Literature

From the Old Kingdom through to the New Kingdom, small amulets of hands and feet were commonly included in bracelets and anklets to protect the limbs and extremities of their wearers. It is thought that they may also have been intended to bestow athletic and practical skills and abilities on the wearer. Often these amulets were made of carnelian and the colour, reminiscent of blood, was believed to bring power and energy to the amulet. See Brooklyn Museum, acc. no. 57.76.1 for a similar carnelian hand example dated to the New Kingdom; also the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, acc. no. 10.130.2358 for a hand; 10.130.2355 for a foot both from the Old Kingdom. See C. Andrews, Amulets of Ancient Egypt, p. 71, nos. 74e and 74g.