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The design for
this kit is based on a pectoral (chest ornament) found on
the body of the Pharoah Tutankhamen in which the 'Eye of Re'
is made from glass-paste and gold cloisonné. Although
Tutankhamen is believed to have died in 1343BC during the
eighteenth dynasty, this object may well have been made and
worn prior to his death. The original pectoral is housed in
Cairo Museum, Egypt.
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The sacred eye
(Wedjet) primarily symbolised protection in Egyptian art.
From early times the moon and sun were believed to be the
eyes of the falcon god Horus, but gradually the right eye
(the 'Eye of Re') became associated with the sun, whilst the
left eye (the 'Eye of Horus') represented the moon. Egyptian
mythology tells of how the Eye of Horus was damaged and then
healed, the term Wedjet possibly meaning 'the restored' or
'the whole one'. Horus presented the restored eye to his father,
and it is from this act that the eye came to symbolise an
offering, a particularly common representation in the art
of the later New Kingdom (1307-1070BC).
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