THE ANKH, also known as key of life, the key of the Nile or crux ansata, was the ancient Egyptian hieroglyphic character that read "eternal life", a triliteral sign for the consonants ?-n-?. Egyptian gods are often portrayed carrying it by its loop, or bearing one in each hand, arms crossed over their chest. The ankh appears frequently in Egyptian tomb paintings and other art, often at the fingertips of a god or goddess in images that represent the deities of the afterlife conferring the gift of life on the dead person's mummy; this is thought to symbolize the act of conception. Additionally, an ankh was often carried by Egyptians as an amulet, either alone, or in connection with two other hieroglyphs that mean "strength" and "health" Mirrors of beaten metal were also often made in the shape of an ankh, either for decorative reasons or to symbolize a perceived view into another world. The ankh was almost never drawn in silver; as a sun-symbol, the Egyptians almost invariably crafted important examples of it (for tombs or other purposes) from the metal they most associated with the sun, gold. A similar metal such as copper, burnished to a high sheen, was also sometimes used. A symbol similar to the ankh appears frequently in Minoan and Mycenaean sites. This is a combination of the sacral knot (symbol of holiness) with the double-edged axe (symbol of matriarchy) but it can be better compared with the Egyptian tyet which is similar. This symbol can be recognized on the two famous figurines of the chthonian snake goddess discovered in the palace of Knossos. Both snake goddesses have a knot with a projecting loop cord between their breasts. In the Linear B (Mycenean Greek) script, ankh is the phonetic sign za. The ankh also appeared frequently in coins from ancient Cyprus and Asia Minor (particularly the city of Mallus in Cilicia). In some cases, especially with the early coinage of King Euelthon of Salamis, the letter ku, from the Cypriot syllabary, appeared within the circle ankh, representing Ku(prion) (Cypriots). To this day, the ankh is also used to represent the planet Venus (the namesake of which, the goddess Venus or Aphrodite, was chiefly worshipped on the island) and the metal Copper (the heavy mining of which gave Cyprus its name). David P. Silverman notes the striking example of how the depiction of the Ancient Egyptian Ankh was preserved by the Copts in their representation of the Christian cross. THE EYE OF HORUS The Eye of Horus is an ancient Egyptian symbol of protection, royal power and good health. The eye is personified in the goddess Wadjet (also written as Wedjat, Uadjet, Wedjoyet, Edjo or Uto and as The Eye of Ra or "Udjat"). The name Wadjet is derived from 'wadj' meaning 'green' hence 'the green one' and was known to the Greeks and Romans as 'uraeus' from the Egyptian 'iaret' meaning 'risen one' from the image of a cobra rising up in protection. Wadjet was one of the earliest of Egyptian deities who later became associated with other goddesses such as Bast, Mut, and Hathor. She was the tutelary deity of Lower Egypt and the major Delta shrine the 'per-nu' was under her protection. Hathor is also depicted with this eye. Funerary amulets were often made in the shape of the Eye of Horus. The Wedjat or Eye of Horus is "the central element" of seven "gold, faience, carnelian and lapis lazuli" bracelets found on the mummy of Shoshenq II. The Wedjat "was intended to protect the king [here] in the afterlife" and to ward off evil. Ancient Egyptian and Near Eastern sailors would frequently paint the symbol on the bow of their vessel to ensure safe sea travel. Horus Horus was the ancient Egyptian sky god who was usually depicted as a falcon. His right eye was associated with the sun Ra. The eye symbol represents the marking around a Peregrine Falcon's eye that includes the "teardrop" marking sometimes found below the eye. The mirror image, or left eye, sometimes represented the moon and the god Djehuti (Thoth). The eye as a hieroglyph and symbol There are seven different hieroglyphs used to represent the eye, most commonly 'ir.t' in Egyptian, which also has the meaning 'to make or do' or 'one who does.' In Egyptian myth the eye was not the passive organ of sight but more an agent of action, protection or wrath. WIKIPEDIA

Bronze, Late Archaic, ca. 500-480 B.C.E., Magna Graecian Condition: Complete except for losses along right upper edge; handle, probably made from another material, missing; crust green patina partially removed from mirror's back, revealing glossy golden brown surface. H. 20.2 cm.; Diam. (of disk) 15 cm. The disk of this splendid hand mirror is cast with a raised, beaded flange all around to protect the interior surfaces. On the reflective side, the polished tondo is surrounded by two incised concentric circles and framed by a kymation border. At the disk's center bottom, a handle support is attached. Two incised volutes at its top form a kind of modified Aeolic capital that suggests the support of a column beneath. The concave back of the mirror disk holds a separately made repousse relief of a head of the Gorgon, Medusa. The comically grotesque face of the monster, with spiraling snake locks, flame-like tufted beard, and protruding tongue, has been schematized into a highly decorative motif. This image is a particularly refined version, with its symmetrical disposition of snaky curls, perfectly aligned teeth without the usual fangs, and heavy-lidded eyes that were once inlaid, probably with glass paste. Perfectly suited to the tondo format, the Gorgon is a particularly witty choice for the decoration of the back of a mirror, as the monster's face was believed to turn to stone anyone who looked at it. Its use here is perhaps a kind of apotropaic device intended to protect the user, similar, for example, to its use on the shields of hoplites. It is not without parallels among mirrors, though none is close to the Fleischman example in quality. This gorgoneion is most closely related to images from South Italy, where similarly decorative images appear on brightly painted terracotta roof tile ornaments (antefixes) and in other media. A South Italian provenance is suggested also by the decoration on the mirror disk itself and the volute capital support at the top of the handle tang, all details that fit neatly among the South Italian hand mirrors. The decorative stylization of the grotesque image suggests a date at the end of the Archaic tradition, perhaps in the early decades of the fifth century B.C.E. Formerly in the collection of Barbara and Lawrence Fleischman, New York; text from the catalog of that collection. From the collection of the Getty Villa, Malibu, California.