de rtme t of - forgotten books
TRANSCRIPT
fianimzitg u iamnzglna nia ,DEPARTMENT OF A RCH/EOLOGY A ND PALEONTOLOGY.
MAN! A L
DESCR IPTIVE OF A COLLECT ION OF TALISMANS ENGRAVED
ON STONES A ND METALS OF VARIO ! S CO! NTR IES A ND
EPOCHS ,ILL! STRAT IVE OF WHAT MA N HA S
WORN FOR HIS PROTECTION FROM
A CC IDENT A ND D ISEASE ;
ALSO ,A NC IENT GEMS,
BAB! LONIAN C ! LINDERS ,
PERSIAN SEALS,ETC
BEING PART OF THE IMPORTANT GLYPTIC COLLECT ION OF
MAXWELL SOMMERVILLE,
VICE-PRESIDENT OF THE M ! SE! M .
LOANED ON THE OCCASION OF THE VISIT OF
THE PA N -AMER ICAN CONGRESS,
THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES,
THE COLLEGE ASSOCIATION OF THE M IDDLE STATES A ND
MARYLAND,
THE FOLK-LORE SOCIETY OF AMERICA,
THE SCHOOL-MASTERS’ ASSOCIATION .
P H I L A D E L P H I A
NOVEMBER,1889 .
L b f
NM! VARD Ce l t i b'
t LIBRAR!
t L5 10 1889
SHERM A N CO . , PR INTERS,PH ILADELPH IA .
This Loan Collect ion was ki n d l y prepa red by
Mr . Sommervi l le i n response to the following le tter
UN IVERSITY OF PENNSYLVAN IA .
MAXWELL SOMMERVILLE,ESQ .
,
Dear S ir —Learn ing of you r return to America with
add itional collect ions i n the l ine of the magn ificent museum you
have formed,I h a s ten to extend to you a cord ial invi tat ion , on
behalf of the Universi ty of Pennsylvan ia,to permi t a loan
exhibi t ion of these spec imens during the en su ing month of
November , when
THE PA N -A MERICAN CONGRESS,
THE NATIONAL ACADEM ! OF SC IENCES,
THE FOLK-LORE SOCIET!,
THE COLLEGE ASSOCIATION OF THE M IDDLE STATES A ND
MAR! LAND,
THE SCHOOL-MASTERS’ ASSOCIATION,
wil l meet at the Un iversi ty.
! ours respec tful ly,
WILLIAM PEPPER,
October 23, 1889 . Provost .
UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVAN IA,
Nov . 1 2th , 1889 .
The Talismanic add ition to the Glypt ic Collec t ion of
Mr. Maxwel l Sommerv il le ha s been necessarily arranged in a
very short t ime .
The following is i ntended to g ive a general descr ipt ion
of the objects d isplayed .
The au thor hopes at his leisure to prepare a more com
ple t e catalogue raison n é .
WI LLIAM PEPPER .
UN IVERSITY OF PENNSYLVAN IA,
DEPARTMENT OF ARCH/EOLOGY AND PALEONTOLOGY
AUTHOR’S NOTE .
The subjec t of Glyptology is at la s t meeting with so
much apprec iat ion among learned men in our land that in all
probabi l i ty i ts considera t ion wi l l soon form on e feature in the list
of sc iences wh ich should be taught to those seeking a fin ished
educat ion .
Wh i lst making the classified col lec tion now on loan at
the Metropo l i tan Museum of Art , New ! ork , I have been led
from one branch and epoch to another un ti l al l phases of the art
have been represen ted . The part of that’
collect ion now on view
at the Universi ty of Pennsylvan ia represents the ethnolog ical
branch of my subjec t . These Tal ismans or Amulets have been
worn on the bodies of peoples of many coun tries and epochs,in
earnest confidence with supersti t ious bel ief i n the i r efficacy ,
I find them,therefore , to be more i nteresting on a c
coun t of the i r ethno logical relat ion , than those gems wh ich were
engraved and worn simply in V iew of their ornamentation .
The work of one who has industriously followed the
excavations of Sou thern Europe,Egypt and Asia Minor , sough t
and found ant ique treasures in many strange coun tr ies, would ,
in a measure,be in complete withou t the aid of earn est , capable
scholars i n ful ly dec iphering the mass of in script ions wh ich there
presen t themselves.
In th is sense I acknowledge gratefu lly the a ssistance of
Dr . Herman V . H i lprecht , Professor of Assyrian , i n the Un iver
si t y of Pennsylvan ia, in the examin ation and cla ssificat ion of
Ancien t Baby lon ian Cyl i nders .
To Dr . Morris Jastrow , Jr. , Professor of Arabic and
Rabbin ical Li terature,i n the Un iversity of Pennsylvan ia , I a m
greatly indebted for the zealous mann er in which he ha s,with
scholarly ab i l i ty , appl ied h imself to the more perfec t explanat ion
and renderin g of the Arab inscript ions on the Persian , Arab and
Ind ia Talisma ns of th is part of my col lect ion .
MA xWELL SOMMERVILLE.
29th NOVEMBER , 1889 .
UN IVERSITY OF PENNSYLVAN IA,
Phi l a de l ph i a , Novembe r 23d , 1889 .
An opportun i ty has been afforded me of see i ng an a d
vance copy of Mr . Maxwell Sommervi l le ’
s work ,
ENGRAVED GEMS. THE IR H ISTOR! A ND A N ELABORATE
VIEW OF THE IR PLACE IN A RT ,
!
which is now abou t to be issued i n Phi la delph ia .
The voluminous book of seven hundred and e igh ty
three pages is printed on beaut ifu l paper of superior qual i ty,tone
and color . One hundred orig i nal drawings by the au thor i l lus
trate h is ski lful descript ion of the source and h istory of En
graved Gems a n d add to the in terest i ng and instructive accoun t
of the author 3 travels in the pursu i t of h i s an t ique t rea sures.
Over five hundred fa c similes of the gems form a wel
come addit ion to the Catalogue Raisonné,wh ich is remarkab le
for i ts terse and compac t form .
The text and i llustrat ions,as we ll a s the b ind ing, are of
the finest mechan ical execu t ion .
The whole handsome vo lume is a proof of the e n thu
si a sm and zeal of i ts author,and bears w itness to the taste and
talent of one who has devoted h i s l ife to art for art ’ s sake , and
has made glyptology a study of affect ionate in terest .
H . V . HILPRECHT .
SOMMERVILLE TALISMANS.
PERSIAN HOUSEHOLD TALI SMANS.
Turquoise—A tal isman,a bird wi th Persian inscrip t ion .
Turquoise—A tal isma n , r ich ly i nscribed , rema rkable in
s ize and beauty ; ex treme length , 86 mill imet res ;extreme wid th
, 57 mi ll imetres .
Turquo ise—A tal isman,wi th pecu l iar head-dress .
Turquo ise—A talisman , a sheep wi th good gilded Persian
inscript ion .
PERSIAN TALISMANS.
I 50 1 . Jade—Very elaborate Persian tal isman wi th a squa re of
myst ic numbers , which rendered in our numerals read
thus
Surrounded on three sides of this square are tal is
manic i nscript ions . They are rel igious . Reverse,
a beau t iful i nscript ion Of a long ve rse from the Koran .
1 50 2 . Jade—Persian tal isman,oblong i n form . A pra yer . Beau
t i ful ly engraved . Beg i ns wi th an invocat ion of d iv ine
2
10 SOMMERVI LLE TALISMA NS.
grace on behalf o f t he Prophet Mahomet and the
covenant,and t he heavens
,and the climates (cl ima tes
i n the sense of terri tor ies), etc . , etc . The manner i n
which these inscript ions are abbreviat ed,to get them
on the l imi ted spa ce of the stone , will account for
the d iffi culty of always en t i rely deciphering them .
Jade—Tal isman . The fla t pocket tablet of a physic ian .
Brown Hemat i te—Also a physic ian’ s pocket tal isman .
A composi te tal isman—Back a n d frame in jade , orna
me n t ed with six stones of bri l l iant colors . In the cen
t re a pale sard,engraved in very beaut iful characters
condensed in to the small spa ce afforded by the size of
the stone,wi t h a quotat ion from Sura XVIII .
, 3 7 , Ma
shallah ( l iteral ly , What God wishes ! There is no
s t rength bu t i n Allah .
!
I f thou lookest at me,I am
less than thee i n fortune and offspring .
!
On the margin the en tire firs t Sura , called the fat ihat,
the open ing Sura,which is used on all possible
occa sions and wi th which every religious ce remon y
begins . Date, 1 0 69 .
Jade—Persian tal isman . Oblong. This tal isman appears
to commence wi th a d isguised form of the div ine name,E /oki for E /oa /z . Then follows a number of Hebrew
words,i n terspersed wi th myst ic combinations of letters
of the Hebrew a lphabet,which here , however, sign ify
numbers . The l a st two lines a prayer . !
(God ) He
who guards Rebecca , the daughter of Huri,and her
ch ild Anam .
1 50 7 . Translucen t an tique pa s te—Imi tat ion of sapph ire . C ufic
inscript ion , wi th cabal ist ic combinat i o n of numbers .
A rema rkably large and elaborately -eng raved j a de Pers ian
tal isma n . Uncommon ly beau t iful execu t ion . In the
cen t re a table t,con tai n ing myst ic numbers combined
wi th Arabic i n i t ia ls , surrounded by a lon g extract from
the Kora n . The CX .
—CXII .
—CXIII .—CXIV . Suras and
quo tat ion from Sura XIII . , I 4, a n d a n i nvocat ion,
wi th the n ame of Al i repeated three t imes .
Oblong jade Persian talisman , with bri l l ian t red ston e i n
SOMMERVI LLE TALISM A NS. 1 1
the cen tre , with a n extract from the Koran , v iz .
,Sura
LXVIII ., 51 , And the i n fide ls indeed came near
tripping thee up w i th their looks ; when they hear the
reminder and say ‘ Surely he is mad .
’ Bu t th is is a
reminder on ly for the worlds . ! Accord ing to Mabom
etan bel ief,there are several worlds . As the reference
is to enem ies of the Prophet th is verse was considered
appropriate for protection against an tagon ists .
Jade—Persian tal isman,wi th an in teresting i n scription
ar t ist ical ly executed , i n which the letters and words
are in terwoven as i n a monogram con tain i ng the usual
praises of Allah , as,! He than whom there is none
hi gher . !
Sard—Persian talisman .
Sard—A Persian Seal Tal i sman . Con tains on fi ve l ines
some of the mystic combi nat ion s of letters of the Arabic
alphabet with which certain Suras of the Koran beg in .
The let ters i n transl i terat ion are as fol lows !
A . L . M . ind icat ing the II . , III ., XXIX .
,XXX . ,
XXXI . and XXXII . Suras .
A . L . M . S . for the VII . Sura .
K . H . J .
‘A . S . for the XIX . Sura .
T . H . for the XX . Sura .
T . S . for the XXVII . Sura .
T . S . M . for the XXVI . and XXVIII . Sura .
J . S . for the XXXVI . Sura.
S . for the XXXVIII . Sura .
for the XLII . Sura.
‘A . S . K .
K . for the L. Sura .
N . for the LXVIII . Sura .
Thus on the l imi ted space on the stone the owner of
th is tal isman wa s i n possess ion of a great amount of
amule tic power .
A polished rock crystal in silve r moun t i ng—Though foundamong Persian objects
,I bel ieve this to be Med i aeval
French .
12 SOMME RVILLE TA L ISMA NS.
Dark-green Jade—A Persian archer ’ s ring .
Jade—A Persian tal isman ic ring .
Sard—Persian tal isman ic ri ng,wi th C ufi c i nscription .
Rock crystal i n i ron brélog ue—Inscript ion C ufic on bo thsides of remarkable execu t ion . The i nscript ion ha s
not yet been ful ly deciphered,the ch a racters bei ng very
minute a n d i nd ist inct,though the phrase There is on e
God ,! can plai nly be seen
,and probably a quotat ion
from the Koran follows .
Rude stone Persian amulet—Ornamentat ion nearly obl i te ra t ed by t ime .
1 51 9 . Rude Pe rsian stone amulet i n the form of an an imal—Thei ndentations eng raved on the back represen t constel la
t ions .
1 520 . Rude Persian stone amule t,wi th two animals—In taglio
almost obl iterated .
Persian stone amulet i n the form of a frog .
Rude Persian pebble amulet,wi th curious ornamentation .
Round Persian stone amulet , with two grotesque an imals .
(Ibex . )
Round Persian pebble amu let , wi th two animal s, resem
bl ing those of No . 1 520 .
I 525. Lapis lazul i—A curious Persian amulet , forming an an imalwhen placed in d ifferen t posi t ions .
Persian sca ra beo id .
Persian stone amulet—A moufllon . Under side engraved
wi th two indentations , i n tended for drops of blood . It
was the custom that two friends i n separat i ng for a lon g
t ime should each con t ribut e a drop of h is blood for
the tal isman of the other .
Hemat ite—Persian amulet—Figure of an an imal .
Round Persian amulet .
Pers ian bron ze a st ragal us.
SOMMERVI LLE TALISMANS. 13
153 1 . Ant ique paste or glass—Persian a s tragalus dark blue .
1 53 2 . Ant ique paste or glass—Persian astragalus pink .
1 533 . Serpen tine—Oval Persian tali sman . Rudely del ineated .
Ibex wi th young.
1534 . Persian amulet represent ing a pig .
PERSIAN SILVER TALISMANS—INSCRI PTIONS IN PERSIANAND HEBRE\V.
Si lver—Persian tal i sman . Oblong. Engraved on both
sides , wi th black si lk arm band . Obverse , in the cen tre
the figure of a dei ty w i th seven teen faces ; the body ,arms and legs covered with inscript ions ; righ t and left
of figure,and i n each corner , in al l e igh t , of the usual
cabal ist ic squares , wi th myst ic numbers ; around the
en ti re border Mussulman prayers.Reverse
,a table contain ing 256 small squares, i n
scri bed with Persian charac ters ; around the ent i re bor
der prayers to Al lah .
S i lver—Persian tal isman . Round . Inscripti on on the
margin . Sura III . , 1 2 . The love of desi re of women
and of offspring,and of t reasures of gold and silver, and
of beaut iful horses, ha s been permi tted for the good of
ma n,
!fol lowed by an invocation agai nst the devil
,v iz. ,
I take refuge i n Al lah against the stony Devi l,
Within the second c i rcle the above quota t ion is con tin
ued ! and the good th ings and the possessions. These
are the advan tages of l ife in th is world , but wi th Allah
there is also a good return {so i n the fu ture world! .The second circl e is completed by a third quotat ion
from the Kora n , wh ich runs i nto the crown or cen treof t he tal isman ! They wi ll love them l ike un to the
love of Allah,and those that bel ieve are strongest i n
love for A llah .
! The inscript ion in the cen tre con
e ludes with th is i nvocation to Al lah ! ! Oh merc iful
one, oh benevolen t, oh recompenser , oh divine revela
t ion , oh al l merc iful .! Date
, 1 22 7 .
S ilver—Persian tal isman . Orn amen tal i n form ,with red
14 SOMME RVILLE TA L ISMA Ns.
silk arm cord . A la rge port ion of the field con tains a
represen tat ion of an an ima l whose body , l imbs and tai l
are charged with inscript ions , surrounded in every d irec
t ion by verses from Suras of the Koran .
Si lver—Persian folding tal i sman ic ri ng, w i th C ufi c i n script ions on both sides .
1 539 . Si lver—Persian talisman . Oblong,w i th white wool arm
cord . On the obverse,with in a circle i n the cen tre , a
square tablet of myst ic numbers,surrounded by rel igious
inscript ion ; a bove and below l ines of mysti c n umbers ;around the ent i re border verses from the Koran .
Reverse,wi th i n an ornamen tal circle in the cen tre
,an
inscript ion of a prayer . In the four corners without the
ci rcle , the usual i n scribed names of the fol lowing an gels
Ez ra ee l , or Isra y l , the archangel who attracts the soul .Djebrail
,or Jebra y l , the archangel who, as the messenger
of God,da i ly brought to Mahome t the inspi rat ion which
enabled him (Mahome t) to wri te the Suras of the Kora n .
Ez ra phee l , or Isra fy l , the archangel long since appoin ted
who,on the last day , will wake al l the dead with the
summons of h is t rumpet . M ika ee l , or M ika yl , the
archan gel who is charged wi th the givi ng of rain . Natu
rally , i n oriental coun tries, he is much sought .
Si lver—Persian fold ing tal isman ic ri n g ,with C ufi c i n scrip
t ion on both sides .
Si lver—Persian arm tal isman or bracelet,wi th red arm
cord . Three stones ; two yellow sard , a n d in the cen tre
a dark red Sard , with inscript ion in Persian , each of
the same signification . The power of the amulet is
thus augmented by three repet it ions of about the same
prayer.
Si lver—Persian fold ing tal isman ic ring , with C ufic i n script ion on both sides.
Si lver—Pers ian tal isman . Oblong,wi th pink si lk arm
cord . Very sim ilar to NO . 1 539 , with appeal s to the
same archan gels .
Si lver—Persian tal isman . Oblong,wi th yellow a rm cord .
SOMMERV ILLE TA L ISMA Ns . 15
Curious i n script ions around the m a rg i n and in the
ce n tral square,wri t ten i n splend id Hebrew charac ters ,
but unless the words are d isgu ised in some way , the
i n scrip t ion'
is not in Hebrew , bu t probably Persian
wri tten wi th Hebrew cha racters , a circumstance which
would lend addi t ional i n terest to this tal isman .
1 545. Si lver—Persian tal i sman . Round , with maroon si lk neck
cord . Inscript ion in Hebrew characters, bu t not He
brew . The i nscript ion around the edge is a dupl ica te
of the one on No . 1 544, wi th some add i t ion s . The
cen t re con tains the name of the person i n whose house
the talisman was prepared , read ing ( i n Hebrew) as fo l
lows For the name , memory of Ga n d i n a h the
daugh ter of Esther . ! There are added three Hebrew
l e t ters which are probably a n abbreviat ion for ! may
h is res t i ng place be Eden ,! a wish expressed when
speak i ng of the dead . Has been carried on the breast
un t i l the outer c ircle i n some places is much worn away .
Si lver—Persian tal isman . Oblong,with yel low arm cord .
Insc ript ion i n Pe rsian , writ ten i n Hebrew characters
sim ilar to No . 1 544 .
PERSIAN BRONZ E TAL ISMANS.
Bronze—Persian tal isman . Inscript ion of verses of the
Koran art ist ical ly engraved on the face of an ancien t
Chinese mirror . Co n tains prayers and the customary
i n vocations against evi l spir i ts .
Reverse , an eight -poin ted star, with other orn a me n
t a t ion .
Bronze—Persian ta l i sman . Obverse , in the cen tre a square
tablet ; s ixteen C ufi c characters , surrounded by Arab
in script ions . O n the margin,quotat ion from the Koran
,
v iz Sura XXIV ., 35 God
’ s l igh t is a lamp
whose oi l would almost give l ight , e’ en though no fi re
had touched i t . Light upon l ight ! Allah guides to
hi s l ight whom he wishes,a n d Allah coins parables for
men,and A llah knows everything .
! In the cent re ,myst ic combinat ions, e tc .
16 SOMMERVILLE TA L ISMA Ns.
The reverse contai ns the various at t ributes of Allah ,possibly al l the n inety-n ine names of Allah .
1 549 . Bronze—Persian talisman . Round . Contains i n seven
squares forming a star , quotat ions from the Kora n ,a mon g
o t hers, Sura s CXII ., CX II I . a n d CXIV . , wh ich , because
of their Shortness, were favori tes for talisman ic i n script ions . The cen tral piece is compounded of two quota
t ions, the fi rst half being taken from Sura VI 59 , read
ing ! There i s no grain in the depth of the earth , there
is n o mo i sture and n o dryness, bu t ( i t is revealed) I n
the clear book,
! which is fol lowed by Sura II .,1 60
They wi l l love wi th like un to the love of God . Those
that believe are st rongest in love to God . Oh , that the
wicked might take to heart when they see the pun ish
ment,that all power belongs to God and that he is
st rong in pun ishing.
! The two quo tat ions,i t will be
seen , stand in no logical connec t ion , a n d th is bundling
together of snatches from the sacred book of Islam i s
characterist ic of tal isman ic inscript ions. On the margin
are Suras CIX. ,CXII . , and part of CXIII . , which is
con t i n ued in one of the cen tre squares . Eng raved on
t he face of an ancien t Chinese mirror,whose reverse
is decorated wi th five fishes .
1 550 . Bronze—Persian tal isman . Obverse,C ufic i nscription .
Reverse,cabal ist i c signs .
Bronze—Persian tal isman . Round . C ufi c inscript ion on
bo th sides . The first l ine on obverse reads ! A fa la
hem—Allah wi l l pardon .
Bronze—Persian tal isman . Peculiarly formed . I n scrip
tion and represen tat ion of the sun . C ufic .
Bronze—Small Persian tal isman . Square . Obverse, C ufic
i nscript ion . Reve rse , C ufi c inscript ion , wi th numbers .
Bronze—Smal l Persian tal isman .
Bronze—Double Pers ian tal isman . Obve rse,three mon
og ra ms surroun ded by prayers . The monograms read
a s fol lows
rst . There is no God but Allah .
18 SOMMERVI LLE TALI SMANS.
four tal ism a nic maxims , one of which, for example ,
reads,! The great Koran revealed from Heaven
around the ou ter c i rcle a prayer .
Bronze—Persian tal isman ic rin g . Cen tre inscript ion,
Allah alone i s exa l ted ! ! The worn in cisions above
and below are apparen t ly cabal ist ic n umbers .
Persian tal isman ic ring composed of three or four metals.On the face a tablet of in laid sec t ional squares of gold ,silver and bronze inscribed wi th cabalist ic numbers. In
the four corners were fragmen ts of turquoise,but by
acc iden t since it came in to my possession they have been
lost .
Bronze—Persian tal ismanic ring wi th a design of a bird .
Bronze—Persian tal ismanic ring w i th pieces of gold set
i nto the face . Inscript ion .
Bronze—Persian tal isman ic ring engraved on the face withan insec t wi th outspread wings
,emblemat ic of the aspira
tions of the soul .Bron ze—Persian tal isman ic ri ng. Inscript ion .
God w i l l pardon .
!
Anc ien t Bronze—Persian tal isman ic ring,shank broken .
Inscript ion C ufic w i th two cabal ist ic represen tat ions
of planets represen ted by five poin ts each .
Iron—Persian tal isman ic box , red silken cord . In la id
wi th gold i nscript ions around the face , octagonal i n
shape , the eig ht sides in laid r ichly wi th rel igious i n script ions. Con tains around the edge
,addresses to Allah
,
such a s ! O ! Divine Revelat ion ! 0 ! Judge ! 0 ! Merci
ful one ! !
Iron—Persian talisman ic box , Octagonal , pink si lken cord .
The l id w ith beau t iful rai sed rel igious inscript ion . The
under side in laid with floral decorat ion in gold .
1 570 . Iron—Pers ian talismanic box , pi n k si lken cord . The l id
wi th art ist ic raised decorations.
A metall ic plaque i n laid with gold represent ing the twelve
signs of the zod iac w i th tal isman ic inscr ipt ions . Has
been used for cast ing horoscopes and for ascertain ing
SOMMERVILLE TALI SMANS. 19
under what signs tal ismans were to be prepared . Oh
verse, praises of Allah on margin in monogrammat ic
wri t ing,a n d very i n t ricate . The usual phrases
,such as
There i s no God except thee,are repeated frequent ly .
In a second c i rcle are seen the twelve signs of the Z o
d iac , i n magn ificen t execut ion . A third ci rc le contains
an i nvocation to God,and final ly in the cen tre
,a pic
ture of a dervish i n the att i tude of kneel ing . To the
righ t,a smal l sanctuary .
Reverse,two rows of inscriptions in laid wi th gold
,
wi th a represen tat ion of two dervishes i n the cen tre .
Iron—Persian talisman ic box , blue si lken cord . The upper
side in laid wi th gold ornamentat ion of leaves . The
eight sides i n laid wi th religious i nscri pt ions,similar to
No . 1 568 .
Bronze plaque . This plaque is octagon al , engraved wi th
cabal i st ic signs i n five c ircles div ided in to th irty-two
section s by l ines divergi ng from the centre . In the
cen tre is a rosette , from which e manate rays extend ingin al l d i rect ions to the c i rcum feren ce . There are in al l ,Six c ircles , one within the other. The fi rst and fourth
ci rcles con tain names apparen tly of ea stern c i t i es , i n the
former forty-eight , and in the latter twenty-four—seven t y
-two in al l . The other ci rcles have myst ic combi
n at ions of letters of the Arabic alphabet , in terspersed
wi th such words and exclamat ions as ! By Allah and! As Allah ! ! This was used in connect ion wi th the
accompanying two sets of dice i n i ron and bronze which
revolve on a pivot . These dice were thrown by the a p
p l ica n t and accord ing to their posi t ion on the l ines and
figures of t he plaque the characters were obtained for
said appl ican ts ’ tali sma n . I t i s to be observed that t he
only poin ts on these dice are repet i t ions of two , three
and four .
Bronze—Persian tal isman ic mirror with i nscription . The
sign ificati on of the i nscript ion i s ! Blessed be he who
dai ly looketh i n to this mi rror .
Bronze—Persian plaque , round . In the ou ter c i rc le the
20 SOMMERVILLE TALISMANS.
signs of the zod iac . An inner c ircl e conta i n ing o the ramulet ic designs . L ike No . 1 573 two sets of d ice o n
pivots wi th same number of poin ts,and used in the way
above descr ibed .
Bronze—Persian talisman ic ring wi th obl i terated figure
resembl ing an animal .
Bronze—Persian tal isman ic ring with the aringa . A fish
often found on a procreative amulet .
Bronze—Persian tal isman ic ri n g wi th cabal ist ic numbers ,of wh ich two eights on ly are recogn izable .
Bronze—Persian tal isman ic ring with a chimera .
Bronze—Persian talisman ic ring wi th the figure of an
emaciated elephan t .
Bronze—Persian tal isman ic ring . Incogn ito .
Bronze—Persian talismanic ring. A husbandman sowingseed .
Bronze—Persian tal isman ic ring wi th two grotesque an imals .
Persian iron ring .
Thirty-four (34) pieces. Bronze . Grotesque figures
of personages , an imals , bi rds , etc .
,found in ex
ca va t ion s at Rha g es and Ecbatana, Persia .
1 6 1 8 .
A SER IES OF FINE GOLD AMULETS FROM EXCAVATIONS A TECBATANA .
1 6 1 9 . Gold—Amulet . Capricornus with beaut ifull y formed
features and horns .
1 620 . Gold—Amulet .
1 62 1 . Gold—Amu let . A mask .
SOMMERVI LLE TA L ISMA Ns. 21
1 622 . Gold—Amu le t . Isis.These are ev iden tly of Greek art and can be ascribed
to the time of the fol lowers of Alexander the Great
the Dja dochs—and not to the A haeme n i a n epoch .
Fi ne gold—Amulet,Harpocrates , the god of si lence .
Amulet—Incogn ito .
Amu let—Incogn ito .
1 626 . Persian—Masse d ’
A rmes. On the an imal ’ s head is a Per
sian inscrip t ion bel ieved to afford tal isman ic protect ion
i n con t ests .
Pers ian—Masse d ’
A rmes i n laid with gold and si lver. The
head of the an imal is charged wi th si lver amulet ic or
n a me n t a t ion . Gold eyes and horns . On the an imal ’ s
head and neck is an inscription , which is repeated
twice on the neck , with wh ich the warrior en tered
bat tle wi th fai th in its tal isman ic virtue . The staff i s
charged wi th decorat ive i ncisions.
1 628 . Bronze—Curious tal isman ic bowl wi th cabalist ic engraved
inscriptions . Two tablets of n ine sect ional squares each
of mystic numbers ded icated to Saturn . The i n script ions made up of verses of the Koran
,i n terspersed with
invocations a gainst ev i l spi ri ts , and prayers for Ma
bomet a n d h is family . Two rings with C ufic inscri ptions
and symbolical an imals . Among others a scorpion,ser
pent , griffon , etc . On the ou tside rim there i s also an
inscript ion runn ing around the bowl wh ich explains
the manner in wh ich i t is to be used . Special ment ion
ough t also to be made of the myst ic combinat i ons ofArabic let ters which are on the bowl , represen t ing the
Sura s beginn ing with these signs . The an imals pictured
on the bowl remind us of the similar designs found on
Babylon ian ! Boundary ! stones , where, too , they areemblematic of evi l spi rits.
Bronze—Superb tal isman ic bowl for the bath completelycovered by engraved i nscriptions in ternall y and exter
nally , quotat ions from Suras of the Koran . To the i n
script ion s on the under side are added fou r fishes .Within some squares there are en t ire Suras , natural ly
22 SOMMERVI LLE TALISMANS.
on ly the shorter ones at the end of the Koran . On the
ou tside,again
,handsomely execu ted i nscri pt ions a n d
monogrammatic designs of the name and ti t les of Al lah ,Mahomet and Al i . The occurrence of the last n amed
again stamps the bowl as Shi i t ic,wh ich
, a s coming from
Persia , is what we wou ld natural ly expect , Pers ia be ingthe seat and centre of the Shi i t ic sect .
Attached to the bowl i s a large round bronze plaque
four i nches in d iameter,i ts face engraved with prayers
from the Koran,divided in to forty sections in l ieu of the
forty metal l ic tokens which usually accompany these
bowls . Its use wa s in accordance with the ord inance
of the priests who di rec ted according to the needs of
the patien ts i nstruct ing them how many t imes to fil l i t
a n d pour i ts con ten ts over the head .
Bronze—Tal isman ic bowl for the bath,from which the
tal isman ic tokens have been lost .
Bronze—Tal isman ic bath -bowl,with a generous ou tfit of
tal i sman ic tokens,to be used by the devou t under the
ord inance of the priest .
Bronze—Beau t iful Persian double bowl for the bath .
Both inner and ou ter bowl wel l furn ished with tal is
man ic tokens,to be used a s al ready described in No .
1 63 1 .
A SET OF CUR IOUS PERSIAN CAMEOS ENGRAVED ON HEAVYOSTRICH EGG-SHELL
,UN IQUE IN THEIR EXECUTION .
1 633 . Rude Persian cameo on ostrich egg-shel l—The subjectseems to be a Good Samari tan . Unique i n genre .
1 634. Rude Persian cameo on ostrich egg-shel l—The subjec t seemsto be a chari table woman bri nging bread to a dervish .
1 635. Rude Persian cameo on ostrich egg-shel l—A nude woman
surrounded by an imals.
1 636 . Rude Persian cameo on ostrich egg-shel l—A hermi t seatedby the margi n of the water. The water is represen ted
convent ionally by the heads of fishes emerging from thewater .
163 7 . Rude Pers ian cameo on ost rich egg shell—Apparen tly represen t i ng a consul tat ion with a dervish patriarch . The
SOMMERVI LLE TA L ISMA Ns. 23
oval dervish cabal ist ic bow l in the foreground lends color
to th is explanat ion .
Rude Persian cameo on ostrich egg-shel l—A pastoral scene,with differen t species of an imals, one human-headed .
Large basso-ril ievo on ostrich egg-shel l—Two stand in gfigures , man and woman in Persian costume.
Large basso -ri l ievo on ostrich egg-sheIl—In tricate monog ra mma t ic tal isman ic inscri pt ion , a repet i t i on of the
ph rase , There i s no one high wi th Allah , rendered
i n diverse manners .
Large basso - ri l ievo on ostrich egg-shel l—Decorated withdeer and birds .
Large basso-ri l ievo on ostrich egg-shell—Inscrip t ion alsomonogra mmat ic
,tal isman ic
,and simi lar to No . 1 644.
Large basso-ri l ievo on ostrich egg-shell—A faun and two
parrots .Large basso-ri l ievo on ostrich egg-shell . Two stand in g
men wi th cl a s ped hands,costume of Cashmere and a
large bird .
Fort y-one Babylon ian seal cyl i nders of various mate
rials and designs,together wi th Hitt i te and Per
sian seal cyl inders . Most of these represen t
de i t i es , priests , worsh ippers and symbols . Several
bear i nscript ions of two to th ree l ines . There
is bu t l i tt le doubt that the orig i nal charac ter of
Baby lon ia n seal cy l i nders was that of tal ismans .
The seals, as a ru le, were worn around the necks
of thei r owners,and remained with them even
when dead and buried , for most of them are
foun d in Babylon ian tombs.
To g ive some cl earer idea of th is collec t i on of
Seal cy l i nders, the fol lowing desc ript ion of some
of the more characteristic and in terest ing subjects
is given
SOMMERVI LLE TAL ISMANS.
Cut from the core or Hel ix of a conch shell . Length,
m. ; d iameter , 1 m .
A cylinder of the late Baby lon ian or Persian epoch .
This somewhat worn engraved cyl i nder bears a pat
tern of l i nes wh ich run in differen t d irections,though with a certain regulari ty (as with cyl inders often
found of th is cl a ss) . The configurat ions between the
pa ir of crossi ng l ines appear to be the convent ional
represen tat ion of a tree , as often found on Baby lon iansculpture .
1 668 . B rown Hemati te . Length , m. ; d iamete r, m .
Old Babylon ian cyl inde r with three l i nes of i n
script ion s i n Archaic cuniform characters. Two mal e
figures standing opposi te to one another and faci ng
each other . The figure facing the left is clad with a
poin ted head -dress a n d a long,folded garmen t . This
figure is beard less and wi th raised arms, as in a posi tion
of prayer The o ther figure wears a short tun ique
reaching to the knee and a head-dress rounded on the
top . The righ t arm is turned firmly towards the
breast,a n d holds in the hand a shor t staff. The left
muscu lar arm hangs in a natural posi t ion on the side.Between these two figures is another masculine figure
half a s large , with extended right arm and with left
rest ing on h is heart i t wears a round head-dress,short
garmen t , is beardless , a n d turned toward the larger
pray ing figure . Over th is smal ler figure are found two
representat ions of an imals , one over the other , in repose .
The inscript ion refers to ! the god Adar , the messenger
of heavenly l ife .
! Adar is in the Babylon ian system of
g ods—principally the g od who destroys by fire and the
parch ing rays of the sun , and consequently the god of
war . But i n h is capaci ty of god of fire he represen t s
also the quali ty of preservat ion and comfort to ma n .
He is the god of frui t fu lness,who m a kes plan ts to grow .
Adar un ites i n h imself the power to destroy and to pre
serve l ife . A simi lar inscript ion i s found on a n o ld
Babylon ian cyl inder in the col lect ion de C lercq,Paris
,
1 885, No . 247 .
26 SOMMERVI LLE TA LISMA NS.
Sama s a s coming from beyond the moun tains to bless
the world and i t s people wi th l igh t and l ife . Before
the door which Samas faces there stands a priest on an
elevat ion,about to open the door of the shr ine ; and
further ba ck is to be seen a large tree , possibly sign i fy in g
fru i tfulness under the ben ign infl uence of the sun . Sim
i l a r represen tat ions of Sama s are found on Babylon ian
cyl inders of other collect ions, yet the represen t ation o f
this cyl inder is especial ly in terest ing,because the ou t
st re tched foot of t he st riding god is in ac t ion , n o t touch
ing or rest ing on the earth , bu t is stretched beyond the
moun tain , more stron gly expressing mo t i on . Samas i s
pronounced , a n d often wri t ten , Shamash . See E n
g r a ved Gems , p . 76 1 , No . 1 4 1 0 .
Red Jasper . Length , 0 . 0 24m. ; diame ter ,Babylonian cyl inder of more recen t date than the
preceding . A deity wi th outstretched hands is s i t t i ng
on a handsome ly-carved chair,wi th high ornamen tal
back ; an al tar wi th offerings is before him ; on the o ther
s ide a priest faces t he al tar, his left han d is extended
before his breast , hi s righ t arm is upl ifted toward the
Offerings . There is st i l l an o the r altar , a so-called A sl zérd
(which is frequen t ly found on lat er Babylon ia n cy l in
ders), above which is suspended an ind icat ion of the
moon,in the form of a crescen t .
PERSIAN SEALS.
1 686 . Pale sard—Persian seal . Rude i n tagl io represen tat ion o f
the lotus .
Brown hemat i te—Persian seal .
Vi trified mass—C ufi c seal .
Brown hemat i te—Persian seal , head of a winged mouffl on .
The seal is beau t iful ly ornamen t ed throughout .
Chalcedony—Persian seal . Very fine ly engraved an imal .
Serpen t ine—Persian seal . A figure of a jacka l .
Superb dark-red ancien t jasper—Persian seal , of exqu is i te
execut ion .
SOMMERVILLE TALISMA NS. 27
Hemati te—Persian seal ring .
Bronze—Persian seal . The design is so worn that only
the breast and fron t legs of two an imals can be recog
n i z ed .
Pale sard—Persian seal . A scorpion .
Deep green beryl—Persian seal . Sa ssan ian . A winged goat .
Silver bronze—Persian seal . An un recogn izable an imal .
Siberian jasper—Persia n seal . A C himera.
ARAB TALISMANS.
Iron—Tal isman ic ri ng.
Inscript ion in the centre—Al lahu ‘a l i—God is g reat .Agate —A n Arab C ufi c tal isman spherical i n form
,with
one fla t face, on wh ich is en graved the following
inscript ion , which is the CXII . Sura
I st l i ne . Say God is un ique .
2d He is the God eternal .
3d He has not had offspring .
4t h Nor was He created .
5t h Nor is there any one equal to H im.
The seal is dated 2 1 1 of the hegi ra,which makes it 785
A .D .
1 7 0 1 . Fine gold—Arab ta l ismanic ring—The four sect ions aroundthe centre tablet con tain the names of four archangels
Ez ra ee l or A sra y l .
Gebra ee l or Jebra y l .
Esra phee l or Isra fy l .M ika ee l or M ika y l .
The inscript ions on the upper part of the shank of the
ring,on each side , are l ike those myst ic words found
at the commencement of chapters of the Koran , which
every Mahometan can pronounce , but which they can
not explain . They were given as sacred words by
Mahomet,and have their sign ificance to the faithful .
The other inscript ions on the shank and on the cen tre
tablet are be l ieved to be Himyari t ic,the language
spoken by the Arabs i n ! emen and surrounding d is
t rict s,which continued to be used for three centuries
28 son e e LLE TA LIBHA XS.
a ft er t he a d ve n t of Ma home t , whe n ,through t he sprea d
of Is la m, i t g ra dua l l y wa s supp la n t ed by t he Ara bic .
1 7 0 2 . Fin e gol d—Ara b t a l isma n—Ou t he obverse,i n t he ce n tre
,
is the i n sc ri pt ion—I n t he n ame of God ,c l eme n t a n d
fu l l o f mercy . God a lon e , the on l y God . Ma home t
His prophet . Tbe Kora n t he book of Ma homet .
Reve rse , i n rea din g t he t op a n d t he le ft s ide togethe r ,i t shou ld be re n dered—All t ha t we un dert a ke frombegi nn i n g t o e n d should be done wi t h the help of Al la h. I n
the ce n t re—Am I n o t t hy lord ,he sa id un t o t hem . The
lowe r pa rt of t his inscripti on is il l eg i ble .
1 70 3 . An t ique pa s t e—Bea ut iful i rides cen t A ra b ta l isma n—I h
scri ption il leg ibl e .
1 7 0 4 . Faience—A Persian t al isma n ic pla t e,w i th Ara b i n scri p
t ion, decora t ed a n d i nscribed wi th five c ircl es, con ta i n
ing innumerable repe t i t ion s o f such phrase s a s , Allah
alon e is God ,
! There is n o on e but A l la h,
! and t he
l ike , i nterspersed w i th combi nat ions of let ters which
appea r to be i n al l ca ses ta ken from the words of the
inscri ptions . In t he cen tre , a tablet of smal l squares
wi th the usual mvst ic combinat ions ofArabic n umerals .
Pas te in imi tation of Jade—Arab tal isman—Al lah i n the
cen tre , on bo th obverse and reverse surrounded by tal is
ma n ic prayers. The hole for the cord descends from
both sides to the cen tre , a s on Persian tal ismans .
Sard—Arab tal i sman . The inscript ion fi lled wi th whi te
enamel .
1 70 7 . Sard—Arab tal isman . The inscription fi l led wi th white
enamel .
Bronze—Persian signe t tal ismanic ring. The face of si lver ,i n laid . The se ct ional squares forming the cabal ist ic
table t con tain each two in i t ial or isolated let ters whichform the two words K . H . T . A . S . and H . M . A . S . Q .
These are curious combinat ions , the first reads from righ t
to left , the second from left to right , and there are as
many rows of sec t ions as there are letters i n each word .
These combin ation s express a word i n Arabic wh ich
sign ifies concordance,for by whatever side you examine
SOMMERVILLE TALISMA NS. 29
them you find nearly the same order of the same letters .
It wil l suffice to say that the Mussu lmans so comb ined
words,on their tal isma ns, to wh ich they attached super
natural vi rtues.
ABRAXAS TALISMA NS OF THE 2D, 31) AND 4TH
CENTURIES, A . D .
1 7 0 9 . Red jasper—Obverse , i n tagl io . Jupi ter Serapis seated ,
Isis and Horus standing . Reverse , Abraxas i nscript ion .
1 7 1 0 . Chalcedony—Abraxa s tal isman . Obverse , in tagl io is I A Q , a
pa n t heus made up of the four elements—the serpent , theeagle
,the human t runk and the scourge
,comb in ing in
h imself many of the attributes of the solar d ivi n i ty .
Reverse , inscription the word ABRAXA S, and i n
gnost ic letters the l igh t of God .
!
1 7 1 1 . Chalcedony—Part ially injured by fire . Abraxa s amulet .On the obverse the wel l-known symbol of Chn ubis.
On the reverse Abraxa s inscript ion—6 9= 6 EQ of God .
The other let ters mixed and transposed .
1 7 1 2 . Chalcedon y of pale sapphire color—A superb ancien t
Abraxas tal isman . Obverse,a pecul iar drawi n g of a man
with extended arms and legs every port ion of the body,
face and arms , are charged wi th Abraxas inscript ions.Reve rse
,loaded wi th ca ba l ist i C ocha ra ct e rs and Abraxa s
inscript ions,also the serpen t closi ng on h is own tai l
,
emblemat ic of etern i ty . I have d iscovered in the Bibl io
theque de l ’ I n st i t ut de France,in a book
,
! Jacob Spon’
s
Voyages in Dalmatia , Greece a n d the Levant , i n the
years 1 675 and 1 676 , a descr ip t i on of an amethyst
Abraxas talisman , of wh ich he g ives a drawing , stat ing
that the figure represen ts the archangel Michel . I t resembles in many respects th is tal isman , and t he rea d ing
of i ts descript ion,which I have copied en t i re
,augmen ts
its i n terest .
Hematite—Ancien t Abraxas tal isman—Obverse,a man in a
field , under a tree, reaping spears of grain .
Reverse, i nscription EXI QN—Echion , one of the five
30 SOMMERVILLE TALISMANS.,
survivi ng Sparti,who ha d grown up from the dragon ’ s
teeth , wh ich Cadmus ha d sown .0
Antique red jasper—Abraxas tali sman . Obverse i n tagl i o
of Jupi ter Serapis . Victory , a fish and cornucopia .
Reverse , i nscriptionMEFA TONO
MA TOT Z EPA
II I
Great i s the name of Serapis .
It wil l be remembered that th is exc lamat ion wa s made
wi th the same feel ing that was expressed by others whocried
,Great is Diana of the Ephesians. ! These Gn os
t ics fi lled the i r ranks from differen t sects and peoples .
Antique onyx—Abraxa s cabal i stic stone . Rude fig ure w ith
a scourge and myst ic signs . I t belongs to a series o f
famil iar gems which ran through several nations at the
east end of the Medi terranean anywhere from 2 B .C . t o
1 A .D .
SCANDINAVIAN .
Si lver—Tal isman of the year 1 528 . On the obverse is t he
figure of a serpen t hung upon a cross , on e i ther side a re
the chi ldren of Israel kneel ing . The ou ter ring is a n
i nscript ion,an a bbreva t ion of Numbers xxi . , 8 . A n d
the Lord said unto Moses , make thee a fiery serpen t
and set i t upon a pole , a n d i t shal l come to pass that
everyone that is bi t ten , when he looketh upon i t , shal l
l ive .
!
St . John i i i ., 1 4 . And as Moses l ifted up the serpen t
i n the wilderness,even so must the son of man be
l ifted up , that whosoever be l ieveth in h im should no t
perish , bu t have etern al l ife .
!
Reverse , i nscript ions
1 . In l ike manner wi th the serpent so must mankind
be healed .
2 . That all those who bel ieve in H im sha l l have eternal
l ife .
SOMMERVILLE TA L IsMA Ns . 3 1
In the field Christ on t he cross,above on a scroll
I C R I (Jesus Ch r i s t , K in g of Judea) . I n the sa me
fie ld wi th the cross IOA NNES. 3 . (St . John the
Evangel ist,Chapter I II .)
Galvano -Pl a st ro reproduc t ion of reverse of No . 1 7 1 6 .
Smal l s tone ch ise l worn by the Scandinavians a s a tal isman .
A book of eng ravin gs of Scandinav ian t al ismans is to
be seen in the Library i n K iel i n which , among other
objects,such tal ismans are del ineated .
1 7 1 9 . Bronze—Round Scandinavian tal isman wi th Hebrew i h
script ion s—On the obverse
,The Lord , this i s my n ame
forever. ! ! The Lord of hosts i s h is name .
! In the
cen tral tablet Tetragrammaton from le t ters indicat ing
the name ofGod in al l combinations. In the four arches
around the cen t ral tablet the names of the fol lowing
archangels ! Oriel , Gabriel , Michael , Rafae l .Reverse, on edge, various at tribu tes of God , and a
number of names such as Isbai Jesse), Joshua, etc .
I n the cen t re a represen tat ion of shew bread , wi th i hscr ipt ion of two Hebrew words , sign ifying shew bread .
Bronze—Round Scand inavian talisman similar to the above(No . a l though in lower rel ief.
1 7 2 1 . Z i nc—A n old North German talisman of the 1 6th century,
made and worn a s protect ion a gai nst the plague—Onthe obverse the Sun , Moon , Saturn , Jupi ter, Mars, Venus,and Mercury . There is a combinat ion of angles
,between
the poin ts of wh ich at regular in tervals are myst ic signs
of the moon and the plane ts, the sun in the centre.
Reverse , i nscript ion around the c i rcumference .
Dieses! metal ! dienst ! vor ! d ie ! F rendered .
Th is metal serves against the plague . Myst ic tokens.Aer Iquis terra aqua
ai r fire earth water
In the cen tre a mystic quadrat wi th tokens of the planets,
e tc . ,and the i nscript ion Mirabi l i naturae, the wonders
of nature .
32 SOMMERVI LLE TA LISMA NS.
BYZ ANTINE.
I 72 2 . An t ique pas te—Religious Byz a n t i n e tal isman—These a m u
le ts i n the 6 t h cen tury we re sewed in to li t t le sacks o f
coarse material and construc t ion a n d were worn on t he
brea s t .
1 7 23 . An t ique pas te—Religious Byzan t ine talisman .
ROMAN.
1 7 24 . Rock cryst al—Twelve-s ided die , ea ch side engrave d
wi th a sign of the Z odiac—When thrown , the face prese n t i n g . i t se l f on the top formed the in i t ial sign of a
tal isman .
MEROVING IAN,
1 7 25. Lead—A Merovingian cross wh ich has served as a Chr is
t ian amulet .
SENEGAL.
1 7 26 . Si lver—A curious, grotesque tal isman worn wi th the bel ief that i t ren dered the possessor impreg nable to fi re .
ENGLAND ,1 7TH CENTURY.
TO ! CH-PIECE, JAMES 11. OF ENGLAND (1685
Gold Touch-piece or Tal isman—Obverse,Sh ip in ful l
sai l . Legen d,
Reverse , St . Michael and the Dra gon Legend , SOLI .DEO .GLORIA . To God alone the glory. This is cal led
a touch -piece ; because the king , when he performed the
ceremony of touching those who were affl i cted wi th
scrofulous complain ts , put abou t the neck of each per
son a wh i te ribbon with one of these pieces on i t . Ed
ward the Con fessor is said to have inst i tu ted the cere
mony , wh ich wa s probably con ti n ued by all his suc
cessors down to the a ccess ion of the Brunswick family ,except Wi ll iam and Mary. The piece of money wh ich
34 SOMMERVI LLE TALISMANS.
Vitrified terra cotta—Ring . Fragmen t .
Vi trified mass—A r ing.
Vi t rified terra cot t a—Egypt ian tal isman . Procreat ion.
A fish . See No . 1 73 1 .
Vi trified mass—Egypt ian talisman . A eg ide Sekhet.
Bronze—Egyptian tal isman . A crocod i le,carried to pro
tee t the wearer from the at tacks of that an imal .
1 749 . Vi tr ified terra cotta—Egyptian tal i sman (round ). Ob
verse , effi gy of the god Bess . Reverse,the sacred eye
of Osiri s.
Bron ze—Egypt ian tal isman . A crocodi le,carried to pro
t sc t the wearer from the attacks of that an imal .
Vi trified mass—Small curious Egypt ian tal isman . The
god Cynocephalus .
Vitreous mass—Egypt ian tal isman . The Apis bul l .
Vi t rified mass—Egypt ian talisman .
Vi trified mass—Egypt ian talisman . Four frogs in high
re l ief, emblemat ic of the renewal of l ife, and a very
expressive image of the resurrec tion of the body
because at the sprin g- t ime they renew thei r you th by
ca st ing the i r slough . This Egypt ian took four chances
for the renewal of his youth .
V i t rified mass—Egypt ian tal isman . A n !a sp, carried
to protect the wearer from the bi te of that repti le.
Parag on curi ous tal isman . Incogn i to .
Antique-paste—Grotesque Egyptian amulet .An t ique-pa s te—Grotesque Egypt ian amulet .An t ique paste—aEg ypt i a n amu let (blue) . Head of the god
Bess .
Cedar wood covered wi th fine gold—A tal isman plaquefound on the breast of a mummy , r ichly ornamen ted
with cabal i st i c charac ters and h ieroglyphics.
Vi treous mass—Egyp t ian amulet . A rpocra tes or Ha rpocrates . God of si len ce .
Vitrified terra cot ta , Pale green—Head of the god Bess.
Terra cotta—Wi t h in laid v i t reous poi n ts . The lotus.
SOMMERVILLE TAL ISMANS. 35
Bronze—Egypt ian amulet . Ha roé ris .
Vitrified t erra cotta—Egypt ian tal isman , an a sp. Carried
to protec t the wearer from the bi te of that repti le .
Hard vi treous mass—Egypt ian house amulet . Decorated
on all sides with rudely-delineated Egyptian deit ies
standi ng on crocodi les .
Large bronze plaque—Wi th human face and many hiero
g l yphics from a mummy ca se .
A pebble—The head of an offic ial baton .
Curious Egyptian figure stand ing on a crocodile . Loadedwith i nscr ipt ions.
A large wi nged sca ra beus .
Lot of fragmen ts of Egypt ian colored glass braceletsRoman epoch .
H INDU DEITIES.
A SER IES OP ENGRAVED AND CARVED STONES, FROM JEYPORE, INDIA.
These de i t ies are also Talismans. The i r possessors placed
them in prominent places i n thei r households . Not
only d id they many times each day bow reveren t ly be
fore them , but once having them installed i n thei r
hab i tat ions, they regarded them as thei r protec t ive tal
isman s,walking a n d l ivi ng wi th confidence in them .
Alabas ter—The Hindu dei ty La kshma n a .
Alabaster—The Hindu goddess Parvat i .Alabaster—Hindu dei ty , three figures , i ncogni to .
Alabaster—The Hindu dei ty Da t a t uree , or the three
hea ded or three -faced Siva .
Alabaster—The Hindu dei ty Gan pati .A labaster—The Hindu dei ty Rama .
Alabaster The Hindu de i ty Matsya Avatar, wi th fish ’ s
tai l .
Al a baster—Hindu dei ty , incogn ito .
Black alaba ster—The Hindu dei ty Hanuman .
Black alaba ster—Hindu dei ty , The Holy Cow .
Black alabaster—The Hindu dei ty Ganpati .
36 SOMMERVILLE TA LISMA Ns .
ANAM ITE TALISMANS.
Bronze—Anamite tal i sman,with rel igious inscript ion .
Bronze—Anami te talisman,wi th rel igious inscript ion .
Bronze—Anamite t al isman , wi th rel ig ious inscript ion .
Bronze—Anamite t a l isman , with rel ig ious inscription .
Bronze—Anamite tal isman , wi th rel ig ious i nscript ion .
Nacre—Anami te tal isman , with rel ig i ous insc ription .
Nacre—Anami te tal isman , wi th rel igious inscript ion .
Nacre—Anami te tal isman,wi th rel ig ious inscript ion .
Nacre—Anami te tal isman,wi th rel ig ious i nscript ion .
Nacre—Anami te tal isman,wi th religious i nscript ion .
S i lver—Anamite tal isman,with rel ig ious i nscription
raised character .
Si lver—Anami te tal isman,wi th rel igious i nscript ion
raised characte r .
Silver—Anami te tal isman , with rel igious i nscr ipt ionraised character .
Si lver—Anami te tal isman , wi th rel igious i n script ionrai sed chara cter.
Silver—Anami te tal isman , wi t h rel igious i nscript ionraised character .
Agalmatol i te—Sacred Anam i te cow .
Agalmatoli te—Sacred Anamite cow .
INDIA TALISMANS—MUSSULMAN .
1 80 0 A series of India Tal ismans , 64 i n number, sough tand collec ted , piece by piece , between Jeypore a n d
Bombay , India . Many of them are of jade , others
of alabaster , talc or steati te , serpen tine , etc . In some
cases t he engraved inscript ion is gi lded , in others the
inc ision i s fil led wi th whi te enamel . Time does n o t
allow on th is occa s ion to give a close descript ion of each
tal isman . The fol lowing examples wi ll serve to i llustra te
the general character of the inscript ions which are always
rel igious,being appeals and prayers to Allah and a ssur
auces of his forg iveness and protect ion
SOMME RVI LLE TALISMANS. 37
1 8 15. Jade—India Mussulman Tal isman . Inscript ionLa i la ha i l la—al la huMuhammadu ra sulu—l—lah i
There is no God bu t Al lah and Mahomet is his prophet .
Jade—Ind ia Mussulman Tal isman . The inscript ion i s
from a verse from the Koran,v i z . , Sura XXL , 87
La i la ha i l la an ta subha n a ka
i n ij kuntu
m in e t s—t sa l imt n
There is no God except thee Praise to thee ! (a
phrase used by the Mussulmans wi th the force of God
forbid that i t should be otherwise ’
) verily I was one
of the ev i l doers.
!
38 SOMMERVI LLE TALISMANS.
Alaba s ter—In d ia Mussulman Tal isman . In scription i n
gold le tters , no teworthy for i ts very crude execu t ion .
Whi le single words can be d ist ingu ished,many of the
characters are so roughly made that i t wi ll be only after
verv careful study that we can hope to get ou t the sense .
It Is not impossible that some of the inc isions are qu i tefanci ful , thei r obscu red , con fused character lend in gforce to thei r myst ic power .
Ligh t blue Ta lc—A n i n terest ing I n dia tal isman , because
the en t ire inscript ion is a short ser ies of cabal i st ic
numbers i n Persian characters which rendered i n our
numerals read thus
2 12 2
Alaba ster—A n India Tal isman . Doubl e .
Obverse,La i laha i l la—allahu Muhammadu rasu—l
lah i . There is no God but Allah,a n d Mahome t i s
the prophet of Allah .
!
Reverse,in gi lded incision , is what appears to be a
characteristic Ind ian amulet ic i n script ion .
SYRIAN AND OTHER NACRES.
Nacre plaque—Baptism of Ch r ist by St . John .
Nacre plaque—The fligh t in to Egypt .
Na cre plaque—A church represen tat ion of the Holy Chi ldbeing borne in the arms of a patriarch .
Nacre plaque (round)—The Saviour’ s en try i n to Jerusalem.
The wa y st rewn with palms .
SOMMERV ILLE TALISMANS. 39
1 868 . Nacre pla que (ova l )—The fla g e l l a t ion of Christ .
1 869 . Nacre plaque—Persian , St . Michael and t he Dra gon .
1 8 70 . Nacre pla que—Persian , St . Michael and the Dra gon .
MEXICAN AND CENTRAL AMERICAN .
Serpentine—Rude Mexican a mulet .
Rude black Mex ican amu let—With human fa ce .
Rude Mexican amu le t .
Serpen t ine—Rudely marked and pierced amulet . Guate
mala.
Serpenti ne—The same as 1 8 74. Guatemala .
A pebble—Wi th Mexican orn amen t ation . Three-faced
head .
Serpent i ne—Same as 1 8 74 . Guatemala .
Jadeite—A stone chise l carried as an amulet . Mex ican .
Rude black Mexican amulet—With human face .
Rude and pecul iar head of an an imal—Guatemala .
Serpen t ine—Rudely marked and pierced amulet,wi th
human face .
1 882 . Serpenti ne—Same a s 1 8 74 .
TERRA COTTA .
Twen ty -fi ve pieces Greek,Roman and E trusco-Romano
terra co t ta . Masks, symbol of a vo t ive offerin g i n theform of a human eye , emblematic of the part of thebo that wa s affected .
1 883 . Serpen t i ne—Fragmen t of a stone wi th a cur ious figurefrom Ca rthage
,probably Phoenic ian .
1 884 . An a ncien t Roman stone d ie wi t h In tagl ios in which were
cast the t essa rae used by the Roman sold iers to enable
them to re -en te r the ir camps at n ight .
A SERIES OF CHINESE FIGURES IN STONE .
1 885. Agalma tol i te . A grotesque Chinese de i ty .
1 886 . A group at a pool .
40 SOMM ERVILLE TAL ISMA NS.
A Buddha .
Incogn ito .
Buddha .
Hippogriff.
Incogn ito .
Buddha.
Incognito .
Twelve artist ically decorated terra cot ta plaques
Japanese.
CAMEOS AND INTAGLIOS.
A few addi t i onal acqu isi t ions of ancien t cameos and i h
t a g l ios to be added to Mr . Maxwel l Sommerv i l le’
s
classified col lection .
Maculated Chrysopra se-cameo—The subject of this cameois Jupiter {Eg iochus i t is engraved on a chrysoprase
of remarkable dimensions,being 1 67 mil limetres i n
height by 1 30 mill imetres i n bread th . I t is of the close
of the epoch o f Marcus Aurelius or the earlier
years of the reign of Commodus . The style is that of
the Graeco-Roman art . The work i s very beaut iful for
that epoch , and there rests in th is head of the master of
the gods an accent of g randeur in wh ich one feels the
reflection of the original Greek of the better cen turies
imi tated here by the engraver of the Roman age .
Sardonyx—Ant ique cameo represen t ing the legend of
Troy—! Eneas bearing h i s father Anch ises on his
shoulders,fol lowed by the young As can ius . Troy burn
ing. I t was by the hole,represent ing the gate of the
c i ty , that th is Ca meo was fastened to the Toga.
Sardonyx—In tagl io . A mask in profi le . Greek .
Cameo—Chalcedony Minerva . From a necklace formerl y
belongi n g to Queen Isabella of Spain .
Chalcedony-Onyx—Antique Cameo . Portrai t of Caius
Cmsa r, with two holes i n the ba se , by which i t was formerly attached to the toga .
