Saturday, January 28, 2012

The charm of Ancient Egypt

My art charm group is currently running a swap with ancient Egypt as the theme.  I was intrigued by this idea as soon as I heard it was coming about.  I ran across similar cat beads late last year and immediately knew what I wanted to do for my charms. This idea has literally been rattling around in my brain for months. 

The Egyptian cat God Bast, is a symbol of protection, motherhood and fertility.  Cats were so revered in ancient Egypt, that they were often mummified.  I thought that the wings were a nice symbol for the transition to eternal life.  Plus, I think it just looks cute!  I also love the serious look on the cat's face.




The wings were silver and did not really go with the brass findings required for the project.  To attend to this, I altered them with a rusting product.  I also added an additional patina agent to one side of the wings.  You can see above that some of the charms are showing a bronze side and others have a bit more of an aged patina look.  Another cool aspect of these little guys is the movement.  The wings really spin if you flick them, fun. 





I hope the gals in the swap like them.  I always look forward to seeing the outcome of my art exchanges.  The past few I have participated in have assisted me in embellishing up a few great art projects.  I am grateful for the ability to share my work, while appreciating the work of others.  Stay tuned, I am sure someday I will have a cool project showing off all my ancient goodies.

Cheers! 

10 comments:

  1. Rhea, these are wonderful!! Love them!

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  2. So wonderful! I look forward to trading with you in the swap!:)

    ~ Kathleen Arola

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  3. Wonderful, Rhea. Can't wait to see them in person.

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  4. Love these charms! The technique you used on the wings really works!

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  5. Your Bast charms are beautiful, Rhea! I'm doing Bast, too, as all cats MUST be worshipped! Mine is so different from yours...I hope I get one of yours in the swap.
    xo
    Debbie
    ===^..^===

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  6. Very cool. I'm sure everyone will love them!

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  7. Rhea, your Bast charms are purr-fectly delightful! I know that the swappers who receive these will be thrilled! (and again, I'm bummed that I didn't join this swap! ACK!)

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  8. I am in the ArtCharm group but didn't participate in this swap. Your idea of God Bast is wonderful---what cute beads--and I love that they actually move!

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  9. Beautiful charms :) can't go wrong with anything with a cat on it :)

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All the comments and feedback you leave affirms my creative spirit on a very deep level. I am grateful for your time and readership!