Scarabaeus

“ I collect scarabs. I'm crazy about scarabs. Ever since I quit business, you might say that I have practically lived for scarabs."
"Though it sounds like an unkind thing to say of anyone," said Ashe. "Incidentally, what are scarabs?" He held up his hand. "Wait! It all comes back to me. Expensive classical education, now bearing belated fruit. Scarabaeus—Latin; noun, nominative—a beetle. ”

“ Every man on board the Scarabaeus was wild with amazement and excitement. Few could comprehend what had happened, but this very quickly became evident. So far as motive power was concerned, the Scarabaeus was totally, disabled. She could not direct her course, for her rudder was gone, her propeller was gone, her engines were useless, and she could do no more than float as wind or tide might move her. Moreover, there was a jagged hole in her stern where the shaft had been, and through this the water was pouring into the vessel. As a man-of-war the Scarabaeus was worthless. ”

“ In burning sandy plains, in tropical jungles, in fresh green fields, in bogs and swamps—wherever there is a bit of earth or water—there are beetles of one kind or another, following out the instincts assigned to them by nature.
The beetle known as the sacred scarabæus was held in great veneration by the ancient Egyptians, and is carved in great profusion on their tombs. Small gold and porcelain figures of the scarabæus, which were strung on necklaces, and used in other ways for personal ornaments, have also been found in Egyptian sarcophagi. ”

“ Forgive me! But at times, oh Holly, the almost infinite mind grows impatient of the slowness of the very finite, and am I tempted to use my power out of vexation—very nearly wast thou dead, but I remembered——. But the scarab—about the scarabaeus!"
"I picked it up," I gurgled feebly, as I got on to my feet again, and it is a solemn fact that my mind was so disturbed that at the moment I could remember nothing else about the ring except that I had picked it up in Leo's cave. ”

“ Because a workman or several workmen have had a hand crushed in machinery, it does not follow that all others should be maimed. If the Scarabæus often, or even very often, loses the fore-claws in its trade of ball-roller, there must be some which, cleverer or more fortunate, have preserved their tarsi. Let us then consult facts. I have observed a very large number of the species of Scarabæus which inhabit France, the S. sacer, common in Provence ”

“ In the first place I considered the manner in which the parchment had come into my possession. The spot where we discovered the scarabaeus was on the coast of the mainland, about a mile eastward of the island, and but a short distance above high-water mark. Upon my taking hold of it, it gave me a sharp bite, which caused me to let it drop. Jupiter, with his accustomed caution, before seizing the insect, which had flown towards him, looked about him for a leaf, or something of that nature, by which to take hold of it. ”

“ It may be true, that it imports little to the universe, whether a scarabaeus fly, with more or less ease, or a bee, employ its wax with the greatest possible frugality. It imports much, however, to the scarabaeus or the bee, and, on that account, is an object not unworthy of the attention of the Creator. ”

“ Varieties of Shape. The period to which a scarab belongs may often be determined from its shape and the markings on the back of the beetle; hence it is important to carefully note the varieties of form which occur. In fig. 58 will be seen a specimen of a scarab-beetle (the real Scarabaeus sacer [113] ) with the nomenclature of its various parts described: these names will be used in later references.
Pre-Middle Kingdom.
70
Fig. ”

“ The larvae have the three pairs of legs well developed, and the hinder abdominal segments swollen. Most of the Scarabaeidae are vegetable-feeders, but one section of the family—represented in temperate countries by the dor-beetles (Geotrupes) (fig. 28) and Aphodius, and in warmer regions by the “sacred” beetles of the Egyptians (Scarabaeus) (fig. 27) , and allied genera—feed both in the adult and larval stages, on dung or decaying animal matter. The heavy grubs of Geotrupes, their swollen tail-ends black with the contained food-material, are often dug up in numbers in well-manured fields. ”

“ It would be absurd for one Scarabæus to steal the eggs of another, each having enough to do in securing the future of its own. So on that point no more doubt can exist; the balls rolled by beetles never contain eggs.
My first attempt to resolve the thorny question as to the bringing up of the larva was by constructing an ample enclosure with an artificial soil of sand and soil constantly renewed. Some twenty Scarabæus sacer were introduced, together with Copris, Gymnopleurus, and Onthophagus, and never did entomological experiment cost me so many mortifications. ”

“ The Scarabæus is the black beetle that the traveler will constantly see tumbling about in the sand, and rolling up balls of dirt as he does in lands where he has not so sounding a name. He was sacred to the old Egyptians as an emblem of immortality, because he was supposed to have the power of self-production. No mummy went away into the shades of the nether world without one on his breast, with spread-wings attached to it. Usually many scarabæi were buried with the mummy—several hundreds have been found in one mummy-case. ”

“ Any one of numerous species of scaraboid beetles belonging to Scarabæus, Copris, Phanæus, and allied genera. The female lays her eggs in a globular mass of dung which she rolls by means of her hind legs to a burrow excavated in the earth in which she buries it. ”

“ Fig. 52.
Material. Specimens of button-seals have been found in gold, amethyst, carnelian, lapis lazuli, black steatite, steatite glazed blue or green, ivory, bone, and blue or green glazed pottery. The hemi-cylinders are only as yet known in steatite glazed blue or green.
3. Scarab-shaped Seals.
Scarab-shaped seals. By far the commonest form of Egyptian seal was that cut in the shape of the scarabaeus beetle, hence its name, “Scarab” or “Scarabaeus,” from the Greek name of the insect, [Greek: skarabos] or [Greek: skarabeios] (Latin scarabaeus) . ”

“ These seals are found in a variety of forms; some of them are cylindrical in shape, others are button-shaped, but by far the greater number are carved to represent the scarabaeus beetle standing upon an elliptical base, the under side of which is engraved with the device or inscription intended to be impressed upon the sealing clay. The specimens of this last variety of seal are universally known as “Scarabs.” [1] Like the gems of Greece and Italy, Egyptian seals are generally found in excellent preservation ”

“ ETRUSCAN SCARABS. ORIGIN OF AND WHERE FOUND. COPIED FROM EGYPTIAN BUT WITH CHANGES IN SUBJECTS, SIZE AND ORNAMENTATION. THE ENGRAVING OF. WHERE USUALLY FOUND. USES BY THE ETRUSCANS. GREEK AND ROMAN SCARABS. GNOSTIC, OF THE BASILIDIANS.
The archaic people of ancient Etruria did not make cameos, their gems were intaglios and were incised on the under side, on forms shaped in the model of the scarabæus or beetle. ”

“ Scarabæus, and thou hast entered as to thyself as Ra," etc. [72]
"Salutation to thee Tumu, [73] salutation to thee, Scarabæus-god, who art thyself; thou who liftest up, in that holding thy name of lifter up ('from the earth,' 'the stairway,' or 'stairs,') and who art (Khopiru) in this, holding the name of the Scarabæus-god (Khopiru) ! Salutation to thee Eye of Horus, whom it has furnished with its two creating hands (Tumuï,) " etc. [74]
Chapter XVII., line 75, of the Book [85] of the Dead, reads: "O Khepra in its boat! the society of the gods is its body, in other words, it is Eternity." ”

“ Its emblem, as shown on the Hindu zodiac, looks more like a beetle or other insect than it does like a crab. [16]
The religious feeling for it, most probably existed among the early [13] Ethiopians, before the migration of the ancient race who were the originators of the Egyptians, into the land on the banks of the Nile. The cult is shown in more modern times by the veneration of the Hottentot for the same insect, and from the worship of the Holy Cricket by the natives of Madagascar. The Egyptians held the scarabæus especially sacred to Amen-Ra, i.e., the mystery of the sun-god. ”

“ In very ancient paintings especially those in the tombs of the kings of Thebes, the scarabæus plays a most remarkable part, as an emblem of the creating first source of life, which passes from it to the embryo, through the intermediary of a celestial generator, who is intended to represent the Makrokosm or great Ideal Man, as the demiurgos. We find the idea of the Makrokosm or great Ideal Man, [17] permeating those writings termed, the Books of Hermes Trismegistos, which have reached our day, and which, with some more recent matter, contain much very old, Egyptian philosophy. ”

“ The mind struggles to establish a connection—a sequence of cause and effect—and being unable to do so, suffers a species of temporary paralysis. But when I recovered from this stupor, there dawned upon me gradually a conviction which startled me even far more than the coincidence. I began distinctly, positively, to remember that there had been no drawing upon the parchment when I made my sketch of the scarabaeus. ”

“ A third and more numerous class of Etruscan signet rings have scarabs, cut usually in sard or carnelian, which are a link between the art of Egypt and that of Greece, the design cut on the flat side being Hellenic in style, while the back is shaped like the ordinary Egyptian scarabaeus beetle. One from Etruria, now in the British Museum, is formed by two minutely modelled lions whose bodies form the hoop, while their paws hold the bezel, a scarab engraved with a lion of heraldic character. ”

“ The Nile's inundations are fast making inroads, undermining the foundations, especially at Luxor, which temple is located so near the bank. We linger and gaze on the stupendous work, even in its crumbling, tottering condition it is one of the wonders of the age. We find the Scarabaeus are bought here to an advantage. [Pg 137] The Arabs, however, have no scruples in selling false beetles for the genuine ones that are sometimes taken from the tombs in excavating. They are becoming more and more rare. ”

“ Scar′-lime′stone, a mass of calcareous rock crowded with marine fossils. [Scand., Ice. sker—skera, to cut.]
Scarab, skar′ab, n. an insect with wing-sheaths, a beetle: a gem, usually emerald, cut in the form of a beetle—also Scarabæ′us, Scar′abee.—n. Scar′aboid, an imitation scarab.—adj. like a scarab. [L. scarabæus; Gr. karabos.]
Scaramouch, skar′a-mowch, n. a buffoon: a bragging, cowardly fellow. [Fr.,—It. Scaramuccia, a famous Italian zany of the 17th century.]
Scarbroite, skär′brō-īt, n. a hydrous silicate of aluminium—from Scarborough. ”

“ Greek authors, cannot be depended upon. Ibid. [162] Greek and other writers, who mention the scarabæus, Introd. xviii., xix. Greek scarabs, 142. made in the Egyptian style, a manufactory for such was at Naukratis, 27. Greeks called the scarabæus the Helio-cantharus, 7.
Hard stones. Egyptian method of cutting, 32. See, Engraving, also Scarabs. Hapi, 108. Harmakhis-Khepra, 80, 85. See, Khepra. Harmakhu-Khepra-Ra-Tum, 83. Harmony and law of the universe, 79, 99, 100. this was called the Ma, 81. See, Ma. Hathor, 102. Hatshepsu. Scarabs of Queen, 28. Signet of, 34. Heart. ”

“ Horus, Hor-em-Khu and Khepra, 80, 81. Hotep. A division of the Egyptian eternal heaven, 61. Hottentot. Veneration for the scarabæus by the, 13. Hyksos. The, Introd. xiv. Hyksos period. Scarabs of the, 25.
Iamblichus, 74. [164] Ideal Prototype, 16, 17. See, Prototypes. Idolatry in Egypt, Introd. xii. Individuality. The, 116. Immortality of the soul, 98. See the Introduction. the scarabæus the symbol of the, 13. See also, Scarabs, Scarabæus. Soul, and the Introduction, also Appendix A. Incising of scarabs, 22. Intellectual part of man's spirit, 115, 116. See, Khu. ”

“ Etruscans at first purchased the scarabs from Phœnicians, 140. borrowed the form of the scarab but did not care for the cult, 139. Eternal life of the soul of man, Introd. vi., vii., ix., x., xi., xii., xiii. See, the Second Death. Eternity. Lords of, 148. Eternity of the soul of the good, 96. See, Introduction. Ethiopians. Religious feeling for the scarabæus among the, 12, 13. [161] Evil One, is Apap, 86. Evolution in the Egyptian philosophy, 99 et seq., 104 et seq. Ezekiel's. The prophet, description of the working and engraving of, precious stones, 35. ”

“ Sometimes he is called Amen-Ra, and his principal temple was at Thebes. He is generally represented by the figure of a man with his face concealed under the head of a horned ram. The figure is coloured blue, the sacred colour of the source of life.
Sacred Beetle (kheper) usually called scarabeus or scarabee. It was thought that the beetle hid its eggs in the sand, where they remained until the young beetles broke forth to life. Thus the scarabeus became the symbol of the resurrection and a future life. ”

“ Peters to collect postage stamps.
"A scarab," he said—"derived from the Latin scarabeus—is literally a beetle."
"I will not collect beetles!" said Mr. Peters definitely. "They give me the Willies."
"Scarabs are Egyptian symbols in the form of beetles," the specialist hurried on. "The most common form of scarab is in the shape of a ring. Scarabs were used for seals. They were also employed as beads or ornaments. Some scarabaei bear inscriptions having reference to places; as, for instance: 'Memphis is mighty forever.'"
Mr. Peters' scorn changed to active interest. ”