A shen ring is a circle with a line at a tangent to it, which was represented in hieroglyphs as a stylised loop of a rope. The word shen itself means, in ancient Egyptian, encircle, while the shen ring represented eternal protection. In its elongated form the shen ring became the cartouche which enclosed and protected a royal name.
The shen ring is most often seen carried by the falcon god Horus, but was also carried by the vulture goddess Nekhbet. It was used as early as the third dynasty where it can be seen in the reliefs from Djoser's Step Pyramid complex.
Read more about Shen Ring: The Stretched "shen Ring", The Cartouche, Shen Ring Uses in Iconography
Famous quotes containing the word ring:
“When I received this [coronation] ring I solemnly bound myself in marriage to the realm; and it will be quite sufficient for the memorial of my name and for my glory, if, when I die, an inscription be engraved on a marble tomb, saying, “Here lieth Elizabeth, which reigned a virgin, and died a virgin.””
—Elizabeth I (1533–1603)