A Pectoral is a large piece of jewelry worn as a pendant across the breast or chest. This scarab pectoral, approximately four inches wide, is one of nearly 150 protective amulets and artifacts buried with Tutankhamun. It is made of gold and semi-precious stones and was wrapped up with Tutankhamun's mummy.
The pectoral spells out Tutankhamun's throne name Nebkheperure through the symbols:
- a basket (the segment shape at the bottom), neb, meaning 'lord',
- a scarab beetle (in the middle), kheperu, meaning 'being', 'form', or 'manifestation', and
- the sun (at the top), re, representing the god Re (or Ra)
thus spelling out his title, which means 'Lord of Manifestations is Re'.
Despite common belief, Tutankhamun's tomb was actually robbed at least twice before Carter unearthed it and most of the loose jewelry was removed. The first robbery must have occurred very soon after the interment and resulted in the removal of the majority of small pieces. Despite the entrance corridor being filled with rubble, a second robbery took place soon after, but this time the perpetrators were caught. One of the few finds of jewelry not sealed in with the mummy are a set of gold rings which were wrapped in a headscarf, presumably by the robbers just before they were discovered.