Ancient Egypt · Memphis, Egypt
Ankh
Also known as Crux ansata, Key of life
A cross with a loop, held out by gods to the faces of kings: the ankh wrote the Egyptian word for life itself, and it has never quite gone out of use.
The ankh is the that wrote the Egyptian word for life. Gods hold it in their hands and kings receive it, and for more than three thousand years it carried a wish that anyone can understand: may you live, and live well.
Where it comes from
The sign appears in Egyptian writing and art from the Early Dynastic period, around 3000 BCE, when the first kings of a united Egypt ruled from the region of Memphis. It spelled the sounds of the word ankh, meaning life, and was soon used in names, titles and blessings.
What the shape first represented is still debated. Some Egyptologists have suggested a sandal strap, since a word for strap used the same consonants; others see a knotted cord or a sign of union. No single answer is certain, which leaves the ankh pleasingly open.
The same sounds appeared in the Egyptian word for mirror, a play on words that Egyptian craftsmen could make visible. A gilded wooden mirror case in the form of an ankh was found in the tomb of Tutankhamun, although the mirror it once held was gone.
What it means
In temple reliefs, gods often hold the ankh up to the nose of the king, offering him the breath of life. Elsewhere, streams of tiny ankh signs pour over the ruler in scenes of purification, falling like drops of water. The meaning is generous and direct: life given by the gods to people.
One of the most tender versions comes from the reign of Akhenaten, in the fourteenth century BCE. In reliefs of that time, the rays of the sun disc end in small hands, and some of those hands hold out an ankh to the king and Queen Nefertiti, as if sunlight itself were handing them life.
The ankh often stands beside two other signs, the was sceptre for power and the djed pillar for stability. Together they formed a kind of blessing in pictures, carved on temple walls and worked into furniture, vessels and jewellery.
The ankh does not ask for anything. It simply wishes you life.
It also lives in personal names. Tutankhamun’s own name means something like “living image of Amun”, with the ankh sign written inside it. To carry such a name was to carry a small blessing every time it was spoken.
Curiously, the ankh seems to appear far more often in art and writing than as a separate amulet. Egyptians often preferred to work it into other designs: openwork plaques, mirror handles, ritual vessels, rings and the clasps of collars. In that sense it was less a charm to hide under clothing and more a wish written on the objects of daily life.
From Egypt to the wider world
When Egypt became largely Christian, the ankh did not vanish. Coptic Christians adopted the looped cross, known in Latin as the , and it appears in early Christian textiles and carvings from Egypt as a sign of eternal life.
From the nineteenth century the ankh travelled again through Egyptian Revival jewellery, and in the twentieth century it became a favourite of artists, musicians and anyone drawn to ancient Egypt. For many people of African descent it is also a proud sign of African heritage and history.
How it is worn and kept
- As a pendant, the most popular way, usually in gold or silver.
- As earrings or a ring, where the loop makes a graceful outline.
- As a small figure or plaque at home, echoing the ankh-shaped mirror case and vessels found in Egyptian tombs.
- Alongside the Eye of Horus or a Scarab, just as Egyptians themselves often combined protective signs.
Silver tarnishes and gold scratches, so a soft cloth and a separate pouch are kind to both. Our guide to metals and materials explains what each traditional material has meant.
Wearing it with respect
For most wearers the ankh is a heritage symbol, admired for its long history. For Coptic Christians and for followers of modern Kemetic religion it can carry real devotional meaning, so it deserves the same courtesy you would give any sacred sign. Knowing a little of its story, and sharing it when someone asks, is the simplest way to wear it well.
It makes a lovely gift for a birth, a milestone birthday or the start of a new chapter in life. Explore more talismans of life and vitality, or see how the ankh fits among the talismans of ancient Egypt. Few symbols say so much with a single loop and two short lines.
taliaris describes beliefs and customs; it makes no claim that a talisman has an effect.