Naturally Occurring Eye Amulets

Exploring Stones and Shells That Resemble Eyes

Today “evil eye” jewelry and related tchotchkes featuring nazars are pretty ubiquitous, but in the “olden days” people first tended to look for amulets in the natural world. For example, horn-shaped pieces of red coral were used as cornicelli amulets. Similarly, unusual-looking shells, stones, and other natural objects were also used as amulets because they were believed to protect against certain ailments and conditions, and of course, shield the wearer from the dreaded evil eye.

Agate amulet set in silver frame © The Trustees of the British Museum

Stag tooth amulet set in silver-gilt mount © The Trustees of the British Museum

Faithful readers of The Bonheur Blog are familiar with the evil eye, but for those who are unfamiliar, the evil eye is a malevolent gaze, typically resulting from feelings of envy toward the lookee. Children and livestock are most susceptible to its effects, and the common view is that people with blue eyes are most adept at casting it.

The pieces of coral below are typical examples of the kinds of natural material that would have been turned into amulets in 19th century Europe, where the practice of wearing amulets was common. According to the Victoria & Albert Museum, “Although the Catholic Church was opposed to the pagan nature of many amulets, it was powerless to prevent their use.”

Amulet of an unworked piece of white coral mounted in silver, Bavaria (South Germany), 1800-1850. Worn against intermittent fevers. From the collection of the Victoria & Albert Museum.

Heart-shaped amulet of fossilised coral (Krätzenstein) in a silver mount, Bavaria (South Germany), about 1800. From the collection of the Victoria & Albert Museum.

Stones with pronounced natural designs, like this piece of fossilised coral, were mainly worn to avoid bewitchment; the witch would be distracted by the complex pattern and so the wearer would escape unharmed. This stone was also said to protect against fevers.

Eye Agates

Apologies for the digression, but The House felt like we needed to lay some groundwork before jumping into the topic of this post — eye amulets. Faithful readers of The Bonheur Blog know that eye amulets are one of the oldest forms of protection against the evil eye. Observe, for example, the Eye of Horus (or wedjat) which was one of the most popular amulets in Ancient Egypt.

But whereas wedjat amulets were manufactured — typically carved from stone or made of faience or glass — other eye amulets were simply found. The first example we will explore is a certain kind of agate that, when polished and cut, resembles the iris and pupil of the eye. These stones were prized as amulets and incorporated in early jewelry as featured stones or beads with an uncanny appearance.

Four gold beads engraved with wavy-lines; two barrel-shaped beads of carnelian and agate; one agate 'eye' bead, excavated in Iraq. © The Trustees of the British Museum

Gold ring with an oval bezel set with an eyed agate in a border of diamond sparks. A spark also on each shoulder, West Europe, 1680-1720. From the collection of the Victoria & Albert Museum.

Operculum Jewelry

The second naturally-occurring eye amulet we will explore comes from Turbo petholatus, also known as the "cat's eye" or "Shiva's eye" snail. The amulet is a part of the snail called the operculum, which means “lid” or “cover” in Latin.

The operculum is a hard, disc-shaped shell that is attached to the snail's foot and is used to close the snail's shell when it is retracted (hence the name). It is about the size of a U.S. quarter and has a spiral pattern on one side. The other side coincidentally resembles a human eye and looks like this:

Opercula, House of Good Fortune Collection.

Given that some of the earliest known jewelry — dating back to the Stone Age — was made using shells, animal teeth and seeds, it should not be surprising that opercula have been used to make pendants, earrings, and other pieces of jewelry for a long time.

Credit: Shell pendant painted with an eye, Paris, France, 1850-1920. Science Museum, London.

Silver finger ring, with circular bezel set with a green and brown operculum. © The Board of Trustees of the Science Museum