Touch of Magick Shop · Beginner Foundations
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A small object can carry a large story: a family memory, a prayer, or a promise you make to yourself. Learning about amulets and talismans begins with asking whose story an object holds and how its meaning was understood.
What do these words mean?
Amulets and talismans are objects understood within particular traditions as carrying protective or other special significance. Their meanings can overlap. The Met’s Isabel Stünkel describes an amulet through the positive properties people believed it could transfer to its owner. Yasmine Al-Saleh’s study of Islamic-world talismans also includes protective purposes. These examples do not support a rigid universal rule that one word always repels and the other always attracts.[1][2]
A keepsake can be meaningful without making a supernatural claim. For our beginner practice, the object serves as a reminder of a chosen commitment. Its significance comes from the meaning you give it and the action you connect to it; we do not promise that it changes events or shields you from physical danger.
Two histories worth keeping distinct
In ancient Egypt, an amulet’s form, material, color, inscription, and ritual context could all contribute to its meaning. Stünkel explains that some types were used by the living, while others had specifically funerary roles. A familiar shape should therefore not be assigned a modern meaning without checking its original use.[1]
One precise example is Hatnefer’s heart scarab, dated by The Met to about 1491–1473 BCE. Its underside carries a version of Book of the Dead chapter 30A, addressing the heart in the context of judgment after death. This is an identifiable ancient object with a specific text and purpose, not a generic good-luck design.[3]
Al-Saleh documents different objects from the Islamic world: scrolls, cases, clothing, and other forms bearing prayers or religious references. Their significance belongs to those religious settings and their particular histories.[2] This is not a claim that every Muslim endorses talismanic practice. Sacred writing is not interchangeable ornament, and our exercise does not reproduce it.
Meaning depends on the system
| Idea or system | What it means here |
|---|---|
| Ancient Egyptian amulets | Form, material, inscription, and context contributed to attributed powers; some were funerary. |
| Hatnefer’s heart scarab | A specific ancient object linked to Book of the Dead chapter 30A and afterlife judgment. |
| Islamic-world examples | Named religious texts and traditions give the objects their context; practices are not universal. |
| Our paper keepsake | An original reminder of your own commitment, with no inherited protective power claimed. |
| Optional shop color suggestion | Choose a color you personally connect with the commitment. No color is required or universally correct. |
Original shop practice: a commitment keepsake
You need a small sheet of paper, pencil, and a notebook pocket or envelope. The illustration’s locket and pouch are examples of containers, not required supplies.
- Choose a commitment within your control, such as “I will pause before agreeing to a new obligation.” Avoid wording that tries to control someone else.
- Write the commitment and today’s date. Add one practical action: “I can say I need time to think.”
- Fold the paper and place it in an envelope or notebook pocket. Take a moment to remember why the commitment matters.
- When you encounter the keepsake, read the action before deciding what to do. You remain free to revise the commitment.
- At the end of a week, note what happened. Keep, rewrite, or recycle the paper respectfully as an ordinary personal object.
Keep paper dry and away from heat. Do not add unidentified powders, liquids, oils, or plant material. Small lockets, beads, and cords need secure storage away from children and pets; this practice requires no wearable item. Do not place a hidden object in someone else’s belongings or present a keepsake as guaranteed protection.
Journal prompt
What story does this object hold, and what real choice will help me live that story?
Sources & further reading
- Isabel Stünkel, “Ancient Egyptian Amulets,” The Met (2019)Curatorial explanation of materials, meanings, and living versus funerary contexts.
- Yasmine Al-Saleh, “Amulets and Talismans from the Islamic World,” The Met (2010)Scholarly discussion of objects in specific religious and historical settings.
- The Met, Heart Scarab of Hatnefer, object 36.3.2Primary object record and identification of its Book of the Dead inscription.