Dung Beetles and Society
Dung beetles have been a part of a variety of ancient human societies and still are a part of modern societies but in different ways. The ancient civilization where they were most prominently featured was the Egyptian.
Dung Beetles in Ancient Egypt
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Dung Beetles, particularly the Scarabaeus sacer was a prominent part of ancient Egyptian society
and religious belief and was elevated to the level of sacred. An outline of the
Beetle was used as a hieroglyph and roughly translates to "to come into being"
and an image of a Dung Beetle or a man with a Dung Beetle head is used to
depict the god Khepri, "he who has come into being", the god of the
rising sun. The reason for this connection is thought to derive from the fact
that the grown beetle emerges from the dung ball - it comes into being from
nothing. The belief was partially based on the(incorrect) idea that Dung
Beetles do not reproduce through sex, the ancient Egyptians thought the dung
beetle was able to self-create. The link between Khepri and Dung Beetles was
further strengthened by the Dung Beetles rolling of the Dung Ball, which was
believed to be a metaphor for Khepris rolling of the sun across the sky which
he then carried through the underworld and brought back into being through
rebirth the next sunrise. In this way the beetle was associated with death -
the setting of the sun and rebirth - the emergence of the beetle from nothing
and the pushing of the sun across the sky. Because of this the Scarabaeus sacer was particularly
important to priests and in burial rituals. The Dung Beetles larvae stage also
has some resemblance to mummies and because of this it is thought that
mummification was in part an attempt to emulate the Dung Beetle's life stages,
with rebirth following mummification.(1)
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Many paintings, carvings and sculptures of Dung Beetles were made. A large number were amulets 1-2cmm long, called scarabs which were carved or molded and often blue or green.(1)(2) The bottoms of these amulets often had hieroglyphs, usually being positive affirmations or to act as a seal. Specialty scarabs existed to be used during burial rituals, called heart scarabs. On these scarabs was the name of the dead and all or part of a spell from the Ancient Egyptian text The Book of the Dead. Often this spell instructed the heart to "not stand as a witness against me". These scarabs were usually set ontop of the heart of the mummified dead. They were intended to provide protection to the dead during judgment.(3)
Dung Beetles in Modern Art and Humor
The Dung Beetle may have lost its status as sacred but it still serves as a basis for modern art and humor. Beyond the sculpture by Mrs Campbell, other examples of Dung Beetles in art include the 1920s satirical play The Life of the Insects by Karel Čapek and Josef Čapek. In this play different human traits are compared to insects, the Dung Beetle(according to them) being representative of self serving nature.(4) Another example of modern art, one which gives the Dung Beetle its well deserved respect is the exhibition Science, Fiction by Diana Thater which features a projection of a close up recording of Dung Beetles in a pile of dung as its center piece.(5) We also see Dung Beetles being used as a basis for humor, giving us all something to chuckle about and offering an entertaining way to expose the public to the natural world and ecosystem which we all live. Though as pointed out before, the Dung Beetles work is serious business.
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Credit Goes to Rico, [email protected]