The eyes of Egyptian statues have always attracted attention for their realism and mystery. They had the ability to change color, accurately imitated the architecture of the retina and were made with incredible skill. However, it was still an open question how these amazing eyes were created.
Research conducted by Professor Jay Enocha of UC Berkeley has uncovered the stunning secret behind the eyes of Egyptian statues. It turns out that they were made of small fragments of rock crystal. Egyptian craftsmen used machine processing and specialized lathes to create these lenses.
One of the most striking examples of these statues is the image of Pharaoh Horus, made of wood. He had eyes inserted into his eye sockets that were amazing in their realism and optical properties. They changed color depending on the angle of view and accurately imitated the structure of the retina.
Jay Enochi’s research suggested that this unique technology reached its peak around 2500 BC. However, as time went on, it became less and less used, and then completely lost.
Not only were crystal lenses inserted into the eyes of pharaohs, but they were also used to create animal eyes. For example, a cat-shaped cosmetic vessel with crystal eyes rimmed with copper has been found, dating from around 1991-1783 BC.
However, the question remains as to where Egyptian craftsmen borrowed this technology from. There is speculation that they simply used quartz blanks for the eye sockets that were available to them at the time. When the supply of these blanks ran out, the technology was also lost.
