Beard from a Statue of a God

The Egyptian nobility usually shaved their faces during life on earth, although mustaches and square beards occasionally enjoyed popularity. It was only in the sphere of the divine that long, tightly braided beards with an upturned end were worn. Many male gods, such as Osiris, the god of the underworld, are portrayed with this beard. Accordingly, images of the deceased, who became associated with Osiris after being accepted into the afterlife, often include the plaited and curved beard. The dark-blue glass inlays on this beard represent lapis lazuli, because divine hair, beards, eyebrows, and eyelashes were said to be of this semiprecious stone.