Egyptian Ib Heart Meaning: The Ancient Heart Symbol in Hieroglyphs

The ancient Egyptian word ib, sometimes written "ieb" in modern product names, means heart. For the Egyptians the heart was far more than an organ: it was the seat of thought, memory, intention and moral character, the part of a person that would be judged after death.

The heart sign

The Metropolitan Museum of Art identifies the ib sign on an early inscribed ivory tag and glosses it simply as "heart". The hieroglyph does not look like the modern ♥ shape; it shows the heart as a vessel-like organ, and its meaning comes from the Egyptian writing system, not from any resemblance to a Valentine symbol.

Why the heart mattered

Egyptians located the inner life in the heart. That is why the heart was usually left in place when a body was prepared for burial, and why it features in the most famous scene of Egyptian judgement: the weighing of the heart.

The weighing of the heart

In the Hall of Two Truths, before Osiris, the heart of the dead was weighed against maat, the principle of truth and right order. If the heart balanced, the dead could live on; if not, it was devoured by the monster Ammut, and the person ceased to exist.

Heart scarabs

Because the heart was a witness to a whole life, the Egyptians made amulets to keep it on their side. Heart scarabs, usually of green stone, were placed in the mummy's wrappings over the heart. As the Met explains, their undersides were commonly inscribed with Book of the Dead chapter 30B, in which the dead ask their own heart not to testify against them at the judgement.

Ib in jewellery

An Ib motif references the heart as the Egyptians understood it: conscience, memory and the inner self, as well as love. See the AURYN Egyptian Ieb Heart charm, or read our guide to ancient Egyptian symbols.