The oldest form of the Ouroboros first appeared in a ancient text called the ”Enigmatic Book of the Netherworld” , a funerary text discovered in the tomb of Tutankhamen dating back to 1400BCE.
 
To the Egyptians the Ouroboros refers to ‘the mystery of time, which flows back on itself’.
 
Ouroboros is Greek for ‘tail devourer’. It represents the cyclic Nature of the Universe: creation out of destruction, Life out of Death. The ouroboros eats its own tail to sustain its life, in an eternal cycle of renewal.
 
From a Gnostic point of view, the opposing ends of the ouroboros were interpreted as the divine and earthly in man, which, despite being at odds with one another, existed in unison nonetheless. It also symbolizes the transcendence of duality and was related to the solar God Abraxas, and signified eternity and the soul of the world.
 
The Serpent Jormungand of Norse legend, one of the three children of Loki and Angrboda, grew so large that it could encircle the world and grasp its tail in its teeth. It guarded the Tree of Life, and is often depicted as an ouroboros.
 
To us, Nomadic People, the serpent eating its own tail is a powerful symbol of renewal, rebirth and immortality.
 
40mm diameter
Solid Sterling Silver