A hand, an eye, a wing: choosing protection

Protection jewelry is worn to keep harm away and to carry a sense of safety, and five shapes do most of that work: the hamsa, the protective eye, the scarab, the elephant and the angel wing. Lay them side by side in solid gold and they could hardly look less alike.

Five shapes, side by side

A hamsa is an open hand, often with an eye in the palm, and on a chain it reads as an open shape. An eye is small and direct. A scarab is dense and sculptural; our Pharos Scarab Charm follows what its description calls the "traditional Egyptian scarab beetle form". An elephant is a large, steady animal made small. A wing is the lightest of them all, a shape caught in flight.

Hold each one in your mind beside the clothes you wear. The meaning brings you to a symbol; the shape is often what decides it.

Where each one comes from

The hamsa is worn for protection and blessing. In Jewish tradition it is the Hand of Miriam, and in Islamic tradition the Hand of Fatima; we have written about it at length in a hand that holds centuries. Ours include the Guardian Eye Hamsa Charm and the Glittering Hamsa Charm.

The protective eye is an eye worn to look back. People wear it to turn away envy and bad luck, and it goes by several names, among them the nazar, the mati and the malocchio. The full account is in why we still wear the gaze. We make the Openwork Protective Eye Charm and the Sapphire Protective Eye Charm.

The scarab is a beetle that was worn as an amulet in ancient Egypt, for protection and renewal; see scarab charm meaning. Beside the Pharos, we make the Guardian Scarab Charm.

The elephant stands for strength and good fortune as well as protection, which is why it also appears among our lucky charms in gold. Ours is the Guardian Elephant Charm. The angel wing stands for guardianship, and for remembering someone you love; see angel wing charm meaning and our Angel Wing Charm.

And the serpent, shown at the top of this page beside a hamsa medallion and an eye, is worn by some for protection and by others for renewal. The serpent, worn close follows both readings.

How to choose

Start with what you know. If one of these belongs to your family or your faith, begin there; it is the strongest reason to choose any symbol. Then choose the shape you like to look at, and then the size. Small is a quiet detail close to the neck. Medium and Large are visible across a room, and in the builder you can change the size and see it beside the chain.

Then think about pairing. Hand and eye are often worn together, and the Guardian Eye Hamsa Charm already joins them. The Guardian Symbols Medallion goes further, with six symbols on a single charm.

For a starting point, a hand with an eye, or an angel wing for someone you carry with you, sits quietly on a Petite oval chain. A scarab looks clean and graphic on a paperclip chain. Our guide to which chain is best for charms helps with the rest.

A tradition, not a promise

These meanings are traditions that people have shared for a very long time. They are the reason someone chooses a piece, and a way of remembering something. They are not a promise, and we do not claim that any charm changes what happens to you.

Seeing it on

Open Design your own and choose a necklace or a bracelet, then a chain, a link weight, a gold and a length. Tap a charm to add it, drag it into place, and look at the on-model view. The page calls that view "a creative visualization, not an exact representation." We confirm every detail with you after you order, and each piece is made to order at our Los Angeles bench in 2 to 4 weeks. The full walk-through is in how to design your own charm necklace.

Ilene Joy was founded in 1996 and relaunched in 2019 by Ilene and her daughter, Rae Scheer. Every piece is made to order in solid 14K or 18K gold at our Los Angeles bench.