Occasionally, a charm or amulet that has enormous power and magic for one culture will have only aesthetic value for another. Where the Egyptians attached great importance to the scarab, the Greeks might have been seen only a species of desert beetle. Yet, every culture makes use of such talismans for protection and to bring good luck. This unusual charm was carved by one of the early peoples of the Upper Euphrates Valley. It is unclear what it depicts, perhaps a bird, maybe a sea creature. What magic it was thought to bring is also unknown, though surely it has remained potent across the centuries.