3" Ankh 'kA' key votive (lotus version)

Considering how often the ancient Egyptian ankh gets called a "Key of Life," there are very few ankh-keys around, aside from the ankh-shaped key used to unlock the door to the temple at Abu Simbel and a copy of it which appears in a popular ancient Egypt inspired anime/manga. Initially I did my own rendition of the Abu Simbel key but upon finding out about the latter, I knew I had to go back to the drawing board as it were.

This is the result. I made the cross-bar more like traditional ankhs with the "wrapped" detail and projecting ends. In this version, those end are waterlily blossoms, primarily symbolizing  rebirth, but also the pursuit of pleasure. The key's teeth are formed by the hieroglyph for 'kA.' No two scholars agree on what the kA is, but it is a very important component of a person's being, which is sometimes translated as "soul, spirit, essence (of a being)" and which is also conceived off as one's life force or "internal motor." At the same time it may be one's "social self." As I said, no two scholars argee and no definitive definition has been achieved!