The evil eye. An account of this ancient and wide spread superstition

IX THE THREE CAKES 319
comparison of the two (Figs. 147, 14S, and 156, 157),
which may be considered as typical of all the known
hands, will not fail to show points of agreement in
them, and prove that, whatever their purpose may
have been, it was the same in all alike.
In five out of the six medals and gems (Figs. 14-
19) there is a serpent ; in both these hands he is in
connection with the third or medical finger, as the
representation of the healing god yEsculapius, and
in both cases he is given the same position on the
back of the hand.
The woman and child in the arched frame are on
both hands alike, but in the Payne Knight hand
there is no bird to watch over them.
The frog, it may be noted, in both cases seems to
have its proper position, and that well known, aphro-
disiac, was surely placed by design in close relation
to the middle finger, the ancient digitusJnfamis.
The ram's head occupying nearly the same position
as the head of Jupiter, appropriately upon what is
known to palmists as the mons Jovis, must be taken
as the symbol of that divinity, who is constantly
depicted with ram's horns upon his head.
The Cantharus, or two-handled vase, appears on
both hands. The remarkable table with three flat
cakes upon it, is much more difficult of explanation.
It seems to be an offering of bread to the Almighty
Jove, and one cannot but be struck by the coincidence
of these three cakes with those shown on the
table in Figs. 113, 116, on the altar of Melchi-
sedec, and before the three strangers entertained by
Abraham. We do not assert the connection, but the
threefold aspect of Egyptian gods is dwelt upon
elsewhere, and these cakes may well typify offerings