Amulet

amulet: [am-yuh-lit] noun a charm, often inscribed with a magic incantation or symbol to protect the wearer against evil.

*from Latin amuletum; earliest extant use in Naturalis Historia [Pliny], meaning "an object that protects a person from trouble.")


...is made a jewel, which she takes
From off her head, and that she makes
Ulysses on his bosom wear,
About his neck, she ties it there,
And, when he is with waves beset,
Bids wear it as an amulet....

The Odysseys of Homer