This is the home of Egypto: Ancient Egyptians

Monday, March 3, 2008

Ancient Egyptians

At first glance, the ancient Egyptians and their gods appear formal and distant from everyday life as we know it. The impressive remains of vast temples, massive pyramids, rows of carvings in relief, stylized images, and rigid postures, along with their amazing paraphernalia of wealth, is evidence of ancient Egyptians pomp and power. Yet the details within these colossal remains-the methodical paintings depicting daily life, the meticulous care with which the dead were attended to-attest to a highly complex religious life. The extensive number of Egyptian gods and goddesses, the complex combinations of their names, the overlapping of their roles, and the multiplicity of local variations on their myths weave a complex web that is as confusing as it is fascinating.

King Farouk & Khedive Ismail Pasha

King Farouk

King Faud Queen Nefertiti

Post Day Giza Pyramids

Pharaonic Dresses

Ancient Minarets

Wood Statue, Princess Nefert., Prince Ra-Hotep

No comments:

Amonet

Amonet was the female form of the original deity, Amun who was without a gender since it was a concept. Amun/Amonet originally were the aspects of the primordial concept of air, in the Ogdoad cosmogony. Of the name for primordial air meaning, (one who) is hidden, the male aspect is Amun, and the female aspect is Amonet. Amonet, as the female aspect, became increasingly identified with Iusaaset, Atum's shadow. By becoming identified as Iusaaset, Amonet was regarded as the mother of creation and she was seen as owning the tree from which all life emerged and returned, the tree of life, an acacia tree said to reside on the desert's edge.

Nut

Her name means Night. Some of the titles of Nut were Coverer of the Sky, She Who Protects, Mistress of All, and She Who Holds a Thousand Souls. Originally she was the goddess of the daytime sky, but in later times she was known simply as the sky goddess. Nut was said to be covered in stars touching the cardinal points of her body. Her headdress was the hieroglyphic of part of her name, a pot, which may also symbolize the uterus. The ancient Egyptians said that every woman was a nutrit, a little goddess.

Nephthys

Nephthys is a goddess of undetermined origin, but contrary to many erroneous claims, her ancient Egyptian name did not, in any way, mean "Lady of the House," as if referring to an ordinary human home. Perhaps most interestingly for our current consideration, Nephthys was not at all restricted to the purely passive and/or formless status so often accorded to her by various commentators. On the contrary, Nephthys is quite often featured as a rather ferocious, dangerous divinity, capable of incinerating the enemies of the Pharaoh with her fiery breath.

Bast

Bast is an ancient solar and war goddess, worshipped at least since the Second Dynasty. The centre of her cult was in Per-Bast (Bubastis in Greek), which was named after her. Originally she was viewed as the protector goddess of Lower Egypt, and consequently depicted as a fierce lioness. Indeed, her name means (female) devourer. As protector, she was seen as defender of the pharaoh, and consequently of the later chief male deity, Ra, who was a solar deity also, gaining her the titles Lady of Flame and Eye of Ra.

Selket

In art, Selket was shown as a scorpion, or as a woman with a scorpion on her head, and although Selket doesn't appear to have had temples, she had a sizable priesthood. The most dangerous species of scorpion resides in North Africa, and its sting can kill, so Selket was considered a highly important goddess, and was sometimes considered by pharaohs to be their patron. As the protector against poisons, and snake bites, Selket was often said to protect the gods from Apep, the great snake-god of evil, sometimes acting as the guard when Apep was captured.

Anuket

Being the deification of the Nile herself also lead to the two tributaries of the Nile being considered the arms of Anuket. Ceremonially, when the Nile started its annual flood, the Festival of Anuket began. People threw coins, gold, jewelry, and precious gifts into the river, in thanks for the life-giving water and returning benefits derived from the wealth provided by her fertility to the goddess. The taboo held in several parts of Egypt, against eating certain fish which were considered sacred, was lifted during this time, suggesting that a fish species of the Nile was a totem for Anuket and that they were consumed as part of the ritual of her major religious festival.