Hathor

Hathor suckling the Kushite Queen Nefrukakashta

Hathor suckling the Kushite Queen Nefrukakashta

Gilded silver amulet shows the Kushite Queen Nefrukakashta being embraced and nursed by a goddess, probably Hathor.Nubian, Napatan Period, reign of Piankhy (Piye), c. 743–712 B.C.From el-Kurru, Ku 52 (tomb of Queen Nefrukekashta)Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. 24.928 The Hathor suckling the Kushite Queen Nefrukakashta sculpture is a fascinating example of Egyptian art, specifically from...

Gold and enamel earring with Hathor and rosette Meroë, Nubia (Kushite region), c. 90 B.C. –50 A.D. Boston Museum of Fine Arts. 23.341

Golden Hathor earring found in Meroë

This golden earring depicting the Ancient Egyptian goddess Hathor was discovered in the location of the ancient city of Meroë, capital of the Kingdom of Kush for several centuries from around 590 B.C., until its collapse in the 4th century A.D. The golden Hathor earring would have been a representation of the goddess and may...

King Unas being suckled by a goddess

King Unas being suckled by a goddess

Fragment of a relief depicts king Unas being suckled by unidentified goddess. These reliefs are often found in temple complexes and tombs, and they serve as visual representations of the divine nature and legitimacy of the king. The concept of a king being suckled by a goddess is often seen as a metaphorical representation of...

Khonsu-mes receives libation of food and drink from the tree goddess. Papyrus of Khonsu-mes21st Dynasty, c. 1000 B.C.

Tree Goddess

In the spiritual landscape of Ancient Egypt, the sycamore tree (“nehet” in the Ancient Egyptian tongue) held a place of deep reverence. More than a mere provider of shade in the searing sun, the sycamore was seen as the Tree of Life, a sacred conduit between the earthly and the divine. It was believed to...

Bust of a Priestess of Hathor

Bust of a Priestess of Hathor

This bust is just a fragment of a statue of a Priestess of Hathor from the New Kingdom in Egypt. The priestess served the Egyptian cow goddess Hathor who unlike many other gods and goddesses had both male and female servants. Egyptian priests were meant to serve the gods and with this responsibility many of...

Frontal view of the goddess Hathor, depicted as nude

Nude Hathor

This statue of the goddess Hathor was made from Egyptian Terracotta, or Brown Nile Silt, and dates from 400-200 B.C. The Ptolemaic influence in this depiction of Hathor is easy to see, as the statue resembles the soft nude bodies of the female deities of the Mediterranean, such as Hathor and Isis’s Greek counterpart, Aphrodite....

Wooden and ivory fan handle with face of Hathor

Wooden and ivory fan handle with face of Hathor

An Ancient Egyptian wooden and ivory fan handle with the face of Hathor engraved. Modern ostrich feathers added to show how the fan would appear in its former New Kingdom glory. Hathor was a multifaceted deity. Her name, literally ‘the abode of Horus’, immediately emphasised the close connection with the falcon-headed god, whose mother or...

Detail of the goddess Hathor from the Tomb of Seti I (KV17)

Goddess Hathor from the Tomb of Seti I (KV17)

Detail of the face of Goddess Hathor, with cobra earring, who, in this full relief, is seen welcoming Seti I to the afterlife with a protective menat necklace. The relief was taken from Seti I’s tomb in the Valley of the Kings, by Champollion. However, this may not have been an act of “treasure hunting”,...

Mirror of Princess Sithathoriunet

Mirror of Princess Sithathoriunet

This mirror of Princess Sithathoriunet is a masterpiece of Middle Kingdom art. The mirror itself is made from silver, while the handle is of obsidian. The handle takes the form of a papyrus stem inlaid with gold ending with a double sided face of the goddess Hathor. Through the depiction of the goddess Hathor, the...