The Dendera zodiac is a widely known Egyptian bas-relief from the ceiling of the pronaos of a chapel dedicated to Osiris in the Hathor temple at Dendera. It contains images of Taurus and the Libra. The chapel was begun in the late Ptolemaic period; its pronaos was added by the emperor Tiberius. This led Jean-François...
This scarab amulet is made of gold, a metal strongly associated with the sun. The blue enamel symbolizes the life-giving waters of the Nile. Scarab amulets were frequently wound into a mummy’s bandages to protect the deceased and ensure rebirth. The ancient Egyptians understood the sun god to manifest himself in multiple forms, chiefly those...
One of the best-known vignettes in the Book of the Dead is that of the weighing of the heart (“psychostasia”) in the tribunal of the Double Truth, in the presence of Osiris and other gods of the netherworld. Chapter 125 of Book of Dead, Papyrus of Taysnakht, daughter of Taymes. The heart of the deceased...
The preparations carried out on the mummy thus took place almost according to the prescriptions relating to the mummification of human corpses, since the falcon was the sacred animal of the god Horus. The body of the mummified animal was first wrapped in linen strips and after the mummy. Then thus shaped into a form...
According to spell 151 of the Book of the Dead, in the tomb chamber, a magic brick with an amulet of Anubis jackal representing the god should be placed on the west wall, facing east to the mummy of the deceased. In this role, the seated jackal Anubis is protecting the dead from any aggressor....
The jackal-headed god Anubis figure is depicted striding on a high pedestal decorated with a palace facade. The deity is wearing a kilt and a vest decorated with a feather motif. He is adorned with a broad collar and bracelets as well as armlets on his upper arms. His two hands are extended slightly forward. The...
It is the mummy of a man about 1.65 meter tall, who lived during the Ptolemaic Period (ca. 305-30 BC). The quality of its embalming, as well as the state of conservation make it a specimen noticeable and worthy of notice. The mummy is a perfect example for anyone wanting to understand the technique of...
In this relief, the goddess Seshat, depicted in a leopard skin, goddess of wisdom, knowledge, and is credited with inventing writing. She also became identified as the goddess of accounting, architecture, astronomy, astrology, building, mathematics, and surveying. In ancient Egypt, the levels of literacy were rather low, less than 1%. Although there were some areas,...
This plaque depicts a woman giving birth on the birthing-chair, being assisted by two women with Hathor heads and crowns; the Hathor crown consists of two horns with the sun disk between them and tall plumes. The figures of the women are rendered in frontal view, and are nearly three-dimensional. They are carved in sunken-relief,...
