Snake

Coffin for young girl from Akhmim. British Museum. EA29587

Coffin for young girl from Akhmim

Wooden lid and base of a coffin for a young girl from Akhmim, Sohag, Egypt, c. 50 B.C.- 50 A.D. This coffin dates from the period of Greco-Roman rule and can be seen by the garment the young girl is seen depicted wearing. However, despite this she maintains her Egyptian religious belief, by being mummified...

Middle Kingdom Bangle with gold & silver amulets. British Museum. EA24787

Middle Kingdom Bangle with gold & silver amulets

This bangle dates from the Middle Kingdom Period, c.2055-1650 B.C. and was found in Egypt, exact location unknown. It is made from a concoction of beaten, cast and soldered gold, with golden and silver amulets of Ancient Egyptian religious iconography such as, the Wadjet Eye and Djed Pillar, alongside animals such as a hare and...

Mehen, the Serpent Game

Limestone Mehen gaming board (also known as the Serpent game or Game of the Snake) Old Kingdom, 4th-6th Dynasty, c. 2543-2152 B.C. Rijksmuseum van Oudheden, Netherlands. F 1968/3.1 The earliest known existence of the Serpent Game dates from the Naqada II, Pre-Dynastic Period of Ancient Egypt, c. 3600-3200 B.C. There is a depiction of the...

Relief Plaque of Cobra on a Neb Basket

Relief Plaque of Cobra on a Neb Basket

This relief depicts the cobra on a neb basket from the king’s Two Ladies name. Small Late Period and Ptolemaic reliefs or sculptures that depict a subject in a partial or unfinished way but are themselves finished objects constitute a special class of object. Guidelines like those for artists are often prominently exhibited as part...

Statuette of the goddess Renenutet

Statuette of the goddess Renenutet

The serpent goddess Renenutet had two main roles. As the root of her name (Renen) makes clear, she was the ‘nurse’, mainly of the king, to whom she ensured a favorable destiny from birth. The goddess was also worshiped because she ensured the success of the harvest and the protection of the crops. In Ancient...

Statue of Netjer-Ankh

Statue of Netjer-Ankh

The serpent statue of Netjer-Ankh, or the Living God, was one of the deities in charge of protecting the regions of the underworld and defending the sun god as he passed through each night. This statue is made of gilded wood and stands on a wooden base darkened with varnish. The eyes are made of...

Tomb painting of Inherkhau worshiping the serpent god Sata

Inherkhau worshiping the serpent god Sata

Tomb painting of Inherkhau worshiping the serpent god Sata, son of the earth and guardian of the underworld. Snakes were dominantly present in ancient Egyptian mythology. They played a double role, benevolent and malevolent. They could be evoked for curing, protecting and healing but at the very same time cursing and inflicting danger. Sata belonged...

Pendant of Tutankhamun with Werethekau

Pendant of Tutankhamun with Werethekau

Pendant of goddess Werethekau with plumed and horned head-dress and snake body, suckling a standing figure of King Tutankhamun. Made of heavy plate gold on two large suspension rings at back, just below head-dress. “The cobra with woman’s head sometimes wears the low crown also associated with Isis, but on other occasions the Double Crown...