GODS & GODDESSES

! Egyptians believed very strongly in the balance of opposites: light & dark, order & chaos, male & female

! This balance was maintained by the gods, goddesses, and king (Pharaoh)

GODS & GODDESSES

! Pharaoh - literally means “Great House” and was originally used to signify the buildings of the court or a palace

! Came to mean the king, himself, in 18th Dynasty (under Akhenaten)

GODS & GODDESSES

! Believed that the Pharaoh was a representative of the gods on Earth

GODS & GODDESSES

! Amun

! The great god of Thebes

! Man wearing ostrich-plumed hat

GODS & GODDESSES

GODS & GODDESSES

! Anubis

! Jackals always seen in cemeteries, so…

! Jackal-god of embalmers and guardian of cemeteries

GODS & GODDESSES

GODS & GODDESSES

! Aten

! The sun-disk with rays that end in hands

! Until Akhenaten, was referred to as “The Aten”

GODS & GODDESSES

GODS & GODDESSES

! Atum

! A creator god

! Man with a double crown

GODS & GODDESSES

GODS & GODDESSES

! Bastet

! The cat goddess

! Protective goddess

GODS & GODDESSES

GODS & GODDESSES

! Bes

! Weird, bearded, dwarf-guy

! Domestic protector

GODS & GODDESSES! Geb

! The Earth god

! God lying down under the sky

GODS & GODDESSES

GODS & GODDESSES

! Hapy

! The Nile god

! Shown with pot belly and water plants

! Responsible for the inundation - yearly flooding of Nile

GODS & GODDESSES

! Hathor ! A feminine cow-goddess

with horned headdress, daughter of Ra.

! Associated with The Milky Way

! Goddess of love and joy

GODS & GODDESSES

GODS & GODDESSES! Horus

! Falcon god

! Son of Osiris.

! God of the sky

! Protector of the pharaoh

GODS & GODDESSES

GODS & GODDESSES! Isis ! Wife of Osiris ! Mother of Horus ! Headdress is a throne ! Name means “She of the

Throne” ! Protective goddess - used

magic to help people

GODS & GODDESSES! Khnum

! Ram-headed god

! Created people on a potter’s wheel

! Also responsible for inundation

GODS & GODDESSES

GODS & GODDESSES

! Khonsu

! Son of Amun & Mut

! His Name means “Wanderer”

! The Moon god

GODS & GODDESSES

! Maat

! Goddess of truth, justice, and order

! Woman with feather on head, or just a feather

GODS & GODDESSES

GODS & GODDESSES

! Menthu

! Ancient god of war.

! Represented strength & victory.

GODS & GODDESSES

GODS & GODDESSES

! Mut

! Wife of Amun.

! Creator goddess

! Name means “Mother”

GODS & GODDESSES

GODS & GODDESSES

! Nekhbet

! Vulture goddess

! Represents Upper Egypt

GODS & GODDESSES

GODS & GODDESSES! Nephthys

! Wife of Seth

! Sister of Osiris

! Protective goddess of the dead

! Headdress is her name in hieroglyphics

GODS & GODDESSES

GODS & GODDESSES! Nut - the sky goddess

GODS & GODDESSES

GODS & GODDESSES! Osiris

! Husband of Isis

! Father of Horus

! God of the underworld

! God of the dead

! Depicted as mummified king/pharaoh

GODS & GODDESSES

GODS & GODDESSES

! Ptah

! God of crafts

! Man with goatee, carrying staff, wrapped loosely in cloak

GODS & GODDESSES

GODS & GODDESSES! Ra

! The sun god

! Most important of Egyptian gods

! Later, other gods would embody powers of Ra

!Ra-Horakty, Amun-Ra

GODS & GODDESSES

! Sekhmet

! Fierce lioness wife of Ptah

! Goddess of war

GODS & GODDESSES

GODS & GODDESSES

! Seth

! God of chaos, violence, & bad weather

! Unidentified animal

GODS & GODDESSES

GODS & GODDESSES

! Shu

! God of the air

! Man wearing a headdress with feathers, holding up the sky

GODS & GODDESSES

GODS & GODDESSES

! Sobek

! Nile god

! Man with the head of a crocodile

GODS & GODDESSES

GODS & GODDESSES! Taweret

! Head of a hippo with the arms and legs of a lion, the back and tail of a crocodile, and the breasts and stomach of a pregnant woman.

! patron of women in childbirth

GODS & GODDESSES

GODS & GODDESSES

! Tefnut

! The goddess of moisture

! Wife of Shu

! Mother of Geb (earth) and Nut (sky)

GODS & GODDESSES! Thoth

! The divine scribe

! Inventor of writing, associated with the Ibis bird

! Gave the Egyptians the gift of hieroglyphics

GODS & GODDESSES

GODS & GODDESSES

! Wadjet

! Cobra goddess

! Represents Lower Egypt