Why egyptian gods have animal heads

There are also theriomorphic depictions, where gods are shown entirely in animal form. These are quite common, and in fact were the most common representations of gods in the very earliest periods of Egyptian history. For example, Anubis as a black jackal, or Thoth as either an ibis or a white baboon. Taweret was even a hybrid of hippo, crocodile and lioness. It is the same reasoning behind why Christians equate Jesus with the lamb, or why we give angels wings. It's mentioned in the Coffin Texts that only the dead can know the true forms of the gods.

Every image is an imperfect means of making a god visible, characterizing his nature, and distinguishing him from other deities. The animal heads and various headdresses are meant to tell us something about the gods, and to distinguish them in artwork.

Wepwawet, "the opener of the ways," was shown in jackal form, or with a jackal head because they stylized the jackal as sleek, fast, and agile. Piper was partially right but her answer is not entirely correct. The other reason is because they were shape shifters. Horus could become a full-on falcon,Anubis could become a jackal and Seth Set could even become what I think is an aardvark.

However,the case of them having animal heads was something they had to begin with. Sign up to join this community. Khepri was often depicted as a male figure with a whole beetle set onto his shoulders. This took on a different form to other hybrid deities, who would only utilise the head of the animal on top a human body. Khepri was associated with creation and new life, as a subsidiary of the principal creator and sun-god, Ra. Scarab beetles had several functions for the ancient Egyptians and came in various forms.

Scarab amulets were probably the most common type, and replicas make rather popular souvenirs in Egypt and international museums today. They are mostly small and are usually pierced on either end, indicating that they were to be used in rings, necklaces and bracelets by the owner. They could be made from a variety of stones, the most recognisable probably being the blue faience scarabs which were popular in the New Kingdom. This compact size meant large-scale distribution was much easier.

A larger type of scarab amulet came in the form of the heart scarab. These were inscribed with a chapter from the Book of the Dead and were placed on top of the mummy or close to it.

The function of the heart scarab was to prevent the heart of the deceased individual from speaking out against the owner during judgement in the underworld — this was crucial if the individual was to pass safely into the Kingdom of Osiris. It was thought that the heart scarab could control the memory and responsiveness of the dead. Large scarabs were also utilised by the royal family to make announcements — these were known as commemorative scarabs.

Through this method, news of royal achievements could be spread among the population, as a kind of propaganda - there was no internet or television to do this for them! Scarab beetles were clearly an important part of life and death, as a symbol of protection, creation and regeneration for the ancient Egyptians — certainly not the flesh-eating villains portrayed in popular culture! The majority of the Egyptian artefacts in the Historic World Objects collections came from archaeological investigations of ancient Egyptian sites.

Reading Museum responded to appeals for financial support for their excavations from both the Egypt Exploration Society and the British School of Archaeology in Egypt. With the permission of the Egyptian Antiquities Service contributing museums received many of the objects uncovered.

The legacy of this system is that objects from the same season of excavation on the same site can be shared between many museums all over the world. The ancient Egyptians worshipped a multitude of gods and goddesses, and an understanding of this is crucial to unlocking the secrets to Egyptian religion and mythology. Worship of the gods often involved people making regular offerings, accompanied by invocation, in order to ensure a continued and benign presence in their lives.

Animals were mummified in the thousands in order to appease the gods and seek their favour. The object of worship was not the animals themselves, but the gods that took on their forms — animals acted as a kind of messenger between the people and the gods. In this blog we have provided merely a taste of the many sacred animals that the ancient Egyptians worshipped, chosen due to their specific qualities and behaviours, and reflected in the deity that they epitomised.

Religion and mythology were central to the lives of the ancient Egyptians, and central to their religion were the deities they worshipped. The physical form of the deities allowed cultic or personal interaction with their gods, and whether it be in full animal form or a mix of animal and human, the ancient Egyptian sacred animals still to this day infuse a sense of mystery and wonder. Whatever your experience or background, there are lots of ways to explore more ancient history at Reading Museum.

Learn about our virtual school sessions , available for classrooms all over the world, browse our online collections , keep reading the Reading Museum blog , or visit our online gift shop! Sacred animals of ancient Egypt. See all posts. Animals in ancient Egypt Whether as deities, pets, symbols of fertility, or objects of fear, protection and luck, animals played a significant role in both royal and non-royal life in ancient Egypt, featuring heavily in everyday secular and religious activities.

In this blog, we take a closer look at some of the most sacred animals of ancient Egypt. Cat Cats are depicted in tomb scenes as early as the Old Kingdom over years ago and it is in this context that we first see their domestication. Romano-Egyptian seated wooden cat figure of Gayer-Anderson type museum object number Copper-alloy head of a cat, representing the goddess Bastet, 26th Dynasty museum object number This Egyptian mummified cat was x-rayed by the Royal Berks Hospital and a video of the work made for a Meridian TV show in February museum object number Dog In Egyptian religion, there were a number of canine deities.

Faience amulet in the form of Anubis the jackal-headed god. Ibis The sacred ibis was worshipped from Predynastic times c. Figure of a striding ibis from the Palace of Apries Memphis, Egypt museum object number Figure of the god Thoth with an Ibis head and wearing wig and shendyt kilt museum object number Baboon The baboon can be seen in imagery from as early as the Predynastic Period and it played a significant role in ancient Egyptian religion and cosmology.

Flat silhouette of the god Sobek or perhaps Hapi, son of Horus in mummiform. Hippopotamus The hippopotamus was the largest animal indigenous to Egypt, but sadly, it has been completely extinct there since the early 19th century.

Green faience amulet of the hippopotamus goddess Taweret, from Hu in Egypt museum object number Scarab beetle The sacred scarab beetle was modelled on the indigenous Egyptian dung beetle and is probably one of the most recognisable images from ancient Egypt.

Finely detailed iridescent green scarab apparently on a copper base, possibly modern museum object number Animals of mystery and wonder The ancient Egyptians worshipped a multitude of gods and goddesses, and an understanding of this is crucial to unlocking the secrets to Egyptian religion and mythology. Find out more Whatever your experience or background, there are lots of ways to explore more ancient history at Reading Museum. Related content.

The journey to the Kingdom of the West: mummification in Ancient Egypt 25 Jan Learn about the process of mummification and the journey to the afterlife in Ancient Egypt. Our Collections Our collections tell the story of Reading and its place in the world.

Reading Museum shop Visit our Museum shop either in person or online! These are spells used by priests in th 3rd to 5th centuries AD, and some of them involve summoning the gods. Although sometimes they seem to appear in their normal forms, quite often they seem to look something like glowing balls of light.

Who knows. You have very interesting points but you failed to examine zoology. For thousands of years bones having human and animal features have been found all over the world. One of the most famous is that of an eight year old boy whose scull was crushed. He had horns , sharp teeth and the appearance of both man and animal. We as human beings live in fear and therefore we come up with theories to help us sleep better at night.

The world is not safe and never has been. Man is primitive as well as his place on earth. The three main religions in the world speak of heavenly host. Some say giants , seraphims , cherubims and many more have breeded with man kind over the years creating hybrids, superior humans , mutants and leaving tales of their renown stories in every culture.

Therefore any time we began to prove or disprove stories we must look at the trail they left behind. You are commenting using your WordPress.

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