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Ancient Egyptian deities were an integral part of ancient Egyptian religion and were worshiped for millennia. Many of them ruled over natural and social phenomena , as well as abstract concepts [ 1 ] These gods and goddesses appear in virtually every aspect of ancient Egyptian civilization, and more than 1,500 of them are known by name.
Isis [Note 1] was a major goddess in ancient Egyptian religion whose worship spread throughout the Greco-Roman world. Isis was first mentioned in the Old Kingdom ( c. 2686 – c. 2181 BCE ) as one of the main characters of the Osiris myth , in which she resurrects her slain brother and husband, the divine king Osiris , and produces and protects ...
Animal cults, a characteristically Egyptian form of worship, became increasingly popular in this period, possibly as a response to the uncertainty and foreign influence of the time. [136] Isis grew more popular as a goddess of protection, magic, and personal salvation, and became the most important goddess in Egypt. [137]
Egyptian texts list the names of many deities whose nature is unknown, and make vague, indirect references to other gods who are not even named. [2] The Egyptologist James P. Allen estimates that more than 1,400 deities are named in Egyptian texts, [ 3 ] whereas his colleague Christian Leitz says there are "thousands upon thousands" of gods.
Bronze relief of Isis wearing a solar crown (2nd century BC) Isis was venerated first in Egypt. As per the Greek historian Herodotus, writing in the fifth century BC, Isis was the only goddess worshiped by all Egyptians alike, [27] and whose influence was so widespread by that point, that she had become syncretic with the Greek goddess Demeter ...
The second was a shorter reference found on the doorjamb to a room called the Birthplace of Isis where as part of her titulary she was called by the name "Hatmehit, who protects ames-scepter". [ 19 ] As the connection between Isis and Hatmehit became stronger, eventually Isis was shown as part of the Mendesian triad without necessarily being ...
Serapis or Sarapis is a Graeco-Egyptian god. A syncretic deity derived from the worship of the Egyptian Osiris and Apis, [1] Serapis was extensively popularized in the third century BC on the orders of Greek Pharaoh Ptolemy I Soter, [2] as a means to unify the Greek and Egyptian subjects of the Ptolemaic Kingdom.
In recent years some Egyptologists, such as Gerhard Haeny, have argued that there is no clear division between the two. The Egyptians did not refer to mortuary temples by any distinct name. [16] [Note 2] Nor were rituals for the dead and rituals for the gods mutually exclusive; the symbolism surrounding death was present in all Egyptian temples ...