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Facts about Heryshaf
This article contains fast, interesting, fun facts about Heryshaf for research, schools, students and kids providing an insight into the lives and religious beliefs of the ancient Egyptians.

Heryshaf, the ram-headed creator god of fertility

The Gods of Egypt - Heryshaf Fact Sheet (aka Harsaphes)

Fact 1 on Heryshaf: Also known as Heryshef, he was the ram-headed creator god of fertility and was identified with the sun-god Ra, Atum, Khnum and Osiris, the god of the dead.

Fact 2 on Heryshaf: Epithets for this god include "He who is on his lake", the "King of the Two Lands" and the  "Ruler of the Riverbanks."

Fact 3 on Heryshaf: The cult of the god as recorded on the Palermo Stone date to the first dynasty in the Early Period of Ancient Egypt. The Palermo Stone is a large fragment of a stele known as the Royal Annals of the Old Kingdom of Ancient Egypt. However, the earliest known temple dedicated to the god is dated later.

Fact 4 on Heryshaf: The title of "He who is on his lake" referred to a sacred lake at the temple complex in Heraklepolis that provided water for the purification of priests and symbolically represented the primordial-ocean and renewal as the sun rose over it each day

Fact 5 on Heryshaf: The city of Heraklepolis, aka Hnas, became religious center of the cult of this creator god, and his Temple was constructed between the latter part of the First Intermediate Period and the early Middle Kingdom.

Fact 6 on Heryshaf: Heraklepolis was the Greek rendition of the name of the city and was taken in reference to Herakles or Hercules and Heryshaf became Herakles (Hercules).

Fact 7 on Heryshaf: Heraklepolis remained an important cult center throughout ancient Egyptian history and during the Ptolemaic period of Egypt (332-30 BC), the Greek rulers strived to connect their own gods with the gods of the Egypt and associated Heryshaf with their god Heracles, hence the name given for Herakleopolis.

Fact 8 on Heryshaf: His title of the "King of the Two Lands" refers to the unified kingdoms of Upper and Lower Egypt.

Fact 9 on Heryshaf: In depictions of the god he is depicted wearing the Shuti crown of Egypt. The Shuti crown, meaning the Two Feathers (divine law), consisted of two, tall ostrich or falcon feathers and combined with ram horns, a rearing cobra Uraeus and a sun disk. The shuti crown combines many symbols of ancient Egypt and is closely related to the Atef crown worn by Osiris and the sun disks, the symbol of Ra.

The Gods of Egypt - Heryshaf Fact Sheet

Facts about Heryshaf
Facts and information about Heryshaf for kids with some amazing, cool and quick information about ancient Egypt and Egyptians. These fast interesting facts about Heryshaf are ideal for children, homework, schools, teachers and kids of all ages.

Heryshaf in Egyptian Mythology
Learn about the ancient Egyptian gods and Heryshaf the fast and easy way via the Heryshaf Fact sheet.

The Gods of Egypt - Heryshaf Fact Sheet

Fact 10 on Heryshaf: The earliest temple to the god was built during the period of the Middle Kingdom during the 12th Dynasty. The building of the temple was started by King Senusret II and completed in the reign of Amenemhet III.

Fact 11 on Heryshaf: The temple was re-built during the period of the New Kingdom in the 19th Dynasty by Pharaoh Seti I (r.1290 BC – 1279 BC).

Fact 12 on Heryshaf: His temple was enlarged during the reign of Ramses II aka Ramses the Great (r.1279 BC – 1213 BC) who was one of the greatest pharaohs of Egypt who brought the Egyptian empire and its wealth to its peak. Ramses the Great was a prolific builder who initiated the building of many new temples in Egypt.

Fact 13 on Heryshaf: The fullest description of the god was in a stele erected in his temple at Heraklepolis, however this was removed and transported to the Temple of Isis in Pompeii. The stele is now located in the Naples Museum.

Fact 14 on Heryshaf: The god was worshipped in his temple together with the gods Atum and Osiris.

Fact 15 on Heryshaf: There is considerable confusion between Heryshaf and the other Ram-headed god Khnum who at times appear to be interchangeable. Khnum was the god of the annual inundation of the Nile and of the Nile cataracts (white water rapids) but it is interesting to note that one of the epithets of Heryshaf was the  "Ruler of the Riverbanks."

Fact 16 on Heryshaf: Although the name of this god was one of the least remembered he was one of the important gods of ancient Egypt.

The Gods of Egypt - Heryshaf Fact Sheet