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Who
was Horus?
Horus was the Egyptian solar god and protector
of the monarchy who symbolized courage and
victory. Although he was represented as many
different manifestations he is famous for the
mythology relating to the 'Osiris myth' in which
he took revenge on the evil Set for murdering
Osiris and usurping his throne. Horus then
became the mythical king of Egypt.
Facts about Horus
The following facts and profile provides a fast
overview of Horus:
Horus Profile & Fact File
Egyptian Name:
Horus
Role & Function:
The function of Horus is described
as being the solar god and protector
of the monarchy, courage &
vanquishing enemies
Status:
Horus was a member of the
Ennead of
Heliopolis. He also featured in
various
Triads of Egyptian gods
Symbols:
The Wedjat, later called the Eye of
Horus, the falcon
Alternative Names:
Horus the Elder, Horus the Child and
Horus the Uniter. He was also known
as Heru, Hor, Harendotes (Horus the
Avenger), Harsomtus, Harpocrates and the Lord of the Two
Lands
Name of Father:
Osiris
Name of Mother:
Isis
Names of
Children: Ihy,
Imsety, Hapy, Duamutef, Qebehsenuef,
the Four
Sons of Horus, the protectors of
canopic jars used in mummification
Horus in Egyptian Mythology
Horus, the Egyptian solar god, the protector
of the monarch and the vanquisher featured in
the stories, myths and legends in Egyptian
Mythology, in particular with the myth
surrounding Osiris. In the creation myth of
the gods of the Ennead of Heliopolis Horus
was the son of Isis and Osiris, the mythical
king and queen who ruled Egypt. Set, the
brother of Osiris and Isis, murdered Osiris
and usurped the throne of Egypt. Isis
impregnated herself from the corpse of her
husband and subsequently gave birth to Horus
in secrecy at Khemmis in the Nile delta. She
hid the child from Set in the papyrus
swamps. When Horus became older he battled
with the evil Set and vanquished him, then
took his rightful place as the ruler of
Egypt and the kingdoms of both Upper and
Lower Egypt were united. During their
battle, which lasted for eighty years, Set
had torn out the left eye of Horus (the
moon) which he was forced to return it by a
council of the gods.
Horus the Uniter
The victory of Horus over the evil Set
resulted in the unification of Upper and
Lower Egypt. The Egyptian pharaoh was
believed to be an incarnation of the god and
formed part of his name. The pharaoh was
said to become Horus after death. His role
in the unification of Upper and Lower Egypt
is clearly indicated by the Pshent double
crown he wears.
The Sons of Horus
He was closely connected with the Underworld
and performed duties of a friendly nature
for the dead. The Sons of Horus whose names
were Imsety, Hapy, Duamutef and Qebehsenuef
also performed funerary duties in respect of
mummification. They were the guardians of
the special containers, called canopic jars,
that held the liver, lungs, stomach and
intestines were placed in special containers
called canopic jars. Qebehsenuef was
depicted as a mummified man with the head of
a hawk who protected the intestines. Hapy
was depicted as a mummified man with the
head of a baboon and protected the lungs.
Duamutef was depicted as a mummified man
with the head of a jackal and protected the
stomach. Imsety was depicted as the
mummified man-headed god who protected the
liver.
Manifestations of Horus
In the passing of time ancient Egyptian
myths emerged detailing different
manifestations of Horus referring to his
birth and secret rearing by Isis, his battle
against Set, his position at Heliopolis,
associated with the rising sun, and linked
with
Ra, the Supreme Solar God
in the sun cult. Others referred to
avenging his father's murder, as symbol of
resurrection, linked with the setting sun
and his role in uniting Upper and Lower
Egypt.
Reference to Horus in the Coffin Texts
The Coffin Texts are a collection of ancient
Egyptian funerary spells written on coffins
beginning in the First Intermediate Period
which were partly derived from the earlier
pyramid texts. A combination of the Pyramid
texts and the Coffin texts eventually formed
the famous
Book of the Dead. A passage from the
Coffin Texts (passage 148) describes Horus
in his own words:
"I am Horus, the great Falcon upon the
ramparts of the house of him of the hidden
name. My flight has reached the horizon. I
have passed by the gods of Nut. I have gone
further than the gods of old. Even the most
ancient bird
could not equal my very first flight. I have
removed my place beyond the powers of Set,
the foe of my father Osiris. No other god
could do what I have done.
I have brought the ways of eternity to the twilight of the morning. I am
unique in my flight.
My wrath will be turned against the enemy of
my father Osiris
and I will put him beneath my feet in my
name of 'Red Cloak'."
The 'Eye of Horus'
The "Eye
of Horus"
was one of the most important
Egyptian
Symbols
symbolizing of royal power, protection and
good health. It is depicted as a human eye
and symbolically with the long tail and
brows which are the markings of a hawk. It
was a fetish that was believed
to embody magical powers and offer
magical protection. It also had the power
to heal the living and protect the
dead.
Facts about
Horus in Egyptian Mythology
Discover interesting information and research facts
about
Horus, the Egyptian solar god and protector
of the monarchy. The facts
about Horus provides a list detailing
fascinating additional info to increase your
knowledge about Horus in Egyptian Mythology.
Mythology and Facts about Horus
Fact 1:
The idea of Horus as the Pharaoh was
superseded by the concept of the Pharaoh as
the son of the solar Ra during the Fifth
Dynasty of Egypt in the period called the
Old Kingdom
Fact 2:
Described as a sky god, this also included
jurisdiction over the sun and the moon
Fact 3:
He was also revered as a god of war and
hunting, due to the myth concerning his
vanquishing of Set
Fact 4:
In some myths the goddess
Hathor is regarded
as his mother and sometimes as his wife
Fact 5:
He was the protector, teacher and guide to
the pharaoh
Fact 6:
In his manifestation of Ra-Harakhte, a
combining with the god Ra, he was the god of
the sun and took it on its daily path across
the sky and represented as a falcon-headed
man wearing the solar disk and the double
crown
Fact 7:
There were at least fifteen distinct forms
of the god. When the Greeks conquered Egypt
under Alexander the Great, they transformed
the Egyptian Horus into their Hellenistic
god known as Harpocrates meaning "Horus the
Child").
Fact 8:
His name in
Hierolglyphics looked like this - look
carefully at the picture of the god and you
will see his symbol in the hieroglyphs |
