A stunning wooden fragment from a mummy case depicting the Goddess Isis. Isis is a goddess in Egyptian mythology. She was most prominent mythologically as the wife of Osiris and...
A stunning wooden fragment from a mummy case depicting the Goddess Isis. Isis is a goddess in Egyptian mythology. She was most prominent mythologically as the wife of Osiris and mother of Horus, and was worshipped as the archetypical wife and mother. Her name literally means (female) of throne, i.e. Queen of the throne, which was portrayed by the emblem worn on her head, that of a throne. However, the hieroglyph of her name originally meant (female) of flesh, i.e. mortal, and she may simply have represented deified, historical queens. Her origins are uncertain but are believed to have come from the Nile Delta; however, unlike other Egyptian deities, she did not have a centralised cult at any point throughout her worship. First mentions of Isis date back to the Fifth dynasty of Egypt which is when the first literary inscriptions are found, but her cult became prominent late in Egyptian history, when it began to absorb the cults of many other goddesses. It eventually spread outside Egypt throughout the Middle East and Europe, with temples dedicated to her built as far away as the British Isles. Pockets of her worship remained in Christian Europe as late as the 6th century.
On this outstanding fragment we see a well-known iconography of the Goddess Isis. She is represented hovering, with wings outspread and the Egyptian hieroglyph for the throne on her head. On the sides six lines of hieroglyphics enclosing two canines, most probably a reference to the God Anubi. Over the representation of Isis, we see most probably the Goddess Nut, a goddess of the sky, vault of the heavens, here depicted as a woman arched over the scene.
In the representation of Isis, the wings, the headdress, the colours used, and the gestures depicted all have symbolic meaning:
1. The wings represent the resurrective power of Isis, who fans her wings to give breath back to her dead husband, Osiris. This is reinforced by the green color of the wings because green symbolises both life and resurrection in Egyptian art. The wings also symbolise safety because they are depicted as outspread, which is a protective gesture in Egyptian art.
2. Her headdress is the Egyptian hieroglyph for the throne, which is also the hieroglyph for her name, it represents her magical powers because the throne was believed to possess magical power. In addition to this, the throne represents "the primal order of the beginning" because "in its shapes lies the original mound," which "first emerged from the waters as habitable land". The headdress is here depicted as blue, which symbolises the heavens and the primeval flood (and due to this, life and rebirth) in Egyptian Art. In this way, the headdress symbolises the ability of Isis to give life to a king through the power of the throne.
3. The Goddess holds two ankhs in her hands. The ankh or key of life is an ancient Egyptian hieroglyphic symbol used in Egyptian art and writing to represent the word for "life" and, by extension, as a symbol of life itself. In fact, the hank is an Egyptian hieroglyphic symbol for "life" or "breath of life" (`nh = ankh) and, as the Egyptians believed that one's earthly journey was only part of an eternal life, the ankh symbolizes both mortal existence and the afterlife. It is one of the most ancient symbols of ancient Egypt, often seen with the djed and was symbols, carried by a multitude of the Egyptian gods in tomb paintings (as it is the case here with Isis) and inscriptions and worn by Egyptians as an amulet.