Pages

Wednesday, October 12, 2005

11 - The Cult of Horus and the Origins of Astronomy - Nr. 11

11 - The Cult of Horus
and the Origins of Astronomy - Nr. 11




Figure 5: Falcon Palette, Egyptian Collection (SAS), Munich

The following later artefact shows the "double falcon":



Figure 6: The "Double Falcon" as a simplified representation


This simplified representation[30] was surely the initial stage for the later writing of the so-called Horus name[31] of the king. The Horus name was written in a protective serekh,[32] with the Horus falcon above it.
__________
[30] This Double Falcon is from El-Beda in the Northeast Delta Region of Egypt. See http://xoomer.virgilio.it/francescoraf/hesyra/dynasty0.htm.[31] Dr. Zahi Hawass, in "The Falcon God", writes: "The name "HORUS" stems from the ancient Egyptian word hr (her) which in its simple form was the preposition "above", "upon", so Horus the falcon soars above all the land and its inhabitants, and was the natural symbol of the King who reigns over all Egypt....Horus, represented by the hawk, was the god of the Sky, a symbol of divine Kingship, and protector of the ruling King.... Horus was the god of the Nile Delta (Lower Egypt) and Seth was the god of Upper Egypt.... The Kings of predynastic Egypt were known as the Followers of Horus...." http://www.guardians.net/hawass/horus.htm.
[32] See Königstitel, Das alte Ägypten http://www.selket.de/koenigstitel.htm.