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Papyrus Painting: the Boat |
The picture shows a papyrus
painting from the Book of the Dead, found in the tomb of Heruben. It
shows the Eye of Horus, and the sacred bark called Uraeus.
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| Horus
Horus was the god of the sky, shown as a man with a falcon's head, or just as a falcon. His eye was supposed to be magical, giving protection from harm.
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Horus was the son of Osiris and Isis. The pharaoh was supposed to be Horus on earth. That is why in the picture to the left, Horus is wearing the crown of Egypt. Horus was based on the Lanner falcon. Can you see its eye markings?
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an Eye of Horus Lanner falcon |
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The Sacred Bark
The boat above is a sacred bark, or a holy boat. Sacred barks were used to keep statues of the gods in. They were made of wood and covered in gold. Usually the god stayed in the sanctuary of his temple, but on festival days he was put in the boat and carried to another temple by priests. |
The picture on the left shows a drawing from a temple wall of priests carrying the sacred bark. At the prow and the stern you can see heads of rams. The ram was the sacred animal of Amun, so this boat contained the god Amun. Amun was the chief god of the New Kingdom. | |
