Anhur
From ArchaeoWiki
Anhur (also, Anhurt; Egyptian: Jn-ḥr.(t), commonly known also by the Greek form of his name, Onuris) was an ancient Egyptian deity of war and hunting, originating in the Thinite region around Abydos in Upper Egypt.
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Origins and Mythology
Function
Anhur-Onuris was later identified by the Greeks with their war deity Ares, the Romans maintaining this broad martial interpretation of Onuris—this may be seen in a depiction of Tiberius on a Kom Ombo column shaft, which shows the emperor to be wearing the characteristic plumed crown of the deity.
Forms and Iconography
Anhur was usually portrayed anthropomorphically as a standing adult male figure, bearded and wearing a short wig. As headdress, the god is normally depicted with uraeus and crowned with either two or four tall plumes. The deity customarily stands with his right hand raised as if to thrust downwards a spear. His left hand frequently grasps a length of rope that perhaps symbolises his role in capturing his lioness consort. Anhur is most commonly garbed in a long (ankle- or calf-length) kilt that is often decorated with a feather-like pattern.
Cult and Worship
The original focus of the Anhur cult lay at This, near Abydos in Upper Egypt. In later times, however, the centre of his veneration was in the Delta city of Sebennytos (present-day Samannud) where he was worshipped alongside or as an aspect of the god Shu. At this particular site, a temple of the syncretic Onuris-Shu was erected during the Thirtieth Dynasty reign of Nectanebo II—it seems that worship of the god, however, definitely anticipated the building of this temple.
Silver and bronze amulets of Onuris are known from Late Period burials in a variety of locations.
Bibliography
- Endrodi, Julia [1992], "Nähe und Ferne. Der Auftakt zur "Onurislegende" in Luft, Ulruch (ed.), The Intellectual Heritage of Egypt. Studies presented to László Kákosy by Friends and Colleagues on the Occasion of his 60th Birthday, [Studies Kákosy], [Studia Aegyptiaca 14], Budapest 1992, pp.125-136. ISBN 9634625428
- The concepts nearness and distance function in this study about the god Onuris in his earliest form (up to the F.I.P.). Evidence for the divine couple Onuris and Mehit and a shared cult before the N.K. is negative. The mentions of other divinities such as Hathor, Min and Thoth in the Naga ed-Deir cemetery material do not permit to conclude that these are a kind of company for Onuris as local god of Thinis. The circumstance that Thinis was a centre of communication with distant places explains the association of its local god with distance (the component Hrt in his name). The verb ini has the connotation of movement towards the centre, Egypt. In ancient Egypt, the activity of bringing home the distant was related to the idea of civilization. This leads the author to a close relationship between Onuris and the king. Onuris was an aspect of the king, deified in Thinis, where in the Archaic Period the royal image was manufactured.
