Re

From ArchaeoWiki

Re (also tranlisterated Ra) was the sun god par excellence in ancient Egyptian belief. Commonly regarded as the preeminent deity within the Egyptian pantheon, the identity of Re coalesced with that of many other solar and other deities throughout Egyptian history while retaining his own individuality—perhaps the most of important of these syncretisms were Re-Harakhty (as the morning sun), with Atum (as the setting sun), and as Amun-Re.

Forms and Iconography

Stela of the Lady Taperet. Twenty-second Dynasty. Painted wood: height 31 cm, width 29 cm, thickness 2.60 cm. Musée du Louvre Département des Antiquités égyptiennes E 52

The sun-god Re could be depicted in a number of diverse forms. The three most common depictions were:

• As the fiery disc of the sun, an inanimate object, normally enclosed by the protective uraeus and frequently equipped with the oustretched wings of a falcon;

• As a falcon wearing the solar disc upon its head, a fully theriomorphic image;

• As divine male figure represented semi-anthropomorphically with the head of a falcon, ram or scarab.

Bibliography

• Assmann, Jan [1995], Egyptian Solar Religion in the New Kingdom: Re, Amun and the Crisis of Polytheism, (translated from the German by Anthony Alcock), [Studies in Egyptology], London: Kegan Paul International, 1995. ISBN 071030465X

• Bács, T.A. [1992], "Amun-Re-Harakhti in the Late Ramesside Royal Tombs", in Luft, U. (ed.), The Intellectual Heritage of Egypt: Studies Presented to Laszlo Kakosy by Friends and Colleagues on the Occasion of His 60th Birthday, [Studia Aegyptiaca 14], Budapest: La Chaire d'Egyptologie de l'Universite Eotvos Loránd de Budapest, 1992, pp.43-53.

• Müller, M., "Re and Re-Horakhty", OEAE III, pp.123-126.

• Onstine, S. [1995], "The Relationship Between Osiris and Re in the Book of Caverns", JSSEA 25 (1995), pp.66-77, pls.5-7.

• Quirke, Stephen [2001], The Cult of Ra. Sun-Worship in Ancient Egypt, Thames and Hudson, 2001. ISBN 0500051070