In early

Egyptian mythology Egyptian mythology is the collection of myths from ancient Egypt, which describe the actions of the Egyptian gods as a means of understanding the world around them. The beliefs that these myths express are an important part of ancient Egyp ...

, Anhur (also spelled Onuris, Onouris, An-Her, Anhuret, Han-Her, Inhert) was a god of

war War is an intense armed conflict between states, governments, societies, or paramilitary groups such as mercenaries, insurgents, and militias. It is generally characterized by extreme violence, destruction, and mortality, using regular o ...

who was worshipped in the Egyptian area of

Abydos Abydos may refer to: *Abydos, a progressive metal side project of German singer Andy Kuntz *Abydos (Hellespont), an ancient city in Mysia, Asia Minor * Abydos (''Stargate''), name of a fictional planet in the ''Stargate'' science fiction universe ...

, and particularly in

Thinis Thinis (Greek: Θίνις ''Thinis'', Θίς ''This'' ; Egyptian: Tjenu; cop, Ⲧⲓⲛ; ar, ثينيس) was the capital city of the first dynasties of ancient Egypt. Thinis remains undiscovered but is well attested by ancient writers, incl ...

. Myths told that he had brought his wife,

Mehit Mehit or Mehyt was an ancient Egyptian goddess. In the Early Dynastic period she was depicted as a reclining lioness with three bent poles projecting from her back. In that era she appears in numerous early dynastic sealings and ivory artifact ...

, who was his female counterpart, from

Nubia Nubia () ( Nobiin: Nobīn, ) is a region along the Nile river encompassing the area between the first cataract of the Nile (just south of Aswan in southern Egypt) and the confluence of the Blue and White Niles (in Khartoum in central Sud ...

, and his name reflects this—it means ''(one who) leads back the distant one''. One of his titles was ''Slayer of Enemies''. Anhur was depicted as a bearded man wearing a robe and a headdress with four

feather Feathers are epidermal growths that form a distinctive outer covering, or plumage, on both avian (bird) and some non-avian dinosaurs and other archosaurs. They are the most complex integumentary structures found in vertebrates and a premie ...

s, holding a spear or

lance A lance is a spear designed to be used by a mounted warrior or cavalry soldier (lancer). In ancient and medieval warfare, it evolved into the leading weapon in cavalry charges, and was unsuited for throwing or for repeated thrusting, unlike s ...

, or occasionally as a lion-headed god (representing strength and power). In some depictions, the robe was more similar to a

kilt A kilt ( gd, fèileadh ; Irish: ''féileadh'') is a garment resembling a wrap-around knee-length skirt, made of twill woven worsted wool with heavy pleats at the sides and back and traditionally a tartan pattern. Originating in the Scottish ...

Roles

God of war

Egyptian - Onuris Amulet - Walters 42344

Due to his position as a war god, he was patron of the ancient Egyptian army, and the personification of royal warriors. Indeed, at festivals honoring him, mock battles were staged. During the

Roman era In modern historiography, ancient Rome refers to Roman civilisation from the founding of the city of Rome in the 8th century BC to the collapse of the Western Roman Empire in the 5th century AD. It encompasses the Roman Kingdom (753–509 BC ...

the

Emperor An emperor (from la, imperator, via fro, empereor) is a monarch, and usually the sovereign ruler of an empire or another type of imperial realm. Empress, the female equivalent, may indicate an emperor's wife ( empress consort), mother ( ...

Tiberius Tiberius Julius Caesar Augustus (; 16 November 42 BC – 16 March AD 37) was the second Roman emperor. He reigned from AD 14 until 37, succeeding his stepfather, the first Roman emperor Augustus. Tiberius was born in Rome in 42 BC. His father ...

was depicted on the walls of Egyptian temples wearing the distinctive four-plumed crown of Anhur. The Greeks equated Anhur to their god of war,

Ares Ares (; grc, Ἄρης, ''Árēs'' ) is the Greek god of war and courage. He is one of the Twelve Olympians, and the son of Zeus and Hera. The Greeks were ambivalent towards him. He embodies the physical valor necessary for success in war ...

. In the legend of Olympian gods fleeing from

Typhon Typhon (; grc, Τυφῶν, Typhôn, ), also Typhoeus (; grc, Τυφωεύς, Typhōeús, label=none), Typhaon ( grc, Τυφάων, Typháōn, label=none) or Typhos ( grc, Τυφώς, Typhṓs, label=none), was a monstrous serpentine giant an ...

and taking animal form in Egypt, Ares was said to have taken the form of a fish as Lepidotus or Onuris.

Sky Bearer

Anhur's name also could mean ''Sky Bearer'' and, due to the shared headdress, Anhur was later identified with Shu, becoming ''Anhur-Shu''. He is the son of Ra and brother of

Tefnut Tefnut ( egy, ; cop, ⲧϥⲏⲛⲉ ) is a deity of moisture, moist air, dew and rain in Ancient Egyptian religion.The Routledge Dictionary of Egyptian Gods and Goddesses, George Hart She is the sister and consort of the air god Shu and the ...

if identified as Shu.

High priests of Anhur

* Amenhotep, from the time of

Thutmose IV Thutmose IV (sometimes read as Thutmosis or Tuthmosis IV, Thothmes in older history works in Latinized Greek; egy, ḏḥwti.msi(.w) "Thoth is born") was the 8th Pharaoh of the 18th Dynasty of Egypt, who ruled in approximately the 14th century ...

. Amenhotep's wife Henut was a songstress of Anhur. Their sons Hat and Kenna were Chariot Warriors of His Majesty. Known from a stela now in the

British Museum The British Museum is a public museum dedicated to human history, art and culture located in the Bloomsbury area of London. Its permanent collection of eight million works is among the largest and most comprehensive in existence. It docum ...

(EA 902).''Topographical Bibliography'' Vol. VIII, retrieved fro
Griffith Institute website
May 2010 *

Nebwenenef Nebwenenef was High Priest of Amun at the beginning of the reign of Ramesses II during the 19th Dynasty. Prior to that, Nebwenenef had served as High Priest of Anhur and High Priest of Hathor during the reign of Seti I and possibly even e ...

High Priest of Anhur during the reign of

Seti I Menmaatre Seti I (or Sethos I in Greek) was the second pharaoh of the Nineteenth Dynasty of Egypt during the New Kingdom period, ruling c.1294 or 1290 BC to 1279 BC. He was the son of Ramesses I and Sitre, and the father of Ramesses II. The ...

. Was appointed High Priest of Amun in the beginning of the reign of Ramesses II. * HoriKitchen, K.A., ''Ramesside Inscriptions, Translated & Annotated, Translations'', Volume III, Blackwell Publishers, 1996 * Minmose, son of the High Priest of Anhur Hori and his wife Inty. From the reign of

Ramesses II Ramesses II ( egy, rꜥ-ms-sw ''Rīʿa-məsī-sū'', , meaning "Ra is the one who bore him"; ), commonly known as Ramesses the Great, was the third pharaoh of the Nineteenth Dynasty of Egypt. Along with Thutmose III he is often regarded a ...

. *

Anhurmose Anhurmose was an ancient Egyptian official of the New Kingdom. He was the ''high priest of Anhur'' under Merenptah, but started his career as a military man, most likely under king Ramesses II (reigned about 1279–1213 BC). Anhurmose is mainly kn ...

, from the time of Merenptah. Porter and Moss Topographical Bibliography; Volume V Upper Egypt Griffith Institute * Sishepset, from the time of

Ramesses III Usermaatre Meryamun Ramesses III (also written Ramses and Rameses) was the second Pharaoh of the Twentieth Dynasty in Ancient Egypt. He is thought to have reigned from 26 March 1186 to 15 April 1155 BC and is considered to be the last great mona ...

* Harsiese, mentioned on an

ostracon An ostracon (Greek: ''ostrakon'', plural ''ostraka'') is a piece of pottery, usually broken off from a vase or other earthenware vessel. In an archaeological or epigraphical context, ''ostraca'' refer to sherds or even small pieces of ston ...

in Abydos

In popular culture

Anhur is a playable character in the

multiplayer online battle arena Multiplayer online battle arena (MOBA) is a subgenre of strategy video games in which two teams of players compete against each other on a predefined battlefield. Each player controls a single character with a set of distinctive abilities that ...

, '' SMITE''. Anhur is a Hunter wielding a spear and bears title the Slayer of Enemies and is shown in his (anthropomorphic) lion form maintaining his beard, robe, and a crown incorporating four large feathers. Anhur is a chaotic god in the computer game '' NetHack''/''

Slash'EM ''Slash'EM'' (''Super Lotsa Added Stuff Hack – Extended Magic'') is a variant of the roguelike game ''NetHack'' that offers extra features, monsters, and items. Several of its novel features, such as the Monk class, "conducts" (voluntary ch ...

''. Onuris has a minor role in the 2012 fantasy novel '' The Serpent's Shadow'' as a presumed dead god who is revived in order to destroy the Lord of Chaos, Apophis. Anhur is one of the 20 bosses you fight in the video game Boss Rush: Mythology. The American death metal band

Nile The Nile, , Bohairic , lg, Kiira , Nobiin: Áman Dawū is a major north-flowing river in northeastern Africa. It flows into the Mediterranean Sea. The Nile is the longest river in Africa and has historically been considered the longest riv ...

did two tracks about Anhur in their 2000 album

Black Seeds of Vengeance ''Black Seeds of Vengeance'' is the second album by American technical death metal band Nile, released on September 5, 2000, through Relapse Records. It was the first album in Nile's discography to mark a more complex musical direction, as well as ...

, called ''Masturbating the War God'' and ''Libation Unto the Shades Who Lurk In the Shadows of the Temple of Anhur''.

References

External links

* http://www.religionswissenschaft.uzh.ch/idd/prepublications/e_idd_onuris.pdf Iconography of Onuris] {{Authority control Egyptian gods Nubian gods War gods Ares Lion deities