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Narmer Macehead
The Narmer macehead is an ancient Egyptian decorative stone Mace (bludgeon), mace head. It was found in the "main deposit" in the temple area of the ancient Egyptian city of Nekhen (Hierakonpolis) by James Quibell in 1898. It is dated to the Early Dynastic Period (Egypt), Early Dynastic Period reign of king Narmer (c. 31st century BC) whose ''serekh'' is engraved on it. The macehead is now kept at the Ashmolean Museum, Oxford. The longitudinally drilled limestone macehead is 19.8 centimeters high, has a maximum diameter of 18.7 centimeters, and weighs 8 kilograms with mueum number AN1896–1908 E.3631 Motifs The Narmer macehead is better preserved than the Scorpion Macehead and has had various interpretations. One opinion is that, as for the Narmer Palette, Palette, the events depicted on it record the year it was manufactured and presented to the temple, a custom which is known from other finds at Hierakonpolis. A theory held by earlier scholars, including Flinders Petrie, Petri ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Serekh
In Egyptian hieroglyphs, a serekh is a rectangular enclosure representing the niched or gated façade of a palace surmounted by (usually) the Horus falcon, indicating that the text enclosed is a royal name. The serekh was the earliest convention used to set apart the royal name in ancient Egyptian iconography, predating the later and better known cartouche by four dynasties and five to seven hundred years. Appearance A serekh was an ornamental vignette combining a view of a palace façade and a plan (top view) of the royal courtyard. The term ''serekh'' derives from the Egyptian word for "façade". Different serekhs on different types of object display countless variations of the façade decor in its complexity and detail. It seems that no strict artistic rules for the design of the serekh itself existed.Jürgen von Beckerath: ''Handbuch der ägyptischen Königsnamen''. Münchner Ägyptologische Studien. Bd. 49. Philipp von Zabern, Mainz 1999, , p. 7-9.Rolf Gundlach: ''Horus ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Red Crown
Deshret () was the Red Crown of Lower Egypt. It was red bowl shaped with a protruding curlicue. When combined with the Hedjet (White Crown) of Upper Egypt, it forms the Pschent (Double Crown), in ancient Egyptian called the ''sekhemti''. The Red Crown in Egyptian language hieroglyphs eventually was used as the vertical letter "n". The original "n" hieroglyph from the Predynastic Period and the Old Kingdom was the sign depicting ripples of water. The word Deshret also referred to the desert Red Land on either side of Kemet (Black Land), the fertile Nile river basin. Significance In mythology, the earth deity Geb, original ruler of Egypt, invested Horus with the rule over Lower Egypt. The Egyptian pharaohs, who saw themselves as successors of Horus, wore the ''deshret'' to symbolize their authority over Lower Egypt. Other deities wore the ''deshret'' too, or were identified with it, such as the protective serpent goddess Wadjet and the creator-goddess of Sais, Neith, who often ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hierakonpolis Objects At Time Of Discovery
Nekhen (, ), also known as Hierakonpolis (; , meaning City of Hawks or City of Falcons, a reference to Horus; ) was the religious and political capital of Upper Egypt at the end of prehistoric Egypt ( 3200–3100 BC) and probably also during the Early Dynastic Period ( 3100–2686 BC). Located in Upper Egypt about 100 kilometers south of the modern-day city of Luxor, Nekhen has been the subject of extensive archeological research over the past one and half centuries, and has yielded a large number of artifacts that give a greater understanding to this period of ancient Egyptian history. The city was the center of cult worship of the god Horus, who is said to have his origins in Nekhen as its tutelary deity. Tombs, temples, breweries, houses, and other structures have all been discovered that date back to the predynastic era. The oldest known tomb with painted decoration, known as the Painted Tomb, is located in Nekhen and is thought to date to c. 3500–3200 BC. It shares disti ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Standard-bearer
A standard-bearer, also known as a colour-bearer or flag-bearer, is a person who bears an emblem known as a standard or military colours, i.e. either a type of flag or an inflexible but mobile image, which is used (and often honoured) as a formal, visual symbol of a state, prince, military unit, etc. This can either be an occasional duty, often seen as an honour (especially on parade), or a permanent charge (also on the battlefield); the second type has even led in certain cases to this task being reflected in official rank titles such as Chorąży, Ensign, Cornet, Fähnrich and Alferes/ Alférez. Role In the context of the Olympic Games, a flagbearer is the athlete who carries the flag of their country during the opening and closing ceremonies. While at present a purely ceremonial function, as far back as Roman warfare and medieval warfare bearing the standard had an important role on the battlefield. The standard-bearer acted as an indicator of where the position of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Horus
Horus (), also known as Heru, Har, Her, or Hor () in Egyptian language, Ancient Egyptian, is one of the most significant ancient Egyptian deities who served many functions, most notably as the god of kingship, healing, protection, the sun, and the sky. He was worshipped from at least the late prehistoric Egypt until the Ptolemaic Kingdom and Egypt (Roman province), Roman Egypt. Different forms of Horus are recorded in history, and these are treated as distinct gods by Egyptology, Egyptologists."The Oxford Guide: Essential Guide to Egyptian Mythology", Edited by Donald B. Redford, Horus: by Edmund S. Meltzer, pp. 164–168, Berkley, 2003, . These various forms may be different manifestations of the same multi-layered deity in which certain attributes or Syncretism, syncretic relationships are emphasized, not necessarily in opposition but complementary to one another, consistent with how the Ancient Egyptians viewed the multiple facets of reality. He was most often depicted as ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hathor
Hathor (, , , Meroitic language, Meroitic: ') was a major ancient Egyptian deities, goddess in ancient Egyptian religion who played a wide variety of roles. As a sky deity, she was the mother or consort of the sky god Horus and the sun god Ra, both of whom were connected with kingship, and thus she was the mother goddess, symbolic mother of their earthly representatives, the pharaohs. She was one of several goddesses who acted as the Eye of Ra, Ra's feminine counterpart, and in this form, she had a vengeful Aspect (religion), aspect that protected him from his enemies. Her beneficent side represented music, dance, joy, love, sexuality, and maternal care, and she acted as the consort of several male deities and the mother of their sons. These two aspects of the goddess exemplified the women in ancient Egypt, Egyptian conception of femininity. Hathor crossed boundaries between worlds, helping deceased ancient Egyptian conception of the soul, souls in the transition to the ancien ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Nome (Egypt)
A nome (, from , ''nomós'', "district") was a territorial division in ancient Egypt. Each nome was ruled by a nomarch (, "Great Chief"). The number of nomes changed through the various periods of the history of ancient Egypt. Etymology The term ''nome'' comes from Ancient Greek νομός ''nomós'' meaning "pasture" extended to "dwelling" and "district"; the Ancient Egyptian term was ( /sɛpɑt/). Today's use of the Ancient Greek rather than the Ancient Egyptian term came about during the Ptolemaic period, when the use of Greek was widespread in Egypt. The availability of Greek records on Egypt influenced the adoption of Greek terms by later historians. History Dynastic Egypt The division of ancient Egypt into nomes can be traced back to prehistoric Egypt (before 3100 BC). These nomes originally existed as autonomous city-states, but later began to unify. According to ancient tradition, the ruler Menes completed the final unification. Not only did the division into ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Register (art)
In art and archaeology, sculpture and painting, a register is a horizontal level in a work that consists of several levels arranged one above the other, especially where the levels are clearly separated by lines. Modern comic books typically use similar conventions. It is thus comparable to a row, or a line in modern texts. In the study of ancient writing, such as cuneiform and Egyptian hieroglyphs, "register" may be used of vertical compartments like columns containing writing that are arranged side by side and separated by lines, especially in cylinder seals, which often mix text and images. Normally, when dealing with images it only refers to row compartments stacked vertically. The use of registers is common in Ancient Egyptian art, from the Narmer Palette onwards, and in medieval art in large frescos and illuminated manuscripts. Narrative art, especially covering the lives of sacred figures, is often presented as a sequence of small scenes arranged in registers ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cloak
A cloak is a type of loose garment worn over clothing, mostly but not always as outerwear for outdoor wear, which serves the same purpose as an overcoat and protects the wearer from the weather. It may form part of a uniform. People in many different societies may wear cloaks. Over time, cloak designs have changed to match fashion and available textiles. Cloaks generally fasten at the neck or over the shoulder, and vary in length from the hip to the ankle, with mid-calf being the normal length. They may have an attached hood (headgear) , hood and may cover and fasten down the front, in which case they have holes or slits for the hands to pass through. However, cloaks are almost always sleeveless. Christian clerics may wear a cappa or a cope – forms of cloak – as liturgical vestments or as part of a religious habit. Etymology The word ''cloak'' comes from Old North French ''cloque'' (Old French ''cloche'', ''cloke'') meaning "bell", from Medieval Latin ''clocca'' "travele ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Litter (vehicle)
The litter is a class of wheelless vehicles, a type of human-powered transport, for the transport of people. Smaller litters may take the form of open chairs or beds carried by two or more carriers, some being enclosed for protection from the elements. Larger litters, for example those of the Chinese emperors, may resemble small rooms upon a platform borne upon the shoulders of a dozen or more people. To most efficiently carry a litter, porters either place the carrying poles directly upon their shoulders or use a yoke to transfer the load from the carrying poles to the shoulders. Definitions A simple litter consists of a sling attached along its length to poles or stretched inside a frame. The poles or frame are carried by porters in front and behind. Such simple litters are common on battlefields and emergency situations, where terrain prohibits wheeled vehicles from carrying away the dead and wounded. Litters can also be created quickly by the lashing of poles to a chair ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Naqada III
Naqada III is the last phase of the Naqada culture of ancient Prehistoric Egypt, Egyptian prehistory, dating from approximately 3200 to 3000 BC. It is the period during which the process of state formation, which began in Naqada II, became highly visible, with named kings heading powerful polities. Naqada III is often referred to as Dynasty 0 or the Protodynastic Period to reflect the presence of kings at the head of influential states, although, in fact, the kings involved would not have been a part of a dynasty. In this period, those kings' names were inscribed in the form of serekhs on a variety of surfaces including pottery and tombs. History The Protodynastic Period in ancient Egypt was characterised by an ongoing process of political unification, culminating in the formation of a single state to begin the Early Dynastic Period of Egypt, Early Dynastic Period. Furthermore, it is during this time that the Egyptian language was first recorded in Egyptian hieroglyph , hie ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Upper Egypt
Upper Egypt ( ', shortened to , , locally: ) is the southern portion of Egypt and is composed of the Nile River valley south of the delta and the 30th parallel North. It thus consists of the entire Nile River valley from Cairo south to Lake Nasser (formed by the Aswan High Dam). Name In ancient Egypt, Upper Egypt was known as ''tꜣ šmꜣw'', literally "the Land of Reeds" or "the Sedgeland", named for the sedges that grow there. In Biblical Hebrew it was known as and in Akkadian it was known as . Both names originate from the Egyptian '' pꜣ- tꜣ- rsj'', meaning "the southern land". In Arabic, the region is called Sa'id or Sahid, from صعيد meaning "uplands", from the root صعد meaning to go up, ascend, or rise. Inhabitants of Upper Egypt are known as Sa'idis and they generally speak Sa'idi Egyptian Arabic. Geography Upper Egypt is between the Cataracts of the Nile beyond modern-day Aswan, downriver (northward) to the area of El-Ayait, which places modern- ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
