Egyptian hieroglyph
Egyptian hieroglyphs (, ) were the formal writing system used in Ancient Egypt, used for writing the Egyptian language. Hieroglyphs combined logographic, syllabic and alphabetic elements, with some 1,000 distinct characters.There were about 1,00 ...
representing gold (𓋞
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S12), phonetic value ''nb'', is important due to its use in the Horus-of-Gold name, one of the
Fivefold Titulary
The royal titulary or royal protocol is the standard naming convention taken by the pharaohs of ancient Egypt. It symbolised worldly power and holy might, also acting as a sort of mission statement for the duration of a monarch's reign (although s ...
names of the Egyptian pharaoh.
In its determinative usage, it identifies any precious metal,
and as an ideogram in "gold" specifically (Egyptian ''nbw'', whence Coptic ''nūb'').
The hieroglyph represents a large gold and pearl necklace. Old Kingdom scenes show dwarfs metalworking the gold, and "stringing the pearls of gold".
Derived forms
Three variants of the gold hieroglyph are ligatured with another hieroglyph:Betrò, 1994, ''Hieroglyphics: The Writings of Ancient Egypt,'' p. 176.
S14-(silver) Gold and
mace (club)
A mace is a blunt weapon, a type of club or virge that uses a heavy head on the end of a handle to deliver powerful strikes. A mace typically consists of a strong, heavy, wooden or metal shaft, often reinforced with metal, featuring a head made ...
for "silver."
S13 Egyptian language ''nbi'', for "gild", or "gilt." (Gold and
Foot
The foot ( : feet) is an anatomical structure found in many vertebrates. It is the terminal portion of a limb which bears weight and allows locomotion. In many animals with feet, the foot is a separate organ at the terminal part of the leg made ...
).
S14A Gold and was scepter-("uas scepter"), for "electrum", ''dj'm.''
Usage
Horus-of-Gold name
One of the older uses of the gold hieroglyph is for the Horus-of-Gold, G8 name. Also known as the ''Golden Horus Name'', this form of the pharaoh's name typically featured the image of a Horus falcon perched above /or beside the hieroglyph for gold.
The meaning of this particular title has been disputed. One belief is that it represents the triumph of
Horus
Horus or Heru, Hor, Har in Ancient Egyptian, is one of the most significant ancient Egyptian deities who served many functions, most notably as god of kingship and the sky. He was worshipped from at least the late prehistoric Egypt until the P ...
over his uncle
Seth
Seth,; el, Σήθ ''Sḗth''; ; "placed", "appointed") in Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Mandaeism, and Sethianism, was the third son of Adam and Eve and brother of Cain and Abel, their only other child mentioned by name in the Hebrew Bible. A ...
, as the symbol for gold can be taken to mean that Horus was "superior to his foes". Gold also was strongly associated in the ancient Egyptian mind with eternity, so this may have been intended to convey the pharaoh's eternal Horus name.
Similar to the
Fivefold Titulary
The royal titulary or royal protocol is the standard naming convention taken by the pharaohs of ancient Egypt. It symbolised worldly power and holy might, also acting as a sort of mission statement for the duration of a monarch's reign (although s ...
Nebty name, this particular name typically was not framed by a cartouche or serekh. It always begins with the depiction of the horus falcon perched above a representation of the sun-(hieroglyph).N5
The combination of the Horus falcon and the gold hieroglyph is frequently found on Ancient Egyptian pectorals (see image).
Gold
In the Old EgyptianPalermo Stone inscription (late 24th or early 23rd century BC),
the hieroglyph is used in the phrases "first counting of gold" and "collar of gold".
One spelling of the word "gold", ''nbw'', in the Egyptian language, uses the melted nugget determinative, N33B (a small circle), and the plural strokes (3-strokes).
Late Period coinage
One of the few coins minted for ancient Egypt is the
gold stater
The stater (; grc, , , statḗr, weight) was an ancient coin used in various regions of Greece. The term is also used for similar coins, imitating Greek staters, minted elsewhere in ancient Europe.
History
The stater, as a Greek silver curre ...
, issued during the
30th Dynasty
The Thirtieth Dynasty of Egypt (notated Dynasty XXX, alternatively 30th Dynasty or Dynasty 30) is usually classified as the fifth Dynasty of the Late Period of ancient Egypt. It was founded after the overthrow of Nepherites II in 380 BC by Nectane ...
. The reverse of the gold stater shows a horse reared up on its hind legs. The obverse has the two hieroglyphs for ''nfr'' and ''nb'': ''"Perfect gold"'', or a common-era term: '' 'Fine'-gold''.
File:Goddess Nephthys with gold hieroglyph, Louvre.jpg, Goddess
Nephthys
Nephthys or Nebet-Het in ancient Egyptian ( grc-gre, Νέφθυς) was a goddess in ancient Egyptian religion. A member of the Great Ennead of Heliopolis in Egyptian mythology, she was a daughter of Nut and Geb. Nephthys was typically paired wi ...
upon the ''Gold hieroglyph'', sarcophagus of Ramesses III
File:Totenbuch.jpg,
Book of the Dead
The ''Book of the Dead'' ( egy, 𓂋𓏤𓈒𓈒𓈒𓏌𓏤𓉐𓂋𓏏𓂻𓅓𓉔𓂋𓅱𓇳𓏤, ''rw n(y)w prt m hrw(w)'') is an ancient Egyptian funerary text generally written on papyrus and used from the beginning of the New Kingdom ...
detail, goddesses on gold, with djed pillar, ankh, Ra, and baboons
File:Unas stelae.jpg, Columnar
stele
A stele ( ),Anglicized plural steles ( ); Greek plural stelai ( ), from Greek , ''stēlē''. The Greek plural is written , ''stēlai'', but this is only rarely encountered in English. or occasionally stela (plural ''stelas'' or ''stelæ''), whe ...