
A radiant or radiate crown, also known as a solar crown, sun crown, Eastern crown, or tyrant's crown, is a
crown
A crown is a traditional form of head adornment, or hat, worn by monarchs as a symbol of their power and dignity. A crown is often, by extension, a symbol of the monarch's government or items endorsed by it. The word itself is used, partic ...
,
wreath
A wreath () is an assortment of flowers, leaves, fruits, twigs, or various materials that is constructed to form a circle .
In English-speaking countries, wreaths are used typically as household ornaments, most commonly as an Advent and C ...
,
diadem
A diadem is a type of Crown (headgear), crown, specifically an ornamental headband worn by monarchs and others as a badge of royalty.
Overview
The word derives from the Ancient Greek, Greek διάδημα ''diádēma'', "band" or "fillet", fr ...
, or other headgear symbolizing the sun or more generally powers associated with the sun. Apart from the
Ancient Egyptian form of a disc between two horns, it is shaped with a number of narrowing bands going outwards from the wearer's head, to represent the rays of the sun. These may be represented either as flat, on the same plane as the circlet of the crown, or rising at right angles to it.
History
In the iconography of
ancient Egypt, the solar crown is taken as a disc framed by the horns of a ram or cow. It is worn by deities such as
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 ...
in his solar or hawk-headed form,
Hathor
Hathor ( egy, ḥwt-ḥr, lit=House of Horus, grc, Ἁθώρ , cop, ϩⲁⲑⲱⲣ, Meroitic: ) was a major 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 ...
, and
Isis
Isis (; ''Ēse''; ; Meroitic language, Meroitic: ''Wos'' 'a''or ''Wusa''; Phoenician language, Phoenician: 𐤀𐤎, romanized: ʾs) was a major ancient Egyptian deities, goddess in ancient Egyptian religion whose worship spread throughou ...
. It may also be worn by
pharaoh
Pharaoh (, ; Egyptian: '' pr ꜥꜣ''; cop, , Pǝrro; Biblical Hebrew: ''Parʿō'') is the vernacular term often used by modern authors for the kings of ancient Egypt who ruled as monarchs from the First Dynasty (c. 3150 BC) until th ...
s.
In
Ptolemaic Egypt, the solar crown could also be a radiate diadem, modeled after the type worn by
Alexander the Great
Alexander III of Macedon ( grc, Ἀλέξανδρος, Alexandros; 20/21 July 356 BC – 10/11 June 323 BC), commonly known as Alexander the Great, was a king of the ancient Greek kingdom of Macedon. He succeeded his father Philip II to ...
(as identified with the sun god
Helios
In ancient Greek religion and Greek mythology, mythology, Helios (; grc, , , Sun; Homeric Greek: ) is the deity, god and personification of the Sun (Solar deity). His name is also Latinized as Helius, and he is often given the epithets Hyper ...
) in art from the mid-2nd century BC onward. It was perhaps influenced by contact with the
Shunga Empire, and a
Greco-Bactrian
The Bactrian Kingdom, known to historians as the Greco-Bactrian Kingdom or simply Greco-Bactria, was a Hellenistic-era Greek state, and along with the Indo-Greek Kingdom, the easternmost part of the Hellenistic world in Central Asia and the Ind ...
example is depicted at the great
stupa
A stupa ( sa, स्तूप, lit=heap, ) is a mound-like or hemispherical structure containing relics (such as '' śarīra'' – typically the remains of Buddhist monks or nuns) that is used as a place of meditation.
In Buddhism, circumam ...
of
Bharhut. The first ruler of Egypt shown wearing this version of a solar crown was
Ptolemy III Euergetes
, predecessor = Ptolemy II
, successor = Ptolemy IV
, nebty = ''ḳn nḏtj-nṯrw jnb-mnḫ-n-tꜢmrj'Qen nedjtinetjeru inebmenekhentamery''The brave one who has protected the gods, a potent wall for The Beloved Land
, nebty_hie ...
(246–222 BC).
In the
Roman Empire
The Roman Empire ( la, Imperium Romanum ; grc-gre, Βασιλεία τῶν Ῥωμαίων, Basileía tôn Rhōmaíōn) was the post- Republican period of ancient Rome. As a polity, it included large territorial holdings around the Medite ...
, the solar crown was worn by
Roman emperors, especially in association with the cult of
Sol Invictus
Sol Invictus (, "Unconquered Sun"), sometimes simply known as Helios, was long considered to be the official Solar deity, sun god of the later Roman Empire. In recent years, however, the scholarly community has become divided on Sol between tradi ...
, influenced also by radiate depictions of Alexander. Although
Augustus
Caesar Augustus (born Gaius Octavius; 23 September 63 BC – 19 August AD 14), also known as Octavian, was the first Roman emperor; he reigned from 27 BC until his death in AD 14. He is known for being the founder of the Roman Pr ...
is shown wearing one in a posthumous coin, after his deification, and
Nero
Nero Claudius Caesar Augustus Germanicus ( ; born Lucius Domitius Ahenobarbus; 15 December AD 37 – 9 June AD 68), was the fifth Roman emperor and final emperor of the Julio-Claudian dynasty, reigning from AD 54 unt ...
on at least one coin while he was alive, it only became common, and sometimes usual, on coins in the 3rd century. Histories record that
Gallienus at least wore an actual crown in public. The solar crown worn by
Constantine, the first emperor to convert to Christianity, was reinterpreted as representing the "
Holy Nails".
Much later, the radiate crown became associated with
Liberty personified, usually in a form as though a circular disc with radiating rays in different directions was worn. This may first appear in the
Great Seal of France
The Great Seal of France (french: Grand Sceau de la République française) is the official seal of the French Republic. After the 1792 revolution established the First French Republic, the insignia of the monarchy was removed from the seal. Ov ...
from 1848 (and under subsequent French republics), and is best known from the ''
Statue of Liberty''. From the Renaissance on the ancient
Colossus of Rhodes
The Colossus of Rhodes ( grc, ὁ Κολοσσὸς Ῥόδιος, ho Kolossòs Rhódios gr, Κολοσσός της Ρόδου, Kolossós tes Rhódou) was a statue of the Greek sun-god Helios, erected in the city of Rhodes, on the Greek isl ...
, a statue of Helios, was often shown with such a crown, although its appearance is now uncertain.
File:Aegis with incrusted eyes N3960 mp3h8698.jpg, Egyptian aegis
The aegis ( ; grc, αἰγίς ''aigís''), as stated in the ''Iliad'', is a device carried by Athena and Zeus, variously interpreted as an animal skin or a shield and sometimes featuring the head of a Gorgon. There may be a connection with a d ...
(from the Louvre
The Louvre ( ), or the Louvre Museum ( ), is the world's most-visited museum, and an historic landmark in Paris, France. It is the home of some of the best-known works of art, including the ''Mona Lisa'' and the ''Venus de Milo''. A central l ...
)
File:Egyptian - Head of Amun-Re - Walters 481717.jpg, Amen-Re, wearing a tall feather crown and sun disk (715–664 BC)
File:Ilion---metopa.jpg, Helios in his chariot, early 4th century BC, Temple of Athena
Athena or Athene, often given the epithet Pallas, is an ancient Greek goddess associated with wisdom, warfare, and handicraft who was later syncretized with the Roman goddess Minerva. Athena was regarded as the patron and protectress of ...
, Ilion
File:Alexander of Epirus.JPG, Coin issued by Alexander, King of Epirus (333-330 BC)
File:PtolemyIV.jpg, Coin of Ptolemy IV Philopator
egy, Iwaennetjerwymenkhwy Setepptah Userkare Sekhemankhamun Clayton (2006) p. 208.
, predecessor = Ptolemy III
, successor = Ptolemy V
, horus = ''ḥnw-ḳni sḫꜤi.n-sw-it.f'Khunuqeni sekhaensuitef'' The strong youth whose ...
, depicting his deified father Ptolemy III (d. 222 BC)
File:Helios with chlamys Louvre AO7530.jpg, Helios wearing the chlamys (Tripoli
Tripoli or Tripolis may refer to:
Cities and other geographic units Greece
*Tripoli, Greece, the capital of Arcadia, Greece
*Tripolis (region of Arcadia), a district in ancient Arcadia, Greece
* Tripolis (Larisaia), an ancient Greek city in t ...
, 1st century AD)
File:Clipeus Helios Terme.jpg, Helios in a clipeus
In the military of classical antiquity, a ''clipeus'' (, Ancient Greek: ἀσπίς) was a large shield worn by the Greek hoplites and Romans as a piece of defensive armor, which they carried upon the arm, to protect them from the blows of t ...
, detail from a Roman sarcophagus, early 3rd century AD
File:Louis-Apollo1.jpg, Ballet costume worn by Louis XIV of France
, house = Bourbon
, father = Louis XIII
, mother = Anne of Austria
, birth_date =
, birth_place = Château de Saint-Germain-en-Laye, Saint-Germain-en-Laye, France
, death_date =
, death_place = Palace of V ...
, playing Apollo
Apollo, grc, Ἀπόλλωνος, Apóllōnos, label=genitive , ; , grc-dor, Ἀπέλλων, Apéllōn, ; grc, Ἀπείλων, Apeílōn, label=Arcadocypriot Greek, ; grc-aeo, Ἄπλουν, Áploun, la, Apollō, la, Apollinis, label= ...
, 1653
File:Great Seal of France.svg, Great Seal of France
The Great Seal of France (french: Grand Sceau de la République française) is the official seal of the French Republic. After the 1792 revolution established the First French Republic, the insignia of the monarchy was removed from the seal. Ov ...
, 1848
File:Arms of Sir Isaac Heard.svg, Coat of arms
A coat of arms is a heraldic visual design on an escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the latter two being outer garments). The coat of arms on an escutcheon forms the central element of the full heraldic achievement, which in it ...
of Isaac Heard, its escutcheon
Escutcheon may refer to:
* Escutcheon (heraldry), a shield or shield-shaped emblem, displaying a coat of arms
* Escutcheon (furniture), a metal plate that surrounds a keyhole or lock cylinder on a door
* (in medicine) the distribution of pubic ha ...
describing Neptune
Neptune is the eighth planet from the Sun and the farthest known planet in the Solar System. It is the fourth-largest planet in the Solar System by diameter, the third-most-massive planet, and the densest giant planet. It is 17 time ...
's headpiece as an ''"Eastern crown"''
See also
*
Crown of justification
In ancient Egyptian religion, the crown of justification ''(mꜣḥ n mꜣꜥ ḫrw'') was a wreath or fillet worn by the deceased to represent victory over death in the afterlife. Its symbolism is based on Chapter 19 of the '' Book of the Dead, ...
*
Crown of thorns
According to the New Testament, a woven crown of thorns ( or grc, ἀκάνθινος στέφανος, akanthinos stephanos, label=none) was placed on the head of Jesus during the events leading up to his crucifixion. It was one of the inst ...
*
Crowns of Egypt
*
Halo
Halo, halos or haloes usually refer to:
* Halo (optical phenomenon)
* Halo (religious iconography), a ring of light around the image of a head
HALO, halo, halos or haloes may also refer to:
Arts and entertainment Video games
* Halo (franchise), ...
*
Horned deity
Notes
References
*
*
*
*
*
{{Refend
Crowns (headgear)
Sun myths
Sol Invictus
Helios