![]() Other gods, like Osiris and Isis, were usually shown as human but had sacred animals in their temples and legends. Horus had the head of a falcon, Bast was the cat goddess, and Anubis was the jackal. One Greek writer claimed that so few animals lived in the Egyptian desert that every one was considered sacred. The Egyptian gods were often associated with specific animals. ![]() An Unusual AnimalĮven Set’s iconography set him apart as a force of disorder. While Osiris represented the bounty and culture of Egypt, Set was the god of the harsh desert, chaos, and foreigners. Most of Set’s mythology would similarly paint him as the opposite of his regal brother. This appears to be largely unmentioned in Egyptian writings, however, and may have been added by later writers to add symmetry to the pairing of Osiris and Isis. Many later sources claimed that Set had married his sister Nephtys shortly after they were born. In one version of the story, Nut spit him out, while in another he tore his way out of his mother’s womb. These were Set, Osiris, Isis, Nephthys and, in some versions of the story, the first Horus.Īccording to some legends, Set’s association with disorder and chaos was evident from birth. When Thoth won five days worth of moonlight in a board game, however, he added these days onto the end of the year to keep the solar and lunar years in sync.īecause these five days were not part of the year, Nut was able to have a child on each of them. Ra had cursed Nut to never be able to have a child on any of the calendar days. Set was born to Geb, the earth god, and his sister-wife Nut, the goddess of the sky. As the country became weaker and more fractured, Set’s association with foreign peoples would make him a hated symbol of Late Period Egypt’s rulers. This identification did not last in Egyptian culture, however. Set’s battle with Horus and hatred of Osirus would eventually lead to a tradition in which he was rehabilitated and took on a more benevolent form. Osiris had an heir after his death, however. After killing Osiris, Set took his throne. Set’s most famous myth is that of his brother’s death. Osiris was the king of Egypt and represented its culture and agriculture, while Set was the wild, chaotic god of the desert. In Egyptian mythology, Set was the brother of Osiris.
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