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Egyptian Artifacts

Faience Statue of Isis Feeding Horus

The statue of Isis 𓊨𓏏𓁥 feeding Horus 𓅃𓀭 as a baby is one of the most popular images 𓏏𓅱𓏏𓏦 of the Late Period through the Ptolemaic Period. Symbolically, Isis 𓊨𓏏𓁥 was thought to be the mother 𓅐𓏏𓁐 of the pharaoh 𓉐𓉻 (The Divine Mother), and was often associated with motherhood 𓅐𓏏𓁐, the protection of women, and a user of magic. As Isis 𓊨𓏏𓁥 became a more popular religious figure, she was associated with cosmological order and was considered to be the embodiment of fate by the Romans.

This image 𓏏𓅱𓏏 of a mother 𓅐𓏏𓁐 holding a child is thought to have inspired the well known Catholic images of the Virgin Mary holding Jesus as a baby. The amulet 𓊐𓊪𓅆 and statue was very popular in Roman households, most likely as a symbol of motherhood and family. My Nonno always made sure to point these statues out to us, as he felt they were really important due to the likely influence on Catholic symbolism.