Tag: anubis

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Egyptian Artifacts

Graeco-Roman Stela

This is certainly an interesting stela ๐“Ž—๐“…ฑ๐“†“๐“‰ธ for sure!

This stela ๐“Ž—๐“…ฑ๐“†“๐“‰ธ is made of limestone ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“ˆ™๐“Œ‰ but the craftsmanship is kind ofโ€ฆoff! This is very typical for work from the time period (1st Century B.C.E. – 4th Century A.D.). During the Greek and Roman periods, objects like amulets ๐“Š๐“Šช๐“…†๐“ช, stelae ๐“Ž—๐“…ฑ๐“†“๐“‰ธ๐“ช, statues ๐“„š๐“ˆ–๐“๐“ญ๐“€พ๐“ช, and more were so mass produced that the craftsmanship suffered. Letโ€™s take a look at what is going on!ย 

The top section of the stela ๐“Ž—๐“…ฑ๐“†“๐“‰ธ seems to be trying to follow the traditional Egyptian way – the winged ๐“‚ง๐“Œณ๐“๐“†ƒ sun disc ๐“‡ณ๐“บ and the Uraeus ๐“‡‹๐“‚๐“‚‹๐“๐“†— are roughly carved but are definitely there! This design is known as โ€œ Horus the Behdetiteโ€ and is a representation of Horus ๐“…ƒ๐“€ญ that is popular on stelae ๐“Ž—๐“…ฑ๐“†“๐“‰ธ๐“ช. Under that, two ๐“ป jackals ๐“Šƒ๐“„ฟ๐“ƒ€๐“ƒฅ๐“ฆ are depicted! 

In the middle section, from the left, Anubis ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“Šช๐“…ฑ๐“ƒฃ is depicted holding an ankh ๐“‹น or key which most likely symbolizes his association with/ability to access the underworld (a very Graeco-Roman version of Anubis ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“Šช๐“…ฑ๐“ƒฃ)! Then the four ๐“ฝ people to the right of Anubis ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“Šช๐“…ฑ๐“ƒฃ are identified by the Greek inscription below: “Pekysis, son of Aruotes, and his brother Pachoumis; Tbaikis the elder and Tbaikis the younger.” Pekysis is thought to be the man holding the torch! Osiris ๐“น๐“Šจ๐“€ญ is depicted all the way on the right! 

Thanks to the MET for the Greek translation because I certainly donโ€™t speak Greek! 

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Egyptian Artifacts

Anubis – drawing, hieroglyph or both?

This is another closeup image ๐“๐“…ฑ๐“ from Imhotep’s ๐“‡๐“…“๐“Šต๐“๐“Šช Book of the Dead (Early Ptolemaic Period) at the MET. While this image ๐“๐“…ฑ๐“ is not part of an inscription ๐“Ÿ๐“›๐“ฅ, this is my favorite hieroglyph ๐“Šน๐“Œƒ; Anubis ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“Šช๐“…ฑ๐“ƒฃ on top of a shrine ๐“๐“Šƒ๐“…“๐“‚œ๐“‰!ย 

As many of you know, Anubis ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“Šช๐“…ฑ๐“ƒฃ is my favorite Egyptian god ๐“Šน and he always has been! I get so excited whenever I see Anubis ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“Šช๐“…ฑ๐“ƒฃ in any form of Egyptian art! 

There are two ๐“ป variations of this particular hieroglyph ๐“Šน๐“Œƒ: ๐“ƒฃ and ๐“ƒค. Both can be used pretty much interchangeably and it was mostly style/aesthetics that determined which one was used in inscriptions ๐“Ÿ๐“›๐“ฅ. 

Anubis ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“Šช๐“…ฑ๐“ƒฃ can be written a bunch of different ways in hieroglyphs ๐“Šน๐“Œƒ๐“ช: 

๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“Šช๐“…ฑ๐“ข

๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“Šช๐“…ฑ๐“ƒฃ or ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“Šช๐“…ฑ๐“ƒค

๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“Šช๐“ƒฃ or ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“Šช๐“ƒค

๐“ƒฃ or ๐“ƒค

๐“ข

Once again, style/aesthetics determined which variation was used in inscriptions ๐“Ÿ๐“›๐“ฅ. This is not all of the variations of the name ๐“‚‹๐“ˆ–, but the ones you will see the most! 

Anubis ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“Šช๐“…ฑ๐“ƒฃ is commonly associated with shrines, because he is a god ๐“Šน that is associated with themes surrounding death ๐“…“๐“๐“ฑ (mummification, places of burial). 

While the word in Middle Egyptian for shrine is ๐“๐“Šƒ๐“…“๐“‚œ๐“‰, shrines associated with Anubis ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“Šช๐“…ฑ๐“ƒฃ had their own word! A shrine associated with Anubis ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“Šช๐“…ฑ๐“ƒฃ was called ๐“‰ฑ๐“Šน, or the โ€œGodโ€™s Booth.โ€ 

One of Anubisโ€™ ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“Šช๐“…ฑ๐“ƒฃ titles that commonly appears after his name ๐“‚‹๐“ˆ– in hieroglyphs ๐“Šน๐“Œƒ๐“ช is: ๐“…๐“Šน๐“‰ฑ or โ€œIn front at the Godโ€™s Booth.โ€ 

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Egyptian Artifacts

Wooden Anubis at the Brooklyn Museum

I had the most amazing day at the Brooklyn Museum with my sister and parents! This was the best birthday (May of 2021) I have had in a long time and Iโ€™m so lucky that my family not only supports me in my love of Egypt ๐“†Ž๐“…“๐“๐“Š–, but that they went out of their way to make my day special! Thank you Amanda for following me around and taking pictures ๐Ÿ˜ƒ.

Here I am with a figure of Anubis ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“Šช๐“…ฑ๐“ƒฃ from the Ptolemaic Period! As you all know, Anubis ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“Šช๐“…ฑ๐“ƒฃ is my favorite ancient Egyptian god ๐“Šน so I was really excited to see this beautiful ๐“„ค piece! This wooden ๐“†ฑ๐“๐“บ statue shows Anubis ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“Šช๐“…ฑ๐“ƒฃ in his jackal form. The kneeling position is representative of him guarding the necropolis from high above on a hill/mountain- as was his role as the god of cemeteries (and mummification). Itโ€™s also similar to his determinative hieroglyph ๐“ƒฃ.

One of Anubisโ€™ ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“Šช๐“…ฑ๐“ƒฃ titles is โ€œupon his hill ๐“ถ๐“บ๐“ˆ‹๐“†‘โ€ and this hieroglyphic ๐“Šน๐“Œƒ๐“ช phrase usually follows his name in dedication texts! Another common title associated with Anubis ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“Šช๐“…ฑ๐“ƒฃ is โ€œhe who is in the mummy wrappings ๐“‡‹๐“ถ๐“…ฑ๐“๐“Ž๐“Š–.โ€œ

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Egyptian Artifacts

Mummiform Coffin of Gautseshenu

Mummiform Coffin of Gautseshenu which contains the Weighing of the Heart and other funerary scenes at the Brooklyn Museum.

The Weighing of the Heart scene from the Book of the Dead is my absolute favorite type of religious art from ancient Egypt ๐“†Ž๐“…“๐“๐“Š–. As a kid, I loved it because Anubis ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“Šช๐“…ฑ๐“ข was the central god ๐“Šน in the scene, and Anubis ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“Šช๐“…ฑ๐“ข is my favorite Egyptian god ๐“Šน . As an adult, I love what the scene represents and the symbolism behind it. While I have posted multiple versions of this scene from various Books of the Dead, this is the first time I saw it on a coffin and I was just in awe. Itโ€™s amazing how well preserved it is and how bright the colors are.

For those unfamiliar with the context of the scene, Anubis ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“Šช๐“…ฑ๐“ข weighs the heart ๐“‡‹๐“ƒ€๐“„ฃ of the deceased ๐“…“๐“๐“ฑ against Maatโ€™s ๐“Œด๐“™๐“‚ฃ๐“๐“ฆ feather. If Anubis determines thereโ€™s balance between the two, then the deceased would be presented to Osiris ๐“น๐“Šจ ๐“€ญ by Horus ๐“…ƒ๐“€ญ. This simplified version of the scene is missing Thoth ๐“…ค๐“€ญ and Amemet.

If youโ€™re looking at the coffin ๐“…ฑ๐“‡‹๐“€พ from the front, you can see Khepri ๐“†ฃ๐“‚‹๐“‡‹๐“›(the winged beetle) and the Four Sons of Horus beneath him. I feel like this coffin ๐“…ฑ๐“‡‹๐“€พ is the Sparks Notes version of the Book of the Dead – it kinda gives you some of the most important parts in a very small amount of space!

This coffin ๐“…ฑ๐“‡‹๐“€พ belonged to man named Gautseshenu and is made of cartonnage (ancient paper mache). It is dated to the 25th Dynasty (Third Intermediate Period). It was found in Thebes ๐“Œ€๐“๐“Š–.

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Egyptian Artifacts

The Book of the Dead of Hunefer

ย The Book of the Dead of Hunefer is one of my absolute favorite artifacts, and seeing it in the British Museum was a dream come true for me!

On the top panel, Hunefer (the deceased) stands before the 42 divine judges and pleads their lifetime of truth and moral doings. The Book of the Dead provided the deceased with the words to say so they would pass this trial!

On the bottom panel: This is the Weighing of the Heart ceremony! Letโ€™s start from the left! Anubis ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“Šช๐“…ฑ๐“ƒฃ is leading Hunefer (the deceased) to the scales (not gonna lie, Iโ€™m a little jealous they are holding hands ๐Ÿ˜‚). Here, Anubis ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“Šช๐“…ฑ๐“ข weighs the heart ๐“‡‹๐“ƒ€๐“„ฃ of the deceased ๐“…“๐“๐“ฑ against Maatโ€™s ๐“Œด๐“™๐“‚ฃ๐“๐“ฆ feather (Maat is sitting on top of the scales). If Anubis ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“Šช๐“…ฑ๐“ƒฃ determines thereโ€™s balance between the two ๐“ป, that means that the deceased lived a truthful ๐“™๐“Œด๐“‚ฃ๐“๐“†„ and just ๐“™๐“Œด๐“‚ฃ๐“๐“†„๐“œ life ๐“‹น.

Ammit ๐“‚๐“…“๐“…“๐“ (the Devourer of the Dead/Eater of Hearts) is there waiting to see if the deceased ๐“…“๐“๐“ฑ didnโ€™t live a truthful ๐“™๐“Œด๐“‚ฃ๐“๐“†„ life! If the deceasedโ€™s ๐“…“๐“๐“ฑ heart ๐“‡‹๐“ƒ€๐“„ฃ weighs more than the feather, Ammit ๐“‚๐“…“๐“…“๐“ would eat the heart ๐“‡‹๐“ƒ€๐“„ฃ and the deceased would โ€œdie a second timeโ€ and not live in eternal paradise. Thoth ๐“…ค๐“€ญ records the findings of the ceremony.

If the deceased ๐“…“๐“๐“ฑ passed the Weigning of the Heart, they would be presented to Osiris ๐“น๐“Šจ ๐“€ญ by Horus ๐“…ƒ๐“€ญ and would then enter the Field of Reeds ๐“‡๐“๐“ˆ…๐“‡‹๐“„ฟ๐“‚‹๐“…ฑ๐“†ฐ๐“Š– and live in eternal paradise!

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Egyptian Artifacts

Details of Anubis on a Roman Sarcophagus

For my whole life I have called this piece the โ€œRoman Anubis Mummy!!!โ€

As anyone who has followed me for a while knows, I love absolutely anything that has to do with Anubis ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“Šช๐“…ฑ๐“ƒฃ! He has been my favorite Egyptian god ๐“Šน since I started learning about mythology at six ๐“ฟ years old! Since I was a kid who was obsessed with mummies ๐“‡‹๐“น๐“…ฑ๐“€พ๐“ช too, it makes sense that Anubis ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“Šช๐“…ฑ๐“ƒฃ, god ๐“Šน of mummification and cemeteries would be a favorite of mine!

What is interesting about this image ๐“๐“…ฑ๐“ of Anubis ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“Šช๐“…ฑ๐“ƒฃ though is that he is depicted with the moon ๐“‡‹๐“‚๐“Ž›๐“‡น. Thoth ๐“…ค๐“€ญ is usually represented with the moon (as he is god ๐“Šน of the moon ๐“‡‹๐“‚๐“Ž›๐“‡น along with hieroglyphs ๐“Šน๐“Œƒ๐“ช, writing ๐“Ÿ๐“›๐“ฅ, wisdom etc.), while Anubisโ€™ ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“Šช๐“…ฑ๐“ƒฃ connection to the lunar disc ๐“‡‹๐“‚๐“Ž›๐“‡น is not well understood. One of the earliest images ๐“๐“…ฑ๐“๐“ฆ of Anubis ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“Šช๐“…ฑ๐“ƒฃ with the moon ๐“‡‹๐“‚๐“Ž›๐“‡น actually comes from Hatshepsutโ€™s ๐“‡‹๐“ ๐“ˆ–๐“Žน๐“๐“„‚๐“๐“€ผ๐“ช mortuary temple at Deir el-Bahri ๐“‚ฆ๐“‚‹๐“‚ฆ๐“ฅ๐“‰, in the scene that โ€œconfirmsโ€ that Amun ๐“‡‹๐“ ๐“ˆ– was Hatshepsutโ€™s ๐“‡‹๐“ ๐“ˆ–๐“Žน๐“๐“„‚๐“๐“€ผ๐“ช father ๐“‡‹๐“๐“€€, thus she had the divine right to rule. Other scenes connecting Anubis ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“Šช๐“…ฑ๐“ƒฃ to the moon ๐“‡‹๐“‚๐“Ž›๐“‡น exist, but the relationship between two ๐“ป are not well understood and it is something I wish we knew more about!

This is the mummy ๐“‡‹๐“น๐“…ฑ๐“€พ of a woman ๐“Šƒ๐“๐“‚‘๐“๐“ named Artemidora who lived in Egypt ๐“†Ž๐“…“๐“๐“Š– during the Roman Period (A.D 90-100). The text above Anubis ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“Šช๐“…ฑ๐“ƒฃ reads โ€œArtemidora, daughter of Harpokras, died untimely, aged 27. Farewell.” The images ๐“๐“…ฑ๐“๐“ฆ taken of her mummy ๐“‡‹๐“น๐“…ฑ๐“€พ using radiographic techniques confirm this age of death. Big thanks the @metmuseum for the translation, because while I can read and translate hieroglyphs ๐“Šน๐“Œƒ๐“ช I certainly do not know Greek!

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Egyptian Artifacts

Anubis and Osiris – Cool Pieces at the Petrie Museum

This photo ๐“๐“…ฑ๐“ has two ๐“ป cool things: an interesting limestone ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“ˆ™๐“Œ‰ piece that represents Anubis ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“Šช๐“…ฑ๐“ƒฃ (left) and a wooden ๐“†ฑ๐“๐“บ piece that represents Osiris ๐“น๐“Šจ๐“€ญ (right). While neither piece is โ€œgrand,โ€ they pose some interesting questions because they are quite unique!

Letโ€™s start with Anubis ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“Šช๐“…ฑ๐“ƒฃ (because heโ€™s my favorite)! Anubis ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“Šช๐“…ฑ๐“ƒฃ is seated on a shrine (very similar in style to one of his determinative โ€œ๐“ƒฃโ€ hieroglyphs ๐“Šน๐“Œƒ๐“ช). The ears are strange here because they are beautifully ๐“„ค carved, but the limestone ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“ˆ™๐“Œ‰ between them was not cut away. Was this a stylistic choice or was the piece unfinished? We will probably never know! Anubis ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“Šช๐“…ฑ๐“ƒฃ was found at Saqqara and dates to the 26th Dynasty.

The Osiris ๐“น๐“Šจ๐“€ญ piece is also a bit strange. It is a large wooden ๐“†ฑ๐“๐“บ figure that has been put into a base during modern times (to display easier). Osiris ๐“น๐“Šจ๐“€ญ is shown in his typical mummiform ๐“‡‹๐“น๐“…ฑ๐“€พ way – wearing the Atef Crown ๐“‹š and holding the crook ๐“‹พ and flail ๐“Œ… in his hands. Whatโ€™s interesting is that the figure is very โ€œblockyโ€ – there are absolutely no fine details shown. Ancient Egyptian artists were known for fine details so again the question is: is the piece intended to look like this or is it incomplete? Osiris ๐“น๐“Šจ๐“€ญ is dated to the 30th Dynasty – Ptolemaic Period and was also found at Saqqara.

Also totally unrelated but you can see the ushabti ๐“†ท๐“„ฟ๐“ฏ๐“ƒ€๐“๐“ฎ๐“€พ necklace from my previous post in the background of this picture ๐“๐“…ฑ๐“!!

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Reading Hieroglyphs

Inscription – “Before Anubis”

Here is a piece of an inscription ๐“Ž˜๐“…ฑ๐“Ž– from a Middle Kingdom sarcophagus ๐“ŽŸ๐“‹น๐“ˆ–๐“๐“Šญ at the MET.

Letโ€™s read some hieroglyphs ๐“Šน๐“Œƒ๐“ช!!

๐“๐“‚‹ – Before
๐“ƒฃ – โ€œAnubisโ€

A very simple inscription ๐“Ž˜๐“…ฑ๐“Ž–, but something that was important for the deceased ๐“…“๐“๐“ฑ since Anubis ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“Šช๐“…ฑ๐“ƒฃ was tasked with the protection of the mummy ๐“‡‹๐“น๐“…ฑ๐“€พ! In order for ancient Egyptians ๐“†Ž๐“๐“€€๐“๐“ช to journey through the Duat ๐“‡ผ๐“„ฟ๐“๐“‰ and eventually reach the Field of Reeds ๐“‡๐“๐“ˆ…๐“‡‹๐“„ฟ๐“‚‹๐“…ฑ๐“†ฐ๐“Š–, the mummy ๐“‡‹๐“น๐“…ฑ๐“€พ/body of the deceased ๐“…“๐“๐“ฑ needed to remain intact! So a person definitely wanted to be near Anubis ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“Šช๐“…ฑ๐“ข!

Anubisโ€™ ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“Šช๐“…ฑ๐“ƒฃ name ๐“‚‹๐“ˆ– Can be written many different ways! Here are some common variations:
๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“Šช๐“…ฑ๐“ƒฃ
๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“Šช๐“ƒฃ
๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“Šช๐“…ฑ
๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“Šช๐“…ฑ๐“ข
๐“ƒฃ
๐“ƒค
๐“ข

Much like in English and other languages, the same words could have different spellings! In ancient Egypt ๐“†Ž๐“…“๐“๐“Š–, most of the time the different spellings had to do with the space that was available on the piece that was being inscribed!

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Egyptian Artifacts

Anubis Engraving on a Sarcophagus

Anubis ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“Šช๐“…ฑ๐“ƒฃ has been my favorite god ๐“Šน since I was a child ๐“๐“‡Œ๐“€•. Why is he my favorite? Here are some fun facts about Anubis ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“Šช๐“…ฑ๐“ƒฃ so you can see why!

Anubis ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“Šช๐“…ฑ๐“ƒฃ is the god of mummification, graveyards/cemeteries, funerals, tombs ๐“‡‹๐“ซ๐“Šƒ๐“‰๐“ฆ and a bunch of other things associated with death ๐“…“๐“๐“ฑ. Even as a kid ๐“๐“‡Œ๐“€•, I was fascinated by mummies ๐“‡‹๐“น๐“…ฑ๐“€พ๐“ช and the process of mummification, so by default Anubis ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“Šช๐“…ฑ๐“ƒฃ is my favorite!

The name ๐“‚‹๐“ˆ–โ€œAnubisโ€ is actually the Hellenistic version of his name ๐“‚‹๐“ˆ– – the Egyptians ๐“†Ž๐“๐“€€๐“๐“ช called him Inpw.

Anubis ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“Šช๐“…ฑ๐“ƒฃ is usually represented by the jackal ๐“Šƒ๐“„ฟ๐“ƒ€๐“ƒฅ or having the head ๐“ถ๐“ค of a jackal ๐“Šƒ๐“„ฟ๐“ƒ€๐“ƒฅ because these canines were often found in cemeteries.

Anubis ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“Šช๐“…ฑ๐“ƒฃ has no temples ๐“‰Ÿ๐“๐“‰๐“ฆ dedicated to him because every tomb/cemetery was considered a โ€œtempleโ€ to Anubis ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“Šช๐“…ฑ๐“ƒฃ!

Anubis ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“Šช๐“…ฑ๐“ƒฃ can be written a bunch of different ways in hieroglyphs: ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“Šช๐“…ฑ๐“ข, ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“Šช๐“…ฑ๐“ƒฃ, ๐“ƒฃ.

Here are some titles that Anubis ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“Šช๐“…ฑ๐“ƒฃ is commonly associated with. His name ๐“‚‹๐“ˆ– appears with these a lot in hieroglyphic inscriptions:
๐“ถ๐“บ๐“ˆ‹ ๐“†‘ – โ€œUpon his hillโ€
๐“… ๐“Šน ๐“‰ฑ – โ€œIn front at the Godโ€™s boothโ€ (shrine)
๐“‡‹๐“ถ๐“…ฑ๐“๐“Ž๐“Š– – โ€œHe who is in the mummy wrappingsโ€

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Egyptian Artifacts

Roman Anubis

I love this statue ๐“„š๐“ˆ–๐“๐“ญ๐“€พ of Anubis ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“Šช๐“…ฑ๐“ƒฃ so much! I think itโ€™s gorgeous ๐“„ค!! Heโ€™s Roman-ified and wearing a toga!! Itโ€™s a really nice piece and one of my favorites in the Vatican! My sister ๐“Œข๐“ˆ–๐“ even joined me for this picture ๐“๐“…ฑ๐“!

Anubis ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“Šช๐“…ฑ๐“ƒฃ is the Egyptian god ๐“Šน of mummification, burial rites and tombs ๐“‡‹๐“ซ๐“Šƒ๐“‰๐“ฅ/cemeteries. However, when Egypt ๐“†Ž๐“…“๐“๐“Š– was conquered by Rome, Anubis ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“Šช๐“…ฑ๐“ƒฃ was likened to the Roman god ๐“Šน Mercury! Mercury had many functions, but one of the traits that related him to Anubis ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“Šช๐“…ฑ๐“ƒฃ was that Mercury guided souls ๐“‚“๐“‚“๐“‚“ of the deceased ๐“…“๐“๐“ฑ to the underworld/afterlife ๐“‡ผ๐“„ฟ๐“๐“‰. It was part of Mercuryโ€™s function as the messenger god ๐“Šน!

In this statue ๐“„š๐“ˆ–๐“๐“ญ๐“€พ, Anubis ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“Šช๐“…ฑ๐“ƒฃ is even holding a caduceus in his hand – a symbol often associated with Mercury. Anubis ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“Šช๐“…ฑ๐“ƒฃ is also looking quite fashionable with his Roman style sandals ๐“ฟ๐“ƒ€๐“๐“‹ธ๐“ฆ!

As you all know, Anubis ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“Šช๐“…ฑ๐“ƒฃ is my favorite ancient Egyptian god ๐“Šน. I also love this statue ๐“„š๐“ˆ–๐“๐“ญ๐“€พ because it shows the blending of the Egyptian and Roman religions which happened after Egypt ๐“†Ž๐“…“๐“๐“Š– was defeated by Rome during the Battle of Actium.

The Battle of Actium (September 12th, 31 B.C.E.) was the last battle of the Roman Republic and gave rise to the Roman Empire (and the fall of Egypt ๐“†Ž๐“…“๐“๐“Š–). The battle was fought between Octavian and Marc Antony/Cleopatra VII ๐“ˆŽ๐“ƒญ๐“‡‹๐“ฏ๐“Šช๐“„ฟ๐“‚ง๐“‚‹๐“๐“„ฟ๐“†‡. With Octavianโ€™s victory, he secured his place as the first Emperor of Rome.