Maria Jose Amor Martinez: mfbx9ma2 Year 3: Certificate Course in Egyptology University of ManchesterThe sites of Seth A study of different places concerning the god Seth Word count 4,959 (excluding the bibliography and front page) I hereby declare that the materials contained in this essay are entirely the product of my own work, that sources used are fully documented and that the whole has not previously been submitted for any other purpose. 1 Index 1.- Introduction 2.- Seth and the environment 3.- Distribution of the Land. Lands of Seth 4.- Cult of Seth in Upper Egypt 5.- Cult of Seth in Lower Egypt 6.- Seth Lord of the Oasis 7.- Seth Lord of the Foreign Lands 8.- Seth Lord of the Sky 9.- Conclusion 2 Illustrations: 1. Seth in his different shapes according to the Bibliography. My outlined. 2. Seth in C-Ware potteries surrounded by mountains and vegetation (Graff 2009, pp. 198-203) 3. Standards in the macehead of the king Scorpion (Petrie 1939, Pl. XXXVIII) 4. Inscription at Gebel Tjauti. My adaptation from Darnell 2002, p.19. 5. My map based upon Gardiner (1947) maps pp. 3,23,51 and 99. 6. Stele of Anhotep (Petrie 1901, PL LXXVIII). Manchester Museum. 7. Winged Seth “Bull of Nebwty” in Asiatic costume. Web 13 8. “Seth Lord of Tjebw” Stele of Nakht, Oriental Institute10510. Gardiner 1947, p. 54. Colored by author. 9. Shaw plants atop the tail of Seth and in the hieroglyphs name of the city, according to Barguet 2000. 10. Seth-Ani/Nemty. “Lord of the East”. Stele in the temple of Hathor at Serabit el-Khadim (te Velde 1967, p. 114) 11. Nemty engraved in the Chapel of Sesostris I at Karnak (Lacau 1969, Pl. 3) 12. The bull Seth-Bata carrying Osiris. Te Velde 1967, Pl. VI 13. Stele of KhaBauSokar. Murray 1905, Pl. I. 14. Fragment of a relief from the Pyramid temple of Wnas at Saqqara. Naydler 2005, p. 306. 15. Avaris, Pi-Rameses and Tanit (Bietak 2003, p.25) 16. Upper part of the 400th Year Stele (Bietak, 2003) 17. Map of the Oasis (Bagnol 1938, p.282) 3 18. Seth/Ash in the sealing of king Peribsen (Petrie 1901 PL. XXII) 19. Stone in the North Kharga Oasis engraved with the god Seth (Photo from web 10) 20. Meskhetyw in the Astronomical Ceiling of Senmut (Photo courtesy of J. Lull) 4 The Sites of Seth “The sites of Horus serve you; the sites of Seth serve you” Pyramid Text spell 213 1.- Introduction During the development of the Egyptian state, three areas were involved. In one side the Nile and its floods, on the other side the eastern desert along with the Sinai Peninsula and, finally, the Western Desert and its Oasis (Midnant Reynes 2000, p. 15). The Nile Valley was a meeting place of many populations who came to the valley from the neighboring deserts due to the long lasting drought that dried the occasional lakes and fertile wadis (Pérez Largarcha 2007, p.39). It had to be very difficult to unify such a miscellaneous people coming with their own gods and manners. In fact, the expression “Uniting the Two Lands” did not appear until the reign of Khasekhemuy (Cialowitcz 1997, p. 57) when Horus and Seth were first reconciled. Myths related to the struggles between Horus and Seth can give an idea of events that actually occurred during the embryonic stage of the Pharaonic state (Griffiths 1958, p.75). Seth was never totally beaten and his worship continued throughout the history of Egypt until Ptolemaic and Roman domination, when he was demonized and his cult limited to some isolated temples located at western oasis. 2.- Seth and the environment The god Seth is usually represented as a canid with a dropped snout and straight ears standing either seated or recumbent. 5 Fig.1 The anthropomorphic figure with the head of Sethian canide is rarely found in the early dynasties. Historically, the first representation of the Seth animal appears during the period denominated Naqada I at the Predynastic cemetery at El Mahasna (Ayrton&Loat 1911, p.31). According to Petrie classification of the ceramic remains, the Sethian animal is only found in the SD 30-39, named C, regarding white figures over dark red background (Graff 2009, p.15). These Sethian images appear in a context closely related to the mountains and vegetation, specially the sedges, which fits very well with the hieroglyphs associated with one of the writings of his name (swty) which means ‘he of the sedge’(Kemp 2006, p. 71). The xAst mountains (Gardiner sign N25) is a determinative related to the desert, which is a common land of Seth as we will see. Fig. 2 The first evidence about warlike conflicts in the Nile Valley, comes from Naqada II onwards (Campagno 2004, p.689). The trace of Sethian animal does not 6 return until Naqada III period, when was featured standing atop a standard in the macehead of King Scorpion.This shows that, by this time being in Egypt, different tribes were organized around a token (Grimal 1988, p. 41). Fig. 3 The standard in the centre shows the Sethian animal flanked by the mountains (left) and the storm god Min (right). The hanging lapwing (rxyt) is, probably, the symbol of original Delta people (Pirene 1965). The scene likely represents the victory of the northern followers of Seth over the people of Delta (Gardiner 1947, p.106). This is the same confederation that appears in a rock shelf at Gebel Tjauti: Fig. 4 7 3.- Distribution of the Land. Lands of Seth Geb, the Earth god, arbitrated between the confrontations of the Two Contenders (Horus and Seth) and decided to grant the Upper Egypt to Seth because it was the land where the god was born; and the Lower Egypt to Horus, for it was the land where his father had drowned (Lichteim1975, p.52). Hereinafter, Geb changed his mind and decided to bestow the entire land to the son of Osiris. The Horus myth of Edfu (Egberts 1997) tells that Seth complained and challenged his nephew to be finally defeated. Geb took pity on Seth and his allies, and sent them to the four cardinal points becoming, thus, the patriarchs of the lands surrounding Egypt: Kushites to the south, Asiatics to the north, Libyans to the west and Bedouins to the east (Egberts1997, p.50). This could be an account for the strong association between Seth and the foreign countries. 4.- Cult of Seth in Upper Egypt Seth is given the title of “Lord of the Nile Valley Land” in the Pyramid Texts (Allen 2005, PT 155). There were cities and temples devoted to Seth until, apparently, the XXV Dynasty when the cult of Seth became extinct (Redford 2002, p.264), at least in the Nile Valley. Due to the frequent instability during the Intermediate Periods, the areas involved in these cities do not always correspond with the geographical boundaries, arranged by the Ptolemies and called nomes. Hence, I have arranged the cities considering the course of the Nile with disregard of the Ptolemaic organization. 8 Fig. 5 9 Seth Lord of Ombos There are two cities linked with “Seth Lord of Ombos”. One is the modern Kôm Ombo, 42 km south of Assuan, on the eastern bank of the Nile. The other is about 4 km on the northwest of the modern Tukh, in the area of Ballas called Ombos. The name of the former in Egyptian hieroglyphs is nbwty and the latter is nebwt (Daressy 1917, p.80). Ombos/Nebwt, was an important bastion for Seth and his followers during the Predynastic period around 3300 b.C. (Wilkinson 1999, p.37). Petrie (1896) found in this site the remains of an old city and a temple devoted to Seth. There are three steles from this temple exhibited in the Manchester Museum. One of them is the Anhotep Stele, where Seth appears as ‘Lord of Nebwty’ referring Kom Ombo: Fig. 6 According to Brugsch (1879, p.318) Seth was worshiped in Kom Ombo under the shape of the crocodile Sobek, deem to be the son of Seth (te Velde 1967, p.150). As we will see, crocodiles and hippopotamus were usually considered manifestations of the god Seth. Another piece from Naqada temple of Seth is located at Petrie Museum, London. Seth is featured standing in front of an offering table with an inscription reading: ‘Seth of Nebwt’, alluding Seth of 10 Ombos (web 7). In the main deposit of this temple, Petrie found pieces out of alabaster with inscriptions describing the labor of enlargement made by Tutmosis III, who is mentioned as: “The good god Menkheperra, beloved of Seth of Nebwt”. In a lintel of the Temple, Seth is referred as ‘Seth of Nebwty, Lord of the Southern Land” (Petrie 1896, Pl LXXIX). In a round topped stele, now at the Glyptotek museum, a bull headed winged Seth is called “Bull of Nebwty”. The bull used to be an icon of Seth: in the Leyden Papyrus, “the son of Nwt” (which is a common epithet of Seth) is called “Bull of the night, Bull of Bull”(Griffith 1974, p.80). Fig. 7 Seth Lord of Wnw and Nashenw These two cities are sited about 50 km north of Denderah, close to the modern Kasr es-Sayed. Seth is referred as the lord of these two cities, in an inscription engraved in the inner side of the exterior wall at Medinet Habu (Gardiner 1947, p.53). 11 Seth Lord of Tjebw Tjebw (Tbw) was the capital city of the X Ptolemaic nome called wADt. Ancient Greeks called it Anteopolis (the city of the giant Anteus) and was settled on the east bank of the Nile. In latter times, the name of the city changed into Djw-Ka (Dw-qa), ‘the high mountain’ (Barguet 1964, p.8), Qau el-Kebir in Arabic. The original deity of this nome was Antewy, portrayed as a double falcon on a boat and assimilated to Seth, as we can see in the stele of Nakht (XVIII Dynasty): Fig. 8 According to Teeter (2003,p.42): “This dual identity is a reflection of the belief that a god could have more than one nature, and that he or she could have the attributes of several deities in order to express the extender power of the god”. This approach is important because all throughout the northern part of Upper Egypt we find the double falcon as the emblem of many cities that could be ancient centers of Seth cult. Over time, the cult of Seth was put aside and replaced by the double falcon, representing the reconciliation between both 12 Horus and Seth (te Velde 1967, p.68). An inscription was found at Qâu showing the priest title sHtp nTrwy, that is to say, ‘Reconciling the two gods’ (Gardiner 1947, p. 53). According to latter versions of the myth, the battle between Horus and Typhon (Seth for the Romans) took place on the river bank close to this city, which was eventually destroyed completely. Today is El-Etmaniyah (Gardiner 1947, p.49). There was a cult to the Sethian animal, the hippopotamus, at Tjebu from the Predynastic period (Lang 1980, p. 361; Gardiner 1947, p.135) shown by a scene of the mayor of Tjebu worshiping a hippopotamus surrounded by papyrus. The inscription here is badly damaged but it could be read as: “Seth, the victorious, the hippopotamus, the Lord of the Tjebw in the nome of wADt” (Brunton 1927, Pl. 32). In the12292 Stele, now at the Oriental Institute in Chicago Illinois, a man called Pa-nehemi stands before Seth as a hippopotamus on pedestal (web 8). Seth of Shashetep This city is located on the western bank of the Nile, about 5 Km south of Asyut, inside the boundaries of the XI Ptolemaic nome. The Sethian canide is atop its standard. According to Budge (1920, p. 1039) and te Velde (1967, p.23) Seth was the local deity. The hymn to Osiris engraved on the sarcophagus of Khnum-Nakht (now in the Manchester Museum) shows the god Khnum as Lord of Shashetep, but, probably, it was a latter association. The text E of the Horus myth engraved 13 at Edfu, mentioned Seth as “The lord of Upper Egypt which has his residence at Shas-Hetep” (Fairmen1935, p. 27). The hieroglyph name of the city features the plants named ‘shaw’ (Gardiner sign M8) that also appear in the Book of the Dead as the lock of hair in the tail of Seth canide (Barguet 2000, p. 132). Fig. 9 The god Shai (the god of Destiny) is determined, in the Stele of Merenptah, by the Seth animal (te Velde 1967, p. 21). Quagebeur (1975, p.144) Brunton (1923, p.68) and Daressy (1916, p175) mention a strong connection among Seth, Ash and Sha, all of them related to the Libyan Desert. Sha (or Shai because it is the same deity) is depicted under the shape of the Seth canide in the northern wall of the tomb of Baqet III (BH 15) at Beni Hasan (Tiradritti 2008, p.187). Meanwhile, in the same area, a relief in the tomb of Petosiris, features the god Shai worshiped at Shashetep as ‘lord of the wine’, another epithet for Seth (te Velde 1967, p.7). Daressy (1916, p.175) established the same relationship between both deities, out of the ancient representation of Sha with the determinative of the Sethian animal. This determinative changed into a swine (SAi in hieroglyphs), when Seth fell from grace (Newberry 1928, p.213). Coffin Texts state that: “It so happened that Seth had transformed himself into a pig” (Faulkner 2004, spell 157) showing that both of them were already connected. 14 Seth of Per Anty Per Anty was the capital of the Ptolemaic Nomo XII of Upper Egypt, likely situated in the eastern bank of the Nile. The name of the nome was Dwf translated as the ‘mountain of the serpent’ and its deity was Anty. According to Corteggani (2007, p.371) Anty was the archaic name of Nemty, the ferryman in the myth referring the contest between Horus and Seth, who was cheated by Isis and had his legs cut (or was skinned in other version) as a punishment inferred by Geb. This gushing skin hanging on a plant is the Nebride which, according to Meeks (2008, p.180) represents Seth. This relationship between Nemty and Seth is clearly shown in the Stele of Sinai: Fig. 10 This Nemty deity appears as that of the nome XVIII (hwt neswt) in the White Chapel of Sesostris I: 15 Fig 11 During the Ptolemaic period, Nemty changed into Dunawy (he who extends his two wings, or claws in other versions). Nevertheless, it was Nemty the deity worshipped here during the early period (Castel 2001, p.110) whose myth was associated to Seth. Seth lord of Saka Saka is settled on the western bank of the Nile, around the current El-Kes. According to the Papyrus Jumilhac (Vandiers 1961, p.131) Seth and his followers reached this area escaping from the allies of Horus. Gardiner and Vandier stated that the Two Brothers, Anubis and Bata, were connected with the two main cities in the area: Hardai and Saka respectively. At the same time, there is a link with the two principal deities devoted in their temples: Anubis and Seth. Seth is worshipped in Saka under the shape of a bull, which is related to the episode of Bata transforming himself into this animal (Lefevre 1982, p.249; Vandier1961, p.131) 16 Fig. 12 As we can see, Seth is frequently referred as a bull. In the Papyrus of Ani, for example, is written: “Who is he? He is Seth. Otherwise said: He is the great Wild Bull” (Faulkner 1998, chapter 17). Seth Lord of Sepermeru Sepermeru was first mentioned during the Rameside period referring both the name of the nome and its capital (Gardiner 1947, p.110). According to Papyrus Harris, Papyrus Wilbour and the Adoption Papyrus, the deity for both of them (the whole nome and its capital) was Seth, who appears as ‘Lord of Sepermeru’ (Gardiner 1947, p. 110). The standard of Sepermeru carries the Oryx animal, strongly associated with Seth (Castel 2001, p.381). The exact location of the city is unknown because there are nothing remaining, but it is to be sought on the western bank of the Bahr Yusuf, a branch of the Nile which, from Asyut, runs along the desert edge (Gardiner 1947, p.47). The list of nomes at the white chapel in Karnak suggests that the capital of this nome was Wnsy, a city devoted to Seth and his divine consort Nephtys (Gardiner 1947, p.11). According to the legend of the contest between Horus and Seth, a great battle 17 took place in this city involving the followers of both contenders. The allies of Seth transformed themselves into hippopotamus and crocodiles, and were finally defeated in this place (Egberts 1997, p.48). According to Daressy (1916, p. 14) they were transformed into oryx, which is the animal standing over the standard of the nome. Seth of Oxyrhynchus Per Medjet, the capital of Oxyrhynchus (current el-Bahnasa) is sited at about 160 Km south of Asyut (Watterson 2003, p.104). Its emblem was two wasscepters over a standard. According to Egberts (1997, p.47) there was also a great battle in this place between the Two Contenders, and Seth with his followers ran to el-Fayium as a consequence. By the Ptolemaic period, this land was consecrated to Igai, a desert deity (portrayed as an anthropomorphic canide-headed figure) called the “Lord of the Southern Oasis” (Fisher 1957, p 224), This title was shared with Seth, as the earliest mention of this deity comes from Khabausokar (III Dynasty) which was at the same time the priest of Anubis, Igai and Seth (Corteggani 2007, p.269) 18 Fig. 13 Seth lord of Sw Sw (also Sesw) was located at the El-Fayium area but the precise place is unknown. In this city, a temple devoted to Seth is documented from the Dynasty XII onwards (Gardiner 1947, p.115). According to the Papyrus Harris, Sw was the birthplace of Seth (Gardiner 1947, p. 115). An inscription in the Rameses III great temple at Medinet Habu says that there was a sanctuary in Sw devoted to “Seth, lord of Sw” (Brugsch 1879, p.752). In the Festival Hall of Tutmosis III at Karnak is written “(Seth) of Nebwty, Lord of the Southern Land, Lord of the Sky, the virtuous son of Nut, the great valuable resident in Sw” (Pleyte 1863, p.11) 19 Fig.14 According to the Ptolemaic myth of Horus, the followers of Seth took refuge in this place after being discovered in Oxirrincus. They stayed here for six days and then had to flee to Silé, in eastern Delta (Egberts1997, p. 52) 5.- Cult of Seth in Lower Egypt Seth lord of Avaris: Seth lord of hwt wart The eastern part of the Delta close to the border, has always been a Sethian area, which stretched out from the north of Sinai until the eastern branch of the Nile. During the Ptolemaic period, it became the nome XIV called Sethroe. The whole domain was devoted to Seth (Bietak 1996, p.82). Hyksos, Ramesides and the kings of XXI and XXII Dynasties built their capitals in this area: Avaris, Pi-Rameses and Tanis respectively. Due to the marshy ground, it has been very difficult to locate the ruins of these cities. Nevertheless thanks to the 20 excavations of Mariette, Montet and Bietak, today we have a good piece of information. Fig. 15 According to Bietak &Müller (2003 p.27) Avaris already existed from the Dynasty XII onwards. The first evidence of a veneration of Seth in this area comes from the obelisk of Nehesy. He appears entitled as ”beloved of Seth, Lord of Avaris” (Bietak1996, p.41). The same name is engraved in an altar belonging to king Apopi II (Hyksos) and devoted to his father ‘Seth of hwt wart’ (Avaris) (Petrie 1907 p.243) so the altar probably came from this city. The location of the temple is not certain, but based upon the Papyrus Anastasi II the temple of Seth was in a southern position regarding the other temples in the city (Bietak 2003, p.33). The most remarkable finding in the area was the 400th Year Stele, re-discovered by Montet at Tanis a few kilometers northwest of Avaris. 21 Fig.16 The stele shows a scene presided by a solar winged disc that covers everything. Beneath the sun, Rameses II offers Seth (wearing a Canaanite tasseled kilt) two globular jars with wine. This stele was erected by Rameses II to commemorate the 400th anniversary of the reign of his ancestor the king "Seth the Ombite" at Avaris. Apopi II had referred Seth of Avaris as his father and hence established a connection between the Hyksos and Ramesides. According to Bietak (1996) it seems clear that all throughout the Hyksos occupation until the end of Rameside period, this area was devoted to Seth as its main deity. Seth of Medjem Medjem was a city located at the edge of the sea, close to the city of Pelusia in the eastern Delta. The Bolonia Papyrus mentions a temple devoted to Seth in this city. The hieratic text is directed by the prophet Praemhib from the temple of Seth, to the steward Sethy asking for his help (Brugsch 1879, p. 401). 22 6.- Seth lord of the Oasis The main oasis of Egypt are located in the Western desert. They are the remains of early Neolithic seasonal lakes which grouped the nomad population who wandered the savanna, when the rains started to decrease (Hendrick &Vermersh 203, p.28) The most important are: Kharga, Dahklah, Farafra and Siwa. Fig.17 Although the archeology in the area is still in its beginnings, the cult of Seth is documented in Kharga, Dakhla and Siwa. Throughout the history of Egypt, the cult of Seth had been displaced to these bordering areas. The first 23 representation of the Lord of the Oasis is engraved in a seal of the king Sekhemib featuring the god Ash in the shape of Seth. Fig. 18 According to Wilkinson (1999, p.282), the anthropomorphic figure features the god Ash absorbing Seth, as a way of syncretism. Ash (also referred as Sha) is given the epithet : “He from Nebwt”, that is to say Seth. The temple of Seth at Kharga Hebet, the ancient capital of Kharga Oasis was located between the Nile Valley and the foothills of Gebels al-Teir and Nadura. Remains were found of a temple devoted to Amun in the centre of the city dated from XXVI Dynasty (Vivian 2000, p.76). An outstanding colorful relief of Seth overcoming the serpent Apophis can be seen inside the monument. Seth is portrayed in blue in the shape of a winged falcon that seems to be Horus, but the inscription says: “words said by stx”, so it is clearly Seth in his traditional function of slaying Apophis (web 14). 24 Recently, drawings carved in a rock have been found in the northern Kharga Oasis featuring Seth (Ikram, web 10) Fig. 19 Seth in Dakhla Oasis The temple of Seth at Mut el-Kharab was particularly active during the Libyan period (Kaper 2009, p.158). Seth is named ‘Lord of the Oasis’ in a stele of pharaoh Shoshenq I (XXII Dynasty) found at Dakhla Oasis, which contains the oracular words of Seth given to the king during a sed festival (te Velde 1969, p.115). There is also a relief of the emperor Vespasian offering flowers to Seth and Hathor at Deir el Haggar. But the earliest attestation of the cult of Seth in the Oasis is written in the votive statue of Penbast found in the temple of Deir-el Haggar at the western edge of Dakhla Oasis (Kaper 1997 p. 231). The statue, badly damaged, was found amidst the debris while clearing the temple. It represents an unknown Egyptian goddess (probably Nephtys, the wife of Seth) with an inscription of a Seth priest called Penbast saying: “Seth Great of Strength, the son of Nut, may he grant life, wellbeing and health to the High 25 Priest of Seth Penbast”, (Kaper 1997, p.232). Both Nephtys and Seth were venerated in Dakhla as the Lord and Mistress of the Oasis until the Roman period (Kaper 1997, p.233). Another votive statue was found in the area with the inscription “Seth Lord of the Ankhet” (an unknown city for now) and published by H. Jacquet-Gordon (Kaper 1997, p.236). The Smaller Dakhla Stele (dated from the XXII or XXV Dynasties according to Jansen 1968, p. 160) was found near the village of Mwt (the capital city) with an incised text in hieratic that reads: “Utterance by Swtekh, great of Strength, the Son of Nut”. This stele features Seth in the shape of a falcon-head god with a sun-disk in his head. As we can see, although the cult of Seth at the Oasis was supported until the latter periods, he changed his earlier representation as a canide animal (from Predynastic until XXII Dynasty) into a falcon. Seth in Siva Oasis Siva Oasis stretches at the northwest of Egypt, in the border to Libya. The groundwater here is saline, so the aridity is extreme. The Amun temple at Siva was very famous (particularly during the latter times) because of the oracle. Alexander the Great came to this place to hear the Oracle of Amun, who declared him his beloved son. During the reign of Nectanebo II, Wenamun, “the great chief of foreign lands”, engraved a relief performing himself kneeling before Seth and other deities. During the latter times, the cult of Seth was eventually forbidden: “They see how Seth is fallen on his side, robbed of land in all his places, Sw laments, Wns 26 mourns. Lamentations goes round in Oxyrhynchus. The oasis of Kharga and the oasis of Dakhla are in affliction. Disaster goes about in them. Cynopolis makes plaint; its lord is not in his territory. wADt (10th Nome of Upper Egypt) is a desolate place. Ombos is pulled down. Their temples are destroyed. All who belonged to them, are not. Their lord is not, he who thinks of enmity is not” (te Velde 1967, p.115) 7.- Seth Lord of the Foreign Lands The Sethian cult survived in the Oasis. According to te Velde (1969, p.113) there are evidences of Seth as 'Lord of the Foreign Countries’ right from the Middle Kingdom. Seth can be identified as both the god Anty of the Sinai and the god Ash of Libya (te Velde 1969, p.114) as we have already seen. Seth is assimilated, in the Merenptah Stele, to the Hittite Teshub, the god of the Storm. During the Rameside period, Seth was revealed as Baal, the Semitic god whose garment wears Seth of Avaris. Seth was the lord of Joppa as can be extricated from ‘The Taking of Joppa’ tale (Maspero 1912, p.111). When Rameses II signed the peace treaty with the Hittite king Hattusili III, the gods witnesses were: Seth of the city of Hatti, Seth of the city of Arinna, Seth of the city of Zippalanda, Seth of the city of Pitrik, Seth of the city of Hissaspa, Seth of the city of Sarisa, Seth of the city of Alepo, Seth of the city of Lihsina, Seth of the [city of Hurma]; [Seth of the city of Uda]; Seth of the city of Sa[pinuwa]; [Seth] of thunder (?); Seth of the city of Saphina (van de Mieroop 2007, p.220). 27 8.- Seth Lord of the Sky “The Son of Nwt” and “The Lord of the Sky” are the most common epithets given to Seth and exhibited in many places: In the stele of Nakht already mentioned; in a relief of Tutmosis III at Medinet Habu where the king receives ankhs from Seth and says: “Seth, Lord of the Upper Egypt, Lord of the Sky” (web 12).This epithet is also found in the peace treaty that Rameses II signed with the Hittites, in the Stele of 400th Year, etc. Seth also appears as Lord of the Northern sky in the Coffin Texts: “O Seth possessed of your power, great longhorn dwelling in the northern sky” (Faulkner 2004 spell 407). According to the Papyrus Jumilhac (Vandier 1961, p.108) at the end of the conflict between the two combatants, Horus cut the foreleg of Seth as a bull (xpS) and put it in the middle of the northern sky (te Velde 1967, p.108). The foreleg of Seth became the constellation of meskhetyw which is Ursa Mayor (Pogo 1930, p.309). It was tied down by a golden chain to a mooring stake, held by a hippopotamus goddess, to prevent Seth from resting in the horizon (Carrier 2009, p. 507). Other version states that it is to prevent Seth from slain OsirisOrion (te Velde 1967, p.87). So the northern sky was the kingdom of Seth, and the constellation of Meskhetyw his dwelling place. The Coffin Texts is written: “I am bound to the northern sky and I will dwell in it with Seth” (Faulkner 2009, spell 581). From the New Kingdom on, the foreleg of the bull changed into a whole bull, as depicted in the astronomical ceiling of Senmwt: 28 Fig. 20 Seth has also been associated with the planet Mercury (Daressy 1916, p.10) and so is featured in the Astronomical ceiling of Senmut (Pogo 1930, p.325). During the Rameside period, Seth was considered both the evening and morning star: “Seth in the evening twilight, a god in the morning twilight” (Parker 1974, p.60) 29 9.- Conclusion I was really surprised to find out how many places and temples were devoted to Seth, throughout the history of Egypt, in spite the systematic destruction performed during latter times. This demonization is not easy to understand. Ancient history shows that, usually, whenever a powerful enemy is defeated, his emblems, gods, and customs were considered impure, ensuring that he would be defeated not only in the battlefields but also in the minds of people. Seth was defeated many times, but never for good. Unfortunately, there was a last and definite time, when Egypt was ruled by foreigners. They were Persians, Greeks and Romans, who ended the Pharaonic tradition. They did not understand the mystery of the ‘Two Combatants”, the underlying duality in the core of Egyptian civilization, and hence the need for a reconciliation. The Two Companions (rHwy) have to be harmoniously combined within the person of the pharaoh (Frankfort 1978, p.). The condition of a traditional Egyptian king is displayed through the power of saying: “I have Pacified the Two Warriors” (Faulkner 2004, spell 1125). That is why Seth has always had his places in Egyptian temples. 30 Bibliography Allen, J.P. The Ancient Egyptian Pyramid Texts. Atlanta 2005 Ayrton, E. and Loat, W.L.S. Predynastic Cemetery at El Mahasna. London, 1911 Bagnol, R. A. Myers, O.H. Peel, R.F. Winkler, H.A. An Expedition to the Gilf Kebir and Uweinat. The Geographical Journal, Vol. 93,No 4 (Apr. 1939), pp 281-312. 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