Isis
The wife who put Osiris back together and the mother who hid Horus — protector of the dead.
- Also written
- Aset · Ese · إيزة · أست
Who they were
Isis is the sister and wife of Osiris and the mother of Horus, and in Egyptian terms she is above all effective: the one who knows the words that work. She searches for her murdered husband, revives him long enough to conceive their son, hides and heals that son in the marshes, and argues his case before the gods. Because of that she became the standard protector of anyone in danger, living or dead. Her cult (the worship and rituals devoted to a deity or royal figure) long outlived pharaonic Egypt and spread across the Roman world, and hers was among the last functioning temples in Egypt.
Where you meet them
She is at her clearest in QV66 in the Valley of the Queens, where she takes Nefertari by the hand and leads her forward — one of the most quoted images in Egyptian painting. She recurs on the walls and shrines of the royal tombs, and she is one of the two winged goddesses on the ends of coffins and canopic (connected with the storage of organs removed during mummification) shrines.
Who they are shown with
Osiris
Osiris often appears wrapped as a mummy, holding a crook and flail. His atef crown has a tall central element flanked by feathers. The djed is a pillar-shaped symbol with stacked crossbars, associated with stability. Use these clues together with the inscription.
Horus
A falcon or falcon-headed figure may represent Horus, but several deities use falcon imagery. Crown, accompanying text and the action in the scene provide the more reliable identification.
Hathor
Cow horns around a sun disc can point to Hathor. A sistrum is a hand-held ritual rattle; a menat is a beaded necklace with a counterweight at the back. Both are associated with her worship. Isis and other deities can share attributes, so check the inscription too.
Anubis
Anubis commonly appears as a black canid or a man with a canid head, associated with embalming and protection of the dead. Black has symbolic significance here; use captions and context to distinguish him from other canid deities.
Sources & further reading3
Source review is incomplete. Consultation dates are shown only for checked references.
Published works and institutional references for further reading.