Of all the ancient worlds, ancient Egypt has been the topic of the most puzzling and thought-provoking discourse. We have been debating over the construction of the pyramids for thousands of years and consider the Egyptians to have a level of ingenuity that was ahead of their time. But, when is comes to cultural practices and religious beliefs we consider them archaic.
Interestingly, religion and culture are functions of political power and since the "Romans usually despised the animal origin gods of Egypt as bizarre and primitive" (Cicarma 42), after the Roman conquest in 30 BC these ideas of life and death became dissipated, rejected and replaced by another set of cultural practices. To me it seems that, since culture is nothing more than the commonly shared virtues of the majority of a society, religion and culture are sort of arbitrary. Had ancient Egypt maintained its political power, perhaps their culture would have been reproduced in the same way that Christianity is felt residually today.
Regardless, the modern western world was inspired by the many other empires after ancient Egypt, leading us gradually to our contemporary social norms. Because of this truth, we don't (and can't) relate to cultures so different from our own. Anthropomorphism functioned in ancient Egypt as an integral part of life and death:
The Book of the Dead:
These books are compilations of "magical texts or spells, which the embalmers sometimes placed among the wrappings of the mummified bodies". They would assist the journey from life to death with the help of numerous, anthropomorphic deities. The "Judgement of Hunefer Before Osiris" appears in one of these "Books of the Dead" and depicts several of these dieties:
Osiris - God of the underworld
Anubis - God of embalming and cemeteries (Jackal-headed creature)
Ma'at - Goddess of truth and order (Symbolized by a feather)
Ammit - "Eater of the Dead" (Crocodile/hippo/lion)
Thoth - God of writing and knowledge (ibis headed)
Horus - Sky God (Falcon headed)
Nephthys - Goddess of death
Isis - Goddess of health, marriage, wisdom
Interestingly, religion and culture are functions of political power and since the "Romans usually despised the animal origin gods of Egypt as bizarre and primitive" (Cicarma 42), after the Roman conquest in 30 BC these ideas of life and death became dissipated, rejected and replaced by another set of cultural practices. To me it seems that, since culture is nothing more than the commonly shared virtues of the majority of a society, religion and culture are sort of arbitrary. Had ancient Egypt maintained its political power, perhaps their culture would have been reproduced in the same way that Christianity is felt residually today.
Regardless, the modern western world was inspired by the many other empires after ancient Egypt, leading us gradually to our contemporary social norms. Because of this truth, we don't (and can't) relate to cultures so different from our own. Anthropomorphism functioned in ancient Egypt as an integral part of life and death:
The Book of the Dead:
These books are compilations of "magical texts or spells, which the embalmers sometimes placed among the wrappings of the mummified bodies". They would assist the journey from life to death with the help of numerous, anthropomorphic deities. The "Judgement of Hunefer Before Osiris" appears in one of these "Books of the Dead" and depicts several of these dieties:
Osiris - God of the underworld
Anubis - God of embalming and cemeteries (Jackal-headed creature)
Ma'at - Goddess of truth and order (Symbolized by a feather)
Ammit - "Eater of the Dead" (Crocodile/hippo/lion)
Thoth - God of writing and knowledge (ibis headed)
Horus - Sky God (Falcon headed)
Nephthys - Goddess of death
Isis - Goddess of health, marriage, wisdom
The Sphinx:
A hybrid creature of man and lion, seemingly combining the optimum qualities of both. The sphinx symbolizes protection and strength, often at the burial places of important rulers, the most famous being the Sphinx at the funerary complex of Khafre.
A hybrid creature of man and lion, seemingly combining the optimum qualities of both. The sphinx symbolizes protection and strength, often at the burial places of important rulers, the most famous being the Sphinx at the funerary complex of Khafre.
Cats:
A sacred animal in ancient Egypt. Cats were considered demi-gods and killing a cat was punishable by death (Hill).
A sacred animal in ancient Egypt. Cats were considered demi-gods and killing a cat was punishable by death (Hill).
While anthropomorphism is being removed from the broader branches of society such as religion and science, it still exists in the domestic sphere (projecting a personality onto ones domesticated animal) and language (legs of a chair, body of a car etc.). Although we don't take anthropomorphism to the extremes of the ancient Egyptians, it seems we still have an innate desire to project our human qualities to our surroundings.
Cicarma, Elena Andra. "The Theriomorphism Of Anubis. His Etymology, Mythological Attendances And Religious Manifestations. The Perceptions External Of Egypt And Subsequent Religious Assessments." Scientific Journal Of Humanistic Studies 5.9 (2013): 42-49. Academic Search Complete. Web. 18 Nov. 2014.
Hill, Jenny. "Cats in Ancient Egypt." Ancient Egypt Online:. 1 Jan. 2010. Web. 19 Nov. 2014.
Stokstad, Marilyn, and Michael Cothren. Art History. 5th ed. Boston: Pearson, 2013. Print.
Cicarma, Elena Andra. "The Theriomorphism Of Anubis. His Etymology, Mythological Attendances And Religious Manifestations. The Perceptions External Of Egypt And Subsequent Religious Assessments." Scientific Journal Of Humanistic Studies 5.9 (2013): 42-49. Academic Search Complete. Web. 18 Nov. 2014.
Hill, Jenny. "Cats in Ancient Egypt." Ancient Egypt Online:. 1 Jan. 2010. Web. 19 Nov. 2014.
Stokstad, Marilyn, and Michael Cothren. Art History. 5th ed. Boston: Pearson, 2013. Print.