User:Nephiliskos/Workshop 2

Seth
God of storm and deserts, protector of bedouins
Name in hieroglyphs	.
Major cult center	Ombos
Symbol	Was-scepter, set animal
Personal information
Parents	Geb and Nut
Siblings	Osiris, Isis, Nephthys
Consort	Nephthys
Offspring	Anubis

Seth (also written Set; derived from Setekh or Sutekh) is the name of a deity from Ancient Egyptian religion. He is one of the "oldest" (i.e. earliest archaeologically detected) deities amongst the Egyptian pantheon.

No other god of the pantheon has experienced such an incredible change in reputation, as Seth did during the history of Egypt. During the Predynastic Period, the Early Kingdom and Old Kingdom, Seth enjoyed great popularity and he was worshipped positively just like his "counterpart" Horus. It was not until the First Intermediate Period, that Seth was more and more ostracized. Only a few kings (pharaohs) connected their names to Seth. During the Greek Era, Seth was syncretized with the Greek god Typhon.

Seth plays the main role in the famous Osiris myth und the also famous Horus-and-Seth myth, in both tales he is the main antagonist. He is there depicted as a murderer, thief and even as a rapist. At the end of the story, Seth is sent into exile. Seth also plays a major role in the famous underworld myths, in which he appears as the loyal protector of the sungod Ra during the night.

Seth's name

Personal name

Seth's personal name is handed down from three languages: In Greek it was Σεθ (Seth), in Coptic it was ⲥⲏⲧ (Sėt) and in Cuneiform it was Šutaḫ. The oldest, hieroglyphic writing of Seth's name occurs in the Pyramid Texts of king Unas and reads Stš.

The symbolical meaning of Seth's name is highly uncertain and thus subject of ongoing investigations. The greek historian and philosopher Plutarch (ca. 45 - 125 A.D.) claims, that Seth's name could mean "overmastering" and "overpassing", but also "turning back". It is possible that Plutarch referred to ancient Egyptian traditions, but because Plutarch lived long time after the downfall of the Egyptian kingdom, his try of explanation must be viewed with caution.

A possible meaning of Seth's name may be found in the countless epithets he received in various texts, especially from the New Kingdom era. There, his name was often connected to violent verbs, such as tštš ("to dismember") and tšj ("to separate"). The word tš3, also often connected to Seth's name, means "frontier", but also "to leave behind" or simply "to abandon". Most possibly, the Ancient Egyptians related to tš3 ("to abandon"), because Seth was indeed often described as a god that rules "behind the realm's borders, in the foreign lands".

Epithets

According to the pyramid texts, coffin texts and temple relief inscriptions, Seth was known by a vast amount of epithets. These epithets were thought to describe Seth's divine and elemental powers. The most often used epithets included: cosmological titles, such as "Lord of the sky" (egypt. neb pet), "Foreign ruler of the sky" (egypt. heqa pet) and "He before whom the sky trembles" (egypt. seda nef pet). Element-bound epithets included: "The storm" (egypt. hahat) and "Lord of the wind" (egypt. neb tjau). Place-bound titles included: "He of Ombos" (egypt. Neb nubti), "Bull of Ombos" (egypt. kau nubti) and "Foreign ruler of the two lands" (egypt. heqa tawy). Last, not least, Seth enjoyed epithets such as "Beautiful child of Râ" (egypt. sef-nefer-en-Râ), "He who defeats Apophis" (egypt. seher A'apep) and "He with the red mane" (egypt. descher fa'a).

Alongside the countless neutral honorary titels and epithets, Seth also had numerous negative epithets. For example, he was often called "The rebel" (egypt. seby), "He who's inexorable" (egypt. tem sefen) and/or "He who causes grieve" (egypt. wed schenen). A very mysterious epithet is "Thief of the morning glory" (egypt. A'awy en tep dua-iyt).

Depiction

Appearance

Seth's appearance is unmistakable. He can appear anthropomorphic (with the body of a human) or zoomorphic (as a certain animal). His trademarks are his rectangular cut, straight upright ears, his bent snout and -when zoomorph- with a forked tail. When appearing as an animal, Seth is either walking, sitting or recumbent. When appearing as a human, he is either standing or sitting.

Heraldic animal

Up to present time, it is unknown, which animal species was picked as the heraldic animal for Seth. The most named candidates include: Wild Donkey, Okapi, Aardvark and Giraffe, with the Wild Donkey being the most favorized animal. Further proposals include also fish species from the Mormyridae tribe (known for their bent snouts) and even the Helmed Guineafowl (egypt. Neh). The reason for the favorization of the Wild Donkey may be hidden in the animal's life style. The Wild Donkey (or Wild Ass) lives in open, vast and dry scrubs and he is known for his booming warning crys and rutting calls. Wild Donkeys were domesticated in prehistoric and predynastic times mainly by wandering and trading nomads and bedouins. Thus, the donkey not only played an overwhelming role in the daily life as a pack animal and meat provider. It was worshipped by nomads as a tribe's deity and patron.

Nonetheless, the Seth-animal (as Egyptologists call the being today) must remain unidentified, because the picture of the Seth-animal has underwent too much stilization. The creature is often replaced by other, mostly strong and unpredictable animals, such as Hippopotamus and Wild Boar. In other texts and depictions from predynastic times, the Seth-animal is depicted together with fantasy creatures, such as a vulture-headed griffin (Egypt. Sefer) and the famous Serpopard (Egypt. Sudja). For this reason, it might be possible, that already the Early Egyptians either didn't know the species of Seth's heraldic animal anymore (because it was already extinct), or they had created it out of their fantasy, just like the Serpopard.

Insignia

The most remarkable insignia of Seth is the so-called Was-sceptre, a long, smooth staff with a slightly bent top, carrying the head of the Seth-animal. The lower end was split into two curved prongs. The was-sceptre symbolized willpower and mental strength. Later, other gods (such as Asch and Bastet) could be depicted carrying the was-scepter, too. Another typical insignia of Seth is the Red Crown of Lower Egypt (egypt. deschret). Clay seal impressions and decorated door jams from late 2nd dynasty, depict the Seth-animal wearing the Red Crown.

Worship

Origins

As already mentioned, Seth was one of the earliest deities to appear in Ancient Egyptian history. Although it is unknown, from which region Seth really was brought into Egypt. Scholars are convinced, that it was at the site of Naqada, that a first cult center was established for him. This very place was named Nubti (lit. "the most golden") at this time. This has lead to one of Seth's most common epithets, neb nubti, which means "He of Naqada". Because he was also always described and entitled as "the foreign ruler", some scholars believe that Seth originated from a deity worshipped by asiatic bedouins. Other scholars think that he originated from Libyan nomads west of Egypt. The reason for both assumptions is the riddle around the Seth-animal, which is thought by many scholars to be a certain species of wild donkeys. Both tribes, asiatic and lybian as well, kept wild donkeys as pets and worshipped them. An outlandish origin of Seth would also explain another, very often used title, namely heqa ("the foreign ruler").

History

Predynastic Period

Early to Old Kingdom

During the 1st dynasty, Seth was clearly worshipped alongside Horus in equal matters. The first and most clear evidence can be found in the archaic queen's titles "She who carries Horus and Seth" (egpt. renmet-heru-setekh) and "She who sees Horus and Seth" (egypt. ma'a-heru-setekh). These titles can be found on private stelas belonging to various female members of the royal court. The stelas in turn were excavated in subsidiary tombs at Abydos. The mentioned titles reveal an important detail of the early dynastic understanding and practizing of kingship, when the rulers were worshipped as "earthly representatives of Horus and Seth".

During the 2nd dynasty, it seems that egyptian rulers seeked to accentuate their role as representative of Horus and Seth in public. Meanwhile, an increase of the Seth cult can be observed: the Palermo Stone, a black olivin-basalt slab inscribed with a detailed kinglist, reveals interesting details: On the recto, in line IV, the last years of king Nynetjer are preserved. The entries (and thus the year windows) are heavily damaged, but reconstructable signs name Seth shrines and temples ("houses") created for this deity. The increase of foundations of temples and shrines for Seth during the later half of Nynetjer's reign may mark a period of change in the state's religious believes.

The increase of Seth-worship reached a first peak during the reign of king Peribsen. This ruler changed his serekh name in an extraordinary way: he replaced the Horus figure atop of the serekh by the Seth-animal. His name "Peribsen" literally means "His will comes forth for them", revealing a plural, which in turn might express the wish to still adress Horus as well as Seth. This shows clearly that Horus was not abandoned as a royal patron, he was just replaced figurely. Peribsen surely had a reason to replace the Horus figure, but this very reason remains undiscovered yet and is thus a subject of investigations and theories. A further proof for the peak of popularity that Seth enjoyed may be a tomb stela mentioning an "ordination priest of the king, Nefer-Setekh". It was found at Helwan and his name is written with a recumbent Seth-animal.

However, it seems that Peribsen's name change caused some kind of trouble or confusion amongst the state priesthood. Peribsen's successor, Khasekhemwy, also used an unusual serekh name, the last ruler of the 2nd dynasty even stepped further and used a double serekh: atop of this serekh, Khasekhemwy placed Horus and Seth together. The figures face each other, they are even shown in a kissing gesture. Horus wears the White Crown of Upper Egypt, while Seth wears the Red Crown of Lower Egypt. Inside the double serekh, Khasekhemwy used an epithet reading netjerw hetep imjef, which means "the two lords are happily unified". The term "two lords" was a long traditioned paraphrase for Horus and Seth as a divine twin pair. Thus, this very epithet strengthens the whish of the ruler to accentuate his role as a living representative of Horus and Seth. Khasekhemwy even used his gold name, nub khet-sen (meaning "their bodies are of one gold"), as a double addression.

First Intermediate Period to New Kingdom

Saitic Period

Greco-Roman period

Cults

Cultic places in Egypt

Cultic places outside of Egypt

Divine role

Power

Main role and patronate

Positive aspects

Negative aspects

Relationships with other gods

Divine family

Other gods

Literature

• Christian Leitz: Lexikon der ägyptischen Götter und Götterbezeichnungen (LGG) (= Orientalia Lovaniensia Analecta, vol. 6). Peeters Publishers, Leuven 2002, ISBN 9042911514.
• Herman te Velde: Seth, God of Confusion. A study of his role in Egyptian mythology and religion - Reprint with some corrections (= Probleme der Ägyptologie, Vol. 6). Brill, Leiden 1977, ISBN 90-04-05402-2.
• Toby A. H. Wilkinson: Early Dynastic Egypt. Strategies, Society and Security. Routledge, London u. a. 1999, ISBN 0-415-18633-1.
• Christian E. Schulz: Schreibgeräte und Schreiber in der 0. Bis 3. Dynastie. Grin, München 2007, ISBN 978-3-638-63909-5.
• Jochem Kahl: „Ra is my Lord“. Searching for the rise of the Sun God at the dawn of Egyptian history (= Menes, Vol. 1). Harrassowitz, Wiesbaden 2007, ISBN 978-3-447-05540-6.
• Christiana Köhler, Jana Jones: Helwan II, The Early Dynastic and Old Kingdom Funerary Stelae. Leidorf, Rahden 2009, ISBN 978-3-86757-971-1.
• Christian Leitz u.a.: Lexikon der ägyptischen Götter und Götterbezeichnungen, Bd. 6: H̱-s. Peeters, Leuven 2002, ISBN 90-429-1151-4, S. 691.
• Toby A. H. Wilkinson: Royal Annals Of Ancient Egypt: The Palermo Stone and its associated fragments - Translation, Transliteration and Commentary. Kegan Paul International Limited, London/New York 2012, ISBN 0-7103-0667-9.