Mother’s Day – Isis and Mut

Happy Mother’s 𓅐𓏏𓁐 Day to all of the moms – and especially to my Mom, Nonna, and Oma! Today 𓏇𓇋𓈖𓇳 I’m going to do a post about some of the Moms 𓅐𓏏𓁐𓏪 of Ancient Egypt 𓆎𓅓𓏏𓊖 who happen to be goddesses 𓊹𓊹𓊹𓏏! 

A calcite statue accented with bronze of Isis feeding the baby Horus (Brooklyn Museum)

The first 𓏃 picture 𓏏𓅱𓏏 shows a calcite 𓍱 and bronze 𓈔𓏤𓈒𓏦 statue 𓄚𓈖𓏏𓏭𓀾 of Isis 𓊨𓏏𓁥 feeding Horus 𓅃𓀭. This is one of the most popular images 𓏏𓅱𓏏𓏦 of the Third Intermediate Period, Late Period and even through the Ptolemaic and Roman Periods.  This image 𓏏𓅱𓏏 has even appeared on the back of Roman Coins! 

Symbolically, Isis 𓊨𓏏𓁥 was thought to be the mother 𓅐𓏏𓁐 of the pharaoh 𓉐𓉻, and was often associated with motherhood, the protection of women 𓊃𓏏𓂑𓏏𓁐, and she was also a user of magic 𓎛𓂓𓄿𓏜.

A sunken relief of the goddess Mut, from a Ramesside-era stela (Brooklyn Museum)

The second picture 𓏏𓅱𓏏 shows the goddess 𓊹𓏏 Mut 𓏏𓅑𓁐 whose name 𓂋𓈖 happens to mean “Mother!” Symbolically, Mut 𓏏𓅑𓁐 was also thought to be the divine mother 𓅐𓏏𓁐 of the pharaoh 𓉐𓉻, and this idea became popularized as Amun 𓇋𓏠𓈖𓀭 (her husband) became one of the most worshipped 𓇼𓄿𓀢 gods 𓊹𓊹𓊹 during the 18th Dynasty.  Mut 𓏏𓅑𓁐 didn’t appear in religious texts until the Middle Kingdom, and some think she was “invented” to be Amun’s 𓇋𓏠𓈖𓀭 wife and a mother 𓅐𓏏𓁐 figure. 

The word for “mother 𓅐𓏏𓁐/𓅐𓏏” in Middle Egyptian seems to predate the appearance of the goddess 𓊹𓏏 Mut 𓏏𓅑𓁐, so it’s possible that her name 𓂋𓈖 was intended to mean “mother.”

There are multiple variants for “mother” in Middle Egyptian/hieroglyphs 𓊹𓌃𓏪, so let’s take a look at them:

𓅐𓏏𓁐

𓅐𓏏𓏏𓁐

𓅐𓏏

𓅐𓅆𓆇

𓅐𓏏𓐎

𓅐𓏏𓁐𓅆

Happy Mother’s Day!

These are my personal photographs and original text. DO NOT repost without permission.