Historian Margaret Bunson writes, 'The Serekh, the earliest of the king's symbols, depicted a falcon (or hawk) on a perch. 3150-c.2613 BCE) onwards, Horus was linked with the king of Egypt (though later rulers associated themselves with Horus the Younger). Imagined as a falcon, he could fly far from Ra and return with vital information and, in the same way, could quickly bring comfort to those in need.įrom the Early Dynastic Period (c. The sun and the moon were considered Horus' eyes as he watched over the people of the world day and night but could also draw near to them in times of trouble or doubt. In his role as The Distant One he performs the same task as The Distant Goddess, a function associated with Hathor (and a number of other female deities) who go forth from Ra and return, bringing transformation. 6000-3150 BCE) were known as 'Followers of Horus' which attests to an even earlier point of veneration in Egypt's history. Rulers of the Predynastic Period in Egypt (c. His name is attested from the beginning of the Dynastic Period and it is probable that early falcon deities such as that shown restraining the `marsh dwellers' on the Narmer Palette represent this same god' (200). Wilkinson comments on how 'Horus was one of the earliest of Egyptian deities.

It is possible that, like Inanna in Mesopotamia, the figure of Horus began as a local god such as Dunanwi but it seems more likely that Horus was fully realized early in Egypt's religious development.Įgyptologist Richard H.

Dunanwi was a local god of the 18th upper nome (province) while Horus was widely worshipped throughout the country. Horus' early association with Dunanwi has been challenged by scholars but there is no doubt he was later combined with the god as Horus- Anubis. Some, such as Dunanwi from Upper Egypt, appear early in history while others, like Montu, were popular later. There were many falcon gods (known as Avian Deities) in Egyptian religion who were eventually absorbed into the god known as Horus. Horus is also depicted as a creator god and benevolent protector. The scholar Geraldine Pinch notes that 'one of the earliest divine images known from Egypt is that of a falcon in a barque' representing Horus in the sun barge traveling across the heavens (142). In another version of the story, Horus is the son of Hathor while, in others, she is his wife and, sometimes, she is mother, wife, and daughter of Horus.

His older brother Osiris was given the responsibility of governing the earth along with Isis while Horus was given charge of the sky and, specifically, the sun. The elder Horus is one of the oldest gods of Egypt, born of the union between Geb (earth) and Nut (sky) shortly after the creation of the world. Horus was given charge of the sky and, specifically, the sun.

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