Horus
Horus, also known as Heru, Har, Her, or Hor[5] in Ancient Egyptian, is one of the most significant ancient Egyptian deities who served many functions, most notably as the god of kingship, healing, protection, the sun, and the sky. He was worshipped from at least the late prehistoric Egypt until the Ptolemaic Kingdom and Roman Egypt. Different forms of Horus are recorded in history, and these are treated as distinct gods by Egyptologists.[6] These various forms may be different manifestations of the same multi-layered deity in which certain attributes or syncretic relationships are emphasized, not necessarily in opposition but complementary to one another, consistent with how the Ancient Egyptians viewed the multiple facets of reality.[7] He was most often depicted as a falcon, most likely a lanner falcon or peregrine falcon, or as a man with a falcon head.[8]
This article is about the ancient Egyptian deity. For the Roman poet, see Horace. For other uses, see Horus (disambiguation).
Celebrations of Horus
The Festival of Victory (Egyptian: Heb Nekhtet) was an annual Egyptian festival dedicated to the god Horus. The Festival of Victory was celebrated at the Temple of Horus at Edfu, and took place during the second month of the Season of the Emergence (or the sixth month of the Egyptian calendar).
The ceremonies which took place during the Festival of Victory included the performance of a sacred drama which commemorated the victory of Horus over Set. The main actor in this drama was the king of Egypt himself, who played the role of Horus. His adversary was a hippopotamus, who played the role of Set. In the course of the ritual, the king would strike the hippopotamus with a harpoon. The destruction of the hippopotamus by the king commemorated the defeat of Set by Horus, which also legitimised the king.
It is unlikely that the king attended the Festival of Victory every year; in many cases he was probably represented by a priest. It is also unlikely that a real hippopotamus was used in the festival every year; in many cases it was probably represented by a model.[47]
The 4th-century Roman author Macrobius mentions another annual Egyptian festival dedicated to Horus in his Chronicon. Macrobius specifies this festival as occurring on the winter solstice. The 4th-century Christian bishop Epiphanius of Salamis also mentions a winter solstice festival of Horus in his Panarion.[48] However, this festival is not attested in any native Egyptian sources.
Suggested influence on Christianity
William R. Cooper's 1877 book and Acharya S's self-published 2008 book, among others, have suggested that there are many similarities between the story of Horus and the much later story of Jesus.[49][50] This outlook remains very controversial and is disputed.[51][52][53]
In popular culture
Declan Hannigan portrays Horus in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) television series Moon Knight (2022).[54]
In the film series Night at the Museum, a group of underworld warrior deities appear in Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian when Kahmunrah uses the combination to open the gate to the underworld and summon an army of Horus warriors. The warriors appear from the underworld carrying spears ready to attack and join Kahmunrah's fight to take over the world.
Horus is a Warrior class God in the multiplayer online battle arena game Smite with the title of "The Rightful Heir".[55]
In the book trilogy The Kane Chronicles by Rick Riordan, main character Carter Kane hosts the spirit of Horus when he is released in the British Museum along with four other Egyptian deities. Horus speaks to Carter throughout the trilogy, offering him his advice and wisdom.
In the fantasy action film Gods of Egypt Horus is portrayed by Nikolaj Coster-Waldau. In the film, he helps out a mortal named Bek to stop his uncle Set while also trying to reclaim his throne and bring peace to Egypt.
Horus appears in a 1980 science fiction graphic novel La Foire aux immortels written and illustrated by French cartoonist and storyteller Enki Bilal.
Horus, patron deity of Hierakonpolis (near Edfu), the predynastic capital of Upper Egypt. Its head was executed by means of beating the gold then connecting it with the copper body. A uraeus is fixed to the diadem which supports two tall openwork feathers. The eyes are inlaid with obsidian. Sixth Dynasty.
Head of Horus statue, 664–30 BCE, Late Period–Ptolemaic Period
Copper-alloy of Horus (centre) as a Roman officer with contrapposto stances (National Archaeological Museum, Athens)
God Horus as a falcon wearing the Double Crown of Egypt. 27th dynasty. State Museum of Egyptian Art, Munich
Statue of Horus from the reign of Amenhotep II (Eighteenth Dynasty, c. 1400 BCE) in the Musée royal de Mariemont, Belgium
Head of Horus from Memphis, 1196 BCE, Penn Museum
![Falcon Horus, deity of Hierakonpolis, on a Naqada IIC jar, c. 3500 BCE, British Museum EA36328.[56][57]](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/fe/Falcon_Horus%2C_deity_of_Hierakonpolis%2C_on_a_Naqada_IIC_jar%2C_British_Museum_EA_36328.jpg/160px-Falcon_Horus%2C_deity_of_Hierakonpolis%2C_on_a_Naqada_IIC_jar%2C_British_Museum_EA_36328.jpg)