Anukis

Also known as Anuket

Mythology of Anukis

Anukis was the goddess of the southern border region of Egypt and particularly the cataracts of the lower Nile in the region of Aswan. She was worshipped since at least Old Kingdom times as a daughter of Ra, but in Middle Kingdom times she was incorporated into the triad of Elephantine as the offspring of Khnum and Satis. The goddess's name is difficult to interpret but may mean 'embracer' with either the meaning of motherly embrace or crushing, strangling grip. It is also possible that these meanings indicate a dual nature similar to the known nature of Hathor - with whom Anukis was associated at Thebes. Like Hathor and certain other Egyptian goddesses, Anukis was viewed in a mythologically maternal role towards the ancient Egyptian king, and is sometimes given the epithet 'mother of the king'. The Greeks identified Anukis with Hestia, their goddess of the hearth.

Iconography of Anukis

Representations of the goddess depict her as a woman wearing a headdress which consists of a low crown surmounted with a row of bound plumes, sometimes with streamers at the rear or a uraeus at the front. In addition to the ubiquitous ankh, the goddess is often shown holding a papyrus scepter. Her sacred animal was the gazelle, and she is sometimes depicted with this animal o by means of it. In her maternal role she is sometimes shown nursing the figure of the king, as in the small Nubian temple of Beit el-Wali

Worship of Anukis

In addition to the cult centers she shared with Khnum and Satis at Elephantine and Aswan, there was a temple dedicated to Anukis a little to the south of Aswan on the island of Sehel at the first cataract. She was worshipped throughout most of lower Nubia and appears in monuments such as the temple of Beit el-Wali along with other Egyptian gods of the region. The popularity of the goddess is also attested in both male and female personal names such as 'beloved of Anukis' and '(he) of Anukis'.

Picture: The Egyptian goddess Anukis (Anuket) wearing the plumed headdress which is her most characteristic attribute.Detail, decorated block, temple of Dakka, Nubia. Ptolemaic Period.