Egyptian Gods
Ancient Egyptian Gods, Goddesses and Religion
Satis
Mythology of Satis
The Upper Egyptian goddess Satis guarded the southern
frontiers of ancient Egypt and in historical ties and was
also connected with the Nile.
Her link with the upper reaches of the Nile perhaps caused
her to be associated with the annual inundation and with
Elephantine in the area of Aswan which ancient Egyptian
mythology sometimes identified as the source of the Nile.
Her name is first attested on stone jars found beneath the
Step Pyramid at Saqqara (3rd Dynasty), and by the 6th
Dynasty she is mentioned in the Pyramid Texts as purifying
the deceased king with four jars of water from Elephantine.
As 'mistress of Elephantine' Satis became the consort of
Khnum and thus mother of Anukis, though a relatively early
connection with the Theban god Montu is also known for
Satis and the original consort of Khnum appears to have
been the goddess Heket.
When Khnum was identified with Ra, Satis became an 'Eye of
Ra' and the goddess then sometimes assumed some of the
characteristics of Hathor, the goddess more usually
depicted in this mythological role.
Satis was identified with the star Sirius, called Sothis,
which heralded the Nile inundation each year. The Greeks
identified Satis with Hera, the wife of Zeus.
Iconography of Satis
Early writings of her name use a hieroglyph representing a
shoulder knot in a linen garment, but later writings use an
animal skin pierced by an arrow. This latter symbol could
have been assimilated from Anukis the huntress goddess who
came to be seen as her daughter. The symbol is sometimes
depicted with the goddess in representational works.
Worship of Satis
The principal cult center of Satis was at Elephantine where
her shrine was built on an early predynastic site. Research
by Ronald Wells has shown that elements of the temple of
Satis were carefully aligned with the position of the star
Sothis or Sirius in the night sky, trying the goddess in
this manner to the star's rising and the annual inundation
of the Nile.
It has also been pointed out that the goddess's temple was
situated at a point where the waters of the inundation
might be heard before they became visible in the lower
reaches of the Nile, so that her function of protector of
the borders could also be tied to that of guardian of the
Nile's flood and its resultant fertility.
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