SG : 2099-2100
SCOTT : 1696-97
Nefertari
QUEEN NEFERTARI & GODDESS ISIS ( MURAL FROM NEFERTARI TOMB )
Nefertari also known as Nefertari Merytmut was one of the Great Royal Wives (or principal wives) of Ramesses the Great. Nefertari means ´Beautiful Companion´ and Meritmut means ´Beloved of [the Goddess] Mut´. She is one of the best known Egyptian queens, next to Cleopatra, Nefertiti and Hatshepsut. Her lavishly decorated tomb, QV66, is the largest and most spectacular in the Valley of the Queens. Ramesses also constructed a temple for her at Abu Simbel next to his colossal monument here.
Osiris myth
The Osiris myth is the most elaborate and influential story in ancient Egyptian mythology. It concerns the murder of the god Osiris, a primeval king of Egypt, and its consequences. Osiris´ murderer, his brother Set, usurps his throne. Meanwhile, Osiris´ wife Isis restores her husband´s body, allowing him to posthumously conceive a son with her. The remainder of the story focuses on Horus, the product of Isis and Osiris´ union, who is first a vulnerable child protected by his mother and then becomes Set´s rival for the throne. Their often violent conflict ends with Horus´ triumph, which restores order to Egypt after Set´s unrighteous reign and completes the process of Osiris´ resurrection. The myth, with its complex symbolism, is integral to the Egyptian conceptions of kingship and succession, conflict between order and disorder and, especially, death and the afterlife. It also expresses the essential character of each of the four deities at its center, and many elements of their worship in ancient Egyptian religion were derived from the myth.
The Osiris myth reached its basic form in or before the 24th century BC. Many of its elements originated in religious ideas, but the conflict between Horus and Set may have been partly inspired by a regional struggle in Egypt´s early history or prehistory. Scholars have tried to discern the exact nature of the events that gave rise to the story, but they have reached no definitive conclusions.
Parts of the myth appear in a wide variety of Egyptian texts, from funerary texts and magical spells to short stories. The story is, therefore, more detailed and more cohesive than any other ancient Egyptian myth. Yet no Egyptian source gives a full account of the myth, and the sources vary widely in their versions of events. Greek and Roman writings, particularly De Iside et Osiride by Plutarch, provide more information but may not always accurately reflect Egyptian beliefs. Through these writings, the Osiris myth persisted after knowledge of most ancient Egyptian beliefs was lost, and it is still well known today.
HORUS / ISIS / OSIRIS ( WALL CARVING )
