Sokar
| Sokar in hieroglyphics | |||||
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| mostly |
Seker / Saker / Sokar Zkr |
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| or with determinative |
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| Greek | Sokaris | ||||
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Sokar is one of the oldest gods of the dead in ancient Egypt . In earlier times he was considered the god of fertility , but then changed his shape over time.
development
Sokar got the role of god of the dead through his place of worship in the area west of Memphis , since the dead have been buried there since the 1st Dynasty . The famous necropolis of Saqqara probably also bears his name.
meaning
Among other things, Sokar is also the earth god and patron of the metalworkers, which brought him close to Ptah and whose character traits he embodied in particular. For this reason the Egyptians also called him Ptah-Sokar, although the representation of Sokar did not change.
He was still shown with a human body and a falcon's head. Sokar helped to open the mouth , which was also a trait of the creator god Ptah. In this context, the Memphite festival of the dead of Sokar arose as early as the Thinite period .
merger
A far more profound merger took place between the gods of the dead Osiris and Sokar. The name Ptah-Sokar-Osiris was born. In the following years, the falcon-headed god was partially depicted in the mummy figure of Osiris. Since Sokar could be seen earlier than resting in the sand, the body of Osiris laid out was imagined as Sokar.
See also
literature
- Richard Anthony Parker : The calendars of ancient Egypt . Chicago Press, Chicago 1950.
- Siegfried Schott : Ancient Egyptian festival dates . Publishing house of the Academy of Sciences and Literature, Mainz / Wiesbaden 1950.
Web links
- Burkhard Backes: Sokar. In: Michaela Bauks, Klaus Koenen, Stefan Alkier (eds.): The scientific biblical lexicon on the Internet (WiBiLex), Stuttgart 2006 ff., Accessed on February 25, 2009.