Meretseger (also known as Mersegrit' or Mertseger) was a
Theban cobra-
goddess
A goddess is a female deity. In many known cultures, goddesses are often linked with literal or metaphorical pregnancy or imagined feminine roles associated with how women and girls are perceived or expected to behave. This includes themes of s ...
in
ancient Egyptian religion
Ancient Egyptian religion was a complex system of polytheistic beliefs and rituals that formed an integral part of ancient Egyptian culture. It centered on the Egyptians' interactions with many deities believed to be present in, and in control ...
, in charge with guarding and protecting the vast
Theban Necropolis — on the west bank of the
Nile, in front of Thebes — and especially the heavily guarded
Valley of the Kings.
[Hart 1986, pp. 119–120.][Wilkinson 2003, p. 224.] Her cult was typical of the
New Kingdom of Egypt
The New Kingdom, also referred to as the Egyptian Empire, is the period in ancient Egyptian history between the sixteenth century BC and the eleventh century BC, covering the Eighteenth, Nineteenth, and Twentieth dynasties of Egypt. Radioca ...
(1550–1070 BC).
[Hart 1986, p. 120.]
Role and characteristics
Meretseger's name means "She Who Loves Silence",
[The British Museum Book of Ancient Egypt (2007), London: The British Museum Press. . p. 104.] in reference to the silence of the
desert
A desert is a barren area of landscape where little precipitation occurs and, consequently, living conditions are hostile for plant and animal life. The lack of vegetation exposes the unprotected surface of the ground to denudation. About on ...
cemetery area she kept
or, according to another interpretation, "Beloved of Him Who Makes Silence (
Osiris)".
[Ions 1973, pp. 116, 118.]
Meretseger was the patron of the artisans and workers of the village of
Deir el-Medina
Deir el-Medina ( arz, دير المدينة), or Dayr al-Madīnah, is an ancient Egyptian workmen's village which was home to the artisans who worked on the tombs in the Valley of the Kings during the 18th to 20th Dynasties of the New Kingdom of ...
, who built and decorated the great royal and noble tombs.
Desecrations of rich royal burials were already in progress from the
Old Kingdom of Egypt (27th/22nd century BC), sometimes by the workers themselves: the genesis of Meretseger was the spontaneous need to identify a guardian goddess, both dangerous and merciful,
[Hart 1986, p. 119.] of the tombs of sovereigns and aristocrats. Her cult, also present in
Esna (near
Luxor), reached its peak during the
18th Dynasty. A royal wife of the
Middle Kingdom pharaoh
Senusret III
Khakaure Senusret III (also written as Senwosret III or the hellenised form, Sesostris III) was a pharaoh of Egypt. He ruled from 1878 BC to 1839 BC during a time of great power and prosperity, and was the fifth king of the Twelfth Dynasty of the ...
(c. 1878–1839 BC) was called
Meretseger; she was the first to bear the title
Great Royal Wife
Great Royal Wife, or alternatively, Chief King's Wife ( Ancient Egyptian: ''ḥmt nswt wrt'', cop, Ⲟⲩⲏⲣ Ⲟⲩⲣϣ), is the title that was used to refer to the principal wife of the pharaoh of Ancient Egypt, who served many official ...
(which became the standard title for chief wives of Pharaohs) and the first whose name was written in a
cartouche: however, as there are no contemporary sources relating to the Great Royal Wife Meretseger, this homonym of the goddess is most likely a creation of the New Kingdom.
The goddess Meretseger was worshiped by the workers' guild, who feared her wrath very much. Being a local deity, only small rock temples were dedicated to her (such as the one located on the path leading to the
Valley of the Queens) and some
stelae with prayers and poignant requests for forgiveness,
as well as various
cappelletti right at the foot of the hill dedicated to her — which was her embodiment too.
She was sometimes associated with
Hathor: even the latter was considered a protector of the graves in her funerary aspects of "Lady Of The West" and "Lady Of The Necropolis" who opened the
gates of the underworld. Her close association with the Valley of the Kings prevented her becoming anything more than a local deity, and when the valley ceased being in use (and Thebes was abandoned as a capital), so she also ceased being worshipped (11th/10th century BC).
Meretseger's hill
Meretseger was especially associated with the hill now called
el Qurn "The Horn" ( egy,
tꜣ-dhnt "The Peak"
), a natural peak, the highest point (420 m) in the Theban Hills, which dramatically overlooks the
Valley of the Kings.
It has an almost pyramidal shape when viewed from the entrance to the Valley of the Kings, and therefore some
Egyptologists believe it may have been the reason for choosing the location as a royal
necropolis
A necropolis (plural necropolises, necropoles, necropoleis, necropoli) is a large, designed cemetery with elaborate tomb monuments. The name stems from the Ancient Greek ''nekropolis'', literally meaning "city of the dead".
The term usually im ...
. El Qurn, also believed to be one of the entrances to the
Duat (underworld), was sacred to both Meretseger and
Hathor, but the former was considered its real personification.
For this reason, two of Meretseger's many epithets were "Peak of the West" (''Dehent-
Imentet'')
and "Lady Of The Peak".
Many small stelae created by artisans and workers have been found as evidence of devotion to their favorite deities: in addition to Meretseger,
Ptah,
Amun
Amun (; also ''Amon'', ''Ammon'', ''Amen''; egy, jmn, reconstructed as (Old Egyptian and early Middle Egyptian) → (later Middle Egyptian) → (Late Egyptian), cop, Ⲁⲙⲟⲩⲛ, Amoun) romanized: ʾmn) was a major ancient Egyptian ...
, Hathor,
Thoth and the deified
pharaoh Amenhotep I (c. 1525–1504 BC), whose cult was very popular in Deir el-Medina.
Stela of Neferabu
It was believed that Meretseger punished the workers who committed a
sacrilege (by stealing something from the royal graves or the building sites —
copper instruments were particularly precious — as well as those who failed in an oath)
poisoning them with her
bite.
But she was also considered generous in forgiving those who repented to her and, in this case, would heal him from physical evil.
This is the case of the draftsman Neferabu, who would have been cured of
blindness after having begged Meretseger, as he himself was able to attest on a
limestone stela (
Museo egizio,
Turin) dedicated to her:
[ Lichtheim, Miriam (1976). Ancient Egyptian Literature. Volume II: The New Kingdom, Los Angeles: University of California Press, . pp. 107–9.]In relation to the Egyptians with their divinities, the concepts of
sin,
repentance
Repentance is reviewing one's actions and feeling contrition or regret for past wrongs, which is accompanied by commitment to and actual actions that show and prove a change for the better.
In modern times, it is generally seen as involving a co ...
and
forgiveness
Forgiveness, in a psychological sense, is the intentional and voluntary process by which one who may initially feel victimized or wronged, goes through a change in feelings and attitude regarding a given offender, and overcomes the impact of th ...
were very unusual; these characteristics of Meretseger's cult appear to be a ''unicum''.
Rock shrine in Deir el-Medina
Meretseger's rock shrine in Deir el-Medina was formed by a series of caves placed in a semicircle, whose vaults however collapsed due to
earthquakes, and on the outer walls still retains many steles, while a large number of fragments have been inventoried and distributed to various museums. It was also dedicated to the most revered
Ptah, god of craftsmen and artisans.
Overlying the temple there is a rock with the shape of a snake's head.
The large amount of material found confirms that the temple was very popular and famous — locally.
Iconography
Meretseger was sometimes portrayed as a cobra-headed woman, though this iconography is rather rare:
in this case she could hold the
''was''-sceptre as well as having her head surmounted by a feather and being armed with two knives.
More commonly, she was depicted as a woman-headed snake or
scorpion,
a cobra-headed
sphinx, lion-headed cobra or three-headed (woman, snake and
vulture) cobra.
On various steles, she wears a
modius
Modius may refer to:
* an Ancient Roman units of measurement#Dry measure, ancient Roman unit for dry measures, (8.73 L) roughly equivalent to a peck
* a Ancient Roman units of measurement#Area, medieval Roman unit for area, approximately 40 acres
...
surmounted by the
solar disk and by two feathers, or the hathoric crown (the solar disk between two
bovine horns).
Her main artistic depictions are inside lavish royal tombs, for example:
* the tomb (
TT56
The Theban Tomb TT56 is located in Sheikh Abd el-Qurna. It forms part of the Theban Necropolis, situated on the west bank of the Nile opposite Luxor. The tomb is the burial place of the ancient Egyptian official Userhat, who was the Royal Scri ...
) of Userhat, "Scribe who Counts the Bread for
Upper And Lower Egypt" under Pharaoh
Amenhotep II (1427–1401 BC), where she appears with
Montu;
* the tomb (
KV14) of Queen
Twosret (c. 1191–1189 BC) and Pharaoh
Setnakhte (c. 1189–1186 BC), where she appears
genuflected;
* the tomb (
KV9
Tomb KV9 in Egypt's Valley of the Kings was originally constructed by Pharaoh Ramesses V. He was interred here, but his uncle, Ramesses VI, later reused the tomb as his own. The layout is typical of the Twentieth Dynasty of Egypt, 20th Dynasty &nd ...
) of Pharaoh
Ramesses VI (c. 1144–1136 BC), where she appears, along with
Khonsu,
Amun-ra
Amun (; also ''Amon'', ''Ammon'', ''Amen''; egy, jmn, reconstructed as (Old Egyptian and early Middle Egyptian) → (later Middle Egyptian) → (Late Egyptian), cop, Ⲁⲙⲟⲩⲛ, Amoun) romanized: ʾmn) was a major ancient Egyptian ...
,
Ptah-
Sokar and
Ra-Horakhty, receiving offerings by the King himself;
* the tomb (
KV18) of Pharaoh
Ramesses X (c. 1111–1107 BC), where she appears with Ra-Horakhty;
* the tomb (
KV4
KV4 is a tomb in the Valley of the Kings (Egypt). The tomb was initiated for the burial of Ramesses XI but it is likely that its construction was abandoned and that it was never used for Ramesses's interment. It also seems likely that Pinedjem I in ...
) of Pharaoh
Ramesses XI (c. 1107–1077 BC), where she appears with many deities.
Gallery
File:Stele cobra goddess Louvre N4193.jpg, Double image of Meretseger (upper tier) and snakes (lower tier). Louvre, Paris.
File:Stele Nakhtimen Meretseger Louvre N4193.jpg, Stela with the drawer Nakhtimen adoring Meretseger. Louvre, Paris.
File:Ägyptisches Museum Kairo 2016-03-29 Ostrakon 03.jpg, Meretseger on an ostracon. Egyptian Museum, Cairo.
File:Ägyptisches Museum Berlin 033.jpg, Stela with a woman adoring Meretsenger. Egyptian Museum of Berlin.
File:Meretseger stele-E13084-mp3h8847.jpg, Stela with a woman adoring Meretseger above many snakes. Louvre, Paris.
References
Bibliography
* Hart, George (1986), A Dictionary of Egyptian Gods and Goddesses, London: Routledge, .
* Ions, Veronica (1973). Egyptian Mythology, London: Paul Hamlyn. .
*
Pinch, Geraldine (2004). Egyptian Mythology: A Guide to the Gods, Goddesses, and Traditions of Ancient Egypt, Oxford: University Press. .
*
Wilkinson, Richard H. (2003), The Complete Gods and Goddesses of Ancient Egypt, Thames & Hudson, .
External links
*
{{Authority control
Egyptian goddesses
Snake goddesses
ca:Llista de personatges de la mitologia egípcia#M