Αρχαία Αιγυπτιακή Κορνεόλη Ιπποπόταμος Φυλαχτό - 36 mm

Provenance:
Collection passed on to me by mother (P.M.Shaw) in 2009
Given to her by
J.G.Judd who acquired piece part of a strand of many depictions and amulets from Cairo dealer 6-10-1979- with copy original invoice available.

To the ancient Egyptians, the hippopotamus was one of the most dangerous animals in their world. The huge creatures were a hazard for small fishing boats and other rivercraft. The beast might also be encountered on the waterways in the journey to the afterlife. As such, the hippopotamus was a force of nature that needed to be propitiated and controlled, both in this life and the next.

In early societies, the act of hunting and killing such a dangerous animal was a sign of courage, strength, and power-all characteristics that were expected of a leader. Thus it is not surprising that, from about 3000 B.C. on, depictions of the king himself hunting a hippopotamus are known from ancient Egypt. Because the hippopotamus also symbolized chaos, these scenes had important symbolic value. The image of the king successfully hunting and killing the animal expressed the victory over chaos and his ability to maintain the world order, which was the task of the Egyptian ruler. It is likely that hippos were captured and kept alive in order to be employed at a later time in rituals, when the ruler would ritually "hunt" and kill the hippo,
thus fulfilling his kingly duty and presenting himself as the victor.

From the New Kingdom (ca. 1550-1070
B.C.) on, the hippopotamus was connected to the god Seth, and in later times Seth was seen as an evil character. The god Horus was the mythological prototype of the king, and in the myth of Horus and Seth, Horus deteats Seth and ascends the throne they had battled over. Ritual enactments of this story were recorded in about 100 B.C. on the walls of the temple of Edfu. These scenes show Horus, who is often depicted together with the king, harpooning Seth in the shape of a hippopotamus.

But the ancient Egyptians also recognized hippopotami as positive creatures. Hippos lived in the Nile River, the source of life, so they, too, were associated with life. They often submerge in water for several minutes, surface to breathe, then sink again; this behavior of disappearing and reappearing was associated with regeneration and rebirth. Sometimes only the back of a hippo is visible, which resembles land surrounded by water.