Who were the gods?
The ancient Egyptians had many gods and goddesses.
Gods created the universe and made sure everything was in order. They were also involved in everyday life.
The gods represented natural forces such as storms, thunder, death and fire. The Egyptians supported and pleased them through offerings and rituals so that the natural order, or maat, could be kept.
Some gods were stars, others were humans and animals. The funerary god Anubis is commonly shown in art as a jackal (a dog).
The god Khnum was the god of the Elephantine Island on the Nile. People believed Khnum was in charge of the annual flood that fertilized the farms.
Watch: Ancient Egyptian beliefs
THE ANCIENT EGYPTIAN GODS
The gods of old Egypt rule over us here,
Bringing us wisdom and wonder and fear.
They look like the things that
The natural world shapes,
Like jackals and beetles and lions.
And apes!
Babi watched over his troupe of baboons,
Ihy, would charm with his beautiful tunes,
Thoth was the scribe god of reading and writing!
Sekhmet the lioness, war god, she liked fighting!
Anubis took care of the recently dead,
Rah wore the sun on the top of his head!
The stories align to the planets and stars!
The sun and the moon, in the timeless stone we'd carve.
Great statues, such forms, we revere, we adore,
The ancient Egyptian gods.
For 3000 years they watched over these lands,
Holding the fate of the world in their hands,
Horus would watch with his all-seeing eye,
Nut moved the moon and she held up the sky,
Isis taught humanity, and healed us when we're hurt,
Osiris , god of life and death, controlled the underworld,
Ptah built the Earth and created us all,
Seth, god of chaos, was an evil so and so!
The stories align to the planets and stars,
The sun and the moon, in the timeless stone we'd carve.
Great statues, such forms, we revere, we adore,
The ancient Egyptian gods,
The ancient Egyptian gods!
Learn more about the gods
- Image source, Manchester Museum, University of Manchester
Image caption, Thoth
Thoth was often shown with the head of a baboon or an ibis (a wading bird with long legs and a long beak). He was the scribe for the other gods and the ancient Egyptians believed that he invented hieroglyphs.
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How important were the gods to the Pharaohs?
Around 3100BC, the pharaohs said they represented the gods and controlled the temples where the rituals were carried out. - Temples were filled with images of the gods and only the pharaoh and the priests could go inside.
The pharaoh was divine. This meant that people believed he had been chosen to rule by the gods.
Pharaohs built temples and performed rituals to keep maat, or order and keep the gods happy.
When did beliefs change?
There was a mixture of gods and rituals in Egypt under Greek and Roman rule from 300BC onwards.
The Roman Empire officially became Christian in the 4th century AD (AD301 - 400).
The ancient Egyptian temples and gods died out by the 6th century AD (AD501 - 600).
Activities
Activity 1: Name the gods
Match the god to their name below.
Activity 2: Quiz 鈥 Ancient Egyptian gods
Activity 3: History Explorer game
Play this game to test your knowledge and learn even more facts about Ancient Egypt.
History Explorer: Secrets through time
History Explorer: Secrets through time: KS2 History
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