Aset (Isis) in Other Temples
Besides the famous temple at Philae, dedicated to Aset (Isis) by the Ptolemies, and the lesser-known temple of Aset at Behbeit el-Hagar, according to ancient references and archaeological records the deity Isis had other chapels and temples dedicated to Her.
****Busiris--Herodotus in his Book II said Isis had a
temple here in the Delta.
****Coptos, in ancient times also known as Quft or Qift, Flinders Petrie found a temple to Min, Isis and Horus, built in the New Kingdom by Tutmosis III.
****Dendera--Aset also had a chapel dedicated to Her built here during the Ptolemaic Period.
****Seti I’s temple of Abydos:
One of the most beautiful chapels to Aset was built in the New Kingdom by Seti I.
On the West wall of the Entrance
Passage there is a scene from the “Book of Gates.” The central image is the
solar boat of Ra-Khepri, which is raised up by Nun, the Primeval Ocean. Ra-Khepri
stands in the center of the boat, and on either side there stand several
deities. Among them is Aset/Isis, who stands immediately to the right of
Khepri, followed by Geb, Shu and Heka.
On the Western Wall of the First
Hypostyle Hall, Isis is shown suckling King Ramesses I, father of Seti I,
in the presence of Her son Horus. Osiris-Andjity is shown giving to Ramesses the
emblem of the Heb-Sed festival, and Horus and Isis stand behind the king.
On the northern wall of the Second
Hypostyle Hall, Osiris is shown adored by five goddesses. Aset stands
behind Osiris, wearing Her throne-sign symbol on Her head, and a wing-patterned
dress. The other goddesses are Ma’at, Renpet, Amentet or Amenty, and Nebt-het
or Nephthys.
On the Western Wall of the Second
Hypostyle Hall there are niches, each containing a scene of Seti and the gods.
In one, Aset stands behind Seti I, offering him the Heb-Sed emblem (as
Her son Horus is also doing in the same scene, in front of Seti I) and She also
holds out to Seti the menat necklace which she is wearing around her neck.
Another niche scene shows Seti standing before Aset who holds the Ankh,
the sign of Life, to his face. She tells the king that he is to Her as “Horus
who was in my body.” In yet another scene, Seti is seated as a child on the
lap of Aset. The scene is reminiscent of those wherein She has Her son
Horus seated upon Her lap, as She places one hand behind Seti’s head and
tenderly raises his face as if for a kiss, and She addresses him as Her beloved
son whom She brought forth and nursed “that his limbs might be strong.”
Isis Chapel of Seti I at Abydos
There are seven vaulted chapels arranged in a row at the western end of the Second Hypostyle Hall. These chapels were intended for the daily cult ceremonies of the gods. One of these is for Aset.
In Her vaulted chapel, the outer
doorway jambs contain the following scenes. On the southern inner jamb, Seti is
offering wine to Isis. On the northern wall, Seti stands before Isis.
He is also shown breaking the seal on the door of a shrine that contains Her
cult statue. (See section on Daily Temple Ritual). Seti is also shown kneeling
in homage before Isis.
The sacred boat of the goddess is shown on both the southern and northern walls at the western end. On each side of the false-door, Seti is shown disrobing and re-clothing the cult statues (see Daily Ritual.)
Aset also appears in a relief
in the vaulted chapel of Horus. She stands behind Her son, Horus, and
affectionately grasps His arm. She also appears in the Vaulted chapel of Osiris,
in one scene where Seti is burning incense before Osiris and Aset, and in
another scene, where Seti is offering a golden collar to Osiris, with Aset
standing behind him with great wings extended on each side of Her husband Osiris.
There are also three chapels to the
north, for the Triad of Abydos, that is, Osiris/Wesir, Aset/Isis, and
Horus/Heru.
In the Isis inner or northern
chapel, the first scene on the eastern and western wall of her chapel shows
Osiris receiving Seti’s homage as the king burns incense. Isis stands
behind Osiris, Her hands resting upon His shoulders, and the inscription reads,
“My two arms are around you, I embrace your beauty.” She then addresses the
king saying, “O my son, lord of the two lands, Men-maat-Ra, my heart is
content with what you have done; I rejoice when I see your monuments, and I give
to you all might.”
In the next scene, Seti is making
incense and libations for Aset, the Mother of God. In the last scene,
Seti is carrying a tray of food offerings for Aset, including bread,
meat, poultry, and fruit.
On the northern wall of the chapel, Isis
hands Seti the emblems of the Heb-Sed and the “Millions of Years.” Horus
stands behind Her looking on with approval.
On the western wall, Seti gives wine to Isis, that “she may give him life like Ra.” Tradition held that Isis invented wine, while Osiris invented Beer.
****Aswan
The temple of Isis at Aswan dates from the reigns of Ptolemy III and IV. Aswan is a town lying on the east bank of the Nile at the northern end of the First Cataract. In ancient Egyptian it was called Swnw and in Greek was called Syene.
The temple was dedicated to Isis "who fights in front of the army," appropriate since the town was a garrison and base for military operations against Lower Nubia.
The temple consists of a hypostyle hall supported by two pillars, giving access to three parallel sanctuaries in the rear part. The relief decorations remained confined to the main doorways and the back wall of the central sanctuary, but they depicted the usual ritual scenes.
The doorway leading into the sanctuary is topped by the cornice below which is a winged disk, which is repeated again on the lintel. Down either side are four panels, of which the first three show the King offering to various gods, and the last on either side shows two figures of Hapi of the North and the South. On either side of the doorway is an inscription in three perpendicular lines, giving a hymn to Isis-Sirius.
****Kalabsha, 50 miles south of the present High Dam, and the largest free-standing temple of Lower Nubia, built in the reign of the last Ptolemies and dedicated to the Nubia deity Horus-Mandulis, and to Isis and Osiris.
****Dendur
This temple now stands, reconstructed, in the Metropolitan Museum in New York City. It once stood on ht eleft bank of the Nile a little less than 12/5 miles south of Kalabsha and some 48 miles south of Aswan. It was originally built by the Roman emperor Augustus, and bears reliefs of Isis and Horus on its entry pylons.
Other depictions of Aset/Isis
Aset/Isis also appears in reliefs in many other temples such as Luxor and Kom Ombo, and in royal and noble tombs such as that of Nefertari and that of Sebekhotep.
Sources: Abydos: Holy City of Ancient Egypt by Omm Sety and Hanny El Zeini
Guide to the Antiquities of Egypt by Arthur Weigall
"Aswan," by Stephan Seidlmayer in Encyclopedia of Archaeology of Ancient Egypt edited by Kathryn Bard.
The beautiful background of a hypostyle hall was made for me by graphic artist Tina Houk, to whom I am deeply appreciative and grateful. It cannot be copied without express permission.
Copyright 2002 by Khenmetaset and Marie Parsons. All texts contained herein are from annotated sources unless otherwise stated. This website is for educational purposes only. Any comments may be directed to Khenmetaset or Marie Parsons at khenmetaset@prodigy.net.