Festivals of Aset

Festivals of Aset/Isis

Middle Kingdom period:

(from the archive at Illahun)

5 epagomenal Days:

Days 1-5, feasts, Births of Wesir/Osiris, Heru-wer/Horus Elder, Set, Aset/Isis, Nebt-Het/Nephthys

New Kingdom period:

(from the temple of Ramesses II at Abydos)

3rd month of Akhet, 17th day - Mourning of Isis and Nephthys at Abydos.

Late Period:

(from the temple at Esna)

1st month of Inundation, 10th day - Making the procession of Isis in Pi-Neter, in order to present offerings to her brother Osiris....Making the procession of the same goddess at nght-time

2nd month of Inundation, 6th day - Feast of Isis; they call it "the beginning of making festivals" (?)

5 epagomenal days, day 4 - Birth of Isis; that good feast of the sky and earth.

(from the temple of Edfu)

4th month of Shomu, day 2 - Taking out in procession, Isis the brilliant, Mother of the God, residing in Behdet. Resting in the barque-sanctuary; every kind of good thing is offered to her.

[See Aset Luminous Festival, aka Aset Webenut, aka Isis Luminous, to sacred barques, and to Horus of Behdet.]

Five days over the year, or, epagomenal days: Birth of Isis. The First Feast of this god is celebrated. Going out in procession, resting in the Place of the First Feast, opposite Ra; invocation....; offering (?) is made for the purification-feast. Every instruction for the robing is carried out......

(from the Edfu calendar of Hathor)

2nd month of Akhet, day 6: Festival of Isis the great, Lady of the Two Lands. It is the beginning of writing for her of her annals by her mother, Tefnut, as for her elder brother Osiris.

1st month of Shomu, day 12 - celebrate the marriage-contract of the Mistress of mankind.....Isis; feast of Ra.

Five days over the year, or epagomenal days - Birth of Isis. Feast of "revealing the face" of this goddess with her ennead. Performing all the rites of the feast of robing...according to the ritual of te place of the First Feast. Make a great oblation of bread, beer, oxen, fowl, wine, milk, pomegranate-wine, [gazelles, oryx, ibexes (?)], cranes, pigeons, fattened, ducks, with fresh vegetables and all kinds of fruit. It is so sweet to serve the Beautiful One with right offerings! Theis goddess is taken out in procession as a female Bes; consecrating....; invocation and summons. All the rites are celebrated in accord with what is in the ritual.

Return to Domain of Aset

Picture of Philae temple done by David Robertson, from Complete Temples of Ancient Egypt by Richard Wilkinson.

Textual source from Temple Festival Calendars of Ancient Egypt by Sherif El-Sabban.