Baboon with a wedjet eye

Baboon with a wedjet eye, Dynasty 26 (ca. 688–525 b.c.)
Egyptian
Faience
Rogers Fund, 1944 (44.4.41)

From the beginning of Egyptian history, the baboon had a role in Egyptian religion. Initially, he was known as a deity called the "Great White One" (that is, the moon), but soon this god was conflated with Thoth, the better known ibis-headed god of writing and recording. Thoth's responsibilities included the calendar, which in ancient Egypt was lunar based, facilitating the integration of the two deities. Baboon amulets probably were offerings to shrines honoring Thoth, but could also have been placed with the deceased as a representative of the deity who recorded Osiris' judgment. This baboon holds a wedjet eye, the eye stolen from Horus and healed by Thoth.

Related

Maps

• World, 1000 b.c.–1 a.d.
• Africa, 1000 b.c.–1 a.d.

Timelines

• Egypt, 1000 b.c.–1 a.d.

Thematic Essays

• Egyptian Amulets

Works of Art by Collection

• Egyptian Art

Index Terms

Art Movement/Style

• Twenty–sixth Dynasty of Egypt in the Late Period

Material and Technique

• Faience

Object

• Amulet

Subject Matter/Theme

• Archaeology
• Archaeology from Africa and Egypt
• Miscellaneous Animal

Technical Glossary

• Egyptian Faience