Yet, Hathor remained popular throughout Egyptian history. More festivals were dedicated to her and more children were named after her than any other god or goddess of Ancient Egypt. Her worship was not confined to Egypt and Nubia. Her birthday was celebrated on the day that Sirius first rose in the sky heralding the coming inundation.
By the Ptolemaic period, she was known as the goddess of Hethara, the third month of the Egyptian calendar. She had power over anything having to do with women from problems with conception or childbirth, to health and beauty, to matters of the heart.
Yet, she was not exclusively worshipped by women and, unlike the other gods and goddesses, she had both male and female priests. Hathor was the goddess of beauty and patron of the cosmetic arts.
Her traditional votive offering was two mirrors and she was often depicted on mirrors and cosmetic palettes. Yet, she was not considered to be vain or shallow, rather she was assured of her own beauty and goodness and loved beautiful and good things.
Hathor was especially connected with the fragrance of myrrh incense , which was considered to be very precious and to embody all of the finer qualities of the female sex. Hathor was associated with turquoise, malachite, gold, and copper.
The Egyptians used eye makeup made from ground malachite which had a protective function in fighting eye infections which was attributed to Hathor. She was the patron of dancers and was associated with percussive music, particularly the sistrum which was also a fertility fetish. Many of her priests were artisans, musicians, and dancers who added to the quality of life of the Egyptians and worshipped her by expressing their artistic natures.
One myth tells that Ra had become so despondent that he refused to speak to anyone. Hathor who never suffered depression or doubt danced before him exposing her private parts, which caused him to laugh out loud and return to good spirits. Trees were not commonplace in ancient Egypt, and their shade was welcomed by the living and the dead alike.
She was sometimes depicted as handing out water to the deceased from a sycamore tree a role formerly associated with Amentet who was often described as the daughter of Hathor and according to myth, she or Isis used the milk from the Sycamore tree to restore sight to Horus who had been blinded by Set. Because of her role in helping the dead, she often appears on sarcophagi with Nut the former on top of the lid, the latter under the lid.
Her priests could read the fortune of a newborn child, and act as oracles to explain the dreams of the people. People would travel for miles to beseech the goddess for protection, assistance, and inspiration. They may have been linked to the constellations Pleiades. Another god that Hathor has a complex relationship with is Horus. Her other relationships include having Shu, Tefnut, Bast and Serket as siblings.
Hathor was also at times seen as the consort of Sobek and Thoth in addition to Horus and Ra. It is these many complex relationships that make this goddess extraordinary and yet puzzling and possibly gives some insight into the thinking of the populations along the way.
Hathor, in addition to the goddess Nut, was often associated with the Milky Way. During Ancient Egyptian times the Milky Way would align with the path of the sun during the fall and spring equinoxes. Another belief was that the Milky Way was Wadjet, a giant snake they believed to be the protector of Egypt.
Because of this Hathor was also closely associated with Wadjet. The cult of Hathor, who worshipped her as the goddess of fertility, is thought to have originated in the pre-dynastic period. It was believed that Hathor played a special role during the birthing process, and that she provided protection and sustenance for newborns. One of her major symbols was the Menat necklace, which was used as a ritual item. It was worn and used as a rattle, as it was often associated with fertility and the womb.
The most important temple to Hathor was the temple at Dendera in Upper Egypt. The temple is well known today as one, if not the best, preserved temples in Egypt. The building found there dates to the Ptolemaic dynasty, although the foundations of older buildings can be seen as well. Another temple exists in Gebelein, a town located on the Nile.
The remains of the temple include multiple cartouches on bricks along with a royal stela dated to sometime during the 2nd or 3rd Dynasty. A twenty-eight year war between Upper and Lower Egypt was fought to unify the two regions.
This was the beginning of the Middle Kingdom. Over time, she was associated with many other goddesses, absorbing their attributes and leading to various roles that were sometimes contradictory. Origins Dating back to the pre-dynastic era, the cow-headed goddess that appears on the Narmer Palette is said to be either Hathor or Bat, another cow-goddess with whom she was identified. Appearance Hathor was most often depicted as a cow or a woman with the horns or ears of a cow. Family Hathor was closely linked to Isis , another famous Egyptian goddess who was the mother of Horus.
Facts About Hathor Because of her popularity, more festivals were dedicated to the honor of Hathor and more children named after her than any other ancient Egyptian god or goddess. Her festivals were joyous affairs, filled with music and dancing; Hathor was not only worshipped in Egypt, but also Nubia, Semitic West Asia, Ethiopia and Libya; Some of the names that Hathor were called include Mistress of Heaven, Lady of Stars, Mistress of Turquoise, Lady of the House of Jubilation, and Mistress of the Offering; Apart from her manifestation as a cow and woman, Hathor took the form of a cat, lion, goose, and sycamore fig; Hathor was the patron of many things, including miners, dancers, drunkenness, and different art forms such as music.
Her body was often represented in red. Together with the dwarf god BES , they were the only two gods ever pictured in portrait rather than profile; Hathor was viewed as the spiritual mother of the pharaoh by ancient Egyptians; An archeological excavation revealed ancient turquoise mining camps and a temple to Hathor in the Sinai desert.
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