15,697
edits
Changes
no edit summary
The most important god of the Hermopolitan creation myth was Amun, who was known as the “Hidden One,” indicating the numinous and mysterious force mentioned by Tobin. Amun grew in importance during Egypt’s Middle Kingdom (c. 2055-1650 BC) until he became the national god during the Eighteenth Dynasty (c. 1550-1295 BC) of the New Kingdom. Amun’s attributes as a creator god were later combined with more martial elements, which was indicative of the period. <ref> Lesko, Leonard. “Ancient Egyptian Cosmogonies and Cosmology.” In <i>Religion in Ancient Egypt: Gods, Myths, and Personal Practice.</i> Edited by Byron E. Shafer. (Ithaca, New York: Cornell University Press, 1991), pgs. 105-6</ref> Where the creation in the Hermopolitan myth was somewhat enigmatic and connected to a mysterious force, creation according to the Memphis myth was the result of intellect.
====The Memphite Creation Myth====
[[File: Ptah_votive_stele.jpg|300px|thumbnail|left|A Votive Stela Depicting Ptah with a Long Beard, Skull Cap, and “Djed” Staff]]
Memphis (Egyptian “Mennefer”) served as Egypt’s political capital for much of its history , and it was also the primary cult center of the god Ptah. Like Amun, Ptah was always depicted in human form, but instead of wearing a feather crown , he was shown wearing a simpler skull cap. In many ways , Ptah was the most logical choice of all creator gods, as he was the god of metal workers and craftsmen. <ref> Wilkinson, p. 18</ref> Although Ptah was known to work with his hands, his act of creation was accomplished through thought and speech. The so-called “Memphite Theology” is articulated fully in a hieroglyphic text known as the <i>Shabaqa Stone</i>. The <i>Shabaqa Stone</i> is named for the Nubian king who ruled over Egypt in the Twenty -Fifth Dynasty (ruled 716-702 BC) and is dated to 710 BC, but is believed by most Egyptologists to be a copy of a Nineteenth Dynasty, or possibly even an Old Kingdom original. <ref> Lesko, p. 95</ref> The creation account of the text reads:
“There took shape in the heart, ; there took shape on the tongue the form of Atum. For the very great one is Ptah, who gave [life] to all the gods and their <i>ka</i>s through his heart and through this tongue, in which Horus had taken shape as Ptah, in which Thoth had taken shape as Ptah.” <ref> Lichtheim, Miriam, ed. <i> Ancient Egyptian Literature.</i> Volume 1: The Old and Middle Kingdoms (Los Angeles: University of California Press, 2006), p. 73</ref>
===The Heliopolitan Creation Myth===