The Egyptian Myths by Garry J. Shaw

Author:Garry J. Shaw
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Thames and Hudson Ltd

A statuette of the god Ptah-Sokar-Osiris.

Sokar

Originally a god of the Memphite necropolis, over time Sokar became strongly connected with the funerary sphere in general and with the Duat, presiding over his desert domain in the fourth and fifth hours of the night, as described in the Amduat (see below). Sokar could be depicted as a hawk-headed man, wearing the White Crown of Upper Egypt or Osiris’ atef-crown. Occasionally, he is shown with a human face and wearing a lappet wig. Whether standing or seated, his body is normally wrapped in a cloak, and he holds a sceptre and a whip. Sokar could also be shown fully as a hawk wearing the Double Crown of Upper and Lower Egypt, and was closely identified with the henu-barque, a heavily ornamented ritual boat, perched upon by the Sokar falcon.

The Pyramid Texts cite Sokar as the creator of the ‘royal bones’, who received the deceased king in the afterlife and then sent him into the sky aboard his henu-barque, helped by Horus; he also played a key role in the resurrection of the non-royal dead. Additionally, Sokar was originally patron of craftsmen, especially metalworkers.

Sokar often appears in a syncretized form as Ptah-Sokar-Osiris, who represents creation, metamorphosis and rebirth, combining each god’s dominant power and responsibility. His family groupings are never fixed, so that although he has a female companion called Sokaret and a son called Reswedja, Nephthys and Seshat can each sometimes be cited as his consort. Sokar’s divine grouping is also fluid: in Memphis he is grouped with a Memphite version of the god Khnum, Herremenwyfy and Shesmu, while in his solar form he is associated with Nefertum and five ‘divine daughters of Re’.

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