Editing Kherty

{{short description|Ancient Egyptian deity}}
{{Infobox deity
|type = egyptian
|name = Kherty
|image =Kherty.svg
|caption = Kherty was depicted as a mummified Ram
|hiero = <hiero>T28:t</hiero><ref name=CLG/> or <hiero>T28:t-i-G7</hiero><ref name=CLG/>
}}

'''Kherty''' is an [[ancient Egyptian deity]]. Despite being archaeologically attested since the early [[Second Dynasty of Egypt|2nd Dynasty]], his original mythological role during this era is unclear. Kherty was an Egyptian god of the [[Duat]].<ref name=JGT/><ref name=GMD>Georg Meurer: ''Die Feinde des Königs in den Pyramidentexten'' (= ''Orbis biblicus et orientalis'', vol. 189). Saint-Paul, 2002, {{ISBN|3525530463}}, pp. 73, 74 & 76.</ref> The earliest mythological descriptions of Kherty's role do not appear until the [[Sixth Dynasty of Egypt|6th Dynasty]] in the [[Pyramid Texts]].<ref name=JGT>John Gwyn Griffiths: ''The Origins of Osiris and His Cult'' (= ''Studies in the history of religions'', vol. 40). BRILL, Leiden 1980, {{ISBN|9004060960}}, p. 6, 173 & 174.</ref>

== Description ==
The earliest depictions of Kherty appear during the early 2nd dynasty, under king ([[pharaoh]]) [[Hotepsekhemwy]] and [[Raneb]]. He is normally shown as a recumbent and mummified [[sheep|ram]].  In rare instances he was pictured as a bull or a lion. The figurine is always guided by the [[Egyptian hieroglyphs|hieroglyphic]] signs of a shamble and a bread loaf, giving a reading as ''kherty''.

== Cult ==
Kherty was worshipped since the early 2nd dynasty, his name appears first time on stone bowls of king [[Sneferka]]. Stone bowl inscriptions from the reign of king [[Peribsen]] mention first time the title "god servant of Kherty" (Egypt. ''hem-netjer Kherty''). The main centre of the Kherty cult was located at [[Letopolis]] (today Ausim), a second cult centre was later founded at ''Nesat'' (exact location unknown).<ref name=CLG>Christian Leitz: ''Lexikon der ägyptischen Götter und Götterbezeichnungen (LGG)'' (= ''Orientalia Lovaniensia Analecta'', vol. 6). Peeters Publishers, Leuven 2002, {{ISBN|9042911514}}, pp. 48.</ref>

== Mythology ==
{{Ancient Egyptian religion}}
Kherty was a contradicting character: The pyramid texts reveal that he was worshipped at one side as a guide, who brought the deceased king safely to "the yonder site" by "being the ferryman". He also protected the deceased against various demons (named ''inmetjw'' in the texts) sent by [[Set (deity)|Seth]]. The deceased king was then brought to his destination by [[Ra]].<ref name=JGT/><ref name=GMD/> On the other site, however, Kherty was feared as death in persona, a god that "lives on the heart of men", making them stop pounding. The pyramid texts reveal that Kherty attacked the physical heart (''khat(jw)'') of the dying peoples, not the metaphysical, symbolic heart (''jb'') as the "seat of thoughts and feelings". For this reason, a lot of spells and prayers were addressed to Kherty in attempt to befriend and please him.<ref name=JGT/> Other prayers beg Ra to "take the deceased king away from Kherty". These prayers also mention [[Osiris]], the judge of the underworld. Thus, Kherty and Osiris were mythologically connected to each other.<ref name=GMD/>

Kherty is not mentioned in the famous [[Coffin Texts]] of [[Middle Kingdom of Egypt|Middle Kingdom period]]. Instead, he is replaced by a god [[Aker (god)|Aker]], who is now the ferryman. In the prayers of the [[Book of the Dead]], Kherty is described as a guard who guides the celestial bark of Ra.<ref name=CLG/>

== References ==
<references/>

{{Ancient Egyptian religion footer}}

[[Category:Egyptian death gods]]
[[Category:Underworld gods]]
[[Category:Egyptian underworld]]
[[Category:Psychopomps]]
[[Category:Lion gods]]