Aegis - in Egyptian and Nubian Mythology

In Egyptian and Nubian Mythology

The aegis also appears in Ancient Egyptian mythology. The goddess Bast sometimes was depicted holding a ceremonial sistrum in one hand and an aegis in the other – the aegis usually resembling a collar or gorget embellished with a lioness head. Plato drew a parallel between Athene and the ancient Libyan and Egyptian goddess Neith, a war deity who also was depicted carrying a shield.

Ancient Nubia shared many aspects of its mythology with ancient Egypt and there is debate about the original source of some religious concepts that the two cultures share and, whether the assimilation was from Nubia to Egypt, the reverse, or through continuing exchanges. At one time the Kush of Nubia ruled ancient Egypt.

The image to the right was discovered in Sudan, which is the contemporary name for the territory of Nubia during the period in which the artifact was made, during the 4th century BC. The figure is that of Isis and she is wearing an aegis. It is likely to be an artifact of the flourishing culture of Meroë, successors to the culture of Kush, because of the use of Egyptian hieroglyphs and cartouches.

• Aegis on an image of Isis from the Nubian culture of the 4th century BC found in contemporary Sudan - British Museum

• Aegis of Neith, Twenty-sixth dynasty of Egypt - Museum of Fine Arts of Lyon