Rods of ancient Egypt
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The rods of ancient Egypt are short cylindrical objects clutched within the fists of various leaders and individuals who have been portrayed in ancient sculpture. Commonly popularized as the "Wands of Horus" they are usually found clutched in the fists of statues of ancient Egyptian kings, or pharaohs, but also appear in other ancient sculptures.
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[edit] Who is represented holding the rods?
The rods of ancient Egypt may commonly be found depicted in statues of ancient Egyptian kings. For example, in the statue of Menkaura at right, Menkaura is portrayed holding a rod in each hand. He is also depicted holding similar rods in several other statues that were made of him.
Numerous statues of other ancient Egyptian kings and pharaohs also depict similar rods clutched in their fists. (A comprehensive pictorial is available on-line at Neilos - Gallery of Images.)
However, rods are also portrayed in other sculptures of other individuals in addition to ancient Egyptian kings and pharaohs. In particular a bas-relief of Marcus Aurelius from the 2nd century depicts an unknown, short rod-shaped object being handed over to him (see image below). Additionally, various statues of other significant persons of ancient Egypt are portrayed holding rods clutched in their fists, namely Supervisor of palace attendants Minnefer and Chief of the granary Nykara (see footnote below).
[edit] What actually were the rods of ancient Egypt?
[edit] Folded cloth
A recent suggestion (see footnote below) that these sculpted objects really represent rolls of tightly folded cloth may appear plausible but fails at providing satisfactory explanations for all exemplary sculptures. Examples include:
- Several ancient Egyptian statues portraying clearly non-cloth rod-like objects fashioned in markedly polygonal shapes -- including nonagonal, hexagonal and square.
- A bas-relief of Marcus Aurelius from the 2nd century depicting a short rod-like object loosely handed over to him (see book cover image at right).
[edit] Sacred symbol
As suggested by the popular name, "Wands of Horus," mentioned above, some researchers suspect that these rods may have borne a religious significance in ancient Egypt specifically associated with Horus. In particular, Horus is known to have been associated in later ancient beliefs with rebirth-after-death (see Horus: Mystery Religion).
[edit] Healing rods
Some researchers/marketeers today purport that these rods were used in ancient Egypt for healing. For example, modern day reconstructs allege varied healing abilities depending upon composition.
[edit] References
- ↑ See "The Old Kingdom and First Intermediate Period," 408 KB pdf-file, Cleveland Museum of Art, pp. 50-53.
- ↑ See "The Old Kingdom and First Intermediate Period," 408 KB pdf-file, Cleveland Museum of Art, footnote 2, page 51. Reference: Henry G. Fischer, "An Elusive Shape within the Fisted Hands of Egyptian Statues" in Ancient Egypt, pp. 143-155 (no date provided). Most probably refers to: ISBN 0-87099-222-8 and ISBN 0-87099-159-0.
- ↑ See large close-up photograph at [9]. Note nonagonal shape grasped within fist of "Sculpture of an Egyptian priest holding nine-faceted 'Wands of Horus,'" posted near bottom of web page. See also hexagonal and square shapes clutched by Ramesses II, posted near the top of web page.
- ↑ See "The Wands of Horus: Ancient Tools for Enlightenment," 260 KB pdf-file, published by Dr. Valery Mikhailovich Uvarov, IICUFII Director of Russia's National Security Academy in St. Petersburg, Russia.
- ↑ See "The Wands of Horus" 1.9Mb pdf-file, English version of the book published in 1996 by Dr. Valery Mikhailovich Uvarov, IICUFII Director of Russia's National Security Academy in St. Petersburg, Russia.
- ↑ See "The Wands of Horus - Extracts from the New Book" 2.1Mb pdf-file, English translations from the book published in 2004 in Russian by Dr. Valery Mikhailovich Uvarov, IICUFII Director of Russia's National Security Academy in St. Petersburg, Russia.
- ↑ See Neilos - Wands of Horus - Product Information - Types of Wands.
- ↑ See "Instructions for Using the Wands of Horus" 2.2Mb pdf-file, English version published 2005 by Dr. Valery Mikhailovich Uvarov, IICUFII Director of Russia's National Security Academy in St. Petersburg, Russia.
![[9]](http://www.neilos.org/wandsgallery/052_Priest_Hermitage.jpg){kind=link}