Book of the Heavenly Cow
E605189
The Book of the Heavenly Cow is an ancient Egyptian religious text that recounts a divine myth of rebellion, destruction, and cosmic restoration involving the sun god and the sky cow goddess.
Statements (59)
| Predicate | Object |
|---|---|
| instanceOf |
ancient Egyptian religious text
ⓘ
cosmogonic text ⓘ mythological narrative ⓘ |
| associatedWithConcept |
divine kingship
ⓘ
eschatology ⓘ maat ⓘ |
| centralDeity |
Geb
NERFINISHED
ⓘ
Hathor NERFINISHED ⓘ Nut NERFINISHED ⓘ Ra NERFINISHED ⓘ Re NERFINISHED ⓘ Sekhmet NERFINISHED ⓘ Shu NERFINISHED ⓘ Thoth NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| cosmologicalMotif |
gods supporting the belly of the sky cow
ⓘ
sky represented as a cow arched over the earth ⓘ |
| culture | ancient Egyptian religion ⓘ |
| dateApproximate | 14th century BCE ⓘ |
| firstAttestedInReignOf |
Ay
NERFINISHED
ⓘ
Horemheb NERFINISHED ⓘ Tutankhamun NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| foundIn |
tomb of Ramesses II (KV7)
NERFINISHED
ⓘ
tomb of Ramesses III (KV11) NERFINISHED ⓘ tomb of Ramesses VI (KV9) ⓘ tomb of Seti I (KV17) NERFINISHED ⓘ tomb of Tutankhamun (KV62) NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| function |
explanation of why the sun god is distant from humanity
ⓘ
legitimization of the king as mediator between gods and humans ⓘ theological justification for the mortality of humans ⓘ |
| genre |
apocalyptic myth
ⓘ
myth of rebellion ⓘ |
| hasAlternativeName |
Book of the Celestial Cow
NERFINISHED
ⓘ
Heavenly Cow NERFINISHED ⓘ Myth of the Heavenly Cow NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| language | Ancient Egyptian ⓘ |
| medium |
coffin inscriptions
ⓘ
tomb wall inscriptions ⓘ |
| narrativeEvent |
Hathor-Sekhmet drinks the beer and is pacified
ⓘ
Ra learns of human rebellion ⓘ Ra orders the brewing of red-dyed beer NERFINISHED ⓘ Ra sends Hathor-Sekhmet to destroy rebellious humans ⓘ Ra withdraws from earth to the sky ⓘ creation of the sky as a cow supported by gods ⓘ institution of the Field of Reeds and the Duat ⓘ massacre of humanity by Hathor-Sekhmet ⓘ |
| period | New Kingdom of Egypt NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| relatedToText |
Amduat
NERFINISHED
ⓘ
Book of the Dead NERFINISHED ⓘ Coffin Texts NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| scholarlyInterpretation |
interpreted as a myth explaining the origin of death and suffering
ⓘ
seen as a political myth supporting pharaonic authority ⓘ |
| script | hieroglyphic ⓘ |
| theme |
cosmic separation of sky and earth
ⓘ
destruction and near annihilation of humanity ⓘ divine rebellion of humanity against the sun god ⓘ justification of royal power ⓘ punishment of humankind ⓘ restoration of cosmic order (maat) ⓘ |
| usage | inscribed in royal tombs for protection and cosmic order ⓘ |
Referenced by (3)
Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.