Ancient Egyptian Religion · deity

Isis

also: Isis · Aset

deitymagicmotherhoodhealingfidelitythe protection of the dead

The greatest of the Egyptian goddesses: wife of Osiris, mother of Horus, the master of magic, the protector of the dead, and the faithful wife.

Isis (from a painted shroud) · Unknown (Metropolitan Museum of Art collection) · Ptolemaic/Roman period (approx. 300 BCE-200 CE) · Metropolitan Museum of Art (via Wikimedia Commons) · CC BY-SA 2.5

The account

Who they are

Isis is the most widely worshipped of the Egyptian goddesses and one of the most important figures in the Osiris cycle [S3][S4]. She is the sister and wife of Osiris and the mother of Horus [S1][S3][S4]. After Set murdered Osiris, Isis gathered the scattered pieces of his body (all except the genitals, which were lost) and used her magic to restore him and conceive Horus [S3][S4]. She is the master of magic (she is the one who, in one myth, learned the secret name of Ra and thereby gained his power) [S3][S4]. Isis is the protector of the dead: in the Book of the Dead, she appears as one of the four daughters of Horus who protect the canopic jars (the internal organs) [S2][S4]. Her worship spread across the Mediterranean and into the Roman world, where the 'Isis cult' persisted for centuries [S3][S4].

Worth knowing

Wife of Osiris, mother of Horus [S1][S3][S4].
Restored Osiris's body and conceived Horus [S3][S4].
Master of magic [S3][S4].
Protector of the dead (one of the four daughters of Horus) [S2][S4].
Her cult spread across the Roman world [S3][S4].

Uncertainties & variants

Isis's 'magic' is a later development; in the earliest sources she is a faithful wife and a good mother [S4].
The 'secret name of Ra' episode is a late (Greco-Roman period) text [S3][S4].

Relationships (8)

Connections

Family & kinship

PARENT_OFGeb — Geb is the parent of Isis.[S1] [S4]

PARENT_OFNut — Nut is the parent of Isis.[S1] [S4]

SIBLING_OFOsiris — Osiris and Isis are siblings.[S1] [S4]

SIBLING_OFSet (Seth) — Isis and Set are siblings.[S1] [S4]

PARENT_OFHorus — Isis is the parent of Horus.[S3] [S4]

Partners

PARTNER_OFOsiris — Osiris and Isis are married (and siblings).[S1] [S3] [S4]

Alliances & rule

ALLY_OFNephthys — Nephthys stands with Isis in the grief and restoration of Osiris.[S3] [S4]

ALLY_OFHorus — Isis protects and supports Horus in his quest against Set.[S3] [S4]

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Their corner of the divine world

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Myths featuring Isis

3 stories

The Murder of Osiris

Set, jealous of his brother Osiris (the rightful king), lured him to a banquet. Set brought a coffin that he had measured to Osiris's exact size; when Osiris lay down in it, Set seized him, wrapped him in the coffin, sealed it with lead, and threw it into the Nile. The chest washed down-river and out to sea, washing up in Byblos, where a tamarisk tree grew around it [S3][S4].

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Isis Restores Osiris

Isis (with the help of Nephthys) searched for the scattered pieces of Osiris's body. She found all the pieces except the genitals (which had been eaten by a fish in the Nile). She reassembled the body, used her magic to restore Osiris to life, and through their union conceived Horus [S3][S4]. Anubis mummified the body, making Osiris the first mummy [S3][S4].

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The Contendings of Horus and Set

Horus (the son of Osiris) and Set (the murderer) fight for the throne of Egypt. The 'Contendings' is a long, episodic struggle in which the two cousins fight, each claiming the throne, and the Ennead (the nine gods) judges between them. Horus ultimately wins, and becomes the king of the unified Egypt [S4].

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Artworks

Depictions

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