Pschent
| Pschent | |
|---|---|
 Pschent, the double crown of Egypt | |
| Details | |
| Country | Ancient Egypt |
| Predecessors | Deshret Hedjet |
Thepschent(/ˈskɛnt/;Greekψχέντ) was the doublecrownworn by rulers inancient Egypt.The ancient Egyptians generally referred to it assekhemty(sḫm.ty), the Two Powerful Ones.[1]It combined theWhite Hedjet CrownofUpper Egyptand theRed Deshret CrownofLower Egypt.
The Pschent represented thepharaoh's power over all of unified Egypt.[2]It bore two animal emblems: anEgyptian cobra,known as theuraeus,ready to strike, which symbolized the Lower EgyptiangoddessWadjet;and avulturerepresenting the Upper Egyptian tutelary goddessNekhbet.These were fastened to the front of the Pschent and referred to as theTwo Ladies.
History[edit]
| |||||
| Pschent "Double Crown" inhieroglyphs | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
The invention of the Pschent is generally attributed to theFirst DynastypharaohMenes,but the first one known to wear a Double Crown was the First Dynasty pharaohDjet:a rock inscription shows hisHoruswearing it.[3]
The king list on thePalermo Stone,which begins with the names ofLower Egyptianpharaohs (nowadays thought to have been mythological demigods), shown wearing the Red Crown, marks the unification of the country by giving the Pschent to all First Dynasty and later pharaohs.[4]The Cairo fragment, on the other hand, shows these prehistoric rulers wearing the Pschent.[5]
Archaeology[edit]
As is the case with the Deshret and the Hedjet Crowns, no Pschent is currently known to have survived. It is known only from statuary, depictions, inscriptions, and ancient tales.
Mythology[edit]
Among the deities sometimes depicted wearing the Double Crown are Horus[6]andAtumor Ra both representing the pharaoh or having a special relationship to the pharaoh.[7]
Gallery[edit]
-
Fragment of an ivory label showing pharaohDenwearing the double crown of Upper and Lower Egypt. Discovered in the tomb of Den atUmm El Qa'ab,now in theEgyptian Museum -
Pharaoh Ptolemy VIII between the goddesses Wadjet (symbolizing lower Egypt) and Nekhbet (symbolizing upper Egypt). Bas-relief on wall of Temple of Edfu, Egypt -
Ring ofPtolemy VI Philometorwearing the Pschent Double Crown, 3rd to 2nd Century BC.Ptolemaic rulerswore the Pschent in Egypt only and wore the Greekdiademin the other territories -
Statue headSenusret IIIwearing a pschent -
Horus falcon with Double Crown -
Statue of Amenhotep IIIwearing a pschent
See also[edit]
- Atef– Hedjet Crown with feathers identified withOsiris
- Khepresh– Blue or War Crown also called Royal Crown
- N-red crown (n hieroglyph)
- N-water ripple (n hieroglyph)
- Uraeus– Rearing Cobra
References[edit]
- ^Griffith, Francis Llewellyn,A Collection of Hieroglyphs: A Contribution to the History of Egyptian Writing,the Egypt Exploration Fund 1898, p.56
- ^Dunand, Françoise;Christiane Zivie-Coche,Gods and Men in Egypt: 3000 BCE to 395 CE,Cornell University Press 2004, pp.32f.
- ^Wilkinson, Toby A. H.,Early Dynastic Egypt,Routledge 1999, p.196
- ^Trigger, B. G. (1982). "The rise of civilization in Egypt". In Clark, J. Desmond (ed.).The Cambridge History of Africa. Volume 1, From the Earliest Times to c.500 BC.Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. p. 521.doi:10.1017/CHOL9780521222150.008.ISBN9781139054553.
- ^Kemp, Barry John,Ancient Egypt: Anatomy Of A Civilization,Routledge 2006, p.92
- ^Zandee, Jan,Studies in Egyptian Religion: Dedicated to Professor Jan Zandee,Brill 1982, p.74
- ^The New Encyclopædia Britannica,Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. 2005, p. 689
