King Ramesses III and Duamutef

King Ramesses III and Duamutef

The sky or part of the universe Duamutef one of the four sons of Horus was the god responsible for protecting the organs of the deceased during the mummification process A powerful image of protecting the prince's soul in the afterlife Duamutef served as guardian of the deceased prince's stomach A wall painting from the tomb of his son shows King Ramses III interacting with Duamutef the jackal-headed god from the tomb of Prince Amenherkepesheva son of Ramses III in the Valley of the Queens QV 55 A powerful image of protecting the prince's soul and invoking the god for the eternal well-being of his son forever The king is shown with benevolent devotion to the god

He was the second pharaoh of the 20th Dynasty reigning from approximately 1187–1157 BCE. He is known for defending Egypt against invasions during the Late Bronze Age Many exquisite inscriptions and paintings can be found on the tomb walls of the last pharaoh of the New Kingdom "House of Eternity" Ramses III bears the star Uraes on his forehead Ramses III and Duamutev with the head of a jackal one of the four sons of Horus join hands and raise their hands in blessing Ramses III wears a red crown Duamutev is a jackal and Kebehsenuf is a falcon

The four sons are also associated with the stars in the sky The Well Room Room E of Ramses III's Tomb KV 11 has idols of various deities adorning the upper walls To the right are Osiris Hapi Kebehsenuf Nephthys Serket and Yunmutef To the left are Osiris Imseti Anubis Duamutev Isis and Yunmutef. Ramses III is shown sacrificing to various gods including Ptah Khepri Atum Thoth and Geb On the back wall are two scenes showing the king sacrificing to Osiris The sides of the four pillars These styles often vary

Canopic jar lids began to feature heads carved in the late Early Middle Ages Canopic jars featured lids depicting the heads of the sons of Horus Although they were originally depicted as humans by the late New Kingdom around 1550–1070 BC the most prominent symbols were adopted Imseti was depicted as anthropomorphic Hapi as a baboon Duamutef as a jackal and Kebehsenu acting as protectors of the deceased.Death and resurrection rituals of the Middle Kingdom recorded in the remarkable Ramesium papyrus show the sons of Horus helping Osiris regenerate his body after death fighting the enemies of Set's followers and restoring the lost Eye of Horus

Later texts like the Pyramid Texts continue to invoke the sons of Horus for protection in the afterlife In many texts Osiris the god of the dead is believed to be represented as a star in the northern sky or as a bird flying to the four corners of the world. Each god is represented in an equal position These positions suggest that the son of Horus was connected to the four Egyptian universes Coffin decorations from this period indicate the location of certain deities in the same location thus linking them with specific directions Imseti and Hapi were invoked at the head of the coffin In Middle Kingdom burials the body was placed with the head to the north and the feet to the south This symbolism was used prominently and was believed to protect the deceased in the afterlife