Twilight Of The Gods

Professor Maarten J Raven, who is retiring after 40 years at the National Museum of Antiquities of the Netherlands, shows us round his farewell exhibition, Gods of Egypt.

- Professor Maarten J Raven

This autumn, the National Museum of Antiquities in Leiden is devoting space to a major exhibition that surveys the mystical world of the Ancient Egyptian gods.

For the Gods of Egypt exhibition, more than 500 impressive statues of gods and goddesses, papyri, gold jewellery and richly-painted coffins have been brought together from museums and private collections in the Netherlands and beyond, including the British Museum, the Louvre in Paris and the Egyptian Museum in Turin.

The exhibition is divided into five sections: The Cosmos, The Heavens, The Earth, The Netherworld, and Eternal Life. It opens with a large double statue (1) of Horus, god of the heavens, and the Pharaoh Horemheb (1319–1305 BC), on loan from the Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna. Sitting beside one another on thrones, the two figures are of equal size, to emphasise that the pharaoh is simultaneously both human and divine. Horus, the falcon-headed god of the heavens, was also god of kingship over Egypt, and the pharaoh was regarded as his incarnation on earth. The Egyptian king thereby formed the pivot between heaven and earth. The gods tasked the pharaoh with maintaining the cosmic order (maat) that had been brought into being with the creation of the universe.

In order to fulfil this task, he acted as high priest of all temple cults, supreme judge, and commanderin-chief of the army. By building temples and making sacrifices, he showed his people’s gratitude for all the good gifts from the gods. By administering justice, he could maintain the social structure and, as a general, he defended the political unity of his country.