Festivals of the god Sebek and astronomical observations of Ancient Egyptians

Abstract

The article deals with the feasts of the crocodile god Sebek, celebrated in Fayum, Thebes and Kom Ombo, which originated during the Old Kingdom. The surviving images of Sebek are studied, that provide an opportunity to reconstruct the ritual and symbolic programs of festivals of the named deity. The analysis of the reliefs from the temple of Nyuserra (V Dyn.) depicting the harvest scenes, crocodile, fish, frog and bA-boat, suggested that they represent festive rituals held during the harvest season and related to the cults of Sebek, Osiris and Re. These rites probably celebrated the renewal of nature, the full flow of the river and the fertility of the earth. A study of the relief of Amenemhat III from the British Museum (EA 1072) made it possible to reconstruct the programs of Sebek feasts in Fayum, which involved the Osirian, solar and Heb-sed rituals. These festivals reproduced the visible movement of the sun and moon across the sky and aimed at the revival of strength and power of the gods and the king. Sebek was associated with the sun, moon and various constellations, represented as crocodiles in the paintings of the coffin of Heny (Asyut; XII Dyn.), the ceilings of the tombs of Senmut (TT 353; XVIII Dyn.) and Seti I (KV 17; XIX Dyn.). Two of these constellations are designated sAq («crocodile») and Htp-rdwy («restful of feet»). It seems that some of the feasts of Sebek were concerned with «the festivals of the sky» and celebrated certain astronomical phenomena.