Seth
Seth West AsiaRepresentations on gravestones in Upper Egypt, dating from the third millennium BC, attribute to Seth a donkey-like appearance, with long legs, long and broad ears, and a short upright tail. But over the centuries the god was transformed into a fabulous beast, not unlike a massive dog. Seth was ‘lord of Upper Egypt’, his sacred city being Ombos, and in that capacity he became a rival to his nephew Horus. Myth recounts the struggle between these adversaries, following the murder of Osiris by Seth, who temporarily seized power in Upper Egypt. By the Greeks Seth was identified with Typhon, a huge monster who fought with Zeus, was defeated and buried in Sicily under Mount Aetna, whose volcanic rumblings and eruptions were the monster's struggles. Nepthys, the wife of Seth and sister of Osiris, was associated with the rites of burial, since she and Isis acted as guardians of the head and feet of the coffin. Nephthys means ‘the lady of the...
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