Ancient Egyptian religion can be mind-boggling on a clear day and when dealing with later, more informative periods, but when one approaches the archaic period it becomes a bit of an intimidating specter. I’d like to say that it was more simplified, and perhaps it was, but without the necessary documentation it is impossible to even hazard a guess. The gods that are prominent during eras such as the Middle and New Kingdoms are either minor local deities or, in some cases, not even attested to. The relationship of the people, and even the king, to their gods seems to be defined in a different manner and there is speculation that the origins of at least one ritual might have had a more macabre meaning. There is good reason to believe that the Pyramid Texts, first located inside the pyramid of the Old Kingdom Pharaoh Unas, also have their origins within the Pre and Early Dynastic periods.

One of the most difficult tasks when approaching the archaic religious structure is locating which deities truly had a place in the religious scheme of Early Dynastic Egypt. You’ll find yourself contemplating the process of assimilation in ways you never thought possible. Early gods’ duties and responsibilities could be assimilated into more "upcoming" gods (case in point - Anubis and Osiris), some were what can only be described as roughly combined and still others kept their duties, but were given smaller roles sometimes as consorts of other gods (case in point - Hatmehit and Banebdjedet). All the while, in some corner or another you’ll eventually find them, even if the Divine and Human Resources Office had relocated their duties. Nome standards can be one place to look for clues - several of the early gods were patron deities of particular regions that eventually became nomes (for example, Hatmehit), but without written documentation even that can be difficult when dealing with what can only be termed as composite gods.

And as a testament that even the most developed cultures had more primitive roots at one time, there is speculation that the Sed Festival originated from the necessity of removing an older and incapable king in lieu of a younger and more capable successor¹. And I don’t mean they sent him to a nice retirement community in Florida either. It may seem a bit extreme to us in our day-and-age, but one must consider that this would have occurred during the period prior to Egypt becoming a wealthy and resourceful kingdom. The continuation of the people, their ability to farm, the abundance of their crops and herds and their ability to protect their settlements would have been closely connected to their chief or king. If he became too old or infirm to protect and govern his tribe, he would have to be removed. While most would simply prefer to pack up their sandals and head to the Great Green for a seaside villa - the ritual sacrifice of a leader was probably performed to insure the prosperity of the people in addition to ushering in the rule of a new leader. I know for some it is hard to believe that our beloved Egyptians could have even contemplated such a thing, but hard evidence for ritual sacrifice isn’t as far off as one might hope. Consider the archaic burials at Abydos and you’ll find evidence of retainers being killed to follow their kings into the afterlife. I won’t even attempt to contemplate the philosophy that condones human sacrifice whether to the gods or for a king, but suffice to say, it has happened all over the world. Thankfully we can say that our beloved Egyptians probably didn’t practice it for very long. The burials mentioned are those made during the 1st Dynasty and the possible original Sed festivals were performed long before the unification of the Two Lands.

On a quick note, you’ll notice when perusing this section that the subsequent pages concerned with archaic deities are entitled "The Netjer" - netjer is translated as ‘god’ and was usually written as a determinative hieroglyphic sign at the end of the name of a deity. While reflected as singular in its translation, its use as a determinative provoked my use of it on these pages.

 

1. Archaic Egypt, W.B. Emery, pg. 108