Articles

Isis-“mistress of the southern highlands” in the Philae Temple of Ptolemy II

Vostok/Oriens '2017, №5

DOI: 10.7868/S0869190817050028

 
The article deals with the early history of the Philae temple, the most important centre of Isis worship in the Ancient world. Well-known goddess Isis was not the first god-inhabitant and master of the south Egyptian Philae Island. Thus, the question is when and how did Isis appear in Philae. I suppose that Isis cult was established there by the Pharaoh Psammetichus II, who wanted to show this important goddess as a protectress of the Dodekaschoinos, northern Nubian region captured by Psammetichus in 593 BCE. Isis should have been also a patron of the Egyptian expanse to Nubia, the Egyptian “southern Highlands”. So she became the mistress of the boundary island and of the whole region. Then her image was enriched and developed to the goddess-queen of Egypt and mistress of the whole world.

Keywords: Isis (goddess), Philae, Nubia, Psammetichus II, Late Egyptian pharaohs, foreign policy, expedition, Ptolemy II, temple texts

Pages: С. 19–25