noted were Cygnus, Cassiopeia, the Dragon, Scorpio, and
the Ram. There is no evidence that the Egyptians charted
the Pleiades until the Ptolemaic Period (304–30 B.C.E.).
The planets noted were Hor-tash-tawy (Jupiter),
called “Horus Who Binds the Two Lands”; Hor-ka-Pet
(Saturn), called “Horus the Bull of Heaven”; Horus-
Desher(Mars), the “Red Horus”; Sebeg(Mercury), mean-
ing unknown; Seba-Djai(Venus), the “Star that Crosses.”
The sun was preeminent in Egyptian religion from predy-
nastic times, represented as the SCARABbeetle, Khepri,
rising in the morning, RE’ at noon (overhead), and ATUM
at night. The sun became important to Egyptian astron-
omy in the Twenty-sixth Dynasty. The Egyptians had no
special interest in the stars and planets in themselves. It
was enough for them to recognize the astral bodies as
part of the cosmic harmony that had to be maintained by
mankind so that the world could prosper and survive.
Aswan This was the most southern city of ancient
Egypt, located at the first cataract of the Nile. Called “the
Southern Gate,” or swenet,which is translated as “con-
ducting business,” Aswan became Syrene in the Greek
eras. The city also served as a provincial headquarters for
the territories below the cataract, as viceroys of NUBIA
(modern Sudan) used the ELEPHANTINEIsland at Aswan
as a residence in some reigns. The area is famous for red
granite, called syrenite.
Settlements at Aswan date to predynastic times,
before the unification c. 3000 B.C.E. The tombs at Aswan
include Sixth Dynasty (2323–2150 B.C.E.) sites. Of partic-
ular note are the tombs of Mekhu and SABNI. Mekhu died
south of Aswan, and his son, Sabni, recovered the body
and brought it to Egypt for burial. PEPI II(r. 2246–2152
B.C.E.) gave mortuary gifts for the tomb, which contains
rock pillared chambers and frescoes. HARKHUF, the faithful
servant of Pepi II, is also buried there. The Middle King-
dom (2040–1640 B.C.E.) tombs of local nomarchs are also
inthe Aswan necropolis, most designated with long pas-
sages and ornamented with frescoes and reliefs.
The temple of KHNUMat Aswan and SATET’s temple
demonstrate the ongoing concern of Egypt’s rulers for the
city. The goddess Satet’s temple was erected by HATSHEP-
SUT(r. 1473–1458 B.C.E.), who had reliefs and a granite
niche installed. The temple of Khnum has additions
made by RAMESSES II (r. 1290–1224 B.C.E.) and NEC-
TANEBO II(r. 360–343 B.C.E.). PHILAE’s temple, which was
moved to the island of Agilkia to save it from the inunda-
tion caused by the High Aswan Dam, was supervised
from the city. In cultic terms, Aswan was the abode of the
deities Khnum, Satet, and ANUKIS. The Nile god, HAPI(1),
resided in a cave in the region, and one site was reserved
as the grave of OSIRIS.
Suggested Readings:Kamil, Jill, and Michael Stock, pho-
tographer. Aswan and Abu Simbel: History and Guide.New
York: Columbia University Press, 1999; Siliotti, Albert.
Aswan.American University in Cairo Press, 2001.The bark of Amun, from a temple relief in Thebes
dess SATETonthe ELEPHANTINEIsland that served as an
observation point for the rise and fall of the Nile each
year, the nilometer was actually a tubular structure with
90 steps, steeply graded and marked to allow the mea-
surement of the river’s inundation each year.Atbara (Astaboras) This is a tributary of the Nile
River that enters the Nile at the fifth cataract, in NUBIA(in
modern Sudan), bringing vast quantities of alluvium and
red mud to the Nile Valley. The Greeks called the tribu-
tary the Astaboras.Aten A deity introduced into Egypt during the New
Kingdom (1550–1070 B.C.E.), Aten was also known as
“Aten of the Day,” the SOLAR DISKthat shone upon the
river, possibly a form of Ré-Harakhte. AKHENATEN (r.
1353–1335 B.C.E.), upon ascending the throne in THEBES,
proclaimed a great religious reformation and decreed
worship of Aten as the only true religion of the land.
Aten was not an invention of Akhenaten, having been
known in the reigns of his predecessors TUTHMOSIS IVand
AMENHOTEP III.
He established a new capital in honor of the god, a
site called Akhetaten, “the Horizon of Aten,” now known
as el-’AMARNA, north of Thebes. Vast temple complexes
arose on the shore of the Nile, but there were no statues
of the god. This deity was represented by a great red disk,
from which long rays, complete with hands, extended to
the faithful. Akhenaten and his queen, NEFERTITI, accom-
panied by their daughters, conducted cultic ceremonies
of the god. Until the last years of his reign, Akhenaten
was the only priest of the cult.
Ceremonies to Aten consisted mainly of the offering
of cakes and fruit and the recitation of lovely hymns
composed in his honor. Aten was lauded as the creator
of man and the nurturing spirit of the world. He was a
solar god, possibly a form of RÉ. A distinct strain of
brotherhood and equality of all races and peoples was
expressed in the hymns. Aten’s worship was a modified
form of monotheism, and as long as Akhenaten was
alive the deity was the official god of Egypt. Akhenaten
associated himself to Aten, however, sharing feasts as a
being united to Aten. Stern measures were taken against
the temple of AMUNin particular and against the venera-
tion of most other deities as well. Even the cartouche of
Akhenaten’s father, Amenhotep III, was damaged
because the name of the god Amun was part of it. When
Akhenaten died in 1335 B.C.E., ’Amarna fell victim to the
many enemies of the new deity and Aten was banished
forever.58 Aswan