Tutankhamen as the Sun God emerging from a Lotus

<!--<!--This statue represents the head of the sun god emerging from a lotus; the sun god here takes the form of King Tutankhamen. The idea of this shape is related to one of the creation theories which states that in the very beginning of the world there was a primeval ocean which was called Nun which consisted of black water and out of this black water came out a luminous lotus flower which filled the whole world with fragrance and light.

The lotus flower

The blue lotus was known as srpt in hieroglyphics there are three kinds of lotus white blue and later pink one appears to us which came to us from foreign countries such as India or Persia. The blue lotus was famous for its fragrant smell and it is the one which is usually represented with the deceased on the walls of the tombs. Lotus was an important symbol in Ancient Egypt as it was the emblem of Upper Egypt. The Egyptians noticed that the lotus flower opens its petals in the morning and closes them on sunset and sinks below the water at dusk this inspired them with the idea of rebirth and regeneration. The emerging lotus is the symbol of the sun that is also regenerated each morning following its nightly journey to the regions of the underworld. The petals of the lotus flower are not rounded but they have pointed ends which resemble the sunrays. We could notice that the center of the flower represents the sun while the petals represents the sunrays.

In the Book of the Dead chapter 81 includes a spell which the deceased used in order to be transformed into a lotus flower as it was thought to be a symbol of rebirth since it comes out of the depths each morning.

Material:

This statue is made out of wood covered with plaster or stucco and then painted.

Discovery:

It was found on the floor of the entrance corridor which leads to the antechamber. It’s thought that it was dropped by one of the robbers who participated in one of the last robberies for one reason or another in their exit which could well have been a hasty one.

Description:

The eye lashes and the eye brows of this statue were supposed to be dark blue in association with the hair of god Re whose hair was thought to be mad e of pure lapis lazuli. The Amarna style of art is clear in this statue shown in the elongated skull, two wrinkles under his neck and the pierced ear lobe. The blue painted base represents the water on which the lotus flower grows. This head has the purpose of wishing the king a destiny of everlasting rebirth.

N.B. the statue is also associated with god Nefertum because he and Tutankhamen were both young as well as the fact that louts flower was a symbol of Nefertum who was the god of perfume.