Sobek enthroned, from the Temple of Haroeris and Sobek at Ombos
Sobek, son of the Goddess Neith, is the God of waters and marshes; God of procreation and vegetation, He is also associated with the Sun God Ra and with Kingship as the God of the mighty of the Kings
Sobek-Ra in His form of sacred crocodile wearing the Solar Crown with the Uraeus and resting upon a shrine;
detail from a column of the Double Temple of Haroueris and Sobek at Ombos
bronze statuette of Sobek (crocodile-headed),
ca. 595-589 bc (XXVI Dynasty); now in the Louvre Museum…
-HYMN TO SOBEK-
[from the Ramesseum papyrus 6, sheet 1-4]
“Hail to You, Who arose from the Primeval Waters,
Lord of the low-lying lands,
Ruler of the desert edge … Who crosses the back-waters,
Mighty God Whose seizing cannot be seen,
Who lives by plunder, Who fares downstream by His beauty,
Who fares upstream having completed a multitude of times,
Twin of Ra, Great Luminary Who came forth from the flood. Welcome in peace, Lord of peace!
Drive off Your wrath, let pass Your raging … ,
cut short Your mourning, let Your beauty come, … exist … ,
the One without His second,
Ruler of the rivers,
Governor of the winds,
rutting Bull,
Lord of Love,
Lord of spirits,
He Who offers to Himself,
hairy one,
He Who loves taking,
Great of terror,
Lord of Ra-sahui,
Lord of Lakeland,
cleaver of Ra-henet,
Who comes summoned as the Flourishing Horus,
Great of power in Herakleopolis,
Lord of fear Who is in Hebenu,
Lord of Ahet, rejoicing in His sceptre, Chief in Ta-sety.
Hail to You in Ramuha, in the flood from which You came,
Begetter of the ram in the midst of the pool,
Lord of Thebes, Great in Semenu, the One Who rests in Cynopolis,
Beautiful of coming in Anty, great of appearances in Rawakh,
the son of Neith in Abydos,
…in Iunesha, acclaimed with praise.
(Incense on the flame!)
High be your soul, who presents the God with what He loves!
Raise yourself and fight for your body, so that the God shall exist!
Rutting bull, savage lion, great of strength, beautiful of shape, Ruler of the foreign countries,
Lord of incense in the midst of rituals,
High of heart,
Star which is in the fields,
King Amenemhat has given this Your beautiful face, with which You look at Your mother Neith,
and with which You are gracious to the Gods.
(Incense on the flame!)
This is for Sobek the Shedtite, Horus Who is in Shedet, Lord of myrrh.
Speaking words: praising Sobek
“Hail to Sobek of Shedet (Crocodilopolis, the region of the Lake Moeris)!
Open be the face of Rahes the gracious, Horus who is in the midst of Shedet!
O appear Horus upon the rivers!
Rise high, Sobek Who is in Shedet, Ra-Horus, Mighty God!
Hail to You Sobek of Shedet!
Hail to You, Who rise from the Flood, Horus Lord of the Two Lands, Bull of Bulls, Great Male, Lord of the island-lands!
Geb has provided You with Your sight, He has united You with Your eyes.
Strong one, Your strength is Great!
May You go through the Lake-land (the Lake Moeris), traverse the Great-Green (the Mediterranean Sea), and seek out Your father Osiris.
Now You have found Him, and made Him live, and said: This cleans the mouth of His father in His name of Sokar!
You have commanded Your children to proceed and care for Your father – that is, Him (Sokar) – in their name of ‘Carers of Sokar’; You have pressed upon the mouth of Your father Osiris; You have opened His mouth for Him.
You are His Beloved Son; You have saved Your father Osiris; You have protected …. in His name of Ptah,
He has brought to You Your Eye,
He has filled Your Eye for You with ointment,
Your Eye has been given to You, whole, in the socket,
You having appeared as Dual King,
the hearts of the Gods fearing You,
the King’s food reverting to You,
You have protected Your father Osiris,
and reckons for Him the hearts of the Gods, having become Anubis.
O Sobek the Shedtite (Krokodilopolis in the Paym Oasis, the region of the Mer-Ur/Moeris Lake),
the Gods have come to rest at Your feet in Your name of ‘Restful of Feet’,
You have joined Them with Your limbs – Their strength and Their magic.
O Hard One, great is Your strength;
Your father Osiris has said of You .… in Your name of Sobek;
You have brought the Gods at once, without exception among Them, in ….
Sobek the Shedtite,
Great of the chase,
Phallus of the Gods,
Cruel of attack,
Great of ….,
Watchful,
Runner
with sharp teeth,
Who seizes by His might,
Powerful in His manifestation,
the Primeval Water goes about for You within the great channel, Isis conducts You to the Horizon,
to …. waters …. so that Sobek the Shedtite rises in the region of the Horizon …. the meals of Truth,
pure …. Horus become …. great.
Come Sobek, son of Neith”
Sobek and the Great King Amenhotep III, from Uaset, Diospolis Megale-Thebes (Luxor museum)
the King offering incense to Sobek and pouring water on the offerings;
scene from a column of the Double Temple of Haroeris and Sobek at Ombos
Ptolemaic King making offerings to the God Sobek, from the Temple of Haroeris and Sobek at Ombos
Stela Fragment with Crocodiles, ca. 1295-1070 BC, Brooklyn Museum The upper register of this stela shows a statue of Sobek-Ra wearing a crown consisting of two plumes and a Sun disk. The God surmounts a shrine under a tree, perhaps also an object of veneration. Offerings are placed before Him. The crocodiles shown below are probably representations of the sacred animals kept in the Temple precinct, manifestations of the God Sobek
the priest Aamerut making adorations to Sobek-Ra represented in His sacred form of crocodile; XIX-XX Dynasty, ca. 1295-1069 bc, now in the Louvre Museum
Relief from the Double Temple of Haroeris and Sobek at Ombos: Haroeris (Horus the Ancient, at left) and Sobek (at right), both holding the Ankh (the symbol of Life) and wearing the Solar Crown with the Uraeus; the two Gods are flanked by a double representations of Horus of Behdet in His form of falcon with outstretched wings as a sign of protection, wearing the Solar Crown with the Uraeus and holding the Uas-scepter of Power and Dominion with the Shen-ring (symbol of Eternity and of Eternal Protection)
relief from the Double Temple of Haroeris and Sobek at Ombos:
(from right to left)
Horus of Behdet in His form of sacred falcon wearing the Solar Crown with the Uraeus, standing on the hieroglyph for “gold”, holding the Uas-Scepter with the Shen-ring and spreading His wings;
Sobek, wearing the Solar Crown with the Uraeus and holding the Ankh (the symbol of Life); before Him is represented a crowned cartouche upon the hieroglyph for “gold”.
Ptolemaic King making offerings to Sobek and Hathor, from the Temple of Haroeris (Horus the Ancient) and Sobek at Ombos
scene from the facade of the Double Temple of Sobek and Haroeris (Horus the Ancient) at Ombos:
on the left, Sobek; on the right, Horus of Behdet and Thoth purifying the King with the sacred water of life and strength. Below, lotus flowers, the symbol of Upper Egypt.
King offering fields to Sobek and Hathor; columns from the forecourt of the Temple of Haroeris and Sobek at Ombos
Sobek and Hathor, column of the Temple of Haroeris and Sobek at Ombos
columns from the Double Temple of Haroeris and Sobek at Ombos:
on the column at right, Hathor and Sobek;
on the column at left, Isis and Nut (and, in the upper register, a double representation of Horus in His form of falcon-headed lion)
Sobek and Hathor,
detail from the Double Temple of Haroeris and Sobek at Ombos
Haroeris (Horus the Ancient) and Sobek;
from the Double Temple of Sobek and Haroeris at Ombos
Nekhbet (at left) and Uadjet (at right) crowning the King Ptolemy XII Neos Dionysos; at left, Hathor and Sobek blessing the King;above is a row of Uraei (fire-breathing cobras), and below lotus and papyrus flowers, symbols of Upper and Lower Egypt. On the column at right is represented the Goddess Isis, holding the Ankh (the symbol of Life) in Her left, and blessing the King with Her right. From the Double Temple of Haroeris (Horus the Ancient) and Sobek at Ombos
Ptolemaic King making offerings to Horus, Sobek, and Tasenetneferet; from the Double Temple of Horus and Sobek at Ombos
the King making adorations and offerings to Sobek and Panebtauy;
scene from the Double Temple of Haroeris and Sobek at Ombos
columns from the Double Temple of Haroeris (Horus the Ancient) and Sobek: (from left to right) the King making adorations and offerings to Khonsu, to Horus, to Sekhmet, and to Sobek.
AMNTE NOFRE (Amentet Neferet) 