Sekhmet

Sekhmet was an Egyptian warrior goddess as well as a goddess of healing.

Symbols: Lioness, sun disk and red linen
Cult Centre: Leontopolis and Memphis
Parents: Ra and Hathor
Consort: Ptah
Children: Nefertem

Sekhmet from the Temple of Mut, Luxor, c. 1403–1365 BC. National Museum, Copenhagen. (c) Richard Mortel

She is depicted as a lioness. She was seen as the protector of the pharaohs and led them in warfare. Upon death, Sekhmet continued to protect them, bearing them to the afterlife.

Sekhmet was considered the daughter of the sun god, Ra, and was among the more important of the goddesses who acted as the vengeful manifestation of Ra’s power, the Eye of Ra. She was said to breathe fire and the hot winds of the desert were likened to her breath. She was also believed to cause plagues, which were called her servants or messengers, although she was also called upon to ward off disease.

Relief of Sekhmet from Kom Ombo. (c) Nefermaat
1. Golden aegis of Sekhmet. Walters Art Museum, Baltimore.
2. Upper torso and head of Sekhmet, Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum, Glasgow. (c) Osama Shukir Muhammed Amin
3. Image from a ritual Menat necklace, depicting a ritual being performed before a statue of Sekhmet. Altes Museum, Berlin. (c) Keith Schengili-Roberts
4. Gilded bier from the Tomb of Tutankhamun with representations of Sekhmet. Egyptian Museum, Cairo. (c) Hans Ollermann
5. Four granite seated statues of Sekhmet. British Museum. (c) Captmondo

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