 Tomb
of Sety I.
The tomb of Sety I lies in the Valley of the Kings. In this sculpted detail,
the king offers wine to the goddess Hathor. Often called a goddess of
love, Hathor can also represent seductive danger. This scene suggests
the worship of the eye-lioness-uraeus forms of the "distant goddess,"
whose myth is perhaps best attested by the "Story of the Departure
of Hathor-Tefnut out of Nubia." Known since the New Kingdom (c. 1560-1085
B.C.), the story tells of the angered eye of the sun, described as the
daughter of Ra, a violent goddess in lion form (Tefnut). Retreating into
Nubia, she is recalled by Ra, and after she is enticed back to Egypt,
she becomes once more the benevolent and happy Hathor. Nonetheless, she
requires constant attention, in the form of wine, music, dance, and offerings
of desert game, lest she become angry and leave Egypt again.
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