- Attributes: Goddess of the sky, stars and death
- Symbols: Sky, stars, cow and a pot
- Place: Egypt
For the ancient Egyptians Nut (or Nuit, Newet, or even, Nueth) was one of the major Goddesses. como uma das mais adoradas. She was the very personification of heaven and she was also the one who gave birth to many Gods and Goddesses. She also had a very important role in Egyptian Mythology as she was the one responsible for creating and sustaining a barrier between chaos and order.
Daughter of Shu, the Air God, and Tefnut, Moisture Goddess, Nut is one of the Goddesses who is related to the creation of the world.
In this myth, Nut and her brother Geb (Earth God) were depicted as lovers. They held each other so tightly that nothing could pass between them. By seeing this situation, Shu separated them becoming the wind which blows between the earth and the sky.
This separation was late. Nut was already pregnant. She gave birth to the stars and planets and they stayed together with her in the sky. Nut shares this attribute of giving life with the Goddess Hathor, as well as her symbol, the cow.
From this union, some Gods and Goddesses were also born. They are Osíris, Set, Ísis e Néftis. The ancient Egyptians also say that Ra, the Sun God, were reborn every day from Nut’s vulva and died every night, being swallowed by Nut’s mouth.
Nut’s depiction is usually a naked, black, star-studded woman. She crouched down to the ground, looking down, and her arms and legs formed pillars that supported the sky and protected the world from chaos. She can also be represented by an ordinary woman with a pot over her head.
Goddess of death
As it has already been said, Nut gave birth to the Sun God every day. This factor connected her with the underworld, with resurrection, and with the tombs, making her a Goddess of death and rebirth.
She was seen as a friend and protector for the dead ones while they were crossing the Duat (the Egyptian underworld).
She was often painted inside the sarcophagi of its devotees to protect them until they were reborn, like Ra, in a new life.
Nut held great importance in Egyptian mythology, having some festivals in her honor during the year. Although no great temple or worship was dedicated to it, there were some shrines in her name, where some rituals were occasionally performed with food.
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