Mehen
{{short description|Ancient Egyptian deity}}
{{infobox deity
| type = egyptian
| name = Mehen
| image = Book of Gates Barque of Ra cropped.jpg
| caption = Mehen surrounding Ra, in the form of a man with a ram head, on his Solar Barque
}}
{{Ancient Egyptian religion}}
In Egyptian mythology, the name Mehen ({{langx|cop|Ⲙⲉϩⲉⲛ}}), meaning 'coiled one', referred to a mythological snake-god and to a board game.[http://www.digitalegypt.ucl.ac.uk/naqada/gameboard.html Discussion of the game by] University College London
Snake god
The earliest known references to Mehen occur in the Coffin Texts.The Complete Gods and Goddesses of Ancient Egypt by R. Wilkinson {{ISBN|0-500-05120-8}} Mehen is a protective deity who is depicted as a snake which coils around the sun god Ra during his journey through the night, for instance in the Amduat.The Ancient Egyptian Books of the Afterlife by Erik Hornung {{ISBN|0-8014-8515-0}}
In the German-Egyptian dictionary by R. Hannig,Hannig, R. 1995. Die Sprache der Pharaonen: Großes Handwörterbuch Ägyptisch-Deutsch it is said that the Mehen (mḥn) or the Mehenet (mḥnt) snake is equivalent to the Ouroboros.
Relationship between snake-god and Mehen game
File:-3000 Abydos Spiel der Schlange Mehen anagoria.JPG with game stones, from Abydos, Egypt, 3000 BC, Neues Museum]]
The precise relationship between the deity and the Mehen game is unknown.{{cn|date=April 2025}} For instance, it is unknown whether the game derives from the mythological character or the character derives from the game.{{cn|date=April 2025}}
It is known that the object known as mehen depicts a game rather than a religious fetish as demonstrated in tomb paintings, game boards, and equipment.{{cn|date=April 2025}} The rules and method of playing the game are unknown, although rules have been created in modern times based on assessments of how it may have been played.{{cn|date=April 2025}}
References
External links
- {{bgg|4148}}
- {{URL|http://www.schoolsliaison.org.uk/kids/siteactivities/mehen.pdf|Mehen boardgame with suggested playing rules}} at Birmingham Museums and Art Gallery schools liaison
{{Ancient Egyptian religion footer|state=collapsed}}