Page 77 - J. C. Turner - History and Science of Knots

Ancient Egyptian Rope and Knots 65

gods with river plants on their heads, are knotting a lotus and a papyrus, the
plants symbolic for lower and upper Egypt. The plants are knotted around a
depiction of the lungs and the trachea. This is the hieroglyph semaa, which
means `to unite'. This symbol refers to mythical times in which the south of
Egypt and the Nile delta (lower Egypt) were united by the gods to be ruled
by the first Pharaoh. Alternatively the two gods Seth and Horus are depicted
in the same action. Horus, with the head of a falcon, is holding the papyrus of
Upper Egypt, while Seth is knotting the Lotus of Lower Egypt. Throughout
Egyptian history, the land was always thought of as consisting of a united
twosome. The reef knot does not only symbolise the historical bond, but is
also causing it. The depiction of the gods in their knotting action was an
eternally repeated fastening of the existing order and thus a magical action,
rather than a mere symbol.

Fig. 32. `Uniting the two countries '. To the left two Nile gods; to the right the
gods Seth and Horus are making reef knots in plants symbolizing Upper and Lower
Egypt
In the same manner, the reef knot was used to symbolise, and at the
same time ensure , the coherency of the human body. On the mummy of Tut-
ankh-Amun two gold amulets were found, shaped like reef knots. They were
put on the thorax of the body, parallel to the arms (Carter 1933, III: plate
83). The use of the reef knot amulet can be explained with another Egyptian
myth. In the dawn of time there were four important gods, two brothers and
two sisters. These were Osiris who was married to his sister Isis, their brother
Seth and their sister Nephtys. Seth murdered his brother and went after the
son of Isis and Osiris, the child-god Horus. Isis escaped with Horus into the
dense marshes of the Nile delta. Seth cut up his brother's body and hid the
parts all over Egypt. Isis went out to bring together all the limbs and she
brought Osiris back to life by knotting together all the parts. From that time
onwards, Osiris was the god of the underworld and the dead. In the Egyptian
religion there was a strong belief in the afterlife. The only requirement was
that the body of the deceased remained intact. Therefore, it was important
that bodies were mummified; but that was not enough. To ensure the integrity
of the body, knot amulets which refer to the re-uniting of the body of Osiris,