Wadjet – Egyptian Goddess Protected Pharaohs And Was Depicted As A Cobra-Uraeus

Angela Sutherland  - AncientPages.com - In Egyptian mythology, Wadjet is a goddess depicted as a cobra and worshiped in Lower Egypt. Wadjet was represented as a cobra-uraeus.

The Uraeus ("rearing cobra"), in the upright form of an Egyptian cobra, symbolized sovereignty, royalty, deity, and divine authority in ancient Egypt and is closely associated with the goddess Wadjet.

Wadjet illustration from Pantheon égyptien by Leon Jean Joseph Dubois. Image credit: Rawpixel -CC BY-SA 4.0

She protected the Egyptian pharaohs, and the Uraeus (the image of Wadjet with the solar disk) was displayed on the pharaoh's head as part of the pharaoh's crown.

It symbolically protected the pharaoh's power in this earthly realm and the heavenly abode. The pharaoh was recognized only by wearing the Uraeus. This tradition is ancient, dating back to the Old Kingdom in the third millennium BC. Several goddesses associated with or considered aspects of Wadjet are also depicted wearing the Uraeus.

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See also: 

Uraeus – Sacred Emblem That Symbolized Sovereignty, Royalty, Deity And Divine Authority In The Land Of Pharaohs

Why Were Ba And Ka Powerful Elements Of Soul In Ancient Egyptian Beliefs?

Pyramid Texts Of Ancient Egypt That Charted Journey Of Pharaohs Into Afterlife

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