Eye of Horus and to ward off evil. Ancient Egyptian and Middle-Eastern sailors would frequently paint the symbol on the bow of their vessel to ensure safe sea travel. Horus was the ancient Egyptian sky god who was usually depicted as a falcon, most likely a lanner or peregrine falcon. His right eye was associated with the sun god, Ra. The eye symbol represents the marking around the eye of the falcon, including the "teardrop" marking sometimes found below the eye. The mirror image, or left eye, sometimes represented the moon and the god Djehuti (Thoth). It was believed by the Greeks and
The Contendings of Horus and Seth The Contendings of Horus and Seth "The Contendings of Horus and Seth" is a mythological story from the Twentieth dynasty of Ancient Egypt found in the first sixteen pages of the "Papyrus Chester Beatty I" and deals with the battles between Horus and Seth to determine who will succeed Osiris as king. The Papyrus Chester Beatty I dates to the twentieth dynasty during the reign of Ramesses V and likely came from a scribe's collection that was recorded for personal entertainment (Chester Beatty Pap I, Oxford). The papyrus contains the story of "The Contendings of Horus and Seth" as well