Ancient Egyptian Gods Gallery
By Barbara Waterson
Last updated 2011-02-17
Seth
Seth, the Red God, god of the desert and promulgator of thunderstorms and violence, was represented as an animal, of a kind not yet identified by Egyptologists.
He has the graceful body of a greyhound, but with a long, stiff, forked tail and square-topped ears unlike any of the canine family. The pig, the donkey, the hippopotamus, the okapi and the desert oryx are all animals that have been identified with him.
Seth was both the brother and the murderer of Osiris; and was the perpetual rival of Horus, son of Osiris. He was one of Egypt's oldest deities, and the Egyptians had an ambivalent attitude towards him. They feared him for his capacity to do harm, yet admired his strength and ferocity. The Greeks equated him with the monster Typhon.
Hands on History: Ancient Britain
Hands on History: Roman Britain
BBC iD
BBC iDBBC navigation
BBC links
BBC © 2014 The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. Read more.
This page is best viewed in an up-to-date web browser with style sheets (CSS) enabled. While you will be able to view the content of this page in your current browser, you will not be able to get the full visual experience. Please consider upgrading your browser software or enabling style sheets (CSS) if you are able to do so.
