Читать книгу The Herodotus Encyclopedia - Группа авторов - Страница 356

JOACHIM FRIEDRICH QUACK

Heidelberg University

Egyptian god, venerated at many places but especially Egyptian THEBES. Originally, Amun seems to have been linked specifically with the wind, but especially in the compound Amun‐Re, he became a solar and creator god. He became EGYPT’s supreme god with the rise of Thebes as capital, and during the New Kingdom his temple was the best‐endowed in all of Egypt. His sacred animals are the NILE goose and the ram. Herodotus identifies the Theban Amun with ZEUS (2.42.5). This is likely based on the fact that Amun was considered the king of the gods in Egypt. It is to be noted that for the Theban god, Herodotus uses the form “Amun” (Ἀμοῦν) which accords with contemporary pronunciation in the Nile valley, while for the god of Sîwa OASIS, he uses the form “AMMON” ( Ἄμμων) which might reflect a local dialect of the western desert.

SEE ALSO: Gods and the Divine; Religion, Herodotus’ Views on