Ankh
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The ankh or key of life is an ancient Egyptian hieroglyphic symbol used to represent the word for "life" and, by extension, as a symbol of life itself.
The ankh has a T-shape topped by a droplet-shaped loop.
Egyptian gods are often portrayed carrying it by that loop, or bearing one in each hand, arms crossed over their chest. It is also known as the Egyptian Cross, or as crux ansata, Latin for "cross with a handle".
Use in writing
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| Ꜥnḫ in hieroglyphs |
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In ancient Egyptian hieroglyphic writing, the ankh was a triliteral sign: one that represented a sequence of three consonant sounds. The ankh stood for the sequence Ꜥ-n-ḫ, where n is pronounced like the English letter n, Ꜥ is a voiced pharyngeal fricative, and ḫ is a voiceless or voiced velar fricative (sounds not found in English).[2] In the Egyptian language, these consonants were found in the verb meaning "live", the noun meaning "life", and words derived from them, such as sꜤnḫ, which means "cause to live" or "nourish";[1] Ꜥnḫ evolved into ⲱⲛϩ (onh) in the Coptic stage of the language.[3] The sign is known in English as the "ankh", based on the hypothetical pronunciation of the Egyptian word, or as the "key of life", based on its meaning.[4]
One of the common uses of the word Ꜥnḫ was to express a wish that a particular person live. For example, a phrase meaning something like "may you be healthy and alive" was used in polite contexts, similar to the English phrase "if you please", and the phrase Ꜥnḫ wḏꜣ snb, meaning "alive, sound, and healthy", was used as an honorific for the pharaoh when he was mentioned in writing. The Egyptian word for "oath" was also Ꜥnḫ, because oaths in ancient Egypt began with a form of the word "live".[5]
The same consonants were found in the word for "mirror" and the word for a floral bouquet, so the sign was also used in writing these words.[6] The three consonants also compose the word for a looped rope-like object found in illustrations on many coffins from the Middle Kingdom[4] (c. 2050–1650 BC).[7] The Egyptologists Battiscombe Gunn and Alan Gardiner, in the early 20th century, believed these objects to be sandal straps, given that they appear in pairs at the foot of the coffin and the accompanying texts say the objects are "on the ground under his feet".[4]
Ankh Media
First Dynasty stone dish in the shape of an ankh embraced by a pair of arms representing the ka[8]
Imprint of a seal impression of King Hezekiah with ankhs
A crux ansata in Codex Glazier, a Coptic manuscript of the New Testament, 4th to 5th century AD
Crux ansata signs on a piece of cloth, 4th to 5th century AD
An ankh made of Egyptian faience
The god Horus offers life to the king, Ramesses II.
Ankh-shaped mirror case from the tomb of Tutankhamun
The god Banebdjedet with a scepter combining the was and djed with the ankh
Frieze of ankh, djed, and was signs atop the hieroglyph for "all"
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- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Allen 2014, p. 30.
- ↑ Allen 2014, pp. 18–19, 30.
- ↑ Gardiner 1915, p. 20.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 Gardiner 1915, pp. 20–21.
- ↑ Allen 2014, pp. 34, 317–318.
- ↑ Wilkinson 1992, p. 177.
- ↑ Wilkinson 1992, p. 13.
- ↑ Fischer 1972, p. 5.