Hapi Discussion

[Jaguar]

With the posting of the information on Hapi and a poll on what you want to sacrifice, I would like to share my reason for chosing jewelry.

After reading the tidbit on Hapi, I thought the most appropriate sacrifice was jewelry rather than livestock, gold or other items. It clearly stated that people would leave offerings next to the river to ensure a happy god and most would leave amulets and such. Since we can't chose amulets, jewelry would be the next best thing. I suppose Gold would come in second.

Anyone else want to share what they picked in the poll?

[Ineti]

I also picked jewels. I figured since your average Egyptian had very little gold, if any, they wouldn't give that up, and livestock is far too important to sacrifice. Wine would be an option, if the average Egyptian drank a lot of wine; I'm not sure on that, though I know beer was quite common.

[Keith]

What Poll?

I didn't see the new addition to the site until you mentioned it.

I didn't pick one, because it seems to be weighted too heavily towards items only the rich people would have, wine, jewelry, gold.

Hapi was everyone's god, and to require some peasant to pay homage with jewery, gold or wine, which they probably didn't have, just isn't right.

Livestock was probably too expensive to sacrifice for the average peasant farmer. There had to be have been other offerings made that were just as honorable but less of a sacrifice to the peasants.

Keith Heitmann

dheitm8612@aol.com
Pharaoh Music Jukebox

[Kiya]

Originally Posted by Keith

What Poll?

On the front page. And there is something else, too!!

BTW, I also chose jewelry.

[Keith]

I didn't check today, until the poll was mentioned.

[EmperorJay]

I picked livestock after a short search on google, but it can very well be I misunderstood the facts about this particular god.

I must say the poll's a nice addition, but wasn't this question more like a quiz than an opinion?

[Afterburner]

I picked wine, because if I have beer, why do I need wine?

[Keith]

Beer might have made a good choice for the poll. Most Egyptians probably had access to it and afterall it was made from sacred waters of the Nile as well, I'm sure.

Keith Heitmann

dheitm8612@aol.com
Pharaoh Music Jukebox

[vovan]

Jewelry would make that god vewy vewy hapi.

Nice reasoning, Jaguar. I chose lifestock, because I voted before reading the little tidbit, and I figured - well-prepared meat always keeps me happy, so why not the god?

[Jaguar]

You know what they say, Vovan. The way to a man's heart is through his stomach

[Bradius]

I would have chosen grain had it been offerred as I would feel that would be the most available sacrifice for the "average" Egyptian worker. However, I selected wine, while still expensive, was a more affordable option than the others. Also, I don't know about gods, but it makes me happy. My guess is that it would be a nice offerring to the god of the Nile. So, a tip of the glass to the Nile god, Hapi

[Miut]

I chose wine as beer wasn't an option, but it was available to the average Egyptian., even reasonably poor ones. They also threw on flowers.

I liked this poll a lot.

[Niempie]

I also chose wine. Simply because beer wasn't a choice and the other choices are, in my opinion, to expensive for the average Egyptians.

[Pharaoh]

Livestock is the most LOGICAL answer for the god of rivers. Something like fish would be OK too.

[Kiya]

I'm not sure that livestock is the best choice here.

"Although cattle were raised, beef was a luxury item because much of the cattle was used for religious ceremonies and offerings. Pork, on the other hand, was eaten regularly but was not used in the Egyptian religion. ...
The cow was sacred to many goddesses. ... Bulls were sacred to Ra." Hapi is not mentioned in this connection.
(Quatation somewhere along this link)
http://www.crystalinks.com/egyptgods5.html
text by Caroline Seawright

Amulets, on the other hand, could mean a lot of things: golden ones with jewels, or poor people could offer modest ones without precious stones. So, I agree with many of you: the choices were not the best possible ones. But the poll itself was nice. I wish we'll have more of them.

[Uatch-Khepheru]

Originally Posted by Kiya

Bulls were sacred to Ra

Bulls were sacred to other gods as well. Consider Ptah, patron god of Memphis. The Apis Bull, who had a triangular white shape on his head, was considered to be Ptah's incarnation on Earth and was venerated throughout his 20 year lifespan. When it died, it was buried at the Serepeum, a tomb complex near Memphis I think, where the other bulls who had gone before him were buried.

Hmm...I wonder if this will become sort of a required strategy of sorts. Maybe you will have to experiment with offerings to the gods to see what pleases them the most. What would be a cool feature is if you gave an inappropriate offering to the god and he/she became offended and unleashed some plague against you

[Miut]

I don't think making it a Trial by Approproiate Offering will happen - though it is an amusing ida.
At Pharonic lavel, much of the booty from a war went to the temple of Amun for the god's intervention in assuring a victory for Pharaoh. Much of the gold mined went there too, as did the lapis lazuli (I adore Lapis lazuli!) because the skin of the gods was said to be of gold and their hair of Lapis. Anyway, these goods were used to adorn the gods and temples.
Then there was the Gold of Achievement - given to notable generals and other worthy men in the courts.

Apart from that, it was the unguents - the oils, spices, incenses etc that were used by the temples that were important, again mostly trade goods. It amazes me how often I read of turpentine incense.. I wonder what it smelled like, possibly something like our Wintergreen and balsams for decongesting sinuses I expect.
I originally went to an art college for 2 years and painted a lot in oils in my bedroom at home. A smell I loved was that of linseed oil mixed with pure turpentine - the oil makes the paint more plastic, use it thicker, takes it longer to dry, gives it a shine when it does, and the turpentine made it thinner so you could glaze over areas.

Ordinary people would probably give the little they had - a loaf of bread, crock of beer, a flower, maybe a cheap piece of jewelery, a rough home made clay figure of the god/dess. (hundreds of those were found in caves in the hills behind Knossos, in Crete,for instance)
You can see examples of this everday when travelling in Italy and Crete at the small wayside shrines set in almost every wall in every village or farmstead. Most have elaborately dressed dolls in them to represent the Virgin Mary, but some have the regular painted plaster Jesus. I'm sure it wasn't that different in the past.

[Jayhawk]

I think jewelry sounds fairs, Jaguar. Faience amulets should be not too expensive

Interestingly Hapi is also one of Horus four sons (the ones from the conopic jars). IIRC the one with the baboon head.


Can't quite remember if the chaps in Tut's jars had a baboon with them, though...

[Miut]

Jayhawk, wasn't Thoth also a baboon as well as an Ibis?

[Uatch-Khepheru]

Originally Posted by Miut

Jayhawk, wasn't Thoth also a baboon as well as an Ibis?

I thought Geb was the baboon-headed deity, meh maybe not...