Gold (hieroglyph)
Encyclopedia
The ancient Egypt
ian Gold hieroglyph is a member of the crowns, dress, staves hieroglyphs. Its major importance is as one of the Fivefold Titulary
names of the Egyptian pharaoh, the Horus of Gold name.
The gold hieroglyph is used as a determinative
in the names of precious metals, and as an ideogram
in nbw, "gold". The hieroglyph is an Egyptian language
biliteral
with the value of nb.
The hieroglyph is a large gold and pearl necklace. Old Kingdom
scenes show dwarfs metalworking the gold, and "stringing the pearls of gold".
over his uncle Seth
, as the symbol for gold can be taken to mean that Horus was "superior to his foes". Gold also was strongly associated in the ancient Egyptian mind with eternity, so this may have been intended to convey the pharaoh's eternal Horus name.
Similar to the Fivefold Titulary
Nebty name, this particular name typically was not framed by a cartouche or serekh. It always begins with the depiction of the horus falcon perched above a representation of the sun
-(hieroglyph).
is the gold
stater
for Nectanebo II, reign 360 to 343 BC, 30th dynasty
. The reverse of the gold stater shows a horse reared up on its hind legs. The obverse has the two hieroglyphs for nfr and nb: "Perfect gold", or a common-era term: 'Fine'-gold.
Ancient Egypt
Ancient Egypt was an ancient civilization of Northeastern Africa, concentrated along the lower reaches of the Nile River in what is now the modern country of Egypt. Egyptian civilization coalesced around 3150 BC with the political unification of Upper and Lower Egypt under the first pharaoh...
ian Gold hieroglyph is a member of the crowns, dress, staves hieroglyphs. Its major importance is as one of the Fivefold Titulary
Fivefold Titulary
The royal titulary or royal protocol of an Egyptian Pharaoh is the standard naming convention taken by the kings of Ancient Egypt. It symbolises worldly power and holy might and also acts as a sort of mission statement for the reign of a monarch .The full titulary, consisting of five names, did not...
names of the Egyptian pharaoh, the Horus of Gold name.
The gold hieroglyph is used as a determinative
Determinative
A determinative, also known as a taxogram or semagram, is an ideogram used to mark semantic categories of words in logographic scripts which helps to disambiguate interpretation. They have no direct counterpart in spoken language, though they may derive historically from glyphs for real words, and...
in the names of precious metals, and as an ideogram
Ideogram
An ideogram or ideograph is a graphic symbol that represents an idea or concept. Some ideograms are comprehensible only by familiarity with prior convention; others convey their meaning through pictorial resemblance to a physical object, and thus may also be referred to as pictograms.Examples of...
in nbw, "gold". The hieroglyph is an Egyptian language
Egyptian language
Egyptian is the oldest known indigenous language of Egypt and a branch of the Afroasiatic language family. Written records of the Egyptian language have been dated from about 3400 BC, making it one of the oldest recorded languages known. Egyptian was spoken until the late 17th century AD in the...
biliteral
Egyptian biliteral signs
Biliteral Egyptian hieroglyphs are symbols which represent a specific sequence of two consonants, also two vowels, or combinational of both, in the language...
with the value of nb.
The hieroglyph is a large gold and pearl necklace. Old Kingdom
Old Kingdom
Old Kingdom is the name given to the period in the 3rd millennium BC when Egypt attained its first continuous peak of civilization in complexity and achievement – the first of three so-called "Kingdom" periods, which mark the high points of civilization in the lower Nile Valley .The term itself was...
scenes show dwarfs metalworking the gold, and "stringing the pearls of gold".
Horus-of-Gold name
The meaning of this particular title has been disputed. One belief is that it represents the triumph of HorusHorus
Horus is one of the oldest and most significant deities in the Ancient Egyptian religion, who was worshipped from at least the late Predynastic period through to Greco-Roman times. Different forms of Horus are recorded in history and these are treated as distinct gods by Egyptologists...
over his uncle Seth
Set (mythology)
Set was in Ancient Egyptian religion, a god of the desert, storms, and foreigners. In later myths he was also the god of darkness, and chaos...
, as the symbol for gold can be taken to mean that Horus was "superior to his foes". Gold also was strongly associated in the ancient Egyptian mind with eternity, so this may have been intended to convey the pharaoh's eternal Horus name.
Similar to the Fivefold Titulary
Fivefold Titulary
The royal titulary or royal protocol of an Egyptian Pharaoh is the standard naming convention taken by the kings of Ancient Egypt. It symbolises worldly power and holy might and also acts as a sort of mission statement for the reign of a monarch .The full titulary, consisting of five names, did not...
Nebty name, this particular name typically was not framed by a cartouche or serekh. It always begins with the depiction of the horus falcon perched above a representation of the sun
Sun (hieroglyph)
The Ancient Egyptian Sun hieroglyph is Gardiner sign listed no. N5 for the sun-disc; it is also one of the hieroglyphs that refers to the god Ra.-Luwian hieroglyhs, Sa-sub4:...
-(hieroglyph).
Late Period usage by Nectanebo II, etc.
One of the few coins minted for ancient EgyptAncient Egypt
Ancient Egypt was an ancient civilization of Northeastern Africa, concentrated along the lower reaches of the Nile River in what is now the modern country of Egypt. Egyptian civilization coalesced around 3150 BC with the political unification of Upper and Lower Egypt under the first pharaoh...
is the gold
Gold
Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au and an atomic number of 79. Gold is a dense, soft, shiny, malleable and ductile metal. Pure gold has a bright yellow color and luster traditionally considered attractive, which it maintains without oxidizing in air or water. Chemically, gold is a...
stater
Stater
The stater was an ancient coin used in various regions of Greece.-History:The stater is mostly of Macedonian origin. Celtic tribes brought it in to Europe after using it as mercenaries in north Greece. It circulated from the 8th century BC to 50 AD...
for Nectanebo II, reign 360 to 343 BC, 30th dynasty
Thirtieth dynasty of Egypt
The Thirtieth Dynasty of ancient Egypt followed Nectanebo I's deposition of Nefaarud II, the son of Hakor. This dynasty is often considered part of the Late Period....
. The reverse of the gold stater shows a horse reared up on its hind legs. The obverse has the two hieroglyphs for nfr and nb: "Perfect gold", or a common-era term: 'Fine'-gold.
Example words
Variant forms
Three variants of the gold hieroglyph are ligatured with another hieroglyph:See also
- Fivefold TitularyFivefold TitularyThe royal titulary or royal protocol of an Egyptian Pharaoh is the standard naming convention taken by the kings of Ancient Egypt. It symbolises worldly power and holy might and also acts as a sort of mission statement for the reign of a monarch .The full titulary, consisting of five names, did not...
- Gardiner's Sign List#S. Crowns, Dress, Staves, etc