386 THE ANCIENT EGYPTIANS. CHAP. XIII- 



with all the pomp which religion and superstition 

 could invent ; and particular ceremonies were ex- 

 clusively appropriated to her. 



An Epigram in the Anthology of Constantine 

 Cephalus*, mentioning certain offerings made to 

 Isis, thus addresses her : " O Goddess clad in linen, 

 who governest the fertile (black) land of Egypt, 

 honour these offerings with thy presence ; this 

 cake, this couple of geese, this ointment, these wild 

 figs, these dried raisins, and this incense are already 

 on the altar. Thou hast protected Damis from the 

 dangers of the sea ; if thou wilt also deliver him 

 from poverty, he will offer you a fawn with gilded 

 horns." 



Athor, Hathor, Eit-hor, Thy-hor, Tei-hor, 

 Athyr, Venus, Evening or Night, The 

 Planet. 



From the connection which appears to subsist 

 between Isis and Athor, it may not be out of place 

 to introduce the last mentioned Goddess, before I 

 proceed to mention Horus, the son of Isis and 

 Osiris, and the other members of the family of Seb. 



Athor, Hathor, or Athyr, the Egyptian Venus 

 or Aphrodite, is frequently represented with the 

 attributes of Isis, — with whom, therefore, she is 

 identified by Apuleius ; and in one of her cha- 

 racters she so nearly resembles her, that with 

 difficulty, as already observed, she can be distin- 

 guished from the consort of Osiris. The analogy 



* 111 Reiske. Given by Larcher, Herodot. vol. iii. p. 567. 



