Egyptian Gods

Serket was an ancient Egyptian god, the Goddess of Scorpion. Her name Serket also spelled as Selchis, Selkit, Selqet, Serkhet, Selket, Serket-hetyt, Selkis, Selkhit, Serqet or Serquet, whose name means “she who tightens the throat”, or “she who causes the throat to breathe” referring to her power of protecting from, or healing stings and bites.

Her appearance portrayed as a woman with a scorpion on her head or a scorpion with the head of a woman. Sometimes, she depicted just as a scorpion itself.

Serket was thought to be a protector of children and pregnant woman from venomous bites, based on a story where she protects Isis and her infant son, Horus from Set. She is both a protective and punisher of the wrong doers. She was called upon in Egyptian magic to avert venomous stings.  Pharaohs also considered Serket to be their patron.

As the protector against poisons and snake bites, Serket often was said to protect the deities from Apep, the great snake god of evil. According to myth, she also protected Ra, the sun god from Apep.

Serket also guarded the tents of embalmers and the canopic jars containing the viscera of the deceased which was deified as Qebehsenuf, one of the Four sons of Horus. Referring to the embalmer’s tent, she was given the epithet, “Lady of the Beautiful Tent” and “Mistress of the Beautiful House”. In afterlife, she helped the deceased adjust themselves in the Underworld.

Serket were strongly associated with Isis, one of the canopic jar guards because of her connection with magic and the underworld.

Although, Serket had large number of priesthood, there are no indications of Serket having any temples. Since, Serket had sizable number of priests, there might be temples built especially for her but they seem to have gone without leaving traces.