Google Answers Logo
View Question
 
Q: Thoneris egyption statue ( Answered 5 out of 5 stars,   0 Comments )
Question  
Subject: Thoneris egyption statue
Category: Miscellaneous
Asked by: valleytom-ga
List Price: $5.00
Posted: 19 Jun 2002 09:50 PDT
Expires: 26 Jun 2002 09:50 PDT
Question ID: 29234
This statue was purchased this year.  Left in will and I have no idea
what it is. Black statue on base with hyrogliphics about 8-10" tall
Answer  
Subject: Re: Thoneris egyption statue
Answered By: scriptor-ga on 19 Jun 2002 11:11 PDT
Rated:5 out of 5 stars
 
Dear valleytom,

As it seems, there is a small mistake in the way the name is spelled.
The ending '-eris' indicates that this is the Greek form of an ancient
Egyptian name. However, my search has revealed that 'Thoneris' is not
an Egyptian name, neither are the possible spelling variants
'Toneris', 'Touneris', 'Thouneris', 'Thuneris', and 'Tuneris'. These
or other variations of 'Thoneris' are not listed by any any sources or
records as Greek terms. But there is an Egyptian deity known as
'Thoeris' (other common Greek forms are Thoueris, Tueris, Toeris). The
Egyptians called her Taweret (‘The Great One’), Taueret, Taurt, Apet
or Opet. She was a low-ranking, but quite popular and very old
goddess. She was a deity of fertility and believed to protect women in
childbirth. Normally, she was portrayed as having a hippopotamus' head
on a voluptous female human body, often combined with lion paws and a
crocodile tail, as shown here:

http://2terres.hautesavoie.net/tegypte/texte/thoueri.htm

Should your statue not show these typical features, it might
nevertheless be an image of the goddess Thoeris: The ancient Egyptians
believed that their deities had various manifestations; they could
appear as animals, mixtures of animal and human features or fully
human without changing their identities. Also, the figure might be the
portrait of a real person who had been given the name or adopted it in
order to please the goddess.

If it is a statue of the diety, the figure might have seen use as a
talisman or item of worship as well as a votive present to the goddess
brought to her during a pilgrimage or as a reward for help in
pregnancy or childbirth.

Some sources for information on the goddess:

University of Colorado, Social Science Data Lab, Egyptian Gods Theme -
Taweret, Hippopotamus goddess and protective deity of childbirth
http://sobek.colorado.edu/LAB/GODS/taweret.html

Glossary Of Egyptian Mythology, Egyptian Goddess Taurt, by Richard
Deurer, 1997
http://members.aol.com/egyptart/taurt.html

Search terms used:
"egyptian gods" list:
://www.google.de/search?q=%22egyptian+gods%22+list&ie=UTF8&oe=UTF8&hl=de&meta=
Thoeris: ://www.google.de/search?hl=de&ie=UTF8&oe=UTF8&newwindow=1&q=Thoeris&meta=
Thoueris: ://www.google.de/search?hl=de&ie=UTF8&oe=UTF8&newwindow=1&q=Thoueris&meta=

I hope this helps you finding out about the identity of your statue
Regards,
Scriptor
valleytom-ga rated this answer:5 out of 5 stars
After checking the statue, the scriptor was 100% correct.  Thank you.

Comments  
There are no comments at this time.

Important Disclaimer: Answers and comments provided on Google Answers are general information, and are not intended to substitute for informed professional medical, psychiatric, psychological, tax, legal, investment, accounting, or other professional advice. Google does not endorse, and expressly disclaims liability for any product, manufacturer, distributor, service or service provider mentioned or any opinion expressed in answers or comments. Please read carefully the Google Answers Terms of Service.

If you feel that you have found inappropriate content, please let us know by emailing us at answers-support@google.com with the question ID listed above. Thank you.
Search Google Answers for
Google Answers  


Google Home - Answers FAQ - Terms of Service - Privacy Policy