Ptah

In Egyptian mythology, Ptah (/pəˈtɑː/;[1] Ancient Egyptian: ptḥ,

Ptah
reconstructed [piˈtaħ]; Ancient Greek: Φθά; Coptic: ⲡⲧⲁϩ)[2] is
the demiurge of Memphis, god of craftsmen and architects. In the
triad of Memphis, he is the husband of Sekhmet and the father of
Nefertum. He was also regarded as the father of the sage
Imhotep.

Contents
Origin and symbolism
Representations and hypostases
Development of the cult
Main places of worship
Photographs
Legacy
See also
References
Literature
External links

Ptah, in the form of a mummified

Origin and symbolism man, standing on the symbol for
Ma'at, holding a scepter or staff that
Ptah is an Egyptian creator god who existed before all other
bears the combined ankh-djed-was
things and, by his will, thought the world into existence. It was
symbols
first conceived by Thought, and realized by the Word: Ptah
Name in
conceives the world by the thought of his heart and gives life
hieroglyphs
through the magic of his Word. That which Ptah commanded was
created, with which the constituents of nature, fauna, and flora, Major cult Memphis
are contained. He also plays a role in the preservation of the center
world and the permanence of the royal function. Symbol the djed pillar, the
bull
In the Twenty-Fifth Dynasty, the Nubian pharaoh Shabaka would
Consort Sekhmet and Bast
transcribe on a stela known as the Shabaka Stone, an old
theological document found in the archives of the library of the Offspring Nefertem, Maahes
temple of the god at Memphis. This document has been known as Parents none (self-created or
the Memphite Theology, and shows the god Ptah, the deity un-created)
responsible for the creation of the universe by thought and by the
word.
Ptah is the patron of craftsmanship, metalworking, carpenters,
shipbuilders, and sculpture.

He bears many epithets that describe his role in ancient Egyptian

religion and its importance in society at the time:

Ptah the beautiful face

Ptah lord of truth
Ptah master of justice
Ptah who listens to prayers
Ptah master of ceremonies
Ptah lord of eternity

Representations and hypostases

Like many deities of ancient Egypt he takes many forms, through Statue of Ptah - Egyptian Museum of
one of his particular aspects or through syncretism of ancient Turin, Italy
deities of the Memphite region. Sometimes represented as a
dwarf, naked and deformed, his popularity would continue to
grow during the Late Period. Frequently associated with the god Bes, his worship then moved beyond the
borders of Egypt and was exported throughout the eastern Mediterranean. Through dissemination by the
Phoenicians, we find figures of Ptah in Carthage.

Ptah is generally represented in the guise of a man with green skin, contained in a shroud sticking to the
skin, wearing the divine beard, and holding a sceptre combining three powerful symbols of ancient
Egyptian religion:

The Was sceptre

The sign of life, Ankh
The Djed pillar
These three combined symbols indicate the three creative powers of the god: power (was), life (ankh) and
stability (djed).

From the Old Kingdom, he quickly absorbs the appearance of Sokar and Tatenen, ancient deities of the
Memphite region. His form of Sokar is found contained in its white shroud wearing the Atef crown, an
attribute of Osiris. In this capacity, he represents the patron deity of the necropolis of Saqqara and other
famous sites where the royal pyramids were built. Gradually he formed with Osiris a new deity called
Ptah-Sokar-Osiris. Statuettes representing the human form, the half-human, half-hawk form, or simply
the pure falcon form of the new deity began to be systematically placed in tombs to accompany and
protect the dead on their journey to the West.

His Tatenen form is represented by a young and vigorous man wearing a crown with two tall plumes that
surround the solar disk. He thus embodies the underground fire that rumbles and raises the earth. As
such, he was particularly revered by metalworkers and blacksmiths, but he was equally feared because it
was he who caused earthquakes and tremors of the earth's crust. In this form also, Ptah is the master of
ceremonies for Heb Sed, a ceremony traditionally attesting to the first thirty years of a pharaoh's reign.
 The god Ptah could correspond with the sun deities Re or Aten
during the Amarna period, where he embodied the divine essence
with which the sun god was fed to come into existence, that is to
say to be born, according to the Memphite
mythological/theological texts. In the holy of holies of his temple
in Memphis, as well as in his great sacred boat, he drove in
procession to regularly visit the region during major holidays.
Ptah was also symbolized by two birds with human heads
adorned with solar disks, symbols of the souls of the god Re: the
Ba. The two Ba are identified as the twin gods Shu and Tefnut
and are associated with the djed pillar of Memphis.[3]

Finally, Ptah is embodied in the sacred bull, Apis. Frequently

referred to as a herald of Re, the sacred animal is the link with the
god Re from the New Kingdom. He even received worship in
Memphis, probably at the heart of the great temple of Ptah, and
upon the death of the animal, was buried with all the honours due
Stucco relief of Ptah holding a staff
to a living deity in the Serapeum of Saqqara.
that bears the combined ankh and
djed symbols, Late Period or
Ptolemaic Dynasty, 4th to 3rd Development of
century BC
the cult
As god of craftsmen, the
cult of the god Ptah quickly spread throughout Egypt. With the
major royal projects of the Old Kingdom, the high priests of Ptah
were particularly sought after and worked in concert with the
vizier, filling the role of chief architects and master craftsmen,
responsible for the decoration of the royal funerary complexes.

In the New Kingdom, the cult of the god would develop in

different ways, especially in Memphis, his homeland, but also in
Thebes, where the workers of the royal tombs honoured him as
patron of craftsmen. For this reason, the oratory of Ptah who
listens to prayers was built near the site of Deir el-Medina, the
Pooh, Phoh, Loh (Lunus, le dieu-
village where the workers and craftsmen were housed. At Lune, Sélène), N372.2, Brooklyn
Memphis, the role of intercessor with humans was particularly Museum
visible in the appearance of the enclosure that protected the
sanctuary of the god. Large ears were carved on the walls,
symbolizing his role as god who listens to prayers.

With the Nineteenth Dynasty, his cult grew and he became one of the four great deities of the empire of
Ramesses. He was worshipped at Pi-Ramesses as master of ceremonies and coronations.

With the Third Intermediate Period, Ptah returned to the centre of the monarchy where the coronation of
the pharaoh was held again in his temple. The Ptolemies continued this tradition, and the high priests of
Ptah were then increasingly associated with the royal family, with some even marrying princesses of
royal blood, clearly indicating the prominent role they played in the Ptolemaic court.
Main places of worship
Temple dedicated to Location
Ptah Pi-Ramses
Ptah Memphis
Ptah who listens to prayers Memphis
Ptah who is south of his Wall Memphis
Ptah-Sokar Abydos Colossal statue of the god Ptah-
Tatenen holding hands with
Ptah-Sokar Kom el-Hettan (Thebes)
Ramesses II found at Memphis - Ny
Ptah who listens to prayers Deir el-Medina (Thebes) Carlsberg Glyptotek, Copenhagen
Ptah Karnak (Thebes)
Ptah Gerf Hussein (Nubia)
Ptah lord of truth Abu Simbel (Nubia)

Photographs
 Head of the god Crenelated model Stela of Irinefer, Profile of the god
Ptah. 18th Dynasty. tower depicting god Servant in the Place Ptah - Relief of the
State Museum of Ptah holding a was- of Truth. 19th small temple of
Egyptian Art, sceptre before an Dynasty. From Tomb Hathor at Memphis
Munich offering table, on the 290 at Deir el-
reverse is a woman Medina, Egypt. The
(? high priestess) in Petrie Museum of
adoration before Egyptian
ears symbolizing the Archaeology,
deity, 18th Dynasty, London
from Harageh,
Egypt, the Petrie
Museum of Egyptian
Archaeology,
London

Colossal triad Pectoral of Statuette of Ptah- Votive stele

representing Ptah- Tutankhamun Sokar-Osiris – The dedicated to the god
Ramses II-Sekhmet representing the Louvre Ptah in the temple of
– Gardens of the young king between Deir el-Medina. New
Egyptian Museum of the goddess Kingdom, XX
Cairo Sekhmet and Ptah – Dynasty, c. 1150
Egyptian Museum of B.C.
Cairo

Legacy
The English name Egypt derives from an ancient Egyptian name for Memphis, Hikuptah, which means
"Home of the Soul of Ptah". This word entered Ancient Greek as Αἴγυπτος (Aiguptos), which entered
Latin as Aegyptus, and which developed into English as Egypt.
Ptah is one of the deities mentioned in Giuseppe Verdi's opera Aida. He is invoked in a chorus, "Possente
Fthà" ("O Mighty Ptah"), in Act 1, scene 2; this chorus is reprised as "Immenso Fthà" ("Almighty Ptah"),
at the end of the opera as the protagonists Aida and Radamès die.

See also
Kothar-wa-Khasis

References
1. "Ptah" in the American Heritage Dictionary (http://education.yahoo.com/reference/dictionar
y/entry/Ptah) Archived (https://web.archive.org/web/20121025084131/http://education.yaho
o.com/reference/dictionary/entry/Ptah) 2012-10-25 at the Wayback Machine
2. Ancient Egyptian, a linguistic introduction, pg 34 (https://books.google.com/books?id=kW8M
zji0XRgC&printsec=frontcover&dq=ancient+egyptian+loprieno&hl=en&sa=X&ei=1bTFT62U
FNHM6QG53djYBg&ved=0CDQQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q=ptah&f=false)
3. Cf. J. Berlandini, Contribution à l'étude du pilier-djed memphite, p.23-33 et pl. 1 A & pl. 2 A

Literature
Allen, James P. Genesis in Egypt: The Philosophy of Ancient Egyptian Creation Accounts.
New Haven, 1988.
Gunn, Battiscombe G. Instruction of Ptah-Hotep and the Instruction of Ke'Gemni: The
Oldest Books in the World. 1998 Google books (https://books.google.com/books?id=SyO6b
c4GNuAC&printsec=frontcover&dq=ptah+egypt&source=bl&ots=kkPXWD_Oa4&sig=wukBn
nyL1F6aBfdukk0kMNK4dfI&hl=en&sa=X&ei=6xM5UO7hM-n6iwL61oD4AQ&ved=0CEQQ6
AEwBA#v=onepage&q=ptah%20egypt&f=false)
Rothöhler, Benedikt. Neue Gedanken zum Denkmal memphitischer Theologie. Heidelberg,
2006 www.ub.uni-heidelberg.de/archiv/7030 (http://www.ub.uni-heidelberg.de/archiv/7030)
Sandman Holmberg, Maj. The God Ptah. C. W. K. Gleerup, 1946.
Thompson, Dorothy J. Memphis Under the Ptolemies, Second Edition. Princeton, 2012.
Zivie, Alain-Pierre. Memphis et ses nécropoles au Nouvel Empire. Éditions du CNRS, 1988

External links
Media related to Ptah at Wikimedia Commons

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