Ive been playing with the idea of getting a new tattoo and I think Ive determined what I want to get. The picture below is of scenes from the Egyptian book of the dead. The scene is called The Weighing of the Heart Ceremony. The symbolic ritual that accompanied this ritual was the weighing of the heart of the deceased on a pair of enormous scales. It was weighed against the principle of truth and justice ( known as maat ) represented by a feather, the symbol of the goddess of truth, order and justice, Maat. If the heart balanced against the feather then the deceased would be granted a place in the Fields of Hetep and Iaru. If it was heavy with the weight of wrongdoings, the balance would sink and the heart would be grabbed and devoured by a terrifying beast that sat ready and waiting by the scales. This beast was Ammit, the gobbler, a composite animal with the head of a crocodile, the front legs and body of lion or leopard, and the back legs of a hippopotamus. The ancient Egyptians considered the heart to be the centre of thought, memory and emotion. It was thus associated with interlect and personality and was considered the most important organ in the body. It was deemed to be essential for rebirth into the Afterlife. Unlike the other internal organs, it was never removed and embalmed separately, because its presence in the body was crucial Ive been trying to find an artist who could do the whole scene and havent found one Ive liked yet. If I cant find someone I will probably have to have a custom design/drawing for it. Anyone have any suggestions?
Posted on: Thu, 20 Nov 2014 23:48:45 +0000
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