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Egyptian Mythology
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River and land

Renenutet

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GreekThermouthis, the Greek form of the name

The harvestNursing and the naming of a childFate

How it changed

A cobra of the fields whose gaze was thought to ripen the grain and to keep the threshing floor clear of vermin, which is a practical reason to welcome a snake into a barn. Her name links to nursing and to the giving of a person's identity, so she also fixed one's fortune at birth, and she stands close to Shai. The Greeks knew her as Thermouthis.

Cult centre

The Faiyum, especially Narmouthis (Medinet Madi)

Best attested

Middle Kingdom onward

Family

  • ChildrenNepri

Mother of the grain god Nepri; associated with Shai, fate.

Epithets

  • Lady of the granaries
  • Nourishing snake

How to recognise the figure

A rearing cobra, or a cobra-headed woman, often shown nursing a child.

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