Shedet (Jan 2023)
THE GEBGA BIRD IN ANCIENT EGYPT
Abstract
This research paper draws attention to the Gebga bird in ancient Egyptian beliefs. According to ancient Egyptian concepts, the Gebga is hostile to dead people. In addition, it was supposed to keep the bird away from the dead, as mentioned in some coffin texts. Furthermore, there was an account of destroying the writing tools of the Gebga. Some texts indicate that the Gebga-bird is the scribe of the god's court at which the dead is condemned. Therefore, the writing tools of the Gebga were eradicated by dead people so that the Gebga could give no evidence against them.On the other hand, some texts mentioned that the dead are reincarnated as the Gebga, probably to prevent the associated negative aspects. Moreover, the Gebga-birds' vertebrae and eggs were used to medicate greyness. The current study seeks to clarify the nature of the Gebga-bird in ancient Egypt, its relationship with the deceased and other attributes. This will be accomplished by using an analytical-descriptive methodology.
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