Amon (Amen, Amun, Ammon, Amoun)
The hidden one
Symbols: bull, ram, goose
Depiction: Amon was depicted as a man seated on a throne holding an ankh in one hand and a scepter in the other. Amon was also depicted with the head of a cobra or frog. He could also appear as an ape or as a crouching lion.
Mythology: Amon was a creation-god. His name means, “what is hidden or cannot be seen.” During the Ptolemaic period, Amon was associated with the root word –men, meaning “to be permanent.” Though later traditions say that Amon was self-created, other traditions say Thoth created Amon as one of the eight gods of creation. According to myth, Amon’s wife was Mut and his son Khonsu (the moon). Amon’s historical role in Egypt is riddled with political intrigue. Originally a minor deity recognized in Thebes, Amon came into prominence in Upper Egypt with the accession of the prince of Thebes to power in Egypt. As a result of his rise in popularity, Amon was promoted to king of the gods some time after the 12th Dynasty when Thebes became the new capital of Egypt. Though worshipped by the wealthy, the common man considered Amon their god who protected the weak and upheld justice. To earn the god’s favor, people would confess their sins to Amon to demonstrate their piety. Amon’s favor among the Egyptian pharaohs waxed and waned as the queen Hatshepsut built the god a temple and claimed him as her father. Later, Thutmosis IV, shunned Amon for a purer sun god, Aten. The final blow to Amon’s popularity came when Thutmosis IV moved the Egyptian capital from Thebes and tried to erase any appearance of Amon from the public record. Akhenaten’s successor, Tutankhamon, restored Thebes as the capital of Egypt and restored the old gods. Never again did Amon regain the popularity he once enjoyed as future pharaohs worshipped the Osirian gods instead.
