Ancient Egyptians were perpetrators of mythology and religious beliefs. The ancient Egypt Duamutef was one of the four sons of Horus, given the duty of funerary rites and rituals.

The four sons of Horus were essentially the personifications of the four jars that accompanied the bodies of the deceased. These jars were used to store different parts of the body of the dead.

Imsety, Duamutef, Qebehsenuef, and Hapy the four sons of Horus are represented as four jars used during mummification. Duamutef is the personification of the jackal shaped jar. This jar was used to store the stomach of the dead person.

Ancient Egyptians associated each part of the body with a God. This God was believed to be the preserver of that organ. The lid of the jars used to preserve organs was sometimes carved into the face of these gods.

The process

Each organ was first removed from the body of the deceased. Then, the organs were dried with natron to prevent them from decaying. The heart, believed to be essential for life was left inside the body. Brain, thought of as the place where evil incepted was removed and discarded.

Each organ was then balmed and placed inside their respective jars. Each jar had a protective goddess associated with it. Duamutef was protected by goddess Neith.

Meaning of Egypt Duamutef

The name is broken into parts and then analyzed individually. The source of the word i.e. ‘dua’ means ‘admiration’ or ‘morning’. The word ‘mut’ means mother and ‘ef’ signifies ‘male ownership’.

So, the name Duamutef means ‘who adores his mother’.

Significance of Duamutef

Duamutef in ancient Egypt held much more significance than merely as the caretaker of the stomach. The four brothers were believed to be the ones ferrying the king over to the eastern horizon in the boat every morning, as seen in the following quote from Pyramid texts.

“The four sons were also responsible for providing food and water to the king. Hapy, Duamutef, Kebhsenuf, and Imsety will expel this hunger which is in my belly and this thirst which is on my lips.” – Pyramid Texts Utterance 338

These four brothers were also connected to the Ursa Major constellation. Present in the Northern sky, they are believed to guard the coffin of Osiris, their mother. Heaven was seen as resting on the staffs of these four brothers.

Clearly, the influence of Duamutef was immense and far reached. His importance in ancient Egypt is known in every text found in the Egyptian pyramids. Ancient Egypt Duamutef was rightly revered and loved by the Egyptians.