Serapis - Ancientart

Roman - Egyptian bronze head of Serapis.

In the late 4th century B.C., the first Macedonian pharaoh of Egypt, Ptolemy I Soter (367-283 B.C.), decided to produce a supreme deity that would be acceptable to both the local Egyptian population, and the recent influx of Greek immigrants and visitors. Ptolemy I declared this new god, named Serapis, to be the principal god of both Egypt and Greece. Ptolemy hoped a common religious base would unify the two peoples and ease tension within the country. The attributes of Serapis were both Egyptian and Hellenistic. The aspects of the ancient Egyptian god Osiris were united with the Apis Bull a major aspect of the god Ptah. The syncretism of these two deities was given the name Serapis. This new deity was usually depicted as an anthropomorphic Greek god not dissimilar to standard depictions of the supreme Greek god, Zeus. Serapis became very popular and his cult quickly spread from its center in Alexandria to all of Egypt and finally to the entire Eastern Mediterranean area. The Romans conquered Egypt in 30 B.C. and continued official governmental support of the Serapis cult. By the 2nd century A.D.

Size: 5 x 3 cm

Material: Bronze