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The Ancient Egyptian Mother Mary

The biblical name of Jesus’ mother is Mary. The name Mary is given to many women in the Bible. The two closest women to Jesus were called Mary, his mother and Mary Magdalene.

The origin of the name Mary lies in Ancient Egypt, where the written word was Mr (the vowels a and y were added by modern scholars to help pronounce the ancient languages), means the beloved.
The name Mary/Mery is one of the most repeated words in Ancient Egyptian texts. It was used as an adjective (epithet) before names of people, neteru (gods), ...etc. This epithet was also applied to many of the Egyptian royal family including his mother, Nefertiti, and his wife, Ankhsenpa-aton.

The familiar Christian scene of the Virgin and Child is a copy of a common and abundant Ancient Egyptian statue—such as the 6th century BCE statue of Auset (Isis) and her son Heru (Horus), now in the Turin Museum. It was such a statue that inspired the 15th century painter Masaccio, in his presentation of The Virgin and Child. We can easily find one or several such Ancient Egyptian statues in museums throughout the world.

Auset’s (Isis’) role in the Egyptian Model Story and the story of the Virgin Mary are strikingly similar, for both were able to conceive without male impregnation. Heru (Horus) was conceived and born after the death of Auset’s husband, and, as such, Auset was revered as the Virgin Mother. [More details in chapter 11 of our book, The Ancient Egyptian Roots of Christianity.]

The ideal of virginity was a cornerstone of the Ancient Egyptian traditions. Ancient Egyptian women are depicted wearing a vulture headdress. The choice of the vulture for this particular feminine role is because:

The vulture is supposed to be particularly zealous in caring for its young.
There is no physical sexual contact between male and female vultures. The female vulture impregnated herself by exposing herself to receive the male seeds carried by the winds. The vulture is therefore a symbol of virgin birth.

Moustafa Gadalla

For more information about the Ancient Egyptian roots of Christianity, refer to:

The Ancient Egyptian Roots of Christianity
by Moustafa Gadalla
192 pages, 5.5" x 8.5"
List Price: $12.95 USD (paperback)
$8.50 USD (eBook)

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