Tyet

Tyet


 * Other Names:**

//Tiet, Tjet//, //Tit//, Knot of Isis, Buckle of Isis, Girdle of Isis, Isis Knot, Blood of Isis


 * Hieroglyphics:**



An important symbol of the goddess Isis, the //Tyet// often pictured with the //Djed//, the symbol of Isis' husband Osiris. Isis herself was sometimes herself depicted rising up out of a //Tyet//. The exact origin of this symbol is unknown, although some theories state that it represents the uterus (//tet//). In many respects it resembles an //Ankh// except that its arms curve down. Its meaning is also reminiscent of the //Ankh//, is often translated to mean “welfare” or “life.”

It seems to be called “the Knot of Isis” because it resembles a knot used to secure the garments that the gods wore. Knots were widely used as amulets because the Egyptians believed they bound and released magic. Due to its symbolic significance, the //Tyet// sign is frequently found on decorative bands carved on the walls and columns of temples, in the decoration of shrines, and on other objects such as sarcophagi and beds. In life, the //Tyet// amulet protected the wear from scorpions and poisonous snakes, and in death it assisted the process of rebirth.

The meaning of “the Blood of Isis” is more obscured, but it was often used as a funerary amulet made of red wood, jasper, faience, carnelian, gold, or glass. In all cases it seems to represent the idea of resurrection and eternal life bestowed by the goddess. The //Tyet// was often tied around the mummy's neck, and it was believed that to have a //Tyet// in Sehet Aaru would allow the deceased to travel anywhere they wished. When Tutankhamen's mummy was unwrapped, a red jasper //Tyet// was among his many magical amulets.

There is a suggestion that the "Blood of Isis" is meant to be menstrual blood, considered by the ancient Egyptians to be a powerful component in magical spells, and the //Tyet// was meant to represent a sanitary towel – a folded cloth soaked with the goddess’s blood.

Other theories state that the //Tyet// represented the lifeblood a mother sheds when she gives birth. Pregnant women used the magic spells linked with the //Tyet// to prevent undesired bleeding and miscarriages. During excavations, the //Tyet// has been found tucked between the legs of pregnant women.


 * Quotes from the Book of the Dead and other sources:**

"Let the Blood of Isis and the magical words of Isis be mighty and protect and keep safely the Osiris, and to guard him from that which is harmful." The Spell of the Tyet

The Knot of Isis

Magical Amulets