Crook+and+Flail

Crook and Flail

The crook (//heka//) and flail (//nekhekh//) were two of the most prominent items in the royal regalia of ancient Egypt. The crook was a cane with a hooked handle, sometimes gold-plated and reinforced with blue copper bands. Some examples found were made of wood, ivory, limestone, and gold. The flail was a rod with three attached beaded strands. The Crook and Flail were usually held across the chest.

Originally the tools of a shepherd, the flail represented a fly-whisk, and crook a shepherd's crook. These tools symbolized the pharaoh's role as the protector of his people. Both crook and flail also serve to link the pharaoh with the god Osiris. //The Teaching of King Merikare// reminds rulers that they must "shepherd the people, the Cattle of Osiris, for it is for their sake that Ra created heaven and earth."

Osiris is usually the only god to be depicted with the crook and flail - other gods hold the crook, such as Andjety, or the flail, such as Min, but rarely both at once. Certain sacred animals were sometimes shown carrying the flail on their backs, such as the Apis bull, the vulture of Mut, and the jackal of Anubis.


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

Receiving the Crook and Flail

Egyptian Symbols