Give him a bone. He’s the famous funeral God with the black dog’s head. But is he a doberman or a jackal? No-one really knows for sure. (“Down, Anubis down!” No, it must be a jackal.)

Legends disagree who his parents are — some claim Osiris was involved while earlier myths claim he is the primordial son of spooky Nephthys and shining Ra. Even Bast gets a tongue-in-cheek mention as possible mother. However we reckon he is definitely not the son of Cow Goddess Hesat as some sources claim. That’s surely a cross-breed too far.

His morbid occupation goes back to the dawn of time. Death was a serious business to the ancients and Anubis ruled over it with grim majesty for eons until Osiris took over the job.

Nowadays Anubis takes a back seat in funeral matters, but still likes to be involved in the judging of the dead. He holds the scales of justice steady while your soul is weighed. If it’s heavy with the weight of sin, you’ll be fed to Ammit as punishment. But if you’re light enough he’ll lead you to Osiris for the top prize of everlasting afterlife.

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Article last revised on November 12, 2018 by Rowan Allen.
Editors: Peter J. Allen, Chas Saunders

References: Coming soon.

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