Cow goddess. A goddess of love and motherhood, worshipped from about 2700BC to AD400. Hathor is the daughter of NUT and RE/RA. In early Egyptian mythology she was said to be the mother of HORUS, but was later displaced by ISIS. After being displaced, Hathor became a protectress or consort of Horus (at Dandara). The Greeks identified Hathor with APHRODITE. Her name means House (or Mansion) of Horus, referring to her role as a sky goddess. The heavens were often depicted as being a cow with stars on it. She was often regarded as the mother of the Pharaoh, who called himself the Son of Hathor. Since the Pharaoh was also considered to be the Living Horus, as the son of Isis, it is plausible that the phrase ‘son of Hathor’ came from when Hathor was the mother of Horus. The snake, the Egyptian rattle known as the sistrum, and the papyrus reed often symbolised Hathor. Her image could also be used to form the capitals of columns in Egyptian architecture. Her principal sanctuary and possibly place of origin is at Dandara, where she is mainly worshipped as a goddess of fertility, women and childbirth. At Thebes she was regarded as a goddess of the dead with the title of ‘Lady of the West.’ At the temple dedicated to Horus at Edfu a distinct tradition has her Horus's consort. As 'Lady of the West' she is associated with Ra on his descent below the western horizon and various deaths related gods, such as OSIRIS and ANUBIS. She is depicted either as a cow or in human form wearing a crown consisting of a sun disk held between the horns of a cow. At Byblos she is associated with ISIS. She is also the goddess of alcohol and erotic dance. Her symbols are the lion, papyrus reeds and snakes
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