CroCodiles:

Guardians of the Gateways

Salima Ikram

I am a crocodile immersed in dread,1 I am a crocodile who takes by robbery, I am the

great and mighty ish-like being who is in the Bitter Lakes, I am the Lord of those who
bow down in Letopolis .
Book of Going Forth by Day, Chapter 88
f one visits the famous Caf el-Fishawy in Cairo, one might notice, among the more
conventional objects of interior decoration such as mirrors and chandeliers, a large
stuffed crocodile suspended over the doorway.2 This is not a unique phenomenon:
there are other houses in Cairo and many more in Upper Egypt, especially between Aswan and
Luxor, that boast crocodiles over their doors, or above the entrance to a hara, or neighborhood.
In Cairo, the builders of a nineteenth century house even went so far as to carve a limestone
crocodile into the lintel over the main entrance.3
These crocodiles (from kroke meaning pebble and drilos meaning worm, describing the
animals skin), both real and imitation, are intended to have an apotropaic function: placed
above the door they avert the evil eye and safeguard the houses residents. They are also
believed to attract wealth and good luck (Ikram 1999). Now, with the dearth of crocodiles
below the Aswan Dam, Nile Monitors (varun or Varanus niloticus, amphibious lizards) have
taken the place of the former. The custom of using crocodiles (or now varuns) as guardians
of the doorway appears to be unique to Egypt.4 Is it possible that this practice of placing a

1 One of my irst classes I took with Kent Weeks when I was a graduate student was about animals and the role
they played in Egyptian iconography. I affectionately offer this article on a possible interpretation of an ancient
Egyptian tradition that has metamorphosed and continues to lourish in modern Egypt to Kent in memory of that
class, from the student Who Just Would Not Go Away. Some of the research for this article was carried out on offdays from work at KV 5, and proited greatly from lively discussions with Susan about the meaning of "over-door
ornaments".
2 The crocodile has been moved inside in 2007, but sometimes is exhibited outside still.
3 The house is located at Number 5, Darb el Tablawy, in the Gamaliyya district of Cairo. It was kindly brought to my
attention by N. Warner whom I would like to thank for bringing this and the Heliopolitan obelisk story to my attention.
N. Walschaerts and Y. el-Shazly assisted me with research on this article, and I am grateful to them both.
4 This author has not found this practice in other countries of the Near East, and only a few examples from the Sudan,
a large part of which was greatly inluenced by ancient Egyptian customs and culture.

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crocodile above the door has its roots in ancient Egyptian beliefs and traditions? And if so, what
other ancient Egyptian vestiges can be found in the role of crocodiles in modern Egypt? One
obvious correlation is the modern Egyptian word for the crocodile itself: the Arabic timsaah is
derived from the ancient Egyptian ms, or at least from the same root.
The Nile Crocodile, Crocodilis niloticus, is indigenous to the Nile River and has been found
throughout the Nile Valley from prehistoric times until the nineteenth century. This animal
was so closely associated with Egypt, that in the Roman Period crocodiles and date-palms,
generally represented together, but occasionally separately, were used as the symbol for Egypt,5
just as the She-Wolf symbolized Rome. The numbers of crocodiles in the Delta started to
decrease in the 1700s, and, by the end of the 1800s, their numbers had been seriously reduced
by hunting and the press of humanity. The crocodile population was then concentrated in
Upper Egypt from the area of Luxor south. A traveler who visited Egypt in the 1790s reports:
"it was said that the crocodiles had a king who resides near Esna. He has ears but no tail, and
does no harm" (Browne 1799: 140). The last crocodile sighting to be reported in the Delta
was in 1753, although small specimens were found in and above Cairo through the nineteenth
century (anderson 1898: 11-12). Apparently it was believed by "the country people...that
[crocodiles do not go north beyond Cairo] due to the Nilometer which, they believe, contains
a talisman. The actual reason is the vast boat-trafic" (antes 1800: 46). According to the
Egyptians, the area of Cairo was protected against crocodiles in a variety of ways. Ibn Jubayr
mentions that the Giza plateau was adorned by marble crocodiles, which served to protect the
banks of the Nile for three miles above and below them (Broadhurst 1951: 7), while in the
tenth century, according to the traveler al-Muqaddisi, it was believed that obelisks erected
around Cairo served an apotropaic purpose and were inscribed with spells against crocodiles
(Bachre 1969: 11).
The last large crocodiles were hunted in Aswan in the 1890s, before they started their retreat
to below the cataracts, coincident with the construction of the irst Aswan Dam. In 1891 the
stuffed skin of a crocodile used to hang over the door of the quarters of one of the British
oficers in Aswan (anderson 1898: 12). Occasional rare crocodile sightings above Aswan
have been reported as recently as August, 1960, when a ive metre long crocodile was captured
at Asyut.6 However, with the construction of the Aswan High Dam in the 1960s the crocodile
population was restricted to Lake Nasser and areas further south, where they now proliferate.
Crocodiles are one of the oldest vertebrates found on this planet. They are covered with a
thick scaly armor that has, in modern times, been coveted for shoes, handbags, and luggage.
Their length varies from 22 centimetres (newborns) up to 6 metres; their weight depends on
their size and diet, and can vary between 272 to 910 kilograms (Grenard 1991). Males are
larger than females. The female always manages to build a nest for her eggs, some 3 x 2.5
5 Mosaics and paintings of this period frequently employ this combination when alluding to Egypt, as can be seen in
the Nilotic mosaic in the Temple of Fortuna at Palestrina, dating to the irst century BC. This continues in the Coptic
and Byzantine Periods, with the crocodile and date-palm symbolising Egypt and the Nile (e.g. Coptic Museum,
Cairo 7211).
6 This incident was kindly related to me by S. Koraiem in March 2000; he was witness to the capture of the beast.

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metres in area (alderton 1998: 81, 85),7 safely above the lood zone, an accomplishment that
was frequently remarked on in antiquity (saId 1973; PlIny VIII.xxxvii; Brunner-traut 1980:
791-801). Because of this the ancient Egyptians, as well as the Greeks and Romans (PlIny VIII:
xxxvii), thought that crocodiles could magically foretell the height of the inundation. It takes
thirty minutes for the mother to lay her eggs in the nest, after which she moves away to guard
them closely. Crocodile egg clutches vary in number from eighteen to eighty eggs, thereby
giving rise to the idea of the crocodiles fertility. The length of a crocodiles penis--nearly up
to a metre--also supports the idea of the crocodile being an exceptionally virile/fertile animal.
Perhaps the animals" fertility gave rise to the belief that crocodiles placed above doorways
bring wealth to a home. In Utterance 317 of the Pyramid Texts (Faulkner 1969: 99), the King
turns into a crocodile and steals wives: a tribute to the animals great sexual potency. Crocodile
eggs take between two to three months to hatch during which time they are prey to hyena,
mongoose, and the Nile monitor (alderton 1998: 82). This is ironic, as the Nile monitor, in
many contemporary folk-beliefs has replaced the crocodile due to the formers availability.
Once hatched the infant crocodiles rest on the back of their mother for parts of the day, safe
from catish, otters, turtles, and Nile monitors. A mummiied crocodile, probably from the
Fayum, now in the British Museum, had its (rather large) babies placed on its back, just as in
life (EA 38562); indeed, several examples of crocodiles with young on their back come from
the Fayum (BaGnanI 1952). In other cases, crocodiles gently place their young in their mouth
and transport them thus for safety; a mummiied crocodile now in the Egyptian Museum was
found with babies in its mouth (CG 29628).
The Nile crocodile can live up to ifty years of age or more (alderton 1998: 50); some
crocodiles have lived to 110 years in captivity. Generally these reptiles are slow moving and
spend a great deal of time lying immobile on a sandbank or semi-submerged in rivers. They
often spend the night in the water, and clamber up to a sandbank with the rising of the sun,
where they bask with their mouth open, only to submerge themselves again at nightfall. This
habit led to their becoming associated with the sun god by the ancient Egyptians. Aspects of
their physical appearance might also have contributed to the identiication of the crocodile with
the sun: the armor, or upper-skin of crocodiles is made up of scutes or osteoderms that trap
heat, and look like dotted sun bursts around a central ridge; the spikes on their tails are also
slightly reminiscent of sun rays; the crocodiles yellow eyes shine brightly at night, providing
tiny suns in the dark; and the sunlight playing upon crocodile scales as it basks often shimmers
and imparts a golden hue to the animal, further emphasizing its solar nature. Also, when these
animals emerges from the water they open their mouth to the sun in order to help regulate their
temperatureno doubt the gaping reddish maw of the animal, delineated by sharp, pointy teeth
7 Eggs take about 85 days to hatch and there are generally an equal or semi-equal ratio of males to females. A curious
feature of crocodile eggs is that the temperature can inluence the sex of the baby: eggs that have been kept at 32 C
degrees or more tend to be male (lynne 2006: 51). Sexual maturity is reached at about three years when the animals
measure an average of two metres (lynne 2006: 201). Many votive crocodile mummies are of approximately this
length or less; presumably they were culled prior to arriving at sexual maturity as they are less biddable (and larger)
thereafter.
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were reminiscent of the sun and its rays. Perhaps the reason that the word kmm, or darkness
uses the hieroglyph sign of a fragment of crocodile skin alludes not only to the dark hue of the
crocodiles hide, but also to the time that these animals spend in the dark and murky depths
of the Nile. Despite their deceptive sloth, crocodiles can gallop up to 18 kph in short bursts
when chasing their prey (alderton 1998: 66). Crocodiles have excellent night vision, as well
as good day vision, both above and below water, as, when underwater, the crocodiles eyes are
protected by transparent nictating membranes, or second eyelids (alderton 1998: 55). They
also enjoy a keen sense of smell and acute hearing (their ears are covered by laps when the
animal is submerged), all of which help them to hunt successfully.
Crocodiles enjoy a well-deserved reputation for ferocity. They are equipped with a ine set
of teeth (64-68 teeth in total) that are replaced throughout their lifetime. The teeth are very
strong and sharp, and at the tip of the snout they interlock, permitting the animal to grasp its
prey with fatal consequences: "A large crocodile can exert a crushing force equivalent to 13
tonnes" (alderton 1998: 56). The crocodile dispatches its prey by seizing it irmly with its
sharp teeth, and then plunging deep into the water to drown it. When feeding, crocodiles clamp
onto a large piece of their victims lesh, and, if they cannot pull it off the corpse immediately,
spin around rapidly, until the meat breaks away from the body. Crocodiles do not chew lesh;
they swallow it whole. Luckily for their victims, crocodiles do not need to eat too regularly.
They can survive for several months without regular feeding (some have been reported to
survive for almost two years between meals) as they can live off their body fat, which is stored
in their tail.
Mammals form the mainstay of the crocodilian diet, with reptiles and ish following.
Crocodiles eat buffalo, antelopes, ish, birds and humans with pleasure. Even now there are
occasional reports of crocodiles killing children and adult ishermen in the area south of the
High Dam. It is interesting to note that in later periods of Egyptian history, people who had
been eaten or attacked by crocodiles achieved a semi-divine status (Brunner-traut 1980: 791801; lloyd 1976, 1988: 307ff). The reasons for this are unclear; perhaps it has something to
do with the crocodiles association with a solar divinity, or perhaps because the crocodile was
a sacred animal in certain areas of Egypt?
Crocodiles hunt solo and in groups, particularly if the kill is large. They patiently lie in wait
for their prey in the water, and then silently ambush them, pulling them into the water to drown.
The crocodiles strength and skill in hunting was often remarked upon in ancient Egypt. They
are commonly depicted on tomb walls of the Old Kingdom as they lie in wait for unsuspecting
cattlea Sethian form of the crocodile (harPur 1987: igs. 68, 189, 190, 192, 193, 211). The
majority of these scenes are found in the Memphite cemeteries of the Fifth and Sixth Dynasty,
and are especially well illustrated in the Sixth Dynasty tombs of the Teti cemetery. Herdsmen
hold out their hands with the foreinger extended and proclaim spells to ward off these beasts.
The tomb of Ankhmahor at Saqqara contains such a spell: "O this herdsman, live, your face
against that aquatic (crocodile) that is on the water so that these ones do not go to that aquatic
(crocodile), he being as a blind of head. Lie thy face against him very much". The caption in
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front of the rear boat provides the title for the scene, "khesef meseh", or repelling the crocodile
(rItner 1993: 227-30; Badawy 1978: 17). In the tomb of Ti, the inscription is more explicit
and reads "to ward off death" (rItner 1993: 227). Spells for repelling crocodiles are also
found in magical and other papyri (e.g. BM EA 9997, BM EA 10059 and BM EA 10042),
including the Book of the Dead (e.g. Spells 31, 32), and the Cofin Texts (Spells 586, 424,
342). A particularly evocative example of Chapter 31 of the Book of the Dead: Repulsing
the crocodile which comes to carry away the magical spells from a man in the Underworld, is
accompanied 1610by a vignette featuring a man brandishing a knife in front of three crocodiles
(P. BM EA10471, Book of the Dead of Nakht). The power of the crocodile is so strong that in
the spell it is not mentioned by name, and "aquatic" is determined by a reed. Clearly this great
beast was feared.
Even in the Coptic era there are tales of how the power of faith and divine intervention saved
people from ravening crocodiles. Abba Bes (a particularly appropriate name for a conqueror
of such creatures) rid his area of ravaging crocodiles and hippopotami through prayer (russell
1980: 66), while other monks managed to save themselves from attacking crocodiles through
prayer and faith (Ward 1975: 46; reGnault 1985: 1046, 1294, 1610). No doubt stories of the
defeat of crocodiles at the hands of the faithful continued on throughout the 19th century.8
The only other riverine animal that can challenge the crocodile is the hippopotamus
(Hippopotamus amphibius). Generally these two riverine powers co-exist relatively peacefully.
However, this peace may be shattered when cows have recently calved and the crocodiles
attempt to seize the newborn calves (e.g. in the tomb of Idut at Saqqara). The mothers,
equipped with enormous canine teeth that can crush a crocodile and kill it, may retaliate. This
is illustrated in several Memphite tomb reliefs dating to the Old Kingdom, most notably in the
tombs of Mereruka, Kagemni, Ti, and Mekhu.
As they were so much a part of the environment and frequently a threat to the dwellers
of the Nile Valley, crocodiles have played a signiicant role in the culture of Egypt from the
earliest times. Crocodile bones have been found in the middens of Predynastic settlements
of Merimde, Omari, and Maadi (Boessneck 1988: 109), indicating that they were a source of
food for the early dwellers of the Nile Valley. Herodotus, the ifth century BC Ionian historian,
also claimed that the inhabitants of Elephantine ate the lesh of crocodiles (II: 69), while J.
Anderson, the naturalist, reports that they were eaten by the Sudanese and certain African tribes
mainly for their aphrodisiacal properties (1898: 18).
Crocodiles, or parts thereof, were also commonly used in ancient Egyptian medicines, and
are still used in some folk-medicines today. For leg pains, cramps and stiffness P. Ram. V
lists crocodile oil as a curative ingredient; crocodile oil and fat is also recommended for pains
and stiffness in other parts of the body (P. Ramesseum V, and Ebers 656 [BardInet 1995: 47273]). It is also suggested that, when crocodile fat is rubbed into the scalp of a bald or balding
person, the hair will be encouraged to grow (Eb. 465 [BardInet 1995: 318]). Crocodile dung
was used as part of the cure for river blindness, caused by the parasitic roundworm Onchocerca
8 I am grateful to R. Bagnall and E. Bolman who assisted greatly in my quest for these references.
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(Eb. 344 and others [BardInet 1995: 304]). The references to crocodiles in warding spells as:
blind one, or requests that it be blind in order to protect the herds and men that were crossing
might be related to this belief. Crocodile dung was also used to test pregnancy in women (P.
Ram. IV, C, Kahun 21 [BardInet 1995: 441, 444]). Burning dung was also used to fumigate
men, and crocodile blood was used possibly as a remedy for snakebite (P. Brooklyn, Remedy
90c [BardInet 1995: 418; 543]). The healers of the Graeco-Roman period adopted many of
these ancient Egyptian cures, and added to them. Pliny writes that crocodile teeth worn on the
right arm act as amulets; that fever patients or those with pains in their joints should be rubbed
with crocodile fat; the ashes created from burning crocodile skin mixed with vinegar have an
anaesthetizing effect; crocodile blood when boiled is a cure for a chronic cough, lumbago,
and sciatica (PlIny Book XXVIII: 107-113). Crocodiles could certainly act as guardians of
peoples health.
The image of the crocodile was also used in a peculiar way in healing practices during the
later periods of Egyptian history (Dynasty XXVI to the irst century AD or later, with a few
examples dating as early as Dynasty XVIII (rItner 1993: 106; rItner 1989; Jacquet-Gordon
1965-1966: 54-64; kakosy 1999). The stelae of Horus-on-the-Crocodiles, also known as
cippi, show Horus, carved in very high relief, facing forward, and standing on the back of two
crocodiles, thus showing his dominance over these ierce creatures. In either hand he grasps (and
sometimes throttles or inverts, thus emphasizing his power over them) a mixture of dangerous
animals including lions, oryx, scorpions and snakes. His head is surmounted by an apotropaic
Bes head, and other protective divinities. The top, sides, and back of this stela are covered with
incised inscriptions that are cures for stings and bites from all the animals featured on the stela.
These stelae could safeguard the donor after their dedication. They could also play a part in a
ritual where liquid, poured over the stela to absorb the magic from the spells and images carved
upon it, was consumed,9 which conferred magical protection to the drinker against attacks by
the various vicious animals that are shown on the stela. A variant on this theme can be seen on
a pectoral in the Hildesheim Pelizaeus Museum (No. 5922). The pectoral shows the god Shed
in a shrine, with arrows in a quiver. He holds antelopes, gazelles, and snakes, and stands on two
crocodiles in the same manner as Horus-on-the-crocodiles. Presumably the wearer of this piece
would be protected from all these potentially harmful animals, most of all the crocodile.
Crocodiles continued as part of the materia medica in Arab times. In al-Birunis Book on
Pharmacy and Materia Medica, crocodile fat is used in conjunction with poppy seeds against
the bites of venomous animals, the faeces are used to help cataracts and other eye diseases, and
the kidneys are considered aphrodisiacs (saId 1973: 93). The use of crocodile dung for eye
diseases deinitely appears to stem from ancient Egyptian practices. The thirteenth century Arab
doctor, al-Bahdadi, basing his research on that of Aristotle, wrote, the liver of the crocodile
furnishes a powerful aphrodisiac: but its kidneys and its fat which they recover produce the
same effect with more energy. Iron will not pierce its skin. From its cervical vertebrae to the

9 The modern Egyptian tasset el khadda work on this principle.

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tail is only a single bone: for this reason, when it is reversed on its back it cannot return by
itself (al-BaGhdadI 1204/1964: 93).
Even today attarin (herbalists) and magicians use crocodiles and their by-products in
remedies and incantations. In 1934 J. Walker published a book on Egyptian folk medicine
in which he listed the following uses for crocodiles: the nails were burnt with incense for
black magic, the paws/feet and entire animal were regarded as apotropaic amulets, the skin was
sometimes used for writing spells upon, certain bones and hunks of skin were used as amulets
in Nubia, and the penis was used, in a powdered form, for virility. Interviews conducted with
the attarin in May of 1999 indicated that many of the uses listed by Walker continue today.10
Crocodile fat is used for rheumatism and other joint pains, just as it was in ancient Egypt. The
animals claws are sometimes still used in black magic, as are its teeth. Portions of, or entire
paws and skin are used as protective amulets in Nubia and Sudan. Similarly, in Madagascar, the
Merina people wear charms (mohara) made from crocodile teeth (real or modeled) that protect
them from crocodiles, or express and transfer the power of the animal to the wearer and the
Thonga tribe in Zululand uses crocodile fat in medicines, particularly apotropaic concoctions
that are meant to guard against lightning as well as more general types of illness (lynne 2006:
50). The whole animal placed over the doorway guards a house. Claws are mixed with incense,
and on a certain Wednesday (the day of Evil), at a certain hour, with a certain combination of
stars, can be used to summon up the king of the Jinns who will grant ones every wish. Some
people interviewed thought that crocodile teeth can also be used for this spell. An unspeciied
bone in the left hind leg is also used to write spells upon as it is supposed to be particularly
powerful.
The most prized and frequently utilised portion of a crocodile is its penis that is ground up
and mixed with honey (10g ground member to 0.5 kg honey). This remedy is taken regularly
over a prescribed period of time (this varies depending upon the doctor and the case) to make
a man virile. In fact, a certain brand of honey on sale in Egypt today sports a crocodile on its
label. Certainly the ancient Egyptians associated the crocodile with virility, and called Sobek,
lord of semen (BrovarskI 1984: 998). Thus the importance of crocodiles in folk medicine and
belief continues today, though their limited availability will probably contribute to the ultimate
demise of these beliefs and uses.
The ancient Egyptians represented crocodiles in many different contexts, each with its own
meaning, both positive and negative. The crocodile is the manifestation of the god Sobek, a
god associated with a good inundation and, consequently, fertility. Perhaps this is why, in the
Old Kingdom, he is sometimes depicted crowned with an aquatic plant (BrovarskI 1984: 996).
The ancient Egyptians believed that a large number of crocodiles in the river heralded a good
inundation. Perhaps this belief continued into the modern period. Thus, the placement of a
crocodile above ones door, especially in agricultural areas, insured good loods and wealth to
the homeowner in the form of a rich harvest

10 S. Ikram and Y. el-Shazly, Interviews with attarin in Cairo, (1999).

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Crocodiles (and Sobek) were also associated with other divinities such as Re, Khepri, Shu,
Tefnut, Seth, and his crocodilian son Maga (Brunner-traut 1980: 791-801; wIlson 1997:
180ff). Certainly, from the later periods of Egyptian history, and perhaps as early as the
Eighteenth dynasty, images of crocodiles with falcon heads are known. Perhaps the crocodiles
association with solar deities and resurrection is due to its habit of emerging from the water
and opening its mouth to the sun when it appears, and then sinking into the depths again at
nightfall, and being reborn the next day.11 Also, hymns addressed to Sobek-Re invoke him as
a protector of Osiris, and therefore the dead (Bucher 1928: 5). Some scholars have also put
forward the suggestion that crocodiles are associated with Horus as they can spend a long time
underwater, and would have been capable of looking for the body parts of Osiris, which had
been scattered throughout Egypt and in the Nile by Seth (vernus 1998: 72-73). One could
extend that metaphor and say that these fearsome beasts can also be said to aid and protect
the dead, who are hailed as Osiris after the Old Kingdom. The ambivalent way in which the
Egyptians viewed the crocodile is especially apparent in the Graeco-Roman period when it
was both used as a protective emblem and one that was dangerous and needed subjugation. A
carved limestone image of a sphinx which has a crocodile protruding from its chest (CG 27574)
underlies the more positive aspects of crocodiles and their relationship with solar deities (edGar
1903: 59, pl. xxviii), as can be seen in the temple of Kom Ombo. This is also apparent in the
hawk headed and crocodile bodied "sphinx" statues that date from the later periods of Egyptian
history, and are even illustrated on stelae dedicated to Sobek during this period (e.g. CG 27575
[edGar 1903: 59, pl. xxviii]).
Conversely, some texts, addressed to Re, relate to the protection from attacks by crocodiles,
who, in this case is associated with the evil aspects of Seth (also see Brunner-traut 1980:
791-801; wIlson 1997: 180ff; leItz 1999: 35), and also Seths son, Maga.12 Crocodiles are
also shown being vanquished by Horus in the cippi stelae. Its association with Seth refers to
the more chaotic aspects of its character, as well as to the time that it spends underwater in
darkness. Its Sethian aspects can be seen when it is being speared by Horus at Edfu13 and also

11 Amenhotep III, in particular, exploited the crocodiles solar association as is seen in the dyad showing the king
together with Sobek (Luxor Museum J155), and the crocodilian sphinxes that formed a part of the decoration of his
funerary temple in Thebes. He also founded the Sobek temple at Damansha (ancient Semenu), a temple that enjoyed
a great deal of popularity in the 18th and 19th dynasties (ex votos and portions of the temple are on display in the
Kom Ombo Crocodile Museum from 2010). Also, it appears that the mummy of Ramesses III was covered by a linen
shroud cut and painted to resemble a crocodile that would magically protect the mummy. It is, however, possible that
this shroud might actually have been intended to resemble Anubis, but the tail is very crocodile like, as are the ears.
However, its state of conservation makes an accurate identiication dificult. Unfortunately the shroud, currently
in Room 52 of the Cairo Museum, has no separate museum number, and little is known about it; the number of
Ramesses IIIs mummy is CG 61083. As an interesting aside, Ramesses III appears to have been keen on healing
statues as well. One quartzite statue, features the Pharaoh himself (JE 69771; drIoton 1939: 57-89) with either a
goddess or queen beside him, and is inscribed with spells and requests to guard against various ills. In this instance,
the pharaoh is acting as Horus. I would like to thank Dr. L. Kakosy for bringing this statue to my attention.
12 In the "Legend of the Winged Disk Seths confederates are turned into animals as discussed by rItner (1993: 160).
13 There has been some speculation that the crocodile might also be associated with the evil dragon of St. George as
the imagery of Horus killing Seth is so similar.

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at Dendera (wIlson 1997). The ambiguous nature of the animal itself, comfortable both on
land and in the water, parallels this dichotomy of good and evil.
This dichotomy is often expressed in ancient Egyptian literary texts. In the Instructions
from Papyrus Insinger we ind: (19th instruction, line 15) There is the evil man who is calm like
a crocodile in water (lIchtheIm 1980: 204); (23rd instruction, line 14) ...he is merciless like the
crocodile (lIchtheIm 1980: 208); and (23rd instruction, line 15) One cannot remove the poison
of the crocodile, the snake, or the evil man (lIchtheIm 1980: 208). From the "Instruction
of Ptahhotep": "But where the crocodile enters hatred arises" (lIchtheIm 1975: 68). The
Instruction for King Merykare adopts a similar theme for the cunning but slightly cowardly (at
least in Egyptian military and royal rhetoric) Asiatic: Lo the miserable Asiaticights since the
time of Horus, not conquering nor being conquered, He does not announce the day of combat,
like a thief who darts about a group... The Asiatic is a crocodile on its shore, it snatches from
a lonely road, It cannot seize from a populous town (Lichtheim 2006a: 103-04). On a more
positive note, in "A Morning Hymn to Khnum", the god is invoked as crocodile-king and Great
crocodile (lIchtheIm 1980: 110-11), and in "The Poetical Stela of Thutmose III", the king is
compared to a crocodile, "master of terror in the water, unapproached" (lIchtheIm 1976: 37), a
frightening comparison, but one that was very good for the ancient Egyptians, and bad for their
enemies. Indeed, in funerary contexts crocodiles are the agents of pursuit of evil-doers, and the
bringers of justice (eyre 1976: 106).
As a deity, the crocodile is found in both two- and three-dimensional representations and in
several temples. Crocodile deities were most common in the Fayum and the Thebaid, notably
the site of Kom Ombo and the neighboring necropolis of el-Shatb, although other sites in the
Thebaid have been found to house several mummiied crocodiles, and a temple to Sobek is
suspected on the West Bank (kockelmann 2009). Herodotus describes the care and upkeep of
a sacred crocodile: its ears are adorned with golden earrings, it wears bracelets on its fore-paws,
it is fed with bread and meat, and when it dies it is embalmed and buried with great pomp and
circumstance (herodotus II: 69). Strabo describes similar crocodiles that are fed on cakes, and
wine mixed with honey (VIII: XVII).
Crocodiles feature in painted and applied decoration on Pre- and Early Dynastic pottery,
perhaps just as simple decoration or for as yet undetermined ritual reasons (e.g. the Naqada I
bowl with appliqud crocodiles in the Cairo Museum, JE 38384). Small igurines and amulets
in the shape of crocodiles and made out of many materials are found throughout the course
of Egyptian history. Petrie found some especially inely modeled crocodiles in a pre-Twelfth
dynasty context (PetrIe 1896: 5). For the most part they appear to be apotropaic: they were
used to repel attack by crocodiles. Some scholars believe that the protection from the god
Sobek was only invoked by amulets clearly in the form of the god: crocodiles wearing crowns,
sun-discs, or by amulets in the form of a man with a crocodiles head, rather than by images of
the animal itself (andrews 1994: 26-27; 36-37).
Crocodiles also feature on magic wands of the Middle Kingdom, presumably in an
apotropaic role (Brunner-traut 1980). In the Old Kingdom tomb of Petty, Giza South East

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(GSE) 1923, in the cemetery of the workmen at Giza, despoilers of the tomb are threatened with
being attacked by a crocodile (hawass 2004). Crocodiles with knives, representing demons
or geni, guard the underworld, especially shown from the New Kingdom onward. Crocodiles
and snakes guard the tired evening Sun God as he sets in the tomb of Ramesses VI. In the
"Book of the Caves", four crocodiles rise out of the earth at sunrise to accompany the sun.
Crocodiles are part of the composite creature Ammit, the devourer of the Underworld, as well
as, sometimes, part of the protective and nurturing Taweret. Thus, it is apparent that crocodiles,
like other animals in ancient Egypt, have both good and evil manifestations, and are used to
represent both chaos (evil aspect) and maat (positive or good aspect) depending on the context
in which they are portrayed. Similarly, hippopotami (male) are generally shown as Sethian
and destructive, while the females of the species are associated with Taweret. Perhaps the
amphibious nature of both crocodiles and hippopotami contribute to this duality?
It is also interesting to note that crocodile skin was used as armor in the Roman Period, as
is illustrated by such a suit now in the British Museum (EA 5473). Perhaps it was not just used
because of its toughness, but because of the belief in the protective and apotropaic properties
of crocodiles, as well as a belief in sympathetic magic, with the wearer taking on the ierceness
of the crocodile. Another notable point is that the door of one of the three Churches in the
Monastery of Abu Sefein, in Old Cairo, "was plated with crocodile scales, and part of it lies
now in the narthex of the church, though scarcely a shred of the scales remains" (Butler 1884:
76).14 The reason for this is not known; perhaps the crocodile skin was purely decorative,
although it is more likely that it had a protective and apotropaic function.15 The doors of other
Coptic churches and monasteries are often covered with a dense concentration of studs that
give the appearance of crocodile hideperhaps these take the idea of the skin one step further?
Certainly crocodile skin is quite sturdy, and would afford further protection to a wooden door,
and was used to line the doors of forts, citadels and strongholds (surIano 1949: chapter 81;
warner 2006: legend 28).
It seems that, aside from their continued use in folk medicine from antiquity to the present
day, crocodiles have maintained their position in Egyptian folk-culture as guardians, which is
why they are placed over doorways. Although crocodiles are dangerous animals, they often
serve as protectors, a belief that might be based in the mother crocodiles vigilant protection
of her nest. Ammit guards the Fields of Reeds against evil interlopers, crocodile-headed geni
guard the gates of the Underworld, and crocodiles protect the person of the sun god. The
king, metaphorically a crocodile, guarded Egypt, and more practically, Seti I stocked the moat
around the fortress of Sileh with crocodiles, who acted as its guardians. In the same way, in the
"Tale of Two Brothers", Bata was protected from the unjust wrath of his older brother, Anubis,
by a body of water illed with crocodiles. Supposedly King Menes was saved from his hunting
dogs by riding on the back of a crocodile across Lake Moeris to safety (dIodorus LXXXIX:
14 I would like to thank Dr. E. Bolman for bringing this reference to my attention.
15 It is possible that many other Coptic church doors were similarly clad, but this knowledge is now lost to us.
Although the main door of Deir el-Abyad, near Sohag, is not covered with crocodile hide, it is covered with very
closely set together broad-headed metal nails that give the impression of a crocodiles hide.

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115), and at Philae temple, a crocodile is shown carrying the mummy of Osiris on its back
(kakosy 1980: 801-11). Even in the Coptic period stories of crocodiles carrying people on
their backs are attested, such as the tale of Abba Helle who used the poor beast as a ferry, before
commanding it to die (russell 1980: 90-91). Thus, for the home-owner who places a crocodile
above his door (or perhaps even covers the door with its skin), the crocodile is tame or subdued,
while for anyone approaching with evil intention, the crocodile is wild and ierce. If the house
owner was responsible for killing the crocodile, it is a mark of his strength and virility, and as
such, the crocodile-trophy shows that the owner of the house is well able to protect his own. In
Gourna there was one house that had two large Nile Monitors over the door that the owner had
killed. He regarded these both as trophies, as well as apotropaic protectors of his home (Ikram
1999). The animals fearsome aspect with scaley back and fearsome teeth might also aid in
scaring away the evil intentioned. Crocodiles protect not only against evil, whether human or
supernatural, but also against the very physical danger of lood damage. Crocodiles always
know where to build their nests so that they are safe from the inundation, thus, especially in
Upper Egyptian villages (especially prior to the construction of the High Dam), a crocodile
above the doorway might avert the waters of the lood from demolishing the house. When
crocodiles were common in the Nile Valley, it may also have served to protect the inmates of
the house from being carried off by crocodiles. Thus, it is possible that although the reasons
why crocodiles are guardians might have been forgotten, the Egyptians continue to use them
apotropaically above their doors as protectors of their homes.

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a varun guarding a door on luxor's west bank (photo h. alexander)

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