Museum of Montserrat - EN

In the 5th century BC, Herodotus considered the Egyptians to be the most religious people in the world, having been impressed by the complexity of deities, cults, myths, and rites he observed in the country. These religious beliefs must have seemed incomprehensible to him.

Everything in Ancient Egypt revolved around the gods, who were held responsible for whatever happened, whether good or bad.

Deities were connected with and personified natural forces, often undergoing changes and associations among themselves that gave rise to a new god through the fusion of functions.

From this multiplicity of powers resulted a tremendously vast and complex pantheon, almost boundless, where local deities predominated and where the strange, semi-human, or semi-animal appearance of many gods was the norm.

The archaeological collection of the Museum of Montserrat related to Ancient Egypt is filled with funerary grave goods dominated by figures of deities crafted in bronze, wood, or faience, as well as vessels and other objects where the depiction of gods is prominently featured. Together, they serve as a fine example of this extensive pantheon and the profound religiosity of this ancient civilization.