Nefertem
In Egyptian mythology, Nefertem was originally a lotus flower at the creation of the world, who had arisen from the primal waters. Nefertem represented both the first sunlight and the delightful smell of the Egyptian blue lotus flower, having arisen from the primal waters within an Egyptian blue water-lily, Nymphaea caerulea. In art, Nefertem is usually depicted as a beautiful young man having blue water-lily flowers around his head.
↻ synthesized from 6 sources
When
- First attested
- 3000 BCE
- Attested period
- -3000 – 300
- Historical notes
- Appears in Egyptian mythology from the Early Dynastic Period.
Relationships
Mentioned by
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Sources
Source passages
“Nefertem (; possibly "beautiful one who closes" or "one who does not close"; also spelled Nefertum or Nefer-temu) was, in Egyptian mythology, originally a lotus flower at the creation of the world, who had arisen from the primal waters.”
#16990 · extracted by google/gemini-2.0-flash-001
“Nefertem – A god of the lotus blossom from which the sun god rose at the beginning of time. Son of Ptah and Sekhmet”
#21030 · extracted by deepseek/deepseek-chat
“These were Maahes, Khonsu and Nefertem. Originally the protector of tombs, Tutu later guarded the sleeping from danger or bad dreams. Tutu was also regarded for ordinary people to worship, offering and rituals were made on portable altars.”
#24715 · extracted by google/gemini-2.0-flash-001
“The jambs next to the first gateway depict Nefertem bearing a blue lotus flower.”
#40482 · extracted by deepseek/deepseek-chat
“Ouahet time of Senusret III Nefertem Sehetepebreankh-nedjem time of Senusret III to Amenemhat III.”
#41805 · extracted by google/gemini-2.0-flash-001