Water Imagery - Boats

Water played an important role in the ancient Egyptian creation myth, as the primeval matter which ‘brought forth all things’. Subsequently water came to represent purification, reproduction, birth and re-animation, and became a part of female symbolism.


Wooden boat from 2nd Intermediate period (2024 - 1700 BCE) in Case V at the bottom of the stairs.

Water imagery/representation (traditional multiple wavy lines) appears often in tarot imagery. This is an example:


‘The Ship of the Dead’ (6 of Swords) – “Osiris’ journey on the Nile seated in a boat that represents his brother and enemy, Seth, is the model for whoever aspires to conquer destiny; a symbol of radical renewal but also of extreme danger”.