The Dendera light is a particularly controversial topic. The image, found on three stone reliefs in the Temple of Hathor at Dendera, could be construed as a bulb similar to a Crookes tube, with a lotus “socket” at one end, a “cable” traveling underneath, and a snake-shaped cord “filament” inside.
The Dendera Light Relief. Source: Wikimedia Commons
In the most popular representation of the so-called Dendera light a priest is shown holding up the “lamp” and a few smaller figures are seen below it. One of the figures appears to be directing the “lightbulb” upwards. A two-armed Djed pillar is also shown with the “bulb” and the hands are apparently connected to the snake/cord inside. A baboon is presented in front of the “lamp” while holding two knives in front of itself.
The most popular ‘Dendera light’ relief in the Temple of Hathor, Dendera, Egypt. (Ioannis Syrigos)
The Controversial Hypothesis: Ancient Egyptian Electricity
A Norwegian electrical engineer was the first to propose that this image depicted an electrical lamp. Austrian authors Peter Krassa and Rainer Habeck brought the hypothesis to worldwide attention when they published a book based on the Dendera reliefs titled ‘Das Licht der Pharaonen. Hochtechnologie und elektrischer Strom im alten Ägypten’ (Light of the Pharaohs. High Technology and Electricity in Ancient Egypt). W. Garn, another electrical engineer, later tested the hypothesis and constructed a working model of the Dendera light.
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In an English translation of an excerpt from the book, Garn is quoted as saying:
“If we evacuate a glass bulb with two metal parts reaching into it (B), (C), we can see a discharge at much lower levels, depending on the size of the glass balloon (D). At a pressure of about 40 t (tonnes) (40 mm of mercury) a snakelike light filament meanders from one metal part to the other (E). If we evacuate further, the light filament grows wider until it fills the whole glass balloon. This is exactly what we see in on the pictures in the subterranean chambers of the Hathor sanctuary.”
The Mainstream Interpretation: Mythological Symbolism
Most Egyptologists, however, interpret the so-called Dendera light in a different way. The key is to remember that there are inscriptions (and other images) beside the reliefs, so it’s necessary to consider the writing alongside the vignettes when interpreting them.
The chamber with the controversial reliefs, Temple of Hathor, Dendera, Egypt. (Ioannis Syrigos)
An excerpt from a translation of the texts surrounding these images made by Egyptologist Dr. Wolfgang Waitkus includes the following information in direct relation to the most famous Dendera light scene:
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“W.t.s.o. Harsomtus, the great god who is in Dendera, who rises from the lotus flower as living Ba, whose perfection is risen by the km3tjw-images of his Ka, whose ssmw-image is worshipped by the crew of the day barge, whose body is carried by the dd-pillar, below his ssmw-image the primeval beginner (Hathor) sits and whose majesty is carried by the companions of his Ka.”
The inscriptions are telling us that Harsomtus (another creator god - “Horus the Unifier of Two Lands”) is the snake rising from the lotus flower, with his body being carried by the Djed pillar on the day barge (the so-called “cable” in the Dendera light hypothesis).
In one of the ancient Egyptian creation myths, the first thing to emerge from the infinite primordial sea of Nun (sometimes referred to as the “Sea of the Two Knives"), which pre-existed creation, was a lotus flower. That flower is said to have given birth to the sun god, Atum-Ra. There are many ancient depictions of the lotus in the shape of a ‘lamp,’ similar to the relief at the Temple of Hathor in Dendera.
We also know that a snake in a bubble was used in later depictions to represent Atum-Ra. The bubble or essence around the snake may represent the emergence of the universe out of nothingness. Therefore, an obvious interpretation of the Dendera “light”, according to most Egyptologists, is the depiction of the sun god emerging from the lotus flower.
Another snake is seen near the “Dendera light”, but it is without the surrounding bubble as it rises from a lotus flower. (Alicia McDermott)
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For example, we see the Djed pillar, which is generally linked to the god Osiris, but is also associated with a creator god called Ptah. This pillar is also seen as a symbol of power, endurance, and stability. M R Reese explains more about the importance of the Djed pillar in ancient Egyptian life:
“The djed symbol is also used in a ceremony called “raising the djed.” This ceremony is meant to represent Osiris’ triumph over Set. During the ceremony, the pharaoh uses ropes to raise a pillar, with the assistance of priests. This coincided with the time of year when the agricultural year began and fields were sown. This was just one part of a 17-day holiday of festivals dedicated to Osiris. Overall, the raising the djed ceremony represented both the resurrection of Osiris, and the strength and stability of the monarch.”
Absence of Historical Evidence
Another major point against the Dendera light hypothesis is the absence of historical texts discussing the use of electricity in ancient Egypt; which one would expect to find if the reliefs depicted electrical lamps.
Finally, it’s worth considering that archaeologists have not found any unambiguous electrical artifacts, much less lightbulbs, in the thousands of ancient sites throughout Egypt. There is no concrete proof available yet to suggest that ancient Egyptians had harnessed the power of electrical lighting.
Two “Dendera lights”, one held up by Ptah and the other by a Djed pillar. (Ioannis Syrigos)
In response to these points, some proponents of the Dendera light hypothesis have claimed that the rituals around the use of electric lights would have been conducted in secret ceremonies undertaken by the ancient priests near New Year/creation-related celebrations. That could mean that the artifacts themselves were also secret or ritually destroyed following the ceremonies.
The Significance of Lamps and Light in Ancient Egypt
There is a mysterious absence of lamps in ancient Egypt; very few artificial lights or lamps turn up in archaeological digs. The lack of examples is explained by the use of floating wicks, an innovation of the Ancient Egyptians. The floating wick system does not require a special or distinctive pot to contain the olive or other flammable oil. An Egyptian lamp will therefore look like any other pot. Robins makes the rather brilliant deduction that the lack of examples is explained by the Egyptian use of the floating wick. He assumes floating wicks were an innovation of the Ancient Egyptians.
Until the invention of glass, Egyptian lamps were made of stone such as alabaster or ceramic such as terracotta. It seems likely that ritual objects in shrines were lit from below by a bowl containing several floating wicks or possibly placed in a special niche. The wick, made from twisted vegetable fibers is a common hieroglyphic sign.
This lightning technology enables us to imagine how the otherwise dark interiors of temple would have looked. It is generally thought the holy of holies was heavy chiaroscuro, alleviated by bright shafts of light from overhead skylights. Artificial lamps in stone pots would work best if placed at the base of statues, giving them an uplighted look. Translucent alabaster lamps would give a gentler illumination, Lamps might also be placed in niches near the object.
Examples of the small components used in the floating wick system have not so far turned up in excavations probably because they are too small, delicate or made of less robust materials. Other kinds of oil lamp have a distinctive spout to hold the wick. An Egyptian lamp could look like any other pot.
Robins cites several other sources from Egypt that document the use of such lights with floating wicks, either in freestanding pots, stone or ceramic, or as in later church architecture in glass bowls suspended by chains from the ceiling. This later arrangement was also adopted by Egypt’s Jewish community, still in residence during the Persian period. This report comes from the Jewish- Roman historian Josephus who says a menorah suspended on chains from the ceiling once existed in the synagogue of Onias at Leontopolis.
It is well known that cords and ropes perform an important function within ancient Egyptian magick. It is also in the use of lamps, which play an important role in the mechanics of magick. Many spells in the magical papyri used lamps, There are also special lamps in the shape of protective deities such as the spitting cobra, deployed to protect the sleeping quarters of the vulnerable. In these lamps, the word used for fire is Nsr.t (anglicized as Nesret) although it is still uncertain whether this refers to the flame or a more generic burning associated with the protective cobras.
Lamps are also used in various contexts to repel unwanted spirits. We could almost refer to lamp magick as a specialty. The practice of cord magic of various sorts never dies out. In the Koran magicians are referred to as “blowers on knots” (Koran CXIII & CXIV).
The Menorah is the seven branched “candelabra” supposedly described in Biblical / Torah passages. C L Myers sees in this word “reed” a clear homage to the Egyptian reed plant. The whole forming perhaps an symbolic plant, perhaps even a “tree of life/light”. The reference to flowers could also be the well known lotus and papyrus motif of Egyptian decorative art.
My thesis is that the Biblical/Torah description is compatible with the floating wick system as invented by the ancient Egyptians. It is even possible the business end of the lamp described as having “three cups shaped like almond flowers with buds and blossoms ” might be an unrecognised attempt to describe this, the “ buds” of the flower like floating component which would be placed inside the main oil receptacle, itself also flower like.
If we accept the theory the Egyptians used the floating wick system then we might expect the Hebrew ethnic minority to takes some of this technology with them when they exited. One can imagine an ancient people might reject aspects of the host’s theology but still retain some of the practical skills they have learnt.
The Dendera Light in Context
The Dendera light is a motif in the Hathor temple at Dendera in Egypt. The temple, especially its crypts, contain several reliefs depicting statues of Harsomtus, sometimes syncretized with Ra, in the form of an upright snake, emerging from a lotus flower which is usually attached to a barge. The so-called Dendera light is a variation of this motif, showing Harsomtus in an oval container called hn, which might represent the womb of Nut. Sometimes a djed pillar supports the snake or the container, other times a man with raised arms and a sun disk on his head.
The crypt of the temple was considered analogous to the Duat, and reliefs in the crypts depict the cult statues (made of precious materials and thus looted or destroyed in later times) which were housed within, kept underground as the 'bodies' of the gods until they were resurrected through contact with light on the roof of the temple.
Specifications of the size and construction of the statues are inscribed alongside captions describing the identity of the statue. Each of the three objects consists of two reliefs.
Harsomtus in the hn-container of the Mesketet-night-barge, four figures exist in it. Gold, another saying: Metal, height: four palms. Words spoken by Harsomtus, the great God, who dwells in Dendera, the hidden of form, protected in his shrine. Harsomtus of Upper- and Lower Egypt, the Sa-ta-snake, who is emerging from the flower, which contains the hn-container, who is flanked by four figures with human faces, under his head the figure of Heh on the Serekh at the prow of his barge.
Archaeologist and debunker Kenneth Feder argued that if ancient Egyptians really had such advanced technology, some light bulb remains (glass shards, metal sockets, filaments...) should have been discovered during archaeological excavations.
Conclusion
While it is possible that there are some aspects of the reliefs in the Temple of Hathor at Dendera that are missing in the interpretations we have today, we cannot disregard the inscriptions and the accompanying story that we can see playing out in the vignettes.
Whatever the meaning behind the Dendera reliefs, they continue to draw in crowds from around the world, who are eager to catch a glimpse of the unusual and controversial carvings at one of Egypt’s most amazing sites.
Dendera Light (Re)Discovered? Ancient Electricity from Egyptian Pyramids
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