In Egyptian mythology, Sekhmet, often spelled Sakhmet, was a goddess of war and the slayer of Re’s foes. Sekhmet was linked to both illnesses and to recovery and medicine. She was referred to as the “Eye of Re,” just like other violent goddesses in the Egyptian pantheon. She was Ptah’s partner and was primarily adored in Memphis. She was typically portrayed as a lioness or as a lady with a lioness’ head, on which the solar disc and the uraeus serpent were mounted. Sekhmet and other Egyptian deities including Hathor, Bastet, and Mut have occasionally been confused.
The lioness who almost destroyed mankind
Sekhmet, “the Powerful One”, was a lion-headed goddess of war, plague and healing. In the myth known as the Destruction of Mankind, Re sent his Eye in the form of Sekhmet to punish humans who had plotted against him. She killed so many that Re had to stop her: he flooded the fields with beer dyed red with ochre, Sekhmet drank it thinking it was blood, fell asleep, and woke as the gentle Hathor. The story was remembered in festivals of drunkenness held in her honour.
Doctor and destroyer
Because she could send disease, she could also take it away. Her priests were among Egypt’s first physicians, and prayers to Sekhmet were recited to drive out epidemics. She was the wife of Ptah of Memphis and mother of Nefertem, the god of the lotus.
Where to see Sekhmet
King Amenhotep III had hundreds of black granite statues of Sekhmet carved, possibly one for every day of the year, to protect his reign. Many were found in the Temple of Mut south of Karnak, and examples now stand in museums around the world. Inside the small Temple of Ptah at Karnak, a dark chamber still holds a striking statue of Sekhmet lit only from a hole in the roof; ask your guide to take you there. Sekhmet statues can also be seen in the Egyptian Museum in Cairo.
Quick facts
- Domain: war, plague, healing, protection of the king
- Symbols: lioness head, sun disc, red linen
- Cult centre: Memphis
- Related deities: Ptah (husband), Nefertem (son), Re, Hathor, Bastet
See more in our ancient Egyptian gods and goddesses guide.