Abstract
Abstract. Key elements of sacred landscapes of the Nile Delta were
lakes, canals and artificial basins connected to temples, which were built
on elevated terrain. In the case of temples of goddesses of an ambivalent,
even dangerous, nature, i.e. lioness goddesses and all female deities who
could appear as such, the purpose of sacred lakes and canals exceeded their
function as a water resource for basic practical and religious needs. Their
pleasing coolness was believed to calm the goddess' fiery nature, and during
important religious festivals, the barques of the goddesses were rowed on
those waters. As archaeological evidence was very rare in the past, the
study of those sacred waters was mainly confined to textual sources.
Recently applied geoarchaeological methods, however, have changed this
situation dramatically: they allow in-depth investigations and
reconstructions of these deltaic sacred landscapes. Exploring these newly
available data, the paper presented here focuses on the sites of Buto, Sais
and Bubastis, by investigating the characteristics of their sacred lakes,
canals and marshes with respect to their hydrogeographical and
geomorphological context and to their role in ancient Egyptian religion and
mythology as well.
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