ANCIENT EGYPTIAN STUDY GROUP - Prince Cups

rwcarter

The Prince drives his chariot through the shallow waters at the edge of the sea. Although both his horse and the chariot make contact with the water, the Prince actually doesn't, suggesting that he is removed from his feelings and emotions. This sense of removal is highlighted by the openness of his chariot.

Both his attire and his horses' coverings are in red, white and blue. His armor is made of silver and hardened leather. Armor represents the barriers that one puts up for protection or self-defense. It can represent spiritual, emotional, mental or physical protection or aid. It could symbolize keeping oneself emotionally apart, detached or protected from the surrounding environment. If the Prince were to come into contact with the water, his armor would continue to allow him to be removed from his feelings and emotions.

Silver is a very malleable metal. Combined with hardened leather, you get a material that's both hard and soft, which represents the true nature of the Prince.

He holds a red lotus in one hand and a chalice from which a cobra rises in the other. The red lotus symbolizes purity overcoming impurity. The lotus itself is associated with rising above evil influences.

The cobra is a serpent and is therefore associated with temptation, sex and physical desires. It signifies the instinctual nature, which is uncontrolled and undifferentiated. It can be a disguise for powers of evil, showing the evil and vicious aspect of nature. Although the cobra rears like the Uraeus, because it's not on the Prince's helmet, I don't believe it is a Uraeus. Plus, the Uraeus provided protection for Kings, not Princes.

Behind him an eagle flies as two ships travel along the horizon. The eagle is considered to be the king of the birds. It was thought that the eagle was able to look directly into the sun as it soars into the heavens; therefore it became a symbol of contemplation and spiritual knowledge. It was said to be capable of rejuvenation like the phoenix. As slayer of snakes and dragons, the eagle was the symbol of triumph of light over the darker forces. The eagle represents energy and acuity of vision. It symbolizes both the mortal sin of pride (or arrogance) and the cardinal virtue of justice. The eagle may indicate a lofty ideal or insight. "To be eagle-eyed" is to be sharp-sighted and to see every detail.

When appearing together, the eagle and the serpent represent the victory of the celestial powers of good over evil. As the eagle is light that has yet to manifest and the snake is darkness that has yet to manifest, together, they are a totality, a cosmic unity and the union of spirit and matter. In conflict, they are duality, the pairing of opposites and the celestial and underworld powers at war. Being between the two animals, the Prince is the middle ground between them.

Rodney