Egyptian Goddess Isis - The Devoted WifeDaughter of Earth God Geb and Sky Goddess Nut, the Egyptian Goddess Isis is one of the most famous of ancient goddesses.She is the symbol of love and motherhood, a dedicated wife to the God Osiris (who was also her brother). Ancient Egypt is infamous for incestuous love because of the marriages between brother and sister deities. The fact is that only royalty imitated this behavior to keep the power within the family - the laymen and laywomen were free to choose their own spouses. A Goddess was not free from womanly passions in ancient Egypt. Isis was as fierce as she was sweet and soft. She was ruthless in the destruction of her enemies yet at times showed mercy and compassion. 
Isis was married to Osiris, and although he had died before she bore him a son, she managed to do so post-mortem. After the murder of Osiris by his brother Seth, she found his body in the Nile. Seth, not too pleased, took it back and hacked the body into pieces, throwing each piece into the water again.Isis was not swayed. She collected his severed body parts and resurrected him with the help of Thoth and Anubis. She then was able to give birth to their son Horus who was to become his father's avenger and the savior of mankind. As a mother, she had to hide her son away from the angry Seth until he was old enough to take on his Godly role. But her motherly love didn't just stop at her own child. Isis was compassionate enough to raise the son of Osiris and his other sister Nephthys (who was Seth's wife) - Anubis. She protected him and nurtured him, and he in turn became her protector and Osiris's chief assistant in the underworld. Isis was depicted mostly in human form - a beautiful, regal woman with different headdresses. Many times she is shown with beautiful feathered wings... She was sometimes adorned with the horns of the Goddess Hathor, and sometimes with the Solar Disk of Ra. She was also sometimes depicted as a vulture in the Book of the Dead, standing behind Osiris and guarding the body of the deceased.
Isis's Function and WorshipOther than representing the great love of a wife and mother to the ancient Egyptians, Isis was also a sorceress and healer.Learning magic and spells from the God Thoth, she practiced her art and was a proficient healer of the sick. And because she had managed to raise her husband from the dead, she was also worshipped by Egyptians who wished for the same. Her amulet, called "the blood of Isis", was placed on coffins. She was also the guardian of Canopic Jars - containers of the organs of the dead. And as the wife of Osiris, she was associated with grains and corn as well.
King Tutankhamun's collection in the Cairo Museum is full of embellishments dedicated to her. Queen Cleopatra believed herself to be a reincarnation of Isis – and was referred to as the daughter of Isis. The Egyptian Goddess Isis was famous worldwide, with temples in Rome, Greece, and Pompeii. Cults dedicated to her still linger to this day...
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