Gods & Goddesses HORUS << Bronze statuette of Isis nursing Horus (E12548). Late Period (664-332 B.C.). The son of Osiris and Isis, Horus became the ruler of Egypt after Osiris' death. In order to win the throne, Horus had to do battle against his uncle, the god Seth. Seth was defeated and was relegated to the role of ruler of the chaotic desert lands surrounding Egypt. As a divine ruler, Horus had associations with the living pharaoh. Sometimes depicted as a falcon or a man with a falcon head, Horus was also seen as a sun sky. As the child of Isis, Horus was also worshipped in the form of Harpocrates (Horus-the-child) and is often shown as a child nursing at the breast of Isis. In the Late Period images of Horus the child were placed on small plaques called "cippi," which were used to ward off evil and provide cures from illnesses and snake bites.

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