Meretseger
(Mertseger)
Cult Center: Thebes
Meretseger was the goddess of the Valley of the Kings, the famous necropolis outside of Thebes. She was believed to live in a pyramid-shaped mountain that rose a thousand feet above the Valley of the Kings. In ancient times, the mountain was named after her. She was also called "Dehenet Imentet", which means "Peak of the West".
During the New Kingdom, Meretseger was the chief deity over the Valley of the Kings. For the tomb builders living in their village, now known as Deir el-Medina, Meretseger was a dangerous, yet merciful, goddess who would punish sinners and liars with blindness and snakebites. She was described as the lion of the summit, for she was fierce in her pursuit of sin. For the pious, she was a protective being who defended the workers against snakebites. The workmen of Deir el-Medina dedicated many stelae to her. Her cult declined rapidly after the 21st Dynasty, as the Valley of the Kings was abandoned.
Meretseger was portrayed as a coiled snake, or as a cobra-headed woman. Her name means, "She Who Loves Silence.
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