The was scepter, djed and ankh are three of the most powerful symbols in Egyptian hieroglyphs, statuary, painting and other iconography. Below they're combined into one form with the tiny Heh god, symbol of infinity, atop the pillar holding two curved palm stems.
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Was scepter
The was scepter is a symbol of power and authority. It's carried by ancient Egyptian deities like Set and Anubis, and by the Pharaoh. A was scepter can represent the creator god Khnum or the 'Set animal'. It signifies control over the forces of chaos personified by Set.
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Below the was scepter is shaped to represent the animal of Set. The identity of the Set animal has never been discovered. When Set appears in animal-head form he resembles the mighty aardvark.
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The was scepter is the sign of authority, divinity and kingship. In a funerary aspect the scepter connects to the continued health of the deceased. It's also considered an amulet. Symbol of Thebes (Egyptian: wꜣst) the scepter can represent the four pillars of the sky.
Was scepters are carried by gods, pharaohs and priests. They're often seen in paintings, drawings and carvings. Usually they're shown with the others of the sacred trio, the ankh and djed-pillar. The earliest was scepters date to the First Dynasty c. 3100 - 2900 BCE.
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The Was (wꜣs) is the Egyptian hieroglyph for power. The scepter also relates to prosperity of the Pharaoh and land, and all good things in life. Above, the pillars have papyrus shaped tops or capitals. The stripes just under the capitals can represent the djed tower or pillar.
Djed Pillar
The djed relates to the spine of Osiris, god the dead, who dwells in the paradise Aaru, or the spine of creator god Ptah, patron of Memphis, Egypt. The djed is the pillar of stability. In the story of the death of Osiris, he's locked in a chest by Set (Seth) and thrown into the water.
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Where the chest comes to land near Byblos, a cedar tree grows around it. The lord of the lands, unaware of the coffin within, cuts down the tree to make a pillar. Turning into a bird to fly far and wide, Isis speaks to the birds and animals, and finally finds the body of Osiris.
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She returns next day with her tools of resurrection. Isis is a powerful goddess of magic. She's shocked to find Set has been here. He chopped the body of Osiris into 14 pieces and buried them throughout the land.
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An Eye of Ra goddess, Isis doesn't easily give up. She unearths pieces of her husband and works magic to resurrect him. Osiris revives, gets Isis pregnant and expires again. He must stay in the Afterlife as God of the Dead. The spine of Osiris becomes the Tower of Djed.
Isis is now impregnated with baby Horus. She and her sister Nephthys hide in the marshes, protecting Horus from the attacks of Set, until Horus grows into a strong young man. Later battles between Horus and Set are legendary.
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Ankh Symbol
Ankh is a symbol of life and life everlasting. Early examples of the ankh date from the First Dynasty of Egypt (c. 30th to 29th century BCE). Within the concept of life, the ankh signifies air or water. In funerary art, gods hold the ankh to the king's nose, offering the breath of life.
Human servants who carry fans behind the king can appear in art as personified ankh signs with arms. In ritual purification, in which water is poured over the deceased, zigzag lines usually associated with water can be replaced with chains of the ankh sign.
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Where there is a god, there's almost always an ankh. The deity carries the ankh to signify the power of giving life. When a person dies, life can be renewed the same way as rebirth in nature. The gods are often depicted in tombs giving ankhs to humans, usually the pharaoh.
In Egyptian belief, "life" is the essential energy of all things. Life force circulates through the world and individual entities, which are all manifestations of this energy and connected to it. Ancients are aware of the collective unconscious. Life begins at the creation of the world.
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Repeated occurrences like sunrise, sunset, seasonal floods and lunar cycles, are seen as reenactments of original creation events. They maintain and renew life in the cosmos. Nurturing life is the primary ambition of deities who govern the cycles of nature.
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