Isis, << Y sihs, >> was the most popular goddess in ancient Egyptian mythology. People identified Isis with royal power because she was the wife and sister of Osiris, king of the underworld. The sky god Horus, in the form of the Egyptian king, was their son. Isis, Osiris, and Horus were honored in a myth about the glorification of Osiris as prince of the dead (see Mythology (The Osiris myth)). Egyptians believed they could become Osiris when they died. They worshiped Isis as the protector of the dead and also as the divine mother.
The earliest definite references to Isis were inscriptions found in pyramids built about 2350 B.C. Isis was originally a local goddess in the northern delta of the Nile, but her worship spread throughout Egypt and also became popular among Greeks and Romans.
Artists usually portrayed Isis in human form, often with the hieroglyph (symbol) for a seat or throne over her head. Isis gradually merged with the cow goddess Hathor. After about 1500 B.C., Isis, like Hathor, was usually shown with horns and a solar disk above her head.
