Egyptian art - ‘Heh’ God of infinity Mythology of Ancient Egypt

‘Heh’ / ‘Huh’

- the Egyptian God of infinity, eternity and numbers.

Wall relief / plaque

Dimensions - Height - 24.1 cm /9-1/2 inches

Width - 20.4 cm / 8 inches

Depth - 2.4 cm / 1 inch

This striking Egyptian relief carving is based on a design featured on one of Tutankhamun’s many beautiful chairs that were found in his tomb. His hieroglyphic name can be seen in several cartouches in this highly detailed scene.

Made of a limestone and quartzite composition stone it has been painted with very ancient looking colours and some barely there to emphasize a realistic look. A wire loop can be seen on the back to allow for a wall hanging option as it is not too heavy for such a purpose. Alternatively, you may like to use a plate stand or prop it up on a shelf. This carving is a great background piece when placing smaller statues and amulets in front of it to create a collection.

Mythology - Heh or Huh was an interesting and thoughtful concept for a god. Not all gods were worshipped in temples built in their honour. Some like ‘Heh’ lived in thought alone or came to be used in artworks to invoke their role or essence in a mortal world.

Heh symbolized infinity, the passage of time itself, long life and the concept of eternity.

Heh was shown either as a frog or human headed god. In human form as in this depiction, he is usually wearing a long wig, a feathered (rishi) corset and shendyt kilt. Kneeling holding one or two segmented palm fronds was typical but he could also be standing with the frond on the head as a headdress. The palm fronds mean ‘a million years’ and it is the multiple segments being so numerous that hint at great numbers involved with this god. He was the god of numbers and the hieroglyph for one million is an image of Heh with upraised arms.

Heh was linked to Ra in the name bestowed upon the solar boat that sailed across the sky. It was called ‘ the boat of a million years’ or ‘Manjet boat’. This was the ancient Egyptian understanding of the endless solar cycle that was believed to last eternal.