The story of ancient Egypt has survived for thousands of years. We continue to marvel at the tombs and pyramids the Egyptians built, at their incredible hieroglyphics and elaborate ritual of mummification. What’s more, their ancient gods and goddesses continue to influence popular culture today, inspiring TV, film and even video games. But how well do you know these famous deities?

More about the gods

Believe it or not, the ancient Egyptian worshipped over 1,500 different gods and goddesses. A few of these gods looked like human people, many were part or entirely animal. Take Anubis (the god of the dead and the afterlife) for instance; he was said to look like a jackal. And then there was Horus, the god of the sky; sometimes Horus was shown as a falcon, at other times he was shown as a human man with a falcon’s head.

The Egyptians believed the gods controlled how the world worked, but they didn’t believe all of them were good. Whilst some were protective like Bes (who scared off bad spirits during times of childbirth and sex), there were terrifying gods like Ammit (who also went by the name of ‘The Devourer of the Dead’).

Influence on popular culture

You may know more about the ancient Egyptian gods and goddesses than you think. This is because many appear in popular culture today.

For example, have you ever watched the popular TV series Penny Dreadful? Evan Green’s character Vanessa is supposed to be an incarnation of Amunet, the goddesses of air. Maybe you’ve played Playtech’s online slots game Pyramid: Quest for Immortality? Take a closer look at the side of the screen as you play and you’ll see Anubis.

Quiz Yourself

On this page you’ll find a quiz designed to test your knowledge of the Egyptian gods and goddess. See how many you can answer correctly, then pass it on to your friends and family to see if they can better your score. You may be surprised by how many you get right.