Isis was a nature goddess whose worship, with its origins in ancient Egypt, expanded throughout the Mediterranean world in the Hellenistic period to become one of the primary faiths of the Roman Empire.

According to mythology, Isis, goddess of fertility and motherhood, was married to her brother Osiris, the god of fertility and growth. Osiris taught the Egyptian people law, agriculture, and religion, and he and Isis ruled for many years, maintaining peace and civilization. According to legend, his evil brother Seth wanted to rule Egypt with Isis so he deceitfully shut Osiris in a coffin and tossed him into the Nile River. Isis searched for her husband and found him in a distant kingdom. She brought his body back to Egypt and hid it, but Seth found it and tore the body into fourteen pieces then scattered them throughout Egypt. Isis gathered thirteen of the pieces and...