Sun God. Re was the Egyptian god of the sun par excellence. His primary cult center was the city of Iunu (Biblical On), called Heliopolis by the Greeks. Re was worshipped as a falcon, or as a human with a falcon head, or simply as a human. Re was most often shown with a sun-disk on his head, surrounded by a protective uraeus serpent. At night, while in the underworld, Re is shown as a ram-headed human.

Royal Title. Re first rose to prominence in Dynasty 4 (circa 2625-2500 B.C.E.), when Redjedef became the first king to add the title "son of Re" to his titulary. From this time on, every king of Egypt took a name that symbolized his descent from Re. The Middle Kingdom (circa 1980— 1630 B.C.E.) tale of King Khufu and the Magicians relates how the first three...