Nefertum

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Earth Culture of Origin

Egyptian

Alternate Names / Spellings

Nefertem, Nefertemu

Presides Over

Sunrise; Patron of the cosmetic and healing arts derived from flowers

Personal Symbols

Beautiful young man standing on a lion; Blue lotus flower (headdress); Blue lotus bud (coming forth from)

Earth Mythological References

Nefertum was either the son of Sekhmet or Bast (or Bastet), both described as daughters of Ra, and Ptah, the god who was later promoted to be the ultimate creator.

A passage of the Book of the Dead says the blessed dead will "Rise like Nefertem from the lotus, to the nostrils of Ra, and come forth upon the horizon each day" (Ancient Egypt Online: Nefertum). Nefertum has been associated with rebirth and thus with the sunrise. He was said to have sprung forth from the blue lotus flower, so many of his statues and drawings depict him either standing on a lotus bud or wearing a lotus flower headdress. The name literally means "beautiful Atum" or "perfect Atum" (Atum represented the sun, so Nefertum came to represent the sunrise). Because of the fragrance and medicinal properties of the lotus, Nefertum later became associated with the cosmetic and healing arts derived from flowers, which included not only the blue lotus, but also the rose, the geranium, and the cornflower.

Stargate References

The Goa'uld Nefertum populated the planet P2X-416 with human slaves. He wrote a religious book, the Book of Nefertum, in which he established himself as humanity's creator. His Book declared him as the son of Sekhmet and the blue lotus blossom was his symbol. According to Teal'c, Nefertum was known as the "Blue Lotus Blossom of Ra", but Nefertum removed all references to Ra in his text, since he was establishing himself above Ra on the planet. In reality, he was a minor System Lord during Ra's reign. Nefertum himself was never met by SG-1. It might have been that he was defeated in battle while Teal'c was still a member of Apophis's Jaffa army. (3.19 "New Ground")

Nefertum abandoned his followers on P2X-416 thousands of years ago, however. Goa'uld abandon their human worlds for various reasons, and Nefertum might have abandoned this planet when the Stargate was buried during the "Upheaval" (earthquakes and volcanic activity) that took place 2000 years ago. During the modern era, the planet's two continents were engaged in war because of Nefertum and the Stargate: Those of Bedrosia claimed that they were created by Nefertum, as the Book proclaimed. Those of Optrica claimed that their human ancestors were brought to the planet through a Gateway. They were at war because the Optricans believed that the proof of their theory—the Gateway—was in Bedrosia. (3.19 "New Ground")

The Optricans were right and the proof of the existence of the Gateway was established when a Bedrosian archeologist named Nyan uncovered the Stargate and SG-1 came through it. The Bedrosian military did everything they could to cover up the discovery. Unfortunately, Nyan and SG-1 were forced to leave the planet before they could reveal the truth of the existence of the Goa'uld and the Stargate. (3.19 "New Ground")

Daniel posited that Nefertum was the son of Sekhmet, and this association was accepted by Rigar, the Bedrosian commander who captured him and who was familiar with the Book of Nefertum from "cover to cover". Several years later, SG-1 indirectly encountered Sekhmet after a rogue cell of the NID used her symbiote to create a human-Goa'uld hybrid with her memories and knowledge. This hybrid was named "Anna". (3.19 "New Ground", 7.19 "Resurrection")

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--DeeKayP 08:44, 7 December 2008 (PST)