Hecate Ivory and Gold Statue

Hecate' (Pronounced hek'-a-tee)

Protector of Daily Life, Birth, Death and Wild Animals Maiden, Mother and Wise Woman

In pre-dynastic Egypt, the matriarch or wise woman of the tribe was called the ‘heq’. Hecate' was worshipped as the midwife goddess Hekat, who assisted with the daily birth of the sun. Hecate' was considered to be the goddess of crossroads; the place where decisions must be made and where one can look back into the past and forward into the future.

She belonged to the class of torch bearing deities and was represented as carrying a burning torch signifying she was the nocturnal goddess of the moon and a huntress who knew her way into the realm of spirits. She wears a gleaming head dress of stars. All the secret powers of Nature are at her command. She had control over birth, life, and death. Because of her power in the three ar-eas of nature, heaven and earth she was represented in a triple form. Hence, she was referred to as the triple goddess. Hecate' is depicted as three female figures. Persephone (Proserpina) as the maiden, Demeter (Ceres) as the mother and Hecate' as the wise woman or crone.

Description

This statue shows Hecate' three heads and six arms, bearing torches, ropes and daggers.

With the torch, Hecate' illuminates the secrets of the occult mys-teries and knowledge of afterlife.

The rope symbolizes the umbilical cord of rebirth and renewal.

The knife represents her role as midwife, cutting the umbilical cord as well as severing the link between the body and the spirit at death.
The two snakes symbolize the knowledge and rare wisdom of the other world.