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If the festival is held at the
winter or summer solstice, we naturally surmise that the god is the
sun, or at all events that he stands in some close relation to that
luminary. Again, if the festival coincides with the time of sowing
or harvest, we are inclined to infer that the divinity is an
embodiment of the earth or of the corn. These presumptions or
inferences, taken by themselves, are by no means conclusive; but if
they happen to be confirmed by other indications, the evidence may
be regarded as fairly strong.
Unfortunately, in dealing with the Egyptian gods we are in a great
measure precluded from making use of this clue. The reason is not
that the dates of the festivals are always unknown, but that they
shifted from year to year, until after a long interval they had
revolved through the whole course of the seasons. This gradual
revolution of the festal Egyptian cycle resulted from the employment
of a calendar year which neither corresponded exactly to the solar
year nor was periodically corrected by intercalation.


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