Nephthys is a minor goddess of the
Ennead
that was known as the wife of
Seth
and the mother of
Anubis
the Jackal-headed god of death in the ancient Egyptian mythology . There is no reference that highlights that she was once worshiped in any place in Egypt . Yet she played a great role in the worship of
Osiris
.
Nephthys was usually embodied as a woman of a headdress with handsome hieroglyphic inscriptions of her name and some signs that describe her as the Lady of the House . Most of her depictions present her with her sister
Isis
such as those in the
Seti I
and Ramsses III . Those two sisters were always presented as two faces of the same coin since Nephthys was a symbol for death and decay and was associated to darkness , while Isis was a symbol for life and associated with day and light . Some carvings also present a picture of her standing with her sister behind Osiris and the Book of Dead explains that she supported Isis in collecting the parts of Osiris' body and his rebirth . As it is recorded in some vignettes , Nephthys accompanied by other goddesses was responsible for guarding the organs
of the dead people . She is one of the four goddesses that appear guarding the funeral chests of
Tutankhamun
in the Egyptian museum now and also on shepenkhonsu's mummy catonnage .
One of the rare but interesting myths in which Nephthys played a major role is the myth of the secret love affair between Osiris and her that was discovered by her husband Seth . Due to this , it was suspected that Anubis was the son of Seth .
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