e Nekhenite. The temple itself covered approximately one-sixth of the total area and it would have dominated not only the temple complex, but the town itself. Some of the greatest finds to come from the Temple Complex were a cache of ceremonial items which included the palette of Narmer and a great golden head of a falcon (c2300 BCE, 6th Dynasty, Old Kingdom, the oldest (known) cult image in existence).
More info on the cities of Horus page.
Iry-Hor is the oldest ruler of Egypt (although he probably only ruled a region of Egypt) that is known by name, and who has some attributions to prove his existence. His name probably means "belonging to Horus", however the symbols were found only on some jars and not in a serekh, so it may not be his name but a sign that the items belonged to the royal treasury or similar. However either interpretation implies the association of Horus with kingship. Iry-Hor was buried in Abydos and ruled around 3100 BCE in the Pre-Dynastic period called Naqada II or Dynasty 0. Abydos was the cult center for Osiris, the God of the Dead. Early religious belief required that pharaohs be buried in Abydos in order to achieve the afterlife -- which accounts for the many pre-dynastic and old kingdom pharaohs buried in the necropolis here.
The Double Falcon
The god Antaios (Antwey/Nemty/Anty) is usually stated to be originally a double god, "the two falcons", that was later joined to create one, probably that of Horus. However I can find no proof of this gods existance. There are late pre-dynastic royal serekhs (Naqada III, Dynasty 0) found on jars from El-Beda and Tura showing a double falcon, this king is thus known as 'Double Falcon' although whether he is one individual is unknown.
Winged Sun Disk
The ivory comb on the right comes from the period of King Djet (3000 BCE) of the 1st Dynasty, buried in Tomb Z in Abydos. The square with the falcon on top and serpent is the traditional serekh containing his name, the Horus Cobra. The comb also shows the sun barc with wings very similar to the traditional winged solar disc which came to represent Horus of Behdet/Edfu. An inscribed block from the mortuary temple of the 5th Dynasty (end of the Old Kingdom) ruler Sahura (2487-2475 BCE) found in the Abusir (located at a couple of km north of Saqqara) includes a full winged disc above his names and titles, with the phrase 'Horus of Behdet' written beside it.
The south entrance to the New Kingdom temple of Montu built by Amenhotep III (18th dynasty) in Karnak has a large winged sun disk with uraeus over it. As does the Temple of Ramesses III (20th dynasty) at Medinet Habu in Thebes, though in colour without the uraeus. The New Kingdom temple of Horus at Edfu has a series of six winged disks in its entrance all with different attributes. I'll be damned if I can find any visual examples of earlier examples like the one mentioned above from Memphis.
Djoser/Netjerykhet (c2620-2600 BCE)
Djoser is one of the most important kings of the Old Kingdom (actually the 3rd dynasty links the old kingdom to the pre-dynastic period) and of the whole long history of Egypt, he was responsible for the first pyramids. He ruled during the start of the 3rd Dynasty, his son was the architect Imhotep. His tomb is in Saqqara (Step Pyramid II).
The relief to the right is from his tomb in Saqqara. We can see the serekh containing his name by his crown. More interestingly above him, clutching an ankh in its claws, is a beautifully rendered hawk. This motif is seen on several other similar reliefs in the tomb. Next to the hawk is an Anubis (Anpu) style dog.
Khafre (6.5' tall diorite 2500 BCE)Khafre was the Pharoah who built the second pyramid (Pyramid of Chephren) and the Sphinx on the Giza plateau in Egypt (2576-2551 BCE, 4th Dynasty). This statue was found in the valley temple in Giza. Horus did not rule directly, but incarnated in a human being and ruled through this human who then became a half-god or a Per-o (or pharaoh).
Heru sma taui (2133-1991 BCE)
This polychrome wooden statuette represents the god Horus, with the head of a falcon and 