The blue water lily that symbolized the sun and rebirth in ancient Egyptian mythology was the Blue lotus.
The plant is scientifically known as Nymphaea nouchali var. caerulea, and is also called the Egyptian blue lotus or blue water lily. Its flowers open in daylight and close at night, a daily rhythm that helped connect it with the sun's emergence and renewal.
Egyptian art frequently depicts the flower, and blue water lily petals have been found in royal and funerary contexts, including the burial chamber of Tutankhamun. In Heliopolitan creation traditions, the sun god Ra was said to emerge from a lotus rising from the primordial waters. The deity Nefertem was also closely associated with the blue water lily, fragrance, beauty, and the first sunlight.
The term “lotus” can cause confusion because the plant is actually a water lily in the genus Nymphaea, not the sacred lotus Nelumbo nucifera. Taxonomists also disagree about whether it should be treated as a variety of Nymphaea nouchali or as the separate species Nymphaea caerulea.