Which goddess is depicted with cow horns and a sun disk?

Which goddess is depicted with cow horns and a sun disk? Hathor. This is Hathor’s most recognizable human-form headdress in ancient Egyptian art.

Hathor was a major goddess associated with the sky, motherhood, love, music, dance, joy, sexuality, and royal protection. Her name is usually translated as “house of Horus,” linking her with the sky god Horus and with the divine protection of Egypt’s kings.

The sun disk between the horns expressed her celestial and solar nature. Hathor could also appear as a complete cow, a woman with a cow’s head, or occasionally as a lioness, cobra, or sycamore tree. These varied forms reflected the Egyptian habit of giving one deity several connected roles.

A common mix-up is Isis, who sometimes adopted Hathor’s horned sun-disk crown, especially in later periods. The headdress therefore identifies Hathor strongly, but an inscription or wider scene may be needed to distinguish the two goddesses. Hathor’s major cult center was Dendera, whose surviving temple is famous for its astronomical ceiling.