The famous "cross of life", as it was called by its contemporaries, probably did not represent a cross, but rather a loose knot, like a belt or a sandal strap. In the long list of hieroglyphs, this sign stood for the words "life" and "to live". It was pronounced "ankh" in ancient Egyptian. It has been found represented on the walls of temples and tombs, or with statues, but only in the hands of a god. This was not a symbol of earthly life, but rather of a power greater than death, an eternal life with which the gods were naturally endowed. This they