{"id":2580,"date":"2009-09-19T06:34:57","date_gmt":"2009-09-19T06:34:57","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.gardenvisit.com\/blog\/?p=2580"},"modified":"2009-09-19T06:34:57","modified_gmt":"2009-09-19T06:34:57","slug":"niwt-symbol-ancient-egyptian-city-determinative-hieroglyph","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.gardenvisit.com\/blog\/niwt-symbol-ancient-egyptian-city-determinative-hieroglyph\/","title":{"rendered":"Niwt symbol: ancient Egyptian city determinative hieroglyph"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"First<\/a>

First draft: niwt determinative heiroglyph logo<\/p><\/div>\n

\"Second<\/a>

Second draft: stylized niwt determinative heiroglyph logo<\/p><\/div>\n

From virtually thousands of emails, I know that many of our readers are throbbing with curiosity about the significance, if any, of the Gardenvisit.com logo. There being no reason for secrecy, and the explanation will now be given. The symbol was inspired by the Egyptian hieroglyph niwt <\/em>(pronounced ‘nee-oot’). Niwt is used as a determinitive so that, for example, if written with a pictogram of a falcon (Horus) the combination of symbols\u00a0 means ‘the city of Horus’ (which the Greeks called Hierakonpolis).<\/p>\n

Most heiroglyphs began as pictograms and many people think that this must be true of the niwt <\/em>symbol. It is read as a protective wall round a settlement with crossing roads within. But it is also known that niwt <\/em>was used for small towns before it was used for large towns, and it could therefore have meant a house-and-garden before it meant a town. My own reading of the symbol is that it reflects two very ancient and fundamental truths about dwelling places:<\/p>\n