Also known as: Ansated Cross, Cross of Life, Crux Ansata, Crux Hermis, Crux Tau, Handled Cross, Hydrometer, Key of Life, Key of the Nile, Long Life Seal, Looped Tau Cross, Satanic Cross, Universal Cross.
Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
"The ankh was the Egyptian hieroglyphic character that stood for the word which means life. Gods may carry it by the loop, or bear one in each hand crossed over their breast. Latinists interpreted the symbol as a "crux ansata, "cross with a handle."
"The ankh appears frequently in Egyptian tomb paintings and other art; it often appears at the fingertips of a god or goddess in images that represent the deities of the afterlife conferring the gift of life on the dead person's mummy. The ankh symbol was often carried by Egyptians as an amulet, either alone, or in connection with two other hieroglyphs that mean "strength" and "health." Mirrors were often made in the shape of an ankh. Sometimes, in art, the Ankh was shown being touched by a god onto a person, which usually symbolized conception."
Masonic and Occult Symbols Illustrated - Dr. Cathy Burns (P328)
"The ankh (or crux ansata) is a symbol of life. A Dictionary of Mysticism explains the ankh as the "Egyptian cross, shaped like a capital T with an oval loop at the top, symbol of life in occult tradition. It was "used by the gods as an instrument for awakening the dead to a new life."
"One Masonic book relates ":The crux ansata, so frequently observed in the hands of the statues of the old kings and gods of Egypt, was evidently both solar and Phallic in signification, and represented a combination of the male and female principles in nature."
"In The Origins, Practises, and Traditions of Halloween, we find that the ankh is an "ancient symbol for immortality, fertility; a cross with a ring at the top worn and used in Satanic rites."
"A former which reveals that the ankh is: "An embelm to identify the worshipper of the sun god Ra, a seeker of the Satanist beliefs, and one who practises the worship of the unknown gods of the supernatural. The wearer acknowledges the sun god Ra, works the voodoo of the unseen world through his hex."
The Continuum Encyclopedia of Symbols - Udo Becker(p19)
"An Egyptian looped cross symbolizing life as well as the fertilization of earth by the sun. Appears frequently in Egyptian Art, often in the hands of gods and kings. In depictions of burial, it is often lifted high and held by the side of the loop (perhaps symbolizing a key that opens the realm of the dead)."