Bennu ~ Horus ~ Phoenix ~ Mythic Birds by Ghirin 1.0.0

The bennu was the sacred bird of Heliopolis in ancient Egypt.  In Egyptian mythology, it was portrayed as a large, heron-like bird with a two-feather crest. It was was associated with the yearly flooding of the Nile River and with the gods Atum, Re and Osiris.

References:  http://www.egyptianmyths.net/phoenix.htm,  http://www.touregypt.net/featurestories/benu.htm

Horus was the son of Osiris and Isis. He was usually symbolized as a falcon or a falcon-headed human. He was a sky god who battled evil.

The first mention of the phoenix was in ancient Egypt, described as more of a wading-type bird.  In Greco-Roman culture, the phoenix became more eagle-like.  The defining features of the phoenix are its longevity (500 years) and its ability to renew itself in fire. The old phoenix builds a funeral pyre of aromatic woods such as cinnamon, which the bird then sets afire. After the fire dies down, the new phoenix emerges.

Updated 2010-11 to save space with less in zip