*Written by Lark Devon, author of adult fantasy romance where the research shows. Published October 2, 2026.* **Short answer:** Anubis and Wepwawet are distinct gods whose canid forms and funerary duties overlap. Wepwawet is tied to Asyut, Abydos, standards, and processions, while Anubis is tied to the necropolis, embalming, and protection of the dead. Inscriptions and context outrank fur color for telling them apart. --- Two jackal gods with overlapping jobs, and I'll admit I couldn't have told you which was which. I wanted to know where Wepwawet's work ends and Anubis's begins, and whether I could learn to tell them apart on sight. ## Two names, two working portfolios Wepwawet’s name is conventionally read *Wp-wꜣwt*, “Opener of the Ways.” Sources connect him with Asyut and with Abydos, where standards could lead processions. The god’s equipment can include the distinctive *shed-shed* object and martial elements. His role can move between royal, processional, martial, and funerary settings. Anubis belongs strongly to the necropolis and the work of the dead. Embalming, protection, and later judgment imagery shape his documented profile. The two deities share a visual vocabulary because Egyptian religion often allowed local gods to occupy related symbolic ground. ## How to identify a canid image Start with the inscription. A label or epithet can settle an identification that paint cannot. Next check the object type and cult context. A standard, procession, local sanctuary, or funerary object each supplies different evidence. Posture helps. The Metropolitan Museum notes that Wepwawet is usually standing while Anubis is favored recumbent, and it also records exceptions. A standing figure is a starting point for identification. The *shed-shed* and weapons strengthen a Wepwawet reading in the right context. Color offers a heuristic. The familiar black Anubis and grey Wepwawet contrast appears in modern explanations, yet it is not a universal rule. Egyptian canids are difficult to identify zoologically, and an unlabeled damaged figure cannot carry a secure name by fur tone alone. I have trusted paint at a distance and regretted it up close. When the label is missing, I leave the name open. ## Why standards matter A standard makes Wepwawet’s “opening” role visible. The upright emblem can lead a procession and point toward movement, access, or royal action. The Global Egyptian Museum connects Wepwawet with Asyut, Abydos, procession, conquest, and funerary opening. Anubis can also appear on standards, and divine epithets overlap. That makes a standard a major clue, but the object’s inscription and local setting still carry the heavier weight. This is where modern family trees become tempting. Later texts can call the gods brothers or combine their functions. Those are period-specific theological moves. They do not establish a timeless sibling genealogy for the First Dynasty. ## The chronology behind the confusion | Period | Evidence-led position | |---|---| | First Dynasty, c. 3100–2900 BCE | Use dated tomb, seal, label, and standard evidence object by object. | | Old Kingdom, c. 2686–2181 BCE | Pyramid Texts provide early written evidence for Anubis and Wepwawet with overlapping funerary vocabulary. | | Middle Kingdom, c. 2055–1650 BCE | Osirian theology expands and Wepwawet remains important at Asyut and Abydos. | | New Kingdom, c. 1550–1070 BCE | Anubis’s embalming and judgment roles become richly visible; Book of the Dead vignettes show the famous scales. | | Late, Ptolemaic, and Roman periods | Hybrid identities and Greek interpretive labels become more common. | The dates stop a later image from becoming a generic Egyptian prop. The familiar kneeling or seated jackal-headed figure at a balance belongs to New Kingdom and later funerary compositions. It does not describe every early canid image. The centuries are part of the identification. Working out the timeline cleared up more of my confusion than the artwork ever did. ## Myth vs. Reality | Myth | Reality | |---|---| | Anubis and Wepwawet are the same god. | Names, cult centers, standards, and customary poses distinguish them in many dated sources. | | Anubis is always black and Wepwawet always grey. | Color varies, and context and inscriptions are stronger evidence. | | Wepwawet is Anubis’s brother. | Brotherhood belongs to later theological contexts and is not a timeless First Dynasty fact. | | The heart scales prove early Egyptian belief. | The well-known tableau is a New Kingdom and later development. | Labels, context, and dates distinguish the gods more reliably than a modern color chart or family tree. > [!lore] Thirty-seven attendants lie silent. The thirty-eighth is still asking questions. *House of Silence* is now available on Lark Devon. [Enter the tomb →](https://larkdevon.com/storytime/story/house-of-silence) ## How I Used This in House of Silence <!-- lark-relationship-inline-image -->  I kept the uncertainty visible. *House of Silence* is Egyptian-inspired, syncretic fantasy, and its canid imagery draws on early Egyptian ambiguity. In the historical discussion, an inscription, a seal, or a local object history must still earn the name. Wepwawet gave me a second kind of motion. “Opener of the Ways” can suggest a standard leading people into danger or ceremony, while Anubis’s office stays close to the necropolis and the dead. That contrast gives texture while leaving the family chart open. The early setting gains atmosphere when the evidence is allowed to remain specific and incomplete. ## What Anubis Thinks *The novel gives Anubis no private viewpoint. This non-canon blog exercise imagines the answer I hear when I hand him a pile of sloppy labels.* --- The Knower of Standards recognizes Wepwawet by the standard and the direction of travel. The opener stands where movement begins. The Keeper of the Necropolis remains at his station. Linen and the careful work of preserving the dead belong to his office. The Reader of Damaged Images uses color only after inscriptions have failed. Black receives one reputation and grey another. The damaged image keeps its silence. The Guardian Who Names Another observes that Wepwawet carries the *shed-shed* and sometimes the weapons. His equipment answers when the label survives. The Witness of Later Rites has seen priests arrange gods into a family. The arrangement serves the rite of its own time. The Lord of Touching Offices sees two duties meet at the edge of death. Each keeps its own name. The Jackal in the Dark returns to the places where a name and a posture still identify him. > [!lore] A sealed royal tomb, a presence in the dark, and a woman asking for a future of her own. Read *House of Silence* on Lark Devon. [Start with the free first chapter.](https://larkdevon.com/storytime/story/house-of-silence) ## Related Questions **What does Wepwawet mean?** Wepwawet is conventionally translated as “Opener of the Ways.” Sources connect him with Asyut, Abydos, processions, royal movement, martial equipment, and funerary opening roles. **Is Wepwawet a wolf?** “Wolf” and “jackal” are conventional translations applied to difficult Egyptian canid imagery. The animal identification remains debated, so “canid” is often the safest description when an inscription does not settle the matter. **Is Anubis always black?** Black is a familiar Anubis convention, yet color alone cannot identify a damaged or unlabeled figure. Inscription, context, posture, and object type provide stronger evidence. **Are Anubis and Wepwawet brothers?** Some later theological contexts connect the gods in family terms. That relationship is period-specific and should not be projected as a timeless First Dynasty fact. **Which god opens the way?** Wepwawet’s name and documented roles associate him with opening roads, processions, royal movement, and funerary passage. Anubis’s documented emphasis falls on the necropolis, embalming, and protection of the dead. ## Related Reading - [Why Did Egypt's First Kings Take Their Retainers to the Grave?](https://larkdevon.com/blog/why-did-egypts-first-kings-take-their-retainers-to-the-grave) - [Were Egypt's Royal Retainers Buried Alive? What Archaeology Can Actually Tell Us](https://larkdevon.com/blog/were-egypts-royal-retainers-buried-alive) - [Inside a First Dynasty Royal Tomb: What Was Sealed in the Dark?](https://larkdevon.com/blog/inside-a-first-dynasty-royal-tomb) - [What First Dynasty Tombs Reveal About Status in Life and Death](https://larkdevon.com/blog/what-first-dynasty-tombs-reveal-about-status) - [The Women Buried Around Egypt's First Kings](https://larkdevon.com/blog/the-women-buried-around-egypts-first-kings) - [Why Did Egyptians Make a Corpse-Eating Jackal Guardian of the Dead?](https://larkdevon.com/blog/why-did-egyptians-make-a-corpse-eating-jackal-guardian) - [How Old Is Anubis? Tracing a God Across Three Thousand Years](https://larkdevon.com/blog/how-old-is-anubis) - [Did Anubis Always Weigh the Heart? How His Role Changed Over Time](https://larkdevon.com/blog/did-anubis-always-weigh-the-heart) - [Sex, Death, and Resurrection in Egyptian Religion: What the Evidence Really Dates To](https://larkdevon.com/blog/sex-death-and-resurrection-in-egyptian-religion-what-the-evidence-really-dates-to) ## Sources 1. [Sofía Bontempo, “Wepwawet and Anubis, Two Egyptian Canid Gods Mutually Complementing Their Funerary Roles,” *Eikón/Imago* 4(1), published June 7, 2015](https://doi.org/10.5209/eiko.73428). 2. [T. G. Wilfong, Death Dogs: The Jackal Gods of Ancient Egypt, Kelsey Museum, University of Michigan, 2015](https://lsa.umich.edu/content/dam/kelsey-assets/kelsey-publications/pdfs/death-dogs.pdf). 3. [Linda Evans, “The Shedshed of Wepwawet,” Journal of the Egyptian Exploration Society 97, 2011](https://www.researchgate.net/publication/297988180_The_Shedshed_of_Wepwawet_An_Artistic_and_Behavioural_Interpretation). 4. [Metropolitan Museum of Art, “Figurine of Wepwawet,” accession 10.130.1324, accessed 2026](https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/545362). 5. [University College London, Digital Egypt, “Gods and goddesses in ancient Egypt: creation,” accessed 2026](https://www.ucl.ac.uk/museums-static/digitalegypt/religion/deitiescreation.html). 6. [Global Egyptian Museum, “Wepwawet,” glossary entry 398, accessed 2026](https://www.globalegyptianmuseum.org/glossary.aspx?id=398). 7. [University College London, Digital Egypt, “Book of the Dead,” accessed 2026](https://www.ucl.ac.uk/museums-static/digitalegypt/literature/religious/bdbynumber.html). 8. [Metropolitan Museum of Art, “Weighing the Heart,” Transforming the Dead, accessed 2026](https://www.metmuseum.org/-/media/files/about-the-met/curatorial-departments/egyptian/facsimiles/2014_transformingthedead_web.pdf).