The
ibis was a bird sacred to the Egyptian god Thoth, god of knowledge, writing,
and scribes. The immortal part of the soul, or the Akhu, was also represented
by the figure of the ibis. Thoth is often seen in the form of a man with the
head of an ibis, and holding a reed and tablet. It was Thoth who kept records
of the confessions of the recently deceased, and who recorded where the souls
were sent.
