Lion in the mythologies and religions
Sphinx of Giza.In many ancient cultures, the lion was playing an important symbolic role. In Egypt, the pharaohs were represented by sphinxes, lions head humaine. The most famous of these representations is the Great Sphinx of Giza. Sekhmet was worshiped as a goddess in human body and lion's head, sent by Ra against the Egyptians who were plotting against lui. Minor deities, such as engineering Nebneryou hosting the realm of the dead or morts Mihos, the son of Bastet headed lion existed, as many gods hybrid with a body part of the lion: Pachet, Aker, or Tefnut Dédoun by exemple.


In Greek mythology, the lions appear in various positions: the Nemean lion, represented as a man-eating beast in the impenetrable skin, was killed by Heracles during his twelve travaux. In the story of Androcles, one of Aesop's fables, the hero, an escaped slave, removes a thorn from the paw of a lion, when later, as punishment for his escape, he was thrown by his master lion to be devoured, the animal recognized him and refused to kill the man.

In the Judeo-Christian religions, the lion is an animal polysemic, especially through portrayed positive images of St. Jerome and his lion, the Evangelists (Lion of St. Mark) and Daniel spared the lions, but a negative connotation it is associated with a passage from Peter referring to Satan who walks "like a lion searching for prey to dévorer. Thus, the lion comes up very often in Catholic churches because it represents the strength of the believer fighting sin, and objects: lion paw bracelets, carved episcopal see in the image of the lion, on the base of the candlesticks, église portals ... In Roman times, during the persecutions, Christians were thrown to the lions; this the negative connotations and was also at the origin of expressions like "being thrown to the lions.