The Vulture (mut) was worn on the diadem of a queen, and was a badge of queenly royalty.
The Sacred Asp, called uræus, was worn on the forehead of a king. It was a symbol of kingly royalty and immortality, and being worn by the king Βασιλευς, the sacred asp was also called basilisk. Rameses, in choosing the epithet “Lord of kingly and queenly royalty,” wished perhaps to set forth that he embodied in himself the graces of a queen with the wisdom of a king.
Crocodile’s Tail (Kham) Egypt. Kham literally means black, and Egypt in early times was called “the black country,” from the black alluvial soil brought down by the Nile. The symbol thought to be a crocodile’s tail represents Egypt, because the crocodile abounded in Egypt, and was a characteristic of that country. Even at the present time Egypt is sometimes spoken of as “the land of the crocodile.”
Two Straight Lines (tata) is the usual symbol for the two countries of Egypt. They appear above the second prenomen of this column of hieroglyphs. Each line represents a layer of earth, and is named ta. Egypt was a flat country, and on this account the emblem of Egypt was a straight line.
A figure with an undulating surface, called set, is the usual emblem of a foreign country. The undulating surface probably indicates the hills and valleys of those foreign lands around Egypt, such as Nubia, Arabia Petra, Canaan, Phœnicia, etc. These countries, in comparison with the flat land of Egypt, were countries of hills and valleys. This hieroglyph for foreign lands occurs in this column immediately above the first nomen.
Cartouche with nomen: “Ra-mes-es Meri Amen.”
Figure with Hawk’s Head is Ra. On his head he wears the aten, or solar disk, and in his hand holds the ankh, or key of life.