Mehen is a snake God responsible for guarding the sun God Ra during his nightly journey through the underworld, before emerging at dawn each day. The journey through the underworld was dangerous and Mehen surrounded Ra with his coiled body to protect him from dangerous entities. As Ra therefore lay at the centre of Mehen’s coils, ancient Egyptians believed that the body of Mehen was like a pathway to reach Ra – if you entered Mehen’s body at the tail end, you could travel through it to reach Ra at the centre. And therein lies the concept of the story behind this, the earliest of board games.
For more information on the game of Mehen, it’s history, it’s archeaology and its game-play see Mehen – the ancient Egyptian game of the Serpent
How do you play Mehen?
Mehen is a strategic racing game for two teams where players move pharaoh pieces from the snake’s tail to its head. Movement of the pieces is controlled by a unique mechanism of guesses, bluff and brinkmanship making the game lively and amusing to play.
But it’s not as easy as it may first look! Opponents attempt to stall progress by unleashing lions to trap pharaohs, who must then defeat the predator to continue their journey.
The first team to deliver all their pharaohs to the snake’s hood wins the game.
For full instructions, see our Rules of Mehen page.
Mehen Sets – comparison
We have two different Mehen game sets.
Mehen – The Ancient Egyptian Game of the Serpent (Cloth Board Game in Box) is the affordable version of the game which features a cloth board, lions, lionesses and coloured wooden playing pieces. The cloth board conveniently rolls up and can be stored in the storage box.
Mehen – The Ancient Egyptian Game of the Serpent (replica resin board and lions) is the perfect set for a true games enthusiast who appreciates a quality set. The board and the lions / lionesses are made from resin and feature great detail. The board and lion pieces are based on Ancient Egyptian museum artefacts. For this particular set, we also offer an expansion pack, upgrading it from a 2-4 player game to a 6 player game.