Overview
A pschent (the Egyptians called it sekhemty, the Two Powerful Ones) combines the conical white hedjet of the south with the flat, chair-backed red deshret of the north, fronted by the cobra and vulture of the two protecting goddesses. It is a symbol of union above all.
How it is worn
It is worn on the head at coronations and great state occasions as the emblem of a single kingship over Upper and Lower Egypt, either alone or over a headcloth. Its two colours and two guardian animals stated the union in a single object.
History
The double crown appears from the Early Dynastic Period, when the joining of the Two Lands was the founding act of the Egyptian state, and it remained a central royal emblem for three thousand years. Individual White and Red crowns were also worn to stress rule over one land.