Near Eastern Archaeology

The Beginning of the Opening of the Mouth

2012-01-28T09:00:00.000-05:00

The Opening of the Mouth, in its most elaborate form, first appeared in the Eighteenth Dynasty. At this time, the ceremonies may have lasted as long as four days , and it was performed in a chamber at the entrance to the tomb or on a spot outside the tomb, which had been made ceremonially pure . Participants in the ceremonies include the Lector (Kher-Heb) priest, the Sem priest, the Am-Khent priest, the Smer (who was probably a friend of the deceased), the Sa-Mer.f (who was either the son of the deceased or a chosen representative of the son), two women (one of whom represented the goddess Isis and the other of whom represented Nephthys), the Menhu (or slaughterer), as well as a group of people called the Heru-Shesu (the “Followers of Horus”) .

The Opening of the Mouth began with the placing of a statue of the deceased upon a heap of sand (which may have symbolized the primeval hill upon which the creator god appeared) that had been made ceremonially pure by the sprinkling of water. It seems to have been important for the statue to face south, although the significance of this is unknown .

The Kher-Heb priest, whose major function in the Opening of the Mouth was to read the ritual texts and to instruct the Sem priest on the proper actions to take, now ordered the Sem to don the “kniw” garment (which covered the Sem’s shoulders, breast and upper back) and to take a censer of burning incense and walk around the statue four times saying “Thou art pure O Osiris” .

The Sem next took four small “nemeset” vases filled with water and walked around the statue four times, emptying one vase of water upon the statue each time. The first time he did this he said, “Thou art pure. Thou art pure. Thy purifications are the purifications of Horus , and the purifications of Horus are thy purifications”. While emptying the second vase of water, the Sem priest repeated the same words except that Set was invoked, rather than Horus. The third and fourth vases were emptied in the name of Thoth and Geb respectively .

The Sem next took four “Dshrt” vases and repeated the same ritual that he had performed with the “nemeset” vases, after which he walked around the statue four times with a vase containing “Incense of the South” dissolved in the water. The Sem then circled the statue four more times with “Incense of the North” in his vase this time .

Development of the Opening of the Mouth

2012-01-25T20:00:00.001-05:00

Exactly when the Opening of the Mouth first came into use is unknown, although it might have been as early as the Predynastic Period since a flint Pesh-en-kef, which dates to this period, has been found [1]

In the early Old Kingdom the Opening of the Mouth was still a relatively simple ceremony, which began with the sprinkling of water and the burning of incense for purification purposes. The statue[2] of the deceased was next anointed with seven kinds of unguents and the eyes were anointed with two different kinds of eye paint. Two garments were presented, after which there was a censing and sprinkling of water. The statue was then considered ready for the funerary meal, which usually consisted of several kinds of cakes and breads served with beer[3].

In the Fifth Dynasty the Opening of the Mouth becomes far more complex and references are now made to Horus performing funerary rites for his father Osiris. Budge[4] was of the opinion that the earlier, and less complex, ceremony may have been favored by the theologians of Memphis, while the priests who drew up the texts for the pyramids of Unas, Teti, and Pepi II were under the influence of a cult not accepted at Memphis (quite possibly that of Osiris).

During the latter part of the Old Kingdom the Opening of the Mouth was still far less complex than it would become in the New Kingdom, but many of the rituals used later had already made an appearance by this time. For instance, from the texts of Unas we learn that the ceremonies opened with several purification rituals, which were followed by the touching of the eyes and mouth with the Pesh-en-kef and then with the “Iron of the North” and the “Iron of the South”. After this there followed a series of rituals in which food was offered to the deceased and the statue was anointed and dressed[5].

As mentioned earlier, the Middle Kingdom provides archaeologists with no real knowledge of the development of the Opening of the Mouth. That this is extremely unfortunate as there can be no doubt, especially when one considers the relative simplicity of the Old Kingdom ceremony as compared to the complex set of rituals with which we are confronted in the Eighteenth Dynasty. There must have been a great deal of change in this funeral ceremony during the Middle Kingdom, but no evidence of the changes is available to us.

[1] E. A. W. Budge, The Book of the Opening of the Mouth (London: Kegan Paul, Trench, Truber & Co., 1909, vol. I, p. vii.

[2] In some cases the actual body of the deceased might be used instead of a statue.

[3] Budge, vol. 1, pp. 2-3.

[4] Budge, vol. I, pp. 4-5.

[5] E. A. W. Budge, The Egyptian Book of the Dead (New York: Dover Publications, Inc., 1967), pp. cxxxix-cxli.

The Egyptian Opening of the Mouth Ceremony (Cont.)

2012-01-20T21:17:00.003-05:00

Burial in ancient Egypt was accompanied by ceremonies in which certain prayers were recited and rituals were enacted, the purpose being to assure the deceased the pleasure of eternal happiness in the afterlife. One of the most important of these ceremonies was the Opening of the Mouth,

From the Coffin Texts, Spell Two, we learn that the shade of the deceased was separated from his body after death[1]. It was necessary to reunite the deceased with his shade before he could enter the underworld This reunion was accomplished by means of the Opening of the Mouth[2]. Furthermore, the Opening of the Mouth also enabled the deceased to eat, drink and speak in the afterlife.

Representations of the Opening of the Mouth are frequently encountered. Several papyri of the Eighteenth Dynasty or later have vignettes which depict portions of the ceremony, with the vignette of Chapter XXIII of the Book of the Dead from the Papyrus of Ani being unique in that the deceased is represented in a seated position during the performance of the Opening of the Mouth, while in every other representation of this ceremony the deceased is shown standing. The significance of this, if any, is unknown.

Another representation of the Opening of the Mouth is to be found in the tomb of Ken-Amun, while in the tomb of Tutankhamen, Aye is shown opening the deceased’s mouth. The tomb of the Vizir Rekhmire (reign of Tuthmose III) contains representations of a large number of the rituals that make up the Opening of the Mouth. Perhaps the finest (artistically) representation of this ceremony is to be found in the tomb of Seti I (Nineteenth Dynasty).

These representations are helpful in reconstructing the Opening of the Mouth, but it is the body of texts dealing with this ceremony, which is of the greatest help to anyone attempting to understand this funerary ritual. The earliest mention of the Opening of the Mouth is in the Fourth Dynasty tomb of Methen, but it is not until the appearance of the Pyramid Texts that any detailed description is available[3]. References to the Opening of the Mouth in the Middle Kingdom are rare, with what references there are providing little new information[4].

From the New Kingdom come two detailed texts, one from the tomb of Rekhmire and one from the tomb of the Pharaoh, Seti I. From later periods several texts are known, including the coffin of Buthiamon (Dynasty XXI), the tomb chapel of Imeniritis (from the Saite Period), a papyrus from late Ptolemaic times and a papyrus from the Roman Period[5].

[1] “Geb has commanded, and the double lion has repeated, that you be given your soul which is in the earth (i. e. the tomb) and your shade which is in the hidden places.” See: R. O. Faulkner, The Ancient Egyptian Coffin Texts, vol. I, (Warminster: Aris & Phillips Ltd. 1973), p. 1.

[2] T. J. C. Baly, Notes on the Ritual of Opening the Mouth”, Journal of Egyptian Archaeology, vol. 16, p. 174.

[3] Baly, p. 174.

[4] Baly, p. 174.

[5] Baly, p. 174.

TheEgyptian Opening of the Mouth Ceremony

2012-01-18T19:36:00.000-05:00

I recently found a printed copy of a paper I wrote in college (on a typewriter if you can believe it!) about the ancient Egyptian “Opening of the Mouth Ceremony”. I have re-typed it into my laptop and updated it. I will be uploading it in pieces to this blog over the course of the next couple of weeks.

For those who are not familiar with the Opening of the Mouth, it was a major part of an ancient Egyptian’s funeral services. It was designed to re-unite the soul of the deceased with his body (or a statue that could be used to take the place of the body). The Opening of the Mouth also gave the deceased the ability to breathe, eat and speak in the afterlife.

There's an App for Everything

2012-01-15T22:42:00.000-05:00

I decided to see what (free) apps existed for iPhones (or iPads) for those of us interested in archaeology. There are not many, but there are a few:

1) British Museum - The Book of the Dead: this app was created to promote a special exhibit the British Museum had on the Egyptian Book of the Dead in 2011. There is a short video that can be viewed on the topic. You can also answer a few reasonably easy questions to unlock a copy of the papyrus of Hunefer for viewing. Some of the vignettes (such as the weighing of the heart) in the papyrus are explained when you click on them. Overall, an app that is interesting but could have been so much more.

2) Louvre Top 100 - this app has some stunning photos of the major works of art housed in the Louvre Museum in Paris. Ninety-Six of the objects have nothing to do with the ancient Middle East. The four items that do are:

The Law Code of Hammurabi
The Mesha Stela (9th Century B. C., from Jordan)
The Dendera Zodiac - Egypt (about 50 B. C.)
The Seated Scribe - Egypt (Old Kingdom)

Each object has a photo and a short description. Hopefully someone will use this same format for an app that covers a major collection of Egyptian or Mesopotamian art.

3) The Brooklyn Museum - the app itself has nothing on it really. There is, however, a link to the museum's full website. The website has some good photos and descriptions of:

Egyptian Mummies
Assyrian Reliefs
Egyptian Sculptures

Overall, these apps have their moments, but could be better. Hopefully someone will fill this gap in the near future (do I smell a business opportunity here?).

When Politics and Archaeology Meet

2011-12-19T17:48:00.000-05:00

The most recent issue of Archaeology has an interesting article in it regarding a large number of cunieform tablets from the Persian Empire.

These tablets are being researched and published by archaeologists. The tablets are in the United States until they are published. Then they are supposed to be returned to Iran.

Attorneys for the victims of terrorist acts that the Iranian government allegedly is involved in, have sued to seize and sell the tablets to help compensate the victims and their families. This has led to the government of Iran demanding the tablets return.

I have no idea how all this will (or even should) work out. All I can say is that when politics get involved with archaeology (or pretty much anything else) a complete mess is sure to follow.

The (Fake?) Statue of Tetisheri (cont.)

2011-12-10T00:07:00.000-05:00

There are some troubling aspects about the statue itself (in addition to the almost certainly forged inscription). Dr Davies points out in particular the style of the Queen's headdress. Notice how the lower portion of the headdress is carved with a gap between the shoulder and the bottom of the headdress (see the topmost picture in this post). This is not a normal style of carving in Egyptian art at all. Additionally, Dr. Davies had concerns about the Queen's hairstyle in the back (notice how the hair seems to "bulge out" in the back).

Another problem with the carving of the statue are the shoulder straps on her dress. Look at the second photo in this post and you can see that the straps are very narrow and would not have properly covered the Queen's breasts. This is also not normal in Egyptian art.

So is the statue a fake? Dr. Davies hesitated in his paper to call the statue a modern forgery, but he did admit to having some real reservations about the carving of the statue. As far as the inscription is concerned, Dr. Davies felt that it was likely a forgey, a conclusion that I must agree with. Sadly, I think the entire statue is a fake, not just the inscription.

The Finding of Tetisheri's Statue

2011-12-01T22:34:00.001-05:00

It is believed that two statues of Tetisheri were "found". We are not sure about the finding of these statues since they were not found in a properly conducted archaqeological excavation. Instead they simply "appeared" on the antiquities market.

One of the statues was a fragment which consisted of little more than the throne upon which the Queen sat. This fragment is now lost, but a copy of the inscription was made and is preserved to this day. The second of this pair of statues is the one in the British Museum.

Dr. Davies noticed that some of the characters in the inscription were badly formed, a frequent clue that an inscription was carved in modern times (by someone who actually could not read hieroglyphs). When he compared the inscription on the statue in the British Museum to the copy of the inscription on the "lost" statue, he noticed another problem.

On the lost statue, the inscription on the Queen's throne is broken off in the lower left corner. If you look at the photo in this article, you will see that the statue in the British Museum is also damaged in the same spot on the Queen's throne. But on the British Museum's statue, the damage is not caused by a break in the stone; instead, it looks like a chisel was used to remove a portion of the inscription.

It seems odd that two statues would have a damaged inscription in the same place and that the damage on one of the statues would look to have been deliberately done. Dr. Davies theory is that the broken statue had an inscription that was real, and that a forger copied the inscription onto the (previously uninscribed) statue that is now in the British Museum. Since the forger did not know hieroglyphs, he damaged the inscription in the lower left corner to hide the fact that he did not know what characters the original inscription contained there.

So, if the inscription is a fake (and I think that it is), does that mean that the statue is a fake as well? Or is the statue a real antiquity and only the inscription is forged?

The Famous (Fake?) Statue of Tetisheri

2011-11-26T23:07:00.000-05:00

One of the most famous objects in the Egyptian collection of the British Museum is the famous statue of the Seventeenth Dynasty Queen Tetisheri.

Tetisheri was, according to The Complete Royal Families of Ancient Egypt (by Aiden Dodson and Dyan Hilton), the commoner wife of Senakhtenre Tao, who was one of the last Kings of Egypt's Second Intermediate Period. Tetisheri may have been the mother of King Sekenenre, who seems to have died in battle against the hated Hyksos Kings who were ruling northern Egypt at the time.

The statue itself is pictured in many books devoted to Egyptian art and is familiar to scholars all over the world. It may not deserve its fame however, as there is some reason to believe that it is a fake.

A number of years ago Dr. W. V. Davies published a paper in which he questioned the inscription, the style of clothes the Queen is wearing and the carving of the wig adorning her head. We will take a look at some of this in the next post.

Ramessid Theban Tomb Decoration

2011-10-22T21:22:00.014-04:00

Clare Fitzgerald was the guest speaker at the October meeting of the Egyptological Seminar of New York last night. She is working toward her doctorate degree and is preparing a thesis on Ramessid tomb decoration at Thebes.

The speaker drew a number of comparisons between the Theban tombs of the 18th Dynasty and the 19th Dynasty.

18th Dynasty:

Mostly “T” shaped, but there are numerous variations Oriented East (entrance) to West (rear of the tomb)
A Traverse Hall is followed by a long passageway that leads back to a shrine for the deceased, the shrine often has a false door and / or a stela
The facade of the tomb consists of a small court with a frieze of funerary cones above the entrance
The thickness of the entrance door has a representation of the tomb owner and (sometimes) his wife
Scenes on the wall rarely “turn a corner” to appear partially on one wall and partially on an adjoining wall
The traverse hall has daily life scenes (usually)
The passage to the rear of the tomb often has funerary scenes (“Opening of the Mouth”, a funeral procession, etc.)
A shaft leads to the actual burial chamber
The deceased is sometimes shown interacting with the King, rarely is he shown interacting with a god

19th Dynasty:

Funerary Cones are gone
Stelae often flank the tombs entrance
The court often has a Pylon at the entrance A pyramid is sometimes built over the entrance (more common at Dier el-Medina then elsewhere)
Scenes sometimes “turn the corner” to be shown on two different walls
The deceased is often shown interacting with dieties, rarely shown interacting with the King
A sloping passageway leads to the burial chamber, rather than a shaft
Daily life scenes lose their prominence and are replaced by funerary scenes and pictures of the gods
The funeral scenes show a procession, then the deceased passing the various gates to the underworld, followed by the judgment of the dead

The next meeting of the Egyptological Seminar of New York is on December 9, 2011 at the Metropolitan Museum in New York City.

Rights of an Adoptee in Babylonia

2011-09-11T22:43:00.000-04:00

Adoption is a topic that has long interested me and a while back I did some posts on adoption in Babylonia. The person who is adopted had certain responsibilities; but the adopting parents had responsibilities as well.

For instance, if the new father does not teach the adopted child a craft, the child could be returned to the household of his biological father (Hammurabi Law Code, Laws 188 - 189).

Additionally, if a child was adopted by a palace official or the family of a priestess, the child could not be reclaimed by the biological parents (Hammurabi #187). Is this because the child would be better off with the new parents?

Also, the original parents could re-claim the child, but only if they did so very shortly after the adoption took place (Hammurabi #186).

Overall, the Babylonians seemed to make a serious attempt to be fair to everyone involved. The adopted child could not renounce their new parents, but their new family had to provide them with the training needed to make a living.

Tushratta's Two Gold Statues

2011-08-27T16:39:00.006-04:00

The Amarna Letters were written on clay tablets mostly in the Akkadian language. They were part of the diplomatic correspondence between the Egyptian Pharaoh and the kings of Assyria, Babylonia, Syria, Hatti (the Hittites) and Mittani.

These letters seldom provide information on important historical events, but they do enable us to get a fascinating view of the relationships between the members of ancient near eastern royalty. One of the main characters in these letters is Tushratta, King of Mittani.

Several letters were exchanged between the courts of Egypt and Mittani regarding two solid gold statues which Tushratta claimed had been promised to him by Amenhotep III. The earliest letter (EA 26 in Moran’s The Amarna Letters) was addressed to Queen Tiye, Wife of Amenhotep III and mother of Akhenaten. Tushratta reminds Tiye of his love for her deceased husband, Amenhotep, and says that he will “show 10 times – much, much - more love” to her son Akhenaten.

He then comes to the point, saying that he had asked Amenhotep for two solid gold statues, but that Akhenaten had sent him wooden statues covered in a thin coating of gold. “Is this love… my brother was going to treat me 10 times better than his father did. But now he has not [given me] even what his father was accustomed to give”. Tushratta asks Tiye to intervene so that two solid gold statues will be cast for him. After all, gold is “like dirt” in Egypt.

In letter EA 27 (addressed by Tushratta to Akhenaten) we find out that these statues in question were of Tushratta and of Tadu-Heba (a daughter of Tushratta’s, who had married Amenhotep III). Tushratta claims that Amenhotep had said to him, “Don’t talk of giving statues just of solid gold. I will give you ones made also of Lapis Lazuli. I will give you, too, along with the statues, much additional gold…”. Tushratta asks Akhenaten to send the statues to him and repeats that gold is like dirt in Egypt.

Incredibly, Tushratta sent at least one more letter (EA 29), addressed to Akhenaten, in which these statues are mentioned. The letter starts off with Tushratta providing a long litany of all the gifts he has sent to Egypt (including has daughter Tadu-Heba) and how much love he has shown Amenhotep and how much he mourned Amenhotep’s passing. He then asks, again, that the statues be sent to him.

These letters make one wonder why these statues were so important to Tushratta. Given the problems that the newly resurgent Hittites were about to cause both Tushratta and Akhenaten, the statues in question seem to be small potatoes.

All quotes are from Moran, William L. The Amarna Letters, Baltimore: John Hopkins University Press, 1992)

Chaos, Murder, and Civil War in Ancient Egypt

2011-08-15T23:26:00.001-04:00

Dr. Aidan Dodson’s Poisoned Legacy is a fascinating attempt to sort out the questions surrounding the end of the Nineteenth Dynasty, which is one of the most obscure periods in ancient Egyptian history.

The death of Ramesses II, arguably one of Egypt’s greatest Pharaohs, ushered in a period of intrigue within the members of the royal family that led to chaos, civil war, and (likely) regicide.

Dr. Dodson takes the tantalizing, fragmentary evidence available and paints plausible answers to some of the vexing questions of the period:

Who was Amenemesses and how did he gain the throne?
Was Siptah a child when he came to the throne? How did he get there and who backed him?
Who as Chancellor Bay? Was he the kingmaker he claimed to be? Was he a foreigner? How did he get the right to build a tomb in the royal valley and was he eventually murdered by a member of the royal family?
Did Tawosret have Siptah murdered so that she could become Pharaoh?
How did Sethnakht get to the throne and who was he?

This book contains over 120 illustrations (black and white photos and line drawings), several useful appendices and an extensive bibliography. It is well researched and written by a recognized expert in the field. This book is sure to hold the interest of anyone interested in Egyptian history.

Met to Return Objects From Tutankhamen's Tomb

2011-08-02T23:48:00.001-04:00

The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York will return nineteen objects that were taken from the tomb of Tutankhamen. The objects were willed to the museum by a niece of the tomb's excavator, Howard Carter.

The move of these objects from New York to Cairo was scheduled to take place today. Once in Egypt, the objects will be displayed in a new museum being constructed near the great pyramids at Giza.

Egyptian Inscription Found in Saudi Arabia

2011-07-23T16:17:00.000-04:00

An ancient Egyptian inscriptian has been found in Saudi Arabia. The inscription bears the names and titles of Ranesses III, the last major Pharaoh of the Twentieth Dynasty.

A copy of the inscription can be found here. This is the first known ancient Egyptian inscription found in Saudi Arabia.

Brotherhood of Kings - a Fascinating History of the Near East

2011-04-24T21:12:00.002-04:00

Brotherhood of Kings, by Amanda Podany, is one of the most interesting books on Near Eastern Archaeology that I have read in a long time.

This book tells the history of the Bronze Age Middle East through the eyes of Kings, Queens, Princes, Princesses and vassals who wrote letters found in archives preserved in Mesopotamia, Syria and Egypt. These letters reveal the personalities of the writers in a very human way. Some of the Kings were greedy for gold; others constantly whined that the gifts that had been sent to them by other Kings were not sufficient. Amenhotep III of Egypt seemed to have an interest in marrying as many foreign princesses as possible and several letters reveal the size of the dowry and bridal gifts exchanged by the Pharaoh and his father-in-law.

Some of the stories are familiar to students of the Ancient Near East. For example, the letters between an Egyptian Queen (Ankhesenamen, the widow of Tutankhamen?) and the King of the Hittites, in which the Egyptian Queen asks for the Hittite King to send one of his sons to Egypt so that she can marry him (as her husband has died and she does not want to marry one of her subjects) is a well-known, and fascinating, story. One wonders how history would have changed if the Hittite Prince had married the Egyptian Queen (instead of being assassinated en route to Egypt).

Other sets of correspondence were not familiar to me. One of the most interesting of these, are the set of letters between Zimri-Lim (King of Mari) and a number of other Kings to whom he had married his daughters. One of the young ladies was very unhappily married and seems to have genuinely feared for her life. She was probably quite relieved when her husband divorced her and sent her home.

This book is well written and easy to read. It is full of fascinating information and tells numerous interesting tales in a very lively manner. I recommend it highly to anyone interested in ancient Near Eastern history.

The Good, the Bad and the Truly Ugly

2011-03-03T22:16:00.007-05:00

If you ever visit the Metropolitan Museum in New York City you will find some spectacular artifacts in the Egyptian collection. Off to the side of the main exhibits, the Met has some groups of small and often rarely visited objects called study areas. One of these study areas contains objects from the Met’s excavations in the Seventeenth Dynasty cemetery at Thebes. The mummiform coffins found in these excavations are quite spectacular. Spectacularly ugly that is!

These coffins are called “rishi” from the Arabic word for feathered. This is because the primary decoration of these coffins is a feathered pattern which often shows a pair of wings extending down the length of the coffins’ lid. Rishi coffins are known from the Second Intermediate period through the end of the Eighteenth Dynasty, with the best known examples coming from the tomb of Tutankhamen.

The examples from the Seventeenth Dynasty are particularly unattractive, as the attached photos will show. The coffins are carved from sycamore logs rather than from high quality cedar wood imported from what is now Lebanon. They are poorly crafted, the faces are badly carved and the painted decoration is unattractive. Often, a line of text which runs from the waist of the coffin down to the feet, contains the names and titles of the deceased. Sometimes the name of the deceased does not appear in the inscription; there is a blank space for it but the “undertaker” never bothered to fill it in.

Other decorative devices include an overly large painted “collar” worn around the neck of the coffin's lid and extending down over the chest (for some nice examples of real collars of this sort you can again look at the ones found in the tomb of Tutankhamen). Above the inscription there is often a painted representation of the goddess Nekhbet (sometimes accompanied by Uadjet).

The Seventeenth Dynasty was a period of political unrest and of declining artistic standards. Thebes was a provincial center which was possibly paying tribute to the “Hyksos” pharaohs who ruled northern Egypt. These coffins display the declining artistic standards of the period quite clearly and serve to remind us that there is more to ancient Egyptian culture than the huge statues and golden jewellery of the Pharaohs.

Khentkawes - A Female Pharaoh?

2011-02-20T15:23:00.004-05:00

In the most recent issue of World Archaeology Magazine, Mark Lehrner suggests that Khentkawes, the Fourth Dynasty wife of Menkara, may have managed to become Pharaoh after her husband's death.

The theory is based on a proposed restoration of a carving representing her, which may have shown her with a false beard and an uraeus on her brow.

Dr. Lehrner also discusses his recent excavations near her tomb at Giza, which includes the re-excavation of a small Fourth Dynasty town.

While the evidence presented for this theory is hardly overwhelming, it is interesting and worth discussing. For more information, check in at the Ancient Egypt Research Associates website.

Egypt Preparing to Ask for Nefertiti Bust (Again)

2009-12-21T23:13:00.002-05:00

Zahi Hawass, head of Egypt's antiquities service has been given copies of the documents related to the discovery of the famous bust of Queen Nefertiti by the museum in Berlin that currently has the bust. Dr. Hawass claimed on his blog today that, "These materials confirm Egypt’s contention that Borchardt did act unethically, with intent to deceive: the limestone head of the queen is listed on the protocol as a painted plaster bust of a princess".

As some readers will remember, I posted a while back that KMT Magazine had published an article indicating that there may have been deception involved in Berlin retaining the famous bust of King Akhenaten's wife, and that Egypt was likely to ask, again, for the return of this famous work of art.

The Law Code of Ur-Nammu (Part 2)

2009-11-29T21:05:00.002-05:00

In many ways the law code of Ur-Nammu was much less "heavy handed" than the later code of Hammurabi. For instance, compare this law from each code and note the different punishments:

Hammurabi (Law 127):
If a man has pointed a finger at a priestess or another man's wife but does not prove her guilty, they shall beat that man in front of the judges. In addition they may half-shave his hair (shaving a man's hair is a public humiliation).

Ur-Nammu (Law 14):
If a man accuses the wife of a young man of promiscuity but the river ordeal clears her, the man who accused her shall weigh and deliver 20 shekels of silver.

Note the differing punishments for a false accusation. In Hammurabi's code physical punishment was meted out, while in Ur-Nammu's code the penalty was an (admittedly stiff) fine.

Again note the difference in punishments in the next two laws. In Hammurabi's code the punishment is physical, while the law code of Ur-Nammu calls for a fine.

Hamurabi (Law 197):
If he has broken another man's bone, they shall break one of his bones.

Ur-Nammu (Law 19):
If a man shatters the ... bone of another man with a club, he shall weigh and deliver 40 shekels of silver.

One last example:

Hammurabi (Law 200):
If a man has knocked out the tooth of a man who is his colleague, they shall knock out his tooth.

Ur-Nammu (Law 22):
If [a man knocks out another man's] tooth with [..., he shall] weigh and deliver [X shekels of silver].

It should be noted however, that Law 201 of Hammurabi's Code does call for a fine if a man knocks out the tooth of a social inferior.

The Law Code of Ur-Nammu

2009-11-22T12:18:00.003-05:00

I mentioned in my last post that the law code of Ur-Nammu was somewhat different than the (later) law code of Hammurabi. The primary difference is in the punishments prescribed for similar offences in the two law codes. Over the next couple of posts I will try to highlight these differences by comparing laws from the two codes.

This is not to say that different punishments are always prescribed for the same crime. For instance, law one of the Ur-Nammu code reads, "If a man commits a homicide, they shall kill that man", while Law 153 of Hammurabi's code says, "If a woman has let her husband be killed because of another man, they shall stick that woman on a stake."

Law 1 of Hammurabi's code also states that if a man makes a false accusation of homicide, the accuser shall be executed.

So homicide was punishable by death in both codes, with Hammurabi's code also stipulating that false accusations of homicide were punishable by the death penalty.

Another example of similarly harsh punishments in both law codes would include law number six of Ur-Nammu's code and Hammurabi's law number 130, both of which call for the death penalty for a man who de-flowers the virgin bride of another man.

In the next post we shall look at some crimes where the punishment is very different in the two law codes.

References:
Richardson, M. E. J., "Hammurabi's Laws", Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press, 2000.

Roth, Martha, "Law Collections from Mesopotamia and Asia Minor", Atlanta: Society of Biblical Literature, 1997.

Ur-Nammu

2009-11-16T18:51:00.003-05:00

Ur-Nammu was a ruler of the city of Ur and the founder of the Third Dynasty of Ur (somewhere around 2097 – 2080 B.C.). Ur-Nammu, who reigned for about sixteen years, claimed the titles “the mighty man, King or Ur, King of Sumer and Akkad” and expanded his control from Ur to a large part of Mesopotamia.

The earliest known law code in world history dates either to the reign of Ur-Nammu or his son Shulgi. We know the contents of this code from three texts. The Nippur tablet preserves the prologue and laws 4 – 20. The Ur tablets, preserve laws 7 – 37 while the “Sippar” tablet (which may actually be from Nippur) contains the end of the prologue and the first ten laws . The law code is somewhat different from the famous law code of the Babylonian King, Hammurapi and I will do several posts soon to highlight some of the differences.

The stela pictured here was originally about five feet cross and ten feet high. It shows the god Nanna seated on a throne and holding a measuring rod and line. The god is wearing a multi layered wool garment and sitting in front of a potted (?) tree.

Many inscriptions from Ur-Nammu’s reign have survived. A large number of these texts describe the building of the walls of the city and a ziggurat which survives to this day. This ziggurat is one of the best known buildings to have survived from the ancient near east. On the north-east side of the ziggurat there are three stairways which meet at the top of the first level. The central stairway then continues up to the second level. It is uncertain if there was a third level. No remains have survived of the temple that, it is assumed, existed at the top of the ziggurat.

The Ramesses II Temple at Abydos

2009-11-15T00:52:00.003-05:00

The Egyptological Seminar of New York's November meeting took place last night and featured two speakers. Drs. Sameh Iskander and Ogden Goelet spoke about their work at the temple of Ramesses II at Abydos. Their work is a joint project between New York University and Egypt's Supreme Council of Antiquities and has been underway since 2007.

The temple has been measured and digitally photographed. The photos will eventually be posted on the Internet. A number of interesting discoveries have been made:

1) There is a very rare representation of Anubis in human form on one of the walls.

2) One object found was carved with both a representation of Bes and a Coptic Cross.

3) One of the chapels has chapter 148 of the Book of the Dead and the "Litany of Re" carved on its walls. These texts are rarely found in temples, being generally reserved for tombs.

Dr. Goelet presented evidence that indicates the temple took about six years to build. When he was asked how long it took to measure and photograph the temple, Dr. Goelet delightfully replied, "It takes longer to survey an Egyptian temple than it took to build the damn things!".

The next meting of the Egyptological Seminar will take place on Friday, January 22, 2010 at 6:30 in the Art Study Room at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. Martina Ullmann will discuss the temples of Ramesses II between the first and second cataracts of the Nile. The public is welcome to attend.

Assurnasirpal II

2009-11-08T21:00:00.008-05:00

Assurnasirpal II was the son of the Assyrian King Tukulti-Ninurta II and the father of Shalmaneser III. He is best known for his military campaigns and his building projects at his capital city of Numrud, where he built a palace and lined its walls with reliefs carved in alabaster.
Many of the palace reliefs are now in the British Museum, while others are in Munich, and Japan. These reliefs portrayed the King as a great warrior and hunter. In one scene Assyrian soldiers are using a siege tower to attack a city and in another, Assurnasirpal’s enemies are shown swimming across a river in an attempt to escape the Assyrian monarch’s army. In one of the hunting scenes some Assyrian soldiers(?) drive a lion toward the chariot of the King, who has already shot four arrows into the lion’s body.

Assurnasirpal’s reliefs often had an inscription (referred to as the “standard inscription”) on them, which traces the kings lineage back three generations, describes his military campaigns and details the boundaries of his empire. It also tells us some fascinating details about the building of the King's.

Assurnasirpal II also built a monumental gateway at Nimrud. The winged bulls, which flanked the gateway, are now in the Metropolitan Museum of Art. The head of one of these winged bulls is shown head on and in profile in the accompanying photos. Note the horned headdress and long earrings, as well as the feathers from the wings, which are carved in painstaking detail. In the face on view, notice the hair (shown as a wavy line on the bull’s forehead) right below the crown.

There is also a well known statue of Assurnasirpal in the British Museum . The statue shows the King standing rather stiffly with a scepter in one of his hands and a “cult object” in the other. His hair is elaborately curled, like the hair on the winged bull shown in the accompanying photographs.

Assurnasirpal’s military campaigns brought back a huge amount of “tribute” to the Assyrian capital. For example, the small district of Bit-Zamani yielded the following tribute:

40 chariots
460 horses
2 talents of silver
2 talents of gold
100 talents of lead
100 talents of copper
300 talents of iron
1,000 copper vessels and 2,000 copper pans
Bowls and cauldrons of copper
1,000 wool garments
2,000 head of cattle
5,000 sheep
The ruler’s sister
The daughters of the local noblemen, along with their dowries
15,000 subjects brought back to Assyria (Roux, p. 286)

Assurnasirpal frequently used terror tactics in his campaign. His inscriptions describe how he flayed his enemies alive, had them buried alive inside a wall or had them impaled on poles as a warning to others.

Gudea and Son

2009-10-31T21:03:00.009-04:00

Gudea was an Ensi, or ruler, of Lagash during the Neo-Sumerian Period (circa 2150 - 2100 B. C.).

Gudea is known to have built, or re-built, at least fifteen temples in Lagash. Two large clay cylinders have been found, which describe the work associated with re-building the temple of Ningirsu. Gudea claims to have brought craftsman from many distant lands and used the highest quality materials in his attempt to please Ningirsu. These texts also detail the elaborate religious rituals conducted before, during and after the re-building of Ningirsu's temple.

Numerous statues of Gudea have survived. Three of them (all currently in the Metropolitan Museum) are shown here.

All of these statues show Gudea with his hands clasped in front of him in a sign of piety. These statues were no doubt placed in the temples of Lagash as a reminder to the gods and goddesses of Gudea's great love for them. The seated statue shown here, bears an inscription listing the temples that Gudea built or restored during his lifetime.

Two of the statues shown here portray Gudea wearing a wool cap, while the third shows the Ensi with a bald head. These statues were carved from diorite, which is a very hard, and difficult to work with, stone.

A very different statue of Ur-Ningirsu, the son of Gudea is also shown here. While Gudea is portrayed as clean shaven, his shown is shown with a long beard. He too is shown with his hands clasped in front of him. This statue is carved from chlorite and was most likely originally set up in one of the many temples in Lagash.

(All photos copyright John Freed. Feel free to use them, but please give credit to this site).

The Met Returns a Naos Fragment to Egypt

2009-10-27T17:59:00.002-04:00

The Metropolitan Museum has purchased a fragment of a "Naos" from a collector and returned it to Egypt as a stolen antiquity. The fragment is from a shrine ("Naos") dedicated to the Dynasty 12 Pharaoh Amenemhat I, which is currently in the temple of Ptah at Karnak.

Zahi Hawas thanked the Met and mentioned that he has now recovered over 5,000 stolen artifacts since 2002, when he became head of the Egyptian Atiquities Service.

The New Issue of Archaeology Magazine

2009-10-26T20:10:00.002-04:00

There are a number of interesting items in the latest issue of Archaeology Magazine.

1) A short blurb mentions the discovery of cuneiform tablets at Tell Tayinat, a Neo-Hittite site that was sacked by Tiglath-Pileser III in 738 B. C. Some links related to the excavations of Tell Tayinat are:

http://www.utoronto.ca/tap/
http://chattahbox.com/science/2009/08/12/cuneiform-tablets-uncovered-in-2700-year-old-turkish-temple/
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/chat/2312618/posts

2) An experiment has been done which attempts to replicate the rib injury found on a Neanderthal skeleton found in Shanidar Cave (in Iraq). The findings indicate that "modern humans" may have injured the Neanderthal with a long range projectile.

3) A temple of the storm god is being excavated in Aleppo. This temple has levels covering the Hittite Empire and the Neo-Hittites and is accompanied by some good photos. One interesting orthostat that is pictured shows a "fish-man" carrying a pine cone and a bucket (symbols of purification) like those found in Assyrian reliefs.

4) Salvage archaeology is being done in the Sudan to save some sites that will be flooded by a dam being built on the Nile north of Khartoum. The site described in this report is now under water.

The Neo-Hittites

2009-10-25T22:38:00.002-04:00

Late Assyrian texts referred to the peoples in what is now northern Syria as “Hittites”, which has led to these peoples being referred to by archaeologists as the Neo-Hittites, even though there seems to have been little relationship between the earlier Hittite empire and the Neo-Hittites[1].

The Neo-Hittites lived in the area surrounding Carchemish in the ninth to seventh centuries B. C. Their art was influenced by contemporary Assyrian art, which is hardly surprising since the Assyrian Kings conducted military campaigns in this area. From the reign of Tiglathpileser III onwards, the artist of northern Syria not only used Assyrian motifs, but they executed those motifs in an Assyrian manner[2].

Neo-Hittite cities were generally circular in plan and protected by two walls, one around the whole city and a second one protecting the citadel. The “palace” had a portico with wooden columns in front of its entrance[3]. Orthostats, which are carved stone blocks used as the base of a wall, are commonly found in museums. One of these objects, originally from Tell Halaf but now in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, is shown here. It shows two human headed bulls standing under a winged sun disc and in front of a seated man who holds what looks like a flower up to his nose. The rather crude workmanship is typical of Neo-Hittite art. Another orthostat from Tell Halaf shows the two human headed bulls actually supporting the winged sun disc[4]. An excellent drawing of the citadel at Zinjirli in Frankfort’s book (p. 335) shows how these orthostats were used in constructing the walls of the fortress.

Another commonly found architectural element in Neo-Hittite building is the “guardian statue” which commonly flanked doorways in the “palaces” of the period. This type of sculpture is common in Assyrian buildings and also occurs at Bogazkoy (in what is now Turkey) when it was the capital of the “real” Hittite empire many years earlier. An interesting example of this type of sculpture is the so-called “scorpion man”. The body of the sculpture is a feathered scorpion with wings. The scorpion has a human head which has elaborately curled hair both on its scalp and on its beard[5].

The history of the Neo-Hittites is mostly one of trying to keep the Assyrians at bay. By 894 the ruler of Tell Halaf, Guzana, paid tribute to Adadnirari II of Assyria. During the regency in Assyria of Semiramis, Guzana made an attempt to shake off the Assyrian yoke, but failed. Tell Halaf was burned by the Assyrian army and became the seat of an Assyrian governor. Other Neo-Hittite cities continued the struggle, but all eventually were incorporated into the Assyrian empire.

________________
[1] Bryce, Trevor. The Kingdom of the Hittites, Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1999, p. 385.

[2] Frankfort, Henri. The Art and Architecture of the Ancient Orient, New York: Penguin Books, 1970, p. 281.

[3] Roux, Georges. Ancient Iraq, New York: Penguin Books, 3rd Ed., 1992, pp. 272 – 3.

[4] Frankfort, p. 345 (photo).

[5] Frankfort, p. 342 (photo)

A Look Inside a Mummy's Wrappings

2009-10-24T21:58:00.002-04:00

Isabel Stuenkel, an Assistant Curator at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, gave an excellent talk last night at the Egyptological Seminar of New York. The Met had one of the mummies they have in their collection run through a CAT scan machine several years ago. They asked the speaker, who is researching Egyptian amulets, to look at the literally thousands of pictures from the CAT scan to see if she could learn anything about the amulets contained in the mummy's wrappings.

The mummy of Nesmin dates to the Ptolemaic period and is in such a good state of preservation that it has never been unwrapped. Nesmin died at about the age of 40 to 45 and was a priest of the god Min.

The primary difficulty in learning anything about the amulets contained in the mummy's wrappings is that the CAT scan works by photographing a "slice" of the body about three millimeters thick. To get any idea at all about what amulet is being looked at, Ms. Stuenkel had to look at dozens of pictures showing the amulet from its lower end up to its top. Ms. Stuenkel showed several examples of this process to illustrate how difficult this is to do and to help the audience judge the accuracy of her conclusions.

Overall, the mummy seems to have contained 29 amulets. Most of the amulets were part of two necklaces on the Nesmin's chest, with one of the necklaces being a row of "Djed" pillers strung together. Two other amulets, probably representing "standing deities" were tied to Nesmin's wrist, on amulet on each wrist. The exact deity represented by the amulet could not be determined from the photos.

The talk was a fascinating look at how modern technology can be used to gather evidence without damaging a rare and valuable archaeological find.

For those of you who live in the New York City area, the next meeting of the Egyptological Seminar is on November 13. Full details can be obtained at www.esny-bes.org if you would like to attend. Membership in the Seminar includes a copy of the group's excellent 'Bulletin of the Egyptological Seminar" (BES).

Egyptian Animal Mummies

2009-10-23T10:36:00.002-04:00

The latest issue of National Geographic has an article on Egyptian Animal mummies. As is usual with the magazine, there are a lot of good photos and the article is otherwise short. The article does have some interesting content however.

The article mentions some work done by Dr. Salima Ikram on mummification. She has attempted to mummify a number of rabbits and used different methods of mummification with each. Here are the results:

1) Cover the dead rabbit in natron without removing the internal organs – this was a complete failure.
2) Remove the rabbit’s organs, stuff it with natron and cover the exterior in natron – this worked.
3) Another rabbit was stuffed with natron contained in linen bags – this resulted in much less of a “mess” (the Natron gets soggy and “disgusting” if it is put inside the corpse without the linen bag), which probably explains why linen bags filled with natron sometimes turn up embalming caches.
4) A fourth rabbit was mummified after having a turpentine and cedar oil enema to destroy its internal organs. This method of mummification was described by Herodotus and scholars have long been skeptical of the Greek historian’s description of the process. However, Herodotus may have been right, as the enema destroyed all of the internal organs except the heart (which needed to be left in the body per Egyptian religious beliefs).

The Louvre Blinks

2009-10-15T07:32:00.002-04:00

Egypt's Antiquities Service refused to renew the Louvre's excavation permit due to the Louvre's possession of wall paintings stolen several years ago from a tomb at Dra Abu el Naga. Egypt requested the return of these paintings, but authorities in Paris were, apparently not very responsive.

After the suspension of the Louvre's excavation permit, the authorities in Paris decided to return the paintings to Egypt within the next week. Needless to say, this is the right thing to do. These paintings were hacked out of a wall in a tomb and the Louvre clearly purchased stolen objects. It is unfortunate that the Louvre got scammed by a thief, but the paintings belong in Egypt.

Marrying a Concubine in Babylonia

2009-10-12T21:55:00.003-04:00

Most marriages in Babylonia were monogamous, but occasionally a man could marry a second wife. This might happen if no children were born by the first wife.

This second wife would be a concubine, not a "full" wife however. In the text translated below, it seems that the father has sold his daughter as a concubine. This might have been done to allow the father to repay a debt, although that is not explained in the text:

"Bunene-abi and Belessunu bought Shamash-Nuri, the daughter if Ibi-Shahan from Ibi-Shahan her father. To Bunene-abi she is a wife, to Belessunu she is a slave. If Shamash-Nuri says to her mistress 'You are not my mistress', she shall be sold for silver'. They weighed out X (amount of) silver for her price. Her affair is finished and his (the girl's father) heart is satisfied. In the future one man shall not contest against the other man. They swore by the life of Shamash, Marduk and Hammurapi..."

(Translated by myself, from a transcription in Huehnergard, John. "A Grammar of Akkadian", p. 232).

Broken Marriage Agreements

2009-10-10T20:55:00.002-04:00

Hammurabi's law code deals with engagements that do not lead to marriage. Law #159 covers the posibility of a man changing his mind and not marrying his intended bride:

"If, after having brought a wedding gift to the house of his father-in-law and having given him the bride-price, a man hankers after another woman and has said to his father-in-law, 'I will not marry your daughter', the father shall take away whatever he had given him for the daughter."

The father of the bride to be might be the person who changes his mind. Law #160 covers that possibility:

"If a man has brought a gift to his bride's father's house, and after he has given the bride-price the father of the girl has said, 'I shall not give you my girl,' he shall double the quantity of any gift he has brought to make recompense."

It is also possible that a neighborhood gossip could cause the wedding to not come off, and law #161 deals with that problem:

"If a man has brought a gift to his bride's father's house, and after he has given the bride-price one of his neighbors gossips about him and the father of the bride says to the bridegroom, 'You shall not take my girl,' he shall double the quantity of any gift he has brought to make recompense. In no way shall the neighbor take that wife."

(Translated by M. E. J Richardson in his book, "Hammurabi's Laws", Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press, 2000), p. 91.

An Interesting Old Babylonian Marriage Contract

2009-10-07T21:26:00.003-04:00

There is one marriage contract that is a bit unusual in that the groom apparently marries two women simultaneously. One of the women is the “junior” wife as can be seen from the translation:

“Warad-Shamash takes Taram-Sagil and Iltani, daughter of Sin-Abishu as wife and husband. If Taram-Sagil and Iltani say to Warad-Shamash ‘You are not my husband’, they shall be thrown down[1] from a tower; and if Warad-Shamash says to Tamam-Sagil and Iltani, his wives, ‘You are not my wife’, he shall forfeit the house.

Iltani shall wash the feet of Taram-Sagil. She shall carry her chair to the temple of her god. Iltani will hate whoever hates Taram-Sagil…..”

(Translated by myself from a transcription in: Huehnergard, John. "A Grammar of Akkadian", Winona Lake: Eisenbrauns, 2000; pp. 216 - 217).

___________________________
[1] The word is “innaddunishshinati” which is the “D” stem of nadum (“to throw down”) combined with the third person plural accusative pronoun “shinati”)

Marriage in Babylonia (Part 2)

2009-10-02T18:53:00.002-04:00

A marriage contract sometimes listed the dowry and bride price. For instance:

"Two garments she is wearing,
a headdress she is wearing,
one bed,
three chairs,
one basin of 4 liters filled with oil,
one round basket of four sheahs filled (with) food,
all this Atanah-illi, her father, the son of Silli-Shamash gives to his daughter Sihar-tilluk, the egitum (egitum seems to be a title of some sort) for the house of Zimer-Shamash (the father of the groom) for Warad-Ulmashshitum his son. Five shekels of silver is her bride price.....".

The text goes on to say that if the bride ever says "You are not my husband" to the groom, she will be sold. If the groom ever repudiates his new wife he will be required to pay 2/3 mina of silver.

Then the bride and groom swore the customary oath by Marduk, Shamash and the King in front of witnesses.

(Translated by myself from a transcript in: Huehnergard, John "A Grammar of Akkadian", p. 403).

Marriage in Babylonia

2009-09-28T22:24:00.002-04:00

Marriage between a man and a woman was arranged by the respective fathers, often while the couple were still children. Marriage was usually monogamous, although under certain circumstances a man could take a second wife or concubine.

The bride's father sent a dowry to the new home of his daughter, while the groom's father paid a "bride's price". The dowry was often in the form of furniture and clothes rather than silver or gold. The bride price was typically paid in silver. Both the bride price and the dowry were sometimes paid in installments until the couple had their first child, at which point both families were required to make payment in full. After the marriage a feast was often held to celebrate the event.

Legal documents were drawn up to make the marriage "legal". One ancient text says, "If a man marries the daughter of another man without the consent of her father and mother, and moreover does not conclude the wedding feast and contract for her father and mother, even if she lives in his house for a full year, she is not a wife!" (see: Nemet-Nejat, Karen R., "Daily Life in Ancient Mesopotamia", Westport: The Greenwood Press, 1998, p. 133). A fairly typical wedding contract follows:

"Rimum, son of Shamhatum, takes Bashtum, daughter of Usibitum, in marriage (literally as husband and wife). If Bashtum says to Rimum her husband, 'You are not my husband', Bashtum shall be thrown into the river. If Rimum says to Bashtum, his wife, 'You are not my wife', he shall pay (a certain amount of) silver. They shall swear by the name of (the god) Shamash and (the King) Shamsu-iluna". A list of witnesses then followed (translated by myself from a transcription published in: Huehneraged, John "A Grammar of Akkadian", Winona Lake: Eisenbrauns, 2000, p. 166)

Notice the much more severe penalty the bride would pay for renouncing her husband. This is typical in Akkadian marriage contracts.

Mysteries of the Ancient World

2009-09-21T14:45:00.002-04:00

Smithsonian Magazine has just published a special edition magazine entitled "Mysteries of the Ancient World". The magazine consists of thirteen articles dealing with different aspects of ancient history. The articles are written for a lay audience and are not meant for experts in the field.

There are several articles on Ancient Egypt, including one on Hatshepsut, another on the underwater archaeology being done at Alexandria and another discussing the recent CAT scan done on King Tutankhamen's mummy in an attempt to determine the probable cause of his death.

The most interesting article in the magazine (to me anyway) is one describing the ongoing excavation of the funerary temple of the Eighteenth Dynasty Pharaoh Amenhotep III. When I was last there, the only portion of the temple that was visible were the huge "Colossi of Memnon" statues that originally stood at the front entrance of the temple. The article describes the finds that have been made there, including the discovery of numerous statues of the goddess Sekhemkhet (as if there were not already enough of these statues in museum collections around the world!). The article also has a well done computer reconstruction of what the temple probably looked like in ancient times.

The magazine also includes articles on Petra (in modern Jordan), Machu Picchu (Peru), Easter Island, The Parthenon (Athens), the vikings and the Anasazi (southwest United States).

New Tomb in the Valley of the Kings?

2009-09-12T20:39:00.003-04:00

Zahi Hawass has posted the results of some recent excavation work in the Valley of the Kings which includes what MAY be a new tomb. There is an interesting video on this topic on Dr. Hawass' website at this link.

Prince Khaemwaset, the World’s First Archaeologist

2009-09-10T23:48:00.001-04:00

Prince Khaemwaset was a son of the Egyptian King Ramesses II and Queen Isetneferet[1]. He acquired a reputation as a scholar that lasted until Greco-Roman times, when he was made the hero of a cycle of stories[2].

Ramesses II took Khaemwaset on a military campaign in Nubia early in his reign[3]. The Prince later became the High Priest of Ptah and was crown prince at the time of his death.

As High Priest of Ptah, Khaemwaset was responsible for the burial of the sacred Apis bulls in the Serapeum at Saqqara[4]. At Saqqara, the Prince restored a number of Old Kingdom monuments, including the Pyramid of Unas[5].

Mariette, the famous French archaeologist, found a chamber in the Serapeum that held two huge coffins, four canopic jars and a tall wooden statue of the god Osiris. It also contained two wooden shrines with scenes of Ramesses Ii and Khaemwaset making offerings to an Apis bull (the Serapeum is the burial place of the Apis bulls). Two large ushabtis of Khaemwaset were found in a niche in the South wall[6]. Some archeologists believe that the burial of Khaemwaset has been found in the Serapeum, but most archaeologists no longer accept this idea.

Khaemwaset’s work in restoring the monuments of the Old Kingdom have led to some referring to him as the world’s first archaeologist.

____________
[1] Shaw, Ian. Ed., The Oxford History of Ancient Egypt, Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2000.

[2] Dodson, Aiden and Dyan Hilton, The Complete Royal Families of Ancient Egypt, London: Thames and Hudson, 2004, p. 171.

[3] Shaw, p. 302

[4] Shaw, p. 302

[5] Dodson, Aiden and Salima Ikram, The Tomb in Ancient Egypt, London: Thames and Hudson, 2008, p. 56.

[6] Reeve, Nicholas, Ancient Egypt: The Great Discoveries, London: Thames and Hudson, 2000, p. 43

Nabonidus, Babylonian King and Archaeologist

2009-09-03T11:57:00.002-04:00

Nabonidus (556 – 539 B. C.) was the last of the Neo-Babylonian Kings. He was the son of a nobleman named Nabu-balatsu-iqbi and a votress of the god Sin from the city of Harran[1]. His predecessor, Labashi-Marduk, was overthrown by a group of conspirators who placed Nabonidus on the throne in his place[2].

Nabonidus spent a large portion of his reign restoring temples and collecting antiquities found during the course of this restoration work. Bertman has called him “the world’s first archaeologist”[3] (although the Egyptian Prince Khaemwaset would probably be a better claimant to that title). Near a wall built at Ur by Nebuchadnezzar, one of Nabonidus’ Neo-Babylonian predecessors, Leonard Woolley found a headless diorite statue from a much earlier period in history. Woolley speculates that this may be one of the antiquities collected at Ur by Nabonidus[4] in the home of his daughter, who was a priestess there.

Woolley also found hidden in the brickwork of Ur’s ziggurat some clay cylinders with inscriptions from the reign of Nabonidus. The inscriptions stated that Nabonidus had completed the Ziggurat, which had been started centuries earlier by Ur-Nammu and his son Shulgi[5]. There is also a record of Nabonidus finding the foundation deposit of Naram-Sin while restoring the ziggurat[6]. Another text relates how Nabonidus, while restoring a shrine, found the foundation deposit of Nebuchadnezzar (604 - 562 B. C.)[7].

Nabonidus had the misfortune to rule at the same time as Cyrus II of Persia. Nabonidus allied himself with Cyrus against the Medes and soon found his ally was every bit as dangerous as the Medes. For some reason Nabonidus spent most, if not all of the years three through eleven of his reign outside of Babylon, possibly as far away as what is now Saudi Arabia[8]. During this time Cyrus gathered his strength and Nabonidus soon saw Babylon incorporated into the Persian Empire.
_______________

[1] Roux, Georges. Ancient Iraq, New York: Penguin Books, 1992, p. 381

[2] Roux, p. 381

[3] Bertman, Stephen. Handbook to Life in Ancient Mesopotamia, New York: Facts on File, 2003, p. 47

[4] Woolley, Leonard, and E. R. S. Moorey. Ur of the Chaldees, Ithaca: Cornell University Press, revised 2nd
edition, 1982, p. 123

[5] Woolley, p. 142

[6] Woolley, p. 228

[7] Woolley, p. 223

[8] Roux, p. 385

Ibn Battuta, World Traveller

2009-08-29T11:20:00.002-04:00

Ibn Battuta is one of the greatest travellers of all time. Born in 1304 and a near contemporary of Marco Polo's, he would eventually visit North and West Africa, Mecca, Southern and Eastern Europe, Constantinople, India, Central Asia, Southeast Asia and China. Some scholars have questioned if he really visited all these places (just as some scholars question whether or not Herodotus actually travelled as much as he claimed to have). Ibn Battuta dictated the story of his travels, a manuscript of which has survived to today and is usually referred to as "Rihla" (Voyage).

He visited the Ruins of Nineveh and described its walls and gates. He also saw the Giza Pyramids and the Pharos lighthouse in Alexandria. He described the Pharos lighthouse as:

"...a very high square building, and its door is above the level of the earth. Opposite the door, and of the same height, is a building from which there is a plank bridge to the door; if this is removed there is no means of entrance. Inside the door is a place for the lighthouse-keeper, and within the lighthouse there are many chambers. The breadth of the passage inside is nine spans and that of the wall ten spans; each of the four sides of the lighthouse is 140 spans in breadth. It is situated on a high mound and lies three miles from the city on a long tongue of land which juts out into the sea from close by the city wall, so that the lighthouse cannot be reached by land except from the city. On my return to the West in the year 750 [1349] I visited the lighthouse again, and found that it had fallen into so ruinous a condition that it was not possible to enter it or climb up to the door." (http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/source/1354-ibnbattuta.html)

Ibn Battuta is almost completely forgotten today, even in the Islamic world. This is unfortunate, as his life was a full and fascinating one.

A large portion of his book are available in English translation at: http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=zKqn_CWTxYEC

A full biography of Ibn Battuta is: Dunn, Ross. The Adventures of Ibn Battuta", University of California Press, 1986.

Gertrude Bell, Shaper of Nations and Archaeologist

2009-08-28T17:31:00.002-04:00

I thought it might be interesting to do a series of biographical sketches of people who have contributed to Near Eastern Archaeology. Anyone can find their way to a biography of Flinders Petrie or Howard Carter, so I thought that mentioning some lesser known, but still very important archaeologists might be in order.

Gertrude Bell (7/14/1868 - 7/12/1926) was a British writer, traveller, political analyst and archaeologist. She is today best remembered for her role is creating the Hashemite Dynasty in Jordan and for drawing the borders of modern Iraq, but it is her work as an archaeologist that concerns us here.

She was educated at Oxford University and travelled to Persia (modern Iran) to se her uncle, Sir Frank Lascelles, who was the British Minister in Tehran. She wrote the book "Persian Pictures" about her experiences on this trip.

Miss Bell became fascinated with the Middle East and would visit the Hittite city of Carchemish, Palmyra, Jerusalem, Cairo and Babylon. She advised archaeologists working at Carchemish, one of whom was T. E. Lawrence (Lawrence of Arabia). She also founded the Baghdad Archaeological Museum (which opened in June of 1926) and was given the title "Honorary Director of Antiquities". Some of her archaeological work was published in the "Reveue Archaologique". Her archaeological work with Sir William Ramsey was published by her in the book "A Thusand and One Churches".

Gertrude Bell was also a mountain climber (in the Rockies and the Alps) and visited Shanghai, Tokyo, India and Seoul among many other places in her full and fascinating life.

Biographies:
Wallach, Janet. "Desert Queen: the Extraordinary Life of Gertrude Bell", Random House, 1999.
Howell, Georgina. "Gertrude Bell: Queen of the Desert", Farrar, Strauss and Giroux, 2007.

A Visit to Memphis (Part 2)

2009-08-27T15:10:00.007-04:00

There are a few other interesting things to see at Memphis. For instance, there is a calcite sphinx of Queen Hatshepsut (Dynasty 18). The photo to the left will give you some idea of the size of the sphinx. The statue was found laying on it's side, and the damage caused by water is clearly visible on the left side of this photo.

Another interesting object is what looks like part of a pillar. The sunk relief carvings are clearly 18th Dynasty. The king's name is badly defaced, but MIGHT be Men-Kheper-Ra (Tuthmose III).

The largest object still to be seen, is a huge statue of (who else?) Ramesses II. The statue has been enclosed in a building to protect it from the elements. The photos clearly show the size of the statue, which is broken off at the knees. The statue shows Ramesses wearing a Nemes headdress surmounted by a double crown (?) that has also been broken off. A large dagger is also represented at the King's waist.

A Visit to Memphis

2009-08-26T15:12:00.010-04:00

The ruins of the ancient Egyptian capital of Memphis do not compare to the Giza Pyramids or the Valley of the Kings as a tourist destination, but most tours of Egypt visit Memphis for a half day and there are some interesting things to see.

For instance, there is a Dynasty 26 embalming site that was probably once a part of a major temple. It is thought that the Apis bulls were mummified here before being buried at Sakkara. The attached photos show a general view of the embalming area (Photo 1), a view of a large embalming table (photo 2) that had a drain on one end to let any fluids from the embalming process flow off the table (photo 3).

There is also a row of small embalming tables (?) nearby which are decorated with a carved image of a lion headed "couch" similar to the one found in the Antechamber of the tomb of Tutankhamen (photos 4 and 5).

Dynasty 26 is not the best known dynasty in Egyptian history. It was founded somewhere around 650 B. C., by an official who served under the Assyrian Kings after their invasion of Egypt, an invasion which pushed the Nubian Kings out of Egypt. Psamtik I started out with a powerbase in the Delta, from which he expanded his empire until he had re-united the country. The dynasty ended with the Persian invasion of Egypt by Cambyses.

Using Scarabs to Build Chronologies

2009-08-24T23:14:00.002-04:00

As I have mentioned several times in the past, I am not a big fan of using scarab styles and decorations to reconstruct the history of Egypt's Second Intermediate Period. My concerns are based on:

1) Style and decoration are very subjective criteria to use
2) It has been done several times in the past and none of the scholars involved agree with each other (Stock and Ward among others). This is probably caused by #1.

The reason I raise this issue is that another scholar has tried to construct a sequence of Kings for the the Second Intermediate Period based in large part on scarabs. Dr. K. Ryholt has proposed that Mayibre Sheshi be put into the Fourteenth Dynasty (rather than the Fifteenth as most scholars place him) and bases this, in part on the style and decoration of Sheshi's scarabs.

Dr. Ryholt's arguments are plausible and cannot be easily refuted, but as long as they are based on scarab seriation, I am going to be a little sceptical. Hopefully more evidence will be found in the future to decide this one way or the other. In the meantime, interested readers should check the sources listed below to follow the arguments being made.

See:
Ryholt, K. The Political Situation in Egypt During the Second Intermediate Period, Copenhagen: University of Copenhagen, 1997.

Stock, H. Studien zur Geschichte und Archaeologie der 13 bis 17 Dynastie Aegyptens, unter besonderer Beruecksichtigung der Skarabaen dieser Zwischenzeit (AF 12, Gluckstadt 1942).

Tufnell, Olga. Studies on Scarab Seals II, Warminster, 1984.

Ward, W. Studies on Scarab Seals, I, Warmister: Aris & Phillips Ltd., 1978.

Another Mummy "Unwrapped"

2009-08-20T21:12:00.002-04:00

A mummy is being unwrapped via computer imaging in the lab of the Stanford University Medical School. There will also be a special museum exhibit dedicated to this project

The Political Situation in Egypt (a Review)

2009-08-18T18:08:00.002-04:00

"The Political Situation in Egypt During the Second Intermediate Period" is a major study of the Second Intermediate Period and has become one of the most frequently cited works on the period in print.

Dr. K. Ryholt has put together a masterpiece of scholarly research. He has sorted through mounds of unclear and contradictory evidence to produce a comprehensive survey of one of the most obscure periods of Ancient Egyptian history. Many of his conclusions differ from those of previous scholars, but given the material archaeologists have to work with, this should come as no surprise.

Perhaps the most important new view Dr.Ryholt has of the period is his reconstruction of the Turin Canon, which is based in part on re-arranging some of the Papyrus' fragments based on the lining up of fibers within those fragments . He has concluded that the list of Pharaohs that many scholars (myself included) considered to be the Seventeenth Dynasty, are actually the Sixteenth Dynasty and that the Pharaohs of the Seventeenth Dynasty are not on the Turin Canon. This has led Dr. Ryholt to reconstruct the order of Kings in Dynasty 17 in a very different way than I have in this blog (see here for the first of a number of posts on this topic).

Another interesting conclusion made in this book is that Mayibre Sheshi, who is usually considered to be one of the six Hyksos Pharaohs of the Fifteenth Dynasty is actually a Pharaoh of the Fourteenth Dynasty. This claim is based on scarab sequencing. I have argued that using scarabs to reconstruct history is difficult, bordering on impossible and have not changed my viewpoint any. Hopefully more evidence will be found to prove or disprove this idea.

Dr. Ryholt has also included a full catalog of attestations of the kings of this period on various monuments. The bibliography is also quite good.

This work is a great addition to the bookshelf of anyone interested in the Second Intermediate Period.

Snefru Built How Many Pyramids?

2009-08-11T08:55:00.002-04:00

In the latest post Dr. Zahi Hawass made on his blog he says "King Sneferu of the Fourth Dynasty built three monumental pyramids during his lifetime, and a fourth smaller step pyramid at Seila in the Faiyum."

I have never heard anyone else attribute the pyramid Seila to Snefru. I have seen it attributed to Huni, but not Snefru. Something feels wrong here. How could one Pharaoh build four pyramids?

I have found a few links that seem worth looking at. Ths are not "scholarly" sites, but they are definately worth a look:

1) Tour Egypt
2) A short biopgraphy of Huni
3) Some photos of Seila

Herod's Tomb Found?

2009-08-10T08:38:00.002-04:00

Archaeologist Ehud Netzer believes that he has found the tomb of Herod at Herodium (7 miles south of Jerusalem). Herod was a notorius King of the Judea who was born around 73 B. C., who was believed to be responsible for the murder of many people, including members of his own family.

This month's issue of Smithsonian Magazine has a cover article on the discovery of the tomb. There is also an article on the internet here.

The Location of Avaris (Part 6)

2009-08-02T18:28:00.002-04:00

To this point the majority of the evidence we have looked at is of Ramesside, rather than Second Intermediate Period, date. Thus the identification of Avaris as either Tanis or Kantir / Tell ed-Dab’a rests on the tenuous theory that the two sites were one and the same in ancient times. Proof of a Second Intermediate Period occupation of Kantir would thus be required to help solidify Kantir’s claim to be the site of Avaris.

A second Intermediate Period occupation of the area has recently been found at Tell ed-Dab’a by a team of archaeologists led by Manfred Bietak. These excavations have revealed a Canaanite city within the borders of Egypt; Bietak has divided the site into twelve occupation levels, the earliest of which dates to the end of the Middle Kingdom. The culture of that level (Level H) is a mixture of Egyptian and Canaanite, as is evidenced by the houses being Egyptian in style but with the burials being a mixture of Egyptian and Levantine styles[1]. It should be pointed out that the burials were found within the living area of the city, something which is completely non-Egyptian[2]. Level F is purely Canaanite, with tombs often including donkey burials, and has been dated to the Second Intermediate Period by Bietak[3]. In level E there are temples built along Levantine lines which include altars with remnants of burnt offerings, while the burials show no Egyptian influence and are often located under the door of a house[4]. In the latter part of Level D there are signs of the return of Egyptian influence; this is probably to be dated to the very end of the Second Intermediate Period[5]. The burials of this period are often quite lavish, with those of Level D3 (the earliest part of this level) showing Levantine influence. These burials often include beautiful gold diadems like the so-called “stag-crown” in the Metropolitan Museum of Art[6].

If Tell ed-Dab’a is indeed Avaris / Pi-Ramesse, then one would expect a hiatus in its occupation from the end of Dynasty Seventeen until the beginning of the Ramesside Period, and that is precisely what Bietak has found[7]. Stratum B seems to date from the reign of Horemheb and contains a temple of Seth[8], an important point in view of the fact that both Avaris and Pi-Ramesse should contain such a temple. If this is the actual site of Pi-Ramesse, one would not be surprised to see the occupation of this site end with the beginning of Dynasty 21, when Tanis was built and this is precisely what happened[9].

______________
[1] Manfred Bietak, Avaris and Pi-Ramesse, (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1979), p. 238.

[2] Bietak, p. 238.

[3] Bietak, p. 238.

[4] Bietak, pp. 247 – 61.

[5] Bietak, p. 237.

[6] Bietak, p. 263.

[7] Bietak, p. 273.

[8] Bietak, p. 270.

[9] Bietak, p. 237.

The Location of Avaris (Part 5)

2009-07-30T23:44:00.002-04:00

What archaeological evidence is there to support the theory that Kantir / Tell ed-Dab’a was the location of Pi-ramesse / Avaris? Excavations at Kantir have revealed a wealth of material from the Ramesside Period, which proves the existence of a large occupation site in the area. Hundreds of glazed tiles (as well as the molds used to make them) have been found. These glazed tiles once formed a part of a palace of Ramesses II[1]. There is also a well with the name of Ramesses II at Kantir, as well as scarabs of Khian, Tell el-Yahudieh pottery and a stela of a Hyksos princess named Tany[2]. The area around Kantir has yielded two statues of Sobekneferu and one of Aamu-Sahor-Nedjheritef (both of Dynasty Thirteen) as well as pyramidions of two Thirteenth Dynasty Pharaohs[3]. It is possible that the statues and pyramidions may not be in situ, but the well and smaller objects (such as the scarabs, tiles and molds) must be in situ as these small objects are not the kind of things that later builders would cart away to another site and the well of course could not have been moved for fairly obvious reasons. Further, there are foundation deposits from the reign of Ramesses II at Kantir (again, the kind of things which must be in situ)[4]. To further strengthen the case it can be added that a temple of Seth is known to have existed at Kantir[5].

Thus emerges a scenario where two separate sites both contain sufficient archaeological evidence (let us temporarily ignore the literary evidence) to lay claim to being Pi-ramesse / Avaris. If a strong case could be made for the evidence in one of these two sites having been brought to that site long after both the Second Intermediate Period and the Ramesside Period had ended, it would surely strengthen the case of the rival site. Save-Soderbergh[6], van Seeters[7], and Habachi[8] are surely correct in claiming that the Hyksos and Ramesside objects at Tanis are not in situ, and were brought to the site no earlier than Dynasty 21 (it should be pointed out that even Gardiner, who supported the designation of Tanis as the site of Pi-Ramesse, was willing to admit that many of the Ramesside objects at Tanis were not in situ[9]). The evidence to support this is readily available. Most telling of all is the fact that there are no pre-Dynasty XXI occupation levels at Tanis. Nor are there any small objects (like pottery, scarabs and private stelae) dating earlier than Dynasty XXI and there are no foundation deposits dating any earlier than the Twenty-first Dynasty[10].

Is it possible that the material which was found in the vicinity of Kantir and which dates to the Second Intermediate Period or the Ramesside Period could have been brought from elsewhere? Much of the material in question can be proven to be in its original location at Kantir. As mentioned above, people do not move wells from one city to another, and it is highly unlikely that small objects such as the glazed tiles and the molds used to make them would be so transported. Furthermore, there is no evidence that Kantir was occupied later than Ramesside times[11], which would make it unlikely tat Ramesside monuments were moved there by later Kings. In solving this question one must ignore the large, showy objects used by Montet to make his case for Tanis (as these are precisely the most likely objects to be moved to a new site by later pharaohs), and instead concentrate on the small, clearly in situ, objects used by Habachi, van Seeters and others to prove the presence of the Ramesside kings at Kantir.

____________________
[1] William Hayes, Glazed Titles from a Palace of Ramesses II at Kantir, (New York: Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1937), p. 5 and passim.

[2] Van Seeters, pp. 134 – 5.

[3] Van Seeters, p. 133.

[4] Hayes, pp. 5 – 7.

[5] Hayes, p. 7.

[6] T. Save-Soderbergh, “The Hyksos Rule in Egypt,” Journal of Egyptian Archaeology 37 (1951): p. 64.

[7] Van Seeters, pp. 130 – 1.

[8] Habachi, L. Second Stela of Kamose. Gluckstadt: Verlag J. J. Augustin, 1972, p. 61.

[9] Gardiner, Alan. “Tanis and Pi’ramesse: a Retraction”, Journal of Egyptian Archaeology, vol. 19, 1933, , p. 124.

[10] Van Seeters, p. 131 and Habachi, p. 61.

[11] Van Seeters, p. 136.

The Location of Avaris (Part 4)

2009-07-28T12:18:00.003-04:00

There is another piece of evidence against the designation of Tanis as Pi-ramesse. An ancient list of Delta cities published by Golenscheff counts Tanis and Pi-ramesse as separate cities, a fact which Gardiner could not explain[1]. Montet argued that this list is confused, and that its listing of Tanis and Pi-ramesse as separate cities is not to be trusted[2]. It seems best, however, to take the Golenscheff list literally and state that Tanis and Pi-ramesse are listed as separate cities because they were separate cities.

If the evidence for Tanis being Pi-ramesse is inconclusive at best, what is the evidence for Kantir? Ancient sources (Papyrus Anatasi III) describe Pi-ramesse as a beautiful area filled with figs, pomegranates, apples and olives and, most importantly , it claims that Pi-ramesse has a harbor[3]. The Kamose Stela describes Kamose’s sacking the “hundreds of ships”[4] of the Hyksos at Avaris, and this strongly suggests a harbor. The area around Kantir is today one of the agriculturally richest in Egypt while the area around Tanis is a barren wasteland of salt flats incapable of supporting the lush vegetation described in ancient texts. The area of Tanis seems to have been, during the Ramesside period, and area of lagoons reached with great difficulty and incapable of having a large harbor, while Tell ed-Dab’a has a harbor along its North side[5].

Another textual reference to Pi-ramesse is that of Abbess Aetheria (who traveled in the area in AD. 533 – 540), who claims that there were only four Roman miles between Faqus (the location of which we know for certain today) and Pi-ramesse. The city of Faqus is only four Roman miles from Tell ed-Dab’a[6]. Furthermore, on the wall of the temple of Ptah is a list of Lower Egyptian districts upon which Tanis and Avaris are mentioned as separate places[7]. This now gives us a text listing Pi-ramesse and Tanis as separate places and a text listing Avaris and Tanis as separate places. This second text casts further doubt upon Montet’s assertion that the Golenscheff list is confused, as both lists must be “confused “ if one of them is.

________________
[1] Ray Weill, “The Problem of the Site of Avaris,” Journal of Egyptian Archaeology 21 (1935): p. 18.

[2] Weill, p. 17.

[3] Van Seeters, John, The Hyksos (New Haven: Yale University Press, 1966), pp. , pp. 137 – 9.

[4] Habachi, Labib, Second Stela of Kamose (Gluckstadt: Varlag J. J. Augustin, 1972), , p. 49.

[5] Van Seeters, pp. 139 – 41.

[6] Van Seeters, pp. 148 9.

[7] Weill, p. 21.

The Location of Avaris (Part 3)

2009-07-26T23:49:00.002-04:00

There is one other piece of evidence in favor of Tanis being the site of Pi-Ramesse / Avaris, and that is Gardiner’s assertion that there are more monuments from the Ramesside Period at Tanis than at any other city in Egypt other than Thebes, but that if Tanis is not Pi-Ramesse then there are no Ramesside literary references to Tanis known[1]. This is a major point and any attempt to prove that Tanis was not Pi-Ramesse must explain this seeming paradox.

This collection of evidence in favor of Tanis being Avaris / Pi-Ramesses is not without its flaws. Montet’s emendation of Manetho to make the text read Sethroite instead of Saite is possible[2], but it must be pointed out that no emendation is necessary if Kantir / Tell-ed-Daba is the site of Avaris. Emending a text to fit a theory is not a good practice, especially when leaving the test unchanged yields sensible results.

In regard to Montet’s assertion that the burials beneath the temple walls prove Levantine influence there are two points to be considered. These burials do show Levantine influence, but Montet has not proved that these burials date to the Hyksos Period. That they were under a wall proves that they were contemporary with or earlier than that wall, but without other evidence no assertion as to their exact date can be made. As will be seen when the evidence at Tell-ed-Dab’a is examined, there is far more evidence for Levantine influence there than at Tanis and that this material can be precisely dated to the Second Intermediate Period.

The monuments at Tanis bearing inscriptions from the Second Intermediate Period are rare and probably not in situ[3]. Montet’s usage of two statues bearing inscriptions referring to Seth, Lord of Avaris to prove that Tanis was Avaris is highly questionable. First of all, there is a statue at Tell el-Moqdam which also refers to Seth, Lord of Avaris, while at Bubastis there are many blocks mentioning Seth[4]. Also, there are many objects bearing the names of Hyksos pharaohs Khian and Apopis at Bubastis[5]. Thus it seems clear that the mere presence of an object bearing either the name of a Hyksos pharaoh or of the god Seth does not prove that the site where the object was found is Avaris.

Montet is certainly correct when he states that the Four Hundred Year Stela must have been erected in a major cut center of Seth, but it must be stressed that there is no evidence that the cult center was at Tanis rather than somewhere else. It must be remembered that Egyptian pharaohs often took the monuments of other kings and moved them to other sites as a way of “filling” a newly built city faster than could be done if they depended entirely on the production of their own artisans. This practice would potentially be even more common in the Delta (where there is a complete lack of local building stone) than it was in Upper Egypt, where such transportation of objects is quite common in spite of the widespread availability of excellent building stone. One example of this which can be cited is the re-use at Hermopolis of stone blocks originally erected at Tell el-Amarna[6].

________________
[1] Ray Weill, “The Problem of the Site of Avaris,” Journal of Egyptian Archaeology 21 (1935): , p.18.

[2] Weill, p. 13.

[3] Habachi, Labib, Second Stela of Kamose (Gluckstadt: J. J. Augustin, 1972),, p. 61.

[4] Habachi, p. 60.

[5] Habachi, p. 60.

[6] Cooney, John, Amarna Reliefs from Hermopolis in American Collections (New York: Brooklyn Museum, 1964), p. 2.

The 400 Year Stela

2009-07-26T07:50:00.004-04:00

The Four Hundred Year Stela (mentioned in my last post) is such an interesting find that it calls for extended discussion. This object is a large slab of stone erected by Ramesses II to commemorate the four-hundredth anniversary of the establishment of the reign of the god “Seth, Great of Power, the Ombite”[1]. Originally this stela had been interpreted as referring to a Hyksos Pharaoh named Seth[2], but in interpreting the name as that of a god Kurt Sethe is clearly correct. Sethe also concluded that this anniversary did not occur during the reign of Ramesses II but rather somewhat earlier, during the reign of Horemhab[3]. If we count backwards four hundred years from the reign of Horemhab, we arrive at a point somewhere during the Second Intermediate Period.

This would place the founding of Avaris at about the time we would expect, provided that it could be proven that this stela referred to the foundation of Avaris. However, this stela does not mention Avaris at all (nor does it mention Tanis). Junker argues that the Hyksos built Avaris on an existing site[4] but points out that Manetho’s report contradicts itself by claiming first that the Hyksos founded Avaris and by then later claiming that they built their capital at a previously existing site[5]. Thus the Four Hundred Year Stela cannot be used to clear up Manetho’s contradiction as to whether or not the Hyksos founded Avaris. Nevertheless, Montet claimed that such an impressive and important stela must have been erected in the main cult center of Seth[6].

Some of this has been completely accepted by scholars over the course of time. Everyone, myself included, accepts that this stela was erected in a major cult center of Seth. But some scholars (and I am one of them) do not accept that the 400 Year Stela has anything at all to do with the founation of Avaris. For an interesting, if speculative, re-appraisal of the 400 Year Stela see: Hans Goedicke, "The 400 Year Stela Reconsidered", Bulletin of the Egyptological Seminar, Vol. 3, (1981).

Also, even though this stela was found at Tanis, that does not mean that Ramesess II originally had the stela erected there. I will have more to say about objects being moved to Tanis from other sites in future posts.
________________
[1] Kurt Sethe, “Der Denkstein mit dem Datum des Jahres 400 der Ara von Tanis,” Zeitscrift Fur Aegyptische Sprache 65 (1930): p. 85.

[2] Sethe, p. 86.

[3] Sethe, p. 86.

[4] Junker, Junker, H. “Phnfr”, Zeitscrift fur Aegyptische Sprache, vol. 75, 1939, p. 80.

[5] Junker, p. 80.

[6] Weill, Weill, R. “The Problem of the Site of Avaris”, Journal of Egyptian Archaeology, vol. 21,
1935, p. 13.

The Location of Avaris (Part 2)

2009-07-25T07:32:00.002-04:00

The location of the Hyksos capital of Avaris has long been discussed by Egyptologists. The sites suggested include Heliopolis (Weill)[1], Tell-el-Yahudieh (Petrie)[2], Pelusium (Gardiner)[3], Tanis (Montet)[4], and Kantir / Tell-ed-Daba (Habachi[5], van Seeters[6], Hayes[7], and Bietak[8]). To complicate the matter further is the theory that the later capital of Pi-Ramesse was built during the Nineteenth Dynasty upon the abandoned site of Avaris; thus any discussion of the location of Avaris must include a discussion of the location of Pi-Ramesse.

It must be stated from the start that the equating of Pi-Ramesse and Avaris is based on very slim evidence. Both cities had Seth as their primary deity, and ancient literary sources claim that both cities were located upon the Pelusaic branch of the Nile River[9]. This is enough to suggest the equation of the cities and most Egyptologists accept this theory, but it must be stressed that the theory is by no means proven as of yet.

Most of the above listed sites have been abandoned as suggested locations for the city of Avaris. The evidence at Tell-el-Yahudieh is not enough to compare with other proposed locations, Weill has retracted his suggestion of Heliopolis[10], and Gardiner has retracted his proposal of Pelusium in favor of Tanis[11]. This leaves only Tanis and Kantir / Tell-ed-Daba as proposed locations for Avaris. The following discussion will take the form of listing the evidence in favor of Tanis (both pro and con) and then making a case for Kantir / Tell-ed-Daba.

Tanis was identified as the location of Avaris as early as the middle of the nineteenth century when de Rouge recorded a mention of Seth, Lord of Avaris on Tanite monuments. De Rouge claimed that the designation Seth, Lord of Avaris was frequent on monuments found at Tanis[12]. Weill points out that this is an exaggeration as there are presently only two monuments known from Tanis with a mention of Seth, Lord of Avaris on them[13].

In 1930 Montet identified Tanis as Pi-Ramesse / Avaris[14] and this identification was supported by Junker[15]. Montet’s evidence was summarized by Weill[16]and will be discussed here at length.

First Montet took a passage from the writings of Manetho, which claimed that Pi-Ramesse was located in the Saite Nome, emended Manetho’s text to read “Sethroite” Nome, and then, quoting Strabo and Herodatus, claimed that the Sethroite Nome was the same as the Tanite Nome[17].

Secondly, Montet points out an example of Levantine influence at Tanis by showing that the main temple is surrounded by a wall and that below this wall were found two skeletons (one inside a large pottery jar). Montet called these skeletons a “foundation sacrifice” and points out (quite correctly) that the Egyptians did not have this custom even though it is well attested in Canaan[18].

Montet’s third point is that inscriptions from both the Hyksos Period and the Ramesside Period occur at Tanis[19], while his fourth is the presence of the Four Hundred Year Stela at Tanis[20].

________________
[1] Ray Weill, “The Problem of the Site of Avaris,” Journal of Egyptian Archaeology 21 (1935): p 10.

[2] Weill, sources cited therein, p. 10.

[3] Weill, sources cited therein, p. 11.

[4] Weill, sources cited therein, p. 11.

[5] Habachi, Labib, Second Stela of Kamose (Gluckstadt: J. J. Augustin, 1972), pp. 60 – 3.

[6] Van Seeters, John, The Hyksos (New Haven: Yale University Press, 1966), pp. 127 – 150.

[7] Hayes, William, Glazed Tiles from a Palace of Ramesses II at Kantir (New York: Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1937), p. 5.

[8] Bietak, Manfred, Tell el-Dab’a II (Vienna: Akademie der Wissenschaften, 1975), pp 128 – 9.

[9] Habachi, Stela, p. 60.

[10] Weill, p. 10.

[11] Alan Gardiner, “Tanis and Pi-Ra’messe: a Retraction,” Journal of Egyptian Archaeology 19 (1933): pp: 122- 8.

[12] Weill, p. 10.

[13] Weill, p. 10.

[14] Weill, p. 12.

[15] Herman Junker, “Phrnfr,” Zeitscrift Fur Aegyptische Sprache 75 (1939): p. 82.

[16] Weill, pp. 10- 25.

[17] Weill, p. 12.

[18] Weill, p. 12.

[19] Weill, p. 13.

[20] Weill, p. 13.

The Location of Avaris

2009-07-24T23:59:00.002-04:00

While it is very clear today, based on the excavations of Manfred Bietak, that the Hyksos (Dynasty 15) capital in Egypt was at Tell-ed-Dab'a, there once was a very heated debate on this topic. Some scholars favored Tell ed-Dab'a / Kantir, while others favored Tanis.

I wrote a paper back in 1986, in which I argued strongly for Tell ed-Dab'a. I based my reasons on a variety of arguments that had nothing to do with Dr. Bietak's excavations (which were not widely known at the time, except to working Egyptologists). I have incorporated into that paper a number of arguments based on Bietak's excavations.

I will begin posting the relevent portions of my paper tomorrow or the next day, and will post all of it over the next few days.

Glyph Tutor

2009-07-19T19:13:00.002-04:00

One of the people in the Middle Egyptian study group I have joined sent out a link which I will pass along to the readers of this blog.

The link is for a program called GlyphTutor. The program displays a bi-literal or tri-literal middle Egyptian sign and allows you to select the single letter characters that make up the sound of the b-literal or tri-literal. The program then tells you that you got the answer correct or displays (and pronounces) the correct response if you got the question wrong.

The program definitely will help you learn the values of the major bi-literals and tri-literals! It also comes at an ideal price - free! Click on the link above, download the software and install it. Then start learning bi- and tri-literals in a way that is much more fun than staring at a list of characters over and over.

Hieroglyph Flash Cards

2009-07-17T00:06:00.002-04:00

A few posts back I mentioned that I had joined a Middle Egyptian study group. One of the group members has found an interesting product for anyone who is learning Ancient Egyptain, a set of flashcards.

The set includes signs and vocabulary words. I have not seen the cards myself, but they can be ordered on the internet here.

The study group began working on July 12. As we progress I will give everyone an update regarding how this sort of thing works.

Minerva Magazine

2009-07-12T17:25:00.002-04:00

Minerva Magzine is an archaeology magazine published in the United Kingdom, which is available in many bookstores here in the United States. The May / June issue has several articles of interest to readers of this blog.

There is a short article on the Assyrian Palace sculptures that are in the British Museum. These sculptures are among the most famous works of art to have survived from ancient Assyria and the article has numerous, high-quality photos of them in full color.

There is also an article on some of the ancient Egyptian art in the Turin Museum in Italy. The Turin collection is one of the most important collections of Egyptian art outside of Egypt. There is also a review, with photos, of the Brooklyn Museum's special exhibition "Unearthing the Truth: Egypt's Pagan and Coptic Sculptures".

Other articles cover the classical world of Greece and Rome and there is also an article devoted to Mayan murals.

Minerva aims for the interested lay reader and is not a heavy, overly-scholarly magazine. The articles are short and beautifully illustrated.

The Greco-Persian Wars (a Review)

2009-07-11T20:31:00.004-04:00

The battles between the Persians and the Greeks were some of the most important events in the entirety of human history, but are rarely given much though today. But what if the Persians had won the Greco-Persian wars instead of the Greeks? How different would the course of European history have been? Would Rome have ever existed as a great empire? Would Alexander have ever conquered the "world"?

Peter Green's book "The Greco-Persian Wars" does a great job of describing the wars, mostly from the Greek point of view. The book is well written and full of fascinating details about the behind-the-scenes politics in the Greek camp as they awaited the Persian invasions.

Part one tries to illustrate some of the Greks misconceptions about the Persians and then the author launches into a dscription of the historical events in question, from the Battle of Marathon to the final Greek victories of the war. The reader is caried along by the narrative and given all the information one could want about this fascinating topic.

Anyone interested in either Greek or Near Eastern history should find this to be a fascinating and worthwhile read.

The Forgotten Empire (a Review)

2009-07-09T09:06:00.002-04:00

Most of us who are interested in Near Eastern Archaeology are familiar with Egyptian and Mesopotamian civilizations. A smaller number of us are interested in the Hittites. But the Near Eastern civilization that attracts the least attention is probably the Persian Empire.

"The Forgotten Empire" is the beautifully done catalogue for an exhibit of the same name. The book not only is filled with gorgeous photographs, but it also has a series of excellent articles written by experts in the field. The articles include a brief history of the Persian Empire, the story of the decipherment of Old Persian and Elamite, an overview of the known archaeological sites (with special emphasis on Persepolis), gold work (jewellery and "dinnerware"), religion and burial customs, warfare and an overview of Persia's "relationship" with the Greeks.

This is a good book which contains a better text than many museum exhibit catalogs, and I recommend it to anyone who would like to learn more about the Persian Empire.

Some Useful Links

2009-07-07T11:14:00.002-04:00

Here are a few more interesting links that I have found on the internet:

The official site of the excavations at Avaris, the capital of the Hyksos Dynasty in ancient Egypt: http://www.auaris.at/ This site is in German and English.

http://www1.lib.uchicago.edu/cgi-bin/eos/eos_page.pl?DPI=100&callnum=PJ3835.B85_cop2&object=61 has inscriptions in Akkadian, transliteration and translation.

A number of texts in Egyptian Hieroglyphs, without translation, can be found here: http://webperso.iut.univ-paris8.fr/~rosmord/hieroglyphes/

The Pyramid of Khafre (Part 2)

2009-07-06T14:54:00.005-04:00

The interior of Khafre's pyramid is different from that of his father. The burial chamber is located much lower in the pyramid, being partially above ground level and partially below it.

The sarcophagus (see photo) is undecorated and is set into the floor of the burial chamber. The burial chamber's roof is designed to relief the weight of the pyramid above it (see photo). Numerous famous people have visited Khafre's pyramid, with the famous "archaeologist" Belzoni leaving his name on the wall of the burial chamber (see photo).

The Pyramid of Khafre

2009-07-05T19:40:00.005-04:00

The pyramid of the Fourth Dynasty Pharaoh Khafre is the second largest of Egypt's "Great" pyramids (it is the middle pyramid in the photo). Like other pyramids this one had a mortuary temple adjacent to the pyramid and a "Valley Temple" where the King's mummified body would have been initially brought for the Pharaoh's funeral. A long causeway connected the two temples.

The Valley Temple has very little decoration, consisting of plain rectangular granite columns and lintels. It originally contained statues of Khafre; one of which is preserved in the Cairo Museum and is one of the great works of art in Egyptian history.

The mortuary temple had what would become the standard plan for this type of temple, an entrance hall followed by a courtyard, statue niches and an inner sanctuary where offerings would have been made to the King's Ka (soul). It is thought that the final services would have been performed for the King's mummy in this temple.

The famous Great Sphinx sits just north of the causeway of the pyramid, very near the Valley Temple. Between paws of the Sphinx is a stela (see photo) erected many centuries after the death of Khafre. This stela tells the story of a young prince who fell asleep in the shadow cast by the mostly sand-covered body of the sphinx. As the prince slept, the Sphinx appeared to him in a dream and promised him the throne if the prince would have the sand cleared away from the Sphinx. The prince did so and became King of Egypt as Tuthmose IV. The stela has two representations of the Pharaoh offering to the Sphinx above the text describing Tuthmose's dream.

Photos copyright John Freed

The Litany of Re

2009-07-02T20:14:00.002-04:00

The Litany of Re is a religious text which appears in a number of Egyptian royal tombs dating to the New Kingdom. It is composed of a number of texts invoking the sun god in his various forms. At the end of the texts, the King is identified as the sun god to general rejoicing by the inhabitants of the underworld.

The representations of the sun god consist of his morning form (Kheper), his evening form (Atum) and many other forms in between. He shown in some scenes as a ram headed diety and in others as a baboon. The sun god is also shown as a mummy with the head of a lion or of a human being.

In the tomb of Tuthmose III, the Litany of Re is in the King's burial chamber. The book then disappears until the reign of Seti I in the Ninetenth Dynasty. From that point on it was usually put in the tomb's entrance corridor.

Egyptologists do not fully understand al of the details of these texts (translating and understanding are two different things!).

The Tomb of Tuthmose III (Part 2)

2009-07-02T08:17:00.005-04:00

This scene from the Litany of Re in the Tomb of Tuthmose III shows Kheper pushing the sun along (the beatle with the red disk in the lower left of the picture) and an enemy of the sun god is shown tied to a stake.

I mentioned in the previous post that I think that drawings on the walls imitate a a papyrus copy of the texts in question. If you look at this picture you can see that the hieroglyphs are drawn in a very cursive manner, much as they would be written on a papyrus. The same can be seen in the second photo, which shows the Pharaoh rowing a boat in the underworld, with Isis standing in the boat behind him.

Photos Copyright John Freed 2009

The Tomb of Tuthmose III

2009-06-30T00:15:00.010-04:00

One of my favorite spots in Egypt's Valley of the Kings, is the tomb of Tuthmose III. It is tucked away in a corner of the royal valley and is accessed via a high stairway (more a ladder than a stair really). Climbing this stairway can be exhausting in the mid-day heat. You then go down a series of stairs until you finally enter the burial chamber, which looks like it was decorated by a child armed with several different colored magic markers.

I suspect that the burial chamber's decoration is designed to look like a papyrus with scenes from the various books of the underworld on it. One of the "books" of the underworld found in this tomb is the Litany of Re; another was the Amduat. The photo above portrays a demon of the seventh hour of the Amduat decapitating the enemies of the King in the underworld.

The other photo in this post shows Isis, as a tree with breasts, nursing Tuthmose. To the left of this scene is a drawing of the King standing with a mace and staff in his hands (partially visible). To the left of Tuthmose (not shown) are drawings of three of Thuthmose's wives and one of his daughters. This particular scene is on one of the columns that supports the ceiling of the tomb.

Photos copyright John Freed

Learning Middle Egyptian

2009-06-26T22:09:00.002-04:00

I joined a study group today to "learn" Middle Egyptian. I learned the language years ago, but could use a refresher course. I also like the idea of working with others who want to learn the language.

The study group has a moderator who will post homework assignments for the group. The group will communicate via email. I am looking forward to seeing how this works out.

If anyone is interested in joining the study group you can do so at: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/GlyphStudy/

Lady Hor is a Man

2009-06-26T09:25:00.002-04:00

A CT scan of a Brooklyn Museum mummy that has always been considered to be a woman has revealed that the mummy is actually that of a man. The mummy has never been unwrapped because it is covered by a superb cartonnage cover.

Here is a link to the story:
http://www.newsday.com/news/local/nassau/ny-limumm2412910051jun23,0,1461405.story

CT Scan Reveals Temple Singer's Face

2009-06-25T11:07:00.003-04:00

A CT scan of the mummy of the temple singer Meresamun has been used to reconstruct her facial features. Meresamun died in about 800 B. C.

Here is a link to a story : http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,529062,00.html

The Six Hyksos Kings (a Possible Retraction)

2009-06-24T22:33:00.003-04:00

As I mentioned in my previous post, there seems to be a problem with the list of kings I proposed as being the six "Great Kings" of the Fifteenth Dynasty.

Sheshi has almost universally been assumed to be one of these kings. But scholars have recently realized that seals of Sheshi found at Uronarti and Mirgissa (in Nubia) are in contexts that would make Sheshi contemporary with the early Thirteenth Dynasty.

Additionally, a seal of Yakubher has been found at Shikmona which seems to be contemporary with the mid-Thirteenth Dynasty (Ryholt, K. "The Political Situation in Egypt During the Second Intermediate Period", Copenhagen: University of Copenhagen, p. 42). K. Ryholt would place both of these kings in the Fourteenth Dynasty (Ryholt, p. 46), which ruled at the same time as the Thirteenth Dynasty.

It should be noted however, that Dr. Ryholt has reconstructed the sequence of Second Intermediate Period kings differently from other scholars and that the evidence for that sequence is based on the stylistic developement of scarabs. I have commented in an earlier post that using scarabs as evidence for much of anything is dangerous, as the number of scarabs preserved from the Second Intermediate Period is small. Additionally, there is no consensus whatsoever on how scarabs could be used (or even if they should be used) to sequence kings.

Time will tell if Dr. Ryholt is correct in removing Sheshi and Yakubher from the Fifteenth Dynasty.

The Six Hyksos "Great Kings"

2009-06-23T23:28:00.003-04:00

Many years ago (1987 to be exact), I wrote a couple of papers on Egypt's Second Intermediate Period. In one of them, I made a half-hearted attempt to identify the six Hyksos "Great Kings". I include the relevant section of the paper below. I my next post, I will retract part of what I wrote many years ago in light of new evidence that has become available.

The Six “Great Kings” of the Hyksos:

It is difficult to determine exactly who the six Hyksos “Great Kings” were. Manetho claims that the Sixteenth Dynasty was comprised of Hyksos Pharaohs, but this is impossible as the Kamose Stela proves that Kamose (of Dynasty Seventeen) and Apopis (of Dynasty Fifteen) were contemporaries[1]. Furthermore, the Turin Canon clearly states that there were six Hyksos Kings[2]. The usual explanation for Manetho’s Sixteenth Dynasty is that Manetho somehow got a list of Hyksos “Princelings” and came to the conclusion that they were Pharaohs in a separate dynasty[3]. In view of the almost total lack of evidence for this period it must be admitted that no better idea is available.

Going on the assumption that there were only six Hyksos Pharaohs and that they comprised the Fifteenth Dynasty we next turn to the question of exactly who those six Kings were. Manetho’s version of the names of these King’s is too garbled to be of any real use, and will be ignored for the most part in the following discussion.

The Inscribed monuments show that Apopis must have been one of the six Kings in question and that he must have been either the last of the six or next to the last (this is proven by the Kamose Stela, which clearly shows that Apopis is a contemporary of Kamose). Khian is certainly one of the six as well, but it cannot be stated for certain who the other four were.

Attempts to clear this matter up have been made by several scholars in the past. Olga Tufnell, in her analysis of the scarabs of the period[4], is one of the persons who have tried to shed light on this topic. A detailed analysis of her work is impossible here, but a summary of her results is in order.

First of all, she concludes that the only “Kings” who must be included in Dynasty Fifteen for sure are Khian, Apopis and Khamudy, There are no scarabs or other monuments of Khamudy; Manetho provides the only evidence for his existence when he claims that Khamudy was the (short-lived) successor of Apopis[5].

Secondly, she separates a list of “Kings” who are represented by a greater amount of “evidence” than the others. She includes on this list: Khian, Meruserre Yakubher, Mayebre Sheshi, Kauserre Amu, Sekhaenre Ykbmw, Nebuserre Y’mw, Ahetepre, Apopis and Khamudy. The remaining three Pharaohs could be any three persons on this list, or even from a list of lesser know individuals.

Thirdly, and most importantly, she has created a relative chronology of the Kings in question, which is not contradicted by any other historical source. This chronology indicates that Khian must be one of the earliest Kings of the period, while Apopis must be at the end. Most scholars accept Mayebre Sheshi as one of the Hyksos Kings[6] and, if her chronology is accurate, he must rule after Khian and before Apopis[7]. There is no way to prove who the remaining two Hyksos rulers were, but the present author is inclined to follow von Beckerath and, very tentatively, suggest Yakubher and Sekhaenre[8], as these two have left behind a larger number of scarabs than other candidates. Taking all of this in to consideration, I would suggest that the six “Great Kings” of the Hyksos, in the order that they ruled, were Meruserre Yakubher, Khian, Mayebre Sheshi, Sekhaenre, Apopis and Khamudy.

[1] Hibachi, p. 31 and passim.

[2] Gardiner, pp. 149-50.

[3] Trigger, p. 158.

[4] Tufnell, O. Studies on Scarab Seals, vol II, (Warminster: Aris & Phillips, lt., 1984).

[5] Tufnell, p. 172.

[6] Tufnell, p. 162.

[7] Tufnell, p. 168, fig. 29.

[8] Von Beckerath, p. 32 and Tufnell, p. 162 and sources quoted therein.

Tomb of Amenemopet

2009-06-23T10:20:00.003-04:00

The tomb of a New Kingdom official has been found at Dra Abu el Naga on the west bank of the Nile at Luxor. Excavators have apparently found one or more mummies in the tomb. The tomb continues to be cleared and cleaned. A few photos can be found here (click on the "previous" link above the photo).

Imhotep the Alchemist?

2009-06-19T23:33:00.007-04:00

Dr. Audran Labrousse did a lecture this evening on the changing view of Imhotep, Djoser's architect and the builder of the Step Pyramid, the world's first large stone building, from earliest times until today. The lecture was given at the Metropolitan Museum in New York and was fascinating.

Imhotep is referenced only once in his lifetime, on the base of a statue of the Pharaoh Djoser. By late Pharaonic times he came to be viewed by the Egyptians as a good of healing. Dr. Labrousse also had a photo of a statue of Imhotep wearing Greek clothing and also showed references to Imhotep from the Renaissance (!) and on into modern times. Dr. Labrousse also traced the development of the "myth" of Imhotep, from his being an architect, to a god of healing to his being mentioned in later European tradition as an alchemist of all things!

This was a really enjoyable lecture and if you have an opportunity to hear him give this lecture while he is in the United States, by all means go.

Met Lecture on the Necropolis of Pepy I

2009-06-19T13:28:00.003-04:00

Dr. Audran Labrousse is doing a lecture at the Metropolitan Museum on Saturday, June 20 at 3:00 pm. The lecture will be the Met's Grace Rainey Rogers Auditorium and will concentrate on the necropolis of the family of Pepy I of Egypt's Sixth Dynasty. Dr. Labrouse has excavated in both Iran and Egypt.

Dr. Labrousse will also be addressing the Egyptological Seminar of New York tonight (Thursday) on Djoser's architect, Imhotep. I am attending this lecture and will post a short note about it tomorow.

Some More Links

2009-06-17T10:24:00.000-04:00

http://www.archaeology.org/interactive/hierakonpolis/ contains some great information and photos from one of the most important sites in Egypt.

http://passionateabouthistory.blogspot.com/2009/06/archaeologists-uncover-worker.html
has a story about the discovery of some homes used by the commoners at Persepolis.

http://www.gizapyramids.org/code/emuseum.asp is the website for the Museum of Fine Arts (Boston) Giza Project. You can download PDFs of mant of the Museums publications here. The site is available in English, French, German and Arabic.

http://www.digitalegypt.ucl.ac.uk/ is a site developed by the Petrie Museum as a teaching tool.

The Fitzwilliam Museum’s site is http://www.fitzmuseum.cam.ac.uk/opac/

The British Museum website is http://www.britishmuseum.org/explore/highlights.aspx

Famous Amarna Stela a Fake?

2009-06-16T22:19:00.003-04:00

The latest issue of KMT magazine has an article by Rolf Krauss that suggestes that a famous Amarna stela in the Cairo Museum might be a fake. If this turns out to be true, there could be serious repercussions.

This is the stela that Cairo received instead of the famous bust of Queen Nefertiti (that went to Berlin). The Egyptians have felt for years that they were cheated during the division of finds from Berlin's excavations at Amarna. If the prime piece that they receeived turns out to be a forgery they will be really upset (and rightly so).

Also, if the stela is a forgery, were the excavators a part of the fraud in an attempt to make sure that Berlin got the Nefertiti bust?

The New Issue of Archaeology Magazine

2009-06-12T16:36:00.002-04:00

The July / August issue of Archaeology magazine has just hit the newsstands, and it has some interesting articles in it.

A ship wreck has been found off the coast of Turkey that was carrying marble column "drums" to the temple of Apollo at Claros. Column drums are circular marble slabs that would have been piled on top of each other to build a column to support the roof of the temple.
A Phoenician shipwreck has been found off the coast of Spain. The ship dates to the 6th century B. C. and may indicate that the Phoenicians went through the Straits of Gibraltar and into the Atlantic Ocean to trade.
Florida State Maritime Archaeologist Cheryl Ward has built a full-sized replica of a boat that Hatshepsut's Punt expedition would have used to sail on the Red Sea. The ship was built based on Egyptian representations of boats and wooden parts from an ancient boat found on the coast of the Red Sea. The newly built ship was used for an eighteen day cruise on the Red Sea.
The ancient city of Petra in Jordan is suffering from water damage. A team of conservationists are working to protect the remains of the once flourishing trading center.
Bob Brier has published an article that further describes the new theory that the Great Pyramid was built with an interior ramp that was used to haul stones into place. I reviewed his book on this topic in an earlier post.

Some Interesting Links

2009-06-10T08:50:00.001-04:00

Here are some more interesting links that I have found while searching the internet:

http://www.blogcatalog.com/blog/near-east-images has many photographs of archaeological sites in the Middle East, including some very nice photos of Sakkara and Giza in Egypt.

http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/cotafamily4/turkish_living/1211342340/tpod.html contains some photos of the Hittite capital in what is now Turkey.

http://www.hittitemonuments.com/zincirli/ has some photos of Hittite objects.

http://www.archaeology.org/online/features/meresamun/ has some photos from a project which recently CT scanned an Egyptian mummy. Very interesting and well worth a look.

http://vovici.com/wsb.dll/s/a81eg3def5 has a survey that Archaeology Magazine is doing regarding a special issue devoted to Ancient Egypt that will be on the newsstands in the near future. Go to this site and give them your opinion.

http://www.youtube.com/archaeologytv is the Archaeological Institute of America’s You Tube website.

http://www.archaeological.org/ This is the website of the Archaeological Institute of America.

http://www2.rz.hu-berlin.de/nilus/net-publications/index.html is an online publication of the Humboldt University in Berlin. It is devoted to Egyptian and Sudanese archaeology. All articles to date are in German.

A Manual of Sumerian Grammar (a Review)

2009-06-08T21:45:00.001-04:00

This volume is a superb grammar that is very suitable for self-learners. This is not to say that it is an easy read. It is however a thorough and understandable text which will help the interested reader learn Sumerian.

Chapter one discusses Sumerian’s linguistic affiliations (or lack thereof) and gives an overview of the languages characteristics. The book then lays out the specifics of Sumerian grammar in a series of twenty-six lessons. During these lessons, Dr. Hayes openly discusses areas of Sumerian Grammar that are not well understood and covers the theories of other scholars that differ with his own.

Each lesson contains vocabulary words and one or more texts which are transliterated and translated by the author. The grammar of each line of the text is explained in detail. Many of the chapters conclude with a short discussion of some point of Sumerian history or culture that is related to the texts the student has just finished working on.

The texts range from only five or six lines to ones of slightly over twenty lines. Some are temple dedication texts while others are historical texts. There is a good variety of texts so that the student does not get tired of translating the same type of text over and over.

At the end of the book there is a glossary and a superb bibliography.

This is without a doubt the grammar that a student of Sumerian should start with. Other grammars written in English are really not meant for the beginning student.

Introduction to Akkadian (a Review)

2009-06-06T00:07:00.000-04:00

Richard Caplice’s “Introduction to Akkadian” is a concise introductory Akkadian grammar. It is designed to provide a one semester survey of the main points of Akkadian.

The book is easily carried about for reading. It does cover the essentials of Akkadian grammar but provides only a few reading exercises. Answers to the exercises are not provided, which makes this book difficult to use for a self-learner. A student could use this book to review the language; as a “brush up” course if you will.

As I mentioned in a different review, any student who wants to really learn Akkadian should be reading John Huehnergard’s “Grammar of Akkadian” and should also buy the separate answer key to that grammar. Dr. Caplice’s book is solid and well written, but has been superseded by Dr. Huehnergard’s book.

A Manual of Akkadian (a Review)

2009-06-03T22:57:00.001-04:00

This thin book by Dr. David Marcus is a good introductory grammar of Akkadian. It contains long extracts from the Law Code of Hammurabi, “The Descent of Ishtar”, and “The Annals of Sennacherib” in cuneiform.

Each chapter contains an extract from one of these texts and a discussion of the grammar points that the student needs to know to translate them. Texts in the first five chapters are shown in Cuneiform, normalized transliteration and in translation. After chapter five, only the cuneiform is given, the student must work out the normalization and translation for himself. This does present a problem for anyone trying to teach themselves Akkadian. If you get stuck with a passage, you will not be able to check your work.

The book is concise (it has 180 pages) and has a very good sign list and dictionary at the rear. If this work has a flaw it is the binding. The book cannot be opened flat. On the other hand, it is light and can be carried around easily.

While I would recommend John Huehnergard’s “A Grammar of Akkadian” over Dr. Marcus’ book for a self learner, this work is nevertheless a valuable addition to the scholar’s library.

The Size of the Hyksos Empire (Part 4)

2009-06-01T13:51:00.001-04:00

Having ruled out the possibility of the Levant and Nubia being a portion of the Hyksos “empire”, it remains to determine exactly how much of Egypt was ruled by the Asiatics. First it is clear that the Hyksos ruled the Nile delta as Manetho tells us that their capital was located there[1], and there is a great deal of evidence for a Middle Bronze Age II culture, heavily influenced by Palestine, at Tell-ed-Daba and at Tell-el-Yahudieh[2] in the delta. It is also clear that the Hyksos ruled Memphis, as a genealogy of a priest of Memphis in Dynasty XXII lists his ancestors as having served under Apopis (rather than under the kings of Dynasty XVII)[3].

Hall has argued that Upper Egypt was controlled as far as Aswan by the Hyksos, basing his argument on the fact that Aswan granite was used by Apopis in the construction of his monuments in the delta[4]. This is possible, but not necessarily true as the Kamose stela shows that the Egyptian nobility were grazing their cattle in the Delta at a time when the Asiatics certainly ruled that part of Egypt[5]. If it was possible for the Egyptians to graze their cattle in Hyksos territory then surely the Asiatics could have obtained granite from Aswan (in return for grazing rights?). One other possibility suggests itself. The Hyksos may have temporarily ruled a large part of Southern Egypt, or that Upper Egypt may have paid tribute to the Hyksos King in return for independence. There is some evidence for such a situation as the names of Khian and Apopis are known from objects found in Upper Egypt[6].

It should be emphasized that these are the only two Hyksos Kings who have left any trace of themselves anywhere in Upper Egypt[7]. Hyksos influence in Southern Egypt must have been of very short duration, however, as the Kamose stela tells us that Kamose ruled Upper Egypt independently of Apopis (who was clearly King of the Hyksos at the time Kamose was ruling Southern Egypt)[8]. Enberg notes that Hatshepsut’s inscription in the Speos Artemidos does not mention any temple south of Cusae needing repair as a result of Hyksos depredations[9] and the Kamose stela states flatly that the boundary between the Egyptians and the Asiatics was at Cusae[10].

___________
[1] Gardiner, A. Egypt Under the Pharaohs, p. 164.

[2] Trigger, B. Ancient Egypt, pp. 156 – 7 and Bietak, M. Avaris and Pi-Ramesses (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1979), pp. 238-9 and passim.

[3] Trigger, B. Ancient Egypt, p. 155.

[4] Enberg, R. “Hyksos Reconsidered”, p. 16 and sources quoted therein.

[5] Habachi, L. p. 48.

[6] Winlock, p. 99.

[7] Winlock, p. 99.

[8] Trigger, p. 156.

[9] Enberg, p. 15, note 49.

[10] Habachi, p. 48.

The Size of the Hyksos Empire (Part 3)

2009-06-01T00:41:00.003-04:00

In the previous post I mentioned that the Kamose Stela showed that the King of Kush ruled independantly of the Hyksos King. Some explanation of that statement is due.

At the beginning of the second Kamose Stela the Pharaoh has already advanced all the way to Avaris. Apopis, the Hyksos King, has one last card to play against Kamose. The Hyksos ruler sent a messenger southwards by way of the oases in the Libyan Desert, in an attempt to get the King of Kush (in what is now the Sudan) to attack Kamose from behind. But Kamose, “… captured his message beyond the oasis going southward to Kush…”[1] and foiled Apopis’ plot. Apophis is clearly in no position to order the King of Kush to attack.

The second stela also reveals that Kamose had conducted a campaign against Kush, probably sometime during the period of time covered by the lost portion of the first stela. Kamose must have advanced at least as far as Toshka during this campaign as there are two graffiti there from his reign[2]. The stela of Emhab lends further credence to the belief that this campaign took place in year three of Kamose’s reign. This text tells of Emhab fighting in a campaign in Kush during year three of an unnamed King, who fought from Avaris to Kush[3].

___________
[1] Habachi, p. 49.

[2] Habachi, p. 52.

[3] Habachi, p. 57

The Size of the Hyksos Empire (Part 2)

2009-05-31T08:26:00.002-04:00

The next matter to concern us is the question of whether or not the Hyksos ever ruled any portion of Nubia. Once again, we find that earlier archaeologists believed the Hyksos did indeed rule Nubia. They cited as evidence the presence of Hyksos scarabs and Tell-el-Yahudieh pottery.

It must be emphasized that no text or statue of a Hyksos king has ever been found in Nubia. Further, the excavations at Kerma have produced abundant evidence to contradict the beliefs of earlier archeologists. For instance, the graves at Kerma which are contemporary with the Fifteenth Dynasty (as shown by the presence of Hyksos scarabs in these graves) contain burials which are totally different from those of the Egyptians, the Hyksos and the peoples of the Levant[1]! Trigger further states that Uronarti (a fortress in Nubia) there are over 4,500 sealings datable to this period, but no other evidence of a foreign culture[2]. At Buhen (another fortress in Nubia) some Tell-el-Yahudieh ware juglets were found along with some stelae of this time, stelae which clearly show Egyptians living in Nubia and serving the King of Nubia (and not the Hyksos King!)[3]. Furthermore, the Kamose stela clearly shows that there was a separate king in Nubia[4], who ruled independently of both the Egyptians in southern Egypt and the Hyksos.

An inscription in the tomb of one Sobeknakht has recently been cleaned and translated and provided a surprise. Sobeknakht claims to have helped repel an invasion from Nubia during "the latter part of the Seventeenth Dynasty." Dr. Vivian Davies points out that this is the explanation for the presence of Egyptian artifacts in the tombs of the Nubian kings at Kerma, they were war trophies. It seems clear from this text, and from the Kamose Stela, that Nubia was at this time an independent and powerful enemy on Egypt's southern border.

_________________
[1] Trigger, B. Ancient Egypt, pp. 163 – 66.

[2] Trigger, B. Ancient Egypt, p. 161.

[3] Trigger, B. Ancient Egypt, pp. 161 - 2.

[4] Habachi, L. Second Stela of Kamose (Gluckstadt: Verlag J. J. Augustin, 1972), p. 39, where the Hyksos King Apopis sends a letter addressed to “the Ruler of Kush…” in an attempt to get him to attack Kamose from the South.

The Size of the Hyksos "Empire" (Part I)

2009-05-29T21:59:00.002-04:00

Early Egyptologists believed that the Hyksos ruled an empire stretching from Syria to Nubia[1], but this notion seems completely wrong to me. First of all, let us look at the evidence for Hyksos rule in the Levant.

Early archaeologists linked the presence of the so-called “Tell-el-Yahudieh” pottery (first found in Egypt and later discovered throughout the Levant) to the presence of the Hyksos. In the early part of the twentieth century there was some reason to accept this as no example of this type of pottery had been found which pre-dated the Second Intermediate Period. Furthermore, the pottery seemed to have no known antecedents and appeared suddenly in excavations much as if it had been introduced by foreign invaders. There are some problems with this idea however. First of all, it is possible to explain the distribution of the pottery as a result of commerce between Egypt and the Levant, rather than as the result of the existence of a Hyksos empire. Second of all, some examples of this ware have been found in Dynasty Twelve contexts at Buhen (in Nubia), el-Lisht, and tombs number one and two at Byblos (which are clearly datable to the reigns of the Dynasty Twelve kings Amenemhat III and Amenemhat IV)[2].

Another often cited “proof” of the existence of a Hyksos empire is the presence of a series of massive earth-work “fortifications” in several places in the Levant and in two places in Egypt. Recent scholars have suggested that the “fortifications” at Heliopolis and Tell-el-Yahudieh are actually temple foundations[3]. This leads to the rather odd situation of having Hyksos fortifications in the Levant (where we are not completely certain that they ever ruled) and having no Hyksos fortifications in Egypt (which is the only place we are certain that they ever ruled).

Further “proof” of the existence of a Hyksos “empire” includes a basalt lion bought by the British Museum in Baghdad, an alabaster jar lid found at Knossos[4] and a fragment of an obsidian vase found at Boghazkoi (all of which are inscribed with the name of Khian)[5]. All of these are better explained as indications of foreign commerce rather than the existence of a far flung Hyksos empire as the chronologies of Crete and Turkey are too well know to admit the possibility of Hyksos rule in either place.

The last piece of evidence which is usually cited as proof of the existence of a Hyksos empire is the numerous scarabs found throughout the Levant. It must be pointed out that all of these scarabs are small and very portable and their distribution is quite possibly explainable as the result of foreign commerce, rather than as evidence of a vast Hyksos empire. Using scarabs as evidence for anything is further complicated by the fact that the Egyptians often carved scarabs with the name of kings who were long dead. For instance, scarabs have been found bearing the names of Fourth and Fifth Dynasty kings; but these scarabs clearly were clearly carved after the kings named on them were dead[6] as it is known that the first scarabs were carved during the First Intermediate Period[7]. There are also Hyksos scarabs in Nubia, when it seems clear that the Hyksos never ruled there (see the discussion in the next post). If Hyksos scarabs are found in Nubia in spite of the fact that they never ruled there, it would seem that the scarabs found in the Levant do not prove Hyksos rule there either.

______________
[1] Breasted, J. Geschichte Aegyptens (Vienna: Phaidon-Verlag, 1936), p. 149 and Save-Soderbergh, T. JEA 37, p. 62-3, and Albright, W. Archaeology of Palestine (Harmondsworth: Penguin Books Limited, 1949), pp. 86-7 to cite only three examples.

[2] Enberg, R. “Hyksos Reconsidered”, pp. 26-8. See also Hayes’ comments in Scepter, vol. II, p. 12 where he agrees with the present author that Tell-el-Yahudieh ware does not indicate the presence of the Hyksos.

[3] Steindorff, G. and Kieth Seele. When Egypt Ruled the East (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1942), p. 25 and Save-Soderbergh, T. JEA, 37, p. 60 as well as Trigger, B., et al. Ancient Egypt (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1983), p. 157

[4] Save-Soderbergh, T. JEA, 37, p. 63.

[5] Trigger, B. Ancient Egypt, p. 159.

[6] Newberry, P. Ancient Egyptian Scarabs (Chicago:Aries Publishers, 1979), p. 118.

[7] Newberry, P. Scarabs, p. 70 and Ward, W. Studies on Scarab Seals, vol 1, (Warminster: Aris & Phillips limited, 1978), p. 4.

The Hyksos Rise to Power in Egypt (Part 2)

2009-05-28T21:32:00.002-04:00

Determining exactly how the Hyksos came to power in Egypt is impossible, although two theories have been advanced. The first of these is that the Hyksos swarmed into the Nile delta with an all conquering army. Few Egyptologists now believe this theory to be true.

The second theory is more attractive in that it has a large body of evidence supporting it. This theory postulates a protracted infiltration of the delta by “Asiatics”. These “invaders” were gradually Egyptianized and began to fill local government positions. Eventually they came to control the government of the eastern delta and began spreading their power into Middle Egypt.

It can be proven that there were many Asiatics in the delta before the accession to power of the Hyksos and it can further be proven that they had some political power in Egypt prior to the start of the Fifteenth Dynasty. During the First Intermediate Period Asiatics swarmed into the delta[1] and early in Dynasty Twelve the Tale of Sinuhe mentions a fort built to keep these people out of Lower Egypt[2]. In the Dynasty Twelve tomb of Khnumhotep at Beni Hassan there is a painting of a group of Asiatics coming to trade with the Egyptians. These foreigners are clearly called “Hekaw Khasut” in the accompanying inscription[3]. Hayes mentions the existence of a large group of Asiatics in Egypt during the Thirteenth Dynasty. These foreigners were all slaves in the possession of one nobleman and it must be thought that if one nobleman had this many Asiatic slaves then there must have been a sizable amount of them in the country[4]. That not all Asiatics in Egypt were slaves at this point in history is indicated by the fact that a number of “Kings” of the Thirteenth Dynasty had Semitic names[5].

The Fifteenth Dynasty – The Hyksos “Empire”:
[1] Goedicke, H. Protocol of Neferyt (Baltimore: John Hopkins University Press, 1977), p. 33.

[2] Lichtheim, M. Ancient Egyptian Literature (Berkley: University of California Press, 1977 – 1981), vol 1, p. 224.

[3] Aldred, C. The Egyptians (New York: Fredrick A. Praeger, 1961), p. 123.

[4] Hayes, W. Papyrus, p. 99.

[5] Van Seeters, J. The Hyksos (New Haven: Yale University Press, 1966), p. 116.

The Hyksos Rise to Power in Egypt (Part 1)

2009-05-27T11:34:00.002-04:00

During a period of internal anarchy and weakness known as the Second Intermediate Period foreigners came to control most of Egypt. These foreigners eventually came to claim the title of "King of Egypt". There has been much speculation as to who the Hyksos were and how they came to power in Egypt. Unfortunately we are unlikely to ever know the full set of facts pertaining to either of these questions.

The word Hyksos is the Greek form of the Egyptian words “Hekaw Khasut” or “Rulers of foreign lands. This phrase is used by the Egyptians as early as the Sixth Dynasty and as late as the Ptolemaic period to designate “Asiatics”[1]. Enberg has claimed that Hurrian pottery found in Egypt suggests that the Hyksos were part of the great migration of the Hurrian people into the Middle East[2], but Save-Soderbergh rejects this theory by pointing out that the pottery which Enberg refers to is only decorated like Hurrian pottery, the actual forms of the pottery are not Hurrian[3]. Save-Soderbergh further points out that most of the names of the Hyksos are Semitic, rather than Hurrian and that, furthermore, if pottery was a valid criterion for postulating ethnic make-up of the Hyksos, then a Cypriote element among the Hyksos must be allowed for as Cypriote pottery has been found in Egypt dating to the Hyksos period[4]. I am inclined to believe that there is no such thing as one group of people called the Hyksos. Rather the “Hyksos” were likely any of numerous different groups of people who were living in the Levant[5].

________________
[1] Enberg, R. “The Hyksos Reconsidered” in Studies in Ancient Oriental Civilization (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1939), p. 6.

[2] Enberg, R. “Hyksos Reconsidered”, p. 6.

[3] Save-Soderbergh, T. “The Hyksos Rule in Egypt” Journal of Egyptian Archaeology, 37 (1951), p. 58.

[4] Save-Soderbergh, T. JEA, 37, pp.58-9.

[5] Gardiner, Alan. Egypt Under the Pharaohs (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1961), p. 156, agrees with the present author.

Amarna Boundary Stelae

2009-05-27T00:38:00.005-04:00

When the Egyptian Pharaoh Akhenaten of the Eighteenth Dynasty established the new city of Akhetaten (the modern name of which is Tell-el-Amarna) he set up a number of boundary stelae to delimit the city's borders. One of these stelae is pictured here. I believe that this is the one designated as stela A by Norman de G. Davies (The Rock Tombs of El Amarna, Part V. - Smaller Tombs and Boundary Stelae, London: The Egypt Exploration Society, 1908). It is one of the three stelae on the Western bank of the Nile and lies about three miles from Tuna-el-Gebel.

In front of the King is an offering table while behind him are his wife, Nefertiti and their two eldest daughters, Merytaten and Meketaten. Above Akhenaten is the god Aten, represented as a solar disk with rays of sunlight ending in hands. The King wears the Kheperesh headress and is shown with the huge hips and large belly that is so typical of Amarna art. Nefertiti is shown wearing a crown with two feathers and a horned disk.

The stela is 14 feet high and 7 feet 6 inches wide and has eight columns of text to the left of the King and Queen. Below the royal family are twenty-five horizontal lines of text.

The British Museum's Website

2009-05-25T21:13:00.002-04:00

I have found two interesting areas in the website of the British Museum. One is a guide to the museum's Cypriot archaeology department.

The other is an online journal of Egyptology articles written by some leading scholars. There are eleven issues published on this site and the articles are of high interest. I would point to one issue in particular which contains a number of issues dealing with relations between the Egyptians and the Hittites.

There is enough reading material on here to keep you busy for a couple of weeks!

Articles Dealing with the Hyksos

2009-05-25T19:27:00.002-04:00

I have found some links dealing with the Fifteeenth Dynasty foreign rulers of Egypt called the Hyksos. Some of them are a bit old, but I will pass them along anyway.

Hyksos Tombs Found in the Wadi Tumilat

The excavation of Khian's Palace at Tell el-Daba

The Rhind Mathematical Papyrus in the British Museum

Links to Archaeology Sites

2009-05-25T09:58:00.002-04:00

I have added a blogroll to the site which will contain links to interesting sites that deal with Near Eastern Archaeology. If anyone has an interesting site that you feel I should link to, by all means send me the link and I will consider it for adition to the blogroll. Click on "View my complete profile" on the right hand side of this screen and then click on "email" and send me the link.

The White Chapel Offering Lists

2009-05-23T19:20:00.003-04:00

The western side of the exterior of the White Chapel has carved into it a list of the Nomes (government districts, states or provinces) Upper (Southern) Egypt, while the western wall contains a list of Nomes for Lower (Northern) Egypt. Note that, unlike the carvings inside the chapel, these carvings are in sunk relief instead of the more expensive and difficult to execute raised relief carvings.

Each Nome has offerings of food, cloth, etc. listed. At the top of each column is the Nome's "standard". The third row of each column shows the amount of the offering being made to that Nome.

Carvings in the White Chapel

2009-05-20T13:55:00.003-04:00

The carved decorations in the White Chapel of Senusert first are some of the finest ever done in the history of ancient Egypt. The decorations are mostly done in raised relief, which is much more difficult to do than sunk relief.

This particular scene shows a priest (identifiable by the animal skin he is wearing) holding a statue of Amen Min in front of him. Behind the priest is a much larger representation of Pharaoh Senusert I. Above and behind the king are his names and titles, while the name of Amen Min is above the representation of his statue in the rightmost column of hieroglyphs.

The ancient Egyptians usually painted reliefs, but no traces of the original paint can be seen in this photo.

The Altar of the White Chapel

2009-05-19T21:41:00.003-04:00

Offerings would no doubt have been made on this altar as part of Senusert's Sed festival. On the exterior wall, to the right of the doorway are two columns of texts giving the names and titles of Senusert telling us that "the King of Upper and Lower Egypt Kheperkara..." is "beloved of Amen Ra..." and that "the Son of Ra Senusert is given all life, stability and health...".

The White Chapel of Senusert I

2009-05-19T21:36:00.001-04:00

The “White Chapel” in the open air museum at Karnak temple was built by Senusert I, the second king of Egypt’s Dynasty Twelve. During the New Kingdom, it was dismantled and used as filler in the Third Pylon of Karnak.

The White Chapel was built from blocks of Egyptian alabaster and is decorated with some of the most skillfully carved reliefs in the history of Egyptian art. Many of the scenes show Senusert with gods such as Amen Ra, Horus, Min and Ptah. The building was possibly erected as part of Senusert’s Sed Festival in the thirty-first year of his reign.

The chapel’s present location in the open air museum at Karnak is away from the areas normally visited by tourists, but the building is quite lovely and well worth visiting if you have the chance.

The Standard of Ur (Part 2)

2009-05-18T17:56:00.002-04:00

This photo, like the one in the previous post, is from the banquet scene on the standard of Ur. The scene seems to show servants bringin a drink (beer?) to a guest, while the picture in the previous post shows a bull and a gazelle (?) being led to the banquest, probably to be slaughtered.

The Standard of Ur

2009-05-18T15:36:00.002-04:00

The Standard of Ur is a wooden object that was decorated with a mosaic on two sides. The “pieces” of the mosaic are made of red limestone, shell and Lapis Lazuli. The standard has been dated to sometime between 2600 and 2400 B. C.

The mosaic on one side of the object shows war scenes, while the other side depicts a banquet. The war scenes show four wheeled chariots pulled by onagers and cloaked infantrymen carrying spears. The other side of the standard shows people enjoying a banquet with food (including live animals which are probably to be butchered) being brought in to the guests.

The Ur Harps (Part 2)

2009-05-18T01:02:00.004-04:00

As mentioned in the previous post, the "harps" found at Ur had a bull's head on their front for decoration. The bull's head pictured here is made of gold with a Lapis Lazuli beard, and is currently in the University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology in Philadelphia.

The Ur “Harps”

2009-05-18T00:35:00.004-04:00

Sir Leonard Woolley’s excavations at the city of Ur turned some harps (or lyres). They were made of wood and decorated with gold and Lapis Lazuli bull’s heads. They range in size from small ones, which could be held in the arms while being played, to large ones that needed to be set on the floor to be played. The picture here was taken in the British Museum.

When these musical instruments were found they wood had completely decomposed. Woolley carefully poured plaster into the places in the dirt where the wood had once been, thereby preserving the shape of the instruments.

Currently, a team is attempting to create a modern replica of the ancient lyre. A website devoted to this project can be found here. The website is very interesting and I would recommend you take a look at it.

References:
C.L. Woolley and P.R.S. Moorey, Ur of the Chaldees, revised edition Ithaca, New York, Cornell University Press, (1982)