๐๐น๐๐๐ณ๐ โGiven Everlasting Life for all Eternity.โ
This is one of my absolute favorite Egyptian phrases – it appears a lot in hieroglyphic inscriptions ๐๐๐ฅ whether its on stelae ๐๐ ฑ๐๐ธ๐ช or tomb/temple walls. The Egyptians ๐๐๐๐๐ช spent their time on Earth preparing for the afterlife and their journey to the Underworld ๐ผ๐ฟ๐๐ to meet Osiris ๐น๐จ๐ญ. I interpret the phrase โ๐๐น๐๐๐ณ๐โ two ๐ป different ways. When they died, the Egyptians ๐๐๐๐๐ช wanted to be remembered, hence the purpose of stelae ๐๐ ฑ๐๐ธ๐ช. Also, they believed death was the beginning of a journey to eternal life ๐น๐.
๐ – Given ๐น – Life ๐ – Everlasting/Eternal ๐๐ณ๐ – Eternity
Eventually everyone is going to get tired of me talking about Hatshepsut ๐ณ๐ฆ๐ but I donโt care! I love anything that has her cartouche on it, and the scarab collection at the MET is no exception!! The MET has a new way of displaying the scarabs that makes it much easier to take pictures, and you can really see each one close up! There are a lot of the scarabs, so eventually you guys will see them all!
These two scarabs have very similar inscriptions carved into them, however one little symbol makes a total difference in the meaning of the inscription! The scarab on the left says โ๐ณ๐ฆ๐๐๐ฟ๐ฟโ which translates to โMaatkare, Lord of the Two Landsโ while the scarab on the right says โ๐ณ๐ฆ๐๐๐๐ฟ๐ฟโ which translates to โMaatkare, Lady of the Two Lands.โ
The symbol โ๐โ makes the phrase feminine! Itโs really interesting to see a scarab with just the symbol for Lord ๐ because while Hatshepsut ๐ณ๐ฆ๐ was the Pharaoh ๐๐ป, most of the inscriptions that pertain to her use the female form of words.
Here is a small quartzite Sphinx of Thutmosis III ๐ณ๐ ๐ฃ. This little statue is interesting for a couple of reasons. One of which is the way that Thutmosis III ๐ณ๐ ๐ฃ is commonly sculpted – he usually has a very child-like face. This is significant because it is thought that Thutmosis III ๐ณ๐ ๐ฃ was shown in a child-like way to visually justify the fact that Hatshepsut ๐๐ ๐๐น๐๐๐๐ผ๐ช was co-ruler and then eventually the sole pharaoh ๐๐ป.
Another interesting point is the inscription, which reads: ๐ค๐น(๐ณ๐ ๐ฃ) ๐ป๐. โThe great God, Menkhepra, beloved.โ
The part of the inscription where Amunโs ๐๐ ๐ name should be, has been erased. The inscription should read: ๐ค๐น(๐ณ๐ ๐ฃ) ๐๐ ๐ ๐ป๐ โThe great God, Menkhepra, beloved of Amun.โ
Why was Amunโs ๐๐ ๐ name erased? Well, we can thank Akhenaten ๐๐๐๐ณ๐ ๐๐ for that! When Akhenaten ๐๐๐๐ณ๐ ๐๐ banned the worship of the traditional pantheon, he tried to have Amunโs ๐๐ ๐ name erased everywhere!
Todayย ๐๐๐๐ณ, we are going to be looking at an inscriptionย ๐๐ ฑ๐ย that is on a statue ๐๐ ฑ๐๐พ of Thutmosis IIIย ๐ณ๐ ๐ฃ.
This statue ๐๐ ฑ๐๐พ of Thutmosis IIIย ๐ ๐ ๐ดย depicts him in an offering position. An offering position is when the pharaoh ๐๐ป is depicted as kneeling, with nemset jarsย ๐๐๐ย in his hands. The only being a pharaoh ๐๐ป would kneel for is another god ๐น, and the god ๐น that Thutmosis IIIย ๐ ๐ ๐พ๐ย is making an offeringย ๐ต๐๐ช๐๐๐ฆย to is Amun-Raย ๐๐ ๐๐ณ๐บ. Based on the inscriptionย ๐๐ ฑ๐, this statue ๐๐ ฑ๐๐พ was probably intended to be placed in the Temple of Amun-Raย ๐๐ ๐๐ณ๐บย at Karnak.ย
Letโs read some hieroglyphs ๐น๐๐ช!ย
Since the directional hieroglyphs ๐น๐๐ช are pointing to the right, we will start reading from the right! Hieroglyphs ๐น๐๐ช are always read from top to bottom, so we will start with the top line too!
๐น – Life/Living
๐น๐ค – Perfect God
๐ณ๐ ๐ฃ – Menkhepperra (Lasting is the Manifestation of Ra)
๐ ญ๐ณ – Son of Ra
๐ ๐ ๐พ๐ – Thutmosis (Thoth is Born, Ruler of Maat)
Here is the bottom line (we will also start reading from the right):
๐๐ ๐๐ณ๐บ๐ญ – Amun-Ra
๐๐ผ๐ผ๐ผ๐ฟ๐ฟ – Lord of the Thrones
๐๐๐น๐น๐น – King of the Gods
๐ธ๐ – Beloved
๐น – Life
๐ – Eternal/Eternity
So here is the full inscription: โLife, the Perfect God, Menkhepperra, Son of Ra, Thutmosis, Beloved of Amun-Ra, Lord of the Thrones, King of the Gods, Eternal Life.โ
This statue ๐๐ ฑ๐๐พ is dated to the reign ๐พ of Thutmosis III ๐ ๐ ๐พ๐ (c. 1479โ1425 B.C.E.) which was during the 18th Dynasty (New Kingdom).
๐ค๐๐๐ ฑ๐ญ๐๐ – How beautiful this is! Look at thisย beautiful ๐ค broad collarย ๐ ฑ๐ด๐๐บ๐!ย
The broad collar ๐ ฑ๐ด๐๐บ๐ was the necklace of choice by both the gods ๐น๐น๐น, the pharaohs ๐๐ป๐ฆ, and the nobility/wealthy! This broad collar ๐ ฑ๐ด๐๐บ๐ is unique because traditionally they were made with faience ๐ฃ๐๐๐ธ๐ผ beads while this particular broad collar ๐ ฑ๐ด๐๐บ๐ is made of gold ๐๐๐๐ and glass ๐ฃ๐๐๐ธ๐ผ! Fun fact: glass and faience are the same word in hieroglyphs ๐น๐๐ช: ๐ฃ๐๐๐ธ๐ผ!
If you look closely at this broad collar ๐ ฑ๐ด๐๐บ๐, you will see a familiar hieroglyphic ๐น๐๐ช symbol: ๐ค! The โheart and windpipe ๐คโ symbol is a triliteral phonogram that represents the sound โnfrโ which in modern times we pronounce like โnefer.โ The word โnfr ๐คโ translates to โbeautifulโ or โgoodโ and is a very popular symbol not only in hieroglyphic ๐น๐๐ช phrases such as titles, but also in names ๐๐๐ฆ!
So basically, this broad collar ๐ ฑ๐ด๐๐บ๐ is just saying โbeautiful ๐คโ over and over and over again! Maybe the broad collar ๐ ฑ๐ด๐๐บ๐ was supposed to bring good ๐ค wishes to the wearer, or just make them even more beautiful ๐ค! Isnโt that what nice jewelry is all about, even in modern times?!
The MET has this piece titled โBroad Collar of Nefer Amuletsโ and it belonged to one of the foreign wives of pharaoh ๐๐ป Thutmosis III ๐ณ๐ ๐ฃ, as that is the tomb ๐๐ซ๐๐ the piece was found in. This piece is dated to the 18th Dynasty (c. 1504โ1450 B.C.E.).
In order to commeorate 100 ๐ฒ year anniversary of the discovery of Pharaoh Tutankhamunโs ๐๐ ๐๐๐ ฑ๐๐น๐พ๐บ๐ tomb ๐๐ซ๐๐, let’s take a look at some artifacts related to Tutankhamun ๐๐ ๐๐๐ ฑ๐๐น๐พ๐บ๐!
This gold ๐๐๐๐ ring ๐๐๐๐ช (the one in the back of the photo ๐๐ ฑ๐), which was also used as a seal, has the throne name ๐๐ of Tutankhamun ๐๐ ๐๐๐ ฑ๐๐น๐พ๐บ๐ on it!
Letโs read some hieroglyphs ๐น๐๐ช!
In the middle of the ring ๐๐๐๐ช, we see the throne name of Tutankhamun: ๐ณ๐ฃ๐ฆ๐ (Nebkheperure). Broken down, the name means:
๐ณ – Ra
๐ฃ๐ฆ – Forms/Manifestations
๐ – Lord So โ
Nebkheperure ๐ณ๐ฃ๐ฆ๐โ means โLord of the Manifestations of Ra.โ
On either side of Nebkheperure ๐ณ๐ฃ๐ฆ๐, there are other hieroglyphs ๐น๐๐ช too!
๐๐ ๐ – Amun
๐๐ณ๐ – Eternity
๐ Lord
๐ป – Beloved
So the full inscription ๐๐๐ฅ reads: โ ๐๐ ๐๐๐ณ๐๐๐ป Beloved of Amun, Lord of Eternity.โ
Something really interesting about the inscriptionย ๐๐๐ฅย is that the sun disc ๐ณ symbol in the word โeternityย ๐๐ณ๐โ has the Ankh ๐น or symbol for โLifeโ with it, which was a common way to write โeternityย ๐๐ณ๐โ during the reign ๐พ of Akhenatenย ๐๐๐๐ณ๐ ๐๐! Itโs meant to represent the Ankhs ๐น๐น๐น that usually appeared in depictions of the Atenย ๐๐๐๐ณ.ย
This sunken relief and inscriptionย ๐๐ ฑ๐ย is from the sarcophagusย ๐๐น๐๐๐ญย of a man named Harkhebit who lived during Dynasty 26 (c. 595-526 B.C.E.). This sarcophagusย ๐๐น๐๐๐ญย is one of the better examples of Late Period ancient Egyptian stonework and is at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in NYC.
One of the best things about Egyptian art is that sometimes the hieroglyphsย ๐น๐๐ชย act as โcaptionsโ and tell you exactly which deity ๐น you are looking at! The name ๐๐ of the deity ๐น usually appears above their head in an inscriptionย ๐๐ ฑ๐!
Duamutefย ๐ผ๐ ๐๐ and Imsetiย ๐๐ ๐๐ฟ.
On the left, we can see Duamutef ๐ผ๐ ๐๐ who is one of the Four Sons of Horus that was tasked with protecting ๐ ๐๐ก๐ the stomach ๐๐ฃ๐ป. ! Duamutef can also be spelled like ๐ผ๐๐๐, and it would be pronounced the same! A lot of the names ๐๐๐ฆ of gods ๐น๐น๐น, goddesses ๐น๐น๐น๐, and even pharaohs ๐๐ป๐ฆ had variants. A variant is just an alternate spelling of a word! A determinative could also appear at the end of the name ๐๐, which would make them appear as ๐ผ๐ ๐๐๐ญ and ๐ผ๐๐๐๐ญ.
On the right, we can see Imsetiย ๐๐ ๐๐ฟย who is also one of the Four Sons of Horus who was tasked with protectingย ๐ ๐๐ก๐ย the liver ๐ ๐๐๐น๐ธ๐ธ๐ธ! Imsetiย ๐๐ ๐๐ฟ can also be spelled likeย ๐๐๐ด๐๐, and that variation is the one you will see most often so it was very cool to see this particular spelling!ย A determinative could also appear at the end of the name๐๐ , which would make them appear asย ๐๐ ๐๐ฟ๐ญ andย ๐๐๐ด๐๐๐ญ.ย
Hapyย ๐๐ช๐ and Qebehsenuef ๐๐ข๐ข๐ข๐
On the left, we can see Hapyย ๐๐ช๐, who is one of the Four Sons of Horus.ย Hapy ๐๐ช๐ had the head of a baboon and protectedย ๐ ๐๐ก๐ย the lungs ๐๐ด๐ฅ๐ ฑ๐บ. Hapyโs name ๐๐can also be spelled like in โ๐๐๐ช๐โย hieroglyphsย ๐น๐๐ช. The spelling seen on this sarcophagus (๐๐ช๐)is a less common variant! Even in English, Hapyย ๐๐ช๐ย can also be spelled like โHapi!โย
On the right, we can see Qebehsenuef ๐๐ข๐ข๐ข๐ who is another one of the Four Sons of Horus.ย Qebehsenuef ๐๐ข๐ข๐ข๐ย had the head of a falconย ๐๐๐ก๐ andย protectedย ๐ ๐๐ก๐ย the intestines ๐๐ช๐ ฎ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ผ. The way thatย Qebehsenuef ๐๐ข๐ข๐ข๐ is spelled on this sarcophagusย ๐๐น๐๐๐ญย is the most common way I have seen the name ๐๐ spelled!ย
A determinative could also appear at the end of the name๐๐ , which would make them appear asย ๐๐ช๐๐ญ andย ๐๐ข๐ข๐ข๐๐ญ.ย
Much like Osiris ๐น๐จ๐ญ and Anubis ๐๐๐ช๐ ฑ๐ฃ were popular deities ๐น๐น๐น to see on funerary equipment ๐๐๐ด๐๐๐ญ, the Sons of Horus were as well because they were tasked with protecting ๐ ๐๐ก๐ organs ๐๐ง๐๐น๐ฆ of the deceased ๐ ๐๐ฑ. That is certainly an important job! Anubis ๐๐๐ช๐ ฑ๐ฃ does appear on this sarcophagus ๐๐น๐๐๐ญ, heโs just in a different spot!
The โRipple of Water ๐โ has always been one of my favorite symbols because โ๐โ is a uniliteral phonogram that has a sound like โNโ! As a kid ๐๐๐ I loved it because you use โ๐โ to write both โNicole ๐๐๐ก๐ฏ๐ญ๐โ and โNonno ๐๐ฏ๐๐๐ฏ๐โ in hieroglyphs ๐น๐๐ช! I also loved this symbol because it is an easy one to write/draw! I am no artist and while I can definitely read hieroglyphs ๐น๐๐ช, writing them is another story! I would have failed scribe ๐๐ school!!
While a simple symbol, the โRipple of Water ๐โ has many uses in Middle Egyptian! On its own, ๐ can mean: to, for, of, through, in, because, not, cannot, unless, no, they, we, us, and our! Thatโs a lot of words! When reading inscriptions, you can figure out the meaning based off of the context clues!
โWe, us, and ourโ can also be written as: ๐๐ฅ. โTheyโ can be written as: ๐๐ฎ or ๐๐ญ.
The โRipple of Water ๐โ is used a lot on its own but is also used a lot as part of larger words and names! Here are some examples:
Todayย ๐๐๐๐ณ we are going to be looking at an inscriptionย ๐๐ ฑ๐ย that includes the name ๐๐ of a god ๐น, and the honorific that follows the name ๐๐ of the god ๐น!ย
Hereโs a breakdown of the inscription ๐๐ ฑ๐:
๐๐ ๐๐ณ๐ญ – Amun-Ra
๐ – Lord
๐ผ๐ผ๐ผ – Thrones
So the inscription fully reads โ๐๐ ๐๐ณ๐ญ๐๐ผ๐ผ๐ผ – Amun-Ra, Lord of the Thrones.โ โLord of the Thrones ๐๐ผ๐ผ๐ผโ was a popular honorific to use after the name ๐๐ of a deity ๐น like Amun-Ra ๐๐ ๐๐ณ๐ญ because as he rose to popularity during the New Kingdom, he was considered to be the King of the Egyptian Gods. Amun-Ra ๐๐ ๐๐ณ๐ญ was also referred to as the โSupreme Godโ and is the combination of the individual deities Amun ๐๐ ๐ and Ra ๐ณ๐.
Here are some variants of Amun-Raโs name ๐๐ in hieroglyphs ๐น๐๐ช:
This is a very unique piece (not the cute little hippoย ๐๐๐ฏ)!
This artifact is referred to as an โApotropaicย Rodโ or โMagicย ๐๐๐ฟ๐ย Rodโ which means that it is an object that has the power to ward off evilย ๐๐๐๐๐ จย or bad luck. This piece is dated to the Middle Kingdom (c. 1678-1640 B.C.E.) which was during the reign ๐พ of Senwosret IIIย ๐ณ๐๐๐๐ย (Dynasty 12).ย
This piece is composed of multiple (four ๐ฝ) segments that are all joined together. This is the only Magic ๐๐๐ฟ๐ Rod that has been found of this type, and luckily it is completely preserved! In ancient Egyptian magic, animals that were considered to be dangerous, such as lions ๐ณ๐น๐ฟ๐๐ฆ, hippos ๐๐๐ฏ๐ฆ, and crocodiles ๐ ๐ด๐๐๐ฆ could be used in amulet ๐๐ช๐ or wand to induce protection ๐ ๐๐ก๐ on the person. There are also some cute frogs ๐๐๐๐๐ฆ!! These animals can be seen as figures on the top of the wand!
There is also a turtle ๐๐๐ฟ๐ amongst the other predatory animals on the top-center of the rod, so were turtles ๐๐๐ฟ๐๐ฆ considered predatory? In ancient Egypt ๐๐ ๐๐, turtles ๐๐๐ฟ๐๐ฆ were seen as an ambiguous force because they were creatures of both land ๐พ and water ๐. Turtles ๐๐๐ฟ๐๐ฆ were also seen as the enemy of Ra ๐ณ๐บ๐, and in chapter 162 of the Book of the Dead, it is stated that โMay Ra live, and may the turtle die.โ The turtles ๐๐๐ฟ๐๐ฆ that lived in the Nile ๐๐๐๐ ฑ๐๐๐๐บ were mostly nocturnal, which is probably why they were considered to be Raโs ๐ณ๐บ๐ enemy.
Carved into the rockย ๐๐๐๐ย underneath the figures are other protectiveย ๐ ๐๐ก๐ย symbols such as the Wedjat ๐ or โEye of Horus,โ and baboons. There is also an image ๐๐ ฑ๐ of a crocodileย ๐ ๐ด๐๐ย and what looks like a lioness ๐ณ๐น๐ฟ๐๐!ย
Hereโs another example of an Egyptian โMagicย ๐๐๐ฟ๐ย Wand,โ which is more commonly referred to as an โApotropaic Wand.โย
This piece is dated to the Middle Kingdom (c.ย 1981-1640ย B.C.E.ย Dynasty 12-13) and wands such as these were common to find amongst burial equipment in Middle Kingdom tombsย ๐๐ซ๐๐๐ฆ. These type of โMagic Wandsโ are a lot more common than the one I posted about previously!ย
This โMagic Wandโ is made out of hippopotamus ๐๐๐ฏ ivory. Since the tusks is the most dangerous and powerful part of the hippopotamus ๐๐๐ฏ, this object symbolically has the power to ward off evil ๐๐๐๐๐ จ or bad luck. Not only is the ivory powerful, but the deities ๐น๐น๐น depicted are also carry knives in order to ward off evil forces ๐๐๐๐๐ จ! Taweret ๐๐ฟ๐ ฉ๐๐๐, Nekhbet ๐๐๐๐ ๐, Anubis ๐๐๐ช๐ ฑ๐ฃ, and Thoth ๐ ๐๐ญ๐ญ are all shown!
There are also some hieroglyphs ๐น๐๐ช on the Magic Wand! Some Magic Wands contain longer inscriptions ๐๐๐ฅ on the back (not this one though)! Many of these inscriptions ๐๐๐ฅ indicate that these wands were used as a protective amulet ๐๐ช๐ during childbirth, but they were placed in tombs ๐๐ซ๐๐๐ฆ to help the deceased ๐ ๐๐ฑ at his/her rebirth.
Letโs read some hieroglyphs ๐น๐๐ช!
๐ฒ๐๐๐ ฑ๐บ๐ณ – Protection of Day
๐ฒ๐ผ๐๐๐ฑ – Protection of Night
Night can also be written as: ๐ผ๐๐๐ or ๐.
Day can also be written as: ๐๐๐บ๐ณ
Ancient Egyptian magic ๐๐๐ฟ๐ is so incredibly fascinating!
