Tag: hieroglyphs

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Reading Hieroglyphs

Kohl Tube of Amenhotep III and Queen Tiye

Let’s read some hieroglyphs π“ŠΉπ“Œƒπ“ͺ!

Today π“‡π“‡‹π“ˆ–π“‡³ we are going to look at a Kohl π“†“π“‚π“Œ π“ƒ€ Tube! Kohl π“†“π“‚π“Œ π“ƒ€ was a type of eye paint (makeup) that was very popular amongst the ancient Egyptians! This tube would have contained the kohl π“†“π“‚π“Œ π“ƒ€, and then a wooden 𓆱𓏏𓏺 or faience π“‹£π“ˆ–π“π“Έπ“Ό stick would have been used to apply it! The kohl π“†“π“‚π“Œ π“ƒ€ tube itself is also made of faience π“‹£π“ˆ–π“π“Έπ“Ό, hence the gorgeous blue 𓇋𓁹𓏏𓄿𓏸π“₯ color! This piece is dated to the 18th Dynasty (c. 1390-1353 B.C.E.).

For me, the most interesting part of an artifact is always going to be the inscription π“Ž˜π“…±π“Ž– on the object! Let’s read some hieroglyphs π“ŠΉπ“Œƒπ“ͺ!

π“ŠΉπ“„€ – Perfect God 

π“ŽŸπ“‡Ώπ“‡Ώ – Lord of the Two Lands

π“‡³π“§π“Ž  – Nebmaatra (Amenhotep III’s Throne Name)

π“‡“π“ˆžπ“ – King’s Great Wife

π“˜π“‡Œπ“­π“— – Tiye

π“‹Ήπ“˜ – May She Live!

Some of you may notice when looking at this inscription that Queen Tiye’s π“˜π“‡Œπ“­π“— name π“‚‹π“ˆ– is in a cartouche too! Sometimes, the names π“‚‹π“ˆ–π“¦ of the queens who held the title of the β€œKing’s Great Wife π“‡“π“ˆžπ“β€ also appeared in cartouches to demonstrate their importance to the pharaoh 𓉐𓉻. 

Tiye π“˜π“‡Œπ“­π“— was actually the mother 𓅐𓏏𓁐 of Akhenaten π“‡‹π“π“ˆ–π“‡³π“…œπ“π“ˆ– and Tutankhamun’s π“‡‹π“ π“ˆ–π“π“…±π“π“‹Ήπ“‹Ύπ“‰Ίπ“‡“ grandmother! Tiye π“˜π“‡Œπ“­π“— and Amenhotep III π“‡³π“§π“Ž  seem to have been married by the second year of his reign. The reign of Amenhotep III π“‡³π“§π“Ž  was an extremely prosperous and successful one, because it was at this time that Egypt π“†Žπ“…“π“π“Š– had reached its peak artistic and international power (even though Amenhotep III π“‡³π“§π“Ž  only participated in one military battle himself). His success had been set up by the works of the previous pharaohs 𓉐𓉻𓏦, such as Hatshepsut π“‡‹π“ π“ˆ–π“ŽΉπ“π“„‚π“π“€Όπ“ͺ and Thutmosis III 𓇳𓏠𓆣 and then Amenhotep III’s π“‡³π“§π“Ž  own father, Thutmosis IV 𓇳𓏠𓆣𓏼.Β 

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Reading Hieroglyphs

Hieroglyphs from the Abydos King List!

Let’s read some hieroglyphs π“ŠΉπ“Œƒπ“ͺ!

These beautiful π“„€ hieroglyphs π“ŠΉπ“Œƒπ“ͺ are from the Abydos King List at the British Museum. There are two 𓏻 surviving King Lists from temples π“‰Ÿπ“π“‰π“ͺ at Abydos, the cult center of Osiris π“Ήπ“Š¨π“€­. One temple π“‰Ÿπ“π“‰ is from Seti I 𓇳𓁦𓏠, and the other from his son π“…­ Rameses II π“‡‹π“ π“ˆ–π“ˆ˜π“œπ“Ίπ“„Ÿπ“‹΄π“Šƒ, who were both pharaohs 𓉐𓉻π“₯ during the 19th Dynasty. Seti I’s 𓇳𓁦𓏠 list is still in the temple π“‰Ÿπ“π“‰ at Abydos, while Rameses II’s π“‡‹π“ π“ˆ–π“ˆ˜π“œπ“Ίπ“„Ÿπ“‹΄π“Šƒ was excavated and brought to the British Museum.Β 

While the two 𓏻 lists were very similar, Rameses II’s π“‡‹π“ π“ˆ–π“ˆ˜π“œπ“Ίπ“„Ÿπ“‹΄π“Šƒ had more rows to accommodate the names π“‚‹π“ˆ–π“¦ so it appears to be shorter. There are three 𓏼 rows of cartouches on the remaining limestone π“‡‹π“ˆ–π“ˆ™π“Œ‰ relief – the upper two 𓏻 rows contain the cartouches of earlier pharaohs 𓉐𓉻π“₯, while the bottom row shows Rameses II’s π“‡‹π“ π“ˆ–π“ˆ˜π“œπ“Ίπ“„Ÿπ“‹΄π“Šƒ throne name and birth name alternating – this is the part we will be reading today π“‡π“‡‹π“ˆ–π“‡³!

Let’s read some hieroglyphs π“ŠΉπ“Œƒπ“ͺ! We are going to start from the right!

π“…“π“‚žπ“‚ž – By Permission Of

𓅭𓇳 – Son of Ra

π“‡‹π“ π“ˆ–π“ˆ˜π“œπ“Ίπ“„Ÿπ“‹΄π“Šƒ – Rameses II, Beloved of Amun (birth name)

π“…“π“‚žπ“‚ž – By Permission Of

π“†₯ – King of Upper and Lower Egypt

π“‡³π“„Šπ“§π“‡³π“‰π“ˆ– Rameses II (β€œUsermaatre” throne name)

π“…“π“‚žπ“‚ž – By Permission Of

𓅭𓇳 – Son of Ra

π“©π“ˆ˜π“œπ“Ίπ“„Ÿπ“‹΄π“‡“ – Rameses II (birth name variant)

β€œBy Permission Of π“…“π“‚žπ“‚žβ€ is meant to signify that Rameses II π“‡³π“„Šπ“§π“‡³π“‰π“ˆ– commissioned the creation of this King List! It’s also cool how different variants of the name π“‚‹π“ˆ– were used throughout the relief!

The point of the King Lists was not to preserve history for future generations, rather the main objective was to glorify the gods π“ŠΉπ“ŠΉπ“ŠΉ, and as we know, pharaohs 𓉐𓉻π“₯ were considered gods π“ŠΉπ“ŠΉπ“ŠΉ on Earth. These lists allowed Seti I 𓇳𓁦𓏠 and Rameses II π“‡‹π“ π“ˆ–π“ˆ˜π“œπ“Ίπ“„Ÿπ“‹΄π“Šƒ to assert their legitimacy amongst the old pharaohs 𓉐𓉻π“₯ of Egypt π“†Žπ“…“π“π“Š–. 

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Egyptian Artifacts Reading Hieroglyphs

Alexander the Great in Hieroglyphs

In 332 BCE, Alexander the Great π“„Ώπ“ƒ­π“Ž‘π“Šƒπ“‡‹π“ˆ–π“‚§π“‚‹π“Šƒ conquered Egypt π“†Žπ“…“π“π“Š– and became pharaoh 𓉐𓉻! This was the beginning of the Hellenistic Period of Egyptian history. 

So why was Alexander π“„Ώπ“ƒ­π“Ž‘π“Šƒπ“‡‹π“ˆ–π“‚§π“‚‹π“Šƒ recognized as a pharaoh 𓉐𓉻? The Egyptians π“†Žπ“π“€€π“π“ͺ saw him as the person who liberated them from the Persians! Alexander π“„Ώπ“ƒ­π“Ž‘π“Šƒπ“‡‹π“ˆ–π“‚§π“‚‹π“Šƒ also restored many of the Egyptian temples π“‰Ÿπ“π“‰π“ͺ and even built new monuments 𓏠𓏍 dedicated to the Egyptian gods π“ŠΉπ“ŠΉπ“ŠΉ! Some of these monuments 𓏠𓏍 show him worshipping Amun π“‡‹π“ π“ˆ–, who basically would’ve been the Egyptian version of Zeus. After Alexander’s π“„Ώπ“ƒ­π“Ž‘π“Šƒπ“‡‹π“ˆ–π“‚§π“‚‹π“Šƒ death 𓅓𓏏𓏱 in Babylon, Ptolemy I π“Šͺπ“π“―π“ƒ­π“π“‡Œπ“‹΄ became pharaoh 𓉐𓉻 and founded the Ptolemaic Dynasty.

Since Alexander π“„Ώπ“ƒ­π“Ž‘π“Šƒπ“‡‹π“ˆ–π“‚§π“‚‹π“Šƒ was Macedonian and not native Egyptian, his cartouche is very phonetic – all of the hieroglyphs π“ŠΉπ“Œƒπ“ͺ used are uniliteral signs, which means that they correspond to a single sound, just like a letter in the alphabet. Let’s take a closer look! 

π“„Ώ – The β€œEgyptian Vulture 𓄿” represents the sound β€œ3” which would be pronounced like β€œah.” 

𓃭 – the β€œrecumbent lion 𓃭” was traditionally a biliteral phonogram for the sound β€œrw,” however, during the Hellenistic Period it adopted the sound of β€œL.” 

π“Ž‘ – The β€œBasket with a Handle π“Ž‘β€ symbol has the sound of β€œk.”

π“Šƒ – The β€œdoorbolt π“Šƒβ€ symbol represents the sound β€œz” or β€œs.” It’s also the ideogram for the word β€œdoorbolt.” 

𓇋 – The β€œreed 𓇋” represents the sound of β€œΔ±Ν—,” however it can also function as an ideogram for the word β€œreed 𓇋𓏺.” 

π“ˆ– – The β€œripple of water π“ˆ–β€ is associated with the sound of β€œn!” 

𓂧 – The β€œhand 𓂧” represents the sound β€œd” and is also the ideogram for the word β€œhand.” 

π“‚‹ – The β€œmouth 𓂋” symbol is used to represent the sound β€œr.” It can also be used as an ideogram for the word β€œmouth 𓂋𓏺.” 

π“Šƒ – see above! 

The hieroglyphs of β€œπ“„Ώπ“ƒ­π“Ž‘π“Šƒπ“‡‹π“ˆ–π“‚§π“‚‹π“Šƒβ€ basically spell out β€œAlksindrs.” It’s pretty cool to see the versatility of the hieroglyphic π“ŠΉπ“Œƒπ“ͺ symbols with examples of foreign names π“‚‹π“ˆ–π“¦!

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Reading Hieroglyphs Video

Video – Let’s read some Hieroglyphs!

@ancientegyptblog

Let’s read some hieroglyphs π“ŠΉπ“Œƒπ“ͺ! This inscription π“Ÿπ“›π“₯ comes from the false door of a man named Mery (4th Dynasty/Old Kingdom), however the inscription π“Ÿπ“›π“₯ is about his wife 𓂑𓏏𓁐 Niankhwadjet π“ˆ–π“‡…π“π“‹Ή. Right Hieroglyphs π“ŠΉπ“Œƒπ“ͺ Column: 𓇓𓂋𓐍𓏏 – King’s Acquaintance 𓉑 – Hathor π“ŠΉπ“› – Priest [Priestess in this case] (literally β€œGod’s Servant”) All together, this inscription π“Ÿπ“›π“₯ would read β€œThe King’s Acquaintance, Priestess of Hathor…” The title β€œKing’s Acquaintance π“‡“π“‚‹π“π“β€œ is taken to mean that the person was close to the pharaoh 𓉐𓉻! Left Hieroglyphs π“ŠΉπ“Œƒπ“ͺ Column: π“ŽŸ – Possessor π“Œ³π“π“„ͺ – Reverence π“ˆ–π“‡…π“π“‹Ή – Niankhwadjet β€œPossessor of Reverence, Niankhwadjet.” Let’s put it all together! π“‡“π“‚‹π“π“π“‰‘π“ŠΉπ“›π“ŽŸπ“Œ³π“π“„ͺπ“ˆ–π“‡…π“π“‹Ή β€œThe King’s Acquaintance, Priestess of Hathor, Possessor of Reverence, Niankhwadjet.” This is mh personal video and original text – Do NOT repost! #ancientEgypt #ancientegyptblog #egyptology #hieroglyphics #letsreadsomehieroglyphs #egitto #egyptianhistory #metropolitanmuseumofart #metmuseum #hieroglyphs

♬ original sound – ancientegyptblog Nicole Lesar

Let’s read some hieroglyphs π“ŠΉπ“Œƒπ“ͺ!

This inscription π“Ÿπ“›π“₯ comes from the false door of a man named Mery (4th Dynasty/Old Kingdom), however the inscription π“Ÿπ“›π“₯ is about his wife 𓂑𓏏𓁐 Niankhwadjet π“ˆ–π“‡…π“π“‹Ή. 

Right Hieroglyphs π“ŠΉπ“Œƒπ“ͺ Column:

𓇓𓂋𓐍𓏏 – King’s Acquaintance

𓉑 – Hathor

π“ŠΉπ“› – Priest [Priestess in this case] (literally β€œGod’s Servant”) 

All together, this inscription π“Ÿπ“›π“₯ would read β€œThe King’s Acquaintance, Priestess of Hathor…” The title β€œKing’s Acquaintance π“‡“π“‚‹π“π“β€œ is taken to mean that the person was close to the pharaoh 𓉐𓉻! 

Left Hieroglyphs π“ŠΉπ“Œƒπ“ͺ Column: 

π“ŽŸ – Possessor

π“Œ³π“π“„ͺ – Reverence

π“ˆ–π“‡…π“π“‹Ή – Niankhwadjet

β€œPossessor of Reverence, Niankhwadjet.”

Let’s put it all together! 

π“‡“π“‚‹π“π“π“‰‘π“ŠΉπ“›π“ŽŸπ“Œ³π“π“„ͺπ“ˆ–π“‡…π“π“‹Ή

β€œThe King’s Acquaintance, Priestess of Hathor, Possessor of Reverence, Niankhwadjet.”

Here is my past post (with photographs) on this beautiful piece!

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Book Recommendations Video

Video – Hieroglyphic Dictionaries Recommendations

@ancientegyptblog

Here are my recommendations of hieroglyphic dictionaries to get you started on your journey to reading hieroglyphs! Like with learning any language, getting a good dictionary to help you learn is going to be vital! I love all my dictionaries that I share in this video, and I hope you can all enjoy them too! I started to teach myself ancient Egyptian hieroglyphs starting at the age of six and I’ve been reading them for over 25 years now! I love teaching people how they can learn too – if I can do it, anyone can! This is not an ad – I brought all of these books myself and these are my honest opinions. You can check out my β€œRecommendations” highlight for links to the books! Follow me to learn all about ancient Egypt, hieroglyphs, Egyptian mythology, art, culture and more! This is my personal video and original text. DO NOT repost. #ancientEgypt #hieroglyphics #languagelearning #ancientegyptianlanguage #hieroglyphs #letsreadsomehieroglyphs #bookrecommendations #ancientegyptblog #egyptology

♬ original sound – ancientegyptblog Nicole Lesar

Hi π“‰”π“‡Œπ“€ everyone! I’m back with another book 𓅓𓍑𓏏𓏛 recommendation! These are four 𓏽 hieroglyphic π“ŠΉπ“Œƒπ“ͺ dictionaries that I really like and use all the time! I would definitely recommend these dictionaries if you’re studying hieroglyphs π“ŠΉπ“Œƒπ“ͺ! 

The two 𓏻 dictionaries by Bill Petty are easy to get because they are still in print, however, the Budge dictionaries are old and you’ll probably have to get them second hand! My Nonno gave me the Budge dictionaries over 20 π“Ž†π“Ž† years ago and what’s wild is they were old books 20 π“Ž†π“Ž† years ago! 

Thank you 𓋴𓏏𓍯𓄿𓀒 to my friend π“ˆ˜π“ˆ‡π“€€π“ @elianubis for sending me this beautiful π“„€ shirt as a gift! I love it!! 

Here are affiliate links, where you can purchase the books that I recommended in the video! As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. This helps to keep my website and educational content free for all!

English to Middle Egyptian Dictionary

Hieroglyphic Dictionary: A Vocabulary of the Middle Egyptian Language 

Budge Dictionary Volume 1

Budge Dictionary Volume 2

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Reading Hieroglyphs

“Rameses II Adoring the Sphinx at Giza”

This limestone π“‡‹π“ˆ–π“ˆ™π“Œ‰ relief is called β€œRameses II adoring the Sphinx at Giza” and it is such a beautiful π“„€ piece! Let’s take a closer look!

By the time Rameses II π“©π“›π“ˆ˜π“„Ÿπ“‹΄π“‡“ was pharaoh 𓉐𓉻, the Sphinx π“Ž›π“…±π“ƒ­π“€ at Giza was already ancient (~1200 years old) – which is almost mind blowing to think about!!! During the 18th Dynasty (the dynasty before Rameses II π“©π“›π“ˆ˜π“„Ÿπ“‹΄π“‡“) the cult of the Sphinx π“Ž›π“…±π“ƒ­π“€ began to reach its peak in terms of religious importance. 

During the first 𓏃 year of their reign π“ˆŽπ“π“‹Ύ, the pharaoh 𓉐𓉻 would take a trip to the Sphinx π“Ž›π“…±π“ƒ­π“€ as almost a right of passage. They would then build monuments 𓏠𓏍 to document the occasion. This relief is representative of that trip that Rameses II π“©π“›π“ˆ˜π“„Ÿπ“‹΄π“‡“ took! 

The New Kingdom pharaohs 𓉐𓉻𓐆 knew the Sphinx π“Ž›π“…±π“ƒ­π“€ as Hor-em-Akhet π“…ƒπ“π“ˆŒ which translates to β€œHorus in the Horizon.” The name π“‚‹π“ˆ– most likely came from the fact that the Sphinx’s π“Ž›π“…±π“ƒ­π“€ head is seen in between Khufu 𓐍𓆑𓅱 and Khafre’s π“‡³π“ˆπ“†‘ pyramids 𓍋𓅓𓂋𓉴π“ͺ, and can appear like the sun disc 𓇳 when approached from a certain direction. It’s definitely a creative name π“‚‹π“ˆ–! 

Let’s read some simple hieroglyphs π“ŠΉπ“Œƒπ“ͺ! Here’s a breakdown of the name π“‚‹π“ˆ– Horus in the Horizon π“…ƒπ“π“ˆŒ! Can you spot this on the relief?

π“…ƒ – Horus

𓐝 – em = in the

π“ˆŒ – akhet = horizon

There are actually two 𓏻 different versions of this relief! If you look at the pictures above versus the pictures 𓏏𓅱𓏏𓏦 below, the reliefs are facing two 𓏻 different directions!

For a closer hieroglyphic study, we are going to be looking at the relief facing the left because I was able to get better pictures 𓏏𓅱𓏏𓏦 of the hieroglyphs π“ŠΉπ“Œƒπ“ͺ on this one! Both reliefs are pretty much identical except for the direction that they face!

Let’s read some hieroglyphs π“ŠΉπ“Œƒπ“ͺ! We are going to look at the picture 𓏏𓅱𓏏 posted below. Some of the hieroglyphs π“ŠΉπ“Œƒπ“ͺ are missing, but I was able to infer what was being written:

𓏙 – Given

π“‹Ή – Life

π“ŽŸπ“ˆπ“₯ – Lord of Appearances 

π“‡³π“©π“„Ÿπ“‹΄π“‹΄π“ŒΈ – Rameses II (Birth Name Variant) (this cartouche is too damaged for me to know which variant, so I made my best guess)

π“ŽŸπ“‡Ώπ“‡Ώ – Lord of the Two Lands

π“‡³π“„Šπ“§π“‡³π“‰π“ˆ– – Usermaatre (Rameses II throne name)

π“ŠΉπ“„€ – Perfect God 

π“ŽΈπ“…“(𓏲𓅆)(π“€­) – Khnum (these hieroglyphs are cut off, but my best guess is this is the start of the name of the god Khnum)

Here’s the hieroglyphs π“ŠΉπ“Œƒπ“ͺ translation for the picture 𓏏𓅱𓏏 posted below:

π“…ƒ – Horus

𓐝 – in the

π“ˆŒ  – Horizon

𓏙 – Given

π“‹Ή – Life

𓆑 – His

π“ŽŸ – All

π“Š½ – Stability

π“Œ€ – Strength

π“‹΄π“ˆ–π“ƒ€π“œ – Health

𓄫𓄣𓏏 – Joy

π“ŽŸ – All

𓇳𓏇 – Like Ra

π“‡³π“ŽŸ – Every day

This beautiful π“„€ and unique relief is located at the Louvre in France!

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Reading Hieroglyphs

The “King’s Acquaintance”

Let’s read some hieroglyphs π“ŠΉπ“Œƒπ“ͺ!Β 

Today π“‡π“‡‹π“ˆ–π“‡³ we are going to be looking at a Title that appears π“ˆ on statues 𓏏𓅱𓏏𓀾π“ͺ and in funerary inscriptions π“Ÿπ“›π“₯. The title of β€œπ“‡“π“‚‹π“π“ – King’s Acquaintance” is used to denote people who were close to the pharaoh 𓉐𓉻 and can be written in two ways: 

𓇓𓂋𓐍𓏏 – if the person was female

𓇓𓏏𓂋𓐍 – if the person was male

In the case of this inscription π“Ÿπ“›π“₯, which was for a female, King’s Acquaintance 𓇓𓂋𓐍𓏏 is written in the female form of the word! The Title has also been translated as β€œGentlewoman,” and β€œCourt Lady,” while the male version (𓇓𓏏𓂋𓐍) can also be translated as β€œCustodian of the King’s Property.” 

Let’s take a closer look at the hieroglyphs π“ŠΉπ“Œƒπ“ͺ that make up this title! 

The β€œSedge 𓇓” symbol is one of the most common hieroglyphs you will see in inscriptions! It functions as a biliteral phonogram and is associated with the sound β€œsw.” Most commonly, the symbol is used as an ideogram for the word β€œKing,” which is associated with the sound β€œnswt.” In this case of this title, the sedge is functioning as an ideogram!

The β€œplacenta or sieve 𓐍” symbol is a uniliteral phonogram and is associated with the sound β€œαΈ«.” This symbol is actually considered β€œunclassified” because Egyptologists actually don’t know what it exactly represents! 

The β€œmouth 𓂋” symbol functions most commonly as a uniliteral phonogram and is used to represent the sound β€œr.” It can also be used as an ideogram for the word β€œmouth 𓂋𓏺.” 

The β€œflat loaf of bread 𓏏” is a uniliteral phonogram used to represent the sound β€œt.” It also functions as the ideogram for the word β€œbread 𓏏𓏺” and can be used to make words feminine when placed at the end of the word! 

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Reading Hieroglyphs

Stela of Aafenmut

Today π“‡π“‡‹π“ˆ–π“‡³ we are going to look at a wooden 𓆱𓏏𓏺 stela π“Ž—π“…±π“†“π“‰Έ that is dated to the Third Intermediate Period (c. 924–889 B.C.E., 22nd Dynasty) which belonged to a man π“Šƒπ“€€π“€ named Aafenmut π“‰»π“†‘π“ˆ–π“π“…π“†‡. This stela π“Ž—π“…±π“†“π“‰Έ shows a typical funerary stela π“Ž—π“…±π“†“π“‰Έ offering π“Š΅π“π“Šͺ𓏏𓏔𓏦 scene, and this style of stela π“Ž—π“…±π“†“π“‰Έ was very popular during this time period. I love this particular style because it is so colorful!Β This stela π“Ž—π“…±π“†“π“‰Έ is on display at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in NYC.

The Solar Barge 𓂧π“Šͺπ“π“Šž is shown at the top of the stela π“Ž—π“…±π“†“π“‰Έ and the Solar Barge 𓂧π“Šͺπ“π“Šž represents Ra’s 𓇳𓏺𓁛 journey across the sky π“Šͺ𓏏𓇯. Ra’s 𓇳𓏺𓁛 journey is supposed to be representative of his birth/resurrection (sunrise), growth (day) and then death (sunset). In between Aafenmut π“‰»π“†‘π“ˆ–π“π“…π“†‡ and Ra-Horakhty π“…Šπ“”π“”π“€ is a table filled with offerings π“Š΅π“π“Šͺ𓏏𓏔𓏦 of bread 𓏏𓏐, fruit, and flowers 𓆼𓅱𓆰𓏦.Β 

Let’s read some hieroglyphs π“ŠΉπ“Œƒπ“ͺ! 

π“…Šπ“”π“”π“€ – Ra-Horakhty

π“ŠΉπ“‰Ό – Great God

π“ŽŸ – Lord

𓇯 – Sky/Heaven

π“‚ž – Give

𓆑 – He

π“Š΅π“π“Šͺ𓏏𓐍𓏛- Offerings

𓐝 – To

π“Š©π“Ή – Osiris

𓐝 – To

π“ž – Scribe

π“Ίπ“‰π“Œ‰π“Ίπ“‰ – Treasury

π“‰»π“†‘π“ˆ–π“π“…π“†‡ – Aafenmut

π“™π“Š€ – True of Voice (Justified)

So all π“ŽŸ together π“ˆ–π“Š—, this inscription π“Ž˜π“…±π“Ž– reads: β€œRa-Horakhty, the Great God, Lord of the Sky/Heaven, may he give offerings to Osiris, to the scribe of the treasury, Aafenmut, True of Voice.” 

Categories
Egyptian Artifacts Reading Hieroglyphs

Sphinx of Senwosret III (Part II)

Here is a link to Part I!

The Horus Name is one of five 𓏾 ways to write the name π“‚‹π“ˆ– of a pharaoh 𓉐𓉻, and it is the oldest way to do so. The purpose of the Horus Name was to identify the king 𓇓 as an earthly representation of the god π“ŠΉ Horus π“…ƒπ“€­.Β 

The Horus Name consists of three elements: the palace facade π“Š, Horus the Falcon π“…ƒ standing on top of the palace π“Š, and the name π“‚‹π“ˆ– of the pharaoh 𓉐𓉻 within the palace π“Š. The palace π“Š hieroglyph π“ŠΉπ“Œƒ is pronounced like β€œserekh” and some Egyptologists are now referring to the Horus Name as the Serekh Name. This was basically the early version of the cartouche! 

On the sphinx π“Ž›π“…±π“ƒ­ of Pharaoh 𓉐𓉻 Senwosret III π“‡³π“ˆπ“‚“π“‚“π“‚“, you can see the Horus name, however, the throne name is also in the serekh! This is unusual to see both names π“‚‹π“ˆ–π“¦ in the serekh! 

Let’s read some hieroglyphs π“ŠΉπ“Œƒπ“ͺ! 

π“ŠΉπ“†£π“…± – β€œHorus, Divine of Form” (Neter-kheperu) (Horus Name)

π“‡³π“ˆπ“‚“π“‚“π“‚“ – β€œThe Souls of Ra have Appeared” (Kha kau ra) (Throne Name)

Something I love about this sphinx π“Ž›π“…±π“ƒ­, is that it is made out of gneiss, which is one of my favorite rocks π“‡‹π“ˆ–π“‚‹π“ˆ™π“¦! Gneiss is a foliated metamorphic rock π“‡‹π“ˆ–π“‚‹π“ˆ™ which means that it was subjected to such extreme heat and pressure during its formation (probably due to mountain π“ˆ‹π“…³ building or plate tectonics), that the minerals π“‡‹π“Œ»π“‚‹π“…±π“ˆ™π“¦ have separated into bands of light (felsic) and dark (mafic) colored minerals π“‡‹π“Œ»π“‚‹π“…±π“ˆ™π“¦! This gives gneiss a natural zebra-like appearance! 

Gebel el-Asr is the only quarry π“Ž›π“π“π“‰ in Egypt π“†Žπ“…“π“π“Š– where gneiss can be found, and gneiss was prized from the Predynastic to Middle Kingdoms for statue 𓏏𓅱𓏏𓀾 making!

The following pictures 𓏏𓅱𓏏 show a close up of one of my samples of gneiss, so you can see this banding! 

Categories
Reading Hieroglyphs

How to Read a Three-Symbol Cartouche

Let’s read some hieroglyphs π“ŠΉπ“Œƒπ“ͺ! 

When I was first starting to learn to read hieroglyphs π“ŠΉπ“Œƒπ“ͺ, the cartouches of the pharaohs 𓉐𓉻𓏦 were some of the first things I learned how to read and recognize! Learning the cartouches allowed me to become familiar with the different uniliteral, biliteral, and triliteral signs! By remembering the signs/meanings of the hieroglyphs π“ŠΉπ“Œƒπ“ͺ associated with the names π“‚‹π“ˆ–π“₯ of the pharaohs 𓉐𓉻𓏦, I was able to then expand my knowledge using the Book of the Dead transliteration/translation!

A lot of the New Kingdom pharaohs 𓉐𓉻𓏦 had simple three 𓏼 symbol throne name cartouches, which sometimes takes some practice to read because of the order of the symbols! For the three symbol cartouches, usually (not always) the symbols were read β€œMiddle-Right-Left” or β€œMiddle-Bottom-Top” depending on the orientation of the hieroglyphs π“ŠΉπ“Œƒπ“ͺ.

For example, Hatshepsut’s throne name of (𓇳𓁦𓂓) would be read β€œMaatkare” (Maat 𓁦 ka π“‚“ re 𓇳) and the throne name of Thutmosis III (𓇳𓏠𓆣) would be read β€œMenkhepherre” (Men 𓏠 kheper 𓆣 re 𓇳).Β 

While to most this is just a piece of wood 𓆱𓏏𓏺, to me this is significant because this piece of wood 𓆱𓏏𓏺 is inscribed with the cartouche of the throne name of the 19th Dynasty pharaoh 𓉐𓉻 Seti I!

So in this picture 𓏏𓅱𓏏, Seti I’s cartouche reads (𓁦𓏠𓇳) or β€œMenmaatre” (Men 𓏠 maat 𓁦 re 𓇳), however, in most inscriptions π“Ÿπ“›π“₯ his cartouche is written as (𓇳𓁦𓏠)! A lot of people will translate his name as β€œMaatmenre” (Maat 𓁦 men 𓏠 re 𓇳) because of the way it is written. So as you can see, the orientation of the three 𓏼 symbols definitely changes and can be confusing to a beginner! I have seen both Menmaatre and Maatmenre used in published books, but if we are going to get technical, the translation of Menmaatre (Eternal is the Truth of Re) makes a little more sense than Maatmenre (Truth is the Eternal of Re). 

I chose to use Seti I’s 𓇳𓁦𓏠 cartouche for this example because Nonno loved Seti I 𓇳𓁦𓏠!