I must admit – I am very guilty of walking past these statuesย ๐๐๐๐ญ๐พ๐ชย at the MET a lot because usually I want to go straight for the Temple of Dendur!! These pictures ๐๐ ฑ๐๐ฆ are from May, but when I went to the MET earlier this month I got some close up photosย ๐๐ ฑ๐๐ฆย of these gorgeous ๐ค statuesย ๐๐๐๐ญ๐พ๐ช, so Iโm going to do a bit of a series on them! Todayย ๐๐๐๐ณย we will learn the history, and then we will read the hieroglyphsย ๐น๐๐ชย tomorrowย ๐ผ๐ฟ๐ณ!ย
These two ๐ป statues ๐๐๐๐ญ๐พ๐ช originally belonged to the pharaoh ๐๐ป Amenhotep III ๐๐ ๐๐ต๐พ๐. While these two ๐ป statues ๐๐๐๐ญ๐พ๐ช now adorn the entrance to the museum exhibit of the Temple of Dendur, they originally were located at Amenhotep IIIโs ๐๐ ๐๐ต๐พ๐ temple ๐๐๐ dedicated to Amun-Ra ๐๐ ๐๐ณ๐บ at Thebes ๐๐๐ (modern day Luxor). Amenhotep III ๐๐ ๐๐ต๐พ๐ ruled ๐พ Egypt ๐๐ ๐๐ during the 18th Dynasty.
Then in the 19th Dynasty, along came the pharaoh ๐๐ป Merenptah ๐ณ๐๐๐๐น๐น๐น! Merenptah ๐ณ๐๐๐๐น๐น๐น was the son ๐ ญ of Rameses II ๐๐ ๐๐๐ณ๐บ๐๐ด๐, and like father ๐๐๐ like son ๐ ญ, Merenptah ๐ณ๐๐๐๐น๐น๐น usurped the statues ๐๐๐๐ญ๐พ๐ช of other pharaohs ๐๐ป๐ฆ and put his name ๐๐ on them!
Usurping can be thought of as ancient plagiarism, and was very common during this time period. While I equate usurpation to plagiarism to put it in a modern context, the purpose wasnโt to defame the previous pharaohsย ๐๐ป๐ฆย of Egyptย ๐๐ ๐๐. The purpose was for the common pharaoh to promote his own rule ๐พ, and what better way to do that than to use statuesย ๐๐๐๐ญ๐พ๐ช, templesย ๐๐๐๐ฆ, etc. that already are made!?
It is always funny to see a statue ๐๐๐๐ญ๐พ that has the facial features of one pharaoh ๐๐ป, but has the name ๐๐ of another pharaoh ๐๐ป on it! Rameses II ๐๐ ๐๐๐ณ๐บ๐๐ด๐ did this all the time – that manโs name ๐๐ is everywhere!
The Temple of Dendur is gorgeous ๐ค – the room that it is located in makes it actually feel like you are along the Nile River ๐๐๐๐ ฑ๐๐๐๐บ in Egypt ๐๐ ๐๐!
This room is one of my absolute favorite places – sometimes I like to sit on one of the benches and just enjoy the atmosphere of it! Visiting the temple only makes me want to go to Egypt ๐๐ ๐๐ more!
The temple ๐๐๐ was actually commissioned by Augustus and building was complete by 10 B.C. Dendur is located in Nubia, and is just south of Aswan. Even though the temple ๐๐๐ was built by Augustus, it definitely follows Egyptian style and not Roman style. The emperor is actually presented as a pharaoh ๐๐ป worshipping Egyptian gods ๐น๐น๐น on the walls of the temple ๐๐๐. The temple ๐๐๐ was primarily used to worship the goddess ๐น๐ Isis ๐จ๐๐ฅ.
Ostraca are basically the ancient Egyptian version of a sketch pad or scrap paper! They were used by scribes ๐๐๐ช or artists to practice their craft! The ostraca were usually chips of limestone or broken pottery.
These ostraca at the MET are very awesome because they depict Senemut ๐ข๐๐ ๐ผ!! Senemut ๐ข๐๐ ๐ผ was Hatshepsutโs ๐ณ๐ฆ๐ most trusted advisor (and in my opinion, they were definitely much closer than that ๐). Senemut ๐ข๐๐ ๐ผ was not only the tutor for Hatshepsutโs ๐ณ๐ฆ๐ daughter ๐ ญ๐ Neferure ๐ณ๐ค ๐ค ๐ค, the royal architect in charge of Deir el-Bahri, but he was also the Steward to Amun ๐๐๐บ๐๐ ๐ at Karnak.
The sketch of Senemut ๐ข๐๐ ๐ผ on these ostraca are very similar to the sketches of Senemut ๐ข๐๐ ๐ผ that are seen in his tomb!
These were always some of my favorite pieces to see as a kid! Not only because it was Senemut ๐ข๐๐ ๐ผ, but also I loved seeing how the Egyptians ๐๐๐๐๐ช used to do things!! Seeing the grids and seeing their โsketch padsโ allowed me a glimpse into just how some of this incredible art was created!
This bronze statue at the MET is from the Ptolemaic Period (664 – 31 B.C.E.) represents Isis ๐จ๐๐ฅ, Osiris ๐น๐จ๐ญ and Horus ๐ ๐ญ- the main triad of the Egyptian pantheon.
Here, Horus ๐ ๐ญ is represented in his Greek form Harpokrates, with his trademarked “finger to lips” pose. This pose represents the โbe quietโ gesture because to the Greeks Harpokrates was the god ๐น of silence. What is interesting about this piece is that there are suspension loops on the back of Osiris ๐น๐จ๐ญ and Harpokrates – this piece is probably too big to be worn as a necklace, so the loops may have some type of unknown symbolic significance.
Many gods ๐น๐น๐น in the Egyptian pantheon appeared in groups of threes ๐ผ, which were known as Triads. They were groups of gods ๐น๐น๐น that usually have some type of familial significance to each other. For example, one of the Memphis triads during this period was Ptah ๐ช๐๐๐ฑ, Sekhmet ๐๐๐ ๐๐, and Nefertem ๐ค๐๐๐๐๐ฏ. Nefertem ๐ค๐๐๐๐๐ฏ is the son of Ptah ๐ช๐๐๐ฑ and Sekhmet ๐๐๐ ๐๐, just like Horus ๐ ๐ญ is the son of Isis ๐จ๐๐ฅ and Osiris ๐น๐จ๐ญ!!
This is one of the grand, large kneeling statues ๐๐๐๐ญ๐พ๐ช of Hatshepsut ๐๐ ๐๐น๐๐๐๐ผ๐ช that were found during excavations of her temple at Deir el-Bahri. The excavations were a joint operation between the MET and the Egyptian government.
In this statue ๐๐๐๐ญ๐พ, Hatshepsut ๐๐ ๐๐น๐๐๐๐ผ๐ช is depicted wearing the nemes headcloth, a false beard on her chin, and is kneeling with a nemset jar ๐ in each hand ๐ง๐๐บ. These were meant to be offerings to the god ๐น Amun ๐๐ ๐- an inscription on the statue ๐๐๐๐ญ๐พ states that Hatshepsut ๐๐ ๐๐น๐๐๐๐ผ๐ช is offering “maat” to Amun ๐๐ ๐- while Maat ๐๐ด๐ฃ๐๐ฆ was the goddess of truth, “maat” was also a concept held dearly by Hatshepsut ๐๐ ๐๐น๐๐๐๐ผ๐ช. Her reign was guided by order, truth, and justice – all the principles of maat.
Hatshepsut ๐๐ ๐๐น๐๐๐๐ผ๐ช is seen kneeling, which is not too common for a Pharaoh ๐๐ป since they were considered to be gods ๐น๐น๐น on Earth. However, since Hatshepsut ๐๐ ๐๐น๐๐๐๐ผ๐ช was making an offering to the god ๐น Amun ๐๐ ๐, she did this in a kneeling position. A pharaoh ๐๐ป kneeled for no one – except for another god ๐น.
From this angle, the statue ๐๐๐๐ญ๐พ looks even more grand! I also love pink granite, which many of Hatshepsut’s ๐๐ ๐๐น๐๐๐๐ผ๐ช statues ๐๐๐๐ญ๐พ๐ช are made out of. Granite is an extremely dense and durable rock (hence why it is used for countertops today), and these statues ๐๐๐๐ญ๐พ๐ช of Hatshepsut ๐๐ ๐๐น๐๐๐๐ผ๐ช were definitely built to last.
The image above is of the cartouches of Hatshepsutโs throne name, Maatkare ๐ณ๐ฆ๐.
This is a small, kneeling statue ๐๐๐๐ญ๐พ of Hatshepsut ๐๐ ๐๐น๐๐๐๐ผ๐ช made out of black/pink granite! The black and pink granite is traditionally found in Aswan (Upper Egypt). In the USA, black and pink granite is commonly found in Nevada and other western states! This piece is in the MET.
While not as grand as some of her other statues ๐๐๐๐ญ๐พ๐ช that adorned her temple ๐๐๐ at Deir el-Bahri, this one makes quite an impression. There are at least eight of these statues ๐๐๐๐ญ๐พ๐ช, and many of them are in the MET. They were most likely used to line the upper court at her temple ๐๐๐, and are thought to be intended for her Heb Sed festival (a festival used to celebrate 30 ๐๐๐ years of rule, and then celebrated every three ๐ผ years after the initial 30 ๐๐๐). Hatshepsut ๐๐ ๐๐น๐๐๐๐ผ๐ช, ever the Pharaoh ๐๐ป to break from tradition, instead celebrated hers in the 16th ๐๐ฟ year of her rule!
In this statue, Hatshepsut ๐๐ ๐๐น๐๐๐๐ผ๐ช is kneeling and is seen holding the nemset jar ๐. The jar ๐ has the djed pillar ๐ฝ adorning the front. The djed pillar ๐ฝ is thought to be the spine of Osiris ๐น๐จ๐ญ, and it represents stability and endurance – both are attributes a Pharaoh ๐๐ป needed in order to be a successful ruler!
The sarcophagus of Wereshnefer is a really interesting piece in the MET. Wereshnefer was a priest of the goddesses ๐น๐๐ช Mut ๐๐ฟ๐ญ, Nephytys ๐ ๐๐, Satis ๐ด๐๐๐๐ญ and Neith ๐๐๐๐ญ and he lived during the 30th Dynasty to the early Ptolemaic Period. Despite being a priest ๐น๐ in Upper Egypt ๐๐ ๐๐, his sarcophagus was found at Saqqara.
One of the interesting things about his very large coffin is that the funerary/religious texts that are engraved into the stone are from writings that predate Wereshnefer by about one thousand years! The lid (which is pictured) shows images and texts related to the sun’s journey through the sky ๐ช๐๐ฏ during the day ๐๐๐บ๐ณ, which in Egyptian religion, acts as a metaphor for the journey from death ๐ ๐๐ฑ to life ๐น that one would take while accompanying the sun ๐ณ๐บ.
What is so interesting about Wereshnefer’s sarcophagus is that it shows the Earth ๐พ๐พ as being round. This is the first evidence that scientists and historians have of the Earth ๐พ๐พ being depicted as a round object (as we know, most people thought that the Earth ๐พ๐พ was flat). Nut ๐๐๐ฏ๐ญ, the goddess ๐น๐ of the sky ๐ช๐๐ฏ, is seen arched over the rounded Earth ๐พ๐พ and is supported by Shu ๐๐ ฑ๐ญ, the god ๐น of the atmosphere. At Nut’s ๐๐๐ฏ๐ญ feet is Geb ๐ ญ๐๐ญ, the god ๐น of the Earth ๐พ๐พ. It is fascinating to me that the Egyptians ๐๐๐๐๐ช would depict the Earth as being round!
This copy of the Book of the Dead (known to the Egyptians as the Book of Coming Forth By Day) belonged to a priest ๐น๐ of Horus ๐ ๐ญ named Imhotep ๐๐ ๐ต๐๐ช! Imhotep ๐๐ ๐ต๐๐ช, Priest ๐น๐ of Horus ๐ ๐ญ, lived during the early Ptolemaic Period (between 332-200 B.C.E.) Fun fact: the word priest ๐น๐ actually translates to โgodโs servantโ!!!
Now, this is definitely not that Imhotep from “The Mummy” (1999), however, this is still a funny coincidence! I always get a laugh when I see this in the museum! The Book of the Dead was created for Imhotep ๐๐ ๐ต๐๐ช so he could have a successful journey into the afterlife ๐ผ๐ฟ๐๐. The spells on the papyrus ๐ ๐๐๐ were also meant to ensure his safety and well-being in the duat ๐ผ๐ฟ๐๐(realm of the dead).
The Book of the Dead is interesting because it doesn’t follow a particular story. The spells do seem to be grouped by theme, and sometimes pictures ๐๐ ฑ๐๐ฆ can be representative of the spells as well. The scene shown here is the Weighing of the Heart, in which the deceasedโs heart ๐๐๐ฃ was weighed against Maatโs ๐๐ด๐ฃ๐๐ฆ feather. More details on that scene later in the post!
Imhotep’s version of the Book of the Dead is complete, and is over 70 feet long!
This page illustrates spell 110, which gives Imhotep ๐๐ ๐ต๐๐ช the ability to enjoy various earthly activities. This takes place in the Field of Reeds, which is also known as The Field of Offerings. Imhotep ๐๐ ๐ต๐๐ช is actually seen doing work in the field ๐๐๐ – he can be seen using a scythe to harvest grain, plowing the field, and doing other various activities. In the top left, there are hieroglyphs โ๐น๐๐๐๐ฟ๐๐๐๐ญ๐โ that translate to “it is he in the Field of Offerings.โ The Field of Reeds could also be written as ๐๐๐ ๐๐ฟ๐๐ ฑ๐ฐ๐
I have provided some close up images of some of the aspects of the image that I mentioned in the caption above!
Let’s take a look at some other portions of the Book of the Dead!
I only have the drawings in this photograph, but to the left of the images would be the Hieratic script which would spell out the Sun Hymns. The Sun Hymns would allow Imhotep ๐๐ ๐ต๐๐ช to be turned into a spirit and join the Khepri ๐ฃ๐๐๐ in the daily cycle of death and rebirth (rising and setting of the sun). During the night ๐ผ๐๐๐, Imhotep ๐๐ ๐ต๐๐ช would travel through the Duat ๐ผ๐ฟ๐๐ underworld/netherworld) and be born again the next morning in the form of ba ๐ ก๐บ (individual’s soul that was depicted as a human headed bird).
The top image ๐๐ ฑ๐ shows the goddesses ๐น๐น๐น๐ Isis ๐จ๐๐ฅ and Nephytys ๐ ๐๐ attending to the sun god Khepri ๐ฃ๐๐๐, who is in the form of a scarab ๐ฃ. The middle image ๐๐ ฑ๐ shows the sun ๐ณ๐บ in human form and is attended by two ๐ป ba ๐ ก๐บ and baboons. The bottom image ๐๐ ฑ๐ shows Imhotep ๐๐ ๐ต๐๐ช and his wife* receiving offerings.
*Since Imhotepโs ๐๐ ๐ต๐๐ช mother ๐ ๐๐ is mentioned a lot throughout his Book of the Dead, many people think that the woman who always accompanies Imhotep in the images ๐๐ ฑ๐๐ฆ is his mother ๐ ๐๐ and not his wife!
Fun fact! The words for โnight ๐ผ๐๐๐โ and โend ๐ผ๐๐๐๐โ were very similar in hieroglyphs ๐น๐๐ช!!!
Now on to my favorite scene from the Book of the Dead (in more detail)!
While I have already posted a pic of the Weighing of the Heart, I wanted to post some alternative angles because this series of images is my absolute favorite – no matter whos Book of the Dead it is from!
Here, Anubis ๐๐๐ช๐ ฑ๐ข weighs the heart ๐๐๐ฃ of the deceased ๐ ๐๐ฑ against Maatโs ๐ด๐๐ฃ๐๐ฆ feather. If Anubis determines thereโs balance between the two, then the deceased would be presented to Osiris ๐น๐จ ๐ญ by Horus ๐ ๐ญ. Thoth ๐ ค๐ญ records the findings. Ammit waits to eat the heart if itโs unworthy!
Here we can see that Imhotepโs ๐๐ ๐ต๐๐ช heart ๐๐๐ฃ is balanced against the feather! There are some really cool images in this particular scene – instead of just being a feather on the scale, it is the hieroglyph determinative for Maat (๐ง). Also, in the last picture, Imhotep ๐๐ ๐ต๐๐ช is accompanied by a feather with a human body! This is probably a representation of Maat ๐ด๐๐ฃ๐๐ฆ, though she is usually depicted as a woman with a feather on her head and rarely as just a human body with a feather.
This is the last picture I have from Imhotep’s ๐๐ ๐ต๐๐ช Book of the Dead. Due to the way that the papyri ๐ ๐๐๐๐ฆ are displayed at the MET, it can be very difficult to get clear pictures ๐๐ ฑ๐๐ฅ. I’m happy that I went back through my pictures ๐๐ ฑ๐๐ฅ because I had taken some better ones than I initially thought!
In this image, you can see some of the hieratic script that the Book of the Dead is written in – don’t ask me to translate, because I can’t read hieratic! I can only read hieroglyphs ๐น๐๐ช! I would love to learn hieratic though! Some of the hieratic is in black ink while some of it is in red. The red ink seems to symbolize either the beginning or the end ๐ผ๐๐๐๐ of a spell, or it could highlight a word for a noun that was considered “bad” in Egyptian culture. However, sometimes even “offering table” could have been written/drawn in red and offering tables were not bad at all! So, some of the red ink seems kinda random.
Imhotep ๐๐ ๐ต๐๐ช is seen here with Anubis ๐๐๐ช๐ ฑ๐ฃ, who is seated on top of a shrine. As you all know, Anubis ๐๐๐ช๐ ฑ๐ฃ is my favorite Egyptian god (he is the god of mummification and cemeteries) so I was very excited to see I got an image ๐๐ ฑ๐ with Anubis ๐๐๐ช๐ ฑ๐ฃ! I like this image ๐๐ ฑ๐ because it reminds me of the Anubis ๐๐๐ช๐ ฑ๐ฃ shrine that was found in Tutankhamun’s ๐๐ ๐๐๐ ฑ๐๐น๐พ๐บ๐ tomb – that is one of my absolute favorite pieces of all time! The drawing is also like the hieroglyph determinative โ๐ฃโ for Anubis!
Happy Anniversary to the deciphering of Egyptian Hieroglyphsย ๐น๐๐ช! Seeing the Rosetta Stone in person was a dream come true for me!ย
Jean-Franรงois Champollion was just a teenager in September 1822 when he discovered how to read hieroglyphs ๐น๐๐ช based off of the Rosetta Stone! The Rosetta Stone is actually a decree issued by priests ๐น๐๐ช in 196 B.C.E. that affirmed the cult of Ptolemy V ๐ช๐๐ฏ๐ญ๐๐๐ด. Identical decrees were supposed to be placed in every temple ๐๐๐ in Egypt ๐๐ ๐๐!
During the Christian period in Egypt ๐๐ ๐๐, the use of hieroglyphs ๐น๐๐ช began to wane and finally disappeared at the beginning of the 4th Century. The Rosetta Stone contains three ๐ผ languages ๐๐ฆ: Hieroglyphs ๐น๐๐ช, Greek and Demotic. Since Greek was a known language ๐๐บ, scholars began to try to use the Greek section of the Rosetta Stone to translate the portion in hieroglyphs ๐น๐๐ช.
Thomas Young was the first person to show that the name ๐๐ in the cartouche (๐ช๐๐ฏ๐ญ๐๐๐ด) actually spelled out โPtolemy,โ however, Champollion gets the credit for deciphering hieroglyphs ๐น๐๐ช because he showed that the phonetic symbols were also used for Egyptian ๐๐๐๐ names ๐๐๐ฆ and not just foreign names ๐๐๐ฆ. With his extensive knowledge of Coptic, Champollion was able to begin reading the hieroglyphs ๐น๐๐ช fully!
I am thankful for the early works of scholars like Champollion because I would not be reading hieroglyphs ๐น๐๐ช without it!
We are going to be taking a (virtual) trip to the Petrie Museum of Egyptian Archaeology today ๐๐๐๐ณ! As many of you know, I love ushabti ๐ท๐ฟ๐ฏ๐๐๐ฎ๐พ figures, so letโs take a closer look at this one!
The textย ๐๐๐ฅย on the ushabtiย ๐ท๐๐๐ฎ๐พย is a version of the โShabti Spellโ from Chapter 6 of the Book of the Dead. This spellย ๐๐๐ย gives the ushabtiย ๐ท๐๐๐ฎ๐พย the power to complete tasks (farming, manual labor, etc) for the deceasedย ๐ ๐๐ฑย in the Field of Reedsย ๐๐๐ ๐๐ฟ๐๐ ฑ๐ฐ๐. Many people (if they could afford it) were buried with at least 365 ๐ฒ๐ฒ๐ฒ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐พ ushabtiย ๐ท๐๐๐ฎ๐พย figures – one for each day of the year! Some were buried with even more!ย
The โShabti Spellโ usually starts off with the following phrase:
๐ด๐๐๐ถ – The Illuminated One
๐น๐จ๐ญ – The Osiris
(Look at the first line of text on the ushabti ๐ ฑ๐๐๐๐ญ๐พ and start reading from the right!)
However, my favorite part of this ushabti ๐ ฑ๐๐๐๐ญ๐พ figure is that the word โ๐ท๐๐๐ฎ๐พ shabtiโ appears very clearly on the piece! It is part of the spell ๐๐๐ that says: โO these shabtis, if you are counted, to do all the works to be done there in the realm of the dead.โ
Can you find โ๐ท๐๐๐ฎ๐พโ on the piece in the picture ๐๐ ฑ๐?
There are a bunch of different ways to write โushabtiโ in hieroglyphs ๐น๐๐ช! Just like in other languages, we can use the words โshabtiโ and โushabtiโ to denote the same figures!
