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Egyptian Artifacts

Hieroglyphs, Cursive Hieroglyphs and Hieratic

Hieroglyphs ๐“Šน๐“Œƒ๐“ช, Cursive Hieroglyphs and Hieratic?! There are so many ways to write the Egyptian Language! 

Hieroglyphs ๐“Šน๐“Œƒ๐“ช, the script everyone is most familiar with, was the first ๐“ƒ script used by the ancient Egyptians ๐“†Ž๐“๐“€€๐“๐“ช to write their language! There are well over 700 ๐“ฒ๐“ฒ๐“ฒ๐“ฒ๐“ฒ๐“ฒ๐“ฒ unique hieroglyphs ๐“Šน๐“Œƒ๐“ช and over 800 ๐“ฒ๐“ฒ๐“ฒ๐“ฒ๐“ฒ๐“ฒ๐“ฒ๐“ฒ symbols if you count the variants! Hieroglyphs ๐“Šน๐“Œƒ๐“ช were mainly used on temples ๐“‰Ÿ๐“๐“‰๐“ฅ, stelae ๐“Ž—๐“…ฑ๐“†“๐“‰ธ๐“ช, tombs ๐“‡‹๐“ซ๐“Šƒ๐“‰๐“ฅ, obelisks ๐“‰ถ๐“‰ถ๐“‰ถ, other funerary equipment  ๐“ˆŽ๐“‚‹๐“‹ด๐“๐“๐“Šญ such as sarcophagi ๐“ŽŸ๐“‹น๐“ˆ–๐“๐“Šญ๐“ช and other objects of all kinds! 

Then there are Cursive Hieroglyphs which is also known as Hieroglyphic Book Hand! This was usually used on handwritten papyri ๐“…“๐“‘๐“๐“›๐“ฆ and was a less detailed version of the traditional hieroglyphic symbols. Cursive Hieroglyphs are easy to read because these symbols match their traditional hieroglyphic counterparts! 

Hieratic is a script that was used on papyri ๐“…“๐“‘๐“๐“›๐“ฆ and the symbols do not match their hieroglyphic counterparts! I cannot read Hieratic and I have found it quite difficult to learn! Plus the Hieratic symbols have evolved over time so they have changed a lot which only makes it more difficult!ย 

Hieroglyphs Cursive Hieroglyphs and Hieratic

This picture ๐“๐“…ฑ๐“ is from the Book of the Dead ๐“‰๐“‚‹๐“๐“‚ป๐“…“๐“‰”๐“‚‹๐“ฒ๐“‡ณ๐“บ๐“ผ๐“บ of Imhotep at the MET and it shows Cursive Hieroglyphs (left) and Hieratic (right). I love how both scripts are used because you can really see the difference between the two! 

This is my personal photograph and original text. DO NOT repost. 

@ancientegyptblogย 

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Reading Hieroglyphs

Relief of Rameses II and Horus

Letโ€™s read some hieroglyphs ๐“Šน๐“Œƒ๐“ช!

Today ๐“‡๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“‡ณ we are going to look at this fragmented relief from the Louvre which depicts the pharaoh ๐“‰๐“‰ป Rameses II ๐“‡ณ๐“„Š๐“ง๐“‡ณ๐“‰๐“ˆ– and the god ๐“Šน Horus ๐“…ƒ๐“€ญ! Horus is holding Rameses IIโ€™s ๐“‡ณ๐“„Š๐“ง๐“‡ณ๐“‰๐“ˆ– hand and leading him. How do we know that this is a depiction of Horus ๐“…ƒ๐“€ญ since there are many falcon gods ๐“Šน๐“Šน๐“Šน? The word “Edfu ๐“„‘๐“‚ง๐“๐“Š–” in the hieroglyphs ๐“Šน๐“Œƒ๐“ช is a major clue – Horus ๐“…ƒ๐“€ญ of the Winged Disc or โ€œBehdetiteโ€ was the chief god ๐“Šน of the city ๐“Š–!

Look at who is leading Horus ๐“…ƒ๐“€ญ- itโ€™s the god ๐“Šน Wepwawet ๐“„‹๐“ˆ๐“ฅ๐“๐“ƒง who is the โ€œOpener of the Ways!โ€ Wepwawet ๐“„‹๐“ˆ๐“ฅ๐“๐“ƒง appears on a standard and is associated leading ritual processions.ย 

Rameses II and Horus
Relief showing Rameses II and Horus

Above the depiction is actually part of Rameses IIโ€™s royal titularly! Each pharaoh ๐“‰๐“‰ป had five names, and the first one that appears is known as the โ€œHorus Name.โ€ Rameses II had many variants of his Horus Name, but we will look at the one that appears here: โ€œ๐“‚ก๐“ƒ’๐“ง๐“Œบ Strong Bull, Beloved of Maatโ€

๐“‚ก – Strong

๐“ƒ’ – Bull

๐“ง – Maat

๐“Œบ – Beloved

After that, the Nebty Name ๐“…’ is listed! The Nebty Name is distinguished by the Nebty or Two Ladies symbol โ€œ๐“…’.โ€ Only the partial name appears on the relief: โ€œ๐“…–๐“Žก๐“†Ž๐“๐“Š– Protector of Egypt.โ€

๐“…– – Protector 

๐“Žก๐“†Ž๐“๐“Š– – Egypt (Kemet) (most commonly, Kemet is written as โ€œ๐“†Ž๐“…“๐“๐“Š–,โ€ however this is another variant).

The full name is as follows: ๐“…–๐“Žก๐“†Ž๐“๐“Š–๐“…ฑ๐“‚๐“†‘๐“ฒ๐“‚ก๐“ˆŠ๐“๐“ฆ โ€œProtector of Egypt Who Curbs Foreign Lands.โ€ย 

Rameses II and Horus
Relief showing Rameses II and Horus

Above Horus ๐“…ƒ๐“€ญ appears:ย 

๐“„‘๐“‚ง๐“๐“Š– – Edfu

๐“ŽŸ- Lord

๐“‡ฏ – Sky

๐“„ค – Perfect

๐“Šน – God 

๐“‡ณ๐“„Š๐“ง๐“‡ณ๐“‰๐“ˆ– – Usermaatre setep en Ra (Throne Name of Rameses II which translates to โ€œThe Justice of Ra is powerful, Chosen of Ra.โ€)

๐“™ – Given

๐“‹น – Life 

๐“Œ€ – Strength

All together the inscription says: “Edfu, Lord of the Sky, the Perfect God Usermaatre setep en Ra Give Life and Strength.”

To the left of Rameses II: 

๐“ƒน๐“ˆ–๐“ˆ– – It Is

๐“„ค – Perfect

๐“Šน – God 

๐“‡ณ๐“„Š๐“ง๐“‡ณ๐“‰๐“ˆ– – Usermaatre setep en Ra

All together the inscription says: “It Is the Pefect God Usermaatre setep en Ra.”

This is my personal photograph and original text. DO NOT repost. 

@ancientegyptblog

Categories
Egyptian Artifacts

Hippos and Hedgehogs!

There are a couple of things I always look for when I go to a museum and the blue ๐“‡…๐“†“๐“› faience ๐“‹ฃ๐“ˆ–๐“๐“ธ๐“ผ hippos ๐“Œ‰๐“๐“ƒฏ๐“ฆ are one of them! The little hedgehogs ๐“Ž›๐“ˆ–๐“๐“ญ๐“„›๐“ช in this display are a nice plus too because they are so cute!ย 

Hippos and Hedgehogs
Me with the Hippos and Hedgehogs at the Brooklyn Museum!

The the blue ๐“‡…๐“†“๐“› faience ๐“‹ฃ๐“ˆ–๐“๐“ธ๐“ผ hippo ๐“Œ‰๐“๐“ƒฏ๐“ฆ was made between the 12th and 17th Dynasties. In Egypt ๐“†Ž๐“…“๐“๐“Š–, hippos ๐“Œ‰๐“๐“ƒฏ๐“ฆ were both feared and respected ๐“ˆ™๐“†‘๐“„…. They were feared because they were one of the most dangerous animals in the Nile Valley ๐“‡—. However, hippos ๐“Œ‰๐“๐“ƒฏ๐“ฆ were also thought to be powerful protectors ๐“…“๐“‚๐“Žก๐“€œ against evil ๐“ƒ€๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“๐“…จ! William has lotus flowers ๐“†ธ๐“ช painted all over him to associate it with rejuvenation! William is most likely painted blue ๐“‡…๐“†“๐“› to represent the Nile ๐“‡‹๐“๐“‚‹๐“…ฑ๐“ˆ—๐“ˆ˜๐“ˆ‡๐“บ and rebirth ๐“„Ÿ๐“ฟ๐“…ฑ.

Hippos and Hedgehogs
Hippos and Hedgehogs!

In ancient Egypt ๐“†Ž๐“…“๐“๐“Š–, the hedgehog ๐“Ž›๐“ˆ–๐“๐“ญ๐“„› was associated with rebirth ๐“„Ÿ๐“ฟ๐“…ฑ, which is a concept central to the ancient Egyptian religion. This association occurred because when food ๐“‡ฌ๐“€๐“…ฑ๐“”๐“ฅ is scarce, hedgehogs ๐“Ž›๐“ˆ–๐“๐“ญ๐“„›๐“ช will retreat into their underground burrows for long periods of time. Hedgehogs ๐“Ž›๐“ˆ–๐“๐“ญ๐“„›๐“ช only re-emerge from their burrows during times of food ๐“‡ฌ๐“€๐“…ฑ๐“”๐“ฅ abundance. This disappearing/appearing pattern strongly correlated with the concept of rebirth ๐“„Ÿ๐“ฟ๐“…ฑ to the ancient Egyptians. 

The hedgehogs ๐“Ž›๐“ˆ–๐“๐“ญ๐“„›๐“ช in this display are made out of blue ๐“‡…๐“†“๐“› faience ๐“‹ฃ๐“ˆ–๐“๐“ธ๐“ผ just like the hippopotamus ๐“Œ‰๐“๐“ƒฏ!

This is my personal photograph and original text. DO NOT repost. 

@ancientegyptblogย 

Categories
Egyptian Artifacts

Ushabti of Amenhotep III

Yesterday ๐“‹ด๐“†‘๐“‡ณ we looked at a ushabti ๐“…ฑ๐“ˆ™๐“ƒ€๐“๐“ญ๐“€พ that belonged to Akhenaten ๐“‡‹๐“๐“ˆ–๐“‡ณ๐“…œ๐“๐“ˆ–, and today ๐“‡๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“‡ณ we are going to examine a ushabti ๐“…ฑ๐“ˆ™๐“ƒ€๐“๐“ญ๐“€พ that belonged to his ๐“†‘ father ๐“‡‹๐“๐“€€, the pharaoh ๐“‰๐“‰ป Amenhotep III ๐“‡ณ๐“ง๐“Ž !

Ushabti of Amenhotep III
An ebony wood Ushabti of Amenhotep III on display at the MET

This ushabti ๐“…ฑ๐“ˆ™๐“ƒ€๐“๐“ญ๐“€พ is made of ebony wood ๐“†ฑ๐“๐“บ and has glass ๐“‹ฃ๐“ˆ–๐“๐“ธ๐“ผ inlaid eyes ๐“น๐“๐“ฆ. The inlaid eyes ๐“น๐“๐“ฆ are a striking blue ๐“‡‹๐“น๐“๐“„ฟ๐“ธ๐“ฅ and white which make this piece really stand out not only amongst other artifacts, but amongst other ushabti ๐“…ฑ๐“ˆ™๐“ƒ€๐“๐“ญ๐“€พ figures too! 

This ushabti ๐“…ฑ๐“ˆ™๐“ƒ€๐“๐“ญ๐“€พ is a typical mummiform piece – the ushabti has its arms crossed over its chest, and at some point was probably holding a holding the crook ๐“‹พ and flail ๐“Œ… which have been lost in antiquity. The crown on its head has also been lost, which is a shame. I wonder what the crown would have been made of? 

The hieroglyphs ๐“Šน๐“Œƒ๐“ช are wonderfully preserved. The hieroglyphs ๐“Šน๐“Œƒ๐“ช are carved into the wood ๐“†ฑ๐“๐“บ, and then weโ€™re filled with paint ๐“‡จ๐“‚‹๐“…ฑ๐“ญ๐“ธ๐“ฆ! I love how much the hieroglyphs ๐“Šน๐“Œƒ๐“ช stand out against the ebony wood ๐“†ฑ๐“๐“บ – I think itโ€™s beautiful ๐“„ค๐“†‘๐“‚‹! 

Can you spot Amenhotep IIIโ€™s birth name (๐“‡‹๐“ ๐“ˆ–๐“Šต๐“‹พ๐“‹†) and throne name (๐“‡ณ๐“ง๐“Ž ) on the ushabti ๐“…ฑ๐“ˆ™๐“ƒ€๐“๐“ญ๐“€พ? Let me know!!! 

This is my personal photograph and original text. DO NOT repost. 

@ancientegyptblogย 

Categories
Egyptian Artifacts

Ushabti Figure of Akhenaten

There are over 200 ๐“ฒ๐“ฒ ushabti ๐“…ฑ๐“ˆ™๐“ƒ€๐“๐“ญ๐“€พ figures that belonged to Akhenaten ๐“‡‹๐“๐“ˆ–๐“‡ณ๐“…ž๐“๐“ˆ– and some of them are on display at the MET! This particular Ushabti ๐“…ฑ๐“ˆ™๐“ƒ€๐“๐“ญ๐“€พ Figure of Akhenaten ๐“‡‹๐“๐“ˆ–๐“‡ณ๐“…ž๐“๐“ˆ– though broken in half, has a wonderfully preserved face and partial inscription!

Ushabti Figure of Akhenaten
Ushabti Figure of Akhenaten on display at the MET

It seems strange that Akhenaten ๐“‡‹๐“๐“ˆ–๐“‡ณ๐“…ž๐“๐“ˆ– would be buried with ushabtis ๐“†ท๐“„ฟ๐“ฏ๐“ƒ€๐“๐“ฎ๐“€พ๐“ช because he completely changed the Egyptian religion from the traditional polytheistic worship ๐“‡ผ๐“„ฟ๐“€ข to the monotheistic worship ๐“‡ผ๐“„ฟ๐“€ข of the Aten ๐“‡‹๐“๐“ˆ–๐“‡ณ. This shows that while he did completely change Egyptโ€™s ๐“†Ž๐“…“๐“๐“Š– religion, some aspects of the old religion, such as belief in the afterlife ๐“‡ผ๐“„ฟ๐“๐“‰, did remain and persist throughout his rule ๐“‹พ.ย 

Most of Akhenatenโ€™s ๐“‡‹๐“๐“ˆ–๐“‡ณ๐“…ž๐“๐“ˆ– ushabtis ๐“…ฑ๐“ˆ™๐“ƒ€๐“๐“ญ๐“€พ๐“ช are in various states of disarray. While most ushabtis ๐“†ท๐“„ฟ๐“ฏ๐“ƒ€๐“๐“ฎ๐“€พ๐“ช contain standard inscriptions ๐“Ÿ๐“›๐“ฅ known as the โ€œshabti spellโ€ or โ€œshabti text,โ€ Akhenatenโ€™s ๐“‡‹๐“๐“ˆ–๐“‡ณ๐“…ž๐“๐“ˆ– ushabtis ๐“†ท๐“„ฟ๐“ฏ๐“ƒ€๐“๐“ฎ๐“€พ๐“ช only contain inscriptions ๐“Ÿ๐“›๐“ฅ of his name ๐“‚‹๐“ˆ– and titles. Letโ€™s take a look at the partial inscription ๐“Ÿ๐“›๐“ฅ! 

You can see the inscription of โ€œ๐“†ฅ,โ€ which as we have learned previously can translate to โ€œHe of the Sedge and the Beeโ€ or โ€œKing of Upper and Lower Egypt.โ€ As we know, this is a very popular title to be seen before a cartouche ๐“ ๐“ˆ–๐“ˆ™๐“ท! 

The โ€œ๐“‡ณโ€ in the cartouche ๐“ ๐“ˆ–๐“ˆ™๐“ท is part of one of Akhenatenโ€™s ๐“‡‹๐“๐“ˆ–๐“‡ณ๐“…ž๐“๐“ˆ– throne names, which would most likely be โ€œ๐“‡ณ๐“„ค๐“†ฃ๐“‡ณ๐“ฆ๐“Œก๐“ˆ–,โ€ since that is the only one of Akhenatenโ€™s ๐“‡‹๐“๐“ˆ–๐“‡ณ๐“…ž๐“๐“ˆ– throne name ๐“‚‹๐“ˆ– variants that begins with a โ€œ๐“‡ณ.โ€

Even though โ€œ๐“‡ณ๐“„ค๐“†ฃ๐“‡ณ๐“ฆ๐“Œก๐“ˆ–โ€ translates to โ€œThe Beautiful One of the Manifestations of Ra, the Unique one of Ra,โ€ this variant was only seen after the name ๐“‚‹๐“ˆ– change from Amenhotep IV ๐“‡‹๐“ ๐“ˆ–๐“Šต๐“Šน๐“‹พ๐“Œ€ to Akhenaten ๐“‡‹๐“๐“ˆ–๐“‡ณ๐“…ž๐“๐“ˆ–! 

This is my personal photograph and original text. DO NOT repost. 

@ancientegyptblogย 

Categories
Egyptian Artifacts

King Sahure Accompanied by a Divine Figure

This beautiful ๐“„ค๐“†‘๐“‚‹ gneiss statue ๐“๐“…ฑ๐“๐“€พ is called โ€œKing Sahure Accompanied by a Divine Figureโ€ and is on display at the MET!ย 

King Sahure Accompanied by a Divine Figure
King Sahure Accompanied by a Divine Figure

This is the only statue ๐“๐“…ฑ๐“๐“€พ of the 5th Dynasty pharaoh ๐“‰๐“‰ป Sahure ๐“‡ณ๐“ƒƒ๐“…ฑ that exists – all other representations are on reliefs. We know that this is ๐“‡ณ๐“ƒƒ๐“…ฑ because his cartouches appear on the right side of the statue ๐“๐“…ฑ๐“๐“€พ! Sahure ๐“‡ณ๐“ƒƒ๐“…ฑ is wearing the nemes ๐“ˆ–๐“…“๐“‹ด headcloth and the false beard ๐“๐“ƒ€๐“Šƒ๐“…ฑ๐“๐“ธ which is the usual fashion worn by the pharaoh ๐“‰๐“‰ป! 

The โ€œdivine figureโ€ that is standing next to Sahure ๐“‡ณ๐“ƒƒ๐“…ฑ on the left is a personification of the 5th Nome of Upper Egypt ๐“‡“ (later called the Coptite Nome). During the Old Kingdom, the nomes (or provinces) of Egypt ๐“†Ž๐“…“๐“๐“Š– were usually drawn as people! The โ€œdivine figureโ€ is offering the pharaoh ๐“‰๐“‰ป Sahure ๐“‡ณ๐“ƒƒ๐“…ฑ an Ankh ๐“‹น. The โ€œdivine figureโ€ also has the โ€œdouble falcon emblem ๐“ˆบโ€ carved on his head, which was the nome standard! 

Something I love about this statue ๐“๐“…ฑ๐“๐“€พ is that it is made out of gneiss, which is one of my favorite rocks ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“‚‹๐“ˆ™๐“ฆ! Hereโ€™s a little geology lesson: Gneiss is a foliated metamorphic rock ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“‚‹๐“ˆ™ which means that it was subjected to such extreme heat and pressure during its formation (probably due to mountain ๐“ˆ‹๐“…ณ building or plate tectonics), that the minerals ๐“‡‹๐“Œป๐“‚‹๐“…ฑ๐“ˆ™๐“ฆ have separated into bands of light (felsic) and dark (mafic) colored minerals ๐“‡‹๐“Œป๐“‚‹๐“…ฑ๐“ˆ™๐“ฆ! This gives gneiss a natural zebra-like appearance – can you spot the banding on the statue ๐“๐“…ฑ๐“๐“€พ? 

Gebel el-Asr is the only quarry ๐“Ž›๐“๐“๐“‰ in Egypt ๐“†Ž๐“…“๐“๐“Š– where gneiss can be found, and gneiss was prized from the Predynastic to Middle Kingdoms for statue ๐“๐“…ฑ๐“๐“€พ making!

This is my personal photograph and original text. DO NOT repost. 

@ancientegyptblogย 

Categories
Video

Wooden Models of Meketre – Video

This video shows the Wooden Models of Meketre!

These wooden ๐“†ฑ๐“๐“บ models were found in the tomb ๐“‡‹๐“ซ๐“Šƒ๐“‰ of the Royal Chief Steward Meketre who lived during the reign ๐“‹พ of Montuhotep II ๐“ ๐“ˆ–๐“ฟ๐“…ฑ๐“Šต๐“๐“Šช and possibly Amenemhat I ๐“‡‹๐“ ๐“ˆ–๐“…“๐“„‚๐“ which was during the Middle Kingdom. Meketreโ€™s high status as an official ๐“‹ด๐“‚‹๐“€€ is why he was able to afford so many wooden ๐“†ฑ๐“๐“บ models and such an elaborate burial.ย 

The first wooden ๐“†ฑ๐“๐“บ model is of a โ€œPorch and Garden ๐“Ž›๐“Šƒ๐“Šช๐“ˆˆโ€ that has a pool ๐“ˆ™๐“ˆ‡ in the center that could have been potentially filled with water ๐“ˆ—!ย 

Wooden Models of Meketre
Porch and Garden Model from the tomb of Meketre

The second wooden ๐“†ฑ๐“๐“บ model is of a bakeryย  ๐“‚๐“…“๐“‚‹๐“‰ and brewery ๐“‚๐“๐“‰๐“Ž›๐“ˆŽ๐“๐“Š๐“ช.ย 

Wooden Models of Meketre
Model of a bakery and brewery from the tomb of Meketre

The third wooden ๐“†ฑ๐“๐“บ model is of a granary ๐“Šš๐“๐“‰.

Wooden Models of Meketre
Model of a granary from the tomb of Meketre

The fourth wooden ๐“†ฑ๐“๐“บ model is of a slaughterhouse. Cows ๐“„ค๐“†‘๐“‚‹๐“๐“ƒ’๐“ฆ and geese ๐“Šƒ๐“‚‹๐“…ฌ๐“ฆ are being slaughtered by butchers, and dried out meat ๐“‡‹๐“…ฑ๐“†‘๐“„น can be seen hanging above them.ย 

Wooden Models of Meketre
Model of a slaughterhouse from the tomb of Meketre

The fifth wooden ๐“†ฑ๐“๐“บ model is of a โ€œModel Cattle Stableโ€ in which workers are feeding cattle ๐“„ค๐“†‘๐“‚‹๐“๐“ƒ’๐“ฆ in order to fatten them for slaughter.

Wooden Models of Meketre
Model of a cattle stable from the tomb of Meketre

There were 24 ๐“Ž†๐“Ž†๐“ฝ almost perfectly preserved models found in the tomb ๐“‡‹๐“ซ๐“Šƒ๐“‰ of Meketre. Half of the models are at the MET, while the other half are at the Egyptian Museum in Cairo!

This is my personal video and original text. DO NOT repost. 

@ancientegyptblogย 

Categories
Egyptian Artifacts

“The Opener of the Ways”

Whenever people see an Egyptian artifact that looks like a jackal ๐“Šƒ๐“„ฟ๐“ƒ€๐“ƒฅ, they think itโ€™s Anubis ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“Šช๐“…ฑ๐“ƒฃ, however, there are other canine deities ๐“Šน๐“Šน๐“Šน in the Egyptian pantheon! This small ๐“ˆ–๐“†“๐“‹ด๐“…ฉ statue ๐“๐“…ฑ๐“๐“€พ depicts the god ๐“Šน Wepwawet ๐“„‹๐“ˆ๐“ฅ๐“๐“ƒง who was known as “The Opener of the Ways!”ย 

The Opener of the Ways
Small statue of the god Wepwawet at the MET

Wepwawet ๐“„‹๐“ˆ๐“ฅ๐“๐“ƒง is associated with Abydos ๐“‹๐“ƒ€๐“ˆ‹๐“Š– and is likely the oldest god ๐“Šน associated with the jackal ๐“Šƒ๐“„ฟ๐“ƒ€๐“ƒฅ! Wepwawet ๐“„‹๐“ˆ๐“ฅ๐“๐“ƒง has been depicted on objects that even pre-date the Narmer ๐“†ข๐“‹ Palette ๐“๐“Šƒ๐“๐“†ฑ! Wepwawet ๐“„‹๐“ˆ๐“ฅ๐“๐“ƒง is associated with war and conquest, and leading ritual processions. 

Wepwawet ๐“„‹๐“ˆ๐“ฅ๐“๐“ƒง was depicted as either a jackal ๐“Šƒ๐“„ฟ๐“ƒ€๐“ƒฅ or a wolf ๐“ƒน๐“ˆ–๐“ˆ™๐“‡‹๐“ฒ๐“„› and one of the best ways to distinguish between Wepwawet ๐“„‹๐“ˆ๐“ฅ๐“๐“ƒง and Anubis ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“Šช๐“…ฑ๐“ƒฃ is by looking for their names ๐“‚‹๐“ˆ–๐“ฆ in hieroglyphs ๐“Šน๐“Œƒ๐“ช since they are artistically very similar looking! 

Another way to tell Wepwawet ๐“„‹๐“ˆ๐“ฅ๐“๐“ƒง and Anubis ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“Šช๐“…ฑ๐“ƒฃ apart is by how the jackal is standing: Anubis ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“Šช๐“…ฑ๐“ƒฃ is usually shown in the recumbent position (๐“ƒข, ๐“ƒฃ, ๐“ƒค) while Wepwawet ๐“„‹๐“ˆ๐“ฅ๐“๐“ƒง is usually shown standing up (๐“ƒง, ๐“ƒจ).

Wepwawetโ€™s ๐“„‹๐“ˆ๐“ฅ๐“๐“ƒง name ๐“‚‹๐“ˆ– translates to โ€œOpener of the Ways,โ€ which has many meanings. He was associated with clearing the path for the sun ๐“‡ณ๐“บ to rise in the sky ๐“Šช๐“๐“‡ฏ, clearing the way for the armies in battle, and clearing the path for the deceased to enter the Duat ๐“‡ผ๐“„ฟ๐“๐“‰. Statues ๐“๐“…ฑ๐“๐“€พ๐“ช of Wepwawet ๐“„‹๐“ˆ๐“ฅ๐“๐“ƒง were also carried in front of a pharaoh ๐“‰๐“‰ป during processions for this reason! 

Other variants of Wepwawetโ€™s name ๐“‚‹๐“ˆ– include:

๐“„‹๐“ˆ๐“ฅ๐“๐“ƒง

๐“„‹๐“ˆ๐“ฅ๐“๐“ข

๐“„‹๐“ˆ

๐“„‹๐“ˆ๐“ˆ๐“ˆ

๐“„‹๐“ˆ๐“ˆ๐“ˆ๐“€ญ

๐“ƒง

This piece is dated to the Late Periodโ€“Ptolemaic Period (c. 664โ€“30 B.C.E.). 

This is my personal photograph and original text. DO NOT repost. 

@ancientegyptblogย 

Categories
Egyptian Artifacts

Book of the Dead of Hunefer

The Book of the Dead ๐“‰๐“‚‹๐“๐“‚ป๐“…“๐“‰”๐“‚‹๐“ฒ๐“‡ณ๐“บ๐“ผ๐“บ of Hunefer ๐“‰”๐“…ฑ๐“„ค๐“€ฝ is my favorite version of the Book of the Dead ๐“‰๐“‚‹๐“๐“‚ป๐“…“๐“‰”๐“‚‹๐“ฒ๐“‡ณ๐“บ๐“ผ๐“บ due to the incredibly detailed drawings and beautiful script ๐“„ค๐“†‘๐“‚‹. It was a dream come true to see it in person at the British Museum!

The text was clearly written by an expert scribe ๐“Ÿ๐“€€, and since Hunefer ๐“‰”๐“…ฑ๐“„ค๐“€ฝ was a scribe ๐“Ÿ๐“€€, was it possible that he wrote his own Book of the Dead?

Book of the Dead of Hunefer
Me with the Book of the Dead of Hunefer at the British Museum

The script in Huneferโ€™s ๐“‰”๐“…ฑ๐“„ค๐“€ฝ Book of the Dead ๐“‰๐“‚‹๐“๐“‚ป๐“…“๐“‰”๐“‚‹๐“ฒ๐“‡ณ๐“บ๐“ผ๐“บ is known as โ€œCursive Hieroglyphsโ€ or โ€œHieroglyphic Book Handโ€ and I can read it because itโ€™s not in Hieratic like a lot of papyri ๐“…“๐“‘๐“๐“›๐“ฆ are!ย 

Book of the Dead of Hunefer
The Weighing of the Heart from the Book of the Dead of Hunefer at the British Museum

The โ€œWeighing of the Heart,โ€ or the โ€œJudgement of Osiris ๐“น๐“Šจ๐“€ญโ€ is my favorite part! In this scene, Huneferโ€™s ๐“‰”๐“…ฑ๐“„ค๐“€ฝ heart ๐“‡‹๐“ƒ€๐“„ฃ is being weighed against Maatโ€™s ๐“™๐“Œด๐“‚ฃ๐“๐“ฆ feather ๐“†„๐“บ by Anubis ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“Šช๐“…ฑ๐“ƒฃ.  If Anubis ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“Šช๐“…ฑ๐“ƒฃ determines thereโ€™s balance between the two, then Hunefer ๐“‰”๐“…ฑ๐“„ค๐“€ฝ would be presented to Osiris ๐“น๐“Šจ ๐“€ญ by Horus ๐“…ƒ๐“€ญ. Thoth ๐“…ค๐“€ญ records the findings.

In ancient Egypt ๐“†Ž๐“…“๐“๐“Š–, the Book of the Dead was actually referred to as the โ€œBook of Coming Forth by Dayโ€ which is what the hieroglyphs ๐“Šน๐“Œƒ๐“ช โ€œ๐“‰๐“‚‹๐“๐“‚ป๐“…“๐“‰”๐“‚‹๐“ฒ๐“‡ณ๐“บ๐“ผ๐“บโ€ translate to!

Letโ€™s take a closer look: 

๐“‰๐“‚‹๐“๐“‚ป – Coming Forth

๐“…“ – By

๐“‰”๐“‚‹๐“ฒ๐“‡ณ๐“บ – Day

๐“ผ๐“บ – Determinative for papyrus scroll (which is where โ€œbookโ€ comes from)ย 

In its simplest form, The Book of the Dead is a collection of magic spells ๐“Ž›๐“‚“๐“›๐“ฆ to help the deceased enter the Duat ๐“‡ผ๐“„ฟ๐“๐“‰, and eventually the Field of Reeds ๐“‡๐“๐“ˆ…๐“‡‹๐“„ฟ๐“‚‹๐“…ฑ๐“†ฐ๐“Š–.ย 

The Book of the Dead ๐“‰๐“‚‹๐“๐“‚ป๐“…“๐“‰”๐“‚‹๐“ฒ๐“‡ณ๐“บ๐“ผ๐“บ of Hunefer ๐“‰”๐“…ฑ๐“„ค๐“€ฝ is dated to the 19th Dynasty. 

This is my personal photograph and original text. DO NOT repost. 

@ancientegyptblogย 

Categories
Egyptian Artifacts Reading Hieroglyphs

Steatite Wedjat Amulets

In relation to my post about the wedjat ๐“‚€ or the “Eye of Horus” from yesterday ๐“‹ด๐“†‘๐“‡ณ, I wanted to talk about these really small ๐“ˆ–๐“†“๐“‹ด๐“…ฉ but cool steatite ๐“…ฎ๐“ˆŽ๐“๐“ˆ’๐“ŠŒ wedjat ๐“‚€ amulets ๐“Š๐“Šช๐“…†๐“ช! I love how detailed the wedjat ๐“‚€ is!ย It always amazes me how ancient Egyptian craftsman were able to make such small ๐“ˆ–๐“†“๐“‹ด๐“…ฉ objects so detailed and beautiful ๐“„ค๐“†‘๐“‚‹! It’s even more incredible that they have lasted in such great condition for thousands of years!

These steatite ๐“…ฎ๐“ˆŽ๐“๐“ˆ’๐“ŠŒ wedjat ๐“‚€ amulets ๐“Š๐“Šช๐“…†๐“ช are very similar to the steatite ๐“…ฎ๐“ˆŽ๐“๐“ˆ’๐“ŠŒ scarabs ๐“๐“Šช๐“‚‹๐“‚‹๐“†ฃ๐“ช from the Hatshepsut ๐“‡ณ๐“ฆ๐“‚“/Thutmosis III ๐“‡ณ๐“ ๐“†ฃ era of the 18th Dynasty! They are in the same display case as the steatite ๐“…ฎ๐“ˆŽ๐“๐“ˆ’๐“ŠŒ scarabs ๐“๐“Šช๐“‚‹๐“‚‹๐“†ฃ๐“ช at the Metropolitan Museum of Art! Most would miss the fact that these amulets ๐“Š๐“Šช๐“…†๐“ช are not scarabs ๐“๐“Šช๐“‚‹๐“‚‹๐“†ฃ๐“ช!ย 

Steatite Wedjat Amulets
Steatite Wedjat Amulets with Hatshepsut’s throne name Maatkare inscribed on the back

Letโ€™s read some hieroglyphs ๐“Šน๐“Œƒ๐“ช! This is a simple but great inscription ๐“Ž˜๐“…ฑ๐“Ž– to read! On the back of this amulet ๐“Š๐“Šช๐“…†, Hatshepsutโ€™s ๐“‡‹๐“ ๐“ˆ–๐“Žน๐“๐“„‚๐“๐“€ผ๐“ช throne name, Maatkare ๐“‡ณ๐“ฆ๐“‚“ is written! 

๐“‡‹๐“ ๐“ˆ– – Amun

๐“Œป – Beloved

๐“‡ณ๐“ฆ๐“‚“ – Maatkare (Truth ๐“ฆ is the Soul ๐“‚“ of Re ๐“‡ณ)

The full inscription ๐“Ž˜๐“…ฑ๐“Ž– reads โ€œBeloved of Amun, Maatkare.โ€ 

This is my personal photograph and original text. DO NOT repost. 

@ancientegyptblogย