This group of blue ๐๐น๐๐ฟ๐ธ๐ฅ glazed faience ๐ฃ๐๐๐ธ๐ผ ushabti ๐ ฑ๐๐๐๐ญ๐พ (or shabti) figures belonged to different โHigh Priests of Amun ๐น๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐ณโ and their families. These ushabtis ๐ ฑ๐๐๐๐ญ๐พ were found in the Royal Cache at Deir el-Bahri and are dated to the 21-22 Dynasties (1070-925 B.C.E.).
The โHigh Priest of Amun ๐น๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐ณโ was the top ranking priest ๐น๐ in the priesthood of the god ๐น Amun ๐๐ ๐. The High Priests of Amun ๐น๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐ณ first appeared during the 18th Dynasty of the New Kingdom and gained a lot of power under Hatshepsut ๐๐ ๐๐น๐๐๐๐ผ๐ช and Thutmosis III ๐ณ๐ ๐ฃ. The Theban high priest was usually appointed by the pharaoh ๐๐ป. However, their power was curtailed when Akhenaten ๐๐๐๐ณ๐ ๐๐ came to the throne and changed the polytheistic Egyptian religion to the monotheistic worship ๐ผ๐ฟ๐ข of the Aten ๐๐๐๐ณ.
Though not officially pharaohs ๐๐ป๐ฆ themselves, The High Priests of Amun ๐น๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐ณ during the 21st Dynasty were unofficial rulers of Upper Egypt ๐. Their names ๐๐๐ฆ even appeared in cartouches and they were buried in royal tombs ๐๐ซ๐๐๐ฆ. This partially explains why these particular ushabti ๐ ฑ๐๐๐๐ญ๐พ figures have the craftsmanship that would usually be reserved for royalty.
Whatโs in a name ๐๐?! To the ancient Egyptians ๐๐๐๐๐ช, a personโs name ๐๐ was everything!
In order to exist, a human needed to have five ๐พ essential elements: the body ๐๐๐ผ, the shadow ๐๐๐ ฑ๐ผ, the Ba ๐ ก๐ค (impression an individual makes on others – everything except the physical body), the Ka (soul/life force) ๐๐ค, and the name ๐๐. A name ๐๐ was considered the essential part of the person because the other four ๐ฝ elements could not exist without the name ๐๐. I find this entire concept absolutely fascinating and Iโm not going to lie, it has made me appreciate my own name ๐๐.
If a person wanted to survive after death ๐ ๐๐ฑ, not only was mummification essential, but even more so was preserving the name ๐๐. This is why pharaohs ๐๐ป๐ฆ and others who could afford to do so had their name ๐๐ carved everywhere – they wanted to survive after they died ๐ ๐๐ฑ. If a name ๐๐ was hacked away or forgotten, it meant that the person was deprived of their entire existence. This is why the names ๐๐๐ฅ of pharaohs ๐๐ป๐ฆ like Hatshepsut ๐๐ ๐๐น๐๐๐๐ผ๐ช, Akhenaten ๐๐๐๐ณ๐ ๐๐ and Tutankhamun ๐๐ ๐๐๐ ฑ๐๐น๐พ๐บ๐ were either left off of official Kingโs lists or removed from their monuments.
Rameses II ๐ฉ๐๐๐๐ด๐ has his name ๐๐ literally everywhere and his cartouche is the most commonly found one! He really wanted to ensure that he survived after he died ๐ ๐๐ฑ! This cartouche from the British Museum is one of Rameses II ๐ฉ๐๐๐๐ด๐ and I think it is so beautifully ๐ค carved!
Anubis ๐๐๐ช๐ ฑ๐ฃ has been my favorite god ๐น since I was a child ๐๐๐. Why is he my favorite? Here are some fun facts about Anubis ๐๐๐ช๐ ฑ๐ฃ so you can see why!
Anubis ๐๐๐ช๐ ฑ๐ฃ is the god of mummification, graveyards/cemeteries, funerals, tombs ๐๐ซ๐๐๐ฆ and a bunch of other things associated with death ๐ ๐๐ฑ. Even as a kid ๐๐๐, I was fascinated by mummies ๐๐น๐ ฑ๐พ๐ช and the process of mummification, so by default Anubis ๐๐๐ช๐ ฑ๐ฃ is my favorite!
The name ๐๐โAnubisโ is actually the Hellenistic version of his name ๐๐ – the Egyptians ๐๐๐๐๐ช called him Inpw.
Anubis ๐๐๐ช๐ ฑ๐ฃ is usually represented by the jackal ๐๐ฟ๐๐ฅ or having the head ๐ถ๐ค of a jackal ๐๐ฟ๐๐ฅ because these canines were often found in cemeteries.
Anubis ๐๐๐ช๐ ฑ๐ฃ has no temples ๐๐๐๐ฆ dedicated to him because every tomb/cemetery was considered a โtempleโ to Anubis ๐๐๐ช๐ ฑ๐ฃ!
Anubis ๐๐๐ช๐ ฑ๐ฃ can be written a bunch of different ways in hieroglyphs: ๐๐๐ช๐ ฑ๐ข, ๐๐๐ช๐ ฑ๐ฃ, ๐ฃ.
Here are some titles that Anubis ๐๐๐ช๐ ฑ๐ฃ is commonly associated with. His name ๐๐ appears with these a lot in hieroglyphic inscriptions: ๐ถ๐บ๐ ๐ – โUpon his hillโ ๐ ๐น ๐ฑ – โIn front at the Godโs boothโ (shrine) ๐๐ถ๐ ฑ๐๐๐ – โHe who is in the mummy wrappingsโ
As a child ๐๐๐ (and even now) I love the story about the discovery of the tomb ๐๐ซ๐๐ of Tutankhamun ๐๐ ๐๐๐ ฑ๐๐น๐พ๐บ๐! The gold ๐๐๐๐ funerary mask and all of the other artifacts found in the tomb ๐๐ซ๐๐ completely fascinated me and still fascinate me to this day!
Better known to the public as King Tut, Tutankhamun ๐๐ ๐๐๐ ฑ๐๐น๐พ๐บ๐ wasnโt that significant of a pharaoh ๐๐ป, but the discovery is his pretty much intact tomb ๐๐ซ๐๐ helped to popularize him in the modern day. He is the son ๐ ญ of the pharaoh ๐๐ป Akhenaten ๐๐๐๐ณ๐ ๐๐, and is credited with restoring the traditional Egyptian pantheon after Akhenaten ๐๐๐๐ณ๐ ๐๐ changed the entire Egyptian religion to the monotheistic worship of the Aten ๐๐๐๐ณ during his rule.
One of the things I love about Tutankhamun ๐๐ ๐๐๐ ฑ๐๐น๐พ๐บ๐ is his cartouche!! Here is a breakdown of its meaning: ๐๐ ๐ Amun ๐๐ ฑ๐ Tut (image) ๐น Ankh (life) ๐พ๐บ๐ Ruler of Heliopolis/Upper Egypt
The name ๐๐ โTutankhamunโ in Middle Egyptian translates to โLiving Image of Amun.โ However, this wasnโt his original name ๐๐; Tutankhaten ๐๐๐๐ณ๐๐ ฑ๐๐น๐๐ณ or โLiving Image of the Atenโ was his actual birth name! When Tutankhamun brought back the old religion, he changed his name ๐๐ to reflect the old religion!
The ancient Egyptians used amulets ๐๐ช๐ ๐ช a lot in both their daily life and afterlife ๐ผ๐ฟ๐๐! No matter who was wearing it, amulets ๐๐ช๐ ๐ช had the same function: to invoke magical protection ๐ ๐๐ก๐ for the wearer! Amulets ๐๐ช๐ ๐ช could represent gods ๐น๐น๐น and goddesses ๐น๐น๐น๐, everyday objects, hieroglyphs ๐น๐๐ช, plants ๐พ๐ฐ๐ฐ๐ฐ, and many other things!
In this display at the British Museum, there are a bunch of different amulets ๐๐ช๐ ๐ช featured! The Osiris ๐น๐จ๐ญ amulet (3) is considered unusual because it shows Osiris ๐น๐จ๐ญ sitting on a throne wearing the Atef crown ๐, just how he would be depicted in the Book of the Dead or on various reliefs. The Osiris ๐น๐จ๐ญ amulets were the most popular form of funerary jewelry and were tasked with overall protection ๐ ๐๐ก๐ for the deceased ๐ ๐๐ฑ.
The Anubis ๐๐๐ช๐ ฑ๐ฃ amulet (4) was most likely only used by the dead ๐ ๐๐ฑ because of Anubisโ ๐๐๐ช๐ ฑ๐ฃ association with mummification and tombs ๐๐ซ๐๐. It most likely protected ๐ ๐๐ก๐ the body of the dead to ensure the deceased ๐ ๐๐ฑ could make it to the afterlife ๐ผ๐ฟ๐๐.
The Triad Amulet (5) (sometimes referred to as the Ossirian Triad) is a representation of Isis ๐จ๐๐ฅ (goddess ๐น๐ of healing and magic), Horus ๐ ๐ญ (god ๐น of the sky and the protector of the ruler of Egypt), and Nephthys ๐ ๐๐ (โMistress of the Houseโ and associated with vultures). Isis ๐จ๐๐ฅ is the mother ๐ ๐๐ of Horus ๐ ๐ญ, the sister ๐ข๐๐ of Nephthys ๐ ๐๐, and the wife ๐๐ of Osiris ๐น๐จ๐ญ. The amulet ๐๐ช๐ is representative of Isis ๐จ๐๐ฅ and Nephthys ๐ ๐๐ protecting Horus ๐ ๐ญ and that protective power extends to the wearer. This amulet ๐๐ช๐ became very popular during the 26th Dynasty, and was usually used by mummies ๐๐น๐ ฑ๐พ๐ช for protection ๐ ๐๐ก๐ on their journey into the afterlife ๐ผ๐ฟ๐๐. The amulet ๐๐ช๐ was either placed on the chest, stomach ๐๐ฃ๐ป, or the thighs of the mummy ๐๐น๐ ฑ๐พ.
The carpenterโs tools ๐ (16) are interesting because they might have guaranteed eternal ๐ righteousness and equilibrium. This is an example of an everyday object that had magical powers when an amulet ๐๐ช๐ ! These would have been placed on a mummy ๐๐น๐ ฑ๐พ!
The staircase amulets ๐ (17) represent the primordial mound from which all life ๐น๐๐ was created. Here is the short version of the myth because it can be long/complicated and there are many versions:
The ancient Egyptian creation myth begins with endless dark water without any purpose or matter. Out of this dark water ๐, rose the primordial hill and the god ๐น Atum ๐๐๐๐ญ (or Ptah ๐ช๐๐๐ฑ in some of the myths). Then with his own shadow, Atum ๐๐๐๐ญ gave birth to Shu ๐๐ ฑ๐ญ (god ๐น of the atmosphere/principles of life) and Tefenet ๐๐๐๐๐ (goddess ๐น๐ of moisture/order). Since there was only the primordial hill, Shu ๐๐ ฑ๐ญ and Tefenet ๐๐๐๐๐ gave birth to Geb ๐ ญ๐๐ญ (god of the Earth ๐พ๐พ) and Nut ๐๐๐ฏ๐ญ (goddess of the sky ๐ช๐๐ฏ/cosmos). Geb ๐ ญ๐๐ญ and Nut ๐๐๐ฏ๐ญ eventually gave birth to the more recognizable gods – Osiris ๐น๐จ๐ญ, Isis ๐จ๐๐ฅ, Seth ๐๐๐ก๐ฃ, and Nephthys ๐ ๐๐.
Here I am with a limestone ๐๐๐๐ statue ๐๐๐๐ญ๐พ of General Horemheb ๐ณ๐ฆ๐ฃ๐ผ๐ณ๐๐ and one of his wives. Before he became the last pharaoh ๐๐ป of the 18th Dynasty, Horemheb ๐ณ๐ฆ๐ฃ๐ผ๐ณ๐๐ was a general for both Tutankhamun ๐๐ ๐๐๐ ฑ๐๐น๐พ๐บ๐ and Ayโs ๐ณ๐ฃ๐ฃ๐ช๐น๐๐ military!
Here, Horemheb ๐ณ๐ฆ๐ฃ๐ผ๐ณ๐๐ is depicted with one of his wives. They are both seated in chairs ๐๐จ๐๐ฑ๐ฆ that have lion ๐๐ ฑ๐ญ paws on the legs. The details on this statue ๐๐๐๐ญ๐พ are beautiful ๐ค – the sandals ๐ฟ๐๐๐ธ๐ฆ on their feet almost look real! Interestingly, there are no hieroglyphs ๐น๐๐ช anywhere on the statue ๐๐๐๐ญ๐พ!
The โcouples statueโ was a very common way to depict a husband ๐๐ฟ๐๐บ๐ and wife ๐๐๐ in Egyptian art! Fun fact: in ancient Egyptian culture, a couple was still considered to be singular even though they are two ๐ป people – that is why the Egyptians use ๐ฆ or ๐ช to pluralize words! In ancient Egypt ๐๐ ๐๐, two ๐ป was singular, and three ๐ผ was plural!
This is a limestone ๐๐๐๐ statue ๐๐๐๐ญ๐พ dated to the 19th Dynasty that depicts a man ๐๐๐ค named Panehesy ๐ ฎ๐ฟ๐๐ด. Panehesy ๐ ฎ๐ฟ๐๐ด is shown in a kneeling position, which usually indicates the active worship of a god ๐น๐น or gods ๐น๐น๐น. Panehesy ๐ ฎ๐ฟ๐๐ด was the โOverseer of the Treasuryโ and has appeared in statues ๐๐๐๐ญ๐พ๐ฆ before, however, this is the first statue ๐๐๐๐ญ๐พ that has hieroglyphs ๐น๐๐ช to show that he served under the pharaoh ๐๐ป Rameses II ๐ฉ๐๐๐๐ด๐.
Panehesy ๐ ฎ๐ฟ๐๐ด is holding a shrine that contains the gods ๐น๐น๐น (from left) Horus ๐ ๐ญ, Osiris, ๐น๐จ๐ญ and Isis ๐จ๐๐ฅ. This family ๐ ๐๐ ฑ๐๐๐๐ฆ unit of the three ๐ผ gods ๐น๐น๐น is seen together often in statuary, as the Egyptians ๐๐๐๐๐ช were fans of โtriadsโ or groups of three ๐ผ gods ๐น๐น๐น that were related to each other in some way.
While itโs hard to see it in my picture ๐๐ ฑ๐, there are hieroglyphs ๐น๐๐ช covering the statue ๐๐๐๐ญ๐พ. Most of the hieroglyphs ๐น๐๐ช translate to prayers ๐ ๐๐๐๐ฆ on behalf of Panehesy ๐ ฎ๐ฟ๐๐ด, along with prayers ๐ ๐๐๐๐ฆ to the gods ๐น๐น๐น Horus ๐ ๐ญ, Osiris, ๐น๐จ๐ญ and Isis ๐จ๐๐ฅ. Prayers ๐ ๐๐๐๐ฆ to Anubis ๐๐๐ช๐ ฑ๐ฃ also appear, even though he isnโt depicted directly on the statue ๐๐๐๐ญ๐พ.
The British Museum has a cast of the Narmer ๐ ๐๐ Palette ๐๐๐๐ฑ that very much looks like the real thing! I remember being so confused seeing it in the display at first because I was like โisnโt this supposed to be in Cairo?!โ
Narmer (or Menes) ๐ ๐๐ is considered the first pharaoh ๐๐ป of Egypt ๐๐ ๐๐ and founder of the First Dynasty because he won a battle in the Western Delta and fully united the two lands ๐ฟ๐ฟ of Egypt ๐๐ ๐๐ as a single country. Egypt ๐๐ ๐๐ was considered to be two ๐ป distinct places – Upper ๐ and Lower ๐ค – before the unification. The denotations of Upper ๐ and Lower ๐ค Egypt ๐๐ ๐๐ were still widely used though, and titles such as โKing of Upper and Lower Egypt ๐ฅโ and โLord of the Two Lands ๐๐ฟ๐ฟโ that were used for thousands of years after Narmer ๐ ๐๐ show how these ideas persisted. Narmer ๐ ๐๐ is depicted here wearing the White Crown of Upper Egypt ๐ค๐.
The original function of this palette is unclear, however, what is interesting is that it shows some early indications of hieroglyphs ๐น๐๐ช! Though this is up for interpretation, letโs take a look!
There are so many things happening on this palette ๐๐๐๐ฑ that it is impossible for me to explain it all so I chose some of my favorite things!
Above Narmer ๐ ๐๐, you can see what seems to be his name (๐ข๐). Next to the small figure on the left, you can see the hieroglyph ๐น๐ of a daisy. The use of the daisy hieroglyph ๐น๐ stopped but some scholars think it may mean โHorus ๐ ๐ญ.โ Narmer is holding a ๐ symbol, which is part of the word for โservant ๐๐ค๐,โ so this may indicate that the words mean โServant of Horus.โ
A question that a lot of scholars who study early Egyptian palettes ๐๐๐๐ฑ๐ฆ have to ask themselves is โwhere do the pictures end and the words begin?โ – we will probably never know!
Here I am with the sarcophagus ๐๐น๐๐๐ญ of Nectanbo I ๐ณ๐ฃ๐, a pharaoh ๐๐ป who ruled ๐พ during the 30th Dynasty (c. 379-361 B.C.E.)! In a previous entry I posted, we learned how to read the titularly from this sarcophagus ๐๐น๐๐๐ญ! So letโs take a bigger look at it!
Nectanbo I ๐ณ๐ฃ๐ was actually the founder of the 30th Dynasty, which is the last native dynasty of Egypt ๐๐ ๐๐! The inscriptions ๐๐๐ฅ on this sarcophagus ๐๐น๐๐๐ญ are beautifully ๐ค carved!
In the second picture ๐๐ ฑ๐, you can see Nectanbo I ๐ณ๐ฃ๐ in a kneeling position making an offering ๐ต๐๐ช๐๐๐ฆ of what seems to be bread ๐. I am making the assumption that it is bread ๐ because the carving in the image ๐๐ ฑ๐ is the same as the hieroglyph ๐น๐: ๐! You can also see a Uraeus ๐๐๐๐๐ on his head ๐ถ๐ค!
Nectanbo I ๐ณ๐ฃ๐ was actually a military general ๐๐ฆ and came to power by overthrowing the previous pharaoh, Nepherites II (who ruled ๐พ for only four ๐ฝ months and has no known cartouches). It is thought that Nectanbo I ๐ณ๐ฃ๐ killed Nepherites!
Here are Nectanboโs cartouches that appear on the sarcophagus ๐๐น๐๐๐ญ:
I love ushabtis ๐ ฑ๐๐๐๐ญ๐พ๐ช and so did my Nonno (we have so many pictures ๐๐ ฑ๐๐ฆ of them)! During the Ramesside period and onward, due to the increasing number of ushabti ๐ ฑ๐๐๐๐ญ๐พ figures that people were buried with, the Egyptians ๐๐๐๐๐ช started putting them in boxes! Like the example in the picture ๐๐ ฑ๐, the Ushabti Boxes were used to hold hundreds of ushabti ๐ ฑ๐๐๐๐ญ๐พ figures for the deceased ๐ ๐๐ฑ.
Much like sarcophagi, ushabti ๐ ฑ๐๐๐๐ญ๐พ boxes usually look different for different people! Some were only single compartment, but some ushabti ๐ ฑ๐๐๐๐ญ๐พ boxes could have up to three ๐ผ compartments full of the figures! Some were elaborately decorated, but this one is just a plain wooden ๐ฑ๐๐บ rectangular box with six ๐ฟ columns of hieroglyphic text ๐๐๐ฅ on the front. Unfortunately due to the angle of the picture ๐๐ ฑ๐, I canโt translate the text – but I can see the Offering Formula (๐๐๐ต๐) on the first column on the right! I can also see that some of the ushabtis ๐ ฑ๐๐๐๐ญ๐พ๐ช have a dedication to Osiris ๐น๐จ๐ญ on them!
Usually people were buried with over 400 ๐ฒ๐ฒ๐ฒ๐ฒ of the figures – one for each day of the year. Fun Fact: the ancient Egyptians ๐๐๐๐๐ช had calculated the year to be 365 ๐ฒ๐ฒ๐ฒ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐พ days, and then they revised it to 365.25 days – which is the actual length modern scientists calculated! How incredible is that?!
The ushabtis ๐ ฑ๐๐๐๐ญ๐พ๐ช that you see in this box are worker ushabtis ๐ ฑ๐๐๐๐ญ๐พ๐ช and you can tell because they are holding tools (๐บ) in their hands ๐๐ฆ! The remaining overseers ushabtis ๐ ฑ๐๐๐๐ญ๐พ๐ช were there to make sure all of the others were doing their work!
