Today ๐๐๐๐ณ we are going to look at a very peculiar type of Ushabti ๐ ฑ๐๐๐๐ญ๐พ figure that does not appear much! Iโve been wanting to write about this piece for so long so this series is the perfect opportunity!
A “Ushabti on a Bier”
These type of ushabtis ๐ ฑ๐๐๐๐ญ๐พ are referred to as โUshabti on a Bierโ because they appear lying flat on a table like a mummy ๐๐น๐ ฑ๐พ. While there are not many of this type of ushabti ๐ ฑ๐๐๐๐ญ๐พ, there are similar (yet more elaborate) ones at the Museo Egizio in Torino, the Louvre in Paris and the Rijksmuseum van Oudheden in Leiden.
There is actually no information about this piece on the MET website, but based on the piece and what I know about ushabtis ๐ ฑ๐๐๐๐ญ๐พ, I am going to make some inferences here!
I am going to infer that this piece is dated to the 18th Dynasty for two reasons: the first is that the similar ushabtis ๐ ฑ๐๐๐๐ญ๐พ located in other museums are all dated to the 18th Dynasty (New Kingdom) and the second is that this piece is in a gallery at the MET that contains New Kingdom era pieces!ย
The “Ushabti on a Bier” on display at the MET. This piece is shown amongst other artifacts dated to the 18th Dynasty!
This piece also seems to be made of limestone ๐๐๐๐, and was part of a non-royal but still wealthy personโs burial.
This โUshabti on a Bierโ that is pictured plus the ones in other museums donโt contain any hieroglyphs ๐น๐๐ช on them which is interesting because many ushabtis ๐ ฑ๐๐๐๐ญ๐พ do contain hieroglyphic inscriptions ๐๐๐ฅ.
To me, the โUshabti on a Bierโ figures look like the wooden mummy ๐๐น๐ ฑ๐พ figures that would be placed on the wooden ๐ฑ๐๐บ model boats ๐ง๐ช๐๐๐ฅ that went in tombs ๐๐ซ๐๐๐ช during the Middle Kingdom.
These types of ushabti ๐ ฑ๐๐๐๐ญ๐พ figures leave me with more questions than answers which to me is both fascinating and frustrating!
What was the purpose of these unique type of ushabti ๐ ฑ๐๐๐๐ญ๐พ figures?ย
Why do all instances of these ushabtis not contain any hieroglyphs?ย
Were these ushabtis inspired by the wooden model boats of the Middle Kingdom?
Why are all examples of these only dated to the 18th Dynasty, and why did they stop being made?
This is my personal photograph and original text. DO NOT repost.ย
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May the Fourth Be With You! Happy Star Wars Day everyone! Today I am going to do a Star ๐ด๐๐ฟ๐ผ Wars ๐๐ฑ๐๐๐ฆ themed post!ย
โI have the high ground ๐ โ is one of the most quoted lines from Star ๐ด๐๐ฟ๐ผ Wars ๐๐ฑ๐๐๐ฆ! The hieroglyph ๐น๐ in the picture ๐๐ ฑ๐ literally means โhigh ground ๐ โ and looks very similar to Obi-Wan during the end fight scene on Mustafar from Revenge of the Sith!
Whenever I see this hieroglyph in ๐น๐ inscriptions๐๐๐ฅ I get very excited solely because I relate it to Star ๐ด๐๐ฟ๐ผ Wars ๐๐ฑ๐๐๐ฆ and I absolutely love Star Wars!
This particular hieroglyphic ๐น๐ symbol has been named the โexcited manโ by James Allen (but I will be calling it โKenobiโ), and I happen to think that is a very fitting description! The โexcited man ๐ โ functions as both an ideogram and a determinative.
When acting as an ideogram, ๐ means โhigh ground.โ
When acting as a determinative, ๐ can be found at the end of words such as:
๐ฟ๐๐ โ Mourn ๐๐๐๐ ฑ๐๐ โ Joy ๐ฏ๐ฟ๐๐ โ be strong, be honored ๐ด๐๐ฟ๐ โ raise, to set right ๐๐ฟ๐ โ to be high, to be loud
These words all express strong emotions, so the โexcited man ๐ โ is definitely a symbol that summarizes the meaning of the word!
Since โRevenge of the Sithโ is one of my absolute favorite movies, I am really quite amused by the meaning of this hieroglyph ๐น๐! It is such a cool coincidence!
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This is the first post in a new series I am doing called “Ushabti Friends,” which aims to educate on the fascinating funerary objects called Ushabtis!
There are so many different types of ushabti ๐ ฑ๐๐๐๐ญ๐พ figures! Today, we are going to start off with the first known ushabti ๐ ฑ๐๐๐๐ญ๐พ figure which is called a “wax ushabti”
Before ushabtis ๐ท๐ฟ๐ฏ๐๐๐ฎ๐พ๐ช we know and love evolved in the 12th Dynasty, wax ๐ ๐๐๐ธ๐ฆ figurines that looked like humans (and had their own mini coffins ๐ด๐ ฑ๐๐๐ฑ๐ฆ) were placed in tombs ๐๐ซ๐๐๐ช with the deceased ๐ ๐๐ฑ! They are known to Egyptologists as โwax ushabtis.โ
These precursor-ushabtis ๐ ฑ๐๐๐๐ญ๐พ๐ช were made of beeswax and beeswax was said to have magical ๐๐๐ฟ๐ powers of protection ๐ ๐๐ก๐, resurrection, and regeneration.
The figures are somewhat detailed and were wrapped in a linen cloth ๐ฑ and placed in the mini-coffin ๐ด๐ ฑ๐๐๐ฑ. The coffin ๐ด๐ ฑ๐๐๐ฑ did not identify any role or jobs that the figure had (like the text on a ushabti ๐ท๐ฟ๐ฏ๐๐๐ฎ๐พ could identify what itโs job was), but it did identify the name ๐๐ of the deceased ๐ ๐๐ฑ. Sometimes even the standard Offering Formula (๐๐๐ต๐ an offering the king gives) appeared on the mini-coffin ๐ด๐ ฑ๐๐๐ฑ as if it were a real one!
If these figures werenโt workers, then what was their purpose? It is thought that this figure would take the place of the body should the body of the deceased ๐ ๐๐ฑ be destroyed.
Not many of these โwax ushabtisโ have been found, especially in comparison to the amount of ushabtis ๐ท๐ฟ๐ฏ๐๐๐ฎ๐พ๐ช that have been found!
Ushabtis ๐ ฑ๐๐๐๐ญ๐พ๐ช evolved into the little worker figures we know today during the 12th Dynasty, but became very popular during the New Kingdom.
This is my personal photograph and original text. DO NOT repost.ย
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Letโs read some hieroglyphs ๐น๐๐ช! Today ๐๐๐๐ณ we are going to be looking at the word โImage ๐๐ ฑ๐๐พ.โย
“Image” in sunken relief hieroglyphs
The word โ๐๐ ฑ๐๐พโ is one I use frequently in my descriptions and I always get excited when I see it appear in inscriptions! The reason I get so excited is because it was one of the first words I learned how to read in hieroglyphs ๐น๐๐ช and I remember being so proud that I knew what it meant!
I have provided two different examples of the word – the first one is in sunken relief/carved hieroglyphs ๐น๐๐ช while the second is in cursive hieroglyphs! Cursive hieroglyphs is the version of hieroglyphs that would appear on handwritten papyri!ย
“Image” in Cursive Hieroglyphs from a funerary papyrus
So what does โ๐๐ ฑ๐๐พโ mean? The word โ๐๐ ฑ๐๐พ,โ which can also be commonly written as โ๐๐ ฑ๐โ or less commonly โ๐๐ ฑ๐๐โ can mean Image, Likeness, Statue, Figure, and Complete. The word has a phonetic value of โtwt,โ but is inferred to be pronounced like โtut.โ
Letโs break down the symbols!
The โflat loaf of bread ๐โ is a uniliteral phonogram used to represent the sound โt.โ
The โQuail Chick ๐ ฑโ is uniliteral phonogram that is representative of the sound w/u.
The โMummy Standing ๐พโ symbol is both an ideogram and a determinative! The symbol is an ideogram for โtwt – Statue and Likeness.โ It is a determinative for โMummy, Statue, Likeness, and Form.โ
The reason why โ๐๐ ฑ๐๐พ or ๐๐ ฑ๐โ was one of the first word I learned how to read is because it appears in the cartouche of Tutankhamun ๐๐ ๐๐๐ ฑ๐๐น๐พ๐บ๐! Tutankhamunโs name means โLiving Image of Amun.โ
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This section of a papyrus ๐ ๐๐๐ is from the โFunerary Papyrus of the Steward Sethnakhtโ which is dated to the Ramesside Period (New Kingdom c. 1320โ1200 B.C.E.). Sethnakht ๐ฉ๐๐ก๐ฝ was the tax master ๐๐๐ด๐ก (Iโm sure he was popular) and this high position is what allowed him to have such a gorgeous funerary papyrus ๐ ๐๐๐!
This entire papyrus ๐ ๐๐๐ is composed of what has been called Chapter 168 of the Book of the Dead ๐๐๐๐ป๐ ๐๐๐ฒ๐ณ๐บ๐ผ๐บ, otherwise known as the “Chapter of Offerings.โ However, most of the time this text is found alone and not with other parts of the Book of the Dead ๐๐๐๐ป๐ ๐๐๐ฒ๐ณ๐บ๐ผ๐บ (as is the case with this papyrus) and is considered now to be its own text and not necessarily a part of the Book of the Dead ๐๐๐๐ป๐ ๐๐๐ฒ๐ณ๐บ๐ผ๐บ.
Letโs read some hieroglyphs ๐น๐๐ช!
A section of the “Funerary Papyrus of the Steward Sethnakht”
The two sections of hieroglyphs ๐น๐๐ช point in two different directions; the hieroglyphs ๐น๐๐ช above the Falcon headed god Osiris-Wennefer ๐น๐จ๐ญ๐๐น๐๐ค๐๐ point to the right while the hieroglyphs ๐น๐๐ช above Sethnakht ๐ฉ๐๐ก๐ฝ point to the left. We are going to start with the hieroglyphs ๐น๐๐ช above Osiris-Wennefer ๐น๐จ๐ญ๐๐น๐๐ค๐๐.ย
Here is the text all together: ๐๐๐๐๐น๐จ๐ญ๐๐น๐๐ค๐๐๐๐๐๐๐
Here is the translation: โWords Spoken By Osiris-Wennefer, Foremost of the West.โ This is a super common introduction for a god in a funerary text. It also lets you know who is depicted in the images!ย
Before we read the next section of hieroglyphs ๐น๐๐ช, letโs take a look at some of the art! On his shoulder, Sethnakht ๐ฉ๐๐ก๐ฝ is holding the goddess Maat ๐๐ด๐ฃ๐๐ฆ while he is holding up his other hand in adoration of the god Osiris-Wennefer ๐น๐จ๐ญ๐๐น๐๐ค๐๐. Maat ๐๐ด๐ฃ๐๐ฆ is the goddess of truth ๐๐ด๐ฃ๐๐ and justice ๐๐ด๐ฃ๐๐๐ and we know itโs her because of the feather ๐ thatโs on her head!ย
Letโs read some hieroglyphs ๐น๐๐ช! We are going to be reading the hieroglyphs ๐น๐๐ช that are above Sethnakht ๐ฉ๐๐ก๐ฝ. These hieroglyphs ๐น๐๐ช point to the left so we will start reading them from the left!ย
Here is the text all together: ๐๐ผ๐ข๐๐น๐จ๐ญ๐๐๐๐๐๐น๐จ๐ญ๐ป๐๐๐๐๐๐ด๐ก๐๐๐ค๐ฉ๐๐ก๐ฝ
Here are the individual phrases broken down:
๐๐ผ๐ข – Praise/Worship (should actually be written as โ๐ผ๐๐ขโ)
๐ – of
๐น๐จ๐ญ – Osiris
๐ – Foremost
๐๐๐๐ – West
๐น๐จ๐ญ – The Osiris
๐ป๐๐ – Great
๐ – the/of
๐๐๐ด๐ก – Tax Master
๐๐๐ค – Overseer
๐ฉ๐๐ก๐ฝ – Sethnakht
Here is the translation: โPraise for Osiris, Foremost of the West, the Osiris, the Great Tax Master, the Overseer Sethnakht.โ
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Letโs read some hieroglyphs ๐น๐๐ช! Today ๐๐๐๐ณ we are going to be looking at a piece titled โModel of a Scribe’s Palette Inscribed for Amenhotep.โ
While this was not a scribal palette ๐ ๐๐๐๐ that was used during this personโs life, it is dated to the 18th Dynasty reign of the pharaoh ๐๐ป Amenhotep III ๐๐ ๐๐ต๐พ๐. Since Amenhotep was a popular name ๐๐ at the time, many people including pharaohs, shared this name ๐๐! This piece is made of the chemical sedimentary rock travertine, which is more commonly known as alabaster ๐ฑ!ย
We are going to be translating the right side of the scribal palette ๐ ๐๐๐๐ first! Also if you are new here, please know that I do all of the translations myself!ย
Here is the full inscription on the right side: ๐๐๐ต๐๐ช๐น๐จ๐ญ๐ ๐๐๐ญ๐๐๐๐๐น๐ผ๐๐๐ค๐ฌ๐ฆ๐๐ช๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐ฏ ๐๐ด๐น๐น๐น๐ฉ๐น๐๐๐๐๐ค๐๐๐ ๐๐ค๐ด๐๐๐ ๐๐ต๐๐ช๐ผ
๐๐๐ต๐๐ช – An Offering the King Gives
๐น๐จ๐ญ – Osiris
๐ ๐๐๐ญ – Foremost of
๐๐๐๐ – West
๐น๐ผ – The Great God
๐ – Lord of
๐๐ค๐ฌ๐ฆ๐ – Rosetau
๐ช๐๐ – Venerated
๐๐ – Before
๐๐๐ฏ – Nut
๐๐ด – Child of, Born of
๐น๐น๐น – Gods
๐ฉ๐น – The Osiris
๐๐ – Kingโs Scribe / Royal Scribe / Kingโs Secretary
๐๐๐ค๐ – Overseer
๐ – of
๐ ๐๐ค๐ด๐ – Memphis
๐๐ ๐๐ต๐๐ช๐ผ – Amenhotep
The full inscription reads: โAn Offering the King Gives Osiris, Foremost of the West, the Great God, Lord of Rosetau, Venerated before Nut, Born of the Gods, The Osiris, the Royal Scribe, Overseer of Memphis, Amenhotep.โ
It is very interesting to see both forms of the god Osirisโ name in the same inscription (๐น๐จ๐ญ and ๐น๐ฉ). This is done because the second variation of the name in the inscription indicates that the deceased person (Amenhotep ๐๐ ๐๐ต๐๐ช๐ผ) has become โThe Osiris ๐น๐ฉโ in death and has been reborn in the netherworld. This is ver common in funerary texts, and both men and women would be referred to as โThe Osiris ๐น๐ฉ.โ
We are going to be translating the left side of the scribal palette ๐ ๐๐๐๐ now!
๐๐ – Kingโs Scribe / Royal Scribe / Kingโs Secretary
๐๐๐ค๐ – Overseer
๐ – of
๐ ๐๐ค๐ด๐ – Memphis
๐๐ ๐๐ต๐๐ช๐ผ – Amenhotep
The full inscription reads: โAn Offering the King Gives Osiris, Ruler of Peace in Abydos, Venerated before Hathor, Lady of the Sycamore, Mistress of the West Roads of Horus (?), The Osiris, the Royal Scribe, Overseer of Memphis, Amenhotep.โ
This side of the scribal palette ๐ ๐๐๐๐ gave me a tiny bit of trouble for three reasons:
The phrase โRuler ๐พ of Peace ๐ต๐โ is an iffy translation for me and I donโt know if itโs one word or two or something totally different!ย
This variant of โAbydos ๐๐๐๐โ is one I do not see a lot at all and I had to look it up! Usually Abydos is written as โ๐๐๐๐โ and while the one symbol difference may not seem like a big difference sometimes it can be! At quick glance it looked like โEast ๐๐๐๐โ
After โMistress ๐บ๐โ the hieroglyphs are very hard to read and I am totally guessing here! Upon first glance it looked like โDesert ๐ Road ๐๐โ which does not sound right to me?! I had to consult my trusty dictionary and the phrase โRoads of Horus ๐ ๐๐๐๐โ was there and it looks like it could be a variant of that too. The second one is probably more accurate due to the association between Hathor and Horus.ย
I guess this was a glance into my thought process! It goes to show that no matter how much you study or learn, translating hieroglyphs ๐น๐๐ช will always present fun and unique challenges! Iโm posting my thoughts and challenges with the text to show that everyone goes through this while translating and if youโre learning now and struggling itโs okay!ย
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