This came out of an awesome project to catalog everyday Ancient Egyptian language. Most of this writing that was sourced for these works is from the Greco-Roman period and not from the earlier periods. (I am currently wondering how much influence these writings might have from Greek and/or Latin or other languages at this point in history. Still, it is well worth checking out.
The Chicago Demotic Dictionary.
Friday, September 21, 2012
Monday, September 17, 2012
Some calm and much needed rest
The festival is done and I can get back to posting here with some sort of regularity. I was at Greater Pittsburgh Pagan Pride selling some of my beautiful wares. I am hoping to have my Etsy shop updated soon with all the items that I still have. That is another matter though. For now here are some pictures of my table from the event. Much of my art is Egyptian and I hope to have some of the next posts describe the purpose of some of these items. Just a short post today because I am still in need of rest after Saturday.
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| Jewelry |
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| Me and all the Egyptian stuff. |
Thursday, August 30, 2012
Children's Hieroglyph Book.
What is most impressive though is that this book has broken down translation and reading basics into a clear and comprehensible series of steps. This book makes hieroglyphs more accessible due to the simplicity and completeness of its coverage.
I definitely think this is a book for any child interested in Ancient Egypt. It would also be a great starting place for an adult to get the basics before moving on to the more complicated adult translation books.
Wednesday, August 29, 2012
Pictures from Facebook
I am sure most of you who have a Facebook account have seen those images comparing Jesus and Horus. I am sure you've seen them but here are a couple examples. (You can click them to make them bigger)
For the most part we are going to ignore the Jesus side of these and focus on what is said about Horus and how that relates to Ancient Egyptian religion. I will also endeavor to point toward sources for as much of this as possible. It might mean a huge bibliography or a lot of links but it is important. Also, I should say that there is nothing wrong with having any of these beliefs but pointing to them as Ancient Egyptian or that Christianity copied these early on from this religion then something must be said about authenticity of these claims.
Let's start with the list in image #1 just because it is the most extensive and will likely address many of the others.
First on the list of image #1 is "Written down 5000 years ago." This means it was written around 3000 BC. This is about 500 years before the Great Pyramids were being built. We know that by this time most of Egyptian mythology, the core anyway, was already strongly in place. From items like the Narmer palette(Discussions of the glyphs and meaning of the palette here.) and other sources contemporary to the palatte, we also know hieroglyphs were in use before 3000 BC. Likely this date of 5000 years ago is probably wrong. On the other side of it dates for the Bible range widely as to when it was written, much of it depends on which version of the Bible one uses. What I take away from all of this is that pointing out dates for either of these documents is probably not legitimate.
We then move on to Horus being born of a virgin. This is going to get into some weird things about Egyptian mythology. As the myth goes, either Osiris impregnates Isis or after Osiris is dead and chopped up Isis uses his dismembered phallus to impregnate herself. In the most traditional sense of virgin, a woman who has never been vaginally penetrated, Isis does not fit the bill. The other common definition of virgin is unmarried. As Osiris was about to ascend to the throne he would have been married by Egyptian customs and there are references to Isis as his wife prior to the dismemberment incident. Isis is not an unmarried woman. In still other myths Isis and Osiris mingle breaths, doesn't that sound like a euphemism, when he is resurrected and that is how she becomes pregnant with Horus. It is highly unlikely that Isis is a virgin in any myths.
Horus was born on Christmas Day. Since Osiris is murdered in early October/November it is highly unlikely that Horus would have been born the next month. The main festival of Horus, which is often associated with the birth of the god or goddess, is in June/July. If we consider the Egyptian ideals of realism their mythology we can see that July as more reasonable as this is 9 months after the murder. Another fact that points to the idea that this is reasonable is that Horus is hidden in a papyrus marsh after his birth so Set would not find him. December is the middle of the Nile flood and most papyrus beds would be underwater at this time making it impossible to hide a child there. July however is the time of low water and planting which would leave much of these areas open.
I don't even know where to start with this concept of three wise men and the Eastern Star. The Eastern Star is usually thought of as Sirius, which in Ancient Egyptian mythology was a goddess, Sothis/Sopdt. (Sothis was a goddess that sometimes heralded the arrival of epidemics and plague as well as her more benign association with the Nile flood bringing fertile soils.!) I don't have much to say about the three wise men. I can't say I have ever read anything about three wise men in any Egyptian myth.
This whole line "Taken to Egypt to avoid the wrath of Typhoon" is problematic. Horus was born in Egypt, usually somewhere in the delta region in most myths. He could not have been taken to some place he already was. (Very curious) Typhoon also causes problems since this is a Greco-Roman god who is a titan offspring of Gaia. I am sure they meant Set but in calling him Typhoon this no longer refers to Egyptian myth but a later Roman idea.
Taught in the temple as a child is also not likely to be true to the myths. There are many myths of Horus' childhood. Many of them include his haphazard childhood of being hunted by Set and stung/bitten by animals. We also must consider that in the ancient world most male children of a king would have been educated, likely in a temple, regardless of their nationality. This is hardly something that would set Horus apart from most other deities or king's children.
Anup is not an Egyptian god. I assume we are dealing with a misspelling of Anpu, the Egyptian name of Anubis. (Anubis is a Greek word) Misspelling a deity name does not instill confidence in me. Baptism is not an Egyptian practice. Baptism is a Christian concept and related to the Jewish concept Tvilah to restore purity. (You can also think of this as the removal of sin.) What they are doing in this piece is blurring all of these different concepts by compiling them under the Greek word "baptismos". This Greek word refers to Jewish ritual washing. From there they are saying that because the Egyptian priests also washed before entering a temple that they were practicing "baptismos" too. This is quite a long string of things to make this comparison work. As for the rest, I can't remember any listing of an Egyptian god or goddess' age being given in years, especially specific years. Usual descriptions refer to body, so something like the body of a young boy or bent with age or they just default to millions of years.
Egyptians combined gods and goddesses into Triads. This makes the 12 disciples rather weird. I thought that perhaps during the myth of Horus and Set, while Horus is hunting Set, that he might have had 12 army leaders in those with him. However, upon reading the myths I didn't see anything about the numbers of men in his army. I am not even sure where this would have come from.
Horus walked on water? Most myths refer to him and show him riding in a boat, as is true for the Egyptian gods in general. There are some myths where Horus is transformed into a winged sun disk to fly over the Nile but this still doesn't fit the concept of walking on water.
The next one just doesn't make much sense either. "Raise El-Azur-us from the dead". I know what they are trying to get at and that is the fallacy that Osiris and Lazurus(of the Bible) are one in the same. First, I must point out that the El starting piece is not in the Egyptian language but is in the Arabic names of various locales and deities. The writer is also trying to manipulate the Egyptian name Ausar which is a name of Osiris. Horus did not resurrect anyone, and certainly not Osiris. Anubis was the god to create mummification and raise Osiris from the dead. (Sometimes with the help of Isis and/or Thoth). Remember, at the time of Osiris' murder and resurrection Horus was not yet born. Not only is this false based on mythology but it would also require a fetus/zygote to raise people from the dead. Even the Egyptians didn't have myths that off the wall.
Transfiguration may be something we could stretch our imagination to believe. As I mentioned before, Horus transformed in some myths into a sundisk to fly around. However, this usually happened in the Nile valley and marshes, not on a mountain. I can grant them that both Jesus and Horus were supposed to have changed into something glowing at some point but these are very different ideas. Jesus glowing was to signal his divinity to those around him. (That is a very paraphrased comment for the sake of brevity.) Horus transformed in order to hunt down Set and try to kill him. He was a god so no need to prove his divinity to anyone.
Titles... "The way, the truth, the light" These are titles I have seen most often used and likely created by various modern forms of Egyptian religion. You could perhaps apply "the light" to Ancient Egypt in later mythology when Horus and Ra are merged into one solar deity Ra-Horakhty. Messiah is actually an interesting title, though it is not Egyptian at all. Aside from the Christian definition, Messiah also means a zealous leader of a cause. This definition could definitely apply to Horus as he was obsessed with vengeance and murdering Set for killing Osiris... though I doubt obsession with killing someone is Christ-like. The next title includes "God's" with a capital "G" which is not an Egyptian term but a Christian one. Son of man does not work at ALL for Horus as the Pharaoh, ie man, was the son of Horus not the other way around. Lamb of God, here we are with the capital "G" god. Also, as a god of the sky, war, revenge and vengence I doubt Horus fits into the traditional "Lamb of God concept. The Word is not applicable. This concept in Ancient Egypt was Ma'at, goddess of truth. The morning star refers to Sirius which we have already addressed. The light of the world in Egypt is Ra so perhaps this could be applied to Horus after he is merged with Ra.
Crucifixion was not used by Egyptians at all. This was a Roman practice Horus never dies in the mythology and therefore cannot be resurrected.
WOW that was just the first image. I hope you are not bored or overwhelmed but I am going to continue going through the rest of these comments on the other images. Might as well finish up.
Image 2 has already been addressed in full.
On image 3 I would like to point out that Horus was born in a papyrus swamp and not a cave.
Image 4 starts out with the wrong date for the begining of Horus worship. Horus is referenced on the Narmer palette from 3000BC.
Healing of the sick and injured is highly unlikely for a god of war and vengeance. Likely, they have given Horus some of the attributes of Isis, his mother.
And at this point we are finished with dispelling some of these items that keep appearing on Facebook attributing things to Ancient Egypt that are not true. I have also seen these types of references between Osiris and Jesus as well. Here at least there are some more applicable relationships including being harmonious, kind, resurrected and so on. If you are interested in reading up on this more here are some suggested readings:
Wright, N.T. The Resurrection of the Son of God. London: SPCK, 2003.
In my searching for answers here I found some other treatments of this topic that take a different approach than I do. Here is one of them. If you are interested in the topic a simple google search will turn up more.
I do hope that this covers the topic. If you have more questions, see another of these types of images that you want me to look into or want more information feel free to reply here or email me.
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 |
Let's start with the list in image #1 just because it is the most extensive and will likely address many of the others.
First on the list of image #1 is "Written down 5000 years ago." This means it was written around 3000 BC. This is about 500 years before the Great Pyramids were being built. We know that by this time most of Egyptian mythology, the core anyway, was already strongly in place. From items like the Narmer palette(Discussions of the glyphs and meaning of the palette here.) and other sources contemporary to the palatte, we also know hieroglyphs were in use before 3000 BC. Likely this date of 5000 years ago is probably wrong. On the other side of it dates for the Bible range widely as to when it was written, much of it depends on which version of the Bible one uses. What I take away from all of this is that pointing out dates for either of these documents is probably not legitimate.
We then move on to Horus being born of a virgin. This is going to get into some weird things about Egyptian mythology. As the myth goes, either Osiris impregnates Isis or after Osiris is dead and chopped up Isis uses his dismembered phallus to impregnate herself. In the most traditional sense of virgin, a woman who has never been vaginally penetrated, Isis does not fit the bill. The other common definition of virgin is unmarried. As Osiris was about to ascend to the throne he would have been married by Egyptian customs and there are references to Isis as his wife prior to the dismemberment incident. Isis is not an unmarried woman. In still other myths Isis and Osiris mingle breaths, doesn't that sound like a euphemism, when he is resurrected and that is how she becomes pregnant with Horus. It is highly unlikely that Isis is a virgin in any myths.
Horus was born on Christmas Day. Since Osiris is murdered in early October/November it is highly unlikely that Horus would have been born the next month. The main festival of Horus, which is often associated with the birth of the god or goddess, is in June/July. If we consider the Egyptian ideals of realism their mythology we can see that July as more reasonable as this is 9 months after the murder. Another fact that points to the idea that this is reasonable is that Horus is hidden in a papyrus marsh after his birth so Set would not find him. December is the middle of the Nile flood and most papyrus beds would be underwater at this time making it impossible to hide a child there. July however is the time of low water and planting which would leave much of these areas open.
I don't even know where to start with this concept of three wise men and the Eastern Star. The Eastern Star is usually thought of as Sirius, which in Ancient Egyptian mythology was a goddess, Sothis/Sopdt. (Sothis was a goddess that sometimes heralded the arrival of epidemics and plague as well as her more benign association with the Nile flood bringing fertile soils.!) I don't have much to say about the three wise men. I can't say I have ever read anything about three wise men in any Egyptian myth.
This whole line "Taken to Egypt to avoid the wrath of Typhoon" is problematic. Horus was born in Egypt, usually somewhere in the delta region in most myths. He could not have been taken to some place he already was. (Very curious) Typhoon also causes problems since this is a Greco-Roman god who is a titan offspring of Gaia. I am sure they meant Set but in calling him Typhoon this no longer refers to Egyptian myth but a later Roman idea.
Taught in the temple as a child is also not likely to be true to the myths. There are many myths of Horus' childhood. Many of them include his haphazard childhood of being hunted by Set and stung/bitten by animals. We also must consider that in the ancient world most male children of a king would have been educated, likely in a temple, regardless of their nationality. This is hardly something that would set Horus apart from most other deities or king's children.
Anup is not an Egyptian god. I assume we are dealing with a misspelling of Anpu, the Egyptian name of Anubis. (Anubis is a Greek word) Misspelling a deity name does not instill confidence in me. Baptism is not an Egyptian practice. Baptism is a Christian concept and related to the Jewish concept Tvilah to restore purity. (You can also think of this as the removal of sin.) What they are doing in this piece is blurring all of these different concepts by compiling them under the Greek word "baptismos". This Greek word refers to Jewish ritual washing. From there they are saying that because the Egyptian priests also washed before entering a temple that they were practicing "baptismos" too. This is quite a long string of things to make this comparison work. As for the rest, I can't remember any listing of an Egyptian god or goddess' age being given in years, especially specific years. Usual descriptions refer to body, so something like the body of a young boy or bent with age or they just default to millions of years.
Egyptians combined gods and goddesses into Triads. This makes the 12 disciples rather weird. I thought that perhaps during the myth of Horus and Set, while Horus is hunting Set, that he might have had 12 army leaders in those with him. However, upon reading the myths I didn't see anything about the numbers of men in his army. I am not even sure where this would have come from.
Horus walked on water? Most myths refer to him and show him riding in a boat, as is true for the Egyptian gods in general. There are some myths where Horus is transformed into a winged sun disk to fly over the Nile but this still doesn't fit the concept of walking on water.
The next one just doesn't make much sense either. "Raise El-Azur-us from the dead". I know what they are trying to get at and that is the fallacy that Osiris and Lazurus(of the Bible) are one in the same. First, I must point out that the El starting piece is not in the Egyptian language but is in the Arabic names of various locales and deities. The writer is also trying to manipulate the Egyptian name Ausar which is a name of Osiris. Horus did not resurrect anyone, and certainly not Osiris. Anubis was the god to create mummification and raise Osiris from the dead. (Sometimes with the help of Isis and/or Thoth). Remember, at the time of Osiris' murder and resurrection Horus was not yet born. Not only is this false based on mythology but it would also require a fetus/zygote to raise people from the dead. Even the Egyptians didn't have myths that off the wall.
Transfiguration may be something we could stretch our imagination to believe. As I mentioned before, Horus transformed in some myths into a sundisk to fly around. However, this usually happened in the Nile valley and marshes, not on a mountain. I can grant them that both Jesus and Horus were supposed to have changed into something glowing at some point but these are very different ideas. Jesus glowing was to signal his divinity to those around him. (That is a very paraphrased comment for the sake of brevity.) Horus transformed in order to hunt down Set and try to kill him. He was a god so no need to prove his divinity to anyone.
Titles... "The way, the truth, the light" These are titles I have seen most often used and likely created by various modern forms of Egyptian religion. You could perhaps apply "the light" to Ancient Egypt in later mythology when Horus and Ra are merged into one solar deity Ra-Horakhty. Messiah is actually an interesting title, though it is not Egyptian at all. Aside from the Christian definition, Messiah also means a zealous leader of a cause. This definition could definitely apply to Horus as he was obsessed with vengeance and murdering Set for killing Osiris... though I doubt obsession with killing someone is Christ-like. The next title includes "God's" with a capital "G" which is not an Egyptian term but a Christian one. Son of man does not work at ALL for Horus as the Pharaoh, ie man, was the son of Horus not the other way around. Lamb of God, here we are with the capital "G" god. Also, as a god of the sky, war, revenge and vengence I doubt Horus fits into the traditional "Lamb of God concept. The Word is not applicable. This concept in Ancient Egypt was Ma'at, goddess of truth. The morning star refers to Sirius which we have already addressed. The light of the world in Egypt is Ra so perhaps this could be applied to Horus after he is merged with Ra.
Crucifixion was not used by Egyptians at all. This was a Roman practice Horus never dies in the mythology and therefore cannot be resurrected.
WOW that was just the first image. I hope you are not bored or overwhelmed but I am going to continue going through the rest of these comments on the other images. Might as well finish up.
Image 2 has already been addressed in full.
On image 3 I would like to point out that Horus was born in a papyrus swamp and not a cave.
Image 4 starts out with the wrong date for the begining of Horus worship. Horus is referenced on the Narmer palette from 3000BC.
Healing of the sick and injured is highly unlikely for a god of war and vengeance. Likely, they have given Horus some of the attributes of Isis, his mother.
And at this point we are finished with dispelling some of these items that keep appearing on Facebook attributing things to Ancient Egypt that are not true. I have also seen these types of references between Osiris and Jesus as well. Here at least there are some more applicable relationships including being harmonious, kind, resurrected and so on. If you are interested in reading up on this more here are some suggested readings:
Wright, N.T. The Resurrection of the Son of God. London: SPCK, 2003.
In my searching for answers here I found some other treatments of this topic that take a different approach than I do. Here is one of them. If you are interested in the topic a simple google search will turn up more.
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Sunday, August 19, 2012
Book Review - Hieroglyphs Without Mystery
I just finished this book by Karl-Theodor Zauzich. The book had some great assets and some less than ideal items. Overall, this book could be used by a beginner but I wouldn't suggest it. While the book walks the reader through signs, phrases and grammar with great precision it has one big downfall. The glyphs in this book are written so small that unless you are familiar with the common glyphs it will be useless in helping you with translation. For someone who is familiar with the basic glyphs then you can get much from this book. One thing I picked up from this book is a quicker, script like form of some of the harder glyphs. (The owl, vulture and chick are the bane of my writing) There are also areas where the phonetics are given without the glyphs. Here again, familiarity with the common glyphs would be helpful.
The book does have some examples of inscriptions that it walks you through translating. However, other books have practice sections for these kinds of translations which this one does not.
I think this is a great stage 2 book for someone looking to learn glyphs. Anyone who has read a couple books and has a familiarity with the "alphabet" and some of the biliterals and triliterals will do well with this book as a next step.
Sunday, August 12, 2012
The first doctors and medical textbooks.
I have realized that we have yet to touch on my favorite topics in Egyptology, medicine. This is a vast topic so we will touch on it here in small pieces. Before we get into talking about specific medical practices it is important to think about what writings exist for medicine at that time.
Names of the papyri:
- Berlin Papyrus - Gynecological, pregnancy tests and mathematics including algebra. c1800 BC
- Brooklyn Papyrus - Concerned mostly with poisonous and venomous stings and bites including identification of snakes, spiders and scorpions as well as prognosis based on symptoms. c1800 BC
- Brugsch Papyrus - Contains topics of gynecology,contraception, fertility, topical/visible/skin issues, mouth issues and chronic disease as well as trauma. (24 pages) c1300 BC
- Carlsberg Papyrus - Focuses on pregnancy and the eyes. c2000 BC to 100 AD. This set is suspected to be added to over time since it consist of writings in hieroglyphs, hieratic, demotic and ancient Greek.
- Chester Beatty Papyrus - Focuses on headaches and digestive tract/anal illnesses (19 papyri) c.1200 BC
- Ebers Papyrus - Mutiple medical topics such as skin diseases, trauma, gynecology, dentistry, chronic diseases (such as migraines) and traumatic diseases. (110 pages) c1550 BC
- Edwin Smith Papyrus - Part of a textbook on trauma diagnosis, treatment, prognosis and surgery techniques. In depth look at what body structures the Egyptians were familiar with including key ideas like the blood vessels being connected to the heart. (22 pages) c.1600 BC Can be seen in translation online.
- Hearst Papyrus - Focuses on issue of blood, hair and animal bites. (This is the only one of the 4 big medical papyri: Kahun, Edwin, Ebers and Hearst that I have not seen direct translations of.) c.2000 BC
- Kahun Papyrus - Women's health. Sometimes called the Kahan Gynecological papyrus. (35 paragraphs)c.1800 BC
- London Medical Papyrus- Prayer and magical aspects of medicine. c 1300 BC
Ramesseum Papyri - Includes Pediatrics, gynecology, and illnesses/injuries related to the eyes and muscular system (17 papyri) c1980 BC
Other smaller papyri exist or papyri that has a small reference to something medical but these are the larger ones that deal with medicine exclusively, or almost so. In addition to using the papyri directly there are some books on this topic that are well worth reading if you are interested in this topic.
Books and videos
Ancient Egyptian Medicine by John Nunn. This is probably the best of the books out there for the medical papyri as far as description, categorization and referencing.
The Art of Medicine in Ancient Egypt from the Metropolitan Museum of Art
An Ancient Egyptian Herbal by Lise Manniche. Medicinal plants in Ancient Egypt. I have not yet read this book so I can't speak for its content. However, it does look very interesting.
Ancient Egypt, Modern Medicine a documentary from the History Channel. Talks about the when and what of the big topics in Ancient Egypt. You can see an excerpt from it here.
Investigation Into Dynamics of Ancient Egyptian Pharmacology: A Statistical Analysis of Papyrus Ebers and Cross-Cultural Medical Thinking This looks truly fascinating as well but I haven't got to read this yet either.
The Quick And The Dead: Biomedical Theory In Ancient Egypt Another of the books I want to read but can't because cost prohibits me.
The Healing Hand: Man and Wound in the Ancient World by Guido Majno This book gives a brief, layman accessible overview to the history of surgical and trauma practices in all the ancient world.
Man and Wound in the Ancient World: A History of Military Medicine from Sumer to the Fall of Constantinople by Richard Gabriel. I haven't read this one personally either but the local librarian suggested it as a good study of injuries related to war and medical practices for the battlefield in the ancient world.
Names of the papyri:
- Berlin Papyrus - Gynecological, pregnancy tests and mathematics including algebra. c1800 BC
- Brooklyn Papyrus - Concerned mostly with poisonous and venomous stings and bites including identification of snakes, spiders and scorpions as well as prognosis based on symptoms. c1800 BC
- Brugsch Papyrus - Contains topics of gynecology,contraception, fertility, topical/visible/skin issues, mouth issues and chronic disease as well as trauma. (24 pages) c1300 BC
- Carlsberg Papyrus - Focuses on pregnancy and the eyes. c2000 BC to 100 AD. This set is suspected to be added to over time since it consist of writings in hieroglyphs, hieratic, demotic and ancient Greek.
- Chester Beatty Papyrus - Focuses on headaches and digestive tract/anal illnesses (19 papyri) c.1200 BC
- Ebers Papyrus - Mutiple medical topics such as skin diseases, trauma, gynecology, dentistry, chronic diseases (such as migraines) and traumatic diseases. (110 pages) c1550 BC
- Edwin Smith Papyrus - Part of a textbook on trauma diagnosis, treatment, prognosis and surgery techniques. In depth look at what body structures the Egyptians were familiar with including key ideas like the blood vessels being connected to the heart. (22 pages) c.1600 BC Can be seen in translation online.
- Hearst Papyrus - Focuses on issue of blood, hair and animal bites. (This is the only one of the 4 big medical papyri: Kahun, Edwin, Ebers and Hearst that I have not seen direct translations of.) c.2000 BC
- Kahun Papyrus - Women's health. Sometimes called the Kahan Gynecological papyrus. (35 paragraphs)c.1800 BC
- London Medical Papyrus- Prayer and magical aspects of medicine. c 1300 BC
Ramesseum Papyri - Includes Pediatrics, gynecology, and illnesses/injuries related to the eyes and muscular system (17 papyri) c1980 BC
Other smaller papyri exist or papyri that has a small reference to something medical but these are the larger ones that deal with medicine exclusively, or almost so. In addition to using the papyri directly there are some books on this topic that are well worth reading if you are interested in this topic.
Books and videos
Ancient Egyptian Medicine by John Nunn. This is probably the best of the books out there for the medical papyri as far as description, categorization and referencing.
The Art of Medicine in Ancient Egypt from the Metropolitan Museum of Art
An Ancient Egyptian Herbal by Lise Manniche. Medicinal plants in Ancient Egypt. I have not yet read this book so I can't speak for its content. However, it does look very interesting.
Ancient Egypt, Modern Medicine a documentary from the History Channel. Talks about the when and what of the big topics in Ancient Egypt. You can see an excerpt from it here.
Investigation Into Dynamics of Ancient Egyptian Pharmacology: A Statistical Analysis of Papyrus Ebers and Cross-Cultural Medical Thinking This looks truly fascinating as well but I haven't got to read this yet either.
The Quick And The Dead: Biomedical Theory In Ancient Egypt Another of the books I want to read but can't because cost prohibits me.
The Healing Hand: Man and Wound in the Ancient World by Guido Majno This book gives a brief, layman accessible overview to the history of surgical and trauma practices in all the ancient world.
Man and Wound in the Ancient World: A History of Military Medicine from Sumer to the Fall of Constantinople by Richard Gabriel. I haven't read this one personally either but the local librarian suggested it as a good study of injuries related to war and medical practices for the battlefield in the ancient world.
Friday, August 10, 2012
More craft
Since I haven't updated and I am still working on items for my upcoming vending event in September I am going to take some more time to share what I am working on once more.
I hope to get back to real posts on Egyptian history soon but for now, hope you are enjoying the artwork.
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| This is another sistrum but this one I have given a twist of Meso-American decoration to the handle. I really think it works despite the very different cultures. I also think it works because the Meso-American cultures use rattles as well. |
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| Papyrus of Sobek |
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| A very modern looking papyrus of Sekhmet and Mehen |
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| Papyrus of Bes |
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| Pair of Papyri of a hawk Could be Horus, Ra or Montu depending. I am not sure which these will be yet. |
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| Papyrus of Montu as counter of time |
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| Papyrus of Bast |
Monday, July 23, 2012
After another break...
I really want to keep up writing here weekly but with a festival coming up that I hope to vend at my time has turned to crafting. I thought I would take a moment to share some of what I have been working on.
So that is a little of what I have been up to. I hope to have an update here with some more posts later in the week, hopefully. Classes have started up again so it might be slow to start but I hope to get on a schedule for regular posts again soon.
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| This is a carved replica of a jointed and movable scarab amulet. I was originally working on a beaded collar for it but I have since changed my mind. I am now working on a set of beads more like the original artifact. (See the image below.) |
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| Faience scarab amulet from the Late Period |
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| These are a series of wall plaques. These are designed with hieroglyphic wards/warnings in a style of the Old and Middle Kingdom threat formulae. I am looking forward to doing some more of these but on papyrus. These three are for Thoth to bestow wisdom, Set to protect against thieves and Sekhmet to protect a family. |
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| A hand carved replica Isis amulet. I still haven't been able to decide if I want to make her into a collar or a hair piece yet. I am sort of leaning toward a hair piece just because it will not be the usual. |
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| A pair of wooden sistrums. These are the rattles sacred to Hathor and Bast as well as several other gods and goddesses. I am experimenting on how different materials alter the sound. So far the one on the right, with all wooden shakers, is my favorite for the delicate sound it makes. Though traditionally these were metal I don't have the facilities to forge metal pieces at home so I have opted for wood. I choose each from a naturally occurring "v" in a branch so they all end up having a unique form, shape and size. |
So that is a little of what I have been up to. I hope to have an update here with some more posts later in the week, hopefully. Classes have started up again so it might be slow to start but I hope to get on a schedule for regular posts again soon.
Tuesday, July 17, 2012
Atenism
One of the common themes for discussion of Akhenaten is the worship of Aten. I am going to approach this topic as a question and answer style. I think this way it will be a little easier to address all of the aspects of this topic without tangents or confusion.
Who or what is Aten?
Aten is the disk or the visible portion of the sun (Ra/Re/Amun/etc). You could say Aten is the light of the sun which is why Aten is often depicted as rays instead of with the usual Egyptian human or human/animal style. Though there are times in Egyptian history that Aten was shown as a falcon. Aten is the portion of the sun that was believed to bring life, give health and healing. Some Egyptian mythology, prior to Akhenaten, states that life could not go on without the shining part of Ra, which is Aten.
When did Aten worship begin?
Though the worship of Aten is likely from much earlier in Egyptian history one of the first large scale references to Aten is from the 12th dynasty Story of Sinuhe. (Akhenaten was in the 18th dynasty). After the 12th dynasty the worship of Aten increased until during the reign of Amenhotep III, Akhenaten's father, Aten became one of the chief deities.
What is the Silver Aten?
The Silver Aten is another name for the moon used in a few hymns and writings.
Is Atenism monotheism?
The short answer... No. There are several competing ideas about what Atenism is or was in the time of Akhenaten and to the pharaoh himself. One point is that in many of the hymns to Aten other deities such as Ra, Ra-Horakhty, Shu and others are mentioned. Though Amun was shunned other deities are merged with or mentioned with Aten in hymns. This suggests that there were other recognized deities. It is quite common in Egyptian history for various forms of the same deity or merged versions of deities to appear in mythology. One idea is that Aten is no different that this and represents a merger of Ra and/or Horus with Aten. Another view is that Akhenaten practiced monolatry, that is he recognized that there were many gods, did not deny their existence but chose to elevate one above all others. Given that he was the pharaoh and therefore head of the religion as well as the state it seems likely that his personal religious choices could have huge effects on Egyptian religion. There are many other theories about what Atenism really is. In some modern forms it is practiced as a monotheistic religion.
Is there a link between Judaism and Atenism?
It is hard to say whether or whether not Atenism had any influence on Judaism. As there had been several rounds of conquering and trade between Egypt and the Middle East there was likely some exchange of religious ideas. One such idea points to the fact that Aten and God (Judeo-Christian God) are one in the same because of how Akhenaten recorded the deity speaking to him and asking things of the pharaoh such as building a new city. This is likely not the case since this is not the first or last writing of Egyptian gods asking pharaohs to build things. Thutmosis IV, a couple kings before Akhenaten, was asked by the Sphinx to unbury it. Other pharaohs also reference building monuments for similar requests from deities. Some suggest that Moses might have been a priest under the rule of Akhenaten. There isn't much proof for any of this as of now. It is an interesting idea but I would like to see more proof in the form of writings from the time period or just after or some other link beyond speculation before I can say anything on this for certain.
References:
Akhenaten: The Heretic King by Donald Redford
The Amarna Letters from Tyre as a Source for Understanding Atenism and Imperial Administration by Luis Siddall
A Program of Political Theology in Armarna Tomb Art: Imagery as Metaphor by Elizabeth Meyers
UCLA Encyclopedia of Egyptology: Amarna Art by Dimitri Laboury
Who or what is Aten?
Aten is the disk or the visible portion of the sun (Ra/Re/Amun/etc). You could say Aten is the light of the sun which is why Aten is often depicted as rays instead of with the usual Egyptian human or human/animal style. Though there are times in Egyptian history that Aten was shown as a falcon. Aten is the portion of the sun that was believed to bring life, give health and healing. Some Egyptian mythology, prior to Akhenaten, states that life could not go on without the shining part of Ra, which is Aten.
When did Aten worship begin?
Though the worship of Aten is likely from much earlier in Egyptian history one of the first large scale references to Aten is from the 12th dynasty Story of Sinuhe. (Akhenaten was in the 18th dynasty). After the 12th dynasty the worship of Aten increased until during the reign of Amenhotep III, Akhenaten's father, Aten became one of the chief deities.
What is the Silver Aten?
The Silver Aten is another name for the moon used in a few hymns and writings.
Is Atenism monotheism?
The short answer... No. There are several competing ideas about what Atenism is or was in the time of Akhenaten and to the pharaoh himself. One point is that in many of the hymns to Aten other deities such as Ra, Ra-Horakhty, Shu and others are mentioned. Though Amun was shunned other deities are merged with or mentioned with Aten in hymns. This suggests that there were other recognized deities. It is quite common in Egyptian history for various forms of the same deity or merged versions of deities to appear in mythology. One idea is that Aten is no different that this and represents a merger of Ra and/or Horus with Aten. Another view is that Akhenaten practiced monolatry, that is he recognized that there were many gods, did not deny their existence but chose to elevate one above all others. Given that he was the pharaoh and therefore head of the religion as well as the state it seems likely that his personal religious choices could have huge effects on Egyptian religion. There are many other theories about what Atenism really is. In some modern forms it is practiced as a monotheistic religion.
Is there a link between Judaism and Atenism?
It is hard to say whether or whether not Atenism had any influence on Judaism. As there had been several rounds of conquering and trade between Egypt and the Middle East there was likely some exchange of religious ideas. One such idea points to the fact that Aten and God (Judeo-Christian God) are one in the same because of how Akhenaten recorded the deity speaking to him and asking things of the pharaoh such as building a new city. This is likely not the case since this is not the first or last writing of Egyptian gods asking pharaohs to build things. Thutmosis IV, a couple kings before Akhenaten, was asked by the Sphinx to unbury it. Other pharaohs also reference building monuments for similar requests from deities. Some suggest that Moses might have been a priest under the rule of Akhenaten. There isn't much proof for any of this as of now. It is an interesting idea but I would like to see more proof in the form of writings from the time period or just after or some other link beyond speculation before I can say anything on this for certain.
References:
Akhenaten: The Heretic King by Donald Redford
The Amarna Letters from Tyre as a Source for Understanding Atenism and Imperial Administration by Luis Siddall
A Program of Political Theology in Armarna Tomb Art: Imagery as Metaphor by Elizabeth Meyers
UCLA Encyclopedia of Egyptology: Amarna Art by Dimitri Laboury
Tuesday, July 10, 2012
A little of the mystery of Akhenaten
There are three main things people always cite as being odd about Akhenaten. Those three things are his religious beliefs, his appearance and how he portrayed himself and family in art. I am going to try and address these as fully as possible in a reasonable length post. There are quite a number of books and articles on Akhenaten and his family but I will try to hit all the main points.
Why did he look that weird?
This has been a question that has come up more than once in research. Some have pointed to genetic or endocrine disorders such as Frohlich's Syndrome, Prader–Willi syndrome or Klinefelter's syndrome. While these disorders have similar physical characteristics there are many of the secondary issues that do not line up wth Akhenaten's actual life. Both, for example, cause infertility/sterility but Akhenaten had six daughters. Other issues would be characteristics of Frohlich's such as vision problems and increased if not out of control appetite. Prader-Willi, in addition to appetite issues, shows motor problems, scoliosis, speech problems and so on. Klinefelter's is linked to learning disabilities, poor memory, problems with attention and so on. Nothing in the records show these weaknesses. So, either this was very well disguised or the priests of Amun decided not to point fingers at the weaknesses in the person they loathed. This is highly unlikely so we have to look at another explanation.
One explanation put forth by John Wilson is that art was already changing, drifting away from the iconic and structured illustrations and statues to something more relaxed. We can see this increased realism in the following to pieces. One is a horse sculpture from the time period and the other a statue of Haremhab which shows a much "fatter" man than we would expect in a sculpture in the rest of Egypt's history. When Akhenaten's dynasty was deposed (and erased as much as possible) temples and priests vehemently returned to the classic style some of which occurred by the decree of Tutankhamen. One thing that does support the idea that this might be a change in artistic styles is that other tombs of officials and nobles from the time show the same odd head shape and rounder forms.
So if it wasn't a disease and it was artistic why that look? Is there precedence for this kind of look?
There is a precedent that could be applied in the mythology. Hapi, god of the Nile, its bounty and floods (not to be confused with Hapy the son of Horus) shows some of these body features. He has long legs, fatter body, "breasts", rounded buttocks and other features attributed to Akhenaten. This hasn't been definitively proven or dis-proven so I will leave it to your judgement.
Two statues of Akhenaten showing the similar body types between Hapi above and the pharaoh.
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At this point all that is certain is that it likely wasn't a disease but beyond that there is only speculation. Until more works discussing Akhenaten and Amenhotep III are uncovered it is likely to remain a mystery.
Why did he look that weird?
This has been a question that has come up more than once in research. Some have pointed to genetic or endocrine disorders such as Frohlich's Syndrome, Prader–Willi syndrome or Klinefelter's syndrome. While these disorders have similar physical characteristics there are many of the secondary issues that do not line up wth Akhenaten's actual life. Both, for example, cause infertility/sterility but Akhenaten had six daughters. Other issues would be characteristics of Frohlich's such as vision problems and increased if not out of control appetite. Prader-Willi, in addition to appetite issues, shows motor problems, scoliosis, speech problems and so on. Klinefelter's is linked to learning disabilities, poor memory, problems with attention and so on. Nothing in the records show these weaknesses. So, either this was very well disguised or the priests of Amun decided not to point fingers at the weaknesses in the person they loathed. This is highly unlikely so we have to look at another explanation.
One explanation put forth by John Wilson is that art was already changing, drifting away from the iconic and structured illustrations and statues to something more relaxed. We can see this increased realism in the following to pieces. One is a horse sculpture from the time period and the other a statue of Haremhab which shows a much "fatter" man than we would expect in a sculpture in the rest of Egypt's history. When Akhenaten's dynasty was deposed (and erased as much as possible) temples and priests vehemently returned to the classic style some of which occurred by the decree of Tutankhamen. One thing that does support the idea that this might be a change in artistic styles is that other tombs of officials and nobles from the time show the same odd head shape and rounder forms.
So if it wasn't a disease and it was artistic why that look? Is there precedence for this kind of look?
There is a precedent that could be applied in the mythology. Hapi, god of the Nile, its bounty and floods (not to be confused with Hapy the son of Horus) shows some of these body features. He has long legs, fatter body, "breasts", rounded buttocks and other features attributed to Akhenaten. This hasn't been definitively proven or dis-proven so I will leave it to your judgement.
 | |||||
| Hapi as portrayed by Amenhotep III, Akhenaten's father, in Luxor |
Two statues of Akhenaten showing the similar body types between Hapi above and the pharaoh.
.jpg)
Heretic? or Not
I haven't spent any time on Akhenaten yet which seems odd. How could I have made it half a year without addressing the rebel pharaoh? This is going to take a few posts I am sure. Like most other things in Ancient Egypt there isn't one simple answer or clear definition that a Western mind can quickly grasp. Akhenaten, aside from being controversial, had many accomplishments and quirks to his person, his style of art and his rule.
One of the things that has always impressed me about Akhenaten is that there is quite a bit of evidence that he wrote many of the hymns to Aten found from this time period. It wasn't that Aten was a new god, contrary, the Aten was a part of Ra (Re) and expressed the visible part of Ra, i.e. his light. Aten is a being of healing, warmth and light. Aten likely had a high place in religion before Akhenaten. His father, Amenhotep III, named his ship "Splendor of Aten".
This is where we shall start with Akhenaten and the worship of the Aten, with a hymn, presumably penned by Akhenaten himself. I think this particular hymn express much of how the Aten was viewed as an entity and what the worship of Aten meant. I also like the clues to Egyptian concepts of astronomy and biology that appear in this hymn.
Thou appearest beautifully on the horizon of heaven (literally the sky or heavens),
Thou living Aten, the beginning of life!
When thou art risen on the eastern horizon,
Though hast filled every land with thy beauty.
Thou are gracious, great, glistening and high over every land:
Thy rays encompass the lands to the limit of all that thou hast made:
As thou are Re, thou reachest to the end of them;
Thou subduest them for they beloved son Akhenaten,
Though thou are far away. thy rays are on the Earth.
Though thou are in their faces, no one knows thy going.
When thou settest in the western horizon,
The land is in darkness, in the manner of death.
Thy sleep in a room, with heads wrapped up,
Nor sees one eye the other.
All their gods which are under their heads might be stolen.
But they would not perceive it.
Every lion is come forth from his fen;
All creeoing things, they sting.
Darkness is a shroud, and the Earth is in stillness,
For he who made them rests in his horizon.
At daybreak, when though arisest on the horizon,,
When thou shinest as the Aten by day,
Thou drivest away the darkness and givest thy rays.
The Two Lands are in festivity every day,
Awake and stand upon feet,
For though hast raised them up.
Washing their bodies, take their clothing,
Their arms are raised in praise of thy appearence.
All the world, they do their work...
Creator of the seed in women,
Though who makest fluid into man,
Who maintainest the son in the womb of his mother,
Who soothest him with that which still his weeping,
Thou nurse in the womb,
Who givest breath to sustain all that he has made!
When he descends from the womb to breathe
On the day when he is born,
Thou openest his mouth completely,
Thou suppliest his necessities....
How manifold it is, what though hast made!
They are hidden from the face of man
O sole god, like whom there is no other!
Thou didst create the world according to thy desire,
Whilst though wert alone:
All men, cattle and wild beasts,
Whatever is on Earth, going upon its feet
and what is on high, flying with its wings.
References:
Everyday Life in Ancient Egypt by Lionel Casson
Akhenaten the Heretic King by Donald Redford
Amarna Sunset: Nefertiti, Tutankhamun, Ay, Horemheb, and the Egyptian Counter-Reformation by Aidan Dodson
Sunday, July 01, 2012
Blog Addition
I want to get back on track with keeping a list of what I have read. A long time back I started keeping track on Shelfari. Today I got back on there for the first time in a very long time. I put in a bunch of books I recently read and then started browsing around on the site. Quickly I discovered they had gadgets available for blogs. I added one here, on the lower right so that I can share what I am reading.
Hopefully seeing that shelf there when I am posting here will remind me to keep up. In the mean time feel free to browse the books I've read or go make your own account. Something extra nice is the ability to share reviews and what you are reading on most of the social media sites. That can be convenient.
Hopefully seeing that shelf there when I am posting here will remind me to keep up. In the mean time feel free to browse the books I've read or go make your own account. Something extra nice is the ability to share reviews and what you are reading on most of the social media sites. That can be convenient.
The Women of Ancient Egypt
I figured after talking about slaves we'd tackle another, mostly Hollywood, misconception and that is the lives and place of women in the Egyptian society. I will be talking solely about Egypt prior to Greco-Roman rule and only during times of Egyptian pharoahship. The invaders of Egypt found their practices regarding women uncomfortable. Reading Herodotus gives us some insight on how the Greco-Roman world viewed Egypt, including women.
I think we should start with what women couldn't do in Egypt. For most of Egyptian history the only thing truly forbidden to the Egyptian woman was being a Pharaoh (they could be Queens) and they were not permitted to be soldiers, particularly infantry or those that managed soldier. Again, the queen could be an exception to that particularly if she was ruling as a regent for a son or nephew. Even despite this being forbidden we do see queens acting as pharaoh and there are historical records of women involved in military endeavors, particularly around overthrowing of invaders to home and country. There are some that contend that women were excluded from bureaucracy. This is highly contested and I will discuss it below. Though not really forbidden you don't often see evidence for women as stone masons or those moving large stones for building. Heavy labor seems to be less common for women.
Women could own and inherit property. This meant money, land, businesses and animals among other things. These inheritances were often equally split between brothers and sisters. If widowed, a wife would receive 1-2 thirds of her husband's wealth depending on the era. Women could run businesses as well. Some businesses were strictly run by women for much of Egyptian history. These businesses include sacred mourners and wailers (part of a funeral procession), weavers and those that administered medical care to women and often young children as well. Later men would join these businesses but still most imagery shows a greater proportion of women in these professions.
Women could divorce. Divorce processes were not long and drawn out like modern times. One spouse would claim some misdeed and proof was shown then a decision made. There are accounts of women divorcing husbands because he didn't do his fair share of work to maintain the house or he did not provide enough sex. Men could also divorce in the same manner. Divorce in Egypt was not a legal matter but a personal one, same as marriage.
While there were harems and polygamy in some times and parts of Egyptian history, harem women could keep their possessions, land and businesses unlike other areas of the Mediterranean world where harem women were slaves or an equivalent.
Women played major roles in religion and religious functions. They served as everything from chantresses to doctors, dream readers to caring for sacred animals. Women filled much of the role as sacred dancers and musicians through much of Egyptian history. In the clergy the only gender based limit seems to be that high priests were usually men.
Women could be traders and captain boats. There is quite a lot of evidence for women being the importers of fine goods.
There are some records of women being viziers to the pharaoh. These were usually positions filled by a mother or aunt but there seemed to be no stigma to having a female vizier vs a male one.
It is expressed by some, that Egyptian women were forbidden from bureaucratic jobs. However, there are women with the titles of judge, overseer and director of funerary priests. These suggest that women were in bureaucratic positions in Egypt.
Grave goods showed that there were women capable of paying for their own funerary goods including statues, gold and other materials. This shows not only wealth but also control of that wealth and its use.
Women often ran estates even when their husbands were home. "Mistress of the House" was a common title for Egyptian women. This didn't mean house wife but expressed the fact that the woman managed the finances and goods of the home as well as any production, servants or other persons working there.
There is a lot of support for women congregating for work, social needs and support systems.
While women are mentioned in stelae and tomb carvings with male relatives there are also quite a number made by women that only feature the woman who commissioned it or the woman and her female relatives.
Many women, particularly those who had brothers who were schooled at home or mothers who had been schooled, received the same education as a male child might. This was very uncommon in ancient times.
Women are depicted hunting and trapping birds as well as running marketplaces and workshops.
Women had full access to the court system as witnesses, plaintiff, entering or writing contracts, collection of taxes and estates and so on.
Fathers, particularly pharaohs, often appointed their daughters to important roles in inheritance and religious stations. Often during royal succession the princess had royal blood and it was her presence and will that gave her husband the right to rule.
Women had full access to medical care of an equivalent quality to that of men.
Women enjoyed the same access to food and drink. There are references to images that may be drunk women, including women vomiting from overindulgence in beer.
Single women, especially widows, are referenced as adopting children.
Queen Tiy, wife of Amonhotep III, is often referred to as "common-born" meaning she was probably not of the royalty or nobility but was still sought and married by the pharaoh.
Some titles given to women not mentioned above include: Overseer of the physicians, overseer of the female physicians, director of the dining hall, overseer of the weavers, divine mother, caretaker/overseer of the royal hair (ie the royal hairdresser), Mistress of Amun/Osiris/Isis/Hathor/etc, Chantress, Keeper of the halls (house maid?), Officiate of ceremonies (official of religious celebrations), Mother of Upper and Lower Egypt and so on.
One more brief comment about women. In Egyptian religion and society women had a very distinct role in life. Men were seen as fertile and fertility but the society believed that it was only through the nurturing of women that things grew prosperous. In this belief most agricultural and fertility deities are male but when it comes to nurturing (or the lack of nurturing) goddesses are used. One thing that stems from this is Egyptian ideas about birth. While the Egyptian mind believed the semen was what created life it was the women's body which could nurture that life into a child. With these religious concepts women were seen as nurturers of society. Anything that needed to be cared for money, goods, children, the dead, etc were often considered in the domain of women.
Sources:
-Kelsey Museum Exhibit on Gender and Ancient Egypt
-The works of Barbara S. Lesko including the research paper "Women's Monumental Mark on Ancient Egypt" from The Biblical Archaeologist and books: The Great Goddesses of Egypt and Women's Earliest Records: From Ancient Egypt and Western Asia
-"Women of Ancient Egypt and the Sky Goddess Nut" by Susan Tower Hollis
-"Everyday Life in Ancient Egypt" - By Lionel Casson
- Kahun and Ebers Medical Papyri
I think we should start with what women couldn't do in Egypt. For most of Egyptian history the only thing truly forbidden to the Egyptian woman was being a Pharaoh (they could be Queens) and they were not permitted to be soldiers, particularly infantry or those that managed soldier. Again, the queen could be an exception to that particularly if she was ruling as a regent for a son or nephew. Even despite this being forbidden we do see queens acting as pharaoh and there are historical records of women involved in military endeavors, particularly around overthrowing of invaders to home and country. There are some that contend that women were excluded from bureaucracy. This is highly contested and I will discuss it below. Though not really forbidden you don't often see evidence for women as stone masons or those moving large stones for building. Heavy labor seems to be less common for women.
So, what were the rights of women?
Women could own and inherit property. This meant money, land, businesses and animals among other things. These inheritances were often equally split between brothers and sisters. If widowed, a wife would receive 1-2 thirds of her husband's wealth depending on the era. Women could run businesses as well. Some businesses were strictly run by women for much of Egyptian history. These businesses include sacred mourners and wailers (part of a funeral procession), weavers and those that administered medical care to women and often young children as well. Later men would join these businesses but still most imagery shows a greater proportion of women in these professions.
Women could divorce. Divorce processes were not long and drawn out like modern times. One spouse would claim some misdeed and proof was shown then a decision made. There are accounts of women divorcing husbands because he didn't do his fair share of work to maintain the house or he did not provide enough sex. Men could also divorce in the same manner. Divorce in Egypt was not a legal matter but a personal one, same as marriage.
While there were harems and polygamy in some times and parts of Egyptian history, harem women could keep their possessions, land and businesses unlike other areas of the Mediterranean world where harem women were slaves or an equivalent.
Women played major roles in religion and religious functions. They served as everything from chantresses to doctors, dream readers to caring for sacred animals. Women filled much of the role as sacred dancers and musicians through much of Egyptian history. In the clergy the only gender based limit seems to be that high priests were usually men.
Women could be traders and captain boats. There is quite a lot of evidence for women being the importers of fine goods.
There are some records of women being viziers to the pharaoh. These were usually positions filled by a mother or aunt but there seemed to be no stigma to having a female vizier vs a male one.
It is expressed by some, that Egyptian women were forbidden from bureaucratic jobs. However, there are women with the titles of judge, overseer and director of funerary priests. These suggest that women were in bureaucratic positions in Egypt.
Grave goods showed that there were women capable of paying for their own funerary goods including statues, gold and other materials. This shows not only wealth but also control of that wealth and its use.
Women often ran estates even when their husbands were home. "Mistress of the House" was a common title for Egyptian women. This didn't mean house wife but expressed the fact that the woman managed the finances and goods of the home as well as any production, servants or other persons working there.
There is a lot of support for women congregating for work, social needs and support systems.
While women are mentioned in stelae and tomb carvings with male relatives there are also quite a number made by women that only feature the woman who commissioned it or the woman and her female relatives.
Many women, particularly those who had brothers who were schooled at home or mothers who had been schooled, received the same education as a male child might. This was very uncommon in ancient times.
Women are depicted hunting and trapping birds as well as running marketplaces and workshops.
Women had full access to the court system as witnesses, plaintiff, entering or writing contracts, collection of taxes and estates and so on.
Fathers, particularly pharaohs, often appointed their daughters to important roles in inheritance and religious stations. Often during royal succession the princess had royal blood and it was her presence and will that gave her husband the right to rule.
Women had full access to medical care of an equivalent quality to that of men.
Women enjoyed the same access to food and drink. There are references to images that may be drunk women, including women vomiting from overindulgence in beer.
Single women, especially widows, are referenced as adopting children.
Queen Tiy, wife of Amonhotep III, is often referred to as "common-born" meaning she was probably not of the royalty or nobility but was still sought and married by the pharaoh.
Some titles given to women not mentioned above include: Overseer of the physicians, overseer of the female physicians, director of the dining hall, overseer of the weavers, divine mother, caretaker/overseer of the royal hair (ie the royal hairdresser), Mistress of Amun/Osiris/Isis/Hathor/etc, Chantress, Keeper of the halls (house maid?), Officiate of ceremonies (official of religious celebrations), Mother of Upper and Lower Egypt and so on.
One more brief comment about women. In Egyptian religion and society women had a very distinct role in life. Men were seen as fertile and fertility but the society believed that it was only through the nurturing of women that things grew prosperous. In this belief most agricultural and fertility deities are male but when it comes to nurturing (or the lack of nurturing) goddesses are used. One thing that stems from this is Egyptian ideas about birth. While the Egyptian mind believed the semen was what created life it was the women's body which could nurture that life into a child. With these religious concepts women were seen as nurturers of society. Anything that needed to be cared for money, goods, children, the dead, etc were often considered in the domain of women.
Sources:
-Kelsey Museum Exhibit on Gender and Ancient Egypt
-The works of Barbara S. Lesko including the research paper "Women's Monumental Mark on Ancient Egypt" from The Biblical Archaeologist and books: The Great Goddesses of Egypt and Women's Earliest Records: From Ancient Egypt and Western Asia
-"Women of Ancient Egypt and the Sky Goddess Nut" by Susan Tower Hollis
-"Everyday Life in Ancient Egypt" - By Lionel Casson
- Kahun and Ebers Medical Papyri
Tuesday, June 26, 2012
Slavery in Ancient Egypt
This is a hotly debated topic and there is no way to address it in one post however I am going to hit on the basics. There are three main questions to address. What is the definition of slave and servant in Ancient Egypt? How does the Ancient Egyptian definition of slave compare to more modern and contemporary (to the Egyptians) definitions of slave? How did one become a slave in Ancient Egypt?
With these questions I think we can address a lot of the comments commonly made about slavery in Ancient Egypt. I am actually going to address these questions in reverse of how I listed them above.
The most common way was probably prisoner of war. Egyptian history shows that often the soldiers of defeated armies became slaves. Most were used as laborers or as house servants.
The second most common method was likely debt. Debt slaves were more like the concept of indentured servants in Europe where someone would work as a slave/servant until the debt had been paid. Debt slaves did not lose their rights due to their service.
By birth the children of a slave, particularly debt slaves who had not paid off the debt, would remain slaves until the debt was paid or the terms of the slavery was fulfilled.
Punishment! Pharaohs, Viziers and the like could give forced labor as a punishment for a crime.
Voluntary slavery. We might not even call this slavery by modern terms. Families or individuals would give themselves, their families or their children into service of an individual. Those taking them on as slaves would provide them with protection and give economic stability to the people. Usually these individuals would pay so much to their "owner" for a set period of time at a set rate. As far as I have read these individuals also kept their rights as citizens.
The slave trade of other nations brought slaves into Egypt and they were sold or given as tribute. There were no slave markets in Egypt through most of its history as existed in many other parts of the ancient world. Slave trades were usually for specific skills; dancers, weavers, people who spoke extra languages, craftsmen or on occasion a noble or pharaoh searching for exotic looks.
In modern times we identify slavery as being owned, forced to toil, abuse, domination and persons as property. Our modern definitions would be on par with how Romans, for example, felt about slaves.
The Egyptians however did not feel the same about slavery. Slaves in Egypt often, more often than not, kept their civil rights. Slaves were also often freed for various reasons. Decent treatment of those in service (and slaves) is written in the moral conduct of the religion. Treating a slave well in Ancient Egypt was part of judgement and the weight of the heart on the scales. In addition, freeing a slave after a fair amount of work had been done was written as a boon for the heart at judgement as well. Egyptian slaves did not all toil on temples. Anything from a field worker to a tax collector; watchmen to temple members could be the duty of a slave. Egyptian slaves could also own property, their own businesses and personal possessions which is contradictory to many of the modern ideas of slavery. Slaves could perhaps marry and definitely co-habitate with both slaves and non-slaves in committed unions with the allowances of the master. Slaves maintained legal rights as well and could speak up as witnesses or in their defense if accused of a crime. Egyptian slaves also could have higher status than free Egyptians. For example, the slave of a temple high priest that was say in charge of ensuring the temple always had enough incense could easily have a higher stature in the Egyptian society than a free field worker. The final interesting tidbit about Egyptian slaves is often the Mistress of the House (ie the owner's wife) would care for and raise the slave children because children were not permitted to be used for labors of adults. It was also forbidden for a master to sell the children or spouses of a union he had sanctioned as ok. Egyptian slave families were rarely broken up aside from grown children being gifted or sent to other locations to work.
Another problem with the word slave in Ancient Egypt is that there is little difference between the usage of slave and servant. For example, priests would interchangeably call themselves slaves and servants of their god. Also, all bets were off when outsiders took over Egypt, particularly the Greeks who brought large numbers of slaves and increased the use of Greek style, more modern style, slavery into Egypt.
It leaves the question of how much slavery was in Egypt by modern standards? Was any of this even slavery by our understanding of the word? This is still something that is contested in research but more and more there is a leaning toward less examples of slavery in Egypt based on our modern understanding of the word compared to how these Egyptians lived.
Some sources for identification of slaves and the life of a slave in Egypt include:
The Dictionary of Ancient Egypt
Grimal's History of Ancient Egypt
Romer's History of Ancient Egypt
Life of the Ancient Egyptians
The Oxford History of Ancient Egypt
The Oxford Encyclopedia of Ancient Egypt
Ancient Egypt: Anatomy of a Civilization
Some on the Slavery in Egypt during Roman times.
The Pyramid Builders of Ancient Egypt: A Modern Investigation of Pharaoh's Workforce
The next post I will tackle the idea of slaves as pyramid and temple builders which will be closely related to that last book about the pyramid builders. I would have included it here but I think this post is quite long enough.
With these questions I think we can address a lot of the comments commonly made about slavery in Ancient Egypt. I am actually going to address these questions in reverse of how I listed them above.
How did someone become a slave in Ancient Egypt?
The most common way was probably prisoner of war. Egyptian history shows that often the soldiers of defeated armies became slaves. Most were used as laborers or as house servants.
The second most common method was likely debt. Debt slaves were more like the concept of indentured servants in Europe where someone would work as a slave/servant until the debt had been paid. Debt slaves did not lose their rights due to their service.
By birth the children of a slave, particularly debt slaves who had not paid off the debt, would remain slaves until the debt was paid or the terms of the slavery was fulfilled.
Punishment! Pharaohs, Viziers and the like could give forced labor as a punishment for a crime.
Voluntary slavery. We might not even call this slavery by modern terms. Families or individuals would give themselves, their families or their children into service of an individual. Those taking them on as slaves would provide them with protection and give economic stability to the people. Usually these individuals would pay so much to their "owner" for a set period of time at a set rate. As far as I have read these individuals also kept their rights as citizens.
The slave trade of other nations brought slaves into Egypt and they were sold or given as tribute. There were no slave markets in Egypt through most of its history as existed in many other parts of the ancient world. Slave trades were usually for specific skills; dancers, weavers, people who spoke extra languages, craftsmen or on occasion a noble or pharaoh searching for exotic looks.
How is slavery defined by Egypt and ourselves?
In modern times we identify slavery as being owned, forced to toil, abuse, domination and persons as property. Our modern definitions would be on par with how Romans, for example, felt about slaves.
The Egyptians however did not feel the same about slavery. Slaves in Egypt often, more often than not, kept their civil rights. Slaves were also often freed for various reasons. Decent treatment of those in service (and slaves) is written in the moral conduct of the religion. Treating a slave well in Ancient Egypt was part of judgement and the weight of the heart on the scales. In addition, freeing a slave after a fair amount of work had been done was written as a boon for the heart at judgement as well. Egyptian slaves did not all toil on temples. Anything from a field worker to a tax collector; watchmen to temple members could be the duty of a slave. Egyptian slaves could also own property, their own businesses and personal possessions which is contradictory to many of the modern ideas of slavery. Slaves could perhaps marry and definitely co-habitate with both slaves and non-slaves in committed unions with the allowances of the master. Slaves maintained legal rights as well and could speak up as witnesses or in their defense if accused of a crime. Egyptian slaves also could have higher status than free Egyptians. For example, the slave of a temple high priest that was say in charge of ensuring the temple always had enough incense could easily have a higher stature in the Egyptian society than a free field worker. The final interesting tidbit about Egyptian slaves is often the Mistress of the House (ie the owner's wife) would care for and raise the slave children because children were not permitted to be used for labors of adults. It was also forbidden for a master to sell the children or spouses of a union he had sanctioned as ok. Egyptian slave families were rarely broken up aside from grown children being gifted or sent to other locations to work.
Another problem with the word slave in Ancient Egypt is that there is little difference between the usage of slave and servant. For example, priests would interchangeably call themselves slaves and servants of their god. Also, all bets were off when outsiders took over Egypt, particularly the Greeks who brought large numbers of slaves and increased the use of Greek style, more modern style, slavery into Egypt.
It leaves the question of how much slavery was in Egypt by modern standards? Was any of this even slavery by our understanding of the word? This is still something that is contested in research but more and more there is a leaning toward less examples of slavery in Egypt based on our modern understanding of the word compared to how these Egyptians lived.
Some sources for identification of slaves and the life of a slave in Egypt include:
The Dictionary of Ancient Egypt
Grimal's History of Ancient Egypt
Romer's History of Ancient Egypt
Life of the Ancient Egyptians
The Oxford History of Ancient Egypt
The Oxford Encyclopedia of Ancient Egypt
Ancient Egypt: Anatomy of a Civilization
Some on the Slavery in Egypt during Roman times.
The Pyramid Builders of Ancient Egypt: A Modern Investigation of Pharaoh's Workforce
The next post I will tackle the idea of slaves as pyramid and temple builders which will be closely related to that last book about the pyramid builders. I would have included it here but I think this post is quite long enough.
Wednesday, June 20, 2012
A Ruler for a Ruler
So, what is a cubit?
A cubit is the standard Egyptian measurement comparable to the modern foot or meter. There are two cubits used. The short cubit which is the distance from the elbow to the tip of the fingers of the pharaoh. The royal cubit is the distance from the elbow to the fingertips plus a palm width. The royal cubit was the standard cubit in use.
Like the foot or meter, cubits were also broken into smaller measurements. These increments were 6 palms for the short (7 palms for the royal), 4 fingers for each palm, a finger was then broken into fractions from halves to 1/16th. 1/16th of a finger seems to be the smallest measure the Egyptians used. 1/16th of a finger is approximately .12 cm (mm) or .05 inches. To give you an idea of how small this is the width of 1/16th of a finger is approximately the width of a standard earring post or an 16-18 gauge piece of piercing jewelry. It is this precision that was likely to allow for such perfection in their buildings as far as fitting stones together.
Two other measurements were common the short span and the great span. Short Span is the distance between the thumb and the pointer finger when they are spread as far as possible. The Great Span is the distance from the thumb to the little finger when they are spread as far as possible.
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| Great Span |
.JPG) |
| Short span |
This leads us to why the Egyptians were the first in history, that we know of, to show up with a standardized ruler. Large scale building and moving of materials. The ruler is a necessary tool when you consider an architect on the Giza Plateau telling some overseer in a stone quarry how big to make the stone blocks. The second reason for a ruler was the obsessive way the Egyptians measured the flooding of the Nile. Priests needed a standard to exist over many generations so that Nile floods and Nile predictions could be made.
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| A workman's cubit rod at the Liverpool Museum. |
A little more about the cubit rod.
The rods had other markings on them besides the tick marks for measuring. Most of the rods included inscriptions invoking gods related to science and craft. Th inscription from the wooden rod above is:"A boon which the King gives (to) Amun-Re and (to) Ptah, Lord of the Two Lands, and (to) Thoth, Lord of Divine Words, great god who dwells in Hermopolis, that they may give life, prosperity and health, and a good lifespan, following their Ka's, for the Ka of the Servant in the Place of Truth, Any."
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Ceremonial cubit rod at the Louvre showing the names of the nomes along the top
as well as the measurement symbols along the edge.
(Remember to read right to left like an Egyptian.) Photo by Jon Bodsworth.
|
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| Close up of the Louvre Cubit rod |
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| Fragment of a stone, ceremonial cubit rod on display at the Metropolitan Museum of Art |
Quick Cubit Conversion Chart:
(Conversions are approximations from measuring a variety of cubit rods)
- 1 Short Cubit = 45cm = 18 inches
- 1 Royal Cubit = 53 cm = 21 inches
- 1 Royal Cubit = 1 Short cubit + 1 palm
- 1 Royal Cubit = 7 Palms
- 1 Palm = 4 Fingers
- 1 Royal Cubit = 28 Fingers
- 1 Great Span = 2 Palms
Sunday, June 17, 2012
Everyone's Favorite Math Subject - Fractions
As we saw with numbers, the Egyptian had glyphs to represent fractions. The symbol is portions of the eye broken into representative sections. (For the previous discussion about eyes you can go back to this post and read about them.) Suffice to say that there are some disagreements over time whether this eye is the Eye of Horus or the Eye of Ra or the Wadjet or none of these between the Old Kingdom, Middle Kingdom and New Kingdom. For the sake of this discussion I am just going to call it an eye instead of trying to decide what time period is right to use or what word would be right.
Looking at it in pieces we can imagine writing a fraction. The Egyptians did not write fractions the same way we do. All Egyptian fractions are one over some number with the exception of 2/3. We'll leave 2/3 for later. Right now we will focus on how an Egyptian might write other fractions.
For example:
We would write 3/4 where an Egyptian would write the glyphs for 1/4 and 1/2 together to show 3/4.
If we write 3/8 the Egyptians would write 1/4 and 1/8 together.
It might seem clunky at first but even very complex fractions could be quite beautiful. Most standards leave the sections in the place of the eye form. So our Egyptian 3/8 would be a brow and pupil drawn in the normal placement. To get a better idea here are all of the pieces in the standard places.
Another set of fraction symbols exist in the Egyptian set of glyphs. These glyphs were used at the same time as the Eye glyphs were.
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| The Eye fractions as presented at The First International Conference on Ancient Egyptian Science . Since this illustration it has been suggested that the eyebrow stroke is 1/8. |
For example:
We would write 3/4 where an Egyptian would write the glyphs for 1/4 and 1/2 together to show 3/4.
If we write 3/8 the Egyptians would write 1/4 and 1/8 together.
It might seem clunky at first but even very complex fractions could be quite beautiful. Most standards leave the sections in the place of the eye form. So our Egyptian 3/8 would be a brow and pupil drawn in the normal placement. To get a better idea here are all of the pieces in the standard places.
The final thing about fractions is conversions. The Egyptians used conversions and fractions particularly in food related topics such as grain but have been found related to other subjects. These conversions would be very similar to modern conversions between different units. I will discuss more about conversions in another post when the topic of geometry is at hand.
Saturday, June 16, 2012
Numbers game
The Ancient Egyptians had separate hieroglyphs for numbers. Unlike our modern language where we have numbers (1,2,3....) and words for them (one, two, three...) the Egyptians had one symbol that meant both the numeral and the word. For the Ancient Egyptians words and symbols went hand in hand so there is no surprise in knowing the hieroglyphs given for a number were related to spiritual and cultural connection of those numbers.
1-9 are simply tick marks. Part of the reason for the first nine being tick marks is because it is believed that the human mind can instantly recognize single digit numbers without counting.
10 is a cattle hobble. This is something that would partially bind the cattle's legs so they could walk but not run. It is believed that like many African cultures the Egyptians saw 10 cattle as almost a base currency.
100 is a coil of rope. This is likely due to a connection to work and labor. "Gangs" of workers in Egypt are sometimes listed as 100 men.
1,000 is a lotus flower. The lotus was the number of joy and satisfaction.
10,000 is the upraised finger. This is a symbol of command which makes sense for a number like 10,000 which would be the count of a very large army or contingent of workers in Ancient Egypt
100,000 is the tadpole symbol of rebirth. 100,000 is related to cosmic cycles in Egyptian mythology.
1,000,000 is a man/god raising his hands in praise. Million was a sacred number reserved most often for offerings or blessings to deities or pharaohs. ex. May he live in peace for millions of years or may he find himself satisfied with millions of loaves of bread.
10 is a cattle hobble. This is something that would partially bind the cattle's legs so they could walk but not run. It is believed that like many African cultures the Egyptians saw 10 cattle as almost a base currency.
100 is a coil of rope. This is likely due to a connection to work and labor. "Gangs" of workers in Egypt are sometimes listed as 100 men.
1,000 is a lotus flower. The lotus was the number of joy and satisfaction.
10,000 is the upraised finger. This is a symbol of command which makes sense for a number like 10,000 which would be the count of a very large army or contingent of workers in Ancient Egypt
100,000 is the tadpole symbol of rebirth. 100,000 is related to cosmic cycles in Egyptian mythology.
1,000,000 is a man/god raising his hands in praise. Million was a sacred number reserved most often for offerings or blessings to deities or pharaohs. ex. May he live in peace for millions of years or may he find himself satisfied with millions of loaves of bread.
That's a little on numbers. We'll continue this discussion tomorrow or the next day with fractions.
Friday, June 15, 2012
Made to Measure
I thought today we would take some time to talk math and Ancient Egypt, though, I am going to handle it in sections over the next few days. I wanted to start with some Egyptian mathematical firsts.
They were the first to:
-have what a modern person would recognize as a ruler to measure.
-have a standardized measurement system for both architecture and science; including building, math, astronomy, weather studies and the like.
-have a standard of fractions.
-use the number one million, and often millions of millions.
- explore the geometry of hemispheres, circles, rectangles, triangles, cylinders and of course pyramids.
-have examples of multiplication.
-have a calculation to control recipes: beer strength as a function of grain.
- add very small fractions such as 1/500th
-write down problems involving scaling shapes.
-write problems involving calculations of volume.
-write formulas for the area of a circle.
If you are interested in the above you can take a peek at the following resources.
Works of Nora E Scott on the Egyptian Cubit Rods.
Egyptian papyri that contain math topics and math problems:
-Moscow Mathematical Papyrus
-Egyptian Mathematical Leather Roll
-Lahun Mathematical Papyri
-Berlin Papyrus (Usually referred to as a medical papyrus due to the inclusion of prenatal medicine and pregnancy test information.)
-Akhmim wooden tablets
-Reisner Papyrus
-Rhind Mathematical Papyrus
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| A rather poor scan of the Rhind papyrus. approx. 1650 BC |
Sunday, June 10, 2012
More poetry
There are rare occasions when I get the muse to write poetry. Rarer still is my desire to share it. I wrote this piece about the worship of Thoth and endeavored to include the kind of flow and imagery that the Egyptians used in their poetry. Hope you all enjoy it.
The Wise Night Bird
The glow of stars above,
Quiet, yet of many words,
Equilibrium, self-devised
Hand and breath of veracity
The Wise Night Bird
The glow of stars above,
Uncountable but for your eyes.
Hands of grace play power upon the sheets
Exactness of thought unadulterated by
… desire, want or need
He who knows the numbers of all…
That might be, could be or should be,
Guide the path with paradisiacal scrawl.
In words and thoughts be seed.
Quiet, yet of many words,
Speak light into my ear
Ever wise night bird
What glides from the fine reed?
Equilibrium, self-devised
The path between the divide
To kingly wisdom you advise.
Whisper softly your creed.
Hand and breath of veracity
Gentle sage of wetland fields
Balance my heart with perspicacity
Forever I follow your lead.
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