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EGYPTIAN RESEARCH ACCOUNT

TENTH YEAR

1904

SAQQARA MASTABAS

PART I

MARGARET A. MURRAY

WITH DRAWINGS BY F. HANSARD AND J. MOTHERSOLE;

AND

GUROB

BY •

L LOAT, F.Z.S.

LONDON

BERNARD QUARITCH, 15, PICCADILLY, W.

1905

EGYPTIAN RESEARCH ACCOUNT

TENTH YEAR
1904

SAOOARA

MASTABAS

PART I

^s^^-^^^'

MARGARET A. MURRAY

LONDON

BERNARD QUARITCH, 15, PICCADILLY. W

1905

3e> TO .20 /

^ /O

LONDON :
PRINTED BY GILBERT AND RIVINGTON LTD.,

ST. JOHN'S HOUSE, Cl.KRKEN WELL,, E.G.

.1372

EGYPTIAN RESEARCH ACCOUNT.

©cneral Committee.

Lord Avebury, D.C.L., F.R.S., &t.
Walter Baily.
Henry Balfour.

Prof. T. G. Bonney, LL.D., F.R.S., F.S.A.
Rt. Hon. James Bryce, D.C.L., .\I.P.
Prof. J. B. Bury, LL.D., Litt.D.
*tS0MERS Cl.^rke, F.S.A.

Edward Clodd.
fW. E. Crum.
Prof. Boyd Dawkins, F.R.S.
Prof. S. Dill, Litt.D.

*MlSS ECKENSTEIN.

Dr. Gregory Foster.
Dr. J. G. Eraser.
Alan Gardiner.
*tPROF. Ernest Gardner.

Prop-. Percy Gardner, Litt.D., F.B.A.,

F.S.A.
Rt. Hon. Sir George T. Goldie, KC.M.G.
Prof. Gowland, V.P.S.A.
Mrs. J. R. Green.
Dr. a. C. Haddon, F.R.S.
Jesse Ha worth.

Sir Henry H. Howorth, K.C.LE., F.R.S.

Dr. a. C. Headlam.
*SiR Robert Hensley [Chainiian).

Sir Richard Jebb, O.M., D.C.L., .M.P.
tPROF. Macalister, F.R.S., F.S.-A.

Dr. R. W. Macan.

Prof. Mahaffy, D.D., D.C.L., &c.
*J. G. Milne, M.A.

Sir Colin Scott Moncrieff, K.C.M.G.

Prof. Montague.

Walter Morrison.

Dr. Page May.

Prof. H. F. Pelham, F.B.A., F.S.A.

Dr. Pinches.

Dr. G. W. Pkothero, Litt.D., LL.D.
F.B.A.

Sir William Richmond, R.A.

Prof. F. W. Ridgeway, F.B.A.

Mrs. Strong, LL.D.
fMRS. Tirard.

fE. TowRY Whyte, M.A., F.S.A.
fSiR Charles Wilson, K.C.B., D.C.L.,
F.R.S.

CCrcasurer.

*tF. G. Hilton Price, Director of the Society of Antiquaries.

Sicector.
Prof. Flinders Petkie, D.C.L., F.R.S., F.B.A., &c.

IbonocarB Secretaries.
Mrs. H. F. Pktrie ■» University College, Gower Street,
*Dr. J. H. Walker ) London, W.C.

* Executive Committee. t Also on Exploration Fund Committee.

CONTENTS

CHAPTER I.

SECT.

1. Introductory ......

2. Description of cemetery and of work .

CHAPTER H.

Steles of Seker-kha-bau and Hathor-

nefer-hetep.

3. Seker-kha-bau

4. Hathor-nefer-hetep . . . . .

CHAPTER HI.
Tomb of the Sheikh-el-Beled.

5. Description of tomb . . . . .

6. The statues and table of offerings

7. Construction of tomb . . ...

CHAPTER IV.
Tomb of Ka-em-hest.

8. Description of tomb . . . . .
g. Construction of tomb . . . . .

CHAPTER V.

Double Tomb of Ptahhetep I. and
Ptahhetep-desher.

10. Ptalihetep I. Entrance. Stele

11. Use of plaster Portico and chambers .

12. Ptahhettp-desher. Portico and chambers

13. Construction of tomb . . . . .

CHAPTER VI.
Tomb of Sekhemka.

14. Description of tomb . . . . .

15. The West Wall

16. ,, „ „ north side of stele

PAGE

I
I

4
4
5

5
6
6

17. The West Wall, south side of stele

18. ,, ,, ,, the south side
ig. ,, ,, ,, the north side

20. South, East, and North Walls

21. Outer Walls ....

22. Construction of tomb .

CHAPTER VII.
Tomb of Ptahhetep II.

PAGE

9
10

24
25
26

27
28

29
30

31
32
33

34
35
36
37

Description of tomb
Painted chamber .
Chamber B .
Chamber C .

The Stele

South Wall. Ptahhetep and

his son
Dwarf animals
Farm-women and their

The upper register

East Wall .

North Wall. P""arm-w
and their offerings

The upper register

Doorways
Chambers D and E . . .
Fragments .....
Construction of tcmb .

CHAPTER VIII.

Tomb of Ateta.

iffer

omen

3g. Description of tomb
40. Construction of tomb

CHAPTER IX.

Tomb of User-neter.

II
II
12

12
12

13
13

14
14

15
16

17
17
17
17

18
19

41. Description of tomb

42. Chamber A .

19
19

CONTENTS.

The Stele
South Wall
East Wall
North Wall

SECT.

43. Chamber A.

44- " "

45- )) "

46- ,, »

47. Doorway

48. Chamber B .

49. Chambers C and D

50. Construction of tomb

CHAPTER X.
Tomb of Ptahshepses I.

51. Description of tomb

52. The Stele

53. The decoration of the Walls

54. Construction of tomb .

CHAPTER XI.
Tomb of Ptahshepses II.

Description of tomb
Stele ....
South Wall .
North Wall .

59. Outer Walls and doorway

60. Architrave

61. Construction of tomb .

56
57'
58

AGE CHAPTER XII.

20 Miscellaneous Objects and Inscriptions.

SECT. I'AGE

22 62. Stele 28

23 63. Coptic remains ...... 28

^3 64. J, Inscription. By W^ E. Cruin . . 29

CHAPTER XIII.

Offerings.

24
25
25
25

65. Hj'aenas

65. Lotus ....

67. Papyrus

68. Sacred oils and perfumes
6g. Lists of offerings .

70.

List of Seker-kha-bau

71. List of Hathor-nefer-hetep

72. Lists of Vth Dynasty .

CHAPTER XIV

26
26

Hieroglyphs.

73-

Human beings

74-

Living creatures .

28
28

75-
76.

Inanimate objects
Colours of hieroglyphs .

30
30
30
32
32

35
36

41
42

LIST OF PLATES.

II.

III.

IV.

VI.

VII.

VIII.

IX.

XI.

XII.

XIII.

XIV.
XV.

XVI.

XVII.

XVIII.

XIX.

XX.

Stele of Sekerkhabau . . • 3, 32

Stele of Hathor-nefer-hetep . 4, 35

Inscriptions of Ka-em-hest, Ptah-

khun, Sheikh-el-Beled . . • 4> 5

Inscriptions of Ptahhetep I . . 6

Stele of Ptahhetep I . . . .6

Ptahhetep-desher . . . • 6, 7

Sekhemka 8, 29

Ptahhetep II. Stele .

South Wall

12
13

14
15
15

,, ,, East Wall.

„ North Wall
,, ,, Akhet-hetep. Farm-

woman . . 13, 16
,, ,, Doorways . . • 17

,, ,, Painted Chamber.

N.S.W. Walls II, 12
,, ,, Painted Chamber.

E. Wall . .11

,, ,, Altar. Doorways.

Fragrhents 12, 15, 17

Ateta. Stele 19

,, Statue 19

User-neter. Stele . . . -19

PLATE

XXI.

User-neter

XXII.

)J M

XXIII.

>J >J

XXIV.

)) >»

XXV.

il »>

N. Wall

E. Wall

S. Wall

Niche .

Architrave.

Fragments

XXVI. Ptahshepses I. Stele

XXVII. „ „ Walls

XXVIII. Ptahshepses II. Stele

. 2t

20, 36

• 23

Doorway.

XXIX.

XXX.

XXXI.

XXXII. Plans.

XXXIII. „

XXXIV. „

XXXV. „

23
25
25
26

-/'

27
26

„ N. Wall
„ S. Wall

,, Doorways. Frag

ments . . :
Sekerkhabau. Sheikh-el-Be-

leJ. Us3r-n2ter . 3, 4, 19
Ka-em-hest .... 5
Ptahhetep II. Ptahshepses

I . . . II, 12, 25

Ptahhetep I. Sekhemka.
Ateta. Ptahshepses II 7, 8,

18, 26
XXXVI. Stele. Granite statue. Coptic in-
scription and pottery 3, 28, 29
XXXVII-XL. Hieroglyphs . . . 40-45
XLI-XLV. Colours of hieroglyphs . 45,4b

SAQQAEA MASTABAS

PART I

CHAPTER I.

INTRODUCTORY.

1, Our work during the winter of 1903-4 lay at
Saqqara ; for, owing to two lady artists having
volunteered to join the partj-, Prof. Petrie obtained
for us permission to clear and copy some of the
many sculptured tombs which were excavated by
Mariette about the middle of the 19th century.
Mariette's notes on these tombs were published after
his death by M. Maspero under the title o{ Lcs Mas-
tabas de VAncieii Empire, and are the only record of
these early monuments. The notes consist of ground-
plans of the tombs, and rapid hand copies of the
inscriptions, with here and there a sketch of some
specially interesting piece of sculpture. Since the
publication in iSgS of the tomb of Ptahhetep by the
Egyptian Research Account, followed by Mr. Davis'
work for the Egypt Exploration Fund, it has been
felt that facsimile copies of the smaller and less
known mastabas were very desirable, and with two
artists to help in the copying it was a good oppor-
tunit}' to start the work. We opened and copied
nine tombs at Saqqara. and copied one in the Cairo
Museum.

Our party consisted of Miss Hansard, Miss Jessie
Mothersole, and myself; and the division of labour
\\as that the two artists copied the figures, animals,
and tables of offerings, while I was responsible for
all the hieroglyphs and the plans. It is owing to
the steady work and skill of these two ladies that
the Egyptian Research Account is able to publish
facsimile copies often tombs; three of these are not
recorded by Mariette, whose records of the rest are,
as I said before, only hand copies of the inscriptions.
The tombs recorded by Mariette which we opened
are A 2, C 6 and 7, C 8, D i, D 62, D 63, and
E2.

My thanks are due to Prof. Petrie for much kind-
ness and help, to Mrs. Petrie for kindly copying
some inscriptions lying in the yard at Mariette's

House, and to Prof. Kurt Sethe for his valuable
translations, to be issued later; also to Miss Phoebe
Slater for help in finishing some of the drawings,
and to Mr. R. A. Yule for his assistance in drawing
the plans. It is due entirely to Mrs. Petrie's sugges-
tion that I made a list of the colours of the hiero-
glyphs in these early tombs. For this suggestion I
am sincerely grateful to her. Mr. Weigall has given
a large amount of time and attention to assisting our
work in many ways ; and the thanks of our party are
specially due to him on behalf of the Research
Account.

2. The cemetery of Saqqara dates back almost to
the limit of the historic period, but the bulk of sculp-
tured tombs belongs to the Vth Dynasty. Through
the middle of the cemetery is a slight ridge running
east and west, sloping steeply to the north, more
gently to the south. To the north lie all the I Vth
Dynasty tombs which we copied, though the most
northern one of all is of the Vlth Dynasty, dated
by the cartouches of Unas and Teta.

The valley to the south of the ridge is broad and
flat and constantly used by tourists as a road from
Mariette's House to the tombs of Mera and Kagemni ;
to the south of the valley is the high ground on
which the Step-pyramid stands. It is on the
northern slope of the ridge and on the south side of
the valley that, with one exception, our Vth Dynasty
tombs were found. User-neter is due north of the
Step-pyramid, close to the enclosure wall ; Ptah-
hetep II and Ateta adjoin the great mastaba of
Ptahhetep and Akhethetep published by the Egyptian
Research Account and the Egypt Exploration
Fund ; the tombs of Ptahhetep I, Ptahshepses I
and II, Ka-em-hest, and the Sheikh el Beled are on
the northern slope; but Sekhem-ka's tomb lies
north-west of Ptahhetep II and Ateta in ground
which looks httle if at all disturbed.

The excavations were conducted nominally by
Reis Khalifa, working for the Museum authorities,
and I was therefore obliged to employ a native reis.

STELES OF SEKER-KHA-BAU AND HATHOR-NEFER-HETEP.

though this is not the custom of the Egyptian
Research Account. Under the circumstances, as
we were not finding objects, the system worked well,
though I must say, having seen both systems, that
I prefer working without a rc'is and having the
workmen under my own direct control.

M. Maspero very kindly gave directions to Re'i's
Khalifa to assist me in every way, and as it was
difficult to find out which were the best tombs to
open, I took the easier course of visiting Rei's Rubi,
who had excavated all the tombs for Mariette, and
asking his advice. Reis Rubi, whose memory of
these mastabas was still as keen as ever, then gave

instructions to his son, Reis Khalifa, where to find
inscribed tombs, with the result shown in the plates
of this volume.

It was amusing to see how eager re'ises, workmen
and guards were over finding inscriptions for me. I
was hardly allowed to enter any chamber that was
not maktub, and I had great difficulty in making the
reis and workmen clear the uninscribed parts of the
double mastaba of Ptahhetep I and Ptahhetep-
desher when I wished to measure them for plans.
In opening a new tomb there was alwaj-s breathless
excitement till I read the name, which was then
repeated over and over again by the workmen and
boys to impress it on their minds, and anything
which my limited vocabulary allowed me to explain

was listened to with the greatest interest. I much
regretted that my command of Arabic was not larger,
for the men were intelligent and really interested in
the sculptures.

There seems to be no typical plan followed in the
building of the tomb-chapels at Saqqara, except the
fact that the stele is, as a rule, placed against the
west wall, facing east, though there are exceptions
even to this rule. Mariette has drawn a typical
stele {Mast. p. 52), and has given names to the
different parts, with the inscriptions usually found
on them.

A = Tambour cylindrique = Drum.

B = Tableau = Panel.

C = Linteau superieur = Upper band.

D = Linteau inferieur = Lower band.

EF = Montants principaux = Outer jambs.

GH = Petits montants = Inner jambs.

Mariette's plans proved to be accurate wherever
they were verified, but I was astonished to find in
two instances that they were not complete. I think
that in both cases it was owing to the ruinous
condition of the chambers that he did not attempt
to plan them, in fact, he says as much in his account
of the tomb of User-neter. Not having any know-
ledge whatsoever of engineering, I was not troubled
with the same qualms ; and with the courage born
of ignorance I ventured under bulging walls and
slanting roof-stones to obtain measurements. That
the danger was more in appearance than in reality
is shown by the fact that not one of those walls or
roofs has collapsed yet.

CHAPTER II.

STELES OF SEKER-KHA-BAU AND
HATHOR-NEFER-HETEP.

3. The steles of Seker-kha-bau, called Hethes,
and of his wife Hathor-nefer-hetep, called Tepes, are
well-known and are now in the Cairo Museum.
Mariette has published the former completely, and
the two sides of the latter {Mast. A 2). The middle
piece of Hathor-nefer-hetep is placed in the Museum
in a different room from the rest of the stele ; Mr.
Weigail called my attention to it, and M. Maspero
informed me that in the old Bulak Museum he
remembers the three pieces being together, but they
appear to have been separated when the Museum

SEKER-KHA-BAU.

was removed to Gizeh. There is no record of the
middle piece, Mariette neither publishes nor men-
tions it ; and though he presumably found it, there
is no certainty on this point. The size of the
fragment and its complete similarity in style and
workmanship to the stele of Seker-kha-bau make it
absolutely certain that it is part of the stele of
Hathor-nefer-hetep. The beauty of the sculpture
on these two steles must be seen to be appreciated :
in the outline drawings given here it is impossible
to show the delicate modelling which is such a
characteristic feature of this monument.

Stele of Seker-kha-bau. In the middle portion,
Seker-kha-bau is represented seated before a table
of offerings. He wears a long robe down to the
ankles, it is brought under the right arm and over
the left shoulder, where it is fastened with a ribbon,
the ends of which hang down on each side of the
arm ; the right arm and shoulder are left bare.
That it is a loose cloth is shown by the left arm
being so swathed in it that the outline is lost. The
garment is so like a woman's dress that had the
head been lost it would have been impossible to say
if it were a man or a woman. He wears a short
wig elaborately curled, and he also has a slight
moustache, like Rahotep, showing that the fashion
of clean-shaving was of later date than the Hlrd
Dynastj-. His chair is of the usual design with legs
resembling those of a bull ; the framework of the
seat shows the cross-lashing by which the seat itself
was fastened to the woodwork. Above the cross-
lashing there is just visible a little piece of the
cushion on which he sits. The table of offerings
consists of a stand with two spreading legs, over
which fits the socket of a wide flat dish, probably
of alabaster like those of the same period which
Mr. Garstang found at Bet Khallaf (Garstang,
Mahasna, pi. \.\i.\). On the dish are laid the leaf-
like objects which Mr. Griffith (Petkie, Dendcreh,
p. 42) supposes to be slices of bread. Above the
head of Seker-kha-bau are his names and titles, and
divided from the titles by a horizontal line is a short
list of offerings. The lower part of this portion of
the stele is filled by a long list of offerings.

The two sides are precisely similar in arrangement
though differing in some of the detail. Seker-kha-
bau is represented standing upright, holding in one
hand a long staff, in the other the papyrus sceptre.
Above him are his titles, which vary on the two
sides, and also his names, Seker-kha-bau and
Hethes ; while below is a list of tweh'c offerings.

His dress consists of a short kilt, of which the upper
fold is "wave-pleated''; one end is fastened under
a belt by a buckle, while two small ends fall from
below the kilt at the knee. He wears a short,
elaborately-curled wig, beneath which the lobe of the
ear is just visible. The most remarkable part of his
costume, however, is his necklace. This consists of
two parts, probably separate from each other. The
under part fastens round the throat with a flat piece
of metal ; to this are attached three flat zigzag
strips, which reach from the throat to the chest ;
the middle strip is finished by a wide loop, the two
side-pieces by small knobs. Attached to these strips
and reaching from shoulder to shoulder is another
long piece of metal intended to represent a jackal.
The animal has two arms raised in the attitude of
worship, and it also has six legs placed at intervals
along the body. The whole ornament must have
been absolutely rigid, judging by the width of the
metal strips. Over it comes a necklace of interlaced
chains which are threaded through small circular
disks and ankli-sxgxvs. The chains are so arranged
as to show the zig-zag strips of metal below them at
the neck and again on the chest.

On Pl. XXXVI is a similar necklace, but of much
later date. It is on a broken granite statue now
being used as a door-stop in the yard of Mariette's
house at Saqqara. Mr. 'Weigall suggested to me
that it would be as well to copy it for the sake of
comparison. In this late example the rigid part of
the ornament is worn above the chains ; the zigzag
pieces are very prominent, but the jackal has
degenerated into a perfectly plain strip of metal
which turns at an angle to the shoulders and
disappears beneath the wig. The chains are inter-
laced through circular disks and (Z«M-signs, and a
single chain which starts from under the wig and
ends nowhere passes through a small cylinder. The
back of the statue was kindly copied for me by Mrs.
Petrie, and shows a number of curious raised circles
which I take to be the spots on his panther
skin.

As the necklace appears in two instances separated
from each other by so great a space of time, it is
probable that it was the badge of some office held
by Seker-kha-bau and, centuries afterwards, by the
original of the granite statue. In the Museum at
Florence (Schiaparelli, Miiseo Egizia di Fi reuse,
p. 197) there is a statue of Ptahmes, high priest of
Ptah, who wears a similar collar. The statue is of
the XVIIIth Dynasty (cf. Erman, A.Z., 1895, p. 22).

TOMB OF THE SHEIKH-EL-BELED.

4. The stele of Hathor-nefer-hetep is arranged
precisely like that of Seker-kha-bau, with a back and
two side-pieces. The upper part of the back is
broken away, the head, the names and titles, and
part of the list of offerings having completely dis-
appeared, but enough remains to show the seated
figure of Hathor-nefer-hetep, wearing a long and very
elaborately-curled wig. Her robe, which reaches
to the ankles, is shaped like her husband's, passing
under the right arm and fastened on the left shoulder,
so that the right shoulder and arm are bare. It is
thickly spotted with black, the only instance of a
spotted dress in this age, beside Median xviii. The
chair and the table of offerings are the same as in
the stele of Seker-kha-bau. The main list of offerings,
though arranged like that of Seker-kha-bau, differs
as to the objects named.

The side-pieces, which are precisely alike, show
Hathor-nefer-hetep standing, clothed in a long dark-
green robe down to the ankles and fastened over the
shoulders by wide straps. She wears no ornaments,
and her wig is the same elaborate construction as
that of the seated figure. Across the forehead under
the wig is seen her own hair brushed smoothly
down. The statue of Nefert, which is of this period,
shows the hair worn in the same manner. There is
one very remarkable point about the personal orna-
mentation in vogue at the time ; the face, from the
eye-brow to the base of the nose, is painted with a
wide band of green, the rest of the flesh being
painted the usual yellow. The mummy of Rahotep
(Petrie, Mednm, p. i8) had green paint, a quarter
of an inch wide, round the eyes ; and green eye-paint
was commonly used in prehistoric times. Above
the head of Hathor-nefer-hetep are her two names
and her only title, while below is a list of six
offerings.

CHAPTER HI.

TOMB OF THE SHEIKH-EL-BELED.

5. The tomb of the " Sheikh-el-Beled " (Mar.,
Mast. C 8) is a huge mud-brick mastaba to which
is added a small outer chamber, also in brick. The
walls of the chamber on the east and south are
greatly ruined, but the west wall is in good condition,
and against it stands a magnificent red granite stele

formed of a single block. The grand proportions,
the fine workmanship, and the simplicity of style, all
point to its being of the great period of art at the
beginning of the IVth Dynasty. The only inscrip-
tion is a single band of incised hieroglyphs, large and
boldly cut, which go across the band of the stele
(PL. HI, 5).

6. The statue of the Sheikh-el-Beled was found
in the recess to the south, and about the centre
of the chamber was found also a circular alabaster
table of offerings with the name Akhet-hetep-her.
Mariette figures a disk with the same inscription,
but states it to be of limestone. The drawing of
this table of offerings has been sorted into the
dossier of the very interesting and elaborate tomb
of Akhet-hetep-her (D 6o). The one which is
in the Cairo Museum, and which I have copied
(Pl. hi, 4), is of alabaster, and I conclude that
it was really found with the wooden statue, and
that the copy of it has been misplaced in the
Mastabas.

It is impossible to say whether the name of the
Sheikh-el-Beled is to be found on the stele or on the
table of offerings. The only piece of evidence is
negative, and that is that the owner of the stele had
only one title, " Chief Kheri-heb priest," and it is
only natural to suppose that he would have been
represented in the distinctive costume of his office,
but the Sheikh-el-Beled is clothed in the ordinary
dress of the time, holding a staff of office in his hand,
which would well accord with his position as "Judge
belonging to Nekheb."

It is not generally known that the head of the
statue was coloured when found, but it was sent to
the Paris Exhibition in 1867, and there a mould was
taken from it without either the permission or
knowledge of the authorities. The wet material
used for the mould removed all the colour, and
dimmed the brilliancy of the eyes, apparently by
" oxydizing the bronze rims." There is a letter extant
from Mariette deploring and lamenting the amount
of damage inflicted on this unique work of art.
(Wallon, Vic de Mariette, Appendix xiii, Institut
de France.)

The beautiful wooden statue of the so-called wife
of the Sheikh-el-Beled was found, Reis Rubi told
me, in the doorway leading northward out of the
tomb. Unfortunately nothing more was dis-
covered, for the tomb must have been plundered
anciently.

CONSTRUCTION OF TOMB.

7. Walls. Black
15 in. X 7 X 5.
Roof. Destroyed.
Floor. Not seen.

mud-brick. Size of bricks,

CHAPTER IV.

TOMB OF KA-EM-HEST.

8. The tomb of Ka-em-hest (Pls. Ill, XXXIII)
was opened by Mariette, who has, however, left no'
record of it. It lies a little north of west from the
tomb of Ptahhetep I, and we cleared merely the one
small sculptured chamber. There may be more
chambers which we left untouched, but Reis Rubi,
Reis Khalifa, and my own Reis, considered I
was wasting my time if unsculptured chambers were
excavated, and these were therefore left severely
alone.

The false doors have that beauty of proportion
which is characteristic of the IVth Dynasty. They
cover the whole of the west wall, and have a slight
batter of if inches in 36. The design is simply an
arrangement of straight lines, vertical and horizontal,
with nine small panels at the top containing the two
lotus-blossoms tied together (Pl. Ill, 2), a decoration
commonly. used in the Ilird and IVth Dynasties.
There is no inscription whatever in the inner
chamber, but on the jamb south of the doorway are
two vertical lines of exquisitely-worked hieroglyphs,
giving the name and titles of Ka-em-hest. The
hieroglyphs are remarkable for the accuracy and
vigour of the drawing, and for the delicacy of work-
manship, which far exceeds anything I saw at
Saqqara, and is only equalled by the work on the
stele of Seker-kha-bau.

The tomb appears to be unfinished, for on the
south wall (Pl. XXXIII elevation) is a long, narrow
slit, evidently intended to be the opening to the
serdab. This still has the original outline marked in
red paint, and the slit itself has been only just begun,
being cut out roughly to the depth of nearly five
inches. The north and south walls are each made
of a single block. The false doors and the inscription
show traces of plaster, and the outer walls leading to
the doorway were thickly covered with the character-
istic pinkish plaster of the Saqqara tombs. Unfor-
tunately I had not then realized that plaster might
hide inscriptions, and though I scraped the walls

here and there, I made no systematic investigation ;
but as the plaster lay perfectly smooth without
hollows or irregularities, I think there could have
been nothing under it.

The doorway has a round drum, not inscribed.
In the roof of the doorway, cut through the lintel
stone, are two rectangular holes, for which I can
find no reason. They measure 15^ in. X 12, and
i5i in. X 13, and are at almost equal distances
from the ends of the stone and from each other.

The stone of which the tomb is built is very fine
white limestone. The masonry is not particularly
good, as the joints do not fit accurately, and the
spaces are filled with a pinkish cement.

9. Walls.

False door.

West. Two blocks.

Traces of plaster.
South. Single block. Unfinished
opening to serdab, iQf in. x if,
depth, 4I.
East. Two blocks on each side of

doorway, smaller blocks above.
North. Single block.
Roof. Destroyed.

Floor. Paved. The floor of doorway is 10 in.
higher than the chamber.

A small, roughly-cut libation tank of limestone was
found in this tomb. Size 20 in. x 15 x 5J ; the
inner measurements were 13-^ in. x 8f x 30-.

CHAPTER V.

DOUBLE TOMB OF PTAHHETEP I AND PTAHHETEP-
DESHER.

10. The double tomb-chapel of Ptahhetep and
Ptahhetep-desher(MAR., J/rti-/'. 6 and 7) is in the North
cemetery, and remains partially open. Mariette
places it in the IVth Dynasty, but from the inscrip-
tions Prof. Sethe dates it to the Vth Dynasty. The
later dating agrees also with the style of the
sculpture, which is more like that of the Vth
Dynasty than of the IVth. It is built against the
outer wall of a mastaba, which has a batter of i in
7. Prof. Petrie, who saw it, thinks that the
mastaba, and the false door which stands against it,
belonged to the father, and the chapels opening
north and south from the main entrance were built
by the two sons. Mariette concludes that the

DOUBLE TOMB OF PTAHHETEP I AND PTAHHETEP-DESHER.

southern tomb is the more ancient. As will be
seen from the plan, the construction is peculiar.
The main entrance which leads to the false door is
open, and has never been roofed. It was here that
Mariette found the stele (Pl. V) 13'ingon the ground.
This stele is of limestone, so roughly worked as to
justify Mariette's opinion that it is quite unfinished.
The hieroglyphs are merelj' hacked in without
sharpness or delicacy, and the workmanship of the
flat surfaces of the stone shows the same want of
care. This stele is now in the Cairo Museum. Its
exact position in the tomb is unknown, possibly it
belonged to the inner chamber A, or to one of the
chambers, now almost level with the ground, which
lead westward out of chamber A.

U. The false door, which faces east, is roughl}'
hewn in limestone. The tomb was partially un-
covered when I tirst went to Saqqara, and I was
therefore able to examine the false door carefull}-
before the workmen entered the tomb. It appeared
to be blank, being covered with a smooth coat of
what I afterwards found to be coats of whitewash.
In one place, however, I was able to trace the
almost obliterated lines of a figure (Pl. I\", 2) and on
the lower band (Pl. IV, i) there were a few hollows
showing traces of a brilliant blue below. With a
penknife I gentU' scraped away some of the plaster
of whitewash, and found an inscription below, the
hieroglyphs being incised and coloured blue. With
Mr. Weigall's help I cleared the two inscriptions; it
then became necessary to try the rest of the false
door, but though Mr. \\'eigall and I spent some
time over it, we found nothing more ; only rough
uninscribed stone appearing when we had dug
through the successive coats of whitewash.

This system of obliterating inscriptions by white-
wash appears to have been not unusual, though the
reason for it does not appear. I found plastered-up
inscriptions and traces of plastering in the tombs
of Sekhemka, Ka-em-hest, User-neter, and Ptah-
shepses I and II, as well as in this tomb ; that is to
saj-, in six out of the nine tombs which I opened,
whitewash had been used. The whitewash was
laid on in successive coats until the hollows of the
sculpture were almost filled, and the walls appeared
blank. In colour it is slightly pinkish, and though it
comes oft sometimes in large flat flakes which bear
on the underside a cast of the sculpture which it has
covered, \et, as a rule, it breaks off in small pieces,
and the work of scraping an obliterated inscription

is very tedious and laborious. It was probably put
on coat by coat when clearing up the tomb every
few years.

On each side of the main entrance which leads
to the false door are two pillars, forming the
entrance to two other tombs. On the north side is
the tomb of Ptahhetep, on the south that of Ptah-
hetep-desher. The two sides of this entrance are
therefore quite uns3'mmetrical, and must be con-
sidered separately.

Ptahhetep I. The two pillars on the north
form the portico of the tomb of Ptahhetep I. This
portico was roofed with slabs of stone which rested
on the wall and on the stone architrave which was
supported by the pillars, overhanging the latter by
yh inches so as to form eaves ; one stone only is in
position. The pillars are inscribed from top to
bottom with the titles and name of Ptahhetep
(Pl. l\'), the only inscription found in this part of
the tomb. The large chamber A has been roofed
in, and part of the roof still remains in a ruinous
and dangerous condition ; the two pillars which
support a massive stone beam also remain. To the
west a narrow doorway leads to two other chambers
according to Mariette's plan, but the walls are so
greatly destro3'ed that we did not excavate further,
as there was no likelihood of finding inscriptions.

12. Ptahhetep-desher. To the south is the
portico leading to the tomb of Ptahhetep-desher ;
this, like the portico opposite, is roofed with slabs of
stone resting on the wall and on the stone archi-
trave, which is supported by the pillars ; three out
of the four roofing-stones remain in position, the
fourth has entirely disappeared. Along the whole
length of the wall above the doorway is an inscrip-
tion carved on a band of stone which projects
il inches from the wall (Pl. VI, i). The hiero-
glyphs, which are incised, are boldly and deeply cut,
and are coloured blue. Where the roof remains, the
inscription is in good condition, but to the east side
where the roofing stone has been removed the
hieroglyphs are much worn ; so much so that it is
only in certain lights that the dcsher bird can be
recognized.

The doorway to this tomb is more elaborate than
the opposite one; the drum (Pl. VI, 3) is inscribed
with the name and titles, and the roof of the door-
way is painted red to imitate granite. Though I
did not clear this tomb completely, I found another
chamber besides that on Mariette's plan. In

CONSTRUCTION OF TOMB.

chamber C the west wall was simply the face of the
original mastaba. The north wall was greatly
destroyed, the best part being to the west, where
the rough stones still retain their coat of mud-
plaster on which had been a painting of the de-
ceased seated ; very little of this remains now
(Pl. VI, 2).

The south wall has also been covered with mud-
plaster and painted. Very indistinct traces re-
mained of a scene of donkeys and men, too in-
distinct and faint to copy ; and a heavy rainstorm
swept away even those few traces.

At the west end of both north and south walls is
a low mud-brick wall, about j ft. high and 2 ft.
3 in. long. Against the north wall it lies imme-
diately below the remains of the painted figure of
Ptahhetep-desher. As to the reason of these mud-
walls, I can give no explanation. Had there been
a stele, they might be supposed to be the tables on
which the offerings were piled preparatory to being
presented ; but there is no stele, and I could see
nothing to warrant the conclusion that there had
been one.

Chamber D and the doorway leading to it from C
are not shown in Mariette's plan. The doorway has
remains of a coating of white stucco, but no traces
of either painting or inscriptions. The chamber
itself is built of rough-hewn blocks and is quite
undecorated. Of the roof, four out of the five stones
are in position, though at the east end the block is
kept in position only by the sand underneath, and it
lay at an angle uncomfortably suggestive of a sudden
fall. As I was digging only for inscriptions and not
for plans, I did not follow up the doorway which
leads southward out of this room.

13. Ptahhetepl. Portico. Walls. Limestone, unin-

scribed.

Pillars. Limestone, rect-
angular, inscribed on
south face.

Roof. One stone in posi-
tion.

Floor. Not seen.
Chamber A. Walls. Limestone blocks,
uninscribed.

Pillars. Limestone, rect-
angular, uninscribed.

Roof. Two stones in
position.

Floor. Not^een.

Ptahhetep-desher. Portico. S. Wall. Limestone.

Architrave, inscribed.

Pillars. Limestone, rect-
angular, uninscribed.

Roof. Three out of four
stones still in position.

Doorway. Drum, in-
scribed ; roof painted
to imitate granite.
Chamber C. W. Wall. Face of a
mastaba, built in hori-
zontal courses, batter i
in 7.

S. Wall. Lower part,
rough blocks covered
with mud-plaster, on
which are traces of
painting ; upper part,
mud-bricks. Size of
bricks, loi x 4^ x 2j.
At west end, a low
mud-brick wall.

E. Wall. Horizontal
rough blocks.

N. Wall. Limestone
blocks, originally
covered with mud-
plaster, on which are
traces of painting.
Low mud-brick wall at
west end.

Roof. Destroyed.

Floor. Not seen.

Doorway to D. Covered
originally with white
stucco.
Chamber D. Walls. Rough limestone
blocks, laid horizon-
tally.

Roof. Four stones out
of five still in position.
Floor. Not seen.

CHAPTER VI.

TOMB OF SEKHEMKA.

14. The tomb of Sekhemka is the most important
of the three which we copied and which Mariette left
unrecorded.

TOMD OF SEKHEMKA.

It lies north-west from the tomb of Ptahhetep II
at the foot of the slope on which Mariette's House
stands. It is on the flat ground in a part of the
cemetery where there appear to be few tombs. It
was impossible to estimate the size of the tomb from
the small part of it that we excavated. It may be
like that of Ateta with a small sculptured chapel and
a large pillared hall ; or like that of Ptahshepses II,
merely a chapel built at the side of the mastaba;
in'in aref? As I have observed elsewhere, vay busi-
ness being inscriptions and not plans, I did not
pursue my investigations be3-ond the sculptured
part.

The workmanship is thoroughly good, not up to
the standard of Ptahhetep II or Ka-em-hest, but
better than any of the others ; and the inscriptions
are interesting. Some colour still remains on the
hieroglyphs, chiefly red and black with a little
}-elIow ; the blues and greens have disappeared.
The figures and inscriptions are in relief with the
exception of the list of the offerings, which is incised,
and the two lowest registers of the outer columns,
which are painted.

The tomb, at least as much as I cleared of it,
consists of a sculptured chamber, a doorway, and an
outer wall along which was the sculptured architrave
(Pl. VII). The stone of the west wall is a nummu-
litic limestone, full of little fossils which fall out
where the stone is worn, leaving a hollow, some of
the edges of which are so sharp as to make it difficult
to determine whether it is a natural hollow or part
of an incised hieroglyph. When two or three little
fossils, which are close together, happen to fall out, a
ridge is left which is soon worn away by the action
of the sand, and thus the surface is defaced more
quickly than is the case with ordinary limestone.

15. The West Wall (Pl. \TI) is entirely covered
with sculpture. The upper part is greatly weather-
worn, the list of festivals having almost disappeared.
The panel is also greatly damaged, but the list of
offerings is fairly complete. The rest of the wall
has suffered very little, and though worn in places,
there is very little which cannot be deciphered.

When the tomb was first cleared, the decoration
of the wall appeared to end at the feet of the large
figures in the central panels ; below was a blank
space the whole length of the wall broken at the
south end by a low stone seat. It was not until I
examined the stele ver)- carefull}^ that I discovered
traces of what appeared to be a line of inscription

belo\\- the feet of the large figures. A little scraping
with a penknife showed that here was another in-
stance of the obliteration of scenes and inscriptions
by whitewash. The registers in the central panels
were sculptured, those at the side were painted. It
is a tedious and delicate business to clear the plaster
off sculpture, but it is far more difficult to scrape a
painting. If the scraping is too hard, the paint
comes off; if not hard enough, the plaster remains
and obscures the outlines.

The little stone seat was also covered thickly with
plaster ; I scraped down to the stone in several
places, but could find no inscription on it. It
must have been placed in position after the wall was
finished, as the painting appears to be complete
behind it.

An architrave extends right across the wall ; it is
quite illegible in the middle with the exception of a
few signs ; but at the beginning a good deal of the
inscription can be deciphered. It ends with a seated
figure of Sekhemka holding a long staff. This is
greatl}' damaged, the upper part of the figure being
completely destroyed, but enough remains to show
what was there originalh-. The middle part is the
stele proper, though the whole of the west wall is
sculptured. Below the architrave is a list of offer-
ings in incised hieroglyphs, in very good condition
except at the top. Then comes a figure of Sekhemka
seated before a table of offerings towards which he is
stretching out his hand. Behind this is another
figure, barely discernible, of Sekhemka seated in his
lion-footed chair ; in front of him is his little son
Kaa, who with outstretched arm is touching his
father in order to call his attention. Below are two
lines of hieroglyphs ending in the name of Sekhemka.

16. The stele now divides into two panels, one on
each side of the false door. The false door has a
long stripe of red on each side as a border, and the
drum has a stripe of red at the top. The panels on
each side are occupied by figures of Sekhemka which,
though not life-size, appear gigantic when compared
with the other figures near them. On the right-hand
side, Sekhemka is represented standing, he has a
short beard and wears a skull cap and a starched
kilt, and holds a long staff and a rope (?) in his
hands. Before him is a diminutive figure of his wife ;
she is dressed in a robe with two shoulder-straps
and wears a long wig. Before her is a still more
diminutive figure of the little son Kaa, who wears
the lock of youth and holds his father's staff.

THE WEST WALL, SOUTH SIDE OF STELE.

A register of five bearers of offerings finishes this
panel; each man having his name above him, and
in front of him the name of the object he is carrying.
The first man carries a bird and a spouted vessel ;
the second is uncovering the burning incense ; the
third has two pieces of cloth ; the fourth holds a
goose in his arms ; and the fifth, who from exigencies
of space is much smaller than the others, has a stick
in his hand and a jar of .water on his head.

17. The left panel shows a standing figure of
Sekhemka holding a long staff in his left hand and a
cloth (?) in his right. His wig is of horizontal rows
of short curls, and his necklace is most elaborate.
He wears a starched kilt, and has a leopard skin
over his shoulders. The head of the leopard, as in
the case of User-neter, is placed about half-wa\' down
the back of the animal, and comes a little below the
waist of the wearer. The skin is tied on the left
shoulder, though the method of fastening is not
shown, and the ends of the tie fall on each side of
the shoulder. In front of Sekhemka is a small figure
of his eldest son, Sekhemka the Little. This figure
is rather smaller than that of the mother in the
opposite panel, though not so tiny as that of the
young brother. Sekhemka the Little is dressed like
his father except for the leopard skin, and he, like
his little brother, holds his father's staff.

In the register below there are five bearers of
offerings, their names above them, and in front of
each one the name of the object he is carrying. The
first brings a jar of water ; the second a bird whose
beak and legs he holds firmly ; the third has a deer
across his shoulders ; the fourth carries in his arms
a young hyaena with its hind legs securely tied ; and
the fifth brings a goose in his arms.

18. The rest of the wall on each side of the stele
is sculptured also, beginning immediately below the
architrave. On the left, or south, side is a figure of
Sekhemka seated on a high-backed chair with a
high square arm, over which he leans his right arm.
In his right hand he holds a fly flap with three tails ;
in his left hand is a short stick which he twirls in his
fingers. He wears a wig with long straight curls, a
starched kilt, and a wide collar. At his feet, with
her right arm round his knees, is his wife Khent-
kaues. I think that this is a portrait from life, the
face being different from the ordinary type. She
wears a wig with long straight curls hanging over
the shoulders, and her dress has two shoulder-straps ;

her ornaments are a necklace and bracelets. Under
Sekhemka's chair lies his dog asleep with its head
on its paws. It is one of the hunting dogs like
that in Ptahhetep (Quibell, Raincsseiim, pi. xxxiii),
rather like a greyhound with prick ears and a long
pointed nose, but with a tightly curled tail like a
pug's. He has a ribbon round his neck, the two
ends lying flat on his back, and his name is Pesesh-
Below this scene are five registers ; four sculptured,
the lowest painted.

The first register contains the family of Sekhemka ;
two sons and two daughters. First comes the
eldest son, Sekhemka the Little, or, as we should
say, Sekhemka Junior; he is a grown man wearing a
short curled wig and a starched kilt like his father.
He is followed by his 3-ounger brother Kaa,
represented as quite a child, with the lock of hair
and the amulet of childhood, he carries a bird in his
hand. Then come the two daughters, Khenut and
Antha ; and behind them are three more children,
the first of the three being " His son's son,
Sekhemka." The other two are probably also
grandchildren, but are unnamed. It is very rare to
find grandchildren commemorated in a tomb ; as a
general rule, only a man's own generation and the
generations immediately preceding and succeeding
him are noted.

The second register contains five servants or
priests bringing birds. The first two are in the act
of killing the birds which they carry ; the third
brings a goose in his arms ; the fourth carries a
crane, whose long beak he holds firmly to prevent
its struggling ; the fifth has three live birds in his'
left hand, and three dead ones in his right arm.
The first two have their names, Uashka and Uay,
inscribed before them. The hieroglyphs are roughly
incised as though by an unskilled hand. In many of
the tombs at Saqqara one sees these roughly incised
or scratched hieroglyphs, giving the name of a
servant, side by side with finely sculptured inscrip-
tions. It is evident that the servants wished to have
their names perpetuated also, and inserted the names
themselves when the artist had omitted them.

The third register has unnamed bearers of offerings.
The first carries two vases ; the second has a vase
and a tray of fruits and vegetables ; the third brings
two joints of meat, and a tray of figs and loaves ;
the fourth holds a bird in one hand and a vase in
the other; the fifth carries a tray of loaves and
vegetables on his right shoulder, lotuses over his arm,
and the ribs of the sacrificed ox in his left hand.

TOMB OF SEKHEMKA.

The fourth register contains a scene of sacrifice.
One butcher, whose name Kednes has been roughly
incised, is fla3'ing the hind leg of the ox which
his assistant holds steady. The other butcher is
engaged in removing the ribs of the partially dis-
membered victim, while the assistant is sharpening
the knife.

The lowest register is one of those that was
plastered up ; the lower part is hidden by the little
seat described above. It is a scene of sacrifice ; the
first figure carries the leg of the victim ; the second
has the heart and some indeterminate object. The
third figure is a butcher who is cutting up the
animal, and turning round makes some remark to
his fellows ; the fourth sharpens the knife. The
hieroglyphs above their heads are in outline, those
at the side in solid colour.

19. On the right, or north, side the scene at the
top shows Sekhemka seated in his straight-backed
chair, over the high arm of which he leans his left
arm. He wears a wig of short curls, a starched
kilt, and a necklace of which some detail is shown.
He holds a fly-flap of three tails in his left hand,
while his right is stretched out towards the piles
of offerings lying in front of him. He is accom-
panied by his dog Pesesh, who in this scene is wide
awake, with his head up and the ends of his neck-
ribbon sticking out.

Below this scene there are five registers as on the
opposite side. The first register gives seven priests,
all dressed alike in short-curled wigs and starched
kilts, all in the same attitude with the right hand
hanging down, and the left hand clutching the right
shoulder. The name and titles of each one are given.

The second register shows five bearers of offerings,
of whom the first one only, Nesua, is named. He
carries two vases balanced on his hands. The
second has a bird and a fiat basket of large figs. The
third brings meat and a tray of vegetables. The
fourth is heavily laden with a vase, lotuses, and a tray
containing a trussed goose lying on two large loaves.
The fifth carries a haunch in his hand, and a loaf (?)
on his shoulder.

In the third register none of the bearers of offer-
ings are named. The first bears a vase and a tray of
loaves and vegetables ; the second, a haunch, and a
tray of loaves and vegetables ; the third has a bird
and a tray piled with various objects ; the fourth
has a fish and a tray on which the most conspicuous
object is a calf's head ; the fifth carries joints of

meat in one hand, and the ribs of the sacrificed o.\ in
the other.

The fourth register, like the one seen opposite,
shows the dismembering of the sacrificial victim. An
official named Nefer superintends the butchers, one
of whom holds the front leg of the ox while the
other cuts it off. Behind is the assistant sharpening
his knife.

The fifth register is one of those which was
covered with plaster. It is painted with a scene of
sacrifice, and shows one butcher cutting off the leg of
the animal while another holds it firm ; a third has
a large bowl containing the blood of the victim ;
and the fourth carries a leg which has already been
removed.

20. S. Wall. This is the only wall that has
suffered any great amount of damage. The mud-
plaster has gone, leaving the blocks of stone exposed,
and a large hole has been made evidently in search
for the serdiib.

E. Wall. This wall is also built of blocks of
rough stone plastered with mud-plaster. The
traces of paint were more connected, and I fancied I
could make out a scene of sacrifice, but the traces
were too faint to copy. The door is at the south end
of this wall ; its roof is painted to imitate granite.

X. Wall. This is built of rough blocks covered
with mud-plaster which shows traces of paint here
and there.

21. Outer Wall. Right across the wall above
the door which leads into the sculptured chamber is
the architrave (Pl. VII). It consisted originally of
three lines, of which the top line has disappeared
entirely; the middle line is not much better ; but the
lowest line with its list of festivals is practically
complete. It ends, like the architrave above the
stele, with a seated figure of the deceased holding a
long staff.

22. W. Wall. Limestone, sculptured. Height

10 ft. 5 in.

Measurements of seat, 2 ft. 5 in. x i ft. x 6J in.

S. Wall. Rough blocks.

E. Wall. Rough blocks covered with mud-
plaster, traces of painted scene.
Doorway.

N. Wall. Rough blocks covered with mud-
plaster, traces of paint.

Roof. Destroyed.

Floor. Paved.

DESCRIPTION OF TOMB.

CHAPTER VII.

TOMB OF PTAHHETEP II.

23. The tomb of Ptahhetep II. (D 62) lies to the
north of the great Ptahhetep (D 64) mastaba pub-
lished by the Egyptian Research Account and the
Archjeological Survey. The two almost touch, being
only separated by a very narrow passage. It is quite
possible, judging by the plan (Pl. XXXIV) that there
is even some communication betvveen the two mas-
tabas ; the unexplained doorway at the east end of
the southern strdab may perhaps be connected with
the chapel of Akhethetep or with the pillared hall of
Ptahhetep.

Mariette writes with enthusiasm of the sculpture
in this tomb. " Ce tombeau se recommande a
I'attention par la disposition exceptionnelle de son
plan, et surtout par la perfection des sculptures qui
decorent la chambre principale." And a little
further on he says: — " L'empleur et I'elegance du
style sont d'ailleurs frappantes. Si une moitie de la
partie superieure des bas-reliefs n'avait disparu, cette
chambre serait I'une des plus remarquables qu'on
puisse montrer comme echantillon de I'art sous les
anciennes dynasties." Mariette is not guilty of ex-
aggeration when he speaks in these terms, for the
tomb of this Ptahhetep is, without exception, the
most beautiful in Saqqara. Though the scenes are
not so interesting as in the mastabas of Thy and
Ptahhetep (D 64), yet in the workmanship and the
drawing it surpasses them. For beauty of line,
design, and decorative effect there is nothing finer in

ligypt-

On the north and south walls the figures are on an
unusually large scale, as will be seen by comparing
them with the figures on the east wall (Pls. IX, X,
XI, XII).

This being a large tomb, I excavated only the deco-
rated portions ; the pillared hall and other uninscribed
chambers were left untouched. Mariette's plan shows
a large pillared hall to the east of the sculptured
chamber C, with an entrance from chamber B. The
west wall of the hall must be the original height, for
it was close to the surface ; it was therefore cleared
to the depth of a few inches until the corners were
reached, in order to verify Mariette's measurements.
The main entrance to the mastaba from the outside
is on the east side of the hall ; immediately opposite
to it is the entrance to the chamber marked B in my
plan. This room B is in reality a little ante-chamber

leading to three other rooms. To the north is a
chamber which I did not open, and the door to
which has been walled up with mud-bricks in recent
times. To the west is the small painted chamber A,
and to the south is the sculptured chamber C. On
the opposite, i.e. the south, side of C is another door-
way leading to an undecorated room D, from the
east end of which runs a skew passage leading to E,
a curiously long, narrow passage-like room with a
doorway at the east end. This doorway does not
appear in Mariette's plan, and, as usual, I would not
continue the excavation for the sake of the plan, but
had to leave it unfinished. Mariette gives a similar
chamber, probablj' a serdab, on the north side of the
building; the proportions are the same as E, but
apparently there is no entrance. There is, however,
no explanation in his notes, and nothing to show
whether anything had been found there.

24. Chamber A. Mariette dismisses this chamber
in a few words. " Ouelques traces de peinture se
font remarquer dans le chambre B et dans le cor-
ridor " (meaning the doorway) " qui le precede." All
the walls have been covered with brilliantl3'-coloured
paintings representing offerings and the bearers of
offerings, of which a certain amount remains. One
roofing stone is still in place, and under this the
colours are better preserved than at the unprotected
end.

West Wall (Pl. XV i). This wall, being the
most exposed since the partial destruction of the
roof, has also suffered the most, and the paintings
are very indistinct and difficult to follow. Traces of
colour remain very often, but where the outline is
destroyed it is impossible to be certain what object
was intended to be represented. I have copied only
where the outlines were certain ; patches of colour,
without outline, are not shown.

South Wall (Pl. XV 2). Here again under the
protection of the roof the colours remain to a great
extent. The blue lotuses, the yellow figs, the red
vases with black tops, and even the bearers of offer-
ings, carr3'ing birds, vases, and lotuses are fairly
distinct at the eastern end ; but where the roof is
destroyed either the stucco is broken away or the
paintings have disappeared.

East Wall (Pl. XIII). Over the doorway the
paintings are in very fair condition, being covered by
the uninjured portion of the roof, and the objects
can be distinguished with very little difficulty. The
colours, in which pale yellow and blue predominate,

TOMB OF PTAHHETEP II.

are very harmonious, and contrast well with the dark
red of the figures on each side of the doorway
below.

North Wall (Pl. XV 3). Like the south and
east walls the upper registers are filled with pictures
of offerings. From the patches of red, which still
remain, it is evident that the lowest register repre-
sented bearers of offerings ; the scheme of decoration
being the same as on the south wall. The cross-
lashing of black appears to have formed a frieze all
round the chamber, as it appears on all the walls
except the west, on which the painted stucco is
entirely destroyed at the top.

In the centre of the west wall is a rectangular
stone block running out into the middle of the room.
It lies a little skew to the walls of the chamber, its
a.xis being slightly N.W. and S.E. As this chamber,
judging by the paintings, was the place where the
offerings were made ready before being presented in
front of the stele or the y^a-statue, it is probable that
this stone block was the table on which the vessels
containing the offerings were arranged.

25. Chamber B. The reveals of the doorway
between A and B (Pl. XVII 2, 3) have been painted
with a figure of the deceased on each side. He is
represented standing with a long staff of office in his
hand, and his titles and name above and in front of
him. The stucco and paint have scaled off to such
an extent that it was difficult to decipher very much.
About the middle of the figure the stucco has been
completely broken away, leaving the rough stone
visible. This was probably caused by the passage of
bearers of offerings, carrying cumbrous loads through
the door. The damage is greatest just at the height
at which a load would be if carried by two men with
their arms down, in the attitude of the two men in
the tomb of Ptahhetep (Ouibell, Rainesseum, pl.
xxxviii, 2nd register from the top). The slightest
swerve would cause the load to strike the side of the
narrow doorway, to the detriment of the painting
and the stucco.

This room is remarkable as having a door on every
wall ; and though the north-east corner of the wall is
greatly ruined every doorway is intact. The door-
ways between A and B, and between B and C, are
painted, the others are undecorated.

Two out of three roofing stones still remain in
position.

26, Chamber C. This is the most important

chamber of the tomb as it is here that the sculptures
are found. The roof has been entirely removed, and
the upper part of all the walls greatl}' damaged as
well. On the north and south walls there had
originally been three registers of sculpture ; on the
north wall, two registers remain and traces of a
third ; but on the south side the upper register has
been completeh^ removed, and of the middle register
there are only fragmentary pieces. The north wall,
too, has lost the westernmost block, thereby making
the procession of women incomplete.

The north, south, and east walls are all built in
the same way (Pl. XXXIV): three courses of
horizontal rough blocks painted red, above these
are large upright blocks of fine white limestone
sculptured and painted. And of these three walls
it is not too much to say that they have the finest
and most beautiful sculpture in Saqqara.

27. West Wall. Acccording to the usual
custom the stele (Pl. VIII) is placed at the west
end of the chamber, facing east. It is formed of a
single block of fine limestone, and stands on another
massive block which is painted red. It is surrounded,
as in the stele of User-neter, with an imitation of a
framework lashed together, the cross-lashing being
faintly visible here and there. On either side of the
stele is a painted inscription now barely visible,
probably a list of the sacred oils, but so little remains
that it is impossible to saj- with certainty.

A great deal of colour is still to be seen on the
stele ; the figures of Ptahhetep are coloured red with
black hair, and many of the hieroglyphs show patches
of brilliant colouring. Beside the centre column of
inscription is a sign in orange-red paint, apparently
the papyrus-roll determinative ; the only explanation
of it is that when (as appears from the east wall) the
tomb was copied in later times, the master sketched
the papyrus sign on the wall to illustrate the
difference between the early and late forms of the
hieroglyph. The red paint of this sign is, however,
not the same colour as the squares on the east wall,
which have a more pinkish hue.

The hieroglyphs on this stele are very interesting,
and one at least — the determinative of the saz-
festival — is new to me (Pl. XXXIX). The Iier-s\%n
is always carefully worked, though the ears are of
the conventional size ; and the vulture and hawk
are both rendered with spirit.

The principal titles of Ptahhetep are given, with
his name, on the drum of the false door, " Judge of

CHAMBER C. SOUTH WALL. PTAHHETEP AND HIS SON.

the High-court, vizier, confidential friend, Ptah-
hetep." But the costume of the figures at the base
of the stele shows the scarf peculiar to the kheri-heb
priest, Ptahhetep being " the chief k/icri-heb.'" The
figures are precisely alike on both sides of the stele,
the only difference being that those on the north
side are not quite finished, and the middle figure on
the north is empty handed, while the middle figure
on the south has a roll of papyrus (?). All are dressed
alike in starched kilt and scarf of office, with a short
beard, long-curled wig and elaborately designed
necklace. The first on each side carries a long staff
and a papyrus sceptre ; the second has nothing in
his hands on the north, and a roll of papyrus on the
south, side ; the third has a long staff and a piece of
cloth.

The stele is surrounded by an imitation of a
framework of reeds lashed together. This lashing
has been represented in colour which now appears
only as a dark shade, with here and there a tiny
fleck of the original brilliant blue.

28. South Wall. The lowest register of this
wall is practically complete, being only a little
damaged at the east end. The middle register is
greatly mutilated, but enough remains to give the
names of the priests and servants, and to indicate
the position of a colossal seated figure of the
deceased. Of the upper register, not a fragment
remains.

At the' west end of the wall is a standing figure
of Ptahhetep, facing the procession that advances
towards him, and considerably larger than the other
figures. He wears a short starched kilt, a wide
collar, and a chain from which hangs an amulet ;
he has a short beard, and round his head he has a
wide ribbon tied in a bow at the bach. In front of
him are two rows of hieroglyphs giving his titles
and name. Facing him is his eldest son, Akhet-
hetep (Pl. IX). This is evidently a portrait, the
features being carefully drawn ; unfortunately the
paint has become so rough owing to the disintegra-
tion of the stone, that neither photograph nor
drawing gives a quite satisfactory idea of the original.
Akhethetep, who holds the title of " First under the
King," presents to his father the account of the
offerings which the farm-women are bringing. He,
also, wears the short starched kilt and the wide
collar, and he carries the scribe's outfit : two pens,
one behind each ear, a writing palette from which
hangs a plummet under his right arm, and a scroll

held open with both hands. Dividing him from
the farm-women is a vertical line of hieroglyphs
announcing the bringing of offerings. Then follows
a procession of seventeen women from the farms
belonging to Ptahhetep, bearing on their heads
baskets of produce, and the greater number either
lead or carry an animal or a bird. The name of the
farm from which she comes is inscribed in front of
each figure ; the first five names are compounded
with names of kings, the others are preceded by
Ptahhetep's own name.

The women are dressed in red or dark green
robes ; their necklaces, bracelets, and anklets are of
blue and green beads, and their wigs are black ; the
flesh-colour is a dark yellow. This scheme of
colour, with the brown of the animals, the brilliant
tints of the hieroglyphs, and the dark grey, almost
black, background, must have had a rich and
magnificent effect.

29. The animals brought by the women (Pls.
IX, X, XII) are worth studying. Their extra-
ordinarily small size, which exceeds all artistic
license, cannot have been from want of knowledge
or exigencies of space. The birds, both geese and
pigeons, are drawn in proportion to the figures ; it
is impossible also to believe that a man, who was so
great a master of decorative art as the artist of this
tomb, could not have made an equally fine design in
which animals and human figures were not so utterly
disproportionate. It was one of the conventions of
art at that period to make the animals slightly
smaller in comparison with the human figures with
which they are associated ; probably in order to
make the human figures more important, just as the
figure of the owner of the tomb is made larger than
any other that it may be the most prominent and
strike the eye at once. On the east wall (Pl. XI)
is an example of how this particular artist treated a
subject where the animals were of the ordinary size ;
the donkeys, though slightly small in proportion,
are not noticeably so. We are therefore forced to
the conclusion that the animals in the procession of
farm women were a special breed, whose beauty lay
in their smallness. In our times, Shetland ponies,
bantam fowls, and toy dogs, are bred simply for
their smallness ; the more diminutive the animal the
more it is admired ; and as these animals are of no
use in themselves it is only people of a certain
amount of wealth who can afford to have them. We
know that the Egyptians devoted great attention

TOMB OF PTAHHETEP II.

to the breeding of animals, and there is no reason
to suppose that toy animals were unknown, and
that then as now it was only the wealthier mem-
bers of society who possessed them. Among the
animals in the procession are some quite young
calves (ist, 3rd, and nth women); these are easily
distinguished from the full-grown oxen with and
without horns (2nd, 5th, 7th, and 14th women), but
the calves give the scale of size. Another point to be
noticed is that the toy animals are usually led by a
rope round the hind leg, the neck, or the horns,
while full-sized animals have the rope fastened
round the lower jaw.

30. The first woman carries a very young calf in
her arms, and on her head an usek/i-ha.sket full of
offerings. The second leads a full-grown hornless
bull, which has a rope twisted four times round its
neck, and from the end of the rope hangs an object
which may be a shell (Davies, Ptakhetep I, pi. xvi).
She carries a crescent-shaped basket of offerings. The
third leads a young calf by a rope tied to its leg ; she
has an «j<?<^//-basket. The fourth leads a full-grown
deer which has its mouth tied up, the leading rope
is fastened to its leg ; in her right arm she carries a
goose, and on her head is a «^^-basket. The patterns
on this and the other baskets were in paint ; the
striped pumpkins in the basket were also painted.
The fifth leads, by a rope round the leg, a full-grown
hornless bull ; the creature has a cloth across its
back and a collar, possibly of rope-work, round its
neck, and it is eating a piece of rope. She carries
an usekh-\>z.^&i. The sixth woman has no animals,
and has only one anklet and one bracelet. She car-
ries a small jar by a loop in her left hand, and on
her head is a crescent-shaped basket. The crescent-
shaped and «^(^-baskets are carried on a ring of twisted
cloth or rope which fits round the head and also fits
the curved base of the basket, rendering it steady on
the head. The seventh woman has a pigeon in her
left hand, while looped over her left arm is a rope
which is attached to the horns of a full-grown bull.
The animal wears an ornamental collar, and holds in
his mouth an object which may be a flower or possibly
a shell amulet like that worn by the bull led by the
second woman. The eighth woman is perhaps the
most interesting in the procession on this wall, owing
to the alteration that has been made in the animal
she is leading. As it stands now, it is a calf with a
rope tied to its hind leg, but across the woman's foot
and between the feet of the calf and above its head

are traces of the tail, feet, and ear of another animal.
The rope, which she holds in her hand, has been
fastened originally to the neck of the animal, but
now it is partly chiselled away and its direction is
changed in order that it may come to the hind leg
of the calf. The calf has been merely sketched in
red paint, preparatory to carving ; the artist evidently
knowing that all remaining traces of the original
animal would be completely hidden by the paint
which would eventually cover it. Even now, when
the surface of the stone is exposed, the traces are
hardly noticeable. From the shape of the tail and
the legs the animal was a hyaena ; and it is parti-
cularly interesting, for it dates the period when the
keeping of hyaenas for food began to go out of fashion.
A «(?/^-basket full of offerings completes this woman's
load. The ninth, like the sixth, has no living creature
in her charge ; she carries a papj-rus stem in the left
hand, and on her head an ?«f/'//-basket. The tenth
has a pigeon in her left hand and an //i'^M-basket
on her head. The eleventh leads a calf by a rope
tied to its hind leg ; on her head, an 2/jeM-basket.
The twelth carries a pintail-duck by the wings in her
right hand ; an //jt'/^/j-basket on her head. The
thirteenth carries a young calf on her arm and an
«j^/t//-basket on her head. Here the artist has made
another correction ; the legs being too thin, he has
added a piece the entire length. This is noticeable
as the addition is at a lower level to the rest of the
figure, the ground being also slightly lowered to
admit of it. The last four women are partially
broken and the baskets are destroyed. Fortunately
a fragment found lying loose in the sand completed
the figures of Nos. 16 and 17, but no other fragments
of this register could be found. The fourteenth
woman holds a goose in her left arm, and leads a
full-grown ox by a rope fastened to its horns, it wears
a large ornamental collar. The fifteenth carries a
young calf, and leads a full-grown deer with curving
horns. The sixteenth holds a pigeon by the wings
in her right hand. The seventeenth carries a goose
on her right arm.

31. Portions of the middle register still remain,
showing (at the west end) the feet of a large seated
figure of Ptahhetep. Before him is a table of offerings
on which are upright leaves. Then comes a pile of
offerings, birds and lotuses, baskets of figs, joints of
meat, and loaves heaped up in confusion. Beyond
this are figures ; most of them being broken away so
that the legs only are left. The son Akhethetep

CHAMBER C. EAST WALL.

leads the way, sacrificing a bird, the rest bring birds
and lotuses as their offerings.

The colours of the women's dresses are as follows,
the numbers beginning at the west end of the wall :
I green, 2 red, 3 green, 4-6 no colour, 7 green, 8 no
colour, 9 green, 10 red, 11 green, 12 no colour, 13
green, 14 no colour, 15 and 16 green.

32. East Wall. On the southern half of this
wall is a recess like a low doorway, but there
appears to be nothing behind it only the limestone
chips of the filling between this chamber and the
pillared hall. The wall has originally had five
registers, of which only the lowest is now complete.
No colour remains, but the wall is covered with red
lines in squares, probably for the purpose of copying.
It is evident that the lines are not the original squar-
ing when the drawing was first transferred to the
wall, for they are on both sculpture and background.
This shows that after the sculpture was completed
it was copied carefully, though at what period there
is nothing to show. We know that during the
Renaissance of art in the XXVIth Dynasty the work
of the early periods was largely copied, and it is quite
possible that an artist might set his pupils to draw
from good work, such as this, just as a modern art-
student works from the Elgin Marbles.

The highest register is very fragmentary, but
contained apparently a procession of bearers of
offerings.

Below is a scene of donkeys. A man holds a
donkey by the ears and the off fore leg, with the
intention either of making it stand still or of throwing
it. Then comes a row of laden donkeys, each driven
by a man ; in front of the foremost donkey is a little
foal, but here unfortunately the wall is very much
damaged before breaking off completely, and the
head of the foal is destroyed.

The middle register is remarkable for the amount
of action in all the figures. First, there are two men
filling a granary by throwing the grain up so that it
may fall in at the top ; a very decorative group.
Then come donkeys on the threshing-floor, being kept
in their place by a man at each end. The drawing is
so spirited that one fails to see at the first glance the
liberties which the artist has taken with the anatomy
of the animals. Only the last donkey has hind legs ;
and the foremost donkey with his head down, and
the donkey which is turning back, have no legs at
all, and consist only of a head and neck. It is
noticeable that the man, who faces the donkeys, was

intended to have an elaboratel)' curled wig like the
butchers in the lowest register ; it was begun, but
never finished. Beyond the donkeys are two stacks
which are being erected by three men wielding three-
pronged pitchforks. Lastly, there are two women
with their hair in pigtails ; one is sweeping up the
grain which the other is winnowing.

The second register from the bottom shows fowlers
at work. The papyrus swamp, in which the scene
takes place, is shown first ; then comes the net, full
of birds, among which the spoonbill and the crested
heron are easily recognizable. The head fowler,
hidden behind a thick screen or pillar, gives the
signal to close the net ; and his assistants respond
by pulling in the rope over-hand, the coil of the rope
lying between the feet of the last man. Beyond
these are five men, the last two being almost com-
pletely destroyed ; they are fowlers, probably the
same as those who managed the netting of the birds,
carrying away their prey.

The lowest register is given up, as is the general
rule, to scenes of sacrifice. The ual>-pnest of Sekhet,
Unnefer, presides over the ceremony, doing nothing,
while the butchers and their assistants slaughter and
dismember the animals. All the little details are
most carefully worked ; even the little knots of the
string which ties the knife-sharpener to the girdle
are never slurred nor done in haste. The groups of
men are varied, so that no two are alike ; even where
two groups are doing exactly the same thing, the
number of men is varied, and the positions of the
principal operators are slightly different. In the first
group, the animal has been skinned, the front legs
removed, and the hind leg is about to be cut off. In
the second group, the butcher is taking out the heart.
In the three groups which follow, the front leg of the
victim, the kliepesh, is being removed. And in the
last group, the butchers are preparing to skin another
animal.

33. The North Wall. Two registers are nearlv
complete ; though, owing to one great block being
broken away at the west end, the figures of Ptahhetep
and his son are missing. In the lowest register the
procession of stately farm-women corresponds with
those on the opposite wall. One of the prettiest
offerings is the cage of birds, of which the design is
charming.

The beginning of the procession is on a fragment
(Pl. XVII 7), only the animal, the woman's feet, and
part of the inscription remain. The position of the

TOMB OF PTAHHETEP II.

^^■oman's feet shows that she is standing, whereas
the corresponding woman on the south wall is walk-
ing. This leads me to suppose that the two walls
did not correspond exactly in design, but that there
was some variation, which makes the loss of the
block still more grievous. A little colour remained
on this fragment, the animal being a pinkish brown,
and the woman's dress had traces of green.

Pl. XII. No. I carries a stem of papyrus, and an
nsek/i-ha.sket of jars (?). It is remarkable that when
the offering is small and poor the artist has taken
less trouble over the figure, and in every instance of
a small gift the wig of the bearer is left unfinished.
2. An i/sekk-hcisket of cakes, and in the right hand a
small jar carried by a loop. 3. A crescent-shaped
basket of fruit and vegetables on the head, and a
miniature deer is led with a rope tied to its hind leg.
4. An !/se^/i-ha.sket of loaves, and a beautifully de-
signed group of lotus and papyrus, the lotus twining
round the stem of the papyrus. 5. An //Ji?-^/;-basket
containing jars and loaves, on the arm a small deer,
and a bunch of lotus hanging from the hand. 6. An
usekk-hasket containing loaves, covered baskets, a
jar and a vegetable ; in the left hand, a bottle-shaped
basket carried by a loop, and a 3'oung calf is led by
a rope round his hind leg. 7. A goat with large
curved horns led by a rope fastened to its hind leg,
on the woman's head is a box or cage of birds. 8. A
calf, with a collar, led by a rope tied to the off fore
leg, on the woman's head an 2/sek/i-h3.sket of cakes,
over her arm a lotus and two buds. g. The animal
has never been finished, but is merely sketched in
red paint ; it is a full-grown bull, and the rope was
intended to be attached to the hind leg. g. A cres-
cent-shaped basket filled with a great variety of
offerings : in the hand, two papyrus stems {?). The
animal is a very young calf, the rope being tied to
its fore leg. 10. An usel-// -ha.sket of vegetables and
cakes on the head, on the arm a 3'Oung calf. The
led animal is a goat with long curving horns, the
rope fastened to the fore leg. 11. On the head a
crescent-shaped basket containing loaves and papy-
rus stems (?), on the arm a large goose ; the animal
is a deer tied by the hind leg. This woman is shown
on Pl. XIII. 12. An ?/Si'l'/i-ha.sket filled with jars(?) ;
traces of the pattern of the basket still remain. In
the hand is a papyrus stem, and the animal, a deer,
is tied by the fore leg. 11. A crescent-shaped basket
filled with loaves and vegetables, among others there
are onions ; a jar, slung by a loop, is in the left hand,
and the animal is a young calf. With the e.xception

of the calf led by the 8th woman, all the animals
have the leading rope fastened on the near side.

34. The Upper Register. There are a few re-
mains of the list and pile of offerings which originally
filled part of this register. Of the pile of offerings
there are only a bundle of papyrus stems (?), the ribs
of an ox, part of a basket of figs, and some loaves (?).
The rest of the register is occupied by a procession
of men bringing offerings, led by two men who are
sacrificing birds. The detail on the feet of the second
bird is very fine and delicate. Both men grasp the
heads of the birds with an action full of energy, and
this. is one of the few instances in which an artist of
the Old Kingdom has succeeded in showing the
object grasped within the grasping hand. i. Akhet-
hetep wears a plain skull-cap ; his necklace consists
of several rows of beads, the outer row being of the
characteristic pear-shaped pendant beads of the Old
Kingdom ; his kilt is starched and comes to a point.
2. Nu-hekau has an elaborate wig of short curls, and
he also wears a starched kilt.

3. This figure has been chiselled away almost com-
pletely, but for what reason it is impossible to sa_v.
It was evidently the artist's intention to put another
in its place, for the dark red flesh colour of a figure,
which had been painted in, was still visible. The
name has been entirely obliterated, but the titles
above the head are untouched.

All the men who follow are dressed alike in short-
curled wigs and short kilts, and carry various offerings.

4. He has a goose and a bunch of pink lotuses, a
bud of which he carries with the flexible stalk looped
round his hand.

5. This man carries the smallest offering, a bird
and a bunch of papyrus stems and lotus buds.

6. A second Akhethetep brings a tray of fruit and
vegetables, and a bird, also a large pink lotus over
his arm.

7. This man is the most heavih' laden in the pro-
cession. He has a large tray of fruit and vegetables,
and a large pottery bowl full of small joints of meat.

8. He carries a goose and a bunch of onions.

g. This is the last man in the procession, and part
of one of his offerings is broken away. It is a large
pottery bowl which apparently had a cover tied on.
These bowls are generally represented with blue
lotuses put through the string which fastens the
cover. In the other hand he carries a sealed vase
on a stand, and over one arm is a bunch of blue
lotus blossom and buds.

CHAMBER C. DOORWAYS.

Note. — In the inscription above the heads of the

figures, a "^^ and ^^ are slightly distorted in the

lithograph ; they should be like the other examples
of the same signs in the tomb.

Of the topmost register only the feet of some of
the bearers of offerings remain, a fragment (Pl.
XVII, 12), found in the sand just outside the wall
of this chamber, evidently belongs to this register.

35. The reveals of the doorways of the sculptured
chamber (Pl. XIV) are painted with figures of
bearers of offerings. The north doorway (Pl. XIV,
I, z) leading from chamber B to chamber C is deco-
rated with three registers of figures. It is in bad
condition ; in many places the colours have dis-
appeared entirely ; in others only a few patches of
paint with definite outline are all that remain of the
original design. Here and there a hieroglyph is
\isible, showing that each servant was named. In
the lowest register of the east side is the figure of a
woman, carrying a box on her head and birds in her
hand ; all the other figures are of men. In the lintel
of the doorway is the pivot-hole for the wooden door
by which the sculptured chamber could be secured,
and the hole for the bolt is in the jamb. The roof
of the doorway is painted to imitate granite.

The south doorway (Pl. XIV, 3, 4) has only one
register of figures on each side. It is in much better
condition than the opposite doorway, owing probably
to its being protected, by the roof of chamber D, from
the prevailing southerly winds. There are three men
on each side of the doorway, and they carry lotuses,
papyrus, vases, covered baskets, and open trays filled
with loaves. At the side furthest from chamber C is
a pattern of rectangles of various colours, and under
the figures is a broad black band.

The roof of the doorway is painted red to imitate
granite, and in the western jamb is the hole for the
door-bolt.

36. Chamber D is long and narrow, built of rough
blocks and roofed, the roof being still intact. There
were no inscriptions of any kind except illegible
traces of a quarry mark in red paint on a block near
the skew passage.

The passage leads from chamber D to chamber E.
The latter is probably a serdab communicating with
the pillared hall through the pointed recesses on the
north side. The roof is intact save for one stone,
and the floor is paved. I greatly regretted that it

was not possible to follow up the doorway which
leads eastward out of this chamber, but under the
circumstances it was not possible.

The recesses are in shape like a pyramid laid on
one side, sloping up to the apex on every side. I
made careful measurements, but when I came to
draw out the plan on paper the points of the recesses
appear to open into the pillared hall, though I could
see no openings from the side on which I stood.
The apparent discrepancy may be accounted for by
the fact that the floor of the recesses sloped upwards,
which would bring the points to the face of the wall
with a very small opening, which when blocked
would not be visible from chamber E.

37. Pl. XVII, 4-13. These fragments were found
loose in the sand, and we collected and piled them
together on a broken part of the wall near the door
of the painted chamber. I am convinced that if a
systematic search were made in the sand surrounding
this tomb great numbers of fragments would be found.
The blocks of stone were too large to be removed
whole, and must have been broken up on the spot,
and the sculptured chips are probabl}' still to be
found.

4 does not seem to belong to this tomb, the hiero-
glyphs are incised, and the workmanship is rather
poor. It was probably a fragment from a much
later tomb thrown in with other stones among the
sand filling. I do not understand the meaning of
the hollowed spaces below the inscription.

6 appears to be part of a figure of a bearer of
offerings from one of the upper registers on the north
wall. A basket of figs and a pink lotus are all that
remain of his gifts.

8-12 are all that remain, with the exception of the
fragment on Pl. XII, of the list of offerings which
generally forms so conspicuous a feature of the deco-
ration of O.K. tombs.

13 is a portion of a figure, probably one of the
bearers of offerings from the upper registers of the
south side.

38. Chamber A. Walls. Rough limestone blocks,

originally covered with
white stucco and painted.

Roof. One stone still in position,
painted red to imitate
granite.

Floor. Paved.

Height of chamber, 8 ft. iijin.

TOMB OF ATETA.

Measurements of stone block. L.

4 ft. gh in. x W. i ft.

iii in. X H. I ft.

lol in.

Chamber B. West Wall. Rough blocks. Upper

and lower lintel, block
of a single span each.
Roof of doorway
painted red to imi-
tate granite. Reveals
of doorway painted.
Height of door, 7 ft.
i in.

South Wall. Horizontal rough
blocks. Upper part
of doorway of fine
white limestone
painted to imitate
granite. Reveals of
doorway painted.
Height of door,
8 ft. 9 in.

East Wall. Greatly destroyed,
doorway only re-
mains intact. Height
of door, 8 ft. 9 in.
North Wall. Horizontal rough
blocks. Door blocked
with mud-brick wall.
Size of bricks, 12 x^j
X 3 in. Height of
door, 6 ft. 4 in.

Roof. Two stones out of three still
in position.

Floor. Paved.

Height of chamber, 10 ft.
Chamber C. West Wall. Stele of a single block ;

base of stele, single
horizontal block
painted red.
Measurements of
hetep-stone, 5 ft. 5 x
2 ft. Ili X I ft. 2}..
Height of step, li^ in.

South Wall. Three courses of hori-
zontal rough blocks
painted red ; above,
are five fine limestone
blocks sculptured.
Height of doorway,
6 ft. 3 in.

East Wall. Three courses of hori-
zontal rough blocks
painted red ; above
are four upright
blocks of fine white
limestone sculptured.
Measurements of re-
cess, 2 ft. 10 in. wide
x 2 ft. 4I high.
Measurements of lin-
tel stone above recess,
4 ft. 8^ X I ft. 3.
North Wall. Three courses of hori-
zontal rough blocks
painted red ; above,
blocks of fine white
limestone, sculptured.
Height of doorwaj-,
7 ft. 9-

Measurements of al-
tar, 5 ft. gi X I ft. 9
X I ft. 9I.
Roof. Destroyed.
Floor. Paved.
Chamber D. Walls. Rough blocks.
Roof. Intact.
Floor. Paved.
Chamber E. Walls. Rough blocks.

Measurements of recesses,
2 ft. 10 wide X 2 ft. 8J
high X 4 ft. gh deep.
Roof. Twelve out of thirteen blocks

still in position.
Floor. Paved.
Height of room, 8 ft. 7.

CHAPTER Vni.

TOMB OF ATETA.

39. The tomb of Ateta (Mariette, Mastabas, D 63)
lies to the south of the tomb of Ptahhetep H (D 62)
and to the west of that of Ptahhetep (D 64). We
e.xcavated only the sculptured chamber, marked A
in Mariette's plan, leaving the pillared hall uncleared.
Mariette thinks that this tomb is later in date than
that of Ptahhetep (D 62). I do not however under-
stand his remarks concerning the stele ; " Le haut
est tres-mutile. Le bas est rendu si meconnaissable
par le sable mele de cailloux qui, aide par les eaux
pluviales a fait une sorte de poudingue silicieux."

CONSTRUCTION OF TOMB.

The only mutilation the stele has suffered is the loss
of the architrave, which may or may not have been
sculptured. The " poudingue " is certainly there,
but the greater part is on the unsculptured portions
of the stele, and affects the inscription very little.

The most remarkable feature of the tomb is the
figure of Ateta, sculptured in such high relief as to
be almost in the round, standing in the false doorway
(Pl. XIX). The height of the figure is 3 ft. 8i in. ;
the height of the pedestal on which it stands is
2 ft. i?7 in., the width i ft. 4 in., and the depth 7 in.

The figure is painted red, the hair black, the gar-
ment white. A great deal of colour remains on the
hieroglyphs, especially on the " band.'" The lists of
offerings are painted blue, and both in colour and
cutting bear a strong resemblance to the hieroglyphs
in the pyramid of Unas. This agrees very well with
Mariette's dating of the tomb, enabling us to place
it at the end of the Vth Dynasty, or beginning of
the Vlth.

In the side chamber, B in Mariette's plan, were
found by Mariette a number of wooden models of
boats, figures, and other objects, which he says were
too decayed to be removed ; and as it was before the
days of rapid photography, the record of them, ex-
cept for this brief notice, is lost. Two statues, how-
ever, and some models of offerings, all in limestone,
were removed to the Museum. The loss of the boats,
which were evidently the precursers of the boats
found commonly in Middle Kingdom tombs, is
irreparable.

40. Walls. W. Stele with figure. N., S., E.
Limestone, uninscribed.
Roof. Destroyed.
Floor. Paved.

CHAPTER IX.

TOMB OF USER-NETER.

41. The tomb of User-neter (Mariette, Mastabas,
D I) lies just outside the northern boundary of the
step pyramid, not far from the stone pyramid.
Mariette remarks on the badness of the building,
and says that the mastaba appears to be collapsing.
This was about fifty years ago, and the mastaba is
still on the point of collapsing, but has not collapsed
yet. Prof Petrie, on seeing it, warned us that the

north wall of chamber A was in a dangerous con-
dition as it was bulging inwards about the middle ;
so we hastily finished drawing that wall and then
banked it well up with sand till we had finished the
remainder. It was probably in consequence of the
ruinous condition of the tomb that Mariette planned
only two chambers, A and B, and makes no mention
of C and D. It is perhaps for the same reason that
his copies of the inscriptions are careless and inaccu-
rate in a way that is unusual with him. I managed
to obtain complete measurements of C, and it was
only because D was evidently unsculptured that I
did not clear the north end.

42. The main chamber A is built of blocks of
limestone badly joined together, and with small
pieces fitted in to the corners of the larger blocks
(Pl. XXXII, elevation of S. wall). At the east end
is the door (Pl. XXXII) and above it, within a few
inches of the roof, is a narrow window. The block
below the window has been removed, but the small
portion that remains shows a chamfered edge. The
chamfer runs also up the side of the window. As in
the tomb of Ptahhetep II, the lowest courses of stone
are left rough and are painted red, the upper courses
being of dressed stone and sculptured.

In consequence of the roof being still intact, the
colours on the walls have been preserved to a very
marked extent, and here, as in the other tombs, we
came to the conclusion that the colours were all of
the same tone, harmonized by the black background.
All round the chamber is a frieze of the kheker
ornament, painted in colours ; the outer part blue,
the next line green, and the centre red ; this scheme
of colour applies to all the parts of the ornament.
Mariette says that this is the earliest example of the
use of the kheker, and as far as I know this state-
ment still holds good. The floor slopes slightly
upwards from east to west (Pl. XXXII, elevation of
S. wall), and at the ]ietcp-=Xox\^ there is a step of
4 in. high.

43, The West W.-^ll. — The west wall is occu-
pied by the stele (Pes. XX, XXXII) built of several
blocks, the joints of which, as in the other walls, do
not fit with any accuracy. The stele is surrounded
with the representation of a framework, held together
by cross-lashings, which in this instance are sculp-
tured and then painted blue. At the top is the usual
cavetto moulding ; the ribbing or leaves, which form
the ornament, are ij in. wide at the base, and are

TOMB OF USER-NETER.

also blue. Above the cavetto are the tops of the
kheker ornament, the lower parts being apparently
hidden behind the stele.

The hieroglyphs on the stele are of good work,
better than those on the side walls. Some of the
signs are very elaborate, and on many of them the
colour remains very clearly. The stele is remark-
able for the fact that it contains only hieroglyphs
and no representations of the deceased. Even the
rectangular space at the top, which Mariette calls
the tableau, and which usually contains the figure of
the deceased before a table of offerings, is here filled
with hieroglyphs only. The vertical columns at the
sides — the montants principaiix and petits montants of
Mariette — usually terminate with standing figures of
the deceased, but here the hieroglyphs are continued
to the bottom of the line. At the base of the stele
the hieroglyphs were covered with plaster, thickest
at the lowest point. Mariette's reproduction of the
stele has several mistakes and misplacements of the
signs, an unusual occurrence in his copies, which are
generally accurate.

A hetep-stone stands at the foot of the stele ; it is
plain and uninscribed.

44. The north and south walls are remarkable as
showing the complete rites for the dead ; the sacri-
fices, the bearers of offerings, the lists of offerings,
the offerings themselves, and the ceremony of purifi-
cation by water and incense. The south wall is in
very good condition, nothing of importance being
lost, but in the north wall there are large spaces
where the surface of the stone has flaked away,
leaving gaps in the sculpture. The artistic merit
and technique of the sculpture is on a level with that
of the building itself. It is crowded with detail,
which serves to hide the want of good drawing ; in
short, this tomb appeals to the archaeologist and not
to the artist.

South Wall. — The principal figure is, as is cus-
tomary, at the west end of the wall nearest the stele,
and appears of colossal size as compared with the
other figures on the same wall. Above his head are
five vertical lines of large hieroglyphs giving his titles
and name, beginning with the title " First under the
King," and ending with his name, User-neter. He
is seated in a chair with lion feet ; and he wears a
short beard and a wig of long straight curls. His
right hand is stretched towards the table of offerings,
and in his left hand he clutches a piece of cloth (?).
His dress consists of a short close-fitting kilt and a

leopard-skin, the latter being fastened on the right
shoulder by an elaborate tie with pendant ends. The
leopard-skin passes under the left arm, leaving the
shoulder bare, the claws fall over User-neter's right
arm and left thigh, the tail is brought across both
his thighs and hangs straight down ; the head of the
animal is fastened in the middle of its back, and
hangs a little below the waist of the wearer (see
Sekhemka, Pl. VII, p. g). The wide collar con-
sists of rows of beads, the outer row of pendants
strung closel}' together. Pendant beads of this shape
are not uncommon in the sculpture of the Old
Kingdom, and Prof. Petrie found the actual beads of
dark and light glaze at Deshasheh (Petrie, Desha-
sheli, pl. xxvi, p. 21). In front of User-neter is
the table of offerings with its tall leaves, and below
it is a short list of offerings. These hieroglyphs are
of exquisite workmanship, the little heads of the
animals being modelled with great delicacy. Judging
by the difference in style, I should say that these
hieroglyphs, the large figure of User-neter, and the
figures of his two sons, with the hieroglyphs that
accompany them in the middle register, were sculp-
tured by the master, and the rest of the tomb by his
pupils ; and that in this little group of hieroglyphs
the master surpassed himself.

The wall is divided into six registers at the east
end, in the middle there are four registers and a list
of offerings ; the whole is surmounted by the kheker
frieze. The list of offerings contains 97 entries, and
is arranged in three rows, each entry being divided
from the next by a vertical line.

The first register, which is very short, gives the
ceremony of purification. The foremost figure is
kneeling, with his hands on the ground, while water
is poured from behind him by another figure. This
is exactly the attitude of the man in the determi-
native of the word seth, the first entry in the list of
offerings. Then comes a partially broken figure,
who from his action appears to be offering incense.
These three are inferior priests whose rank is not
given ; they are followed by a klie7-i-heb priest wear-
ing the scarf of office across his left shoulder and
holding a roll of papyrus in his hand. Behind him
are two more unnamed assistants, the first carries
two pieces of cloth, the second opens a censer from
which three rays arise. There is a better example
on the fifth register, further down the wall, where
the balls of incense and the three rays are painted
red. I take these rays to be the flames and smoke
rising from the burning incense. Lastly there is

CHAMBER A. EAST WALL.

another klicri Jicb priest with his scarf and his
roll.

The second register is even shorter than the first,
and is divided horizontally into two rows, both con-
taining offerings. In the upper row, there is a good
example of the pink lotus, which is much rarer than
the blue variety in the sculptures.

The third register is divided horizontally through
a greater part of its length into two rows, and is
entirely filled with offerings ; near the figure of User-
neter, however, is a i'd:-priest sacrificing a bird. The
chief points of interest in this register are the bowls
filled with blue lotuses, and the wicker basket full of
joints of meat. Baskets of meat somewhat similar
to this are found in the offerings for Debehen
(L. D. ii. 36) and Ra-shepses (L. D. ii. 64 bis).
There are also jars with curious flaps at the
shoulders which are coloured black or blue, but
which, from the cross lines incised on them, are
probably intended to represent basket-work. The
small flat baskets, in which figs are almost always
represented, are partly superseded here by a large
curved square basket, at the four corners of which is
a high handle shaped like the prow of a gondola.
There are better examples on the east wall
(Pl. XXII).

In the fourth register are thirteen men walking in
procession, the two sons of User-neter lead the way ;
the eldest is named Ra-shepses, the second User-
neter after his father. The wigs of these two
personages are peculiar, and unlike any that I have
seen in other tombs. Following User-neter is an
unnamed man carrying papyrus stems, blue lotuses,
and a tray of offerings ; then comes a hen-ka, whose
name is Dua, bearing the haunch and heart of a
victim and three birds ; both these figures wear
short kilts with pleated fronts, and Dua has the end
of the cloth drawn through his waist-belt. The
fifth man has a basket of fruit and a goose ; the
sixth is heavily laden with a covered dish and a tray
of offerings on his shoulders, and with lotus blossoms
over one arm and lotus roots over the other. The
seventh figure carries the leg of an ox on his
shoulder ; the eighth, who is an unnamed hen ka,
has papyrus stems, three birds, and a pink lotus ; the
ninth, carries two trays with a calf's head and loaves,
three birds are slung by a rope round their wings
over his left arm, and over his right arm are pink
and blue lotuses ; the tenth brings a haunch, a heart,
and two birds ; the eleventh holds in his arms a
small deer with disproportionately long horns ; the

twelfth has a basket of fruit and a vase ; and the
last appears to have only a goose.

The fifth register begins with a pile of offerings,
and the remainder is filled by a procession of eleven
men, the figures being rather crowded in order to get
them into the space. The two foremost are ka-
priests, one sacrifices a bird while the other opens
the censer of burning, flaming incense. Of the other
figures, the third carries a goose ; the fourth, a deer ;
the fifth, a haunch, a heart, and two birds ; the
sixth, a calf's head and a joint of meat ; the seventh,
a basket of vegetables and a bunch of lotus blossoms ;
the eighth, papyrus stems and a tray of loaves ; the
ninth, lotus roots and a goose ; the tenth, a haunch
and a heart ; the eleventh, a young calf.

The lowest register stretches right across the wall ;
and is occupied by scenes of sacrifice. It begins
with four figures carrying portions of the victim.
Then there is a group surrounding a slaughtered ox ;
the butcher is in the act of removing the heart,
turning round at the same time as if to speak. This
appears to be the customary form at this operation.
By the side of the victim a boy kneels on one knee,
holding a large bowl to catch the blood. In other
tombs a figure carrying away a bowl of blood is often
seen (Quibell, Ramesseum, pl. xxxvi, p. 31), but
this is the only example of the actual receiving of the
blood in the appointed vessel. Another butcher
carries awaj- a haunch, while the fourth member of
the group sharpens his knife. The second ox is
being dismembered by two butchers, the third being
engaged in sharpening his knife. The third animal
is a mahez-At&r: ; the front leg is being carried away
by an assistant, the principal operator in the mean-
while turns his head aside and plunges his hand into
the body of the animal to remove the heart ; another
assistant is making ready the knife. The fourth
beast is already partially dismembered by two
butchers with their assistants ; the scene shows the
flaying of the animal. The last group is of a cow-
herd "bringing the young Jiiahez-deev.^'

45. The East Wall. The surface of this wall,
from the base of the khekcr frieze to the top of the
doorway, is occupied by a mass of offerings divided
into six rows. Here are to be seen baskets of figs,
bowls of lotuses, covered dishes with lotus-blossoms
passed through the handles, jars of liquid, baskets of
meat and of cakes, and all the other delicacies which
an Egyptian hoped to enjoy in the other world. On
each side of the door are three registers, in each of

TOMB OF USER-NETER.

which is a man conducting animals to the sacrifice.
On the right, or south, side the upper register
contains a man " bringing the young r/iahea-deex."
In the middle register a man, in a pleated kilt, leads
four meek-looking hornless oxen. In the lowest
register a cattle-herd is " bringing the young ox,"
The ox is of the breed with wide-spreading horns,
but the left horn in this instance is deformed. The
rope, with which the man controls the animal, divides
into two, one part is attached to a kind of collar
round the neck of the creature, the other is fastened
in an unexplained manner to its mouth. Probably
the artist intended to express the method of fastening
which appears to have been customary at that period
(QuiBELL, Raincsseiim, pi. xxxi). The rope passes in
a loop over the herdsman's shoulder and behind his
back.

On the left, or north, side of the doorway, the
upper register is precisely similar to the one on the
opposite side. The middle register shows another
" young ox " with wide spreading horns being led to
the slaughter, and stopping to scratch itself with its
hind leg. In the lowest register a man leads two
hornless calves, and carries in his hand a curious
roll or staff.

46. The North Wall. This is very similar to
the south wall, but there are some important points
of difference. The kheker frieze, the list of offerings,
the list of titles above the large figure of User-neter,
are merely replicas of the opposite wall, and except
for the position of the left hand the figure of User-
neter is precisely the same as the other.

In the first and second registers are scenes from the
funeral rites. Two men, kneeling, offer a small vase
in each hand ; in shape and size these vases are like
the tiny stone jars found in the prehistoric graves.
A kheri-hcb priest stands behind them, and is followed
by two assistants carrying linen and incense, and
another kheri-heb brings up the rear.

The second register begins with a figure of which
very little remains ; enough, however, is still visible
to show that it is a kneeling man ; water is being
poured on his hands by a man standing behind him ;
he is followed by an incense-bearer, and then come
three men with the vessels used in the sacred rites ;
a kcs vase, a table for the offerings, of which many
are to be seen in museums, and a large bowl with a
spout, very similar to the spouted bowl in which the
boy catches the victim's blood (Pl. XXI).

The third register represents the offerings ; two

men stand amid the piles of food, one sacrificing a
bird, the other offering incense. The fourth register
begins with the two sons, Ra-shepses sacrificing a
bird and User-neter lifting the cover of the incense-
burner. Behind them are thirteen men carrying
offerings. The workmanship of these registers is
very poor, and much of it has been slurred over
evidently with the hope that the paint would cover
all deficiencies. The objects carried in this proces-
sion are of interest ; the third man has pieces of
linen ; the fourth, a libation-vase ; the fifth, a scten-
hetep, unfortunately this object is broken, it looks,
however, like a flat tray carried on the shoulder.
The sixth man has a table like the one in the second
register, it is called an "altar," and on it is a large
loaf; the seventh has papyrus stems and a small
basket with a handle ; the eighth, a vase, lotus
blossoms, and a bird ; the ninth, a tray of loaves,
two birds, and papyrus stems (?) ; the tenth, a
vase (?), a basket with handle, and lotus blossoms;
the eleventh, a tray of fruit, lotus blossoms and
roots, papyrus stems, and a bird, the workmanship
is peculiarly careless in this figure. The twelfth has
a haunch and a heart ; the thirteenth, lotus blossoms
and two vases ; the fourteenth, a tray of fruit, lotus
roots, and a long object, possibly papyrus stems,
passed through his girdle ; the fifteenth, a goose.

The heap of offerings in the fifth register is
partially broken away ; it is remarkable for the un-
usual number of pink lotuses; a great deal of colour,
chiefly green, still remains. The procession of men,
ten in number, is preceded, as usual, by the man
sacrificing a bird and the man offering incense.
These are probably, in every instance, the two sons,
though the names are only given twice. The third
man in the procession carries a goose ; the fourth, a
haunch, a heart, and a joint ; the fifth, a large loaf,
a tray laden with various objects, lotus blossoms,
lotus roots, the last being quite unfinished, and
recognizable only by the outline ; the sixth, a vase,
a piece of linen (?), and a bird ; the seventh, a
tray of fruit and a trussed goose ; the eighth, a
haunch, another joint, and a heart ; the ninth, a
large basket of fruit and vegetables, lotus blossoms,
and lotus roots ; the tenth, a small deer.

The sixth and lowest register, like that on the
south wall, contains sacrificial scenes. It differs
slightly in detail, but the unusual figure of the child
with the bowl for the blood is repeated, unfortunately
the outline of the bowl has almost vanished. In the
group immediately following the broken portion of

DOORWAY.

the wall is a figure of one of the butchers' assistants
holding up the leg of the ox. This figure was
originally made too small, and has been altered
twice, with the result that it is possible to trace
three heads, two bodies, and four arms. When
painted over, the mistake would not be observed,
even though the elaborately sculptured wig of the
second head comes across the face as it was left
finally. At the end of the register a herdsman is
"bringing a young heifer," which appears to be
giving trouble either by showing fight or by trying
to run away. The herdsman is pulling with both
hands and his foot at the rope, which is fastened
either to the cow's lower jaw in the usual way, or
perhaps to its near fore-leg, it is impossible to say
which. The near fore-leg is pulled up towards the
body, while a boy seizes the other, in order to pull
the creature on its knees. Another boy, who has
also come to the man's assistance, has hold of the
animal's tail with both hands.

Against the north wall is an altar of stone like that
in the tomb of Ptahhetep II. It is uninscribed, and
at the east end (the end furthest from the stele) is
an arm like the arm of a sofa in miniature. This
arm is circular in section, and only 2| in. in
diameter.

47. Doorway. The reveals of the doorway
between chambers A and B (Pl. XXV) were origin-
ally sculptured in several registers on each side.
Very little remains in silu, but we found loose in the
sand some fragments which evidently belonged to
the doorway, though it was not possible to fit them
all into their proper places. The scenes are those
usually found in doorways, rows of bearers of offer-
ings ; among the offerings lotuses are very con-
spicuous. The bearers wear the pleated kilt which
is very common in this tomb. The roof of the door-
way is painted to imitate granite ; the drum
(Pl. XXV) has the chief title and the name, " First
under the King, User-neter ; " the hieroglyphs are in
relief, and painted a brilliant green, ver\- different
in tone to the greens of chamber A, which were
intended to be seen on a dark background.

48. Chamber B. Over the doorway is an in-
scribed architrave ; two out of the three stones
which compose it still remain, the third had dis-
appeared before the time of Mariette. The inscrip-
tion consists of six lines, and terminates in a figure
of User-neter seated on a chair holding a long staff

in his left hand, and a cloth in his right. His wig
is long with straight curls, and he wears a starched
kilt and an elaborate necklace.

At the north end of this wall is the niche
(Pl. XXIV). On the north side much of the colour
still remained, especially on the figure of the wife.
This had been carved in the plaster with which the
faulty parts of the stone had been overlaid, and the
colours had sunk into the plaster. The effect of the
figure nmst have been brilliant in the extreme ; the
flesh tints were yellow ; the wig black, marked out
along the edge of each curl with a line of white ; the
ribbon, which is tied in big bows round the head
was red, green, and white ; the necklace was blue
and green ; the dress dark-green; and the lotus blue.
No colour remained on the corresponding figure
on the south side, but some of the hieroglyphs
were painted on the stone without having been
sculptured.

From the wearing of the stone it would seem that
the niche had been open for many years, and it was
probably here that many of the offerings were made
and the ceremonies performed for the dead. This
chamber with its niche may very well have been the
Usekht, where an offering (the Hetcp-Usckht of the
lists) was presented ; the inner tomb chamber with
its elaborate sculpture being reserved for great
festivals only.

49. Chamber C. This small chamber was un-
inscribed, and was opened only because I wished to
see where the north door of Chamber B led. The
walls are of rough blocks, and the roof, consisting
of two slabs running east and west, is intact.

To my uninstructed eyes, the west wall appears
to be giving way, but as the chamber has never
been filled with sand, and yet has lasted all these
centuries, it is probable that there is no real danger.
A doorway leads eastward from this room to
Chamber D.

The roof of the doorway is painted to imitate
granite ; the drum (Pl. XXV) has been covered
with stucco, in which hieroglyphs have been incised,
and then painted green. Both the paint and the
stucco were so fragile that it was almost impossible
to copy the signs. The inscription is almost the
same as on the drum of the inner door, " First
under the King, User-neter, the old."
. Chamber D. This is another uninscribed cham-
ber, also built of rough blocks. It is the largest
chamber in the tomb, at least as far as we excavated.

TOMB OF PTAHSHEPSES I.

though it is possible that other and larger chambers
may lie beyond,

The roofing slabs were enormous, two remained
in position at the south end ; the one, which had
covered the portion over the doorway, had dis-
appeared ; and further to the north, one had slipped
off the west wall, and was lying at a sharp angle,
supported by the east wall and the sand. All the
roofing stones in this chamber were in bad condition,
flaking away on the under side, the sand under them
being strewn with fragments.

Under the roof at the south end we found a
few pots of the XVIIIth and XXIInd Dynasties,
evidently from a later burial.

50. Chamber A. West Wall. Limestone blocks,

stele.
Heh'j>-stone at base of stele ;
measurements 4 ft. 11 in. X i ft.
10 in. X 8j in. from lower step,
4 in. from upper step.
South Wall. Limestone blocks.
Three lowest courses
rough and painted,
upper courses sculp-
tured.
East Wall. Limestone blocks.
Doorway, height
8 ft. i^ in. Window,
measurements 6 in.
X 3 ft.
North Wall. Limestone blocks.
Three lowest courses
rough and painted,
upper courses sculp-
tured.

Measurements of
altar 5 ft. li- in
X I ft. 7i in.x yi-in
— I ft. o] ; arm
width 2h, height 2j
Roof. Intact. Four stones run

ning N. and S.
Floor. Paved, slopes upwards from
E. to W. ; at /2£ie/> stone a step
4 in. high.
Chamber B. West Wall. Limestone blocks.

Doorway, height
8 ft. liin. Inscribed
architrave above ;
reveals sculptured.

drum inscribed.
Roof of doorway
painted red to imi-
tate granite.
Little wall, measure-
ments, I ft. 7i X gi
in. X 2 ft. 9 in.
Niche, sculptured
and painted, height
6 ft. 6 in.
South Wall. Limestone blocks.

No decoration.
East Wall. Limestone blocks.

No decoration.
North Wall. Limestone blocks.
Doorway, height
6 ft. 9 in. Roof of
doorway painted to
imitate granite.
Roof. Two out of three stones in
position, running E. and W.,
painted to imitate granite.
Floor. Paved.
Chamber C. Walls. Limestone blocks unsciilp-
tured.
Roof. Intact. Two slabs

running E. and W.
Floor. Not seen.
Chamber D. Walls. Limestone blocks, rough
and unsculptured.
Roof. Two slabs in posi-
tion, running E. and W. ;
one fallen.
Floor. Not seen.
Doorway to Chamber C.
Drum inscribed ; roof of
doorway painted to imi-
tate granite.

CHAPTER X.

TOMB OF PTAHSHEPSES I.

61. This little tomb is not noticed by Mariette,
though he excavated it among the others. It is
very small and its chief beauty lies in the colour of
its painted walls. The mastaba itself is of brick,
the tomb chamber being lined with slabs of white
limestone, from 3^ in. thick and upwards. It is a
small chamber and has been made still smaller by a

THE STELE.

mud-brick wall at the north and south sides, reach-
ing originally from floor to ceiling, and extending
2 ft. g in. from the limestone walls. On the south
side the brick wall has been destroyed to within
about 3j ft. from the ground, but on the north side
the wall remains to a height of nearly 6 ft. That
these are part of the original construction is shown
by the painting of the deceased on the northern
wall(PL. XXVII), which has been broken away only
at the top, and by the fact that the roof is painted
red in imitation of granite except on the portions
covered by the walls, these remain uncoloured.
The tomb has been considerably damaged ; holes
are knocked in the limestone walls, evidently with
the purpose of discovering the serdab, but as Mariette
has no record of this tomb it is uncertain whether
the search was successful.

52. The West Wall. The west wall is occupied
by the stele (Pls. XXVI and XXXIV), an erection
which owes its interest to the patterns with which
it was profusely decorated. The lower part was
painted red to imitate granite, the figures and
hieroglyphs being yellow. Here again were found
traces of plaster, the hieroglyphs and part of the
figure being filled up so as to form a flat surface.
The figures represent Ptahshepses standing, holding
a staff in one hand, and the papyrus sceptre in the
other. The chief beauty lay, however, in the upper
part, where each rectangular space was filled by a
pattern in colours, the spaces between being also
painted in patterns or in squares of flat colour. The
effect must have been brilliant in the extreme,
though probably perfectly harmonious, as all the
colours, with the exception of red, appear to have
been of the same tone.

The colours are represented in our drawing by
heraldic shading : vertical lines = red ; horizontal =
blue ; diagonal = green ; dots = yellow.

In the upper part of the stele is the usual conven-
tional representation of the deceased, seated and
stretching out his hands towards a table of offerings,
below which is a short list enumerating the chief
offerings which he requires. Below is a band giving
his name and titles.

Above the stele and against the roof are the
remains of a pattern which originally continued all
round the chamber, and of which small fragments
are to be seen above the entrance door. It is the
same pattern as that in the painted chamber of the
tomb of Ptahhetep II (Pl. XV).

53. The South Wall. Nothing remains but a
fragment of the inner brick wall, and beyond it are
the limestone slabs which Hne the chamber.

East Wall. The limestone blocks are covered
with a thin coating of plaster, on which are painted
scenes of sacrifice, and figures of bearers of offerings
(Pl. XXVII). There are three registers ; the upper
one, which is very indistinct, gives the usual scene
of the slaughter of sacrificial cattle; the inscriptions,
if there ever were any, have entirely disappeared.
The second register, of which a fragment remains
across the doorway, also shows the procession of
bearers of offerings ; the lowest register, on both
sides of the door, gives part of the same procession.
The entire painting is greatly mutilated, but it is
possible to discover what many of the objects are
which are being carried. Below these there have
been tables of offerings, one on each side of the
door, but it is impossible to say with any certainty
what objects are represented, as little more than
mere traces of colour still remains.

Across the entrance door is the round lintel which
was invariably used in tombs of the Old Kingdom.
It bears the principal title and the name of the
deceased in dark green hieroglyphs on a red ground.

The North Wall. The brick wall, broken at
the top, has been plastered smoothly to receive a
design in colour. The deceased is represented (Pl.
XXVII) seated before a table of offerings, on which
the usual upright sword-like leaves are shown ; they
are painted a yellowish brown, showing that the
traditional colour of the object was remembered
though its real origin was forgotten. The face is
broken away, but part of the head remains. Beyond
are a few traces of a pile of offerings heaped up
beside the table.

The ceiling is composed of seven limestone slabs
which cross the roof in a single span. The red
paint with which they were coloured extends no
further than the limit of the brick wall. The floor is
paved with limestone blocks, and at the foot of the
stele is a grey granite table of offerings, set in the
ground and sloping inwards towards the stele
(Pl. XXVII). It is greatly worn in the middle, the
Hetep being merely a thin shell and the hieroglyphs
having completely disappeared. The conventional
representations of cakes are, however, still quite
perfect.

54. West Wall.

Limestone stele
Table

of ofl'erings.

measure-

TOMD OF PTAHSHEPSES II.

ments, 4 ft. o^l in. x i ft. 2 in.
X 5 in.

South Wall. Limestone blocks with inner
mud brick wall broken to
within about 3 ft. of the
ground.

East Wall. Limestone blocks covered with
plaster and painted. Height
of doorway, 7 ft. 4! in.

North Wall. Limestone blocks with inner
mud-brick wall, broken only
at the top. Measurements
of bricks, 11^ in. X 5^ in. x
3 in.

Roof. Intact. Seven blocks, running E. and
W. ; painted red except where
covered by the brick walls.

Floor. Paved.

Height of chamber, g ft. 10^ in.

CHAPTER XI.

TOMB OF PTAHSHEPSES II.

55. The tomb of Ptahshepses II (Mar., Mast., E
I and 2) is due north of Ptahshepses I. According
to Mariette it is a doublt? tomb, the other part
belonging to Sabu, surnamed Abba, whose relation-
ship to Ptahshepses it is not possible to determine.
As all the sculptures from the tomb of Sabu are
now in the Cairo Museum, we did not open that
part, but cleared only the portion belonging to
Ptahshepses. Unfortunately we had no time to
copy the very interesting scenes from Sabu's tomb in
the Museum.

Mariette remarks that the walls of the tomb of
Ptahshepses are covered with plaster too hard to
remove, and on that account he could not copy it.
The walls were certainly thickly coated with plaster,
and but for Mariette's words and a few hollows here
and there showing hieroglyphs underneath, I should
have supposed the walls to be blank. The plaster
was hard, but fortunately it came off in flakes, dis-
closing scenes and inscriptions beneath (Pes. XXIX,
XXX). Two days' hard work were required to clear
it away ; and this work we did ourselves, the stone
being too soft and friable to trust to the unskilful
hands of the workmen, it being a delicate task to

clear the plaster out of the hollows of the incised
hieroglyphs.

56. The tomb is of fine limestone from Mokattam,
according to Mariette, the outer walls being of a
silicious limestone. The roof is still intact, and a
few blocks of the flooring remain. The stele (Pl.
XXVIII) is of limestone, painted red to imitate
granite, the hieroglyphs and the two figures of the
deceased at the top being incised and coloured
green, and the figures of the deceased at the base
are incised also, and painted yellow. The cavetto
at the top is merely painted and not sculptured ; no
colour remains, the lines showing dark against the
stone. The names of the sacred oils on each side of
the stele are incised, and the hierogl}phs are painted
in their proper colours. In several places the
original drawing, in red paint, of the sign, still
remains, showing that the sculptor worked inside
the lines of the first sketch, and in every instance he
has improved on the curves of the original.

The table of ofterings (Pl. XXXI, 8) was at the
foot of the stele ; it is very worn, and was partially
plastered up ; but whether by design or by the
running-down of the plaster from the stele I could
not determine. There is no inscription on it, only
rough representations of the off"erings, three circular
cakes, two ordinary jars for containing liquid,
probably beer, and a vase for pouring libations.
The stone is placed so that the broken part touches
the stele.

57. The South Wall. The south wall is in
much worse condition than the north wall, being
greatlj' broken in parts. The inscription above the
head of Ptahshepses, and the list of offerings are the
same as on the north wall. The representation of
Ptahshepses is slightly diflerent in attitude from that
on the north wall ; his right hand is stretched out to
the table of offerings, his left hand rests on his leg
and holds an object which looks like a folded cloth.
Between him and the table are two vessels of the
same shape as those on the north \vall, the lower
one resting on a stand.

The register below the list of offerings contains
two rows of offerings ; then comes a /t«-priest who
carries on his left shoulder a large basket with
loaves, vegetables, and joints of meat. In his right
hand he holds a rope, with which he leads two goats.
Behind him are the butchers cutting up a sacrificed
o.\.

NORTH WALL.

The next register, which is partially destroyed,
contains piled-up heaps of offerings.

The third register begins with a little list. " A
thousand hanks of thread, a thousand pieces of
cloth, a thousand loaves, a thousand cakes, a
thousand jars (of beer)." Then comes a man
named Men-ahy, carrying on his left shoulder a
trayful of meat, bread, and fruit. In his right hand
he holds two birds by their wings, and also a rope
with which he leads two small sturdy goat-like
animals. This personage appears again among the
bearers of offerings in the doorway (Pl. XXXI).
Two unnamed servants follow, the hrst of whom
■carries on his right shoulder a tray on which a bird
only can be distinguished ; across his left arm he
holds papyrus stalks entwined with lotuses ; and he
leads by a rope three small deer with long horns.
The last man has a large goose in one arm, and in
the right hand he holds three birds by the wings,
while he also leads a small animal, probably a calf,
by a rope.

The lowest register contains eight bearers of
offerings. The lirst carries the leg of an ox, and is
Sabu, the son of the deceased. The second also
carries an ox-leg, and is named, " His son, Ptah-
shepses." The third, unnamed, carries two geese in
one arm, and a jar in the other hand. The other
five men carry birds, three or four each, and wring
their necks. Above the fifth man are his name and
office roughly scratched on the stone, as though by
an unskilled hand, " The /'^-servant, loving his lord,
Ankh-menkh}-."

58. North Wall (Pl. XXIX). The sculptures
on this wall, with the exception of the list of
offerings, are in relief, the list only being incised.
This was very fortunate for us, as the plaster came
away more easily from the raised work than from
the incised hieroglyphs. The upper part of the wall
is occupied by the titles of Ptahshepses and by the
list of offerings.

Ptahshepses is seated before the table of offerings
with his right hand outstretched, and his left hand,
which holds some indeterminate object, is against
his breast. He wears a necklace and bracelets, and
the folds of his garment are indicated. Before him
are piles of offerings and bearers of offerings. In
the upper register, immediately below the list of
offerings, there is a double row of cakes, fruits,
joints, and vases ; then comes a man bearing on his
shoulder a leg of a sacrificed ox. He is probably

the same person that appears in a lower register.
Next are two butchers cutting off the front leg of a
slaughtered animal. Lastly, there are two men,
each carrying the leg of an ox ; one is called Nesu-
ptah and appears again in the lowest register.

The second register is filled with offerings, birds,
joints of meat, fruit, loaves, and jars piled up in
confusion.

In the third register, between Ptahshepses and
the stand of the table of offerings are two vessels
with spouts, of the shape of certain copper vessels
found in tombs of the 1st Dynasty. On the other
side of the table are three jars in a stand, and above
them is a short list of offerings. Four bearers of
offerings fill up the register ; the first carries a calf
on his shoulder. The second leads an antelope
with his left hand, the rope passing round the
animal's neck and chest ; on his right shoulder he
carries a tray laden with cakes and vegetables, with
a basket hanging from his right wrist. The third
carries on his right shoulder two traj's, one abo\e
the other ; in the upper one is a meat-offering, an
ox's head and the joint called sut ; the lower tray
contains a loaf and two covered baskets ; in his left
hand are two birds carried by the wings. The
fourth, who is called merely a /^rt-servant and is
without a name, has a tray on his right shoulder
with offerings of vegetables and loaves, and in his
left hand two papyrus-reeds.

The lowest register contains eight men, of whom
the first three are said to be the sons of Ptahshepses.
As all three bear the same name, though with
different titles, it is possible that these may be three
representations of one person, especiall}' as on the
opposite wall in the corresponding scene two sons
only are mentioned, Sabu and Ptahshepses. The
first man, " his son Ptahshepses," carries a leg of an
ox ; the second, with a similar burden, is also a son,
and his name also is Ptahshepses ; the third carries
a very large goose in both arms, he is " His son,
Ptah-sheps." After these three come five men, with
their names and titles, all of whom are sacrificing
the birds which they carry, by wringing their necks.
The last man is without either name or title.

59. The sculpture on the outer walls and the
doorway (Pl. XXXI) is of much finer and more
artistic work than in the inner part of the tomb, and
is probably by a different hand. No. 3, on the
south side of the doorway, shows Ptahshepses
holding a staff and a mace, and preceded by his son.

MISCELLANEOUS OBJECTS AND INSCRIPTIONS.

Sabu, and followed b}- another diminutive figure,
probably the other son Ptahshepses, of whom
nothing remains but the legs and feet. Below are
three bearers of offerings ; the first carries a goose,
bunches of onions (?), and an indeterminate object
in the left arm, and three birds in the right hand.
The second carries a tra}-, now completely destroyed,
and bunches of onions (?) ; the third carries a small
deer and lotuses.

The north side of the doorway (No. 7) is destroj'ed
with the exception of the three bearers of offerings,
the first of whom is Men-ah}', who is also represented
in the inner part of the tomb on the south wall.
These hieroglyphs are very finely and carefulK'
sculptured. Men-ahj' carries a bird by the wings in
the left hand, and in the right an object so much
destroyed that it is impossible to determine its
nature. It is possibly a bunch of lotuses, of which
the stalks are wrapped round his hand. He is
followed by Merhetep, who has a tray of loaves on
his shoulder, a bunch of lotus roots with long stalks
over his arm, and a lotus with two buds in his hand.
The last man in the procession is unnamed, he
carries three birds by the wings in one hand, and a
large goose in the other arm.

According to Mariette {Mast., p. 378), the north
side of the doorway was still intact, and had a
representation of Ptahshepses with his son Ptah-
shepses and an unnamed daughter.

Nos. I and 2 are on the outer walls which face
east, and represent Ptahshepses and his wife Anthat.
The fragments, 5 and 6, which were lying loose
in the sand, probably belong to the inscription
above the heads of the figures, but I was unable to
fit them into their proper places.

60. No. 4 is the architrave, of which we found
only this small fragment lying loose in the sand.
Mariette {Mast., p. 377) gives a complete copy of the
inscription, showing that it was intact when he
opened the tomb ; therefore it must have been
destroyed in recent years. He also gives (p. 378) an
inscription from a cylindrical drum which has
entirel)- disappeared, " Honoured by Ptah Resi-anb-
ef, the high priest, he who is in the two houses,
Ptahshepses, the honoured one."

61. West \\'all. Stele, limestone, painted red,

hieroglyphs green, figures
yellow. Top of wall slopes
upwards towards the north.

Measurement of table of offerings 3 ft. 4 x

I ft. 3^x6 \ in.
North and South Walls. Limestone blocks.
Roof. Intact. Two slabs of stone running

north and south.
Floor. Paved.
Height of chamber, 7 ft. 11 i in. at south end,

8 ft. li at north end.
Outer Walls. Batter | in 12.

CHAPTER XII.

MISCELLANEOUS OBJECTS AND INSCRIPTIONS.

On Pl. XXX\T. are a few small objects and
inscriptions which were copied for some definite
reason.

62. I is an almost illegible stele of the XlXth
Dynast}', which was found b\- the Qufti workmen
when digging the foundations of our house at
Saqqara.

Nos. 2 and 3 have already- been described on
P- 3-

63. No. 9. The Coptic inscription was found by
accident on visiting the work of some scbakhin who
were digging in the desert not far from the head of
the dyke-road. It was due to Miss Hansard's
quickness of observation that we found this inscrip-
tion, which was on a broken stone lying on the
ground in such a position as to be scarcely visible.
I believe it is now in the Cairo Museum. The
sebakliin had apparently come upon a Christian
church, stone lined, with small stone pillars of
a debased Roman t3pe, but we saw no other
inscriptions, except a few fragments of hieroglyphs,
though we searched carefully on more than one
occasion. The site appeared from the remains of
houses to have once been a village, and the pieces
of painted pottery, Nos. 4 — 8, were found among
the ruins. A great deal of Roman glass could be
seen, but we could not find any that was of any
interest or value, merely small fragments. There
was however a lump of green glass, apparently from
a glass-worker's workshop, showing that a great part
of the glass was probably of local manufacture. I
also found an amphora-handle, stamped with a
monogram, see Cairo Cat. 26,110.

COPTIC INSCRIPTION.

29,

64. Coptic Inscription. This is described by
Mr. Crum as follows : — Apparently the right-hand
portion of a slab, Pl. XXXVI, opposite the end
of L 2, being the broken arm of the central cross.
It commemorates certain officials of a monastery,
probably that of [" our] holy [father] Apa Jeremias,"
i.e. the monastery in the " hill of Memphis," well
known from other documents (v. Krall, Corpus
Rainer ii, Rechts-urkunden, p. 79, Amelineau
Geographie, 248 ; Eg. Expl. Fund's Report 1902 — 03,
62.) This Jeremias seems to have lived about the
year 500 {v. John of Nikiu, p. 488). The other
names are Apa Alexandros, perhaps the woman's

title, Ama , and Nishteroo[u], who was

SevTepdpio^, or second in authority in the com-
munity. This last name occurs only once else-
where and that in a deed dated from the verj'
monastery in question (v. Krall in Recueil de Trav.,
vi, 66). It is probably a Middle-Egyptian variant
of Nishgroou (Zoega, 366), and is transcribed in
Greek as NiaT6pwo<;, NiarepCov (Migne, PC, 65, 305).

As to any other inscriptions or objects found on
that site I cannot speak. I should fancy from the
broken pottery and other objects which we saw
scattered about that it might have been worth
while to excavate the site for Roman and Coptic, or
even Ptolemaic, remains. Now it is too late, the
sebakhin have worked their will on it, and any historic
value which it may have possessed is destroyed.

CHAPTER XIII.

OFFERINGS.

65. Hyaenas. It appears from the sculptures in
the tombs that in the Old Kingdom hyaenas were
amongst the domestic animals and were probably
used as food. In the tomb of Sekhemka (Pl. VII)
among the animals which are being taken to the
sacrifice is a hyaena, carried in the arms of a /&«-priest.
In the tomb of Peheniuka (L. D. ii, 45) at Saqqara
there is again a hyaena being carried among the
deer and cattle which are offered to the deceased. In
the tombs of Thentha (L. D. ii, 30), of Ra-en-kau
(L. D. ii, 15 b.), of Neb-em-akhet (L. D. ii, 14 c),
all at Gizeh, and of Meru, surnamed Beba (D.-wiES,
Sheikh Said, pis. xix, xx), at Sheikh Said, hyaenas
are led by herdsmen with the other domestic
animals. In the tomb of Ptahhetep II (Pl. X)
there are traces of a hyaena led by one of the farm-

women, but this is rare, the}- are usuall\- brought by
the herdsmen. In the tomb of Khafra-ankh (L. D.
ii, 11) at Gizeh, a large female hyaena is being
driven by a man holding its tail ; and at Deir el
Gebrawi, in the tombof Asa(DAViES, Deir el Gebrawi
ii, pl. xviii), a female hyaena, called Iiethet nefert,
is being pulled forward by a man who appears to be
using a certain amount of force. In the tomb of
Anta (Petrie, Deshasheli. pl. ix) at Deshasheh, a
huge hyaena is being led b}- two men. These
instances show the hyaenas to be not uncommon
among the animals offered to the dead.

But there is still further proof that the hyaena was
as domesticated as the antelopes and other so-called
"wild" animals with which we are familiar in the
sculptures. In the tomb of Ptahhetep at Saqqara
(QuiBELL, Ramesseiim. pl. xxxiii), a huntsman is
leading hyaenas with the hunting dogs, but in this
instance they are evidently not for food, though
quite domesticated. In a farmyard scene in the
tomb of Shepseskaf-ankh (L. D. ii, 50 b) at Gizeh,
there is a h3-aena tethered by a short rope to a hoop
in the ground in exactly the same manner as other
domestic animals. In another farmyard scene in
a tomb (L. D. ii, 96) at Saqqara is a herd of
creatures with bushy tails, which, though not well
drawn, cannot be taken for anything but hyaenas.
And in the unpublished tombs of Kagemni
(photograph in Edwards' collection) and Mera at
Saqqara there are scenes in which hyaenas are
being fattened by having food forced down their
throats ; similar scenes in which birds are fattened
are well-known.

From this accumulation of evidence it appears
certain that in the Old Kingdom the hyaena was
recognized as an animal for food, and that attention
was paid to the fattening of the creatures and to
getting them into good condition for eating by feed-
ing them on clean and wholesome food.

It is not clear where the supply of hyaenas came
from. They are not found in hunting scenes on the
desert, nor in the representations of animals caught
in nets. It seems probable, considering the number
of females which appear, that they were bred in con-
finement, like any other animal which was kept in
the farmyard for use as food.

I have not been able to find a scene of the slaughter
of hyaenas for the use of the dead, nor can I identify
any of the joints among the offerings as portions of
this animal.

On the ivory handle of a prehistoric flint knife in

OFFERINGS.

the Pitt-Rivers collection (Petrie and Quibell,
Naqada and Ballas, pi. Ixxvii.) hyaenas are carved.
It was a sacrificial knife, and the animals figured on
the handle are possibly the sacrificial animals.

66. Lotus. In many of the Old Kingdom tombs,
we find among the objects brought for the dead are
bunches of lotus, both bud and blossom, which are
carried with the long drooping stalks over the
bearer's arm while his hands are occupied with other
objects. The blue and pink lotuses are so carefully
differentiated that there is no possibility of mistaking
them. Sometimes we find (Pls. XXV, XXXI)
bearers of offerings carrying a bunch of roots, these,
like the blossoms, are hung by their long drooping
stalks over the arm. They have been usually iden-
tied with the lieziu of the lists of offerings, and trans-
lated " Onions," but the growth is not that of the
onion. The stalks are in every respect like those of
the lotus flowers, and they always occur in a pro-
cession where the lotus is a prominent feature. It
must be then the lotus-root of which the Greek
authors make constant mention, and which they tell
us was largely eaten by the Egyptians. Pliny says
that the lotus root was the size of a quince ; the out-
side covered with a black skin like that of a chest-
nut ; the inside being white and good to eat. He
preferred it boiled or roasted, but it appears to have
been eaten raw as well. Diodorus says, " They made
them bread of Loton, the invention whereof was
ascribed to Isis, and by others to one of the most
ancient kings of Egypt, named Menas." This
shows that the use of the lotus as food was con-
sidered to be co-eval with corn, which was also
introduced by Isis.

Herodotus also tells us that the Egyptians " eat
the root of the lotus, which is round and equal to an
apple in bigness. Another lily grows in the same
places, much like a rose, with a certain fruit found
at the foot of the stem, in form not unlike a wasp"s
nest, and covered with a pellicule containing divers
kernels of the size of an olive stone, which are eaten
either tender or dried " (Littlebury's translation).

Another part of the lotus was also used as food.
Pliny relates that the seed vessel, which he says
resembles a poppy-head, contains seeds like millet.
The people, he sa3's, let the seed-vessels deca}', then
remove the seeds by washing, and when dry they
grind them to make a kind of bread. Herodotus, too,
'mentions that the Egyptians eat " the heart of the
plant," evidently the seed-vessel, for he describes it

as being like a poppy-head ; that " they mould it into
a paste, and bake as bread."' This lotus bread is not
yet identified among the offerings.

67. In Pls. IX, X, XII there are several women
who carry stems of papyrus across the shoulder, and
others who carry on their baskets a bundle of short,
straight stalks, like candles. These stalks are
evidently the edible part of the papyrus according to
Herodotus, who says, "The byblus they annually
gather in the fens, and divide into two parts ; the
head is reserved for other uses, but the lower part,
being of a cubit in length, is eaten and publicly sold.
When any one is desirous to eat these stems dressed
in the best manner, he stews them in a clean pan "
(Littlebury's translation).

Diodorus appears to have seen the pap3-rus root
eaten as well as the stalks, " they live upon the roots
of bulrushes and others, which they roast in the
embers, and with the stalks of plants gathered in
the marshes, sometimes boiled, sometimes roasted,
and often raw."

68. The sacred oils or perfumes are generally
seven in number, but in the early lists of offerings
(Pls. I and II, and Petrie, Medimi, pi. xiii) five
others are mentioned, while in chap, cxlvi of the
Book of the Dead there are others which are not
found in the lists.

Pliny, in his Natural Historj', gives some interest-
ing information about Egyptian perfumes. Egypt,
he says, was the country which produced the best
aromatic substances, and though the most celebrated
perfume of ancient times came from the island of
Delos, yet the perfume of Mendes was hardly inferior
to it.

His description of " metopium " applies very well
to the perfumes made of a liquid oil thickened with
other substances. The foundation of metopium was
oil of bitter almonds, to which were added ompha-
cium, cardamoms, juncus, calamus, honey, wine,
myrrh, balsam seed, galbanum, and terebinth resin.
Metopium appears to have been valued ver}' highly
as a perfume.

Dr. Walker has very kindly given me the following
notes on these ingredients : —

" OinpliaciiDii is the juice of unripe grapes, accord-
ing to Pliny, but the Greek oficlia^ is used also for
unripe olives, and in fact anj- unripe fruit. Jiincns and
calamus are much the same, both are used for ' rush '
and ' reed,' in fact A.KE in Coptic is translated as

SACRED OILS AND PERFUMES.

both j/nu'/is ^nd calamus, "l ^^^ ((j km KAJU. is the

common hieroglyph used for Jiuiciis, and there is a
rtOVrte ftKA^AX in the Paris Codex 44, fol. 83, for
which the Greek gloss reads fjieXevT^piov , ' honey of
the inside,' evidently a sweet juice extracted from
the root of rush. A calaimts odoratits is mentioned
I Pliny, which is evidently the sweet rush or ' spice-
wort.' Galbaniim is used in our Pharmacopoeia. It
is an aromatic gum-resin obtained from plants in
India and the Levant, chiefly used as a plaister.
Tcrcbintli resin, obtained from different kinds of pine
trees, is also used only for plaisters."

Another perfume was obtained from a grain like
that of coriander, white and aromatic. It was first
boiled in oil and then crushed, and the perfume
which was the result was called " cyprus." The best
came from Canopus on the banks of the Nile.

Two plants which yielded a scented oil were the
" myrobalanus " and the "malobathro," of which the
best kinds came from Egypt. The fruit of a palm
called " adipsos " was much valued ; it had the odour
of a quince and was used before it ripened. There
is confirmation of this statement, as jars containing
palm oil have been found even in prehistoric graves
(Petrie, Diospolis Parva, p. 15), and the sand-filling
of the tomb of King Mersekha (Petrie, Royal
Tombs i, p. 14.) was saturated with perfumed oil,
the scent of which was still noticeable. The salvia
aetliiopis, called " marum " by Plin)-, was also used,
though the Egyptian variety was not considered
equal to the Lydian.

At Edfu there is a text which gives elaborate
directions for making the heknn perfume, giving
the exact weight of every ingredient (Dumichen,
A.Z., 1879, looj. The principal ingredient is the

^^ ° W 0 ^^''^ nezeinui, " Fruit of the sweet tree,"
which may be the mjTobalanus or malobathro
of Pliny, as from the fruit of both these plants a
perfumed oil is expressed. The ingredients of the
perfume are : — •

Pert nezeinui.

Ajiii-resin (i.e. frankincense) of two qualities.

Ab-iesin.

A>^plant (f '^ )

T/ies/ieJ>s-pl3.nt Q ^^ (J)

Wood charcoal.

S/iel>en-p\3.nt.

Best wine of the Oasis.

Water.

Nemb-ves'm (_(U. M^ '<^\.

All the dry materials were to be pounded and sifted
before being mixed with the wine. The pert-nczeniui
was to be pressed and boiled over a quick fire, then
it was added to the other ingredients, and the whole
compound was boiled again, and poured ofi" into a
/J'/^f/'t'/;-vessel. The whole process took about eleven
days.

Another recipe is given for the °u^ mezet perfume.

This is possibly a late name for one of the sacred
oils of these lists. A sacrificial ox, ceremonially
pure, is to be slaughtered and the fat cut off with a
clean knife. The fat is to be melted and poured
into a stone vessel. When all impurities are
removed, it is to be perfumed with herbs and mixed
with the wine of the Oasis ; this mixing is to be
done in a golden vessel with a gold or silver imple-
ment. The fat is then to be cooked with aromatic
herbs, and coloured red with the flowers of the Nesti
and Nevii plants ; when finished it is poured into a
stone vessel. This perfume is made on the modern
principle ; except that beef suet is used instead of
lard, and wine instead of rectified spirits.

In the Ebers Papyrus there is a receipt for
another perfume {kyplii) made of dried myrrh,

juniper berries, incense, gyu-'p\z.\\\. (ffltls"^),

(1 (I ^ 3) of

Northern Syria, _y«/!v/« ((1(1 j, and zeni-

.'^«-plant C^ ^ ^ -^^ II J, ground, mixed, and

cooked. It was used for perfuming houses and
clothes, or when prepared with honey and made
into pills it was used by women for perfuming the
breath.

Pereonne {A.Z. 1870, 152) describes a perfume
found in a vase of Thothmes III : " Ce parfum a
ete obtenu en faisant une pate avec de I'huile ou un
corps gras liquide quelconque, et un melange de
chaux, d'oliban et de myrrhe, melange qui aurait
ete additionne d'une petite quantite de benjoin."
He says also that the same composition is still
used in Egypt and is called Bouiikourrc-bare, " Per-
fume of the frontier."

The two oils which are placed last in the lists
are not perfumes, though they always occur with
the perfumes. The hatet ash, or " oil of cedar," is
necessarily one of the principal offerings for the dead,

OFFERINGS.

for, as Herodotus tells us, it was largely used in
embalming. It is found in all the lists, and is one of
the oils mentioned in the Book of the Dead.

The hatet thehennti, or " Libyan oil," is said by
M. Maspero to be the oil used to saturate the four
wicks with which fire for the dead was lit, both at
the consecration of the tomb and on the festival of
Uag. It may be the oil which Pliny describes
under the name of " kiki," of which he says that
after sprinkling the seeds with salt, an oil is ex-
pressed, unpleasant for food, but good for burning
in lamps. Herodotus mentions the same oil and
gives a description of the method of preparing it :
" Some bruise it in a press and squeeze out the oil,
•others put it in pans, which, they set on the fire,
and by that means extract the juice. The oil is
unctuous, and no less useful in lamps than other oil,
"but the odour is strong and disagreeable " (Little-
bury's translation). The French translators of
Pliny identif}- the "kiki" with castor oil, which
is one of the best vegetable oils for burning, as
it gives a soft, clear light ; it is still largely used as
a lamp oil in parts of India.

Pliny's description of the method of extracting
the oil with the addition of salt recalls the account
which Herodotus gives of the festival of The Lighting
of Lamps at Sais. " They hang up by night a great
number of lamps, filled with oil and a mixture of
salt, round every house, the tow swimming on the
surface."

The perfumes of the Egyptians were kept in
alabaster vases, at least they are so represented in
the sculptures ; and from prehistoric times down to
the Roman occupation, alabaster perfume vases are
found in the tombs. Pliny gives what seems to be
an explanation of this universal custom, when he
tells us that perfumes keep best in alabaster vessels
{Unguenta optime servantur in alabastris).

69. [The names marked with an asterisk * occur in
the lists of both Ilird and Vth Dynasties.

The references to Medum are to the tomb of
Rahotep (Petrie, Medum, -^X. xiii, and Mr. Griffith's
notes on the inscriptions, p. 38) ; the references to
M. Maspero are to his paper, " La table d'offrandes
des tombeaux figyptiens," in the Revue de Vhistoirc
des Religions, t. xxxv and xxxvi ; the references to
the altar of Ptahneferu are to Petrie, Kahun, pi. v.
All other references are given in full.

Mr. Griffith has also kindly made some sugges-
tions on the names of the objects in lists \a and b?\

The lists of offerings show some curious variations.
In the lists of the Ilird Dynasty the objects are
chiefly the possessions of the deceased, vessels of
stone or metal, furniture, linen, perfumes and cos-
metics, with a very small proportion of food. In
the IVth Dynasty the amount of food increases in
proportion to the other objects, and in the Vth
Dynasty the lists are made up almost entirely of
food — cakes, joints of meat, preparations of milk,
fruit, wine, beer — while the furniture and other
possessions are shown only in pictures and are not
mentioned in the lists. I have therefore divided the
lists into two ; I is of the IlIrd Dynasty, which is
again subdivided into, {a) the list of Sekerkhabau, and
(l>) the list of his wife, Hathor-neferhetep ; II is the
Vth Dynasty list, of which that of User-neter is the
type. Lists of the Illrd Dynasty vary greatly both
in names and in arrangement; the Vth D3'nasty lists
are alike, the variations being in the sequence of the
names, not in the names themselves. M. Maspero
has shown that in the Vth and Vlth Dynasties the
offerings were made during the commemorative
service for the dead, in regular sequence and to the
accompaniment of appropriate words.

70. List \a. Stele of Sekerkhabau. Above the
central figure :

Water for washing the hands.

This

appears to correspond with the

^ seth,

of the later lists. No. 22 gives the name of the
ewer and basin.

*2. In O seneter. Incense.

=^ M n h<itit- Sacred oils or perfumes. Two

vases
*

sefeth. A sacred oil or perfume. See

list 11. 5.

*5- 0 '"' yrep. Wine. Two jars.
6. ^ '^=^ O ta nr (?). Large loaf (?).

ta reteh. Mr. Griffith (Petrie, Kahun,

p. 41) calls this " a large round cake made of dates."
Dates were a very important item of food in Egypt.
In the tomb of Rekhmara (Newberry, Rekhmara,
pi. xiii) the " house of dates " is mentioned, evi-
dently the storehouse in which the dried dates or
date-flour were kept, for Pliny says that in Ethiopia

LIST OF SEKER-KHA-BAU.

dates, on being dried, become so friable that they
yield a flour which is made into bread.

J^O

slidt. Bread or cake. Compare the

shape of this loaf with the slices laid on the table of
offerings. See list II. 6i.

*9- 0 ^ yslied. Apricots (?). M. Maspero

calls these " Lebakh fruit."

Then come four offerings of which the representa-
tions are given without the names :

*io. The khepesh or haunch.

*ii. 'Y\\& stit ox ytid ]0\\\t.

*i2. A trussed bird.

*i3. The ribs of an ox.

Below the figure comes the main list of offerings,
consisting chiefly of linen, furniture, and stone or
pottery vessels with a few names of food.

14. ,^ neier — linen. There are five varieties,

numbered respectively 5, 4, 3, 2, i, which, Mr.
Griffith says, refer to the strands in the thread. The

word I ^^-^ sesef, which here applies to the

neter linen, and is determined with a bundle of
linen, is applied in Medum to the shescr-\in&n, and is
there determined with a man. A thousand of each
quality.

15, 16. < — m. shescr-Xv;\QX\. ^-= «« linen. In quali-
ties of 100, 9, 8, 7, and 6 strands to the thread. A
thousand of each quality.

The lists which follow are arranged under head-
ings, which sometimes represent the material of
which the vase or other object is made, sometimes
the contents of the vase. The sign for a thousand
follows each object in the list.

seseha.

Probably a stone, and

from the determinative apparently the stone of which
the butcher's knife-sharpeners were made. But here
there is a difficulty : the corn-grinders show that it
must have been stone, but the hut and defy vases are
of forms which are made in metal, not in stone; and in
Medum they are coloured blue, the colour for copper.

17. 8 ^ ^ h^^t. A deep bowl with a rim and
one handle and a round base. See list \b, 9.

18. (I defy. A bowl with a rim and two
handles.

19. ^0 akliy. Grinding stones for corn. Here

in Medum in section and there
Petrie, Royal Tombs ii, pi.

nemset. Evidently the name of a

seen in plan, but
coloured red (cf.
xxxiii. 25).

*2o. r-j^h^-j^ \ r

jar of a special shape. In Medum it is made of
stone (?) and of gold, and in later times it is of
pottery. See list II, 22, 23.

sekhept

The second heading is 1 p, sekliep

in list I/'). This is another elusive material,
which cannot be identified, as in list \b the corn-
grinders (stone) and the hiit-\2j~,& (metal) occur under
this heading. It might be supposed that \>o'Ca. seseha
and sekhep were the names of the contents of the
vases, like Jiierhet, but the mention of the grinding-
stones makes this supposition impossible.

A/WAAA

21. T^T^T 1^^^^ shanm (?), yak/unu {?). A deep bowl,

/VWSAA

with a rim, supported on a stand.

22. ^^ penn (1). Ewer and basin for washing

the hands. Vessels of this shape have been found of
copper and of alabaster (Garstang, Mahasna, pi.
xx), and at Abydos (Petrie, Royal Tombs i, pi.
xxxii, 32, and ii, pi. v, 13, 14) stone vases were found
inscribed, " For washing the hands of the King."
In Medum the ewer and basin occur twice ; once
coloured blue, which means copper or perhaps a
dark stone.

The third heading is

' 1

inerhet. Oil or

Perfume, and below are the names of five sacred oils,
all of which are called tep lultet. " Best quality."

23- \ _-5?i (1 J '^:r# yb, determined with the sign

of a kid or fawn. This points to its being made
of some animal substance, such as musk. In Medum
there are two varieties of j/(J-perfume.

24. f ^^1

shest (?

This has not

been e.xplained ; it may, however, mean " White."
There is a word slies which, when applied to cloth is
translated by Brugsch ( Wtb. 1202) as White ; and the
white stone, alabaster, is also called shes. In Medum

In Medum it is

the name of this perfume is I ^

the same name but with the numeral 3 following
it. This seems to indicate a mixture of aromatic
substances, " sefer of 5 [ingredients]," and " sefer of

OFFERINGS.

3 [ingredients]." The vase in which the perfume
was contained is the same shape as that alwa3's used
for the cn-khncvi perfume of the later lists, and which
recalls the shapes of the Aegean pottery of the
1st Dynasty found at Abydos (Petrie, Royal Tombs
ii, pi. liv).

26. U g^ 1 %=? \ se ur {!) determined with a

bag, showing that it was a dry preparation, like eye-
paint, to be moistened when required for use.

*~7- f ^ - -fi ds/i. Oil of cedar. This appears

to be one of the principal oils, for, as Herodotus
tells us, it was largely used in embalming. It is
found in all lists, and is among the oils mentioned
in the Book of the Dead.

The fourth heading is (1 - 0 *^v yda, under

which come three vases.

28. ^ X feh res {!), ylut qcina (?).

36. f:

set en khct. Seat of wood.

ha (?) khet. Back (?) of wood.

Perhaps the back of the chair, for in list \b the
object appears to be panelled like the chair-backs of
a later period.

The eighth heading is Riii tlur. Coloured

or Painted.

17-

cescr. Apparently a stool or table in

list \b, here decorated with two buckle-amulets and
the hes-sisn between them.

I I un

■es. A head-rest.

39-

29. ® f^ (i" ^'st II, ©

30. y^y^ masct.

kJiesez.

7-t £f neg. The long-horned o.\. Mr. New-
berry {Life of Rekhinam, p. 28) gives ncgii as
" mature ox."

40. 0 -Jp I S yna. The short-horned ox.

41. J "2 za. The demoiselle crane.

*42. I "^ se. A goose.

43-50. Then follow eight heaps or granaries in-

These are all tall vases, Nos. 28 and 29 are slightly
barrel shaped. No. 30 has straight sides widening to
the top. From the mouth of each fall loops of the scribed with the names of different kinds of grain
string by which the cover was secured.

The fifth heading is |f. Mr. Griffith suggests
the reading "J j^ P — " (?) or ty-yam . I(^). It

occurs among the names of materials in Medum,
where the second sign is elaborately drawn, and
represents a branch with leaves. Here there are
onlj' two vases under this heading.

. thd. A large vase with a rim and two

and fruit.

Under the figures on each side are the names of
fifteen kinds of food and liquids, thirteen being the
same on both sides.

*5i.

Iieqet iie:jc!iit. Sweet beer. See list

II, 67.

52. y^

kit en dii'i (?).

31-

*53

(tubular ?) handles.

32. slid. A tall cjlindrical vase.

The sixth- heading is LJ '^ ka/>eli (?).
3^^. '-' A penq. A bowl on a tall stand.

34- ^°^ '0' zeuyb (?). A bowl of the same shape

as the penq. A similar bowl made of copper was
found at Ab3-dos (Petrie, Abydos ii, pi. xxi. 3).

The seventh heading is 1 [pT] ^^ -^^-^ sarj. Cedar

wood (?). The precious wood in the early dynasties
was ebony, and the next in \alue seems to have
been cedar.

p ® ^ sekhept.
54. J I ^ /;./// ;mc

Fresh dates (?).

yn-p.

Winc.
1 I nrbes. Sycomore figs (

//('//. Dourra grain (cf. PKTRiii;,

Royal Tombs i, pi. xxxii, 36, for the name written on
a jar).

LIST OF HATHOK-NKFER-HETEP.

*6i. (^ yshcd. Apricots (?) (cf. Petrie, i?(3j/rt/

Tombs ii, pi. xxv, i6).
*62. p I '

' r-rr-i

seshet itas. Green scsliei-zoxn (cf.
Petrie, Royal Tombs i, pi. xlii, 57, 64).

*63. I I seshet her.. White seshet-covn (cf.

Petrie, Royal Tombs i, pi. xlii, 63).

*64. (on the left) ^ %> ^ agnt. Seed-corn (cf.
Petrie, Royal Tombs i, pi. xlii, 61).

65. (on the rif,'ht) (^ vt| yrcp ua. Z7c?-winc.

71. List \b. Stele of Hathoy-ncfer-hetep. The
upper part of the list above the seated figure is
broken away, but enough remains to show that it
was identical with that of Seker-kha-bau ; the list of
linens is also the same. As in list \a, each object
has the sign for Thousand following it.

merhet.. Oil or

The first heading is ^"^:x.
Perfume.

2. |.=^^=fP[\| se-nr.

3. I ^=^ P ^ ^^cfer.

r-n~i n

4. I ^ s/icst.

The second heading is [1

of the following vases are placed under the same
heading in list la.

s- 1^\ p4> >-e^ (?)■

6. ® 1 1-=^ khesds.':.

yaa.

Three

7. ^ I r L^ III as I- 1.

8. ^ <J ^ ^ ta uz.
The third heading is I

12. T{J|T /www shamiiQ) yakhm!i(})

ing 's P [q] "^

sac. Cedar-

The fourth headir
wood (?).

13. j| set khet. A seat of wood.

14. ]) zcscr. A stool or table, not decorated
as in list Ii?.

15-

16.

17-

18.

^^MQ)l-hct.
' '-' Q Iiotu. A box.

thcst. A bundle(?)or perhaps a cushion (?).
^°^ dfrjct. A rectangular box.

19.

debcn. A circular box.

The fifth heading is fD J ^
Ebony.
20. ® ^

A/VVvA\

hcbcn.

21.

khciid. A chair or stool.
gesa. Mr. Griffith

suggests

Sloped (?) footboard (?)."

22. ^4-4- ^'^ ^^"'

'^ 0 khert ii. Scribe's writing tablet.

24. r ^ 2=3 ittJies. Sedan-chair.
2^. ^ neg. The long-horned ox.

26. KJ ^^ Q hem in: The great cow.

27. (J -jH £3 yi"^- The short-horned ox.
*28. 1 <=» '^ scr. The .w;'-goose.

29. I za.

The demoiselle crane.

Then follow eight objects representing granaries,
each inscribed with the name of a fruit or grain.

sck/iept. Three of 30. ^ f'csh. In the royal tombs of the 1st and

the following vases are placed under sesclia in list \a.

Ilnd Dynasties at Abydos there were found frag-
» ments of stone and pottery jars inscribed in ink with

9-|_p^^'«^- Here the hut vase has two the names of their contents. Among these are two

handles, and a flat base. See list !«, 17. fragments marked JP which is perhaps the same

10. /ww\A H ^J\ Q nemset.

II.

7X7//. Grinding stones for corn.

as the J ""^"^ of the Ilird Dynasty (Petrie, Royal
Tombs i, pi. xxxii, ^j, and ii, pi. xxv, 15).

OFFERINGS.

32. set. Corn.

ii- Z5 «.?'^'' (')• Seed corn.
I res'i. Southern corn.

nd/i. Dourra grain.

'35

*36. || ysked. Apricots (?).

*Z7- "^^^ J ^K deba. Figs.

*38. AAww J 1 nebes. Sycomore figs (.').

Under the figures are six names of food-offerings,
the same on each side.

'"39-

yrep. Wine.

'^40. [1 yshed. Apricots (?).

''■41. A^A~v^ 11 nebes. Sycomore figs (?).
*42. ^^^^J*^ dcba. Figs.

43.(1

"44

•PI

yart. Grapes.
sekht itaz. Green seshet-covn.

72, List II. Lists of the Vth Dynasty.

M A^AA'\A

I . AAAAA^

° - ' *W\AAA

setJi. The libation of water at

the beginning of the funerary rites. M. Maspero
says that the libations were made with two different
waters, that of the South and that of the North.
In the tomb of User-neter (Pl. XXIII) the whole
ceremony is shown.

2. ' ^ ll I ' setet seneter. Burning incense
(see Pl. XXIII).

3. ' s=> [ I 1 seth-heb. Festival perfume. A sacred

oil. M. Maspero says that the basis of this perfume
was an oil mixed with aromatic substances which
rendered it thick like ointment.

4. fi ^ ^ hcknti. A sacred oil. This is one of

the oils mentioned in the Book of the Dead, and the
receipt for making it is given in the inscription at
Edfu (p. 31).

*5- Y , se/et/i. A sacred oil. Determined (Pl.
XXIII) with the Mnei/i-vase. M. Maspero thinks

it was semi-liquid ; not so thin as oil, nor so thick
as ointment.

5_ AAAA^ Q gfi khncni. A sacred oil.
(Pl. XVni)with =^^ the sign of land.

from the land of

Determined

Mr. Griffith
{Hieroglyphs, p. 39) suggests the translation, " Of
[the god] Khnem." Possibly
Khnem" (Elephantine).

7. Q vU I ci v§\ tiimit. A sacred oil.

^^•fll:

^Cfe:

"^ Imtet cisli. Oil of cedar.
I ^ hdtet theheimu. Libyan oil.

=<^=w- v. uaz dref. A bag of green

eye-paint. This was made of green malachite, ground
fine. From the determinative, it appears to have
been applied to the lower eyelid only, and in connec-
tion with this use of green paint a remark of a well-
known Egyptian artist (T.^lbot Kelly, Egypt,
p. 208) is instructive: "A little charcoal or green
paint rubbed upon the eyelids (especially the lower
one) is a considerable mitigation of the glare." The
figure of Hathor-nefer-hotep (Pl. II), however, shows
a broad horizontal stripe of green paint across the
face from the eyebrow to the base of the nose.

'^ sdemt arcf, also written

II.

viesdenit. A bag of black eye-paint. After the Old
Kingdom, black eye-paint made of sulphide of lead
(galena) superseded the malachite paint, and is used
to the present day in Egypt, being called by its
Arabic name koJil. The Latin name, stibinvi, is
derived from the Egyptian sdeiiit.

12. ^^

v^ 1 1 imkhiii. Two pieces of cloth.

On Pl. XXI II is a priest bearing the two pieces
of cloth in his hands.
O

13-

tha qebh (Pl. XVIII), teb in

the tomb of Anpu-kap. Prof. Erman gives

as " A drop." This can hardly mean " Two drops
of water," it is probably a direction to the priest as
well as the name of the offering: " Water, drop by
drop."

*i4. 1 P ^"^ (1 ^ee No 2.

15. i) v\ '^W^ khaiit. Altar, i.e. an altar covered

with offerings. In the tomb of Rahotep (Petrie,
Medtim, pl. xiii) the khaitt is placed among the

LISTS OF FIFTH DYNASTY.

■^1

objects made of alabaster, showing that it repre-
sents the actual altar and not the offerings upon it.

1 6. 1 sctcn hetcp. A royal offering.

Two. M. Maspero shows that the setcn hetep was
the large flat dish of alabaster which was placed on a
stand and on which the offerings were piled. On
Pls. XXI — XXIII there are stands with flat dishes
containing offerings. On the altar of Ptahneferu
there are two seten-hetep together, and a third one

inscribed

fl^Al

" Coming with the

seten-hetep." The dishes or stands are mentioned
before the offerings of food.

Offering of the

I?- 1"^ hetep en usekht.

forecourt. Also a dish or pla<iue for holding offer-
ings. Two. The j£'/f«-//e/^y> was offered in the inner
chamber of the tomb in front of the false door, the
offering of the forecourt was in the outer chamber
where, as in the tomb of User-neter, there was some-
times a niche for that purpose. On the altar of
Ptahneferu the " offering of the forecourt " is a
circular dish on which are placed a shens loaf and
a jar each of wine and beer.

1 8. 8 '^ ' yf h^^iis-

ig. „.<rz> O I A 0 slicns and d/nni {}). One of

each. These two words appear to mean " food
and drink," without any further or more definite
meaning. See Nos. 24, 25, 29, 36.

20. ^ V ^ ^"^' '^ ^°^^ °^ cake. On the altar

of Ptahneferu it is larger than the slicns-lozi, though
of nearly the same shape.

*2i. ^ A 5 — O ta retch. Cake of dates.

See list \a, 7.

22. 'ww« ([1^7 W^ ncmset :.

23. ^AA«v\ \ (] 5? R neinset Iicqt.
In Medum the word is written 0 ~«~« |i f] ^ ensct.

•sert.

the first sign being the determinative of stone (?) ;
in the same list there is also an enset of zam
or electrum. It is a vase without handles, wider
at the shoulder than at the base, and with a rim
round the mouth. From the fact that it was made
in electrum it could not have been of any great
size. On the altar of Ptahneferu and in the list

of Hapzefa (Griffith, Siut, pi. i), it is called

^ (1 khticms.

In the Ilird Dynasty the vase itself was the
object oftered ; but in the Vth Dynasty, when the
material of which it was made had degenerated
into pottery, it is the contents of the jar, and not
the jar itself, which we find mentioned in the lists.
For zesert see No. 64, for hekt see No. 67.

24.
19. 25

25-

sheb.

*26.

CZEZl

slicns an fa (?). Cf. Nos.

29.

|IOc^l^O^_^ J^ shens duyu

silt. According: to Mr. Griffith

this is the haunch or shoulder shrunk by boiling.
He also says that the joint was of two kinds, called
' respectively snt and yiid, one being the foreleg, the
other the shoulder. It occurs twice in the lists,
once among the miscellaneous offerings and once
among the joints. On the altar of Ptahneferu the
object is the same as the determinative.

Water. Two vases. Some-

-/•

mil.

times written without the hand. M. Maspero says,
"Two vases, one of which contained water charged
with the natron of El K3h, five pastilles of the South,
the other containing water charged with the natron
of Shit-pit (the Wady Natrun) five pastilles of the
North. It appears that the officiating priest took
the pastilles one after the other, and threw them
into the vase of the South as he recited the formula,
and repeated the same operation for the vase of the
North." The altar of Ptahneferu gives one in-
scribed, and two uninscribed, vases.

1 1 bed. Natron. Sometimes one, some-
times two vases. Mr. Griffith says of the deter-
minative that it is a roll of sacred linen, combined
with the bag which is the ideogram of toilet powders,
and that the substance contained in the bag is
probably natron. In reference to the use of natron,
M. Maspero observes that balls of it put in a water
jar clarify the liquid at once. This is probably the
reason why it always occurs immediately after water
in the lists. On the altar of Ptahneferu there is
only one vase of bed.

29. 5 '^^^ slietis duy r (?). One of each.
(IT^ ^>*^ Another variant of Nos.

19. 24,

This is the beginning of a list

25-

of bread and cakes.

38.

OFFERINGS.

^0. '=^

•31. e

c t/tt. See No. 20.

ta retell. See No. 21.

0
32. X s=3 ^ hethn. Bread or cake. Two. On

the altar of Ptahneferu, it is a tall upright loaf, like
the shens in shape.

23. r^^^j^ <^ _g^ nelicrii. Another kind of cake,
in shape like the JietJiu and sliens on the altar of
Ptahneferu. Two.

34-

or V\ dcptoxdepa. Bread or cake.

Four. On Ptahneferu"s altar it is shown as a tall,
narrow loaf, so narrow for its height as to be badly
balanced, and therefore is laid on its side. On the
altar it occurs with the sekhai joint of meat.
D "^
— O

On Ptahneferu's altar an object shaped something

like the sole of a foot is called A X 1.

41. (| '^'^0#''^=^ J'^^rt'^//;aX'(?). Bread or

cake. Four. M. Maspero translates this as " Le
gateau de derriere le double."

^ pant. Bread or cake. Four.

.\ circular cake on which is the print of the four
fingers of the hand. There are three varieties of
it on the altar of Ptahneferu.

C3a

ta asher. Roasted bread.

35-

( QyS pesenox persen. Bread"

or cake. Four. A circular cake, occurring with
wine, beer, and shens cake on the altar of Ptahne-
feru. The size of the cake can be estimated from
the fact that in the time of Rameses II, ttV of

a sa f'^'^^ of barley was allowed for one cake

(DlJMiCHEN, A.Z. 1870, p. 42). Dioscorides gives
as the Egyptian name of the divine bread ambrosia,
fiepaim, which Lauth derives from this word perseti.
(Lauth, A.Z. 1868, p. 92).

3^- 9 P 0 ^^'^"^- I'our. Cf. Nos. ig, 24, 25,
29.

37. ^ -^h =^^^ ta-ynii ta. Bread of that which is

in the ground (?). Four. Perhaps a kind of bread
made from the roots of plants.

38. ^ '^-=^- VN /t//(?«y«, sometimes written ^^^«?<.

Cake or bread. Four. On the altar of Ptahneferu
they are flat and oval. They were probablj' small,
as in the inscriptions of Siut, Hapzefa requires two
hundred of them from each priest in his list of
offerings (Griffith, Siut, pi. vii).

43-

Four. From the name this must be a kind of
biscuit or toast, i.e. a doubly cooked bread. Ptahne-
feru's altar shows it of the same curious shape as
the qemliu-qeiiia.

44. YYj Iieziu. Onions. Four baskets. In the

list of Ateta (Pl. XVIII) the word is spelt out.
The fondness of the Egyptian for onions was almost
proverbial ; even so late as the Christian era we find
St. Apollonius saying that the Egyptians give the
name of god to the onion, and Herodotus says that
so early as the time of Khufu the workmen lived
upon bread, radishes, and onions.

*45. r-iir-i !i»,c^ khcpesJi. Fore-leg. This seems

to have been the most important joint of the sacrificial
animal. In all representations of offerings the fore-
most priest carries a fore-leg, generally on his
shoulder. In lists the kkcpesh is followed by the
names of other joints and edible parts of the animal.

*46. '2^ c^3^ y^'^- See No. 26.

47. —*— ( I sekhcn. Fore-part (?) of an ani-

mal. On the altar of Ptahneferu the sekJien is of
a nondescript shape, and is placed with other joints
and dept cakes.

See No. 26.

*a1^

39. I J 2.1 % hebneunn. Bread or cake. *49. H ^ | ^=v, 0 ^ secptch spcr. Ribs. Four,

Four. From the determinatives on Pl. XVIII they
appear to be small round cakes.

4°- ^ ^^ 8 V ^1 Qemlni-qeiiia. Bread or cake.

On the altar of Ptahneferu it is represented as four

ribs with a piece of the skin (?) still attached.

r~w~i
50-

ashcrt. Roast (meat). Ptahneferu

Four. This word is spelt in many ways, but this
form seems to be the most complete. Prof. Erman,
in his Glossary, suggests that it is a foreign word.

gives two baskets filled with oval pieces of meat,
and in the tomb of User-neter (Pl. XXIII) there is
a basket filled with various joints, which are separated

LISTS OF FIFTH DYNASTY.

from similar joints in other parts of the piles of
offerings, probably because they had been specially
prepared.

In the tomb of

51. y luyst. Kidneys (?)

Ptahshepses (Pls. XXIX, XXX), this and the three
following meats are determined with a fire sign, as if
to imply that the}- were cooked.

52. 4-4- ^^^ nenslieiii. Spleen. In Coptic rtoeity.
On the altar of Ptahneferu it is spelt i-^.

53-

J Jia, Limb. The representation on

Ptahneferu's altar is not sufficiently definite to
enable one to identify the special part of the animal.

54. [1 p ~vww '=^ yf en Iidt. Flesh of the fore-
part.

55. <=> ^3' re, A kind of goose ; in Coptic po.
This is the first of a list of five birds which are
represented almost exactly alike on the altar of
Ptahneferu. In the tomb of User-neter (Pls. XXI —
XXIII) there are several different kinds of birds
represented, both among the piles of offerings and
also carried by attendants.

56. ji-^ tlierp. A kind of goose.

57. ^I^ set. A duck (sheldrake ?).

*58. n <=> ^3- scr. Teal. Mr. Griffith {Hiero-
glyphs, p. 23) says of these two birds, "The
domesticated duck named which, like the small

duck, is never absent from scenes of the poultry

farm, has the two long central tail-feathers of the
pintail." On the altar of Ptahneferu the ser duck is
represented as much smaller than the other birds.

50.
60. g

^^ incntiut. Pigeon.

ta srf. Bread or cake. On the

altar of Ptahneferu a large, flat, circular cake.

*6i. r\ shdt. Bread or cake. Two. On

the altar of Ptahneferu this is an upright cake like
the shens loaf In the tomb of Rekhmara (New-
berry, Reklimara, pi. xiii) is a scene of bakers
"cooking shdt." The "slaves of the house of
dates " are sifting flour, other servants are moulding
the loaves, and others again are engaged in the

actual cooking. A large jar of honey, placed con-
spicuously among the men, shows that honey was
among the ingredients, and that the shdt was
therefore a sweet cake, made of date flour.

62.

measures.

baa

nepat. Seed corn (?). Two

63.

^ 006

mesiic. It is not clear what

this is, as, on the altar of Ptahneferu, only a covered
basket is seen inscribed uiestit.

64. W^ S ^'cscrt. Butter or cheese; M. Mas-

pero suggests cream [T.S.B.A. v. 557). In Coptic
it is CA-ipe. On the altar of Ptahneferu there are
two vessels of zesert, one is the tall jiemset vase,
the other the bowl, which is the determinative of
the hin-measure.

^-^

zesert Vast. Cheese of Thebes.

I take this to mean ewe's-milk cheese, for Diodorus
says (ii, 3) : "The sheep . . . gives milk and cheese
in abundance," and Thebes is known to have been
a place where sheep were held sacred.

66. § ^ ^ l\ P ^ ^^eqt khenemset.

Hepzefa's list (Griffith, SiiU, pi. i.) gives the

reading of this :

khenemset net

hcqt. h. kheiieuiset ]2Lr oiheev. See No. 23.

*67. ft heqt. Beer. Two vases.

Beer is of very ancient origin, and its invention
was ascribed by the Egyptians to Osiris. Diodorus
says : " If he (Osiris) found any territory unsuitable
for the vine, he caused the people to make beer,
a drink composed of barley and water, not much
inferior in taste, savour, and strength to wine."
(Diod. i, 3). In another place he says that it is
called Zythos. There were several kinds of beer,
of which, according to M. Maspero, the black beer
was considered the best. For an account of the
method of making beer in Egypt, see Borchardt,
A.Z., 1897, 128.

this is generally translated

^68. \\® ^ sekliept,

Cucumbers (?). Two measures. This appears to
be either a liquid expressed from fruit, or a very
juicy fruit. Among the offerings (Pl. IX) carried
by the farm-women are large melons (?) striped with
green, which I would suggest as being the sekhept.

HIEROGLYPHS.

On the altar of Ptahneferu there are two bowls of bird is sometimes written with a hoe in its claws

sekhept.

Mr. Griffith (Beni Hasan iii, p. 30) gives

^9- © ^'/ P'^^'"'- ^^^- ^''''^''^- Two baskets. ^^^^^^^ ^^ ,. ^^^^^ ^^^^ „ . ^j_ Maspero suggests

The determinative in User-neter (Pl. XXIII) is " Lentils." (Cf. Petrie, Royal Tombs i, pi. xlii,

three grains, but I think they are intended for the 64.)

three dots of the plural. Brugsch ( Worth. 503) calls *^8_ " n R ^^.^w. Sycomore figs. Two baskets,

this: "Split bread," i.e. "slices." Mr. Griffith ^ , ^ "^ J , ^, , . ,.. _ ,,

has proposed (Petrie, Dendereh, p. 42) to see in the In the tomb of Rekhmara (Newberry, Rekhviara,

upright objects on the tables of offerings, not palm- pl- v) ;/.-^.^-fruit is brought as tribute packed in

leaves but slices of bread. On studying the shapes skins ; and in the tombs of the kings of the 1st and

of these objects in the earliest examples (Pes. I and Und Dynasties at Abydos (Petrie, Royal Tombs

II and Mcdum, pl. xiii) it is seen that they are the ii, PP- 36, 38) quantities of dried sycomore tigs

sh'ape of half a loaf, and the colour is either black or were found which had been strung together, having

yellow. The table then was covered with slices of the hole visible in the middle.

79. /I J] I i'(? nebes. Bread or loaf of sycomore

'^"y'^ figs. Two baskets.

71.

72.

bread on which the offerings were piled.

70. [^ S;a -5- p ^^ or c:^ S;a # P
shescr. Two. In the list of Khnumhotep the arrow
is replaced by the bow □ .

^^^■W yyep. Wine. Two measures.

There were five kinds of wine offered in the tombs,

of which the names were, i- tj □ ' "• J '-^^'

3. (1^^,4.^:0, 5.^- AtSiut(GRiE-

FiTH, Siut, pl. i) the first name is [| "^ °^ yrep

meh. Northern wine. In the lists, however, the
names are not often given, but the word Wine is
repeated five times. According to M. Maspero,
two kinds of wine were always offered ; the black,
representing the right Eye of Horus, the white
representing the left Eye of Horus ; the white wine
was considered the best.

*73. (|'^^^ yshcd, Apricots (?). Two baskets.

*74. [1 I sckJiet hcz. White sckhct-zQxn. Two

baskets.

*75- 0 I -^^^'^""^ "'^•^- Green se/c/wi-covn. Two

baskets.

*76.

*So. ^
baskets.
81. ^

82.

uc7h. Durrah grain. Two

k/u-l nebt nezemt. All sweet thinsjs.

7rnp2it neb. All growing things. In

the tomb of Akhethotep (vol. ii) all the offerings
brought in procession by the priests are called renpiit.

83.

fer-^

000

licnk. Offerings.

«^--fl

hat iidlm. The chief [things]
setep. The choice pieces [of oxen and

of the altar.

birds].

^ seth (?), Libation.

scnetcr. Incense.
88. 5 I shcs. Linen.
80. ^^^ ® 1 I vienkhet. Cloth

86. |^^£.
*S7. ^ P

90.

ffi

V^'''' dgu. Mr. Griffith {Bcni Hasan

iii, p. 30) gives yt dget as " Yellow corn." Two
baskets.

77-

ban-set (?). Two baskets. The

incrhet. Ointment.
CHAPTER XIV.

HIEROGLYPHS.

73. Pls.XXXVII-XL. The hieroglyphs in these
plates are either rare, peculiar, or of unusually good
and detailed forms. They are taken from five tombs,

LIVING CREATURES.

Seker-kha-bau, Ka-em-hest, Ptahhetep II, User-
neter, and Ptahshepses II (abbreviated to S, K,
P, U, and PS). I am indebted to Mr. Griffith's
writings on this subject for much of the information
given here.

1. A woman suckling a child, det. of the word
mendt, "Nurse" (Pl. X, in farm name). The
woman wears a long wig, one braid of which falls
in front of the shoulder, and her dress has one
shoulder-strap. No colour.

2. A woman kneeling and offering a tray on
which are two A^'J-vases and an Wrtj-sceptre (Pls.
XXIX, XXX, in list of titles). A very rare sign.
The woman wears a dress with one shoulder-strap,
a long wig which falls only down the back, and a
necklace. The position of the necklace and wig
give a somewhat deformed appearance to the figure.
No colour.

3. A bearded man seated, wearing a fillet round
his head and an ostrich feather, probably fastened
into the fillet and standing straight up from his
head (Pl. I, in list of titles). He is swathed in a
garment which completely covers him so that only
his head and one hand appear ; the ends of the
garment are gathered together and thrown over one
shoulder, and are seen at the back of the neck.
He holds in his hand two objects, somewhat like
drumsticks in shape. An unique sign. No colour.

4. Head, seen in profile, wearing a short curled
wig and a short horizontally-striped beard. Sign for
tepy, "First" (Pl. VIII, in list of titles). The colours
are invariably the same at all periods (Pl. XLI).

5. Head seen full-face ; sign for her, " Upon "
(Pl. VIII, in list of titles). The ears and eyebrows
are greatly exaggerated, the hair looks like a skull-
cap, but from the colour, black, it is undoubtedly
hair. The beard is very wide, and is marked with
horizontal bands (Pl. XLI for colour).

^ 6. Two hands holding a nekhebt wand, the arms
continued to the shoulder. Sign for zeser, " Sacred "
(Pl. I, in list of titles). The right hand grasps the
wand, but the left hand is merely closed, and the
wand passes behind it, though the artist's intention
was to show the wand grasped in both hands. The
modelling on this sign is fine and delicate, all the
muscles being indicated (Pl. XLI for colours).

7. Two upraised hands and arms joined at the
shoulder. Sign for ka (Pl. Ill, i in name). Like
all the hieroglyphs in the tomb of Ka-em-hest, the
drawing and modelling are exquisite (Pl. XLI for
colour).

8. An outstretched hand holding a small globular
vase, the arm cut off just above the elbow. Det. of
a festival (Pl. VIII, list of festivals; Pl. XLI for
colours).

9. Conventional form of a heart, the markings
and " wings" representing the great blood vessels.
Word sign for yl>, " Heart " (Pl. VIII), also often
used as det. of " /nUi, "Heart" (Pl. XLI for
colour).

10. Two feet with legs as far as the knee. Det.
of words of motion (Pl. XX). The feet are shown
with the left foot slightly raised at the heel in the
act of passing the other foot ; in this position the
knees, when viewed sideways, would be together.

74. II, 12. An owl, Strix flauiiiiea. Sign for the
letter M (Pls. Ill, VIII). The markings on the
head are conventional even at this early date ; and
even in the tomb of Ka-em-hest, the beauty of the
sign lies, not in truth to nature, but in the delicacy
of the detail (Pl. XLII for colour).

13. The small vulture, Neophron percnopterns.
Sign for the letter alcph (Pl. VIII). On Pl. I in
the short lists of offerings there is a variant of this
sign, where the thin hairs on the head are shown as
a sort of crest (Pl. XLII for colours).

14. A quail chicken. Sign for the letter W.
(Pl. VIII). In this instance the tiny wing with the
little pinion feathers is clearly shown (Pl. XLII for
colours).

15. 16. A crested plover, Vancllus cristatus. Sign
for rekhyt, " Mankind " (Pls. VIII, XX, in lists of
titles). In 16 an attempt has been made to show
the markings on the head and breast (Pl. XLII for
colours).

17. A flying duck, Dafila acuta. Sign for the
syllable Pa (Pl. X, in farm name ; Pl. XLII for
colours).

18. The large vulture with naked neck and throat.
Sign for the syllable ;;/«/ (Pl. VIII in list of titles).
The repulsive appearance of the folds of skin on the
neck is well shown in an otherwise greatly conven-
tionalized representation (Pl. XLII for colours).

ig, 20. A swallow (?). ig. Sign for nezes,
" Small "(Pl. I). There are two birds represented
in the hieroglyphs which greatly resemble each other,
but which have totally opposite meanings, one
means Little, the other Great ; the chief difference
in the drawing is in the shape of the tail ; the iir,
" Great," bird (wagtail) has a forked tail (20), the
nezes bird has a round tail (Pl. XLII for colour).

HIEROGLYPHS,

21. Three cranes (?) with a tuft where the head
joins the neck. Sign for byu, " Fame," or usually
"Spirits " (Pl. I in name). In later times this bird
is represented with the tuft on the breast instead of
on the neck (Pl. XLII for colours).

22. Fledgling swallowing a worm. Sign for that,
"Vizier" (Pl. VIII, in list of titles). The wing
and tail feathers are carefully drawn, the lines on
the body are possibly intended to indicate the
muscles and bones seen on the unfledged bird
(Pl. XLII for colour).

23. Hawk perched on a semi-circular object from
which hang two streamers ; an ostrich feather in
front. Sign for Yinentet, "The west" (Pl. VIII in
formula for the dead ; Pl. XLII for colours).

24. An unknown quadruped, the symbol of the
god Set (Pl. I in list of titles). This is the earliest
detailed representation of the animal, which is
known in ruder form from pre-dynastic times. The
characteristics of the creature — the long drooping
nose, the square ears, and the forked tail — are con-
tinued till a late period, but it is impossible to
identify the animal from the sculptures. It is either
a fabulous animal, or a highly conventionalized
representation of some species of dog. No colour.

25. A lion couchant. Sign for rii (Pl. Ill in list
of titles). This is the most beautiful of all the fine
hieroglyphs in the inscription of Ka-em-hest. No
colour.

26. A jackal walking. Sign for sab, " Judge "
(Pls. VIII, IX, in list of titles). In early tombs at
Saqqara the jackal's tail is always immensely long
and passes either over or under the boundary lines
of the inscriptions (Pl. XLI for colour).

27. A jackal couchant with an ostrich feather on
his back. Sign for /i ;//«," The god Anubis." The
reason for the feather is not explained, it occurs also
in the inscription of Khnum-hetep at Beni Hasan
(Griffith, Bcni Hasan i, pl. xxvi), but it does not
appear, in either instance, to make any difference in
the meaning (Pl. XLI for colour). Cf. Petrie,
Royal Tombs, pl. .xxix, 86.

28. A little quadruped called Hcthes (Pl. I in
name). Prof. Sethe translates it as a rat or a mouse,
in the Cairo Museum it is translated " Hyaena ; "
I think that it is a mongoose or ichneumon, called
nims by the Arabs ; they are not at all uncommon
at Saqqara, and being fearless, friendly little animals
are easily tamed, and would probably be well-known
to the Egyptians of the Old Kingdom. No colour.

29. A hare. Sign for the syllable Un (Pl. XI in

the lo\vest register). The desert hare is not very
common now, but was probably more so in early
times. The ears are always represented as being
disproportionately long (Pl. XLI for colour).

30. The fore part of a lion with a long heavy
mane. Sign for the syllable ha (Pls. VIII, IX, and
Pl. XLI for colours)

31. A fish. Sign for the syllable (inz (Pls. XX,
XXI, XXIII, XXIV in list of titles). A commonly
represented fish in the hieroglyphs though rather rare
in reality (Pl. XLII for colours).

32. A fish, called bolie by the Arabs. Sign for the
syllable yn (Pl. XII in farm name). A common
fish in the Nile, and the best for eating. There is
also a mythological fish called ynt mentioned in
hymns to the Sun in the Book of the Dead, where it
is said to pilot the boat of the Sun. No colour.

33. A large hornet. Sign for byfl, " King of
Lower Egypt." (Pl. VIII in list of titles.) A very
detailed representation, the stripes on the body
being clearly shown ; it is not clear what is intended
by the marks on the wings. No colour.

75. 34. A compound sign, consisting of the plan
of a house with the elevation of one side, within the
enclosure a wide bowl called »sek/i with the semi-
circular sign for the letter T, here used as the
feminine ending. The whole sign probably reads
het nsekJit, "The wide house," which Prof Sethe
takes to mean the palace (Pl. XX). The enclosing
wall is ornamented with pilasters as in the fortress
palaces of the Old Kingdom (see ground plan of
Shuneh fort, Ayrton, Abydos iii, pls. vi-viii, p. 2,
and OuiBELL, Hicrakonpolis ii, p. 20). The eleva-
tion shows that the wall was decorated along the
top with the klieker ornament ; about the middle are
two sacred eyes and between them the sign hez
" White " ; these are probably charms painted on
the wall to prevent the entrance of evil into the
house : below are straight lines representing bands
of colour (see description of Middle Fort, Ayrton,
Abydos iii, p. 3). The usck/i bowl and the T are
enclosed merely for the sake of making a compact
group (see Pl. XLI 1 1 for colours).

35. A compound sign, consisting of the ground-
plan of a building enclosing the sign for natron.
lleibedil) "House of Natron" (Pl. Ill in list of
titles). In the corner of the enclosing walls there
is a small rectangle which may be the plan of the
house standing in the corner of an immense court-
yard (Ayrton, Abydos iii, p. 2), or possibly the gate

INANIMATE OBJECTS.

leading into the building. The sign for natron
consists of the roll of cloth (?), which stands usually
for Neter, terminating in a little bag with ends. No
colour.

36. Front elevation of a shrine. Sign for the
sjllable sell (Pl. Ill in list of titles). Another
shrine of the same kind is shown in Nos. 43 and 44
(Pl. I in list of titles). Nos. 36 and 44 show the
front elevation of the shrine, with the door through
which the worshippers could see the figure of the
god. No. 43 gives a side view of the same building,
and both show that the structure was of light
materials, the sides being probably of trellis or
basket work. In the tomb of Imery at Gizeh (L. D.,
ii, ^i^b) carpenters are making a similar shrine which
is on runners, showing that it was intended to be
taken from place to place (Pl. XLIII for colour).

37. A building supported by columns. Sign for
the word kha, " Palace " (Pl. XXII). The sign is
remarkable on account of the Proto-Doric columns,
here evidently made of wood. No colour.

38. 39. Front elevation of a sarcophagus, showing
the fagade of false doors in imitation of a mastaba.
Det. of qrest, " Burial " (Pls. Ill, VTII in formula
for the dead). No colour.

40. A dome-shaped building with one door (?).
Det. of yst, which Prof. Sethe translates as
"Boundary House" (Pl. X in farm name). No
colour.

41. A compound sign, consisting of the sign per,
" A house," and the mace, which reads hec, " White."
The two signs together are read per hes, " The White
House" (Pl. VIII in list of titles). In many
instances the sign is reduplicated and must then be
read in the dual, when, according to Prof Sethe, it
means the administration of finance, in the title iHer
peruy hez (Pls. XLIII, XLV for colours).

42. The plan of a house surmounted by six uraei.
Sign (according to Prof. Sethe) for sebakh (?) ty, and
when compounded with sab it means " Chief Judge"
(Pl. VIII). A wooden structure with uraei along
the top is now in the Museum of the Society
of Antiquaries of Scotland in Edinburgh (Rhind,
Thebes, its Tombs and their Tenants, frontispiece).
It is a canopy for a bier and is in the form of a
building with pillars, while along the top is a
chevaux de frise of uraei (Pl. XLIII for colours).

43. 44. A shrine seen from the side and from
the front. Sign for seh{T) (Pl. I in list of titles).
The shrine is evidently a temporary erection
of light trellis-work, easily moved from place to

place. In 43 a little porch is indicated, and at the
base the three objects are perhaps steps leading up
to the doorway (Pl. XLIII for colour).

45. A compound sign, consisting of a shrine or
canopy and an object which appears to be a basket.
Sign for heb, "Festival" (Pl. VIII in list of
festivals). The canopy is a light erection, probably
of reeds bound together, supported on a central pole.
The semi-circular object below almost invariably
has a diamond-shaped mark in the centre, which
gives it the effect of basket work. (Pl. XLIII for
colour).

46. A building. Det. of granary (Pl. VIII in list
of titles). This is evidently the conventional repre-
sentation of the circular mud-brick granaries which
are one of the features of harvest scenes (Pl. XI).
In the short lists of offerings on the stele of Seker-
kh:i-bau and his wife (Pls. I and II) almost every
object is determined with this sign (Pl. XLIII for
colour).

47. A road bordered by trees (grass ?) with a canal
on each side. Sign for nat, " Road " (Pl. XX in
formula for the dead, Pl. XLIII for colour).

48. Flowering papyrus plant growing out of a
mass of mud and water. Sign for meJi, " North,"
(Pl. I in list of titles). No colour.

49- Flowering rush growing out of water. Sign
for qeind, "South" (Pl. I in list of titles). It is
remarkable that the plants which typify the North
and the South should be marsh plants (Pl. XLII for
colour).

50. The same as 49, with the addition of the
numeral 10 (Pl. XX in list of titles, Pl. XLII for
colour).

51- A compound sign, consisting apparently of the
two upright feathers on a crescent ; the lower part
seems to represent a flower, but the whole sign is so
highly conventionalized that its true meaning is lost
even at this early period (Pl. I in list of titles).
No colour.

52. An unknown sign. Det. of the Jrt'^-festival
(Pl. VIII in list of festivals). No colour.

53. The rising sun (?). Sign for kha, " To appear,
to be crowned," &c. (Pl. I in name). The colour-
ing of this sign makes it more than probable that
this is an attempt to represent the rainbow. In the
tomb of Ptahshepses I (Pl. XXVII) the colours are
in bands, green, blue, and red, divided by white
lines ; the bands are concentric like a rainbow, not
radiating like the rays of the sun.

54. 60. A row of four pots. Sign for khent, " In

HIEROGLYPHS.

front of" (Pls. I and XX in list of titles', Pl. XLIV
for colour).

55. Two wine jars. Det. of wine (Pl. I in lists
of offerings). The jars are covered with basket-
work, either to cool the wine or to prevent the jars
from breaking. The first jar has a double stopper,
the second a single stopper. Wine is almost
invariabK' determined by two jars (except when the
vine sign is used), in later times they are apparently
fastened together (Pl. XLIV for colour).

56-59. Jars of various shapes. Det. of water and
vases (Pl. I in list of offerings, Pl. XLIV for
colour).

61. Basket of fruit. Det. o( js/icd-hmt (Pl. I in
list of offerings). No colour.

62. Globular vase. Sign for the syllable nu (Pl. I
in list of titles, Pl. XLIV for coleur).

63. Flint knife (Pl. I in list of titles). The
handle and the serration of the edge of the blade are
clearly indicated. No colour.

64. Adze (Pl. I in list of titles). The blade of
flint or metal is securely lashed to the wooden
handle. No colour.

65. A kind of drill, sign for he7n(, "craftsman"
(Pl. I in list of titles). The stones which form the
weight are tied to the upright by ropes ; a later
example (Pl. XXVI) shows the stones in a network.
In an unpublished tomb at G\zeh there is a fine
example of the use of this tool, which is used by a
man standing upright to drill the hollow of a large
stone vase. No colour.

66. A crook. Sign for fwtjn, "To rule" (Pl. I in
list of titles). No colour.

67. An unknown object (Pl. I in list of titles).
No colour.

68. 6g. A hank of flax or other fibre twisted
tightly together. Sign for the letter H (Pls.
VIII-XII). The ends of the hank are tied to pre-
vent the entangling of the strands. There is a fine
example in the unpublished tomb of Ptah-nefer-sem
at Saqqara, where the twisted hank of fibre is laid
on a basket (Pl. XLIV for colour).

70. A loop of rope. Sign for the syllable [/a
(Pls. VIII, XX). It is probably intended to
represent a knot, but the Egyptians seemed to have
a difficulty in drawing knots. On Pl. XI the knots
by which the butchers' whet-stones are fastened to
their girdles, though carefully drawn, are not knots
at all, but merely an ingenious arrangement of loops
which would not hold firm in reality (Pl. XLIV for
colour).

71. A ball of string wound on a stick. Sign for
^r, " command " (Pl. XLIV for colour).

72. A bead necklace with pendant beads and with
wide ribbons to tie. Sign for nu3, " gold " (Pl. VIII
in list of titles). The strings of beads are caught up
at each end into a circular disk ; in later times the
plain disk was replaced by a hawk, or lion, head.
No colour.

73. A bead necklace to which is attached a
cylinder seal (cf. Petkie, Hfec/um), sign {or sesa/j' (?),
"seal-bearer" (?), (Pl. VIII in hst of titles ; Pl.
XLV for colour).

74. A hatchet. Reading doubtful (Pl. Ill in list
of titles). The use of this tool is shown in the tomb
of Khunes at Sauiet el Meitin (L. D. ii, 108) where
men are cutting down trees and smoothing the
baulks of timber with hatchets of this shape. In the
tomb of Aba (D.wies, Dezr el Gebraivi i, pl. xvi) a
boat-builder is using two hatchets, one in each hand.
No colour.

75. 76. A hoe made of wood and tied with rope.
Sign for mer, " Love " (Pls. Ill and VIII). Like all
the hieroglyphs in the tomb of Ka-em-hest this sign
is remarkable for its delicacy and beauty of finish
(Pl. XLV for colour).

yy, 78. .A. furnace. Sign for the syllable ia
(Pls. VIII and XX in lists of titles, Pl. XLIII
for colour).

79. A conjoined wreath of flowers. Sign for the
god Min (Pl. VIII in list of festivals). This speci-
men is highly conventionalized, but prehistoric
examples (Petkie, Koptos, pl. iii, Rand.^ll-Maciver,
El Auirah, pl. viii, 2) show the flowers placed one
inside the other like the jasmine chains of India.
No colour.

80. A door-bolt. Sign for the letter S (Pl. VIII
in list of festivals). See P.S.B.A., i8gg, p. 286, for a
specimen in wood, and Caulfeild, Temple of the
Kings, pl. xvii, 4, for one in use (Pl. XLIII for
colour).

81. Unidentified object. Sign for zcha (Pl. XII
in farm name, Pl. XLIV for colour).

82. Unidentified object. Det. of sacred oil (Pl.
XXIX in list of oils, Pl. XLV for colours).

83. Pool of water. Sign for the letter 5// (Pl. VIII
in list of titles). In later periods the carefully-
delineated ripples of water are omitted entirely, and
the sign appears as a blank rectangle (Pl. XLIII for
colour).

84. Unidentified object. Det. of a festival (Pl.
VIII in list of festivals). It is used as the det. of the

COLOURS OF HIEROGLYPHS.

festivals of Thoth and Uag only, combined with the
hand holding a vase (8), and three globular vases.
Mr. Griffith supposes it to be a table covered with a
cloth (Davies, Ptahhetcp i, p. ■3,']). I know no similar
object in the sculptures which is used as a table, but
in the tomb of Sekhemka, at Gizeh (L. D. ii, 89) a
man is bringing one on his shoulder, and on a
wooden panel of the O. K. in the Cairo Museum,
a woman is carrying one on her head. In the
latter instance the object is fluted vertically. No
colour.

85. A bundle of papyrus rolls (?) tied at the top
and bottom and in the middle. Sign for the syllable
ys (Pl. VIII in list of titles). No colour.

86. A girdle (?) tied in a bow with long ends.
Sign for dnkh, " Life " (Pl. IX). The ends of the
bow appear to be knotted in two wide double
loops, possibly to keep them in position (Pl. XLV
for colour).

87. A strip of cloth wound on a stick with one end
loose. Sign for neter, " God " (Pl. XX in name).
It was formerly supposed to be an axe, and even the
Egyptians appear to have considered it so, and made
amulets of that shape, in which all idea of cloth was
lost (see jeweller}' of Aahhetep, Petrie, History ii,
fig. 6). In early examples the loose end of cloth — ■
the head of the axe — was divided into two (Petrie,
Royal Tombs ii, pl. viii, 13 ; xxiv, 211 ; Garstang,
Mahasna, pis. viii-x). Originally, it was used only as
the word for "god," later it became the det. for
names of gods (Pl. XLV for colour).

88. A tusk (?) bound with cords. Sign for the
word ybek (Pl. I in list of titles). No colour.

89. Circular enclosure containing an irregular
cross. Sign for net, " City " (Pls. IX, X, XII in farm
names). It is generally taken to be the plan of a
town or village with cross roads running through it
and with circular enclosing walls (Pl. XLIII for
colour).

90-92. Unidentified object. Sign for ymakh,
"Worthy" (Pls. VIII, XXXI). No satisfactory
explanation of this sign has been found yet. Mr.
Griffith supposes it to be a bag drawn together by a
string, the folds or pleats being indicated by the lines.
The colour is certainly that used for cloth, but the
same colour is also used for wood, and this sign has
more the appearance of a wooden, than of a woven,
object (Pl. XLIV for colour).

93. Scribe's writing apparatus. Sign for sesli,
" Scribe " (Pl. VIII in list of titles). It represents
the pen-case ending in a lotus blossom, a small

water-pot, and a palette with two saucers, all tied
together with cords. In the tomb of Userneter
(Pl. XX), the top of the pen-case is more elaborate,
and the little saucers are hollow. In the tomb of
Ptahhetep II (Pl. XV, 4), each saucer is divided
into black and white, or red and white (Pl. XLIV
for colour).

94. Draught-board with men. Sign for the syllable
j/ien (Pl. X in farm name). The draught-board is of
the typical form, spaces 10 x 3, the men are distin-
guished by having some plain and some with a knob
on the top. Men of both forms are found in early
tombs (Petrie, R. T. ii, p. xxxv. 5, 6, p. 36) made
of ivory and blue glaze (Pl. XLIV for colour).

95. A mound (?) with herbage (?). Sign iox yat,
" Fields" (Pl. XII in farm names, Pl. XLIII for
colour).

96. A plant. Sign for the syllable hen (Pl. XI,
lowest register). The later forms and the printed
form are so different from this as to be hardly recog-
nized as the same sign. The plant is evidently the
little succulent plant which grows in all the hollows
on the desert at Saqqara in February and March,
making little green oases in the midst of the sand.
From the great variability in the form of this sign —
more than one kind of plant being represented in
different tombs — I am disposed to think that it
represents a special stage in the growth of the plant.
In the plant typical of the south the three different
stages — bud, leaf, and blossom — are used for three
different words (Pl. XLII for colour).

97. A water-lily plant. Sign for /C'/;<7, " thousand "
(Pl. XXIII in short list of offerings). In Pls. I
and II there is another form of the same sign in the
lists of offerings (Pl. XLII for colour).

98. A roll of papyrus tied and sealed. Det. of
writing and of abstract words (Pl. VIII in list of
titles). In early examples the seal is shown and
sometmies one loose end of the string with which
the roll is tied ; later, the two ends of string are
invariably shown (Pl. XLIV for colour).

76. Pls. XLI-XLV. In these plates anattempt has
been made to classify the colours of the hieroglyphs.
It is not by any means a complete list, except of the
tombs which we cleared, but it may prove a help to
those who are studying the signs and their original
meanings.

In comparing the colours used for flesh, it is
remarkable that in early examples, Seker-kha-bau and
his wife at Saqqara, and Rahotep at Medum (Petrie,

HIEROGLYPHS.

Meduiii) and Khnumhetep (B. M. 1,143) the flesh
tints are generally yellow for both sexes. In the Vth
Dynasty these hieroglyphs are conventionalized,
red for men, yellow for women.

The conventional colour, black, for the jackal is
certainly curious, as being quite different to the
yellowish tints of the animal. In the figure of the
jackal"god the colour is probably meant to show that
it is a wooden animal. The convention lasted to the
latest periods, the wooden jackals found in tombs
being always covered with black paint. The fore-
part of the lion Hd shows great diversity of colour,
and is evidently not intended to represent the true
colours of the animal. In the tomb of Rahotep*
(Petkie, Medum, pis. xiii and xxviii), the muzzle
and foreleg are green, the mane yellow, and the ear
black. In the tomb of Merab (L. D. ii, 19) the fore-
leg is blue, the head 3'ellow.

The Egyptian artists evidently found great diffi-
culty, with the few pigments at their disposal, in
representing the colours of the birds, blue and black
appear to interchange, also green and blue, and red
and yellow ; whereas in other signs in which the
colours are more definite on the original object the
only interchange is between blue and black.

Of the lower orders of living creatures the only
variations worth noting are, (i) the cvocoiWe sebek,
which in the tomb of Nefermaat (Petrie, Mcdiini,
pi. xviii) is yellow with black legs ; and (2) the fish
iinz, which in the tomb of Merab (L. D. ii, 22) is
green with red fins.

Pl. XLIII. In the sign representing a pool the
distinguishing letters have been omitted. A is the
outer rim, B the water.

In the two signs representing channels of water, it
is not very certain by the colour as to which part is
intended for the water. In the tomb of Merab
(L. D. ii, 22) the mer sign is shown with A black and
B yellow ; and in the same tomb the uat sign has A
green, B black, and C red.

Kha has been written inadvertently iox yat.

The sign Nes or G varies a good deal in colour ;

* Part of this tomb with this sign is now in the Biiiish
IVIuseuni, Nos. 1,242 and 1,277.

usually it is red, sometimes yellow (also Petrie
Medum, pl. xiii), and once green.

Pl. XLIV. The row of klient vases are evidently
reminiscent in colour of the red and black pottery,
which was commonly used in prehistoric and early
dynastic times. The tops are either blue or black,
the body of the vase red. The colour of the sup-
ports (?) varies, being sometimes the same colour as
the top, sometimes the same as the body of the vases.
The nil vase is generally blue or black, varied
occasionally (Rahotep and Merab) by reverting to the
prehistoric black-topped type. In the tomb of Atet
(Petrie, Medum, pl. xxvii), there is an example
where it is yellow.

In all the signs of rush work or fibre there is
variation between green and yellow, showing that
the rushes and fibres were used both fresh and dried
(Griffith, Hieroglyphs, p- 4,"). The yellow is found
in the earlier tombs as a rule.

The loaf of bread is interesting as showing that
even in the Vth Dynasty it was possible to obtain a
good brown crust to a loaf. In the inscriptions of
Merab of the IVth Dynasty, however, the sign is
black, evidently with a burnt crust.

Pl. XLV. The colouring of the emblematic or
magical signs, rt'^^/and sekliem, is extremely elaborate.
One of the earliest examples of the ded (Petrie,
Medum, pl. xiii) shows the upper part — the capitals
of the "pillars" — -alternately green and red with
yellow edges, the lower part being yellow.

The ^r^i'.f-harpoon, like the flint-knife, varies in
colour, being sometimes of its natural hue, blue in
the one case, black in the other ; and sometimes red,
which I suppose to represent the implement when
made of copper. The ^^/-dagger is generally red,
but in the stele of Khnum-hetep (Brit. Mus. 1,143) it
is blue.

The trap is a rare sign. In the tomb of Nefermaat
(Petrie, Medum, pl. xviii) it is red. The three grains,
determinative of the plural, are not uniform, being
sometimes red, sometimes blue, and sometimes black.
And the numeral One also varies between red and
black ; in the tomb of Merab (L. D. ii, 21) it is black,
and in the tomb of Ptahbaunefer (L. D, ii, 55) it is
red.

( 47 )

INDEX.

PAGE

Adze, Method of securing blade

of 44

Agriculture, Scenes of . . .IS

Alabaster table of offerings . . 4

,, vases for perfumes . 32

Altar with arm 23

Altars, Measurements of . . 18,24
Alterations in sculptured figures

14, 23
Ambrosia, Eg^-ptian name of . 38
Amphora-handle, Stamped . . 28
Amulet, Shell-shaped ... 14
Animal, Erased 14

„ of Set 42

Animals, Colours of . . . .46

,, Dwarf 13

,, led to sacrifice 13, 14, 16,
21, 22, 23, 26, 27

„ sketched . . . M, 16
Apa Jeremias, Monastery of . 29
Apparatus for writing , . .45
Architraves, Inscribed 8, 10, 23, 28

Ateta, Statue of IQ

,, Measurements of statue . 19

Baskets 14, 16, 21

„ Patterns on . . . .14

„ Rope ring for carrj-ing . 14

Basket work on jars . . . 21,44

Batter of walls . . . • 5> 7, 28

Bead necklace as sign for

"Gold" 44

Beads, Pear-shaped . . . 16, 20

Bearer of offerings, Woman . .17

Bearers of offerings 9, 10, 11, 12, 15,

16, 17, 21, 22, 23, 25, 27

Beer 39

,, Sweet 34

Birds as hieroglyphs . . . .41

,, Colours of 46

,, Names of 39

„ Sacrifice of 9, 15, 16, 21, 22, 27

Blue lotus 16, 21

,, in bowls . . . .21

Boats, Wooden models of

Bolte fish

Bowl of sacrificial blood .

,, with spout .
Boy with bowl of blood .
Bread made of lotus .

,, Names of .

PAGE

. 19

• 42
10, 21

. 21
• 30

33. 37, 38, 39
,, Slices of . . . 3, 25, 40

Breath pastilles 31

Bricks, Measurements of 5, 7, 18, 26
Brick walls. Measurements of 7, 24
Building, Charms on a . . .42
Burning incense . . . .20,21
Butter 39

Cakes, Names of . , 33, 37, 38, 39
Castor oil for burning . . .32
Cavetto moulding . . . 19, 26

Cedar oil 31, 34

Ceremony of purification . . 20
Charms on a building ... 42

Cheese 39

Christian church, Remains of . 28
Clarifying water with natron . 37
Clothes, Perfumes for . . .31
Colour on statue of Sheikh el

Beled 4

Colour on hieroglyphs 6, 8, 12, 19,

20, 23, 25, 26

Colours in tombs. , 13, 19, 22, 25

,, of animals . . . . 46

„ „ flesh 45

,, ,, magical signs . . . 46
„ „ pigments .... 46
,, „ women's dresses 4, 13, 15,

16, 23
Columns, Proto-Doric ... 43
Construction of tombs 5, 7, 10, 17,
19, 24, 25, 28
Conventional colours ... 46
Coptic inscription . . . 28, 29
Copying, Sculpture squared for . 15
Corn grinders . . . . 33i 35

Costume of Akhethetep .
,, ,, Kheri-heb-'^xi&'il
,, ,, Ptahhetep .

Courses of masonry ,

Crescent-shaped baskets .

Crested heron

Cross-lashing, Painted
,, ,, Sculptured

Crust on loaf of bread

" Cyprus " perfume .

PAGE
. 13

• 13

• 13
19, 24
14, 16

• 15

i3> 25

. IQ
. 46
. 31

Date-flour 32

Dates of tombs . . • .1,5,19
Decoration of lotus blossom . . 5
Determinative of festival . . 44

AiVTtpdpLO^ 29

Dog 9, 10

Donkeys, Scenes of . . . 7) 1 5
Door-bolt, Hole for . . . .17
Door, Pivot -hole for . . . .17
Doors, Measurements of 18, 24, 26
Doorways, Painted . . . 12, 17
„ Sculptured . 23, 27, 28

Draught-board hieroglyph . . 45
Dresses, Men's 3, 8, 9, 10, 13, 16, 20,

21, 23,41
„ Women's 4, 8, 9, 13, 15,

23- 41
Drill for stone vases .... 44
Dwarf animals 13

Ebony, Furniture of . ... 35

Edible lotus 30

,, papyrus 30

Egyptian name of ambrosia . . 38
Erased figures . . . . 14, 16
Eye-paint 36

Fattening of hyaenas ... 29
Farm women. Procession of. 13, 15
Festival, Determinative of . 43, 44
Figures erased . . . . 14, ib

INDEX.

PAGE PAGE

Fish, Mythological .... 42 Hyaenas, bred in confinement . 29

Flesh tints 45 „ domesticated ... 29

Floor, Sloping . . . . iq, 24 „ Fattening of . . .29

Fly flap 9, 10

Fowling I ;

Fragments, tomb of Ptahhetep II 1 7

Framework of reeds, Imitation Ichneumon 42

13, 19 Imitation granite 6, 7, 10, 17, 23^

Frieze of uraei 43 2^,26

Fruit, Names of . 33) 34i 35i 36, 40 f, . framework of reeds 13,19

Funeral rites 20,22 Incense, Burning , . .20,21

Furniture of ebony .... 35 „ and Water, purification

„ „ sa3-\\'ood . . 34, 35 by 20

„ Names of . . . 34,35 Ingredients of /zc/^;/«-perfume . 31

,, ,, metopium . . 30

„ „ mesei-perfiiTne . 31

,, „ " Perfume of the

Glass, Roman 28 frontier" 31

Goats 26 Inscribed architraves . 8, 10,23,28

Grain, Names of . . 34, 35, 36, 40 Inscription, Coptic . . .28, 29
Grandson of Sekhemka . . . q
Granite statue. Fragment of . 3
„ Imitation 6, 7, 10, 17, 23,

25, 26 Jackal, colour of 46

Green eye-paint, Use of . . 4,36 Jars with basket-work . . 21,44
Grinding stones for corn . 33,35 Jeremias, Monastery of ... 20

Joints of meat. Names of 33, 37, 38,

Lotus, pink .
„ roots .
,, seed-vessels

PAGB

16, 17, 21, 22
21, 22, 28,' 30
. . . 30

Handle of amphora. Stamped
Hansard, Miss .... i.

Hatchet

Jifeinu-oi[, Receipt for making .

Jlen-plant

Herdsmen pulling down a heifer

Heron, Crested

Hetep-&\.one% . . . . 19, 25,
„ ,, measurements of 18,

26,

Jlt'/kes-ammal

Hierogl3-phs, Birds as . . .
,, Colour on 6, 8, 12,

Rare . . 41,43,
,, Scratched . q, 10,

High-priest of Ptah, Necklace of
Hill of Memphis, Monastery of .
Hole for door-bolt
Holes, Unexplained .
Honey ....
Hornless oxen
Houses, Perfume for .
Hyaenas ....
,, as offerings .

30, 31,

28
28
44
31
45
23
15
26

24.

42
41
19.
20
46

-> —
-/

39
22

14
29

Khalifa, Reis 1,2,;

A'/ieier-ornament . 19, 20, 22, 42

Kheri-heb priests . 4, 13, 20, 21, 22

,, ,, Costume of .13

Knots 15, 44

Kohl ^6

Leading-rope, Methods of fasten-
ing 14. 22, 23, 27

Leopard skin 3,9,20

Libation tank :;

Libyan oil 32

Linens, Names of .... 33
Lists of offerings 3, 4, 16, 17, 19, 20,

22, 25, 27

„ „ sacred oils . . . 12, 26

Loaf of bread. Crust of . . .46

Long-horned oxen . . 22, 34, 35

Lotus-blossom decoration . . ^

Lotus, blue 16, 21

,, ,, in bowls . . . .21
„ bread %o

Magical signs. Colour of . . .46
Mariette's plans . . 2, 6, 11, 18, 19
Marsh plants, Hieroglyphs of . 43
Masonry, Courses of . . 12, 19, 24

Maspero, M 2

Measurements of altar . . 18,24
,, ,, bricks . 5, 7, 18, 26

,, ,, brick walls 7, 24

,, „ doors . 18, 24, 26

,, ,, hetep-^tonti, 18, 24,

26, 28
„ ,, libation tank . 5

„ „ niche ... 24

,, ,, pedestal . . 19

,, ,, recesses . .18

„ „ statue of Ateta 19

,, „ stone block . 18

,, „ stone seat . . lo

„ ,, window . . 24

Meat, Joints of . . -^.i, 37, 2,^, 39

Melons 39

Men's costumes 3, 8, q, 10, 13, 16,
20, 21, 23,41
Method of securing blade of adze 44
Methods of fastening leading-
ropes . . . .14, 22, 23, 27
Metopiiim perfume .... 30

J/^if/ perfume 31

Min, sign for 44

Models of boats 19

,, ,, offerings . . . .19
Monastery of Apa Jeremias . . 29

Mongoose 42

Mothersole, Miss . . . . i

Mud plaster 7, 10

Mythological fish .... 42

Name of dog 9, 10

Names of birds 39

„ „ cakes . . 33, 37, 38, 39
„ „ fruit . 33, 34, 35, 36, 40
„ „ furniture ... 34, 35
„ „ grain . . 34, 35, 36. 40
„ „ joints of meat 33,37,38,39

,, ,, linens 33

,, I, parts of stele ... 2

INDEX.

PAGE

Names of sacred oils . . 33, 35, 36

„ „ vases . , 33, 34, 35, 37

„ „ wines .... 35, 40

Natron for clarifying water . .37

iV(?(^-baskets 14

Necklace of beads .... 44

„ „ High-priest of Ptah 3

Neter^ Hieroglyph for . . . 45

Niche, Sculptured .... 23

„ „ Measurements

of . .24.

Offerings 11, 12, 14, 16, 21, 22, 26,27

,, Bearers of q, 10, 11, 12,

15.16,17,21,22,23,25,27

„ Lists of 3, 4, 16, 17, iq,

20, 22, 25, 27

„ Models of

Oil, Castor

,, Libyan

,, of cedar

Oils, Lists of

Onions

Ox, Hornless

,, Long-horned

,, Short-horned

,, with deformed horn

•

■

•

31,

12,

2, 34,

34,

Painted doorways

Palm oil, Scented

Panther skin .

Papyrus as food .

Parts of stele. Names of

Pattern of rectangles

Patterns on baskets .
„ „ stele. .

Pedestal, Measurements of

Pendant beads

" Perfume of the frontier "

Perfumes, Alabaster vases for
„ for clothes

,, ,, houses

„ ,, the breath

,, Receipts for mak

Pesesh, the dog .

Petrie, Mrs. . .
„ Prof. . . .

Pigments, Colours of

Pigtails ....

Pillars ....

12,

3, 9,

17
31
20

25
14
25

iq
20

32
31
31
3'
31
10

, 3
20
46

PAGE

Pink lotus ... 16, 17, 21, 22
Pitchforks, Three-pronged . .15
Pivot hole for door . . . .17
Plans, Mariette's. . 2, 6. 11, iS, 19
Plastered walls . . 5, 6, 8, 20, 26
Position of tombs . . i, 8, 11, 19
Pottery, XVIIIth and XXnd

Dynasties 24

Priests, Khcri-heb 4, 13, 20, 21, 22
Procession of farm-women . 13,15
Proto-Doric columns ... 43
" Prunkscheinthor " . . . . 5
Ptah, Necklace of High-priest of 3

Pumpkins -^9

Purification, Ceremony of . .20

Quarry mark. Traces of .

Rare hieroglyphs . . 41, 43, 46
Receipt for making heknu--^tx-

fume . 31
„ „ „ mezet-^&x-

fume . 31
Recess in wall. Unexplained . 15
Recesses, Measurements of . . 18
,, Pointed . . . .17
Rectangles, Patterns of . . 17, 25
Remains of Christian church . 28
Rites, Funeral .... 20, 22

Roman glass 28

„ pillars 28

Roofing stones 6, 7, 12, 17, i8, 23,

24, 25, 28
Roots of lotus . . . 21,22,28,30
Rope-ring for carrying baskets . 14
Rubi, Reis 2, 4, 5

Sacred oils -^o

,, „ Lists of . . . 12, 26
,, „ Names of. . 33, y-.^ 36

Sacrifice of birds 9, 15, 16, 21, 22, 27

,, Animals led to 13, 14, 16,

21, 22, 23, 26, 27

Saz-\'iOoA furniture . . . 34, 35

Scenes of agriculture . . . i ^
„ „ donkeys . . . 7, 15
„ „ fowling . . . .15
,, ,, sacrifice 10, i ^, 22, 2;, 26

4
14
35

PAGE

Scenes, Traces of . . . 7, 10
Scented palm-oil .... 31
Scratched hieroglyphs . 9, 10, 27
Scribe's writing apparatus , . 45
Sculpture squared for copying . 15
Sculptured doorways . 23, 27, 28

Seat, Stone 8

Sebakhin, Work of . . . 28, 29
Seed-vessels of lotus .... 30
Sekhet, Uab-^ntit of . . .15
Serdab, Unfinished .... 5

Set-animal 42

Sden-lutep 22, 37

Sethe, Prof. i, 5, 43

^Z/rtZ-cake 39

Sheikh el Baled, Colour on statue

Shell-shaped amulet ....
Short-horned ox . . . .34

Shrines 43

Size of bricks . . .5, 7, 18, 26
Sketches in red paint 12, 14, 16, 26

vSkew passage 17

Slater, Miss Phoebe .... I
Slices of bread on table of offer-
ings 3, 25, 40

Sloping floor 19,24

„ wall .... -«

Spoonbill ....
Statue, granite, Fragment of
Statue of Ateta .
Stele, Names of parts of .

„ ofXIXth Dynasty

,, patterns on

„ Ptahhetep I . .

„ typical

Stibium

Stone block ....

,, ,, Measurements of

„ seat ....

,, „ Measurements of

„ vases. Drill for
Stones for grinding corn
Stones, Roofing 6, 7, 12, 17, i

2J. '

Stucco 7, ]

Sweet beer

Sycamore figs ....

3, 35
>, 23,
5, 28
2, 17

34
40

Table of offerings. Alabaster
Tank for libations
Three-pronged pitchforks .

INDEX.

Tombs, Construction of 5, 7, 10, 17,

IQ, 24, 25, 28

,, Dates of . . . . i, 5. iq
,, Position of . . I, 8, 11, iq
,, unrecorded by Mariette 5,

Traces of quarry mark . . ■ i~

,, „ scenes . . . . 7, 10

Typical stele 2

Uai-priest of Sekhet

Unrecorded tombs .

■ 5) 7i

Uraei, Frieze of .

Use of green eye-paint .

• 4.

Usek/i-hdiskets

• 1+

Variation in colour of hiero-
glyphs 45-46

Vases, Names of . . 33, 34, 35, 37
Vessels with spouts . 9, 22, 27, 33

Wall, Batter of . . . . 5, 7, 28
„ Mud brick ... 7, 25

,, Sloping 28

,, Unexplained .... 7
Water and incense. Purification

by 20

Water clarified by natron . .37
Weigall, Mr. A. E. . . 1,2, 3' 6
Whitewash . . . 5, 6, 8, 20, 26
Wigs . . 3,4,9, 10, 13, 15, 16, 21

PAGE
. IQ
• 24

35. 40

• 15

• 17

• 15
13, 15, 23,

,, ,, Colours of 4, 13,

15. 16,23

Writing apparatus .... 45

Window

,, Measurements of
Wines, Names of
Winnowing ....
Woman bearing offerings
Women with pigtails
Women's dresses 4, 8, 9, i

Ymakk, Hieroglyph for
Yule. Mr. R. A. . .

45
I

1 :7

SAQQARA: TOMB OF SEKER-KHA-BAU, IIIRD DYN.

1:6

SAQQARA: TOMB OF SEKER-KHA-BAU, lliRD DYN.

STELE OF THE WIPE.

1:4-

1;6

SAQQARA: TOMB OF THE SHEIKH EL BELED, Etc., IVth DYN.

III.

■w^

[> Zi

' Oj/

,0^0 <-"U%

^^i^irarm^

4.^

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J.M.

MA.M.

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IV.

mM:£^sSk

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SAQQARAr TOMB OP PTAHHETEP II, STELE, Vth DYN.

VIM.

F.H.
M A.M

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SAQQARA: TOMB OF PTAHHETEP II, SOUTH WALL, Vth DYN.

IX.

FARM-WOMEN BRINGING OFFERINGS.

J M.
M.A.M

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SAQQARA: TOMB OF PTAHHETEP II, Vth DYN.
SOUTH WALL.

FARM-WOMEN BRINGING OFFERINGS.

J.M.
M.A.M.

1 ;7

SAQQARA: TOMB OF PTAHHETEP II, EAST WALL, Vth DYN.

XI.

<2-jU Snx

SCENES OF AGRICULTURE, BIRD-CATCHING, AND SACRIFICE,

F.H^
M.A.M.

SAQQARA: TOMB OF PTAHHETEP II, Vth DYN. XII.

NORTH WALL.

FARM WOMEN BRINGING OFFERINGS.

SAQQARA: TOMB OF PTAHHETEP II, Vth DYN.

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SAQQARA: TOMB OF PTAHHETEP II, DOORWAYS, Vth DYN.

XIV.

«, •«^■A^

NORTH DOORWAY
3

SOUTH DOORWAY

M.A.M.

1:7

SAQQARA: TOMB OF PTAHHETEP II, Vth DYN.
PAINTED CHAMBER, WEST, SOUTH AND NORTH WALLS.

iC^M-

WEST WALL

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SOUTH WALL

M.A M.

1 -.7

SAQQARA: TOMB OF PTAHHETEP II, Vth DYN.
PAINTED CHAMBER, EAST WALL.

XVI.

M.A.M,

1:7

SAQQARA: TOMB OF PTAHHETEP II, Vth DYN.

XVII.

1:8

h^-tllt^H-^-AZ-f^^ -^ASta

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F.H-
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SAQQARA: TOMB OF ATETA, Vth DYN.

XVII

inn I 1 1 1 I

1 1 1 1 n I

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XIX

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XX.

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SAQQARAi TOMB OF USER-NETER, NORTH WALL, Vth DYN.

F. H.
M A.M.

1:9

SAQQARA: TOMB OF USER-NETER, EAST WALL, Vth DYN.

XXII

1:9

SAQQARA: TOMB OF USER-NETER, SOUTH WALL, Vth DYN.

F,H.
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MA.M.

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SAQQARA: TOMB OF USER-NETER, NICHE, Vth DYN.

XXIV.

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F.H.
M.A.M.

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SAQQARA: TOMB OF USER-NETER. Vth DYN.
ARCHITRAVE, DOORWAYS, Etc.

XXV.

ARCHITRAVE

DOORWAY

FRAGMENT

DRUM OF INNER DOOR

iP'-^-;f

DRUM OF OUTER DOOR

FRAGMENTS

F.H.
M.A.M.

1 :10

SAQQARA: TOMB OF PTAHSHEPSES I, STELE, VIth DYN.

XXVI.

U LJ U

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P.S.

M.A.M.

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SAQQARA: TOMB OF PTAHSHEPSES I, Vth DYN.

XXVII.

11M!f!^

DRUM

TABLE OF OFFERINGS

.-.m

NORTH WALL

EAST WALL

P-^ c ^

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SAQQARA: TOMB OF PTAHSHEPSES II, STELE, VIth DYN.

XXVIII.

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SAQQARA: TOMB OF PTAHSHEPSES II, NORTH WALL, VIth DYN.

XXIX.

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1: 8

SAQQARA: TOMB OF PTAHSHEPSES II, SOUTH WALL, VIth DYN.

XXX.

1 :8

SAQQARA: TOMB OF PTAHSHEPSES
DOORWAYS, Etc.

VlTH DYN.

XXXI.

1; 100

SAQQARA: TOMB PLANS AND SECTIONS.

XXXI

SEKER-KHA-BAU
f///////////A

STELE

USER- NETER

EAST WALL SOUTH WALL

>!><-

i 1

III II

/ / 1

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SAQQARA: TOMB PLAN AND SECTIONS.

XXXIll.

DOOR

EAST WALL

WEST WALL

M AM.

1 MOO

SAQQARA: TOMB PLANS AND SECTIONS.

XXXIV.

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PTAHHETEP I

SAQQARA: TOMB PLANS AND SECTIONS.

XXXV.

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R.A.Y.
M A ,M

1 : 3

SAQQARA: VARIA.

XXXVI.

STATUE

COPTIC POTTERY AND INSCRIPTION.

1 :2

SAQQARA; HIEROGLYPHS.

XXXVII.

P J M.
M A.M.

1:2

SAQQARA: HIEROGLYPHS.

XXXVIII

34.

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XXXIX.

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XL.

74-

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PS.

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mmmn

MM^NMI

J.M.
MAM.

SAQQARA: COLOURS

OF HIEROGLYPHS.

XLI.

. -J
00

Cl.

O Lu

-r i-u

Ski

Lo-J

ULJ

-a;

tli ^

Lt-I

A.|-«£l

B. black

A. red

B.LLklIc

=-r-

a C|OoL

n.recL

A.G bloci-
13. red

5»-

ch'dA.

r3. i-cd.

.-#"•

SER

A. block
f3. red

KUk. R r«{
C.wlufe.H roi

A. red.

A.Uk.B.rut
C.wkiC

t3. vccL

-^c

UAB

C-rtcL

A.Gred.l5,blJ<

»■'

SHE PS

A. red

KAT

Qred,

A.G red
r3. bLcLtk

r3. block
G red

¥^

exclQnidticr

A. bfoLtk
13. red.

<-0Lra

MAAT

A yellow
B.C green

A.yclXow
13. C green

IB. qreen

^ID

TEP

A.GbLctcA

B. vccl

A. blr^i^
13. red.

B. red.

A.r Wacfc
rarrecL

A.Ct(fld<

A.6(ojUc

^i«

HER

r3. red
C red

13. rcjJ.

A.G block;

A-G Mack

A.(l block

A.Ctl'«i<

A.Uk.B.red
C dark reel

A.blrmk
C reel

A.Q. blade

yellow

red.

red

C^il

yeLLow

red.

Ye.d

,^— n

recL

red

reoL

red

r-ed.

A. i-ed
13. bloxJf

a=5

oFFo'uiq

A.rect
f3.qi-eeu

AB. red

red.

red

red.

red

ZESER

A. red
[3. brown

B.i,Lae

KHEN

re.d

NEPER

red-

red

vecL

racL

red

yellow

yctioV

red

=J!

l>et:p(-
motion

red

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red.

red

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h.ai.r

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ilack

tLodc

I) Lack

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black

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a'blcL*.

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fe/re.d

€) i

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Spot t(x)xk

yfeliow
spots tuuk

IBI

KHEN

red

•^

SHED

red

M A.M.

SAQQARA: COLOURS OF HIEROGLYPHS.

XLI

U-l
CO

HATHOR
NEPER- HETEP

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red tnarkitujs

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yellow

brownisli yellow

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yeUowwiBi

yellow

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AMENT

6. qrcen

-m

NETER

A. Liu*.
13. reel

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6. qreen.

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t3.C liloe

D.red

^:^'^

NUT

B.C tU

^ ^c

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red.

B red

f. qreen

ieh of
tirds

yellow

100.000

oreen.

^'^

bLotU

jrowmdiycOcw

A.yeUoW
B. green

A. yellow
B. green

A-^ xli

yelLow

A.blacJ<
B. yellow

A. birtfk

B. yellow

AbU/J<
B. re.dL

SE3EK

liLoxk

l)Lae

KHEPER

[Lxck

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KHET

yellDW

greevi.

green

are.s-\\

(jreen

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green

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qreen.

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gree-n.

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(frain.

yellow

M.A.M.

SAQQARA: COLOURS OF HIEROGLYPHS.

XLIII.

ar->

l-J-J

HATHOR-
NEFER-HETEP

Ljl_i

a.
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^^.%

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yellow

:da

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blue

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M.A.ri

SAQQARA: COLOURS OF HIEROGLYPHS.

XLIV.

•J
1^

sir

LJ-]
LXJ

U-I
CO

LXJ
ULJ

LJ-l ^

:3r o

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l_LJ

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festivaL

red

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red

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olL

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bliui red

KHNEM

blue

HEN

(jloe.

bLck

l)U

blat
LLock

MH^

KHENT

ra.C l-ed

13. rtd

A.C. ktuc
13. red

A.C. blui.
B.red

13 red

A.Ulu.

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A. blue.

a. red

A.kUu.
l-a.red

klack

blue

liLu.t

blue

USEKHT

red

red.

d:^.

A. buu.
a. red

A. bLocJc
ta. red

A.B. red

XletioF
metal vessel

(.Lack

frt

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wine.

B, yellow

AMAKH

red.

red

SHEN

kroHTi.HiUi
red, U.1US

®@^

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dloik

red

qreen

green

cjretu

yellow

-»>

qreen

green

^3)

creeu

qreen.

gi-etii

green

c,re.e.n

fSj 5) A

ATHET

A.qrecn

A . Q rten
f3. red

rtd

red.

red

rfcd

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{}

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HETEP

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ri,qret>t

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ti.C. qreen

ra.C. qreen

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ra.C. qreen

f3.C qreen

Ifmcn yellow

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green

B^grA

ktrtonyellut^

Uwon. yellow

green

A.^itert.
B. trow-

green

c, I'een

NfB

Qi-een

green

v_y

DEBA

green

K_^

green

Cc=:^:i

drtbucKe

blae

green

■m-^

SAHU

green

A. green

'"P=^-A

MEN

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A.vtllow. B.C|reo

A. qreen

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red

bread

brovrn,

wown.

red

orange

yellovv^ wiJiv.
black liivti

A-

SESH

Ctt^

AI)(B.'J<.D,an.
rS.C.F. rti

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D qreen

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D qreen

A.UK.B.C.F red

^QHT^"^

aLstroit Word.

C. red.

A.bkuk
Crtd

M.A.M.

SAQQARA: COLOURS OF HIEROGLYPHS.

XLV.

d
.-I

HATHOR-
NEFERHETEP

::^

L.LJ
CO

>-
1—

1 —

LJ-l

LXJ

1 'J-

LJ-J v3

m-A

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tikcavkon.

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SEN

red

red.

n n n n

HEBS

red

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oreen

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SEKHEM

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qreen

ACq^f-^n

13. red.

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red.

liron-n

|-£d

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SAHU

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^-mji

NETER

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C. qru.n

A.B yeiUwv
C, ^reav

AJi.yjttiow
C c, ve.cn

C q reen

A.ByfUoK
C green

^^'

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A . ^reew
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MER

red

red.

e Uadc

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B. black

■^.i^^

Bet: of

A. bi'ow)!.
B block

MER

A. blue

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Q rean

'^ — 1

Q.C-llwM

KRES

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red

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%'-\

HESMEN

B l^kck

NEI

red.

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reA

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r3 rt<i

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B. red

-v- V

let: of
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()

MEDU

yelLoyy

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1^ red
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blue

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blue

red

<ii ^

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sacred, oil

ydL>w

m=>

r^al.

r~\

bUtck

binfk

Llocic

bLaLk

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binrk
bUte,

bLe

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o o o

:[)et:of-
plural

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Dat: of-
Oprtnpd

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red.

LLuk

red.

MAM.

EGYPTIAN RESEARCH ACCOUNT

TENTH YEAR
1904

GUROB

L. LOAT, F.Z.S.

CONTENTS.

CHAPTER I.

Medinet Gurob.

SECT.

1. The site ....

2. The prehistoric cemetery

3. The Temple

CHAPTER II.
The Cemetery.

4. XVIIIth Dynasty burials.

5. Cemeter)' of infants

6. Ptolemaic burials

7. Animal skulls

PI.

PAGE
I
I
I

CHAPTER III.

The Animal Cemetery.

Pis. viii-xiii.

SECT.

8. The site .....

9. The mammalia ....
10; The fishes .....

11. Description of burials .

CHAPTER IV.
Objects Discovered

12. Pottery. Pis. i-iii

13. Scarabs, &c. PI. iv

14. Shabtis. PI. v

15. Steles. Pis. xv-xviii.

16. Stele of High Priest. PL xix

P.\GE

3
3

3
4

6
6

7
7
8

LIST OF PLATES.

PL.\TE

I. Pottery

II. Pottery, XVIIIth— XlXth Dyn. .

I"- ., „ „ „ .

IV. Scarabs, etc., XVIIIth— XlXth Dyn.

V. Alabaster, etc., XVIIIth— XlXth Dyn
VI.
VII. Burials, XVIIIth-XIXth Dyn.
VIII. Animal cemetery, XlXth Dyn.
IX. „

P.\GE

6
6
6
6

7
2

3-6

PLATE PAGE

XI. Animal cemetery, XlXth Dyn. . . 3-6

XII. „ „ ,, ■ . 3-6

XIII. Plans of animal cemetery and tomb . 3-6

XIV. Temple of Tahutmes . . . . i
XV. Steles XlXth Dyn 7

XVI. Steles and shabti jar. XlXth Dyn. . 7

XVII. Steles, etc. XlXth Dyn. ... 7

XVIII. Steles, etc 7

XIX. Stele of high priest .... 8

GUEOB

CHAPTER I.

MEDINET GUROB.

1. The cemetery and town of Medinet Gurob,
which in Arabic means the town of the crow, are
situated on the edge of the desert, about a mile and
a half to the W.-S.-W. of Illahun, on the border of
the province of the Fayum, and at no great distance
from the Bahr Yusef.

The cemetery covers a large area, but is somewhat
scattered, as the ground was evidently not all equally
suitable for the excavation of tombs. The town,
many of whose inhabitants were foreigners, seems
to have flourished during the XVIIIth Dynasty, and
probably owed its origin to Tahutmes III. It
continued on into the XlXth Dynasty, and then
seems to have fallen into decay. The cemetery,
however, was again used in Ptolemaic and Roman
times.

The ruins of a small village, also dating from the
X\TIIth Dynasty, lies about 500 yards to the
south of the old town, in close proximity to an animal
cemetery.

Professor Petrie excavated at Gurob some fourteen
years ago, and the result of his work was published
in the volumes entitled " Kahun''' and "Illahun.''
Since then very little has been done at the site,
except by natives, who have plundered it extensively.

2. Hitherto no prehistoric burying place was
known further north than Sohag; this is some 210
miles south of a cemetery now discovered.

This cemetery was on a small " kom " or eminence
about half-a-mile to the south of the ancient town,
close to the cultivated land, and consisted of some
fifty graves, which had been so effectually plundered
that only three perfect pots and fragments of a few
other types were obtained (Pl. I, 1-9).

All of these may be referred to the middle
prehistoric period, circa 6,000 B.C., according to the
sequence dating given by Professor Petrie in his

"Diospolis Parva." The graves were mostly oblong
in shape, and varied in depth from 2 to 3 ft.

Although the country was carefully searched in all
directions, not a trace of another prehistoric grave
was discovered, from which one may conclude, that
the original colony was either a very small one, or
that it has only occupied this district for a short
period, and removed to some more congenial spot.

3. A small temple or shrine was dedicated to the
worship of Tahutmes III, and is situated to the
W.-N-W. on the outskirts of the ancient town, and
about fifty yards from the large temple discovered
by Prof. Petrie about fourteen years ago. It was
probably erected at the end of the XVIIIth, or
beginning of XlXth Dynasty, and built of medium-
si^ed sun-dried bricks.

The design is simple, consisting of two courts, a
terrace and three chambers beyond it.

The front court, B, had two steps in the N.-\V.
corner, ^ and six column bases, one of which was a
sculptured slab originally belonging to a Xllth
Dynasty tomb ; at the base of the eastern wall a
Ptolemaic burial was found.

The second court, D, contained four column bases,
a flight of six steps, at the foot of which were four
small stones, probably forming the base of an altar,
E, also a beam made from the stem of a palm tree,
which had originally formed part of the roof. The
walls of both courts were covered with mud plaster
whitewashed ; the upper portion had been decorated
with figures, &c., in red, several fragments of which
were found in the rubbish.

The flight of steps leads up to the terrace, F ; this
together with the chambers beyond are raised
twenty inches above the level of the court, D. At
the top of the steps are two pillar bases, one on either
side ; in front of them is the sanctuary, G, on either
side of which is a chamber, H and K, possibl}-

1 For convenience of description, the temple is supposed to
face due noitli.

MEDINET GUROB.

treasuries. In and near the entrance to chamber H
a number of steles were found lying face downwards
and mostly unbroken. Stele No. 13 was in three
fragments, one in H and the other two in chamber
K, which had a stone sill at the entrance. The
remaining steles were found on the terrace, with the
exception of No. 16, which was lying close to the
steps in court D, and two large fragments inscribed
with the name of Tahutmes III, discovered at a dis-
tance of a few yards outside the entrance to the front
court. The walls of the terrace and chambers were
covered with whitewashed mud plaster, and smooth
mud floors about two inches thick were throughout
the whole building. The shaded portions at A and
C were later additions, made possibly to improve the
appearance of the structure. Abutting on the
eastern portion of the temple, and running the whole
length of the same, is a narrow enclosure with an
entrance at each end, containing three recesses, M, N
and O, and a flight of six steps, P. This enclose may
have been used by those who had come some distance
as a place in which to stable their beasts, while they
attended the services in the temple ; the recesses
would serve for storing fodder.

At the N.-E. corner a portion of the enclosing wall
had been broken down in order to make room for a
grave during the Ptolemaic period.

CHAPTER II.

THE CEMETERY.

4. Several types of burial were found. In one
case the body had been placed in a roughlj'-made
trench, dimensions 7 ft. x i ft. 9 in. x 3 ft., lying
approximately N.-E. and S.-W., on the top of a large
" kom " or eminence. Covering the body was a
closely woven mat of grass, which was wonderfully
well preserved considering that it dated from the
XVIIIth Dynasty. Resting on the mat, and
leaning against the end of the tomb at the right
hand side of the head, was a large red earthenware
pot (Pl. VII, i). When the upper mat was
removed, the body was found lying wrapped in
another mat, composed of sticks made from the ribs
of the date palm, round which a rope had been
bound to prevent its coming undone (Pl. VII, 2),
beneath the head was a small two-handled vase
(Pl. Ill, 99). On unwrapping the body, which was

mummified in the usual way, the following articles
of the toilet were found on the breast ; a copper
mirror with a carved wooden handle of a very
unusual pattern, a kohl tube, containing kohl, made
out of the hollow stem of some reedy plant, and the
usual wooden kohl-stick (Pl. IV, 35, 36, and ^y.)

At a short distance from the above burial were
found two shallow graves, each containing the body
of a baby. Both graves were of the same measure-
ment, viz., 3 ft. X I ft. X I ft. 6 in. In one case
the body was wrapped in a mat composed of thin
reeds, while at the head was placed a roundish lump
of dried mud with a shallow depression at one end,
perhaps meant to represent the usual burial jar.
The grave was partly covered in with three mud
bricks, each 12 in. x 6 in. x 3 in., placed end to
end. On the breast were a number of dark blue
glass pendants.

In the other case the body was wrapped in what
appeared to be a species of rush, bound tightly
together at intervals with coarse rope.

5. To the south of the town was a small
cemetery for babies, which were buried in earthen-
ware jars of an oval shape with two small handles,
one on either side. The jars were evidently not
originally intended for the purpose to which they
had been put ; as in every case the mouth had been
enlarged by breaking, in order to allow of the body
being placed inside ; they were sealed with a cap
composed of mud. The graves consisted of shallow
pits from i ft. 6 in. to 2 ft. 6in. in depth, hollowed
out of the friable rock. In two cases an earthenware
dish had been placed upside down near the mouth
of the jar. On Pl. VII, 4 are shown burial jars in
position.

6. An unusual type of coffin of the Ptolemaic
period was found in one of the tombs. The tomb,
which was of the XVIIIth Dynasty, was of the
ordinary t3'pe with two chambers, one at either end
of the shaft ; it had been re-used after having been
opened and plundered in early times, as was evident
from the accumulated sand which half-filled the
chamber ; and it was on the top of this sand that
the body had been placed. The coffin was a light
framework composed of the ribs of palm leaves and
decorated in green and pink, which had retained
much of their freshness, especially at the head
portion (Pl. XVIII, 3).

The head, and breast of the mummy down to the

ANIMAL SKULLS.

knees, was covered with cartonnage, which was very
much injured by insects. The body was wrapped in
cloth in the usual way, and bound from chin to feet
with thin strips of cloth arranged in a lattice-work
pattern.

On removing the outer covering an unusual state
of affairs was found, viz., that only the chief bones
had been preserved, and these were mostly dis-
jointed ; those of the arms and legs lying on either
side, and between them the ribs, pelvis, and vertebrae
had been loosely arranged. These were all roughly
bound in cloth and held together with reeds placed
lengthwise. The feet of the mummy were repre-
sented by a wreath of what appeared to have
been flowers bound in cloth. The outer covering
had been so skilfully arranged that the body
presented nothing unusual until it had been un-
wrapped.

Several pottery coffins of the XVIIIth — XlXth
Dynasties were found ; some quite plain, others
roughly painted with the usual figures of the guard-
ians of the dead, &c.

On Pl. XVIII, 4, is a photographof a red earthen-
ware coffin belonging to a late period. At the
bottom of the same plate is an interesting group
from a Roman grave, consisting of two pottery dolls,
a lamp and an earthenware jar of the same shape,
such as is often used at the present day on the
" saqqieh," or water-wheel.

7. Pl. XII, I shows a group of forty animal
skulls, chiefly sheep, those of the rams having well-
developed horns ; in the middle are three dogs' skulls.
The whole series was found together near the top of
the shaft of one of the tombs. In another tomb
shaft, about three feet below the surface, a mass of
skulls, a hundred and twenty-two in number, was
found, chiefly those of the goat ; the rest consisting
of sheep, two oxen, and five dogs.

On the same plate, No. 3, is a photograph of a
ram's head with an unusually fine pair of horns, also
found in a tomb shaft.

CHAPTER III.

Near by were the ruins of a small village. The
cemetery itself afforded very few facts as to its age,
though it probably dated from the XlXth Dynasty,
judging from the shape of several pots which were
found in one of the graves (Pl. Ill, 54, ']■]., and 79).
It may roughly be divided into two portions, one
adjacent to the cultivated land and extending a short
distance into the desert, which contained the bodies
of oxen and goats ; while the other, which was still
further in the desert, was almost entirely occupied
with the remains of fish.

The oxen and goats were buried in shallow
irregular pits, varying in depth from eighteen inches
to two feet. In nearly every pit there were more than
one animal buried, but only of one species ; and
generally without any kind of order, i.e., one on the
top or lying across the other. In some cases only a
confused mass was discernable ; this may be owing to'
the graves having been reopened from time to time
to receive the animals as they died. There were no
indications that the animals had been mummified,
though in one grave several of the heads of the oxen
still retained portions of cloth adhering to them.

9. Many of the goats and oxen had long horns, a
point of some interest, as the Egyptian cattle at the
present day have, generally speaking, very short horns,
a characteristic of the Syrian cattle, which have been
largely introduced in comparatively recent times and
taken the place of the original breed. Mr. Oldfield
Thomas, of the Natural History Museum, kindly
supplied us with the measurements of one of the best
goats' heads, viz : — ■

I ft. lOtV in. along the outside curve.

I ft. 7 in. from tip to tip.
Pl. XI shows four graves containing oxen and
goats respectively.

1. The bodies of two oxen.

2. The pit was roughly 6 ft. square, and contained
three adult and three young goats.

3. A very irregularly shaped pit, about 22 ft. long
by 19 ft. wide, containing a confused mass of skeletons
of oxen and two or three calves.

4. This pit was 6 ft. long and 4 ft. 6 in. wide, and
contained four adult goats.

THE ANIMAL CEMETERY. jQ. The portion of the cemetery devoted to fish

Pls VIII XIII burials differed in several points from that in which

the o.xen and goats were buried. F"or one thing the

8. A cemetery of animals lay a quarter of a mile pits were more carefully dug, many being occupied by

to the South of that containing the human burials, a single fish, and in those cases in which two or more

THE ANIMAL CEMETERY.

were buried together, a certain arrangement was
observed; they were either side by side, or in layers,
and sometimes head to tail. Another point of
difference lies in the fact that in nearly every case
where fish were concerned a packing of fine grass
ashes, probably " halfa," was used as a preservative.

The fish was placed on a thick la\'er of this, and
covered up with the same material ; while in the
case of large specimens the mouth and openings
behind the gill covers were packed with the same.

In a few of the largest fish, a slit had been made
along the ventral surface of the body, and the cavity
was stuffed with ashes.

The greater number of the fish were Lates nilotiais,
sometimes known by the name of the Nile perch ;
a few specimens of three other well-known Nile
species were also found, but in no case were different
species placed together in the same pit. A few
specimens were found wrapped in cloth.

As a fish cemetery of this description has, as far
as I am aware, not been previously described, it has
been considered advisable to give a more or less
detailed description of each pit ; the numbers indi-
cating each pit will be found to correspond to those
used in the plan of the cemetery on Pl. XIII.

11. I. Lates nilotiais. Pits i to iia.

Dimensions of the pit, 4 ft. long by 3 ft wide, by
I ft. 18 in. deep. Contents, Seven fish, averaging
3 ft. in length ; four small lots of bones, three wrapped
in dried grass, and one in cloth ; also a complete fish,
likewise wrapped in grass ; these bundles were
removed and photographed together (Pl. IX, 3).

2. Pit, 5 ft. 6in. X 3 ft. 3 in. x i ft. 6 in. (Pl VIII,
2.) Ten fish of various sizes Ij'ing one on the top of
the other.

2n. A mass of loose fish bones.

3. Pit, 6 ft. X 4 ft, X 3 ft. (Pl. IX, i).

Twenty or more fish of various sizes lying one on
the top of the other.

At one side of the pit a complete fish was found
bound up in dried grass ; on the other, a number of
bones likewise bound up in grass. Under these was
one of the large opercular bones wrapped in a piece
of cloth, and a little further were a number of bones
fastened up in a piece of reed matting. In nearly
every case the bones in these bundles proved to be
either those of the head or vertebral column, and
with one exception, which will be mentioned later on,
all the fish were preserved whole. The preservation
even of odd bones reveals to us with what reverence

certain fish were held by the ancient Eg3'ptians,
more especially Lates niloticus, which is known to the
natives by various names in different localities ; for
example, this species is found mummified in various
parts of the country, although the chief city for the
veneration of Lates was Latopolis, identified with the
modern town of Esneh in Upper Egypt. The Greeks
realized this when they gave it the name of Latopolis.
3(•^. A circular pit in close proximity to No. 3.
6 ft. 6 in. deep and 4 ft. 10 in. in diameter, lined with
mud bricks to a height of 3 ft. 10 in. from the bottom ;
nearly every brick was stamped with the cartouche
of Rameses II. It was filled with sand, amongst
which were found two heads of Z.. niloticus, a few
fish bones, and a scrap of reed mat ; these had most
likely got in by chance, the pit having probably
been originally used as a receptacle for holding
grain.

4. Pit, 4 ft. g in. X 2 ft. 6 in. x i ft. 5 in.

A large number of fish, mostly of a small size, lying
one on the top of the other.

5. Pit, 5 ft. x 2 ft. 6 in. X 2 ft.

Five fair-sized fish, but in this case no preservative
had been used.

6. Pit, 6 ft. 9 in. x 2 ft. 6 in. x i ft. 6in. (Pl.VIII, 3).
A single large specimen.

7. A single specimen oi Lates (Pl. VIII, 4).

The pit was about 3 ft. 6 in. deep. Close to the
fish, but nearer the surface, was the body of a small
lamb or kid. In this case, and in a few others,
animals belonging to totally distinct orders were
found in close proximity to one another ; this was
evidently due to chance and not intentional, as from
the nature of the ground a pit when once filled in
would in a short period become more or less ob-
literated. Near the fish was a portion of a circular
pit loosely lined with grass, which had evidently
been partly destroyed in order to make room for the
fish. The object of this pit is unknown to me.

8. Pit, 4 ft. 6 in. X 2 ft. 9 in. x 3 ft.
About twelve fish, but no preservative.

g. In this case three separate burials at different
times had been made close together, and consisted
of two L. niloticus and a sheep. The sheep was lying
on its side at a depth of about 2 ft. 6 in., and the two
fish, one of which was lying across the other, at 3 ft.
and 4 ft. respectively. The former was a fine speci-
men, whose head measured 21 in. taken from the tip
of the snout to the outer edge of the operculum or
gill cover.

10. Pit, 6 ft. X 2 ft. 6 in. X 2 ft. 9 in.

DESCRIPTION OF BURIALS.

A single large fish, measuring 5 ft. 6 in. in length
and nearly 2 ft. in depth, had the mouth and gill
openings filled with ashes. Several specimens were
found measuring 5 ft. or more. At the present day
it is but rarely that one comes across large speci-
mens, as during the three years in which I was
engaged in making the Nile Fish Surve}', I only saw
two examples of unusual size, one was at Assuan
which measured above 4 ft. in length, although I
was told that occasionally much larger specimens
were caught there ; but as an Arab's idea of measure-
ment is somewhat vague, too much reliance cannot
be placed in what he says. The other was a splendid
fish obtained by Captain Bainbridge a few miles up
the Sobai River, who kindly supplied me with the
following measurements : length, 6 ft. i in., girth, 4 ft.
7 in., and 266| lbs. in weight. The only other place
where I obtained information as to large specimens
being obtained was in the Fayoum, on the shores of
the large lake known as the Birket Karun. An in-
teresting point arises as to the locality from which
the large specimens of this species found in the
cemeteries were obtained. The Birket Karun and the
Nile are too far away, the distance being nearly thirty
miles in the former, and above six in the latter case.
The only other fishing-ground in the district is the
Bahr Yusef, which passes only a short distance from
Gurob. At the present day, however, no unusually
large fish are obtained, as far as I could learn ; this
would be accounted for by the fact that the Bahr
Yusef is thoroughly fished throughout the length of
its course, thus reducing enormously the chance of
any individual fish living long enough to attain
unusual size.

11. Pit, 7 ft. X 3 ft. X 2 ft. 6 in.

A single fish measuring 5 ft. 2 in. in length.

iia. Pit, 7 ft. X 2 ft. 6 in. X 2 ft. (Pl. VIII, i).

A single fish 5 ft. i in. in length, the pit containing
this specimen was so close to that of No. 11 that a
single photograph was obtained bringing in both
fish.

12. Two goats (Pl. XII, 2).
Lying side by side in a shallow pit.

13. Fragments of what appeared to be mats made
of coarse string or twine, and portions of cloth mixed
up with a quantity of ashes.

14. Synodontis schal (Pl. IX, 4).

A circular pit 2 ft. in diameter and 2 ft. 6 in. deep.
A portion of a grass mat was lying close to the fish,
in which it had probably been originally wrapped.
On the other side were the remains of another fish.

but too much broken to be identified with certainty
This was the only example of this species found.

15. This pit contained a curious mixture of
objects placed at various levels. At the top, about
a foot below the surface, was an unbroken pot
of red earthenware (Pl. Ill, 54), a number of frag-
ments of pottery, and three curiously-shaped sticks
pointed at one end (Pl. VI, 10), which looked as if
they might have been used for tethering sheep or
goats, a common practice at the present day ;
immediately below these was a wooden model of
a fish, perhaps bates (Pl. VI, 8), or it might possibly
only be typical of fish in general, and a large pot
(Pl. Ill, ']']) with a portion of the rope by which it
had been carried still fastened round it. Below
these again, were the leg bone and part of the lower
jaw of a sheep or goat, a pot (Pl. Ill, 79), a small
oblong piece of wood with a hole in the middle of
it, and a small well-carved model of a face in
wood with some of the paint still adhering to it
(Pl. VI, 9).

16. L. niloticus. Pit, 3 ft. 6 in. x 2 ft. x i ft. 6 in.
A few small fish, and a portion of the vertebral

column of a large specimen wrapped in a piece of
cloth.

17. L. uilotiais. Pit, 6 ft. x 2 ft. x 2 ft. 6 in.
One large fish.

18. Sheep. Pit, 4 ft. x 3 ft. x 3 ft.

Lying on its side. In the region of the pelvis was
found the skeleton of a lamb just ready for birth.
Only a little ash was found underneath the body.

19. L. niloticus. Pit, 6 ft. x 2 ft. x i ft. 6 in.
Single specimen 5 ft. 6 in. in length. No pre-
servatives had been used.

20. A shallow pit containing several loom weights,
oval in shape and made of mud, with the cords for
hanging them by still intact.

21. L. niloticus (Pl. X, 2).

This was a fair-sized fish ; close to the head and
practically resting on the body was a loosely-woven
grass basket not unlike an old-fashioned beehive,
but much larger. The basket contained nothing
but sand, which had leaked in as the basket de-
cayed, the object of it being placed above the fish
is unknown to me. At the head was a circular
brick-lined pit, part of whose side had been broken
away to make room for the fish.

22. Bagrus doc mac.

An egg-shaped pit 3ft. Sin. long about 2ft. wide
and 3 ft. deep. No preservative had been used.

23. Bagrus docinac {Fh. X, i).

OBJECTS DISCOVERED.

Also an egg-shaped pit 2 ft. 8 in. x i ft. 6 in. x 2 ft.
The ugual preservative had been used.

24. L. niloticHS. Pit, 5 ft. x 2 ft. 6 in. x 2 ft. 6 in.
The fish measured 5 ft. in length.

25. L. niloticus. Pit, 3 ft. x i ft. g in. x i ft. 6 in.
A single fish which, besides being preserved in the

usual way, was wrapped in cloth.

26. L. niloticus. Pit, 6 ft. x 2 ft. x 2 ft. 3 in.

A large specimen measuring nearly 6 ft. in length.

27. L. niloticus. Pit, 5 ft. x i ft. 6 in. x i ft. 6 in.
Single specimen with traces of a cloth bandage on

the head.

28. L. niloticus. Pit, 5 ft. 6 in. x 2 ft. 6 in. x 2 ft.
A single fish 5 ft. in length.

29. Cat.

A small oval pit, i ft. 9 in. x i ft. 3 in. x i ft. 9 in.
The only specimen of this species found. There
were no indications that it had been mummified.

31. L. niloticus.

A number of small fish laid in a heap.

32. L. niloticus.

33. L. niloticus.

A number of specimens of various sizes.

34. L. niloticus. Pit, 3 ft. 8 in. x 2 ft. 6 in. x 4 ft.
An oval pit, several fish preserved in the usual

way.

35. A square pit, 4 ft. x 4 ft. x 4 ft.
Containing a large quantity of ashes and a mass

of cloth mi.xed up together, but no trace of animal
remains.

36. L. niloticus. Pit, 3 ft. 6 in x 2 ft. x 3 ft. 6 in.
A mass of small fish carefull}- laid head to tail and

several layers deep.

37. L. niloticus. Pit, 5 ft. x 3 ft. x 2 ft. 6 in.
Two fairlv large specimens lying side by side.

38. L. niloticus. Pit, 3 ft. 8 in. x i ft. 9 in. x 2 ft.
S in.

A single fish.

39. Bagrus docniac. Pit, 6 ft. x 4 ft. x 4 ft.
After removing about twelve inches of the surface

sand, a layer composed chiefly of "halfa" grass,
pieces of rope and sticks mixed with ashes was
revealed (Pl. X 3). Below these was a layer of
ashes about 2 ft. in thickness containing scraps of
grass ; while at the bottom were three medium-sized
fish lying on their backs in a thick layer of ashes,
the body cavities, mouths, and gill openings were
filled with the same (Pl. X, 4).

40. Clarias larscra. Pit, 4 ft. x 2 ft. 3 in. x 2 ft.
About a foot below the surface was a small mat

2 ft. long X 10 in. wide, made of thin reeds neatly

fastened together with twine ; while coiled up at the
top was a fragment of rope (Pl. IX, 2).

When the mat was removed the heads of three
small fish were found, below these again at a depth
of about 12 in. was a single large specimen of the
same species.

41. Dog (Pl. XII, 4). Circular pit, i ft. 6 in.
each way.

The animal was lying in a curled-up position, k
fine piece of twine was found tied round the neck.
No preservative had been used.

42 — 45. L. niloticus.

46. Contained a sheep placed in an upright
position. A few inches below it, in the sand, were
several L. niloticus. The sheep was most likely a
later burial.

47 — 49. L. niloticus.

50. Contained the head of a ram, with a fine pair
of horns.

CHAPTER IV.

OBJECTS DISCOVERED.

12. POTTER Y. Ph. I, H, ///.—The usual types
common to the XVTIIth and XlXth Dynasties were
fairly well represented.

On Pl. I, nos. 14 and 15 are graceful in shape and
somewhat elaborately decorated in various colours.

On Pl. Ill, nos. 56 — 62 were found together; 57
contained some date seeds, and 62 is meant to be a
model of a pig in pottery.

A considerable quantity of pottery of foreign
origin was found in the tombs, but on account of its
rather fragile character a great deal of it had been
broken when the graves were disturbed.

On Pl. Ill, nos. 80 — 108 show nearly all the types
of pottery of foreign origin found at Gurob, with the
exception of nos. 95 and 96, which came from
Sedment, situated some few miles away. The greater
number are Phoenician, made in imitation of leather
bottles.

Nos. 81, 82, 83, 95, 96 are blackish with pale
yellow lines.

Nos. 97, 98, 99 are Cypriote pilgrim bottles.

13. SCARABS, etc., Pl. /F.— Only a few of the
scarabs found call for any particular notice, viz. : —

No. 8. Formed part of a burnt deposit (described
in Petrie, lllahun, 16), found in one of the houses of

SHABTIS.

the town, and records, " Rameses possessing the
ninth Sed-festival ? "'

No. g. In black obsidian, inscribed with the names
of Tahutmes IV and Nefertari, a queen hitherto
unknown at this period.

No. 12. In glazed steatite, with the name of Queen
Hatshepsut.

No. 13. Kohl tube of pale green glaze.

No. 14. Figure of the goddess Ta-urt in dark blue
glazed pottery.

No. 21. Glass kohl tube in the form of a papyrus
capital inlaid in black.

No. 22. A model of a hand and arm in ivory, used
for decorating the top of a dancer's wand.

No. 23. A blue glazed pottery dish, found in the
same tomb as No. 22. The design is well executed
and represents the common Nile fish Tilapia nilotica,
locally known as boltc. Coming out of its mouth,
and attached to the caudal region of the body are
what appears to be lotus buds, which are often
associated with this fish for decorative purposes.

Nos. 24 — 28. An interesting group of objects found
in the same tomb, consisting of a heart amulet of
inlaid glass, a kohl tube in the form of a papyrus
capital of dark blue glass beautifully inlaid in white,
jellow, and pale blue, a kohl-stick of polished black
haematite, with the words, " Royal scribe Men-
kheper," an alabaster ear plug, and an ornament
made out of a shell.

No. 29. A small ivory figure of the god Bes.

No. 31 and 32. The back and front of a pottery
pectoral, originally covered with gold leaf and inlaid
with oblong pieces of different coloured glaze.

No. 33. An alabaster toilet dish cut in the form of
the bolte fish.

No. 34. A prehistoric copper pin.

No. 38. A wooden wand made in the form of a
bouquet of conjointed flowers found in the temple.
(Pl. XIV).

No. 39. An ivory toilet box, probably used for
holding trinkets.

No. 3ga. Another view of the same.

No. 41. A piece of wood found in the temple
(Pl. XIV), inscribed " Sebek in Shedt, Horus in
Shedt " (?), the usual titles of the god Sebek.

No. 42. A portion of a glazed kohl-tube with the
name of Amenhotep III.

No. 43. A blue glass cup.

No. 44. The under surface of a portion of a shallow
pottery dish, decorated with outline drawings in
black.

14. On Pl. V are represented some of the types
of shabtiu figures found in the tombs.

Nos. I — 5, of red pottery with blue wigs.

Nos. 6 and 7. Pottery covered with a white wash.

No. II. Blue glaze, recording the name of Mer-ra,
superintendent of cattle, whose tomb is shown on
Pl. XVII.

No. 12. Also in blue glaze, with the name of
Khamuas.

No. 15. Of dried mud, painted a carmine colour.

Nos. 16 and 18 were of limestone.

15. STELES. Pis. XV-XIX. All the steles
with the exception of that figured on Pl. XIX, were
found in the small temple (Pl. XIV). The numbers
at the right-hand bottom corners of the steles
correspond to those in the plan, which show the
exact position in which each was found.

Plate XV. I. A painted stele, showing the figure,
much defaced, of a worshipper before Set ; the
inscription reads, " Made by the superintendent
of the king's (?) throne."

2. Is well cut, and much of the colour has been
preserved. It shows a worshipper adoring Tahut-
mes III. The figures are in red; the crown, the
ankh and crook held by the king, the dais and
likewise the ornaments of both are blue. The throne
has a design in blue and red, and the inscription in
black, which reads, " Giving praise to thy ka, O
Menkheperra, son of Amon, may he give life,
prosperity and health, readiness of face, praise and
love to the ka of the royal chamberlain of the king
of the two lands, Rameses-em-per-Ra."

3. Stele of Pashedu adoring Tahutmes III.

4. Figures of a man and woman adoring Osiris.

5. A fragment of a stele showing a figure of a
king coloured red, probably Tahutmes III, sitting
in his pavilion and holding in his right hand a
sistrum.

Plate XVI. I. A painted stele in bad preserva-
tion, showing a man, a woman, and a small child
adoring Kheper-kha-(?)ra (Usertesen II ?).

The figures are coloured red, the crown of the
king blue, the garments of the man white with
red lines, and the hieroglyphics and hair of the
woman black ; on the child's head is a wreath of
flowers.

2. Two worshippers in adoration before the king.
The figures are coloured in red, the helmet, dais and
hieroglyphics in blue. The inscription seems to
read, " Made by ? the superintendent of the .... ?

OBJECTS DISCOVERED.

of his majesty (i.e. of Tahutmes III ?) Pay and the
lady Hent-taui."

3. A worshipper adoring Tahutmes III. The
figures and hnes between the inscription are in red :
the crown of the king and the necklaces of both are
blue. The inscription reads, " Givingplace to thelord
of the two lands, obeisance to the son of Amon : that
he may give good age in seeing his beauties : to the
ka of the attendant of the house of ... . Zarui."
There is also a photograph of this stele on Pl.
XVIII.

5. An interesting stele, but unfortunately in bad
preservation. The upper register shows Tahutmes
III adoring Hershafe (Hershefi), the god of the
district, whose large temple at Ehnasya (Heracleo-
polis Magna) about six miles distant, was cleared
by Professor Petrie this year. The lower register
shows a worshipper adoring Sebek. The inscrip-
tion at the foot reads, " his name flourisheth, the
draughtsman Neb-neteru.

6. A figure of the king, probably Tahutmes III.

7. Part of the inscription of a large stele found
at Sedment, which must have originally come
from Heracleopolis Magna. The inscription reads,
" Hershafi king of the two lands, may he give life
health and prosperity to the chief singer? of HnAs
(Heracleopolis Magna) Merna. By his son who
makes his name live, the scribe Kha."

16. Plate XIX. This stele was found close to

the animal cemetery, and had been utilized to form
part of the lining of a shallow oblong pit.

The inscription over the figures reads, "Amon re,
the bull, who lifts the arm, of lofty plumes, the
great." "The prophet of Amonresonther (Amon
of Karnak), the chief captain of the whole land,
Thekat." Below, " Dedication of fifty arouras of
land called (?) Aifma (?), to Amonre of lofty plumes,
the great, done by the chief prophet of Amon-
rasonther, the captain and leader Thekat . . . . :
the priest of Amonre (?) Pgay son of Nesptah.
Done in the presence of the commissioner (?) the
superintendent of the treasury of the house of
Amon-Nes-somtu, son of A ... ., and the superin-
tendent of the granary of Sekhemkheperu Boken-
[nifl ?]." A photograph of this stele is shown on
Pl. XVHI.

The inscription of Piankhi names the " House of
Sekhemkheperu " as a locality south of Medum and
north of Oxyrhj-nchus. The present text indicates
that it may be the name of Gurob in these later
days. It cannot be earlier than the XXIInd Dynasty,
being found with the prenomen of Osorkon I. The
name Thekat may well be an error for Thekerat,
who was high priest of Amen in the 23rd year of
Pedubast, ']})i B.C. (see Aeg. Zeit. xxxiv. 114, No. 29).

Mr. LI. Griffith kindly supplied me with trans-
lations of the inscriptions on the steles, etc.

I should also like to express my indebtedness to
Prof F. Petrie for his advice and assistance while
preparing this report.

PRINTED BY GILISERT AND KIVINGTON LIMITED, ST. JOHN'S HOUSE, CLERKENWELL, LONDON, E.C.

1 : 6

GUROB ; POTTERY.

PREHISTORIC.

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III.

FOREIGN POTTERY.

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100

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GUROB: SCARABS, Etc, XVIII-XIX DYN.

IV.

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GUROB: USHABTIU FIGURES, XVIII-XIX DYN.

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GUROB ; ALABASTER, Etc.. XVIII-XIX DYN.

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GUROB; BURIALS: XVIII XIX DYN.

VII

GUROB; ANIMAL CEMETERY: XIX DYN.

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GUROB; STELES AND SHABTI JAR, XVlll-XIX DYN.

XVI

GUROB; STELES, ETC., XIX DYN.

XVII.

4 HEAD OF CYPRIOTE
FIGURE JAR

5. THREE HANDLED XVIII DYN- VASE

S HEAD OF CYPRIOTE
FIGURE JAR

GUROB; STELES, ETC.

XVIll

I STELE OF SENAflUI

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3. PTOLEMAIQ BURIAL

« COFFIN

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GUROB; STELE.

XIX.

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MM?i?^iW^?^Ir:^"f^'^n!tM.'?

-Wiir.

BOSTON PUBLIC LIBRARY

3 9999 06561 106 1

PUBLICATIONS

OF THE

EGYPTIAN RESEARCH ACCOUNT.

I. DALLAS, i8q5; by J. l£. Quihell.

(Out of print; obtainable in joint volume, N^aqada a id Baiias,
by VV. M. F. Petri E.)

II. THE RAMESSEUM, 1S96; by J. E. Oi;ii!ELL. (Out of print.)

III. EL KAB, 1S97; by J. E. OuiitELU 27 plates, ios. net.

\y. HIERAKONPOLIS, I., 1S98 ; text by W. M. F. P. 43 plates.
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Quihell. 39 plates (4 coloured and 20 photographic). 35^-. net.

VI. EL ARABAH, 1900; by J. Gai stang. 40 plates. i6s. net.

VII. MAHASNAH, 1901 ; by J. Garstang. 20^. net.

VIII. TEMPLE OF THE KINGS, 1902; by A. St. G. Caulfeilu.
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IX. THE OSIREION, 1903: by Margaret A. Murr.v.'. 37 plates.
20s. net.

X. SAQQARA MAST ABAS, I., 1904; by Marg.\ret A. Murray.

/n preparation,
XI. SAQQARA MASTABAS, II., 1905; by Hilda Petrie.

LONDON: B. QUARITCH, i.s, PICCADILLY, W,

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