Brugsch, Heinrich: Egypt under the pharaohs: a history derived entirely from the monuments (London, 1891)

Dm i. THE ' HERSESHTA' AND SCRIBES 25

administered justice to the oppressed, whose complaints
it was the duty of the king's deputies to hear.

The warlike hosts of young soldiers (Mesha), con-
sisting of infantry, whom the master of the armoury
equipped with clubs and axes, spears, and bows and
arrows, were commanded by experienced generals. It
was the duty of the commander-in-chief to plan the
campaign, dispose the troops, and go out to war with
his soldiers. Of a more peaceful kind was the cele-
brated office of the ' teachers of mysteries ' (Herseshta),
for they were the possessors of all hidden wisdom in
those ancient times. ' The mystery-teachers of heaven '
looked upwards, and, as wise astronomers, explained
■the ever-changing course of the stars. ' The mystery-
teachers of all lands ' contemplated the nature of earthly
things, and appear to have been the geographers of the
ancient world. ' The mystery-teachers of the depth,'
if we are not mistaken, were the possessors of know-
ledge of that which the earth conceals in its depths and
were initiated into the peculiar nature of the soil.

Others, ' mystery-teachers of the secret word,' wrote
books on subjects of deep thought, whilst the 'mystery-
teachers of the sacred language ' devoted themselves to
the special knowledge of the Egyptian tongue. Most
frequently of all we meet with the ' mystery-teachers of
Pharaoh,' or ' of all the commands of Pharaoh,' wise
men who held the position of private secretaries to
their master. Next to them we read of ' mystery-
teachers who examine words,' without doubt either
learned men of letters or judges who listened to com-
plaints and compared the evidence of the witnesses.

The scribes were divided into many branches, accord-
1;ng to their position and business. In obedience to the
commands of their master, they either wrote the events
°f his domestic life or accurately recorded his income