DOI Seite / Zitierlink:
https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.6641#0022
8 TELL EL ~!
which were formerly set models of the great
sphinxes guarding the entrance; higher up, on
either side, are marked the positions of the
statues of the king and of the two great obelisks.
At the top of the steps are again, on either side,
sockets for two smaller sphinxes. Beyond these
are marked the positions of the two great pylons;
in front of these pylons were set tall masts or
flag-staffs; on the inner sides of the pylons are
seen holes marking the place of the double gate
of the sanctuary, beyond which monarchs and
priests alone could pass. Farther on are shown
the positions of the great walls enclosing the
sanctuary, within which were preserved the morn-
ing and the evening barges of the god.
" On three sides or edges of the model are
sculptures representing the monarch presenting
offerings to the deity, and inscriptions in finely-
cut hieroglyphics."
Taking into account the large dimensions of
the great Temple of On, it seems evident that
this monument represented only the forepart of
the temple. That it does represent the temple
of On (Heliopolis) is placed beyond doubt by the
hieroglyphic inscriptions. As the stone is not
very thick, the king, Seti I., who is seen making
offerings, is depicted in a semi-prostrate attitude.
The front side is decorated with two of these
subjects, showing the king going from left to
right and from right to left. In the middle is
the name of Turn Harmakhis, the great god of
On. On the sides are inscriptions recording how
Seti I. raised statues to his father Turn, and
describing the stones with which he adorned the
sanctuary of On. The whole is therefore a
model of part of the temple of Heliopolis, which
was made in the form of a table of offerings, on
which a hawk, or some emblem of the divinity,
was probably placed, surrounded by models of
the obelisks and sphinxes erected in advance of
the temple.
How did this monument come to Tell el
Yahoodieh ? Was it brought there from Helio-
polis, or was it placed there for any other
reason ? It is a fact that on all the inscriptions of
Barneses III., and most of those of Rameses II.,
we find no other god mentioned than Turn Har-
makhis ; and no other qualification is given to him
than the "God of On." No other geographical
name appears except the name of On, and this
circumstance, added to the presence of tables of
offerings, has led Brugsch-Bey to the conclusion
that Tell el Yahoodieh was the real On, the true
Heliopolis which was seen by Herodotus; and
that the old city near Matarieh, where the
obelisk is still standing, had been abandoned
after the Hyksos period, and remained as a
sanctuary more or less ruined, the inhabitants
settling farther north.
But was Tell el Yahoodieh really Heliopolis ?
This important question was one of the chief
motives which induced me to attempt excavations
at the place. I entertained the hope, which un-
fortunately proved false, that I might find the
hieroglyphical name of the place ; but there was
another problem to be solved. How far could
the tradition be trusted, which says that Tell el
Yahoodieh was a Jewish settlement, built at
the time when the high priest Onias fled from
the persecution of the king of Syria and took
refuge in Egypt ? Was Tell el Yahoodieh Onion,
the city founded by Onias ? These two points
seemed to be sufficiently important to justify an
excavation; I consequently settled there early in
which were formerly set models of the great
sphinxes guarding the entrance; higher up, on
either side, are marked the positions of the
statues of the king and of the two great obelisks.
At the top of the steps are again, on either side,
sockets for two smaller sphinxes. Beyond these
are marked the positions of the two great pylons;
in front of these pylons were set tall masts or
flag-staffs; on the inner sides of the pylons are
seen holes marking the place of the double gate
of the sanctuary, beyond which monarchs and
priests alone could pass. Farther on are shown
the positions of the great walls enclosing the
sanctuary, within which were preserved the morn-
ing and the evening barges of the god.
" On three sides or edges of the model are
sculptures representing the monarch presenting
offerings to the deity, and inscriptions in finely-
cut hieroglyphics."
Taking into account the large dimensions of
the great Temple of On, it seems evident that
this monument represented only the forepart of
the temple. That it does represent the temple
of On (Heliopolis) is placed beyond doubt by the
hieroglyphic inscriptions. As the stone is not
very thick, the king, Seti I., who is seen making
offerings, is depicted in a semi-prostrate attitude.
The front side is decorated with two of these
subjects, showing the king going from left to
right and from right to left. In the middle is
the name of Turn Harmakhis, the great god of
On. On the sides are inscriptions recording how
Seti I. raised statues to his father Turn, and
describing the stones with which he adorned the
sanctuary of On. The whole is therefore a
model of part of the temple of Heliopolis, which
was made in the form of a table of offerings, on
which a hawk, or some emblem of the divinity,
was probably placed, surrounded by models of
the obelisks and sphinxes erected in advance of
the temple.
How did this monument come to Tell el
Yahoodieh ? Was it brought there from Helio-
polis, or was it placed there for any other
reason ? It is a fact that on all the inscriptions of
Barneses III., and most of those of Rameses II.,
we find no other god mentioned than Turn Har-
makhis ; and no other qualification is given to him
than the "God of On." No other geographical
name appears except the name of On, and this
circumstance, added to the presence of tables of
offerings, has led Brugsch-Bey to the conclusion
that Tell el Yahoodieh was the real On, the true
Heliopolis which was seen by Herodotus; and
that the old city near Matarieh, where the
obelisk is still standing, had been abandoned
after the Hyksos period, and remained as a
sanctuary more or less ruined, the inhabitants
settling farther north.
But was Tell el Yahoodieh really Heliopolis ?
This important question was one of the chief
motives which induced me to attempt excavations
at the place. I entertained the hope, which un-
fortunately proved false, that I might find the
hieroglyphical name of the place ; but there was
another problem to be solved. How far could
the tradition be trusted, which says that Tell el
Yahoodieh was a Jewish settlement, built at
the time when the high priest Onias fled from
the persecution of the king of Syria and took
refuge in Egypt ? Was Tell el Yahoodieh Onion,
the city founded by Onias ? These two points
seemed to be sufficiently important to justify an
excavation; I consequently settled there early in