DOI Page / Citation link:
https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.6641#0086
72
flesh (animal creation?) had not entered it [to] see the
secrets in the horizon : it (the privilege ?) was granted in
the time of Bii, who made a great wall standing around it
of [ .... ] cubits on its four sides, 20 cubits high, 15
cubits thick. As to the sacred lake in At Nebes it was
[.....] cubits [..••] of At Nebes : Shu himself
digged it in the time of the majesty of Ea: its arrangement
was not1 seen nor sealed ? to [gods—goddesses ?] men and
flesh : A circuit was set up on every side of it, of 190
cubits (in length), 110? cubits in its breadth [ . . . .
cubits] in height, 15 cubits in thickness: separating all
temples from ? it2 by mysterious and secret work 1 in
[....] Then came the majesty of Shu arid raised up At
Nebes even as the sky is fixed, and all its temples even as
the horizon. Now it happened that [he] departed [to be
enthroned] as king of the gods in At Nebes, at the time that
he ascended ? the throne of Harmakhis.3 Then the children
of the dragon Apep, the evil-doers [of Usheru ?] and of
the red country4 came upon the road of At Nebes, invading
Egypt at nightfall........now these evil-doers came
from the Eastern hills [upon] all the roads of At Nebes : then
the majesty of Shu, the gods who attend Ea and the gods
who attend Shu caused [to be fortified?] all the places
around At Nebes : these places were since the time of Eil
when the majesty of Ea was in At Nebes.......At
Nebes they are the mighty walls of Egypt repelling the
evil-doers when Apep penetrates 1 to Egypt: the gods who
are in them are the defences of this land, they are the supports
of heaven that watch ? the ... of the eternal horizon : they
are the throne ? of Shu in Hat Nebes: those who dwell in
the places in At Nebes they raise the land.......Eer
Sepd : they are the spirits of the East to . . . Ea Harmachis
they elevate Ea to heaven in the morning upon ? the pillars
of heaven : they are the possessors of the Eastern hills :
they are the rescuers of Ea from Apep. Account of all the
[places] around Hat Nebes together with the gods who are
in them : the Elace of the Whirlpool ?5 in At Nebes is a
pool upon the East of Hat Nebes in which the majesty of
Ea proceeded." (Another pool is mentioned on the East
of Hat Nebes.)
El. xxvi. 1, 2. The fragments of the inscription show
that the list of localities was continued on the left side.
El. xxv. (back). "Now it came to pass that the majesty
of Shu obtained the whole land, none could stand before him,
no other god was in the mouth of his soldiers ? [but sickness
came upon him ?].....confusion seized the eyes ? he
made his chapel .... evil fell upon this land, a great
disturbance in the palace, disturbed......those who
in the plate (xxv.
MINOR EXPLORATIONS.
were of the household of Shu. Then Seb saw [Tefnut] and
loved her greatly, his heart desired her: he wandered over ?
the earth in search of? her in great affliction.6 The majesty
of Shu departed to heaven with his attendants: Tefnut was
in the place of her enthronement in Memphis. Now she
proceeded to the royal house of Shu in the time of mid-day:
the great cycle of nine gods were upon the path of eternity,7
the road of his father Ea Harmakhis. Then the majesty of
[Seb met her] he found her in this ? place which is called
Pekharti?: he seized her by force: [the palace was in great
[affliction]. Shu had departed to heaven: there was no
exit from the palace by the space of nine days. Now these
[nine] days were in violence and tempest: none whether god
or man could see the face of his fellow. The majesty of
Seb came forth appearing ? upon the throne of his father
Shu: every royal dwelling? did him homage. Then after
75 days Seb proceeded to the North country: Shu had
flown up to heaven, the great chief of the plain at the head
of his city ? ? the prince of the hills . . . came ? he went
not to Heliopolis: moreover? certain Asiatics carried his
sceptre, called Degai, who live on what the gods abominate;
behold he went to the East of Usher:8 He entered the
house of the Aar the Eastern gate ? of At Nebes: he dis-
cussed the history of this city with the gods who attended
him [and they told him] all that happened when the majesty
of Ea was in At Nebes, the conflicts of the king Turn in
this locality, the valour of the majesty of Shu in this city,
the deeds of Shu in ... . the [wonders] of the goddess
Ankhet done to Ea when he was with her:' the victories of
the majesty of Shu, smiting the evil ones, when he placed
her (the serpent) upon his brow. Then said the majesty of
Seb I also [will place] her upon my head even as my father
Shu did. Seb entered Fer Aart together with the gods
who were with him: then he stretched forth his hand to
take the case in which [Ankhet] was: the snake came forth
and breathed10 its vapour upon the majesty of Seb, confound-
ing him greatly: those who followed him fell dead: his
majesty ? burned with this venom ? his majesty proceeded to
the north of At Nebes with this burning of the uraeus Hert
Tep, then his majesty reached the fields of henna 11 but [his
1 I have omitted before
/WWVA
1. 20).
2 Or " contained in it."
3 At Heliopolis ?
4 The desert on the north-eist border.
5 The reading of this name is unknown
6 Or for a long time.
7 Accompanying the sun 1
8 Usher which seems to occur also El. xxiv. 25, would
literally mean " desert."
9 After 1. 13 the loss from the left-hand end of the lines
seems to be exaggerated in the plate.
10 The word used is ankh for the sake of alliteration with
the name AnkMi.
11 Henw plant \ ^ tjl : in 1. 25 the district is called
the-'land of the henu." The modern name of Goshen,
Saft el henna, suggests a meaning : large quantities of henna
L» Lawsonia inermis, are grown there now. The henu
plant was used in the treatment of stings or snake-bites
(cf. Pap. Ebers 29, 11), and the name occurs even in the
Eyramid texts as of a green plant or shrub (Pyr. Teta 1. 100) ;
flesh (animal creation?) had not entered it [to] see the
secrets in the horizon : it (the privilege ?) was granted in
the time of Bii, who made a great wall standing around it
of [ .... ] cubits on its four sides, 20 cubits high, 15
cubits thick. As to the sacred lake in At Nebes it was
[.....] cubits [..••] of At Nebes : Shu himself
digged it in the time of the majesty of Ea: its arrangement
was not1 seen nor sealed ? to [gods—goddesses ?] men and
flesh : A circuit was set up on every side of it, of 190
cubits (in length), 110? cubits in its breadth [ . . . .
cubits] in height, 15 cubits in thickness: separating all
temples from ? it2 by mysterious and secret work 1 in
[....] Then came the majesty of Shu arid raised up At
Nebes even as the sky is fixed, and all its temples even as
the horizon. Now it happened that [he] departed [to be
enthroned] as king of the gods in At Nebes, at the time that
he ascended ? the throne of Harmakhis.3 Then the children
of the dragon Apep, the evil-doers [of Usheru ?] and of
the red country4 came upon the road of At Nebes, invading
Egypt at nightfall........now these evil-doers came
from the Eastern hills [upon] all the roads of At Nebes : then
the majesty of Shu, the gods who attend Ea and the gods
who attend Shu caused [to be fortified?] all the places
around At Nebes : these places were since the time of Eil
when the majesty of Ea was in At Nebes.......At
Nebes they are the mighty walls of Egypt repelling the
evil-doers when Apep penetrates 1 to Egypt: the gods who
are in them are the defences of this land, they are the supports
of heaven that watch ? the ... of the eternal horizon : they
are the throne ? of Shu in Hat Nebes: those who dwell in
the places in At Nebes they raise the land.......Eer
Sepd : they are the spirits of the East to . . . Ea Harmachis
they elevate Ea to heaven in the morning upon ? the pillars
of heaven : they are the possessors of the Eastern hills :
they are the rescuers of Ea from Apep. Account of all the
[places] around Hat Nebes together with the gods who are
in them : the Elace of the Whirlpool ?5 in At Nebes is a
pool upon the East of Hat Nebes in which the majesty of
Ea proceeded." (Another pool is mentioned on the East
of Hat Nebes.)
El. xxvi. 1, 2. The fragments of the inscription show
that the list of localities was continued on the left side.
El. xxv. (back). "Now it came to pass that the majesty
of Shu obtained the whole land, none could stand before him,
no other god was in the mouth of his soldiers ? [but sickness
came upon him ?].....confusion seized the eyes ? he
made his chapel .... evil fell upon this land, a great
disturbance in the palace, disturbed......those who
in the plate (xxv.
MINOR EXPLORATIONS.
were of the household of Shu. Then Seb saw [Tefnut] and
loved her greatly, his heart desired her: he wandered over ?
the earth in search of? her in great affliction.6 The majesty
of Shu departed to heaven with his attendants: Tefnut was
in the place of her enthronement in Memphis. Now she
proceeded to the royal house of Shu in the time of mid-day:
the great cycle of nine gods were upon the path of eternity,7
the road of his father Ea Harmakhis. Then the majesty of
[Seb met her] he found her in this ? place which is called
Pekharti?: he seized her by force: [the palace was in great
[affliction]. Shu had departed to heaven: there was no
exit from the palace by the space of nine days. Now these
[nine] days were in violence and tempest: none whether god
or man could see the face of his fellow. The majesty of
Seb came forth appearing ? upon the throne of his father
Shu: every royal dwelling? did him homage. Then after
75 days Seb proceeded to the North country: Shu had
flown up to heaven, the great chief of the plain at the head
of his city ? ? the prince of the hills . . . came ? he went
not to Heliopolis: moreover? certain Asiatics carried his
sceptre, called Degai, who live on what the gods abominate;
behold he went to the East of Usher:8 He entered the
house of the Aar the Eastern gate ? of At Nebes: he dis-
cussed the history of this city with the gods who attended
him [and they told him] all that happened when the majesty
of Ea was in At Nebes, the conflicts of the king Turn in
this locality, the valour of the majesty of Shu in this city,
the deeds of Shu in ... . the [wonders] of the goddess
Ankhet done to Ea when he was with her:' the victories of
the majesty of Shu, smiting the evil ones, when he placed
her (the serpent) upon his brow. Then said the majesty of
Seb I also [will place] her upon my head even as my father
Shu did. Seb entered Fer Aart together with the gods
who were with him: then he stretched forth his hand to
take the case in which [Ankhet] was: the snake came forth
and breathed10 its vapour upon the majesty of Seb, confound-
ing him greatly: those who followed him fell dead: his
majesty ? burned with this venom ? his majesty proceeded to
the north of At Nebes with this burning of the uraeus Hert
Tep, then his majesty reached the fields of henna 11 but [his
1 I have omitted before
/WWVA
1. 20).
2 Or " contained in it."
3 At Heliopolis ?
4 The desert on the north-eist border.
5 The reading of this name is unknown
6 Or for a long time.
7 Accompanying the sun 1
8 Usher which seems to occur also El. xxiv. 25, would
literally mean " desert."
9 After 1. 13 the loss from the left-hand end of the lines
seems to be exaggerated in the plate.
10 The word used is ankh for the sake of alliteration with
the name AnkMi.
11 Henw plant \ ^ tjl : in 1. 25 the district is called
the-'land of the henu." The modern name of Goshen,
Saft el henna, suggests a meaning : large quantities of henna
L» Lawsonia inermis, are grown there now. The henu
plant was used in the treatment of stings or snake-bites
(cf. Pap. Ebers 29, 11), and the name occurs even in the
Eyramid texts as of a green plant or shrub (Pyr. Teta 1. 100) ;