DOI Seite / Zitierlink:
https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.4145#0010
DEIR EL BAHARI.
and a fourth row representing a procession. The
upper one is very much damaged. It contains two
long barges, with a considerable number of oarsmen,
who row standing. On these boats stand laro;e shrines,
adorned with draperies. I suppose that in one of the
boats were the emblems of the goddess, in the other
those of the queen.
The boats of the two lower rows correspond to those
which are found in the representation of the obelisks ;
they are the escort, the numerous suite which performs
religious rites. The text at the top gives us the name
of the festival; it is that of the "second birth,"
an expression which Brugsch considers to refer to an
astronomical period of four years :—
"... the dancers of the royal boats.
" They hail Kamalca, the Horus mighty by her has, they utter
words of joy iu the sky, and in the land of Serui.
" Hathor, she reneweth her birth. Thebes is in joy. Kamaka,
while endures the sky, thou endurest."
On the top of one of the shrines the reis of the boats
shouts out: " Pull the oar," and the watchman, who is
standing behind " the royal nobles," commands : " To
the west."
On the lower row are the boats of what Ave may call
the religious escort; and here, as in the case of the
obelisk, the queen is not shown herself: what takes her
place is her lea, in the form of a fan. Throne and fan
are a substitute for the sitting person, or rather for the
lea, who so often follows king or queen in the religious
representations. Here we see clearly the confusion
which exists between the goddess and the queen, a
confusion which is intentional; for in this ceremony
Hatshepsu wishes to be considered as one with Hathor,
or rather as being Hathor herself. Above the front
boat Ave find these Avords: " Hail to Hathor, the
protectress of Thebes by the protector, the King
Menkheperkara, living eternally." Here Hathor is evi-
dently meant to be the queen, for behind the pavilion
Avhich contains the throne bearing the lea are these
words, uttered by a priest who offers a foAvl and a
pointed loaf: " A gift to thy (living) hi, thou art
strengthened, Ramaka, for millions of years." There-
fore the ka of the first boat is that of the queen.
The middle boat contains an empty pavilion ; the
oarsmen, Avho seem to be the only occupants of the
barge, sing praises to the queen. The shouting in the
boat of the sailors is: " The good lord has erected
buildings to her mother Hathor; as she endures, they
endure for ever."
The third boat again contains a pavilion with a ha.
Here it is decidedly the lea of the goddess, as Ave may
judge from the inscription : "A gift to thy lea, Hathor,
queen of the gods, giving life, by the King Ramaka and
the King Menkheperra, like Ra, eternally."
The third row is almost an exact repetition of the
second, except that in the inscription of the front boat
a royal person Avhose name is erased, but Avho is
probably Hatshepsu, praises Amon instead of Hathor;
the first barge carries the lea of the queen, the last one
the lea of the goddess. The reason for the two loAver
roAvs being exactly alike is that we must suppose the
upper row, that of the large barges, to be in the middle,
between two rows quite similar, one on each side.
Under the boats is a subject which we find repeated
in other parts of the temple, and which Avas a favourite
one; for not only do Ave see it several times nearly
complete, but the excavations have brought to light
many fragments belonging to representations of the
same kind. It is a festive procession of soldiers,
carrying arms, boughs of trees, and sacred standards.
These men are called " the dancers of the royal boats."
They must haA-e been a company which Avent out Avith
the royal barges, to enliven the navigation or the fes-
tival by dances and songs. We saAv them mentioned
in the inscription at the top of the Avail; the same pro-
cession receives the obelisks Avhen they land at Thebes.
The dancers are not alone ; they are accompanied by
young soldiers, the pick of the army, Avho take part in
the rejoicing. The inscription reads as folloAvs:
" Eejoicing by the dancers of the royal boats, the young men of
Thebes, the choicest soldiers. The whole land is in joy, in
the presence of [here Avords are erased] Anion, the lord of
the thrones of the two lands ... in his festival of
the beginning of the year, by the protector, the King
Kamaka, the protector, the King Menkheperra, living
eternally, when it came to pass that the majesty of this
great goddess went and rested in her sacred abode, in Amon
Serui; they are living eternally."
The second soldier carries Avhat seems to be a drum,
probably made of terra-cotta Avith skins at the end.
The last soldier leads a tame panther or leopard, Avhich
Ave shall find again in the train of the queen. The
procession closes Avith Africans, " Tamahu," performing
Avar dances Avith boomerangs in their hands, Avhile their
comrades probably beat time with their sticks. It is
curious that in other festivals the dancing is done also
by these Africans, the Tamahu, as if they had some
national propensity to that art, like the Hungarian
gipsies in modern times.
and a fourth row representing a procession. The
upper one is very much damaged. It contains two
long barges, with a considerable number of oarsmen,
who row standing. On these boats stand laro;e shrines,
adorned with draperies. I suppose that in one of the
boats were the emblems of the goddess, in the other
those of the queen.
The boats of the two lower rows correspond to those
which are found in the representation of the obelisks ;
they are the escort, the numerous suite which performs
religious rites. The text at the top gives us the name
of the festival; it is that of the "second birth,"
an expression which Brugsch considers to refer to an
astronomical period of four years :—
"... the dancers of the royal boats.
" They hail Kamalca, the Horus mighty by her has, they utter
words of joy iu the sky, and in the land of Serui.
" Hathor, she reneweth her birth. Thebes is in joy. Kamaka,
while endures the sky, thou endurest."
On the top of one of the shrines the reis of the boats
shouts out: " Pull the oar," and the watchman, who is
standing behind " the royal nobles," commands : " To
the west."
On the lower row are the boats of what Ave may call
the religious escort; and here, as in the case of the
obelisk, the queen is not shown herself: what takes her
place is her lea, in the form of a fan. Throne and fan
are a substitute for the sitting person, or rather for the
lea, who so often follows king or queen in the religious
representations. Here we see clearly the confusion
which exists between the goddess and the queen, a
confusion which is intentional; for in this ceremony
Hatshepsu wishes to be considered as one with Hathor,
or rather as being Hathor herself. Above the front
boat Ave find these Avords: " Hail to Hathor, the
protectress of Thebes by the protector, the King
Menkheperkara, living eternally." Here Hathor is evi-
dently meant to be the queen, for behind the pavilion
Avhich contains the throne bearing the lea are these
words, uttered by a priest who offers a foAvl and a
pointed loaf: " A gift to thy (living) hi, thou art
strengthened, Ramaka, for millions of years." There-
fore the ka of the first boat is that of the queen.
The middle boat contains an empty pavilion ; the
oarsmen, Avho seem to be the only occupants of the
barge, sing praises to the queen. The shouting in the
boat of the sailors is: " The good lord has erected
buildings to her mother Hathor; as she endures, they
endure for ever."
The third boat again contains a pavilion with a ha.
Here it is decidedly the lea of the goddess, as Ave may
judge from the inscription : "A gift to thy lea, Hathor,
queen of the gods, giving life, by the King Ramaka and
the King Menkheperra, like Ra, eternally."
The third row is almost an exact repetition of the
second, except that in the inscription of the front boat
a royal person Avhose name is erased, but Avho is
probably Hatshepsu, praises Amon instead of Hathor;
the first barge carries the lea of the queen, the last one
the lea of the goddess. The reason for the two loAver
roAvs being exactly alike is that we must suppose the
upper row, that of the large barges, to be in the middle,
between two rows quite similar, one on each side.
Under the boats is a subject which we find repeated
in other parts of the temple, and which Avas a favourite
one; for not only do Ave see it several times nearly
complete, but the excavations have brought to light
many fragments belonging to representations of the
same kind. It is a festive procession of soldiers,
carrying arms, boughs of trees, and sacred standards.
These men are called " the dancers of the royal boats."
They must haA-e been a company which Avent out Avith
the royal barges, to enliven the navigation or the fes-
tival by dances and songs. We saAv them mentioned
in the inscription at the top of the Avail; the same pro-
cession receives the obelisks Avhen they land at Thebes.
The dancers are not alone ; they are accompanied by
young soldiers, the pick of the army, Avho take part in
the rejoicing. The inscription reads as folloAvs:
" Eejoicing by the dancers of the royal boats, the young men of
Thebes, the choicest soldiers. The whole land is in joy, in
the presence of [here Avords are erased] Anion, the lord of
the thrones of the two lands ... in his festival of
the beginning of the year, by the protector, the King
Kamaka, the protector, the King Menkheperra, living
eternally, when it came to pass that the majesty of this
great goddess went and rested in her sacred abode, in Amon
Serui; they are living eternally."
The second soldier carries Avhat seems to be a drum,
probably made of terra-cotta Avith skins at the end.
The last soldier leads a tame panther or leopard, Avhich
Ave shall find again in the train of the queen. The
procession closes Avith Africans, " Tamahu," performing
Avar dances Avith boomerangs in their hands, Avhile their
comrades probably beat time with their sticks. It is
curious that in other festivals the dancing is done also
by these Africans, the Tamahu, as if they had some
national propensity to that art, like the Hungarian
gipsies in modern times.