Excavations in Western Thebes, 2021

In 2021, working from the outer wall of Medinet Habu north about 100 meters, west of the road that leads to the Valley of the Queens, and east to the temples of Thutmose III, Ramesses IV and Amunhotep Son of Hapu, the Egyptian Expedition discovered three districts of a city with well-preserved architecture. The borders of the districts have serpentine walls. The artifacts from the main district indicated the manufacture of faience and stone jewelry industry, textiles, and leatherwork. The second shows grinding of grain, baking, and processing meat. Sealings and jar labels show that the name of the city was THn Itn, “The Dazzling Aten” and so it was part of the support city for Malkata and perhaps Amunhotep’s memorial temple. A cemetery dated to Dynasties 25–27 (yet to be fully investigated), was found to the west of the city.

An Unpublished Manuscript of The Teaching of Khety (P. Turin CGT 54019)

This paper is a publication of P. Turin CGT 54019, which contains an excerpt from The Teaching of Khety, also known as The Satire of the Trades. The papyrus provides a welcome additional source for the second part of the composition (chapters 21–30), particularly because it offers some interesting variants that are unparalleled in the other sources. After a brief introduction on variants in general, including scribal errors, these variants are discussed in detail. The colophon that concludes the papyrus is badly preserved. However, it mentions the mortuary temple of Ramesses III at Medinet Habu. This is quite remarkable, since locations are seldom referred to in the colophons of literary texts. These rare instances are analyzed here to try to reconstruct the manuscript’s colophon. Finally, the relationship between literary texts and mortuary temples is discussed to shed light on the social context of P. Turin CGT 54019. ملخص هذا النص هو إحدى منشورات P. Turin CGT 54019، والذي يحتوي على مقتطف من "وصايا خيتي" ، المعروف أيضاً باسم "مساوئ الحِرَف". تمثل البردية مصدراً إضافياً لمقدمة الجزء الثاني من العمل (الفصول 21-30)، وبالتحديد لأنها تقدم بعض المتغيرات المثيرة للاهتمام التي لا مثيل لها في المصادر الأخرى. بعد مقدمة موجزة عن المتغيرات بشكل عام، بما في ذلك أخطاء الكاتب، تمّت مناقشة هذه المتغيرات بالتفصيل. بيانات المنشور التي تختم بها البردية محفوظة بشكل سيئ. ومع ذلك فإنها تتحدث عن المعبد الجنائزي لرمسيس الثالث في مدينة هابو. هذا أمر جدير بالذكر، حيث نادراً ما يشار إلى موقع محدد في بيانات المنشور للنصوص الأدبية. يتم هنا دراسة وتحليل هذه الحالات النادرة لمحاولة إعادة بناء بيانات المنشور الخاصة بالمخطوطة. أخيراً، تمت مناقشة العلاقة بين النصوص الأدبية والمعابد الجنائزية لإلقاء الضوء على المنظومة الاجتماعية لـ P. Turin CGT 54019 .

A New Demotic Horoscope from Medinet Habu

The relatively small set of Demotic astrological texts from Medinet Habu may be increased by a newly identified horoscope recorded on an ostracon held at the Cairo Museum. Despite the lack of pertinent data in the official records, the origin of this sherd seems to be certain thanks to some telling palaeographical and textual indications. The date recorded on this potsherd indicates the late first century AD and refers explicitly to the Alexandrian calendar. With regard to the content, it preserves the general format and layout of the Demotic horoscopes on ostraca from Medinet Habu, albeit with some small differences in the type and arrangement of the data. This horoscope leaves out some astronomical data common to other Medinet Habu horoscopes which, along with some other Theban horoscopic ostraca, might confirm a trend among Theban astrologers going from more detailed and complicated compositions to less elaborate and more simplified ones.

O papel das oferendas de alimentos na manutenção do status das Esposas Divinas de Âmon (séculos VIII-VI a.C.)

O ritual de oferenda de alimentos é muito presente nas fontes egípcias e tinha como principal objetivo garantir o suprimento aos deuses e aos indivíduos falecidos. Entretanto, esse rito também foi utilizado nas representações iconográficas de algumas sacerdotisas conhecidas como “Esposas Divinas de Âmon” para manter e propagar seu poderio social, político e religioso na região de Tebas. Por meio da análise iconográfica de quatro imagens provenientes de duas capelas destinadas ao culto de Osíris em Karnak, das capelas-tumbas das esposas divinas em Medinet Habu e de um edifício residencial de uma dessas sacerdotisas em Naga Malgata, este artigo tem como objetivo analisar o papel das oferendas de alimentos na manutenção e consolidação do status das esposas divinas nos séculos VIII-VI a.C.