The South Chamber
The chamber south of the Great Hall is sculptured on
the east, south, and west walls with the 168th chapter of the "
Book of the Dead " . At first sight the arrangement
appears confused, but a closer examination shows a very definite order .
The
whole chapter is devoted to the worship of the gods of the twelve Qererts by the king . Each section contains a vertical line of inscription,
reaching from the top of the wall to the bottom ; this gives the numbers of the
Qererts . On one side of each of these vertical inscriptions
are three figures of the king kneeling and making an offering ; above his head
are three, four, or five short vertical lines of hieroglyphs . On the other
side of the long vertical inscription are representations of the gods of each Qerert . These generally appear in three registers, corresponding with the
figures of the king, thus the king makes an offering to every register . The
word Qerert in its literal sense
is a Cavern, but it may here be taken, perhaps, to mean a Division of the night
.
The East Wall ( North Half ):-
I. Long vertical line of inscription : " The gods
of the first Qerert in the Duat ( The
Underworld ) . The gods of the second Qerert . The gods of the
third Qerert . The gods of the
fourth Qerert . The gods of the
fifth Qerert . The gods of the
sixth Qerert " .
On the left side of the inscription, there is three
vertical scenes shows the king kneeling and making an offering, and above him
are five short vertical lines of hieroglyphs .
On the right-hand side of the long vertical line are
the gods of the six Qererts enumerated in the
inscription . In each Qerert there are three
deities, male, female, male . Those of the first, third, and fifth Qererts are mummified figures ; the others are represented as living .
II. The long vertical line of inscription reaching from
the top of the wall to the bottom : " The gods of the eighth Qerert " . Then comes a sentence with the hieroglyphs reversed : "
Hail, O ye souls, weighing ........ distinguishing righteousness from evil "
. A blank space, after which the hieroglyphs are written as at the top of the
line : " The gods of the seventh Qererts " . The reason
that the two numbers, seven and eight, are in reverse order appears to be that
the gods of the seventh Qerert are only three in
number, like those immediately preceding, and that they can be fitted into the
sculpture only in that particular place .
On the right is another vertical line of hieroglyphs
reaching from the top of the wall to the bottom . The inscription is divided
into three parts, which must be read in connection with the short lines of
hieroglyphs above the figure of the king .
On the left of the long vertical inscription, there is
three vertical scenes shows the king kneeling and making an offering . Above
him are three short lines of hieroglyphs .
On the right of the two long vertical inscriptions :-
1. Four men, each carrying a woman on his shoulder . Fayu hert-sen, " Those who carry their mistresses " .
Four men, each carrying a man on his shoulder . Fayu heru-sen, " Those who carry their masters " .
A vertical line of hieroglyphs : " There is
offered to them a handful upon earth at the sacred pylon of Neb Zat " .
Four women lying on their faces with their hair
falling down . The papyrus of Amenhotep gives the word Nenyu, here shortened to Nen, " Those who give honour " .
2. Three men and a woman lying on their faces, making
offerings . They are called Kheryu Autu, " The
possessors of food offerings " . Below these are two men and two women
lying on their faces, with outstretched hands . Mr. Griffith suggests that the
hieroglyphs may read, " The smitten of Ra ", and that what appears to
be the loose hair falling over the face is really blood pouring down, as in the
hieroglyphic sign for Death . This is a very probable explanation, as two of
the figures are of men, for whom long hair would be quite inappropriate .
A vertical line of inscription : " There is
offered to them a hin-measure upon earth, when the body lives
in Amentet . There is offered to them upon earth from the
follower of the great God at the secret door " .
Three mummified figures, male, female, and male .
3. Four men bending down so that their hands touch the
ground . The hieroglyphs are partially destroyed, but the name can be recovered
from the papyrus of Amenhotep II, Hefiu, " The humble ones " .
4. Four men supporting tall pillar-like objects . Kheryu hotepu, " The possessors of offerings " .
III. A vertical line of inscription reaching from the top
to the bottom of the wall : " The gods of the ninth Qerert in the Duat, secret of forms, cutting off the winds (?) " .
On the left of the long vertical inscription, there is
three vertical scenes shows the king kneeling and making an offering . Above
him are four short lines of hieroglyphs .
The East Wall ( South Half ):-
To the right of the vertical line :—
1. A god holding an uas-sceptre ( or Was Sceptre ), his name is Aha, " He who is firmly placed ." A mummified figure called Sheta, " Secret " . A bull and a uraeus on a stand ; the bull is
called ... deg Asur, " ..... Osiris
" . A mummified figure without a name . A bull and uraeus on a stand, he
is called Ymen-Asar, " Osiris is
hidden " . Below are two bulls with uraei on stands, and two mummified
figures, alternately ; the first bull is Ymen-Asar, " Osiris is
hidden " ; the mummified figure is Hap ; the second bull is
Sesheta Asar, " Making Osiris to be in secret "
. The mummified figure is called apparently Sheth .
Two short vertical lines of hieroglyphs : (1) "
There is offered to them a handful upon earth, (2) from him who belongs to the
eastern people in the Duat " . Below these, though not exactly under them,
are two more short vertical lines of hieroglyphs : (1) " There shall be
offered to them a handful upon earth from him who belongs (2) to the eastern
people in the Duat " .
A crocodile-headed god holding an uas-sceptre and an ankh ; behind him are four mummified figures
. Unfortunately the inscription is so mutilated as to be illegible, and it
cannot be restored from the papyrus of Amenhotep II .
Two short vertical lines of inscription partially
destroyed : (1) " [ There is offered ] to them a handful upon earth from a
powerful one (2) ......... every land, great of ......, chief of the Glorious
Ones " .
Four women kneeling on chairs ; the first letter of
the name is broken away, and in the papyrus of Amenhotep it is almost
illegible, it may, however, be S, for there is a word Senen, which means " Image ", and here the name is Senentyut .
A jackal-headed god, with his name Anubis above him,
holding a human-headed staff in each hand . In the papyrus of Amenhotep he
holds two heq-signs .
In the row below are four mummified male figures . Shetayu a, " Those who hide the hand " ; four
mummified female figures, Shetayut a, " Those who
hide the hand " . A god holding an uas-sceptre and an ankh, Amen hau, " Hidden of limbs " . Two short vertical
lines of hieroglyphs : (1) " There is offered to them a handful upon earth
. It is that the king Ba-en-Ra mer-Neteru (2) is among the hearers who are upon
earth " .
Four birds, each sitting on a tree, Bau peryu, " The souls which go forth " . Four
mummified figures, Aryn nehaut, " Those who
belong to the sycomore trees " . Four men bending backwards, Shesepyu, " Those who bend (?) " .
2 and 3. A vertical line of inscription ; the words
are repeated twice : " There is given to them a hin-measure upon earth in entering the secret places " .
Twelve figures of Osirified gods in shrines . The
hieroglyphs read : " The gods who are in their shrines upon the sand "
. There is a curious curved line going from one side of the shrine to the other
; I take this to be an attempt to indicate that the inner part of the shrine
itself was curved .
Two vertical lines of inscription reaching to the
ground . There is only one sentence, repeated four times, showing that it
applies to the four rows of figures who come next . Each sentence begins in the
left-hand line and ends in the right-hand line ; it occupies exactly the same
space as a single register of the gods to whom it applies : " There is offered
to them a handful upon earth from a Glorious One who is in the secret place at
the chamber ( aryt ) within the Duat " .
Four rows of twelve figures, alternately male and
female . The gods carry uas-sceptres and ankhs ; of the goddesses, six carry the ankh, the rest are
empty-handed . The hieroglyphs are the same in each row, Neteru netertyu (sic) ymyu khet Asar, " The gods and
goddesses who follow Osiris " .
The carelessness of the sculptor is very well
exemplified here ; the base line of the third row of deities is still
incomplete, a piece in the middle not having been incised .
The South Wall :-
At the top is the winged disk with horns and pendant
uraei . The wings are drooped so as to fit the gable of the pent-roof ; nearly
half the gable has been destroyed, but fortunately the name of Ba-en-Ra
mer-Ptah, the throne name of Merenptah, still remains between the two uraei .
To the left at the tip of the wing is the name Behdet, determined with the city
sign . Under the curve of the wing are the words, " May he give the [ sweet
] breezes of life " .
The whole wall is occupied with the inhabitants of the
tenth Qerert . The inscription
appears to begin as usual with the long vertical line which comes next to the
king making offerings . " The gods of the tenth northern Qerert of the Duat, those who cry aloud, sacred of mysteries " .
To the left of the long vertical inscription, there is
three vertical scenes shows the king kneeling and making an offering, the first
and third figures are beardless, and the second one is bearded . Above him are four
short lines of hieroglyphs .
To the right is a long vertical line of inscription :
" There is offered to them a hin-measure upon earth from him who makes
light in the secret place ..... repulsing the Sebyu-fiend on the day of
........ powerful in Amentet " .
Then comes : (1) Two rows of four men standing . The
name is almost destroyed . (2) Nine mummies laid upon biers . The hieroglyphs
are Pat sau ymyu, " The whole body of the sons who
are within (?) " . The word Pat is said by Dr. Budge to mean the "
mass " ( like a cake or dough ), meaning " the whole body " ;
e.g., Pat neteru would be " the
whole body of the gods " . (3) Thirty-one figures in a walking attitude,
but lying horizontally ; they are in pairs, except those at the top left-hand
corner where there are three together . Above them is written Bau kheperyu em Asar, " The souls who become as Osiris " .
A vertical line of inscription reaching from the top
to the bottom of the wall : " When transformations are made in Amentet, his soul, let it go forth for its refreshment, those who are therein (
i.e. in Amentet ) let them praise Ra,
when he goes forth upon earth " .
Then comes : (1) Eight women holding in the left hand,
which is raised above the head, an object which looks like a whip . In the tomb
of Ramses VI the whip is replaced by a net, and in papyrus No. 10,478 of the
British Museum the object is painted blue and appears like a hatchet-shaped
vessel from which water is pouring . The name is almost entirely destroyed .
(2) Eight men standing : " Those who belong to the Glorious One " .
(3) Eight mummified figures from whose mouths water is pouring . Their name is Pat ymenu a, " The whole body of the hiders of the hand "
. Behind these stands a woman called Shent, who is probably the goddess Shenty .
She is generally represented under the form of a cow, and it is in the chapels
dedicated to her that some of the Osirian mysteries are celebrated .
The West Wall :-
The whole wall is occupied with the inhabitants of the
eleventh Qerert, a vertical line of
inscription : " The gods of the eleventh northern Qerert . He that covers the fainting one, concealing [ his ] secret places "
.
The West Wall ( South Half ):-
On the right side of the long vertical inscription are
three registers shows the king kneeling and making an offering . Above the
first one on the top is four short lines of hieroglyphs, and of the others two
are three short lines of hieroglyphs .
To the left : A vertical line of inscriptions reaching
the whole height of the wall : " There is offered to them a handful upon
earth from a Glorious One going in and going out unto the day . It is that the
king Ba-en-Ra mer-Neteru, true of voice, makes transformation as his heart
desires in the Underworld " .
(1) The god Yqeh standing and holding an uas-sceptre and an ankh .
Nine gods lying either on or beside serpents on biers
. The name is Pat ymiu-khet, " The whole
body of those who follow " .
A vertical line of inscription : " There is
offered to them a handful upon earth from a soul who follows Ra " . Nine
figures lying on biers ; they are called Pat heq
Yment, " The whole body of the rulers of Amentet " .
A vertical line of inscription : " There is
offered to them a handful upon earth [ when ] entering the pylon of the Sacred
Land " . Three small registers : in the upper one are four men with their
arms raised, they are called Heknyu " The Praisers "
. In the middle register are four men standing, who are called Bau ta, " The Souls (?) of the Earth " . In the lowest register is a
man standing holding an uas-sceptre and an ankh ; his name is Ba Amentet, " The Soul of Amentet " . Behind him is a woman treading on a snake .
(2) Nine jackals on stands of the shape that are
always used for divinities . The name of these jackals is Neteru resyu, " The gods, the watchers " . A vertical
line of inscription which extends to the ground : " It is that the king
Ba-en-Ra mer-Neteru, true of voice, son of the Sun, Lord of diadems,
Hotep-her-Maat Merenptah, is true of voice before Osiris Khenti-Amentiu "
.
Nine women lying on their faces with their hair
falling down and their arms raised . The hieroglyphs read Pat ykebyu, " The whole body of mourners " .
A man standing with raised hand in an attitude of
declamation ; he is called Nys-ta (?), " Summoner
of the earth " . Below him is another standing figure holding an uas-sceptre ; his name is written merely with the reed-leaf which reads Y,
the determinatives are a statue and the papyrus roll .
(3) A snake with a woman's head, called Zesert-tep, " Sacred of head " ; behind her are four
mummified bearded figures, called " Those who are with the Sacred of head "
.
A snake named Reny ( Meheny in the papyrus of Amenhotep ), behind whom are four standing figures
with unknown names .
Then comes the vertical inscription already translated
above . After that there are nine figures of men in a curious bending attitude,
with their faces turned upwards . Their title is Pat Ymen Asar, " The whole body of the hidden of Osiris "
. Behind them is a standing mummified figure called Hetem, " Destroyed of face " .
The West Wall ( North Half ):-
The last section consists of a vertical line of
inscription reaching the whole height of the wall : " The gods of the
twelfth northern Qerert in the Duat . The
offerings of the gods " .
To the far right are three registers :- (1) The king (
who on the top ) kneeling and making an offering . Above are five short
vertical lines of inscription . (2) The king kneeling and offering fruit and
cakes . Above are four short vertical lines of inscription . (3) The king kneeling
and making an offering . Above are four short vertical lines of inscription .
To the left of the long vertical inscription are three
registers ( from right to left ) :-
(1) Fourteen snakes arranged in four rows ; within the
coils of each snake lies a human figure . Four mummified bearded figures stand
side by side .
A vertical line of inscription : " There is
offered to them a handful upon earth when he goes forth and enters unto Amentet at all the gates belonging thereto " .
Then comes two registers containing thirteen small thirteen
figures in all . The figures are standing, and each holds an uas-sceptre, four figures hold an ankh also . The inscription reads :
" The gods who are in the land of Duat " .
A bearded figure standing holding an uas-sceptre . His name is Maat-ta, " Truth of the
earth " (?) .
(2) Eleven rams' heads on poles : " Those who are
with those who are in heaven and the earths " .
Two vertical lines of inscription: (i) " There is
offered to them a handful upon earth . It is that (ii) the King Ba-en-Ra
mer-Neteru, true of voice, is as a Glorious One, powerful in his cooling "
.
Then comes two registers each containing four standing
figures : " The gods who are with the lord " .
A bearded figure standing and holding an uas-sceptre and an ankh . His name is Heri-ta (?), " He who is on the earth " .
(3) Four men bowing . They are called Yuutyu, " The aged ones " . Two short vertical lines of inscription
: (i) " The King Ba-en-Ra mer-Neteru, true of voice, when he enters and
goes forth (ii) from Amentet at all the gates
belonging thereto " .
Then comes fourteen snakes arranged in three registers
; in the coils of each snake lies a human figure : Neteru ymyu Mehen, " The gods who are with, [ or, in ] the snake
Mehen " .
The North Wall :-
These inscriptions are on either side of the doorway,
and each consists of four vertical lines .
Left : (1) " Speech of the Son of the Sun,
Lord of Crowns, Hotep-her-Maat Merenptah, true of voice . I come before thee,
Lord of the Sacred Land, Osiris, Ruler of Eternity . I make what thy ka desires in the land of the living . (2) Speech of the king, Lord
of the Two Lands, Ba-en-Ra mer-Neteru, true of voice . I come before thee .
Lord of Eternity, Unnefer, son of Nut . I make for thee offerings (?) very
great . I know that which belongs to thy table of offerings (?) on account of
it . (3) Speech of the Son of the Sun, Lord of Crowns, Hotep-her-Maat
Merenptah, true of voice . I come before thee . Lord of Amentet, Osiris, great
of soul in the Duat . I have driven out evil from the earth in order to satisfy
thy heart every day . (4) Speech of the King, Lord of the Two Lands,
Ba-en-Ra mer-Neteru, true of voice . I come before thee . Lord of the
Underworld, Lord of Eternity ( neheh ) . Ruler of the Dead . I increase for
thy ka the offerings consisting of bread and beer, oxen and
fowls " .
Right : (1) " Speech of the Son of the
Sun, Lord of Crowns, Hotep-her-Maat Merenptah, true of voice . I come before
thee, Osiris, Lord of Augert . I establish thy cycle in the cities of the nome .
(2) Speech of the King, Lord of the Two Lands, Ba-en-Ra mer-Neteru, true
of voice . I come before thee, Osiris, Lord of Deddu . I bring unto thee breath
for thy nostril, life and strength for thy beautiful face . (3)
........... Hotep-her-Maat Merenptah, true of voice . I come before thee,
Osiris .......... [ I make ] for thee sacrifices every day . I know that thou
livest by means of them . (4) ............. I (cast down) thy enemies
under thee " .
Part ( 8 ) .. Coming SoOoOon .....
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