The Book of Gates: The Book of Gates: Chapter I. The Alabaster Sarcophagus of Seti I.

CHAPTER I.

THE ALABASTER SARCOPHAGUS OF SETI I.

THE text of the "Book of Gates," printed in the following pages, is taken from the alabaster sarcophagus of king Seti I., B.C. 1370, which is preserved in the Museum of Sir John Soane, at 13, Lincoln's Inn Fields. This sarcophagus is, undoubtedly, one of the chief authorities for the text of that remarkable book; but before any attempt is made to describe the arrangement of the scenes and the inscriptions which accompany them, it will be well to recall the principal facts connected with its discovery by Giovanni Battista Belzoni, who has fortunately placed them on record in his Narrative of the Operations and recent discoveries within the pyramids, temples, tombs and Excavations in Egypt and Nubia, London, 1820, p. 233 ff. In October, 1815, Belzoni began to excavate in the Biban-al-Muluk, i.e., the Valley of the Tombs of the Kings, on the western bank of the Nile at Thebes, and in the

1 The sarcophagus chamber is situated at a distance of 320 feet from the entrance to the first corridor, and is 180 feet below the level of the ground. Belzoni succeeded in bringing the sarcophagus from its chamber into the light of day without injury, and in due course it arrived in England; the negotiations which he opened with the Trustees of the British Museum, to whom its purchase was first proposed, fell through, and he subsequently sold it to Sir John Soane, it is said for the sum of £2000. An examination of the sarcophagus shows that both it and its cover were hollowed out of monolithic blocks of alabaster,

1 that these were quarried in the mountains near Alabastronpolis, i.e., the district which was known to the Egyptians by the name of Het-nub, and is situated near the ruins known in modern times by the name of Tell al-'Amarna. In the Yet-nub quarries large numbers of inscriptions, written chiefly in the hieratic character, have been found, and from the interesting selection from these published by Messrs. Blackden and Fraser, we learn that several kings of the Ancient and Middle Empires carried on works in them, no doubt for the purpose of obtaining alabaster for funeral purposes. The sarcophagus is 9 ft. 4 in. long, 3 ft. 8 in. wide, in the widest part, and 2 ft. 8 in. high at the shoulders, and 2 ft. 3 in. at the feet; the cover is 1 ft. 3 in. high. The thickness of the alabaster varies from 21 to 4 inches. The skill of the mason who succeeded in hollowing the blocks without breaking, or even cracking them, is marvellous, and the remains of holes nearly one inch in diameter suggest that the drill was as useful to him as the chisel and mallet in hollowing out the blocks. When the sarcophagus and its cover were finally shaped and polished, they were handed over to an artisan who was skilled in cutting hieroglyphics and figures of the gods, &c., in stone, and both the insides and outsides were covered by him

. The prenomen is sometimes written , or , and , and is to be read either SETI-MEN-EN PTAH, or SETI-MEN-EN-PTAH. Mr. Sharpe did not, apparently, realize that both the signs and

Recension of the Book of the Dead; on the inside of the cover is a figure of the goddess Nut, with arms outstretched. On the outside of the

maat, son of the Sun, Seti Mer-en-Ptah, whose word is maat, and I have come so that I may be among those who protect thee. I make to flourish thy house, which shall be doubly established, by the command of Ptah, by the command of Ra himself."

Speech of ANPU: "I am Anpu, who dwelleth in (or, with) the funeral chest." He saith, "Mother Isis descendeth . . . . . . . . bandages for me, Osiris, king Men-Maat-Ra, whose word is maat, son of the Sun, Seti Mer-en-Ptah, whose word is maat, from him that worketh against me."

Speech of TUAMATEF: "I am Tuamatef, I am thy son Horus, I love thee, and I have come to avenge thee, Osiris, upon him that would work his wickedness

To be said: "Ra liveth, the Tortoise dieth! Strong are the members of . . . . . Osiris, king Men-Maat-Ra, whose word is maat, for Qebhsennuf guardeth them. Ra liveth, the Tortoise dieth! In a sound state is he who is in the sarcophagus, in a sound state is he who is in the sarcophagus, that is to say, the son of the Sun, Seti Mer-en-Ptah, whose word is maat."

Speech of NUT: Nut, the great one of Seb, saith: "O Osiris, king, lord of the two lands, Men-Maat-Ra, whose word is maat, who loveth me, I give unto thee purity on the earth, and splendour (or, glory) in the heavens, and I give unto thee thy head for ever."

II. Speech of NUT, who is over the HENNU BOAT: "This is my son, Osiris, king, Men-Maat-Ra, whose word is maat. His father Shu loveth him, and his mother Nut loveth him, Osiris, son of Ra, Seti Mer-en-Ptah, whose word is maat."

Speech of HAPI: "I am Hapi. I have come that I might be among those who protect thee, I bind together for thee thy head, [and thy members, smiting down for thee thine enemies beneath thee, and I give

Speech Of ANPU, the Governor of the divine house: I am Anpu, the Governor of the divine house. O Osiris, king, lord of the two lands, Men-Maat-Ra, whose word is maat, son of the Sun, [proceeding] from his body, the lord of crowns, Seti Mer-en-Ptah, whose word is maat, the Shennu beings go round about thee, and thy members remain uninjured, O Osiris, king, Men-Maat-RA, whose word is maat for ever."

Speech Of QEBHSENNUF: "I am thy son, I have come that I might be among those who protect thee. I gather together for thee thy bones, and I piece together for thee thy limbs. I bring unto thee thy heart, and I set it upon its seat in thy body. I make to flourish (or, germinate) for thee thy house after thee, [O thou who] liv[est] for ever."

To be said: "Ra liveth, the Tortoise dieth! Let enter the bones of Osiris, king Men-Maat-Ra, whose word is maat, the son of the Sun, Seti Mer-en-Ptah, whose word is maat, let them enter into their foundations. Pure is the dead body which is in the earth,

On the bottom of the sarcophagus is a large, full-length figure of the goddess NUT who is depicted in the form of a woman with her arms ready to embrace the body of the king. Her face and the lower parts of the body below the waist are in profile, but she has a front chest, front shoulders, and a front eye. Her feet are represented as if each was a right foot, and each only shows the great toe. One breast is only shown. The hair of the goddess is long and falls over her back and shoulders; it is held in position over her forehead by a bandlet. She wears a deep collar or necklace, and a closely-fitting feather-work tunic which extends from her breast to her ankles; the latter is supported by two shoulder straps, each of which is fastened with a buckle on the shoulder. She has anklets on her legs, and bracelets on her wrists, and armlets on her arms. The inscriptions which are cut above the head, and at both sides, and under the feet of the goddess contain addresses to the king by the great gods of the sky, and extracts from the Book of the Dead; they read:--

INSCRIPTION ON THE BOTTOM OF THE SARCOPHAGUS OF SETI I.

I. The words of Osiris the king, the lord of the two lands, MEN-MAAT-RA, whose word is maat, the son of Ra (i.e., the Sun), SETI MER-EN-PTAH, whose word is maat, who saith, "O thou goddess NUT, support thou me, for I am thy son. Destroy thou my defects of immobility, together with those who produce them."

II. The goddess NUT, who dwelleth in HET-HENNU, saith, "This [is my] son Osiris, the king, the lord of the two lands, MEN-MAAT-RA, whose word is maat, the son of Ra, [proceeding] from his body, who loveth him, the lord of crowns, Osiris, SETI MER-EN-PTAH."

III. The god SEB saith, "This [is my] son MEN-MAAT-RA, who loveth me. I have given unto him purity upon earth, and glory in heaven, him the Osiris, king, the lord of the two lands, MEN-MAAT-RA, "whose word is maat, the son of Ra, the lover of Nut, that is to say, SETI MER-EN-PTAH, whose word is maat, before the lords of the Tuat."

IV. Words which are to be said:--"O Osiris, king, lord of the two lands, MEN-MAAT-RA, whose word is maat, the son of Ra, [proceeding] from his body, that is to say, SETI MER-EN-PTAH, whose word is maat. Thy mother NUT putteth forth [her] two hands and arms over thee, Osiris, king, lord of the two lands, MEN-MAAT-RA, whose word is maat, son of Ra,

V. The great goddess NUT saith, "I have endowed him with a soul, I have endowed him with a spirit, and I have given him power in the body of his mother TEFNUT, I who was never brought forth. I have come, and I have united myself to OSIRIS, the king, the lord of the two lands, MEN-MAAT-RA, whose word is maat, the son of Ra, the lord of diadems, SETI MER-EN-PTAH, whose word is maat, with life, stability, and power. He shall not die. I am NUT of the mighty heart, and I took up my being in the body of my mother TEFNUT in my name of Nut; over my mother none hath

VI. ["Nut,"] saith Osiris, the king MEN-MAAT-RA, whose word is maat, "Raise thou me up! I am [thy] son, set thou free him whose heart is at rest from that which maketh [it to be still]."

VII. Osiris, the king, the lord of the two lands, MEN-MAAT-RA, whose word is maat, the son of the Sun, loving him, SETI MER-EN-PTAH, saith the

CHAPTER OF COMING FORTH BY DAY AND OF MAKING A WAY THROUGH AMMEHET. 1

Saith Osiris, the king, the lord of the two lands, MEN-MAAT-RA, whose word is maat, the son of the Sun, [proceeding] from his body, loving him, the lord of crowns, SETI MER-EN-PTAH, whose word is maat, "Homage to you, O ye lords of maat, who are free from iniquity, who exist and live for ever and to the double henti period of everlastingness, MEN-MAAT-RA, whose word is maat, the son of the Sun, [proceeding] from his body, loving him, the lord of diadems, SETI MER-EN-PTAH,

1 and my ale is in the city Of TEP, and my arms are united

1 Grant ye, unto me sepulchral offerings, that is to say, incense, and merhet unguent, and all beautiful and pure things of every kind whereon the God liveth. Osiris, the king, MEN-MAAT-RA, whose word is maat, the son of the Sun, [proceeding] from his body, loving him, the lord of diadems, the ruler of joy of heart, SETI MER-EN-PTAH, whose word is maat, existeth for ever in all the transformations which it pleaseth [him to make]. He floateth down the river, he saileth up into SEKHET-AARU, 2 he reacheth SEKHET-HETEP. 3 I am the double Lion-god." 4

VIII. Saith Osiris, the king, the lord of the two lands, MEN-MAAT-RA, whose word is maat, son of the Sun, loving him, SETI MER-EN-PTAH, whose word is maat:--"O ward off that destroyer from my father Osiris, the king, the lord of the two lands, MEN-MAAT-RA, whose word is maat, and let his divine protection be under my legs, and let them live. Strengthen thou Osiris, son of the Sun, lord of diadems, SETI MER-EN-PTAH, whose word is maat, with thy hand. Grasp thou him with thy hand, let him enter thy hand, let

IX. Saith Osiris, the king, the lord of the two lands, MEN-MAAT-RA, whose word is maat, the son of the Sun, [proceeding] from his body, loving him, the lord of diadems, SETI MER-EN-PTAH, whose word is maat,

[THE CHAPTER OF CAUSING THE SOUL TO BE UNITED TO ITS BODY IN THE UNDERWORLD] 1

Hail, ye gods who bring (ANNIU)! [Hail] ye gods who run (PEHIU)! [Hail] thou who dwellest in his embrace, thou great god, grant thou that may come unto me my soul from wheresoever it may be. If it would delay, then lot my soul be brought unto me from wheresoever it may be, for thou shalt find the Eye of Horus standing by thee like those watchful gods. If it lie down, let it lie down in ANNU (Heliopolis), the land where [souls are joined to their bodies] in thousands. Let my soul be brought

"Hail, ye gods who tow along the boat of the lord of millions of years, who bring [it] into the upper regions of the Tuat, who make it to pass over Nut, and who make the soul to enter into its sahu (i.e., spiritual body), let your hands be full of weapons, and grasp them and make them sharp, and hold chains in readiness to destroy the serpent enemy. Let the Boat rejoice, and let the great god pass on in peace, and behold, grant ye that the soul of Osiris, king MEN-MAAT-RA, whose word is maat, may emerge from the thighs [of Nut] in the eastern horizon of heaven, for ever and for ever."

X. Osiris, the king, the lord of the two lands, MEN-MAAT-RA SETEP-[EN]-RA, whose word is maat, the son of Ra, loving PTAH-SEKRI, the lord of diadems, SETI MER-EN-PTAH, whose word is maat, saith:--"O ye shennu beings, go ye round behind me, and let not these my members be without strength."

XI. Osiris, the king, the lord of the two lands, MEN-MAAT-RA AA-RA, whose word is maat, the son of the sun, [proceeding] from his body, loving him, lord of diadems, SETI MER-EN-PTAH, saith:--"O Nut, lift thou me up. I am thy son. Do away from me that which maketh me to be without motion." [Nut saith]:--O Osiris, the king the lord of the two lands, MEN-MAAT-RA

On the outside of the cover, beneath the two scenes and texts which occupied the upper part of it, was a horizontal line of hieroglyphics which contained two short speeches, the one by the goddess Nut, and the other by Thoth. The speech of Nut is a duplicate of the opening lines of that found on the bottom of the sarcophagus (see above § v., p. 55); the speech of Thoth is much mutilated, and can have contained little except the promise to be with the king, and a repetition of the royal name and titles. On the inside of the cover were texts, many portions of which are identical, as we see from the fragments which remain, with the Chapters from the Book of the Dead which are found on the bottom of the sarcophagus, and which have been transcribed above. At each side of the figure of the winged goddess which was cut on the breast was a figure of the god Thoth, who is seen holding a staff surmounted by the symbol of "night.". When the cover was complete there were probably four such figures upon it, and the texts which accompanied them were, no doubt,

APPENDIX TO CHAPTER I.

BELZONI'S ACCOUNT OF HIS DISCOVERY OF THE TOMB OF SETI I.

"ON the 16th (of October) I recommenced my excavations in the Valley of Beban el Malook, and pointed but the fortunate spot, which has paid me for all the trouble I took in my researches. I may call this a fortunate day, one of the best perhaps of my life; I do not mean to say, that fortune has made me rich, for I do not consider all rich men fortunate; but she has given me that satisfaction, that extreme pleasure, which wealth cannot purchase; the pleasure of discovering what has been long sought in vain, and of presenting the world with a new and perfect monument of Egyptian antiquity, which can be recorded as superior to any other in point of grandeur, style, and preservation, appearing as if just finished on the day we entered it; and what I found in it will show its great superiority to all others. Not fifteen yards from the last tomb I described, I caused the earth to be opened at the foot of a steep hill, and under a torrent, which, when it rains, pours a great quantity of water over the very spot I have

Footnotes

44:1 As Belzoni's narrative is of interest, his account of his discovery of Seti's tomb is given in the Appendix to this Chapter.

45:1 The Alabaster Sarcophagus of Oimenepthah I., King of Egypt. London, 1864, p. 14.

59:1 This is Chapter LXXII. of the Book of the Dead.

61:1 Pe and Tep formed a double city in the Delta.

63:1 The kher-heb was the priestly official who read the funeral service.

63:2 I.e., the Field of Reeds.

63:3 I.e., the Field of Peace.

63:4 I.e., Shu and Tefnut.

65:1 This is Chapter LXXXIX. of the Book of the Dead.