Famine Stela Lichtheim Ancient Egyptian Literature Vol III
Famine Stela Lichtheim Ancient Egyptian Literature Vol III
On Sehel Island
name Yfesir, may not have been a Nubian chief ruling the area in defi
ance of the Ptolemaic king. The most plausible hypothesis, it seems to
me, is the one that sees the inscription as the work of the priesthood of
the Khnum temple, who were anxious to strengthen their privileges in
the face of the encroaching claims made by the clergy of Isis of Philae.
The extent of the "12-iter land" or, Dodekaschoinos, has also been
much discussed, for the location of Takompso, mentioned as its south
ern limit, is not known, and the length of the iter appears to have varied.
The problem now seems to have been settled in favor of an iter usually
averaging I 0.5 km, except for a much shorter iter indicatea by the
boundary stelae of Akhenaten at El-Amarna (see the new studies of A.
Schwab-Schlott). Thus, the "12-iter land" would designate the northern
half of Lower Nubia, extending south from Elephantine for a length of
about eighty miles.
Barguet's good edition has greatly advanced the understanding of this
difficult text. There remain a number of problems and uncertaimies.
Publication: H. K. Brugsch, Die biblichen sieben Jahre der Hungersnoth
(Leipzig, 1891). P. Barguet. La Itfie de Ia famine ri Sihe/, Institut fran-
;ais d'archeologie orientale, Bibliotheque d'etude, 34 (Cairo, 1953).
Translation: G. Roeder, Urkurulen wr Religion des a/ten Agypten (Jena.
1915), pp. 177-184.
-
Translation of excerpts: J. Vandier, La famine dans l'Egypte ancienne,
Institut fran(.:ais d'archeologie orientale, Recherches, 7 (Cairo, I 936),
pp. 38-44 and 132-139. J. A. Wilson in ANET, pp. 31-32.
Studies and comments: K. Sethe, Dodekaschoinos das Zwiilfmeilenland an
rler Grenze von Aegypten und Nubien, Untersuchungen. 11/3 ( Leipzig. 190 I;
reprint Hildesheim, 1964). K. Sethe, ZAS, 41 (1904). 58-62. W.
Schubart, ZAS, 47 (1910), 154-157. H. de Meulenaere. Bibliotheca
Orienta/is, 14 (1957), 33-34, review of Barguet's publication. H.
Brunner, "Die Hungersnotstele" in Kindler's Literatur Lexiko11, III (Zur
i<h. 1967), cols. 2255-2256. D. Wildung, Die Rolle iigypti<clzer Konige
im Bezousstsein illrer Nachwelt, Vol. I, Miinchner agyptologische Studien,
17 (Berlin, 1969), pp. 85-91. A. Schwab-Schlott, Die Ausmasse Agyp
ff'IH nach altiigyptischerl Texten. Dissertation, University of Tlibingen,
1!169; idem, MDIK, 28 (1972), 109-113; idem, "Dodekaschoinos" in Lexi
lum der Agyptologie, Vol. I (Wiesbaden, 1975), cols. 1112-1113. M.
l.ichtheim in StudieJ in Honor of George R. HugheJ, Studies in Ancient
Oriental Civilization, 39 (Chicago, 1977). pp. 142-144.
On the stones and metals consult: Harris, Minerals.
"Their gathered products are set before the face of Khnum and
.or"'"'" him; likewise (I'l) tall plants and Rowers of all kinds that exist
lwrwtTII Ychu and S<"IIIIHII}11 and arc there on the east and the west.
98 ANCIENT EGYPTIA LITERATURE
Fashioner of everybody,
Guide of each man in his hour,
Tatenen, father of gods,
Great Shu, high in heaven!
The Donation
Ill \'chu.'11'
.\II Jishcrmen, all hunters, who catch fish and trap birds and all
11141s or game, and all who trap lions in the desert-[ exact from then1
.,,,.!<'nth of the take of all of these, and all the young animals born of
llw k1nales in these miles [in their totality].
I ltw shall gi,e the branded animals for all burnt offerings and daily
''' o iliccs; and one shall give one-temh" of gold, ivory, ebony, carob
\n u 141, '1ch rc, carnelian, .\hrt. dhtr-pbnls, nf7t1-plants, all kinds of timber.
100 ANCIENT EGYPTIAN LITERATURE
NOTES
I. The reading of the name is not quite certain, and the name is
probably not an Egyptian one.
2. When the inscription was first published, the description of a
seven year famine was believed to be connected with the biblical story ol
a seven-year famine in Egypt (Genesis 41 ) . Since then it has been shown
that a tradition of seven years of famine was widespread in the litcril
tures of the ancient Near East; see C. H. Gordon, Orintlalia, n.s., 2:l
(1953), 79-81.
3. Barguet, ojJ. lit., p. 15, took llrto be the word for "revenue," wh ilt'
I take it to be the word for "twin."
4. The meaning seems to be that those who had entered a housr
were too weak lo leave it again.
5. The "slaffof the lbis" designates the corporation of snilws who!lr
TEXTS IN THE CLASSICAL LANGUAGE 101
patron was Thoth. As Barguet, op. cit., p. 16, pointed out, the king con
sults a priest of I mhotep, not the god Imhotep himself, as previous
translators had thought. The earlier view is now argued anew by D.
Wildung,/mhotep und Amenho tep (Munich, 1977), pp. 149-152.
6. fju)t-ibtt, the "Mansion of the Net," appears to have been a name
for the temple of Thoth at Hermopolis Magna. The logic of the tale
would seem to require that the king's consultation with the priest of lm
hotep takes place in the capital, i.e., at Memphis, which was also the cult
center of lmhotep. Since the priest is said to have returned "quickly," or
"immediately," poetic license might stretch this to include a quick trip
from Memphis to Hermopolis, but surely not a voyage to the Khoum
temple of Elephantine. Hence the "Mansion of the I"\et," if it does not
here refer to the temple of Hermopolis, could only designate a sanctuary
in, or close to, Memphis.
7. A somewhat obscure sentence which rendered literally would be:
"gathered for the steadfastness of everyone for what they do," which I
take to refer to the sanctuary, whereas Barguet construed it as referring
to the priest.
8. The "Souls of Re" are the sacred books kept in the temple's
"House of Life."
9. I.e., Elephantine, in the first nome of Upper Egypt, faces toward
Lower Nubia (Wawat).
I 0. The passage gives the traditional view that the inundation rose
from twin caverns at Elephantine.
II. I.e., by the time the inundation has reached the Delta town of
Sema-behdet, the metropolis of the I 7th nome of Lower Egypt, its
height of twenty-eight cubits above low water has diminished to seven
cubits.
12. I have restored the lacuna merely to indicate that some such
meaning is required. It is Khnum, the creator, who releases Hapy, the
inundating Nile.
13. The identification of Khnum with Shu also occurs in other texts of
the Ptolemaic period, notably at Esna.
14. Lit., "the land of Upper Egypt and Lower Egypt."
15. Despite Barguet's explanation I fail to understand the words used
lo describe the instrument, its location, and its relation to Shu. Barguet,
of!. cit., pp. 20-21 translated: "II y a Ia un support de bois et sa croix faite
de poutres swl, pour son peson, qui sont sur Ia rive; a cela est affecu
Chou, fils de Re, en tant gue 'maitre de largesse'," and he discussed the
instrument further in CdE, 28, no. 56 (1953), 223-227.
16. I.e., the first cataract of the Nile, which was an effective boundary
1hroughout Egypt's history.
17. Literally, "temples of Upper and Lower Egypt."
I H. The island of Biggah, south of Elephantine and opposite Philae.
19. The two elevations described here, a pleasant one and a difficult
ouc, have been identified with the "two mountains called Crophi and
Mo phi," mentioned in Herodotus 11,28. See Barguet, op. cit., p. 22,
where Cmphi is identified with grf-Jbw.
:.?0. Since many of the stones have not been idemified, it is not clear to
whal cxtclll the list may have been accurate.
:!I. On the mtu:h di sn 1 ssed b[m stone see now Harris, op. cit., pp. 78-
H:!, where lhc lranslalion "gnywa<k(" is favored.
102 ANCIENT EGYPTIAN LITERATURE
22. Harris (ibid., p. 74) thinks it probable that mOy was merely an
other spelling of m3J, "granite."
23. An unidentified material seemingly of golden color; see ibid.,
p. 88.
24. The stones rgs and wtS_v have not been identified; see ibid, pp. 85
and 89.
25. According to Harris (ibid., p. 105), this may be the Greek pra..mn,
"prase."
26. An unidentified stone, see ibid., p. 92.
27. This ts both a precious stone and a term for faience, glass, and
glaze, see ibid., pp. 135-138.
28. An unidentified stone, see ibid., pp. 133 and 232.
29. Harris (ibid., pp. 110-111) thinks it probable that this is "quartz."
30. Or perhaps "beryl," see ibid., p. 105.
31. An unidentified stone, see ibid, p . 92.
32. According to Harris (ibid., p. 115), this term usually designates
"green felspar."
33. According to Harris (ibid., p. 154), this is a writing of [m!Jyand sig
nifies a species of "red ochre."
34. Harris (ibid., pp. 118-120) thinks it probable that this is "garnet ."
35. An unidentified stone, see ibid., pp. 96-97.
36. Harris (ibid., pp. 168 and 233-234) concludes that this stone,
originally called bi3 !tsy. is haematite and possibly also magnetite.
37. On rst, "carnelian," see ibid .. pp. 120-121.
38. Harris (ibid., pp. 130-131) concludes that this was a semiprecious
stone probably of green color.
39. Mm or mimi is known as a word for seed-grain, but that does not
suit here.
40. On sty and t3-sty, "ochre," see ibid., pp. 150-152.
41 I.e., the king consulted the manuals that taught how to perform
the temple rituaL
42. The speech of the god abounds in assonances. which I have imi
tated whenever possible.
43. The "lips" suggest some kind of gate or lid made of two section!4
which, when opened, releases the water.
44. I take this to be the word for "well" rather than "sieve."
45. Lit., "your west as Manu, your east as Bakhu," the two names for
the mountain ranges bordering the Nile valley on the west and east.
46. The Greek Takompso, the locality that marked the southern limit
of the Dodekaschoinos.
47. Barguet, op. cit., p. 29, read imys nb; I wonder if it might be imv 11hll
nb, meaning the nb of Wb. 2,293.15.
48. Barguet, ibid., read the name as "Ville du Piege" (Hermopolis). I
think it is merely another writing of "Yebu."
49. Barguet, op. cit., p. 30, read the signs as rJ, "sack," rather than d(
r-10. I have retained the reading di r-IO and have discussed the prohl<lfl
of the whole donation in my article on the NaucratiJ Stela in Studit'.\ ;,.
Honor of George R. Hughes (Chicago, 1977), pp. 142-144.
50. A region of Nubia south of the second cataract; see C. Vand('l"
sleyen, Les FJIUTTes d'Amo.sis (Brussels, 1971), pp. 64-68.
51. I wonder if the unread word might be tmm', "prisoners"?
TEXTS IN THE CLASSICAL LANGUAGE 103