Egypt Exploration Society

Two overlooked oracles

Author(s): David Klotz
Source: The Journal of Egyptian Archaeology, Vol. 96 (2010), pp. 247-254
Published by: Egypt Exploration Society
Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/23269773
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20I0 BRIEF COMMUNICATIONS 247

The material discussed here once again demonstrates how vital it is to preserve and study
the records of our Egyptological predecessors. By his conscientious recording of key elements
of his collection, Anthony Harris has enabled the solution to one of the minor mysteries of
Egyptian history.

Mark Collier, Aidan Dodson, and Gottfried Hamernik

Two overlooked oracles

New readings proposed for two Late Period stelae reveal additional evidence for divine oracles
Nectanebo I relates how the goddess Nehmetaway proclaimed his future kingship through an or
hieros-gamos ritual as Roeder had suggested. JE 53147 (Bucheum Stela 9), informs us that the
chosen by the statue of Amenope during a ritual procession in Luxor, possibly from among a
taurian candidates.

jfE 72130 Herrnopolis Stela of Nectanebo I

The Thirtieth Dynasty began when Nectanebo I from Sebennytos rose to power
succeeded the Mendesian Twenty-ninth Dynasty. However, the precise details of
dynastic shift have remained shrouded in mystery. Only two classical historians all
the actual transition. Theopompos of Chios briefly remarked that 'Nectanebo assum
kingship ot Egypt' (/cat ws NeKTevLfitos TrapetXrupoTos tt)v Aiyv-nTov ^aatAetav).1 Corneliu
meanwhile, noted that 'for, having gone forth to help Nectanebo, he (the Athenian g
Chabrias) established his kingship' (nam Nectenebin adiutum profectus, regnurn ei constitu
Most scholars have concluded that Nectanebo seized the throne from Nepherite
military force.3 As A. B. Lloyd recently summarized, 'Given such an ancestry [referr
Nectanebo I's military family] and the extreme brevity of Nepherites' reign, the adv
the new dynasty looks suspiciously like a military coup'.4
The only native Egyptian source to mention the succession is a stela Nectanebo I e
at Hermopolis, now in the Egyptian Museum (JE 72130).5 Although the text contains
philological difficulties, Roeder was able to reconstruct the basic course of events:
(i) Nectanebo, general under Achoris or Nepherites II, leads an expedition to Hermopoli
to quell a local rebellion.

(2) Successful in his campaign, Nectanebo earns the support of the Hermopolitan offic
and the favor of the goddess Nehmetaway.

(3) With this local support, Nectanebo seizes the crown from the young Nepherites II.

1 F. Jacoby, Die Fragmente der griechischen Historiker, II/B (Berlin, 1929), 558, F103, 10; cf. F. Kien
politische Geschichte Agyptens vom 7. bis zum 4. Jahrhundert vor der Zeitwende (Berlin, 1953), 89, 173. No
the phrase irapaAaft/Savto fiaaiXeLav has neutral connotations, corresponding to Egyptian ssp nsw.t (var. iiw
'to receive kingship' (var. 'the great office') in Ptolemaic trilingual decrees; LSJ, 1315; F. Daumas, Les m
d'expression dn grec et de I'egyptien compares dans les decrets de Canope et de Memphis (SASAE 16; Cair
205-6, 236.
2 Cornelius Nepos, Chabrias II, 1; noted by Kienitz, Die politische Geschichte, 89. This statement may
imply that Chabrias supported Nectanebo against the Persians.
3 E. Drioton and J. Vandier, L'Egypte (Paris, 1962), 608-09; J- H. Johnson, 'The Demotic Chronicle
Historical Source', Enchoria 4 (1974), 11; H. de Meulenaere, 'Nektanebos I', LA IV, 450; C. Traunecker,
sur 1'histoire de la XXIXe Dynastie', BIFAO 79 (1979), 436; J. D. Ray, 'Egypt: Dependence and Indepen
(425-343 B.C.)', in H. Sancisi-Weerenburg(ed.), AchaemenidHistory, I: Sources, Structures, and Syntheses
1987), 82-3; N.-C. Grimal, A History of Ancient Egypt (Oxford, 1992), 375; J. A. Josephson, 'Nektaneb
B. Redford (ed.), The Oxford Encyclopedia of Ancient Egypt, II (Oxford, 2001), 512; J. Kahl, 'Zu den
spatzeitlicher Usurpatoren, Fremdherrscher, Gegen- und Lokalkonige', ZAS 129 (2002), 33; A. I. Bloba
Denn ich bin ein Konig, der die Maat liebt": Herrscherlegitimation im spatzeitlichen Agypten. Eine verg
Untersuchung der Phraseologie in den offiziellen Konigsinschriften vom Beginn der 25. Dynastie bis zum E
makedonischen Herrschaft (AegMonast 4; Aachen, 2006), 18.
4 A. B. Lloyd, 'Egypt, 404-337 bc', CAH2 VI, 340-1.
5 G. Roeder, 'Zwei hieroglyphische Inschriften aus Hermopolis', ASAE 52 (1953), 375-442; sections o
stela have been discussed recently by K. Mysliwiec, The Twilight of Ancient Egypt (Ithaca, 2000), 16

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248 BRIEF COMMUNICATIONS JEA 96

While this outline is generally correct, one of the signs confused Roeder, and thus he
overlooked an important detail of Nectanebo's rise to power. The relevant section appears in
lines 911, after the description of the rebellion:6

)0 =
fff.3 1 I JEL

Roeder translated:

'Er verlangte nach (? dachte an ?) seiner Mutter Wosret Nehmet-awaj, Auge des Re,
in der Stadt (nicht Koptos!). Als er Konig von Ober- und Unter-Agypten werden sollte
mit vielen Jahren als guter (/r) Herrscher dieses Landes, da zog er nun nach der Reside
Der (bisherige Konig), der in dem Palaste war, verkiindete einen Erlass (?) iiber das (?), w
in ihm geschehen war. Aber nachdem sein Vater Thot, der [zweimal Grosse], der Herr v
Chmunu, und seine Mutter Wosret Nehmet-awaj [ihn] hatten erscheinen lassen [als Kon
(wsu!/)] der Ewigkeit und Konig (bjtj) der Unendlichkeit'.

The primary difficulty comes from the first sign, a rearing animal,7 which Roeder
consistently read as ib, 'to desire'.8 The same hieroglyph appears three other times on the
stela, always in the same phrase: ^||| (line 20 twice, and line 27). The first two examples
occur in a fragmentary section describing a festival in Hermopolis:9

Roeder translated the first phrase as 'diirsteten nach...' and the second as 'nach der Schonheit
diirstetet... (sexuell?)'. Explaining his interpretation, he further noted:10
Die zweimalige Verbindung von jb mit nfr.zv verstehe ich nicht (...). Sicher ist der Jubel der
Bevolkerung von Hermopolis iiber die Ehrung der Gottin durch den Konig. Man konnte
an die sexuelle Vermischung der Geschlechter in der Festesfreude denken.

S. Grallert, BauenStiften Weihen: Agyptische

Agyptische Ban- Ban- und
nnd Restaurierungsinschriften
Restanrierungsinschriften von von den
den Anfangen
Anfangen bisbis zur
zurjo.
jo.
Dynastie (ADAIK 18; Berlin, 2001), 503-04, 672; 672; A.
A. Engsheden,
Engsheden, La La reconstitution
reconstitution du du verbe
verbe en en egyptien
egyptien de de tradition
tradition
40030 avant J.-C. (USE 3; Uppsala, 2003), 4245 4245 (s.v.
(s.v. 'Hermopolis');
'Hermopolis'); Blobaum,
Blobaum, Denn
Denn ichich bin
bin ein
ein Konig,
Konig, derder die
die
Maat liebt", passim.
6 Text after Roeder, ASAE 52, 390-1; with corrections
corrections based
based on on the
the published
published photograph
photograph (ibid.,
(ibid., pi.
pi. x).
x).
7 Although Roeder copied a rearing calf, the the photographs
photographs show show thisthis sign
sign has
has aa thinner
thinner bodybody and
and longer
longer ears.
ears.
8 A similar sign actually writes ib in the same same inscription,
inscription, in in line
line 7:
7: wnn
wnn hm-f
hm-f m m ibic
ibic hihi km.t,
km.t, 'His
'His majesty
majesty is is
a shelter (5ni) around Egypt'. Roeder, ASAE 52, 52, 386
386 and
and 421,
421, translated
translated this
this phrase
phrase as as 'Seine
'Seine Majestat
Majestat warwar inin
Sorge (?) um Kemet', and elsewhere referred
referred to to this
this sign
sign asas 'das
'das unverstandliche
unverstandliche Gazelle'.
Gazelle'. Nonetheless,
Nonetheless, the the royal
royal
epithet ibw
ibzv hi
In Km.t
Km.t is
is quite
quite common;
common; see
see H.
H. W.W. Fairman,
Fairman, 'An 'An Introduction
Introductionto tothe
theStudy
Studyof ofPtolemaic
PtolemaicSigns
Signsandand
their Values', BIFAO 43 (1945), 723 n. 1; H. de de Meulenaere,
Meulenaere, 'Un 'Un sens
sens particulier
particulier des
des prepositions
prepositions "m-rw.tj"
"m-rw.tj" et et
"m-itr.tj"', BIFAO 53 (1953). 92-3
9 Roeder, ASAE 52, 400.
Ibid., 401.

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2010 BRIEF COMMUNICATIONS 249

The third example of this phrase appears in a clearer section relating how Nehme
entered her newly renovated temple during a large festival (line 27):11

Roeder translated, 'Ihre Majestat war in Sehnsucht nach der Schonheit des Konigs, ihr H
jubelte liber das, was Seine Majestat ihr tat', 12 and once again suggested that the ex
in question 'hier sexuell gedeutet werden kann'. Nonetheless, he also questioned whe
this phrase 'sollte nur "danken" bedeuten?'. Roeder's conviction that the rearing an
must read ib led him to postulate a literal hieros gamos between Nectanebo and Nehme
during a festival in Hermopolis, possibly accompanied by similar couplings amon
celebrants. While such an event is theoretically possible, a different interpretation
sign leads to a far simpler reconstruction of events.
The rearing mammal may in fact be a simple variant of the giraffe, writing sr 'to p
announce; predict'. A similar example of such confusion occurs in the tomb of Ramesse
(KV2), where the scribe replaced the giraffe with a rearing goat.13 The same confusion
probably explains why the jackal can also have the phonetic value sr.'4
With this new interpretation, the enigmatic phrase ^||| becomes the standard expression:
sr nfrw (n), 'to proclaim the goodness (of someone); to predict good things (for someone)'.15
Therefore, one can translate the aforementioned passages with no sexual overtones, for
example:

hrw nhm n niw.t tn ph.n=f \h\r.t

hr sr nfrw nty [...] nfr pr m Rr
hr nb [...] sr nfrw [...]
The sound of jubilation from this city reached up to [heajven,
extolling the goodness of [...] the good [...] who came forth from Re,16
everybody [...] proclaiming the goodness of [...]

Similarly:
wnn hm(.t)-s hr sr nfrw nty nsw.t
ib-s m hrr m ir(.t) n-s hm-f

Her Majesty praised the goodness of the king,

her heart rejoicing because of what His Majesty did for her.

More importantly, this new reading of the rearing animal clears up the interesting historical
section:

" Ibid., 407.

12 Ibid., 408.
13 G. Roulin, Le Livre de la Nuit: Une composition egyptienne de I'au-dela (OBO 147; Fribourg, 1996), I, 56 n. o,
and II, 7; an even stranger version of this sign appears in the parallel text from the tomb of Ramesses VI.
14 E. Chassinat, Le mystere d'Osiris au mois de Khoiak (Cairo, 1968), II, 676 n. 9; C. Traunecker, Coptos: Dieux
et hommes sur le parvis de Geb (OLA 43; Leuven, 1992), 64 n.q; S. Cauville, Dendara: Le fonds hieroglyphique au
temps de Cleopatre (Paris, 2001), 253; see also J. Assmann, 'Eine Traumoffenbarung der Gottin Hathor', RdE 30
(1978), 26 col. 10, 29 n.d; W. Westendorf, 'Horus und Seth (?) auf der Palastfassade des Semerchet oder noch
einmal: Die Giraffe und das Seth-Tier', GM 223 (2009), 107. LGG VI, 426b, signals an example of sr written
with a donkey, but the photograph shows the sign is actually a giraffe: see H. Gauthier, Le temple de Kalabchah
(Cairo, 1911), 169 and pi. lviii.a.
15 Wb. IV, 190.1314; cf. A. Gutbub, Textes fondamentaux de la theologie de Kom Ornbo (BdE 47; Cairo, 1973),
I, 397 n. f, 416 n. k; N.-C. Grimal, Les termes de la propagande royal egyptienne, de la XXIXe dynastie a la conquete
d'Alexandre (MAIBL 6; Paris, 1986), 119; J.-M. Kruchten, Le grande texte oraculaire de Djehutymose, intendant
du domaine d'Amon sous le pontifical de Pinedjem II (MRE 5; Brussels, 1986), 47 n.4 ('predire du bonheur');
M. Smith, The Mortuary Texts of Papyrus BM 10507 (CDPBM 3; London, 1987), 90 n. a referring to line VI, 1;
P. Wilson, A Ptolemaic Lexikon: A Lexicographical Study of the Ptolemaic Texts in the Temple of Edfu (OLA 78;
Leuven, 1997), 881; E. Chassinat, Le temple de Dendara, II (Cairo, 1934), 199.8; E. Chassinat and F. Daumas, Le
temple de Dendara, VIII (Cairo, 1978), 40.2.
16 One can probably restore 'the good [god] who came forth from Re', as an epithet of the king; cf. Grimal, Les
termes de la propagande, 102 n. 255.

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250 BRIEF COMMUNICATIONS JEA 96

sr n-f mw.t-f wsr.t [Nh]m.t-[r]w?y ir.t-Rr [... hr.t-ib?] qs(y.t)-q?

wnn-f m nsw.t-bitl m rnp.wt wr.w m hqs nfr n ts pn
iw-f (i)r-f sms piv ir.n-f r hnw
iw/r smr n nt(y) m rhc m hpr im-fd
ir m-ht shr.n sw it-f Dhwti [rJ ri] nb Hmnw
mw.t-f wsr.t [Nh]m[.t]-rw?[y... m nsw.t] n nhh biti n d.t

His mother, the Mighty, Nehmetaway, the Eye of Re [...within?] the High Mound,
announced to him

that he would be King of Upper and Lower Egypt for many years as a good ruler
of this land.
He then hurried back to the Residence,
to report to the One in the Palace about what had happened to him.
Later on, his father, Thoth [the twice great], Lord of Hermopolis,
and his mother, [Neh]me[t]awa[...] caused him to appear in glory [as nsw.t-king]
of cyclical eternity and biti-king of linear eternity.

a) Roeder tentatively copied Iff but the published photograph confirms reading
the High Mound', just as the toponym appears later in line 24. For Nehmetaway
in the High Mound of Hermopolis, see also D. Mallet, Le Kasr el-Agouz (MIFAO 11;
Cairo, 1909), 88; discussed by J. Parlebas, Die Gottin Nehmet-awaj (PhD Thesis, Universitat
Tubingen; Kehl, 1984), 42 and 119.
b) Engsheden suggested that this faulty spelling of smi was influenced by Demotic, where
the s-sign is identical to the seated man (A2).17 However, confusion between the former sign
and the reed leaf is more likely.'8 The preposition r is written iw frequently on this stela; see
Roeder, ASAE 52, 421 (who did not note this example).
c) For = as nty, see Roeder, ASAE 52, 421, and cf. also the Naukratis Stela, col. 13, and
MMA 1996.91, col. 2 (both from the reign of Nectanebo I). For this designation of the
king, see Wb. I, 214.12-17; I. Guermeur, 'Glanures (3-4)', BIFAO 106 (2006), 124 n.e.
Compare also G. Lefebvre, Le tombeau de Petosiris (Cairo, 1924), inscr. no. 106.15-16, where
Petosiris claims to have paid his workman properly 'just as one had done in the past while a
king was still in the palace' (mi ir.tw dr m-bili r/iw nsw.t wn(.w) m rh).

d) For the phrase hpr im=f, 'what happened to him', see Wb. Ill, 262.18-21; G. Vittmann,
Der demotische Papyrus Rylands 9 (AAT 38; Wiesbaden, 1998), II, 31415; F. R. Herbin,
"Trois papyrus hieroglyphiques d'epoque romaine', RdE 59 (2008), 129 n. 36.

According to this section, Nehmetaway made an oracular or ominous prediction to

Nectanebo when he visited Hermopolis as a general.19 Nectanebo then returned to the
palace, and dutifully reported the miraculous event to the reigning monarch. Only later
(ir m-ht) did Thoth and Nehmetaway make Nectanebo the new king. Derchain recently
recognized a similar oracular appearance of Nehmetaway in the autobiographical texts of
Petosiris (61.338; 81.708), when the priest carried the processional bark of the goddess
around Hermopolis so she might signal the optimal location for her new temple.20

17 Engsheden, La reconstitution du verbe, 303 n. 1156.

18 J. C. Darnell, The Enigmatic Netherworld Books of the Solar-Osirian Unity (OBO 198; Fribourg, 2004), 140;
Cauville, Dendara: Lefonds hieroglyphique, 255.
19 For the nuances of the verb sr, see primarily E. Graefe, 'Konig und Gott als Garanten der Zukunft
(notwendiger Ritualvollzug neben gottlicher Selbstbindung) nach Inschriften der griechisch-romischen Tempel',
in W. Westendorf (ed.), Aspekte der spatagyptischen Religion (GOF 9; Wiesbaden, 1979), 53-70; Graefe argued
that many examples of this verb refer more to 'omina' or 'proclamations' rather than actual oracles. Nonetheless,
the fact that Nehmetaway 'announces' (sr) to a general that he will one day become king strongly suggests an
oracle setting; cf. the remarks of L. Coulon, 'Quand Amon parle a Platon (La statue Caire JE 38033)', RdE 52
(2001), 105, n. 73. For the topos of divinities announcing or promising kingship, see Graefe, in Westendorf (ed.),
Aspekte der spatagyptischen Religion, 613; Grimal, Les termes de la propagande, 11820, 123.
20 P. Derchain, 'Possession, transe et exorcisme: les oublies de l'egyptologie', GM 219 (2008), 16-17.

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20I0 BRIEF COMMUNICATIONS 251

While this narrative is undoubtedly a work of royal propa

does not necessarily refer to a military coup d'etat, as some
inscription follows a long tradition of royal stelae recording
goddess. A similar example is the historical inscription from
the processional image of Amun indicates his desire for Hats
Even closer is the Sphinx Stela, where the Sphinx speaks to a young Thutmosis IV as
prince, and promises to make him king if he clears away the encroaching sand.23 The latter
text suggests that royal succession was not always based on seniority, and that Thutmosis IV
ensured his status as Crown Prince in part through the benefactions he performed in Giza.24
Likewise, the general Nectanebo may have exploited the oracle of Nehmetaway to establish
himself as a legitimate successor to the Mendesian kings of the Twenty-ninth Dynasty.
The Hermopolis stela avoids mentioning the previous king, using periphrastic expressions
such as 'the one who was in the palace' (nt(y) m rh), and 'the king who was before him' (nswt
wn(.zv) lir hi.t-f) in lines 7 and 9. Scholars generally assume this king was Achoris,25 and the
allusion to times of troubles when a certain rebel 'became ruler' (hpr-fm hqi) over part of the
country (line 8) aptly describes the dynastic struggles between Achoris and the Gegenkonig
Psammuthis.26
The fact that Nectanebo reported (smi) the oracle to the reigning monarch, suggests he had
a reasonable claim to the royal succession, perhaps because he was actually related to Achoris.
Blobaum recently denied any connection between Nectanebo I and the Twenty-Ninth
Dynasty because 'diese oftmals nachgesagte Verwandtschaft mit Nephorites I. griindet sich
auf MiBdeutung einer Textpassage der Demotischen Chronik und muG revidiert werden'.27
However, the relationship between the Mendesian and Sebennytic lines is still supported by
a hieroglyphic inscription which refers to Nectanebo's father, the great generalissimo Teos,28
as 'king's son' (zs nsw.t).29 Thus, even if one excludes the Demotic Chronicle, Nectanebo I
must have been the grandson of a certain king who, for chronological reasons, was most
likely Nepherites I. In that case, Nectanebo I could have been a viable candidate for king
after Nepherites II after all.
The new reading does not clear Nectanebo I of usurping the throne, and one can easily
imagine him storming to the capital with the military support of Hermopolis, expressed
in the form of an oracular decision. However, this stela now demonstrates the continued
political importance of oracles in Late Period Egypt, presaging to some extent Alexander's
voyage to Siwa only fifty years later.

JE 53147 Bucheum Stela 9

Although most of the Bucheum stelae from Armant follow a standardized formula, the
inscription on JE 53147 provides many unparalleled details about the selection process

21 E.g. Ray, in Sancisi-Weerenburg (ed.), Achaemenid History I, 82-3; Lloyd, CAH2 VI, 340-1.
22 P. Lacau and H. Chevrier, Une chapelle d'Hatshepsout a Karnak (Cairo, 1977), I, 97-142.
23 See recently A. Klug, Konigliche Stelen in der Zeit von Ahmose bis Amenophis III (MonAeg 8; Brussels, 2002),
296-304, 524-5; P. Beylage, Aufban der koniglichen Stelentexte vom Beginn der 18. Dynastie bis zur Amarnazeit
(AAT 54; Wiesbaden, 2002), 65-75, 601-3.
24 See the discussion of B. M. Bryan, The Reign of Thutmose IV (Baltimore, 1991), 38-92.
25 H. de Meulenaere, 'La famille royale des Nectanebo', ZAS 90 (1963), 90; P.-M. Chevereau, Prosopographie
des cadres militaires egyptiens de la Basse Epoque (EME 2; Paris, 1985), 154 and 353.
26 J. Ray, 'Psammuthis and Hakoris', JEA 72 (1986), 149-58; connection noted by Blobaum, Denn ich bin
ein Konig, der die Maat liebt", 18; for the complicated history of the Twenty-ninth Dynasty, see recently J.-Y.
Carrez-Maratray, 'Psammetique le tyran: Pouvoir, usurpation et alliances en Mediterranee orientale au I Ve siecle
av. J.-C.', Transeuphratene 30 (2005), 37-62.
27 Blobaum, Denn ich bin ein Konig, der die Maat liebt", 18.
28 Note also that Blobaum, ibid., mistranslated the titulary of Teos (Urk. II, 26.10), reading 'Vorsteher der
groGen Kornspeicher? (jm(j)-r' ssr.w? zvr.w)' instead of imy-rs msr ivr, for this common spelling of the title, see
Wb. II, 155, and Chevereau, Prosopographie, 2602.
29 See already de Meulenaere, ZAS 90, 90-2; Blobaum, Denn ich bin ein Konig, der die Maat liebt", 18, did not
mention this important inscription. For the genealogy of the Thirtieth Dynasty, see most recently A. Engsheden,
'La parente des Nectanebo', CdE 81 (2006), 62-70.

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252 BRIEF COMMUNICATIONS JEA 96

for a new Buchis bull.30 When a candidate for the Buchis is born somewhere near Asfun,
local priests recognize his special colouring and take him to Esna,31 and a group of priests
from Armant sail south to inspect him there. From Esna, the bull travels in a procession to
Victorious Thebes for his enthronement (shn), while the king and his entourage come from
Alexandria to participate in the event.
After this lengthy introduction, the coronation rites consist of two lines written in
abbreviated day-book style. Previous translators have all passed over a small yet significant
detail (line 10):32

Fairman,33 Goldbrunner,34 and Grenier35 translated respectively:

Amenopet, the god of the city, appeared in procession. His Majesty went before him,
Amenopet stood opposite this good (sic) god, and the king likewise.
Amenope, der Gott des Ortes, erschein. Sein Majestat ging vor lhm. Amenope stand
diesem Gott gegeniiber, ebenso dem Konig.
Amon d'Ipet, dieu de Djeme, apparut alors en procession a 1 initiative du roi, marchant
(Amon d'Ipet) devant lui (le roi) alors que se tenaient dans (son) alignement le Boukhis et
le roi.

In earlier translations, it is unclear why the stela would mention Amenope's position vis
a-vis (m-rqi) the Buchis candidate, and this appears to be a superfluous detail. However, if
one translates rhr not as, 'to stand', but 'to stand still' or 'stop moving' (Wb. I, 218.8-10 and
220.9), then one arrives at a different reconstruction:
Amenope of Djeme appeared in procession; his Majesty went in front of him; Amenope
came to a stop directly across from this particular god (in 'Imn-'lp.t rhr m-rqi ntr pn)\ like
wise the king (and the entourage, prophets, priests of the staff of the House of Life, and
all troops of the entire land which had come with him to Thebes. Then this good god was
enthroned).

With this modified translation, the reason for the phrase m-rqi becomes clear. Theban
priests carried the portable bark of Amenope of Djeme in procession (shr), and the procession
stopped only when he was in front of the bull in question. In other words, Amenope indicated
his choice of Buchis bull by suddenly rendering the bark immovable.36 This may imply that
there were actually multiple candidates vying to become the new Buchis. Although the zvrb
priests of Sakhmet were specially trained to spot the distinctive markings on sacred animals,37
apparently only a god could determine which one was the true earthly manifestation.
An inscription from Edfu outlines a similar ritual for choosing sacred falcons in much greater
detail.38 The statue of Horus Behedety is carried in procession to the 'falcon house' (pr n bik).

3 For this stela, see L. Goldbrunner, Buchis: Eine Untersuchung zur Theologie des heiligen Stieres in Theben
zur griechisch-rdmischen Zeit (MRE n; Brepols, 2003), 5761, pi. 5; and most recently J.-C. Grenier, 'Les
peregrinations d'un Boukhis en Haute Thebaide', in C. Thiers (ed.), Documents de theologies thebaines tardives
(CENiM 3; Montpellier, 2009), 39-48.
31 The proper reading of this toponym follows Grenier, in Thiers (ed.), Documents de theologies thebaines
tardives, 4; it had been already suggested briefly by S. Sauneron, Quatres campagnes a Esna (Esna I; Cairo, 1959),
21 n. 2. For connections between the clergy of Thebes, Armant, and Esna, see Coulon, RdE 52, 1003.
32 Following the improved text of Grenier, in Thiers (ed.), Documents de theologies thebaines tardives, 43.
33 H. W. Fairman, The Bucheum, II: The Inscriptions (EES EM 41; London, 1934), 7.
34 Goldbrunner, Buchis, 60.
35 Grenier, in Thiers (ed.), Documents de theologies thebaines tardives, 43.
36 See J. Cerny, 'Egyptian Oracles', in R.A. Parker, A Saite Oracle Papyrus from Thebes in the Brooklyn Museum
(Providence, 1962), 445, for the different movements of processional barks during oracles.
37 For the duties of these priests, see recently J. Osing and G. Rosati, Papiri geroglifici e ieratici da Tebtynis
(Florence, 1998), 189215; J. F. Quack, 'Tabuisierte und ausgegrenzte Kranke nach dem Buch vom Tempel"',
in H.-W. Fischer-Elfert (ed.), Papyrus Ebers und die antike Heilkunde (Philippika 7; Wiesbaden, 2005), 678.
38 E. Chassinat, Le temple d'Edfou, VI (Cairo, 1931), 102.48; see recently D. Kurth, Treffpunkt der Gotter:
Inschriften aus dem Tempel des Horus von Edfu (Diisseldorf, 1998), 2323 (no. 31).

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20I0 BRIEF COMMUNICATIONS 253

The names of multiple priests are called until the statue assents (hn) to one of them. This
particular priest, called the 'servant of the falcon' (fun gmhszv), then stands in the forecourt in
front of (m-rqi) the portable bark of Horus while the following procedure takes place:39
sti drty.ua tzvt(.zv) r Rr m inm-m r hft-hr n ntr pn zvr-zvr
spr-f m htp hr bik-f
Bringing falcons resembling Re in their plumage before this god, one by one, (until) he
(Horus) decides upon his particular falcon in peace.

Just like in the Bucheum stela, the priests of Edfu selected multiple falcons whose plumage
qualified them to become sacred falcons. However, the statue of Horus Behedety had the
final word, picking his favorite choice in traditional oracular procedure.
Although the verb r//r, 'to stop', does not occur in most oracular texts, a parallel does exist
in a mysterious Ptolemaic stela from Diospolis Parva dating to the reign of Ptolemy III
(lines x+7-8):40
spr hm-f r zvi.t n dzv-sti m-rqi sti.t nt Knm.t
rhr piv ir.n-f
hn.n hm-f zvr sp-snzv

His Majesty came to the desert road, facing the necropolis-region of the West,41 he came
to a stop (rhr), and His Majesty assented very greatly.

Given the fragmentary preservation of the inscription, Collombert noted 'Si l'hypothese
de l'oracle parait done pleinement assuree, le sujet meme de la manifestation divine semble
devoir nous echapper totalement'.42 Nonetheless, he suggested that the proceedings related
to the divinization of a local priestess named Udjarenes, attested in several other sources.
Elaborating on his hypothesis, one notes that the stela ends abruptly on the following
line with the mention of a certain edifice (line x+9):^^j^/^|^Q 'the [temple/tomb] of the
Osiris (of) the god's wife, Udjaren<es>'.43 Perhaps priests from Diospolis Parva carried the
processional bark of a deity, here denoted 'His Majesty',44 to the western gebel to find an
auspicious spot for a tomb or desert shrine for the deified Udjarenes.45 During the procession,
the statue 'came to a stop' (rhr) and 'assented' (hn) at an appropriate location, thus indicating
his choice by means of an oracle. Petosiris conducted a similar procession for the goddess
Nehmetaway, leading her statue through the flooded ruins of Hermopolis until it halted (rhr)
at the location of her future temple.46

39 Chassinat, Edfou VI, 102.7-8.

102.78.
40 P. Collombert, 'Hout-sekhem et le septieme
septieme nome
nome de de Haute-Egvpte,
Haute-Egvpte, I:I: La La divine
divine Oudjarenes',
Oudjarenes', RdE46
RdE46 (1995),
(1995),
64, 6770, pis vii-viii (esp. 68 n. v, for this
this meaning
meaning ofof rhr);
rhr); cf.
cf. also
also the
the discussion
discussion of
of J.
J. C.
C. Darnell,
Darnell, Theban
Theban Desert
Desert
Road Survey in the Egyptian Western Desert,
Desert, I:
I: Gebel
Gebel Tjauti
Tjauti Rock
Rock Inscriptions
Inscriptions 1-45
1-45 and
and Wadi
Wadi el-Hol
el-Hol Inscriptions
Inscriptions
1-45 (OIP 119; Chicago, 2002), 133.
41 Literally 'the road of the Mysterious Mountain (i.e. Western gebel; desert) facing the necropolis region of
Kenmet (i.e. Khargeh and Dakhleh Oases; the Western Desert)'. For this use of Knm.t, see Collombert, RdE
46, 67 n.u, and note that this refers specifically to the necropolis of Diospolis Parva in E. Chassinat, Dendara, II
(Cairo, 1934), 133.3, a"d S. Cauville, Dendara, X (Cairo, 1997), 282.13; for the term dw-sti, dzv-sti, see
see recently
recently D. D. Meeks,
Meeks,
Mythes et legendes du Delta d'apres le papyrus Brooklyn 47.218.84 (MIFAO 125; Cairo, 2006), 45 n. 20.
42 Collombert, RdE 46, 69.
43 Collombert, RdE 46, 64 and 68 n.y, translated '[...temp]le
'[...tempjle d'Osiris (?), l'epouse-du-dieu Oudjarene<s>',
but this could simply refer to the mortuary cult of Udjarenes, just as on BM 934, line 2 (ibid., 57, 58 n.d, 73);
see in general M. Smith, 'Osiris NN or Osiris of NN', in B. Backes
Backes (ed.),
(ed.), Totenbuch-Forschungen:
Totenbuch-Forschungen: Gesantmelte
Gesammelte
Beitrage des 2. Internationalen Totenbuch-Symposiums. Bonn, 25. 25. bis
bis 29
2g September
September 2005
2005 (SAT
(SAT 11;
11; Wiesbaden,
Wiesbaden,
2006), 325-37.
44 Both Collombert and Darnell assumed hm-f lim-f referred
referred toto Ptolemy
Ptolemy III,III, but
but this
this phrase
phrase could
could just
just as
as easily
easily
denote the god, especially since the term hm can specifically designate
designate thethe processional
processional cult-statue
cult-statue ofof aa divinity
divinity
performing oracles; cf. Kruchten, Le grand texte oraculaire, 27. 27. The
The divinity
divinity could
could be
be either
either Neferhotep
Neferhotep or or the
the
August Sistrum of Diospolis Parva, mentioned previously on line line x+7.
x+7.
45 Or perhaps the priests were searching for the lost tomb of Udjarenes?
46 Lefebvre, Le tombeau de Petosiris, inscr. nos 61.36, 81.77; following
following thethe new
new interpretation
interpretation of of Derchain,
Derchain, GMGM
219, 16-17.

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254 BRIEF COMMUNICATIONS JEA 96

Returning to the Bucheum stela, it is interesting to note that

specifically used for this ritual. Amenope was of course the main
location of the Buchis enthronement ritual,48 but until recently he w
oracles. However, a fascinating inscription on the statue of a Ptol
relates how the following occurred when Amenope of Djeme app
di=f hr=f r-i
di-j rs(-i) sjy.t-j m hrw-i
dd-f n-i shr.w
whr-i m bih=f
He would turn his face to me,50 causing me to rejoice (because) his majesty was throughout
my body, he would pronounce oracles to me, and I would interpret in his presence.

The statue of Plato and the Bucheum stela both indicate that the processional image of
Amenope performed oracles.51 It appears Amenope inherited the role of chief oracular god
of Thebes from the deified Amenhotep I,52 a god with whom he shared much in common.53
David Klotz

47 For Amenope, see primarily M. Doresse, 'Le dieu voile dans sa chasse et la fete d
(1971), 113-36; id., 'Le dieu voile dans sa chasse et la fete de la decade [II]', RdE 25 (19
voile dans sa chasse et la fete de la decade [III]', RdE 31 (1979), 36-65; D. Klotz, Kneph
Thebes (PhD Thesis, Yale University; New Haven, 2008), 6980.
48 In lines 7-8, the ceremonies are set in 'Victorious Thebes, the traditional place o
(Wis.t-nht.t, s.t shn-f dr-blh) and more specifically in the Opet ('Ip. t) = Luxor Templ
Documents de thelogies thebaines tardives, 42, claimed that while the Buchis ceremony
either Luxor or Karnak, the latter option is 'peut-etre plus probable', without noting an
can refer to Karnak, which is properly Ip.t-s.zvt. J. Quaegebeur, 'Amenophis, nom roy
methodologiques', RdE 37 (1986), 97-106, argued that 'Ip.t could refer to many location
toponym 'Opet' exclusively designates Luxor Temple in the Graeco-Roman Period: cf
allusion to enthronements in the past (dr-blh) calls to mind royal inscriptions of the E
explicitly locate coronation rituals within Luxor Temple; cf. Lacau and Chevrier, Une ch
and 135 n.j; A. H. Gardiner, 'The Coronation of King Haremhab', JEA 39 (1953), 1
L. Bell, 'Luxor Temple and the Cult of the Royal Ka', JNES 44 (1985), 251-94.
49 Coulon, RdE 52, 88 col. 3, 90, 96, 103-8.
s For the oracular phrase rdi-hr in relation to the processional image of Amenope, se
Priester als Restaurator: Zu einer ptolemaischen Inschrift am Luxortempel', ZAS 132 (
51 For representations of the portable bark of Amenope of Djeme, see Doresse, RdE
52 Cf. J. Cerny, 'Le culte dAmenophis I chez les ouvriers de la necropole thebaine', B
53 For similarities between the processional barks of Amenhotep I and Amenope, see
112; for confusion between the names Amenhotep and Amenope, see Quaegebeur, RdE

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