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The inscriptions on the outsides of the jars, which are sometimes accompanied by inscribed figures of the four gods, vary considerably; some consist of a few words only, but others occupy several lines. These inscriptions show that each of the four gods was under the protection of a goddess; thus Isis guarded Mestha, Nephthys guarded Ḥāpi, Neith guarded Ţuamāutef, and Selket or Serqet guarded Qebḥsennuf. The following are examples of the formulæ inscribed on these jars :-1

I. AMSET. AA

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Osiris [is] the protection of Amseth, [for]

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1 These inscriptions are taken from the set of Canopic jars exhibited in the British Museum, Nos. 886 to 889; they were made for the commander of soldiers

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Nefer-ȧb-Ra-em-xut, Psammetichus, son of Neith, son of Ta-tā

nub-hetep. See Sharpe, Egyptian Inscriptions, 1st Series, pl. 114.

2 Here follow the name and titles of the deceased.

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Speech of
Serget.

make pass the night I of day every in making the protection of

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Frequently the first parts of these inscriptions read, Variant

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MIA genà em āāui ḥer enti

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ȧm-a. “I embrace with my two arms that which is in me;"

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sexen and mm! anq; frequently also they only contain the names and titles

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of the deceased preceded by the words.
"watchfully devoted to," which are followed by the names of
the four gods. Often the same formula is repeated on all
four jars.

CHESTS FOR CANOPIC JARS.

The chests, or coffers, which held Canopic jars were made of wood, and were usually painted black; they were fitted on a kind of sledge with two runners, the ends of which were rounded. They are about two feet square. On one end are traced in outline figures of Neith and Serqet, and on the other Isis and Nephthys; on the one side are Mesthȧ and Ḥāpi, and on the other Ţuamāutef and Qebḥsennuf. By the side of each god is inscribed the formula which is given in the 151st chapter of the Book of the Dead, and by the side of each goddess is inscribed the formula which is found on Canopic vases. (Excellent examples of chests on sledges are Nos. 8543a, and 85436, 3rd Egyptian Room, British Museum.) The inside of the chest is divided into four equal spaces by wooden partitions, and in each stood a jar. The use of such chests is certainly as old as the XIIth dynasty.

זיןד

REESE
UNIVERSI

OF
CALIFORNIA

readings.

The Book of the Dead not a

'Ritual.'

Early printed copies of the Book

of the Dead.

THE BOOK of the DEAD.

The collection of chapters, or distinct compositions, which the ancient Egyptians inscribed upon pyramids, walls of tombs, sarcophagi, coffins and papyri, amulets and other objects which were buried in the tombs with the dead was called "Rituel Funéraire" by Champollion, and this misleading name was adopted by De Rougé, who, in his Etudes sur le Rituel Funéraire des Anciens Egyptiens, brought forward reasons for so doing, and considered that all he had said "justifie suffisamment, suivant nous, le titre choisi par Champollion." Champollion's grammar shows that he had studied every part of the so-called Ritual, and the many short passages which he translated prove that he recognized the nature of its contents, and rightly appreciated its great value from a religious point of view; it is quite clear, however, that he never completely analysed a single chapter of it, and that he never translated any passage from it of considerable length. Had this remarkable man lived to examine the work further he would have seen that it was not a "Ritual."2 This collection of chapters was entitled "Todtenbuch" by Lepsius, in 1842, and by the name "BOOK OF THE DEAD" it is now most generally known.

The earliest publications of parts or whole copies of the Book of the Dead were made by Cadet (J. Marc), Copie figurée d'un rouleau de Papyrus, trouvé à Thèbes, dans un tombeau des Rois, Strassburg, 1805; Fontana, Copie figurée d'un rouleau de papyrus trouvé en Egypte, publiée par Fontana et expliquée par Joseph de Hammer, Vienna, 1822; Sen

1 In Revue Archéologique, N.S., tom. i. 1860, pp. 69–100, 234-249, 337–365. 2 Dieser Codex ist kein Ritualbuch, wofür es Champollion's Bezeichnung "Rituel Funéraire" zu erklären scheint ; es enthält keine Vorschriften für den Todtenkultus, keine Hymnen oder Gebete, welche von den Priestern etwa bei der Beerdigung gesprochen worden wären: sondern der Verstorbene ist selbst die handelnde Person darin, und der Text betrifft nur ihn und seine Begegnisse auf der langen Wanderung nach dem irdischen Tode. Es wird entweder erzählt und beschrieben, wohin er kommt, was er thut, was er hört und sieht, oder es sind die Gebete un Anreden, die er selbst zu den verschiedenen Göttern, zu welchen er gelangt, spricht. Lepsius, Vorwort (Todtenbuch), p. 3.

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