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Nephthys, and other gods of the dead. The inscriptions sometimes resemble those found on chests for Canopic jars, but frequently they contain prayers in which the deceased entreats the gods to give him gifts of cakes, bread, beer, wine, ducks, oxen, wax, oil, bandages, etc., etc. Such inscriptions are at times very brief, at others they cover the whole box.

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An interesting class of sepulchral boxes comes from Boxes Aḥmîm, the ancient Panopolis, which deserves special Akhmim. mention. The largest of them in the British Museum (No. 18,210) is 3 feet long and 3 feet high. Each side tapers slightly towards the top, and is in the shape of a pylon. The hollow cornice is ornamented with yellow, black, and red lines upon a white ground. Beneath it are two rows of ornaments: the first is formed by, and the

second by

repeated several times. Beneath each line is a row of five-rayed stars★✩✩✩✩✩. The front of the box

is ornamented with fff and urai wearing disks and

a winged disk Behind is a hawk upon a pedestal, before which is an altar with offerings. On the right hand side is Thoth with both hands raised, pouring out a libation; and on the left is a hawk-headed deity with both hands raised also pouring out a libation. On the back of the box is a hawk, with extended wings, and sceptres. On the right hand side of the box is a figure of the deceased, kneeling, having his left hand raised, and above him are two cartouches

QQ. Behind him are three jackal-headed deities, each having his

left arm raised, while his right hand is clenched and laid upon his stomach. On the left hand side of the box the deceased is represented in the same attitude, and behind him are three hawk-headed deities. These six gods form the vignettes of the 112th and 113th chapters of the Book of the Dead; the hawk-headed were called Horus, Mestha, and Ḥapi, and the jackal-headed Horus, Tuamāutef and Qebḥsennuf; they are figured in Lanzone, Dizionario, Tav. xxvi. In two sides. of the box are two pairs of rectangular openings about six inches from each end;1 the use of these is unknown to me.

For the description of a similar box see my article in Proc. Soc. Bib. Arch., 1886, pp. 120-122.

bread in the shape of cones.

FUNEREAL CONES.

This name is given to a large number of burnt terra-cotta conical objects which are found near tombs chiefly at Thebes, in the districts called 'Asâsîf and Kûrnah; they were used Loaves of from the XIth to the XXVIth dynasties. They vary in size, but the ordinary length is ten inches, and the diameter three inches. The face, or flat part, of the cone at its thickest end contains inscriptions in relief which record the name and titles of the person in whose tomb they were found; the inscriptions appear to have been made by a stamp with the characters incuse. The inscribed end of the cone is variously coloured blue, red, or white. Dr. Birch thought that they were used for working into ornamental architecture, or to mark the sites of sepulchres; it is more probable, however, that they are merely models of bread or cakes which were placed in the tomb. It is not likely that they were seals, because they have been found of a rectangular shape with several copies of the same inscription stamped upon them.

Use of stelæ.

Stelæ of the Ancient Empire.

1

SEPULCHRAL STELE OR TABLETS

Stelæ is the name given to the tablets of granite, calcareous stone, wood, or faïence, which the Egyptians used in large numbers for inscribing with decrees and historical records of the achievements of kings, biographical notices of eminent officials, priests, and private persons, hymns to Rā and other gods, and notices of any events of importance. The greater number, however, of those which have been found belong to the class called sepulchral, and are inscribed with the names and titles of deceased persons, their pedigrees, and the principal events in-their lives. They were placed inside tombs, either in the corridor leading to the mummy chamber, or at the door, or at the foot or the head of the bier, or let into the wall; sometimes they are rectangular and sometimes they are rounded at the top. The styles of stele, the arrangement of the scenes upon them, and the inscriptions, vary with

1 Wilkinson, Ancient Egyptians, iii: p. 437.

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the different dynasties. From the Ist-VIth dynasty1 stelæ are rectangular in form, and sometimes are made to resemble the outer façade of a temple. The inscriptions are comparatively short, and merely record the names of the relatives of the deceased who are represented on the stele, and the prayers to Osiris for cakes, bread, meat, wine, oil, milk, wax, bandages, ducks, oxen, etc., which are put into the mouth of the deceased. A remarkable inscription found in a tomb of the VIth dynasty is that of Unȧ, who was born in the reign of Tetȧ, and held service under this king; under Pepi, the successor of Tetà, he brought stone from the quarries of Ruau, and conducted an expedition against the nomad tribes to the east of Egypt, and in the reign of the following king, Mer-en-Ra, he died full of days and honour. During the XIth dynasty the stele have many of the characteristics of those of the VIth dynasty, but the execution is better. A large number Stela of of the stele of the XIIth dynasty are rounded, the inscriptions Middle and scenes are carefully executed, and are often painted with Empire. many colours; sometimes on the same stele the figures are in relief, while the inscriptions are incised. As a rule the contents of the inscriptions are repetitions of the titles of the deceased, praises of the king, bald statements of the work he has done for him, prayers to the god for sepulchral meals, and an address to those who pass by the stele to make mention of the dead man in appropriate funereal formulæ. The scenes usually represent the several members of the family of the deceased bringing to him offerings of the various things for which he prays. From the XIIth-XVIIth dynasty, biographies on stelæ3 are rare. Stelæ of the XIIIth and XIVth dynastics are characterized by their uniformity of colour, when painted; the workmanship is, however, poor, the inscriptions are badly cut, and the hieroglyphics are thin and small. The stele of the XVIIIth dynasty are usually rounded at the top, and have

1 The oldest stele known is preserved at Gîzeh and at Oxford, and was made for Shera, a priest of Sent, the fifth king of the IInd dynasty, about B.C. 4000; it is figured in Lepsius, Auswahl, Pl. 9.

Compare the interesting inscription published by Schiaparelli, Una tomba egiziana inedita, Rome, 1892.

3 The inscription of Chnemu-ḥtep, one of the most valuable of this period, is inscribed on the walls of his tomb.

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