T H E D E C E C R A T I O N O F E G Y P T
"By 3000 B.C. the art of Egypt was so ripe and so far advanced that it is surprising to find any student of early culture proposing that the crude contemporary art of the early Babylonians is the product of a civilization earlier than that of the Nile."
JAMES H. BREASTED
JAMES H. BREASTED
Occultists owe a massive debt to Ancient Egypt; not least because it was through Egyptian sages that the Hermetic mysteries were first revealed.
There has never been a culture that has matched the achievements of the ancient Egyptians. And yet despite their towering magical, intellectual, philosophical, artistic and architectural achievements here has never been a culture that has been at the receiving end of so much exploitative abuse and disrespect.
So what provoked this all this spite?
Let's start with good old fashioned racism, move on to rampant colonialism, envy, greed, ignorance. Not to forget the Bible; in the same way that the Jews have suffered unjustly for the crucifiction of Christ the Egyptian reputation has suffered for their alleged offences against the Jews. And yet there is powerful evidence that Moses, the Jewish deliverer, derived his novel, monotheistic brand of religion from the 'heretic' pharaoh Arkenarten (Amenhotep IV). Freud voiced the opinion that Moses was a high priest of Arten and, in all probability, not Jewish at all.
For centuries the Roman Empire was the dominant force in Europe and north Africa. Their cultural imprint was imposed wherever they settled. The Greeks, the Roman's major cultural influence, made no secret of their respect for, and indebtedness to, the Egyptian sages. The Romans, however, didn't feel a similar obligation to acknowledge this intellectual lineage. The Egyptian scholarly hieroglyphic writing fell out of use and this formed an insuperable barrier which effectively sidetracked Egypt from the flow of history. Having lost their voice the Pharaohs and their subjects were reduced to mere curiosities.
It was only when the Rosetta Stone was deciphered in 1822 by the French scholar Champollion that this incredible 5,000 year old culture was able to break the silence imposed by our ignorance. Unfortunately the 'curiosity' label stuck.
The following examples annotate the wholesale exploitation of this towering culture; they also reflect my personal revulsion for the practice of exhuming and displaying the ancestors of any culture.
There has never been a culture that has matched the achievements of the ancient Egyptians. And yet despite their towering magical, intellectual, philosophical, artistic and architectural achievements here has never been a culture that has been at the receiving end of so much exploitative abuse and disrespect.
So what provoked this all this spite?
Let's start with good old fashioned racism, move on to rampant colonialism, envy, greed, ignorance. Not to forget the Bible; in the same way that the Jews have suffered unjustly for the crucifiction of Christ the Egyptian reputation has suffered for their alleged offences against the Jews. And yet there is powerful evidence that Moses, the Jewish deliverer, derived his novel, monotheistic brand of religion from the 'heretic' pharaoh Arkenarten (Amenhotep IV). Freud voiced the opinion that Moses was a high priest of Arten and, in all probability, not Jewish at all.
For centuries the Roman Empire was the dominant force in Europe and north Africa. Their cultural imprint was imposed wherever they settled. The Greeks, the Roman's major cultural influence, made no secret of their respect for, and indebtedness to, the Egyptian sages. The Romans, however, didn't feel a similar obligation to acknowledge this intellectual lineage. The Egyptian scholarly hieroglyphic writing fell out of use and this formed an insuperable barrier which effectively sidetracked Egypt from the flow of history. Having lost their voice the Pharaohs and their subjects were reduced to mere curiosities.
It was only when the Rosetta Stone was deciphered in 1822 by the French scholar Champollion that this incredible 5,000 year old culture was able to break the silence imposed by our ignorance. Unfortunately the 'curiosity' label stuck.
The following examples annotate the wholesale exploitation of this towering culture; they also reflect my personal revulsion for the practice of exhuming and displaying the ancestors of any culture.
The subject of the desecration of the Egyptian dead brings to mind gold-hungry tomb robbers; but the transgressions of these rogues pale into insignificance in the light of those seeking to exploit ancient Egypt for much more mundane commodities.
In 820 A.D. the Arab Caliph Abdullah Al Manum decided to make his own search for the treasure of Khufu. Failing to find the treasure these Arabs, as if in revenge for the missing treasure, stripped the pyramid of its pearly white limestone casing and used it for building in Cairo. They even attempted to disassemble the great pyramid itself, but after removing the top 30 feet of stone, they gave up on this impossible task. The symbolic significance for the removal of the capstone wasn’t lost on future generations, check out the $1.00 bill. Across the whole of Egypt priceless religious monuments were torn down to provide building stone. Even the Rosetta stone was recovered from where it was 'recycled' as part of a wall of a fort.
Egypt first came to 'modern' prominence following Napoleon Bonaparte's Egyptian Campaign (1798–1801). Despite many decisive victories and an initially successful expedition into Syria, Napoleon and his Armée d'Orient were eventually forced to withdraw. But not before information about Egypt had been gathered in a multi-volume fully illustrated publication known as Description de l’Egypte. This publication, along with the antiquities that were exported form Egypt to the west, served to spark the interest of the western public and intellects in Egyptian antiquities.
Mummies became especially popular as souvenirs since they were abundant, exotic, as well as relatively easy to transport. However, once in a while transferring mummies was not a success. A story tells of two ladies who attempted to smuggle a mummy to Europe aboard their dahabiyah (house boat), but the stench of the mummy after a few days made it unbearable, and they had to dispose of it in the Nile. Another gentleman who tried to transport mummies via train was stopped and questioned by the authorities, who assumed that he was trying to dispose of the bodies he has murdered.
Ground-up mummified bodies also produce a brown pigment, still referred to as 'mummy brown' or 'Egyptian brown'. Mummy brown (a rich brown bituminous pigment, intermediate in tint between burnt umber and raw umber and one of the favorite colors of the Pre-Raphaelites) was originally made in the 16th and 17th centuries from white pitch, myrrh, and the ground-up remains of Egyptian mummies, both human and feline, one London colourman claiming that he could satisfy the demands of his customers for twenty years from one Egyptian mummy.
It was also considered extremely variable in its composition and quality, and since it contained ammonia and particles of fat, was likely to affect other colours that it was used with. Nevertheless mummy brown was produced up into the 20th century until the supply of available mummies gave out. This product fell from popularity in the early 19th century when its composition became generally known to artists. One artist using this color was so distraught after finding out that this color was made from actual mummies, that he buried them in his garden, giving them a 'decent burial'.
Before the times of aspirin, decongestant, and effervescent vitamin C tablets, rich Europeans would carry around a pouch of a special powder. A powder that is as ancient as the world itself, a magic powder that cures all ailments and maladies. This powder is called mummia powder. Sounds familiar? Indeed, as rare and as expensive as the most exclusive spices get powder made of ground up mummies was a highly demanded commodity.
The earliest mention of the medicinal uses of mummies comes from the Greek physician and pharmacologist Dioscorides (AD 40-90) who listed it as a cure for some ailments. The earliest mediaeval mentioned comes from El Magar, an Arabic-Jewish physician living in Alexandria in the twelfth century.The various ailments that it cured include nausea, epilepsy, vertigo, abscesses, eruptions, ulcers and more. It was often mixed with other spices such as marjoram and thyme. From the 1100s until opinions changed in the 1700s, powdered or chopped up pieces of a mummy were considered a cure for many different health problems, including diseases, poisoning, open wounds, and even broken bones.
The earliest mention of the medicinal uses of mummies comes from the Greek physician and pharmacologist Dioscorides (AD 40-90) who listed it as a cure for some ailments. The earliest mediaeval mentioned comes from El Magar, an Arabic-Jewish physician living in Alexandria in the twelfth century.The various ailments that it cured include nausea, epilepsy, vertigo, abscesses, eruptions, ulcers and more. It was often mixed with other spices such as marjoram and thyme. From the 1100s until opinions changed in the 1700s, powdered or chopped up pieces of a mummy were considered a cure for many different health problems, including diseases, poisoning, open wounds, and even broken bones.
Mixed with other ingredients or used straight, mummy medicine became a popular drug in the West. King Francis I of France took powdered mummy with rhubarb daily.While Egyptian mummies were traditionally the source for mummia, as demand increased throughout the Renaissance, other types of corpses came to be used including non-Egyptian mummies and bodies of the recently deceased that were specially prepared. This was sometimes called mumia falsa.
The German company Merck sold mummy up until 1910. Even as late as 1972, there were trade medical catalogues supplied to doctors which listed mummy powder.
The German company Merck sold mummy up until 1910. Even as late as 1972, there were trade medical catalogues supplied to doctors which listed mummy powder.
If you fancy a bit of mummia powder, there are still some being sold in Egypt near Bab Zuweila in at least one of the big spice shops along the street. But be careful though; follow the recommendations of Pierre Pomet from 1694. You should only buy good quality powder that comes from black mummies without bones or dust, ones that smell good – with the smell of something burnt, not the smell of pitch or resin.
Not only mummy powder was reproduced from modern corpses, but one instance recalled is that of a mummy being sold to a traveler in Aswan. He later found out that it was not an ancient Egyptian mummy after all, but the body of an English engineer who had died in Egypt.
Not only mummy powder was reproduced from modern corpses, but one instance recalled is that of a mummy being sold to a traveler in Aswan. He later found out that it was not an ancient Egyptian mummy after all, but the body of an English engineer who had died in Egypt.
The 20th century witnessed the discovery (1922) by Howard Carter of the fabulously equipped burial chamber of Tutankhamun and the young Pharoah's now iconic funeral mask reignited the mysteries of the pharoahs in the public imagination. Events that unfolded following the opening of the tomb to added a new and sinister edge to the Egyptian mystery and the 'curse of the pharoahs' was born.
Adding insult very much to injury the fairground fascination for mummy unwrappings now transphered onto the silver screen. In 1932 a horror film economically entitled 'The Mummy,' starring Boris Karloff revived ancient Egyptian priest, was released by Universal Studios. It was an instant success and the Mummy was welcomed into the pantheon which comprised Werewolf, Vampire, Zombie, and Frankensteinian Monster. Not great press for an already grossly misunderstood culture.
The film scenario sees an Ancient Egyptian priest called (wait for it) Imhotep is revived when an archaeological expedition finds Imhotep's mummy and one of the archaeologists, despite a warning, recklessly reads aloud an ancient life-giving spell. Imhotep escapes from the archaeologists, taking the Scroll of Thoth, and prowls Cairo seeking the reincarnation of the soul of his ancient lover, Princess Ankh-es-en-amon. Hermeticists of the time no doubt felt a shiver go down their spines; the 1999 version had that effect on mine. (The fight scene between Rachel Weisz and Patricia Velásquez, however, went along way towards placating me.)
One could almost forgive Holywood for the blasphamous references to Imhotep and Thoth were it not for Elizabeth Taylor's performance in 'Cleopatra'. To quote a reviewer..."For four hours this moody, glossy pantomime leadenly plods on, saying much more about the hubris and excess of old-time Hollywood thinking than the burnished glories of an ancient world". Not even the halarious parody by the 'Carry On' team can wipe its deficiences from the mind.
Early in 2011 there was extensive public unrest in Egypt. A number of 'protesters' broke into Cairo Museum, decapitating two 3,300-year-old mummies and damaging about 100 other artifacts. When the men were apprehended later that night, they were allegedly still carrying mummy skulls and a statue of Isis. The museum was later placed under military guard.
Why do they always take it out on the poor old mummies?
Pharoahs as fuel...
Pyramids stripped...
Tombs looted...
Ground down for ink...
Demanded by artists...
Mummified animals...
Sold in the street...
Ancient medicine...
Howard Carter finds...
Tutankhamun's tomb...
Egyptian icon...
On public display...
Music hall parody...
Viewed with horror...
Big screen epic...
Carrying On...
Rioters in Cairo...
Looting museum...
|
The subject of the desecration of the Egyptian dead brings to mind gold-hungry tomb robbers; but the transgressions of these rogues pale into insignificance in the light of those seeking to exploit ancient Egypt for much more mundane commodities.
In 820 A.D. the Arab Caliph Abdullah Al Manum decided to make his own search for the treasure of Khufu. Failing to find the treasure these Arabs, as if in revenge for the missing treasure, stripped the pyramid of its pearly white limestone casing and used it for building in Cairo. They even attempted to disassemble the great pyramid itself, but after removing the top 30 feet of stone, they gave up on this impossible task. The symbolic significance for the removal of the capstone wasn’t lost on future generations, check out the $1.00 bill. Across the whole of Egypt priceless religious monuments were torn down to provide building stone. Even the Rosetta stone was recovered from where it was 'recycled' as part of a wall of a fort. Egypt first came to 'modern' prominence following Napoleon Bonaparte's Egyptian Campaign (1798–1801). Despite many decisive victories and an initially successful expedition into Syria, Napoleon and his Armée d'Orient were eventually forced to withdraw. But not before information about Egypt had been gathered in a multi-volume fully illustrated publication known as Description de l’Egypte. This publication, along with the antiquities that were exported form Egypt to the west, served to spark the interest of the western public and intellects in Egyptian antiquities. Mummies became especially popular as souvenirs since they were abundant, exotic, as well as relatively easy to transport. However, once in a while transferring mummies was not a success. A story tells of two ladies who attempted to smuggle a mummy to Europe aboard their dahabiyah (house boat), but the stench of the mummy after a few days made it unbearable, and they had to dispose of it in the Nile. Another gentleman who tried to transport mummies via train was stopped and questioned by the authorities, who assumed that he was trying to dispose of the bodies he has murdered. Tourists are always attracted by excavations, and they cannot help themselves from looking on if they happen to stumble across some archaeologists going on about their work, in hopes that something grand would be discovered in front of them. In the 18th and 19th centuries, travelers were not only rewarded with seeing objects discovered, but they themselves ‘discovered’ antiquities. Mummies were collected from here and there, and placed in touristy spots. They were unearthed when the travelers came. An example of this is a group of some 30 mummies that were ‘discovered’ together in a tomb during King Edward VII’s (then Prince of Wales) visit in 1869. These mummies were distributed to collectors in England. The tomb in which they were discovered was discovered 40 years earlier in 1830s, and was devoid of any contents except for a single sarcophagus. Mummies sent to Europe became the stars of “mummy unwrapping” parties. These parties became grand social events. Amulets from the wrappings of the mummies were sometimes given as favors to the guests, and the unwrapped mummy would be displayed in the house, perhaps in the study of its owner. In Britain during the 1830s and 1840s, mummy “unwrapping” parties were popular. Tourists traveling to Egypt would bring back a mummy and invite friends over to witness the unwrapping of the mummy, followed by refreshments. Victorians also found it interesting to keep the hand or foot of a mummy as a display piece. Thomas Pettigrew, a medical doctor, also unwrapped mummies. Although he did so for more scientific purposes, many people still watched him at work. For twenty years he unwrapped and studied mummies and was later known as 'Mummy' Pettigrew. The Duke of Hamilton was so impressed by 'Mummy' Pettigrew’s work that he asked Pettigrew to mummify him after he died. Mummies were sometimes abused rather than showcased. In America, Their linen wrappings were used to make brown paper used by butchers. Additional by-products of mummies include the distillation of the bodies to produce aromatic oils, such as olibanum and ambergris, which can be made into machine oils, soaps or even incense for use in the Catholic Church. The opening quotation from Mark Twain is almost certainly intended as humour; however it sets the scene and is possibly the least bizarre of the uses to which Egyptian corpses were put. And if the mummies were not used as fuel it was only because they were more valuable put to other uses. Nevertheless remember what fate befell many of the 'Dead Sea Scrolls'. Ground-up mummified bodies also produce a brown pigment, still referred to as 'mummy brown' or 'Egyptian brown'. Mummy brown (a rich brown bituminous pigment, intermediate in tint between burnt umber and raw umber and one of the favorite colors of the Pre-Raphaelites) was originally made in the 16th and 17th centuries from white pitch, myrrh, and the ground-up remains of Egyptian mummies, both human and feline, one London colourman claiming that he could satisfy the demands of his customers for twenty years from one Egyptian mummy. It was also considered extremely variable in its composition and quality, and since it contained ammonia and particles of fat, was likely to affect other colours that it was used with. Nevertheless mummy brown was produced up into the 20th century until the supply of available mummies gave out. This product fell from popularity in the early 19th century when its composition became generally known to artists. One artist using this color was so distraught after finding out that this color was made from actual mummies, that he buried them in his garden, giving them a 'decent burial'. Before the times of aspirin, decongestant, and effervescent vitamin C tablets, rich Europeans would carry around a pouch of a special powder. A powder that is as ancient as the world itself, a magic powder that cures all ailments and maladies. This powder is called mummia powder. Sounds familiar? Indeed, as rare and as expensive as the most exclusive spices get powder made of ground up mummies was a highly demanded commodity. The earliest mention of the medicinal uses of mummies comes from the Greek physician and pharmacologist Dioscorides (AD 40-90) who listed it as a cure for some ailments. The earliest mediaeval mentioned comes from El Magar, an Arabic-Jewish physician living in Alexandria in the twelfth century.The various ailments that it cured include nausea, epilepsy, vertigo, abscesses, eruptions, ulcers and more. It was often mixed with other spices such as marjoram and thyme. From the 1100s until opinions changed in the 1700s, powdered or chopped up pieces of a mummy were considered a cure for many different health problems, including diseases, poisoning, open wounds, and even broken bones. Mixed with other ingredients or used straight, mummy medicine became a popular drug in the West. King Francis I of France took powdered mummy with rhubarb daily.While Egyptian mummies were traditionally the source for mummia, as demand increased throughout the Renaissance, other types of corpses came to be used including non-Egyptian mummies and bodies of the recently deceased that were specially prepared. This was sometimes called mumia falsa. The German company Merck sold mummy up until 1910. Even as late as 1972, there were trade medical catalogues supplied to doctors which listed mummy powder. If you fancy a bit of mummia powder, there are still some being sold in Egypt near Bab Zuweila in at least one of the big spice shops along the street. But be careful though; follow the recommendations of Pierre Pomet from 1694. You should only buy good quality powder that comes from black mummies without bones or dust, ones that smell good – with the smell of something burnt, not the smell of pitch or resin. Not only mummy powder was reproduced from modern corpses, but one instance recalled is that of a mummy being sold to a traveler in Aswan. He later found out that it was not an ancient Egyptian mummy after all, but the body of an English engineer who had died in Egypt. By the 1850s, papermaking in America was reaching a crisis point. America was producing more newspapers than any other country and its paper consumption was equal to England and France’s combined. According to one 1856 estimate, it would take 6,000 wagons, each carrying two tons of paper, to carry all the paper consumed by American newspapers in a single year. This equals out to a need for 405,000,000 pounds of rags for the 800 paper mills then at work in the United States. Most of these rags were imported from Europe, with the largest source being from Italy. By 1854, however, Italy also started exporting rags to England, decreasing the supply available to American paper-makers. This meant that a substitute for or a new supply source of rags needed to be found, and quickly. At this same time period, Egyptian mummies were not unknown in America. Many mummies had been part of exhibits and had been shown in museums and traveling shows across the country. The impetus for a new supply source of rags for paper may have come from Dr. Isaiah Deck, an Englishman by birth, a New Yorker by residence, a geologist by trade, an archeologist by hobby and a determined explorer. On an earlier copper prospecting trip to Jamaica, Deck had evaluated other sources for paper including aloe, plantain, banana and dagger-grass, but none were acceptable. Already preoccupied with paper and paper sources, Deck set out on a trip to Egypt in 1847 to search for Cleopatra’s lost emerald mines. Deck’s father, also named Isaiah, had known Giovanni Belzoni, a famous Italian robber of Egyptian tombs; Deck the younger thus inherited from his father some Egyptian artifacts, including a piece of linen from a mummy. While searching for the lost mines, Deck couldn’t help but notice the plethora of mummies and mummy parts that turned up in communal burial sites called 'mummy pits'. He wrote, “So numerous are they in some localities out of the usual beaten tracks of most travelers, that after the periodical storms whole areas may be seen stripped of sand, and leaving fragments and limbs exposed in such plenty and variety.” Deck did some calculations: assume two thousand years of widespread embalming, an average life span of thirty-three years and a stable population of eight million. This would leave you with about five hundred million mummies. Add to that the number of mummified animals including cats, bulls and crocodiles, and the number drastically rises. Deck also states, “it is by no means rare to find above 30 lbs. weight of linen wrappings on mummies…A princess from the late Mr. Pettigrew’s collection was swathed in 40 thicknesses, producing 42 yards of the finest texture.”[10] Deck further calculated that the average consumption of paper in America is about 15 lbs. per person per year. This meant that the supply from Egyptian mummies would be able to keep up with the American demand for about 14 years, by which point a substitute supply source or material would likely have been discovered, rendering the need for rags unnecessary. Opinion is divided as to whether this scheme was actually operated and, if so, on what scale. The 20th century witnessed the discovery (1922) by Howard Carter of the fabulously equipped burial chamber of Tutankhamun and the young Pharoah's now iconic funeral mask reignited the mysteries of the pharoahs in the public imagination. Events that unfolded following the opening of the tomb to added a new and sinister edge to the Egyptian mystery and the 'curse of the pharoahs' was born. Adding insult very much to injury the fairground fascination for mummy unwrappings now transphered onto the silver screen. In 1932 a horror film economically entitled 'The Mummy,' starring Boris Karloff revived ancient Egyptian priest, was released by Universal Studios. It was an instant success and the Mummy was welcomed into the pantheon which comprised Werewolf, Vampire, Zombie, and Frankensteinian Monster. Not great press for an already grossly misunderstood culture. The film scenario sees an Ancient Egyptian priest called (wait for it) Imhotep is revived when an archaeological expedition finds Imhotep's mummy and one of the archaeologists, despite a warning, recklessly reads aloud an ancient life-giving spell. Imhotep escapes from the archaeologists, taking the Scroll of Thoth, and prowls Cairo seeking the reincarnation of the soul of his ancient lover, Princess Ankh-es-en-amon. Hermeticists of the time no doubt felt a shiver go down their spines; the 1999 version had that effect on mine. (The fight scene between Rachel Weisz and Patricia Velásquez, however, went along way towards placating me.) One could almost forgive Holywood for the blasphamous references to Imhotep and Thoth were it not for Elizabeth Taylor's performance in 'Cleopatra'. To quote a reviewer..."For four hours this moody, glossy pantomime leadenly plods on, saying much more about the hubris and excess of old-time Hollywood thinking than the burnished glories of an ancient world". Not even the halarious parody by the 'Carry On' team can wipe its deficiences from the mind. Early in 2011 there was extensive public unrest in Egypt. A number of 'protesters' broke into Cairo Museum, decapitating two 3,300-year-old mummies and damaging about 100 other artifacts. When the men were apprehended later that night, they were allegedly still carrying mummy skulls and a statue of Isis. The museum was later placed under military guard. Why do they always take it out on the poor old mummies? (Once in a while the offensively inaccurate stereotyping of ancient Egypt had a lighter side. What's not to love about Wilson, Keppel and Betty...) |
[1] The Rosetta Stone is an ancient Egyptian granodiorite stele inscribed with a decree issued at Memphis in 196 BC on behalf of King Ptolemy V. The decree appears in three scripts: the upper text is Ancient Egyptian hieroglyphs, the middle portion demotic script, and the lowest Ancient Greek. Because it presents essentially the same text in all three scripts (with some minor differences between them), it provided the key to the modern understanding of Egyptian hieroglyphs.
Originally displayed within a temple, the stele was probably moved during the early Christian or medieval period and eventually used as building material in the construction of Fort Julien near the town of Rashid (Rosetta) in the Nile Delta. It was rediscovered there in 1799 by a soldier of the French expedition to Egypt. As the first ancient bilingual text recovered in modern times, the Rosetta Stone aroused widespread public interest with its potential to decipher the hitherto untranslated Ancient Egyptian language. Lithographic copies and plaster casts began circulating amongst European museums and scholars. Meanwhile, British troops defeated the French in Egypt in 1801, and the original stone came into British possession under the Capitulation of Alexandria. Transported to London, it has been on public display at the British Museum since 1802. It is the most-visited object in the British Museum.
Ever since its rediscovery, the stone has been the focus of nationalist rivalries, including its transfer from French to British possession during the Napoleonic Wars, a long-running dispute over the relative value of Young's and Champollion's contributions to the decipherment, and since 2003, demands for the stone's return to Egypt.
Study of the decree was already under way as the first full translation of the Greek text appeared in 1803. It was 20 years, however, before the decipherment of the Egyptian texts was announced by Jean-François Champollion in Paris in 1822; it took longer still before scholars were able to read other Ancient Egyptian inscriptions and literature confidently. Major advances in the decoding were: recognition that the stone offered three versions of the same text (1799); that the demotic text used phonetic characters to spell foreign names (1802); that the hieroglyphic text did so as well, and had pervasive similarities to the demotic (Thomas Young, 1814); and that, in addition to being used for foreign names, phonetic characters were also used to spell native Egyptian words (Champollion, 1822–1824).
Two other fragmentary copies of the same decree were discovered later, and several similar Egyptian bilingual or trilingual inscriptions are now known, including two slightly earlier Ptolemaic decrees (the Decree of Canopus in 238 BC, and the Memphis decree of Ptolemy IV, ca. 218 BC). The Rosetta Stone is therefore no longer unique, but it was the essential key to modern understanding of Ancient Egyptian literature and civilization. The term Rosetta Stone is now used in other contexts as the name for the essential clue to a new field of knowledge.
Originally displayed within a temple, the stele was probably moved during the early Christian or medieval period and eventually used as building material in the construction of Fort Julien near the town of Rashid (Rosetta) in the Nile Delta. It was rediscovered there in 1799 by a soldier of the French expedition to Egypt. As the first ancient bilingual text recovered in modern times, the Rosetta Stone aroused widespread public interest with its potential to decipher the hitherto untranslated Ancient Egyptian language. Lithographic copies and plaster casts began circulating amongst European museums and scholars. Meanwhile, British troops defeated the French in Egypt in 1801, and the original stone came into British possession under the Capitulation of Alexandria. Transported to London, it has been on public display at the British Museum since 1802. It is the most-visited object in the British Museum.
Ever since its rediscovery, the stone has been the focus of nationalist rivalries, including its transfer from French to British possession during the Napoleonic Wars, a long-running dispute over the relative value of Young's and Champollion's contributions to the decipherment, and since 2003, demands for the stone's return to Egypt.
Study of the decree was already under way as the first full translation of the Greek text appeared in 1803. It was 20 years, however, before the decipherment of the Egyptian texts was announced by Jean-François Champollion in Paris in 1822; it took longer still before scholars were able to read other Ancient Egyptian inscriptions and literature confidently. Major advances in the decoding were: recognition that the stone offered three versions of the same text (1799); that the demotic text used phonetic characters to spell foreign names (1802); that the hieroglyphic text did so as well, and had pervasive similarities to the demotic (Thomas Young, 1814); and that, in addition to being used for foreign names, phonetic characters were also used to spell native Egyptian words (Champollion, 1822–1824).
Two other fragmentary copies of the same decree were discovered later, and several similar Egyptian bilingual or trilingual inscriptions are now known, including two slightly earlier Ptolemaic decrees (the Decree of Canopus in 238 BC, and the Memphis decree of Ptolemy IV, ca. 218 BC). The Rosetta Stone is therefore no longer unique, but it was the essential key to modern understanding of Ancient Egyptian literature and civilization. The term Rosetta Stone is now used in other contexts as the name for the essential clue to a new field of knowledge.
EARLY DYNASTIC PERIOD
1st Dynasty (3100 - 2890 BC) Narmer, also known as Menes, becomes the first ruler to unite upper and lower Egypt, as commemorated by the Narmer Palette. 2nd Dynasty (2890 - 2686 BC) OLD KINGDOM 3rd Dynasty (2686 - 2613 BC) 2667-2648 BC Imhotep, the prolific and innovative architect of pharoah Zoser (Djoser) builds the revolutionary step pyramid at Saqqara, just north of Dahshur. 4th Dynasty (2686 - 2181 BC) 2613-2589 BC Sneferu (or Snofru), son of Huni, builds a step pyramid at Meidum, followed by the Bent Pyramid and the Red Pyramid, both at Dahshur. 2589 - 2566 BC Sneferu's son Cheops builds the Great Pyramid at Giza. FIRST INTERMEDIATE PERIOD The kingdom disintegrates, Upper Egypt and Lower Egypt become separate kingdoms. MIDDLE KINGDOM 11th Dynasty (2055 - 1985 BC) 2055 - 1985 BC Montuhotep II reunites Upper and Lower Egypt. 12th Dynasty (1985 - 1795 BC) 1855-1808 BC Amenemhat III builds the Black Pyramid at Dahshur. SECOND INTERMEDIATE PERIOD Egypt disintegrates again into separate kingdoms. NEW KINGDOM 18th Dynasty (1550 - 1295 BC) 1279 - 1213 BC Hatshepsut becomes the most successful female pharoah, even if she has to wear a false beard to do it. 1352 - 1336 BC Amenhotep IV changes his name to Akhenaten and overturns polytheistic worship in favor of monotheistic worship of the Aten or Sun Disk. He moves the capital from Thebes to Akhetaten (modern day Tell al-Amarna) and lives there with his children and wife Nefertiti. 1336 - 1327 BC Akhenaten's son Tutankhaten changes his name to Tutankhamun, returns the capital to Thebes and restores polytheistic worship. 19th Dynasty (1295 - 1186 BC) 1279 - 1213 BC Ramses II interrupts his long reign of stamping on his enemies just long enough to build the Ramesseum and the temple at Abu Simbel. THIRD INTERMEDIATE PERIOD, GRAECO-ROMAN PERIOD 332 - 323 BC Alexander the Great defeats the Persians and brings Egypt into his empire. 323 - 30 BC Alexander's general Ptolemy founds the dynasty of greek Ptolemaic rulers who adopt Egyptian religion, architecture and clothing. They turn their new capital Alexandria into the greatest city in the world and maintain independence until their last ruler, Cleopatra VII, marries the roman ruler Julius Caesar and, on his death, Marc Antony. 30 BC - 640 AD Rome rules Egypt and continues the tradition of adopting Egyptian religion and other traditions. In 323 AD Christianity becomes the empire's official religion, and in 394 AD the last hieroglyphs are carved at the temple of Philae, bringing ancient Egyptian culture to an end as a living force. MUSLIM PERIOD 642 - 1250 AD In 642 AD Islamic arabs invade Egypt and found Fustat, which later becomes Cairo. 1250 - 1517 AD Turkish mercenary soldiers called Mamluks, hired by Salah ad-Din (known to the crusaders as Saladin), take control from Salah ad-Din's successors and rule brutally. 1517 - 1796 AD The Ottoman Turks add Egypt to their empire. 1797 - 1801 AD Napoleon Bonaparte defeats the remaining Mamluks and brings large numbers of scholars and artists to study Egypt's history, flora and fauna, beginning the European fascination with Egypt. 1801 - 1882 AD Britain allies itself with Turkey and drives the French out in 1801. Mohammed Ali, an Albanian lieutenant with the Turkish army, gains control in 1806, slaughters 500 Mamluk leaders in 1811 and modernises Egypt. His heirs build the Suez canal, which opens in 1869. 1882 - 1952 AD The British occupy Egypt in order to gain control of the canal, while leaving the heirs of Mohammed Ali in nominal control of the country. 1952 - The Egyptians revolt against the British and force them out. Colonel Nasser becomes president, nationalizes land and property through Egypt and attempts to unite the Arab world. |
"The fuel [Egyptian railroaders] use for the locomotive is composed of mummies three thousand years old, purchased by the ton or by the graveyard for that purpose, and . . . sometimes one hears the profane engineer call out pettishly, 'Damn these plebeians, they don't burn worth a cent - pass out a King!'"
MARK TWAIN
MARK TWAIN
Occultists owe a massive debt to Ancient Egypt; not least because it was through Egyptian sages that the Hermetic mysteries were first revealed.
There has never been a culture that has matched the achievements of the ancient Egyptians. And yet despite their towering magical, intellectual, philosophical, artistic and architectural achievements here has never been a culture that has been at the receiving end of so much exploitative abuse and disrespect.
So what provoked this all this spite?
Let's start with good old fashioned racism, move on to rampant colonialism, envy, greed, ignorance. Not to forget the Bible; in the same way that the Jews have suffered unjustly for the crucifiction of Christ the Egyptian reputation has suffered for their alleged offences against the Jews. And yet there is powerful evidence that Moses, the Jewish deliverer, derived his novel, monotheistic brand of religion from the 'heretic' pharaoh Arkenarten (Amenhotep IV). Freud voiced the opinion that Moses was a high priest of Arten and, in all probability, not Jewish at all.
(My personal, and unsubstantiated, theory is that the exodus wasn't primarily a Jewish affair, but monotheistic followers of Arten fleeing a vengeful and reactionary priesthood bent on re-establishing their authority in the wake of the suspiciously sudden demise of Arkenarten who founded the cult of Arten).
For centuries the Roman Empire was the dominant force in Europe and north Africa. Their cultural imprint was imposed wherever they settled. The Greeks, the Roman's major cultural influence, made no secret of their respect for, and indebtedness to, the Egyptian sages. The Romans, however, didn't feel a similar obligation to acknowledge this intellectual lineage. The Egyptian scholarly hieroglyphic writing fell out of use and this formed an insuperable barrier which effectively sidetracked Egypt from the flow of history. Having lost their voice the Pharaohs and their subjects were reduced to mere curiosities.
It was only when the Rosetta Stone was deciphered in 1822 by the French scholar Champollion that this incredible 5,000 year old culture was able to break the silence imposed by our ignorance. Unfortunately the 'curiosity' label stuck.
The following examples annotate the wholesale exploitation of this towering culture; they also reflect my personal revulsion for the practice of exhuming and displaying the ancestors of any culture.
There has never been a culture that has matched the achievements of the ancient Egyptians. And yet despite their towering magical, intellectual, philosophical, artistic and architectural achievements here has never been a culture that has been at the receiving end of so much exploitative abuse and disrespect.
So what provoked this all this spite?
Let's start with good old fashioned racism, move on to rampant colonialism, envy, greed, ignorance. Not to forget the Bible; in the same way that the Jews have suffered unjustly for the crucifiction of Christ the Egyptian reputation has suffered for their alleged offences against the Jews. And yet there is powerful evidence that Moses, the Jewish deliverer, derived his novel, monotheistic brand of religion from the 'heretic' pharaoh Arkenarten (Amenhotep IV). Freud voiced the opinion that Moses was a high priest of Arten and, in all probability, not Jewish at all.
(My personal, and unsubstantiated, theory is that the exodus wasn't primarily a Jewish affair, but monotheistic followers of Arten fleeing a vengeful and reactionary priesthood bent on re-establishing their authority in the wake of the suspiciously sudden demise of Arkenarten who founded the cult of Arten).
For centuries the Roman Empire was the dominant force in Europe and north Africa. Their cultural imprint was imposed wherever they settled. The Greeks, the Roman's major cultural influence, made no secret of their respect for, and indebtedness to, the Egyptian sages. The Romans, however, didn't feel a similar obligation to acknowledge this intellectual lineage. The Egyptian scholarly hieroglyphic writing fell out of use and this formed an insuperable barrier which effectively sidetracked Egypt from the flow of history. Having lost their voice the Pharaohs and their subjects were reduced to mere curiosities.
It was only when the Rosetta Stone was deciphered in 1822 by the French scholar Champollion that this incredible 5,000 year old culture was able to break the silence imposed by our ignorance. Unfortunately the 'curiosity' label stuck.
The following examples annotate the wholesale exploitation of this towering culture; they also reflect my personal revulsion for the practice of exhuming and displaying the ancestors of any culture.