The Bremner-Rhind Papyrus: I. A.

The Songs of Isis and Nephthys

Author(s): R. O. Faulkner
Source: The Journal of Egyptian Archaeology , Dec., 1936, Vol. 22, No. 2 (Dec., 1936), pp.
121-140
Published by: Sage Publications, Ltd.

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 THE BREMNER-RHIND PAPYRUS-I
BY R. 0. FAULKNER

A. THE SONGS OF ISIS AND NEPHTHYS

THE religious papyri of the Graeco-Roman period are a source of inform

myth and ritual which has been comparatively little exploited. Of this g
members of which are scattered in quite considerable number in the pr
the world, the Bremner-Rhind papyrus (British Museum, no. 10188) is p
largest and certainly one of the oldest, since it dates back to not long a
Thirtieth Dynasty. That it belongs at latest to the fourth century B.C. i
by the date of 'the twelfth year, fourth month of the inundation-season, o
der, son of Alexander', i.e. 312-311 B.C.,1 given in the so-called 'Colopho
by an owner of the papyrus in a hand different from that of the rest of t
papyrus was therefore written prior to that date, but probably not very m
palaeographically it belongs to the Ptolemaic group.
Nothing definite is known of the provenance of the manuscript,2 but
owner, the priest Nasmin who wrote the 'Colophon', appears to have bee
by the priestly titles he bore. Although there is no direct evidence bear
seems probable that the papyrus came from his tomb, and it would be inter
what circumstances a book which appears to have been written origin
library came into the private possession of a member of the priesthood.
The papyrus as a whole contains four distinct works of a ritual nature, n
of Isis and Nephthys, the Ritual of Bringing in Sokar, the Book of Overthr
a pendant to the last-named, the Names of 'Apep, which shall not be. Of the
the first is treated in the present paper.3 It is a work of similar tenor to t
Isis and Nephthys contained in Pap. Berlin 3008,4 but considerably long
series of hymns sung by two priestesses representing the goddesses Isis and
course of the celebration of the Osirian mysteries. Unlike the Lamentations
both goddesses are on an equal footing, Nephthys is here rather in the b
is solely that of a duettist with Isis, while all solo parts are confined to the
a hymn to Osiris recited by the officiating lector-priest (9, 13-11, 5). T
instructions for the preparation of the temple and the adornment of t
who must be virgins. The priestesses and the lector-priest open the pr
liminary invocations of Osiris, after which the priestesses commence th
hymns they sing purporting to be the mourning of Isis and Nephthys for

1 Or perhaps about 306 B.C., since according to Bevan, The Ptolemaic Dynasty, 28, t
Alexander's reign were reckoned from the death of Philip Arrhidaeus, and documents
in the name of the former for some years after his murder in 311 B.C.
2 For the history of the papyrus since it was acquired by Mr. A. H. Rhind, cf. Budg
Papyri in the British Museum (First Series), ix, and Faulkner, The Papyrus Bremn
Aegyptiaca, m), iii. The following translation is based on the transcription published i
3 It is proposed to deal with the remaining texts in subsequent parts of this Journa
4 See Melanges Maspero i, 337 ff.; for a comparison of the two texts see op. cit. 347

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122 R. O. FAULKNER

and their summons to the god to rise again. They open with a duet (1, 10-
alone speaks for four lines (3, 13-16).1 The duet is resumed in 3, 17 until
rubric indicates that the performance is interrupted by an unspecified ri
magic (s<s>t), after which a new duet commences. This continues until a rubric
the beginning of a new hymn. This opens with a duet, which, however, soo
by Isis (6, 27). Nephthys resumes her part at 7, 24, but at 8, 3 she drops o
tinues alone until 8, 21. Here the other joins in again until 9, 8, where Isi
stage of the ritual with five solo lines. The officiating lector-priest now
protective magical rite (9, 13) and then himself proceeds to recite a hymn to O
following the line 'Thine are the Two Sisters', the priestesses join in, and t
possibly now retires. A rubric at 11, 19 marks a new duet, which continues un
once again sings alone. Nephthys appears to partner her again at 13, 13 for
Isis is singing alone in 13, 21, and her solo appears to continue until the end (1
there is no employment of the 1st person plural pronoun to indicate clear
singing, although from 16, 4 onwards the absence of the 1st person singul
rather suggest that the performance ended, as it began, with a duet.
The interest of the text from the point of view of the student lies not
information it imparts on Egyptian belief-though the markedly solar ch
lector-priest's hymn to Osiris is worthy of note-as in the fact that we hav
the dialogue spoken in the enactment of the drama of the Passion of Osir
of as the Osirian Mysteries. A certain amount of information on this ear
of which we learn from the well-known inscription of Ikhernofret tha
old as the Middle Kingdom, can be gathered from Egyptian sources, esp
inscriptions of the temple of Denderah, but the present text, with its alternat
solo and the occasional interpolation of magical rites, sheds a welcome lig
of the ceremonies. It is possible, of course, that the somewhat elaborate rit
this series of hymns is a late development which has arisen out of the predom
of Osiris in Egyptian religion at this period-we possess a contemporary v
shorter and simpler nature in the Lamentations-but it seems highly pro
such performance by a pair of priestesses was included in the Mysteries from
In the translation which is appended the following symbols have been e
[ ] marks a restoration of the original text.
( ) shows that a word omitted in the original has been supplied.
( ) marks English words inserted to clarify the sense.
[..... ] marks lacunae.
...... indicates inability to translate.
Words written in the original in red ink have been printed in small capitals

Translation

1, 1 I HERE BEGIN THE STANZAS OF the Festival of the Two Kites which is celebrated in
1, 2 of Osiris, First of the Westerners, the great god, Lord of Abydos, in I the fourth
Inundation, from the twenty-second day down to the twenty-sixth day. THE ENTIR
1, 3 SHALL BE SANCTIFIED, AND THERE SHALL BE BROUGHT IN [TWO] women pure | o
1, 4 virgin, with the hair of their bodies removed, their heads adorned with wigs, i
bourines in their hands, and their names inscribed on their arms, to wit Isis and N
1, 5 and they shall sing from the stanzas of this book in the presence of this god.

1 The alternations between duet and solo can be detected by the changes from the 1st pers
the 1st person singular and back again.

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 THE BREMNER-RHIND PAPYRUS-I 123

1, 6 | THEY SHALL SAY: 0 my lord Osiris!-FOUR TIMES.1

1, 8 RECITATION BY the chief lector of this temple: [ 0 great
TIMES.

RECITATION BY the two long-haired ones:

1, 10 0 fair Stripling, come to thine house;
For a very long while we have not seen thee.
O fair Sistrum-player, come to thine house;
0 thou who dwellest in-lacuna2-after thou didst desert us.
O fair Stripling who didst depart untimely,
1, 15 In thy3 prime, out of due season;
Sacred image of thy father Tanen,
Mysterious seed which issued from Atum,
A lord, a lord who art exalted above thy fathers,
The first-born in the womb of thy mother.
1, 20 0 that thou wouldest come to us in thy former shape,
That we might embrace thee, thou forsaking us not.
0 fair of countenance, the well-beloved,
Image of Tanen, Male, lord of passion,
[The first-born(?)] who opened the womb,
1, 25 Whose body [was weary] when it was bandaged,
Come thou in peace, our Lord, that we may see thee,
And that the Two Sisters [may protect] thy body, there being no injury in thee,
[..........] the evil as though it had never been.
2, 1 Our Head, turn back to us (?);
Great mourning is among the gods,
For they (?) cannot discern the way which thou hast travelled,
O thou young Child, out of due season.
2, 5 Mayest thou travel around heaven and earth in thy former shape,
For thou art the Bull of the Two Sisters.
Come thou, 0 young Child, in peace,
O our Lord, that we may see thee;
Consort thou with us after the manner of a male
2, 10 -TEBHA to his execution-block!-
Come thou in peace, thou eldest son of thy father,
Thou being established in thine house without fear,
And thy son Horus protecting thee;
For NEKI is gone,
2, 15 He is in his hell of fire every day,
His name has been cut off from among all the gods,
AND TEBHA IS DEAD IN slaughter (?).
But thou art at thine house without fear,
WHILE SETH IS IN ALL THE EVIL WHICH HE HAS DONE.
2, 20 He has disturbed the order of the sky (?),
He has constricted thought for us (??)
The earth has encroached upon us (??)
Foulness (?) being on the brow [........]
3, 1 Someone is brought in dead (?)

1 From here onward to the end of the Songs only the first line of each column and thereafter every fifth
line have been numbered. 2 7; see Commentary.
3 Where necessary, in order to accord with English usage, the 3rd
by the 2nd person.
R

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124 R. O. FAULKNER

And our eyes are weeping for thee,

The tears (?) burn.
Woe (is us) since our Lord was parted fr
3, 5 0 thou who art fair of countenance, l
O Bull who impregnates cows,
Come, 0 Sistrum-player, gleaming of cou
O thou who art uniquely youthful, beaut
Lord among women,
3, 10 Male of cows,
0 Child, master of beauty,
O that we might see thee in thy former

(Isis sings)
Even as I desire to see thee!
I am thy sister Isis, the desire of thine heart,
3, 15 (Yearning) after thy love whilst thou art far away;
I flood this land (with tears ?) to-day.

(Duet)
Draw nigh, so please you, to us;
We miss (?) life through lack of thee.
Come thou in peace, 0 our Lord, that we may see thee,
3, 20 0 Sovereign, come in peace,
Drive trouble (?) from out of our house,
Consort thou with us after the manner of a male.

A PROTECTIVE RITE.-RECITATION BY the long-haired ones:

O Osiris, Bull of the West,
3, 25 The One enduring, exalted above the gods,
Child who begets,
4, 1 Eldest heir of Geb,
Offspring of a god among the gods,
Come thou to the Two Widows!
The entire Ennead serve thee,
4, 5 They ward off SETH for thee WHEN HE COMES;
May he whose name is evil be behind the shrine in the presence of thy father RSe
When he administers the punishment of the rebellious.
Come hither to thy songstresses,
And drive care from out of our house;
4, 10 Come hither to thy songstresses,
For it is not fitting for thee to dwell alone.
Our Lord is in peace <in?) his place!
He who was stronger (?) than he has struck down (?) him whose face is mild,
Since NEBED has joined (?) WITH HIS FOES
4, 15 And troubles the earth with his designs.
Great mourning is among the gods,
The Ennead (sit) with head on lap because of thee,
Inasmuch as thou art exalted above the gods.
Where is he who (once) trod the earth, who was great even <in> the womb,
4, 20 With the uraeus on his head ?
Whence comes he who fashioned himself at his own desire ?
Body of a god, lord of love, the exalted one rich in love,

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 THE BREMNER-RHIND PAPYRUS-I 125

O thou Soul, mayest thou live again!

The Two Sisters protect thy body,
4, 25 Even they who came hither to thee aforetime;
A million mourn for thee
Like [..........] all the gods.
5, 1 Come hither (to) thy songstresses!
Thy father Re< strikes AT NEBED;
The Ennead serve thee as thine entourage, they ward off the RED ONES for thee.
Expel thou the great misery of thy Two Women,
5, 5 Thine house being in festival, the evil one at his place of slaughter and the rebellious one in
all the evil which he has done,
-He has oppressed the land with his evil designs,
He has felled the sky to the ground-
Having been driven back and taken into the place of execution,
And having been taken to the slaughter-block of THE REBELLIOUS.
5, 10 Thy father Ret will attend to thy need,
Thy son Horus will protect thee:
Mayest thou land as thou wast wont to do,
Mayest thou traverse the sky to its four quarters,
Mayest thou alight on earth at the hall (?) of the Great Temple,
5, 15 The Two Ladies serving thee.
Raise thee up! Raise thee up! Behold SETH is in the place of execution,
AND HE WHO REBELLED AGAINST THEE shall not be.
Come thou to thine house, 0 Osiris, thy place where men seek to see thee;
Hear thou the plaint of Horus in the arms of his mother Isis.
5, 20 But thou art repulsed, being scattered through all lands, and he who shall reunite thy body,
he shall inherit thine estate.
O great god, provide thyself with thy shape,
Forsake not thine house, 0 Osiris!
Come thou in peace to thy place, 0 lord of dread, in whose form is all beauty,
O great Bull, lord of passion,
5, 25 Lie thou with thy sister Isis,
Remove thou the pain which is in [her body,]
That she may embrace thee, for thou wilt not forsake her;
6, 1 Place thou life on the forehead of the Cow.
Oho! thou art protected, 0 thou who wast drowned in the nome of Aphroditopolis,
For the evil is as though it had never been.
Thy sister comes to thee that she may purify thy body,
6, 5 0 great living god, 0 well-beloved,
Who didst bring thyself up before the face of Upper and Lower Egypt.
Adorn thyself, 0 lord of adornment,
O Male, thou great one who art master of beauty,
Come thou to thy mother Nut that she may spread herself over thee when thou comest to her,
6, 10 That she may guard thy flesh from all evil,
That she may go .......... within her (?),
And that she may drive off all evil which appertains to thy flesh,
The loneliness being broken as though it had never been.
The Child, the Lord who came forth from the Lower Heaven,
6, 15 He has made this land as (it was) before;
The Lord, the Child who came forth from the womb of her whom the gods made pregnant,
Who opened the West (out of) due season,
The Child departs untimely.

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126 R. O. FAULKNER

Thy father Rec will protect thee,

6, 20 Thy son Horus refashions thee,
AND SETH IS IN ALL THE EVIL WHICH HE HAS DONE;
Come thou to thine house without fear.
RECITATION BY THE LONG-HAIRED ONES:
0 fair Sistrum-player, come to thine house,
6, 25 Be thou exalted, exalted, thy back to thine house (?)
The gods being on their thrones.

(Isis sings)
I am a woman beneficial to her brother,
Thy wife, <thy> sister by thine (own) mother;
7, 1 Come thou to me quickly,
Since I desire to see thy face after not having seen thy face.
Darkness is here for us in my sight even while Rec is in the sky;
The sky is merged in the earth and a shadow is made in the earth to-day.
7, 5 My heart is hot at thy wrongful separation;
My heart is hot (because) thou hast turned thy back to me;
For there was never a fault which thou didst find in me.
The Two Regions are upheaved, the roads are confused,
While I am seeking in order to see thee;
7, 10 While I am in a city which has no ramparts,
I yearn for thy love toward me.
Come! Be not alone! Be not far off!
Behold, thy son Horus will drive back TEBHA TO THE EXECUTION-BLOCK.
I hid me in the bulrushes to conceal thy son in order to avenge thee,
7, 15 Because it is a very evil state of affairs, the being far from thee,
And it is not fitting for thy flesh.
I walk alone, wandering in the bulrushes,
And many (?) are enraged against thy son.
It befell that a woman was hostile to (?) the boy,
7, 20 But I knew, and also the Chief Justice.
I have travelled the roads, I have turned aside after my brother who forsook (me) wrong-
fully.
Hot are the hearts of myriads of persons,
Great sorrow (?) is among the gods.

(Duet)
We lament the Lord,
7, 25 For love of thee is not lacking with us.
0 thou Male, lord of passion,
King of Lower Egypt, lord of eternity,
8, 1 Ascend into life, 0 prince of eternity,
For Nenrekh is dead.

(Isis sings)
0 King of Upper and Lower Egypt, 0 Lord, who didst proceed to the Sacred Land, there is
no (helping) act of thine in which I can trust;
0 my Brother, 0 Lord, who didst proceed to the Silent Land,
8, 5 Come thou to me in thy former shape,
Come in peace, in peace!
0 King of Lower Egypt, 0 Sovereign, come in peace!

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 THE BREMNER-RHIND PAPYRUS-I 127

Would that we could see thy face as of old, even as I have d

Mine arms are upraised to protect thee, 0 thou whom I have
8, 10 I have loved the two Northern Regions (?) because of (?) k
That thou hast received the head-dress in them;
Thy dust is myrrh.
0 Husband, brother, lord of love, come thou in peace to thy
0 fair Sistrum-player, come to thine house; it is long indeed t
8, 15 Mysterious are thy things as Bull of the West;
Hidden (?) is thy flesh within the House of Henu;
Hail (to thee) in thy name of Prince of Eternity!
Horus comes (to) thee as champion,
He purifies thy body, he gathers up for thee the efflux which
8, 20 Join together thy body, 0 great god, provide thee with th

(Duet)
Come thou in peace, our Lord, who art young again,
Thy son Horus protecting thee;
Come thou out of thine house, for thy temple is flooded with love of thee,
O Beneficent Sovereign whom she broke out of the egg,
8, 25 Unique, mighty of strength,
He is indeed a son who opened the womb,
And the power of Geb is over his mother.
9, 1 0 Adorned One, great of love,
Who acted against the West, his valour aroused (?),
O Lord of the Netherworld, Bull of the West, Offspring of Re(-Harakhte,
O Child, beauteous to behold,
9, 5 Come thou to us in peace, in peace;
Assuage thou thy wrath, banish thou anger,
O our Lord, come thou to us in peace, in peace!

(Isis sings)
Ho thou youth, come in peace!
Ho, thou brother of mine,
9, 10 Come, that I may see thee, 0 King of Lower Egypt, Prince of Eternity!
Be not weary in the weariness of thine heart, 0 our Lord;
Come thou to thine house without fear.

THE GREAT RITE OF PROTECTION, UNSEEN, UNHEARD. RECITATION BY THE LECTOR:

O fair Sistrum-player, come to thine house;

9, 15 The Ennead is seeking to see thee, 0 Child, 0 Lord, who openedst the womb;
O Child, love of thee is over thee,
O Heir, beneficent in opening (?) it,
Beneficent son who went forth from Him-who-sees-and-hears,
.......... Isis has cared for thee; be not far from thy place.
9, 20 Their heads are taken away for love of thee,
They mourn for thee in dishevelment (?), the hair of their heads disordered (?).
O (King) Onnophris, lord of provisions, Sovereign, thou most majestic,
God above the gods,
Thou launchest the bark of him who begat himself,
9, 25 Thou art more than the gods.
The Nile is the efflux of thy body, to nourish the nobility and the common folk,
Lord of provision, prince of green plants,

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 128 R. O. FAULKNER

[..........] great one, tree of life which

10, 1 And invocation-offerings unto the sp
O Thou who awakest in health, lord of t
Lord of the Udjat-eye, mysterious in the
Who shinest in due season,
10, 5 And who risest at thy proper time,
To thee belongs sunlight, 0 thou who ar
Thou shinest at the left hand of Atum,
Thou art seen in the place of Re(.
When his rays are darkened (?), thou art
10, 10 Thy son Horus flies behind Re(;
Thou shinest in the morning, thou settes
Thy being is every day,
Thou art at the left hand of Atuim, eter
Abominable is Nebed, who is destroyed i
10, 15 He is doomed (?) on account of his e
Let him be turned back, A REBEL agains
The imy-shty priest makes presentation
He extols all the gods;
The Ennead rejoice at thine approach,
10, 20 And thou passest thy time with ReC
0 Image, thou art seen at the left hand
O Image, thou beholdest the living;
To thee belongs the light of the Solar Di
Thine is the entire Ennead,
10, 25 She who is on thine head rejoices bef
Her flame attacks THY FOES.
Rejoice at us, for thy bones are assembled for thee,
And thy senses are recovered daily;
11, 1 Thou comest in like Atim in his time, without being held back,
And thy neck is made firm for thee.
Wepwawet opens for thee the mountain and breaks open the burial;
Thine is the lord of the Sacred Land,
11, 5 Thine are the Two Sisters.

(Duet)
Thou hast forgotten sorrow because of us (?).
They reassemble thy limbs for thee with mourning,
Seeking to care for thy corpse.

11, 10 Come thou to us, that he who rebelled against thee may not be remembered;
Come thou in thine earthly shape,
Cease from thy wrath, and be gracious unto us, 0 Lord;
Take the heritage of the Two Lands;
0 god, uniquely beneficent of governance unto the gods,
11, 15 All the gods rejoice at thee;
Come thou to thine house without fear.
Rec loves thee, thy Two Women love thee,
Thou resting in thy place for ever.

RECITATION BY the two long-haired ones:

11, 20 0 fair Sistrum-player, come to thine house;
Be exalted, be exalted, thy back to (?) thine house, the gods being on their thrones.

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 THE BREMNER-RHIND PAPYRUS-I 129

Ho! Come in peace!

O King of Lower Egypt, come in peace!
Thy son Horus will protect thee.
11, 25 Mayest thou expel the great misery of thy Two Women,
May thy face illumine us with thy joy,
0 Child, according as the desire to see thee.
Come to us; great shall be thy protection <because ?> of our love;
12, 1 Come to thine house without fear.
0 ye gods who are in heaven,
0 ye gods who are on earth,
0 ye gods who are in the Netherworld,
12, 5 0 ye gods who are in the Nile,
0 ye gods who are in the train of the Nile,
Follow us with the Lord, the lord of love,
Brother, Male, lord of passion.
(Isis sings)
Ho! Come to me!
12, 10 Heaven is merged in earth,
And a shadow exists on earth to-day;
Heaven is felled (?) to earth.
Ho! Come with me!
Men and women in the city are seeking our Lord,
12,15 Who (?) walked the earth in the time of our Lord.
Come to me! Heaven is felled (?) to earth
And the god is caused to come to his place.
Snuff the wind to thy nose!
The Lord is gone into his palace.
12, 20 Ho Re(! Greet this one!
-Thy evil be against thee, 0 doer of evil!-
Since my heart desires to see thee,
0 Heir, King of Lower Egypt, handsome Child!
Ho, lord of love!
12, 25 Come to me, my Lord, that I may see thee to-day;
0 Brother, come that we may see thee.
Mine arms are extended to greet thee,
Mine arms are upraised, are upraised to protect thee.
13, 1 0 Male, lord of youth, Child! our Lord is greeted (?).
I am a daughter of Geb ...... (yet) thou wast parted from me,
0 youthful one, out of due season.
I walk the roads since love of thee came to me,
13, 5 I tread (?) the earth, I weary not in seeking thee,
Fire is in (?) me through love of thee;
Ho! Come that I may see thee!
I weep because thou art alone;
Come thou to me quickly since <my> desire is to see thee
13, 10 After I have desired to see thy face.
Jubilation is in thy temple (?),
Thou being protected, protected in peace.
(Duet)
Ho! Ho! Our Lord comes to his house;
They place protection about his temple,

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 130 R. O. FAULKNER

13, 15 And our Lord comes in peace upon h

Be established in thine house without fear!
Be exalted, exalted, 0 our Lord!
Hearken (?) from afar, 0 great god!
Come thou in true peace;
13, 20 Ascend thou with ReC, having power over the gods!

(Isis sings)
0 Heny, come in peace,
That I may see thee, 0 Child, when thou comest in thy child-shape.
HAI IS FALLEN,
Horus is ruler,
13, 25 And he who is stronger (?) than thou can do nought against thee.
Raise thee up between (?) the Two Sisters,
0 thou whom thy father loves, lord of jubilation,
The heart of the Ennead is well-disposed unto thee,
Thy temple is illumined with thy beauty,
13, 30 The Ennead is in fear through thy majesty,
14, 1 The earth quakes through dread of thee;
I am thy wife, who acts on thy behalf (?),
A sister beneficial to her brother;
Come that I may see thee, O lord of my love;
14, 5 Be exalted, exalted, O thou who art great of shape; come, that I may see thee;
O Youth, walk! O Child, come, that I may see thee.
The countries and lands weep for thee,
The regions mourn for thee, inasmuch as thou art He-who-awakes-in-health;
Heaven and earth weep for thee, inasmuch as thou art greater than the gods;
14, 10 There is no lack of praising thy ka;
Come to thine house without fear.
Thy son Horus .......... the circuit of heaven;
Babai (?) is in fetters (?) and thou shalt not fear;
Thy son Horus will protect thee,
14, 15 He will overthrow for thee THE CONFEDERACY OF NEBED.
O Lord who art behind me in Djebact (?),
I see thee to-day, and the savour of thy body is (that) of Pwenet;
The Noble Women adore thee in peace,
The entire Ennead rejoices.
14, 20 Come thou to thy wife in peace;
Her heart palpitates through love of thee,
She embraces thee, and thou forsakest her not,
Her heart rejoices at seeing thy beauty,
For thou hast removed (?) her from (?) the secret house;
14, 25 She dispels the evil which appertains to thy flesh,
And the stroke as though it had never been:
Thou placest life before <thy) wife.
Oho! Be thou protected, 0 thou who wast drowned in the Field of Aphroditopolis on
this day:
Great mourning and an evil deed, the like of which has never been.
15, 1 The Cow weeps for thee with her voice,
The love of thee is in her heart,
Her heart palpitates when thou rejoicest over her,
She embraces thy body with her arms,

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 THE BREMNER-RHIND PAPYRUS-I 131

15, 5 <She) comes to thee in haste-variant:1 in peace-

She protects thee from him who would do aught against thee,
She makes hale for thee thy flesh on thy bones,
She knits for thee thy nose to thy forehead,
She gathers together for thee thy bones, and thou art complete.
15, 10 Thy mother Nut, she comes to thee in peace,
She builds thee up with the life of her body.
Be thou a soul, a soul! Be thou stable, stable!
Mayest thou have a soul, 0 Male, lord of women, with the oint
when thou comest to the Divine Land;
The ointment-cone (?) on thine hair is of the myrrh which comes
15, 15 Go forth and come in peace, in peace;
O King of Lower Egypt, Sovereign, come in peace;
The Lady of Sais, her hands are on thee;
Shentyt, her heart serves thee;
Thou art a god who came forth from a god,
15, 20 0 Mekti, who hast none beside thee!
Thine hair is of true (?) turquoise when thou comest from the f
Thine hair is lapis-lazuli, it belongs to lapis-lazuli;
Lo, lapis-lazuli is over thine hair;
The colour of thy body which thou hast is that of iron of Uppe
15, 25 Thy bones are fashioned of silver;
According as thou art (??) a child.
Thy vertebrae which thou hast are of turquoise
-variant:2 The smell of the incense on thine hair is (that) of the
of itself-
16, 1 Those things which are on thine head are of lapis-lazuli.
Geb, he offers up to thee food-offerings,
He promotes the god who issued from out of him.

(Duet)
O great Heir who came forth from Rec,
16, 5 Eldest One, fair of countenance,
Living Soul who is <in) Istenu,
Child who came forth from Him-who-sees-and-hears,
Elder of the Two Shrines, Heir of Geb,
Who gives to thee all the circuit of the sun;
16, 10 Come to thine house, 0 Osiris, who judgest the gods;
Open thine eyes, that thou mayest see with them;
Drive thou away the clouds,
Give thou light to the earth in darkness;
Come to thine house, O Osiris, First of the Westerners, come to thine house.
16, 15 O Thou who camest forth from the womb with the uraeus on thine head,
Thine eyes illumine the Two Lands and the gods.
Raise thee, raise thee up, 0 Sovereign our Lord!
HE WHO REBELLED AGAINST THEE IS AT THE EXECUTION-BLOCK, AND SHALL NOT BE.
Be stable, be stable, in thy name of Stable One;
16, 20 Thou hast thy body, 0 (King) Onnophris l.p.h.;
Thou hast thy flesh, 0 thou who art weary of heart.
O Osiris, how fair is that which comes forth from thee!

1Ky dd, lit. 'another saying'. 2 Ky dd.

S

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132 R. O. FAULKNER

Authoritative utterance it is which is on thy mouth.

Thy father Tatenen lifts up the sky
16, 25 That thou mayest tread over its four quarters;
Thy soul flies in the east;
Thou art the likeness of Rec,
And they who dwell in the Netherworld receive thee with joy,
Geb breaks open for thee what is in him,
16, 30 And they come to thee in peace.
Go thou in peace to Busiris!
17, 1 Raise thee up, 0 Osiris!
Raise thee, raise thee up in peace!
Isis comes to thee, 0 Lord of the horizon, inasmuch as (?) she begat the Uniq
guide of the gods;
She will protect thee,
17, 5 She will guard thee,
She will guard Horus,
Even the woman who created a male for her father,
Mistress of the Universe, who came forth from the Eye of Horus,
Noble Serpent which issued from Rec,
17, 10 And which came forth from the pupil in the eye of Atiim
When Rec arose on the First Occasion.
It is at an end.

Commentary
1, 1. On Q 1 'stanza' see Gardiner, The Chester Beatty Papyri No. I, 27, with n. 2. On
drty 'the two kites' who mourn for Osiris, namely Isis the greater kite and Nephthys the
lesser kite, see Davies-Gardiner, Tomb of Amenemhet, 49, with n. 2.
1, 2-5. With the instructions for the ceremony compare Lamentations, 5, 13 ff.; see Mel.
Maspero, I, 341.
1, 3. Nn wpt.sn 'who have not been opened', i.e. who are virgin; for this sense of wp see
also 'twenty women .... n wpt-sn m mst who have not been opened in child-birth', Westcar,
5, 11.
1, 4. p= clearly means 'wig' here, but in Hirtengeschichte, 5 the word is used of the
'tresses' of a goddess, and in Naville, Mythe d'Horus, P1. 2 O=o= seems to mean
'giraffe-hide'.
1, 5. o 'tambourine', Wb. iv, 191. For a scene showing the 'two kites' actually play-
ing on the tambourine cf. Mariette, Denderah iv, P1. 55.
1, 9. This rubric marks the commencement of the first duet; the 'long-haired ones' are,
of course, the two bewigged priestesses.
1, 11. On this passage see my note in Mel. Maspero I, 342. For the writing of the
dependent pronoun 2 masc. sing. cf. Gardiner in PSBA 31, 10.
1, 12. The like expression, Lamentations, 2, 2. Thy is properly the title of the youthful god
Harsomtus, son of Hathor, cf. JEA 6, 57, with n. 2, but it is a peculiarity of this text, and
to a lesser degree of the Lamentations, that the deceased Osiris is frequently invoked with
epithets more appropriate to young gods such as Harsomtus or Harseisis, e.g. .o c
1, 10. 14; 2, 4; 9f4 2, 4. 7; 3, 11. 26 and often; ooov) 2, 11; 14, 26; P@J+ (con-
fusion of sdty and h) 6, 14; e 13, 1. This anomaly is doubtless to be explained by a
desire to stress the persistence of Osiris' pristine vigour despite his death, on which see
Breasted, Development of Religion and Thought in Ancient Egypt, 28, with n. 2.
1, 13. - is doubtless an indication of a lacuna in the scribe's original, and an abbrevia-

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 THE BREMNER-RHIND PAPYRUS-I 133

tion of the full phrase gm ws 'found defective'; hnty must be part of an epi
which the remainder is lost.
1, 14. For the expression -iceO ® 'not (in due) time', 'untim
Jf< _O° | 'who destroyed me in my childhood ere due time had co
Grabsteine griechischer Zeit, in Festschrift fiir E. Sachau, 104; for the force
also = o® 'at the (proper) time', Newberry, Rekhmara, 2, 7.
1, 17. ,, is a puzzle, since it seems quite meaningless. It is perhaps in
ending y to sty; it can hardly be for prothetic Q in the participle pr, since t
indicate that inflexion.
1, 25. Nwh 'to bind, fetter' is used here apparently of the bandaging of the corpse in
mummification.
1, 27. Nn im'k st-c 'there being no injury in thee'; for the word-order compare] 9 X .
lying there', Wenamun, 2, 43-4; similarly 9 ]^ |. ibid., 2, 62. On st-c see Gardiner,
PSBA 34, 261, n. 14.
1, 28. The lacuna doubtless originally contained some expression for 'removing' or 'dis-
persing' the evil.
2, 1. An obscure sentence. It is possible that tp.n 'our head' refers to Osiris, perhaps
in a play upon the word in the double sense (1) of a head turning back to look in a desired
direction and (2) of Osiris as 'head' of his people. 1,1q is a late writing of the pronominal
form of the preposition hr, again 3, 2; 9, 16; cf. Pap. Abbott, rt. 5, 18 (919!°e ); Pap.
Amherst, 3, 9 (?<?, ).
2, 2. With the expression prt(t) ¢;t 'great mourning', which occurs again 4, 16; 14, 29,
compare - "! 'ceremony of the Great Mourning', on which see Schafer, Mysterien des
Osiris, 24-5.
2, 3. Nn nhb.s mtn ir.n.k is an obscure sentence which certainly calls for emendation,
since the fem. suffix has no noun to which it can refer. Most probably it should be emended
into sn, referring back to 'gods' in the preceding line; on the writing of s for sn see Black-
man, JEA 16, 64. For the sense of c- cf. Gardiner, Notes on the Story of Sinuhe, 97; the
allusion is to the departure of Osiris from the world of the living.
2, 9. rC in rQ: is an abbreviation for t; 'male', cf. 12, 8 as compared with 1, 23.
2, 10. A parenthetic execration directed against the foe of Osiris. Tbh; as an epithet of
Seth is very common in the texts of the temple of Edfu; cf.. also Urk. vi, 25, 10.
2, 14. U -TAmeQ is probably a writing of the old perfective 3rd masc. sing.
2, 17. A corrupt passage; for a possible emendation see the textual note in my pub-
lished transcription.1
2, 18. For snd n.k read snd.k as 2, 12.
2, 19. The sense of this must be that Seth's wickedness has recoiled on his own head.
In 2, 20 ff. follows an obscure description of his evil deeds; compare 5, 6-7.
2, 20. A difficult sentence which, however, clearly alludes to cosmic disturbances caused
by Seth as storm-god. For the rendering of wd as 'disturb' cf. wd m 'injure' some one,
Urk. i, 102, 12, later wzd r, see Gardiner, Admonitions, 85; possibly a preposition should be
supplied after the verb in the present instance. Sh,;b, translated as 'order', is perhaps the
same word as sh;b 'Verwaltung(?)' Wb. iv, 207. < is certainly nwt 'sky' and not nnt
'lower heaven'; compare r J e = , 'he has felled (lit. "sent") the
sky to the ground' 5, 7; cf. also op. cit. I, 213 and the writing ~ for nwt 'sky',
Harris mag. pap., 5, 2. An alternative possibility, suggested by Gardiner, is to emend [ F
1 Faulkner, op. cit. 5.

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134 R. O. FAULKNER

.j into P 'ra 'to be in confusion' (Gardiner, op. cit., 28) and to read wd
'he has put confusion in the sky', comparing o":Pr vz 'the sky is i
Pap. Leiden 345, rt. I, 3, 3. Against this view, however, there is the use of h;b
5, 7 quoted above, which may be related in some way to the sentence her
the rendering actually adopted involves no more emendation than the poss
a preposition after wd.n.f.
2, 21-2. The meaning of these two sentences is utterly obscure, and I
mechanically, without perceiving their drift, except that they are still dealing
wrought by Seth. For ink (' wiirgen' Wb. I, 101) in a hostile sense see Harri
-SXh'draw nigh to' is construed with m again 3, 17; there is clearly no con
expression s.h m 'tarry(?) in', Westcar, 10, 16.
3, 1. This sentence should probably be analysed into stA (passive sdm.
participle)+ the determinative of 'death' applied to the whole expression.
struction, but with active participle, is found in ~-T , u' 'he who goe
ka', Pyr. § 17a; sim. §§ 826a; 832a; oa;oV 'the flier flies', Pyr. § 8
translation is therefore 'he who is brought in is brought in (dead)', the all
sibly to the bringing on the scene of an effigy of the corpse of Osiris.
3, 2. On hr-hr.k see note on 2, 1.
3, 3. o- e is unknown to the Wb., and the rendering 'tears' rests
context.
3, 4. For ih;y as an expression of grief as well as of joy see Wb. I, 118.--b
from', also Lamentations, 2, 3; 5, 6; ZAS 62, 102.
3, 6. On this passage see Me'l. Maspero I, 344.
3, 13. The change of person to the 1st sing. shows that the duet here
solo; the next line shows that the soloist is Isis.
3, 15. Hr-s; seems to be used pregnantly with the sense of 'yearning a
after' or the like; compare the similar use of m-s; in the sense of 'looking afte
e.g. Horus and Seth 5, 10; 6, 9.
3, 17. IS I 'so please you'; for this use of the old perfective hs.tl see al
Djedi: MI^ ^ o I IV 0 ( <"So please you, I do not know t
thereof"', Westcar, 9, 2-3.-The suffix in zimn marks the resumption of the du
3, 18. The expression i ? = does not seem to be known elsewhere.
obscure, but it perhaps signifies missing or passing by the joy of life; for wn
Sethe, Einsetzung des Viziers, 21, n. 90.
3, 21. No word [ appears to be known; perhaps p 'blow' in a meta
is to be understood, the det. | having been taken over from ht 'fire'.
3, 22. On (= see note on 2, 9.
3, 23. Scst occurs again 9, 13. It is doubtless the same word as PB, 'Abw
Wb. iv, 55. The word, both here and in 9, 13, appears not to refer to the
which follows, as otherwise it would have been found also at the commencemen
in 1, 9, but to be a kind of stage-direction indicating an act external to the act
The rubric marks the start of a fresh duet.
4, 2. m [ ae is a late writing of mstiw 'offspring' of a god, Urk. iv, 14, 16; 84, 16; 887, 3,
which in turn is a later form of mstw, Pyr. §§ 929b; 935c; 100lb; 1104b; 1707a; a writing
similar to the present instance is (fP B, Piehl, Inscr. hier. ii, 52.
4, 6. The det. > appears to belong to the whole phrase ,h. rn.f, which will then be the
subject of the sentence.-M-h9 kcri 'behind the shrine' is perhaps an Egyptian equivalent

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 THE BREMNER-RHIND PAPYRUS-I 135

of the Biblical phrase 'in outer darkness'; compare the expression how
behind the shrine' as a description of beings hostile to the dead king, Py
4, 7. ( ,- is probably a miswriting of ) i sbiw 'the rebellious one', e.g
4, 11. For the verb tis cf. Bull. 29, 63, nn. 6, 7.
4, 12. $ or 9^ should be supplied after htp.
4, 13. P o< x is probably the gdm.n.f form of skr 'to strike down'; for
of the dmn-f form see'_ 'o QoJ - 5, 6. If this view be correct, wr'he w
must refer to Seth, whose superior 'greatness' (here apparently in the sen
'power') enabled him to slay 'him whose face is mild', i.e. Osiris. For an
this use of wr see 13, 25.
4, 14. The verb J o )VA is a difficulty, since none of its recorded m
present context. A satisfactory sense can be obtained by equating it w
pression shn hr 'to be united with', Wb. III, 469, but no similar writing
appears to be known.-The pronoun in 'his foes' must refer to Osiris.
4, 15. This sentence refers to the evil deeds of Nebed. For j|e x
has e o eo i .-. The phrase hw t; 'smite the earth' has here a more liter
the passages discussed by Gardiner, Notes on ... Sinuhe, 61, where it is a com
used of 'exiling' persons; cf. now Gardiner, Hieratic Papyri in the British
Beatty Gift), 16, n. 11; in Pap. Ch. B. III, rt., 7, 15 this expression mean
4, 16. For prt(t) ¢t see note on 2, 2.
4, 17. For tp m;st 'head on lap' without preposition cf. Gardine
Sinuhe, 10.
4, 19. ~ probably perfective active participle.
4, 21. M-b.h ib-f, lit. 'in the presence of his heart', seems to be a unique expression.
Assuming ib to have the frequent sense 'desire' here, 'in the presence of his desire' might
well mean 'at his own desire'.
4, 22. Dt 'body' may perhaps have the sense of 'personality' or the like.
4, 26. Lit. 'mourning is thine among a million'; the absence of any suffix speaks against
Q being a writing of snyt as in 5, 3.
5, 2. qi should be supplied before khib; on this verb see Wb. v, 137.
5, 3. The sense demands that Q should be regarded as an abbreviation of snyt 'en-
tourage' rather than as sn 'circuit'.-The 'Red Ones' are Seth and his confederates.
5, 6. For iwh 'to oppress' written with the water-determinative (taken over from iwh
'to moisten') cf. also Rec. de Trav. 4, 131. This sentence and 5, 7, which describe the 'evil'
mentioned in 5, 5, form a parenthesis inserted between that sentence and 5, 8, which
continues the description of the fate of a rebel.
5, 7. See note on 2, 20; hrb is lit. 'sent', and is probably the correct reading, as h; 'fall'
is usually intransitive. For the idea of the sky falling to the earth compare the threat
of Neith, 'Do not do these great acts of wickedness, else I will be angry and the sky shall
crash to the earth', Horus and Seth, 3, 2-3.-For the writing of stw 'ground' cf. Amenemope,
1,13.
5, 8. This sentence continues on from 5, 5 after the parenthesis. The choice of preposition
in msb m hbt is unusual, r being customary after the verb in this sense, as in 5, 9, but compare
m hbt again in 5, 16.
5, 11. For wsb 'to protect' as transitive verb cf. 7, 14; Israel Stela, 15. 17.
5, 13. cGQ^ I A is to be read simply nmi, this writing being due to confusion of U1
and D in New Kingdom hieratic; compare M6ller, Hier. Pal. ii, no. 343 in its simpler form

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136 R. O. FAULKNER

with no. 393. Since in late hieratic these two signs are quite distinct the one
(see Moller, op. cit. III, nos. 343, 393), the presence of this writing suggests t
of the text extends back at least to the period of the later Empire. For nmi u
the sky cf. Pyr. §§ 543a; 749c; Budge, Book of the Dead (1898 ed.), Text 9, 6, a
ing of the next word as n(w)t 'sky' rather than nnt 'lower heaven' cf. the
compare the above-mentioned passage, Pyr. § 543a.
5, 14. For the transitive use of hn cf. Wb. II, 287.-The word ;wt,
possibly to be identified with A^e 'room in a temple', op. cit. I, 5.
5, 18. St.k hh mr;k 'thy place where men seek to see thee' is lit. 'thy p
see thee'.
5, 20. Rdit m 'being scattered through' is lit. 'being placed in'. The allusion is to the
murder and subsequent dismemberment of Osiris.-For ssp 'to inherit' cf. Gardiner,
Inscription of Mes, p. 18, n. 38.
5, 24. > is doubtless to be read simply as one word, the last two signs having been
added from the more usual phonetic writing U I, e.g. 2, 6.
5, 25. For the sense of ;pd cf. Wb. i, 9.
5, 26. Sty 'pain' in metaphorical sense only here; on the true meaning of this word see
Dawson in JEA 20, 185.
6, 1. For wsb cf. x j 'bull' Wb. I, 373; the word here is shown, however, to be
feminine by the parallel 14, 27, which substitutes m tp hmt 'on the head of the woman';
the allusion is doubtless to Isis in both cases.
6, 7. Compare the epithet q\x applied to Osiris in 9, 1.
6, 9. For ps's read ps.s sy with reflexive object-pronoun; compare Pyr. §§ 580c; 825a.
6, 11. This passage is obviously corrupt, but the fem. suffixes undoubtedly refer to Nut,
as in the sentences which precede and follow.
6, 13. The 'loneliness' is that of death, broken by Osiris' restoration to life and to his
former companions.
6, 14. ,, in this case is not for nwt 'sky' but fo r nnt lower heaven', whither
Osiris went at death and whence he returned at his resurrection.
6, 17. Since the 'opening of the West' is apparently a metaphor for death, the sense
demands the emendation nn is r tr.f as 1, 15; cf. also 2, 4; this view is confirmed by the
association of the expression sm nn nw 'depart untimely' with this context both here in
6, 18 and above in 1, 14. To render 'who opened the West at due season', which would have
to mean 'rose again', accords ill with the context.
6, 25. The peculiar expression s;.k r pr'k 'thy back to thine house' perhaps envisages
Osiris as standing in front of his shrine or temple; it occurs again below, 11, 21.
6, 27. The change to the 1st pers. sing. marks the opening of a solo by Isis in which she
sings of her adventures while hiding with the infant Horus in the Delta swamps.
7, 3. Q $ - is unknown to the Wb., but Gardiner suggests that it may be a writing
of 'T$ 'darkness'. The dative n-n' for us' is unexpected and its position after the adverb
is abnormal.
7, 4. The parallel 12, 10-11 substitutes hpr for ir. The preposition r has been omitted
after pt; cf. 12, 10.
7, 5. For sfh in the sense of separation compare 'I am provided with the efflux which
went forth from Osiris --P © .~ - and I shall never be separated from it', Budge,
Book of the Dead (1898 ed.), Text, 380, 14.
7, 8. - is probably to be understood as ~ , on which see Wb. I, 238. With tnm wwct

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 THE BREMNER-RHIND PAPYRUS-I 137

compare -- I Ji ,_ 'confusing the ways of those who rebel agains

nich, 248; Gardiner has called my attention also to h
'these ways are all in confusion to-day', written on a plan of a kind of m
of M.K. wooden coffins, e.g. B3C, 400 (unpublished).
7, 10. 'A city which has no ramparts' is doubtless a hyperbolic way o
undefended hiding-place in the Delta swamps.
7, 15, Sp-knw is apparently a compound noun, judging by the position
mt-knw 'evil renown(?)' 10, 15.
7, 18. Tnw, despite the determinative, can yield a sense only if rega
for 'number'. To translate as 'many', 'a number', is rather a precarious
better alternative offers itself. In this and the next two sentences we
allusions to some mythical story concerning the childhood of Horus.
7. 19. Hrwv w (= r) t/, lit. 'faces against the male'; the sense is doubtless th
but it is not clear why the plural hrw has been used.
7, 20. The allusion to 'the Chief Justice' is obscure, but probably Th
7, 23. For the use of mnlt compare perhaps ^o. ? 'tears(?)' 3,
demands a word with the sense of 'sorrow' or the like.
7, 24. The suffix 1st plur. indicates that Nephthys is again bearing a part.
7, 25. q91i is the pronominal form of the preposition hr, see note on 2, 1.
8, 3. Isis speaks alone once again.
8, 10. An utterly obscure sentence and a conjectural translation.
8, 11. To what does tp ;rt, here translated 'headdress', refer? Is it to the Atef-
crown ?

8,12. The translation is clear, but the connexion with the context is not obvious; possibly
the scribe has skipped a portion of his text.
8, 16. An obscure god Hnw occurs Piehl, Inscr. hier. i, 84, 3; pr hnw may, however,
refer to the shrine of the sacred bark of Sokar, cf. Bull. 13, 82.
8, 21. The duet is now resumed until 9, 8.
8, 24. The absence of any antecedent for the feminine suffix again suggests a scribal
omission; the reference is presumably to Osiris' mother Nut. The passage recalls Pyr.
§§ 1967; 1969c.
8, 26. On wp _ht'who opened the womb' see Sethe's comment in his Dramatische Texte, 30.
9, 1. Compare 6, 7.
9, 9. The suffix 1st sing. shows that Isis is now singing alone.
9, 13. At this point the chief lector comes in with a hymn to Osiris.-On the expression
"o ^ cf. Mell. laspero I, 345.
9, 17. The sense of wp.s is quite obscure, unless it refers to the opening of the womb, cf.
above 8, 26; 9, 15.
9, 19 E - is quite incomprehensible unless Ij 'second' be restored after it, in which case
one might render 'second stanza', although a rubric would not be expected so soon after
the commencement of the utterance. Since the following word is written over an erasure
it is possible that Q - has been inadvertently left standing; at any rate a good sense can
be obtained only by ignoring it.
9, 20. Since the suffix in tp.sn has no antecedent it is clear that some corruption has
occurred; here, again, it seems probable that the scribe has skipped one or more lines.
Judging from the next sentence it seems fairly clear that the suffix sn refers to the two sisters
Isis and Nephthys.
9, 21. On q 1- see Sethe, Dramat. Texte, 205. The determinative suggests that this

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138 R. O. FAULKNER

word has reference to the disarray of the hair of the mourning women in fu
Davies-Gardiner, Tomb of Amenemhet, P1. 24.- . ,J7cj appears also t
to displacement of the hair, though whether we should read msbb snw or sim
det. M is uncertain; neither usage is known to the Wb.
9, 22. 'Onnophris' in a cartouche; so also in 16, 20.
9, 25. For the sense of prw iw (= prw r) compare prw hr 'more than',
on... Sinuhe, 44.
9, 26. f e before c(nh is probably to be understood as the preposition r.
9, 28. Probably supply n after htpw. With this passage compare 'A boon which the king
gives to Amin lord of the Thrones of the Two Lands, Re(-Harakhte, the Ennead which is
in Nekhen and the gods who are in their shrines _anl . l hE ),q, 1- F
$; that they may give their offerings of the tree of life and their provisions in the necro-
polis to the soul of Djehuti', Urk. iv, 130, 14-131, 2.
10, 2. The group 'T£ reads rs-wd1. For the hieratic form see also von Bergmann, Buch
vom Durchwandeln in Ewigkeit, 1. 51 (transcription on p. 19), and for an account of this deity
see Bec. de Trav. 37, 62.2
10, 3 ff. Osiris is here identified with the sun.
10, 6. For the sense of ntk as indicating possession rather than identity compare 10, 23,
where it occurs in parallelism with q q older n-k imy 10, 24.
10, 7. For the n before Uibt read doubtless m as in 10, 13.
10, 9. Sm; 'to darken' is unknown to the Wb., but the context leaves little doubt that we
have here a verb from the same root as smi 'darkness'; for s.h 'to mummify' cf. Wb. Iv, 59.
10, 10. An allusion to Horus as the winged sun-disk.
10, 13. 'In the Presence' presumably refers to Osiris.
10, 15. Mt-knw 'evil renown( ?)' is shown by the position of the suffix to be a compound
noun: a similar formation is found in sp-knw 'evil state of affairs' 7, 15, see the note thereon.
10, 16. It is difficult to account for the feminine demonstrative twy, since nkn is a
masculine noun. Probably it is to be regarded simply as an error for pwy.
10, 17. For the imy-shty priest cf. also Piehl, Inscr. hier. iii, 35, 4; de Rouge, Inscr. hier.,
59; Brugsch, Diet. geog., 1375.
10, 21. At the end of the line restore -q.i, cf. 10, 7. 13.
10, 23. On the sense of ntk see note on 10, 6; for qaoQe A® read either qa-®<®
or simply q ej.
10, 24. 9QiQ is clearly a writing of older n k imy 'thine is', Gardiner, Eg. Gramm.,
§ 114, 4; this writing occurs again 11, 4. 5.
10, 25. Hr(t) tp.k is the uraeus worn by the god; the fer. gender of < is indicated
by the suffix s in nsrt s 10, 26.-The preposition hr should be supplied before hn.
10, 27. The suffix ; in this passage shows that the two priestesses are now joining in.
10, 28. For ip dt 'to recover the senses' cf. Lacau, Textes rel., 12, 7. Just as Osiris dies
at sunset (cf. 10, 9), so is he resurrected in full possession of his faculties at the next dawn.
11, 2. On this passage cf. Gardiner, Admonitions, 89; Gunn, Syntax, 5, n. 6.
11, 6. The translation of this sentence is doubtful. For the rendering of m;wy as 'sorrow'
compare m;wt 'tears(?)' 3, 3; see also 7, 23.
11, 8. Emend either hh.sn or, less probably, hr hh.
11, 9. I am quite unable to translate this sentence.
11, 19. A fresh duet now commences.

1 Emend I^ 2 I owe these references to Mr. H. W. Fairman.

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 THE BREMNER-RHIND PAPYRUS-I 139

11, 21. For the expression s.'k r pr.k see also 6, 25, with the note the
11, 25. Emend dr-k iw wr n rpty.k as 5, 4; on the corruption di or rdi fo
on Sallier II, 2, 10 in Griffith Studies, 72.
12, 9. The suffix 1st sing. marks a new solo by Isis.
12, 10-11. Compare 7, 4, which, however, has ir instead of hpr.
12, 12. Hb is probably simply a writing for h,b in a sense similar to 5
12, 15. For JFi read probably W A,,, since the sense seem
participle referring to tow hmwt.
12, 16. For hb see above on 12, 12.
12, 19. On this use of hinm see Wb. II, 380, 17.
12, 21. A parenthetic execration.
13, 2. The group ' ' after zJ - is inexplicable unless we assume th
omitted some word or words before it.
13, 5. For the sense of o e, )V cf. Wb. II, 288, 1, if it be not simply an error for hnd.
13, 11. The group l i , is presumably a confusion of c-i i and c- .
13, 13. The plural suffix, shows that the duet with Nephthys is now resumed.
13, 14. It is not clear to whom `,, refers; perhaps one should emend to .
13, 18. k i is probably identical with a X Wb. II, 162.
13, 25. For the sense of wr here see note on 4, 13.-For ~ read .
13, 26. Ml dbn im is an obscure expression to which attaches a strong suspicion of cor-
ruption; the translation 'between( ?) ' is merely a conjecture based on the use of the noun
dbn for a person's entourage, Wb. v, 436.
14, 2. frr im.k is probably equivalent to older ir n.k 'act on behalf of, help, thee'.
14, 12. The meaning of the word ihy is quite obscure; it can hardly have any connexion
with I 3| 9 T 'to darken', Pyr. § 393a; the determinative suggests that a verb Ihy is intended,
but there is no word of this reading which suits this context.
14, 13. The reading of the first sign as B;b; is not certain, as the name of this god is
usually written not with the double crown but with the white crown only, e.g. Urk. v, 151,
14. 16; 153, 3; Budge, Book of the Dead (1898 ed.), Text, 133, 9; on the other hand, the
reading Bfbz suits the context, since this being occasionally appears as hostile to the dead;
cf. Budge, op. cit., 260, 11.-M sphw is lit. 'in the lasso'; the determinatives of the noun
'lasso' have been taken over from the corresponding verb, cf. Wb. iv, 105.
14, 16. The sense seems to demand the reading j` rather than 0 , and my published
transcription should be emended accordingly; a place-name is much more likely than a
word for 'hour'. The place-name in question is perhaps identical with the locality Dbcwt
mentioned in Pyr. §§ 734c; 1668a; 1993c, with which Horus is closely associated.
14, 23. Emend mn.k nfr.k into nm nfr.k; the literal translation 'to see thee and thy
beauty' is too harsh to be acceptable.
14, 24. For the transitive use of hri see Wb. III, 146, top; but one would expect the fol-
lowing preposition to be r rather than m.
15, 2. On the archaic use of dr as a preposition of place see Sethe, Dramat. Texte, 24.
15, 13. (^Z r= is probably simply a writing for ti 'male', combining the abbrevia-
tion r with the full writing of the word; the emendation (~ ) ):> r== suggested in my
textual note on this passage is less likely, since it involves the repetition of the word for
'male', and should therefore not be adopted.
15, 14. 'The myrrh which comes forth of itself' is perhaps ladanum, which is an aromatic
resinous exudation from certain plants; on the possible association of this substance with
Osiris cf. Newberry in JEA 15, 86 ff.
T

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140 R. O. FAULKNER

15, 20. The significance of the term mktt is quite obscure; the determi
that there has been some confusion with mktr 'fortress', 'migdol', Wb. ii
group transcribed by me as, should be read , , though our ignorance of
the word makes the reading uncertain. In any case, it is clearly intended
Osiris. In Wb. II, 162 the word is read UYL I, ,, which is also p
possible, but no suggestion is made as to its real meaning.-9 qi9 .- is a lat
old expression © ; for other examples see JEA 3, 242.
15, 22. On 'lapis-lazuli' as a description of hair which is glossy bla
Gardiner, Chester Beatty Papyri No. I, 30, n. 3, in its continuation on
Probably the term 'turquoise' also applied to Osiris' hair in 15, 21 has a s
15, 23. q e = is a late writing of r-hr; with this passage compare hrw t
things which are on thine head are lapis-lazuli', 16, 1.
15, 24. On biN 'iron' see Wainwright in JEA 18, 6 ff.
15, 25. Compare Harris mag. pap., 4, 9.
16, 1. Compare loc. cit.
16, 2. The 'god who went forth from' Geb is of course Osiris, who acc
politan theology was his son.
16, 23. Compare zt Itel A , 0h i ^ 'Lord of Understandin
tive utterance is on his mouth', Cairo hymn to Amuin, 4, 5.
16, 29. Geb as earth-god breaks open Osiris' tomb in the earth that he
16, 30. The suffix sn 'they' presumably refers to those who are in the

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