1.
Teti
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Teti, less commonly known as Othoes, was the first Pharaoh of the Sixth dynasty of Egypt and is buried at Saqqara. The exact length of his reign has been destroyed on the Turin King List, Teti had several wives, Iput, the daughter of Unas, the last king of the Fifth dynasty. Iput was the mother of Pepi I, Khuit, who may have been the mother of Userkare Khentkaus IV Weret-Imtes. This queen is mentioned in the autobiography of Wenis and it may be a reference to the title of the queen instead of her personal name. She was involved in a plot to overthrow Pepi. In the tomb of the official Wenis there is mention of “a secret charge in the royal harem against the Great of Sceptre”, Teti is known to have had several children. He was the father of at least three sons and probably ten daughters, Kanawati, Teti had at least 9 daughters, by a number of wives, and the fact that they were named after his mother, Sesheshet, allows to trace his family. At least three princesses bearing the name Seshseshet are designated as king’s eldest daughter, meaning there were at least three different queens. It seems that there was a one, born of a fourth queen as she is also designated as king’s eldest daughter. Seshseshet, whose name was Waatetkhéthor, married to Vizier Mereruka. She is designated as king’s eldest daughter of his body and she may have been the eldest daughter of Iput. Seshseshet with the name of Idut, king’s daughter of his body. Seshseshet Nubkhetnebty, king’s daughter of his body, wife of Vizier Kagemni and she was maybe also born of Iput. Seshseshet, also called Sathor, married to Isi, resident governor at Edfu and she also would have been born of Iput I. Seshseshet, with the name of Sheshit, king’s eldest daughter of his body and wife of the overseer of the great court Neferseshemptah. As she is an eldest daughter of the king, she cannot be born of the mother as Waatkhetethor. Seshseshet also called Sheshti, king’s daughter of his body, married to the keeper of the head ornaments Shepsipuptah, and depicted in her husband’s mastaba. Seshseshet with the name of Merout, entitled king’s eldest daughter but without the addition of his body and therefore born of a third, maybe a minor queen
2.
Ancient Egypt
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Ancient Egypt was a civilization of ancient Northeastern Africa, concentrated along the lower reaches of the Nile River in what is now the modern country of Egypt. It is one of six civilizations to arise independently, Egyptian civilization followed prehistoric Egypt and coalesced around 3150 BC with the political unification of Upper and Lower Egypt under the first pharaoh Narmer. In the aftermath of Alexander the Greats death, one of his generals, Ptolemy Soter and this Greek Ptolemaic Kingdom ruled Egypt until 30 BC, when, under Cleopatra, it fell to the Roman Empire and became a Roman province. The success of ancient Egyptian civilization came partly from its ability to adapt to the conditions of the Nile River valley for agriculture, the predictable flooding and controlled irrigation of the fertile valley produced surplus crops, which supported a more dense population, and social development and culture. Its art and architecture were widely copied, and its antiquities carried off to far corners of the world and its monumental ruins have inspired the imaginations of travelers and writers for centuries. The Nile has been the lifeline of its region for much of human history, nomadic modern human hunter-gatherers began living in the Nile valley through the end of the Middle Pleistocene some 120,000 years ago. By the late Paleolithic period, the climate of Northern Africa became increasingly hot and dry. In Predynastic and Early Dynastic times, the Egyptian climate was less arid than it is today. Large regions of Egypt were covered in treed savanna and traversed by herds of grazing ungulates, foliage and fauna were far more prolific in all environs and the Nile region supported large populations of waterfowl. Hunting would have been common for Egyptians, and this is also the period when many animals were first domesticated. The largest of these cultures in upper Egypt was the Badari, which probably originated in the Western Desert, it was known for its high quality ceramics, stone tools. The Badari was followed by the Amratian and Gerzeh cultures, which brought a number of technological improvements, as early as the Naqada I Period, predynastic Egyptians imported obsidian from Ethiopia, used to shape blades and other objects from flakes. In Naqada II times, early evidence exists of contact with the Near East, particularly Canaan, establishing a power center at Hierakonpolis, and later at Abydos, Naqada III leaders expanded their control of Egypt northwards along the Nile. They also traded with Nubia to the south, the oases of the desert to the west. Royal Nubian burials at Qustul produced artifacts bearing the oldest-known examples of Egyptian dynastic symbols, such as the crown of Egypt. They also developed a ceramic glaze known as faience, which was used well into the Roman Period to decorate cups, amulets, and figurines. During the last predynastic phase, the Naqada culture began using written symbols that eventually were developed into a system of hieroglyphs for writing the ancient Egyptian language. The Early Dynastic Period was approximately contemporary to the early Sumerian-Akkadian civilisation of Mesopotamia, the third-century BC Egyptian priest Manetho grouped the long line of pharaohs from Menes to his own time into 30 dynasties, a system still used today
3.
Religious text
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Religious texts are texts which religious traditions consider to be central to their religious practice or set of beliefs. It is not possible to create an exhaustive list of religious texts, one of the oldest known religious texts is the Kesh Temple Hymn of Ancient Sumer, a set of inscribed clay tablets which scholars typically date around 2600 BCE. For example, the content of a Protestant Bible may differ from the content of a Catholic Bible, the word canon comes from the Sumerian word meaning standard. Hierographology is the study of sacred texts, the following is an in-exhaustive list of links to specific religious texts which may be used for further, more in-depth study. The writings of Franklin Albert Jones a. k. a, some denominations also include the Apocrypha. For Protestantism, this is the 66-book canon - the Jewish Tanakh of 24 books divided differently, some denominations also include the 15 books of the Apocrypha between the Old Testament and the New Testament, for a total of 81 books. For Catholicism, this includes seven deuterocanonical books in the Old Testament for a total of 73 books, called the Canon of Trent. For the Eastern Orthodox Church, this includes the anagignoskomena, which consist of the Catholic deuterocanon, plus 3 Maccabees, Psalm 151, the Prayer of Manasseh,4 Maccabees is considered to be canonical by the Georgian Orthodox Church. Some Syriac churches accept the Letter of Baruch as scripture, christian Scientists The Bible Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures by Mary Baker Eddy. This textbook, along with the Bible, serves as the permanent impersonal pastor of the church, the Community of Christ uses the Joseph Smith Translation, which it calls the Inspired Version, as well as updated modern translations. Seventh-day Adventists The Bible The writings of Ellen White are held to a status, though not equal with the Bible. Also known as the Gospel of Mani and The Living Gospel the Treasure of Life the Pragmateia the Book of Mysteries The Book of Giants the Epistles the Psalms, the Shabuhragan The Arzhang The Kephalaia, Discourses, found in Coptic translation. Odù Ifá Jaap Verduijns Odu Ifa Collection Primary religious texts, that is, the Avesta collection, The Yasna, the Visperad, a collection of supplements to the Yasna. The Yashts, hymns in honor of the divinities, the Vendidad, describes the various forms of evil spirits and ways to confound them. Shorter texts and prayers, the Yashts the five Nyaishes, the Sirozeh, there are some 60 secondary religious texts, none of which are considered scripture. The Khordeh Avesta, Zoroastrian prayer book for lay people from the Avesta, religious full text online library Ancient texts library Internet Sacred Text Archive
4.
Old Kingdom of Egypt
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The term itself was coined by eighteenth-century historians and the distinction between the Old Kingdom and the Early Dynastic Period is not one which would have been recognized by Ancient Egyptians. The Old Kingdom is most commonly regarded as the period from the Third Dynasty through to the Sixth Dynasty, many Egyptologists also include the Memphite Seventh and Eighth Dynasties in the Old Kingdom as a continuation of the administration centralized at Memphis. During the Old Kingdom, the king of Egypt became a god who ruled absolutely and could demand the services. Under King Djoser, the first king of the Third Dynasty of the Old Kingdom, the capital of Egypt was moved to Memphis. A new era of building was initiated at Saqqara under his reign, King Djosers architect, Imhotep is credited with the development of building with stone and with the conception of the new architectural form—the Step Pyramid. Indeed, the Old Kingdom is perhaps best known for the number of pyramids constructed at this time as burial places for Egypts kings. For this reason, the Old Kingdom is frequently referred to as the Age of the Pyramids, the first king of the Old Kingdom was Djoser of the third dynasty, who ordered the construction of a pyramid in Memphis necropolis, Saqqara. An important person during the reign of Djoser was his vizier and it was in this era that formerly independent ancient Egyptian states became known as nomes, under the rule of the king. The former rulers were forced to assume the role of governors or otherwise work in tax collection, Egyptians in this era worshipped their king as a god, believing that he ensured the annual flooding of the Nile that was necessary for their crops. Egyptian views on the nature of time during this period held that the worked in cycles. They also perceived themselves as a specially selected people, the Old Kingdom and its royal power reached a zenith under the Fourth Dynasty, which began with Sneferu. Using more stones than any king, he built three pyramids, a now collapsed pyramid in Meidum, the Bent Pyramid at Dahshur. However, the development of the pyramid style of building was reached not at Saqqara. Sneferu was succeeded by his son, Khufu who built the Great Pyramid of Giza, after Khufus death, his sons Djedefra and Khafra may have quarrelled. The latter built the pyramid and the Sphinx in Giza. Recent reexamination of evidence has led Egyptologist Vassil Dobrev to propose that the Sphinx had been built by Djedefra as a monument to his father Khufu, alternatively, the Sphinx has been proposed to be the work of Khafra and Khufu himself. There were military expeditions into Canaan and Nubia, with Egyptian influence reaching up the Nile into what is today the Sudan, the later kings of the Fourth Dynasty were king Menkaure, who built the smallest pyramid in Giza, Shepseskaf and, perhaps, Djedefptah. The Fifth Dynasty began with Userkaf and was marked by the importance of the cult of sun god Ra
5.
Sarcophagus
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A sarcophagus is a box-like funeral receptacle for a corpse, most commonly carved in stone, and usually displayed above ground, though it may also be buried. The word sarcophagus comes from the Greek σάρξ sarx meaning flesh, since lithos is Greek for stone, lithos sarcophagos means, flesh-eating stone. The word also came to refer to a kind of limestone that was thought to decompose the flesh of corpses trapped within it. Sarcophagi were most often designed to remain above ground, in Ancient Egypt, a sarcophagus acted like an outer shell. They are made of clay in shades of brown to pink. Added to the basin-like main sarcophagus is a broad, rectangular frame, often covered with a white slip and then painted. The huge Lycian Tomb of Payava, now in the British Museum, is a tomb monument of about 360 BC designed for an open-air placing. However, there are many important Early Christian sarcophagi from the 3rd to 4th centuries, most Roman examples were designed to be placed against a wall and are decorated on three of the sides only. More plain sarcophagi were placed in crypts, of which the most famous include the Habsburg Imperial Crypt in Vienna. The term tends to be often used to describe Medieval, Renaissance. They continued to be popular into the 1950s, at time the popularity of flat memorials made them obsolete. Nonetheless, a 1952 catalog from the industry still included 8 pages of them, broken down into Georgian and Classical detail, a Gothic and Renaissance adaptation. Shown on the right are sarcophagi from the late 19th century located in Laurel Hill Cemetery in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the one in the back, the Warner Monument created by Alexander Milne Calder, features the spirit or soul of the deceased being released. In Sulawesi, Indonesia, waruga are a form of sarcophagus. Mont Allen, Sarcophagus, in The Oxford Encyclopedia of Ancient Greece and Rome, edited by Michael Gagarin, R. R. R. Smith, Sculptured for Eternity, Treasures of Hellenistic, Roman, and Byzantine Art from Istanbul Archaeological Museum. Ewald, Living with Myths, The Imagery of Roman Sarcophagi, egyptian sarcophagi sarcaphagi in the Istanbul Archaeological Museum Chisholm, Hugh, ed. Sarcophagus
6.
Pyramid
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A pyramid is a structure whose outer surfaces are triangular and converge to a single point at the top, making the shape roughly a pyramid in the geometric sense. The base of a pyramid can be trilateral, quadrilateral, or any polygon shape, as such, a pyramid has at least three outer triangular surfaces. The square pyramid, with base and four triangular outer surfaces, is a common version. A pyramids design, with the majority of the closer to the ground. This distribution of weight allowed early civilizations to create stable monumental structures and it has been demonstrated that the common shape of the pyramids of antiquity, from Egypt to Central America, represents the dry-stone construction that requires minimum human work. Pyramids have been built by civilizations in many parts of the world, khufus Pyramid is built mainly of limestone, and is considered an architectural masterpiece. It contains over 2,000,000 blocks ranging in weight from 2.5 tonnes to 15 tonnes and is built on a base with sides measuring about 230 m. Its four sides face the four cardinal points precisely and it has an angle of 52 degrees and it is still the tallest pyramid. The largest pyramid by volume is the Great Pyramid of Cholula, the Mesopotamians built the earliest pyramidal structures, called ziggurats. In ancient times, these were painted in gold/bronze. Since they were constructed of sun-dried mud-brick, little remains of them, ziggurats were built by the Sumerians, Babylonians, Elamites, Akkadians, and Assyrians for local religions. Each ziggurat was part of a complex which included other buildings. The precursors of the ziggurat were raised platforms that date from the Ubaid period during the fourth millennium BC, the earliest ziggurats began near the end of the Early Dynastic Period. The latest Mesopotamian ziggurats date from the 6th century BC, built in receding tiers upon a rectangular, oval, or square platform, the ziggurat was a pyramidal structure with a flat top. Sun-baked bricks made up the core of the ziggurat with facings of fired bricks on the outside, the facings were often glazed in different colors and may have had astrological significance. Kings sometimes had their names engraved on these glazed bricks, the number of tiers ranged from two to seven. It is assumed that they had shrines at the top, but there is no evidence for this. Access to the shrine would have been by a series of ramps on one side of the ziggurat or by a ramp from base to summit
7.
Saqqara
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Saqqara, also spelled Sakkara or Saccara in English /səˈkɑːrə/, is a vast, ancient burial ground in Egypt, serving as the necropolis for the Ancient Egyptian capital, Memphis. Saqqara features numerous pyramids, including the world-famous Step pyramid of Djoser, sometimes referred to as the Step Tomb due to its rectangular base, located some 30 km south of modern-day Cairo, Saqqara covers an area of around 7 by 1.5 km. At Saqqara, the oldest complete stone building known in history was built, Djosers step pyramid. Another 16 Egyptian kings built pyramids at Saqqara, which are now in states of preservation or dilapidation. High officials added private funeral monuments to this necropolis during the pharaonic period. It remained an important complex for non-royal burials and cult ceremonies for more than 3,000 years, well into Ptolemaic, north of the area known as Saqqara lies Abusir, south lies Dahshur. The area running from Giza to Dahshur has been used as a necropolis by the inhabitants of Memphis at different times, some scholars believe that the name Saqqara is not derived from the ancient Egyptian funerary god Sokar, but from a supposed local Berber Tribe called Beni Saqqar. The earliest burials of nobles can be traced back to the First Dynasty, during this time, the royal burial ground was at Abydos. The first royal burials at Saqqara, comprising underground galleries, date to the Second Dynasty, the last Second Dynasty king Khasekhemwy was buried in his tomb at Abydos, but also built a funerary monument at Saqqara consisting of a large rectangular enclosure, known as Gisr el-Mudir. It probably inspired the monumental enclosure wall around the Step Pyramid complex, Djosers funerary complex, built by the royal architect Imhotep, further comprises a large number of dummy buildings and a secondary mastaba. French architect and Egyptologist Jean-Philippe Lauer spent the part of his life excavating and restoring Djosers funerary complex. During the second half of the Old Kingdom, under the Fifth and Sixth Dynasties, the Fifth and Sixth Dynasty pyramids are not built of massive stone, but with a core consisting of rubble. They are consequently less well preserved than the world-famous pyramids built by the Fourth Dynasty kings at Giza, Unas, the last ruler of the Fifth Dynasty, was the first king to adorn the chambers in his pyramid with Pyramid Texts. It was custom for courtiers during the Old Kingdom to be buried in mastaba tombs close to the pyramid of their king, clusters of private tombs were thus formed in Saqqara around the pyramid complexes of Unas and Teti. Few private monuments from this period have been found at Saqqara, Pyramid of king Khendjer Pyramid of an unknown king During the New Kingdom Memphis was an important administrative and military centre, being the capital after the Amaran Period. From the Eighteenth Dynasty onwards many high officials built tombs at Saqqara, when still a general, Horemheb built a large tomb here, though he was later buried as Pharaoh in the Valley of the Kings at Thebes. Other important tombs belong to the vizier Aperel, the vizier Neferrenpet, the artist Thutmose and to Maia, many monuments from earlier periods were still standing, but dilapidated by this period. Prince Khaemweset, son of Pharaoh Ramesses II, made repairs to buildings at Saqqara, among other things, he restored the Pyramid of Unas and added an inscription to its south face to commemorate the restoration
8.
Sixth Dynasty of Egypt
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The Sixth Dynasty of ancient Egypt along with Dynasties III, IV and V constitute the Old Kingdom of Dynastic Egypt. Known pharaohs of the Sixth Dynasty are as follows The pharaohs of this dynasty ruled for approximately 164 years, the Horus names and names of the Queens are taken from Dodson and Hilton. Dynasty VI is considered by authorities as the last dynasty of the Old Kingdom. Manetho writes that these kings ruled from Memphis, since their pyramids were built at Saqqara, Dynasty VI was founded by Teti, who had married Iput, commonly believed to be the daughter of the Dynasty V pharaoh Unas. Manetho claimed that Teti was eventually murdered by his own bodyguard, during this dynasty, expeditions were sent to Wadi Maghara in the Sinai Peninsula to mine for turquoise and copper, as well as to the mines at Hatnub and Wadi Hammamat. The pharaoh Djedkara sent trade expeditions south to Punt and north to Byblos, and Pepi I sent expeditions not only to these locations, but also as far as Ebla in modern-day Syria. The most notable member of dynasty was Pepi II, who is credited with a reign of 94 years. With the growing number of inscriptions in non-royal tombs, our knowledge of the contemporary history broadens. For example, we hear of a plot against Pepi I. We also read a written by the young king Pepi II, excited that one of his expeditions will return with a dancing pygmy from the land of Yam. These non-royal tomb inscriptions are but one example of the power of the nobility
9.
Coffin Texts
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The Coffin Texts are a collection of ancient Egyptian funerary spells written on coffins beginning in the First Intermediate Period. Ordinary Egyptians who could afford a coffin had access to these funerary spells, as the modern name of this collection of some 1,185 spells implies, they were mostly inscribed on Middle Kingdom coffins. They were also written on tomb walls, stelae, canopic chests, papyri. Due to the limited writing surfaces of some of these objects, in contrast to the Pyramid Texts which focus on the celestial realm, the coffin texts emphasize the subterranean elements of the afterlife ruled by the deity Osiris, in a place called the Duat. An Osirian afterlife is offered to everyone, and the deceased is even referred to as the Osiris- and this subterranean realm is described as being filled with threatening beings, traps, and snares with which the deceased must contend. The spells in the Coffin Texts allow the deceased to protect themselves against these dangers, a new theme recorded in the coffin texts is the notion that all people will be judged by Osiris and his council according to their deeds in life. The texts allude to the use of a balance, which became the moment of judgment in the later Book of the Dead. The texts address common fears of the living, such as having to do manual labor and they combine ritual actions intended as protection, expressions of aspiration for a blessed existence after death and of the transformations and transmigrations of the ba and akh and so on. In addition there are descriptions of the land of the dead, its landscape and these include the Sekhet Hotep, the paths of Rostau and the abode of Osiris. Coffin text 1130 is a speech by the sun god Ra, I repeat to you the good deeds which my own heart did for me from within the serpent-coil, in order to silence strife. I made the four winds, that man might breathe in his time. I made the great inundation, that the humble might benefit by it like the great, I made every man like his fellow, and I did not command that they do wrong. It is their hearts which disobey what I have said, I have created the gods from my sweat, and the people from the tears of my eye. Coffin text 1031 is spoken by the deceased, who says, I shall sail rightly in my bark, I am not afraid in my limbs, for Hu and Hike overthrow for me that evil being. I shall see light-land, I shall dwell in it, make way for me, that I may see Nun and Amun. For I am that Akh who passes by the guards, I am equipped and effective in opening his portal. As for any person who knows this spell, he will be like Re in the eastern sky and he will go down to the circle of fire, without the flame touching him ever. This collection, called the Book of Two Ways, was the first example of an Ancient Egyptian map of the underworld
10.
Book of the Dead
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The Book of the Dead is an ancient Egyptian funerary text, used from the beginning of the New Kingdom to around 50 BCE. The original Egyptian name for the text, transliterated rw nw prt m hrw is translated as Book of Coming Forth by Day, another translation would be Book of Emerging Forth into the Light. The Book of the Dead was part of a tradition of texts which includes the earlier Pyramid Texts and Coffin Texts. Some of the spells included were drawn from older works. Other spells were composed later in Egyptian history, dating to the Third Intermediate Period, a number of the spells which made up the Book continued to be inscribed on tomb walls and sarcophagi, as had always been the spells from which they originated. The Book of the Dead was placed in the coffin or burial chamber of the deceased, there was no single or canonical Book of the Dead. The surviving papyri contain a selection of religious and magical texts. Some people seem to have commissioned their own copies of the Book of the Dead, the Book of the Dead developed from a tradition of funerary manuscripts dating back to the Egyptian Old Kingdom. The first funerary texts were the Pyramid Texts, first used in the Pyramid of King Unas of the 5th dynasty and these texts were written on the walls of the burial chambers within pyramids, and were exclusively for the use of the Pharaoh. Towards the end of the Old Kingdom, the Pyramid Texts ceased to be a royal privilege. In the Middle Kingdom, a new funerary text emerged, the Coffin Texts, the Coffin Texts used a newer version of the language, new spells, and included illustrations for the first time. The Coffin Texts were most commonly written on the surfaces of coffins. The Book of the Dead first developed in Thebes towards the beginning of the Second Intermediate Period, by the 17th dynasty, the Book of the Dead had become widespread not only for members of the royal family, but courtiers and other officials as well. At this stage, the spells were typically inscribed on linen shrouds wrapped around the dead, the New Kingdom saw the Book of the Dead develop and spread further. The famous Spell 125, the Weighing of the Heart, is first known from the reign of Hatshepsut and Thutmose III, from this period onward the Book of the Dead was typically written on a papyrus scroll, and the text illustrated with vignettes. During the 19th dynasty in particular, the vignettes tended to be lavish, in the Third Intermediate Period, the Book of the Dead started to appear in hieratic script, as well as in the traditional hieroglyphics. The hieratic scrolls were a version, lacking illustration apart from a single vignette at the beginning. At the same time, many burials used additional funerary texts, during the 25th and 26th dynasties, the Book of the Dead was updated, revised and standardised
11.
Palermo Stone
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The Palermo Stone is one of seven surviving fragments of a stele known as the Royal Annals of the Old Kingdom of Ancient Egypt. The stele contained a list of the kings of Egypt from the First Dynasty through to the part of the Fifth Dynasty. It was probably made during the Fifth dynasty, the Palermo Stone is held in the Regional Archeological Museum Antonio Salinas in the city of Palermo, Italy, from which it derives its name. The term Palermo Stone is sometimes applied to all seven surviving fragments of the Royal Annals, including held in museums in Cairo. The fragments are also sometimes described collectively as the Cairo Annals Stone, the Royal Annals stele, of which the Palermo Stone formed part, may originally have been about 60 cm high and 2. 1m wide. The fragments are composed of a hard black stone, probably a form of basalt. The Palermo Stone itself is an irregular shield-shaped fragment,43.5 cm high,25 cm wide and 6.5 cm thick, the inscription on the front of the Palermo Stone consists of 6 horizontal bands or registers of hieroglyphic text running right to left. The first register lists the names of kings of Lower Egypt. The second register on the Palermo Stone begins with the final year entries for a king of the First Dynasty whose name is not preserved, but who is generally assumed to be either Narmer or Aha. The rest of the register is taken up with the first nine annual entries for this kings successor, who is again not named on the fragment. The remainder of the inscription on this continues with royal annals down to the kings of the Fourth Dynasty. The text continues on the back of the Palermo Stone, cataloguing events during the reigns of pharaohs down to Neferirkare Kakai, from the surviving fragments it is unclear whether the Royal Annals originally continued beyond this point in time. Where a king is named, the name of his mother is also recorded, such as Betrest mother of the First Dynasty king Semerkhet and Meresankh I mother of the Fourth Dynasty king Seneferu. Information recorded in the Royal Annals includes measurements of the height of the annual Nile flood, the Inundation, details of festivals, taxation, sculpture, buildings, the original location of the stele is unknown and none of the surviving fragments have a secure archeological provenance. One fragment now in Cairo is said to have found at an archaeological site at Memphis. No find site for the Palermo Stone itself has been suggested, the Palermo Stone was purchased by a Sicilian lawyer, Ferdinand Guidano, in 1859 and it has been in Palermo since 1866. On 19 October 1877, it was presented to the Palermo Archaeological Museum by the Guidano family, there are five fragments of the Royal Annals in the Egyptian Museum in Cairo, four of which were acquired between 1895 and 1914. The fifth was purchased on the market in 1963
12.
Osiris
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Osiris was an Egyptian god, usually identified as the god of the afterlife, the underworld, and the dead, but more appropriately as the god of transition, resurrection, and regeneration. He was also associated with the epithet Khenti-Amentiu, meaning Foremost of the Westerners, as ruler of the dead, Osiris was also sometimes called king of the living, ancient Egyptians considered the blessed dead the living ones. Osiris was considered the brother of Isis, Set, Nephthys, and Horus the Elder and he was described as the Lord of love, He Who is Permanently Benign and Youthful and the Lord of Silence. The Kings of Egypt were associated with Osiris in death – as Osiris rose from the dead they would, in union with him, inherit eternal life through a process of imitative magic. By the New Kingdom all people, not just pharaohs, were believed to be associated with Osiris at death, Osiris was widely worshipped as Lord of the Dead until the suppression of the Egyptian religion during the rise of Christianity in the Roman Empire. Osiris is a Latin transliteration of the Ancient Greek Ὄσιρις IPA, in Egyptian hieroglyphs the name is appears as wsjr or jsjrt. Since hieroglyphic writing lacks vowels, Egyptologists have vocalized the name in various ways as Asar, Yasar, Aser, Asaru, Ausar, Ausir, Wesir, Usir, several proposals have been made for the etymology and meaning of the original name wsjr. John Gwyn Griffiths proposed a derivation from wsr signifying the powerful, moreover, one of the oldest attestations of the god Osiris appears in the mastaba of the deceased Netjer-wser. David Lorton proposed that Wsjr is composed by the morphemes set-jret signifying ritual activity, wolfhart Westendorf proposed an etymology from Waset-jret she who bears the eye. He also carries the crook and flail, the crook is thought to represent Osiris as a shepherd god. The symbolism of the flail is more uncertain with shepherds whip, fly-whisk and he was commonly depicted as a pharaoh with a complexion of either green or black in mummiform. The Pyramid Texts describe early conceptions of an afterlife in terms of travelling with the sun god amongst the stars. Amongst these mortuary texts, at the beginning of the 4th dynasty, is found, An offering the king gives, by the end of the 5th dynasty, the formula in all tombs becomes An offering the king gives and Osiris. Osiris is the father of the god Horus, whose conception is described in the Osiris myth. The myth described Osiris as having been killed by his brother Set, Isis joined the fragmented pieces of Osiris, but the only body part missing was the phallus. Isis fashioned a golden phallus, and briefly brought Osiris back to life by use of a spell that she learned from her father and this spell gave her time to become pregnant by Osiris before he again died. Isis later gave birth to Horus, as such, since Horus was born after Osiris resurrection, Horus became thought of as a representation of new beginnings and the vanquisher of the evil Set. Ptah-Seker thus gradually became identified with Osiris, the two becoming Ptah-Seker-Osiris, Osiris soul, or rather his Ba, was occasionally worshipped in its own right, almost as if it were a distinct god, especially in the Delta city of Mendes
13.
Afterlife
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The afterlife is the concept of a realm, or the realm itself, in which an essential part of an individuals identity or consciousness continues to exist after the death of the body. Belief in an afterlife, which may be naturalistic or supernatural, is in contrast to the belief in oblivion after death, in this latter view, such rebirths and deaths may take place over and over again continuously until the individual gains entry to a spiritual realm or Otherworld. Major views on the afterlife derive from religion, esotericism and metaphysics, in metaphysical models, theists generally believe some type of afterlife awaits people when they die. Members of some generally non-theistic religions, tend to believe in an afterlife, the Sadducees were an ancient Jewish sect that generally believed that there was a God but no afterlife. Reincarnation refers to a concept found among Hindus, Buddhists, Jains, Sikhs, Rosicrucians, Theosophists, Spiritists. Reincarnation is also a belief described in Kabbalistic Judaism as gilgul neshamot and this succession leads toward an eventual liberation. One consequence of reincarnationist beliefs is that our current lives are both afterlife and a beforelife, according to those beliefs events in our current life are consequences of actions taken in previous lives, or Karma. In most denominations, heaven is a condition of reward for the righteous to go after they die, traditionally defined as eternal union with God. In contrast to heaven, hell is a condition of punishment and torment for the wicked, traditionally defined as eternal separation from God and confinement with other sinful souls and fallen angels. So they are seen as existing in a state of natural. In other Christian denominations it has described as an intermediate place or state of confinement in oblivion. The notion of purgatory is associated particularly with the Catholic Church, the tradition of the church, by reference to certain texts of scripture, speaks of a cleansing fire although it is not always called purgatory. Anglicans of the Anglo-Catholic tradition generally also hold to the belief, traditional African religions are diverse in their beliefs in an afterlife. For each soul remains distinct and each represents a new soul. In some societies like the Mende, multiple beliefs coexist, the Mende believe that people die twice, once during the process of joining the secret society, and again during biological death after which they become ancestors. However, some Mende also believe that people are created by God they live ten consecutive lives. One cross-cultural theme is that the ancestors are part of the world of the living, interacting with it regularly, the afterlife played an important role in Ancient Egyptian religion, and its belief system is one of the earliest known in recorded history. When the body died, parts of its known as ka
14.
Ancient Egyptian religion
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Ancient Egyptian religion was a complex system of polytheistic beliefs and rituals which were an integral part of ancient Egyptian society. It centered on the Egyptians interaction with many deities who were believed to be present in, and in control of, rituals such as prayers and offerings were efforts to provide for the gods and gain their favor. Formal religious practice centered on the pharaoh, the king of Egypt and he acted as the intermediary between his people and the gods and was obligated to sustain the gods through rituals and offerings so that they could maintain order in the universe. The state dedicated enormous resources to Egyptian rituals and to the construction of the temples, individuals could interact with the gods for their own purposes, appealing for their help through prayer or compelling them to act through magic. These practices were distinct from, but closely linked with, the formal rituals, the popular religious tradition grew more prominent in the course of Egyptian history as the status of the Pharaoh declined. Another important aspect was the belief in the afterlife and funerary practices, the Egyptians made great efforts to ensure the survival of their souls after death, providing tombs, grave goods, and offerings to preserve the bodies and spirits of the deceased. The religion had its roots in Egypts prehistory and lasted for more than 3,000 years, the details of religious belief changed over time as the importance of particular gods rose and declined, and their intricate relationships shifted. At various times, certain gods became preeminent over the others, including the sun god Ra, the creator god Amun, for a brief period, in the theology promulgated by the Pharaoh Akhenaten, a single god, the Aten, replaced the traditional pantheon. Ancient Egyptian religion and mythology left behind many writings and monuments, along with significant influences on ancient, the beliefs and rituals now referred to as ancient Egyptian religion were integral within every aspect of Egyptian culture. Their language possessed no single term corresponding to the modern European concept of religion, the characteristics of the gods who populated the divine realm were inextricably linked to the Egyptians understanding of the properties of the world in which they lived. The Egyptians believed that the phenomena of nature were divine forces in and these deified forces included the elements, animal characteristics, or abstract forces. The Egyptians believed in a pantheon of gods, which were involved in all aspects of nature and their religious practices were efforts to sustain and placate these phenomena and turn them to human advantage. This polytheistic system was complex, as some deities were believed to exist in many different manifestations. Conversely, many forces, such as the sun, were associated with multiple deities. The diverse pantheon ranged from gods with vital roles in the universe to minor deities or demons with very limited or localized functions. It could include gods adopted from foreign cultures, and sometimes humans, deceased Pharaohs were believed to be divine, and occasionally, distinguished commoners such as Imhotep also became deified. The depictions of the gods in art were not meant as representations of how the gods might appear if they were visible. Instead, these depictions gave recognizable forms to the deities by using symbolic imagery to indicate each gods role in nature
15.
Gaston Maspero
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Sir Gaston Camille Charles Maspero KCMG was a French Egyptologist known for popularizing the term Sea Peoples in an 1881 paper. Masperos son, Henri Maspero, became a notable sinologist and scholar of East Asia, Gaston Maspero was born in Paris to Jewish parents of Italian origin. While at school he showed a taste for history. The publication of texts in the same year established his academic reputation. This occurred a few months before the death of Mariette, whom Maspero then succeeded as director-general of excavations, aware that his reputation was then more as a linguist than an archaeologist, Masperos first work in the post was to build on Mariettes achievements at Saqqara. Selecting five later Old Kingdom tombs, he was successful in that aim, the cache was moved to Cairo as soon as possible to keep it safe from robbers. In 1886 he resumed work begun by Mariette to uncover the Sphinx, removing more than 65 feet of sand and he also introduced admission charges for Egyptian sites to the increasing number of tourists to pay for their upkeep and maintenance. Maspero did not attempt to halt all collecting, but rather sought to control what went out of the country, when Maspero left his position in 1886 and was replaced by a series of other directors who attempted to halt the trade in antiquities, his absence was much lamented. Maspero resumed his duties in Paris from June 1886 until 1899. On October 3 that year an earthquake at Karnak collapsed 11 columns, the vast catalogue of the collections made rapid progress under Masperos direction. Twenty-four volumes or sections were published in 1909. This work and the workload of the Antiquities Service led to an expansion of staff at the museum. In 1912 he also succeeded where his predecessors had failed in the introduction of a series of anti-looting laws, Maspero died on June 30,1916 and was interred in the Cimetière du Montparnasse in Paris. And the Annales du service des antiquités de lEgypte, a repository for reports on official excavations, Gaston Maspero was also the one to find Amenemhats pyramid, located at Lisht. The pyramid was already eroded when he found it. C. to 330 B. C, the Egyptian director Shadi Abdel Salam has recorded his presence in the feature film The Mummy. Collège de France list of Chair of Egyptian Archaeology Works by Gaston Maspero at Project Gutenberg Works by or about Gaston Maspero at Internet Archive Works by Gaston Maspero at LibriVox
16.
Kurt Heinrich Sethe
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Kurt Heinrich Sethe was a noted German Egyptologist and philologist from Berlin. He was a student of Adolf Erman, Sethe collected numerous texts from Egypt during his visits there and edited the Urkunden des ægyptischen Altertums which is a standard catalogue of Ancient Egyptian literature and text. Among Sethes many contributions to Egyptology, two are singled out by Gardiner. the pronunciation of Middle Egyptian, among Sethes students were Hans Jakob Polotsky and Alan Gardiner. Sethes anthology, Aegyptische Lesestuecke, is still doing sterling service to the beginners in the study of the language, Sethe also published a comprehensive collection of Egyptian epigraphy, which he called Urkunden der Aegyptologie. Kurt Sethe, Das aegyptische verbum im altaegyptischen, neuaegyptischen und koptischen, Leipzig, kurt Sethe, Urkunden des Alten Reichs. Augmented edition, Hinrichssche Buchhandlung, Leipzig 1933, available online, Sethe at the Wayback Machine at 2terres. hautesavoie. net Gardiner, Alan. Being an Introduction to the Study of Hieroglyphs, rev. London, Oxford University Press,1957
17.
German language
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German is a West Germanic language that is mainly spoken in Central Europe. It is the most widely spoken and official language in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, South Tyrol, the German-speaking Community of Belgium and it is also one of the three official languages of Luxembourg. Major languages which are most similar to German include other members of the West Germanic language branch, such as Afrikaans, Dutch, English, Luxembourgish and it is the second most widely spoken Germanic language, after English. One of the languages of the world, German is the first language of about 95 million people worldwide. The German speaking countries are ranked fifth in terms of publication of new books. German derives most of its vocabulary from the Germanic branch of the Indo-European language family, a portion of German words are derived from Latin and Greek, and fewer are borrowed from French and English. With slightly different standardized variants, German is a pluricentric language, like English, German is also notable for its broad spectrum of dialects, with many unique varieties existing in Europe and also other parts of the world. The history of the German language begins with the High German consonant shift during the migration period, when Martin Luther translated the Bible, he based his translation primarily on the standard bureaucratic language used in Saxony, also known as Meißner Deutsch. Copies of Luthers Bible featured a long list of glosses for each region that translated words which were unknown in the region into the regional dialect. Roman Catholics initially rejected Luthers translation, and tried to create their own Catholic standard of the German language – the difference in relation to Protestant German was minimal. It was not until the middle of the 18th century that a widely accepted standard was created, until about 1800, standard German was mainly a written language, in urban northern Germany, the local Low German dialects were spoken. Standard German, which was different, was often learned as a foreign language with uncertain pronunciation. Northern German pronunciation was considered the standard in prescriptive pronunciation guides though, however, German was the language of commerce and government in the Habsburg Empire, which encompassed a large area of Central and Eastern Europe. Until the mid-19th century, it was essentially the language of townspeople throughout most of the Empire and its use indicated that the speaker was a merchant or someone from an urban area, regardless of nationality. Some cities, such as Prague and Budapest, were gradually Germanized in the years after their incorporation into the Habsburg domain, others, such as Pozsony, were originally settled during the Habsburg period, and were primarily German at that time. Prague, Budapest and Bratislava as well as cities like Zagreb, the most comprehensive guide to the vocabulary of the German language is found within the Deutsches Wörterbuch. This dictionary was created by the Brothers Grimm and is composed of 16 parts which were issued between 1852 and 1860, in 1872, grammatical and orthographic rules first appeared in the Duden Handbook. In 1901, the 2nd Orthographical Conference ended with a standardization of the German language in its written form
18.
French language
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French is a Romance language of the Indo-European family. It descended from the Vulgar Latin of the Roman Empire, as did all Romance languages, French has evolved from Gallo-Romance, the spoken Latin in Gaul, and more specifically in Northern Gaul. Its closest relatives are the other langues doïl—languages historically spoken in northern France and in southern Belgium, French was also influenced by native Celtic languages of Northern Roman Gaul like Gallia Belgica and by the Frankish language of the post-Roman Frankish invaders. Today, owing to Frances past overseas expansion, there are numerous French-based creole languages, a French-speaking person or nation may be referred to as Francophone in both English and French. French is a language in 29 countries, most of which are members of la francophonie. As of 2015, 40% of the population is in Europe, 35% in sub-Saharan Africa, 15% in North Africa and the Middle East, 8% in the Americas. French is the fourth-most widely spoken mother tongue in the European Union, 1/5 of Europeans who do not have French as a mother tongue speak French as a second language. As a result of French and Belgian colonialism from the 17th and 18th century onward, French was introduced to new territories in the Americas, Africa, most second-language speakers reside in Francophone Africa, in particular Gabon, Algeria, Mauritius, Senegal and Ivory Coast. In 2015, French was estimated to have 77 to 110 million native speakers, approximately 274 million people are able to speak the language. The Organisation internationale de la Francophonie estimates 700 million by 2050, in 2011, Bloomberg Businessweek ranked French the third most useful language for business, after English and Standard Mandarin Chinese. Under the Constitution of France, French has been the language of the Republic since 1992. France mandates the use of French in official government publications, public education except in specific cases, French is one of the four official languages of Switzerland and is spoken in the western part of Switzerland called Romandie, of which Geneva is the largest city. French is the language of about 23% of the Swiss population. French is also a language of Luxembourg, Monaco, and Aosta Valley, while French dialects remain spoken by minorities on the Channel Islands. A plurality of the worlds French-speaking population lives in Africa and this number does not include the people living in non-Francophone African countries who have learned French as a foreign language. Due to the rise of French in Africa, the total French-speaking population worldwide is expected to reach 700 million people in 2050, French is the fastest growing language on the continent. French is mostly a language in Africa, but it has become a first language in some urban areas, such as the region of Abidjan, Ivory Coast and in Libreville. There is not a single African French, but multiple forms that diverged through contact with various indigenous African languages, sub-Saharan Africa is the region where the French language is most likely to expand, because of the expansion of education and rapid population growth
19.
Pyramid of Unas
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The Pyramid Complex of Unas is located in the pyramid field at Saqqara, near Cairo in Egypt. It was built for pharaoh Unas, the ninth and final king of the Fifth Dynasty in the mid 24th century BC and its ancient name, Nefer Isut Unas, means Beautiful are the places of Unas. Originally reaching 43 metres high with a base of 58 by 58 metres. It was investigated by Perring and then Lepsius, but it was Gaston Maspero who first gained entry to the chambers in 1881 and these together with others found in nearby pyramids of successive pharaohs are now known as the Pyramid Texts. In the burial chamber itself the remains of a mummy were found, including the skull, right arm and shin, near to the main pyramid, to the north east, there are mastabas that contain the burials of the consorts of the king. The pyramid was built close to the pyramid of Djoser at Saqqara, the causeway was approximately 750m long and the unusual shape is because it follows a wadi. Material was taken from the complex of Djoser that was used to plug gaps in the wadi, the roof of the causeway was covered over to make a closed tunnel, with the exception of a long slot that illuminated the walls that were decorated with brightly painted reliefs. View the hieroglyphs and the complete translation
20.
Pepi I Meryre
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Pepi I Meryre was the third king of the Sixth dynasty of Egypt. His first throne name was Neferdjahor which the king later altered to Meryre meaning beloved of Rê, Pepi was the son of Teti and Iput, who may have been a daughter of Unas, the last pharaoh of the previous dynasty. He needed the support of individuals in Upper Egypt in order to put down his brother. These individuals would remain a presence in his court thereafter. His two most important wives and the mothers of his two successors were Ankhesenpepi I and Ankhesenpepi II and he also had a son called Teti-ankh and two daughters, Iput II and Neith, both became wives to Pepi II. Pepi Is reign was marked by expansion into Nubia, the spread of trade to far-flung areas such as Lebanon and the Somalian coast. One of the kings officials named Weni fought in Asia on his behalf, pepis mortuary complex, Mennefer Pepy, eventually became the name for the entire city of Memphis after the 18th Dynasty. The decline of the Old Kingdom arguably began during Pepi I’s reign, with nomarchs becoming more powerful, Pepi I married two sisters – Ankhesenpepi I and II – who were the daughters of Khui, a noble from Abydos and Lady Nebet, made vizier of Upper Egypt. Pepi later made their brother, Djau, a vizier as well, the two sisters influence was extensive, with both sisters bearing sons who were later to become pharaohs. An analysis of the damaged Dynasty 6 South Saqqara Stone Annal document gives him a reign of c, 48–49 years but this is not confirmed by the Turin King List which apparently assigns him 44 years, according to the Danish Egyptologist Kim Ryholts analysis of this document. There has been doubt regarding whether the cattle count dating system was strictly biennial or slightly more irregular. That the latter appeared to be the case was suggested by the famous Year after the 18th Count. This would be the year 36 if the biennial dating system was used and this information is significant because the Heb Sed Feast was always celebrated in a kings Year 30. If Pepi I was using a counting system during his reign. This could imply that the count during the 6th dynasty was not regularly biennial. It is hard to believe such a narrow space corresponds to the jubilee celebration. Appears, this rulers final 25th count is also associated with Pepi Is first royal jubilee. The South Saqqara Stone confirms that Pepi Is last year was his Year of the 25th Count, fortuituously or not, this compartment corresponds perfectly to year 30/31, if a strictly biennial system of numbering is presumed for Pepi Is reign
21.
Merenre Nemtyemsaf I
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Merenre Nemtyemsaf I was the fourth king of the Sixth dynasty of Egypt. His nomen, theophorically referring to Nemty, was read as Antyemsaf. Merenre was a son of Pepi I and Ankhesenpepi I, and grandson of the female vizier Nebet and he also began a process of royal consolidation, appointing Weni as the first governor of all of Upper Egypt and expanding the power of several other governors. While he was assumed to have died at an early age. Two contemporary objects suggests that Merenres reign lasted more than a decade. The British Egyptologists Ian Shaw and Paul Nicholson in a 1995 book raised Merenre Is reign from the traditional 6 year figure to 9 years. One must note that cattle counts were not always biennial, for example,18 had been performed by the 30th year of Pepi Is reign and it is therefore entirely possible that Merenre ruled for fewer than 11 years. Sixth dynasty royal seals and stone found at Saqqara demonstrate that Merenres aunt. Merenres daughter was Ankhesenpepi III, the wife of Pepi II. The South Saqqara Stone, Sixth Dynasty Annals
22.
Pepi II Neferkare
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Pepi II was a pharaoh of the Sixth Dynasty in Egypts Old Kingdom who reigned from c.2278 BC. His throne name, Neferkare, means Beautiful is the Ka of Re and he succeeded to the throne at age six, after the death of Merenre I. He was traditionally thought to be the son of Pepi I and Queen Ankhesenpepi II but the South Saqqara Stone annals record that Merenre had a minimum reign of 11 years. Inscriptions on these blocks give Ankhesenpepi II the royal titles of, Kings Wife of the Pyramid of Pepy I, Kings Wife of the Pyramid of Merenre. Therefore, today, many Egyptologists believe that Pepi II was likely Merenres own son, Pepi II would, therefore, be Pepi Is grandson while Merenre was, most likely, Pepi IIs father since he is known to have married Pepi IIs known mother, Queen Ankhesenpepi II. Pepi IIs reign marked a decline of the Old Kingdom. As the power of the nomarchs grew, the power of the pharaoh declined, with no dominant central power, local nobles began raiding each others territories and the Old Kingdom came to an end within mere decades after the close of Pepi IIs reign. His mother Ankhesenpepi II most likely ruled as regent in the years of his reign. An alabaster statuette in the Brooklyn Museum depicts a young Pepi II, in full kingly regalia, despite his long reign, this piece is one of only three known sculptural representations in existence of this particular king. She may have helped in turn by her brother Djau. Some scholars have taken the relative paucity of royal statuary to suggest that the court was losing the ability to retain skilled artisans. A glimpse of the personality of the pharaoh while he was still a child can be found in a letter he wrote to Harkhuf, a governor of Aswan, sent to trade and collect ivory, ebony, and other precious items, he captured a pygmy. She may be a daughter of Ankhesenpepi I and hence also Pepi IIs cousin, Iput II – A half-sister of Pepi II. Ankhesenpepi III She was the daughter of Merenre Nemtyemsaf I and hence a granddaughter of Pepi I, Ankhesenpepi IV – The mother of King Neferkare according to texts in her tomb. It is not known which Neferkare as there are several kings with that name during the First Intermediate Period and his name may be Neferkare Nebi. Udjebten She was also a daughter of Pepi I, of these queens, Neith, Iput, and Udjebten each had their own minor pyramids and mortuary temples as part of the kings own pyramid complex in Saqqara. Queen Ankhesenpepi III was buried in a pyramid near the pyramid of Pepi I Meryre, two more sons of Pepi II are known, Nebkauhor-Idu and Ptashepses. Pepi II seems to have carried on foreign policy in ways similar to that of his predecessors, copper and turquoise were mined at Wadi Maghareh in the Sinai, and alabaster was quarried from Hatnub
23.
Ankhesenpepi II
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Ankhesenpepi II or Ankhesenmeryre II was a queen consort during the sixth dynasty of Egypt. She was the wife of Kings Pepi I and Merenre Nemtyemsaf I, Ankhesenpepi II was the daughter of Khui and the female vizier Nebet. Her sister Ankhesenpepi I was also married to King Pepi I and her brother Djau served as vizier. Both queens gave birth to the kings, the son of Ankhesenpepi I was Merenre Nemtyemsaf I, who ruled only for a few years, the son of Ankhesenpepi II was Pepi II, Pepi II was a young boy when he succeeded to the throne. There are indications that Ankhesenpepi II served as a regent for her son in early years of his reign. A statue which shows her with her son on her lap shows the queen much larger in size than her son, some have interpreted this statue as Ankhesenpepi II and her son Pepi II assuming the roles of the goddess Isis and her son Horus. She is also mentioned together with her sister on their brothers stela in Abydos, at her pyramid and she further appears in a decree in Abydos. She is depicted in the Sinai, where she is equal in size to her son. However, it is now known that she was also the queen of Merenre after the death of Pepi I. Since the temple was constructed under Pepi II because it makes a reference to king Pepi II, after her son Pepi came to the throne, Ankhesenpepi added the titles Mother of the Dual King Men-ankh-Neferkare, King’s Mother of Men-ankh-Neferkare, and King’s Mother. Ankhesenpepi IIs pyramid in Saqqara was found and excavated in 1998, the finds show that Ankhesenpepis pyramid contained the first known examples of the pyramid texts in a Queens pyramid. The texts refer to her as a mother, hence the construction of her pyramid dates to the reign of her son. In 1963, the chamber was discovered and remains which could be those of the queen were found. The burial was disturbed and the found in and near the sarcophagus was incomplete. The bones belong to an aged woman
24.
Neith (wife of Pepi II)
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Neith was an ancient Egyptian queen consort, one of the principal queens of the Old Kingdom pharaoh Pepi II Neferkare, who ruled. Queen Neith was named after goddess Neith, Neith is thought to have been a daughter of the pharaoh Pepi I and queen Ankhesenpepi I, making her half-sister and cousin to pharaoh Pepi II. Neith may be the mother of King Nemtyemsaf II, there is a legend about Queen Nitocris who, if she indeed existed at all, may have been a daughter of Neith. Of the three small pyramid complexes built around that of the pyramid of Pepi II, Neiths is the largest. Neiths pyramid may have been the first one constructed among the queens pyramids associated with Pepi II, Neiths pyramid complex included a small temple, a satellite pyramid and a fleet of sixteen wooden boats buried between the main and satellite pyramid. The entrance to the enclosure was flanked by two inscribed obelisks, Neiths burial chamber and was inscribed with Pyramid Texts. This is the second occurrence of these texts in a queens pyramid. The burial chamber contained a red granite sarcophagus and a canopic chest, the remains of at least part of her mummy were uncovered and were once housed in the Qasr el-Aini Medical School
25.
Iput II
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About the river in Belarus and Russia see Iput River. For the early 6th dynasty queen, wife of Unas see Iput, Iput was an ancient Egyptian queen consort of the Sixth dynasty, a sister and wife of Pepi II. Her titles King’s Daughter, and Eldest King’s Daughter show that Iput II was a daughter of a pharaoh, the title Hereditary Princess identifies her as a noble lady. Iputs pyramid complex consisted of a pyramid and a mortuary temple. The temple was built in an L-shape and she was buried close to Pepi II at Saqqara and her tomb contains a version of the Pyramid Texts. In one of the storerooms of the mortuary temple excavators discovered the granite sarcophagus of Queen Ankhesenpepi IV, another wife of Pepi II. It is not entirely clear if Ankhesenpepi IV was originally buried in the complex of Iput II, or if she was originally interred elsewhere. Ankhesenpepis sarcophagus is inscribed with an historical text which sheds some light on the history of the early part of the 6th dynasty. The text inscribed on the sarcophagus has been hard to decipher. From the text it is now clear that Userkare reigned some four years, but the practice of damnatio memoriae later lead to his name being expunged from the records
26.
Opening of the mouth ceremony
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The opening of the mouth ceremony was an ancient Egyptian ritual described in funerary texts such as the Pyramid Texts. The ceremony involved a symbolic animation of a statue or mummy by magically opening its mouth so that it could breathe, there is evidence of this ritual from the Old Kingdom to the Roman Period. Special tools were used to perform the ceremony, such as a ritual adze, an arm shaped ritual censer, a spooned blade known as a peseshkaf, a blade. A calfs leg was held up to the lips painted on the coffin. The ancient Egyptians believed that in order for a soul to survive in the afterlife it would need to have food. The opening of the ritual was thus performed so that the person who died could eat. Thoth has come equipped with spells, He looses the bonds of Seth from my mouth. Atum has given me my hands, They are placed as guardians and my mouth is given to me, My mouth is opened by Ptah, With that chisel of metal With which he opened the mouth of the gods. I am Sekhmet-Wadjet who dwells in the west of heaven, I am Sahyt among the souls of On, parallels between the Opening of the Mouth and Psalm 51 have been noted. The parallels include, Mentions of ritual washing with special herbs, O Lord, open thou my lips
27.
Unas
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Unas /ˈjuːnəs/ or Wenis, also spelled Unis, was an Ancient Egyptian pharaoh, the ninth and last ruler of the Fifth Dynasty during the Old Kingdom period. Unas reigned for 15 to 30 years in the mid-24th century BC succeeding Djedkare Isesi, little is known of Unas activities during his reign, which was a time of economic decline. Egypt maintained trade relations with the Levantine coast and Nubia, Unas built a pyramid in Saqqara, the smallest of the royal pyramids completed during the Old Kingdom. These texts identify the king with Ra and with Osiris, whose cult was on the rise in Unas time, Unas had several daughters and possibly one or two sons who are believed to have predeceased him. Manetho, an Egyptian priest of the Ptolemaic period and author of the first history of Egypt, Unas was succeeded by Teti, the first pharaoh of the Sixth Dynasty, possibly after a short crisis. The funerary cult of Unas established at his death continued until the end of the Old Kingdom, the cult was still in existence or revived during the later Middle Kingdom. This did not prevent Amenemhat I and Senusret I from partially dismantling the mortuary complex of Unas for its materials. In parallel to the cult, Unas may have received popular veneration as a local god of the Saqqara necropolis until as late as the Late Period. Unas is well attested by historical sources with three ancient Egyptian king lists dating to the New Kingdom period mentioning him, Unas occupies the 33rd entry of the Abydos King List, which was written during the reign of Seti I. Unas name is present on the Saqqara Tablet and on the Turin canon. The Turin canon further credits Unas with 30 years of reign and these sources all place Unas as the ninth and final ruler of the Fifth Dynasty, succeeding Djedkare Isesi and preceding Teti on the throne. This relative chronology is corroborated by evidence, for example in the tomb of officials serving under these kings. In addition to sources, Unas was also likely mentioned in the Aegyptiaca. No copies of the Aegyptiaca have survived to this day and it is known to us only through later writings by Sextus Julius Africanus and Eusebius, Africanus relates that the Aegyptiaca mentioned a pharaoh Onnos reigning for 33 years at the end of the Fifth Dynasty. Onnos is believed to be the form for Unas. The primary contemporaneous sources attesting to Unas activities are the reliefs from his pyramid complex. Excluding these, surprisingly few documents dating to Unas reign have survived to this day, excavations at Abusir, the royal necropolis of the Fifth Dynasty, have produced only four dated inscriptions safely attributable to Unas. They explicitly mention his third, fourth, sixth and eighth years on the throne, Unas also left a rock inscription on the island of Elephantine, next to the First Cataract of the Nile in Nubia
28.
Pyramid of Teti
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The Pyramid of Teti is a smooth-sided pyramid situated in the pyramid field at Saqqara in Egypt. It is historically the second known pyramid containing pyramid texts, excavations have revealed a satellite pyramid, two pyramids of queens accompanied by cult structures, and a funerary temple. The pyramid was opened by Gaston Maspero in 1882 and the complex explored during several campaigns ranging from 1907 to 1965 and it was originally called Tetis Places Are Enduring. The preservation above ground is very poor, and it now resembles a small hill, below ground the chambers and corridors are very well preserved. The pyramid complex of Teti follows a model established during the reign of Djedkare Isesi, a valley temple, now lost, was probably destroyed in antiquity due to the place of an Old Kingdom temple dedicated to Anubis constructed there. A better known funerary temple revealed by James Edward Quibell in 1906, is connected to the temple by a causeway. The plan of the temple of Teti is also comparable in many respects to that of Unas, which is its immediate predecessor. Tetis temple has a special plan, however, due to a deviation of the floor which traditionally should have been located in the axis of the temple. It then accesses the temple through a hallway of the north–south facade joining the east–west axis of the monument, followed in this main axis is a second hall. The thickness of the walls suggests a vaulted cover and this hall opened into an open courtyard surrounded on all four sides by colonnades whose main purpose was the presentation of daily offerings and ritual libations. The only way out is centered to the west and provides access to the innermost part the sanctuary. This part also included a room containing the false door stela of the King, a veritable object of funeral worship. The first row frames the party host and is accessible by a corridor along the entire width of the building that leads to the south and north within the peribolos of the pyramid. The second set frames the sanctuary and the hall of statues of gods and was accessible from the latter. This small pyramid covers an underground plan consisting of a ramp leading to a single underground chamber. In the middle of the courtyard of the paribolos, facing east and west, are two landscaped basins in the granite floor. Their use is disputed by Egyptologists, but the location of these basins, following the path of the sun, the orientation of the pyramid is not aligned with the four cardinal points. However, the proportions and plan of the pyramid follow exactly the same pattern as that of the Pyramid of Djedkare-Isesi, the internal dimensions and slope are the same and it is otherwise very similar
29.
Philip Glass
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Philip Morris Glass is an American composer. He is considered one of the most influential makers of the late 20th century. Glasss compositions have been described as music, similar to other minimalist composers including La Monte Young, Steve Reich. However, Glass has described himself instead as a composer of music with repetitive structures, Glass founded the Philip Glass Ensemble, with which he still performs on keyboards. He has written numerous operas and musical works, eleven symphonies, eleven concertos, seven string quartets and various other chamber music. Three of his scores have been nominated for Academy Awards. Glass was born in Baltimore, Maryland, the son of Ida and his family were Jewish immigrants from Lithuania. His father owned a store and his mother was a librarian. She developed a plan to help them learn English and develop skills so they could find work and his sister, Sheppie, would later do similar work as an active member of the International Rescue Committee. Glass developed his appreciation of music from his father, discovering later his fathers side of the family had many musicians and his cousin Cevia was a classical pianist, while others had been in vaudeville. He learned his family was related to Al Jolson. Glasss father often received promotional copies of new recordings at his music store and he spent many hours listening to them, developing his knowledge and taste in music. This openness to modern sounds affected Glass at an age, My father was self-taught, but he ended up having a very refined and rich knowledge of classical, chamber. Typically he would come home and have dinner, and then sit in his armchair, I caught on to this very early, and I would go and listen with him. The elder Glass promoted both new recordings and a selection of composers to his customers, sometimes convincing them to try something new by allowing them to return records they didnt like. His store soon developed a reputation as Baltimores leading source of modern music, Glass cites Schuberts work as a big influence growing up. He studied the flute as a child at the school of the Peabody Institute. At the age of 15, he entered a college program at the University of Chicago where he studied mathematics
30.
Opera
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Opera is an art form in which singers and musicians perform a dramatic work combining text and musical score, usually in a theatrical setting. In traditional opera, singers do two types of singing, recitative, a style and arias, a more melodic style. Opera incorporates many of the elements of theatre, such as acting, scenery. The performance is given in an opera house, accompanied by an orchestra or smaller musical ensemble. Opera is a key part of the Western classical music tradition, in the 18th century, Italian opera continued to dominate most of Europe, attracting foreign composers such as George Frideric Handel. Opera seria was the most prestigious form of Italian opera, until Christoph Willibald Gluck reacted against its artificiality with his operas in the 1760s. The first third of the 19th century saw the point of the bel canto style, with Gioachino Rossini, Gaetano Donizetti. It also saw the advent of Grand Opera typified by the works of Auber and Meyerbeer, the mid-to-late 19th century was a golden age of opera, led and dominated by Richard Wagner in Germany and Giuseppe Verdi in Italy. The popularity of opera continued through the era in Italy and contemporary French opera through to Giacomo Puccini. During the 19th century, parallel operatic traditions emerged in central and eastern Europe, the 20th century saw many experiments with modern styles, such as atonality and serialism, Neoclassicism, and Minimalism. With the rise of recording technology, singers such as Enrico Caruso, since the invention of radio and television, operas were also performed on these mediums. Beginning in 2006, a number of opera houses began to present live high-definition video transmissions of their performances in cinemas all over the world. In 2009, an opera company offered a download of a complete performance. The words of an opera are known as the libretto, some composers, notably Wagner, have written their own libretti, others have worked in close collaboration with their librettists, e. g. Mozart with Lorenzo Da Ponte. Vocal duets, trios and other ensembles often occur, and choruses are used to comment on the action, in some forms of opera, such as singspiel, opéra comique, operetta, and semi-opera, the recitative is mostly replaced by spoken dialogue. Melodic or semi-melodic passages occurring in the midst of, or instead of, the terminology of the various kinds of operatic voices is described in detail below. Over the 18th century, arias were accompanied by the orchestra. Subsequent composers have tended to follow Wagners example, though some, the changing role of the orchestra in opera is described in more detail below
31.
Akhnaten (opera)
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Akhnaten is an opera in three acts based on the life and religious convictions of the pharaoh Akhenaten, written by the American minimalist composer Philip Glass in 1983. Akhnaten had its premiere on March 24,1984, at the Stuttgart State Theatre. Paul Esswood sang the role, German director Achim Freyer staged the opera in an abstract style with highly ritualistic movements. The American premiere was held on October 12,1984, at the Houston Grand Opera, according to the composer, this work is the culmination of his two other biographical operas, Einstein on the Beach and Satyagraha. The text, taken from sources, is sung in the original languages, linked together with the commentary of a narrator in a modern language. Other portions are in Akkadian and Biblical Hebrew, Akhnatens Hymn to the Sun is sung in the language of the audience. Apart from this, this was Glasss most conventional opera orchestra until then, generally speaking, for the unprepared listener the music of this opera is more accessible than that of its predecessors, the hardcore minimalist Einstein and the oratorio-like Satyagraha. The opera is divided into three acts, Thebes,1370 BC Prelude, verse 1, verse 2, verse 3 Set in the key of A minor, the scribe recites funeral texts from the pyramids. Open are the doors of the horizon, unlocked are its bolts. Scene 1, Funeral of Akhnatens father Amenhotep III Heralded by hammering drums, Aye, the music is basically a march, based on the chords of A major and F♯ minor, and grows to ecstatic intensity towards the end. Scene 2, The Coronation of Akhnaten After a lengthy introduction, during which Akhnaten appears, heralded by a solo trumpet, the High Priest, Aye. After that, the Narrator recites a list of royal titles bestowed upon Akhnaten, after the coronation, the chorus repeats the ritual text from the beginning of the scene. Again, the key is A minor. Scene 3, The Window of Appearances After an introduction in A minor, dominated by tubular bells and this is the first time he actually sings, after he has already been on stage for 20 minutes and the effect of his countertenor voice is startling. He is joined by Nefertiti, who actually sings lower notes than he, and later by Queen Tye, whose soprano soars high above the intertwining voices of the royal couple. Scene 1, The Temple The scene opens again in A minor, with the High Priest, the music becomes increasingly dramatic, as Akhnaten, together with Queen Tye and his followers, attack the temple. This scene has only wordless singing, the harmonies grow very chromatic, finally reaching A♭ major and E minor. The temple roof is removed and the sun god Atens rays invade the temple, thus ending Amuns reign, Scene 2, Akhnaten and Nefertiti Two solo celli introduce a love theme
32.
Nile (band)
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Nile is an American technical death metal band from Greenville, South Carolina, United States, formed in 1993. Their music and lyrics are inspired by Ancient Egyptian/Near Eastern mysticism, history, religion, Nile formed in their hometown of Greenville in 1993, from the ashes of a previous band Morriah in which Karl Sanders played since the 1980s. The EP Ramses Bringer of War was released by Visceral Productions in 1997, Visceral were due to release the full-length Amongst the Catacombs of Nephren-Ka, but went out of business later that year. However, Relapse Records was open to releasing it in early 1998, giving Nile a wider distribution, the follow-up, Black Seeds of Vengeance, was released in late 2000. Prior to this release, Pete Hammoura left the band due to injuries sustained while touring for The Catacombs, however, since the band thought he was holding them back, it was agreed that he leave. Derek Roddy drummed on all of the tracks as a session musician, also, prior to Black Seeds of Vengeance, Dallas Toler-Wade joined as a second guitarist/vocalist. A collection of remastered recordings, In the Beginning, was released later the same year, chief Spires left the bands a few months after the release of Black Seeds of Vengeance citing personal and professional differences. He was replaced by Jon Vesano, the band also found a new drummer in Tony Laureano. By 2002, In Their Darkened Shrines was released, one reviewer noted that the album gave death metal a cinematic, symphonic twist. Two videos were shot with director Darren Doane, Sarcophagus and Execration Text, Annihilation of the Wicked was released in 2005. New drummer George Kollias stepped in to replace Tony Laureano, who left before the recording began, after recording the bass for Annihilation of the Wicked, Jon Vesano also left the band. He was temporary replaced by Joe Payne on the following tour, another Darren Doane directed video was shot for Sacrifice Unto Sebek. In May 2006, Nile signed a contract with Nuclear Blast. On February 26,2007, Nile entered the studio and began recording their fifth album entitled Ithyphallic. Karl Sanders had confirmed a date of June 29 via a posting on the bands message board. Upon the albums release, it sold 4,600 copies, on March 21,2007, Nile was confirmed as a Second Stage act for Ozzfest 2007. A message from Karl Sanders via Niles MySpace profile indicated that they were excited to bring true death metal to an Ozzfest audience. In March/April 2008, Nile went on a US headlining tour with Suicide Silence, The Faceless, Unexpect, in September/October 2008, Nile set out on a European headlining tour with Grave, Omnium Gatherum and Severe Torture
33.
The Mummy Returns
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The film is a sequel to the 1999 film The Mummy. The Mummy Returns inspired the 2002 prequel film The Scorpion King which is set 5,000 years prior and whose eponymous character and it was followed by the 2008 sequel The Mummy, Tomb of the Dragon Emperor. In 3067 BC, the Scorpion King leads his army on a campaign to conquer the world, after fighting for seven years, his army is defeated while attacking Thebes and exiled to the desert of Ahm Shere, where his men die of heat exhaustion. After vowing to give Anubis his soul for the power to defeat his enemies, the Army of Anubis sweeps across Egypt, but once their task is finished, Anubis claims the Scorpion Kings soul and his army. In 1933, Rick and Evelyn OConnell explore a ruined temple in ancient Thebes with their son, Alex. In London, the bracelet locks onto Alex, showing him a vision directing him to Ahm Shere, Alex has seven days to reach the oasis, or the bracelet will kill him when the suns rays shine on the Scorpion Kings pyramid. Evelyn is captured by an Egyptian cult who resurrect Imhotep, they wish to use his power to defeat the Scorpion King, giving him command of Anubis army to take over the world. The cult, led by Baltus Hafez, the British Museums curator, includes a warrior named Lock-Nah and Meela Nais, Rick sets out to rescue Evelyn, accompanied by her brother Jonathan and the Medjai Ardeth Bay. Hafez attempts to sacrifice Evelyn but a fight ensues between Rick and Imhotep, Imhotep calls on the help of mummified soldiers to kill Rick and the others. After freeing Evelyn, they flee on a bus with the soldiers in pursuit. After defeating them, Alex is kidnapped by Lock-Nah, and along with the travels to Egypt. The OConnells pursue them to rescue Alex, along with Ricks associate from his past adventures, Izzy, a pilot, the bracelet gives Alex directions to Ahm Shere that Imhotep follows and they travel there by train. At each location, Alex leaves clues for his parents, who follow in Izzys dirigible, Lock-Nah finds Alex leaving clues, so Imhotep makes a wall of water that attacks the dirigible, causing the OConnells to crash into the jungle of Ahm Shere. Izzy stays with the dirigible in hopes to repair it, by nightfall, the OConnells attack the cult, and both groups are attacked by pygmy mummies. Rick retrieves Alex while Ardeth Bay kills Lock-Nah and they escape the pygmies, who kill the cult except for Baltus. Rick and Alex eventually make it to the pyramid before sunrise, Ardeth regroups with the Medjai in case Anubiss army rises. Anck-su-namun soon stabs Evelyn, killing her, and escapes with Imhotep, Rick, determined to avenge the death of Evelyn, pursues Imhotep. Baltus puts on the bracelet and revives the army, Anubis takes Imhoteps powers, wanting Imhotep to fight as a mortal
34.
Ripper Street
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Ripper Street is a British TV series set in Whitechapel in the East End of London and starring Matthew Macfadyen, Jerome Flynn, and Adam Rothenberg. It begins in 1889, six months after the infamous Jack the Ripper murders, the first episode was broadcast on 30 December 2012 during BBC Ones Christmas schedule and was first broadcast in the United States on BBC America on 19 January 2013. Ripper Street returned for a second series on 28 October 2013. On 4 December 2013, it was reported that a series would not be made due to low viewing figures for series two. Then on 11 December 2013, Variety reported negotiations between the shows producer Tiger Aspect and LoveFilm to fund future episodes, similar to Netflix funding episodes of Arrested Development, on 26 February 2014, it was confirmed that Amazon Video would resurrect the show. Series three began streaming on Amazon UK Prime Instant Video on 14 November 2014 but has not been available on Amazons US site. The third series airing on BBC America on 29 April 2015. In June 2015, the series was renewed for a fourth and fifth series, in 2016, it was announced that the show would end with the fifth series. Series 4 premiered on Amazon UK on 15 January 2016, on BBC America on 28 July 2016, the concluding fifth series premiered in full on Amazon UK on 12 October 2016. The men of H Division had hunted the Ripper and failed to find him, when more women are murdered on the streets of Whitechapel, the police begin to wonder if the killer has returned. They frequently cross paths with Tenter Street brothel madam Long Susan and their relationship becomes strained due to Jacksons attraction to one of her most profitable girls, Rose Erskine, and because of his close involvement with Reid and H Division. Reid and his wife Emily only have one daughter, Mathilda, the newspaper reporter, Fred Best, knows a dark secret about her death. Although still troubled, and despite her husbands reservations, Emily is determined to make a new life for herself by helping the women of Whitechapel. The second series is set in 1890, Emily has left Reid after he gave her false hope that Mathilda might not have drowned. Rose Erskine has left Long Susans brothel to work as a waitress at the music hall, Sergeant Drake has married another of Susans girls, Bella. A new detective constable, Albert Flight, is introduced, Reid crosses swords with the ruthless Inspector Jedediah Shine. Ten years an Inspector on the Hong Kong police force, Shine has used that experience to exert a firm grip over Limehouse’s neighbouring K Division and the emergent Chinatown that grows within it. Long Susan, happy as brothel keeper, is in debt to Silas Duggan, in 1894, a train accident in Whitechapel kills fifty-five civilians
35.
Vedas
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The Vedas are a large body of knowledge texts originating in the ancient Indian subcontinent. Composed in Vedic Sanskrit, the texts constitute the oldest layer of Sanskrit literature, Hindus consider the Vedas to be apauruṣeya, which means not of a man, superhuman and impersonal, authorless. Vedas are also called śruti literature, distinguishing them from religious texts. The Veda, for orthodox Indian theologians, are considered revelations seen by ancient sages after intense meditation, in the Hindu Epic the Mahabharata, the creation of Vedas is credited to Brahma. The Vedic hymns themselves assert that they were created by Rishis, after inspired creativity. There are four Vedas, the Rigveda, the Yajurveda, the Samaveda, each Veda has been subclassified into four major text types – the Samhitas, the Aranyakas, the Brahmanas, and the Upanishads. Some scholars add a fifth category – the Upasanas, the various Indian philosophies and denominations have taken differing positions on the Vedas. Schools of Indian philosophy which cite the Vedas as their authority are classified as orthodox. Other śramaṇa traditions, such as Lokayata, Carvaka, Ajivika, Buddhism and Jainism, despite their differences, just like the texts of the śramaṇa traditions, the layers of texts in the Vedas discuss similar ideas and concepts. The Sanskrit word véda knowledge, wisdom is derived from the root vid- to know and this is reconstructed as being derived from the Proto-Indo-European root *u̯eid-, meaning see or know. The noun is from Proto-Indo-European *u̯eidos, cognate to Greek εἶδος aspect, not to be confused is the homonymous 1st and 3rd person singular perfect tense véda, cognate to Greek οἶδα oida I know. Root cognates are Greek ἰδέα, English wit, etc, the Sanskrit term veda as a common noun means knowledge. The term in some contexts, such as hymn 10.93.11 of the Rigveda, means obtaining or finding wealth, property, a related word Vedena appears in hymn 8.19.5 of the Rigveda. It was translated by Ralph T. H. Griffith as ritual lore, as studying the Veda by the 14th century Indian scholar Sayana, as bundle of grass by Max Müller, Vedas are called Maṛai or Vaymoli in parts of South India. Marai literally means hidden, a secret, mystery, in some south Indian communities such as Iyengars, the word Veda includes the Tamil writings of the Alvar saints, such as Divya Prabandham, for example Tiruvaymoli. The Vedas are among the oldest sacred texts, the Samhitas date to roughly 1700–1100 BC, and the circum-Vedic texts, as well as the redaction of the Samhitas, date to c. 1000-500 BC, resulting in a Vedic period, spanning the mid 2nd to mid 1st millennium BC, or the Late Bronze Age, Michael Witzel gives a time span of c.1500 to c. Witzel makes special reference to the Near Eastern Mitanni material of the 14th century BC the only record of Indo-Aryan contemporary to the Rigvedic period
36.
International Standard Book Number
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The International Standard Book Number is a unique numeric commercial book identifier. An ISBN is assigned to each edition and variation of a book, for example, an e-book, a paperback and a hardcover edition of the same book would each have a different ISBN. The ISBN is 13 digits long if assigned on or after 1 January 2007, the method of assigning an ISBN is nation-based and varies from country to country, often depending on how large the publishing industry is within a country. The initial ISBN configuration of recognition was generated in 1967 based upon the 9-digit Standard Book Numbering created in 1966, the 10-digit ISBN format was developed by the International Organization for Standardization and was published in 1970 as international standard ISO2108. Occasionally, a book may appear without a printed ISBN if it is printed privately or the author does not follow the usual ISBN procedure, however, this can be rectified later. Another identifier, the International Standard Serial Number, identifies periodical publications such as magazines, the ISBN configuration of recognition was generated in 1967 in the United Kingdom by David Whitaker and in 1968 in the US by Emery Koltay. The 10-digit ISBN format was developed by the International Organization for Standardization and was published in 1970 as international standard ISO2108, the United Kingdom continued to use the 9-digit SBN code until 1974. The ISO on-line facility only refers back to 1978, an SBN may be converted to an ISBN by prefixing the digit 0. For example, the edition of Mr. J. G. Reeder Returns, published by Hodder in 1965, has SBN340013818 -340 indicating the publisher,01381 their serial number. This can be converted to ISBN 0-340-01381-8, the check digit does not need to be re-calculated, since 1 January 2007, ISBNs have contained 13 digits, a format that is compatible with Bookland European Article Number EAN-13s. An ISBN is assigned to each edition and variation of a book, for example, an ebook, a paperback, and a hardcover edition of the same book would each have a different ISBN. The ISBN is 13 digits long if assigned on or after 1 January 2007, a 13-digit ISBN can be separated into its parts, and when this is done it is customary to separate the parts with hyphens or spaces. Separating the parts of a 10-digit ISBN is also done with either hyphens or spaces, figuring out how to correctly separate a given ISBN number is complicated, because most of the parts do not use a fixed number of digits. ISBN issuance is country-specific, in that ISBNs are issued by the ISBN registration agency that is responsible for country or territory regardless of the publication language. Some ISBN registration agencies are based in national libraries or within ministries of culture, in other cases, the ISBN registration service is provided by organisations such as bibliographic data providers that are not government funded. In Canada, ISBNs are issued at no cost with the purpose of encouraging Canadian culture. In the United Kingdom, United States, and some countries, where the service is provided by non-government-funded organisations. Australia, ISBNs are issued by the library services agency Thorpe-Bowker
37.
James Wasserman
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James Wasserman is an American author and occultist. A member of Ordo Templi Orientis since 1976 and a designer by trade. Wasserman began working in 1973 at Weiser Books, then the world’s largest bookstore, while working at Weiser, he met and befriended legendary filmmakers and occultists Harry Smith and Alejandro Jodorowsky. Wasserman worked with Brazilian occultist Marcelo Ramos Motta to publish the Commentaries of AL in 1975, additionally, he supervised the 1976 Weiser publication of The Book of the Law, the first popular edition to append the holograph manuscript to the typeset text. Wasserman left Weiser in 1977 to found Studio 31, where he produced the Simon Necronomicon, in 2008, it was reissued in a high-quality 31st anniversary edition by Ibis Press. This new edition includes some corrections and improvements to the color plates, a member of O. T. O. since 1976, Wasserman founded one of its oldest lodges, Tahuti Lodge, in New York City in 1979. He has played a key role within the Order in publishing the literary corpus of Aleister Crowley, in 1983, he worked with two other members of O. T. O. to produce The Holy Books of Thelema, a collection of Crowley’s Class A writings. In 1986, his essay “An Introduction to the History of the O. T. O. ” appeared in The Equinox III, in 2009, he and his wife Nancy published To Perfect This Feast, a performance commentary on the Gnostic Mass. Revised for an edition in 2010, the book is now in its third and final edition. Wasserman is described by Dan Burstein as a founder of the modern Ordo Templi Orientis” in his guide to Dan Browns novel Angels & Demons. In 2012, Wasserman wrote In the Center of the Fire and he contributed an essay entitled The New Aeon in the New World, The Law of Liberty in the Wild West. Eleven other ranking members of the Order contributed essays on a range of topics such as Thelemic doctrine, magical practices, Order history. Wasserman’s work in O. T. O. and his numerous writings point to a philosophy based on individual liberty and this more modern conception of Gnosticism dispenses with the myriad variations of the term as it is applied to numerous sub sects within major religions long ago. Modern Gnosticism simply presupposes the ability to forge a link with the highest level of divinity. Wasserman further advances the notion that political liberty offers humanity the best conditions for spiritual growth, in 2009, he discussed his book Secrets of Masonic Washington at the National Press Club in Washington, D. C. In 2012, his performance of Liber Israfel was broadcast on The Discovery Channel in a program entitled Secrets of Secret Societies. In 2013, Swirling Star Lodge filmed a 50-minute talk he presented on a history of the O. T. O. Instructions for Aleister Crowleys Thoth Tarot Deck, “An Introduction to the History of the O. T. O. ” in Crowley, Aleister
38.
Egyptian pyramids
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The Egyptian pyramids are ancient pyramid-shaped masonry structures located in Egypt. As of November 2008, sources cite either 118 or 138 as the number of identified Egyptian pyramids, most were built as tombs for the countrys pharaohs and their consorts during the Old and Middle Kingdom periods. The earliest known Egyptian pyramids are found at Saqqara, northwest of Memphis, the earliest among these is the Pyramid of Djoser which was built during the third dynasty. This pyramid and its surrounding complex were designed by the architect Imhotep, the most famous Egyptian pyramids are those found at Giza, on the outskirts of Cairo. Several of the Giza pyramids are counted among the largest structures ever built, the Pyramid of Khufu at Giza is the largest Egyptian pyramid. It is the one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World still in existence. By the time of the Early Dynastic Period, those with sufficient means were buried in bench-like structures known as mastabas, the second historically-documented Egyptian pyramid is attributed to the architect Imhotep, who planned what Egyptologists believe to be a tomb for the pharaoh Djoser. Imhotep is credited with being the first to conceive the notion of stacking mastabas on top of each other, the result was the Pyramid of Djoser, which was designed to serve as a gigantic stairway by which the soul of the deceased pharaoh could ascend to the heavens. Such was the importance of Imhoteps achievement that he was deified by later Egyptians, the most prolific pyramid-building phase coincided with the greatest degree of absolutist rule. It was during this time that the most famous pyramids, the Giza pyramid complex, were built. Long after the end of Egypts own pyramid-building period, a burst of pyramid-building occurred in what is present-day Sudan, al-Aziz Uthman tried to destroy the Giza pyramid complex. He gave up after damaging the Pyramid of Menkaure because the task proved too huge, the shape of Egyptian pyramids is thought to represent the primordial mound from which the Egyptians believed the earth was created. Pyramids were often named in ways that referred to solar luminescence. For example, the name of the Bent Pyramid at Dahshur The Southern Shining Pyramid. While it is agreed that pyramids were burial monuments, there is continued disagreement on the particular theological principles that might have given rise to them. One suggestion is that they were designed as a type of resurrection machine, the Egyptians believed the dark area of the night sky around which the stars appear to revolve was the physical gateway into the heavens. One of the shafts that extend from the main burial chamber through the entire body of the Great Pyramid points directly towards the center of this part of the sky. This suggests the pyramid may have designed to serve as a means to magically launch the deceased pharaohs soul directly into the abode of the gods
39.
Lepsius list of pyramids
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The Lepsius list of pyramid is the first attempt at systematically listing all the Egyptian pyramids, and as such, is a pioneering effort of early modern Egyptology. The list was published together with the results of the expedition in Lepsius work Denkmäler aus Aegypten und Aethiopien, karl Richard Lepsius, who had learned of Champollions method to decipher the hieroglyphs and had met Ippolito Rosellini of the Franco-Tuscan Expedition, was chosen to lead it. The main aim of the expedition was to explore and record the remains of the ancient Egyptian civilization as well as to materials for the Egyptian Museum of Berlin. The Prussian expedition assembled in Alexandria in 1842 and quickly departed for Giza, proceeding north to south, Lepsius men then explored the pyramids field of Abusir, Saqqara, Dahshur and, in 1843, Hawara. Lepsius and its team stayed for 6 months in total at these locations as the Prussian expedition was the first study, in total, Lepsius and his men uncovered a total of 67 pyramids and 130 tombs. The pyramids, dating from the Third Dynasty until the Thirteenth Dynasty, were given roman numerals from north to south, Lepsius numerals have remained the standard designation for some of the pyramids. The results of the Prussian expedition to Egypt, comprising the list of pyramids, Lepsius drew maps of the locations his expedition visited and which regroup the pyramid listed above. They are presented below, from north to south
40.
History of ancient Egypt
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The history of ancient Egypt spans the period from the early prehistoric settlements of the northern Nile valley to the Roman conquest, in 30 BC. The Pharaonic Period is dated from the 32nd century BC, when Upper and Lower Egypt were unified, until the country fell under Macedonian rule, note For alternative revisions to the chronology of Egypt, see Egyptian chronology. Egypts history is split into different periods according to the ruling dynasty of each pharaoh. The dating of events is still a subject of research, the conservative dates are not supported by any reliable absolute date for a span of about three millennia. The following is the list according to conventional Egyptian chronology, traces of these early people appear in the form of artifacts and rock carvings along the terraces of the Nile and in the oases. To the Egyptians the Nile meant life and the desert meant death, evidence also indicates human habitation and cattle herding in the southwestern corner of Egypt near the Sudan border before the 8th millennium BC. Despite this, the idea of an independent bovine domestication event in Africa must be abandoned because subsequent evidence gathered over a period of thirty years has failed to corroborate this, the oldest-known domesticated cattle remains in Africa are from the Faiyum c.4400 BC. Continued desiccation forced the early ancestors of the Egyptians to settle around the Nile more permanently, however, the period from 9th to the 6th millennium BC has left very little in the way of archaeological evidence. The Nile valley of Egypt was basically uninhabitable until the work of clearing and irrigating the land along the banks was started, however it appears that this clearance and irrigation was largely under way by the 6th millennium. By that time, Nile society was already engaged in organized agriculture, at this time, Egyptians in the southwestern corner of Egypt were herding cattle and also constructing large buildings. Mortar was in use by the 4th millennium, the people of the valley and the Nile Delta were self-sufficient and were raising barley and emmer, an early variety of wheat, and stored it in pits lined with reed mats. They raised cattle, goats and pigs and they wove linen, prehistory continues through this time, variously held to begin with the Amratian culture. Between 5500 BC and the 31st century BC, small settlements flourished along the Nile, the Tasian culture was the next to appear, it existed in Upper Egypt starting about 4500 BC. This group is named for the burials found at Deir Tasa, the Tasian culture is notable for producing the earliest blacktop-ware, a type of red and brown pottery painted black on its top and interior. The Badari culture, named for the Badari site near Deir Tasa, followed the Tasian, however, the Badari culture continued to produce the kind of pottery called blacktop-ware, and was assigned the sequence dating numbers between 21 and 29. The Amratian culture is named after the site of el-Amreh, about 120 kilometres south of Badari, el-Amreh was the first site where this culture was found unmingled with the later Gerzeh culture. However, this period is attested at Nagada, and so is also referred to as the Naqada I culture. The Amratian period falls between S. D.30 and 39, newly excavated objects indicate that trade between Upper and Lower Egypt existed at this time
