Understanding the news: Rameses II or Psamtek I? What's in a name?
The discovery of a large pharaonic statue in pieces in March 2017 raises some interesting points about how Egyptologists identify images of kings. We are usually aided by the fact that because names had the magical power to label images which could then be used as 'soul houses', the Egyptians labelled images carefully. Sometimes these labels were recut by later kings to take ownership but such recutting can usually be identified by the traces left behind in the stone. Kings also had an 'Official Image' which can be recognised by Egyptologists by how their face and other features are represented.
In this story, Antiquities Minister Khaled el-Anani describes how a part of one of the king's names was found on the statue, and because it is a unique name: 'Neb Aa' it identifies the statue as Psamtek I. We know this name belongs to a king of the 26th Dynasty as it was part of his royal titles which have been found elsewhere.
Ancient Egyptian Kings had up to 5 names:
Prenomen/Nswt bity (Sedge and Bee) name signifies the king's rule over Upper and Lower Egypt (Sedge = Upper Egypt/Bee =Lower Egypt). This name is also known as the Throne Name which was taken by a ruler when they became king officially.
Nomen/Son of Ra this was the king's birth name usually and is the one usually referred to by Historians, which can be a bit confusing because these names were often 'common'.
Horus name Contained in a Serekh or palace facade box, this name reflects the king is the representative of Horus on earth and is one of the earliest forms of royal nomenclature.
Two Ladies Also called the Nebti name, this title links the king to the patron goddesses of Upper (Nekhbet|Vulture) and Lower Egypt (Wadjet|Cobra) and signifies he is the ruler and unifier of both lands. It was part of this name that allowed the identification of the statue as belonging to Psamtek I.
Golden Horus This name certifies that the king is 'made of gold' - that is, his flesh was divine, and he is an earthly manifestation of the gods who can act as intermediary between his people and the divine.
When you look up a king on Wikipedia, you can see the 5 names of the king by going to the section marked "Royal titulary" and clicking 'show'
[example of Psamtek posted into the comments]
Edit: updated for Blogger:
Bunson M (2002) Encyclopedia of Ancient Egypt (REVISED EDITION)
Facts On File, Inc.: New York, USA
p.367
More info on royal titles: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ancient_Egyptian_royal_titulary
http://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-03-17/egypt-pharaoh-statue-not-ramses-ii/8362992
The discovery of a large pharaonic statue in pieces in March 2017 raises some interesting points about how Egyptologists identify images of kings. We are usually aided by the fact that because names had the magical power to label images which could then be used as 'soul houses', the Egyptians labelled images carefully. Sometimes these labels were recut by later kings to take ownership but such recutting can usually be identified by the traces left behind in the stone. Kings also had an 'Official Image' which can be recognised by Egyptologists by how their face and other features are represented.
In this story, Antiquities Minister Khaled el-Anani describes how a part of one of the king's names was found on the statue, and because it is a unique name: 'Neb Aa' it identifies the statue as Psamtek I. We know this name belongs to a king of the 26th Dynasty as it was part of his royal titles which have been found elsewhere.
Ancient Egyptian Kings had up to 5 names:
Prenomen/Nswt bity (Sedge and Bee) name signifies the king's rule over Upper and Lower Egypt (Sedge = Upper Egypt/Bee =Lower Egypt). This name is also known as the Throne Name which was taken by a ruler when they became king officially.
Nomen/Son of Ra this was the king's birth name usually and is the one usually referred to by Historians, which can be a bit confusing because these names were often 'common'.
Horus name Contained in a Serekh or palace facade box, this name reflects the king is the representative of Horus on earth and is one of the earliest forms of royal nomenclature.
Two Ladies Also called the Nebti name, this title links the king to the patron goddesses of Upper (Nekhbet|Vulture) and Lower Egypt (Wadjet|Cobra) and signifies he is the ruler and unifier of both lands. It was part of this name that allowed the identification of the statue as belonging to Psamtek I.
Golden Horus This name certifies that the king is 'made of gold' - that is, his flesh was divine, and he is an earthly manifestation of the gods who can act as intermediary between his people and the divine.
When you look up a king on Wikipedia, you can see the 5 names of the king by going to the section marked "Royal titulary" and clicking 'show'
[example of Psamtek posted into the comments]
Edit: updated for Blogger:
 |
Full royal titles of Psamtek I from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Psamtik_I
References:Bunson M (2002) Encyclopedia of Ancient Egypt (REVISED EDITION)
Facts On File, Inc.: New York, USA
p.367
More info on royal titles: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ancient_Egyptian_royal_titulary
http://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-03-17/egypt-pharaoh-statue-not-ramses-ii/8362992
Agree with Dolly :) We know for example in Tanis the pharaohs reused a lot of objects in their tombs and also a lot of statues for the cities. So I think from a fragment very hard to say who was the real owner even if there is a cartouche on it.
ReplyDeleteOf course, Ramesses II did that to many works of his predecessors, in turn ...
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