VICINO ORIENTE - QUADERNO 1

L'IMPERO RAMESSIDE
CONVEGNO INTERNAZIONALE
IN ONORE ORE DI SERGIO DONADONI
ROMA 1997
DJPARTIMENTO DI SCIENZE STORICHE ARCHEOLOGICHE E ANTROPOLOGICHE DELL'ANTICHITA
SEZIONE VICfNO ORIENTE
Comito to scientifico: M.G. Amadasi Guzzo, A. Archi, A. Ciasca, M. Liverani, P. Matthiae, A. Roccati
Redazione: I. Brancoli, E. Ciampini, A. Roccati, L. Sist
Composizione a/ computer: I. Brancoli
Copertina: M. Necci (riproduzione da stampa)
VOLUME PUBBLICATO CON IL CONTRIBUTO DEL C.N.R.
UNIVERSITA DEGLI STUDI DI ROMA LA SAPIENZA
Stnm,Jn: Tipolitografia di Ascolinio Giuseppe- Via Chieti, 26 - 00161 Roma - Tel. 44.23. 11 . 11 - Finito di stampare nel diccmbre 1997
I HAVE NOT DIVER1ED MY INUNDATION"
LEGITIMACY AND THE BOOK OF THE DEAD IN A
S1ELA OF RAMESSES IV FROM ABYDOS
Francesco TIRADRITTI - Roma
The following remarks partly depend on suggestions that Professor Donadoni
made in a translation of the text stu died here.! The analysis is part of a work
on r oyal stelae of the XXth Dynasty which I begun under his guidance. I hope
that he will accept this as a small sign of gratitude, since it is due to him that I
can now write about an Egyptological subject.
The importance of the monument of Ramesses IV, named by Kitchen '' Gr eat
Stela to Osiris and the Gods is demonstrated by the interest it h as always
aroused among the scholars.3 The large limestone stela (2,60 m high, 1,20 m
wide; 0,38 m in depth) is round-topped and was found by Auguste Mariette in
the Middle Cemeter y of Abydos. reused as paving of a later private tomb, with
the inscr ibed side facing down It is safe to assume that the stela was
originally set in a v isible place, such as the city temple of Osiris, or in a chapel
S. Donadoni. Testi religiosi egizi, Torino 1970, pp. 434- 439.
2 KRI VI. 20.
3 The fit:st edition of the stela is in A. Mariette, Abydos. Description de
fouilles. Tome II, Paris 1880, p. 41, tavv. 54-55 e 56a-b . Translations of the
text . other than by Donadoni, h ave been given by K. Piehl (Stele de J'epoque
de Rameses I V: ZAS, 23 [1885]. pp. 13-19), M. Korostovtsev (Stele de
Ramesses IV: BIFAO. 45 [19471. pp. 155- 173) and A.j. Peden (Egyptian
Historical Inscriptions of the Twentieth Dynasty [Document a Mundi
Aegyptiaca 3], jonsered 1994, pp. 159- 174 and The Reign of Ramesses IV,
Warminster 1994. pp. 94- 100). Furthermore the stela is mentioned in many
works centred on religion topics.
4 The stela is now in Cairo Museum (jdE 48831).
193
VO Quad. 1 ( 1997)
F. Tiradritti
in the necropolis. This latter idea can be inferred by the nature of the text.
written to look like a funerary composition.
The stela is inscribed on one side and on the two margins: this speaks for an
original collocation against a wall. On the margins there are two texts: one
dedicated to Osiris and the other one to Re. The surface of the inscribed side is
divided into three parts: on the top is a scene, in the middle are thirty-six lines
of hieroglyphic text and at the bottom a register of adoring Rekhyt facing the
center, where there are two cartouches of Ramesses IV.S
The scene shows the king offering the image of Maat to twelve gods,
identified as Osiris, Horus, Isis. Nephthys, Min, Iunmutef. Horakhty, Onuris-Shu.
Tefnut, Geb, Thoth, and Hathor. The number of deities is quite high for a royal
monument, where the king is usually represented before one god or a triad of
gods.
The peculiarity of this figuration drew the attention of Philippe Derchain
who explained the scene as being allegoricat.6 He thought that the series of
deities before the king could be divided in two groups? Osiris, Horus, Isis.
Nephthys, Min and Iunmutef formed the first one. In Derchain's opinion, the
presence of Min and Iunmutef could be explained by their representing the
double function which legitimizes the king ("la force virile du pere et J'appui
que Je fils doit a sa mere"B) and not, as seems more probable, because they are
gods worshipped in the Thinite nomos. Following again Derchain's theory, the
second group of gods is differentiated from the first one because each god lays
a hand on the shoulder of the one preceding him. Nevertheless. carefully
observing the scene, one realizes that the position of the deities is organized in
relation to the narrow figurative space, and does not have the value of
differentiating the two groups. On the other hand, the interpretation given by
Derchain for each single deity of the second group is not consistent at all: the
sequence of Re-Horakhty, Shu and Geb " est d 'ordre cosmique. Elle signifie Ja
s This .kind of decoration seems to be typical of the stelae in Abydos. See, i.e.,
the stela of the Second Hittite Marriage of Ramesses II (K.A. Kitchen - G.A.
Gaballa. Ramesside Varia II: ZAS. 96 [1969], tavv. II-III).
6 Ph. Derchain. Comment les Egyptiens ecrivaient un traite de la royaute:
BSFE. 87-88 (mars et mai 1980), pp. 14- 17.
7 L. - A. Christophe (Onouris et Ramses IV: MDAIK. 15 [1957]. p. 36) divides the
series of deities into three groups. according to the places where each of
them was worshipped
8 Derchain: BSFE. 87- 88 (mars et mai 1980), p. 15.
194
A Stela of Ramesses IV from Abydos
continuite du regne"; Thoth is "Ie Fonctionnaire qui sait tout ecrire" and Hathor
represents "Je plaisir que le createur eprouve a creer ".9 This interpretation
does not derive from elements endogenous to the figuration, but from a
preconceived theory resulting from the reading of the text and aimed at
pointing out the function of the stela as "plaidoyer de celui qui se pretend
J'heritier Jegitime" .lO Although this is correct, it cannot be inferred only from
the scene, the meaning of which is quite different. Derchain is wrong in
explaining the presence of every single god choosing, each time, a single
different contextual selection and using encyclopaedic competencies possessed
only by an "intelligent" reader with the knowledge of a XXth century
Egyptologist. To give just one example, the presence of Hathor on the scene can
be interpreted as being worshipped in Abydos, without having recourse to
explanations involving extra-contextual connotations.ll
Knowing the "model reader" to whom the stela is addressed is the only way
of understanding the meaning of the scene. As the identity of the "actual
reader" of the stela mainly depends on the place where it was set, we can
safely assume that he could be any inhabitant of Abydos. Further, the scene
and the text rely upon two different kinds of language in order to convey their
messages. The scene is based on figuration and it can be read without the need
of literacy: the text, on the contrary, requires a process of learning. This creates
a differentiation in the content of the message (generic vs. specific), and in the
identity of the "model reader" (illiterate vs. literate). On the basis of these
assumptions we can affirm that the scene is understandable to everyone living
in the Abydos cultural milie u, whereas the text is understandable only to
literate people and, for this reason, belonging to the elite.
In this stela, the scene shows the king before a large number of gods. The
"model reader" is able to recognize each deity by the fact that every one of
them is worshipped in the area of Abydos and Thinis. For him, the simple
figurative message conveyed by the scene, is that the king is the only human
9 Derchain: BSFE, 87- 88 ( mars et mai 1980), p. 16.
1o Derchain: BSFE, 87- 88 (mars et mai 1980). p. 14.
11 The cult of Hathor is attested in Abydos at least from the Middle Kingdom,
when some funerary stelae of citizens (Cairo Museum, CG 20219, 20397,
20713, 20748) mention Hathor "mistress of the High House" (ljw.t -ljr nb.t
pr- qs), maybe a worshipping place of the goddess. In these documents
Hathor is connected to Osiris (Cairo Museum, CG 20219, 20713) and Min
(Cairo Museum, CG 20397, 20748 ). For a discussion of the role played by
the cult of Hathor in Abydos, see ]. Spiegel, Die Gotter vom Abydos (GOF
IV.l ), Wiesbaden 1973, pp. 64-65.
195
F. Tiradritti
being able to act as intermediary with the divine world. This justifies the
existence and the importance of the king himself as guarantor of the cosmic
order.
For a literate .. model reader .. the series of gods says something more. He can
recognize the twelve gods as an Ennead, a conclave representing all the gods of
Egypt.12 He can also go further, interpreting the Ennead as a divine tribunal; in
fact, such is its main function.13 This last reading is also supported by the fact
that Ramesses IV is depicted offering justice to the gods. A comment on the
scene. pointing to this interpretation, can also be found in the text itself: mk wl
nls sbr-1 mbs.Q. .Q.mk .Qnc r/SrHt cs.t lmy btk .. Lol I am declaring my conduct
before Your Majesty and the Great Tribunal following you .. .l-4
Thus it seems that the scene of this stela has been conceived in order to give
two different messages:
1) the simplest is that the king is necessary to maintain the cosmic order;
2) the most important from the propaganda point of view, is that Ramesses
IV intentionally presents himself before a divine tribunal offering justice.
12 The text is full of references to the Ennead. W. Barta also (Untersuchungen
zum Gotterkreis der Neunheit [MAS 28], Mlinchen-Berlin 1973, p. 60)
explains the twelve gods before Ramesses IV in such a way. It is difficult to
understand why Christophe (MDAIK, 15 [19571. p. 36) and Derchain (BSFE,
87-88 [mars et mai 1980], pp. 14- 17) did not follow that interpretation
instead of analysing the deities as two or three different groups. Further, as
the Ennead is the specific one of Abydos, the absence of Amun remarked by
Peden (The Reign, p. 36) is not astonishing at all.
13 See Barta, MAS 28, pp. 31 - 35 and H. Brunner, s.v ... NeunheiC (LA IV) ,
Wiesbaden 1982, cc. 476- 477.
H (1. 12). The translation of s/)r as .. conduct"" (R.O. Faulkner, A Concise
Dictionary of Middle Egyptian, Oxford 1962, p. 242.3) is authorized by the
context itself. Korostovtsev (BI FAO, 45 [19471. p. 126: .. c'est moi qui revele
mes desseins devant Ta Majeste et (devant) le grand Conseil qui est
derriere toi. .. ) and Peden (Doc. Mundi Aegyp. 3, p. 16 3 and The Reign, p. 96
see, it is I who announce my plan(s) before Your Majesty, together with
the Great Tribunal accompanying you ... ) seem not to take into account the
nuance of the judgement and, in that way, their traslations fail to indicate
the connection between scene and text existing here. Also Derchain (BSFE,
87-88 [mars et mai 1980], p. 15) reports this sentence without perceiving
the ties between writing and image.
196
A Stela of Ramesses IV from Abydos
This second theme is resumed and developed in the text of the stela.
The similarities shared by the central part of the text with the so- called
"Declaration of Innocence" of Chapter 12 5 of the Book of the Dead have already
been stressed.1s But the comparison with the Book of the Dead - especially with
Chapter 12 5 - is more striking and involves the whole text on the stela.
The text of Ramesses IV is conceived as a speech of the king t o no explicit
addressee. At the beginning, the king states he read some documents stored in
the House of Life looking for "his father, his lord". At the end of his research,
the king gives a description of the god he found.l6 The god is compared to the
moon. to the flood and it is stated that he is the king of the Netherworl d.
This part of the text can be compared with the beginning of Chapte r 12 5,
where the dead states he knows the god ("I know you. I know your name" l7).
Evidently, as the text of Ramesses IV is a royal one, the topic is developed in a
quite different way from the funerary composition. The knowledge of the god
is preceded by the search for him. a typical rhetorical means used in the royal
compositions to emphasize the greatness of the king.IS In this case the accuracy
in the search for the god is demonstrated by the large space attributed to the
description of the search itself. The unusual development of the passage serves
the purpose of emphasizing the superiority of the king (who is able to read the
documents of Thoth in the House of Life) and the superiority of the god
(recognized as being the most mysterious and the oldest).19
IS See, i.e., Donadoni, Testi religiosi, p. 434. Another stela of Ramesses IV
("Great Stela for Osiris for length of Reign, Year 4, Abydos") contains a
passage directly following the form of the "Declaration of innocence" (KRI
VI, 18, 7- 15).
16 Nowhere does the text clearly state the identity of the god. The addresses of
the king to the god are always made by epithets It-! nb-1 (I. 2, 12 ), ,flm -k (I.
[ 4], 8. 11. 12) or by the pronoun of I I sing. m. This feature matches the very
nature of Osiris whose name has to be secret. That the monument is
dedicated to him is stated only at the very end of the text: lr.n-f m mnw-f
n It wslr .(Jnty-lmnt.t Mr cg ,flks g.t (I. 35). The non-explicit addressee led
Piehl (ZAS. 23 [18851. pp. 18-19) to explain the first part of the text as an
hymn dedicated to Thoth.
17 R. Lepsius. Das Todtenbuch der Agypter nach dem hieroglyphischen
Papyrus in Turin, Leipzig 1842, pl. XLVI,l.
18 A knowledge of the god deriving from an act of learning of the king is to be
found in "The Invocation to the Nile", written on stelae of Sety I. Ramesses
II. Merenptah and Ramesses III in West Silsila (KRI I. 89. 13- 16).
19 /p.n-1 m lb -llt-1 nb-1 [m mgs.tlgn.wt] n.t g,flwty !my pr-'nb bw ws,fl-1
lmy.w r - gr.w r tm dgs st r .fl.fly wr.w r ngs.w m Mr.w ntr.wt gm.n-1 [.Qm-k]
197
F. Tiradritti
At this point. there is a change in the text: Ramesses IV claims to present
himself before the divine tribunal and pronounces a short preamble where he
introduces a Declaration of Innocence developed ar ound the themes of
legitimacy and correct behaviour towards the god. These topics are very
different from those of the funerary literature for they derive completely, once
more, from the royal rhetorical speech.
As in Chapter 125 of the Book of the Dead all the arguments in the
Declaration of Innocence of the stela of Ramesses IV are expressed by means of
negative sentences. As for the meaning, the text of the stela, based on
propagandistic topics, can be roughly divided into three sections:20 in the first
the king reaffirms his legitimacy (1. 15 KRI VI. 23, 8- 9); in the second he
states he has not committed any evil against the gods (11. 15- 18 KRI VI. 23,9-
14), and in the third one he goes back to the subject of legitimacy (11. 18- 19-
KRI VI. 23, 14- 15).
In the first section, legitimacy is affirmed by the sentences tl bw osf-1 it-i
bw nc-1 mw.t - I "I .have not denied my father and I have not rejected my
mother". On the contrary, the following sentence ( ) seems
to change the topic of the text. But that is only apparently true.
Strangely enough the word Hapy is followed by the hieroglyphic sign
representing the king ( t!1 ) instead of the determinative for the god ( fJ ).21 In
m psg.t tmm.t(l) lJpr.w-k nb t5.w rst "I recognized with my thought my
father. my Lord [in the book/annals) of Thoth which are in the House of
Life. I have not neglected what is in them so as to complete their
consultation to look for the great and the lesser among the gods and the
goddesses. I found [Your Majesty) among the entire Ennead, your forms, o
Lord, being more mysterious than their ones" (11. 2- 4 KRI VI. 22, 4-7). The
is mine and partially differs from the others given until now.
20 In the Stela of the Year 4. where another Declaration of Innocence appears,
an exact division into topics cannot be detected, though "legitimacy" and
"correct behaviour towards the gods" are the central themes of the speech.
21 It could be interpreted as a scribal oversight. In 1. 12 ( KRI VI. 23,5) one
finds ttl instead of and, in lw rdl.nl nk nry etc. (1. 2 3 KRI VI.
2 4,8 ), the suffix pronoun I sing., usually written t!]. appears as Such
exchanges of signs seem to be derived from a phenomenon of attraction: in
fact the oversight of the lapicide intervenes in points of the text where the
signs of the king (1. 12) or that of the god (l. 23) recur many times. This also
could be the case of the sentence here considered. However it is very
strange to find such an error in a place where it gives a further meaning to
the text. In support of the hypothesis that the sign of the king at the end of
the word .(l'py has to be considered here a choice and not an oversight of
198
A Stela of Ramesses IV from Abydos
this case the sign can be explained as the lst singular suffix pronoun rather
than a determinative. Thus the sentence can be read as nn /)sf-ll)cpyliJdf l m
1 have not diverted my inundation from where it flows. In that way the
pre sence of the s uffix pronoun creates a sentence that, in order to be
understood, needs a metaphorical reading.22
In a r oyal context, as is the case of the stela of Ramses IV, "" Nile and
"" inundation are frequently employed to refer metaphorically to the king and
to kingship.23 The terms can be connected to each other because all of them are
necessary to the existence of Egypt. That the Nile and the inundation are
necessary is univer sally true; as for the king and kingship, their necessity is
affirme d in royal text s and the related literature. In this peculiar case,
speaking about my inundation can be interpreted as the will of the writer to
r efer not to a general kingship but rather to a specific one, that is to say, the
kingship directely deriving from the family. Further the flowing of water is
frequently used in Egyptian literature to mean a good situation, a correct
the scribe, another occurence of the same word can be brought forward (1. 7
- KRI VI, 2 2.12 ). The orthography is quite different and can also correspond
to a different meaning: in 1. 7 ( l r!J ) it can refer to the actual god and
can be translated as ""Nile; while in 1. 15 ( ) it can refer rather to the
manifestation of the god and can be translated as "" inundation.
Furthermore, as the text is certainly a copy from a hieratic original, where
the sign of the god is well differentiated from that of the king, it is hard to
imagine confusion occurring. Another orthography of l)cpy ( . 1.
32 - KRI VI, 25.4) seems to be derived from the for mer two. In this case it
can be translated as "" Nile-floods or ""Nile-inundations (see also Peden, Doc.
Mundi Aegypt. 3, p. 171 and The Reign, p. 100).
22 In Ch apter 125 of the Book of the Dead a very similar sentence can be
found: ....... ... -- have not diverted the water in its season
(Lepsiu s. Todtenbuch, pl. XLVI. 10). The substitution of water for
""inundation (generic vs. specific) can be attributed to the writer"s intention
of adding a further meaning to the passage and supports a metaphorical
reading.
23 For discussions on the metaphorical value of "" Nile and "" inundation like
king and kingship, see H. Grapow, Die Bildlichen A usdrucke des
Agy ptischen. Vom Denken und Dichtern einer altorientalischen Sprache,
Leipzig 1924, pp. 6 1- 62 and F. Haikal, L eau dans Jes metaphores de J"gypte
ancienne: B. Menu (ed.), Les problemes institutionnels de J"eau en gypte
ancienne et dans J"antiquite mediterraneenne, CoJJoque AIDEA, Vogue 1992
(BdE CX), Le Caire 1994, p. 207.
199
F. Tiradritti
development of affairs.24 In this frame, the sentence 1 have not diverted my
Inundation takes the value of reaffirming the legitimacy of the king: he keeps
maintaining the function of the kingship because this comes to him, flowing
from his father. In such a way the text of Ramesses IV resumes the topic of
the two previous sentences, bringing it to a conclusion.
Having accepted the metaphorical reading of this sentence we could draw
o ur attention to the third section, going back again to the topic of legitimacy.
This time Ramesses IV says: bw tkni s .Q.r ns.t itf rb.kwi bw.t nk is pw I
have not attacked someone on the throne of his father, because I know that it
is an abomination to you (1. 18- KRI VI, 23, 14- 15). The following sentence
runs as nn !'d.nl bd.t m ktt=st mst.t tp .Qsbw-sn '' I have no cut barley while it
was little and the mst.t- plant25 before it was counted'' (1. 18- 19 KRI VI. 23,
15 ). In this case also. it seems that the sentence has nothing to do with the
context. But a metaphorical reading is possible based on the topic of legitimacy:
Ramesses IV states that he waited for harvest time before picking the fruits:
that is to say that he did not seize power before the time had come for him.
The idea expressed in this sentence finds its parallel in the one preceding it.
Both are built around the theme of immaturity (the heir and the fruit) and
colour the topic of legitimacy giving a more specific meaning to the words of
Ramesses IV: he denies seizing the throne from him who was the legitimate
heir .
Thus the two affirmations of legitimacy open and close the Declaration of
Innocence that, from the semantic point of view, is to be considered as
composed as a chiasmus (legitimacy - correct behaviour towards the gods -
24 Haikal, BdE CX. pp. 205 - 206. The deviation and the barrage of the
inundation and the Nile, on the contrary, are usually employed to describe
an extr emely critical situation. Some examples of such descriptions are
briefly discussed in R.A. Caminos, A Tale of Woe. From a Hieratic Papyrus in
the A.S. Pushkin Museum of Fine Arts in Moskow, Oxford 1977, p. 51 . In
'The Instruction of the King Amenemhat I to His Son Sesostris r. the
troubles in royal succession, deriving from the plot against the king, are
described as an interruption of the water canalisation (see N. Grimal. Le
sage, J'eau et Je roi: B. Menu (ed.), Les problemes institutionnels de reau en
Egypte ancienne et dans rantiquite mediterraneenne, Colloque AIDEA.
Vogue 1992 [BdE CX], Le Caire 1994. p. 202).
25 Peden (Doc. Mundi Aegypt. 3. p. 165 and The Reign, p. 97) transaltes mst.t
as "mandrakes". But the identification with the Calatropis procera proposed
by Daumas (Note sur la plante MAT}ET: BIFAO, 56 [19571. pp. 59- 64) seems
more correct. See also D. Meeks. Annee Lexicographique. Egypte ancienne,
Paris 1981. p. 154 [n. 78.1648].
200
A Stela of Ramesses IV fro m Abydos
legitimacy). The stylistic coherence of the passage is to be fo und also in the
choice of the ter ms on which the two methaphors are built. In fact . .(lcpy and
m5[.t occur in a si milar context. once again in funerary literature: ink .(l cpy imy
rnp.t - f il.n-i min m t5-nlr iw mss.n-i idb m5I. t "I am the Nile who is in his
year . I have come here from the Land of the God after having seen the bank of
the mst.t - pl ant "26 states the Spell 317 of the Coffin Texts. This coincidence
could be fortuitous but one cannot dismiss the possibility that it derives from a
definite will of the text writer.
The references to the Book of the Dead and the Coffin Texts. the composition
in chiasmus and the use of the metaphor make the Declaration of Innocence in
the ste la of Ramesses IV a very elaborate piece of literature. f ully appreciable
only by learned people. Since the stele is in Abydos. this is not surprising. It is
possible that the text has been composed in the local House of Life and that. as
possible reader. it takes into account also the personnel of this learned
istitution. being able to catch the little nuances of me aning and sty le too.
However, all these textual artifices are but secondary to the transmission and
comprehension of the main message and represent just an enrichment to the
tex t.
The similar ities between the stela and Chapter 125 do not stop here. The
following invocations to each god of the Ennead depicted in the scene27 find a
parallel in the invocations to the forty -two gods of the divine tribunal of the
Book of the Dead. thus giving another formal connection between the two texts.
As for the content. in Ch apter 125 the dead declares again his innocence before
every god; in the stela of Ramesses IV. the king states he perfor med some
peculiar rite for each god.
From thi s point on. the two texts diverge in for m and content. The stela of
Ramesses IV continues and ends with a prayer where the king proclaims all
the good deeds he has done and asks for the protection of the gods upon him
and his offspring.
26 A. De Buck. The Egyptian Coffin Texts IV: Texts of Spells 268- 35 4 (OIP
LXV I 1), Chicago 19 51 . 120g- 121 c. My translation differs f rom that given by
Faulkner (The Ancient Egyptian Coffin Texts. Vol. I. Warminster 1978, p.
244). I took into account the version in SlP that seems to me the more
correct and I chose to traslate the m as a preposition of motion rather than
of predication. Although the reading of Faulkner cannot be r ejected (on the
basis of S 1 C). in my opinion. it is better to understand the passage as a
description of the inundation coming from the south.
27 Tefnut is here r eplaced by Sekhmet.
201
F. Tiradritti
But also the texts on the two margins of the stel a recall the funerary
literature. They are very similar to the solar hymns appearing in the Book of
the Dead and in the Theban tombs of the New Kingdom. It is noteworthy that
in the post - Amarna period the hymns in the tombs are dedicated to Re
(Sonnenaufgang) and Osiris (Sonnenunt ergang)28 like the texts in the
monument of Ramesses IV. However, after the address to the gods and some
common themes, the texts of the margins differ completely from the sol ar
hymns and they end in a prayer where the king asks the god for a long life.
Conclusion
The Abydos larger stela of Ramesses IV has no parallel in contemporary
documents and in other royal stelae erected at Abydos before the XXth
dynasty. The stela can be rel ated to the typical method of propaganda of the
end of the New Kingdom, when the royal administration sends messages in a
way which comes up to the reader's expectations. Such a rethorical behavior is
mainly detectable in documents found in the Theban area where it is possible
to single out a realistic picture of the linguistical identity of the inhabitants, as
to differentiate various addressees. So the topics and the language of the texts
are usually used to point to a peculiar category of people. The most striking
example is represented by the stela car ved by Ramesses II J29 in the rock
shrine of Mertseger at Deir el-Medina. In that case, the language is the same
attested by the writing documents found among the ruins of the work men
village. And the subject of the text is an answer to the worries of the workmen
about t he dangerous proximity of foreign tribes. The form of the text is very
schematic and repetitive as to make the text easier to understand. All these
rethorical means work together to carry ou t a selection among the possible
addressees and give more effectiveness to the message.
In Abydos, the use of a textual form reflecting the Book of t he Dead is a very
effective means of better attaining a high number of literate readers, that are
identifiable with the people living in the town and frequenting the necropolis
28 J. Ass mann, Sonnenhymnen in Thebanischen Gr;ibern. Band 1. (Theben 1).
Mainz am Rhein 1983: p. xv. In the tombs of the previous period Atum
appears instead of Osiris .. Usually, the hymn dedicated to Re is to the left of
the entrance or on the southern stela, whereas the hymn dedicated to A tum
- or Osiris - is to the right or on the northern stela.
29 KRI V, 90 -91.
202
A Stela of Ramesses IV from Abydos
and the places of worship. In this stela the royal speech becomes mimetic and
it bends to t he rules dictated by the funerary literature. following the form and
handling the themes of the more well -known and widespread compositions of
the Egyptian f unerary literature.
The t ext and the scene concur in presenting Ramesses IV submitted to
judgment before a divine tribunal where he asserts his legitimacy in different
ways. This proves that the stel a belongs to a period of the reign when there
was the need t o s t ress this topic and that cannot be much after the death of
Ramesses III. The almost complete absence of the legitimacy theme in the
l atter documents of the reign of Ramesses IV could also suppor t this
hypothesi s.30
30 Peden (Doc. Mundi Aegypt. 3. p. 159 and The Rei gn. p. 35) has tentatively
dated this stel a to the year 4 of Ramesses IV. In my opinion. this date i s too
far from the death of Ramesses III to be right. The prenomen .Qks- ms<.t - r<
stp-n - lmn. written under the s un-disk in the scene. does not prove that the
monument was written after the second year of the reign because it is
attested also in year 1 (Ostracon Cairo Musem CG 25651: see j. Cerny,
Catalogue General des Antiquites Egyptiennes du Musee du Caire. N.os
25501 - 25832: Ostraca hieratiques. Tomes I et II. Le Caire 1935. pp. 49. 70
and Pl. LXV 1). Furthermore. the stela of year 4 from Abydos is distant - in
the l anguage, the composition and the themes - from the one here
considered. This makes the possibility t hat the two documents are to be
considered as contemporary very unlikely.
203