IFAO

The word ḥpt is most often translated by "oar" although the numerous entries in the Egyptian dictionaries show the embarrassment of the Egyptologists concerning its exact meaning. In the Old Kingdom ḥpt was only written with the phonogram , ḥp. It never referred to the part of a boat (oar, rudder...) nor to another object, and the nature of the object depicted by this sign still remains undetermined. Ḥpt is a verbal noun made from the verb root ḥp(ỉ), "to run, travel", and exclusively describes a travel, either fast or not, either by land or not. Consequently, depending on the context, ḥpt may be translated by "course, travel, journey". The related verbal expressions ỉṯỉ ḥpt and, later and more rarely, ỉrỉ and ỉnỉ ḥpt are to be understood in the same way: "to make a travel, to travel". However, in the later part of his reign, King Mentuhotep II of the Eleventh Dynasty introduced the oar-sign in place of the usual sign in the spelling of his throne name Nb-ḥpt-R.ʿ. Such a new spelling, based on ideological grounds, was certainly intended to emphasize the association of the king with the god Re aboard the solar bark in its daily course, in connexion with the ritual navigation for the god Amun-Re created in Thebes at that time. This writing of ḥpt with the oar-sign only became widespread from the Eighteenth Dynasty onwards. The oar-sign was then used either as determinative or as phonogram ḥp. This graphical change did not lead to semantic changes but aroused some ambiguity in the use of the word by the Egyptian themselves and in its understanding by modern scholars. Actually, the few examples in which ḥpt seems to mean "oar" (i.e. something like "the fast one") are rare and scattered through the Middle and New Kingdoms. Some of them, dating back to the Late New Kingdom, are of obscure meaning and their interpretation is still uncertain.

In spite of important damages on the south wall of the inner Hypostyle or room of appearence in Dendara, it was possible to determine that the four pictures, on the left side of the door form a coherent set. Through the power of the primeval god and god of creation Ptah-Tatenen, the universe of Tentyra gradually gets organised. The second and third pictures are in bad condition but we can guess that Montu is present and Thot, the god of learning, preserves the cosmic order he established. The top of the wall depicts the rising of the sun. The sungod Re-Horakhty appears and bestows integral kingship on Hathor. In her turn, the celestial goddess guarantees the investiture of the king who is charged with maintaining the cosmic order by specific rites.

The use of fabric sjȝ.t within the framework of the Ritual of the Embalming largely exceeds its material function. It forms part of a vast network of bonds – that this article tries to restore – referring to other elements of creation: Ġax, rising, sun, moon, etc.

This article describes the mining expeditions led to South-Sinai during the New Kingdom. Using the epigraphic material, it shall point out to the various sites that were selected and describe the expeditionary forces: their number, organisation, their leaders and the roads they followed.

Situé à la lisière du désert Libyque, à environ 25 km au sud du Caire, Abousir s'étend sur plus d'une centaine de kilomètres, d'Abou Roach au nord jusqu'à la frontière de l'oasis du Fayoum au sud.

Plusieurs souverains de la Ve dynastie, leurs familles et courtisans firent bâtir leurs tombes sur le territoire même du dieu des morts - per-ousir, « demeure (temple, domaine) d'Osiris ». Vaste champ de pyramides, inscrit au patrimoine mondial par l'Unesco depuis 1979, le site abrite également deux sépultures d'époque saïto-perse.