Sah before the PTs
Sah attested before the Pyramid Texts?
"The god Sah personified the constellation of Orion - the most distinctive of all the constellations in the night sky. (R.H. Wilkinson 2003: 127)
sAH - Orion (constellation) - 'Egyptian Dictionary I - Old Kingdom and FIP' Hannig 2003: 1066
sAH - constellation Orion - 'A Concise Dictionary of Middle Egyptian' Faulkner 1962: 210
Early Dynastic seal with D61 (sAH) triliteral sign:
'The Royal Tombs of the Earliest Dynasties' Part II, Petrie 1901: Pl. xvi, 116
Above and behind the national shrine of Upper Egypt - the 'Great House' (pr wr) at Nekhen (nxn) - the "earliest centre of Egyptian royal power and cult centre of Horus as god of kingship " is the Sah hieroglyph.
Below and in front of the 'Great House', a recumbent feline, probably a lioness, with a tall structure on her back, may represent the cult image of the leonine goddess Mehit (mHt) protecting the 'Great House'. The tall structure on the back of the feline has a curious bend in the upper section. Old Kingdom depictions show a bend in a single vertical rod? that may represent a simplified version.
The sign O180 (extended library) has the vertical rod / pillar with the bend incorporated into a structure (shrine?) as a centre support:
In the extended sign list, P11A, a nautical term? - perhaps a variation of P11 'mooring post' (mjnt):
detail of a wooden panel from the Dynasty 3 tomb of Hesire showing the recumbent feline with a vertical rod on her back (lower centre), and the goddess Mehit (V23 (mH) X1 (t) + 'recumbent feline' det.) - top right hand corner.
recumbent feline (Mehyt) and pole with semicircular bend midway
Dynasty 4 Stela of Wepemnofret, right column:
mDH zXAw nswt, mDH-(archaic title) Hm-nTr sSAt xntt pr mDH (w)t iry-xt nswt
Commander of the king's scribes, 'overseer (of the cult image) of Mehyt'? (archaic title - uncertain meaning), priest of Seshat, foremost of the archive(s) of the keeper of the king's property.
Wepemnofret - an 'Overseer of the Royal Scribes' associated with
building construction. The recumbent feline under the axe sign, precedes the emblem of Seshat, referred to as 'Lady of Builders' in the Pyramid Texts (Sethe Vol 1: 331; §616 b).
Mehyt - Dynasty 4 Stela of Wepemnofret, top row
late pre-dynastic depiction of ship: poles with full circles
Great Sah
Written with the 'star' determinative, Sah was an astral entity, securely attested in the Pyramid Texts from the end of Dynasty 5. Obviously an important deity, Sah was referred to as 'Father of the Gods' in the earliest texts of Unis and Teti.
A possible earlier Dynasty 4 allusion to Sah, is an inscription in the tomb of Metjen, Ruler of the House / Palace of 'Great Sah' (wr sAH + 3x 'town' or 'place' det. O49):
'Great Sah' was probably named after Sah, 'Father of the Gods,' referred to as 'Great' in the Papyrus of Ani, Pl. 15, Chap. 23:
"I am Sah (sAH) the Great who dwells with the Souls (bAw) of Iunu."
A Pyramid Text referring to Sah (sAH, Orion) has the 'town' determinative, O49:
"I have gone up on the ladder, with my foot on Orion (sAH) and my arm is in elevation." Nt 272b (PT 625A §1763c)
Sethe Vol 2: 425; §1763c
In the Middle Kingdom Coffin Texts, a 'Mansion of Orion' (Hwt sAH) is mentioned:
"My mother is Sirius (spd.t), and she prepares my path, she sets up a stairway to this very great plain of Nenmut for my ascent from the Valley of the Mountain of the Sehseh-bird on the north with my river-banks, at the place where Orion issues. I find Orion standing in my path with his staff of rank(?) in his hand; I accept it from him and I will be a god by means of it. He gives me his staff which is in his hand, and I will cause the strong ones(?) to tremble by means of it. I will spit on(?) the great ones by means of it, it will make me noble in the presence of Sirius, it will make me secure in the Mansion of Orion. I ascend and appear as a god, my signs of rank are on me, and I will make the lands of the Fenkhu impotent through them. I sit on the throne within the shrine and make summons to Orion (sAH) that he should come to me. O Orion (sAH), come and see me!......." CT 469 (V 390)
In the tomb of Metjen, sAH also appears in sAH.t-bA, the name of a town in the HAt-mHjt provence of the north east delta. (Hannig 2003: 1551, 1564)
Sahure
Another possible allusion to the god Sah, is found in the name of the second king of Dynasty 5, Sahure (sAHw ra):
Sahure - from a column in Sahure's mortuary complex
Sahure - Dynasty 5 tomb of Neferirtenef link
Sahure - Seti I, kings list, Dynasty 19
The king's name Sahure, is written: N5 (ra) + D61 (sAH) + G43 (w)
The 'sun' sign (N5), is the determinative for 'sun','day', and 'time', but with the 'falcon on standard' determinative (G7) is the ideogram for the sun as a deity. In Sahure's name, the 'Sun' (ra) as a deity, is incorporated into his name (the determinative is omitted in names).
The name could be translated 'Ra (the Sun) has endowed me'
If sAHw is a verb in Sahure, the name could also be translated, 'He who is near or close to Ra'.
Examples of sAHw as a verb, and used as a play on words with sAH (Orion):
"......the stars which are near (sAHw) Orion" (sAH + 'falcon on standard' det.) PT 738 §2268e (Faulkner supplement p. 81)
"I have descended in order to see Him who is astray, even your fifth, you neighbouring (sAHw) stars in Orion (sAH)." (CT 124; II, 147)
The D61 (sAH) sign is used in the words 'toe', 'kick', 'approach', but with the 'star' determinative (N14), refers to the deity Sah (the 'Father of the Gods' in the Pyramid Texts of Unis and Teti).
'Sah' in Sahure, may simply have the phonetic value, sAH, but sAH could refer to the god Sah, in the same way ra refers to the Sun as a deity, which means Sahure incorporates the name of not just one, but two deities.
This is consistent with a Dynasty 6 'Pyramid Text' of Pepi II, and Neith, where the Sun (ra) is the brother of Sah:
"The sky's two reedfloats have been set for the Sun (ra), that he may go on high from east to west to the midst of his brothers the gods. Orion (sAH) is his brother, Sothis (spdt) is his sister, and he will sit between them in this world forever." Nt 277 (PT 691A §2126; hieroglyphs, Faulkner supplement p. 53).
A stellar aspect to the king's afterlife
"So-called airshafts, only 20cm (8in) square, leave the north and south walls of the chamber and emerge high up on the corresponding faces of the pyramid. These also were found in the original high-level burial chamber, and seem to have been aimed at particular stars, implying a stellar aspect to the king's afterlife - although as we have seen he was later more closely associated with the sun. Interestingly, the pyramid for Khufu's immediate successor, Djedefra, bore a name that described the king as a 'shining star'" (Dr Aidan Dodson, specialist in Egyptian funerary archaeology - Link )
Although little is known about the king's afterlife before the appearance of the Pyramid Texts, Early Dynastic seal impressions that denote royal domains or land-holdings established to support royal activities, especially the royal mortuary cult, imply a stellar aspect in the king's afterlife:
Dynasty 1, Anedjib, 'Horus, star of the corporation' (Hrw sbA Xt)
Dynasty 2, Hetepsekhemwy, 'Horus, risen as a star' (Hrw xa sbA)
Dynasty 2, Khasekhmwy, 'Horus, the star of bas' (Hrw sbA bAw)
Dynasty 3, Netjerikhet, 'Horus, the foremost star of the sky' (Hrw sbA xnti pt)
(T. Wilkinson 2001 (1999): 119)
The names of some early pyramids are either explicitly stellar, or allude to a stellar aspect in the royal afterlife that complemented the important solar aspect:
'Horus is the star at the head of the sky' (the name of Netjerikhet's pyramid / funerary domain; Quirke (after Helck) 2000: 116)
'Nebka is a star' (Edwards 1985 (1947): 282) (Another possible translation, 'Instructors of Nebka' (Strudwick, 2005)
'Khufu's Akhet' (according to the Pyramid Texts, the king became akh in the Akhet, and akhs were the northern Imperishable Stars)
'Djedefre is a shining star' (Strudwick 2005: xxix); 'Radjedef's star' (J.P. Allen 1998)
‘The appearance of the ba of Sahure’ (Strudwick 2005: xxx)
‘The ba of Neferirikare’ (Strudwick 2005: xxx)
Divine are the bas of Neferefre' (Strudwick 2005: xxx)
'Ba-names' imply the pyramid was a manifestation of the ba of the king. According to the Pyramid Texts, the ba of the king appeared as a star in the sky:
"You (Nut) have encircled the land and everything within your arms, and have placed this Pepi as an Imperishable Star that is in you (P 20)..........that you (Nut) might make (each of) them a star, as 'She of a Thousand Bas' (xA-bAw), and they might not go away from you as stars, you should not let Pepi be away from you, in your identity of the above.” P 22 (PT 434 §785)
Allen's note on 'She of a Thousand Bas': “Nut, whose "Thousand Bas" are the stars of the night sky.”
From the Middle Kingdom Coffin Texts: "See, its starry sky (xA.s-bAw, lit. its 'thousand-are-her-bas') is in Iunu, the sun-folk are in Kheraha, because its thousand gods are born...." CT 1030
Nut, personification of the visible sky, was identified with the royal pyramid that enclosed and protected the physical remains of the king:
“You have been given to your mother Nut in her identity of the burial chamber, and you have been elevated to her in her identity of the tomb's superstructure.” T 196 (PT 364 §616)
The king was given to his mother Nut in her identity of the sarcophagus. (M 291)
The underlying meaning and implications of names of pyramids that are explicitly stellar or allude to a stellar aspect to the king's afterlife only become apparent in the royal funerary texts inscribed within pyramids from the end of Dynasty 5. In the earliest Pyramid Texts, the king became clean in the cool waters of the stars, and the Imperishable Stars raised him aloft (W 147); the king led the Imperishable Stars (W 175); he was given birth by Shezmetet as a star and he appeared as a star (W 159); the king 'parted' his place in the sky amongst the stars of the sky, the lone star at Nut's shoulder (W 156); Atum took the arm of the king and allotted him to the wise and experienced Imperishable Stars (W 176); the king was the son of Sopdet (spdt, personification of Sirius, the brightest star in their sky), and Sopdet flew the king to the sky amidst his brothers the gods (W 207); the king was given title as the greatest controlling power by Sah (sAH, the constellation Orion), the father of the gods - the king reappeared in the sky and was crowned as lord of the Akhet. (W 180b)
Many important deities mentioned in the Pyramid Texts (Atum, Shu, Tefnut, Nut, Isis, Nephthys etc.), are not attested in the archeological record before the end of Dynasty 5. Other deities (Horus, Seth, Hathor, Anubis, Thoth, Sun, Khnum, Neith, Shezmetet, Bastet etc.) are attested from the Early Dynastic Period, but little is known of their role in the king's afterlife.
The leonine goddess, Shezmetet, attested from the Early Dynastic Period and from Dynasty 4, is associated with the king's rebirth as a star in the earliest Pyramid Texts.
Nefermaat, and Hemiunu were both ‘Overseer of all the king’s works’ (imy-rA kAt nb(t) nt nswt), a title that implies overall responsibility for the realization of the royal mortuary complexes of Snefru and Khufu. This is consistent with the career of Khnumenti who was ‘Overseer of all the works of the king’ (imy-rA kAt nb(t) nt nswt), and ‘Royal master builder in both houses’ (mDH qd nswt prwy)
Khnumenti's son, Nekhebau, progressed from common builder (qdw n aSAt), to 'Inspector of Builders' (sHD n qdw), to 'Overseer of Builders' (imy-rA qdw), to 'Royal Master Builder' (mDH qd nswt), to 'Royal Master Builder in Both Houses' (mDH qd nswt prwy), and finally ‘Overseer of Works'. Nekhebau was his older brother's scribe and secretary, and when his brother was appointed 'Inspector of Builders', Nekhebau's duty was to carry his brother's measuring rod (mAt). Nekhebau's brother went on to become ‘Overseer of all the works of the king’ (imy-rA kAt nb(t) nt nswt), and ‘Royal master builder in both houses’.
It seems from the following royal decree, that after receiving instructions from the council, the 'overseer of all the works of the king' submitted his plans to the court council for consideration.
“Royal decree (to) the chief justice and vizier, overseer of all works of the k[ing], and overseer of scribes of royal records, Senedjemib [the Elder]. My Majesty has seen this ground plan (which you [se]nt) to be considered in the court council for the precinct of the broad court of the keep of Izezi of the jubilee festival. Moreover, {you} say to My Majesty that you have made {i}t {to} a length of 1,000 cubits and {to} [a width] of 440 cubits, in accordance with what was commanded to you in the court council. How well {indeed y}ou know how to say {better than anything} what {Izezi} wishes! It is surely in accordance with the heart’s desire of Izezi that god has made you.
My Majesty knows that you are more skillful than any overseer of works who has (ever) come into being in this [en]tire land. Much has been done through you so that what I want more than anything might [be] done. You have indeed acted as director on innumerable [occasions], and [you] {are (henceforth) to serve as over}seer of all works of the king. O {Se}nedjemib the Elder, I assuredly lo{ve} you, and assuredly it is known that I love you. Year of the [1]6th count, 4th month of summer, day 28.” (From the tomb (G 2374) of Khnumenti, GM7 pp.115-6)
(note: ‘both houses’, Upper and Lower Egypt)
Nefermaat, most likely a son of Snefru (or perhaps Huni), was a ‘Priest of the goddess Shezmetet’ (Hm nTr Szmtt). Hemiunu, a probable son of Nefermaat, followed in his father’s footsteps, and was also a ‘Priest of Shezmetet’.
Little is known of Shezmetet's role in the royal afterlife beliefs of Dynasty 4, but in the earliest Pyramid Texts her role is clear - Shezmetet gave birth to the king as a star - the king appearing as a star:
“Unis is a great one: Unis has emerged from the Ennead's thighs. Unis has been conceived by Sekhmet, and Shezmetet is the one who gave birth to Unis, a star (sbA) with sharp front and extensive goings, who fetches what the above has for the Sun every day. Unis has come to his seat with the Two Ladies on it, appearing as a star (sbA).” W 159 (PT 248) Sethe Vol 1: 143; §§262-3
Later texts also mentioning Shesmetet, confirm her association with the conception and new birth of the deceased:
".....I have issued from between the thighs of the Enneads; Shesmet conceived and bore me." (CT 364); "I was conceived and borne by Shesmetet......" (CT 485)
Depictions of the king being embraced or suckled by a leonine goddess were included in the 'decorative' scheme of Dynasty 4 - 5 royal mortuary complexes:
Snefru embraced by a leonine goddess (Bastet?, Sekhmet?, Shezmetet?) - from Snefru's Valley Temple)
Shezmetet was represented in the cult complex of Userkaf. (A. Labrouse, J.P. Lauer 2000: doc. 209. fig. 281)
Niuserre with leonine goddess
Chris Tedder, December 2009