Egyptian Tales — W. M. Flinders Petrie
EGYPTIAN TALES, Second Series You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org . If you are not located in the United States, you will have to check the laws of the country where you are located before using this eBook. Title : Egyptian Tales, Translated from the Papyri: Second series, XVIIIth to XIXth dynasty Author : W. M. Flinders Petrie Release date : February 1, 2005 [eBook #7413] Most recently updated: November 20, 2012 Language : English Other information and formats : www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/7413 Credits : Produced by Eric Eldred and David Widger *** START OF 65) EGYPTIAN TALES TRANSLATED FROM THE PAPYRI SECOND SERIES, XVIIIth TO XIXth DYNASTY EDITED BY W. M. FLINDERS PETRIE, HON. D.C.L., LL.D. EDWARDS PROFESSOR OF EGYPTOLOGY, UNIVERSITY COLLEGE, LONDON ILLUSTRATED BY TRISTRAM ELLIS SECOND EDITION First Published . . . September 1895 Second Edition . . . February 1913 PG Editor's Note: This early contribution to Project Gutenberg has been reproofed with many corrections of spelling, scannos and punctuation. The html file has received many hours of work to make the illustrations visible and the file conform to WCA standards. A great deal more work is needed to bring this file to prsent day PG standards. I have hopes another volunteer will find a print copy of this work which can be scanned and digitized to produce a file to replace this, as yet, unsatisfactory edition. DW PREFACE AS the scope of the first series of these Tales seems to have been somewhat overlooked, a few words of introduction may not be out of place before this second volume. It seems that any simple form of fiction is supposed to be a "fairy tale:" which implies that it has to do with an impossible world of imaginary beings. Now the Egyptian Tales are exactly the opposite of this, they relate the doings and the thoughts of men and women who are human—sometimes "very human," as Mr. Balfour said. Whatever there is of supernatural elements is a very part of the beliefs and motives of the VI PREFACE people whose lives are here pictured. But most of what is here might happen in some corner of our own country to-day, where ancient beliefs may have a home. So far, then, from being fairy tales there is not a single being that could be termed a fairy in the whole of them. Another notion that seems to be about is that the only possible object of reading any form of fiction is for pure amusement, to fill an idle hour and be forgotten and if these tales are not as amusing as some jester of to-day, then the idler says, Away with them as a failure! For such a person, who only looks to have the tedium of a vacuous mind relieved, these tales are not in the least intended. But the real and genuine charm of all fiction is that of enabling the reader to place himself in the mental position of, another, to see with the eyes, to feel with the thoughts, to reason with the mind, of a wholly different being. All the greatest work has this charm. It may be to place the reader PREFACE vii in new mental positions, or in a different level of the society that he already knows, either higher or lower; or it may be to make alive to him a society of a different land or age. Whether he read "Treasure Island" or "Plain Tales from the Hills," "The Scarlet Letter," "Old Mortality," or "Hypatia," it is the transplanting of the reader into a new life, the doubling of his mental experience, that is the very power of fiction. The same interest attaches to these tales. In place of regarding Egyptians only as the builders of pyramids and the makers of mummies, we here see the men and women as they lived, their passions, their foibles, their beliefs, and their follies. The old refugee Sanehat craving to be buried with his ancestors in the blessed land, the enterprise and success of the Doomed Prince, the sweetness of Bata, the misfortunes of Ahura, these all live before us, and we can for a brief half hour share the feelings and see with the eyes of those who ruled the world when it was young. This is the real via PREFACE value of these tales, and the power which still belongs to the oldest literature in the world. Erratum in First Edition, 1st Series. Page 31, line 6 from below, for no It read not I. CONTENTS PAGE THE TAKING OF JOPPA . . . 1 REMARKS .... 7 THE DOOMED PRINCE . . 13 REMARKS . . . .28 ANPU AND BATA . . . 36 REMARKS . . . -65 SETNA AND THE MAGIC BOOK . . 87 REMARKS . . . .119 INDEX ..... 143 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS PAGE THE QUEEN'S TRIAL . . . Frontispiece SMITING THE FOE . . . . 4 THE TWO HUNDRED SACKS . . -5 THE PRINCE'S HOUSE . . . 14 GOING INTO THE DESERT . . 16 THE CLIMBING SUITORS . . 17 REACHING THE WINDOW . . .21 LOVE'S RESCUE . . . . 23 THE BOWL OF MILK . . . .26 THE RETURN AT EVEN . . '37 GOING TO THE FIELDS . . 39 WAITING FOR CORN . . . .40 THE DARK RETURN . . . -43 THE AMBUSH. . . . 44 THE CANAL OF RA . . . 47 XII LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS THE HOUSE IN THE VALLEY . . . 50 THE PROPHECY . . . -51 THE RAVISHING SEA . . . -53 THE CHIEF FULLER OF PHARAOH . . 54 THE REUNION . . . . 58 ANPU ON THE BULL . . . -59 BATA'S PERSEA TREES . . .62 AHURA'S APPEAL . . . .88 READING THE INSCRIPTIONS . . . 92 SENDING THE SILVER . . -94 THE PRIESTS' WIVES . . . -97 SLAYING THE SNAKE . . -99 READING THE SPELL. . . . 104 REMORSE ..... 105 SETNA DEMANDING THE ROLL . . 108 SETNA VANQUISHED . . . . 109 APPLYING THE TALISMAN . . . 110 SETNA VICTORIOUS . . . .111 SETNA READING THE ROLL . . .113 XVIIITH DYNASTY THE TAKING OF JOPPA THERE was once in the time of King Men-kheper-ra a revolt of the servants of his majesty who were in Joppa; and his majesty said, "Let Tahutia go with his footmen and destroy this wicked Foe in Joppa." And he called one of his followers, and said moreover, "Hide thou my great cane, which works wonders, in the baggage of Tahutia that my power may go with him." Now when Tahutia came near to Joppa, with all the footmen of Pharaoh, he sent u