JEA 72, 1986, Quirke, The Hieratic Texts in the Tomb of Nakht

The Hieratic Texts in the Tomb of Nakht the Gardener, at Thebes (No. 161) as
Copied by Robert Hay
Stephen Quirke
The Journal of Egyptian Archaeology, Vol. 72. (1986), pp. 79-90.
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THE HIERATIC TEXTS IN THE TOMB OF
NAKHT THE GARDENER, AT THEBES (NO.
AS COPIED BY ROBERT HAY
By STEPHEN QUIRKE
Publication, with translation and commentary, of Hay's copies of the six groups of hieratic grafiiti
which he recorded in the tomb of Nakht.
AMONG the texts copied by Robert Hay in the tomb of Nakht are a number of hieratic
graffiti. Since Lise Manniche is now publishing the hieroglyphic texts, this seems a
good opportunity to present a preliminary study of the graffiti. It should be borne in
mind that Hay made these copies in the early part of the last century and under
difficult field conditions. These circumstances impose certain limitations on
present-day studies of his copies, but they also bear witness to the remarkable talent
of this early epigraphi~t.~
Graffito I (figs. 1-2)
This is recorded in Hay MS 29822, 107. Under the text, Hay has added the note 'over the
garden'. ?'his sets the graffito in the lowest register on the left wall. The hieroglyphic
inscriptions in the gardening scenes are nos. 34-7 in Lise Manniche's article.
Transliteration Translation
I. k~ry SI-'Imn fry htpw n 'Imn SI ....
I. The gardener Siamon, offering-bearer
Hwy.
.
of Amun, son of. .. Huy ..
2. s3.f. ......... Nn-nswt sdm n pr-hd n
2. His son ........ Nen-nesut, servant
Hnkt-rnb(?)
.. wnn .......
of the treasury of Henketcankh(?) ......
Commentary
kwy. This title points to affinity with the tomb owner, and this encourages me to read fty
htpw after the name. The graffito shows that the gardener was not merely a manual labourer;
he could be literate enough to write this text, just as he could be in the position of owning his
own tomb.
SI-'Imn. The reading is uncertain. Perhaps
& should be read in place of s~. This would
give 'gardener of Amun', but it would increase the difficulties at the end of the line.
f~yhtpw.
I had first considered the initial group separate, reading the following signs
Nfr-htpw. However, the writings for f~y and htpw, in Graffito
3, line 2 and Graffito 4, line I
respectively, support the transliteration given above.
Hwy. The name is unclear; the preceding signs would give the father's title, if his name
comes at the end. Perhaps the last group should be read nfr; the name Hwy-nfr was borne by
I am indebted to Lise Manniche for making available to me the Cambridge microfilms of the Hay
manuscripts. The present article was written on her initiative, and the credit for bringing these texts to the
attention of scholars is properly hers.
I should like also to thank John Ray for his help and suggestions.

80 STEPHEN QUIRKE
one of Nakht's sons. If this were the same man, the preceding title might be hry-hbt, but
these readings are too uncertain to allow any firm
conclusion^.^
st.f. This appears to record the visit of a father and son; similar visits are attested in graffiti
el~ewhere.~ at the Step
The terms 'father' and 'son' might refer to 'tutor' and 'p~pil';~
Pyramid there are two graffiti which mention school staff.5 However, the Nakht graffito
probably records the visit of a true father and son, since the first line contains indications
that they are related to the tomb owner.
Nn-nswt. Possibly to be transcribed
$A 3- 3- SF. Nn-nswt is the classical Heracleopolis
Magna, principal town of the Twentieth Upper Egyptian nome. There seems no reason to
connect this town with the title of a Theban, whereas its importance in mythology might
explain its place in a personal name.6 Either way, it is most unexpected in the context of a
Theban tomb.
sdm. This could be the end of the name, which would then read 'He of (?) Nen-nesut is the
one who hears (me)'. Such a name would be similar to Rr-sdm.' Nevertheless, until the
groups preceding Nn-nswt can be explained, it seems safer to follow the structure of the first
line: title-name-secondary title.
Hnkt-mb. This is a very tentative suggestion; from Moller, Pal. 11, 104, a fuller form of ad
hnk would be expected here. However, Hnkt-rnb was the name of Tuthmosis 111's mortuary
temple on the West Bank at Thebes, and the tomb of Nakht contains a scene of the deceased
offering to that king.8 Ricke cites a late Eighteenth Dynasty title which indicates an active
cult in Hnkt-mb at that time.g It is possible that both Nakht and the visitors to his tomb were
involved in the supply of floral offerings to the cult of Tuthmosis 111.
Graffito 2 (figs. 1-2)
The copy is in Hay MS 29822, I 10. There is no note as to its position in the tomb, but it may
be placed provisionally on the right wall.
Transliteration Translation
I. r n snir n Rr Hr-tbty hJt wbnf I. Text of incense for Ra-Horakhty when
he rises
2. m tbt ijbtt nt pt i.nd hr.k wbn Rr 2. in the Eastern horizon of heaven. Hail at
rising,
0 Ra!
3. psd.k m Hpri fsdk n Hr-jbty 3. You shine as Khepri, you dawn as
Horakhty.
4. Spdt hnr.k 4. Sothis is with you.
In inscription no. 57 of Lise Manniche's article, Huynefer presents the offering to his father Nakht, and in
inscription
IS he leads the line of Nakht's children. This seems to put him in the position of eldest son and,
therefore, chief lector-priest in his father's funerary cult. However, in inscriptions
5 and 25 he follows Khac, so
he may not be the principal figure in the funerary cult.
In the mastaba of Ptahshepses at Abusir (Spiegelberg,
RT 26 (1904), 152) and at the temple of Khons,
Karnak (Champollion,
Notices descriptives, 11, 240-3, no. 8, 11. 3-4).
Bierbrier, JEA 66 (1980), 101-2.
Firth and Quibell, Step Pymmid, I, 78 text A; 80 text F.
For the religious importance of Heracleopolis Magna, see Kees,
ZAS 65 (1930), 66-73; Gomai, in
LA 11, I 124-7; Mokhtar, Zhnasya el-Medina, 184-95. For Nn-nswt in personal names, cf. Pt-rt-m-Nn-nswt
(Ranke, PlV 11, 278, IS); Nbt-Nn-nswt (I, 188, 21); Nn-nswt (not certain, 11, 299, 31); Nn-nswt-m-hb
(I, 206, 6).
' Ibid. I, 220, 5.
The accompanying text is no. 62 in Lise Manniche's article.
Ricke,
Der Totentempel Thutmoses' 111, 39-40, no. 22; imy-r kjwt imy-r hmwwt hrp itwt nb n 'Zmn. However,
see the note on p.
38.

THE HIERATIC TEXTS IN THE TOMB OF NAKHT
8 I
Commentary
r. This introduces a passage to be recited; in the ritual for the Valley Festival, r is the
heading for one unit or 'chapter' of text, and is followed by dd-mdw 'recitation' or dd.n
hry-hbt hry-tp 'recited by the chief lector-priest'.1°
Rr Hr-ihty. The Greenfield Papyrus contains a parallel for 'a text of incense for
Ra-Horakhty'.ll Elsewhere in the same papyrus, the offering of incense to Ra-Horakhty
comes under the heading ky dwj Wsir Wn-nfr m rnwf nbw 'another adoration of Osiris
Wennefer in all his names'.12 From this it is clear that worship of the sun-god at dawn was
appropriate to the cult of the dead.
Ssp.k n Hr-ihty. This phrase probably echoes the preceding psd.k m Hpri. The change
from the original m of predication to n presumably mirrors the spoken language. It is curious
to find both forms in the same short line, but it gives better sense than a strictly literal
translation 'you dawn for Horakhty'.
Spdt. Sothis, goddess of the star Sirius, accompanied the reborn sun just as Isis
accompanied Osiris; at one point in the ritual for the Valley Festival, Isis identifies herself
with Sothis, and Osiris with Orion.13 By her presence, the goddess guaranteed the
well-being of Ra and Osiris, and through them the deceased.
hnr.k. The vertical stroke could stand for the determinative for divinity, in which case the
last group might read n.k 'to you' or perhaps in this sentence '(is) yours'.
Graffito 2 (right)
r n sntr n 'a text of incense for'.
There is no more space to the left, so the text has to finish here. This may have been a false
start in the writing of the main text to the left; alternatively, it may have been an initial
practising effort. It does not seem likely that we have here the beginning of a new and
separate text.
Graffito 3
Besides the hand-copy of this text in Hay MS 29822, I 10, there is a slightly different version
in the tracing made directly from the wall, in Hay MS 29851,
67. The graffito is located
immediately to the left of the group of mourning women, in the lowest register on the
right wall.
Transliteration Translation
I. dir hbn '
2. fiy . . . . .
3. wr.. .
4. s~lf.. . .
Imn
. . . . . 'Imn-nht(7) sj(?)
I. Given at the feast of Amun
2. Bearing . . . . .. . . . . . . . Amennakht
son of
3. Wer.. . .
4. His son . . . .
Commentary
di r hb. After the signs for hb, there is a small stroke above the n. This stroke could
be a simple straight line, as determinative for hb, but it puts the reading in doubt.
lo P. BM 10209, 2, 1. 10 and I, 1. 2, respectively. The papyrus is published by Fayza Haikal, Two Hieratic
Funerary Papyri of Nesmin
(= Bibliotheca Egyptiaca XIV-xv).
" Budge, The Greenfield Papyrus, pl. Ixxix, 1. 4. This funerary papyrus belongs to Nestanebisheru, of the
Twenty-first Dynasty.
l2 Ibid. pl. lxxxiii, 11. 7-8.
l3 P. BM 10209, 3, 1. 5.

82 STEPHEN QUIRKE
Graffito 2
Graffito 3
Hay MS 29822, I 10
Hay MS 29851, 67
FIG. I
'Imn-nht. In the hand-copy the last sign is faint; perhaps 'Imn-ms is a better reading, with
Gardiner Sign-List Zg over a seated man AI.
wr. Perhaps Hr? The name seems to end with the swallow, possibly for Sri.
sjf. Again not certain. For fatherlson visits to monuments, see the comment on slfabove,
Graffito I, line 2.
Graffito 4 (fig. 3)
As with the preceding text, there is both a hand-copy (Hay MS 29822, I 12) and a tracing
(Hay
MS 2985 I, 68). The graffito fills the space between the mourning women and the boy
who stands in front of the oxen; this places it on the same register as Graffito
3.