The Ramesseum Dramatic Papyrus a New Edition, Translation, and Interpretation
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THE RAMESSEUM DRAMATIC PAPYRUS A NEW EDITION, TRANSLATION, AND INTERPRETATION by Christina Geisen A thesis submitted in conformity with the requirements for the degree of PhD Graduate Department of Near and Middle Eastern Civilizations University of Toronto © Copyright by Christina Geisen (2012) Abstract Thesis Title: The Ramesseum Dramatic Papyrus. A new edition, translation, and interpretation Degree: PhD Year of Convocation: 2012 Name: Christina Geisen Graduate Department: Department of Near and Middle Eastern Civilizations University: University of Toronto The topic of the dissertation is a study of the Ramesseum Dramatic Papyrus, a document that was discovered together with other papyri and funerary objects in a late Middle Kingdom tomb in the necropolis later associated with Ramses II’s funerary temple on the West bank of Luxor. The thesis will cover an analysis of the complete find, providing information on the provenance of the collection, the circumstances of its discovery, the dating of the papyri, and the identity of the tomb owner. The focus of the dissertation, however, is the Ramesseum Dramatic Papyrus itself, which features the guideline for the performance of a ritual. The fabrication and preservation of the manuscript is described as well as the layout of the text. Based on a copy of the original text made with the help of a tablet PC, an up-dated transliteration and translation of the text is provided, accompanied by a commentary. The text has been studied by several scholars, but a convincing interpretation of the manuscript is lacking. Thus, the dissertation will analyse the previous works on the papyrus, and will compare the activities described in the text of the manuscript with other attested rituals from ii ancient Egypt. By highlighting the differences and similarities the text has with texts that describe these other ceremonies, the exact nature of the rites described in the Ramesseum Dramatic Papyrus can be identified. Finally, a new interpretation of the text is offered, suggesting that the ceremony to which it refers concerns a statue ritual performed in commemoration of Senwosret I’s accomplishments at Karnak. iii Acknowledgments I would never have been able to finish my dissertation without the guidance of my committee members, help from friends, and the support of my family. I would like to express my deepest gratitude to my PhD advisor, Professor Ronald J. Leprohon of the University of Toronto, for his excellent guidance, caring, invaluable support in all academic matters, advice and discussions concerning my research, as well as his willingness to meet on very short notice; the latter was especially helpful in the final stages of writing when I was working towards a deadline. A very special thank you goes to Professor Katja Goebs of the University of Toronto, who was not only a member of my thesis committee, but who was also an invaluable source of knowledge concerning my research area and was always available to meet with me and discuss my progress. Her true commitment for the interests of students must also be mentioned. Always willing to help and support me concerning any academic matters, Professor Katja Goebs also provided me with the chance to broaden my scholarly experience by employing me in her research project “Divine Light in Egypt and Mesopotamia”. I would also like to thank the other committee members, Professors Mary-Ann Pouls-Wegner of the University of Toronto and Thomas Schneider of the University of British Columbia, for their advice on my dissertation. I am also very grateful to Professor Mary-Ann Pouls- Wegner for giving me the opportunity to join her excavation team in the framework of the “Abydos Votive Zone Project”. In addition, I owe many thanks to Dr. Richard B. Parkinson and Bridget Leach at the British Museum in London, who not only made it possible for me to consult the original Ramesseum Dramatic Papyrus, but who were also always available for help and advice during my stay at the British Museum. I am also grateful to Dr. Richard B. Parkinson for integrating my research into the Ramesseum Papyri Project at the British Museum. iv I would also like to show my gratitude to the administrative staff, graduate students, and faculty members of the Department of Near and Middle Eastern Civilizations at the University of Toronto, who provided a professional, but always welcoming and cooperative, atmosphere. Anna Sousa, the graduate administrator, must be singled out here for her outstanding service for and dedication to students that goes beyond her work duties. I could always turn to her with problems or questions concerning academic matters, and she was able to solve and answer them immediately. I would also like to thank the Faculty of Arts and Science and the School of Graduate Studies of the University of Toronto for the scholarships (University of Toronto Fellowship, Connaught Fellowship, SGS Travel Grant) that enabled me to pursue my PhD program and my research stay at the British Museum. I cannot express in words my gratitude towards Anna and Manuel Sousa who integrated me into their family and welcomed me into their home without hesitation; a character trait that is very rare in the world today which proved to be invaluable moral help for someone who left friends and family behind to do her dissertation in a foreign country. I do not think I would have been able to complete my studies in Toronto without their continuing and unwavering support and help in any situation. In the same vein, I would like to thank their extended family: their children Vanessa, Justin, and David, as well as the Papaleo-, Santapaga-, and Sibbio-families, who always made me feel like a part of their big family. A big thank you also goes to all my friends around the world. They are too many to name them all, but I would like to mention a few in alphabetical order who stand in for all the others with their support, encouragement, humour, and invaluable help in the many years of my studies: Anne Clement, Sargon Donabed, Eva Fürstenberg, the Graduate House Gang, Barbara Kürsten, Adriana DiSalvo-Pincente, Heather Snow, and Simone Stöhr. I also thank the members of my departmental Volleyball team, the “Whores of Babylon”, for many fun and distracting hours. A thank you also goes to my students, whom I taught the Middle Egyptian Language in the last three years. I learned at least as much from them as they learned from me. v The final and biggest thank you goes to my parents, who had to cope with the situation of their only child deciding to move to a foreign country, at the other end of the world, to write her dissertation. Without questioning my decision in further pursuing my studies, in a field in which the job expectations are not great, they always supported me financially and morally, and, thus, allowed me to finish my dissertation without delay. Consequently, I dedicate my thesis to them as I would not have been able to fulfill my work related aspirations without their permanent and unconditional help and encouragement. Christina Geisen University of Toronto June 2011 vi Table of Contents List of Figures xi List of Appendices xii Abbreviations xiii I. Introduction 1 II. The Ramesseum Papyri Collection 4 II.a The provenance of the Ramesseum Papyri collection and the circumstances of its discovery 4 II.b The dating of the Ramesseum Papyri collection 8 II.c The owner(s) of the Ramesseum Papyri collection 13 III. The Ramesseum Dramatic Papyrus 21 III.a The preservation history of the Ramesseum Dramatic Papyrus and its present condition 23 III.b The fabrication of the Ramesseum Dramatic Papyrus 24 III.c The drawing on the verso of the Ramesseum Dramatic Papyrus 26 IV. The layout of the Ramesseum Dramatic Papyrus 30 V. The division of the ritual 37 VI. The transliteration and translation of the ritual 41 VI.1 Sequence 1 (cols. 1-7) 42 VI.1.1 Scene 1 (col. 1) 42 VI.1.2 Scene 2 (cols. 1-4) 42 VI.1.3 Scene 3 (cols. 5-7) 44 VI.1.4 Vignette 1 47 VI.2 Sequence 2 (cols. 8-14) 48 VI.2.1 Scene 4 (cols. 8-10) 48 VI.2.2 Scene 5 (cols. 11-14) 50 VI.2.3 Vignette 2 53 VI.3 Sequence 3 (cols. 15-17) 55 VI.3.1 Scene 6 (cols. 15-17) 55 VI.3.2 Vignette 3 56 VI.4 Sequence 4 (cols. 18-24) 58 VI.4.1 Scene 7 (cols. 18-20) 58 vii VI.4.2 Scene 8 (cols. 21-24) 61 VI.4.3 Vignette 4 65 VI.5 Sequence 5 (cols. 25-28) 67 VI.5.1 Scene 9 (cols. 25-28) 67 VI.5.2 Vignette 5 70 VI.6 Sequence 6 (cols. 29-33) 71 VI.6.1 Scene 10 (col. 29) 72 VI.6.2 Scene 11 (cols. 29-33) 72 VI.6.3 Vignette 6 76 VI.7 Sequence 7 (cols. 34-40) 76 VI.7.1 Scene 12 (cols. 34-36) 76 VI.7.2 Scene 13 (cols. 37-40) 78 VI.7.3 Vignette 7 82 VI.8 Sequence 8 (cols. 41-54) 83 VI.8.1 Scene 14 (cols. 41-45) 83 VI.8.2 Vignette 8 87 VI.8.3 Scene 15 (cols. 46-47) 87 VI.8.4 Vignette 9 90 VI.8.5 Scene 16 (cols. 48-50) 91 VI.8.6 Scene 17 (cols. 51-52) 93 VI.8.7 Vignette 10 96 VI.8.8 Scene 18 (cols. 53-54) 96 VI.8.9 Vignette 11 97 VI.9.