Journal of the American Research Center in Egypt, 1975
Page 1. A Rare Use of Ds + Suffix Pronoun in Middle Egyptian Edmund S. Meltzer In Middle Egyptian... more Page 1. A Rare Use of Ds + Suffix Pronoun in Middle Egyptian Edmund S. Meltzer In Middle Egyptian, the compounds ds-\- suffix pronoun are generally acknowledged to indicate: (i) a person "(him)self" or "in person"; (2) a person's ...
It is a pleasure and an honor to offer these observations and reflections on the Nachlass and rec... more It is a pleasure and an honor to offer these observations and reflections on the Nachlass and reception of ancient Egyptian culture to my friend, colleague, and fellow student Edward L. Bleiberg, whose fascination with the continuing survival and influence of ancient Egypt over the centuries and millennia I share.
Reviewing Foster's recent monograph on Sinuhe {Thought Couplets in the Tale of Siauhe , MAU 3/L99... more Reviewing Foster's recent monograph on Sinuhe {Thought Couplets in the Tale of Siauhe , MAU 3/L993; review in JARCE 32/L995) has helped to crystallize or catalyze some of my own thoughts on that profound and beautiful tale. The following aspects deserve further discussion: 1) Sinuhe and the "Transcendent" Once Again:
A discussion of the common elements of the ancient Egyptian story of Sinuhe and the narrative of ... more A discussion of the common elements of the ancient Egyptian story of Sinuhe and the narrative of Moses in the Hebrew Bible, and the appearance of similar motifs in folklore and in other works of ancient and modern literature.
wHEn i tAugHt Jim HoFFmEiEr introductory Middle Egyptian at the University of Toronto-as I recall... more wHEn i tAugHt Jim HoFFmEiEr introductory Middle Egyptian at the University of Toronto-as I recall, it was in the 1973-1974 academic year-both of us were graduate students. In the ensuing years, which have grown into decades, we have been friends, colleagues and coworkers. We have studied with several of the same teachers, Professors Redford, Williams, Millet, and Mills; we have both worked on the Akhenaten Temple Project; and about ten years after that first encounter in Middle Egyptian, we coedited a Festschrift for Ron Williams, in which Jim wrote one of what has grown into an increasingly long list of impressive studies fruitfully comparing ancient Egyptian texts, art and archaeological finds with the Hebrew Bible. 1 I always look forward to seeing Jim at the American Research Center in Egypt and other meetings, and he is one of the most dedicated and decent people I know. It is thus a pleasure to dedicate to him a reflection on a perhaps off-the-beaten-track comparison between a biblical passage and an ancient Egyptian text.
The author relates the history of his encounter and friendship with Jack Foster over the years an... more The author relates the history of his encounter and friendship with Jack Foster over the years and his ongoing dialogue with Jack's work on Egyptian language and literature. He offers an appreciation of Jack and the significance of his contributions, reviewing agreements, disagreements, and some of the questions that still need further investigation.
Journal of the American Research Center in Egypt, 1975
Page 1. A Rare Use of Ds + Suffix Pronoun in Middle Egyptian Edmund S. Meltzer In Middle Egyptian... more Page 1. A Rare Use of Ds + Suffix Pronoun in Middle Egyptian Edmund S. Meltzer In Middle Egyptian, the compounds ds-\- suffix pronoun are generally acknowledged to indicate: (i) a person "(him)self" or "in person"; (2) a person's ...
It is a pleasure and an honor to offer these observations and reflections on the Nachlass and rec... more It is a pleasure and an honor to offer these observations and reflections on the Nachlass and reception of ancient Egyptian culture to my friend, colleague, and fellow student Edward L. Bleiberg, whose fascination with the continuing survival and influence of ancient Egypt over the centuries and millennia I share.
Reviewing Foster's recent monograph on Sinuhe {Thought Couplets in the Tale of Siauhe , MAU 3/L99... more Reviewing Foster's recent monograph on Sinuhe {Thought Couplets in the Tale of Siauhe , MAU 3/L993; review in JARCE 32/L995) has helped to crystallize or catalyze some of my own thoughts on that profound and beautiful tale. The following aspects deserve further discussion: 1) Sinuhe and the "Transcendent" Once Again:
A discussion of the common elements of the ancient Egyptian story of Sinuhe and the narrative of ... more A discussion of the common elements of the ancient Egyptian story of Sinuhe and the narrative of Moses in the Hebrew Bible, and the appearance of similar motifs in folklore and in other works of ancient and modern literature.
wHEn i tAugHt Jim HoFFmEiEr introductory Middle Egyptian at the University of Toronto-as I recall... more wHEn i tAugHt Jim HoFFmEiEr introductory Middle Egyptian at the University of Toronto-as I recall, it was in the 1973-1974 academic year-both of us were graduate students. In the ensuing years, which have grown into decades, we have been friends, colleagues and coworkers. We have studied with several of the same teachers, Professors Redford, Williams, Millet, and Mills; we have both worked on the Akhenaten Temple Project; and about ten years after that first encounter in Middle Egyptian, we coedited a Festschrift for Ron Williams, in which Jim wrote one of what has grown into an increasingly long list of impressive studies fruitfully comparing ancient Egyptian texts, art and archaeological finds with the Hebrew Bible. 1 I always look forward to seeing Jim at the American Research Center in Egypt and other meetings, and he is one of the most dedicated and decent people I know. It is thus a pleasure to dedicate to him a reflection on a perhaps off-the-beaten-track comparison between a biblical passage and an ancient Egyptian text.
The author relates the history of his encounter and friendship with Jack Foster over the years an... more The author relates the history of his encounter and friendship with Jack Foster over the years and his ongoing dialogue with Jack's work on Egyptian language and literature. He offers an appreciation of Jack and the significance of his contributions, reviewing agreements, disagreements, and some of the questions that still need further investigation.
We think it's clear that, however rich and detailed our medical documentation from ancient Egypt ... more We think it's clear that, however rich and detailed our medical documentation from ancient Egypt seems to be, it only represents "the tip of the iceberg." In his Foreword to the Sanchez-Meltzer edition of the Edwin Smith "Trauma Treatise," Dr. Ben Harer reflects on how different our view of ancient Egyptian medicine would be if we didn't have the Edwin Smith Papyrus.
Since its discovery within the southern pyramid field at Meroe in 1922, the stela of Kariben has ... more Since its discovery within the southern pyramid field at Meroe in 1922, the stela of Kariben has received little attention. Upon publication in 1950 by Dows Dunham, the stela was described as having "six lines of incised corrupt Egyptian hieroglyphs" (380) and was subsequently left unstudied. The stela is now housed in the Art Museum at the University of Memphis. This paper will discuss recent attempts to translate the inscription on the stela and postulate potential reasons for the irregularities in the text. We will make suggestions regarding both Egyptian phraseology and personal names in the text. This paper will also examine Kariben's role within the Kushite royal family and how his stela fits into the broader context of Nubian elite burials.
Ancient Egyptian medical texts pose unique challenges to translation secondary to the ambiguity o... more Ancient Egyptian medical texts pose unique challenges to translation secondary to the ambiguity of anatomical terms, the alternate application of otherwise welldefined words, and the use of words for which there is no accepted definition, particularly medicines, herbs, and specific disease names. Moreover, the text often limits or omits a full patient history and physical exam, which are critical for diagnosis in modern medicine. Thus, a definitive diagnosis can be challenging to deduce and the limited translations of these texts lead to the propagation of erroneous interpretations. The Ebers Papyrus is one of several ancient Egyptian texts detailing medical knowledge and prescriptions. Within this text, an example that captures the challenges of medical translation is Ebers Papyrus No. 200, which was suggested to describe tuberculous spondylitis per a 1937 translation. Unfortunately, this diagnosis is often repeated without consideration of text or the likelihood of this condition. Upon review of this prescription, with consideration to its context within the papyrus, an alternate diagnosis of acute pancreatitis is suggested. Namely, four relevant diagnostic criteria are described in the case: pain in the abdomen or chest, pain referred to the back, possible association with a bite or sting, and spontaneous resolution within a few days. These criteria heavily favor a self-limited disease like acute pancreatitis over the chronic and debilitating tuberculous spondylitis.
The Brooklyn Snake Papyms has been published by S. Sauneron {t}n troite 1gtptien d'ophiotogie [98... more The Brooklyn Snake Papyms has been published by S. Sauneron {t}n troite 1gtptien d'ophiotogie [9890, but t]rere is room for improved understanding both in language and in the medical and herpetological aspscts, including new identifications of some snakes. Dr.
The expression nn wHmty.fy, 2 sometimes analyzed as nn wHmwty.f, 3 is taken by the scholars just ... more The expression nn wHmty.fy, 2 sometimes analyzed as nn wHmwty.f, 3 is taken by the scholars just cited as "without equal," "wie er sich nicht wiederholen wird," "there will never be his like again," "'there will be none to equal him' (lit. 'none who will repeat')," "inégalable." In the Thutmose I Coronation Decree, 4 where that king's titulary is announced, Ronald Leprohon translates nn wHmty.fy Dt (or nn wHmwty.f Dt) as "without his like within earthly eternity" 5 ; Ritter 6 renders "without anybody who will ever repeat this."
The cunei-form vocabulary of Egyptian words found at Amarna was regarded by early commentators as... more The cunei-form vocabulary of Egyptian words found at Amarna was regarded by early commentators as possibly the work of "an Asiatic scribe learning Egyptian" (snrith and Gadd, JEA 11 [1925]: 23L) or "part of a manual for insrructing Egyprians i-n cuneiform' Prepared by a syro-Mitannian teacher" (Albright, JEA 12 tlg26): lgB, n. 4). Recent work on the recovery of Egyptian vocalj.zation, grg. Osingrs Die Nominarbildung des !.gyptischen, has utilized this rext without considering the significance of the possibility that its author riras not a native speaker of Egyptian. LIe would suggest that: 1 ' The at least possible non-native-speaker ori,gin of rrany of the cuneiform transcriptions of Egyptian in the Amarna and other Late Bronze cuneiform texts, and their being filtered through the cuneiform writing system, shoul cl recomsrend caution i'n the attempt Eo uL. them in a precise, mechanical reconstruction of Egyptian;
Es la historia de un matrimonio egipcio pobre, Amen-mose y Sit-Hathor, y su gato extraordinario M... more Es la historia de un matrimonio egipcio pobre, Amen-mose y Sit-Hathor, y su gato extraordinario Miu-shepsi. Durante una hambre, cuando no tienen bastante que comer, Miu-shepsi encuentra una piedra mágica que trae buena suerte. El rey codicioso la roba, pero el gato ingenioso tiene un plan. . . .
This is the story of a poor ancient Egyptian couple and their remarkable cat. They are starving ... more This is the story of a poor ancient Egyptian couple and their remarkable cat. They are starving during a famine, when the cat finds a magic stone that brings good luck. The greedy king steals it, but the cat comes to the rescue.
Bffi _s FOREWORD The writing o{ the ancient Egyptians has exerted a {ascination ovel men's imagin... more Bffi _s FOREWORD The writing o{ the ancient Egyptians has exerted a {ascination ovel men's imaginations {or centuries, due to the beauty oi the script, and to the aura o{ mystery which must naturaliy surround any system o{ "picture writing". witl^Lthe decipherment o{ Egyptian by champollion in the 182O',s' ihe mystery was dispelied and the Eqyptian writing system was {ound to be a practicll scrrpt, iarqely phonetic, and well-adapied to the recording o{ a sophisticatedand colourlui language. With the riddie solved and the mystery stripped away, it was paradoxically easier to appreciate how the ancieni Eqyplian had used his hieroglyphic script as an art iorm in itsel{. For the Eqyptians never lost sight o{ the decorative vaiue oi their {ormal script, ar.Je-ployed it to beautify as well as to communicate. Nowhere ca[ihis double purpose o{ the hieroglyphs be seen betier than on the objects {rom Tutankhamun's tomb. Here the decorative {ancy o{ the Eighteenth Dynasty artist has reached its peak, and here hieroqlyphic *ritir1g has been uied as ornament in profusion. It is the purpose ol the authois of this book to enrich the vlsitor's experience o{ the treasures o{ Tutankhamun by heiping him discover the meaning, as weil as appreciate the beauty-, o{ the hieroglyphic inscriptions which he will see' I can recommend this book to anyone who wishes to make the most o{ a unique experience.
Let's look briefly at examples of other writings, and how some of them tie in with stories. One c... more Let's look briefly at examples of other writings, and how some of them tie in with stories. One common type of text is the autobiography, in which a person,
0The following began as a lunchtime talk presented to the students in the Department of Linguisti... more 0The following began as a lunchtime talk presented to the students in the Department of Linguistics of the University of Toronto in 1977 and underwent successive revisions through 1992 at which time I was teaching at IHAC in Changchun.
As a long-time language teacher and researcher, I find that one of the most fascinating aspects o... more As a long-time language teacher and researcher, I find that one of the most fascinating aspects of language is words that show connections or possible connections not only between individual languages (which, after all, would be almost every word that exists), but between generally recognized language
There seems to be a considerable amount of unclarity regarding the relationship or presumed ident... more There seems to be a considerable amount of unclarity regarding the relationship or presumed identity between languages and writing systems, which is reflected by some of the posts on this thread. Linguisitically speaking, it isn't very meaningful to say that a given alphabet or script is or isn't related to a given group of languages. Linguists would say that this is comparing apples and oranges, and they would be right. Many scripts have been invented or devised to write languages of one family and adapted or appropriated to write languages of another family or other families. Sometimes this results in what seems like a bad fit between a script and the language(s) that it is used to write, in terms of phonemic inventory, syllable structure, etc. I think it is worthwhile to "unpack" this possibly confusing situation and take a brief look at the peregrination of some scripts from one language or language family to another.
endnotes 54-73. Although old, Hans Bonnet's Reallexikon der ägyptischen Religionsgeschichte (Berl... more endnotes 54-73. Although old, Hans Bonnet's Reallexikon der ägyptischen Religionsgeschichte (Berlin: De Gruyter 1952) is extremely informative and detailed, and well worth consulting for any religious topic that might arise; for the subjects discussed here, the articles "Laienpriester" (pp. 413-416), "Priester" (pp. 596-607), "Priesterin" (pp. 607-608) are relevant.
Les chercheurs intéressés à soumettre des articles traitant de quelconque sujet relié à l'égyptol... more Les chercheurs intéressés à soumettre des articles traitant de quelconque sujet relié à l'égyptologie et souhaitant honorer Sally devraient contacter les éditeurs du JSSEA au [email protected] ou au [email protected] pour plus d'informations sur les échéances et les conventions d'écriture. En raison de la longue implication du Dr Katary dans le domaine des études classiques, les études comparatives sont également les bienvenues. Les contributions sont acceptées en français, anglais, et allemand. La date limite est le 31 janvier 2018 pour les contributions pour le volume 45. Toutes personnes désirant faire un don afin de contribuer à la publication du volume sont priées de contacter [email protected] pour de plus amples informations. Les donateurs seront reconnus par l'entremise d'une tabula gratulatoria au début du volume et les citoyens canadiens et américains recevront un reçu pour fins d'impôt.
The Society for the Study of Egyptian Antiquities/Société pour l’Étude de l’Égypte Ancienne has d... more The Society for the Study of Egyptian Antiquities/Société pour l’Étude de l’Égypte Ancienne has decided to dedicate volumes 42 and 43 of the Journal of the SSEA to the memories of our late colleagues and long-time members Edwin C. Brock and Dr. John L. Foster, one number of the journal being dedicated to each. La Société pour l’Étude de l’Égypte Ancienne/Society for the Study of Egyptian Antiquities a décidé de dédicacer les volumes 42 et 43 du Journal de la SÉÉA (JSSEA) à la mémoire de nos ex-collègues, membres de la Société pendant de nombreuses années, Edwin C. Brock et Dr. John L. Foster. Un numéro du Journal sera ainsi dédicacé à chacun d’eux.
This course will provide both a geographical and chronological survey of the Ianguages and script... more This course will provide both a geographical and chronological survey of the Ianguages and scripts attested in the ancient Near East and its periphery, and also an intensive introduction to the theoretical study of writing systems. The problems of genetic linguistics, language contact, language spread, the sociology of writing and literacy, the emergence, spread and typology of writing systems, and the diversity of media and scribal practice will also be discussed. lie shall also survey the textual corpora surviving from the civilizations of the ancient Near East, with special attention to the possible interrelations between method of communication and information to be communicated.
In this presentation we will try to cover the most essential aspects of Egyptian interaction with... more In this presentation we will try to cover the most essential aspects of Egyptian interaction with foreign deities and religions through the entire ancient period.
This is a partially revised version of my dissertation (University of Toronto 1980), which I wrot... more This is a partially revised version of my dissertation (University of Toronto 1980), which I wrote under the title of "Problems of Adjectival Constructions in Old and Middle Egyptian."
Highlights of the Egyptian Collection of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem Archaeology Institute... more Highlights of the Egyptian Collection of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem Archaeology Institute - pre-print version, ed. Arlette David
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Papers by Edmund Meltzer
La Société pour l’Étude de l’Égypte Ancienne/Society for the Study of Egyptian Antiquities a décidé de dédicacer les volumes 42 et 43 du Journal de la SÉÉA (JSSEA) à la mémoire de nos ex-collègues, membres de la Société pendant de nombreuses années, Edwin C. Brock et Dr. John L. Foster. Un numéro du Journal sera ainsi dédicacé à chacun d’eux.