The Ancient Egyptian Book of Two Ways

By Leonard H. Lesko

This title is part of UC Press's Voices Revived program, which commemorates University of California Press’s mission to seek out and cultivate the brightest minds and give them voice, reach, and impact. Drawing on a backlist dating to 1893, Voices Revived makes high-quality, peer-reviewed scholarship accessible once again using print-on-demand technology. This title was originally published in 1972.

• Language: English
• Publisher: University of California Press
• Release date: Jul 28, 2023
• ISBN: 9780520316928

Leonard H. Lesko

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THE ANCIENT EGYPTIAN BOOK OF TWO WAYS

THE ANCIENT EGYPTIAN BOOK OF TWO WAYS

By LEONARD H. LESKO

UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA PRESS BERKELEY • LOS ANGELES • LONDON

University of California Publications Near Eastern Studies Volume 17

UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA PRESS BERKELEY AND LOS ANGELES CALIFORNIA

UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA PRESS, LTD.

LONDON, ENGLAND

ISBN: 0-520-03514-3 Library of Congress Catalog Card No. 72-83096

© 1972 BY THE REGENTS OF THE UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA

California Library Reprint Series Edition, 1977

PRINTED IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

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CONTENTS 1

CONTENTS 1

SECTION II

SECTION III

SECTION IV

SECTION V

SECTION VI

SECTION VII

SECTION VIII

SECTION IX

BOOK OF THE DEAD PARALLELS

SECTION II

Spell 1132 begins section II, which consists of the spells found in a number of compartments which lead to the ground plan of a building. The section takes up most of the upper register on the three C-version coffins involved. The texts here are generally the most difficult of the book. In addition to corruptions and unknown words, there are numerous allusions to things that we cannot understand. The texts are included here for the little that we can get from them and also for comparison with the other sections.

In CT 1132 there is a gate to be passed, and the deceased identifies himself with Nun, the watery abyss. He tells the demon keepers that he knows them from their pictures, probably because he has this illustrated book. This spell sets the pattern for those following through 1139. In most of these the deceased claims to have come from some special place for some purpose.