7. Agyptologische Tempeltagung: Structuring Religion.

Nicholson, Paul T.

Edited by Rene Preys. Konigtum, Staat und Gesellschaft Fruher Hochkulturen, vol. 3.2. Wiesbaden: Harrassowitz Verlag, 2009. Pp. vii + 298, illus. [euro] 78.

This volume contains seventeen papers which resulted from the seventh Tempeltagung conference held in Leuven in 2005 and organized by Harco Willems and Rene Preys, the latter of whom edited this volume. The papers are in English (seven), French (four), and German (six). Space does not permit extensive discussion of all of these here.

Willems states in his preface that the original idea for the meeting had been to consider the "technicalities of Egyptian temple building" from the procurement of the stone to the completion of the building. It became apparent, however, that this could not be done without consideration of the "concern to translate religious ideas into stone," hence the incorporation of relevant religious studies into the volume alongside those dealing with technical aspects of construction. As a result this volume contains a very diverse range of papers relating not only to the physical construction of the edifice but also to its financing, as examined by Chrislophe Thiers, and indeed to the setting up of religious institutions over a landscape, as in the paper by Martina Ullrnann, which looks at the cultic structure of Nubia during the New Kingdom.

Petra Andrassy deals with aspects of pyramid and temple building as reflected by builders' graffiti (Baugraffiti) and notes that those 'crews' ('paw) who left their marks at pyramid construction sites are referred to as 'noblemen' (spsw), 'acquaintances' (rhw), 'companions' (smrw), or 'beloved ones' (mrw). These titles suggest to Andrassy that these are not the graffiti of ordinary workmen but of "elite troops" serving their master at a construction site. That such military teams were widely used is evidenced by the discovery of a copper adze bearing the name of such a crew in the "woodcutter's region of Lebanon." He goes on to deal with specialized craftsmen who operated as 'gangs' (gs). Amongst these were a specialized group known as the hmwwt hist--usually translated as 'craftsmen of the desert' (= necropolis). However, recent work has shown that the hill country sign (Gardiner's N25) here refers to a foreign land and that these are in fact foreign craftsmen. The work of foreigners on Egyptian monuments should not be underestimated.

Jitse Dijkstra also examines graffiti, but in this case its use in helping to understand the architectural development of a monument, here the temple of Isis at Aswan. He found that most of the graffiti on the front wall of the temple were incised into blank areas and on the third and fourth courses--the height easily reached by visitors. The graffiti belonged to the Graeco-Roman period and were probably left by pilgrims while the temple was functioning. As one might expect, graffiti located higher on the walls belong to the Christian period when the ground level had risen, the temple having ceased its original use. Inside, the graffiti tend to be in ink (dipinti) and were probably made by the priests themselves rather than by pilgrims. Dijkstra uses the graffiti and their positioning to reconstruct five phases of occupation of the building. This paper is an excellent example of just how much information can be gleaned from a class of evidence that has all too often been overlooked.

Graffiti, this time from the pylon at Edfu, are also used by Ulrike Fauerbach in her study of "The Creation of an Egyptian Capital." Here she examines graffiti from the pylon which show column capitals. One of the interesting aspects of her study is that she is able to show that these graffiti are in fact scale drawings of actual capitals at Edfu. This she claims as the first evidence for the use of scale drawing in Egypt. It is dated to the end of the second century B.C. However, this seems to ignore the draughtsman's board, currently in the Luxor Museum, which shows a seated statue intended for production on an increased scale--albeit simply using squares rather than a mathematical scale. Edfu is also the subject of the paper by Joachim Quack, "Die Theologisierung der biirokratischen Norm zur Baube-schreibung in Edfu im Vergleich zum Buch vom Tempel." Here he uses information from the fragments of the "Book of the Temple," which he has been painstakingly piecing together, to show that not all of the Edfu texts are actually specific to that building but are formulae from the long-established Book.

Andras Gulyds takes as his theme the solar hymn of the brothers Suty and Hor, overseers of the building work at the temple of Luxor in the time of Amenhotep III. He notes that their text occurs in the rearmost part of the temple, a highly sacred space to which they must have had access during construction and at least part of whose function they must have understood. This access during construction to what would become a restricted part of the temple is interesting (if necessary!) in itself, but he goes on to wonder how much of the solar concept the brothers understood. Did they commission the text or leave the decision on what to include to a third party? He is able to show that the concept of "divine aloneness," a feature of the Amarna period, is already present here. In another contribution, Rolf Gund-lach considers the role of the obelisk of Thutmosis I at Karnak as reflected by both text and positioning.

The lack of research on palaces, as compared to temples, is emphasized by Kirsten Konrad, who examines the similarities between these structures, particularly in regard to the terminology applied to them. Ludwig Morenz reviews the evidence for considering Gebelien to be essentially a second Dendera under Mentuhotep II, while Pierre Zigani examines the architecture of Dendera itself and how it relates to concepts of proportion as well as the way in which the daily cult activities progressed through the temple. Rene Preys, editor of the volume, takes up the theme of the orientation of the Dendera temple and its chapels in relation to both natural and theological geography.

David Depraetere and Mark Depauw discuss the limestone quarries at Dayr al-Barsha, examined as part of an extensive archaeological project at the site. Their work involved the mapping--including the ceilings--of the subterranean quarries, recording tool marks and graffiti. The paper provides a valuable summary of quarrying tools and their marks and it is refreshing to see that the observations have been supported by experimental archaeology conducted by the authors. As at the temple of Isis, the position of individual graffiti indicates the ground level and thus the progress of the quarrying work. The authors make the intriguing suggestion, based on the names of some of the workmen, that they may have been specialist quarrymen brought from the Memphis region. They note that this confirms a suggestion by Devauchelle (1983) that the quarries may have links with Tura and Masara.

Stone, notably the use of particular stones and their symbolic value in New Kingdom temples at Thebes, is the subject of the paper by Thierry De Putter and Christina Karlshausen, who show that the selection of building materials is far from random. Erika Meyer-Dietrich expands the theme of the significance of the temple building itself to serve not only as the abode of the divinity but as the body of the living god. She shows how the architecture complements, even defines, aspects of the ritual.

Several papers deal with specific temples. That by Julia Budka concerns the temple of Ramesses IV in the Asasif, which was connected to the Beautiful Feast of the Valley and, she argues, formed part of a new ritual landscape on the West Bank. Heidi Jauhiainen examines the religious buildings of Deir el-Medina using largely textual evidence to try to give attributions to particular buildings. She shows that rather than the deified Amenhotep I being the best represented deity at the site, that position is held by Hathor. It also becomes apparent that the terms pr (temple) and hnw (chapel) may not be used entirely consistently, thus complicating our picture of religious buildings at the site. This interesting paper would, however, have been much enhanced by a plan of the site showing all those buildings discussed.

Overall this is a volume which scholars and students of Egyptology will consult with profit and which provides a stimulating overview of the factors contributing to the construction of an Egyptian temple. There are some inconsistencies in the presentation of papers, some having references to literature at the end and others in footnotes, and in consistency of spelling between (and sometimes within) papers. These are minor quibbles, however, in regard to what is a very useful book.

Paul T. Nicholson School of History, Archaeology and Religion Cardiff University