Senuseret III (Part III): The Coffin Texts
Circa 1867 BCE the cultural products of Egypt are developing rapidly. As part of a generations-long process, the aristocracy are now taking a greater share in its rewards than ever before.
They paint spells, hymns and stories upon their coffins, giving them access to the realm of Osiris and breaking the old royal-control of the afterlife.
How did they realize this dream? What was the afterlife like, and how did they experience it once they arrived? We explore these questions and more…
Bibliography
- W.K. Simpson (editor), The Literature of Ancient Egypt, 2006. PDF Copy at Archive.org.
- Leonard H. Lesko, “Some Observations on the Composition of the Book of Two Ways,” Journal of the American Oriental Society, Vol. 91 (1971). JSTOR link.
- Harold M. Hays, “The Mutability of Tradition: The Old Kingdom Heritage and Middle Kingdom Significance of Coffin Texts Spell 343,” Jaarbericht van het Vooraziatisch-Egyptisch Genootschap “Ex Oriente Lux” Vol. 40 (2007). Read Online Free at Academia.edu.
- The Fitzwilliam Museum, Egyptian Funerary Literature, website.
- Osiris.net, The Tomb of Djehuty-hotep, website.
- Margaret R. Buson, Encyclopedia of Ancient Egypt – Revised Edition 2001. GoogleBooks Edition.
