Pharao als Gott in den Unterwetlsbuchern des Neuen Reiches.

• Author: Troy, Lana
• Position: Review

By FREDRICH ABITZ. Orbis Biblicus et Orientalis, vol. 146. Freiburg, Switzerland: UNIVERSITATSVERLAG, 1995. Pp. vii + 219.

This posthumous publication concludes the life work of Fredrich Abitz, author of five previous volumes covering different aspects of the royal tombs of the Valley of the Kings. The present study deals with the distribution of those New Kingdom texts known collectively as the Books of the Netherworld (Unterweltsbuchern), found in the royal tombs of the Valley of the Kings. The author charts their occurrence, placement, textual, and pictorial variation in the royal tombs. His results are presented in a catalogue-like form, with commentaries dealing with chronological and thematic questions.

The longest chapter of the book is devoted to the Amduat (pp. 3-50). Describing the journey of Re in his sun bark through the night, this is the most commonly used Netherworld text, and it is found, in some form, in all of the tombs from Tuthmosis I to Ramses IX. Abitz notes a reoccurring, but not absolute, correlation between the cardinal points and the placement of the scenes, hour by hour. The increasing importance of other books of the corpus gradually reduces the Amduat's function as one of the primary texts of the burial chamber.

The Litany of Re (pp. 51-72) is first found in the tomb of Tuthmosis III. This text associates the dead king, mentioned as many as 144 times, with the seventy-five manifestations of Re, and focuses on the union of the god-king with Osiris in the Netherworld. This text is placed in the first corridor of the tomb, from Dynasty 19, suggesting that its function was related to the act of entering the Netherworld.

The first occurrence of the Book of Gates (pp. 73-91) is found in the tomb of Horemheb, where it is given preference over the Amduat in the burial chamber. Like the Amduat, this text is divided according to the hours of the night, although not all of the hours are always included. According to the author, the judgment scenes contained in this text contribute to the deification of the king as Osiris, while additional scenes function to complete his transformation to Re.

The Book of the Celestial Cow (pp. 92-101) is not a description of the sun god's journey but rather describes the events in the reign of Re which lead to his retirement as king and a subsequent Pharaonic succession, thus associating the dead king with the role of Re's heir. The earliest known example of this text is found on the wooden...