Religious Practice and Cultural Construction of Animal Worship in Egypt from the Early Dynastic to the New Kingdom
Ritual Forms, Material Display, Historical Development
By (author) Angelo Colonna
Paperback (Published)
(October 2021)
ISBN: 9781789698213
8.07 x 11.42 inches
Price: $49.00
In stock
This study presents an articulated historical interpretation of Egyptian ‘animal worship’ from the Early Dynastic to the New Kingdom, and offers a new understanding of its chronological development through a fresh review of pertinent archaeological and textual data.
Religious Practice and Cultural Construction of Animal Worship in Egypt from the Early Dynastic to the New Kingdom presents an articulated historical interpretation of Egyptian ‘animal worship’ – intended as a segment of religious practice focused on the mobilisation of selected animals within strategically designed ritual contexts – from the Early Dynastic to the New Kingdom, and offers a new understanding of its chronological development through a fresh review of pertinent archaeological and textual data. The goal is twofold: (1) to re-conceptualise the notion of ‘animal worship’ on firm theoretical and material bases, reassessing its heuristic value as a tool for analysis; (2) to demonstrate, accordingly, that ‘animal worship’ did not represent a late degeneration of traditional religion, socially (popular cult) and thematically (animal mummies and burials) restricted, but a complex domain of religious practice with a longer history and a larger variety of configurations than usually assumed.
Preface and Acknowledgements 1. Introducing Animal Worship Animal worship and ancient Egyptian religion: articulation of the problem Thesis, goals, and limitations of the present study History of research and status quaestionis Theory and methodology Presenting the Evidence 2. The Early Dynastic Royal evidence Titles and personal names The Classical tradition Summary 3. The Old Kingdom Royal and temple evidence Private inscriptions: titles and biographies Personal names Funerary domains Pyramid Texts Architectural evidence Summary 4. From the First Intermediate Period to the Middle Kingdom Titles Private inscriptions Personal names Coffin Texts Summary 5. The New Kingdom The Apis bull at Memphis The Mnevis bull at Heliopolis The 'Fish-stelae' from Mendes The fish necropolis at Gurob The 'Salakhana Trove' at Asyut Bulls in the Theban region The 'Crocodile-stelae' from Sumenu The inscribed jar fragment Munich A 1383 Synthesis and Reconstruction 6. Modelling Animal Worship Introduction: etic and emic The etic perspective: single and multiple animals The emic perspective: Egyptian concepts and modes of predication The sacralisation of the animals: a ritual and semantic process Reconfiguring 'animal worship': practice, display, history Conclusions Bibliography Index, Preface and Acknowledgements ;
1. Introducing Animal Worship ;
Animal worship and ancient Egyptian religion: articulation of the problemThesis, goals, and limitations of the present studyHistory of research and status quaestionis ;
Theory and methodology Presenting the Evidence 2. The Early Dynastic ;
Royal evidenceTitles and personal namesThe Classical traditionSummary 3. The Old Kingdom ;
Royal and temple evidencePrivate inscriptions: titles and biographiesPersonal namesFunerary domainsPyramid TextsArchitectural evidenceSummary 4. From the First Intermediate Period to the Middle Kingdom ;
TitlesPrivate inscriptionsPersonal namesCoffin TextsSummary 5. The New Kingdom ;
The Apis bull at MemphisThe Mnevis bull at HeliopolisThe ‘Fish-stelae’ from MendesThe fish necropolis at GurobThe ‘Salakhana Trove’ at AsyutBulls in the Theban regionThe ‘Crocodile-stelae’ from Sumenu ;
The inscribed jar fragment Munich Ä 1383 Synthesis and Reconstruction 6. Modelling Animal Worship ;
Introduction: etic and emicThe etic perspective: single and multiple animalsThe emic perspective: Egyptian concepts and modes of predicationThe sacralisation of the animals: a ritual and semantic processReconfiguring ‘animal worship’: practice, display, historyConclusions Bibliography ;
Index
- By (author) Angelo Colonna
'...Colonna has provided readers with an authoritative compilation of data pertaining to animals in cult practice from the Early Dynastic through the New Kingdom and, given the limited nature of the evidence, has made a heroic effort to explore the role(s) of animals in the cults of the ancient Egyptians.' – Salima Ikram (2023): Current World Archaeology 112
—
‘Overall, C. deserves credit for examining under-researched periods within the study of animal worship in Egypt and for introducing some interesting concepts into the study.’ – Paul T. Nicholson (2024): Ancient West and East Volume 23
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Other Titles in this Series
Egypt 2015: Perspectives of Research
Proceedings of the Seventh European Conference of Egyptologists (2nd-7th June, 2015, Zagreb – Croatia)
Compulsion and Control in Ancient Egypt
Proceedings of the Third Lady Wallis Budge Egyptology Symposium
Environment and Religion in Ancient and Coptic Egypt: Sensing the Cosmos through the Eyes of the Divine
Proceedings of the 1st Egyptological Conference of the Hellenic Institute of Egyptology: 1-3 February 2017
Prepared for Eternity
A study of human embalming techniques in ancient Egypt using computerised tomography scans of mummies
Proceedings of the XI International Congress of Egyptologists, Florence, Italy 23-30 August 2015
Volume 19
Rise of the Hyksos
Egypt and the Levant from the Middle Kingdom to the Early Second Intermediate Period
I templi del Fayyum di epoca tolemaico-romana: tra fonti scritte e contesti archeologici
Per una classificazione degli edifici sacri nell’Egitto tolemaico e romano
The Family of Pa-di-Amun-neb-nesut-tawy from Thebes (TT 414) Revisited
The Case Study of Kalutj/Nes-Khonsu (G108 + G137)
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