Osireion

The Osireion (also Osirion or Osiron ) in the Egyptian Abydos is a small temple complex which was built in honor of the ancient Egyptian god Osiris. It is located southwest immediately behind the mortuary temple of Seti I. and was built like this in the time of the New Kingdom. Earlier assumptions that the Osireion represented a king grave or grave appearance, are unlikely according to recent research. The temple character is just as clear as to the type of decorations made ​​in the sacrificial rites.

The complex of Osireion was discovered in 1902 by Margaret Murray and Flinders Petrie. The exposure was carried out until 1926 under Henri Frankfort. The temple is reminiscent of its structure to the royal mortuary temple of the Fourth Dynasty, however, dates from the time of Seti I. The decoration was made until the time of his grandson Merenptah. The name of Seti I. is listed on dovetail Bauklammern that held the massive granite blocks of the main hall of the Osireions. Building materials from times before the Nineteenth Dynasty was not found.

Description

Originally Osireion was covered by a mound grave, fenced with rows of trees. The entrance was in the west of the plant. From there was a long, downward corridor leading south-east to a rectangular chamber with a narrow space behind it. On the walls of the corridor paintings were attached to that represented on the northeast side of the book of the caves, on the wall opposite the Book of Gates. Both describe the nocturnal journey of the ancient Egyptian sun god Ra through the underworld. Under Merneptah had begun at the south end of the corridor so, execute the paintings as bas-reliefs.

Other bas-reliefs from the time of Merneptah are also located in the rectangular chamber, the next room, and the north-east leading from the chamber response and the rear wall and the architraves of the subsequent transverse hall in front of the main hall with the circulating water channel. The passage from the inlet chamber to the first temple hall is like the corridor described sloping, so that the water could be fed in the underground Tempelgraben from groundwater. Today, the entire floor of the temple Osireions is under water. From the first hall, built of red granite stone blocks, led a door with lintel still present in the main hall with two rows of five large pillars on the artificial island surrounded by water. This had the Osireion customary for the Book of the Temple arrangement Egyptian temples, each one of which was a sacred hill.

From the center of the temple to the northeast and southwest of steps led down into the moat. Between these on the artificial island are two shallow pits, one rectangular and the other square, elaborated. They may have been intended as the site of a sarcophagus and a canopic chest. Circumferentially around the trench sixteen slots have been embedded in the outer walls, each of the six sides and in each case two adjacent to the entrance hall and this opposite wall. In the center of the latter led a low door in a behind second transverse hall which had no further access. Here show high reliefs on the ceilings and walls of the groove, the book and the book of night, framed by two representations of the sky goddess Nut. The door to this last hall is so low that it is completely flooded by the water in the main hall, which may have been already planned during the construction of the temple mid revolving moat so.

The roof of the Osireions is now only preserved in a few parts, so that one has a good insight into the formerly underground temple complex from above. The huge monumental explains the great local significance of Osiris at Abydos, which also was one of the burial places of Osiris.

Cosmological representations

On the walls and the ceiling cosmological texts of the sky books and deans were installed. The north, south and east walls is so destroyed that no reading is possible. On the west wall remains of the Book of the Earth are still recognizable. The ceiling spans the western and eastern sarcophagus embalming. In the western half of the Book of Nut is shown, while in the eastern half of the book is shown by the night.

In the southern area of the " spell of the 12 tombs " as 168th chapter of the Book of the Dead is attached to the east, south and west walls. The accompanying vignette shows the occupied already in the Pyramid Texts three phases of the sun god Re. Already in the oldest witness to the reign of Amenhotep II are " 7 tombs " no longer exists as text. Only in Osireion an attempt was made to reconstruct the crypts schematically as one unit.

The discovery

In the season 1902/ 03 Flinders Petrie had his wife Hilda put in charge of the excavations at Abydos. Also present were Margaret Murray, whose knowledge of religious texts for copying were important, as well as the artist Miss F. Hansard for the drawing of the reliefs. The three women took all necessary aspects of the company. Last season Mr. St. G. Caulfeild ( Algernon St. George Thomas Caulfield ) was the long corridor within the boundary wall partially exposed. The large masses of sand were removed, had left a huge furrow like a natural ravine.

The manner of construction of this great Hypogeum made ​​it fairly easy to suspect another underground building including, although the depth at which it had to be, would make it impossible to expose more than a small part of it. It is the nature of the desert, that after 60 - encounters on hard marl 120 cm wind-blown sand. This is as hard as rock. The ancient architects drew from their advantage by corridors and halls filled up with steeply sloping, almost vertical, excavated sides, then covered with large blocks of stone as roof and the hole at the top with sand. The entire structure was no longer visible from the outside and thus well hidden. The researchers had thus from the marl from test pits excavated within the temenos wall, which showed without exception that the marl was trimmed vertically to allow the building underneath.

After three failed attempts, where they always met only on sand, they found at 5 m depth, some large sandstone blocks. Margaret Murray also discovered a kind of door, behind which they found on the floor of a room after a few meters. After the discovery of a hieroglyphic cartouche of Merneptah was clear to everyone that they had discovered a building without one in Egypt previously known counterpart. Afterwards, the Great Hall and a sloping corridor has yet been found. Since then, Margaret Murray is regarded as " the discoverer of Osireions ".

" We spent three weeks trying to find a place where there could be a roof, and we were confused by the right-angle turns that seemed to make this access. Now we know that these " bends " were hewn out of the rock to serve as a carrier for rooms and halls. We hoped to find a spot where the roof was still in order. For days I carried candles and matches in my pocket, ready to slip through a passage which was big enough - but they were never needed. During all this excavation it was always the unexpected that happened. If we expected to find a corridor, we found rooms and halls when we were hoping for a complete roof, the roof was completely removed when we expected a grave, we found a place for worship. "

Since the excavation season was about to end, they could do no further investigation. Also said Flinders Petrie that the BSAE not have enough funds for such a large company has, that is, the masses of sand and rock at about 9.50 m (40 ft. ) to remove depth over the entire building. He hoped that the service at Gaston Maspero Antiques would be prepared as part of the great temple, which was already a major attraction in Egypt to dig this unique Hypogeum of Osiris and maintain it. However, it would take until 1914 before Edouard Naville could dig again for the Egypt Exploration Society here, and finally to 1925 when Henri Frankfort excavated by a steam engine today " Osireion ".

"I could only copy a very small part of the Inscriptions, because - even though we had cleared the corridor to the ground - was a strong wind within two days everything again. The whole excavation was greatly delayed by fierce sandstorms that sometimes half a ton of sand and stones brought down. Sitting in a pit under irregular, but continuous fire of small stones and the chance of getting hit with the larger stone, was an experience that is only funny in retrospect. "

" The carefully elaborated study of Osiris, Miss Murray has issued, will hopefully serve to clarify the various aspects and connections of one of the important deities of the Egyptian worship and faith and to bring to bear. "

Flinders Petrie has given this archaeological site named " Osireion ".