RT Article
T1 Towards the Origins of the Pyramid Texts
JF Journal of ancient Near Eastern religions
VO 24
IS 2
SP 206
OP 235
A1 Peterková Hlouchová, Marie
A1 Krejčí, Jaromír 1971-
A2 Krejčí, Jaromír 1971-
LA English
YR 2024
UL https://ixtheo.de/Record/1916131069
AB The Pyramid Texts represent the oldest surviving corpus of religious compositions from ancient Egypt. Their first attestations come from the very end of the Fifth Dynasty, from the inner rooms of the pyramid of King Unas (late 24th century BC). Some scholars have suggested that their roots must have been older, and their origins have been widely discussed among Egyptologists. What could shed more light on this topic are the wooden fragments, dated to the Sixth Dynasty, with parts of several Pyramid Texts spells found in the excavations of the French Archaeological Mission at Saqqara. These artefacts demonstrate that the religious texts could have been written down on portable items of burial equipment, uncovering thus new dynamics in the extent of their usage. In this regard, wooden fragments from the pyramid complex Lepsius no. 24 (AC 22 [J]) and the pyramid complex of Queen Khentkaus II (AC 14 [A]) at Central Abusir, both dated to the Fifth Dynasty, are of considerable significance. These may represent the earliest clear evidence of the so-called Pyramid Texts in ancient Egypt.
K1 Fifth Dynasty
K1 Abusir
K1 wood
K1 Origins
K1 Pyramid Texts
K1 Old Kingdom
K1 Egypt
DO 10.1163/15692124-12341347