Royal Belgian Society of Oriental Studies

Abstract : During our excavations in Tepe Zarduyan,we have discovered a very large cemetery of the Parthian period from where a great number of funerary jars and coffins has been unearthed. We were surprised to see that the dimensions of some coffins reached human ones and were adorned with a lot of fine ornamental elements like bands, false handles and side handles. A survey on the site let us know that other coffins were buried here. Beside these great coffins, were a lot of poteries of lesser dimensions and different quality. We suppose that they were used as reserves of food for the deads during their journey in the neitherworld. Moreover and unexpectedly, we discovered traces of funerary architecture like partition walls dividing the area of the cemetery in different parts and isolating the ‘‘main’’ sector of the site where the great coffins have been buried. our future studies are to described the links between walls, the stone areas and the material buried in the jars.

Abstract : this article studies the various sites and buildings that were once called “museum” by assyriologists or historians of the ancient near East. Following an introduction, the first part discusses five sites/buildings and will tackle the question whether they were real museums or not. the second part goes deeper into what is often called “the oldest museum in the world”, more precisely a complex of various rooms within the temple Edublama? in Ur. allegedly this museum was founded by En-nigaldi-nanna, the daughter of the neo-Babylonian king nabonidus (556- 539 BCE), but doubts still remain on this issue.

Abstract : the myth INANNA and ENKI lists more than a hundred ‘‘ME’’ that the goddess will acquire from the god. the concept of ME is specifically inherent in Sumerian civilization and defining it is extremely complex. ME can be considered as objects, functions, know-how, moral values or even names. in myths, they can be exchanged, stolen or offered between deities. ‘‘Power’’ seems to be the most apt term to translate this concept word, even if our word is far from mentioning the full extent of the Sumerian semantic and symbolic value. after classifying these Powers according to a logic which is more familiar to us than that of the Sumerian enumeration, we will attempt a most exhaustive study of each of these divine powers.

Abstract : This article examines the gold mask no. 624 of the national archaeological museum of athens, better known as the mask of agamemnon. it is one of the museum’s most famous pieces, but it remains enigmatic in more than one respect. We will discuss in particular its identification, its possible links with egypt, etc.

Abstract : Kushite royal texts in “égyptien de tradition” (late Middle egyptian) are not only valuable for their historical significance but also for their linguistic one, thanks to the feats they preserved. After a brief overview of the linguistic situation of egypt and nubia under the 25th dynasty (ca. 722-ca. 655) and of the main factors influencing late Middle egyptian, two aspects of Kushite late Middle egyptian are reviewed. First, the evidence of a specific stage of the evolution of Middle egyptian into late egyptian in the Victory Stela of Piankhy; then, the possibility of non Middle egyptian based “égyptiens de tradition”.

Abstract : Among the objects in the collection of the chapel Sancta Sanctorum (now in the Vatican museum), a syro-Palestinian reliquary (5-6th C.) is most remarkable. representing the arch of the Covenant in the heart of latin Christianity, it illustrates against arianism the orthodox Chalcedonian theology about the reality of the suffering of Christ on a real, wooden cross, as well as the role of the Virgin Mary, not only as mother of Jesus but also as mother of god. her throne, the kathisma or Sedes Sapientiae, is the arch of the New Testament.

Abstract : We shall present three colophons signed by the copyist monk Ṣṭāfanā al-Ramlī (Stefan of Ramla) in two manuscripts: BL OR 4950, a parchment of 237 folios, copied in the Vieille Laura Saint Chariton in 877, and Arab Sinaï 72, a parchment of 119 folios, copied in 897. The first one is made up of two treaties, each of which ending with a colophon, and the second one also ends with a colophon, followed by a note from the owner notifying its arrival at the monastery of Saint Catherine in Mount Sinaï at an unprecised date. We shall first present the handwritten reproductions of the three colophons, their transcription into contemporary Arabic characters as well as their translation. in a second step we shall comment upon those documents from three points of view: the copyist, the dates and linguistic observations.

Abstract : This article highlights the importance of the karšūnī system as a tool for textual transmission. moreover, although it is usually agreed that this system would be used exclusively in christian circles, this study shows new evidence of its use in muslim texts. therefore, its use might not be reserved for a specific area, namely religious.

Abstract : Al-Maqqarī reports in his Nafḥ al-ṭīb information on the copy of al-Iḥāṭa fī aḫbār Ġarnāṭa of which the author Ibn al-Ḫaṭīb had, during his lifetime, made a waqf for the benefit of the ḫanqāh of Saʿīd al-Suʿadā’ in Cairo. Al-Maqqarī consulted the copy but other well-known personalities had done the same before him. Some of these readers and the marks they left on the copy pages caught al-Maqqarī’s attention. This short article sheds some light on those readers contact with the copy of al-Iḥāṭa based on the data kept in the Nafḥ al-ṭīb.

Abstract : Giuseppe Casanova in his Memories, Story of My Life, describes a trip he made to Constantinople in 1745. He is received by the famous French renegade, Bonneval Pasha, who presents him to several high ranking turks, in particular ismail efendi, whom Casanova qualifies of Ministry of Foreign Affairs. this ismail efendi takes the young man to a kiosk, where he gets excited by the view of naked women (sirens) swimming in a pool. turkish History does not record any ismail efendi Minister of Foreign Affairs during that period. Casanova gives a clue: this turkish diplomat was a friend of a venetian Ambassador. this leads to Çelebizade said Mehmet efendi who took part in a turkish embassy in Paris with his father in 1721, and lead a second embassy to Paris in 1742 along the venetian Ambassador. said Mehmet launched the first official ottoman printing in cooperation with Muteferrika. A scholar fond of books, said Mehmet probably showed to Casanova miniatures of the classical Persian Iskandarnāma, where Alexander admires sirens.

Abstract : Carrying on with the study of the relations between Leopold II king of the Belgians and egypt (BiOr, 73, no 5-6 [2016], col. 551-590), I extended the panel or sources to copies, notes, exchange of letters, drafts, health reports from Dr stacquez (Goffinet Fonds), 14 folios identified here as to the Notes du voyage d’Égypte 1862/3, and two manuscript files (APR, 1935 and MRAH, 1941) never into account. I chose the chronological approach to trace gifts of antiquities, not only during the journeys on the Nile but on too. the Duke of Brabant had no special interest in the egyptian art. it is the reason why he chose or bought nearly only few pieces of art, as ‘travel souvenirs’ to keep in mind, like his collections of photographs, his albums and his diaries. Leopold considered the whole set as it were a private museum of his own travels. For a long time egypt and especially Cairo remained in his mind as symbol of extension abroad. Our present aim is to link the formation of the royal collection with the political and diplomatic main concerns of the Duke of Brabant discussed at long in his diary of 1862/3 and submitted to evolution in the course of years. Over time the focus remained the same: to convert Belgium into a colonial power, whatever the approach could be applied.

Abstract : The ever-increasing number of archaeological objects discovered and the egyptian desire to preserve the various traces of the past from prehistory to the present day has led to the multiplication of museum spaces. since their creation in the second half of the 19th century, the museums of egypt, created on the european model, have multiplied and diversified to meet the many aspects of the material and immaterial culture of society. Concepts relating to the study, conservation, and transmission of egyptian archaeological heritage, revealing cultures – prehistoric, Pharaonic, Greco-roman, Coptic and Muslim - that have succeeded one another in the Nile Valley, have changed considerably in at least six decades in both europe and egypt. A new concept of global cultural solidarity first emerged in the rescue of monuments in Nubia. in response to the conservation of monuments, but also to the needs of egyptian society and the increase of tourism, a new era for museums in egypt has begun. in 2005, convinced that the strategic key to education and heritage awareness is there, the egyptian authorities announced the renovation or creation of thirty-three institutions. in 2002, they planned the construction of the Great egyptian Museum (GEM) in Giza, intended to be the largest archaeological museum in the world. A recent census of museums shows one hundred and seventy-two, classified by type of collection and distributed among government museums, university museums, private museums, or nonprofit foundations. Their variety and the fact that most of them are unfamiliar prompted me to propose this article to place them in the context of their creation and outline the great features of the history of museums in egypt. Many egyptian professionals are aware of the essential role of museums in society. To increase the long-neglected egyptian audience, while increasing the number of international visitors, the egyptian authorities are developing the vast programme of modernization and creation of museums. similarly, the development of museum mediation for young audiences led to the creation of the Children’s Museum at the Cairo Museum and the Children Civilization and Creativity Center in Heliopolis. An essential part of the new museum strategy is to train curators in museology, museography and cultural heritage management.

Abstract : this short article presents two interrelated projects pertaining to the archives of the Philby- Lippens-Ryckmans expedition kept at the Université catholique de Louvain. this epigraphical and archaeological survey, carried out in the winter of 1951-1952 in the kingdom of Saudi Arabia, yielded an abundant documentation for the study of the languages, scripts and history of Pre-Islamic Arabia, much of which is yet to be exploited and published. On the one hand, the history of the collection and the various phases of its description and digitization are explained, and on the other hand, the article outlines the methods, the various components and the objectives of the “In the footsteps of Philby, Ryckmans and Lippens” project: publication, translation, historical interpretation, and verification in situ of selected data, as well as communication of research output to the public at large.

Abstract : Herodotus presents Cambyse as an impious tyrant, murderer of the sacred bull apis. a whole tradition has perpetuated this detestable image among later Greco-roman authors but also in Coptic sources. this tradition is partly dependent on Herodotus but not entirely. But Cambyses’ image is always detestable, in all the stories, notwithstanding the details. this study reexamines the question of the veracity of Herodotus’s claims about the murder of apis by the persian conqueror. interpreting the funerary stelae of two apis bulls buried in the Serapeum of Memphis under the reigns of Cambyses and darius, many egyptologists have concluded that the king was innocent. according to them, the account of the apis assassination is a total invention of priestly circles, who were the informants of the Greek historian. However, these steles can be interpreted in a completely opposite sense. Maybe the apis murder did happen. and the royal name composed for Cambyses by an egyptian dignitary (Oudjahorresnet, considered as a vile collaborator of the persians) can, in fact, be understood as a condemnation of the criminal impiety of the achaemenid sovereign.

Abstract : Many religions saw the necessity of reform at some point in the course of their history. in order for these reforms not to appear heretical, they had to be justified in the most common way possible, that is to say returning to the origins. The zoroastrian religion is no different from these others. The zoroastrian community of the 18th century in india was faced with some religious dilemmas for which they did not find any solution neither in their sacred texts nor their clergymen were able answer them. Following the immigration of the zoroastrian community from iran to india after the islamization of iran, this small minority found itself surrounded by people of alien faiths. These unanswered questions were raised due to their interactions with the non-zoroastrians. At this point, the best way of putting these distressful matters to rest would be to implement a reform. How to implement this reform without seeming heretical? Would forging an archetypical text allow this reform to take place smoothly? if so what would be the best way of doing so?

Abstract : The early excavations in the 1950s at the site of Pasargadae revealed a sculptured fragment depicting the head of a man in bas-relief. The exact archaeological context of the bas-relief is not known but it is said to be found in the Tall-e Takht excavations by Ali Sami. A close examination of the fragment shows interesting elements of comparison with both early Achaemenid sculptures known from the Bisutun monument of darius ist and bas-reliefs decorating the structures at Persepolis.

Abstract : Compilers often confuse two types of texts dedicated to Jāmāsp but of different nature. on the one hand, the versions of the Ayādgār ī Jāmāspīg also known as Jāmāspi or Jāmāsp-nāmāg that have come down to us in Pehlevi, pāzand, gujarati and Persian. these strictly zoroastrian texts, consist of an apocalyptic dialogue between the king Vīštāsp and the wise man Jāmāsp. on the other hand, the versions of Ahkām ī Jāmāsp which, although they also feature the king Vīštāsp and the sage Jāmāsp, deal with the history of the world according to the positive or negative confluences of the planets and conjunctions, followed by the historical prophecies of Jāmāsp according to the conjunctions of the planets, and their positions in the houses of the zodiac.

Abstract : This paper proposes a brief analysis and a prose paraphrase of a hitherto little-studied episode taken from the first part of Niẓāmī’s Eskandar-Nāma, recounting the traumatising adventure of alexander the great in the Cavern of kay khosrow. This strange and compelling episode with its almost Jules-Vernian ambiance, is part of alexander’s quest for knowledge, in a first part of his education towards becoming the ideal Farabian ruler who combines the qualities of conqueror, philosopher and (Farabian) prophet. alexander faces the reality of a true quest for immortal heavenly rule, a redoubtable example which he is not ready to follow.

Abstract : There are three words meaning “desire” in sogdian texts: 1) ˀβrγsˀk “wish, desire, lust” – 2) kˀm “wish, desire” – 3) rγż “wish desire, demand”. These words have occurred in Buddhist, Manichean and christian sogdian. in some Buddhist sogdian texts the translators have used these three words to translate different chinese words and especially Buddhist terms. But, are these words synonyms? Do they have the same usages? in this paper all these sogdian words are studied and compared in order to find out their exact meaning, usage and frequency and to answer the mentioned questions.

Abstract : the Children of Horus are divinities to whom the function of protector of the organs gives a privileged status. as from the New Kingdom they are shown nearest the deceased on the funeral furnishings and monuments. their figuration is closely linked to that of the deceased. as divinities, they wear the chendjit kilt or the corselet and carry the royal attributes. Like the deceased they are mummified and carry the same accessories as the deceased, such as the beads netting, which can be seen in numerous examples as from the third intermediate period. these are visible in many examples as is shown by the group of five plaques of serpentine on display at the Musée royal de Mariemont.

Abstract : This article is the second part of analysis of the employment of the term "man" by the monks of Egypt, through the Mission of Paphnutius / Life of Onnophrius. The term is used to refer to a human being in general or, more specifically, a monk. It may also refer to an angel.