The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1902-09-20
PLAQUES OF OLD EGYPT.
An Ancient Papyrus of Pharaoh's
Day.
Gondon Globe.1


come a household word. The episodes
which have brought the magic OF
Egypt most into prominence are the
contests between the Wonder-Workers
OF the court of Pharaoh and Moses
EXODUS. vii. ID. and the miracles in
the form of plaques which struck ter
rOr into the heart OF Pharaoh The
miracles of the Hebrew laWgiver ara
described with such detail that it has
long been hoped that some trace OF
such efforts of magic would be found
In the black literature OF Egypt. Such
a discovery seems at last TO have been
made During recent years a great
quantity of magical literature, con-
sisting OF charms, litanies and coilee-
lections of tales, have been recovered
from Egypt. Among these We have the
tales IN the Westcar papyrt ascribed
TO a magician OF the age OF Khufu, the
builder of the great pyramid; the
Daubeney papyrus, with the Tale OF
the Two Brothers," which present a
close resemblance to the story of Jo-
seph and Potiphars wife, and others.
| The magical literature was the men
tai pabulum of the common people,
and these tales were. no doubt. read
or told to Interested audiences In
Thebes and Memphis, as the stories
from the Arabian Nights" or the
! tales OF Antar are now told In the ba-
zaars and cafes Of Cairo.
| In Ptolemsic times there was a
/ great revival OF these tales of the
! things which tie men of the olden
Tune knew" and many collections of
these folk stories were made. Chief
| among those cycles OF stories was one
grouped round a certain prince named
! khamuas, the son of Rameses II, the
king al whose court Moses fiourished.
Although the papyTus in the museum
! is very late document. dating about
A a. II is copy of much older
! manuscripts. The first set of tales
which relate TO the birth and miracles
OF child named Se-OsiFis / noticed
some months ago in these columns.
and pointed out their remarkable re-
sembiance to the stories of the infancy
of Jesus; the second portion is com
posed OF material derived from doeu-
ments OF antiquity and associated with
Pharaohs of the eighteenth and nine
teehth dynasties.
The main incidents in the story are
supposed to take place at the court
OF Rameses II. as those in the life of
Moses took place at the court of his
son, Merenptah. when Se-Osiris cham
pioned Egypt against the wonder
workers OF Ethiopia. The Ethiopian
magician has a magical writing which
none can read. and which, il not read,
will bring a terrible curse on the land.
This the boy Se-Osiris succeeds in
reading. This enables him TO bring in
a curious contest between magicians,
which had taken place some five CEN
aFxr
Thothmes III.
This fact is important as it shows
that the wonders had taken place ac-
cording to the literary traditions of
Egypt long prior to the age of Moses.
According to this story, Sc Osiris had
lived in a former state of existence at
the court of Thothmes III as Hor. the
son OF the negro. where he had been
a reader" and an exceedingly learned
man skilled in magic. At that time
there came 10 Egypt some Ethiopian
magicians who would work enchant-
ments upon Pharaoh and his people,
and, indeed, commenced to do so.
when this wise man was called to
save the king. Here at the onset we
have a curious parallel TO the tradi-
uonai contest between Moses and
James and Jambres Timothy iii. 81.
And the resemblance in Moses is very
striking when one Of the magicians
taunts the victorious Hor in the
words. Art thou not Hor, the son of
the negro. whom 1 saved from the
reeds OF RAP"
We come now TO a curious series of
boasts OF the Ethiopian magicians of
the spells they would cast upon the
land of Egypt. This is most curious
and valuable material The first ma
gician says: Il will cast my spell upon
the land of Egypt, and will cause the
people Of Egypt to pass three days and
three nights without seeing the light"
The parallel with Exodus x. 21-23, is
almost literal. To quote: THE Lord
said unto Moses, stretch thy hand to-
ward heaven and there shall be dark
ness over the land of Egypt
and there was darkness in the land
of Egypt three days" Such an agree
ment can hardly be by mere chance.
The next extract is very valuable, and
presents a curious agreement with the
Hebrew account and explains a strange
gloss therein.
The mother of one of the magicians,
after warning him of the skill of the
Egyptian wise men, says: set some
Sl6n ncANtcH me anu kHttt SnoQil II
be that thou fallest. / will come 10
thee. that / may see If ] shall be able
To save thee" Her son then says: If
il happens that ] be overcome the
waters shall be made the color Of
blood before thee. and the foods that
are before thee the color of flesh, and
the heavens shall be the color of
blood" Here we have all the
Feat ~ hn s,ia
of blood Exodus vii, 1929. IN
the Bible we are told that ''the
magicians Of Egypt did in like
manner with their entertainments"
It would seem as II the writer of the
Hebrew account knew OF this magical
story and used il. for II would be cur
rent in the age when Exodus was writ
ten. The writer Of the book OF Exodus
appears 10 have been well acquainted
with the popular literature OF Egypt,
for we have another curious parallel
when one Of the magicians said: II
viii cast my magic upon the land of
Egypt and l viii not allow the land
10 be fertile for three years" No
doubt the famines which occurred from
time TO time in Egypt were by the ig-
n0rant attributed to magical spells
cast over the land. The Tale Of the
Two Brothers" has all the features Of
the story of Potiphars wife: the tale
or the fight of Sinhuit to INDIAN is
similar 10 that of the flight OF Moses,
while the crossing of the sea has
parallel in the dividing OF the waters
found in many magical stories. II is
evident that in the fairy tales and
novels OF Egypt we have that which
students have failed 10 find in the
monuments-the true basis Of the