The great pyramids of Giza contain no inscriptions in their inner chambers. The walls that «speak» come later, in smaller and less celebrated pyramids in the necropolis of Saqqara. Here, beginning with the reign of Unas, last ruler of the Fifth Dynasty, the burial chambers were covered with columns of hieroglyphs: these are the Pyramid Texts, the oldest corpus of religious and magical spells to have reached us in extended form.
A late nineteenth-century discovery
For centuries the pyramids of Saqqara were considered silent. Only in 1880-1881, during work directed by Gaston Maspero, then head of the Egyptian Antiquities Service, were the chambers of several Fifth and Sixth Dynasty pyramids opened and found to be entirely inscribed. Maspero published the texts in the following years, opening a field of study that has never closed.
Besides Unas, similar texts are found in the pyramids of Teti, Pepi I, Merenre and Pepi II, and also in those of some Sixth Dynasty queens. Throughout the Old Kingdom these texts remained a royal privilege.
How they are organised
Scholars call the individual units «spells» or, with a term spread by English translations, «utterances». The German Egyptologist Kurt Sethe published a critical edition at the beginning of the twentieth century, and his numbering is still in use.
Their arrangement in the chambers is not random. Broadly speaking:
- in the sarcophagus chamber are texts linked to offerings and the resurrection of the body;
- in the antechamber and corridors, spells of passage, ascent and protection predominate;
- the sequence of texts ideally accompanies the king from the interior towards the exit, that is, towards the sky.
The king among the stars and the sun
The Pyramid Texts describe the king's destiny with different images that, for the Egyptian mind, coexist without contradiction:
- Stellar destiny: the king joins the «imperishable stars», the circumpolar ones that never set.
- Solar destiny: the king boards the sun's barque and accompanies the god on his journey.
- Osirian destiny: the king is identified with Osiris, who died and was reborn, and his son Horus performs the rites for him.
The means of ascent are very concrete: a ladder, a ramp of sunbeams, flight as a falcon or a goose, the smoke of incense. The language is rich in images that it would be a mistake to read as mere metaphors: for the priests who composed them, they described a ritual reality.
Spells against snakes and dangers
A considerable part of the Pyramid Texts consists of apotropaic spells, meant to drive evil away. Many are directed against snakes, scorpions and other dangerous animals. Their language is short, often obscure, with repeated sounds and phrases addressed directly to the snake.
One detail reveals the scribes' magical mindset: in some pyramids, hieroglyphs depicting potentially dangerous animals, such as snakes or scorpions, were drawn incomplete or cut through. Since the written image could come to life, it was prudent to make it harmless already on the wall.
The so-called «Cannibal Hymn»
Among the most debated texts is a passage known as the «Cannibal Hymn», found in the pyramid of Unas. The king is described hunting and «eating» the gods, absorbing their strength and magic. This does not refer to real practices; it is an extremely powerful image: the dead ruler becomes stronger than every power by taking divine heka into himself. It is one of the passages showing how far magical force was considered a substance to be acquired.
Legacy
The Pyramid Texts did not disappear with the end of the Old Kingdom. Many spells passed into the Coffin Texts of the Middle Kingdom and then into the Book of the Dead, sometimes adapted for non-royal people. Some reappear in tombs and papyri of the Late Period, a sign that priests went on copying and studying them as a venerable heritage.
| Element | Old Kingdom | Later periods |
|---|---|---|
| Recipient | Kings and queens | Officials and private individuals too |
| Medium | Stone walls | Coffins, papyri, objects |
| Language | Old Egyptian | Spells taken up and adapted |
In short
- The Pyramid Texts first appear in the pyramid of Unas at Saqqara.
- They were discovered in 1880-1881 during work directed by Gaston Maspero.
- They describe the stellar, solar and Osirian destiny of the dead king.
- They contain many spells against snakes and dangerous animals.
- Their heritage passed into the Coffin Texts and the Book of the Dead.
