Fragmmts on Egyptian Literature^ 353 



the battle of Actium was fought, and in the latter end of which 

 Egypt submitted to the conqueror. By the bye, an important 

 epoch in the submission appears to be recorded in *' hierogly- 

 phics," PL 74, A 5 b. The characters which Dr. Young sup- 

 posed to signify ** the munificent," (Quar, Journ. N.S. II., 

 314,) are certainly a date; Pharmutic, or Mesore, 12 ; that i* 

 Ms^y 9, or August 7, in the year 30 b.c. 



VIII. Astrological MS. from Saccara — Correction of the 

 received Chronology of the Itoman Emperors. In the 52nd 

 plate of Dr. Young's collection of •' Hieroglyphics," is the fac- 

 simile of a Greek MS., found in a mummy-pit, the contents 

 of which are far more important than at first sight they appear 

 to be. It is a table of the position of the heavens, at the birth 

 of some unknown native, and *' in the^rs^ year of Antoninus, 

 the 8th of the month Adrian^ according to the Greeks, but the 

 18th of Tybi, according to the Egyptians,'"' or " according to 

 the ancient system,'' as it is expressed in another place ; for the 

 date is written twice, and very distinctly. This day was the 

 4th December, 137. I have computed accurately the positions 

 of the sun, moon, and Venus^ for that day, which was the 18th 

 of Tybi, in the 885th year of Nabonassar ; and I find them 

 closely to approximate with those given in the MS., which are 

 evidently not observed, but computed places. It is manifest 

 that no nearer approximation can take place in any other year. 

 The sun's longitude would be a quarter of a degree farther 

 from the place assigned in the MS., on the same day in the 

 following year ; and the moon would be near four signs from 

 the place assigned to it, on that day in any of the four circum- 

 jacent years. As I only consider the matter in a chronological 

 point of view, I have not thought it necessary to compute the 

 places of the other heavenly bodies, except in a very rude 

 manner, by which I find that they must have been, on the 

 day above-mentioned, in the quarters of the heavens assigned 

 to them in the MS. In the upper of the two following lines 

 are given the positions of the sun, moon, and Venus, as 

 assigned by the MS. for the 18th Tybi, in the 1st of Anto- 

 njnuS) *' in the first hour of the day," that is, the first from 

 suprise; and in the lower line are the positions of the same 

 badifts, 'as computed from the tables in Vmce's Astronomy, 



