ROMAN PAVEMENTS AND INTRECCl. l8l 



and they both occur in a single sentence of the Book of the 

 Dead, chap. Ixii. " I am heir of eternity ; to me hath been given 

 everlastingness." The expressions differ. 



In one, the solar disc is the determinative, and in the other, 

 the sign for the Delta, or land without horizon. Moreover, the 

 snake's attitude in the latter expression is not that of a circle, tail 

 in mouth, but it rather confirms Horapollo's description, though 

 the reptile is more like an asp than a urseus. 



We must look elsewhere for an explanation. It is to be found 

 in the practice of magic, as revealed in the Book of the 

 Overthrowing of Apep. This was a sort of litany which was 

 recited in the temple of Amon Ra every day. The papyrus roll 

 which contains it was written B.C. 305, but the work itself is 

 much more ancient. 



Apep was the Sun God's greatest foe in the underworld. It is 

 natural that the Book of the Dead should fully describe the 

 monster. He dwelt on a mountain and was 500 cubits in length. 

 The determinative attached to his name is a snake in five 

 undulations, with a sword stuck in each of them.* On the 

 Sarcophagus of Oimenepthaf his folds are intricate. Nothing 

 but his overthrow could bring a restoration of life to the dying 

 soul. 



" Praise to Ra," we read in the litany, " the great god in his 

 disc, who destroyeth Apep in the underworld. O ye gods of the 

 south, north, west, and east, tie and fetter Apep ; set fetters round 

 about him. Ye starry deities of Orion fetter him ; and ye who 

 dwell in the decans fetter him. The Great Bear of the Northern 

 Heavens, cast him down. O ye fetterers, fetter ye, fetter ye Apep, 

 that enemy of Ra. Horus who dwelleth unseen cries ' Tie him 

 up, slay him with your swords, with sacred knives of flint.' Apep 

 shall be overthrown on sea, on land, and among the stars." 



* It is remarkable that the name of the fourth Mexican monarch was Itzcoatl, 

 or " knife-snake," represented by a number of obsidian knives stuck in a 

 serpent's back. 



t B.C. 1147. 



