20 THE ANCIENT EGYPTIANS. CHAP. XIII. 



of years with a reed, or pen, like the last-mentioned 

 Deity. This, as well as the crescent and globe, 

 may appear to connect him with the Moon ; but I 

 am rather disposed to see in him some analogy to 

 the Egyptian Hercules, or the representative of 

 created things.* The name of Chon, given to 

 Hercules by the author of the " Etymologicum 

 Magnum t," is certainly in favour of the former 

 supposition, though much doubt still exists re- 

 specting the real character of the Egyptian Her- 

 cules. 



It was from this God that the name of an indi- 

 vidual Petechonsis, mentioned in a papyrus found 

 at Thebes, was derived, which signifies Chonso- 

 dotus, or " gifted by Khonso." It is compounded, 

 like Diodotus, Herodotus, Ammonodotus, and 

 others, of the ^ordi pet, " gifted," or " giver," and 

 the name of the Deity. 



The name of Khonso is written with the sieve, 

 (kh, or sh) ; the zigzag (n), the reed (s), and the 

 chicken (o). The first character is marked with 

 cross lines, showing the nature of the object it re- 

 presents ; but these are frequently omitted on the 

 monuments ; and, as all hieroglyphics were painted, 

 the distinction between the sieve and the solar disk 

 was pointed out by a blue, and a red, colour. Few 

 sculptures, however, have retained it ; and hence 

 the former often presents the same appearance as 

 the Sun, from which it cannot then be distinguished. 

 In those cases, too, when all the hieroglyphics are 



* Vide supra. Vol. I. {2d Series) p. 248. 

 f Vide Jablonski, lib. ii. c. 3. s. 3. 



