Lesley.] ^26 [May, 



King ; Chapter 64, to the reign of Menkaura (builder of the third pyra- 

 mid).* 



"We read, again, in the Medical Papyrus Ebers of a hair salve pre- 

 pared as long back as by 8hesh the mother of Teta, (TTA) apparently the 

 A&oTix of the lists, 2d King of the 1st Dynasty," the immediate successor 

 of Menes, &c. 



The tablets of Abydos and Saqqara give the following combined list 

 of names of the Kings of the first three dynasties : Mena (Menes), TeTA, 

 ATeTh, ATA, Kenkenes, Husapti (Sapti), Meribapu, Semempses, Qebuhu, 

 Butau, Qaqeu, Ba-n-neter, Watnas, Senda, Hetefa, TTAA (T'atai), 

 ISTeferqara, Sokarneferka, Nubkara, Sar, Sar-TeTA, Huni. Snefru. 



It will be seen that TTA occurs with slight variations five times in this 

 list of 23 Kings. The hair-ointment is assigned to the mother (Shesh) ot 

 the first one. I give little weight to Krall's etymologies of these names, 

 although he accepts them as "ganz abschliessend festgestellt " by Lauth, 

 in his Manetho (p. 87). I prefer to refer them all (as mere modifications) 

 to Tat, the sacred symbol, Nilometer, or what not, used incessantly in the 

 priestly literature and on the monuments with numerous meanings more 

 or less radically different. But I wish to insist here on the striking fact, 

 that the value of this famous verb and known root of Egyptian literature 

 could not very well be more highly guaranteed and illustrated than by 

 its being used alone and without any other compounding element to man- 

 ufacture (whether historically or traditionally or mythically is a question 

 of no moment here) the personal names of five out of 23 of the most an- 

 cient Kings. 



Its value is further shown by the fact that it entered as a compound into 

 the names of many other Kings (like Ra-tat-f, Tat-kara, &c.) of succeeding 

 dynasties. 



Its highest value is exhibited in the name of the special god of the 

 clerici, clergy, clerks, scribes, the god of learning, i. e. worship, Thoth. 



But it appears among the names of the egyptian nobility or bourgeoisie 

 (for it is hard to distinguish between these classes, distinct as they become 

 in modern times) ; as, e. x. — In the tombstone of a gentleman of the 

 Ancient Empire preserved in the Boulaq Museum at Cairo (No. 71, 

 Magazine V, Mariette's Aperqu.), the legend runs, that his name was, 

 ATA ; his father's . . . .ua ; his mother's Neb't ; and his son's Sebek-nefer. 



Taking this private name (in the 5th dynasty '?) ATA, and comparing it 

 with the royal names ATA, ATeT, TeTA, and TeTAi of the 1st and 2d 

 dynasties, we can not be surprised at the appearance of the name 

 ATI, in 1 Chronicles ii : 34, given, as it is there, to the son of an Egyptian, 

 the slave of one of the descendants of Judah. But the marvel is that the 

 slave's wife's father should have the egyptian sounding name Sheshan ; 

 and that the Ebers Papyrus should call the mother of the pharaoh TTA, 

 Shesh! 



To return to the list of early names in 1 Chron. ii : 17. 



*4th King of IV Dy. if Snefru were tlie 1st. But if Snefru was the last King 

 of tlie III D then Mycerinos was 3d King of the IV D. 



