- 
416 Decree of the Evyptian Priefts in Honour of Ptolomy V. [June 7; 
1, 42. Exthaveg evfyagtce vaov cove] Zode~ 
vELY. 
1. 44. Meuopfes cegov tov See Hasse owe 
cuy|rerecn. 
“1.45. pudaxenerg yeluctia....--- ofre.” 
1. 47. coer [ny de nas mavuluesy ev Tog KaTA THY 
At | yuxrov. 
1.48. aec8feccic.2.----- me] eeyornevors or 
mreoblecriac]. : 
1. 49. xeilev[tavloy xara Thy ave Xat XaTe THY 
Aiyurre] xweay. 
1, 50. meorayoge! vonceSat or meoreyoge Jubn- 
CovTat OF Hat TavTaS teceig TYTES, 
I. 54. xat Sevres[ av nas Terrwy seeoy ev 01g 
iSeuserat (or ET) n Elkwy Tou Ogoy 
Enipayoug, 
. 
As it would be impoffible to enter here 
into a laboured and minute commentary, 
upon every hiftorical, theological, or li- 
turgical fact» contained or alluded to in 
the infcription, we fhall confine our more 
general remarks within a narrow compa{s ; 
directing them toa fuch points, alone, as 
feem to require an explanation fomewhat 
in detail. 
L. 1. uveres Sacre. The Piolomies, 
befide Egypt, were pofleffed of Syria, Cy- 
renaica, Lylia, Pamphilia, and the ifle of 
Cyprus. 
5, De xUeLOU TEbaKOVTA eTECOwY. This 
has been fuppofed, by the French com- 
mentators, with a deal of verbiage, to al- 
lude to fome aftronomical period, of which 
our knowledge is not at prefent clear. 
Allufions of a fimilar nature, though not 
exaétly in point, having been obferved 
among the writings of thofe who have 
javifhed praife upon the princes of the Eaft. 
L.3. tay Os aw nor nate xwewr. It 
has been doubted, whether Upper and 
Lower Egypt are to be here fimply under- 
ftood; cr whether in addition to the title 
of Lord of Thirty Years, we have not ano- 
ther reference to aftronomic obfervations ; 
in which Ptolomy is compared to the Sun, 
as the great king of the upper and lower 
regions. 
L. 3. ov o H@aisos edousuecey. A mode 
of expreffion which agrees with the Greek 
tranflation of the infcription of Heliopolis 
given by Hermapion. He fays, in fpeak- 
ang of Rhamefes, oy o HZaises o rw Pewy 
mavne meoezesvev { Amm. Marc. xvii. ¢. 4.) 
So the pfeudo-Callifthenes (Fabr. Biol. 
Grec. xiv. #.149.) calls him Weomaroea 
EWVe ; 
L.3. Qo Hatos cdwuev tay vexny proba- 
bly alludes to the vi€tories Ptolemy ob- 
tained over Antiochus the Great of Syria. 
Ytou tov Hase, in the fame line, isa for- 
mule of expreffion mot uncommon among 
the titles of the kings of Egypt. The 
Z eae 
= 
Heliopclitan infcription, in fpeaking of 
Rhamefes, joins this and the following 
title of Ptolomy Epiphanes together, Hare 
wars asavoesios. The immortal fon of the 
Suz. Alexander the Great, it is to be 
remembered, gave himfelf out as the fon 
of Jupiter Ammon, and killed Clytus for 
refufing to adore him. a: 
L.4. nyarnucvoy rov Oba. Phtha, one 
of the principal gods of the Egyptians, 
was interpreted among the Greeks by 
Vulcan, (See Jablonfky’s Pantheon Egypt. 
Lib. 1.¢. ii.) Suidas exprefsly fays, that 
it was the name under which Vulcan was 
adored at Memputs*; the temple where- 
at, defcribed by Herodotus and Diodorus 
S:culus, was the only one in Egypt fet 
apart to Vulcan. 
L. 4. Asrov rov acrov. In the firt 
copies. of the infcription edited beth here 
and on the Continent, the fecond AETOY 
was read AE TOY; but the examination 
of the original ftone by no means war- 
ranted the emendation. M. Ameilhon 
thought he had found an authority for it 
in a decree. of the Sigzeans in honour of 
Antiochus Softer, pinted in Chifhuli’s 
Antiq. Afiatice, p. §2. ETH TE bEeEws 
TOY TOY Bacirews Avrioye. It is fin. 
gular too that Mr. Akerblad, among the 
difcoveries already mentioned, found the 
repetition of Aéfos-in the Coptic. The 
Fagle, the literal meaning of Aetos (pre- 
ferved in the four lines tranflated on the 
plate) is fuppofed either to have been the 
fymbolic name, indicating the High Prieit, 
or to have been in fome way. connecied 
with the figure of the bird which fo con- 
ftantly occurs on almoft all the coins of 
the Prolomies. M. D’ Anffe de Villoifon 
(Magas, Encyclop. 1803, vol. Vi. p- 70.) 
thinks it the proper name of a particular 
prieft, Aétes ; -and Profeffor Heyne, that’ 
the infcription fpeaks of #étes, fox of Aétes. 
Li 4. Ozav Lornewy, &c. Thefe gods, 
in pairs, are the kings and queens, pre= 
deceflors of Ptolomy Epiphanes. ©zwy 
Lorngwy, Ptolomy Soter and_ his ‘wife 
Arfinoé; @ewy OiAaceAQws, Ptolomy Phi- 
ladelphus and Arfincé; @ewy Evegyetw, 
Prolomy Evergetes and Berenice; @ewy 
Dirowoaroguy, Ptolomy Philepator and 
Arfineé, . 
L6: Mexere oxruxasocdarn; anfwering 
to the early part of March. 
Ray IIregoQogas. Hefychius exprefsly 
fays, that the Pterophoroi were an order 
of priefts; (xarovuta: d& etws uab TwD EP 
Atyuntw segewy THve¢:) who appear to have ~ 
been diftinguithed by wearing wings upon 
* GOAT Lo Hpaisos wage Mepegirais. f 
theig 
Ms en ee ee egg ee 
