Chapter 17 (part 3)

, Hermopolis Magna, the metropolis of Un, the 15th nome of Upper Egypt, the city called ### by the Copts, and Eshmûnên, ### by the Arabs. It was the abode of the "eight" ( xemennu ) great primeval gods, and of Thoth, the scribe of the gods. (See Meyer and Dümichen, Geschichte des alten Agyptens , p. 185.)] written upon a slab of steel of the South, in the writing of the god himself, under the feet of the majesty of the god, in the time of the majesty of Men-kau-Ra, the king of the North and of the South, triumphant, by the royal son Heru-tata-f who found it while he was journeying to inspect the temples." The scarabs which are found in the mummies, or lying upon the breast just above the position of the heart, form an interesting section of every large Egyptian collection. In the British Museum series every important type of the funereal scarab is represented. They are made of green basalt, green granite (Nos. 7894 and 15,497), white limestone (Nos. 7917, 7927, 15,508), light green marble (No. 7905), black stone (Nos. 7907, 7909, 7913), blue paste (Nos. 7904, 14,549), blue glass (No. 22,872), and purple, blue, or green glazed faïence (Nos. 7868, 7869). They vary in size from 5 inches to 2 inches in length. On the hard stone examples the text of the Chapter of the Heart, more or less complete, is usually cut on the base in outline; but it is sometimes traced in red ink (No. 7915), or in gold (No. 15,518). Incuse hieroglyphics are sometimes filled with gold (No. 7881). The name of the person with whom the scarab was buried usually precedes the text of the Chapter of the Heart; but in many instances blank spaces are found left without insertion of the name--a proof that i, these amulets were bought ready-made. The base however is often quite plan (Nos. 7965, 7966), or figures of Osiris, Isis, and Nephthys occupy the place of the usual inscription (Nos. 15,500, 15,507). The backs of scarabs are generally quite plain, but we find examples inscribed with figures of the boat of the Sun Osiris, with flail and crook the bennu bird, and the u'tat (No. 7883), Ra and Osiris (No. 15,507), and the bennu bird with the inscription neteri ab en Ra , "the mighty heart of Ra" (No. 7878). A finehard, green stone scarab of the Greek or Roman period has upon the back the figures of four Greek deities (No. 7966). In rare instances, the beetles have a human face (Nos. 7876, 15,516) or head (No. 7999). Carefully made scarabs have usually a band of gold across and down the back where the wings join: an example of the late period (No. 7977) has the whole of the back gilded. The scarab was set in a gold oval ring, at one end of which was a smaller ring for suspension from the neck or for attachment to the bandages of the mummy (No. 15,504). The green glazed faïence scarab of Thothmes III. (No. 18,190) was suspended by a gold chain from a bronze torque.