M. de Rougé belongs the honor of having first given a complete translation

of it. This was published in the “_Revue Contemporaine_,” 1856, p. 389. The scene of the exploit lies in the neighborhood of the city of Katesh,(685) the capital of the Hittites, which stood on the banks of a river named Anrata (or Aranta, as it is sometimes written), perhaps the Syrian Orontes. It appears, from the sculptures and inscriptions of Ibsamboul and the Theban Ramesseum, that Rameses II, in the fifth year of his reign, made an expedition into Asia to suppress a revolt of the Asiatic tribes headed by the Prince of Heth. Arrived near Katesh, upon the south side of the city, certain wandering Arabs came to inform him that the forces of the Hittites had retired toward the south, to the land of the Khirbou. These Arabs were, however, in the service of the enemy, and were sent with the intention of entrapping the Egyptians, the fact being that the Hittites and their allies were assembled in force to the north of the town. Rameses fell into the trap, and advanced to the northwest of Katesh while the body of his army proceeded to the south. Shortly after two Hittite spies were caught and brought to the King, and under the pressure of the bastonnade, confessed the true state of the affair. The prince of the Hittites had in the meantime executed a movement to the south of the city, and thus the King was cut off from the body of his troops, and only escaped destruction by the dashing exploit which his admiring subjects seem to have been never weary of commemorating, and which furnished Penta-our, the court poet, with a brilliant theme. A few extracts from the recital shall be given, based upon M. de Rougé’s version, from which I venture in a few respects to deviate. The papyrus begins in the middle of a sentence, at the moment when the King had discovered his mistake. “[The Prince of] Heth advanced with men and horses well armed [or full of provender?]: there were three men to each chariot.(686) There were gathered together all the swiftest men of the land of the vile Hittites, all furnished with arms ... and waited stealthily to the northwest of the fortress of Katesh. Then they fell upon the bowmen of Pharaoh, into the middle of them, as they marched along and did not expect a battle. The bowmen and the horsemen of his Majesty gave way before them. Behold they were near to Katesh, on the west bank of the river Anrata. Then was [fulfilled?] the saying of his Majesty. Then his Majesty, rising up like the god Mentou [Mars], undertook to lead on the attack. He seized his arms—he was like Bar [Baal] in his hour. The great horse which drew his Majesty his name was Nekhtou-em-Djom, of the stud of Rameses-Meiamen ... His Majesty halted when he came up to the enemy, the vile Hittites. He was alone by himself—there was no other with him in this sortie. His Majesty looked behind him and saw that he was intercepted by 2,500 horsemen in the way he had to go, by all the fleetest men of the prince of the base Hittites, and of many lands which were with him—of Artou [Aradus], of Maausou, of Patasa, of Kashkash, of Aroun, of Kadjawatana, of Khirbou, of Aktra, Katesh, and Raka. There were three men to each chariot, they were ... but there were neither captains, nor squires, nor leaders of bowmen, nor skirmishers [with the King], ‘My archers and my horsemen forsook me, not one of them remained to fight with me.’ Then said his Majesty, ‘Where art thou now, my father Amen? Behold, does a father forget his son? But do I confide in my own strength? Walking or standing, is not my face toward thee? Do I not inquire the counsels of thy mouth? Do I not seek for thy mighty counsels, O thou great lord of Egypt, at whose approach the oppressors of the land are scattered? What now is the hope of these Aamou? Amen shall abase those who know not god. Have I not made for thee many and great buildings of stone? have I not filled thy temple with my spoils, building for thee a temple to last myriads of years? ... The whole earth unites to bring thee offerings ... [to enrich] thy domain. I have sacrificed to thee 30,000 oxen, with all kinds of sweet-scented herbs. Have I not put behind me those who do not thy will? ... I have built thee a house of great stones, erecting for thee eternal groves; I have brought for thee obelisks from Abou [Elephantine]; I have caused the everlasting stones to be fetched, launching for thee boats upon the sea, importing for thee the manufactures of the lands. When was it ever before said that such a thing was done? Confounded is every one who resists thy designs; blessed is every one who obeys thee, O Amen. That which thou doest is dear to my heart[?] I cry to thee, my father, Amen. I am in the midst of many unknown people gathered together from all lands. But I am alone by myself; there is none other with me. My bowmen and my horsemen have forsaken me; they were afraid; not one of them listened when I cried to them. Amen is more helpful to me than myriads of bowmen, than millions of horsemen, than tens of thousands of chosen youths, though they be all gathered together in one place. The arts of men prevail not, Amen is more powerful than they; they follow not the commands of thy mouth, O sun! Have I not sought out thy commands? have I not invoked thee from the ends of the earth?’ ” This invocation is heard, and the King proceeds to make a vigorous charge against the enemy, who are scattered in all directions. The prince of the Hittites rallies, and succeeds in bringing them again to the combat, but they are repulsed by the King. It will be observed that sometimes the writer himself speaks, but generally the narrative is put into the mouth of the King—a poetical artifice which gives a certain liveliness to the composition— “ ‘I ran toward them, like the god Mentou, I fleshed my hand upon them in the space of a moment[?]. I smote them, I slew them, so that one of them cried to another, saying, “It is no man” [superhuman]. Mighty was he who was among them, Soutech, the most glorious. Baal was in my limbs; why was every enemy weak? his hand was in all my limbs. They knew not how to hold the bow and the spear. As soon as they saw him, they fled far away with speed, but his Majesty was upon them like a greyhound. He slew them, so that they escaped not.’ ” The King’s squire or armor-bearer is seized with terror, and conjures his master to fly. The King comforts him; and after charging the enemy six times, returns victorious from the field. Rameses, on rejoining his troops, addresses a long tirade to his captains upon their cowardice, and enlarges upon his own valor without any modest scruples. In the evening the rest of the troops came dropping in, and were surprised to find the whole country strewed with the bodies of the dead. The whole army joins in singing the praises of the courageous leader— “ ‘Hail to the sword, thanks to the bold warrior, strengthener of hearts, who deliverest thy bowmen and thy horsemen, son of Toum, subduing the land of the Hittites with thy victorious sword. Thou art King of victories; there is none like thee, a King fighting for his soldiers in the day of battle. Thou art magnanimous, the first in battle. The whole world joined together cannot resist thee. Thou art the mighty conqueror, in the face of thy army. The whole earth falls down before thee saying homage. Thou rulest Egypt, thou chastisest the foreigners, thou crushest, thou bowest the back of these Hittites forever.’ Then said his Majesty to his bowmen and his horsemen, likewise his captains, ‘Ye who did not fight, behold none of you have done well, in that ye left me alone among the enemy. The captains of the vanguard, the sergeants of the infantry, came not to help me. I fought against the myriads of the land alone. I had the horses Nechtou-em-Djom and Becht-herouta; they were obedient to the guidance of my hand, when I was alone by myself in the midst of the enemy. Therefore I grant to them to eat their corn in the presence of Ra continually, when I am in the gate of the palace, on account of their having been found in the midst of the enemy: and as for the armor-bearer who remained with me, I bestow upon him my arms, together with the things which were upon me, the habiliments of war.’ Behold his Majesty wore them in his great victory, overthrowing myriads assembled together with his conquering sword.” The battle is renewed the next day, and the Hittites are thoroughly routed. An envoy from the chief is now announced, suing for mercy. Rameses acts the part of a magnanimous conqueror, and grants pardon to the repentant rebels. He then returns peaceably to Egypt, leaving the terror of his arms in all the countries of the East. At the end of the last page of the manuscript are the date and dedication, unfortunately somewhat mutilated. The writer Penta-our dedicates it, not to the King, but to a chief librarian, probably Amen-em-an, with whom he carried on a correspondence. This poem was so highly appreciated by the King that he caused it to be engraved in hieroglyphics upon the walls of one of his palaces, where some remains of it may be still seen. If the date be correctly read, it would appear to have been written four years after the event it celebrates, and, notwithstanding the exaggerated style of adulation which pervades it, there can be little doubt that some such occurrence as that which it represents really took place. FOOTNOTES _ 1 I.e._, the mountain of sunset. _ 2 I.e._, Maāt. 3 The following petition, “Oh, grant thou unto me a path,” etc., is written once only, and at the end of the Litany, but I think it is clear that it was intended to be repeated after each of the nine addresses. This is proved by the Saīte Recension (see Lepsius, op. cit, Bl. 5) where the words, “Grant thou the sweet breath of the north wind to the Osiris Auf-ānkh,” are written in two places and are intended to be said after each of the ten addresses above them. _ 4 I.e._, “the place where nothing groweth,” the name of a district in the underworld. 5 The name of the sanctuary of the goddess Nekhebet in Upper Egypt, the Eileithyiapolis of the Greeks. _ 6 I.e._, the two lands Atebui, which were situated one on each side of the celestial Nile. _ 7 I.e._, the land on each side of the Red Sea and on the coast of Africa. _ 8 I.e._, “Lady of life,” a name of Isis. _ 9 I.e._, the mountain of the sunset. _ 10 I.e._, the mountain of the sunset. _ 11 I.e._, An-rut-f, the place where nothing groweth. _ 12 I.e._, the mountain of sunrise, but the scribe appears to have written “Baakha” instead of “Manu.” _ 13 I.e._, the Sun and the Moon. _ 14 I.e._, the Sun and Moon. _ 15 I.e._, the dead. 16 The name of the deceased is wanting. _ 17 I.e._, “Osiris, Governor of Amentet.” 18 Pe and Tepu were two famous sanctuaries of northern Egypt. _ 19 I.e._, An-rut-f. 20 “Ab” is undoubtedly the “heart,” and “hat” is the region wherein is the heart; the word may be fairly well rendered by “breast,” though the pericardium is probably intended. 21 “Erpat,” _i.e._, “tribal chief.” 22 The Papyrus of Mes-em-neter (Naville, “Todtenbuch,” Bd. II. p. 92) adds: “His heart goeth forth to take up its abode in his body, his heart is renewed before the gods, and he hath gained the mastery over it.” 23 The words within brackets are from the Papyrus of Mes-em-neter. _ 24 I.e._, the god of the “Large Face.” _ 25 I.e._, the deceased. 26 The words within brackets are translated from the Papyrus of Nebseni (sheet 4). _ 27 I.e._, Mycerinus, a king of the fourth dynasty. _ 28 I.e._, “He of two teeth” (or two horns); the Saīte Recension (Lepsius, op. cit., Bl. 16) reads “Bent,” _i.e._, “ape.” _ 29 I.e._, “Thy face is of right and truth.” 30 We should probably add the word “tep” and read “Tep tu-f,” “He that is upon his hill,” _i.e._, Anubis. 31 The Theban texts mention four crocodiles only. 32 So far back as 1867 the late Dr. Birch identified the animal “maftet” with the lynx. 33 Read, “the lord of the city of Shennu” _i.e._, of Kom Ombos. 34 Or, “I report [my] message to Nebes” (or Nebses). 35 The two opponent goddesses, or Isis and Nephthys(?). 36 These words are from the Papyrus of Ra. 37 The words within brackets are supplied from the Papyrus of Mes-em-neter. _ 38 I.e._, The “land of cold and refreshing water.” 39 Literally, “eat.” 40 A king of the first dynasty. See also the rubric to the longer version of the 64th from the Papyrus of Nu, infra, p. 47. 41 These words are added from the Papyrus of Nebseni. 42 From the Papyrus of Nu, sheet 13. 43 From Papyrus of Nu, sheet 21. 44 He was the son of Cheops, the builder of the Great Pyramid at Gîzeh. 45 Here follows the text of Chapter of “Preserving the Heart,” page 25. _ 46 I.e._, the souls of Horus and Rā. 47 This Rubric is taken from the Papyrus of Thenna (see Naville, op. cit., Bd. II. p. 153). 48 From the Papyrus of Ani (Brit. Mus. No. 10,470, sheet 6). 49 The words in brackets are supplied from Naville, op. cit., Bd. II. p. 158. 50 Literally, “Thou hast given unto me.” 51 The variants are Aahet At, Aahet Ateh, and one papyrus gives the words, “I am the great god”; see Naville, op. cit., Bd. II. p. 167. 52 Literally, “I flew.” 53 I believe that “Turtle” is the correct translation. 54 Literally, “dilated with years.” 55 Added from the Papyrus of Nebseni. 56 Added from the Papyrus of Nebseni. 57 The Papyrus of Nebseni has, “make thou me to see my soul and my shade.” 58 This rubric is taken from the Papyrus of Ani, sheet 17. 59 The Papyrus of Ani contains what are, apparently, two versions of this chapter. _ 60 I.e._, the “Governor of Amenti,” or Osiris. 61 This title is taken from the Saïte Recension. _ 62 I.e._, the four pillars at the south, north, west, and east of heaven upon which the heavens were believed to rest. 63 In the Saïte Recension this chapter is about twice as long as it is in the Theban Recension. 64 The words in brackets are from the Papyrus of Nebseni. 65 Or, “I am at peace with the god of the city.” _ 66 I.e._, “Existence in Peace,” the name of the first large section of the Elysian Fields. 67 The name of a pool in the second section of the Elysian Fields. 68 The name of a pool in the first section of the Elysian Fields. 69 The name of a pool in the second section of the Elysian Fields. 70 The name of a district in the third section of the Elysian Fields. 71 The name of a pool in the first section of the Elysian Fields. 72 The name of a pool in the third section of the Elysian Fields. 73 The name of a pool in the third section of the Elysian Fields. 74 A name of the city of Mendes, the metropolis of the sixteenth nome of Lower Egypt. _ 75 I.e._, he lost his temper and raged. _ 76 I.e._, Cusæ, the metropolis of the fourteenth nome of Upper Egypt. 77 The words in brackets are from the Papyrus of Neb-qet (sheet 3). 78 A fuller title of this chapter is, “The Chapter of knowing the name of Osiris, and of going into and of coming forth from Re-stau.” 79 For the text see Naville, op. cit., Bd. I. Bl. 130. 80 The words in brackets are from the Papyrus of Amen-em-heb. See Naville, op. cit., Bd. II. p. 267. 81 The Papyrus of Mes-em-neter adds, “bringing right unto thee the divine being who loveth her.” _ 82 I.e._, Heliopolis, Mendes or Busiris, Heracleopolis, Abydos, Panopolis, and Sennu (a city near Panopolis). 83 The words in brackets are from the Saïte Recension (see Lepsius, op. cit., Bl. 46). _ 84 I.e._, the “Land of the inundation,” a name of Egypt. 85 In other papyri this chapter is called: (1) “The Chapter of going into the Hall of double Maāti;” (2) “The Chapter of [the Hall of] double Maāti and of knowing what is therein;” and (3) “The Book of entering into the Hall of double Maāti.” See Naville, op. cit., Bd.