But in the archaic period, with which
we are dealing, a star like the Babylonian sign may very
well have been used for "god," and the title of Narmer's
sandal-bearer may read _Hen-neter_. He was the slave of the
living god Narmer. All Egyptian kings were regarded as
deities, more or less.
The monuments Khasekhemui, a king, show us that he conquered the North
also and slew 47,209 "Northern Enemies." The contorted attitudes of the
dead Northerners were greatly admired and sketched at the time, and were
reproduced on the pedestal of the king's statue found by Mr. Quibell,
which is now at Oxford. It was an age of cheerful savage energy, like
most times when kingdoms and peoples are in the making. About 4000 B.C.
is the date of these various monuments.
[Illustration: 052.jpg OBVERSE OP A SLATE RELIEF.]
Khasekhemui probably lived later than Narmer, and we may suppose that
his conquest was in reality a re-conquest. He may have lived as late
as the time of the IId Dynasty, whereas Narmer must be placed at the
beginning of the Ist, and his conquest was probably that which first
united the two kingdoms of the South and North. As we shall see in
the next chapter, he is probably one of the originals of the legendary
"Mena," who was regarded from the time of the XVIIIth Dynasty onwards
as the founder of the kingdom, and was first made known to Europe by
Herodotus, under the name of "Menes.
Pages:
45
46
47
48
49
50
51
52
53
54
55
56
57
58
59
60
61
62
63
64
65
66
67
68
69