EGYPTIAN
ARCHAEOLOGY
primeval god who is described in the inscription over the scene as follows: ‘The King of Upper and Lower Egypt, the father of the gods, who came into being by himself, whose birth does not exist, who opened heaven and earth when he appeared, to whom the gods are coming to give [him] praise.’ Atum is depicted as a snake four times on this monument, in one of these reliefs as a snake with the head of a falcon. The inscription on the right jamb of the doorway describes him again as a primeval being who existed before all other creatures: ‘This god: He came into being at the first moment, when the earth was still in the primeval waters, when the sky did not yet exist, when the earth did not yet exist, when the firmament was not yet tied together. He created the sky goddess, he engendered the gods, he [...] all products of the sky, the earth, and the netherworld. He comes to see what he has created, coming to everybody in his circuit. He protects his beloved son Horus-senedjem-ib, the Great God, who is in the middle of Akhmim, while he is resting on his throne eternally.’ About Atum in Akhmim nothing is known so far, but he is depicted as a serpent rearing up on its tail in the temple of Athribis, about 15 km southwest of Akhmim on the other side of the Nile. He is named there ‘Atum in the Nun’, i.e. primeval waters, a statement quite similar to that on the newly discovered chapel in Akhmim. Another and quite unusual aspect of Atum is mentioned at the left outer door jamb of this chapel. Here, he is acting as protector of Isis and Nephthys, when they are rushing through the mounds while searching for
Left: representation of Atum from the temple of Athribis. Above: depiction of Atum as a snake on one of Akhmim chapel’s door jambs. (Photos: Stefan Baumann) 5