his father.' Hail, Osiris, Keb hath brought to thee Horus, he hath
avenged thee, he hath brought to thee the hearts of the gods, Horus
hath given thee his Eye, thou hast taken possession of the Urert Crown
thereby at the head of the gods. Horus hath presented to thee thy
members, he hath collected them completely, there is no disorder in
thee. Thoth hath seized thy enemy and hath slain him and those who
were with him." The above words are addressed to dead kings in the
Pyramid Texts, and what the gods were supposed to do for them was
believed by the Egyptians to have been actually done for Osiris. These
extracts are peculiarly valuable, for they prove that the legend of
Osiris which was current under the XVIIIth Dynasty was based upon
traditions which were universally accepted in Egypt under the Vth and
VIth Dynasties.



[FN#27] Mer-en-Ra, line 336; Pepi II., line 862.

[FN#28] I omit the king's names.

[FN#29] Teta, line 274; Pepi I., line 27; Mer-en-Ra, line 37; and Pepi
II., line 67.

[FN#30] Pyramid Text, Teta, l. 276.



PLATE XV.