“semitisches pantheon”. eine “männliche tyche” - MOSAIKjournal.com

SPACE AND SCENERY | 309
the motif of the Abydos pilgrimage, the sailing northwards during
zSS wAD could be understood as an analogue of the journey to Abydos
which, in fact, was located to the north of Thebes.
Further evidence that the ritual zSS wAD had a symbolic relation
with the Fields of Offerings comes from Utterance 317 of the
Pyramid Texts. It describes the arrival of the deceased pharaoh “at
the head of the inundation of the flood […] to the places of satisfaction,
with green fields, which are in the horizon” (mHt Agbir st
Htpw wADt sxtw imyw Axt). 151 In these fields the pharaoh could
“make green (swAD) the herbs in both lands of the horizon” (swAD
smw Hr idby Axt). 152 Obviously, the text quoted refers to the Fields
of Offerings or the Field of Reeds where the deceased could “make
green” the nature. Could this act resemble the rite swAD which took
place along with the rite zSS wAD and probably also belonged to the
part of the Xnt @wt-@r Festival? As shown by the passage just
quoted, the act “making green” was linked to the “head of the inundation”,
i. e. to the second half of inundation. Therefore, the
events of the ritual swAD really coincided with the Xnt @wt-@r Festival.
It is also clear that the venue of the swAD and zSS wAD rituals
was related to the Fields of Offerings or the Field of Reeds.
Let us now assume that the rites swAD and zSS wAD intended to
bring Hathor to the deceased, took place before the main festival
of the goddess celebrated on IV Axt 4 during the reign of Thutmose
III. In other words, the result of these ceremonies was, approximately,
the arrival of the goddess Hathor who delivered the
deceased to his tomb (here, one may recall the sequence of relief
scenes from the northern court of the Karnak temple: the sailing of
Thutmose III to the goddess Hathor greeting the ritual run of
pharaoh). In the context of the Xnt @wt-@r Festival this conclusion
is clearly supported by the scene that showed the navigation of
Hathor protecting the pharaoh in the guise of a cow-nurse.
If we continue drawing a parallel between the Xnt @wt-@r
Festival and the motif of Abydos pilgrimage, another question will
arise: Did the journey to the north and south of Egypt took place
in reality during this feast? It is known that the pilgrimage to Aby-
151 Pyr. §507a. 508b.
152 Pyr. §509a.