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

310| ALEXANDRA MIRONOVA
dos did not take place as a real event. 153 According to K. Myśliwiec,
Abydos was a metaphoric name of a sacred place within the necropolis,
where only statues of the deceased might have journeyed
to, symbolize his actual pilgrimage to Abydos. 154 Can we say something
similar about the Xnt @wt-@r Festival which was probably
involved in the Osirian festivities?
J. Dittmar suggests that the scene depicting the zSS wAD rite
had purely symbolic character, and in reality consisted of offerings
to the gods, such as birds and flowers of papyrus. 155 Without denying
this possibility, it seems rather unlikely, to consider the scene
from the Akhmenu temple as solely symbolic, as it pictures a real
procession. At the same time, given this, one should believe that
the boat navigation to the north and south was not a travel of the
actual procession to the north and south of Egypt and might have
taken place within the area of Karnak.
It is likely that under Thutmose III the navigation of Hathor
took place near the Akhmenu temple, probably on the Sacred Lake
dug during the reign of Thutmose III to the south of the main
temple of Amun-Re. 156 The reason for such assumption is the symbolic
meaning of the lake, associated probably with the waters of
the underworld, which were a way the night journey of Re ended
with his rise at the dawn in the form of scarab. 157 Thus, the lake
could well be the venue for the Xnt @wt-@r Festival which, as
shown in the present research, commemorated the journey of the
deceased pharaoh in the hereafter.
To sum up, we will now try to restore the course of the Xnt
@wt-@r Festival under Thutmose III. In general, this festive event
can be divided into four stages: 1. III Axt-beginning of IV Axt the
navigation northwards on the Sacred Lake at Karnak; the offering
153 ALTENMÜLLER (1975) 46–47.
154 MYŚLIWIEC (1985) 25.
155 DITTMAR (1983) 80–81.
156 PORTER – MOSS (1972) plan VI; BARGUET (1962) 54, n. 2.
128, n. 3; NIMS (1969) 70. 73.
157 This idea has two proofs: 1. the relief compositions in
Taharqa’s temple, adjacent to the lake, including, the scenes of the
night journey of Re: PORTER – MOSS (1972) 220 (12), and 2. the
presence of the Scarab statue of Amenhotep III at the northern
edge of the lake: PORTER – MOSS (1972) 221.