Chapter 3 - ADZE (Myths from different CULTURAL AREAS with TOOLS OF CONTROL)
Adze
Adzes were not only used as a carving tool, in Egyptian mythology it was part of the long staff carried by the god of mummification, Anubis [figure 35]. This tool, called a was (w3s)-sceptre, was ritualistic in nature and thought to have the meaning of power and control. The hieroglyph of was
, when included in ancient Egyptian texts had the meaning of power
or rule, which is why this figure was included in the nome of Thebes, the capital city of Upper Egypt, (Waset)
and the epithet “dji ankh djed was” included after the pharaohs’
name in a text
(Allen, 2014: 343). In the funerary context, the inclusion of the symbol in text and in
the pictures on coffins and in tombs would have been carved or painted for the wellbeing of the deceased, as well as been included within the wrappings as an amulet. These were seen in the burial of Horemheb – KV 57 as part of the Theban mapping project. The same symbol is also depicted in ‘Adze-on-block’ hieroglyphic texts and has been thought to mean “chosen of”, which also has a relation to the pharaoh (Betrỏ, 1995, Collier & Manley, 1998). With either option, the context is clearly saying that this person or place is to be respected, as they have been bestowed a great power.
This power takes its active form in the mouth opening ritual and the process is not
only depicted on the walls of tombs, but the miniature versions were buried with the deceased as amulets inside the mummy’s wrapping from the Old Kingdom into the Roman Period (Assmann, 2005; Roth, 1992; Roth, 1993). They were often made of dark material, including glass and gilt, and generally having the shape of two fingers [figures 36] to invoke the ritualistic meaning within the opening of the mouth by Horus, which was described on the wall:
sem-priest, lector-priest, imy-is priest standing around him Words spoken: my father, my father, my father, my father Words spoken: Oh N! your mouth is ... (?): I have balanced your mouth and bones for you N! I have opened your mouth for you N! I open your mouth for you with the nua-blade I have opened your mouth for you with the nua-blade, the meskhetyu-blade of iron, that opens the mouths of the gods Horus is the opener of the mouth of N, Horus; Horus has opened the mouth of N Horus has opened the mouth of N with that with which he opened the mouth of his father, with which he opened the mouth of Osiris with the iron that came from Seth, the meskhetyu-blade of iron with which the mouths of the gods are opened - may you open the mouth of N with it so that he may walk and speak with his body before the great Nine Gods in the great mansion of the official that is in Iunu and so that he may take up your White Crown there before Horus lord of the nobility
(Translation done by the University College London, 2003).
As guidance for the journey into the afterlife, the painting discusses the beginnings and the reason for the ritual itself. Horus had to open his father Osiris’ mouth before completing the mummification so he could continue to speak prayers in the afterlife (Assmann & Lorton, 2005). This ritual continued in order to pass on knowledge, even in death, especially because of the necessity of answering the negative questions that the gods ask at the heart weighing ceremony. If the dead is unable to speak the truth and answer the questions to the Gods’ expectations Amut would devour them and their soul would cease to exist (Egyptian Book of the Dead referenced in Assmann & Lorton, 2005). While the act of opening a mouth may not relate directly to agriculture or creating a human environment the way that other burial amulets have, there is a metaphysical connection. Part of Egyptian mythology is that the writings, paintings, and prayers made on the sarcophagi and tombs become real in the afterlife. Both the written and spoken wishes were, therefore, represented by the adze tool for the deceased to continue their prayers and live in eternity in a world of their own making, which would not be possible without the gift of knowledge and their ability to speak.
Ea/Enki, the god of wisdom and fresh waters, had given the duty of building the ark to a man named Ziusudra, and later Utnapishtim meaning ‘he who saw life’, for when the great flood waters came in the story of Descent of Inanna, and was the patron of craftsmen, artisans and exorcists in the story Inanna and the God of Wisdom (Mark, 2011). He is also a main character in stories about the world’s creation and his and his son’s roles in taming the chaos within it. The king and Enki’s son, Mardok, killed Quingu, the bodyguard of Tiamat, Enki’s mother, and Tiamat to create the world from the swirling waters it was before (Mark, 2011). In Sumerian, the word for adze is nañar, translating directly to na: stone and ñị̉r: knife, meaning: wood chisel, adze, carpenter, or craftsman (Holloran, 2006:58). The tool it is said that Enki gave the pious man was an adze, as that would have been the general tool to craft the ark that Zjusudra needed to survive the flooding. It has been suggested that this handing over of the adze could be symbolic of Enki’s giving of knowledge to allow the human race to survive along with the control and responsibility over the animals that had to be collected two-by-two by Zjusudra (Mark, 2011).
As a summary, the adzes are made to reflect the various cultures in the societies they’re made, often being used as tools of crafting and knowledge. In Egypt, Anubis, the God of mummification, carried a staff with the adze on the top to signify the mouth opening ritual and the ability to speak in the afterlife. Another elder society, Sumer, has the God Enki being associated with the adze tool and with knowledge that was presented with it. The story that is most transliterated through the centuries was of Enki, giving the tool and the knowledge of how to use it to the human Zjusudra to build an ark to save all the world's species from the chaos of the disastrous floodwaters.
Comments