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  5. Graffito of Esmet-Akhom

Events on August 24 in history

Graffito of Esmet-Akhom
394Aug, 24

The Graffito of Esmet-Akhom, the latest known inscription in Egyptian hieroglyphs, was written.

The graffito of Esmet-Akhom, also known by its designation Philae 436 or GPH 436, is the last known inscription written in Egyptian hieroglyphs, carved on 24 August AD 394. The inscription, carved in the temple of Philae in southern Egypt, was created by a priest named Nesmeterakhem (or Esmet-Akhom) and consists of a carved figure of the god Mandulis as well an accompanying text wherein Nesmeterakhem hopes his inscription will last "for all time and eternity". The inscription also contains a text in the demotic script, with similar content.

The temple at Philae was a prominent site of worship for the ancient Egyptian religion, as it was believed to be one of the burial places of the god Osiris. The primary deity of worship was Isis, the sister-wife of Osiris, though several other deities are also recorded to have been worshipped at the temple. Several deities originally from Nubia in the south, including Mandulis, were also worshipped. The inscription by Nesmeterakhem is from after the pagan temples of Egypt were closed by the Roman emperor Theodosius I in 391 or 392; the Philae temple survived as it was just outside the borders of the Roman Empire.

Nesmeterakhem belonged to a family of priests who staffed the temple; due to the Christianization of Egypt, it is possible that belief in the old Egyptian gods by Nesmeterakhem's time did not extend far beyond his own immediate family. Shortly after the 394 inscription was made, it is likely that there was no longer anyone alive who could read the hieroglyphs. Later graffiti and inscriptions are known from Philae, but they were written in either demotic or Greek. The Philae temple, seemingly continually staffed by members of Nesmeterakhem's family, was finally closed on the orders of Emperor Justinian I between 535 and 537, marking the end of the last vestige of the ancient Egyptian culture.

References

  • Graffito of Esmet-Akhom
  • Egyptian hieroglyphs

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