Padief papyrus – Turin 6

Padief – pA-di.f
Probably from Thebes, 21th Dynasty, 1076-944 BC, acquisition in 1824
Ranke I, pg. 123, 14

God’s father (?) in the Temple of Amen-Re (Museo Egizio mentions as title God’s father of Amen-Re)

This papyrus presents scenes from the middle registers of the Amduat’s Tenth and Twelfth Hours. Above the composition, the scribe placed a line of text reporting the Eleventh Hour’s introduction, and on the manuscript’s far right-hand side, the so-called etiquette shows an offering scene between Osiris and the papyrus’ owner.

The treatise’s structure consists of one horizontal register. From left to right it describes the netherworld reality through a multimodal composition of visual and linguistic signs.

The Tenth Hour, on the manuscript’s left-hand side, presents the following scenes: The Solar Boat, The bA of Sokar, The bA of Osiris and The Armed Ones.

An eight-columned text presents the Tenth Hour’s introduction as well as the deceased’s name, epithet and title. This text separates the Tenth Hour from the Twelfth.

On the manuscript’s right-hand side, the Twelfth Hour describes the end of the Sun-god Re’s nocturnal journey through the Netherworld. Here, the Sun’s rejuvenation process takes place inside the life-regenerating serpent anx-nTr.w (Life of the gods). This hour of the night presents the following scenes: The Solar Boat, The Twelve Gods of Tow, The Snake of Rejuvenation, The Thirteen Goddesses of Tow and Khepri and Shu.

On the manuscript’s far right-hand side, the etiquette shows the deceased, Padief, offering funerary supplies and a perfume burner to Osiris (source Museo Egizio Papyri, research Enrico Pozzi, Shenali Boange)