Testing the Limits of the Sign: Writing Strategies for Advanced Scribes from the Educational Board BM EAÂ 194

Amr ElÂ Hawary

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ChapterÂ 4 Testing the Limits of the Sign: Writing Strategies for Advanced Scribes from the Educational Board BM EAÂ 194

In: Looking beyond the Text

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Amr ElÂ Hawary

Amr ElÂ Hawary
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Type:: Chapter

Pages:: 85â104

DOI:: https://doi.org/10.1163/9789004723405_006

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Abstract

This contribution will start with an attempt to define the term âcontextâ (archaeologically, socio-culturally, linguistically). Egyptologists used to reconstruct the socio-cultural background of a given text through gathering historical information from other textual sources, so there is no escape from the textuality of history. Therefore, the focus here will be on the level of linguistic context questioning the core semantic unit of the Egyptian hieroglyphs (text, sentence, word). To demonstrate how scribes were trained/examined to recognize all the possible textual contexts, the educational board for advanced scribes and priests (the Crossword Stone EAÂ 194) will be presented. This unique stone is famous for the multiple reading of its text horizontally, vertically, and even diagonally. Moreover, according to my comprehensive study of this stone, the text, even in one reading direction, has multi-layered meaning. It is possible to read every single hieroglyph in that text with different phonetical values or to identify the category of the sign itself as a phonogram, ideogram or semogram. Furthermore, it can be considered as an initiation game for advanced disciples to learn how to deeply understand the hieroglyph signs and how to use them correctly in a proper context. This extraordinary text gives us unique insights in the ancient Egyptian scribal practice of reading/hearing/understanding and writing/compiling texts. The key strategy of this process is to respectively outline the relevant textual context (words, combinations, genres, jargons).

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Looking beyond the Text

New Approaches to Scribal Culture and Practices in Ancient Egypt

Series:Â Harvard Egyptological Studies, Volume: 27

E-Book ISBN:: 9789004723405

Publisher:: Brill

Print Publication Date:: 03 Feb 2024

Subjects
- Ancient Near East and Egypt
  - Egyptology

Front Matter

PartÂ 1 Social Contexts

PartÂ 2 Education and Formation

PartÂ 3 Writing Mechanics

PartÂ 4 Scribal Materials

PartÂ 5 Transmission and Reception

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African Studies	Education	Media Studies
American Studies	History	Middle East and Islamic Studies
Ancient Near East and Egypt	Human Rights and Humanitarian Law	Musicology
Art History	International Law	Philosophy
Asian Studies	International Relations	Religious Studies
Biblical Studies	Jewish Studies	Slavic and Eurasian Studies
Biology	Languages and Linguistics	Social Sciences
Book History and Cartography	Life Sciences	Theology and World Christianity
Classical Studies	Literature and Cultural Studies

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ChapterÂ 4 Testing the Limits of the Sign: Writing Strategies for Advanced Scribes from the Educational Board BM EAÂ 194

Abstract

Citation Info

Share link with colleague or librarian

Looking beyond the Text

New Approaches to Scribal Culture and Practices in Ancient Egypt

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