*** First of all, The Stele is a stone or wooden slab, erected as a monument, very often for funerary or commemorative purposes.
This ornamentation may be inscribed, carved, found in different parts of the world, notably Egypt and China.
In ancient Egypt, these vertical slabs of stone depict tombstones, religious uses, and boundaries.
The Sphinx Stele, was erected in the first year of Thutmose IV'reign, 1401 BC..
As was common with other New Kingdom Pharaohs, it makes claim to a divine legitimization to pharaoh-ship.
In ancient Egypt, when pharaohs wanted to record something for eternity and have it be known not only to mortals, but more importantly, to the gods, they wrote in stone. The hieroglyphs carved into the Dream Stella of Thutmosis IV, an enormous upright slab at the base of the Sphinx, tell a portentous story of a young king's bargain with the sun god.
The dream
"Now the statue of the very great Khepri [the Great Sphinx ] rested in this place, great of fame, sacred of respect, the shade of Ra resting on him. Memphis and every city on its two sides came to him, their arms in adoration to his face, bearing great offerings for his Ka. One of these days it happened that prince Thutmose came travelling at the time of midday. He rested in the shadow of this great god. Sleep and dream took possession of him, at the moment the sun was at zenith. Then he found the majesty of this noble god speaking from his own mouth like a father speaks to his son, and saying: "Look at me, observe me, my son Thutmose. I am your father Horemakhet-Khepri-Ra-Atum. I shall give to you the kingship [upon the land before the living]....[Behold, my condition is like one in illness], all [my limbs being ruined]. The sand of the desert, upon which I used to be, (now) confronts me; and it is in order to cause that you do what is in my heart that I have waited.
Stele description
The Dream Stele is a vertical rectangular stele, 144 cm Ht, 40 cm W, 70 cm D. The upper scene lunette ( The lunette spatial region in the upper portion of stelas, became common for steles as a prelude to a stele's topic ), shows Thutmose IV on the right and left making offerings to the Great Sphinx.
Medical Analysis of the Stele
Recently a surgeon at Imperial College London (Dr Hutan Ashrafian) has analysed the early death of Thutmose IV and the premature deaths of other Eighteenth dynasty Pharaohs (including Tutankhamun and Akhenaten). He identifies that their early deaths was likely as a result of a Familial Temporal Epilepsy. This would account for the untimely mortality in Thutmose IV and can also explain his religious vision described on his Dream Stele due to this type of epilepsy’s association with intense spiritual visions and religiosity.
Note
*** Thutmosis IV was the eighth king of the 18th dynasty, which is during Egypt's New Kingdom, a period when Egypt was really at its height. This area, at that time, was like a recreation area for the pharaohs. They would come here to hunt, ride their chariots, do target practice.
I had collected the information from several documents and the Wikipedia.
This ornamentation may be inscribed, carved, found in different parts of the world, notably Egypt and China.
In ancient Egypt, these vertical slabs of stone depict tombstones, religious uses, and boundaries.
As was common with other New Kingdom Pharaohs, it makes claim to a divine legitimization to pharaoh-ship.
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| Dream Stele, reproduction. |
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| Diagram |
The dream
"Now the statue of the very great Khepri [the Great Sphinx ] rested in this place, great of fame, sacred of respect, the shade of Ra resting on him. Memphis and every city on its two sides came to him, their arms in adoration to his face, bearing great offerings for his Ka. One of these days it happened that prince Thutmose came travelling at the time of midday. He rested in the shadow of this great god. Sleep and dream took possession of him, at the moment the sun was at zenith. Then he found the majesty of this noble god speaking from his own mouth like a father speaks to his son, and saying: "Look at me, observe me, my son Thutmose. I am your father Horemakhet-Khepri-Ra-Atum. I shall give to you the kingship [upon the land before the living]....[Behold, my condition is like one in illness], all [my limbs being ruined]. The sand of the desert, upon which I used to be, (now) confronts me; and it is in order to cause that you do what is in my heart that I have waited.
Stele description
The Dream Stele is a vertical rectangular stele, 144 cm Ht, 40 cm W, 70 cm D. The upper scene lunette ( The lunette spatial region in the upper portion of stelas, became common for steles as a prelude to a stele's topic ), shows Thutmose IV on the right and left making offerings to the Great Sphinx.
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| Reproduction of the Dream Stele of Thutmose IV - Close-up of detail depicting pharaoh making offering to Sphinx. RC 1834 (Original 1500 - 1390 BC, made of granite, located on the Giza Plateau). |
Recently a surgeon at Imperial College London (Dr Hutan Ashrafian) has analysed the early death of Thutmose IV and the premature deaths of other Eighteenth dynasty Pharaohs (including Tutankhamun and Akhenaten). He identifies that their early deaths was likely as a result of a Familial Temporal Epilepsy. This would account for the untimely mortality in Thutmose IV and can also explain his religious vision described on his Dream Stele due to this type of epilepsy’s association with intense spiritual visions and religiosity.
Note
*** Thutmosis IV was the eighth king of the 18th dynasty, which is during Egypt's New Kingdom, a period when Egypt was really at its height. This area, at that time, was like a recreation area for the pharaohs. They would come here to hunt, ride their chariots, do target practice.
I had collected the information from several documents and the Wikipedia.
Thanks
Manal Raafat
