Proceedings of the Society of Biblical Archaeology

Mar.6] SOCIETYOF BIBLICAL ARCH/EOLOGY. [1894.

ON THE PHONETICVALUEOF THE SIGN t=l.

By P. J. DE Horrack.

As is well known,the sign i^=r often takesthe place of W> in

the Royal titles,fromwhenceit was concluded, thatits sound was

that of \^ , viz. mer and ma, mat, the final letterr having afterwards

fallenoff. The reading ma was adopted by the late M. Chabas, in

his translation of the 1st Anastasi-papyrus,* for groups in which the

sign -r=r entersas a phonetic value. Butin 1874 f M. Brugsch

proposedthe reading (I, O^jv^. and applied it to a great manyex

pressionscompoundwith ,— 1. However strongwerethe proofs

of this value, broughtforward by the learned Egyptologist,theydid

not appear conclusiveto some scholars,althoughothersJ adhered

to the new reading. It is true, thattheseeminentauthoritiescite

instancesof 3=i havingapparentlythe value (I , (I *K\ ; but on the

otherhand, the old reading V\ l| rests on a much firmer basis

and is, as will be seen, absolutelycertain.

In addition to the already knownvariantfurnishedby the group

i=r 9. Q ,"§ M. Karl Piehl has recently produced two more

instancesin proof of the sound 1\ (J, ma, (Proceedings, XIV,

p. 45), and I now beg to point out some furtherexamples,which

were chiefly obtained by comparison with each other, of the

numerouslists of funereal offerings,wherethe sign t=t occursin

* Voyage <TunEgyptien,p. 103.

t Zeitschrift, p. 143, and Lexicon, V, p. 26.

X P. le Page Renouf,Proc.VI, p. 99 ; W. Max Muller,AsicnundEuropa,

P-79-

§ See J. de Rouge, TextesgJo.,p. 38; P. le Tage Renouf,Transactions,II,

p. 304 ; Maspero, Mel.d'Arch.,II, p. 298 ; Karl Piehl,Rectuild. T., II, p. 30,

and Diet, du pap.Harris,p. 39.

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