Dec.5] SOCIETYOF BIBLICAL ARCHEOLOGY. [1893.A DETAIL OF GEOGRAPHY IN THE INSCRIPTIONOF
HERKHUF.By F. L. Griffith, F.S.A.The great inscriptionof the Vlth dynasty,copiedby Schiaparelli
fromthe front of the tomb of Herkhufat Aswan,has alreadyattracted
considerable attention; the only other inscription of the ancient
Empire to be compared with it in importance is that of Una.
Schiaparellifullyrecognisedits great value,and a few months after
its discovery gave it to the world in the memoirs of the Reale
Accademiadei Lincei for 1892. Thepublicationwas quicklyfol
lowedby new translations fromthe pens of Maspero and Erman in
the Revue Critiqueand the Zeitschrift der Deutschen Morgenlcind-
ischenGesellschaft. Ermancontributeda revision of a portion of
the text, madewiththe help of a photograph, to the XXXth volume
of the Zeitschrift fur aegyptische Sprache, and Masperodealtwith
two passages in the Recueil de travaux, Vol.XIV.
Takenin connection withthe inscription of Una, muchlightis
thrown by it on the dealings with Nubia in the early period of
Egyptianhistory. It appears thatan officer was sent by the king
from timeto time on a " mission to Amam," to explore andtrade
withthe negroes of the west bankof the Nile in Nubia. According
to Professor Ermanthe photograph showsa nome-sign as the starting
pointof Herkhuf's third expedition to Amam : Erman givesthis
signas V (approximately), and when we consider the circum-
stanceswe can hardly be wrong in identifying it with the nome-sign
.0 whichwas borne by a district dividedat a later periodinto
the two nomes of Lycopolis and Cusae.* Thereare, in fact, three- The 01 nome of Heracleopolis wouldsuitthe sign evenbetter,but on.
geographicalgroundsseemsless likely.
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