In the September 2023 issue of Archaeology Magazine, I noticed two unrelated articles. Their juxtaposition got me thinking about treatments of the dead. We humans are really good at over-the-top respect on the one hand, and fear on the other.
Ramesses II Gets Respect for a Loooong Time
The first article, titled Ram Heads for Ramesses, describes a recent find in the area around Ramesses II’s temple in Abydos. (The photo at top is of a relief from his temple, by Olaf Tausch, wiki.) Historically, Ramesses II is the great foe of the Hittite queen who is the main character in my novels. So archaeological finds regarding him catch my attention.
That’s a Lot of Skulls!
The archaeologists excavated thousands of ram and other animal skulls. They appear to have been offered all at one time, apparently in reverence for Ramses II after his death. Pharaohs are considered gods during their lifetimes and also beyond, so grand scales of offerings aren’t horrifically surprising. However, this offering dates to the mid-Ptolemaic period. Now that caught my attention. Ramesses ruled from 1279 to 1213 BCE. The mid-Ptolemaic period is a good 1,000 years or so later. That strikes me as a long stretch for a human ruler to continue his highly revered status as a divinity. I’m sure Ramesses would view this treatment as simply his proper due, but he was raised to believe he was a god.
Fictional Pharaoh Smiles at This Treatment of the Dead
In my books, I portray him as arrogant and ruthless. He’s always off stage so I don’t have to get too detailed about his character. But the direct face to face encounter that one of my main characters, Hattu, recounts shows him being intimidated by Hattu’s skill as a warrior when Hattu wounds him. He does not enjoy that at all. Pharaoh’s hatred of Hattu has repercussions within the novel. While the historical Hattusili and Ramesses did fight on the same battlefield, I imagined this key encounter. But if the Ramesses I imagined was able to look down on his temple and watch the happenings there a thousand years after his death, he’d be mighty pleased. Even by extravagant Homeric hecatomb standards (100 or so cattle), an offering of over two thousand animals is way over the top.
In Contrast…
Ingo Mehling Wiki
The other article about a distinctive treatments of the dead dates to a much later period and is entitled Preventing the Return of the Dead. Between 100 and 150 CE, a very creepy burial took place in Sagalassos in southwest Turkey. Instead of putting the cremated ashes into an urn and placing that urn into a memorial spot, this dead guy got dumped on. Literally. Right where the pyre took place, they dumped bricks and lime to seal him in. Then they held the dead in place with 40 nails or so. No one wanted this spirit wandering about, apparently. No similar burials are found in the area. I guess there was only one really evil demon in town. In my current work in progress, such a demonic human would get thrown into a chasm and sealed up, but my characters have griffins to help with such cataclysmic earth-moving!
We humans have been persuaded over the centuries of the continuing power and presence of the dead. Sometimes that inspires extraordinary measures of quite different styles.
Further Reading about Treatments of the Dead
For another “anomolous” burial, this time of a young woman on Cyprus, you might enjoy reading the section in my weekly post entitled “Face Down Female Residential Grave“