Weighing and Measuring the Offerings

Chapter 8

The king himself, the King of Upper and Lower Egypt, Makere (Hatshepsut). Taking the measure of the electrum, laying the hand on the ... of the heaps, first instance of doing the good things. Measuring of the fresh myrrh to Amon, lord of Thebes, lord of heaven, the first of the harvest ... of the marvels of the countries of Punt. The lord of Khmunu (Thoth) records them in writing; Sefkhet counts the numbers. Her majesty herself is acting with her two hands, the best of myrrh is upon all her limbs, her fragrance is divine dew, her odor is mingled with Punt, her skin is gilded with electrum, shining as do the stars in the midst of the festival-hall, before the whole land. There is rejoicing by all the people; they give praise to the lord of gods, they laud Makere (Hatshepsut) in her divine qualities, because of the greatness of the marvels which have happened for her. Never did the like happen under any gods who were before, since the beginning. May she be given life, like Re, forever. Heaps of myrrh in great quantities. Measuring the fresh myrrh, in great quantities, for Amon, lord of Thebes; marvels of the countries of Punt, treasures of God's-Land,⁠ for the sake of the life, prosperity and health .... Recording in writing, reckoning the numbers, summing up in millions, hundreds of thousands, tens of thousands, thousands and hundreds; reception of the marvels of Punt, for Amon-Re, lord of Thebes, lord of heaven. The balances, accurate and true, of Thoth, which the King of Upper and Lower Egypt, [Make]re (Hatshepsut), made for her father, Amon, lord of Thebes, in order to weigh the silver, gold, lapis lazuli, malachite, and every splendid costly stone, for the sake of the life, prosperity, and health of her majesty. Weighing the gold and electrum, the impost of the southern countries, for Amon-Re, lord of Thebes, ..., presider over Karnak .... Recording in writing, reckoning the numbers, summing up in millions, hundreds of thousands, tens of thousands, thousands, and hundreds. Reception of the marvels of the South countries, for Amon, lord of Thebes, presider over Karnak.

Texts in conversation

Compare Punt Reliefs of Hatshepsut 8:6 and Song of Solomon 4:6

Ancient Near East, Egyptian · Hebrew Bible

Summary

Hatshepsut's reliefs show workers measuring heaps of myrrh from Punt, the faraway land of incense the Egyptians called God's Land. In Song of Solomon 4, the lover heads for a mountain of myrrh and a hill of frankincense, picturing the woman as Punt.

Passages

Punt Reliefs of Hatshepsut 8:6

Ancient Near East, Egyptian · Deir el-Bahri Punt Expedition Inscriptions

Heaps of myrrh in great quantities. Measuring the fresh myrrh, in great quantities, for Amon, lord of Thebes; marvels of the countries of Punt, treasures of God's-Land, for the sake of the life, prosperity and health .... Recording in writing, reckoning the numbers, summing up in millions, hundreds of thousands, tens of thousands, thousands and hundreds; reception of the marvels of Punt, for Amon-Re, lord of Thebes, lord of heaven.

1470 BCE (scholarly estimate) Read in the Punt Reliefs of Hatshepsut

Song of Solomon 4:6

Hebrew Bible · Song of Songs

5 Your two breasts are like two fawns, twins of the gazelle grazing among the lilies. 6 Until the dawn arrives and the shadows flee, I will go up to the mountain of myrrh and to the hill of frankincense. 7 You are altogether beautiful, my darling! There is no blemish in you!

300–201 BCE (scholarly estimate) Read in the Song of Solomon

References

“... Spurred on by theory (his meditations), he turns to praxis, going in quest of the “mountain of myrrh” and the “hill of frankincense.” If these metaphors were meant to refer to particular parts of the body, they would probably be the cheeks (cf. 5:13b) or the breasts. [...] The beloved as a whole, with all her “high places,” becomes a landscape (with mountains and hills)—more, a wonderland like Punt (eastern Sudan, northern Eritrea) in the Egyptian love lyrics (cf. 2:17). The expedition sent there about 1470 [...] by Queen Hatshepsut is described as a journey into wonderland. Her reliefs in Deir al-Bahri show how the weight of huge piles of red myrrh was determined (fig. 91). The inscription over the people reads: “Measuring fresh myrrh in great quantities. ... A wonder from the regions of Punt. Treasures of the land of the gods.” A love song already cited (see the commentary on 2:17) says: I embrace her, and her arms open wide, I am like a man in Punt. The speaker in 4:6 also no doubt hopes to be “like a man in Punt” as he makes his way to his “mountain of myrrh” and his “hill of frankincense.” ...”

Othmar Keel, The Song of Songs: A Continental Commentary (Minneapolis: Fortress, 1994), 152.

References are not endorsements of their contents. Read each reference in full to understand its author's intentions in using these texts.

Weighing and Measuring the Offerings

Punt Reliefs of Hatshepsut10 chapters

Compare Punt Reliefs of Hatshepsut 8:6 and Song of Solomon 4:6

Summary

Passages

Punt Reliefs of Hatshepsut 8:6

Song of Solomon 4:6

References

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