Decree of Canopus
Encyclopedia
The Decree of Canopus is a bilingual inscription in two languages, and in three scripts. It was written in three writing system
s: Egyptian hieroglyphs, Egyptian Demotic
, and Greek
, on an ancient Egyptian memorial stone stele
, the Stone of Canopus. The inscription is a decree by Egyptian priests honoring Pharaoh Ptolemy III Euergetes; Queen Berenice, his wife; and Princess Berenice
in 238 BC
.
, for Ptolemy IV, and the third, final stone, being the Memphis Decree Rosetta Stone
, inscribed for Ptolemy V, in 196 BC
E. Having a greater number of different hieroglyphs
than the Rosetta Stone, the Canopus Stone has proved crucial in deciphering them. Two copies of the stele stones exist, in different line widths. (See Ptolemaic Decrees
.)
. It mentions the king's donations to the temples, his support for the Apis
and Mnevis cults, which enjoyed huge success in the Graeco-Roman world, and the return of divine statues which had been carried off by Cambyses
. It extols the king's success in quelling insurgencies of native Egyptians, operations referred to as 'keeping the peace.' It reminds the reader that during a year of low inundation the government had remitted taxes and imported grain from abroad. It inaugurates the most accurate solar calendar
known to the ancient world, with 365¼ days per year. It declares the deceased princess Berenike a goddess and creates a cult for her, with women, men, ceremonies, and special 'bread-cakes'. Lastly it orders the decree to be incised in stone or bronze in both hieroglyphs and Greek, and to be publicly displayed in the temples.
advances to another day in every 4 years, so that attaching the beginning of the year to the heliacal rising
of the star Sirius
would keep the calendar synchronized with the seasons.
This Ptolemaic calendar reform failed, but was finally officially implemented in Egypt by Augustus
in 26/25 BCE, now called the Alexandrian calendar, with a sixth epagomenal day occurring for the first time on 29 August 22 BCE. Julius Caesar
had earlier implemented a 365¼ day year in Rome in 45 BCE as part of the Julian calendar
.
Writing system
A writing system is a symbolic system used to represent elements or statements expressible in language.-General properties:Writing systems are distinguished from other possible symbolic communication systems in that the reader must usually understand something of the associated spoken language to...
s: Egyptian hieroglyphs, Egyptian Demotic
Demotic (Egyptian)
Demotic refers to either the ancient Egyptian script derived from northern forms of hieratic used in the Delta, or the stage of the Egyptian language following Late Egyptian and preceding Coptic. The term was first used by the Greek historian Herodotus to distinguish it from hieratic and...
, and Greek
Greek language
Greek is an independent branch of the Indo-European family of languages. Native to the southern Balkans, it has the longest documented history of any Indo-European language, spanning 34 centuries of written records. Its writing system has been the Greek alphabet for the majority of its history;...
, on an ancient Egyptian memorial stone stele
Stele
A stele , also stela , is a stone or wooden slab, generally taller than it is wide, erected for funerals or commemorative purposes, most usually decorated with the names and titles of the deceased or living — inscribed, carved in relief , or painted onto the slab...
, the Stone of Canopus. The inscription is a decree by Egyptian priests honoring Pharaoh Ptolemy III Euergetes; Queen Berenice, his wife; and Princess Berenice
in 238 BC
238 BC
Year 238 BC was a year of the pre-Julian Roman calendar. At the time it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Gracchus and Falto...
.
Importance for the decipherment of hieroglyphs
This is the earliest of the series of bilingual inscriptions of the "Rosetta Stone Series", the next being the Decree of MemphisDecree of Memphis (Ptolemy IV)
The Decree of Memphis is an ancient inscribed stone stela which comprises the second of the Ptolemaic Decrees issued by Ptolemy IV of the Hellenistic Ptolemaic dynasty, which ruled Egypt from 305 BC to 30 BC. Like the Rosetta Stone, the Decree of Memphis is inscribed in three writing systems...
, for Ptolemy IV, and the third, final stone, being the Memphis Decree Rosetta Stone
Rosetta Stone
The Rosetta Stone is an ancient Egyptian granodiorite stele inscribed with a decree issued at Memphis in 196 BC on behalf of King Ptolemy V. The decree appears in three scripts: the upper text is Ancient Egyptian hieroglyphs, the middle portion Demotic script, and the lowest Ancient Greek...
, inscribed for Ptolemy V, in 196 BC
196 BC
Year 196 BC was a year of the pre-Julian Roman calendar. At the time it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Purpureo and Marcellus...
E. Having a greater number of different hieroglyphs
Egyptian hieroglyphs
Egyptian hieroglyphs were a formal writing system used by the ancient Egyptians that combined logographic and alphabetic elements. Egyptians used cursive hieroglyphs for religious literature on papyrus and wood...
than the Rosetta Stone, the Canopus Stone has proved crucial in deciphering them. Two copies of the stele stones exist, in different line widths. (See Ptolemaic Decrees
Ptolemaic Decrees
The Hellenistic Ptolemaic dynasty, which ruled Egypt from 305 BC to 30 BC, issued these series of decrees over the course of their reign. The Rosetta Stone is a well-known example of one of the decrees....
.)
Contents of the inscription
The inscription touches on subjects such as military campaigns, famine relief, Egyptian religion and governmental organization in Ptolemaic EgyptPtolemaic Egypt
Ptolemaic Egypt began when Ptolemy I Soter invaded Egypt and declared himself Pharaoh of Egypt in 305 BC and ended with the death of queen Cleopatra VII of Egypt and the Roman conquest in 30 BC. The Ptolemaic Kingdom was a powerful Hellenistic state, extending from southern Syria in the east, to...
. It mentions the king's donations to the temples, his support for the Apis
APIS
APIS may refer to:*Advance Passenger Information System*Armour Piercing Incendiary Shells...
and Mnevis cults, which enjoyed huge success in the Graeco-Roman world, and the return of divine statues which had been carried off by Cambyses
Cambyses
Cambyses can refer to two ancient rulers and two plays:-*Cambyses I, King of Anshan 600 to 559 BCE*Cambyses II, King of Persia 530 to 522 BCE*Cambyses, a tragedy by Thomas Preston...
. It extols the king's success in quelling insurgencies of native Egyptians, operations referred to as 'keeping the peace.' It reminds the reader that during a year of low inundation the government had remitted taxes and imported grain from abroad. It inaugurates the most accurate solar calendar
Calendar
A calendar is a system of organizing days for social, religious, commercial, or administrative purposes. This is done by giving names to periods of time, typically days, weeks, months, and years. The name given to each day is known as a date. Periods in a calendar are usually, though not...
known to the ancient world, with 365¼ days per year. It declares the deceased princess Berenike a goddess and creates a cult for her, with women, men, ceremonies, and special 'bread-cakes'. Lastly it orders the decree to be incised in stone or bronze in both hieroglyphs and Greek, and to be publicly displayed in the temples.
Calendar reform
The traditional Egyptian calendar had 365 days: twelve months of thirty days each and an additional five epagomenal days. According to the reform, the 5–day "Opening of the Year" ceremonies would include an additional 6th day every fourth year. The reason given was that the rise of SothisSothis
Sothis is the name of a star that the Egyptians considered unusually significant. The star is not explicitly identified, but there are enough clues for modern scholars to be almost unanimous in identifying Sothis as Sirius....
advances to another day in every 4 years, so that attaching the beginning of the year to the heliacal rising
Sothic cycle
The Sothic cycle or Canicular period is a period of 1,461 ancient Egyptian years or 1,460 Julian years...
of the star Sirius
Sirius
Sirius is the brightest star in the night sky. With a visual apparent magnitude of −1.46, it is almost twice as bright as Canopus, the next brightest star. The name "Sirius" is derived from the Ancient Greek: Seirios . The star has the Bayer designation Alpha Canis Majoris...
would keep the calendar synchronized with the seasons.
This Ptolemaic calendar reform failed, but was finally officially implemented in Egypt by Augustus
Augustus
Augustus ;23 September 63 BC – 19 August AD 14) is considered the first emperor of the Roman Empire, which he ruled alone from 27 BC until his death in 14 AD.The dates of his rule are contemporary dates; Augustus lived under two calendars, the Roman Republican until 45 BC, and the Julian...
in 26/25 BCE, now called the Alexandrian calendar, with a sixth epagomenal day occurring for the first time on 29 August 22 BCE. Julius Caesar
Julius Caesar
Gaius Julius Caesar was a Roman general and statesman and a distinguished writer of Latin prose. He played a critical role in the gradual transformation of the Roman Republic into the Roman Empire....
had earlier implemented a 365¼ day year in Rome in 45 BCE as part of the Julian calendar
Julian calendar
The Julian calendar began in 45 BC as a reform of the Roman calendar by Julius Caesar. It was chosen after consultation with the astronomer Sosigenes of Alexandria and was probably designed to approximate the tropical year .The Julian calendar has a regular year of 365 days divided into 12 months...
.
See also
- Canopus, EgyptCanopus, EgyptCanopus was an Ancient Egyptian coastal town, located in the Nile Delta. Its site is in the eastern outskirts of modern-day Alexandria, around 25 kilometres from the centre of that city....
- Decree of Memphis (Ptolemy IV)Decree of Memphis (Ptolemy IV)The Decree of Memphis is an ancient inscribed stone stela which comprises the second of the Ptolemaic Decrees issued by Ptolemy IV of the Hellenistic Ptolemaic dynasty, which ruled Egypt from 305 BC to 30 BC. Like the Rosetta Stone, the Decree of Memphis is inscribed in three writing systems...
, for Stone #2. - IntercalationIntercalationIntercalation is the insertion of a leap day, week or month into some calendar years to make the calendar follow the seasons or moon phases. Lunisolar calendars may require intercalations of both days and months.- Solar calendars :...
- Ptolemaic DecreesPtolemaic DecreesThe Hellenistic Ptolemaic dynasty, which ruled Egypt from 305 BC to 30 BC, issued these series of decrees over the course of their reign. The Rosetta Stone is a well-known example of one of the decrees....
- Rosetta Stone Decree-list of Ptolemy V accomplishments and rewards honoredRosetta Stone Decree-list of Ptolemy V accomplishments and rewards honoredThe Decree of Memphis is the third Memphis decree, the first being for his grandfather Ptolemy III , and the second being, Decree of Memphis...
- Rosetta StoneRosetta StoneThe Rosetta Stone is an ancient Egyptian granodiorite stele inscribed with a decree issued at Memphis in 196 BC on behalf of King Ptolemy V. The decree appears in three scripts: the upper text is Ancient Egyptian hieroglyphs, the middle portion Demotic script, and the lowest Ancient Greek...
Literature
- Budge. The Rosetta Stone, E.A.Wallace BudgeE. A. Wallis BudgeSir Ernest Alfred Thompson Wallis Budge was an English Egyptologist, Orientalist, and philologist who worked for the British Museum and published numerous works on the ancient Near East.-Earlier life:...
, (Dover Publications), c 1929, Dover edition(unabridged), 1989. (softcover, ISBN 0-486-26163-8) - Pfeiffer, Stefan. Das Dekret von Kanopos (238 v. CHR). Munich: K. G. Sauer, 2004.
External links
- The Canopus Decree, full translation by S. Birch (about 1800 words—25 paragraphs)
- Stele of Canopus and the Rosetta Stone