Meresamun Singer in the Interior of theTemple of Amun

 

My friend & guru Mimi JanislawskiI recently gifted me a beautiful book* published in 2009 entitled: The life of Meresamun, Temple Singer in Ancient Egypt edited by Emily Teeter & Janet H. Johnson.

Meresamun ("Amun Loves Her") was a women who lived in Egypt in approx. 800 BC and Dr.  EmilyTeeter informs us:

“We know Meresamun  from her beautifully decorated coffin, which is now in the collection of the Oriental Institute (in Chicago). A single band of inscription running down the front of the coffin records her name and her job title:

Singer in the Interior of the Temple of Amun  …

and as a Singer in the Interior of the Temple of Amun , Meresamun belonged to a group of elite musician-priestesses who sang and made music for the god Amun....

Music played an important role in Egyptian religion.  The gods, who had many of the same characteristics as humans, were thought to be entertained by music.  The instruments most closely associated with music played in temples are the ritual rattle known as the sistrum & beaded necklaces (menat).  Playing these instruments was believed to calm the gods and make them more agreeable to protecting and helping mankind.  “

While reading this book, I was reminded of being blessed to view the wall (see below) at Hatshepsut's  Chappelle Rouge at the Temple of Karnak  (dating back to approx.. 1460 BC)   wherein carved is a wonderful depiction of khener shaking sistra and clapping the rhythm during the Opet Festival.  HNR is the ancient Egyptian name for a professional troupe of dancers and singers associated with Hathor and Horus.

"In the annual Opet Festival, during which Amun traveled from the Karnak temple to the Luxor temple, the procession was greeted by the queen who shook two sistra.  Behind her was a group of seven women, labeled "Singers of Amun," who hold menat and shake sistra before the boat that carried the god....."

Video clip of Tahya introducing Meresamun:  Click here
 

In the chapter titled Ritual Music Dr. Teeter details:

"A sistrum is a rattle that was played primarily by queens, princesses, and priestesses in the course of offering rituals and sacred processions.  The goddess Hathor, who was known as the Mistress of Music, was so strongly associated with the sistrum that her face decorated the handle of most examples.  The sistrum is also connected to the worship of Hathor through a ritual called “plucking papyrus for Hathor” apparently because the sound of the sistrum was equated with rustling sound that papyrus made in the marsh.  This equation was further stressed by a pun, for both “sistrum” and “plucking” were Seshseshet  (Sššt)  in the ancient Egyptian language..."

"The act of shaking a sistrum was also thought to protect the goddess and her subjects.  This protection is made clear by scenes at the temple of Hathor at Dendera that are captioned:

I have taken the Seshseshet sistrum,

I grasp the sistrum and drive away the one who is hostile to Hathor, Mistress of Heaven

I dispel what is evil by means of the sistrum in my hand.

 

 

 

*find this book at the University of Chicago Oriental Institute Museum Store:  Click here

 

Music was an important part of festivals and banquets, often accompanied by singing and dancing. The noise of clapping and rattling was also thought to drive away hostile forces and/or dangerous spirits.

The goddess Hathor, whose head appears on both clappers of the right (www.britishmuseum.org),
was often associated with music and entertainment.

Hathor was also seen as a protective deity. She was often invoked in spells to drive away evil spirits such as those which caused illness. She also protected both mother and child during the dangerous time of childbirth, as did Taweret and Bes.

 

Egyptian clappers would have been joined at the end opposite the hands (similar to castanets) and were often played together with sistra, harps and pipes.

Typically, clappers appear to be carved in the shape of a hand. Evidence can be seen in pre-historic rock drawings of dancing figures and fourth millennium BC images on pottery in Egypt, seem to show curved-blade clappers held in hand. Click here to see Ancient Egyptian Ivory Clappers dating back to Old Kingdom ca. 2649–2150 BC.

From www.britannica.com: Clappers are a musical instrument consisting of pieces of wood, bone, or metal either held in both hands or, fastened together, held in one hand, sometimes with a handle, and struck against each other. Clappers have been played throughout the world since ancient times, often with a ritual or signaling function. Varieties include spoons, bones, castanets, and small, tuned finger cymbals. Some Egyptian ivory sets (c. 2000 bc) are shaped like arms and hands.

 

From Metropolitan Museum, the clappers below are attributed to
Period: New Kingdom, Amarna
Period Dynasty: Dynasty 18
Reign: reign of Akhenaten
Date: ca. 1353–1336 BC
These clappers in the form of human hands were carved from
a single hippopotamus tusk that was split in half.

 


 In addition to making the 21st Century Ceremonial Systrum™ instrument available to you,
Tahya is poised to present its rich and magnificent story steeped in antiquity. 
LECTURE & POWERPOINT PRESENTATION
available to your community!

Curious? Here's a short (3.5 min) introduction to the 60-90 min program:

story of the systrum
To bring  A STORY OF THE SYSTRUM to your community,
Send inquiries:   info(at)hathorsystrum(dot)com

***

Introductory series related to  the Ceremonial Systrum aka Sistrum

How to Play the SYSTRUM Video-series:  Click here
NOTE: Series includes an abbreviated slide show of images depiciting systra throughout ancient Egyptian history
[from July 2012 RCN Community Spotlight featuring Tahya, hosted by Dan Mowdy]

sistrum aka systrum processional

Click here to view Tahya chanting invocation to Hathor
(chant phrasing from hieroglyphic carvings on the ancient temple walls at Dendura, Egypt)
utilizing the Ceremonial Systrum™
August 12, 2012 MUSIKFEST progam

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Hathor sculpture from site near Saqqara. 1996
photo credit:  Karena Mahoney
Thank you Karena for sharing!

 

More...

Sublime image of the Goddess ...
capital of a column representing the Goddess Hathor with cow's ears;
Her hair adorned with multi-petalled lotus blossoms;
dated to the III century BCE, now in the Louvre Museum.

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HYMN TO THE GODDESS HATHOR - from Her Sanctuary at Iunet/Dendera (Dendera I-80; cfr.S.Cauville):

Hathor, Lady of Iunet,
Your beautiful face is pleased by the King of Upper and Lower Egypt.
The South, the North, the West, and the East pay You homage,
and they make adorations to You.
You illuminate the Two Lands with the rays of Your Eye.
The Gods rejoice for You when You appear.
Thoth satisfies You with His glorifications and He raises His arms to
You, carrying the sistrum. 
Your Father Ra adores You,
His face rejoices in hearing Your Name.
The Goddesses come to You bowing Their heads....

 

Thanks for posting: Amentet Neferet - Religion and Traditions of Ancient Egypt