Book of Gates

Merneptah's reign sees the introduction of the Book of Caverns.

It's a piece of funerary literature, like the Amduat and the Book of Gates, describing the sun god's journey into the Duat.

Ra meets Osiris and unites with him to bring light to the dead.

So far, so good.

At the entrance, Ra-Horakhty himself greets the king and welcomes him to the Duat.

And the further in you go, you'll find gods like Anpu, Anubis, Nebet-hut, or Nephthys, Iset, or Isis, and the four sons of Horus ready to receive Pharaoh.

The hieroglyph text includes sections from The Book of Gates, The Book of the Dead, the Amduat, and that new text, The Book of Caverns, which appears in the burial chamber.

Merneptah went to his rest in a lavish house of eternity.

Egyptian funerary literature gives another reason the culture became associated with sacred wisdom.

Texts now grouped under names such as the Pyramid Texts, Coffin Texts, the Book of the Dead, the Amduet, and the Book of Gates offered ritual language and sacred knowledge for the dead.

A successful passage beyond death could involve knowing divine names, recognising dangerous beings, speaking correctly, and moving through the geography of another world.

Knowledge mattered after death.