Hermione Wrote:
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> Yes, but where's the reference to the original
> phrase, "yeast gas"? All I can see is a
> description of N as "effervescent".
There are innumerable references to CO2 in the Pyramid Texts. Many
of them are not definitional and just refer to it as something which
falls from Osiris; his efflux. This is consistent with the behavior
of CO2 when coming out of solution with water under standard temper-
ature and pressure. Even if there were a reasonable explanation for
for all the uses of efflux in the PT one still has to question just
why their Gods would be so sweaty, or alternatively, forever dripping
parts of their corpse onto the desert.
While there are no direct tie-ins to the word for "gas" or "gas (of)
yeast" there still seems little doubt that this was the meaning. I[].t-
wt.t is often associated with an odor as are the effluxes and typically
a pleasant odor.
2109. The sky trembles, the earth quakes before the god, before N.
2110a. N. [is not enveloped] by the earth;
2110b. ’I[].t-wt.t, thou art not enveloped by the earth.
2110c. Thy fame is by day; thy fear is by night, as a god, lord of fear.
CO2 is not enveloped by the earth when the God stands and is a topic
of learned conversation by day but when the wind slows at night fatal
concentrations can accumulate.
198b. The great ’I[].t has given birth to thee, the ’I[].t-wt.t has adorned thee;
198c. the ’I[].t-wt.t has given birth to thee, the great ’I[].t has adorned thee,
Gas has given birth to the geyser, CO2 adorns it (with bubbles)
CO2 has given birth to the geyser, gas adorns it.
1916-3 (Nt. 738). Great is thine odour, pleasant to the nose, the odour of ’I[].t-wt.t.
There are other uses which also fit with CO2. Most are nice clean
fits for which one would be hardpressed (impossible) to find another
term that fits all the implied characteristics.
Here's one that is a clean fit for geysers but must be nearly opaque
to traditional explanation;
443a. he draws, (the teeth) which are upon (in) thy mouth; he saps thy poison
443b. with those four strings, which were in the service of the sandals of Osiris.
The teeth are in the top of the djed and cause the poison (CO2) to come
out of solution. Osiris' sandals always refer to the djed which in which
Osiris stood.
Here's the most telling reference to CO2;
131d. His nurse is ’i[].t;
131e. it is she who makes his life (through nourishment?); it is she who gave birth to N.
Mercer is wrong about it being through nourishment of course.
Finally is the explanation for why the bottom of the heiroglyph for "pyra-
mid" has a red band at the bottom;
1147a. N. is the red bandage, who comes forth from the great ’I[].t;
There is a vast amount of dissolved siderite in the water and it stains
the bottom of the pyramid below the top of the geyser.
There really aren't any other explanations possible for these translations.
It's possible the translations are wrong, but what are the odds of a bunch
of monkeys pounding on typewriters writing War and Peace. It's more likely
that this explanation fits because it's right.
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Man fears the pyramid, time fears man.
Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 09/07/2009 08:52PM by cladking.