The Sun is Risen at the Place of Purification
         The original sky chart of the remote Ancient Egyptians, dating back to 11:57pm July 3rd 14000BCE and encoding their Sacred Knowledge, was not altogether lost as the millennia slipped by almost unnoticed. As we have already discovered it was incorporated into the Narmer Plate in 4468BC (Part 8 to Part 14)

         More than two thousand years later, in 2308BCE, the Sumerians developed their equivalent of the 11:57pm July 3rd 14000BCE sky chart and Narmer Plate combined. It comes in the form of a royal cylinder-seal depicting "The Sun is Risen". The purpose of the seal is to celebrate the Dawn of the Age of Aries. Perhaps not surprisingly it comes complete with Ancient Egyptian hieroglyphs.
         In linking the seal with the Ancient Egyptian 11:57pm July 3rd 14000BCE sky chart the following need to be accounted for: the Celestial Sphinx and the Rising Sun, together with the Constellations of Orion, Gemini, Phoenix, and Grus. There are two other constellations on the sky chart, those of Taurus and Piscis Austrinus.

         Moreover, in linking the seal with the Narmer Plate the following need to be additionally accounted for: the Constellation of Canis Major, the hieroglyph for the horizon and, most importantly, Precession of the Ages of the Zodiac; the Sun moving out of one Age and into the next.
         Central to the scene is the Rising-Sun, Shamash. The Risen-Sun is depicted as both the circle above Shamash's hat (the Sumerian equivalent of the Taurean Red Crown of Ancient Egypt) and the figure with outstretched wings, the Constellation of Phoenix which symbolizes Rebirth / Resurrection: the rebirth / resurrection of the Sun in a New Age of the Zodiac.          The bird with the twig in its beak, which is also recorded on the Narmer Plate, is the Constellation of Grus, the Crane. The twig and the long neck of the crane are interchangeable. This constellation is in the shape of a Cross, which symbolizes Precession. (See Part 5) The crane was the pictogram for astronomers in Ancient Egypt.
         The knife which Shamash is wielding is the Constellation of Piscis Austrinus, which hangs in the West above the Constellation of Grus in the night sky as viewed from Giza at 11:57pm July 3rd 14000BCE. This is symbolically the implement used in the Opening of the Mouth Ceremony … the Opening of the Way or Portal for the Sun to pass through into the next Age of the Zodiac.

         The hieroglyph used for the mountain, or horizon on the cylinder-seal is an Ancient Egyptian hieroglyph, the same as appears on the Narmer Plate. On the cylinder-seal however the mountain is covered in either waves denoting water, or feathers denoting birds' wings.

         It is a tri-partite symbol encoding the Sacred Mound, the Waters of Nun, and the Winged Disk. In the centre of the Winged Disk is the Sun passing through the Portal, Opening or Birth Canal into the next Age of the Zodiac … which is a concise description of the event portrayed on the roller seal.

         The figure with one foot on the Sacred Mound is the god Ea, the Sumerian equivalent of the Ancient Egyptian concept of the Sacred Waters of Nun. His prominent nose sets him apart from the others as being an introduced figure.

Ea is a new concept which combines the Constellation of Orion, and the Sacred Waters of Nun as the Constellation of Eridanus, fanning out behind him like a pair of wings. In effect the god Ea is the Sumerian equivalent of the Celestial Sphinx! Ea was later adapted into the figures of Moses and John the Baptist. Jesus is the Risen Sun/Son baptized in the waters of the sacred Waters of Nun.
         Ea's association with Nermer/Orion, is evidenced by the Constellation of Lepus the Hare at his feet. Clearly, by 2308BCE Lepus had lost its Ancient Egyptian association with Orion's Chair, the Throne of God.

         Moreover Ea can be compared with Naram/Orion on the Naram Stele, which is also dated to 2308BCE. Both Ea and Naram are positioned with one foot on the Mound.

         Meanwhile another very bewildered Naram/Orion, complete with bull's ear, (See Part 15) stands next to the Tree of Life (the Axis Munde) on the cylinder-seal. He was necessary to maintain balance both on the seal and on the sky chart. Like Naram he is wearing a very large overlay to cover his Taurean virility.
         It is noticeable however that he is no longer attended by the King of the Seven Stars, Sirius. (See Part 10) Rather he is accompanied by his dog, the Constellation of Canis Major. This indicates that the transformation of the symbolism of the constellation of Canis Major from person to dog had occurred by 2308BCE.

         The figure at our far right, representing the Gemini Twins, is looking back to the past and forward to the future. Remember it is a cylinder-seal and as such conveys Cycles of Time repeated into Eternity when twirled around and around in the hand. The past and the future are one and the same.

         Despite this cylinder seal being dated to the beginning of the Age of Aries, the Ram, there is no evidence of a ram on the cylinder-seal. Either the dating of the seal is incorrect or the content of the Nermer Plate 4468BCE and the night sky as viewed from Giza 11:57pm July 3rd 14000BCE have been adapted by the Sumerians to symbolize Precession of the Ages in general.
         I have translated the hieroglyphs of the descriptive title on this Sumerian cylinder-seal as "The Place of Purification." The Sun is Purified, or Baptized, in the waters of Nun before it is reborn/resurrected into the New Age of the Zodiac.
         The Sumerian hieroglyphs, which evidence the development of writing from Ancient Egyptian to Sumerian hieroglyphs, are written in two different styles.

         The bottom and earlier form is directly derived from the Ancient Egyptian original: "abt", which translates as "Place of Purification". The glyphs on the right of the Sumerian writing represent the human ritual of the "Opening of the Mouth Ceremony" while those on the left represent the celestial ritual of the "Opening of the Mouth Ceremony"; the Sun passing through the Portal into a New Age. (See Part 10 and Part 16)
         The upper form is a later development still. The glyphs have become more stylized. The "leg" glyph of Osiris/Orion has adopted the two triangles which form the arms of Orion in the cylinder-seal as his identification tag. (Compare this to the Orion tag on the Kish Tablet in Part 12) The long neck is his beard and the square is his head. His "mouth" (which can also be interpreted as the horns of Taurus the Bull) is open ready to receive the Sun at the beginning of a New Age.
         The transition has been made. The original sky chart of the remote Ancient Egyptians dating back to 11:57pm July 3rd 14000BCE is hardly recognisable to the untrained eye in the sky chart recorded on this Sumerian cylinder-seal.




Footnote … subtle references to Freemasonry are intentional.

Copyright Audrey Fletcher 1999
All rights reserved
Adelaide, South Australia