which opens thus:—'The Chief of the fleet, Aahmes, son of Abana (the Blessed), speaketh to you all, ye people, that you may know the honours that have fallen to his lot.' He was born, he tells us, in the city of Nek-heb (the Greek Eileithyia), and as a lad he served King Aahmes on board a ship called the 'Calf.' He married, and set up a house, after which he was promoted, 'because of his strength,' to another vessel called the 'North.' And when the king went out in his chariot, it was the duty of the young captain to follow him on foot. In the siege of the Hyksos stronghold, Avaris, he fought bravely on foot in presence of his majesty. During the siege he was further promoted to the vessel called Going up into Memphis.'
Hard fighting went on around Avaris, and Aahmes tells us of the trophies of the dead[1] he brought in, as well as of his living prisoners. One of the latter he had much difficulty in securing, for he had to drag him some distance with a firm grasp through the water to avoid
- ↑ These were the hands of the slain, which were cut off and counted to ascertain the number of the fallen.
