Pharaoh’s Man, ‘Abdiel: The Vizier with a

Semitic Name
By Alain Zivie

022 023

The purpose of this article is to introduce ‘Aper-El, the “vizier

and father of the god,” to the readers of Biblical Archaeology
Review. This man was indeed a prominent character of New
Kingdom Egypt. His floruit was in the last decades of the 18th
Dynasty, under the reigns of both Amenhotep III and
Amenhotep IV (Akhenaten), corresponding to the famous
Amarna period in its broader definition (c. 1391–1353 B.C.).
Usually known under the Egyptian spelling of his name, ‘Aper-
El or ‘Aperel (but certainly not ‘Aper-el, as we find sometimes, because El is the name of a
divinity and as such requires a capital letter), his fame expands beyond the circle of
Egyptologists. This Egyptian man also piques the interest of specialists of the Near East and
the Late Bronze Age, as well as of Biblical scholars and historians of religion, for two
reasons: first, because of his Semitic name containing the name of the god El, known also
from the Bible, and, second, because of his connection with the pharaoh Akhenaten, too often
presented as the “creator” of monotheism.

The name ‘Aper-El is written in Egyptian ‘Aperiar (‘pri3r), with iar (i3r) being an Egyptian
spelling for ial (i3l). Let us also note that the name can be sometimes shortened to ‘Aperia
(‘pri3). We recognize in the second element, i3r/l, the Egyptian way of writing “El,” the name
of a prominent Syro-Canaanite god, which later became a designation of God in the Bible
(also appearing in its plural form, Elohim). But in its singular form, the name was used in other
Biblical names, many of which are still in use today, like Daniel, Raphael, etc. As for the first
element, ‘aper (‘pr), even if it recalls an Egyptian verb meaning “to equip,” it is an attested
way of writing a non-Egyptian word: the Semitic ‘abed (‘abd, ‘abdou), or “servant.” Therefore,
the name of ‘Aper-El (or ‘Aperel) was in fact pronounced something like ‘Abdiel (‘Abdi-El),
and it meant “the servant of the god El” (not “the servant of God”!). As for the shortened form
‘Aperia, it could have been pronounced something like 024 ‘Abdi or ‘Abdou.1 In that respect
the vizier’s name can be compared with theophoric names from Egypt’s New Kingdom,
referring to other Syro-Canaanite names associated with the element ‘abed written ‘aper:
‘Aper-Reshef (‘Abdireshef), ‘Aper-‘Astarté (‘Abdiashtoret), ‘Aper-Degel (‘Abdidegel), etc.2
Therefore, we shall call the subject of the present article ‘Abdiel (‘Aper-El)—and shall turn to
the question of his identity and supposed origins later. First, a short presentation of his tomb,
his career, and his family and time is necessary.

With its exceptional contents, his tomb at Saqqara is not

only the main source for our knowledge of ‘Abdiel (‘Aper-
El), but the only one.3 ‘Abdiel was buried with his wife and
1
one of his sons, probably the elder one, in Saqqara, the
main necropolis of Memphis. His rock-cut tomb
(hypogeum) is located almost at the southeast corner of the
cliff, in the zone known as the Bubasteion, a part of the
necropolis known in Pharaonic time as the “escarpment of
‘Ankhtawy” (dhnt nt ‘nkht3wy). Being the first of a series of
tomb entrances on the same side, the tomb is referenced
as Bubasteion I.1 (I for the upper level of tombs, 1 because
it is the first on a line going westward). The tomb had been entered by British archaeologist
William Flinders Petrie in 1881, who copied some signs visible in accessible parts of the
chapel (level 0). Among other unpublished notes, Petrie’s copy is kept by the Griffith Institute
in Oxford, where I consulted it, shortly after entering the tomb in 1976 and beginning my study
of its decors and inscriptions slightly more than a century after the visit of Petrie. This
hypogeum and others close to it—and all of the Bubasteion with its New Kingdom rock
tombs, which had been reused later as cats’ catacombs—were revealed to have been
completely ignored in spite of their outstanding interest 025and their importance for our
knowledge of the Amarna period in its broader sense. So began the resurrection of the vizier
‘Aperia (‘Aper-El), as he was usually called after this exploration. It became a real
archaeological adventure.4

The next step was the exploration, excavation, and preservation of his tomb, a task to which
this writer has been completely devoted since 1980 with the French Archaeological Mission
of the Bubasteion (MAFB), supported by the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Of course, all
the work has been done in close connection with the Organization of Egyptian Antiquities,
which became the Supreme Council of the Egyptian Antiquities, headed since 2011 by the
Ministry of Antiquities.

From several points of view, this tomb is exceptional, as were its discovery and the difficulties
and the risks of its excavation. Other tombs of the same period, of great artistic and historical
interest, have been discovered close to ‘Abdiel’s (‘Aper-El’s): particularly Bubasteion I.19 of
the artist Thutmes (or Thutmose), who painted and engraved his own tomb and who was
found to be the creator of the famous bust of Queen Nefertiti, presently kept in Berlin,a and of
Maïa (Bubasteion I.20), the foster mother of Tutankhamun, who was found to be the princess
Merytaten, the elder daughter of Akhenaten and sister of the king, who sat briefly on the
throne and functioned as a kind of regent before her brother was crowned.5

The tomb is large and deep with four levels corresponding to the chapel (level 0) and the
funerary apartments (levels -1, -2, and -3) connected by stairs and shafts. The chapel
includes a poorly preserved rectangular room with unfinished decoration, which opens onto a
large square room separated into three parts by the presence of four square pillars also hewn
from the rock. These partly decorated pillars suffered a lot of damage, and the southeast one
is now completely missing due to Late Period transformations. The ceiling was decorated, as
was the rear wall, which includes three rock-cut niches. The main niche, in the middle, had
been painted first on its three sides, and later the bottom had been engraved.

After a short stair and the first funerary apartment level -1, which
2
was hewn as a passage turning toward the west, a deep shaft of
some 26 feet led to level -2, consisting of a rectangular room off of
which open seven small rooms that were used as storage places
for ceramic vessels, including grain and wine jars (not to speak of
later human inhumations). This level had been “visited” before us
and suffered extensively. Moreover rock collapses had occurred,
the last one between two seasons of excavation, so that a huge
work of consolidation had to be done with the help of a French civil
works company (now Vinci) working on the Cairo subway. The
marl clay had “melted” in many places because of the water from the plateau above. But it
was worthwhile to continue excavation and take some risks because during our first
exploration, we had noticed another shaft in a lateral room on level -2, visibly leading to 026a
fourth level—level -3. The shaft had a depth of some 26 feet, like the previous one. Once
excavated and emptied, the floor of level -3 appeared, with a few steps, leading through a
gallery to a small room that contained the remains of later, largely destroyed inhumations. Our
disappointment was great, but the excavation permitted us to notice that there was still
another room—hidden on purpose under false steps at the entrance of the gallery. The
remains of the official seal of the necropolis (a jackal with nine prisoners, as in
Tutankhamun’s tomb) were still visible. That was the funerary room, which had been “visited”
in antiquity, but never more after that.

After its long and painstaking excavation, the funerary room of the vizier ‘Abdiel (‘Aper-El) at
Saqqara (tomb Bubasteion I.1) was construed as having contained the remains of three
persons and an abundance of exceptional funerary equipment, which reflects the prominence
of the characters for whom it was prepared and attests to its own high archaeological and
artistic value.6

The vizier, his wife, and one of their sons had been indeed buried in this hypogeum. They
had been mummified. But due to the wild ancient plundering of the room and the burials, and
also because of water damage, we found only the skeletons, identified with certitude by the
study of the coffin fragments and inscribed objects associated with each burial. This
identification has been confirmed by a close study of the human remains, performed in the
mission’s former lab at the site of Saqqara. The anthropological and radiographic analyses
revealed interesting elements about the age, condition, etc., of this small family.7 But we
presently have no indications about the space of time that could have separated these
successive burials—unless they were buried (or reburied) at the same time. The lack of
thematic or artistic differences between the coffins and the funerary material gives the feeling
that they were all prepared more or less at the same time.

The study of the rich and often superb material—inscribed or

not—discovered in the funerary room continues to bring new
insight into the reigns of Amenhotep III and Amenhotep IV
(Akhenaten), and their aftermath, during which this family
had its floruit. It must be emphasized here that the quality of
many pieces of the equipment found in this Memphite tomb,

3
and particularly the coffins, is comparable to similar objects
discovered in the Theban tomb, Kings Valley 46, of the
parents of the queen Tiy: Yuya and Tuya. The condition of
many elements of this material, and particularly the wooden
coffins, was alas bad and in some cases even hopeless. The
room had been plundered in antiquity and had suffered
damage from water and humidity for centuries. Nevertheless,
with its conservators and the support of the Inspectorate of
Saqqara, the French Archaeological Mission of the
Bubasteion (MAFB) succeeded to give meaning to many fragments and to restore some
wooden objects, including some coffins lids.

With a thorough study of the fragments of coffins discovered in the room, we can state that
each member of the family had been buried in three wood anthropoid sarcophagi, fitting into
each other, most probably kept in rectangular wooden coffins. Some of them were gilded, and
the inner coffins of each character were particularly richly decorated with glass inlays, similar
to the coffins of Yuya and Tuya. But note that ‘Abdiel’s wife had three coffins, while Yuya’s
wife had only two!

Among the most important and often gorgeous artifacts discovered in the tomb are the
inscribed stone canopic jars (four for each person); an ivory spoon for cosmetics, taking the
shape of a gold fish (tilapia nilotica); a stuccoed wood support for a wig, representing the
head of a young woman with big earrings;8 and a wood votive cubit, mentioning many titles,
positions, and honorific epithets of ‘Abdiel (‘Aper-El) himself.9 Some of these objects are now
exhibited in the Imhotep Museum, built at the 027entrance of the site of Saqqara. As for
objects and jewels made of or including gold, whether complete or fragmentary, they have
been transferred to the Egyptian Museum, Cairo, where they are exhibited.10 A diadem, found
close to the skull of the vizier and composed of colored beads and elements of gold, is
particularly remarkable.11

As we discovered from the inscriptions on his tomb and his

funerary material, ‘Abdiel (‘Aper-El) had several titles,
corresponding to very important functions and to the highest rank
at the court and in the state. The most used one is “chief of the
town, vizier” (mr niwt tj3ty), which is usually rendered as “vizier.”
But he also held the title, often mentioned just before his name, of
“father of the god” (it ntjr), with “god” referring to the Egyptian king.
This title implies a real proximity to the sovereign for whom its
bearer was a kind of senior adviser and refers to a king whom the
bearer had known as a child and helped to educate. Two other
prominent men, once generals of the chariotry, held the title
“father of the god”: Yuya, the step-father of Amenhotep III, and
Ay, who became king after Tutankhamun, but neither had been
vizier.

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We must also note that ‘Abdiel had been during his career a
“general of the horses,” that is, of the chariotry (mr ssmwt),
according to a title on an object discovered in his funerary room
—here again, like Yuya and Ay. Moreover his (elder?) son Huy
also became a prominent officer of the army, “general-in-chief”
(mr msh‘ wr).

Most interesting among his titles, also mentioned on the same

object, are “chief in the entire land” (mr pr m t3 r-djr.f) and “child
of the kap” (khrd n k3p), often translated as “child of the nursery” but better rendered as “child
of the palace.” The holder of this last title had grown up or had been educated in the palace
(the private part connected with the harem) with the future king. As far as we know, no other
vizier is known as having been a “child of the kap.”

As already mentioned, ‘Abdiel had held the title of general of chariotry. Therefore, it is
interesting 028to note that in the same inscription, he is also called “messenger of the king,”
usually rendered by “ambassador of the king” (wpwty nsw), a function that could have had a
link to his military rank and expeditions.

Two other important titles must be mentioned. They are found in the
chapel of the tomb, but are not well preserved, and their complete
reading is not absolutely certain. The first one is “director of the foster
fathers and mothers of the children of the king” (mr mn‘w/wt msw nsw).
It indicates that ‘Abdiel was responsible for the officials or wives of
officials, the royal foster fathers and mothers who were in charge of
feeding and educating the princes and princesses. This could be
connected to the title of “father of the god [the king],” which ‘Abdiel
bears in many inscriptions.

The second title was found close to the previous one in the
chapel and reads “first servant of Aten in …” (b3k tpy n Itn
m …); the end is not readable. That title would prove that
‘Abdiel had an early—potentially already under
Amenhotep III—and high connection with the cult of Aten,
perhaps first in Memphis and later in Akhetaten, the new
“sacred” capital founded by Amenhotep IV (Akhenaten). All
these titles and functions attest to a personal link between
‘Abdiel (and perhaps his elder son as well) and one or,
more likely, two pharaohs, the father and son Amenhotep III and Amenhotep IV.

029

No inscription has been found, either on the tomb itself, or in the material discovered in the
funerary room, which mentions the father and the mother of ‘Abdiel or the parents of his wife.
We know neither their brothers nor sisters. But that fact is not so exceptional, even with high-
ranking people like them, during this period. This is almost always the case with the high

5
officials’ tombs of Akhetaten (Tell El-Amarna), which are chronologically and “politically”
close to ‘Abdiel’s tomb. But here, too, we must be wary of quick conclusions. In Akhetaten’s
tombs, the situation is more radical; even the wives and children of the owners are generally
not mentioned, which is not the case with the vizier’s tomb at Saqqara.

There are different spellings of the name of ‘Abdiel’s wife,

buried with him in the tomb. In the chapel, she is named
Uriai (Wriai). Because we also found a mention of the
name Tauret (T3wrt), “the great one,” on the funerary
material, her complete name could have been a reference
to the goddess (with the hippopotamus shape) Thueris—
sometimes shortened to Wriai, without the feminine article
ta. Close to Uriai’s remains, we discovered a golden ring
with the figure of the goddess Thueris. It could have been
used as her personal seal. At the same time, it is not
completely impossible that the vizier’s wife also had (or
possibly first had) the name Mut (Mwt), sometimes
shortened to Mutuy or Tui. Of course this name became totally excluded in the Amarna
period, because it refers to the goddess Mut, who was ostracized like the god Amun.

As mentioned above, one of ‘Abdiel’s sons, probably the elder one, was also buried in the
tomb. His name was Huy (Hwy), which is usually an abbreviation of the name Amenhotep or
Amenophis (Imnhtp), similar to the name of the kings Amenhotep III and Amenhotep IV (later
changed to Akhenaten). But in its complete spelling, the name referred to the main god
Amun, who was defaced everywhere with the triumph of the god Aten during the Amarna
period, even in the royal name “Amenhotep.” We find a clear confirmation of this fact on an
inscription of the inner coffin of ‘Abdiel’s son: his name was first written “Amenhotep,” but was
later modified and replaced by the shortened form “Huy,” eliminating the overt reference to
Amun.

We can see that this man occupied the highest military functions, as he was a general of the
chariotry (“director of the horses”) like his father at a certain stage, and a “scribe of the
recruits” (ssh nfrw). He even ascended to the rank of “general-in-chief” (mer mesh‘a wr). In
another field of activity, he had the title of “director of all the works of the gods.” Moreover, we
observe that the chapel of the tomb mentions him in several places, not only as the one who
“makes the name of his father live”—as is a typical role for a son in Egypt—but almost as a
co-owner of the tomb with his father. We observe indeed that the two west pillars of the hall
are devoted to ‘Abdiel (‘Aper-El), and that the northeast one is entirely devoted to “the
general-in-chief Huy, son of the vizier ‘Aper-El.” It is likely that the southeast pillar was also
associated with Huy, but we cannot find a confirmation because it had been destroyed by
ancient rock collapses and replaced by a big masonry filling in a later period.

We have a feeling that the father and the son held their respective positions almost at the
same time. 060So the tomb which was initially only for ‘Abdiel also could have become the
tomb of his son, perhaps because the son died rather early (around the age of 35 according
to the study of his remains).
6
There were other children in the family. Tauret’s skeleton indicates that she had been a
mother several times. This is also confirmed by a defaced representation in the central niche
of the chapel, which shows that the family had included several children, at least one
daughter and three sons, counting Huy. The two other sons, probably younger, were pursuing
important careers, too. They are represented in the first room of the chapel, on the southwest
pillar, and in the central niche, where they occupy a central place. They are symmetrically
depicted performing rituals in front of ‘Abdiel. On the east side, we see the vizier and his son
Seny (Sny, perhaps a shortened form of Sennefer), who is a steward (mr pr) with other titles
and epithets connecting him to the king and seems to follow his father’s civil career. On the
western wall of the niche, ‘Abdiel, who is shown wearing a wig and not in the apparatus of a
vizier, appears with another son: Hatiay (H3ti3i), certainly a diminutive, in front of him. This
son was a first servant or high priest (hm-ntjer tpy) of Nefertum, the god son of the Memphite
triad. This title perhaps denotes a still minor role due to his young age. (After all, the most
important gods of Memphis were the two elder members of the triad, Ptah and his wife,
Sekhmet). All this shows that these two sons were already at least young adults. But it is not
clear if they occupy such a place in the chapel’s niche because the elder son, Huy, had
already died by the time the tomb’s decoration took place.

One of the main characteristics of the tomb is its direct connection

with the Amarna period, which is the center of much interest and
many heated debates. But it is difficult to situate precisely the full
career of the tomb’s main owner, ‘Abdiel (‘Aper-El), within the
reigns of Amenhotep III and Amenhotep IV (Akhenaten). The man
could have lived most of his adult life under and served both kings.
As for his elder son Huy, he would have served mainly or solely
the pharaoh Amenhotep IV. There would not have been a strict
symmetry between the fathers, ‘Abdiel and Amenhotep III, and the
sons, Huy and Amenhotep IV. Things cannot be so simple,
especially as the history of the Amarna period in its broader definition (from the last years of
Amenhotep III until the reign of Tutankhamun) is not so firmly established. In that context, the
tomb Bubasteion I.1 031of Saqqara certainly constitutes a new and welcome source of
information on the Amarna period, but as it is, this information is still unclear. We do not yet
have a complete idea of the role that ‘Abdiel played during that period, even if it was evidently
a very important one.

The few precisely dated elements discovered in the tomb

include a royal cartouche partly defaced on a wall of the
chapel. It could have been Nebmaâtrâ, the praenomen of
Amenhotep III, but the question remains open. Among the
many objects of the funerary material, clear cartouches of
Amenhotep III have nevertheless been discovered (with, in
one case, the cartouche of his wife, Queen Tiy). Clay sealings referring to Amenhotep IV
(Akhenaten) were also found in the disorder of the plundered funerary room. Moreover, we
discovered wine jars with hieratic dockets mentioning the general Huy associated with year
10 of the reign of Akhenaten,12 giving a terminus ante quem for the life of Huy. Finally, we

7
must stress that the funerary apparatus of the three persons buried in the tomb forms a very
coherent ensemble. There is no real difference of style, and further it refers to the Osirian
funerary tradition as it appears from the coffins, etc.—as if the Amarna crisis were not so
pregnant in that Memphite tomb, except for changes like the name of Amenhotep transformed
to Huy on the son’s inner coffin. All that is surprising, more so as we face burials which
perhaps did not occur at the same time.

In any case, one fact seems clear: ‘Abdiel (‘Aper-El) had

been particularly close to the two kings, Amenhotep III and
Amenhotep IV (Akhenaten). He had played an important
role at the side of the first sovereign, but he also must have continued to work for and with the
second one, in spite of the changing political and religious circumstances—perhaps because
he had supervised the foster fathers and mothers of Amenhotep III’s children. So, with
‘Abdiel, the Amarna crisis does not prevent us from discerning a kind of continuity in Egyptian
politics, even if some paradigms changed. It is also clear that the role of ‘Abdiel during this
period is not acknowledged as it deserves. After all, he is the only attested high official of this
period who had been vizier, “father of the god,” and “child of the palace.”

Taking all that data into account, we can qualify ‘Abdiel with the title of “Pharaoh’s man”—or
even, perhaps more precisely, “the Pharaohs’ man,” referring to Amenhotep III and IV. But
perhaps he died too early in the reign of Akhenaten, possibly like his elder son, to play a role
at the end of the Amarna period, unlike his contemporaries (and possible rivals), the two
future kings Ay and Horemheb. It is difficult to admit, but we have apparently no other mention
of this man in spite of his importance.13

But we must take also into account that he may have been known under another name, a
shortened name, or a nickname. Elsewhere he may be mentioned by this other name, as
often happens in Egypt for New Kingdom officials, particularly during the Amarna period in its
broader definition. (We also have examples of double names in other tombs of the
Bubasteion). In that respect, a path of research is by now being explored by this writer, which
may soon lead to an interesting identification. However, because there are still facts to check,
I shall refrain from any possible identification without a solid basis, if not real evidence.14

It is noteworthy that ‘Abdiel (‘Aper-El) is often presented in scholarly literature as a “foreigner.”

Of course, this affirmation is founded solely on his name. But a non-Egyptian name does not
imply that the individual was a “non-Egyptian.” Rather it denotes a foreign origin, or the
foreign origin of the individual’s father and/or mother, which is not the same. In the case of our
vizier, we can say that everything in his tomb (the names of the members of his family,
funerary apparatus, gods mentioned, etc.) is Egyptian and only Egyptian.

Nevertheless, a foreign origin or foreign connections of the vizier is not totally excluded. But
at the same time, we must remember that “oriental” names, particularly Syro-Canaanite ones,
could be 064appreciated in the cosmopolitan New Kingdom, even in the royal family (e.g., a
daughter of Ramesses II was named Bint’anath, “Daughter of Anath”). Moreover, ‘Abdiel was
a “child of the palace.” This fact does not necessitate that he was a foreigner, as some
Egyptologists have thought (that the “children of the palace” would have been the children of
8
foreign chiefs educated at the court). But it implies that he was in Egypt since a young age
and perhaps since his birth.15

As a matter of fact, ‘Abdiel is sometimes, if not often, the object of speculation because of his
“foreign” (Semitic) name, moreover referring to the god El, and his links to the palace and the
king Akhenaten. Fragile or even baseless assumptions can be found here and there, which
sometimes mix epochs and sources. At the same time, there is one apparent paradoxical fact:
Very few (i.e., almost no) tombs of Egyptian high officials of this period with such rich funerary
material still in situ comparable to the tomb of Yuya and Tuya have been discovered,
excavated, and studied. (The plunderers of the 19th century likely unearthed several of them).
And when such a discovery is made, it is a tomb lost among late mummified cats. It is not in
Thebes, but in Memphis. And, moreover, this tomb belongs to a man of possibly foreign origin
with a Semitic name. So, it would seem that the story of ‘Abdiel is admittedly difficult to
integrate into our greater knowledge of the New Kingdom 065and the Amarna period. Yet we
know by several examples that in New Kingdom Egypt people who came from elsewhere
could intermix as though in a deep melting pot. And some, if not many, advanced to high
positions.

But at this final stage of the presentation of ‘Abdiel (‘Aper-El), I must mention a question
which cannot be avoided, even if it is highly speculative, if not to say phantasmal. I feel
obliged to mention it, particularly in the present article. Although perhaps of foreign origin,
‘Abdiel ascended to a great social position and was particularly close to the king or kings of
Egypt. Therefore, to the mind of any Egyptologist, specialist of the ancient Near East, Biblical
scholar, etc., comes the story of Joseph, son of Jacob, in the Book of Genesis. This beautiful
narrative shows the ascension of a young “Oriental” to the rank of second to the king of Egypt.
Previously we knew some (few) examples of historical ascensions of this kind to illustrate the
story of Joseph, but none situating the hero at the level of vizier, “father of the god,” and other
high titles. There is no doubt that the discovery of ‘Abdiel changes the situation. But the
analogy has limits. We speak here of illustrating, not confirming or invalidating the story of
Joseph. There is a fundamental difference between the natures of archaeological and
historical research on one hand, and a literary narrative with national and religious
implications on the other. As an Egyptologist and the discoverer of ‘Abdiel, I must remind the
nonspecialists, and even some specialists, to be extremely careful and to avoid confusing
these completely different fields.

But I know that for many the temptation to identify the two figures is—and will be—difficult to
resist, especially since ‘Abdiel lived at the turning point of the reigns of Amenhotep III and
Amenhotep IV, the future Akhenaten, who is often and too quickly presented as “the first
monotheist.” For those who confuse epochs, approaches, concepts, and data, it seems easy
to imagine that the “servant of El” (‘Abed-El) “learned” monotheism from Akhenaten or, to the
contrary, that he “taught” monotheism to the king, as he was in charge of the education of the
royal children, and that he influenced him as a close adviser. From here it is a quick step to
find a link between the vizier and the patriarch16—a little step which ignores historical
realities: The religion of Akhenaten is not exactly monotheistic and is in many ways strikingly
different from Biblical monotheism, which itself is the result of a long process materializing

9
only much later in the time of the prophets. But I confess that I make no illusions: Imagination
and phantasms are powerful in such a sensitive issue, particularly outside the circle of
informed and strict scholars.

Let us consider nevertheless the apparent parallel of the historical character found at
Saqqara and the literary figure met in Genesis. We know that the existence of a literary figure,
specially a figure like Joseph, does not exclude a possible historical background at its origin,
or, inverting the terms, we know of many historical characters who became literary characters
or who were used as such long after their life. After all, we must remember that links and
connections between the Amarna period, with Akhenaten and his religious “revolution,” and
the story of the Hebrews and the Exodus from Egypt had already been made in antiquity—
links and connections rooted in later Israelite reinterpretations and fights for ethnic and
political identifications and identities that made the links to Egypt all the more powerful more
than a millennium after the events initially occurred.

Then, would it be possible that Jews living in Egypt during the Late period and perhaps the
Hellenistic period ever encountered the historical figure of ‘Abdiel (‘Aper-El)? The “meeting”
could have occurred during their obstinate research and their tough contests with Egyptian
scribes and priests in their efforts to find testimonia of the traditional stories recounted in
Gene-sis and Exodus—and connected to a much older Egypt.17

Footnotes:

a. See Strata: “Nefertiti Mystery Solved,” BAR, May/June 2015.

Endnotes:

1. See Alain Zivie, “Le nom du vizir ‘Aper-El,” in Marcel Sigrist, ed., Études
égyptologiques et bibliques à la mémoire du Père B. Couroyer, Cahiers de la Revue
Biblique 36 (Paris: Gabalda, 1997), pp. 115–123. But the proofs of the paper were not
sent to the author for corrections, so that numerous mistakes in the hieroglyphs and the
transliterations, not due to him, spoil his demonstration, as was well understood by
Christian Cannuyer in his review in Chronique d’Egypte 74 (1999), pp. 43–46.
2. See particularly Thomas Schneider, Asiatische Personennamen in ägyptischen
Quellen des Neuen Reiches, Orbis Biblicus et Orientalis 114 (Freiburg: Vandenhoeck
Ruprecht, 1992), pp. 66–68.
3. For a recent status quaestionis with a complete bibliography, see Alain Zivie, “Le vizir
et père du dieu ‘Aper-El (‘Abdiel),” in Giuseppina Capriotti Vittozzi, ed., Egyptian
Curses I: Proceedings of the Egyptological Day held at the National Research Council
of Italy (CNR), Roma, 3rd December 2012 (Roma: CNR Edizioni, 2014), pp. 83–99.
4. See Alain Zivie, “Une tombe d’époque amarnienne à Saqqarah,” Bulletin de la Société
Française d’Egyptologie 84 (1979), pp. 21–32; Alain Zivie, Découverte à Saqqarah: Le
vizir oublié (Paris: Seuil, 1990). It has been published in Arabic—Kachef fi Saqqara. El-
Maqbara Abria (Cairo: Editions Dar El-Fikr, 1995)—with a foreword by Zahi Hawass.
See also Alain Zivie, The Lost Tombs of Saqqara (Toulouse: Caracara Edition, 2007),
an updated edition in English (translated from French by David Lorton) of Les tombeaux
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 retrouvés de Saqqara (Paris: Rocher, 2003).
5. See Alain Zivie, La tombe de Maïa, mère nourricière du roi Toutânkhamon et grande du
harem, Les tombes du Bubasteion à Saqqara, vol. 1 (Toulouse: Caracara, 2009); Alain
Zivie, La tombe de Thoutmes, directeur des peintres dans la Place de Maât, Les
tombes du Bubasteion à Saqqara, vol. 2 (Toulouse: Caracara, 2013).
6. See Alain Zivie, “Recherches et découvertes récentes dans la tombe d’Aperia à
Saqqarah,” Comptes rendus de l’Académie des Inscriptions et Belles-Lettres
(April/June 1989), pp. 490–505; Alain Zivie, “The Treasury of ‘Aper-El,” Egyptian
Archaeology: The Bulletin of the Egypt Exploration Society 1 (1991), pp. 26–28.
7. See Roger Lichtenberg, “La radiographie des ossements retrouvés dans la chambre
funéraire du vizir ‘Aper-El,” Bulletin de la Société Française d’Egyptologie 126 (1993),
pp. 38–43; Eugen Strouhal, “L’étude anthroplogique et paléopathologique des restes
du vizir ‘Aper-El et de sa famille: premiers résultats,” Bulletin de la Société Française
d’Egyptologie 126 (1993), pp. 24–37.
8. See Alain Zivie, “Portrait de femme,” Revue d’Egyptologie 9 (1988), pp. 179–195.
9. See Alain Zivie, “Le vizir ‘Aper-El au Musée,” in Zahi Hawass, ed., Egyptian Museum
Collections around the World: Studies for the Centennial of the Egyptian Museum, vol.
2 (Cairo: Supreme Council of Antiquities, 2002), pp. 1261–1274.
10. On the tribulations of the funerary material of tomb Bubasteion I.1, see Alain Zivie, “The
Saga of ‘Aper-El’s Funerary Treasure,” in Sue H. D’Auria, ed., Offerings to the
Discerning Eye: An Egyptological Medley in Honor of Jack A. Josephson (Leiden: Brill,
2009), pp. 345–355.
11. See Valérie Looten-Lacoudre, “Fouille et restauration de bijoux nouvellement
découverts dans le materiel de la chambre funéraire d’‘Aper-El,” in Bulletin de la
Société Française d’Egyptologie 126 (1993), pp. 17–23.
12. This year 10 was a good year for the wine according to several sources; see Pierre
Tallet, “Une jarre de l’an 31 et une jarre de l’an 10 dans la cave de Toutânkhamon,”
Bulletin de l’Institut Français d’Archéologie Orientale 96 (1996), pp. 381–383.
13. Nevertheless we must note that the name ‘Abdiel (‘Aper-El) appears as a toponym in a
letter dating from the Ramesside period (Papyrus Anastasi VIII). The text mentions an
expedition of grain and the death of a certain Any, son of the sailor Pay, and of his
children. These people are said to be “of/from ‘Aper-El of the great statue of Ramses
beloved of Amun, sun of princes.” These events happened under the 19th Dynasty.
Their geographical frame was the Eastern Delta, and therefore the toponym ‘Abdiel
(‘Aper-El) was probably located in that part of Egypt. For this letter, see the study of
Sarah Groll, “The Historical Background to the Exodus: Papyrus Anastasi VIII,” in
Marcel Sigrist, ed., Études égyptologiques et bibliques à la mémoire du Père B.
Couroyer, Cahiers de la Revue Biblique 36 (Paris: Peeters, 1997), pp. 109–114. The
author tries to directly connect the events and the general frame related in this letter with
several themes in the narrative of the Exodus, but this aspect of the article is not really
convincing from my point of view.
14. In her recent book Amenhotep III: Egypt’s Radiant Pharaoh (Cambridge: Cambridge
Univ. Press, 2012), p. 247, Ariel Kozloff, a specialist of this reign, suggests that the
Egyptian official Amanappa (probably a transcription of Amenempe, meaning “Amun is
in Ope”) of the Amarna Letters, has replaced his name with ‘Aper-El in year 5 of
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 Akhenaten’s reign, his former name becoming inappropriate because it refers to the god
Amun. The parallel mention of a charioteer named Huy, like the son of the vizier, a
common name, is not enough to give consistence to this hypothesis.
15. Bernard Mathieu suggested with some good arguments that the children educated in
the kap would have been children born on the same day as the future sovereign; see
“L’énigme du recrutement des ‘enfants du kap’ dans l’Egypte pharaonique: une
solution?” Göttinger Miszellen 177 (2000), pp. 41–48. If it is the case, ‘Abdiel (‘Aper-El)
would have been born on the same day as Amenhotep III. Nevertheless, although
intriguing, this approach of the question of the “children of the palace” still needs to be
confirmed.
16. Joseph Mélèze Modrzejewski, a specialist of the Judaism and the Jews in Egypt in the
Greco-Roman period, presents ‘Aper-El as a “proto-Joseph,” avoiding the impossible
confusion and identification, but seeing nevertheless a link between the two characters;
see Joseph Mélèze Modrzejewski, The Jews of Egypt: From Ramesses II to the
Emperor Hadrian (Princeton, NJ: Princeton Univ. Press, 1997).
17. We have evidence of this kind of research, for example, with the novel Joseph and
Asenath, written by an Egyptian Jew. See Alain Zivie, La Prison de Joseph: L’Egypte
des pharaons et le monde de la Bible (Paris: Bayard, 2004), where I approach this kind
of question. This has never been published in English, but a new modified, enriched,
and updated version is now ready to be published in French under the title L’Egypte et
la Bible, where I also evoke the question of ‘Abdiel (‘Aper-El). There is a project to
publish this French edition together with an English edition (titled Egypt and Bible), as
soon as the question of the funding is resolved. At the same time, the publication of the
tomb Bubasteion I.1 at Saqqara is now being prepared and will be included in the
series Les tombes du Bubasteion à Saqqara (Toulouse). Finally, if support is found, an
updated English edition of Découverte à Saqqara: Le vizir oublié (which won awards
from the Académie des Beaux-Arts and the Société des Gens de Lettres, Paris) under
the title The Forgotten Vizier: Chronicle of a Discovery will be pursued.

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© HYPOGÉES (P. CHAPUIS/MAFB)
INSIDE ‘ABDIEL’S TOMB. Here, the north part of the chapel, with the central niche, is shown.

© HYPOGÉES (P. CHAPUIS/MAFB)

THE CHAPEL is located on the ground floor (level 0) of ‘Abdiel’s tomb. In the above
photograph, which captures the northeast part of the chapel, the central niche and the
northeast pillar devoted to Huy are visible.

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© HYPOGÉES (M.-G. FROIDEVAUX/MAFB)
AN EXPANSIVE TOMB. The axonometric view (left) and plan (right) show the layout of
‘Abdiel’s rock-cut tomb (hypogeum), Bubasteion I.1.

© HYPOGÉES (A. LECLER/MAFB)

FANTASTIC FUNERARY FINDS. The funerary room of ‘Abdiel’s tomb is pictured at the time
of its discovery in 1987. The cover of Huy’s outer coffin stands out among the other pictured
funerary materials.

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© HYPOGÉES (P. CHAPUIS/MAFB)
THE VIZIER ‘ABDIEL. The damaged cover of ‘Abdiel’s (‘Aper-El’s) outer coffin—made of
wood and decorated with paint, gold, and glass inlays—was discovered within the funerary
room of tomb Bubasteion I.1 at Saqqara near modern Cairo.

© HYPOGéES (P. CHAPUIS/MAFB)

THE VIZIER’S WIFE. Composed of painted wood, gold, and glass inlays, Tauret’s coffin
hints at her beauty. Tauret, ‘Abdiel’s wife, was originally buried in three coffins, one stacked
inside the other. Pictured here is the upper part of her middle coffin.

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© HYPOGÉES (P. CHAPUIS/MAFB)
CANOPIC JARS. ‘Abdiel, his wife, Tauret, and their son Huy were each buried with four
canopic jars, which housed internal organs of the deceased. Here is one of ‘Abdiel’s four
stone canopic jars, mentioning him by the shortened spelling of his name, ‘Abdi (‘Aperia).

© HYPOGÉES (A. ZIVIE/MAFB)

CANOPIC JARS. ‘Abdiel, his wife, Tauret, and their son Huy were each buried with four
canopic jars, which housed internal organs of the deceased. Here is the cover of one of
Tauret’s four canopic jars, which is made of fine limestone.

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© HYPOGÉES (A. ZIVIE/MAFB)
FANCY FISH. An intact spoon used for cosmetics was found far from the funerary room.
Made of painted ivory, it represents a Nile perch (tilapia nilotica?). The spoon can be seen in
the Imhotep Museum at Saqqara.

© HYPOGÉES (A. ZIVIE/MAFB)

FANCY FISH. An intact spoon used for cosmetics was found far from the funerary room.
Made of painted ivory, it represents a Nile perch (tilapia nilotica?). The spoon can be seen in
the Imhotep Museum at Saqqara.

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PHOTOS © HYPOGéES (A. ZIVIE/MAFB)
WIG SUPPORT. Made of stuccoed and painted wood, this partially preserved woman’s head
was intended to support a wig. This piece is now in the Imhotep Museum in Saqqara.

© HYPOGÉES (P. CHAPUIS/MAFB)

DAZZLING DIADEM. Found close to the head of ‘Abdiel, this diadem fragment contains
faience beads and gold pendants. It is now in the Egyptian Museum in Cairo.

© HYPOGéES (P. CHAPUIS/MAFB)

THE VIZIER’S CUBIT. A wooden cubit bearing many of ‘Abdiel’s titles and positions was
uncovered from the funerary room. The detail of the cubit shown here identifies ‘Abdiel as
“the chief of the city and vizier, the child of the palace ‘Abdi [‘Aperia].” This piece is now on
display in the Imhotep Museum.
Magazine: Biblical Archaeology Review, July/August 2018
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Volume: 44
Issue: 4
Source URL (modified on 2018-06-01 18:53): https://members.bib-arch.org/biblical-archaeology-review/44/4/2

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