From: "KMOTC" To: "Ancient Egyptian Language List" Subject: AEL ALLEN GLYPHSTUDY COLLATION 20.1H Date: Mon, 23 Apr 2007 15:31:51 -0500 20.1H TRANSLITERATION: bjk aX.f Hna Smsww.f nn rdjt rx st mSa.f bjk - noun "falcon" aX.f - imperfective "he was flying off" (aX - from 3ae-inf. verb axj "fly off", .f - 2MS suffix personal pronoun "he") Hna - preposition "together with" Smsww.f - noun phrase "his followers" (smsww - noun, plural "followers, .f - 2MS suffix personal pronoun "his") nn - negative particle (introduces infinitive; in a sentence precedes infinitive - expresses an action whose existence is denied) rdjt - infinitive "giving, causing" (from anom. verb rdj - "give, put, make, cause") rx - infinitive "knowing" (from 2-lit. verb rx "learn, know") st - "it" (dependent personal pronoun, neutral in gender and number - used in place of other nouns or plurals) mSa.f - "his soldiers" (mSa - collective noun "soldiers, army, expedition", .f - 2MS suffix personal pronoun "his") TRANSLATION: "The falcon was flying off with his followers, not allowing his army to notice it" Transliteration: bjk aX.f Hna Smsww.f nn rdjt rx st mSa.f Dissection: bjk = "the falcon" i.e., Senwosret, the son (Horus)of the king and now the new king after his father's death aX.f = SUBJECT-imperfective construction of aXj (verb 3ae-inf.) "fly off" Hna = preposition "together with" (8.2.9) Smsww.f = "his (i.e., Senwosret's) followers" nn = negation of an infinitive (expresses an action whose existence is denied) (14.15.1) rdjt = infinitive of rdj (verb anom) "give, put,cause" rx = (verb 2 lit) "learn, know" st = dependent pronoun "it" mSa.f = "his (i.e., Senwosret's) army" Translation: literal: The falcon was flying off together with his followers, without giving knowing of it to his army. paraphrase: The falcon was flying off with his followers, not letting his troops know of it. 20.1H Transliteration: bjk ax.f Hna Smsw.f nn rdjt rx st mSa.f Translation: "The falcon, he flew off and did not allow that his army knew of it." Vocabulary: bjk = noun = "Falcon" axj = verb, 3ai = "fly off" f = suffix pronoun, 3rd masc sing Hna = preposition, = "and, together with" Sms = noun = "follower" nn = negative particle rdj = verb, anom = "do, make, cause" rx = verb, 2 lit = "know" st = dependent pronoun, 3rd mSa= noun = "army" Grammar: bjk = preposed subject of ah.f ax.f = subject imperfective verb and resumed subject Hna Smsw.f = prepositional phrase nn = negates the following rdjt = narrative infinitive, causal rx = infinitive, object of rdjt, rx st mSa.f = paradigm is VoS st = object of rx mSa.f = subject of rx, DETAILS: D58-M17-V31-G6-D36:F32-H5:I9-V28-N35:D36-T18-S29-Z7-D54-A1-Z2:I9- D35:N35-D21:D36-X1:D21-Aa1:Y1-S29-X1-A12-A1-Z2:I9 D58-M17-V31-G6 b-j-k- Det in bjk "falcon" D36:F32-H5:I9 a-X- Det WING-f V28-N35:D36 H-n-a T18-S29-Z7-D54-A1-Z2:I9 Sms-complement-w- Det MOTION- Determinative MAN- Det in PLURAL-f D35:N35 nn-complement D21:D36-X1 r-var for D37-t D21-Aa1:Y1 r-x- Det CONCEPTS S29-X1 s-t A12-A1-Z2-I9 mSa- Determinative MAN- Det in PLURAL-f ============================================================================== From: "KMOTC" To: "Ancient Egyptian Language List" Subject: AEL ALLEN GLYPHSTUDY COLLATION 20.1E Date: Mon, 23 Apr 2007 15:30:53 -0500 20.1E transliteration: tj sw Hm jy.f jn.n.f sqr(w)-anx.(wj) mnmnt nbt nn Drw.s translation: And as he returned, after he had got prisoners of war and every herd (of cattle) without limit, ... This line is not a complete sentence. Rather, it contains some adverb clauses; the sentence's main clause appears in the following line. The first clause in this line is 'tj sw Hm jy.f'. This clause is marked as an adverb clause by the appearance of the proclitic particle 'tj'. The enclitic particle 'Hm' also appears; this particle indicates that the sentence is an additional statement to a previous one and so the word "and" is used here to start off the translation. This clause uses the SUBJECT-imperfective construction. The subject is given by the 3MS dependent pronoun 'sw' ("he"). Allen never says so explicitly (except in sec. 12.16.2, but there specifically in reference to clauses with adverbial predicates); but apparently when the subject of a clause marked by 'tj' is a pronoun, a dependent pronoun is used. This is confirmed by Gardiner sec. 243: "[tj] is always followed by a noun or *dependent pronoun*, and serves to introduce clauses ... These may have either adverbial or verbal predicate" (emphasis mine). The verb in this clause is 'jy' and is an imperfective form of the anomalous verb 'jj' ("come, return"). The 3MS suffix pronoun 'f' attached to the verb resumes the subject. In adverb clauses, the imperfective expresses action that is concomitant with that of the governing clause, which in this case is the main clause appearing in the following line; in the translation given above, this is expressed by using the word "as". The action is in the past; so putting the above together, we have the translation "And as he returned" for this clause. The other clause in this line is 'jn.n.f sqr(w)-anx.(wj) mnmnt nbt nn Drw.s'. This is an unmarked adverb clause involving the perfect 'jn.n' of the 3ae-inf. verb 'jnj' ("get, fetch, use"). The subject of the clause is given by the 3MS suffix pronoun 'f' ("he") attached to the verb. There are two objects of the verb. One is 'sqr(w)-anx.(wj)' which means "prisoners of war" (this is a noun clause involving a passive participle of the verb 'sqr', "strike down", followed by the stative of 'anx', "live"; thus 'sqr(w)-anx.(wj)' literally means "those struck down alive"). The other object of the verb in this clause is 'mnmnt nbt', "every (kind of) herd (of cattle)". This is modified by the nn A clause 'nn Drw.s'. The suffix 3FS pronoun attached to 'Drw' ("limit(s)") refers to 'mnmnt'. Thus, 'mnmnt nbt r Drw.s' means "every herd without limit". The perfect is used in adverb to denote an action that has been completed with respect to its governing clause (in this case the preceding adverb clause). This is indicated in the translation above by the use of the work "after". 20.1E tj sw Hm jjy.f jnn n.f sqr-anx(w) mnmnt nbt nn Drw.s tj = particle(§16.6.15) serves to mark an adverbial clause sw = 3ms dependent pronoun Hm = particle 'also' jjy.f = imperfective 'return' jn.n.f = perfect of jnj, to fetch sqr-anx = prisoner of war mnmnt = herd of cattle nbt = all nn = negation Dr = limit And while returning he has fetched prisoners of war and every herd ofcattle without limit. (literally: there was no limit to it) ============================================================================== From: "KMOTC" To: "Ancient Egyptian Language List" Subject: AEL ALLEN GLYPHSTUDY COLLATION 20.1D Date: Mon, 23 Apr 2007 15:30:16 -0500 20.1D tj sw hAb.(w) r H(w)t xAswt r sqr jm(j)w THnw he having been sent to smite foreign lands and to strike down those who are in the Libyan desert tj proclitic particle, introduces an adverb clause sw = "he", 3ms dependent pronoun, the subject hAb.w = "sent", 3ms stative r Hwt = "(in order) to smite", r + infinitive, describes purpose (§14.11.3) xAswt = "foreign lands", object of Hwt r sqr = "(in order) to strike down", r + infinitive jmjw = "those who are in", prepositional nisbe (§8.7), object of sqr THnw = "the Libyan desert", object of jmjw There are no examples of the perfective or imperfective in this line. The first part of this line together with the preceding one were Ex 17.6. Because of the particle 'tj' this is a marked adverb clause. The main verb is a subject-stative construction 'sw hAb.w'. Following 'tj' a pronominal subject is expressed by the dependent pronoun. The clause is circumstantial describing a state pertaining while the action of the previous sentence tookplace (§17.12). 'hAb' is a transitive verb; so its stative is normally translated in the passive voice: "he having been sent". The main verb is followed by two clauses of the form 'r' + infinitive,expressing purpose (§14.11.3). The first is 'r Hwt xAswt', "to smite foreign lands". In the second, the object of the verb 'sqr' is the phrase 'jmjw THnw'. This consists of a prepositional nisbe, 'jmjw' (§8.6), used on its own as a noun, governing the noun 'THnw' (§8.7). Although translated by Allen as "the Libyan desert", this is literally the land of the Tjehenu, one of the groups of peoples identified by the Egyptians to their west, and whom we call generically Libyans. 20.1D glyphs: tj-sw-w-h-a-b-DET-r-H-DET-t-DET-HAst-t-pl.sign-r-s-o-r-DET-DET-jm-j-w- pl.sign-TH-n-nw-w-DET-DET-DET-pl.sign-DET grouped: tj sw hab r Ht xAswt r sor jmjw THnw words: tj = particle indicating adverb clause sw = he hAb > hAbw = stative of hAb, 3-lit = send sw hAb = he is sent = he has been sent (subject-stative construction = in adverb clause) r = to, in order to Ht > Hwt = infinitive of Hwj, 3ae-inf = hit/strike/smite r Hwt = in order to smite xAswt = desert cliffs, foreign lands sqr = infin of sqr, 3-lit = flatten, strike down (no final -t in = this group) r sqr = in order to strike down jmj = inherent in, (the) one in > jmjw = those in, the ones in THnw = Tjenu = the Libyan desert So: he is/was (or has been, according to context) sent in order to smite foreign lands in order to strike down those (ones) in the Libyan desert Finally as per Allen: he having been sent to smite foreign lands and to strike down those in the Libyan desert. 20.1D tj sw hAb.(w) r Hwt xAswt r sqr jmjw THnw tj = particle(§16.6.15) serves to mark an adverbial clause sw = 3ms dependent pronoun hAb = to send (here stative) r + inf = in order to... Hwj = hit, strike, smite (note, that hand sign is a determinative here, after the infinitive 't') xAswt = desert land sqr = flatten, strike down (here, r+inf construction) jmjw = prep. nisbe 'those inside' THnw = the Libyan desert SO: Being sent in order to smite the desert land and to strike down those in the Libyan desert. ============================================================================== From: "KMOTC" To: "Ancient Egyptian Language List" Subject: AEL ALLEN GLYPHSTUDY COLLATION 20.1F Date: Mon, 23 Apr 2007 15:31:29 -0500 20.1 F (smrw nw stp-zA hAb.sn r gs jmntj r rdjt rx zA-nswt sSmw xpr n aXnwtj) (smrw) plural noun = courtiers (nw) plural nisbe = belonging to (stp-zA) noun = palace (hAb.sn) verb, 3-lit., plus 3plural suffix pronoun = they sent word (r) preposition = to (gs) noun = side, half (jmntj) nisbe = Western (r) preposition = to (rdjt) verb, anom., = let (rx) verb, = know (za-nswt) noun = king's son (sSmw) noun = situation (xpr) verb, 3-lit., = evolve, happen (n) preposition = in (aXnwtj) noun = chamber =the courtiers of the palace sent word to the Western side, to let the King's son know the situation that happened in the chamber. 20.1F smrw nw stp-zA hAb.sn r gs jmntj r rdjt rx zA-nswt sSmw xpr m aXnwtj the courtiers of the palace were sending word to the western side in order to let the king's son know the events that happened in the chamber smrw = "the courtiers", the subject nw stp-zA = "of the palace", indirect genitive hAb.sn = "they were sending word" - subject-imperfective construction r gs jmntj = "to the western side" r rdjt = "in order to let", r + infinitive, clause of purpose (§14.11.3) rx = "know", subjunctive zA-nswt = "the king's son", honorific transposition sSmw = "events" xpr = "that happened" m aXnwtj = "in the chamber" The main clause of this sentence is a subject-imperfective construction. The subject is 'smrw nw stp-zA', the courtiers of the palace. Next is the verb 'hAb.sn' with a 3pl suffix pronoun agreeing with the subject. From the context it can be deduce that this expresses imperfective action, "the courtiers of the palace were sending word", not a generalization. The main clause concludes with the prepositional phrase 'r gs jmntj', to the western side. The remainder of the sentence is a clause of purpose with an 'r' +infinitive construction. The verb is the infinitive 'rdjt' followed by the subjunctive 'rx', expressing the causitive (§19.10). The subject is 'zA-nswt', written with honorific transposition, "the king's son / prince". So far this is "in order to let the king's son know". The object of the verb is 'sSmw', "the events", qualified by 'xpr m aXnwtj'. Allen gives us the translation "that happened" for 'xpr', a participle (chapter 23); 'm Xnwtj'is a prepositional phrase, "in the chamber". So the the whole clause is "in order to let the king's son know the events that happened in the chamber." 20.1F glyphs: s-Ab/mr-m-r-w-DET-DET-pl.sign-nw-stp/sTp-zA-DET-h-A-b-DET-s-n-pl.sign- r-gs-jmnt/wnmj-t-j-DET-r-rdj-t-r-x-DET-sw-t-n-za-DET-s-sSm-m-DET- pl.sign-xpr-r-m-a-Xn-n-nw-tj-t-j-DET grouped: smrw nw stp-zA hAb.sn r gs jmntj r rdjt rx zA-nswt sSmw xpr m aXnwtj words: smrw To: "Ancient Egyptian Language List" Subject: AEL ALLEN GLYPHSTUDY COLLATION 20.1A Date: Mon, 23 Apr 2007 15:29:09 -0500 20.1A Transliteration: Hsbt 30 3 Axt 7, ar nTr r Axt.f (n)swt bjt(j) sHtp-jb-ra sHr.f r pt Xnm.(w) m jtn Ha-nTr Abx.(w) m jr sw Dissection: Hsbt = "regnal year" (9.9) 30 = 3 x 10 3 Axt 7 = 7th day of 3 Inundation (mid-Sept.--mid-Oct.) (9.8) ar = from verb 2-lit. "ascend" (14.14.1).The infinitive used in a heading, "ascending" nTr = "god," subject of the infinitive ar by the direct genitive (14.4.2) "ascending of the god" r = "to" Axt.f = "his Akhet" (n)swt bjt(j) = "the king of Upper and Lower Egypt" sHtp-jb-ra = (in cartouche) Sehetepibre (or Sehotepibre?), throne name of Amenemhat I sHr.f = from verb caus. 3ae-inf. "distance, distance oneself, go above," infinitive with 3MSsuffix, lit. "his going above" r pt = "to the sky" Xnm.(w) = stative (with 3MS suffix) in adverb clause (17.19) from verb 3-lit. "join, unite," so "united" m = "with" (8.2.3) jtn = "sundisk" (i.e., the Aten) Ha-nTr = "body of the god," "god's body" Abx.(w) = stative (with 3MS suffix) in adverb clause from verb 3-lit. "mix, mingle," so "mixed" m = "with" (8.2.3) jr sw = "the one who made it" Translation: Paraphrase "On the 7th day of the 3rd Inundation, In the 30th year of the reign of Sehetep-ib-re, King of Upper and Lower Egypt: the ascending of the god to his Akhet, going above to the sky, united with the sundisk, the body of the god mixed with the one who made it...." ************************************************ 20.1A read right to left Hsbt 30, 3 Axt 7, ar nTr r Axt.f, nswt bjtj SHTP-JB-Ra, sHr.f r pt Xnm.(w) m jtn, Ha -nTr Abx.(w) m jr sw. Regnal year 30, 3 Inundation 7. Ascent of the god to his Akhet, the King of Upper and Lower Egypt SEHETEP-IB-Ra, going above to the sky, united with the sun-disk, the god's body mixed with the one who made it. Hsbt 30 regnal year 9.8,9.9 3 Axt 7 3 Inundation 7 ar verb 2-lit ascent nTr noun god r preposition 8.2.7 to Akhet essay 2 .f personal pronoun his nswt bjtj noun phrase - royal title King of Upper and Lower Egypt SHTP-JB-Ra throne name of Amenemhat I SEHETEP-RE shr verb caus. 3ae-inf going above .f personal pronoun his r preposition to pt noun sky Xnm verb 3-lit united m preposition 8.2.3 with jtn noun sun-disk ntr noun gods Ha noun body essay 7 Abx verb 3-lit mixed m preposition with jr verb 3ae-inf the one who made sw 3ms dependent pronoun it ============================================================================== From: "KMOTC" To: "Ancient Egyptian Language List" Subject: AEL ALLEN GLYPHSTUDY COLLATION 20.1C Date: Mon, 23 Apr 2007 15:29:42 -0500 20.1C jst r.f zb.n Hm.f mSa r tA tjmHjw zA.f smsw m Hrj nTr nfr z(j)-n-wsrt jst = particle = now, so (S12.16.1), or leave untranslated r.f = preposition + suffix pronoun = concerning him/it, to him/it jst r.f = Now, concerning him, zbj = verb 3ae-inf = send zb.n = perfect = had sent Hm.f = His Incarnation jst r.f zb.n Hm.f = His Incarnation had sent mSa = noun = expeditionary force, army r = preposition = to tA = noun = land tjmHjw = noun = Libyans mSa r tA tjmHjw = the army to the land of the Libyans zA.f = his son smsw = eldest m = preposition = as Hrj = prepositional nisbe = who is over zA.f smsw m Hrj = his eldest son as the one who is over (it) nTr = noun = god nfr = adjective = perfect z(j)-n-wsrt = name = Senwosret zA.f smsw m Hrj nTr nfr z(j)-n-wsrt = his eldest son as the one who is over (it) nTr nfr z(j)-n-wsrt = the perfect god, Senwosret jst r.f zb.n Hm.f mSa r tA tjmHjw zA.f smsw m Hrj nTr nfr z(j)-n-wsrt = Now, concerning it, His Incarnation had sent an army to the land of the Libyans, his eldest son at its head, the perfect god, Senwosret 20.1C TRANSLITERATION: jst r.f zb.n Hm.f mSa r tA tjmHjw, zA.f smsw m Hrj jrj nTr nfr z(j)-n-wsrt jst - particle (variant of jsT, stands at the head of the adverb clause and serves to mark it; it can be translated with different introductory words, for example "when", "although", "while", "now" (see ~12.16.1) r.f - "to him" (r - preposition, .f - 3MS suffix personal pronoun) zb.n - perfective form, "has sent" (from verb zbj - "go", "travel", "conduct", "spend", "send", "approach") Hm.f - "his incarnation" (Hm - noun "incarnation", .f - 3MS suffix personal pronoun) mSa - collective noun "soldiers", "army", "infantry", "expedition" r - preposition, "to", "toward" tA - noun "land" tjmHjw - "Libyan", plural of possessive noun "Libyan" "Now, His incarnation has sent soldiers to the land of Libyans" zA.f - "your son" (zA noun "son", .f - 3MS suffix personal pronoun) smsw - adjective "elder", "eldest" m - preposition "in" Hrj - "head man", "master", "leader", commander" m Hrj - "as a commander" (literally - "in (the role of) commander") jrj - prepositional nisbe "pertaining to", "thereto" (from preposition r - with respect to", see &8.2.7) nTr nfr - phrase "beautiful (good) god" (nTr - noun "god", nfr - adjective "beautiful", "good") z(j)-n-wsrt - Senwosret (king from the 12th Dynasty, Middle Kingdom) "His eldest son, good god, Senwosret, as their commander" TRANSLATION: "Now, His incarnation has sent soldiers to the land of Libyans, with his eldest son, good god, Senwosret, as their commander" __ 20.1C Transliteration: jst r.f zb.n Hm.f mSa r tA tjmHjw zA.f smsw m Hrj jrj nTr nfr znwsrt Translation: "Now it happens that the His Incarnation sent an army to the land of the Libyans, his eldest son, the Good God Senwosret, was in charge." Orientation: right to left, horizontal, normal Vocabulary: jst = particle r = preposition f = suffix pronoun, 3rd sing masc zbj = introduction of a new topic. Hm =noun = "Incarnation" mSa = noun = "army, soldiers" tA = noun = "land" tjmHj = noun = "Libyan" zA = noun = "son" sms = adjective = "eldest" m = preposition Hrj = nisbe of Hr = "over, commander" jrj = prepositional adverb = "thereunto" nTr = noun = "god" nfr= adjective = "good" znwsrt = noun, proper name = "Senwosret" Grammar: jst r.f = introduction of a new topic zb.n Hm.f mSa= VSO (verb - nominal subject - nominal object). The verb is a perfect form. r tA = prepositional phrase (preposition + object) tA tjmHjw = direct genitive zA.f smsw = noun + adjective m = m of acquired status Hrj jrj = phrase nTr nfr = noun + adjective znwsrt = wsrt is given the place of honor, honorific transposition Transliterations: M17-S29&X1-D21:I9-O35-D58-D54:N35-U36-Z1:I9-A12- A1:Z2-D21-N16:N23*Z1-U33-G17-V28-M17-T14-A1*B1:Z2-N25-G39:I9-A19-G17- D2:D21-Z4:N1-M17-D21:Z4-R8-F35-<-F12-S29-D21:X1-O34:N35-> M17-S29&X1 j-s-t D21:I9 r-f O35-D58-D54:N35 z-b- Det MOTION-n U36-Z1:I9 Hm- Used as ideogram of signs meant to be read as ideograms rather than phonograms-f A12-A1:Z2 mSa- Determinative MAN- Det in PLURAL D21 r N16:N23*Z1 tA- Det LAND, especially IRRIGATED LAND-- Used as ideogr of signs meant to be read as ideograms rather than phonograms U33-G17-V28-M17-T14-A1*B1:Z2-N25 tj-m-H-j- Ideogr THnw "Libya"- Determinative MAN- Det. FEMALE- Det in PLURAL- Det DESERT, FOREIGN LAND G39:I9 zA-f A19 Ideogram for smsw "eldest" G17 m D2:D21-Z4:N1 Hr-complement-j- Ideogr for Hrj "upper" (8.6.7). M17-D21:Z4 j-r-j R8 nTr F35 nfr <-F12-S29-D21:X1-O34:N35-> start of cartouche-wsr-complement-complement-t-z-n-end of cartouche ============================================================================== Date: Fri, 27 Apr 2007 20:04:45 -0400 From: "John Corridan" To: AEgyptian-L@rostau.org.uk Subject: AEL field trip to Excavating Egypt exhibit in Massachusetts Hi everyone: The Petrie Museum's "Excavating Egypt" exhibit is currently at Mount Holyoke College Art museum in South Hadley, Massachusetts. I've made several trips to this exhibition and have attempted to translate all the inscribed material, but with less than 100% success. I thought it might be fun if a several of us got together at the museum and compared notes on translations. We could probably learn a lot from each other, especially since we'd have the actual artifacts to work from, not just a transliteration or artist's rendering of the glyphs. Sincerely, John Corridan ============================================================================== From: "KMOTC" To: "Ancient Egyptian Language List" Subject: AEL ALLEN GLYPHSTUDY COLLATION 20.1B Date: Sat, 28 Apr 2007 22:03:54 -0500 20.1B read from right to left (jw Xnw m sgr, jbw m gmw, rwtj wrtj xtm.w, Snyt m tp Hr mAst, pat m jmw) the main clause: (jw) particle, show a statement of fact as far as the speaker knows, = is, was (Xnw) noun = royal residence, capital (m) preposition = in (sgr) = silence (ibw) plural noun = hearts (m) preposition = in (gmw) noun = mourning, grief +The capital was in silence, hearsa in grief QUESTION: Why couldn't this be two separate sentences? Other that the absence of a second particle? Did I just answer my own question?! (rwtj) QUESTION/COMMENT now this really confuses me!! I found it defined as a nisbe = outside. I cannot find "double gates" anywhere!! (wrtj) adjective = great (xtm.w) verb, 3-lit., =shut At this point I am at a loss. Please someone help me? (Snyt) noun = court (m) preposition = with (tp) noun = head, top (Hr) preposition = upon (mAst) noun = lap =the court with head upon lap, (pat) noun = the elite, nobility (m) preposition = in (jmw) noun = mourning =the nobility in mourning. 20.1B jw Xnw m sgr jbw m gmw rwtj wrtj xtm.(wj) Snyt m tp Hr mast pat m jmw jw = particle Xnw = noun = interior, home capital m = preposition = in sgr = verb caus. 2-lit = cause to be still, silent OR sgr = noun = stillness, silence (I think the noun form is correct here) jw Xnw m sgr = the capital (was) in silence ["Past tense" used because it is a narrative] jbw = noun = hearts m = preposition = in gmw = noun = grief jbw m gmw = hearts (were) in grief rwtj = noun = gates wrtj = adjective = great the dual ending on both the above indicate there are two great gates xtm = verb 3-lit = seal, shut xtm.(wj) = stative = (were) shut (as a state of being rather than an action) rwtj wrtj xtm.(wj) = the two great gates were shut Snyt = noun = circle, court m = preposition = with tp = noun = head Hr = preposition = on mast = noun = lap Snyt m tp Hr mast = the court with head on lap pat = noun = elite, nobles m = preposition = in jmw = noun = mourning pat m jmw = the nobles (were) in mourning jw Xnw m sgr jbw m gmw rwtj wrtj xtm.(wj) Snyt m tp Hr mast pat m jmw = The capital was in stillness, hearts were in grief, the two great gates were shut, the court with head on lap, the nobles were in mourning. COMMENT: NB I am finding this very difficult - I could not see the perfective or imperfective in this exercise at all **************************************** 20.1B jw Xnw m sgr, jwb m gmw, rwtj wrtj xtm.(w), Snyt m tp Hr mAst, pat m jmw. "The capital was in stillness, hearts were in grief, the two great gates were shut, the court was head upon lap, the elite was in mourning." jw - proclitic particle asserts the following is true from the speaker's point of view. Xnw m sgr - non-verbal sentence. The subject is the noun Xnw "inside, capitol city". The predicate is the prepositional phrase m sgr "in stillness". "The capitol was in stillness." jbw m gmw - non-verbal sentence of the same form. The subject is jbw "hearts" the predicate is m gmw "in grief". "Hearts were in grief." rwtj wrtj xtm.(w) - subject-stative construction. rwtj - dual of the singular noun rwt "gate" wrtj - adjective "great" with feminine dual ending to agree with rwtj these together form a noun phrase which is the subject. xtm - 3-lit. verb "seal, shut". Allen gives this as the stative, with an unwritten 3MS suffix. QUESTION: Couldn't this also be subject-imperfective? In that case the emphasis would be on them being shut now, and staying shut during the rest of the action. Do we know what stative suffix goes with dual nouns? In any case, this is something like "The two great doors where shut." Snyt m tp Hr mAst - another non-verbal sentence Snyt - noun "Circle, court" as subject m - preposition marking the start of the predicate tp Hr mAst - noun phrase as the object of the preposion "The court is/was like head-in-lap." pat m jmw - non-verbal sentence pat - noun "elite" subject m jmw - predicate "in mourning" Literally "in hearts"? I've translated all this as past tense since this is a narrative, but the sentences with non-verbal predicate are unmarked for tense, and likewise so are both the imperfective and the stative, so it could in theory be translated as present. ==============================================================================