Kitāb al-ʿAdjāʾib al-kabīr (Great Book of Marvels)
before 1209 CE
translated by Jason Colavito
2018
|
NOTE |
Little is know of the life of the writer known variously as Al-Waṣīfi and Ibrāhīm ibn Waṣīf Shāh, traditionally ascribed to the early 1200s CE. Neither the date of his birth or his death is recorded, and even his name is the subject of dispute. Al-Waṣīfi is the first version cited, given by al-Qifṭī around 1250 CE, but he is better known by the more elaborate name, under which the most extensive extant fragments of his work are quoted by al-Maqrizi, who calls him "The Master" (al-Ustād). Scholars debate whether ibn Waṣīf Shāh's book is identical with the Akhbār al-zamān. Several manuscripts of the latter identify ibn Waṣīf Shāh as the author, but later commentators place ibn Waṣīf Shāh too late to be the author of a text whose internal evidence suggests an origin around 1000 CE. The excerpts quoted by al-Maqrizi, totaling about two-thirds of the Akhbār al-zamān's second part, on Egypt, are nearly identical to the parallel passages in this book, but they are not entirely the same, and where they differ, ibn Waṣīf Shāh has the inferior reading, sometimes quite garbled, and his version has apparently been redacted, with references to Giants and Hermetic material minimized or eliminated. Below, the names of the pharaohs from the Akhbār al-zamān have been placed in brackets for easier cross-referencing. My sense, after reading both, is that ibn Waṣīf Shāh used the Akhbār al-zamān as his primary source for a work of Egyptian history, similar to the way his contemporary Murtaḍā ibn al-ʻAfīf did the same thing with nearly verbatim copying.
The fragments below are not comprehensive because a few citations have never been translated out of the Arabic and are unavailable to me. The texts below are primarily from al-Maqrizi's Al-Khitat, the single largest collection of these fragments, arranged in chronological order. (Al-Maqrizi had torn up ibn Waṣīf Shāh's book and rearranged it geographically.) The translations below are taken from the listed sources. All are my own translation from the French, German, or Old Spanish. The exception are quotations from al-Maqrizi's The History of the Copts, which were translated by S. C. Malan, and the quotation from Al-Qifṭī, which was provided to me by Nathan S. French. Ambiguous or uncertain material, where material parallels the Akhbār al-zamān but is not cited, or where the author has continued a story without clearly identifying the end of a quotation, is marked in brackets. I stopped where the Akhbār al-zamān stops, with the Pharaoh of Moses, but the General Estoria of Alfonso X preserves under the name of Alguazif lengthy accounts of what was apparently the next volume of ibn Waṣīf Shāh's History of Egypt, covering the period from Moses to Alexander the Great. |
THE GREAT BOOK OF MARVELS
Al-Qifṭī, History of Learned Men (Ta‘rīh al-ḥukamā), s.v. Third Hermes
He [the Third Hermes] researched hidden wisdom. They saw that he worked within the world of existence and corruption that was before the human species and when many of the species of animals were of strange forms and abnormal constitutions. Then, there were the types of humans who gained mastery over those species until they either were annihilated or were scattered into vast and desolate wastelands. Among them were the ghilān (ghouls), the sa‘ālā (female demons?), and other examples. Those are among what are recalled by al-Waṣīfī in his history.
He [the Third Hermes] researched hidden wisdom. They saw that he worked within the world of existence and corruption that was before the human species and when many of the species of animals were of strange forms and abnormal constitutions. Then, there were the types of humans who gained mastery over those species until they either were annihilated or were scattered into vast and desolate wastelands. Among them were the ghilān (ghouls), the sa‘ālā (female demons?), and other examples. Those are among what are recalled by al-Waṣīfī in his history.
Note: The above is a rough translation by Nathan S. French, who cautions that placing al-Qifṭī's use of specific terminology in full historical context may alter the translation.
Al-Maqrizi, The History of the Copts and Their Church 2
Ibn Wasif Shah says, moreover, that the priesthood of Misr excelled in power and renown, by reason of the science of soothsaying; and that the wise among the Greeks give them place, and bear them witness for it, and also call them to witness, saying, “The wise men of Misr have taught us this and that.” In their soothsaying they went by the stars, which, in their opinion, made them abound in knowledge, and told them things hidden or doubtful; revealed to them the secrets of horoscopes and the order of talismans; guided them into hidden sciences, and [taught them] names both glorious and profound. The Qibt, therefore, wrought celebrated talismans, and discovered important secrets of others; they brought out figures that could speak, they limned moving pictures, reared the highest buildings, engraved their sciences on stones; and through their talismans warded their enemies off the land; so that their wisdom was marvellous, and the wonders they wrought were known of all.
Al-Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 2.2
Master Ibrāhīm ibn Waṣīf Shāh the writer, in his book titled Stories and Wonders of Egypt, reports that the city of Masr bore in ancient times the name of Amsūs, and that the first king of Egypt was Naqrāūsh [= Naqrāūs] the Mighty, son of Miṣraīm. Naqrāūsh means “king of his people.” This Naqrāūsh, son of Miṣraīm the Elder, son of Mūrqaīl, son of Dūaī, son of Arīab, son of Adam, departed with seventy and some valiant horsemen from the Benu ’Ariab seeking a country to flee from the sons of their father, for at that time they were jealous and opposed each other, and the Benu ’Ariab were molested by the Benu Qabil. The Benu ’Ariab stopped their march only at the Nile, and marveling at the beauty and extent of the country, they settled there and built admirable buildings there. Naqrāūsh raised the city of Masr to which he gave the name of his father Miṣraīm; then he abandoned it and had it built for a second time, which he called Amsūs. This prince, according to what Ibn Waṣīf Shāh says, knew some of the sciences which Dūai [= Dāwil] had learned from Adam; he built towers, erected stelae, built palaces, extracted metals from the earth, constructed talismans, dug canals, and founded towns; all the high sciences possessed by the Egyptians came to them from Naqrāūsh and his companions. These sciences were represented on stone, and they were explained much later by the priest Qlimūn [= Philemon] who accompanied Noah in the ark.
Naqrâūsh, having founded Amsūs, filled it with marvels, among which we must mention: a bird which every day whistled twice at sunrise and twice at sunset, so that by this whistle, they were informed of the events which were taking place, so that they could take the necessary measures for these events; a black stone statue placed in the center of the city and faced by another similar statue; if any thief entered the city, he could not help but pass between these two statues, and as soon as he was there, they would meet him and arrest him; another bronze statue placed on an elevated tower and over which clouds constantly were seen piled up: anyone who addressed this statue and asked for rain would get what he wanted from it. He also erected on the frontiers of the country copper statues, hollow and filled with sulfur, on which were vigilant spirits of fire; as soon as someone approached them, these statues ejected flames through the mouth, which burned him. On the mountain of Botros, he erected a tower from which escaped a stream that watered all the fields of the vicinity. These monuments remained upright until the Flood overthrew them. It was Naqrâūsh, it is said, who improved the course of the Nile; previously the river was spread between the two mountains; to remedy this, this prince sent to Nubia a troop charged with stopping it and drawing from it a great canal on which were built cities and drawn out plantations. Naqrâūsh then wanted to know the source of the Nile, and having set out, he reached the country beyond Equator; there, he found himself on the shore of the Dark Sea of pitch, and saw the Nile flowing on the surface of this sea, like a network of threads, and finally penetrating under the mountain of Qūmr to emerge and enter into lakes. It was by him also that the statues found in this region were erected. Returning to Amsūs, he shared the land among his children, giving his eldest son Naquūsh the western region and his son Shurab the eastern region. Finally, he built the city of Borsan for his youngest son Miṣraīm, where he lived. He reigned 180 years in Egypt, and at his death his body was embalmed with aromatic drugs, then locked in a coffin of gold; they built a gold-plated tomb where the body was deposited with innumerable quantities of treasures, aromatics, and vases of gold. On the tomb was engraved the date of his death, and talismans were erected to ward off destructive insects.
After him reigned his son Naqūsh who was, like his father, versed in the science of magic and talismans; he is the first to have erected a temple in Egypt; he placed there the image of the seven planets, and in each of their chapels he wrote their good or bad influence. He clothed every statue with splendid garments, and appointed servants and slaves for them. Then he left Amsūs, heading west, and reached the Enveloping Ocean, and raised on its edges columns surmounted by statues whose eyes sparkled in the night; from there he returned to the country of the Negroes in the direction of the Nile; along the river he built a wall with doors through which the water of the river flowed. Beyond the oases, in the desert of the West, he built three cities on high columns of colored and transparent stones; in each of these cities he established a great number of houses of science, and in one of them he set up a statue of the Sun, represented as a man with a bird’s body, all in gold, except for the eyes, which were of yellow jewels; the statue was placed on a magnetic pedestal and held in its claw a volume of science. In another of these cities he erected a statue with a human head and a bird’s body, near which was the image of a seated woman; it was made of solidified mercury and it was capped with two braids and held in its hand a mirror. On its head was the emblem of a planet, and it raised its mirror to the height of its face. In the third city was laid a basin in which seven waters of different colors flowed but did not mix. In one of these cities was the image of an old man made of turquoise, having before him the seated figures of young children, all made of rubies; in one city stood the image of Hermes, that is to say, of Mercury, leaning on a table placed before him, made of ammonia salt, and mounted on feet of red sulfur; in the middle of the table was a page written in (inlaid) jewels. There was also the image of a green emerald eagle with yellow topaz eyes, holding in its talons a blue silver snake whose tail was wrapped around the legs of the eagle and whose head straightened as to hiss at the eagle. There was yet a representation of Mars mounted on a horse and holding in his hand a naked sword, all in green iron. There was a column of red jewels surmounted by a golden dome on which rose the statue of Jupiter; there was also a zinc dome on four columns of blue glass; at the top stood the statue of the Sun and the Moon, represented as a man and a woman conversing. There was also another dome of red sulfur containing the image of Venus as a woman busy braiding her hair; at her feet a man, in green emerald, held in his hand a book enclosing some of their sciences, and which he seemed to read to his companion. In the rest of the stores, he deposited treasures of silver, gems and jewels, precious elixirs, specimens of remedies and mortal poisons, all in innumerable quantities. At the door of each of these cities was applied a talisman to defend the entrance. Then he had long underground corridors run through by which these cities communicated with each other, each subterranean route being three miles long. He built another city in Egypt called Haljama [= Jaljalah], in which he built a garden whose walls were adorned with jewels encrusted in gold; he planted all kinds of trees under which he ran canals; he also planted trees producing all kinds of edible fruits; then he built a dome of red marble surmounted by a statue that turned at the same rate as the sun, and he placed as guards demons charged with killing anyone who came out of his house during the night. There were also stelae on which were engraved all the sciences, the recipes for drugs, and their uses and harms. For this city too, he made an underground passage which joined to those of the three other cities; between these and the other subterranean passages, there were twenty miles’ worth. These cities lasted until the deluge. And when Naqūsh died, after having reigned over Egypt for eighteen years, his body was buried and placed in a tomb with talismans.
After him reigned his brother Miṣrām, son of Naqrāūsh the Mighty, son of Miṣraīm; it is from him, it is said, that Egypt took its name of Masr. This prince was a sage, and he raised to the sun a marble temple clad in red gold, in the middle of which was a blue stone horse carrying a statue of the sun in red gold; on the head of the statue was a glass vase containing a special stone endowed with a more piercing light than that of a lamp. He tamed the lions and used them as mounts. He went to the Encircling Ocean and raised in the middle of this sea a white citadel on which rose the statue of the sun, and on this monument, he engraved his name and his portrait. He made yet another copper statue on which he engraved these words: “I am Miṣrām the powerful, the revealer of the mysteries, the victorious, the strong; I have executed genuine talismans, I have erected statues endowed with speech, I have erected formidable monuments on the shore of the undulating sea. Let posterity learn that no one has the strength of my arm!” Then he returned to Amsūs and escaped the eyes of the world for thirty years, having established to replace him a man of the lineage of Ariab, son of Adam, named ’Aīqām [= ‘Anqām], a priest at the time and a magician. As time went on, the people of Egypt had the desire to see their king; ’Aīqām, following the instructions of Miṣrām, brought together the people, and the king appeared on a throne enriched with all sorts of ornaments, and in a frightful apparatus which filled their hearts with terror; his subjects fell prostrate before him and worshiped him; Miṣrām made them prepare a feast where they all ate and drank, after which Miṣrām ordered them to return to their homes, and after this, no one saw him again.
After him reigned ‘Aīqām, who had held the regency. About him, among the Egyptians there are legends that reason refuses to believe. It is in his time, as it is reported, that Idris appeared, thanks to whom ’Aīqām was able to foresee the Flood and build, beyond the Equator, on the plateau of the mountain of Qūmr, a palace of copper, in which were erected eighty-five copper statues from the mouth of which flowed the water of the Nile, first falling into a lake, and then proceeding towards Egypt. ’Aīqām himself left Amsūs to return to this palace and to see with his own eyes the orderliness of the constructions and the ornaments of the walls, such as the engravings representing the celestial images, etc. The interior of the palace was lit by lamps, and tables were erected on which were served all kinds of delicious food in magnificent vases, and these dishes, whatever the soldiers of his escort consumed, did not diminish in any way, and one could neither know who prepared them nor who served them. In the middle of the palace was a basin filled with water solidified on the surface, but liquid below and whose movement was visible through the solid part. Enamored of what he had seen, ’Aīqām returned to Amsūs, chose his son ’Ariāq [= ‘Arbāq] to replace him, entrusted him with power, and gave him his instructions; he then returned to this palace and remained there until his death. It is to this ’Aīqām that the Coptic books are attributed which contain the history of this people and all that must happen until the end of time.
After him, the power passed to ’Ariāq, who is also called ’Ariāq ibn ’Aīqām, nicknamed Al-Athīm (the guilty). He also made various marvelous objects, among others: a yellow tree whose branches of iron were armed with claws; if any malefactor approached this tree, he was seized by these claws and could escape only by confessing his crime and restoring his theft to the injured person; a black pumice statue to which he gave the name of ’Abd Zahil (servant of Saturn). It was before it that one was called to justice and the one who was wrong remained fixed in his place and could not move away until confessing his crime, though he might remain there a year. Those who lacked some object had only to rise during the night and to look at the planets while praying and pronouncing the name of ’Ariāq; in the morning when he awoke, the desired object was at his door. He had also made an iron tree whose branches had been coated with a prepared drug that attracted all kinds of animals—lions and wild beasts—so that hunters could easily seize them. If he was angry with the inhabitants of a province, he set wild beasts and lions on them, and sometimes he changed their (beneficial) rains into furious showers. It is said that Harut and Marut appeared under his reign. He had built a splendid garden and had assembled the most beautiful women he had taken. One of them, using cunning, managed to poison him.
At his death, he was replaced by Lūjīm ibn Naqūsh, who is claimed to be a descendant of the powerful Naqrāūsh, and who is called Lūjīm the Younger. It was he who took over the empire of ’Ariāq, son of ’Aīqām the priest, and returned it to the Benu Naqrāūsh from the hands of those who had taken it, and without war or combat. He was a scholar in the magic and art of talismans and performed many wonderful things. In his day, vultures and crows had multiplied and devastated the crops; he raised four towers in the four corners of the city of Amsūs, and placed on each of them the image of a raven holding in its beak a serpent which had wrapped itself around it; the harmful birds, frightened by these images, disappeared immediately, never to return while the towers remained upright, but they were overthrown by the Deluge. Lūjīm’s conduct was admirable; he was fair to his subjects, just and generous to the priests. At his death, he was buried in a tomb and his treasures with him, and a protective talisman was attached to this tomb.
After him reigned his son Khaṣlīm, a virtuous prince and learned in magic, who also executed marvelous objects. It is to him that we owe the first miqiās (nilometer). It was intended to measure the Nile flood. Having assembled the princes of science and the engineers, they erected a marble structure on the bank of the river, in the middle of which was placed a small copper basin containing a definite quantity of water; above this basin were two eagles of copper, one male, the other female. On the first day of the month in which the flood began, the house was opened, the priests met there in the presence of the king, and they mumbled their prayers until one of the eagles whistled. If the male eagle whistled, it presaged an excellent Nile flood; if on the contrary it was the female, the Nile flood would be insufficient. According to this, precautions could be taken against the rise in the price of grain and provisions made in advance. It is this prince also who established in Nubia a bridge over the Nile. At his death, he was shut up with his treasures in a tomb to which was attached a talisman.
After him reigned his son Hūsāl [= Harṣāl] or Yūsāl, which means “servant of Venus”; some call him Sūmāl ibn Lūjīm al-Naqrāūshi because he was of the family of Naqrāūsh the powerful. It was in his day, it is said, that Noah was born. He was a virtuous prince, well versed in the magic and the art of the talismans, and also made wonderful things, among others a city in the midst of which he raised to the Sun a statue which turned at the same rate as this star, setting to the west and rising, in the morning, to the east. He also dug a corridor under the Nile, followed an underground road, and arrived unexpectedly at Babel to visit the monuments erected by its king. Noah lived in his time. Hūsāl had twenty sons, each of whom he assigned a region; he was the grand chief of magic and remained on the throne for seventeen years, after which he only looked after the temples, leaving to each of his sons the care of settling the affairs of the territory which had been assigned to him by his father. And for seven years it was so.
Then their votes alighted on one of them whom they elected king; his name was Tudarīshan or Tudarīsar [= Qadrashān]. As soon as he was king, he exiled all his brothers to the cities of the interior, in the west of Egypt, and keeping with him only one woman, his cousin, who was a magician, he built himself a wooden pavilion where the images of the planets were engraved. He had the richest carpets, and having placed them atop the water, he walked there stretched out (on cushions). Now, one day when he was walking like this, a violent wind began to blow, which raised the waves, and overturned and broke the pavilion; the king was drowned, as were all those who were with him in the floating palace.
After him reigned his brother Nimrod the powerful one, also called Shimrūd [= Shamrūd] ibn Hūsāl. This prince had an admirable deportment and to his subjects he was just and fair; he gathered his brothers and shared with them the treasures of their dead brother. Thanks to him, the people were happy. He sought the wife of his brother, the magician, but she ran away with her son and took refuge in a city in Upper Egypt where she sought shelter from the prosecution of her brother-in-law, thanks to her magic. After a while, the magicians she had gathered with her son Tūmidūn [= Tūsidūn] suggested the idea of seizing power. Nimrod and his brothers marched against him; a terrible struggle ensued in which Tūmidūn was victorious and Nimrud perished.
After him reigned Tūmidūn ibn Tudarīshan who established his capital in Amsūs. He was a skillful and wise prince whom the magic of his mother made formidable. The latter executed for him marvelous works: a dome of glass, made in the image of the celestial sphere, and which turned in time with the firmament; in this dome were represented the images of the planets: by it they knew the secrets of nature and all the sciences of the world. Tūmidūn had reigned for sixty years when his mother, the magician, died. Her body was smeared with spices to protect her from corruption and insects, and she was buried under the statue of the moon. It is said that after her death, the voice of a spirit, who predicted marvelous things and answered the questions put to her, was heard from her grave. When Tūmidūn died after a reign of one thousand years, it was said he had a glass statue that opened in two parts, and into which his body was placed, impregnated with all the preserving spices against putrefaction; then the statue was closed and welded shut, and finally deposited in the temple of idols. Near him were buried his treasures, and an annual feast was instituted.
After him reigned his son Shariāq [= Sarbaq], also called Sariāq ibn Tūmidūn ibn Tudarīshan ben Hūsāl; like his father, he was well versed in magic, witchcraft, and the art of talismans, and he made wonderful works. Above the gate of the city of Amsūs, he placed the image of a copper duck perched on a column; if a stranger, coming from any country, entered the city, this duck fluttered its wings and uttered a cry; at once they seized the stranger and clarified his business in order to know the reason for his arrival. He dug a canal which, starting from the Nile, led toward the cities of the West, and along this canal he built monuments, towns, and places of pleasure. A king of the lineage of Fūrasha ibn Adam or, according to others, of the lineage of Sūaniti bin Adam emerged during his time on the border of Iraq, subdued the provinces of Syria and marched against Egypt, in order take the king. He had been told: “You will not be able to do anything against this country because of the magical power of its inhabitants,” but he did not want to believe it. Accompanied by an escort, he himself came to realize the position of the Egyptians; as soon as he appeared at the frontier, he and all those who accompanied him were taken by the people who were in charge of watching the region, who sent a report and waited for the king’s instructions for the prisoners. Now, the king had had a dream in which he saw himself on an elevated tower, where a huge bird rushed upon him, uttering cries; in wanting to avoid the bird, he had almost fallen from the tower, but the bird had passed the king, who had been saved. When he awoke, frightened by his dream, he related it to the leader of the magicians, who said to him: “A king will attack you, but he cannot do anything against you.” And having consulted the king’s stars, he saw that the prince who was to attack him had already entered Egypt; at this moment the messenger brought the report on the prisoners at the frontier. The king gave the order to bring them to him, but to first make them examine all the wonders of the country. Securely bound, they were paraded among the wonders of the land of Egypt, and they were shown all of its talismans. They arrived first at Alexandria, then at Aswan, and finally at the garden built by Miṣrām, and where King Shariāq went. By the time the procession arrived, the magicians conjured up marvelous statues. The prisoners entered the presence of the king, surrounded by the priests, and before whom was burning a flame which had to be traversed by anyone who wished to approach the king. This fire spared the innocent, but consumed every man who wished to do some harm to the king, or who felt for him the slightest aversion. The whole company, man after man, passed through the fire without it hurting them. At last the King of Iraq arrived, but just as he was approaching the fire, the heat seized him, and he tried to escape. He was pursued and, having reached him, he was brought back to Shariāq, who questioned him for a long time and came to know everything that concerned him. The order was given to hang him, and he was hanged on the citadel where he had been taken, and at the moment of his execution it was proclaimed that such would be the punishment of anyone who would covet what is out of his reach. As for the other prisoners, they were given mercy; they left Egypt, recounting everywhere the wonders they had seen there, and these stories took away from the kings of the earth all desire to conquer Egypt. Shariāq died after a reign of 130 years. He was buried in a tomb along with his wealth, and talismans were executed to protect him from anyone who attempted to destroy his body.
After him reigned his son Shahlūq [= Sahlūq], well versed in magic and the art of talismans. He divided the water of the Nile into well-measured portions which he distributed precisely in all directions. He put in order the affairs of the Empire and erected a temple to Fire, because he was the first to adore this element. In Amsūs he executed wonderful monuments. He placed on the highest of the mountains a tree that divided the winds and repulsed anyone who wanted to harm or weaken Egypt, whether they were djinn, men, quadrupeds, or birds; he also built in the city a heptagonal bedrock dome with seven doors, one at each corner. In the middle of the dome there was a second of yellow copper, at the top of which was the image of the seven planets, and below it another dome resting on seven pillars. Above the first door of the dome was [the image of] a lion and a lioness of yellow copper, both squatting, to whom they immolated a little [lion] cub, burning, by way of perfumes, the hairs of this animal; on the second door a bull and a cow, to whom a calf was sacrificed; on the third door were a pig and a sow, to whom a little swine was immolated, whose bristles were burned; on the fourth door a ram and a sheep, to whom was sacrificed a lamb whose fleece was burned; on the fifth door a male fox and a female fox, to whom a kit was sacrificed; on the sixth door a vulture and his female, to whom a young vulture was sacrificed, whose feathers were burned; on the seventh door was an eagle and its female, to whom an eaglet was sacrificed, and whose feathers were burned; and each pair of animals was anointed with the blood of the animal sacrificed to it; the victims were entirely burned, and the ashes buried under the doors of the dome. The king assigned servants to the dome to maintain lamps day and night. He divided the people of Egypt into seven castes, each of which was assigned one of the doors of the dome. If any plaintiffs approached one of these images, and the wrongs were his doing, he was stuck to this image, and could detach himself only by confessing the truth; the man was thus fixed to the male animal and the woman to the female animal, and in this way the oppressor and the oppressed were recognized. This dome remained standing in Amsūs until the Flood destroyed it. — Shariāq [sic for Shahlūq], it is said, saw in a dream his father, who ordered him to go to one of the mountains of Egypt, which he pointed out to him; on this mountain he would find an opening in such and such a way: Above the door he would see a two-headed viper who showed its teeth to whoever approached it. “Take with you,” added the apparition, “two little birds, one male, the other female; offer them to this viper for it to swallow them. The viper will seize them by the head and will carry them to an underground chamber. As soon as it is gone, go in your turn. There you will find an admirable woman made of hot and dry light; she will [try to] touch you and you will feel her heat, do not approach her, you will be burned, but sit down in front of her and salute her; she will speak to you. It is up to you to understand what she will say to you and to execute it. You will receive great honor from it, for she will tell you of the treasure of your ancestor Miṣrām, of which she is the guardian. When Shariāq woke up, he did what his father had told him to do, and when he was seated near the woman and greeted her, she said, “Do you know me?” “No,” he replied. “I am,” she continued, “the image of the Fire, adored by past peoples. I want you to revive my name and raise again for me a temple in which you will maintain for me a perpetual fire in a brazier, and that you establish in my honor an annual feast that you will attend with your people. In exchange, you will find me helpful in that I will make you illustrious more than you are illustrious and powerful more than you are powerful. I will keep you away from anyone who wishes to harm you, and I will show you the treasures of your ancestor Miṣrām. Having promised to do what she asked, the lady led Shariāq to the treasures buried under the suspended cities, and taught him how to make himself master of them, and to control the spirits in charge of them, giving him all the necessary instructions. “How,” asked Shariāq, “may I see you again?” “Do not come back,” she said, “for the viper will spare you no more, but perfume your house in such and such a way, and I will come to you.” With that, she left Shariāq full of joy; he left and performed all that she had commanded: he raised a temple to Fire, took away the treasures of Miṣrām and, at his death, he was buried in a tomb and with him all his wealth and all his treasures, and a protective talisman was placed on his grave.
After him reigned his son Sūrīd, a wise and virtuous prince; it was he who first collected taxes in Egypt, distributed money to the sick and the incurable on his treasure, and instituted the morning genuflection. He executed marvelous things: a mirror made of mixed substances, in which we saw the different climates and by which we knew all the events that took place, and he could consequently foresee both abundance and scarcity. This mirror, which was of copper, was placed in the center of the city of Amsūs. He also erected in Amsūs the image of a woman seated, holding in her lap a child whom she was nursing; this woman was such that if an Egyptian, suffering from any evil in a part of her body, came to rub the sick part of her body against the corresponding part of the body of the statue, the evil immediately disappeared; if it was exhaustion of milk, the woman had only to rub her breasts against the breasts of the statue, and the milk came back; if it were a stoppage of menses, the woman need only rub her sexual parts against those of the statue, and the menstruation returned; if on the contrary the blood came in too great abundance, the woman rubbed the bottom of her pubis against the corresponding part of the statue. In the case of being stuck in labor, they rubbed the head of the half-born child in the lap of the statue was, and deliverance was accomplished. If a woman wanted to be loved by her husband, she rubbed her face against that of the statue, saying, “Do this or that.” But if some adulterous woman put her hands on the statue, she was seized with a tremor which only subsided when the criminal manifested her repentance. This statue remained standing until the Flood overthrew it; according to the Coptic books, it was found after the Flood and many people worshiped it. Sūrīd also raised another statue composed of a large number of mixed substances, and if anyone suffered in any part of his body, he had only to wash the corresponding part of the statue and to drink the water which had been used for washing, and the sickness ceased immediately. It is this Sūrīd who raised in Egypt the two great pyramids that are attributed to Shaddād bin ’Ād; but the Copts refuse to admit that the ’Ādites ever entered their country, for their magic would have rejected them. When Sūrīd died, he was buried in the pyramid with his treasures. He lived, it is claimed, 300 years before the flood and reigned 190 years.
Aḥmad ibn ʻAlī Qalqashand, Subh al-a 'sha
As for the Nilometer, Ibrāhīm ibn Waṣīf Shāh told in his Book of Wonders that the first who set up a nilometer on the Nile, was Khuglim [= Khaṣlīm], the seventh of the Egyptian kings before the Flood; he placed a small pool, and set beside it two eagles of brass, a male and a female; Here, on a certain day of the year, their priests and scholars assembled and addressed each other, and then one of the two eagles began to whistle; when the male whistled, they announced a (sufficient) rising of the Nile, and if the female whistled, they concluded that it would insufficiently rise, and therefore made provisions for the necessary supplies of food for that year.
Al-Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 1.40
The writer Master Ibrāhīm ibn Waṣīf Shāh, in his History of Egypt and Its Wonders, speaking of Sūrīd ibn Shahlūq ibn Sariāq ibn Tūmidūn ibn Tudarīshan ben Hūsāl, one of the kings who ruled Egypt before the Flood and who resided in the city of Amsūs (which will be discussed in the chapter of this book that deals with the cities of Egypt), said: The raising of the Two Pyramids in Egypt is attributed to Shaddād bin 'Ad: Copts claim that, thanks to the power of their magic, ’Ādites could not enter their country. Here is what was the cause of the erection of the two pyramids: Three hundred years before the flood, Sūrīd had a dream in which it seemed that the earth overturned, and the men fled straight ahead, and the stars fell and collided against each other with a terrible crash; Sūrīd, scared, never spoke to anyone about this dream, but he was convinced that a major event would occur in the world. A few days later he had another dream in which he felt that the fixed stars had descended on the earth in the form of white birds and catching men while in flight, rushed between two high mountains which closed over them, and the bright stars became dark and obscure. Full of terror when he awoke, he went to the temple of the Sun, prayed, rolled in the dust, and wept. As soon as it was day, he gathered the chief priests of all the provinces of Egypt; the number was 130. He shut himself up with them and explained what he had seen in his first and second dream. The priests explained to the King that an extraordinary event would occur in the world, and the greatest of them, named Aqlimun, said unto him, ‘The dreams of kings do not happen for no reason, because of the importance of princes. I shall tell Pharaoh of a dream I had myself and that I have not spoken of to anyone. It seemed that while I was sitting with the king in the tower at Amsūs, the sky, leaving its place, fell down and approached our heads, forming above us a dome that enveloped us. The king raised his hands to the sky with the stars mingling among men in various forms. People ran, seeking refuge at the king’s palace and requesting help. The king raised his hands to his head, telling me to do the same, and we were both in terrible anxiety. And now, from the tower where we were, we saw a part of the sky about to open and a bright light escaped from the breach. The Sun appeared, and we began to beg. And the Sun told us that the sky would return to its original place. I awoke full of terror, and then I fell asleep and I saw the city of Amsūs overturned with its inhabitants, the idols fallen on their heads, and men descended from heaven holding in their hands iron whips, with which they hit mortals. “Why,” I asked them, “do you strike at men?” They said, “They have shown their wickedness to God.” “Is there not,” I said, “some way for us to redeem ourselves?” And they said: “Yes, whoever wants to be saved must go to reach the master of the Ark.” Thereupon I awoke full of terror.’ The King said: ‘Take the elevations of the stars and see what needs to happen.’ After a thorough review, it was recognized that a deluge would occur after which would appear a fire out of the constellation Leo which will burn the world. ‘See,’ said the King said, ‘if this disaster will reach our country.’ ‘Yes,’ they said, ‘the flood will reach us and we will be ruined for many years.’ ‘See,’ said the King, ‘if this country becomes prosperous as before or if it will remain still covered by water.’ ‘The country,’ said the priests, ‘will return to its former state and remain prosperous.’ ‘And after?’ asked the King. ‘Our country will be attacked by a king who will raise up the inhabitants and will take hold of their wealth.’ ‘And after?’ ‘A barbaric people, coming to the mountains of the Nile, will attack it and will be master of the largest part of the territory.’ ‘And after?’ ‘The Nile will be cut off and the country abandoned by its inhabitants.’ Then the king commanded the building of the pyramids and canals where the Nile would fill up reservoirs to a specific spot, and then would flow to certain areas of the West and the Saïd. He completed the pyramids with talismans, wonders, wealth, and idols, and he deposited within them the bodies of kings. According to his orders, priests engraved on these monuments all sayings of the wise. They wrote on every surface of the pyramids, the ceilings, foundations, and walls, all the sciences familiar to the Egyptians. They drew the figures of the stars; they wrote the names of the drugs and their useful and harmful properties, the science of talismans, mathematics, architecture—all the sciences of the world—and it was all laid out very clearly.
Having made this degree, the king had blocks cut and polished slabs of enormous size extracted from the land of the West and the rocks of the Aswan region, and thus laid the foundations of the three pyramids: East, West, and Colored. The workers had with them sheets (papyri) covered with writing, and as soon as a stone was cut and trimmed, they placed one of the sheets on the stone and gave it a blow, and the blow was enough to make it travel a distance of 100 sahmes (200 spans of the arrow), and this continued until the stone arrived at the Pyramids’ plateau. In the middle of a slab was drilled a hole; in this hole was planted vertically an iron pin, and then this was placed on the preceding slab. A second hole for the iron pin penetrated the second slab, and then molten lead was run into the hole around the pin in order to secure the two slabs and make them steadfast. This continued until the completion of the pyramid. When the monuments were complete, the king dug doors 40 cubits below ground level. The door of the East pyramid turned eastward and opens 100 cubits from the face of the pyramid. The door of the West pyramid is west and at 100 cubits from the face of the pyramid. The door of the Colored pyramid turns south and is also 100 cubits from the face of the pyramid. If this distance is dug (vertically), there is (at 40 cubits deep), the door that gives access, by vaulted corridors and masonry, to enter the pyramid. The king calculated for each of the pyramids a height above ground of 100 of his cubits, which is 500 of our current cubits. The length of each side was also 100 cubits, and the faces were calculated so that the pyramid’s height stopped eight cubits before the geometric summit. The construction of these pyramids began under favorable constellations, all chosen by mutual agreement. When they were finished, they were covered up and down with colored silk, and a feast was held which was attended by all the inhabitants of Egypt. In the Western pyramid were built thirty colored granite rooms filled with all kinds of wealth and various objects: statues of precious stones, beautiful iron tools, weapons that could not rust, malleable glass, extraordinary talismans, simple and compound drugs, and deadly poisons. In the East pyramid’s rooms were executed representations of the sky and the stars, and they were crammed with statues of the ancestors of Sūrīd, perfumes which were burned for the planets, and the books that concerned the table of the fixed stars and the table of their revolution in the course of time, the list of events of past eras under their influence, and when they must be examined to know the future of everything about Egypt until the end of time. In addition, there lay basins containing magic elixirs and such things. In the Colored pyramid, they laid the bodies of priests locked in coffins of black granite, and with each priest was a book that traced the wonders of his art that he had exercised in his actions and his life, that which had been done in his time, and all that was from the beginning and will be until the end of time. On each side of the pyramids were made representations of characters performing all kinds of work and arranged according to their importance and dignity; these representations were accompanied by a description of their occupation, the tools they needed, and everything about them. No science was neglected; these were all drawn and described. Also placed in the pyramid were the treasures given to the planets, those given to the stars, and the treasures of the priests, all vast and incalculable in value.
At each of the pyramids a guardian was assigned: The Western pyramid was placed in the custody of a statue composed of granite; this statue was standing, holding in his hand something like a spear, and wore a viper wrapped around him. As soon as someone approached the statue, the viper sprang upon him, wrapped itself around his neck, killed him, and returned to his place. The guardian of the Eastern pyramid was a stone statue spotted black and white with eyes open and bright. She was seated on a throne and held a spear. If someone looked at her, he heard on the side of the statue a terrible voice that made him fall on his face and he died there without being able to get up. At the Colored pyramid was a stone statue of an eagle set on a similar stone base. Anyone who looked at it was attracted to it, stuck to it, and could not be detached until dead. With all of this completed, the pyramids were surrounded by intangible spirits; they were the victims of sacrifice, a ceremony to protect the pyramids against those who would like to approach them, with the exception of the initiates who complete the necessary rites to enter.
The Copts tell in their books that the sides of the pyramids were engraved with a text which in their language means: ‘I am Sūrīd, the king who raised these pyramids at such and such a time. I completed the construction in six years. If someone who comes after me claims to be my equal, let him destroy them in six hundred years, for we know that it is easier to destroy than to build. I have, after completing these, covered them with silk; let another try to cover them only with mats.’ And after consideration it was recognized that the most prolonged passage of time could not destroy them.
The Copts recount that the spirit attached to the pyramid of the North is a naked yellow devil whose mouth is filled with long teeth. That of the Southern pyramid is a naked woman who reveals her natural parts; she is beautiful but her mouth is filled with long teeth. She charms men who look at her, smiles at them, draws them in, and makes them lose their reason. The spirit of the Colored pyramid is an old man holding a church censer wherein burn perfumes. Many people have seen these spirits on numerous occasions around the pyramids in the middle of the day and at sunset.
After his death, Sūrīd was buried in the pyramid and his riches and treasures with him. Sūrīd, according to the Copts, is said to have built temples, filled them with treasures and engraved on their walls all the sciences, and gave them sprits for guardians to protect them against those that may want to destroy them. The pyramids of Dahshur were said to be raised by Shadat bin ’Ādim with stones once cut by his father. According to some authors, this Shadat is the same as Haddah bin ’Ād, but those who refuse to admit that the ’Ādites entered Egypt ignore the name Shadat bin ’Ādim and instead say Shaddād bin ’Ād, a name that they have much more opportunity to say, for the other is not widely used. According to these, a single king (strange) would have entered Egypt and tamed its inhabitants; this king is Bokht-Nasr (Nebuchadnezzar). But God is the most learned!
Al-Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 2.2
After him reigned his son Harjib [= Harjit], as educated and versed as his father in magic and the art of talismans, so he executed marvelous objects. He had metals extracted, brought to light the art of chemistry, and built the pyramids of Dahshur, where he carried considerable wealth, precious stones, drugs, and poisons, and entrusted spirits to guard them. One man having wounded another, he cut off his fingers; another robbed of money, he made the thief the slave of the victim. At his death he was buried in a pyramid, and with him his riches and his treasures. After him reigned his son Minaūs [= Menāūs], who is also called Minqaūs; he was, like his father, very learned, but violent, vicious, and bloodthirsty, tearing women away from their husbands, which his relatives were also doing lawfully, according to his example. He did wonderful things and discovered treasures. He built palaces of gold and silver, watered by canals; the sand was replaced by precious stones. To govern his subjects, he chose a violent man named Qurnās [= Ḳarmās] and went to war against the peoples of the West, of which he massacred a large number, and at his death he was buried in one of his palaces and his treasures with him. On his tomb a talisman was placed to protect him and defend him against anyone who approached.
Aḥmad ibn ʻAlī Qalqashand, Subh al-a 'sha
Ibrāhīm ibn Waṣīf Shāh says in the Book of Wonders: Harjib, also one of the Egyptian kings before the Flood, is said to have built the great pyramid which stands at Dahshur, and the second was built by Qofṭarīm ibn Qoft ibn Qobtīm ibn Misr ibn Peisar ibn Ham ibn Noah after the Flood.
Al-Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 2.2
After him, his son Afrūs [= Afrāūs] reigned, as well-versed as his father in knowledge and science. From the moment of his advent, he showed justice and equity, and restored to their husbands the wives which his father had taken away. He built a dome five hundred cubits long and a hundred cubits wide, and placed on its flanks copper birds, whistling in different ways for an hour without stopping. In the middle of the city of Amsūs, he raised a tower, at the top of which was a human head of copper that uttered a cry whenever one of the hours of the day or night had passed, and whoever heard this cry knew that an hour had passed. He raised another tower surmounted by a dome of gilded copper, and covered with ointments; and every night. As soon as the sun was down, a light shone from the dome, illuminating the city of Amsūs all night long, so that one would have thought it was daylight; and neither the wind nor the rain could extinguish that light which disappeared at the moment when the day was rising. He sent as a present to a king of Babel a bottle of emerald, the diameter of which was five spans; this bottle was found, it is said, after the Deluge. He also had a colossal statue erected in the Mountain of the East standing on a pedestal; this statue was painted, and the yellow parts were reproduced with gold; his face was constantly directed towards the sun, and turned at the same rate as it until the sun set; during the night the statue continued its revolution, and at dawn was facing the east, it face turned toward the rising sun. He built numerous cities in the Western desert, which he provided with magnificent treasures. He slept with three hundred women without children, for God had rendered their wombs sterile, having decided to destroy the world by the Flood and to bring destruction upon men and animals. At his death, he was placed in a tomb, in the Mountain of the East, and with him, his wealth and a talisman to protect him.
After him reigned Armālīnūs, who executed marvelous works, built cities and palaces, and multiplied the talismans. He had a cousin named Far’ān who was audacious. He removed him by putting him at the head of an army with which he set out, subjugating kings, slaughtering numerous peoples, and plundering their riches; on his return, one of the king’s wives fell in love with him, and did not let him rest until he joined him; they thus bound themselves and remained for a long time like this. Then they were afraid that the king would discover them, and the woman prepared for Armālīnūs a poisoned drink of which he died.
After him, his cousin Far’ān ibn Mashūr reigned. No one dared to stand up to him because of his violence and skill, and he had reigned a short time when the priest Qlimun had a dream in which white birds seemed to descend from heaven and say, “Whoever wants salvation, let him go to the master of the ark.” The Egyptians had already known of the coming of the Flood since the time of Sūrīd, and it was for this reason that the pyramids had been built and people had made glass-clad subterranean chambers where the winds had been carefully imprisoned. Far’ān had made a number for himself and his family. Qlimūn did not hesitate, and bringing together his parents, his children, and his disciples, he went to Noah and embraced his faith. He stayed with him and went up with him to the Ark. The Flood then came under the reign of Far’ān; Egypt was completely submerged, its buildings destroyed and its sciences destroyed. The water stayed on the ground for six months and went up to half the height of the largest pyramids, and if it pleases God, we will give some account of this event in the chapter of this book which deals with the calamities of Egypt. — It is said that Far’ān was arrogant and cruel, that he seized wealth and kidnapped women, and that he wrote to al-Darshīl bin Lawīl of Babel, advising him to kill Noah because Noah despised the priests and temples. In his time, the land of Egypt was altered, the fields were reduced to almost nothing, the two regions destroyed, because both, marrying his errors and his crimes, were associated with his entertainments and his games; people followed the same path as him, and vice spread from one to the other. When the Flood came and the rain began to fall, Far’ān, drunk, got up to flee to the [Great] Pyramid; but the earth opened before him as he reached the door. His feet failed him, and he fell, helpless and shouting, and all who had taken refuge in the tunnels died of consumption. And God is the most learned.
Al-Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 2.2
Master Ibrāhīm ibn Waṣīf Shāh, the writer, after reporting the history of the city of Amsūs and the destruction of its buildings by the Flood of Noah, adds: “The waters having withdrawn, the first who reigned in Egypt after the flood was Baīṣar son of Ham, son of Noah: he was accompanied by thirty persons, the most courageous of his family and his children; all gathered and built the city of Memphis, where they settled. With them was the priest Qlimūn, who was mentioned above regarding the city of Amsūs. This priest had married his daughter to Baīṣar, and she had accompanied her husband to Egypt, where she gave him a son named Miṣraīm. Baīṣar having died, he was buried in the convent of Abu Hermes, a name given, it is said, to the region west of the Pyramids. There, it is claimed, was the first cemetery in Egypt where they buried people. The death of Baīṣar came 1806 years after the time of the Flood.” […]
Al-Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 2.57
Master Ibrāhīm ibn Waṣīf Shāh, speaking of Miṣraīm, son of Ham, son of Noah, said: “He was a delicate boy, and when he came into the vicinity of Egypt, he pitched a tent of branches lined with grasses of the fields. Then, in the same place he built a city which was called Darsān, that is to say, “the Gate of Paradise.” The space stretching from Darsān to the sea was planted with trees and gardens. It was a succession of gardens, meadows and dwellings.
Al-Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 1.43
Ibrāhīm ibn Waṣīf Shāh, speaking of the arrival of Miṣraīm ibn Baīṣar ibn Ham ibn Noah in the land of Egypt, says: The companions of the priest Aqlimūn [= Philemon] brought to light the treasures of the Egyptians and their manuscripts, containing the sciences exhibited in berabi writing; they cleared out their monuments and found the mines of gold, emeralds and turquoises, etc. They restored the description of the arts, that is, of alchemy. And Miṣraīm instituted as chief of alchemy a man of the priestly caste named Muqaītam the Sage, who exercised his art on the eastern mountain, which took from him the name of Muqattam, because Muqaītam the Sage practiced alchemy there. The name of the sage was abridged, and this abbreviation served to designate the mountain, which was called Mount Muqattam, that is to say, mountain of Muqaītam the Sage.
Al-Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 2.2
[probable] After Baīṣar reigned his son Miṣraīm (also called Masr) ibn Baīṣar. Qlimūn discovered for him the treasures of Egypt, taught him his writing, and instructed him in the science of the Egyptians. Miṣraīm founded cities, dug canals, planted trees and built a beautiful city to which he gave the name of Darsan and which is the same as Al-Arish. From a woman of the caste of priests he had a son named Qoftim; then he built the city of Raqūdah, the site of the future Alexandria. When he died, they made for him an underground chamber 150 cubits long, all covered with white marble; in the middle was a pedestal covered with gold leaf and provided with four doors above each of which was a golden statue, bearing on its head a crown of gold and sitting on a golden throne with feet of emerald. On the breast of each statue were engraved words intended to protect the body, enclosed in a basin in the shape of a human body, made of green emerald and 40 cubits long. With him was buried all that was contained in his treasures: gold, silver, and precious stones. Among these were a thousand pieces of cut emerald, a thousand statuettes of precious stones, a thousand gold vases filled with admirable pearls, a thousand gold cups, a large number of silver ingots. A talisman was placed on his body to defend him against anyone who attempted to approach, and the tomb was engraved: “Miṣraīm, son of Baīṣar, son of Ham, son of Noah, died 2,600 years (or 2,700, according to others) after the Flood. He never worshiped idols, and went to the garden where there is no old age, no sickness, no grief, and no sadness.” He wrote here the name of the very great God who will not allow anyone to approach him, except for a king who will appear at the end of time and who will proclaim the religion of the King of Justice and believe in the resurrection, in the Holy Book, and the Prophet and propagator of the True Faith at the end of the ages. Then huge rocks were rolled over the subterranean chamber, and sand was spread over them, forming a barrier between two opposite mountains.
Al-Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 2.4
Ibrāhīm ibn Waṣīf Shāh, speaking of the stories related to Miṣraīm ibn Baīṣar, son of Noah, adds: He also taught them to make talismans; as the beasts came out of the sea and devastated their fields, their gardens, and their dwellings, talismans were made against them, and these beasts disappeared, never to return. They built, somewhere other than on the river, towns, among which Raqūdah, on the site of Alexandria. In the middle of Raqūdah was raised, on columns of gilded copper, a gilded dome also surmounted by a mirror made of various mixed substances; the diameter of this mirror was five spans, and the dome was a hundred cubits high. If, among the people who surrounded Egypt, and some of whom envied Egypt, there was someone who wanted to attack the Egyptians from the seacoast, the mirror, by means of some artifice, began to throw flames in the direction of the attackers and set them on fire. This mirror remained standing for a long time, but was overturned by the sea. It is said that it was in imitation of this mirror that Alexander built his tower, on which was also placed a mirror where one could see the attackers coming from the country of Rūm. But some king of this country, using cunning, sent an emissary who managed to overthrow this mirror, which was composed of glass.
Al-Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 2.9
Ibn Waṣīf Shāh, after recalling the story of Miṣraīm ibn Baīṣar ibn Ham ibn Noah, adds: They built on the sea cities, among others Raqūdah, location of the future Alexandria, and they placed in the middle a dome placed on pillars of golden copper; the dome was also golden. Above the dome was raised a tower surmounted by a mirror formed of various substances and whose diameter was five spans. The height of the dome was one hundred cubits. If any of the peoples of the vicinity wanted to attack and destroy them, or advanced towards the sea, the rays of this mirror were directed at the arrivals and burned them. The mirror preserved this virtue until it was overthrown and destroyed by the sea. Alexander, it is said, only rebuilt a lighthouse similar to the first, on which he also placed a mirror, where one could see enemies from the country of Rūm. But some king of Rūm managed, by trickery, to put an end to the protective virtue of this mirror which was made of glass prepared with art.
Al-Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 2.29
When Miṣraīm, says Master Ibrāhīm ibn Waṣīf Shāh, saw death coming, he made his recommendations to his son Qobtīm; he had previously divided the land between his children and assigned to Qobtīm the territory between Qoft and Aswan; to Ashmūn the region stretching from Ashmūn to Memphis; to Atrīb the entire Jauf, and to Ṣā from the city of Ṣā by Beheirah to the vicinity of Barqa. To his brother Farīq, he said: “I give you the territory that extends from Barqa to the West”; and Farīq became the master of Ifrīkīah and his descendants were Afarīq [i.e., the Africans]. And Miṣraīm commanded each of his sons to build a city in his own province.
Al-Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 2.2
[probable] After him reigned his son Qobtīm [= Qofṭīm], also called Qoft ibn Miṣraīm. He was the first to do marvelous things after the Flood, extracting metals, digging canals, building stelae and towers, and making talismans.
Al-Maqrizi, The History of the Copts 1
Master Ibrahim Ben Wasif Shah, the writer, says that the Qibt [Copts] descend from Qibtim, son of Misraim, son of Misr, son of Ham, son of Noah. That Qibtim was the first to do wonders in Misr [Egypt]; he worked the mines, and dug water-courses while ruling the land of Misr, after his father Misraim. He lived until the confusion of tongues, and came from it with the [Qibtieh] Coptic language which he knew; and died after a reign of eighty years. His sons and his people lamented together over his death, and buried him on the eastern side of the Nile, in a cave under the Great Mountain; and his son Qaphtorim then reigned in his stead over Misr.
Al-Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 2.69
Qaftarīm [= Qofṭarīm] took power after his father Qobtīm. He was, according to Ibn ibn Waṣīf Shāh the eldest and dearest of his father’s children. He was brave and tall, and it was he who laid the foundations of the pyramids of Dahshur and elsewhere. He also built the city of Dendera and the city of idols. At the end of his reign, ’Ād was destroyed by the wind. He obtained in the mines more metals than any of his predecessors. He had gold ingots as big as millstones, enormous emeralds like pillars, and in the desert of the West, blocks of white lead like castles. He made a great number of wonderful things. On the mountain of Qoft he raised a tower from which one could see the Eastern Sea, and he discovered in the same mountain mines of mercury from which he made statues as high as mountains that did not disintegrate or liquify. He also excavated the pond called Siadat al-Teīr (the bird hunter): if a bird passed over this pond, it fell and could not move until it had been taken. This pond, it is said, still exists today, but the tower collapsed. The king commissioned many wonders, and it was in his time that the cult of the idols that had been drowned by the Flood, which the demon had established, were again, by perfidy, worshiped by the people. This prince, it is said, founded the cities of the interior and placed therein wonderful objects; to the west of the Nile, beyond the oases of the interior, he built cities which he provided with many marvels to which were attached protective djinn; no one could approach or enter these cities without first making an offering to these spirits. Qaftarīm reigned 480 years and most of the wonderful objects were executed by him and his son Būdsīr [= Al-Būdashīr]. Therefore, the Saīd possessed more wonders than the Delta; Qaftarīm lived there. When death approached, the prince had a tomb made in the western mountain, near the city of the priests, in an underground corridor supported on vaults descending to the ground. He cut into the mountain a vast palace surrounded by niches cut into the wall; he reserved in the ceiling a corridor for the passage of the air, and he paved the floor and the rest of the building in marble. In the middle of the table he had a bench placed on eight feet, covered with melted crystal of various colors; in the ceiling were placed luminous stones and at each corner of the bench were statues of gold holding trumpets which they were blowing. Under the dome, another bench was plated with gold and mounted with emeralds; on the bench was a bed of silk where his body was placed after having been coated with preservatives. Beside him were placed small containers of camphor, and the body was covered with golden robes, the face remaining uncovered. He was wearing the royal crown, and near the bench stood four hollow glass statues of women with golden fans. On his chest, and over the clothes, was a precious sword with an emerald handle. They placed in storage chests all the treasures of the king, gold bars, crowns, jewels, hieroglyphics dealing with the sciences, and all sorts of drugs and talismans, and books of science in innumerable quantities. On the door was fixed a rooster of gold perched on a pedestal of green glass, with the wings extended; on this cock were engraved preservative formulas. At the entrance of each of the vaults two copper statues had been erected, holding swords in their hands, with their feet resting on slabs under which was hidden a mechanism. Whoever approached these statues was struck by their swords and died. On the ceiling of each vault was suspended a ball coated with a prepared ointment which remained luminous indefinitely. The door of the vaults was closed by blocks of lead. Above them, they laidhuge slabs and the gaps were filled with sand. On the door of the passageway they wrote: “This is the entrance that leads to the body of the superb king, the dreaded, generous, and vigorous Qaftarīm, endowed with valor and power, strength and victory. His star is in eclipse, but his memory and remembrance have remained. No one will be able to penetrate to him or reach him by any means until seven hundred and seventy revolutions of years have been completed.”
Al-Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 2.71
It is said, says Ibn Waṣīf Shāh, that Qaftorīm built the cities of the interior and made wonderful things, among others, water that stood in the form of a column without breaking apart or liquifying; from him also came the pond named Falesṭīn, that is to say, the taker of birds; indeed, if a bird passed over this pond, it fell into it and could not go out until it was taken. He also made a stone column surmounted by the image of a bird; if lions, serpents, or other evil beasts approached the city, the bird uttered a shrill whistle that put the animals to flight. At the four gates of this city he had erected four copper statues, which a stranger could not approach without falling into deep sleep; he fell asleep beside the statue and could only wake up if the people of the city came to blow in his face to remind him. If they neglected to do so, the sleeper continued his sleep near the statue, and finished it only at death. This same prince built an elegant turret of colored glass, placed on a pedestal of copper and surmounted by a statue made of a great number of compound substances and holding in its hand a bow from which it seemed to shoot arrows. If a stranger placed his gaze on the statue, he remained fixed in his place until the people of the city came to him. This statue itself indicated the direction of the four winds. It is still there today, it is said, but one abstains from going to this city, in spite of the considerable quantity of treasures and marvels that one meets there, for fear of this statue, because one dreads to gaze upon it. It shall remain standing until it destroys itself. Some king wanted to tear it down, but he could not succeed, and in this attempt, a large number of people perished. It is said that Qaftorīm set up a mirror in one of the cities in the interior, where one could see all that was asked of it; he also built at city to the west of the Nile and beyond the oases of the interior, where he performed many wonders; to watch over them he assigned spirits who forbade any approach, and no one could approach or enter without having first brought offerings to these spirits. One can still go to this city today, and one can take what one wants of its treasures without obstacle and without punishment.
Al-Maqrizi, History of the Copts and Their Church 2
Know that the Qibt of Misr [the Copts of Egypt] were in past ages a people of believers in false gods. They worshipped the stars, they offered sacrifices to them, and set up figures with names on them, as the Sabians did. Ibn Wasif Shah says, that the worship of idols first began in Misr, in the days of Qaphtorim, son of Qibtim, son of Misra'im, son of Bisr, son of Ham, son of Noah; that Eblis [the devil] set up the idols that had been thrown down by the flood, and [made it] an honour for the Qibt to serve them. So that Budsir, son of Qaphtorim, was the first soothsayer and worker of magic arts; and Menāush, son of Menqāus, was the first of the people of Misr to worship kine.
Al-Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 1.15
At that time, says Master Ibrāhīm ibn Waṣīf Shāh, there reigned Al-Būdashīr, a mighty king, who was the first to employ enchantments and magic, and could make himself invisible. His uncles, Ashmūn, Atrīb, and Ṣā each reigned in his province, but Al-Būdashīr subdued them by his bravery and his courage, and, like his father, his fame surpassed that of the kings who preceded him; thus he was more powerful than his uncles and they had to submit to him. It is said that he sent the Egyptian priest Hermes to Mt. Qūmr (the Mountain of the Moon), at the foot of which is the source of the Nile. Hermes’ mission was to raise (at the source of the river) bronze statues and to restore the lake from which the river’s waters flow. It was, they say, this priest who restored the two banks of the Nile, whose waters had been lost in the ground and whose course was sometimes interrupted. The palace where the statues were erected contained eighty-five figures built by Hermes to bring Nile water through pipes and hoses through which the water flowed. On leaving Mt. Qūmr, water entered a statue and came out through its mouth. Hermes then established a carefully graduated scale of known cubits. All the water was thus brought down to the various beds of the river which led to two lakes from which it emerged to enter into another lake which gathered together all of the output of water at the foot of the mountain. Through these statues, Hermes regularized the river that was to bring to Egypt fertility and well-being, and thus what had been harmful now became useful.
The water level was to reach eighteen of these cubits, each of which contained thirty-two fingers. All the surplus was directed, by means of canals, to the right and to the left of the statutes, and spread through the sands and across the countryside, beyond the equator, where it went unused. Without this precaution, the waters of the Nile would have submerged the country they water.
Al-Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 2.73
“Al-Būdsīr [= Al-Būdashīr],” said Ibn Waṣīf Shāh, “went to the West to see what was there; he discovered an immense territory furrowed with waters and springs and covered with grass. There he built towers and houses of pleasure, and established there a great number of people of his house who cultivated the country and built there so that all the land of the West was populated. It stayed that way for a long time. Then came the Berbers, who mixed with the inhabitants by marriages. Afterward, there arose misunderstanding and discord; wars came about that ruined the country, and the population disappeared, except for a few points called the Oases.”
Al-Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 1.10
Master Ibrāhīm ibn Waṣīf Shāh said that King ’Adīm, son of Naqtarim, was a violent and proud prince, tall in stature. It was he who ordered the rocks cut to make the pyramids, as had been done by the ancients. In his time there lived two angels cast out of heaven, and who lived in the well of Aftarah; these two angels taught magic to the Egyptians, and it is said that ‘Adīm, the son of Al-Būdashīr, learned most of their sciences, after which the two angels went to Babel. Egyptians, especially the Copts, assure us that these were actually two demons named Mahla and Bahala, not two angels, and that the two are at Babel in a well, where witches meet, and they will remain there until the Day of Judgment. Since that time, they worshiped idols. It is Satan, they say, who made them known to men and raised them for men. According to others, it was Badura who raised the first idol, and the first idol erected was the Sun, yet others claim that Nimrod ordered the first idols raised and the worship of them. It was also said that ’Adīm first made use of the crucifixion, for this purpose: a woman married to a person of the court had adulterous relations with a man of the artisan class. The king ordered them crucified on two poles, the back of one of the culprits facing the back of the other; and on each post was written the names of perpetrators, their crime, and the date of punishment. Therefore, adultery ceased. This king built four cities where all kinds of wonderful objects and talismans were deposited, and there he buried considerable treasures. To the east, he erected a tower on the summit of which was placed a statue turned towards the rising sun, both hands extended to prevent the creatures of the sea and the desert from crossing its borders; on its chest was engraved the date of its construction. This statue is said to have remained standing up to now; if it had disappeared, the waters of the East Sea would have invaded the land of Egypt. The same king also made a bridge over the Nile, to the point where Nubia begins; on this bridge he drew up four statues facing the four cardinal points; each of them was armed with two javelins to strike those who advanced on his side. These statues remained upright until the day they were destroyed by the Pharaoh of Moses. This king also had a temple erected at the door of Nubia, which has remained standing to this day. In one of the four towns of which we have just spoken, he had another black granite basin, filled with water, which never during the course of time was diminished or spoiled, for the builder captured the humidity from the air; the people of the country as well as the inhabitants of the city drank this water without it diminishing. The king had built this reservoir because the city was very far from the Nile. Some Coptic priests believe that this water remained consistent because of the proximity of the sea, where the heat of the sun produced fogs, which either by mechanical means or by magic, were partly resolved into water that was brought into this tank, using elements such as coolness or using the force of the wind; in any case, no matter the weather, this water did not diminish, whatever the people drank. This king also made a pretty cup which enjoyed the same properties, and which Hūamīl offered to King Alexander the Great. ‘Adīm reigned over the Egyptians for a hundred and forty years, and he died at the age of seven hundred and thirty years. He was buried in one of his marvelous cities or, according to others, in the desert of Qoft.
Some Copts say that ‘Adīm’s tomb was built in the Qoft Desert on the surface of the ground, under a cupola of bright green glass on top of which was placed a golden ball surmounted by a bird of gold encrusted with precious stones, with outstretched wings, charged with defending the entrance to the dome. The dimensions of the monument were one hundred square cubits. In the middle, the body of the king was laid out, on a braided gold bed, and a cloth of gold was spread over him and intertwined with jewels arranged with artistry. The height of the dome was forty cubits; one hundred and seventy manuscripts of scientific works were deposited inside, and seven tables with their services: a table of pomegranate-red beads with similar service; a golden table of Qlimūn, with service of the same metal; a table of the bright sunstone with its service (this stone is the emerald that makes the eyes of the vipers watching it melt); a table of worked red sulfur, and its service; a table of worked and brilliant white salt, with its service, and a table of solid mercury. Many jewels were enclosed in the dome, vases of magnificent workmanship, and around the body seven swords and cuirasses of brilliant white iron and handsome work, statues of gold horses harnessed with golden saddles and seven golden sarcophagi filled with dinars on which was depicted the image of the king; and all sorts of drugs, poisons, and medicines enclosed in stone vases were deposited with him. People who have seen this mausoleum claim to have remained for days and days without being able to reach it, and finally having approached it at a distance of eight cubits, the dome began to turn to the right and to the left, and, among other marvelous facts, they related that, passing from vault to vault, they never saw any other image than that which they had seen from the preceding vault; they said that they had seen the king’s face a cubit and a half long, and his beard very long and uncovered; they measured the length of his body and it reached ten cubits and more. Those who saw the mausoleum say that, having gone out for some work, they had discovered it by chance, so they had questioned the people of Qoft about it and only one old man could answer them.
King ‘Adīm recommended that his son Shedab bin ‘Adīm raise in each province of his empire a column on which he would write his name. So Shedab went to Ashmunein, erected a column, and inscribed his name on it. There he also built amphitheaters, and in the desert of Ashmunein he erected a tower surmounted by a two-headed statue dedicated to the two planets which were in conjunction at the time of its erection. From thence he went to Athrib, and built there a magnificent dome, high on columns and pillars erected above each other; at the top of the cupola was placed a small golden statue. He also built a temple for the planets and left for the district of Ṣā. There he erected a tower surmounted by a mirror made of mixed substances and in which one could see each province, then he left. Shedab bin ‘Adīm also built the temple of Armant, in which statues were erected in the name of the planets and made of all kinds of metals; this temple was beautifully decorated: It was encrusted with jewels and colored glasses, and covered with silk and brocade. In the towns of the interior, from Antinoë, he built a temple and built another at Athribis, his residence; it was he who raised the temple east of Alexandria. He also erected a black granite statue on the western bank of the Nile, and on the eastern bank he built several cities: In one of them was a standing statue of a man with his penis: If any man who was helpless or bewitched and unable to perform the sex act approached and rubbed the phallus with his hand, his manhood returned and he could perform coitus. In another of these cities was the image of a cow with enormous udders: if the milk of a woman dried up, it had only to approach the cow and rub it with her two hands for her milk to reappear. The same king again made a talisman in the district of Assiut to attract crocodiles. These animals came in throngs to Akhmim via the Nile, where they were killed, and their skins made into boats and other useful things.
Al-Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 2.74
Sedan [= Shaddāt] ibn ‘Adīm, says Ibn Waṣīf Shāh, is the one who built the pyramids of Dahshur with stones carved in his father’s time. He made the Nirandjat [1] books and the Armant Temple. He also erected a temple at Antinoë, a town in the interior; he established his residence at Athrīb and built a temple east of Alexandria. On the eastern bank of the river, he founded cities. It was in his time that Qūs, the high city, was built, where a whole population of scientists and artists was installed. The Ethiopians and the Blacks having invaded the country, he sent against them his son Minqaūs [= Manqāūs] at the head of a considerable army. He killed and took a number of them and enslaved those he had taken. This way of acting became for them a traditional custom. He opened the country’s gold mines and ordered his prisoners to work there and bring him the gold. He was the first to enjoy hunting, capture animals of prey, and obtain the breed of Slūghi dogs [= dogs of Salūq] by crossing wolves and domestic dogs. He executed talismans and wonders of all kinds in countless numbers.
[1] The French translator did not recognize the word, but it is an Arabicization of a Persian word referring to magic and the occult sciences: nīranğ, plural: nīranğīat.
Al-Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 1.10
King Manqāūs built a temple surrounded by statues assigned to all infirmities. On the head of each of them, he wrote the name of the illness that it cured. People used it for a long time, until a certain king overthrew them. He also made the statue of a woman with a smiling face that a distressed person could not look at without being relieved of his grief and sorrow. People approached her one by one, circled her and adored her, and this statue became one of the deities they honored afterwards. He raised another gilded bronze statue with two wings, which could not be passed by adulterers or fornicators, without them showing their nakedness; it was by means of this statue that adulteries were discovered, and this crime was no longer committed for fear of the statue. In the reign of Qalqūn, one of the wives of this prince developed a desire for one of his servants, but she was afraid of being discovered by the statue. So, one day, talking with the king, she turned the conversation on the adulterous, overwhelming them with invective and sarcasm. Qalqūn spoke to him about the statue and its virtue. “The king speaks truthfully,” replied the queen, “but Manqāūs was not very wise, for he took, as well as his sages, much trouble for the welfare of his people, and not for his own. It would have been better for him to erect the statue in the royal palace where his wives and slaves are, and if any of them had committed adultery, it would have been known and caught. The stature would have been a brake on the desires that would have fallen in their hearts.” “You are right," said Qalqūn, who sincerely believed the queen’s opinion; and he had the statue removed from the place it occupied to carry it to his palace; but she lost her virtue and the woman fulfilled her desire.
The same Manqāūs also had a temple built on Mount Quṣaīr, where magicians resided who did not allow the winds to favor the passage of the ships until after the latter had paid a tax which the magicians imposed on the king’s behalf.
Al Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 1.27
Ibn Waṣīf Shāh said: Manqāūs divided the revenues of the country into four parts: a quarter for the king who did with it what he wanted; another quarter allocated to the expenses necessary for the improvement of the land, the repair of the dikes, the cleaning of the canals, and the relief to be given to the inhabitants for cultivation; a quarter was buried in anticipation of unfortunate events that could occur; the last quarter was assigned to the army. At that time, the country’s revenues amounted to one hundred and three million dinars from one hundred and three districts, one million per district. Each of these dinars was worth, it is said, ten of our Muslim miṯqāl. Today Egypt is divided into eighty-five nomes, forty-five for lower Egypt and forty for Saīd; each of these nomes is administered by a priest and a military commander.
Al Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 2.66
When, says Ibn Waṣīf Shāh, King Manqāūs rode on horseback, the most astonishing performances were made before him; the crowd pressed to admire the execution. This king had a particular temple built for prayer, in which he placed a dome containing the image of the sun and planets, and which he surrounded with statues and marvelous objects. He went there on horseback and stayed for seven days. He erected two columns on which he inscribed the date of the construction, and these two columns still exist now; this is the place called Ain Shams. He brought tither treasures, talismans, drugs, and marvelous artifacts that he buried in Ain Shams and the surrounding area. After a reign of 91 years, this king died of the plague, according to some, or poison, according to others; a tomb was dug in the desert of the West or, according to another version, in the West of Qūṣ; they buried with him books of science and art, statues of gold, jewels, and a considerable quantity of gold coins. At the same time, they buried the statue of the spirit of the Sun in bright gold with two emerald wings, and the image of his wife. He loved her very much, and when she died, he placed her statue in the temples. This statue was of gold with two black tresses and wore a coat of precious stones arranged with art; the woman was represented sitting on a throne, and the king had it placed before him wherever he himself sat, to try to console himself for his loss. This statue was buried with him and placed at his feet, as if she were speaking to him.
Al-Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 78
This is what Ibn Waṣīf Shāh says: Minaūsh [= Menāūs] reigned in his turn and sought wisdom like his father. He had books brought to light, was generous to those who cultivated them, and showered them with gifts. He sought to attain the highest degree of perfection in the execution of marvelous objects; each of their kings, moreover, had endeavored to do for himself things which none of his predecessors had done. He strengthened himself in the knowledge of their books and had their annals engraved on stone. Minaūsh was also the first among the Egyptians who worshiped cows, and here is the reason: He had been afflicted with a disease so serious that he despaired for his life when, in a dream, he saw a gigantic djinn who told him, “You will not heal from your pain unless you consent to kiss the cow; for the constellation that presided over your horoscope is that of the two-horned bull. And Minaūsh did what the djinn asked; he had a pied bull brought to him and made them prepare a room for it in his palace, surmounted by a golden dome which was perfumed with incense. A special guard was charged to stand near him, and to clean its litter. The king who came to worship him, unbeknownst to his subjects, was cured of his illness. He was the first to use chariots during his illness. These chariots were surmounted by cabins with wooden domes, and those of his servants and his wives who so desired could have one of the same, and bulls dragged the chariot from place to place and from one place of pleasure to the other. When he arrived at a pleasant place, the king stopped there, and every time he passed through some ruined place, he had it restored. It is said that having seen that the bull who was dragging his chariot was pied and of an admirable form, he promised to give it special care and to have it march before him, so much did he like it. He even had it covered with a brocade cover. One day, finding himself in a remote place, far from his slaves and his servants, he approached the bull, which remained standing. And behold: The animal spoke and said to him, “If the king exempts me from walking, puts me in a temple, and adores me, and if he orders his subjects to adore me, I will fulfill everything for him that he will require; I will help him in his undertakings, I will make him strong in his kingdom and remove all calamity from him.” The frightened king ordered that the bull to be washed, perfumed, placed in a temple and worshiped. For a long time, this bull was so adored. Wonderful thing! The animal did not urinate or defecate; he ate only the ends of the green leaves of the reeds once a month. This confused the minds of the people. Such was the origin of the cult of the cow.
Menaūsh built redoubts in which he buried treasures, and on which he erected stelae. In the western desert, he built a town called Dīmās, in which he erected a tower and buried the heroes around him. This city, it is said, is still standing, and people who had come from the West and had gone astray have heard the hissing of the djinn and have seen a light reflected there. In Egyptian books it is said that this bull, who had been worshiped for a long time, ordered them to execute his image in hollow gold, to collect hairs from his head and tail, and the powder from his horns and hooves to be placed in the statue; then he told them that he was returning whence he had come, and ordered them to place his body in a sarcophagus of red stone and bury him in the temple, setting his statue on the sarcophagus at the moment when Saturn was at its apogee and in opposition to the Sun in the third quarter of the moon, while this star is in its greatest brilliance; the signs of the seven planets still had to be engraved on the statue. This was done, and the statue was adorned with all sorts of jewels, and instead of eyes, two enormous pearls were inlaid. After placing it in the sarcophagus, a tree was planted on his body in the temple; and they built a tower, eighty cubits high, which for a week changed every day of color, and returned every seven days to the first color. The temple was covered with all kinds of hangings, and a Nile canal was brought to the temple. Around the sarcophagus were talismanic statues with a monkey’s head and a human body, each of which was to ward off an evil and provide a good. At the four gates of the temple were placed four idols, under each of which were buried all sorts of treasures, for each statue were fixed offerings and incense, and these statues were placed in the tree. The city was known as the City of the Tree, and from this tree all the species of trees were derived.
[possible] Minaūsh was the first to celebrate Nūrūz in Egypt and his day was built Bahnasa. He erected pillars supporting a room of yellow glass surmounted by a golden dome which, at sunrise, sent the sun’s rays back to the city. Minaūsh reigned, it is said, over the Copts for 830 years, and was buried in one of the small pyramids of the South, or, according to others, west of Ashmunein. With him were buried a great quantity of silver, jewels and marvelous objects, the images (?) of the seven planets which see the dead and the living (?), a thousand gold and silver lamps, ten a thousand cups and vases of gold, silver, and glass, and a thousand useful ingredients in all kinds of arts. And on his tomb were engraved his name, the duration of his reign, and the time of his death.
Al Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 1.10
Menāūs, son of Manqāūs, built a town in the western desert, near the city of the magicians; it was called Qantarat and it was full of wonderful things. In the middle of the city, the king raised a dome, above which was a sort of cloud that in summer and winter produced a light rain; under the dome was a reservoir filled with green water, which served to treat and cure all diseases. To the east, he built a superb temple with four double doors. On each door was represented a head that was talking to its neighbor about the events of the day. Whosoever entered the temple in a state of uncleanness, the two figures of the door blew upon, and the impure man was seized with a violent tremor that left him only when he fell dead. It is said that in the middle of this temple the light descended in the form of a column, and whoever managed to kiss it could perceive the spirits distinctly, hear their words, and see their actions. At each gate of this city was the statue of a monk holding in his hands a manual treating some of the sciences. Those who wanted to know this science had only to approach the monk and rub the book with his two hands, which he then passed over his chest, and instantly this science was fixed in his chest. These two cities were, it is said, built in the name of Hermes, who is the same as Mercury, and still remains in the same state. It is said that a man came one day to meet ‘Abd al-‘Azīz ibn Marwān, Emir of Egypt [685-705 CE], and told him that, having lost his way in the desert of the East, he had come upon a ruined city where there was a tree producing all kinds of fruit, that he had eaten it and had collected a supply of it. A Copt assured him that it was one of the two cities of Hermes, and that there must be considerable treasures there. ‘Abd al-‘Azīz sent the man with an escort and a supply of water and provisions, but they searched the desert for months without finding any trace of the city.
Al-Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 2.79
Ashmūn, said Ibn Waṣīf Shāh, was the fairest of his father’s children, and the most eager to carry out lasting works capable of perpetuating his memory. It was he who built the rooms clad in colored glass in the middle of the Nile, and, according to the Copts, it is he who dug a subterranean passage which led from Ashmunein to Antinoë while passing under the Nile. According to the report, he dug it and built it for his daughters who went to the temple of the sun. This underground corridor was plated on the floor, the walls, and the ceiling, with thick colored glass. Ashmūn, it is said, reigned longer than his brethren: According to historians, he reigned for eight thousand years. After the 600th year of his reign, the people of ’Ād took away the kingdom and held it for seventy years, after which they withdrew by the Hejaz to Al Dathimah and to the Wadi Qūra which they cultivated, and where they built houses and workshops. It was then that God caused a calamity to fall on this people and destroyed them, and the government of Egypt returned to Ashmūn. It is said that this prince placed a copper goose at the gate of Ashmunein which, if some stranger came to enter the city, uttered a cry, waving its wings and so the people were warned of the foreigner’s coming, and could choose to send him away or let him in. In his time, the serpents having multiplied, they were hunted and from their flesh, they prepared drugs and remedies. Then, with the help of magic, they were pushed back to the valley of snakes (salt) in the mountains of Libya and Maraqiah where they remained imprisoned.
Al-Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 2.72
The city of Santariah [= Shantarah] is part of the Oasis and was built by Minaqiūsh [= Menāqiūs], the builder of the city of Akhmim, one of the ancient kings of the Copts. He had, said Ibn Waṣīf Shāh, the resolution and firmness of his father and was admired by the Egyptians. It was he who first built carousels and ordered his companions to exercise there. He was the first to build a hospital for people with acute and chronic conditions; he provided him with remedies and doctors, for which he paid a great deal, and placed administrators there. He established for himself a festival in which people gathered near him; he called it the “Feast of the King”: It took place on a certain day of the year; they ate and drank for seven days, and the king watched, seated on a throne set on columns, clad in gold necklaces and splendid garments, and gold brooches. Above the king rose a dome, inlaid with marble, glass, and gold. It was in the time of this king that Santariah was built in the desert of the Oases. He made it square and of white stones; in each wall a door opened from which a boulevard led to the opposite wall. Each boulevard had doors on the right and on the left opening onto streets leading to the center of the city. There was an amphitheater, with seven rows of tiers running around it, and it was surmounted by a dome of varnished wood resting on magnificent marble columns. In the middle of the amphitheater stood a marble tower surmounted by a statue of black granite, which turned at the same rate as the sun. On all sides under the dome hung statuettes that whistled and spoke in different languages. The king took his place on the highest level of the circus, having with him his sons, his family, and the princes; on the second tier sat the chiefs of the priests and viziers; on the third, the chiefs of the army; on the fourth, philosophers, astronomers, physicians, and masters of science; on the fifth, architects; on the sixth, the heads of the guilds, and on the seventh, the common folk. And each of the classes was instructed “to look at those who were below you and not those who are above you, because you will never be able to match them,” and this is the best course of action. Minaqiūsh’s wife killed him by stabbing, and he died after a reign of sixty years.
Al-Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 2.80
This prince, reports Ibn Waṣīf Shāh, was patient and resolute. He began to cultivate agriculture, build villages, build stelae, and collect the works of science and books left by kings and sages. He made wonderful things and built a city where he retired. This city was surrounded by a rampart on which were raised four stelae, one at each corner; between the stelae were eighty copper statues, holding various weapons in their hands, and each bearing on its breast an inscription mentioning its virtues. There was in Memphis a man of the caste of priests, one of the most versed men in magic, who taught them to take crocodiles and wild beasts; he taught magic to young men, and when they had become skilled, he taught it to still others. The king built a city for this priest, and this city is Akhmim. Minaqiūsh reigned over the Egyptians a little over forty years; then he died and was buried in the pyramid facing Al Atfih, and with him were buried considerable treasures, jewels, vases, and statues. On the tomb, the name of the king and the time of his death were engraved. The people of Akhmim recount that an individual from the East was attached to the temple; that he came every day to perfume it with frankincense and saffron, addressing his perfumes and incense above all to an image placed near the door; and every day he found under this image a dinner he took, after which he went away. He had done this many times, but at last he was denounced to the governor of the country by one of his slaves. He was arrested, but having given some money, he was able to leave the country.
Al-Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 1.10
The mother of King Milatus [= Bilāṭis] had an immense basin dug in the western desert, in the middle of which rose a column thirty cubits high surmounted by a basin of stone, from which water flowed constantly; around this pool were placed images made from stones of various colors representing animals, wild and domestic beasts, and birds; and every animal that came near the image that represented it remained attached to it so that it could be taken with the hand and used. She also had a pavilion built for her son. This prince was very fond of hunting. The queen put in this pavilion seats raised on pedestals of marble plated with gold and encrusted with jewels and enamels. The pavilion was entirely decorated with wonderful drawings and engravings. Water escaped from gushing springs and flowed through silver-flagged canals to gardens adorned with magnificent furniture. Around the pavilion were rows of statues whistling in all sorts of languages, and in front of the seats were curtains of brocade. The queen chose for her son her most beautiful cousins and the most beautiful princesses; she married him off and installed him in this garden, around which were seats for the viziers, the priests and the chiefs of the craftsmen who came to make a complete report to him all their acts, and to be served something to eat and drink. Milatus, who became king on the death of his father Marqūah [= Marqūrah], was still a child, and the kingdom was ruled by his mother, a judicious and prudent woman, who conducted business as in the time of Milatus’ father, in an admirable way, treating his subjects with justice and discharging them from several taxes. All his reign was happy; he spread abundance and happiness among men, as well as justice. Milatus had a day devoted to hunting; when he returned, he distributed gifts to his companions and served them food and drink. The other days he remained for one day seated, examining the situation of his subjects and meeting their needs, and the next he passed with his wives. He reigned thirteen years and died of smallpox.
Al-Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 2.18
After the death of his father Qobṭīm, says Ibn Waṣīf Shāh, Atrīb retired to his province, that is, to the city his father had built for him. It was twelve miles long and had twelve gates. He placed on its main street three domes raised on columns, one above the other. Of these domes, one was in the center and the other two at both ends of the city. Each dome was surmounted by a large watch tower. In each district was an amphitheater, places where one could sit, pleasure places exposed to the east. To the west of the city he dug a canal over which he placed bridges carrying uninterrupted lines of seats; around it were dwellings watered by the canal and communicating by bridges with gardens full of vegetation, beyond which extended orchards and flower beds. Each of the doors was endowed with a marvel; statues, moving images, talismans defending the approach of the door. At the entrance of each of the doors, and on each side of the door, was erected the image of a demon made of copper; if any good man approached, the statue on the right laughed loudly, while the demon on the left cried if some dishonest man approached. In each of the places of pleasure, he gathered what was most beautiful, tame animals and singing birds. On the domes of the city, he placed a statue that whistled when the wind blew and set up a mirror in which one saw distant countries. Opposite, in the east, he built a city where he established amphitheaters and, outside, he raised statues of different aspects; in the middle was placed a basin such that if a bird passed by, it fell into it and could not come out, so that it could be taken. He provided this city with a citadel of twelve gates, on each of which was a statue that did marvelous things. All around were planted gardens, and in the vicinity, on the east side, was built a belvedere on eight pillars and surmounted by a dome on which was a bird with outspread wings whistling three times a day: in the morning, at noon, and at sunset. In the interior were statues and many wonders. This king built numerous cities and installed [in office] a man named Bursān, who was engaged in chemistry, and struck dinars weighing seven miṯqāl, each and bearing his image. Atrīb reigned thirty-six years, and he attained the age of five hundred; they made him a tomb in the eastern mountain; they dug a subterranean gallery of glass and marble, and the body was placed on a bed of gold encrusted with precious stones. Beside him, his treasures were deposited, and the image of a dragon, which no one could approach without perishing, was put on the door. They threw sand over it and inscribed on the tomb his name and the years of his life.
Al-Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 2.19
After Atrīb, says Ibn Waṣīf Shāh, reigned his daughter who administered and wisely directed the kingdom and guided it with energy and vigor for 35 years, after which she died, leaving the government to the son of her sister, Qlimūn [= Felīmūn]; he returned to the viziers their prerogatives, reinstated in their ranks the priests whose opinions directed all things. He made the country more prosperous, and eagerly pursued science. In his time, the first Tinnīs was built, which the sea submerged, although it was originally at a great distance and the city was surrounded by crops, orchards and vineyards, villages, wine presses, and a territory more prosperous than any other. In the middle of the country, the king constructed a pavilion surmounted by domes and decorated with the most beautiful ornaments and the most beautiful engravings. He had it upholstered with draperies and skillfully arranged. As soon as the Nile began to rise, the king went to this city, settled there until the Nīrūz, then returned. The king had the idea of distributing the water and giving each village its share. In these villages there was a citadel surrounded by bridges, and every king came and worked to make it prosperous and to improve it; all made it their place of pleasure.
It is said that the two gardens of which God speaks in his sublime book, when he says “Propose to them the example of these two men: to one, we gave two gardens planted with vines which we surrounded by palms, etc.” (Qur’an 18:31), that these two gardens were those of two brothers of the royal household, between whom this region was divided, and who regulated the agriculture, industry, and construction admirably; the king came to entertain himself in these two gardens, which produced the most beautiful fruits and vegetables, of which they made the most delicious dishes and drinks. One of the two brothers, hospitable and charitable, marveled at this place, gave his share to charity; the other, selfish and avaricious, seeing his brother giving away all his possessions, made fun of him, and each time the first wanted to sell something, the second bought it from him, so that the first came to own nothing and the garden became the property of his brother, from whom he was obliged to beg alms. But the miser rejected him and drove him away, accusing him of prodigality. “I,” he said, “advised you to keep what you had and you did not do it; my avarice has profited, and I have become richer than you. My children are also more numerous.” And he turned away from his brother, happy to be the master of so much wealth and such a beautiful garden. But God gave an order to the sea which submerged the land and drowned it whole; and the proprietor began to whine and groan over his ruin, saying, “Would to God that I had not associated anyone with my Lord! For God said, ‘There is no army so small that it cannot be victorious with the help of God!’”
In the time of King Qlimūn, the city of Damietta was built; Qlimūn reigned 90 years and built a tomb in the eastern mountain; he placed all around it treasures, jewels, and all sorts of precious things; at the entrance, he placed statues that rotated by means of mechanisms, and they held in their hands swords they used to pierce anyone who wished to enter. On the right and left, he placed two golden copper lions equipped with a mechanism and which mauled those who came near. On the tomb they engraved these words: “This is the tomb of Qlimūn ibn Athrīb ibn Qobṭīm ibn Masr, who lived a long life. When death came to find him, he could not repel it. Let whoever comes to him take nothing away from him, but take only what is already with him.”
Al-Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 2.61
Master Ibrahim ibn Ibn Waṣīf Shāh says that Damietta is an ancient city, built in the time of Qlimūn ibn Atrīb ibn Qobṭīm ibn Miṣraīm, and to which was given the name of a young man whose mother was the magician of Qlimūn.
Al-Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 1.10
Farsūn [= Qarsūn] ibn Qilmūn ibn Athrīb [= Qarsūn ibn Felīmūn ibn Atrīb] built a tower at the edge of the sea at Qulzum, surmounted by a mirror which attracted the ships to the shore, and did not let them go if they did not pay a tithe; the tithe paid, the mirror was veiled until the ships had passed. Farsūn reigned two hundred and sixty years, and he had a tomb built behind the Black Mountain of the east; in the center was a dome surrounded by twelve chapels containing marvels all different from each other, and the name of the king and the duration of his reign were inscribed on this dome.
Al-Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 2.20
When, said Ibn Waṣīf Shāh, Qobṭīm ibn Miṣraīm shared the land between Ashmūn, Atrīb, Qofṭ, and Ṣā, each of them withdrew to the domain assigned to him. He, with his people, his children, and his servants, went to his province, which occupied the territories of Beheirah and Alexandria, and extended as far as Barca; Alexandria did not yet exist, and he settled in the city of Ṣā. Ṣā was the youngest son of Qobṭīm and his dearest child. As soon as he had taken possession of the government of his province, he watched over the prosperity of the country, founded towns and villages, erected temples, and executed marvelous objects, as his brethren had done, and endeavored to surpass them.
According to Marhūn the Indian, governor of Banah, he built towers along the sea from the border of the land of Ṣā to that of Libya and Marāqīah; on these towers were placed mirrors made of various amalgamated materials; one of these mirrors they intended to repel marine animals and to protect themselves from their depredations; another, if enemies arrived from the islands of the sea to attack them, directed the sun’s rays upon their ships, and set them on fire; in another, one could see the cities directly opposite, on the other side of the sea, and what their inhabitants were doing; in another, they saw the various provinces of Egypt, and consequently they knew the abundance and scarcity each year. He made baths that heated themselves, built pavilions and places of pleasure, and each day he went to one or the other with his private slaves and his servants. All around it ranged gardens in which the singing birds and tame beasts roamed freely; these gardens were crisscrossed with canals which flowed perpetually through admirable gardens. The windows of his palace were of colored glass that sparkled when struck by the sun and scattered the rays around. He had neglected nothing that could please and charm. And the crops spread without interruption through the desert from Rosetta and Alexandria to Barqah, and everyone could travel through the land of Egypt without provisions, thanks to the abundance of fruits and all kinds of excellent things, and they walked constantly in the shade and away from the sun. In these deserts he built palaces, planted trees, and brought in canals from the Nile. So, from the west to the western border, it was just an unbroken series of fields. And when the inhabitants had disappeared, there remained vestiges in these deserts; their dwellings have disappeared, the men have dispersed, but all the travelers who have entered these regions keep reporting that they have seen marvelous ruins there.
Al-Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 2.4
According to Ibn Waṣīf Shāh, the crops extended, through the desert of Rosetta and Alexandria, as far as Barqah; one could walk there across the land of Egypt and no provisions were needed, so much fruit and other good things were abundant; and one walked constantly sheltered by the shade of the trees against the heat of the sun. King Ṣā, son of Qobṭīm, raised palaces in this desert, planted large plantations there, and brought from the Nile canals which, starting from the western bank of the river, went as far as the western border of the country, through uninterrupted fields. And when the population had disappeared, its traces remained in this desert; the palaces are destroyed, the inhabitants are dispersed, but they continue to tell of this region what they saw there of the ruins and marvels, and surprising legends.
Al-Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 1.10
King Marqōnos was a wise man, a friend of astronomy, science, and philosophy. In his day, a singular dirham was struck; if the master of this dirham wanted to buy something, he agreed with the merchant to weigh the purchased merchandise simply by the weight of the dirham, without demanding anything more. Seduced by this proposal, the merchant accepted. When the bargain was concluded, the dirham came to weigh a number of rotoliz equal to ten times the double of its weight, and even twice that number of rotolis if the master of the dirham desired it. This dirham was found in the treasure of the people of that time, and later in the treasure of the Umayyads. They found still other dirhams struck, they say, in the same reign: When wanting to buy something, if they put this dirham in the balance of some merchant, they only had to kiss it, saying: “Remember the covenant,” and they bought what they wanted; returning home with the goods purchased, the buyer found his dirham had preceded him to his home; as for the merchant, he found in the place of this dirham a sheet of myrtle, a piece of paper, or some other round thing like the dirham. It was in the time of this king also that the glass vessels which were used for weight were made; filled with water or something else, they weighed no more than when empty. In his day also were made those vases that turned water into real wine by color, scent, and (intoxicating) effect. One of these vases was found at Aṭfiḥ during the vizierate of Hārūn bin Khomarawaīh bin Aḥmed bin Tūlūn; they were goblets of onyx, closed with a blue cap striped with white. Those who found him were Abū’l-Hasan, the jeweler of Khurāsān, and his companions. As they ate on the banks of the Nile, they drank water in this goblet, and found it to be wine; they got drunk and began to dance; the goblet fell and broke into pieces. Abd al-Hasan was very sorry and went to Hārūn with the pieces of the vase. Hārūn very distressed exclaimed: “If this goblet had been intact, I would have paid for it with a part of my kingdom!” As for the copper vases which changed the water into wine, they are attested under Cleopatra, daughter of Ptolemy, queen of Alexandria; these are numerous. It was in Marqōnos’ time when images of reptiles, toads, beetles, flies, scorpions, and other insects were made. If we put in a place any of these images, all those of its kind gathered there and could no longer separate from the image and they were easily killed. This king seems to have organized all that he did by the celestial constellations, according to their names and their appearance, and in this way, he accomplished all he desired. He also established in the Western desert an amphitheater of colored glass in the middle of which was a dome of transparent green glass. When the sun was above this dome, the rays were reflected back a great distance. On all four sides of the amphitheater he installed four elevated glass seats, each of them of a different color, and on each seat were drawn in glass, of a different color than the background, marvelous magic formulas, strange drawings and extraordinary figures, all in clear and transparent crystal. The king spent whole days in this amphitheater and established three festivals a year. At each feast the people processed, made sacrifices, and stayed for seven days; and they came willingly, for this amphitheater had no equal. No such amphitheater existed in the universe; it was finally destroyed by a king furious at not being able to make a similar one.
The mother of Marqūnos was the daughter of the king of Nubia; her father adored the star Sūha (in Ursa Major), to which he gave the name of God; she asked her son to build a particular temple for her. He built it, covered it with gold and silver, and set up an idol veiled by a curtain of silk; the queen entered with her slaves and her suite, and prostrated herself before the idol three times each day; she instituted a monthly festival in which victims were slaughtered and incense burned before the statue night and day; she enthroned a Nubian priest charged with watching over the idol, making the sacrifices and burning the perfumes; and she did not let her son rest until he worshiped the idol and invited his people to worship it. When the priest saw that the king professed a perfect worship for the star, he wanted to give the star Sūha representatives on the earth in the form of an animal that would be worshiped. For this he acted with cunning, and waited until by chance the vultures, having multiplied in Egypt, caused great damage. The king sent for this priest and asked him the cause of the increase in vultures. “It is,” said the priest, “your god who sent them, that you may make a statue of them that you will adore.” “If that will please the God, I will do it,” said the king. “The God will be satisfied,” said the priest. So, the king made a vulture of molten gold two cubits high and one cubit wide; its eyes were two rubies. Two pearl necklaces were fastened to its neck beneath tubes of green stones, and from the beak a pearl was suspended; tis thighs were adorned with red beads. It was set up on a chiseled silver pedestal placed in turn on a blue glass support, and it was installed under a vault to the right of the temple; a silk curtain was stretched before it. It was prescribed to burn aromatic herbs and odiferous gums, and a black calf was devoted to it, as were the first-born of the chicks, and the first fruits and flowers. After seven days, the king invited the people to worship the idol and the people came running. The priest, always preoccupied with the worship of this statue, made the king institute a feast. Forty days later, the Devil spoke through the mouth of the idol. The first thing he asked for was that sandalwood be burned at the middle of the month, and that the temple should be sprinkled with old wine from the surface of the jars; moreover, he announced to the people that it was he who had removed the vultures and put an end to the evil they were causing, and that in the future he would preserve them from all that they would have to fear. The ravished priest went to find the king’s mother to inform her of what was happening; The latter went to the temple, heard the words of the vulture, and she adored it joyfully. The king, informed in his turn, went on horseback to the temple; the statue conversed with him, prescribing certain things and forbidding others. The king adored it, gave it servants, and had the temple decorated with the most beautiful ornaments. And Marqūnos remained in the temple worshiping the statue and asking it what he should do. And the statue answered him.
In the practice of chemistry, he did what no king heretofore had done; it is said that he buried five hundred treasures in the desert of the West. It is said that he raised at the door of the city of Ṣā a column surmounted by a statue of a woman sitting and holding a mirror in which she gazed. If a sick person came to her and looked in this mirror, or someone looked for him, if he were to die of this disease one saw him dead, if he was to live one saw him alive. It was the same way for a traveler: If one saw him from the front, one knew he would return; if one saw him from behind, one knew he would linger on the way. If he were sick or dead, one could see him in the mirror. He also made the image of a monk sitting in a chair in Alexandria, his head covered with a kind of hood and holding a stick in his hand. If any merchant passed by him, he had to put in his hand a piece of his money proportional to his goods; if he wanted to go, even if it was far from the statue, without giving him any money, he could not do so and remained there fixed in the square. By this means, considerable sums were collected which were distributed among the incurables, the infirm, and the poor. In his day, all kinds of marvelous things were executed, on which he had his name engraved; it was also inscribed on all scientific objects, on talismans and statues. He made himself an underground tomb near the mountain of Sadām; this tomb was vaulted, and the vault had, it is said, a hundred cubits in length, a height of thirty cubits, and a breadth of twenty. It was covered in marble and colored enamels and the ceiling was made of stones. All around were arranged benches of glass, on each of which a wonderful object was placed. In the middle of the vault was a glass gallery at the four corners of which was an image charged with preventing people from approaching; between each two statues was a column surmounted by a luminous stone, and in the middle of the gallery was placed a gold basin in which was deposited the body of the king, after it had been embalmed with all kinds of preservative aromatics; all his treasures, gold, jewels, and the rest were shut up with him, and the door of the passage was closed with rocks and lead, on which sand was poured. He had reigned seventy-three years, and was two hundred and forty years old. He was handsome and his hair was magnificent; after his death, his wives led a life full of piety and kept the temple.
After him, Aīsad [= Ansād] reigned, and Ṣā, son of Aīsad (some claim that Ṣā was the son of Marqūnūs and brother of Aīsad). This prince built in the city of Memphis a mirror in which were seen the times when Egypt was to be prosperous or barren; he raised a city in the interior of the oases, and erected several towers near the sea; he also set up behind the Moqaṭṭam, a statue which was called the Statue of Deception; whoever was perplexed in an affair came to this statue, burned incense to it, and his business was cleared up. By his orders, a tower was built on the shore of the sea from which one could recognize the state of the sea and know what came to pass there as far as he looked, that is to say, at a distance of several days’ journey, and he was the first to use it. He is said to have built the greater part of the city of Memphis and all the important buildings of Alexandria.
Al-Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 2.71
[probable] King Sal ibn al-Sad [= Ṣā ibn Ṣā], or, according to others, ibn Marqūnos, built a city within the oases, surrounded by numerous palm plantations. This king resided at Memphis and reigned over all the provinces; he made marvelous objects and talismans, and restored the priests to their ranks, and drove the people away from vice and debauchery that had been the companions of Al-Sad ibn Marqūnos. He sent messengers to the extreme points of Egypt to inform him of what was happening on their frontiers, and he set up towers on the west of the Nile, on which fires were lit if anything happened or if someone approached from that side. When he was master of his entire country, he gathered around him the wise men, and examined the stars, an art in which he was very skillful. He saw that his country would be inevitably drowned by the overflow of the Nile and that he would be ruined by a man who would come from Syria. Therefore, he gathered together all the workers of Egypt and had a city built in the extreme oasis, whose rampart was fifty cubits high, and gathered there the sciences and the treasures. It is this city met by Mūsa bin Nusayr, in the days of the Umayyads, when he came from Maghreb; when he entered Egypt, he sought to find the farthest oasis he had heard about; he remained seven days wandering in the sands, between the west and the south; finally, a city appeared to him with a rampart and iron gates. It was impossible for him to open the gates; some men, having mounted the ramparts, had not looked inside the city so much as threw themselves into it. Unable to overcome the mystery of this city, Mūsa passed on after having lost many of his companions. In this desert, many people had pleasure houses, marvelous villas and treasures; but all this has been covered by the sands, although all the kings have endeavored to build, against the sand, talismans whose power has been obliterated with time. No one can ignore the enormous quantity of the buildings of these peoples, or their cities, or all the magnificent monuments that they built, for this people had a boldness that no other had. And traces are still visible, such as the pyramids, the stelae, Alexandria, the remains that meet in the desert of the East, the mountains they dug into to deposit their treasures, the valleys, carved by the hand of man, and all that can be seen in the temples of Saīd, and all that they have engraved in testimony to their science.
Al-Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 1.10
When Badares [= Tedāris] ibn Ṣā took over the government of the State from his father and his kingship was well established in Egypt, he built, west of Memphis, an admirable temple to the planet Venus; In this temple he erected a magnificent gilded lapis lazuli statue with a bluish-gold crown and enclosed it between two green emerald walls. The statue represented a woman with two braids of worked black gold; on her legs were two rings of transparent red stone, gold sandals on her feet, and a scepter of coral in her hand. She waved her fingers as if to greet those in the temple. In front of this statue was erected a second representing a cow with two horns and two breasts of gilded red bronze and a necklace of lapis. The face of the cow was turned towards the face of Venus and between the two statues, on a pillar of onyx, was laid a basin made of a mixture of all kinds of stones and containing a prepared water which cured all diseases. The temple was strewn with the grass of Venus, which was renewed every seven days. Priests were given seats plated with gold and silver, and thousands of sheep, goats, wild beasts, and birds were sacrificed to this idol. On the day of Venus, the king toured the temple, which he had furnished with furniture and curtains. He also placed there, under a dome, the image of a man riding a winged mare and holding in his hand a javelin from whose point was suspended a human head. This temple lasted until it was destroyed by Nebuchadnezzar at the time of Mālīk ibn Tedāris. This prince was a monotheist following the religion of Qobṭīm and Miṣraīm. He left with a large army, by land and by sea, and fought against the Berbers, Africa, Spain, the land of the Franks, as far as the ocean; there he erected towers on which he engraved his name and the story of his campaign; then he came back, dreaded by the kings of the earth.
Al-Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 1.23
The Sakha Canal was dug by Nadarīs [= Tedāris] ibn Ṣā ibn Qobṭīm ibn Miṣraīm ibn Baīṣar ibn Ham ibn Noah; he was one of the kings of the ancient Egyptians who reigned in the earliest ages. Ibn Waṣīf Shāh says: Nadarīs was the first king who ruled all the provinces. He reigned after his father Ṣā, and under him the land of Egypt was quiet. Nadarīs was wise and experienced and more energetic, powerful and knowing in public affairs. He practiced righteousness, established the temples and their priests in the best possible state, and extended his empire over all the provinces. He was said to have dug the Sakha Canal, and under his reign the revenue of the country rose to one hundred and fifty million dinars. An Amalekite of Syria dared to attack him, and marched against him, believing it permissible in this regard. Nadarīs entered Palestine, killed many, and reduced to captivity some sages whom he established in Egypt. The kings feared him. In the thirtieth year of his reign, the Blacks of the countries of Zanj and Nubia burst into his kingdom and gave themselves over to pillage. Nadarīs collected the army of the provinces of Egypt and prepared ships; he sent a general, named Philotheos [= Bilāṭis], with three hundred thousand men and another general with an equal army, and on the Nile he dispatched three hundred boats each carrying a magician who knew how to perform marvelous things. Then he himself marched on with a considerable army, meeting with a force of more than a million men, defeated them, killed a great number of them in admirable combats, and captured a considerable quantity of prisoners; his army pursued the Blacks to the land of elephants, in the country of Zanj. He took a large number of these animals, along with tigers and other wild beasts, and sent them to Egypt, where he tamed them. He had erected on the frontier of this country a monument on which he had inscribed an account of his expedition and his victory, and the date of his campaign. He then died in Egypt and was buried in a tomb where a number of images of the planets, gold, jewels, jewels and statues were transported; on the tomb they engraved his name and the date of his death. They erected talismans to drive away (the destroyers) and he left the kingdom to his son Mālīk ben Nadarīs.
Al-Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 1.10
To the west of Egypt was a city called Qarmīdah, whose inhabitants had a magician for a queen; Mālīk made war against them but without success and returned to Egypt. The queen of Qarmīdah wanted to destroy Egypt and, calling magic to her aid, she made a talisman that was thrown into the Nile. The water swelled and flooded the crops and killed them, crocodiles and toads swarmed, diseases spread among the Egyptians, and snakes and scorpions multiplied. Mālīk gathered the priests and sages in the palace where they would meet and engaged them to take care of this affair. So they looked in their [books of] stars and saw that this curse came from the west, that a woman was its author, and something had been thrown into the Nile; they knew where this spell came from and tried to repel it by their own science, and doing so, they got rid of the corrupt water and destroyed the dangerous beasts. A general was sent with an army against that city, but only one man was found there; a number of riches, jewels, and statues were found, including the statue of a priest, made of green emerald on a stone pedestal…. [lacuna] and the figure of a djinn in gold, whose head was a red stone, and the two wings of pearls, and which held in his hand a volume containing a great part of the sciences of this people; the two covers of this book were encrusted with precious stones; in addition, a sapphire bowl was placed on a pedestal of green enamel, in which was a water that expelled diseases; finally, a mare of silver, who, if someone pronounced a certain formula over it, and, after having burned certain perfumes. climbed on its back, it flew away with its rider. All these objects and many other wonderful things and other magical works were brought to Egypt, such as statues, treasures, and precious stones. At the same time, the man was brought (made prisoner in the city). The king asked him what was the most wonderful thing they had done. “One day,” he said, “a king of the Berbers, dragging after him an immense army and dreadful engines, attacked us. The people of the city closed their fortresses and went to pray to the idols. The high priest went to a large, very deep pond, where the inhabitants quenched their thirst, and, sitting on the shore, ordered the priests to stand around the basin; then he began to murmur over the boiling water, and from the middle of the lake came a fire, in the center of which appeared a figure like the disk of the sun and all luminous. The congregation fell prostrate before this apparition, which continued to grow until it had passed the dome, and it was heard that said, ‘You are safe from harm which your enemies [wanted to do to you].’ They got up and the enemies were dead, as well as all those who accompanied them. This occurred because the image of the sun coming out of the basin had passed by uttering a cry that had destroyed them.”
Kalkūn [= Kalkān] reigned over Egypt after the death of his father Khariba [= Khartabā]. It was in his time that Nimrod, who, having heard of Kalkūn’s wisdom and magical power, asked permission from this prince to visit him, begging him to come to meet him. Nimrod was then living in the countryside of Iraq and had subjugated a large number of peoples. Kalkūn went to meet him, carried by four winged couriers, surrounded by a kind of fire and surrounded by frightening images. He was in the midst of them, wearing a snake in a sling whose end served him as a belt; this snake had an open mouth. Kalkūn held a green myrtle wand in his hand, and every time the serpent waved his head, he hit him with his wand. Nimrod, when he saw him, was terrified and recognized the greatness of his wisdom. The Copts claim that Kalkūn rose in the air and sat at the top of the western pyramid, with a canopy over his head. If a painful situation befell the people of the country, they would gather around the pyramid. It is also said that he remained for days at the top of the pyramid without drinking or eating, and that once he disappeared for a time, so that he was thought dead; the kings then wanted to take Egypt and one of them, a king of the West, named Sadūm, attacked it with a large army and reached Wādī-Hajab. Kalkūn attacked the attackers, magically spread over their heads a cloud filled with suffocating heat, and they remained for days under that cloud without knowing where to go. Kalūn then rose in the air and went to Egypt to inform the Egyptians of what he had done; at his orders, they went out and found the army destroyed, men and mounts alike. All the priests feared him, and they engraved his image in all the temples. This king raised to Saturn a temple of black granite, in the province of the West, and instituted for him a feast.
Al-Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 2.3
Then reigned his brother Māliā ibn Hazaba [= Khartabā]. Ibn Waṣīf Shāh says: “Then reigned his brother Māliā; he was a greedy man who ate and drank to excess, indulging solitarily in his pleasures and absolutely neglecting the sciences. He entrusted affairs to his vizier, and abandoned himself to women; he owned eighty. His son Ṭūṭīs threw himself on him one day when he was drunk, and killed him and the woman who was with him.”
Al-Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 1.27
Under the reign of Nadarīs ibn Ṣā, the country’s revenues reached one hundred and fifty million dinars and, in the time of Kalkūn ibn Kharbata ibn Mālīk ibn Nadarīs, they were still a hundred and a few tens of millions of dinars. When the government of the first Egyptians ceased and the country was governed by the Amalekites, the state of Egypt was less prosperous and the first Pharaoh (Shepherd) received ninety million dinars, from which there were ten million dinars for the improvement of the country, ten million dinars for the maintenance of the staff of the king’s children and the poor, ten million dinars for the personnel in charge of affairs, for the army and the employees; and ten million dinars for the maintenance of the Pharaoh; the rest, fifty million dinars, was set aside for the Pharaoh.
Al-Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 2.81
Here is what Ibn Waṣīf Shāh says: Al-Wālīd ibn Dūma’ the Amalekite had left with a considerable army traversing the country and subjugating the kings. When he arrived in Syria, he sent one of his slaves, named ’Ūn, who went to Egypt and subjugated it. Then Al-Wālīd went in his turn, joined ’Ūn, who came to meet him, and entered Egypt, whose inhabitants he abused at his pleasure. Having formed the project to go to the sources of the Nile, he left with a large army, leaving the government of Egypt to ’Ūn, and remained forty years in his expedition. Now, after seven years of government, ’Ūn became arrogant and proclaimed himself king, refusing to recognize himself as a slave to Al-Wālīd, and saying that he was his brother. Thanks to magic, he imposed himself, he took away the free women, and everyone adhered to him. He married every woman descended from the kings of Egypt; every fortune he seized by killing its owner, and yet he honored the priests and respected the temples. One day, he saw Al-Wālīd in a dream. He said to him, “Who has permitted you to take the title of king? You are aware that it is a crime that deserves death; you have united with the daughters of kings and you have taken riches without having any right to them.” Then he filled a cauldron with oil, which was heated to a boil, and tore off his clothes to throw into it. Then an eagle fell on ’Ūn, seized him, carried him into the air, and laid him on the edge of a precipice on the top of a mountain, whence he fell into a valley filled with stinking mud. He awoke frightened and told his vision to the priests, who said to him, “We will deliver you from Al-Wālīd if you want to make an eagle and worship it, because it is he who delivered you in your dream. “I acknowledge him,” replied ’Ūn, “and the eagle said to me, ‘Recognize this place and do not forget it.’” And he made a golden eagle, having two precious stones instead of eyes, he put on it a girdle of jewels and made him a beautiful temple upholstered with silk. There they came to praise him and leave him offerings. In the end, the eagle spoke. And ’Ūn prostrated himself and worshiped him and invited his subjects to imitate him, which they agreed to do. On ’Ūn’s orders, all the workers of Egypt were assembled, and ’Ūn took all his followers to the Western Desert in search of a vast and unified terrain that one could penetrate only by difficult passages and steep mountains: puddles of water spread out in the vicinity. It is today the Fayum, which was then a swamp formed by the waters of the Nile and remained so until Joseph brought the waters of the river to Medinet (al-Fayum). They therefore departed and remained a month before turning to find the object of their desires. And there remained in Egypt neither a workman nor an engineer, nor anyone who understood the art of construction, working with large stones, or sculpture: All went there. He took with him a thousand men of the army and seven hundred magicians to help the builders, and with them tools and food in wagons, and the trace of these carts are still visible in the desert of the West up to the Fayum behind the Pyramids. When all the necessary stones were cut, the city wall was raised, a square of two parasangs on each side; in the middle, a well was dug into which the image of a pig made of copper mixed with other materials was lowered and which was placed on a pedestal of copper, the face turned towards the East. At the moment of the rising of the house of Saturn, at the time of its apogee, a hog was immolated; the face of the statue was smeared with its blood, some of his hair was burned, and the interior filled with blood, hair, bones, flesh, and gall; a little gall was put in the ears, and the rest of the pork was burned and the ashes deposited in a copper vial before the statue. On it, they engraved the virtues of Saturn. At the bottom of the well, four subterranean passages leading to the walls of the city were dug in four directions, and at each end were openings for the circulation of the air. Then the well was closed and surmounted by a dome placed on columns raised on the walls of the city. Boulevards were drawn, each boulevard leading to one of the gates of the city, which was divided into streets and houses. Around the dome, they raised copper statues of horsemen with javelins in their hands and faces toward the doors. The foundations of the city were made of rippled stone, over red stone, then yellow stone, green, and above all transparent white stone, all cemented with lead poured into the joints. In the center of each stone was an iron rod, as in the construction of the pyramids. The wall was made sixty cubits high and twenty wide. At the top of each of the doors of the rampart was a large eagle made of a copper alloy, the wings extended, and hollow. At each corner, a horseman held a javelin in his hand, his face turned towards the exit of the city. The water, brought to the eastern gate, flowed through the city towards the western gate and poured into cisterns; likewise, from the South Gate to the North Gate. Eagles were sacrificed to the eagle, and the winds brought life to the mouths of the statues, which uttered frightful voices. ’Ūn attached to each of them a djinn which was to prevent any individual, with the exception of the inhabitants, from entering the city. Then the worshiped eagle was placed under the dome in the center of the city on a pedestal with four corners; at each corner was the figure of a demon. The whole rested on a column which turned; the corner turned with it and remained in each direction (cardinal points) a quarter of the year. Finally, all this finished, ’Ūn brought to this city the jewels and riches of Egypt, royal objects, statues, works of science, silver powder, aromatics, and arms. He installed there the great magicians, the priests, the industrialists, and the merchants, and he divided the dwellings among them. The people of every trade mingled only among themselves. He built a suburb for artisans and farmers; on the canals, he put bridges where those who entered the city passed. Water flowed around the suburb. ’Ūn drew up signals and established guards. Behind the city, on the desert side, he planted vines, palm trees, and all kinds of trees, in separate fields. Behind them extended cereal crops on all sides. And all this was created out of fear of Al-Wālīd. Between this city and Memphis was three days’ walk. ’Ūn stayed there or went there, then ’Ūn came back to Memphis. There were four festivals a year, at the four times when the eagle changed position. Having admired all of this, ’Ūn felt his heart more reassured, until he received from Nubia a letter from Al-Wālīd instructing him to bring him food and prepare the markets. ’Ūn sent him back by land and water what he asked for, and gathered in the city his partisans and those whom he had chosen from the daughters of kings and grandees. Al-Wālīd having come nearer, ’Ūn went to the city, and strengthened himself, having left a substitute at Memphis. Al-Wālīd, advancing and having learned all that ’Ūn had done, became enraged and thought of sending an army against him, but when better informed of the state of the city, the fortifications, and the magicians who defended it, he wrote to ’Ūn to come to him, threatening him with the consequences that his disobedience might entail. ’Ūn replied: “On my part, there is no offensive word against the king, no attack, no act hostile to his country: I am his servant and stand in this place to repel any enemy coming from the West; and I cannot go to him because of the terror he inspires me. Let the king leave me where I am governor, and I will send him all the taxes and all the presents that he demands.” And he sent him considerable treasures and precious jewels. And Al-Wālīd gave up attacking him, and ’Ūn remained in Egypt until his death.
Al-Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 1.15
The same author adds: Al-Wālīd, son of Darma, the Amalekite, left with a large army, going from country to country, subjugating their kings and seeking peace at his convenience. Arriving in Syria, he heard about Egypt and the extent of its riches; he learned that the government had fallen into the hands of women, its kings having perished. Therefore, he sent one of his servants, named ’Ūn, to Egypt and entered after him, treating the inhabitants according to his caprice, seizing wealth and slaughtering a large number of priests. Then the idea came to him to visit the sources of the Nile and to know the peoples who lived on its banks. The preparations for the expedition lasted three years, at the end of which he set out at the head of a considerable army, annihilating the peoples through whom he passed. He thus crossed the country of the Blacks and having passed it, arrived at the region of gold where one sees the golden rods coming out of the ground. Continuing his march, he reached the lake where the Nile flows from the foot of the mountain of Qūmr. This is a very high mountain to which they have given the name Qūmr because the Moon never rises there, for the mountain rises up beyond the equator. Al-Būdashīr saw the Nile coming out of the mountain and flowing by streams and channels to the two lakes from which it emerged in the two rivers that meet in another lake. After having passed the equator, the Nile receives as a tributary a river coming from the region of the Makrān River in India, a river which also emerges from the mountain of Qūmr and which, from the beginning, is directed from side (towards the Nile). The Makrān River is said to be similar to the Nile; it rises and falls like it; also like the Nile, it is populated with crocodiles, and the fish that one meets there are similar to those of the Nile. Al-Wālīd, son of Daūma’, found the palace with bronze statues built by the first Hermes in the time of Al-Būdashīr, son of Qantarim, son of Qobṭīm, son of Miṣraīm.
Some historians report that the four (primordial) rivers come from the same source, sheltered under a dome in the land of gold, beyond the Dark Sea. These four rivers are the Saīḥūn, the Jaīhūn, the Euphrates, and the Nile. The land of gold, according to these writers, would be a portion of Paradise; the dome would be topaz (or emerald), and the four rivers, before reaching the Dark Sea, would be sweeter than honey, and more fragrant than camphor. This opinion is also that of one of the children of Al-Aīs, son of Isaac, son of Abraham, who arrived at this dome and crossed the Dark Sea. This man was named Gabīr. Others say that these rivers are divided into sixty-two parts, which determine seventy-two different languages used by the people. According to still others, these rivers are formed by ice which the heat melts; the melted snow then flows into these rivers whose ice waters the country they cross, as God considers appropriate for the sake of His creatures.
Arriving at the mountain of Qūmr, adds the historian, Al-Wālīd saw that it was a very high mountain, and he used cunning to reach its summit and see what was behind it. He discovered a sea black as pitch and putrid, and the Nile flowing towards the mountain in narrow streams. From this sea exhaled miasmas which destroyed a great number of the companions of Al-Wālīd, and he, having almost succumbed, hastened to descend again. Some authors assure us that he saw neither sun nor moon, but only a red glow like that of the setting sun.
As to what is reported from Gabīr, who crossed the Dark Sea without even wetting his feet, it is explained by declaring that he was a prophet and that God had given him wisdom. He had asked God to see the sources of the Nile, and the necessary strength had been granted. He walked, it is said, for thirty years through inhabited countries, and twenty years through deserted lands.
For Al-Wālīd, his absence lasted, it is said, forty years, after which, retracing his steps, he returned to Memphis and remained in Egypt, treating the inhabitants as slaves, kidnapping women, and plundering the treasures. His reign lasted a hundred and twenty years during which he was loathed and hated; but one day, having gone hunting, his horse threw him into a precipice; Al-Wālīd was killed and the people were delivered.
Al-Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 1.27
In the time of Al-Raīan [= Ar-Rayān] ibn Al-Wālīd, the Pharaoh of Joseph, the income reached ninety-seven million dinars, but this prince, wanting a perfect hundred million dinars, ordered the planting of all the possible kinds of crops, the repairing of the dikes, and the extension of the cultivated land, so that this sum was reached and even exceeded.
Al-Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 2.82
Then reigned, says Ibn Waṣīf Shāh, Al-Raīan ibn Al-Wālīd, who was Joseph’s Pharaoh; the Copts call him Nahrāūsh. When he ascended the throne, he was a prince of an admirable character, handsome in countenance, wise and thoughtful, and who promised to be amiable. He discharged his people from taxation for three years and shared treasures between his private friends and his subjects. He called to the government of the country a man of his family named Atfein, the same as the traditionalists call Al-‘Azīz. The king caused him to raise in the palace a throne of silver on which Atfein sat, and he only left to go to the king’s door. The latter gave his vizier authority over the officers and scribes, and Nahrāūsh took care only of what was happening behind the curtain. With Atfein accumulating all his authority and relegating him to his pleasures, Nahrāūsh plunged himself into his frivolity, neglecting business, not showing himself to the people, but the country was prosperous and the king did not ask for more. They built for him colorful glass lounges, surrounded by water where the fish lived freely and by colored crystals in which, when the sun’s rays hit them, a marvelous reflection was produced. Pleasure pavilions were built for him in numbers equal to those of the days of the year, and every day he walked in one of them. Each pavilion was tended and furnished with different furniture and draperies, but it was rumored among the kings of the vicinity that Nahrāūsh was concerned only with pleasure, and that the care of affairs rested on Atfein. The kind of the Amalekites, Abū-Qābūs ’Aqir ibn Yanūm, marched on Egypt and headed for its borders. To resist, Al-‘Azīz raised an army whose general was called Barianis; he struggled for three years; but the Amalekite took the upper hand, killed Barianis, razed towers and fortresses, and his yoke descended on the land. The people then went in crowds to the king’s palace and implored his protection. Nahrāūsh appeared, reviewed his army, and he set out with 600,000 combatants, not counting the valets. The two armies met beyond Hūf and fought a fierce battle. The Amalekite was defeated, and Nahrāūsh pursued him as far as the borders of Syria, killed a great number of men, destroyed the crops and trees, burned, hung and raised to the places where he had arrived stelae on which he engraved these words: “Whoever will cross this line, I wait for him.” He reached, it is said, Mosul, imposed a tribute on Syria, built a magnificent city near Al Arich, left a garrison there, and returned to Egypt, where, having assembled an army of all the provinces, he prepared to attack the king of the West. He therefore left with 700,000 men, crossed the land of the Berbers, of which he subjugated the greater part, and sent out in a fleet from Raqūdah a general who was to go to the islands of the children of Japheth and devastate them. For him, following the dirt road, he took the direction of the land of the Berbers, gave battle to them, and by treaty imposed the tribute on them; From there he continued his journey across Ifrīqīah and Qarṭājanna (Cartagena), and concluded peace with these countries by means of tribute and, continuing on his way, reached the spot where the Green River flows into the Sea of Rūm; this is where the copper statues are erected. He erected a statue on which he engraved his name and the story of his campaign, and imposed a tribute on the inhabitants of the country. Then, turning onto the great land, he reached Spain, where the king fought him for many days, and then, by means of tribute, promised to defend Egypt against the aggression of its neighbors. After that, he departed, but not by sea, and headed east through the land of the Berbers. All the people he met had to submit to him. From there he marched south, fought against many peoples, and sent a general to a town on the Black Sea [i.e., the Atlantic]. The king of that city went out to meet the general, who told him what Al-Raīan was and how he treated kings. “No one,” said the King, “has spoken of this to us.” The general then asked him some questions about the sea. “Has anyone ever sailed it,” he asked. “That is impossible for anyone,” replied the king, “because of the shadow cast by the clouds and which prevents you from seeing.” Al-Raīan having arrived, he was presented with presents, fruits, bananas for the most part, and a black stone which became white when put into water. The king, heading for the countries of Sudan, arrived at the kingdom of the anthropophagous Damdams who went to meet him naked. He conquered them, subjugated them, and took the road to the Obscure Sea; but, as fog was rising, he returned to the north and came to a red stone statue, which, with its hand, made a sign of turning back and which bore this inscription on the chest: “There is nothing behind me.” From there he walked to the City of Copper, but could not reach it; he found the Dark Valley where loud noises could be heard without seeing anyone, because of the thickness of the darkness. He went from there to the Valley of the Sands and, on his way, met statues bearing the names of kings. He raised up another statue on which he engraved his own name. Having learned of the desert, he crossed it to the ruins that stretched along the Sea of Darkness, where he saw lions roaring against each other. Judging that the land beyond held nothing but ruin for him, he turned back, returned to the Valley of the Sands, and crossed the Land of the Scorpions, where he lost some of his men; the rest of the army was protected from evil by the power of spells. Having crossed this region, he arrived at the City of the Sages, better known as the town of Kand, whose inhabitants fled before him to the mountain. He stayed there for a long time and his army was about to die of thirst. In the end, there came down from the mountain one of the most virtuous and wise, whose body was covered with hair: “What do you want?” said he to the king. O, stranger, too happy and too favored, why do you lose yourself and your army? Why is what you possess not enough for you and do not you trust your Creator? Look for rest, abandon fatigue and error, because that’s all you can acquire here.” The king, surprised at these words, asked him for water. The other having indicated he could, the king asked him about his country. “Our country,” he replied, “no one before you has reached.” “What are you living on?” “The roots of plants; that is enough for us, because we are satisfied with little.” “And what are you drinking?” “Rain and snow.” “Why did you run away from our approach?” “We have little desire to go with you, but we had no reason to fear you.” “What do you do when the sun gets hot?” “We retreat to caves excavated in the mountains.” “Do you need money? I will leave some with you.” – “City-dwellers alone need money; we do not use that. We are satisfied with what is sufficient for us; besides, we have so much that, if you saw it, you would despise your riches.” “Show me,” said the king. The man then led the king and some of his followers to a land at the foot of the mountain; there were gold ingots in quantity. Their guide showed them still a valley whose two banks were sown with emeralds and sapphires. Nahrāūsh ordered his companions to take some of the larger stones, which they did. The wise man, seeing that the king’s suite adored a statue carried in the expedition, invited the king to stay no longer on their land, and inspired him with some fear concerning the worship of idols. Nahrāūsh, having taken his leave, went off, and among all the peoples he met, he left traces of his passage. He finally arrived in Nubia, taxed the tribute by treaty, and raised in Dongola a statue on which he engraved his name and the story of his expedition. Then he took the road to Memphis; and in every city of Egypt the inhabitants, filled with joy and gladness, came to meet him with flowers and perfumes. At last he arrived at Memphis. The people of the town, led by Al-‘Azīz, came to meet him with flowers and perfumes of all kinds. Al-‘Azīz had prepare for him a pavilion of colored glass, adorned with the richest hangings. Around it trees and flowers were planted, and a basin filled with blue glass was dug into the depths of which were seen images of white glass fish. The king went down to this pavilion, and the people remained for days and days to drink and eat. Then Nahrāūsh reviewed his army and found that he had lost 700,000 of his men; on the other hand, he brought back more than 50,000 prisoners. His expedition out of Egypt lasted eleven years.
The kings, informed of his return, were full of respect for him, and his power was strengthened. On the east bank he built marble palaces topped with towers. He gave orders for the improvement of the country, repaired the embankments and cultivated the soil, so that the tax yield amounted to one hundred million dinars.
It was from his time that a young man from Syria, whom his brothers had sold by trickery, entered Egypt. The caravans stopped at the place now called Al Maūqef (the stopping). The young man was brought there, and he was put up for auction. It was Joseph the Truthful, the son of Jacob son of Abraham the darling of God. Atfein bought it to present it to the king. But when he arrived with him at his palace, his wife Zulaīkha, who was at the same time his cousin, having seen the new slave, said to her husband, “Let us keep him. We will raise him, and he will serve us.” And what happened to him is what God tells in the Qur’an. She hid her love until the day when she was conquered by him. Then, having withdrawn with Joseph, she appeared for him and confessed that she loved him, adding that if he consented to satisfy her desires, she would fill him with riches. But as he refused, she promised to give it up. She began to pray to him, and he always resisted, so long as in the end her husband appeared. On seeing him, Joseph moved away from Zulaīkha. Al-‘Azīz was helpless and could not approach women. And as Joseph was trying to apologize to Al-‘Azīz, “I was asleep,” said Zulaīkha, “when he came to abuse me.” But some of his people appeared and testified against his wife. “Leave that,” said Atfein to Joseph, that is, “leave the excuses,” and addressing his wife, “Ask forgiveness for your sin,” he said. The noise of the adventure reached Nahrāūsh, but he returned to his pleasures and lived away from men. The women of high society, acquainted with history, made fun of Zulaīkha; the latter invited some of them to a repast, and had two golden rooms prepared for them, which were spread with golden yellow brocade. Between the two rooms she had brocade curtains suspended, and she ordered the hairdressers to adorn Joseph and bring him out of the room opposite to where she would be with the women. This room was facing the sun. The hairdressers then took Joseph with them, and adorned her hair with all sorts of jewels; they decked him in a yellow brocade robe, topped with red disks inlaid with gold, where little green birds could be seen; the robe was lined with green. Under the robe, Joseph was wearing a red tunic and on his head was a crown of pearls and jewels. The hairdressers passed the ends of the hair under the crown, which fell on his forehead. They drew back the curls on his breast, uncovered his forehead, and placed the crown on it. In his ears they put two loops in jewels; behind the collar of his caftan, they let his hair intermingle with precious stones and gold, hanging between his shoulders; at his neck was suspended a gold necklace inlaid with red stones and splendid pearls. At his waist was fastened a gold belt with staples of colored stones and chiseled pendants. He put on white shoes with green embroidery on a background of gold; and the bottom of his kaftan was bordered with braids and braids, and many green stones were sewn there. On each cheek a lock of hair was curled up, his eyes were kohled and a green feather fan was put in his hand. The women having finished eating and drinking, Zulaīkha handed them knives with gem-sleeves to cut the fruit; these fruits were, it is said, oranges, and while her guests ate them, Zulaīkha said to them: “I have been told that you speak of me and my slave.” “How,” cried they, “can you say that? You are of a race too high for such a thing to exist; a person of your quality is placed higher than the children of kings by your beauty and nobility. How could you have been satisfied with your slave?” “You have not been told the truth,” said Zulaīkha, "and he is at my house for another service. Then she made a sign to the hairdressers, they lifted the curtain which separated the room where they stood from the other, and Joseph appeared illuminated by the sun on his face; and the room and all that it contained was illuminated by Joseph’s face. The latter stepped forward, fan in hand, and the women looked at him stealthily. Arrived near Zulaīkha, Joseph stopped and his fan kept the flies away from his mistress’s head. The women, all occupied in looking at him, and marveling at his beauty, cut off their fingers, thinking they were cutting their fruits, and did not utter a word. “What has happened” Zulaīkha asked them, “that you do not speak anymore and you look at my slave.” “God forbid it!” they replied; this one is not your slave; she is a magnificent angel. And there was none among them who lacked desire and love for him. “This is the one,” said Zulaīkha, for whom I am so much reproached.” “No one,” answered the women, “can blame you for it. Whoever blames you would be wrong. Take him therefore.” “I tried,” said Zuleikha, “but he refused me. Talk to him for me.” Then each one began to talk to Joseph, secretly trying to convince him and offering herself to him, but he always refused. Hoping to be accepted, they spoke to Zulaīkha and said, “Your mistress loves you and you hate her. You do not have the right to disobey her.” “I do not care,” said Joseph. Finally, judging any persuasion useless, they tried to take him by force. “No,” said Zulaīkha, “that would not be agreeable; but since he refuses me, I will deprive him of all pleasure, I will imprison him and take away all that I have given him.” Joseph replied, “Prison is preferable to what is required of me.” And she swore by her god who was a green emerald statue, named Atared (Mercury), that if he persisted, she would make good on her threat on the spot. And she had him stripped of his clothes, had him put on his coat and asked Al-‘Azīz to put his prison at her disposal to stop the slanderous rumors circulating about her. Al-‘Azīz consented and Joseph was thrown into prison.
The king saw in a dream someone who said to him: “Such and such have formed the plan to kill you. And he pointed to the baker and the king’s butler. When he awoke, the king summoned them, questioned them, and they confessed. According to some authors, only one of them confessed and the other denounced it energetically. The king had them imprisoned. The baker was named Rasan and the butcher Mortos. Joseph was also in the same prison consoling those who were there and promised them freedom. The two officers told him their dreams, as reported by God in his book, and the event was fulfilled as Joseph had announced. Later, the king had the vision of the cows and the ears; it was then that the butler spoke to him of Joseph, went to the captive, told him the king’s dreams, and returned to the prince, who exclaimed: “Let him come!” “I will not go out,” said Joseph, “before we have cleared up the women’s affair for which I was imprisoned.” Everything was discovered then and Zulaīkha made a complete confession.
They sent for Joseph, washed him, freed him from the filthiness of the prison, and had him wear the clothes that suited those who came to kings. On seeing him, the king felt his heart fill with affection for him; he filled him with favors, and questioned him about his dreams, which Joseph explained, as God has related. “Who will come to my aid?” Asked the king. “Me,” answered Joseph. And the king gave him a royal garment, put a crown on his head and made him walk through the city, escorted by the army, and bought him back to the palace where the king made him sit on the throne of Al-‘Azīz, taking on at the same time the functions of Regent. It is reported that after the death of Al-‘Azīz, the king gave his widow in marriage to Joseph. “This is better than how you wanted me,” Joseph told her. “Forgive me,” replied Zulaīkha, “my husband was helpless and no woman can see you without her heart being filled with love for you because of your beauty.”
The years of abundance having come to Egypt, Joseph gathered the grain from all sides, stored it, and collected a large quantity of it. And when the years of famine came, when the Nile began to decline and its level fell year by year, the country was so desolate that wheat was sold for fortunes of jewels, cattle, clothes, crockery (of value), land. Egypt would have been abandoned if Joseph had not been in charge of affairs. Syria was also desolated by the scourge and Joseph’s brothers came to Egypt as God reported. Joseph sent for his father who went to Egypt with all his family. Joseph, taking with him wheat from Egypt, went to meet him and presented him to the king. Jacob was then a venerable old man whom the king treated with respect. He asked him about his age, state, and religion. “I am a hundred and twenty years old,” replied Jacob; “for my condition, I have sheep that I graze and that I use. I love the master of the world, your creator and mine. He is the God of my fathers, your God and the God of all things.” Among the people of the king’s suite was a very powerful priest who said to the king, “I fear that the ruin of Egypt will come through the hands of this man’s children.” “How can we make sure of that?” the king asked. Then the priest said to Jacob, “Show me your God, O old man.” “My God,” said Jacob, “is too big to see.” “We see our gods.” “Certainly,” says Jacob, “your gods are of gold, silver, stone, precious stones, copper, and wood, used by the sons of Adam, who are the slaves of my God. There is no God but him, he is the sublime and the wise.” “A thing that cannot be seen with the eyes does not exist,” said the priest. Jacob, irritated, denied this: “God,” said he, “is not a thing like other things; he is the creator of all that exists; there is no God but him.” “Describe him to us,” asked the priest. “Only creatures,” said Jacob, “can be described; but he is the unique creator, the Elder, the Wise, the Eternal; he sees, but we do not see him.” And Jacob got up angrily. The king made him sit again and ordered the priest to be quiet. “We have found in the books,” said the priest to the king, “that the ruin of Egypt will come by the hand of these people.” “Will it happen in our time?” asked the king. “No,” said the priest, “not for a long time yet. But it would be best to kill him and leave no one of his race to live.” “Even if,” said the king, “the thing would as you say it will be, we cannot prevent it and we cannot kill these people.” And he gave to Jacob and his companions the valley of A Sedir, where Jacob remained until his last day. When he died, he was carried to the village of Abraham and buried with him.
Nahrāūsh, it is said, was a believer, but he concealed his faith, fearing that his authority would suffer. He reigned 120 years and, during his reign, Joseph created the Fayum. The Egyptians had begun to speak ill of their king: “He has grown old,” said they, “his intelligence is darkened; put it to the test.” And the king said to Joseph, “I have given this land to my daughter; it is only an overflow for the waters; put it in order for her.” And Joseph set to work; he managed to remove the waters, had the mud removed, dug the Menha and built Allahūn; he divided the waters and separated them; and all this in four months. Everyone was astonished at his skill. He was, it is said, the first in Egypt who practiced the art of engineering.
When Nahrāūsh died, his son Darmagūsh succeeded him. It is the same which carries with the historians the name of Dārim ibn Al Rīan; he is the fourth Pharaoh of the Egyptians. This prince followed a line of conduct quite different from that which his father had followed. Joseph was his lieutenant, but if, in certain cases, he adopted his opinions, in others he ignored them. It was in his time that Joseph died; they interred him and laid his body in a marble sarcophagus buried on the western bank of the Nile; and this shore became more and more fertile, while the eastern shore remained barren. The sarcophagus was then transported to the east, and this region became fertile in its turn, while the fertility of the western shore decreased. It was therefore decided to place the body one year on the east bank and one year on the west bank. Then they resolved to fasten the sarcophagus in the middle of the river by means of solid chains, and both banks of the river became fertile.
Al-Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 1.10
In the time of Dārim ibn ar-Rayān, who is the fourth pharaoh, named by the Copts Drimūs, a silver mine was found three days’ march from the Nile, and a considerable quantity of metal was extracted. a statue, in the name of the Moon, for he was born at the moment when this planet was in conjunction with the Crab, and he raised it above the alabaster palace that his father had built in the desert of the East. Around it, he raised statues, all of silver, which he draped with red silk, and instituted a festival which was celebrated every time the Moon entered the sign of the Crab.
When Aqsaīs [= Aqsāmis], the sixth pharaoh, seized power after his father Mo‘dan ibn Mo‘adiūs [= Ma‘ādiūs] ibn Dārim ibn Drimūs, he had numerous towers around Memphis. Above these towers were raised columns through which one could from one to the other; he also made at Raqudah, at Ṣā, and in the cities of Upper and Lower Egypt, buildings and towers which were lighted, and a plethora of talismans; he made a block of silver engraved with the image of the planets; this block, plated with porcelain, was placed at the top of a column in the middle of Memphis; he raised in his father’s temple a statue of Saturn in worked black gold. It was from his time that a balance was made to advise men: the two trays were of gold, the pointer of silver and the chains of gold; it was suspended in the temple of the Sun, and on one of the plates the word “Truth” was engraved, and on the other the word “Lie”; below were placed stones bearing the names of the planets. When there was a dispute between two people, the offender and the offended entered the temple. Each took a stone and pronounced a few words, then put one of them in one of the scales and the other in the other; the offender’s plate was lowered, and that of the offended rose. If a man wanted to undertake a journey, he took two stones, giving one the name of “Leave” and the other that of “Stay” and put each of them in a tray. If the two plates were lowered, without either rising above the other, he remained; if both of them rose, he would leave; and if only one plate was raised, he delayed his journey, but would eventually leave. They also consulted this scale for a debt, for the absent, and to know if a business was good or bad. They say Bokht Nasr, among other things he took to Babylon after the conquest of Egypt, carried off this balance. He placed in one of the temples of fire. During the reign of Aqsaīs was made an oven that roasted and cooked without fire and a knife which, put in place, attracted the animals who saw it and who came to slaughter themselves; this prince also prepared a water that turned into fire and a glass that changed into air and many other magical objects; he even left the necessary instructions to manufacture them.
For the temples, it was Sūrīd, the builder of the pyramids, who, according to Ibn Waṣīf Shāh, raised them all, deposited treasures in them, wrote the precepts of science, and established a djinn to protect them against whoever would destroy them.
Al-Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 2.3
It is asserted that Al-Wālīd ibn Al-Raīan was the Pharaoh of Joseph, and Al-Wālīd ibn Mu‘sāb the Pharaoh of Moses; among them [the Pharaohs] we still count Sanān ibn ‘Ālūān. Ibn Waṣīf Shāh says that the name of Pharaoh was given to him only because he committed many murders, sparing only a very intelligent girl, who, frightened by the number of his crimes, poisoned him in his 170th year.
[possible] After him, Gūriaq reigned; this princess treated her subjects kindly, amassed wealth, honored priests and scholars and magicians, extended their power, and multiplied temples. Those who would not submit to her authority went to the city of Atrīb and chose for king a man of the lineage of Atrīb. The story of what concerns him is in the chapter on Alexandria. Gūriaq is the first woman of Noah’s family who was queen of Egypt. After her death, his cousin Zalfa banūt Mamūn succeeded her. She was a wise and intelligent virgin who treated her subjects gently. Aī‘man the Atribite revolted against her, and summoned the king of the Amalekites, who sent him a general, to his aid. Zalfa sent an army to meet him; the two armies joined Al-Arich, and after a fight in which a great number of men perished, the partisans of Zalfa fled to Memphis, pursued by the enemy. Zalfa retreated to the Saīd and stopped at Ashmunein, and the war continued between her and the Amalekites, a war in which they were routed, abandoned Memphis after having devastated it, and retreated to the Gurf which they fortified. Egypt was then divided into two parts; Zalfa recommenced the war, but after three months of struggle, had to retreat to Qūs, pursued by Aī‘man. Seeing herself about to be caught, she poisoned herself.
Alfonso X, General Estoria 1.31 (fol. 160r)
A wise man of the Arabs who was named Al-Waṣīf and who wrote the history of Egypt said that the Pharaoh in whose time the Hebrew Exodus occurred was called Ṭalmā in Arabic. He is called Talmai in Hebrew, and the Egyptians, according to the account of Jerome and Eusebius, called him Acencheres, as we have told you already.
Al-Maqrizi, Al Khitat 2.4
Of all the preceding stories, says the author [al-Maqrizi], those of Ibn Waṣīf Shāh are obviously authentic. […] For Ibn Waṣīf Shāh is well informed about the Chronicles of the Egyptians.
Al-Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 2.57
And Ibn Waṣīf Shāh is the man who knows the best stories about Egypt!
Ibn Wasif Shah says, moreover, that the priesthood of Misr excelled in power and renown, by reason of the science of soothsaying; and that the wise among the Greeks give them place, and bear them witness for it, and also call them to witness, saying, “The wise men of Misr have taught us this and that.” In their soothsaying they went by the stars, which, in their opinion, made them abound in knowledge, and told them things hidden or doubtful; revealed to them the secrets of horoscopes and the order of talismans; guided them into hidden sciences, and [taught them] names both glorious and profound. The Qibt, therefore, wrought celebrated talismans, and discovered important secrets of others; they brought out figures that could speak, they limned moving pictures, reared the highest buildings, engraved their sciences on stones; and through their talismans warded their enemies off the land; so that their wisdom was marvellous, and the wonders they wrought were known of all.
Al-Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 2.2
Master Ibrāhīm ibn Waṣīf Shāh the writer, in his book titled Stories and Wonders of Egypt, reports that the city of Masr bore in ancient times the name of Amsūs, and that the first king of Egypt was Naqrāūsh [= Naqrāūs] the Mighty, son of Miṣraīm. Naqrāūsh means “king of his people.” This Naqrāūsh, son of Miṣraīm the Elder, son of Mūrqaīl, son of Dūaī, son of Arīab, son of Adam, departed with seventy and some valiant horsemen from the Benu ’Ariab seeking a country to flee from the sons of their father, for at that time they were jealous and opposed each other, and the Benu ’Ariab were molested by the Benu Qabil. The Benu ’Ariab stopped their march only at the Nile, and marveling at the beauty and extent of the country, they settled there and built admirable buildings there. Naqrāūsh raised the city of Masr to which he gave the name of his father Miṣraīm; then he abandoned it and had it built for a second time, which he called Amsūs. This prince, according to what Ibn Waṣīf Shāh says, knew some of the sciences which Dūai [= Dāwil] had learned from Adam; he built towers, erected stelae, built palaces, extracted metals from the earth, constructed talismans, dug canals, and founded towns; all the high sciences possessed by the Egyptians came to them from Naqrāūsh and his companions. These sciences were represented on stone, and they were explained much later by the priest Qlimūn [= Philemon] who accompanied Noah in the ark.
Naqrâūsh, having founded Amsūs, filled it with marvels, among which we must mention: a bird which every day whistled twice at sunrise and twice at sunset, so that by this whistle, they were informed of the events which were taking place, so that they could take the necessary measures for these events; a black stone statue placed in the center of the city and faced by another similar statue; if any thief entered the city, he could not help but pass between these two statues, and as soon as he was there, they would meet him and arrest him; another bronze statue placed on an elevated tower and over which clouds constantly were seen piled up: anyone who addressed this statue and asked for rain would get what he wanted from it. He also erected on the frontiers of the country copper statues, hollow and filled with sulfur, on which were vigilant spirits of fire; as soon as someone approached them, these statues ejected flames through the mouth, which burned him. On the mountain of Botros, he erected a tower from which escaped a stream that watered all the fields of the vicinity. These monuments remained upright until the Flood overthrew them. It was Naqrâūsh, it is said, who improved the course of the Nile; previously the river was spread between the two mountains; to remedy this, this prince sent to Nubia a troop charged with stopping it and drawing from it a great canal on which were built cities and drawn out plantations. Naqrâūsh then wanted to know the source of the Nile, and having set out, he reached the country beyond Equator; there, he found himself on the shore of the Dark Sea of pitch, and saw the Nile flowing on the surface of this sea, like a network of threads, and finally penetrating under the mountain of Qūmr to emerge and enter into lakes. It was by him also that the statues found in this region were erected. Returning to Amsūs, he shared the land among his children, giving his eldest son Naquūsh the western region and his son Shurab the eastern region. Finally, he built the city of Borsan for his youngest son Miṣraīm, where he lived. He reigned 180 years in Egypt, and at his death his body was embalmed with aromatic drugs, then locked in a coffin of gold; they built a gold-plated tomb where the body was deposited with innumerable quantities of treasures, aromatics, and vases of gold. On the tomb was engraved the date of his death, and talismans were erected to ward off destructive insects.
After him reigned his son Naqūsh who was, like his father, versed in the science of magic and talismans; he is the first to have erected a temple in Egypt; he placed there the image of the seven planets, and in each of their chapels he wrote their good or bad influence. He clothed every statue with splendid garments, and appointed servants and slaves for them. Then he left Amsūs, heading west, and reached the Enveloping Ocean, and raised on its edges columns surmounted by statues whose eyes sparkled in the night; from there he returned to the country of the Negroes in the direction of the Nile; along the river he built a wall with doors through which the water of the river flowed. Beyond the oases, in the desert of the West, he built three cities on high columns of colored and transparent stones; in each of these cities he established a great number of houses of science, and in one of them he set up a statue of the Sun, represented as a man with a bird’s body, all in gold, except for the eyes, which were of yellow jewels; the statue was placed on a magnetic pedestal and held in its claw a volume of science. In another of these cities he erected a statue with a human head and a bird’s body, near which was the image of a seated woman; it was made of solidified mercury and it was capped with two braids and held in its hand a mirror. On its head was the emblem of a planet, and it raised its mirror to the height of its face. In the third city was laid a basin in which seven waters of different colors flowed but did not mix. In one of these cities was the image of an old man made of turquoise, having before him the seated figures of young children, all made of rubies; in one city stood the image of Hermes, that is to say, of Mercury, leaning on a table placed before him, made of ammonia salt, and mounted on feet of red sulfur; in the middle of the table was a page written in (inlaid) jewels. There was also the image of a green emerald eagle with yellow topaz eyes, holding in its talons a blue silver snake whose tail was wrapped around the legs of the eagle and whose head straightened as to hiss at the eagle. There was yet a representation of Mars mounted on a horse and holding in his hand a naked sword, all in green iron. There was a column of red jewels surmounted by a golden dome on which rose the statue of Jupiter; there was also a zinc dome on four columns of blue glass; at the top stood the statue of the Sun and the Moon, represented as a man and a woman conversing. There was also another dome of red sulfur containing the image of Venus as a woman busy braiding her hair; at her feet a man, in green emerald, held in his hand a book enclosing some of their sciences, and which he seemed to read to his companion. In the rest of the stores, he deposited treasures of silver, gems and jewels, precious elixirs, specimens of remedies and mortal poisons, all in innumerable quantities. At the door of each of these cities was applied a talisman to defend the entrance. Then he had long underground corridors run through by which these cities communicated with each other, each subterranean route being three miles long. He built another city in Egypt called Haljama [= Jaljalah], in which he built a garden whose walls were adorned with jewels encrusted in gold; he planted all kinds of trees under which he ran canals; he also planted trees producing all kinds of edible fruits; then he built a dome of red marble surmounted by a statue that turned at the same rate as the sun, and he placed as guards demons charged with killing anyone who came out of his house during the night. There were also stelae on which were engraved all the sciences, the recipes for drugs, and their uses and harms. For this city too, he made an underground passage which joined to those of the three other cities; between these and the other subterranean passages, there were twenty miles’ worth. These cities lasted until the deluge. And when Naqūsh died, after having reigned over Egypt for eighteen years, his body was buried and placed in a tomb with talismans.
After him reigned his brother Miṣrām, son of Naqrāūsh the Mighty, son of Miṣraīm; it is from him, it is said, that Egypt took its name of Masr. This prince was a sage, and he raised to the sun a marble temple clad in red gold, in the middle of which was a blue stone horse carrying a statue of the sun in red gold; on the head of the statue was a glass vase containing a special stone endowed with a more piercing light than that of a lamp. He tamed the lions and used them as mounts. He went to the Encircling Ocean and raised in the middle of this sea a white citadel on which rose the statue of the sun, and on this monument, he engraved his name and his portrait. He made yet another copper statue on which he engraved these words: “I am Miṣrām the powerful, the revealer of the mysteries, the victorious, the strong; I have executed genuine talismans, I have erected statues endowed with speech, I have erected formidable monuments on the shore of the undulating sea. Let posterity learn that no one has the strength of my arm!” Then he returned to Amsūs and escaped the eyes of the world for thirty years, having established to replace him a man of the lineage of Ariab, son of Adam, named ’Aīqām [= ‘Anqām], a priest at the time and a magician. As time went on, the people of Egypt had the desire to see their king; ’Aīqām, following the instructions of Miṣrām, brought together the people, and the king appeared on a throne enriched with all sorts of ornaments, and in a frightful apparatus which filled their hearts with terror; his subjects fell prostrate before him and worshiped him; Miṣrām made them prepare a feast where they all ate and drank, after which Miṣrām ordered them to return to their homes, and after this, no one saw him again.
After him reigned ‘Aīqām, who had held the regency. About him, among the Egyptians there are legends that reason refuses to believe. It is in his time, as it is reported, that Idris appeared, thanks to whom ’Aīqām was able to foresee the Flood and build, beyond the Equator, on the plateau of the mountain of Qūmr, a palace of copper, in which were erected eighty-five copper statues from the mouth of which flowed the water of the Nile, first falling into a lake, and then proceeding towards Egypt. ’Aīqām himself left Amsūs to return to this palace and to see with his own eyes the orderliness of the constructions and the ornaments of the walls, such as the engravings representing the celestial images, etc. The interior of the palace was lit by lamps, and tables were erected on which were served all kinds of delicious food in magnificent vases, and these dishes, whatever the soldiers of his escort consumed, did not diminish in any way, and one could neither know who prepared them nor who served them. In the middle of the palace was a basin filled with water solidified on the surface, but liquid below and whose movement was visible through the solid part. Enamored of what he had seen, ’Aīqām returned to Amsūs, chose his son ’Ariāq [= ‘Arbāq] to replace him, entrusted him with power, and gave him his instructions; he then returned to this palace and remained there until his death. It is to this ’Aīqām that the Coptic books are attributed which contain the history of this people and all that must happen until the end of time.
After him, the power passed to ’Ariāq, who is also called ’Ariāq ibn ’Aīqām, nicknamed Al-Athīm (the guilty). He also made various marvelous objects, among others: a yellow tree whose branches of iron were armed with claws; if any malefactor approached this tree, he was seized by these claws and could escape only by confessing his crime and restoring his theft to the injured person; a black pumice statue to which he gave the name of ’Abd Zahil (servant of Saturn). It was before it that one was called to justice and the one who was wrong remained fixed in his place and could not move away until confessing his crime, though he might remain there a year. Those who lacked some object had only to rise during the night and to look at the planets while praying and pronouncing the name of ’Ariāq; in the morning when he awoke, the desired object was at his door. He had also made an iron tree whose branches had been coated with a prepared drug that attracted all kinds of animals—lions and wild beasts—so that hunters could easily seize them. If he was angry with the inhabitants of a province, he set wild beasts and lions on them, and sometimes he changed their (beneficial) rains into furious showers. It is said that Harut and Marut appeared under his reign. He had built a splendid garden and had assembled the most beautiful women he had taken. One of them, using cunning, managed to poison him.
At his death, he was replaced by Lūjīm ibn Naqūsh, who is claimed to be a descendant of the powerful Naqrāūsh, and who is called Lūjīm the Younger. It was he who took over the empire of ’Ariāq, son of ’Aīqām the priest, and returned it to the Benu Naqrāūsh from the hands of those who had taken it, and without war or combat. He was a scholar in the magic and art of talismans and performed many wonderful things. In his day, vultures and crows had multiplied and devastated the crops; he raised four towers in the four corners of the city of Amsūs, and placed on each of them the image of a raven holding in its beak a serpent which had wrapped itself around it; the harmful birds, frightened by these images, disappeared immediately, never to return while the towers remained upright, but they were overthrown by the Deluge. Lūjīm’s conduct was admirable; he was fair to his subjects, just and generous to the priests. At his death, he was buried in a tomb and his treasures with him, and a protective talisman was attached to this tomb.
After him reigned his son Khaṣlīm, a virtuous prince and learned in magic, who also executed marvelous objects. It is to him that we owe the first miqiās (nilometer). It was intended to measure the Nile flood. Having assembled the princes of science and the engineers, they erected a marble structure on the bank of the river, in the middle of which was placed a small copper basin containing a definite quantity of water; above this basin were two eagles of copper, one male, the other female. On the first day of the month in which the flood began, the house was opened, the priests met there in the presence of the king, and they mumbled their prayers until one of the eagles whistled. If the male eagle whistled, it presaged an excellent Nile flood; if on the contrary it was the female, the Nile flood would be insufficient. According to this, precautions could be taken against the rise in the price of grain and provisions made in advance. It is this prince also who established in Nubia a bridge over the Nile. At his death, he was shut up with his treasures in a tomb to which was attached a talisman.
After him reigned his son Hūsāl [= Harṣāl] or Yūsāl, which means “servant of Venus”; some call him Sūmāl ibn Lūjīm al-Naqrāūshi because he was of the family of Naqrāūsh the powerful. It was in his day, it is said, that Noah was born. He was a virtuous prince, well versed in the magic and the art of the talismans, and also made wonderful things, among others a city in the midst of which he raised to the Sun a statue which turned at the same rate as this star, setting to the west and rising, in the morning, to the east. He also dug a corridor under the Nile, followed an underground road, and arrived unexpectedly at Babel to visit the monuments erected by its king. Noah lived in his time. Hūsāl had twenty sons, each of whom he assigned a region; he was the grand chief of magic and remained on the throne for seventeen years, after which he only looked after the temples, leaving to each of his sons the care of settling the affairs of the territory which had been assigned to him by his father. And for seven years it was so.
Then their votes alighted on one of them whom they elected king; his name was Tudarīshan or Tudarīsar [= Qadrashān]. As soon as he was king, he exiled all his brothers to the cities of the interior, in the west of Egypt, and keeping with him only one woman, his cousin, who was a magician, he built himself a wooden pavilion where the images of the planets were engraved. He had the richest carpets, and having placed them atop the water, he walked there stretched out (on cushions). Now, one day when he was walking like this, a violent wind began to blow, which raised the waves, and overturned and broke the pavilion; the king was drowned, as were all those who were with him in the floating palace.
After him reigned his brother Nimrod the powerful one, also called Shimrūd [= Shamrūd] ibn Hūsāl. This prince had an admirable deportment and to his subjects he was just and fair; he gathered his brothers and shared with them the treasures of their dead brother. Thanks to him, the people were happy. He sought the wife of his brother, the magician, but she ran away with her son and took refuge in a city in Upper Egypt where she sought shelter from the prosecution of her brother-in-law, thanks to her magic. After a while, the magicians she had gathered with her son Tūmidūn [= Tūsidūn] suggested the idea of seizing power. Nimrod and his brothers marched against him; a terrible struggle ensued in which Tūmidūn was victorious and Nimrud perished.
After him reigned Tūmidūn ibn Tudarīshan who established his capital in Amsūs. He was a skillful and wise prince whom the magic of his mother made formidable. The latter executed for him marvelous works: a dome of glass, made in the image of the celestial sphere, and which turned in time with the firmament; in this dome were represented the images of the planets: by it they knew the secrets of nature and all the sciences of the world. Tūmidūn had reigned for sixty years when his mother, the magician, died. Her body was smeared with spices to protect her from corruption and insects, and she was buried under the statue of the moon. It is said that after her death, the voice of a spirit, who predicted marvelous things and answered the questions put to her, was heard from her grave. When Tūmidūn died after a reign of one thousand years, it was said he had a glass statue that opened in two parts, and into which his body was placed, impregnated with all the preserving spices against putrefaction; then the statue was closed and welded shut, and finally deposited in the temple of idols. Near him were buried his treasures, and an annual feast was instituted.
After him reigned his son Shariāq [= Sarbaq], also called Sariāq ibn Tūmidūn ibn Tudarīshan ben Hūsāl; like his father, he was well versed in magic, witchcraft, and the art of talismans, and he made wonderful works. Above the gate of the city of Amsūs, he placed the image of a copper duck perched on a column; if a stranger, coming from any country, entered the city, this duck fluttered its wings and uttered a cry; at once they seized the stranger and clarified his business in order to know the reason for his arrival. He dug a canal which, starting from the Nile, led toward the cities of the West, and along this canal he built monuments, towns, and places of pleasure. A king of the lineage of Fūrasha ibn Adam or, according to others, of the lineage of Sūaniti bin Adam emerged during his time on the border of Iraq, subdued the provinces of Syria and marched against Egypt, in order take the king. He had been told: “You will not be able to do anything against this country because of the magical power of its inhabitants,” but he did not want to believe it. Accompanied by an escort, he himself came to realize the position of the Egyptians; as soon as he appeared at the frontier, he and all those who accompanied him were taken by the people who were in charge of watching the region, who sent a report and waited for the king’s instructions for the prisoners. Now, the king had had a dream in which he saw himself on an elevated tower, where a huge bird rushed upon him, uttering cries; in wanting to avoid the bird, he had almost fallen from the tower, but the bird had passed the king, who had been saved. When he awoke, frightened by his dream, he related it to the leader of the magicians, who said to him: “A king will attack you, but he cannot do anything against you.” And having consulted the king’s stars, he saw that the prince who was to attack him had already entered Egypt; at this moment the messenger brought the report on the prisoners at the frontier. The king gave the order to bring them to him, but to first make them examine all the wonders of the country. Securely bound, they were paraded among the wonders of the land of Egypt, and they were shown all of its talismans. They arrived first at Alexandria, then at Aswan, and finally at the garden built by Miṣrām, and where King Shariāq went. By the time the procession arrived, the magicians conjured up marvelous statues. The prisoners entered the presence of the king, surrounded by the priests, and before whom was burning a flame which had to be traversed by anyone who wished to approach the king. This fire spared the innocent, but consumed every man who wished to do some harm to the king, or who felt for him the slightest aversion. The whole company, man after man, passed through the fire without it hurting them. At last the King of Iraq arrived, but just as he was approaching the fire, the heat seized him, and he tried to escape. He was pursued and, having reached him, he was brought back to Shariāq, who questioned him for a long time and came to know everything that concerned him. The order was given to hang him, and he was hanged on the citadel where he had been taken, and at the moment of his execution it was proclaimed that such would be the punishment of anyone who would covet what is out of his reach. As for the other prisoners, they were given mercy; they left Egypt, recounting everywhere the wonders they had seen there, and these stories took away from the kings of the earth all desire to conquer Egypt. Shariāq died after a reign of 130 years. He was buried in a tomb along with his wealth, and talismans were executed to protect him from anyone who attempted to destroy his body.
After him reigned his son Shahlūq [= Sahlūq], well versed in magic and the art of talismans. He divided the water of the Nile into well-measured portions which he distributed precisely in all directions. He put in order the affairs of the Empire and erected a temple to Fire, because he was the first to adore this element. In Amsūs he executed wonderful monuments. He placed on the highest of the mountains a tree that divided the winds and repulsed anyone who wanted to harm or weaken Egypt, whether they were djinn, men, quadrupeds, or birds; he also built in the city a heptagonal bedrock dome with seven doors, one at each corner. In the middle of the dome there was a second of yellow copper, at the top of which was the image of the seven planets, and below it another dome resting on seven pillars. Above the first door of the dome was [the image of] a lion and a lioness of yellow copper, both squatting, to whom they immolated a little [lion] cub, burning, by way of perfumes, the hairs of this animal; on the second door a bull and a cow, to whom a calf was sacrificed; on the third door were a pig and a sow, to whom a little swine was immolated, whose bristles were burned; on the fourth door a ram and a sheep, to whom was sacrificed a lamb whose fleece was burned; on the fifth door a male fox and a female fox, to whom a kit was sacrificed; on the sixth door a vulture and his female, to whom a young vulture was sacrificed, whose feathers were burned; on the seventh door was an eagle and its female, to whom an eaglet was sacrificed, and whose feathers were burned; and each pair of animals was anointed with the blood of the animal sacrificed to it; the victims were entirely burned, and the ashes buried under the doors of the dome. The king assigned servants to the dome to maintain lamps day and night. He divided the people of Egypt into seven castes, each of which was assigned one of the doors of the dome. If any plaintiffs approached one of these images, and the wrongs were his doing, he was stuck to this image, and could detach himself only by confessing the truth; the man was thus fixed to the male animal and the woman to the female animal, and in this way the oppressor and the oppressed were recognized. This dome remained standing in Amsūs until the Flood destroyed it. — Shariāq [sic for Shahlūq], it is said, saw in a dream his father, who ordered him to go to one of the mountains of Egypt, which he pointed out to him; on this mountain he would find an opening in such and such a way: Above the door he would see a two-headed viper who showed its teeth to whoever approached it. “Take with you,” added the apparition, “two little birds, one male, the other female; offer them to this viper for it to swallow them. The viper will seize them by the head and will carry them to an underground chamber. As soon as it is gone, go in your turn. There you will find an admirable woman made of hot and dry light; she will [try to] touch you and you will feel her heat, do not approach her, you will be burned, but sit down in front of her and salute her; she will speak to you. It is up to you to understand what she will say to you and to execute it. You will receive great honor from it, for she will tell you of the treasure of your ancestor Miṣrām, of which she is the guardian. When Shariāq woke up, he did what his father had told him to do, and when he was seated near the woman and greeted her, she said, “Do you know me?” “No,” he replied. “I am,” she continued, “the image of the Fire, adored by past peoples. I want you to revive my name and raise again for me a temple in which you will maintain for me a perpetual fire in a brazier, and that you establish in my honor an annual feast that you will attend with your people. In exchange, you will find me helpful in that I will make you illustrious more than you are illustrious and powerful more than you are powerful. I will keep you away from anyone who wishes to harm you, and I will show you the treasures of your ancestor Miṣrām. Having promised to do what she asked, the lady led Shariāq to the treasures buried under the suspended cities, and taught him how to make himself master of them, and to control the spirits in charge of them, giving him all the necessary instructions. “How,” asked Shariāq, “may I see you again?” “Do not come back,” she said, “for the viper will spare you no more, but perfume your house in such and such a way, and I will come to you.” With that, she left Shariāq full of joy; he left and performed all that she had commanded: he raised a temple to Fire, took away the treasures of Miṣrām and, at his death, he was buried in a tomb and with him all his wealth and all his treasures, and a protective talisman was placed on his grave.
After him reigned his son Sūrīd, a wise and virtuous prince; it was he who first collected taxes in Egypt, distributed money to the sick and the incurable on his treasure, and instituted the morning genuflection. He executed marvelous things: a mirror made of mixed substances, in which we saw the different climates and by which we knew all the events that took place, and he could consequently foresee both abundance and scarcity. This mirror, which was of copper, was placed in the center of the city of Amsūs. He also erected in Amsūs the image of a woman seated, holding in her lap a child whom she was nursing; this woman was such that if an Egyptian, suffering from any evil in a part of her body, came to rub the sick part of her body against the corresponding part of the body of the statue, the evil immediately disappeared; if it was exhaustion of milk, the woman had only to rub her breasts against the breasts of the statue, and the milk came back; if it were a stoppage of menses, the woman need only rub her sexual parts against those of the statue, and the menstruation returned; if on the contrary the blood came in too great abundance, the woman rubbed the bottom of her pubis against the corresponding part of the statue. In the case of being stuck in labor, they rubbed the head of the half-born child in the lap of the statue was, and deliverance was accomplished. If a woman wanted to be loved by her husband, she rubbed her face against that of the statue, saying, “Do this or that.” But if some adulterous woman put her hands on the statue, she was seized with a tremor which only subsided when the criminal manifested her repentance. This statue remained standing until the Flood overthrew it; according to the Coptic books, it was found after the Flood and many people worshiped it. Sūrīd also raised another statue composed of a large number of mixed substances, and if anyone suffered in any part of his body, he had only to wash the corresponding part of the statue and to drink the water which had been used for washing, and the sickness ceased immediately. It is this Sūrīd who raised in Egypt the two great pyramids that are attributed to Shaddād bin ’Ād; but the Copts refuse to admit that the ’Ādites ever entered their country, for their magic would have rejected them. When Sūrīd died, he was buried in the pyramid with his treasures. He lived, it is claimed, 300 years before the flood and reigned 190 years.
Aḥmad ibn ʻAlī Qalqashand, Subh al-a 'sha
As for the Nilometer, Ibrāhīm ibn Waṣīf Shāh told in his Book of Wonders that the first who set up a nilometer on the Nile, was Khuglim [= Khaṣlīm], the seventh of the Egyptian kings before the Flood; he placed a small pool, and set beside it two eagles of brass, a male and a female; Here, on a certain day of the year, their priests and scholars assembled and addressed each other, and then one of the two eagles began to whistle; when the male whistled, they announced a (sufficient) rising of the Nile, and if the female whistled, they concluded that it would insufficiently rise, and therefore made provisions for the necessary supplies of food for that year.
Al-Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 1.40
The writer Master Ibrāhīm ibn Waṣīf Shāh, in his History of Egypt and Its Wonders, speaking of Sūrīd ibn Shahlūq ibn Sariāq ibn Tūmidūn ibn Tudarīshan ben Hūsāl, one of the kings who ruled Egypt before the Flood and who resided in the city of Amsūs (which will be discussed in the chapter of this book that deals with the cities of Egypt), said: The raising of the Two Pyramids in Egypt is attributed to Shaddād bin 'Ad: Copts claim that, thanks to the power of their magic, ’Ādites could not enter their country. Here is what was the cause of the erection of the two pyramids: Three hundred years before the flood, Sūrīd had a dream in which it seemed that the earth overturned, and the men fled straight ahead, and the stars fell and collided against each other with a terrible crash; Sūrīd, scared, never spoke to anyone about this dream, but he was convinced that a major event would occur in the world. A few days later he had another dream in which he felt that the fixed stars had descended on the earth in the form of white birds and catching men while in flight, rushed between two high mountains which closed over them, and the bright stars became dark and obscure. Full of terror when he awoke, he went to the temple of the Sun, prayed, rolled in the dust, and wept. As soon as it was day, he gathered the chief priests of all the provinces of Egypt; the number was 130. He shut himself up with them and explained what he had seen in his first and second dream. The priests explained to the King that an extraordinary event would occur in the world, and the greatest of them, named Aqlimun, said unto him, ‘The dreams of kings do not happen for no reason, because of the importance of princes. I shall tell Pharaoh of a dream I had myself and that I have not spoken of to anyone. It seemed that while I was sitting with the king in the tower at Amsūs, the sky, leaving its place, fell down and approached our heads, forming above us a dome that enveloped us. The king raised his hands to the sky with the stars mingling among men in various forms. People ran, seeking refuge at the king’s palace and requesting help. The king raised his hands to his head, telling me to do the same, and we were both in terrible anxiety. And now, from the tower where we were, we saw a part of the sky about to open and a bright light escaped from the breach. The Sun appeared, and we began to beg. And the Sun told us that the sky would return to its original place. I awoke full of terror, and then I fell asleep and I saw the city of Amsūs overturned with its inhabitants, the idols fallen on their heads, and men descended from heaven holding in their hands iron whips, with which they hit mortals. “Why,” I asked them, “do you strike at men?” They said, “They have shown their wickedness to God.” “Is there not,” I said, “some way for us to redeem ourselves?” And they said: “Yes, whoever wants to be saved must go to reach the master of the Ark.” Thereupon I awoke full of terror.’ The King said: ‘Take the elevations of the stars and see what needs to happen.’ After a thorough review, it was recognized that a deluge would occur after which would appear a fire out of the constellation Leo which will burn the world. ‘See,’ said the King said, ‘if this disaster will reach our country.’ ‘Yes,’ they said, ‘the flood will reach us and we will be ruined for many years.’ ‘See,’ said the King, ‘if this country becomes prosperous as before or if it will remain still covered by water.’ ‘The country,’ said the priests, ‘will return to its former state and remain prosperous.’ ‘And after?’ asked the King. ‘Our country will be attacked by a king who will raise up the inhabitants and will take hold of their wealth.’ ‘And after?’ ‘A barbaric people, coming to the mountains of the Nile, will attack it and will be master of the largest part of the territory.’ ‘And after?’ ‘The Nile will be cut off and the country abandoned by its inhabitants.’ Then the king commanded the building of the pyramids and canals where the Nile would fill up reservoirs to a specific spot, and then would flow to certain areas of the West and the Saïd. He completed the pyramids with talismans, wonders, wealth, and idols, and he deposited within them the bodies of kings. According to his orders, priests engraved on these monuments all sayings of the wise. They wrote on every surface of the pyramids, the ceilings, foundations, and walls, all the sciences familiar to the Egyptians. They drew the figures of the stars; they wrote the names of the drugs and their useful and harmful properties, the science of talismans, mathematics, architecture—all the sciences of the world—and it was all laid out very clearly.
Having made this degree, the king had blocks cut and polished slabs of enormous size extracted from the land of the West and the rocks of the Aswan region, and thus laid the foundations of the three pyramids: East, West, and Colored. The workers had with them sheets (papyri) covered with writing, and as soon as a stone was cut and trimmed, they placed one of the sheets on the stone and gave it a blow, and the blow was enough to make it travel a distance of 100 sahmes (200 spans of the arrow), and this continued until the stone arrived at the Pyramids’ plateau. In the middle of a slab was drilled a hole; in this hole was planted vertically an iron pin, and then this was placed on the preceding slab. A second hole for the iron pin penetrated the second slab, and then molten lead was run into the hole around the pin in order to secure the two slabs and make them steadfast. This continued until the completion of the pyramid. When the monuments were complete, the king dug doors 40 cubits below ground level. The door of the East pyramid turned eastward and opens 100 cubits from the face of the pyramid. The door of the West pyramid is west and at 100 cubits from the face of the pyramid. The door of the Colored pyramid turns south and is also 100 cubits from the face of the pyramid. If this distance is dug (vertically), there is (at 40 cubits deep), the door that gives access, by vaulted corridors and masonry, to enter the pyramid. The king calculated for each of the pyramids a height above ground of 100 of his cubits, which is 500 of our current cubits. The length of each side was also 100 cubits, and the faces were calculated so that the pyramid’s height stopped eight cubits before the geometric summit. The construction of these pyramids began under favorable constellations, all chosen by mutual agreement. When they were finished, they were covered up and down with colored silk, and a feast was held which was attended by all the inhabitants of Egypt. In the Western pyramid were built thirty colored granite rooms filled with all kinds of wealth and various objects: statues of precious stones, beautiful iron tools, weapons that could not rust, malleable glass, extraordinary talismans, simple and compound drugs, and deadly poisons. In the East pyramid’s rooms were executed representations of the sky and the stars, and they were crammed with statues of the ancestors of Sūrīd, perfumes which were burned for the planets, and the books that concerned the table of the fixed stars and the table of their revolution in the course of time, the list of events of past eras under their influence, and when they must be examined to know the future of everything about Egypt until the end of time. In addition, there lay basins containing magic elixirs and such things. In the Colored pyramid, they laid the bodies of priests locked in coffins of black granite, and with each priest was a book that traced the wonders of his art that he had exercised in his actions and his life, that which had been done in his time, and all that was from the beginning and will be until the end of time. On each side of the pyramids were made representations of characters performing all kinds of work and arranged according to their importance and dignity; these representations were accompanied by a description of their occupation, the tools they needed, and everything about them. No science was neglected; these were all drawn and described. Also placed in the pyramid were the treasures given to the planets, those given to the stars, and the treasures of the priests, all vast and incalculable in value.
At each of the pyramids a guardian was assigned: The Western pyramid was placed in the custody of a statue composed of granite; this statue was standing, holding in his hand something like a spear, and wore a viper wrapped around him. As soon as someone approached the statue, the viper sprang upon him, wrapped itself around his neck, killed him, and returned to his place. The guardian of the Eastern pyramid was a stone statue spotted black and white with eyes open and bright. She was seated on a throne and held a spear. If someone looked at her, he heard on the side of the statue a terrible voice that made him fall on his face and he died there without being able to get up. At the Colored pyramid was a stone statue of an eagle set on a similar stone base. Anyone who looked at it was attracted to it, stuck to it, and could not be detached until dead. With all of this completed, the pyramids were surrounded by intangible spirits; they were the victims of sacrifice, a ceremony to protect the pyramids against those who would like to approach them, with the exception of the initiates who complete the necessary rites to enter.
The Copts tell in their books that the sides of the pyramids were engraved with a text which in their language means: ‘I am Sūrīd, the king who raised these pyramids at such and such a time. I completed the construction in six years. If someone who comes after me claims to be my equal, let him destroy them in six hundred years, for we know that it is easier to destroy than to build. I have, after completing these, covered them with silk; let another try to cover them only with mats.’ And after consideration it was recognized that the most prolonged passage of time could not destroy them.
The Copts recount that the spirit attached to the pyramid of the North is a naked yellow devil whose mouth is filled with long teeth. That of the Southern pyramid is a naked woman who reveals her natural parts; she is beautiful but her mouth is filled with long teeth. She charms men who look at her, smiles at them, draws them in, and makes them lose their reason. The spirit of the Colored pyramid is an old man holding a church censer wherein burn perfumes. Many people have seen these spirits on numerous occasions around the pyramids in the middle of the day and at sunset.
After his death, Sūrīd was buried in the pyramid and his riches and treasures with him. Sūrīd, according to the Copts, is said to have built temples, filled them with treasures and engraved on their walls all the sciences, and gave them sprits for guardians to protect them against those that may want to destroy them. The pyramids of Dahshur were said to be raised by Shadat bin ’Ādim with stones once cut by his father. According to some authors, this Shadat is the same as Haddah bin ’Ād, but those who refuse to admit that the ’Ādites entered Egypt ignore the name Shadat bin ’Ādim and instead say Shaddād bin ’Ād, a name that they have much more opportunity to say, for the other is not widely used. According to these, a single king (strange) would have entered Egypt and tamed its inhabitants; this king is Bokht-Nasr (Nebuchadnezzar). But God is the most learned!
Al-Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 2.2
After him reigned his son Harjib [= Harjit], as educated and versed as his father in magic and the art of talismans, so he executed marvelous objects. He had metals extracted, brought to light the art of chemistry, and built the pyramids of Dahshur, where he carried considerable wealth, precious stones, drugs, and poisons, and entrusted spirits to guard them. One man having wounded another, he cut off his fingers; another robbed of money, he made the thief the slave of the victim. At his death he was buried in a pyramid, and with him his riches and his treasures. After him reigned his son Minaūs [= Menāūs], who is also called Minqaūs; he was, like his father, very learned, but violent, vicious, and bloodthirsty, tearing women away from their husbands, which his relatives were also doing lawfully, according to his example. He did wonderful things and discovered treasures. He built palaces of gold and silver, watered by canals; the sand was replaced by precious stones. To govern his subjects, he chose a violent man named Qurnās [= Ḳarmās] and went to war against the peoples of the West, of which he massacred a large number, and at his death he was buried in one of his palaces and his treasures with him. On his tomb a talisman was placed to protect him and defend him against anyone who approached.
Aḥmad ibn ʻAlī Qalqashand, Subh al-a 'sha
Ibrāhīm ibn Waṣīf Shāh says in the Book of Wonders: Harjib, also one of the Egyptian kings before the Flood, is said to have built the great pyramid which stands at Dahshur, and the second was built by Qofṭarīm ibn Qoft ibn Qobtīm ibn Misr ibn Peisar ibn Ham ibn Noah after the Flood.
Al-Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 2.2
After him, his son Afrūs [= Afrāūs] reigned, as well-versed as his father in knowledge and science. From the moment of his advent, he showed justice and equity, and restored to their husbands the wives which his father had taken away. He built a dome five hundred cubits long and a hundred cubits wide, and placed on its flanks copper birds, whistling in different ways for an hour without stopping. In the middle of the city of Amsūs, he raised a tower, at the top of which was a human head of copper that uttered a cry whenever one of the hours of the day or night had passed, and whoever heard this cry knew that an hour had passed. He raised another tower surmounted by a dome of gilded copper, and covered with ointments; and every night. As soon as the sun was down, a light shone from the dome, illuminating the city of Amsūs all night long, so that one would have thought it was daylight; and neither the wind nor the rain could extinguish that light which disappeared at the moment when the day was rising. He sent as a present to a king of Babel a bottle of emerald, the diameter of which was five spans; this bottle was found, it is said, after the Deluge. He also had a colossal statue erected in the Mountain of the East standing on a pedestal; this statue was painted, and the yellow parts were reproduced with gold; his face was constantly directed towards the sun, and turned at the same rate as it until the sun set; during the night the statue continued its revolution, and at dawn was facing the east, it face turned toward the rising sun. He built numerous cities in the Western desert, which he provided with magnificent treasures. He slept with three hundred women without children, for God had rendered their wombs sterile, having decided to destroy the world by the Flood and to bring destruction upon men and animals. At his death, he was placed in a tomb, in the Mountain of the East, and with him, his wealth and a talisman to protect him.
After him reigned Armālīnūs, who executed marvelous works, built cities and palaces, and multiplied the talismans. He had a cousin named Far’ān who was audacious. He removed him by putting him at the head of an army with which he set out, subjugating kings, slaughtering numerous peoples, and plundering their riches; on his return, one of the king’s wives fell in love with him, and did not let him rest until he joined him; they thus bound themselves and remained for a long time like this. Then they were afraid that the king would discover them, and the woman prepared for Armālīnūs a poisoned drink of which he died.
After him, his cousin Far’ān ibn Mashūr reigned. No one dared to stand up to him because of his violence and skill, and he had reigned a short time when the priest Qlimun had a dream in which white birds seemed to descend from heaven and say, “Whoever wants salvation, let him go to the master of the ark.” The Egyptians had already known of the coming of the Flood since the time of Sūrīd, and it was for this reason that the pyramids had been built and people had made glass-clad subterranean chambers where the winds had been carefully imprisoned. Far’ān had made a number for himself and his family. Qlimūn did not hesitate, and bringing together his parents, his children, and his disciples, he went to Noah and embraced his faith. He stayed with him and went up with him to the Ark. The Flood then came under the reign of Far’ān; Egypt was completely submerged, its buildings destroyed and its sciences destroyed. The water stayed on the ground for six months and went up to half the height of the largest pyramids, and if it pleases God, we will give some account of this event in the chapter of this book which deals with the calamities of Egypt. — It is said that Far’ān was arrogant and cruel, that he seized wealth and kidnapped women, and that he wrote to al-Darshīl bin Lawīl of Babel, advising him to kill Noah because Noah despised the priests and temples. In his time, the land of Egypt was altered, the fields were reduced to almost nothing, the two regions destroyed, because both, marrying his errors and his crimes, were associated with his entertainments and his games; people followed the same path as him, and vice spread from one to the other. When the Flood came and the rain began to fall, Far’ān, drunk, got up to flee to the [Great] Pyramid; but the earth opened before him as he reached the door. His feet failed him, and he fell, helpless and shouting, and all who had taken refuge in the tunnels died of consumption. And God is the most learned.
Al-Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 2.2
Master Ibrāhīm ibn Waṣīf Shāh, the writer, after reporting the history of the city of Amsūs and the destruction of its buildings by the Flood of Noah, adds: “The waters having withdrawn, the first who reigned in Egypt after the flood was Baīṣar son of Ham, son of Noah: he was accompanied by thirty persons, the most courageous of his family and his children; all gathered and built the city of Memphis, where they settled. With them was the priest Qlimūn, who was mentioned above regarding the city of Amsūs. This priest had married his daughter to Baīṣar, and she had accompanied her husband to Egypt, where she gave him a son named Miṣraīm. Baīṣar having died, he was buried in the convent of Abu Hermes, a name given, it is said, to the region west of the Pyramids. There, it is claimed, was the first cemetery in Egypt where they buried people. The death of Baīṣar came 1806 years after the time of the Flood.” […]
Al-Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 2.57
Master Ibrāhīm ibn Waṣīf Shāh, speaking of Miṣraīm, son of Ham, son of Noah, said: “He was a delicate boy, and when he came into the vicinity of Egypt, he pitched a tent of branches lined with grasses of the fields. Then, in the same place he built a city which was called Darsān, that is to say, “the Gate of Paradise.” The space stretching from Darsān to the sea was planted with trees and gardens. It was a succession of gardens, meadows and dwellings.
Al-Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 1.43
Ibrāhīm ibn Waṣīf Shāh, speaking of the arrival of Miṣraīm ibn Baīṣar ibn Ham ibn Noah in the land of Egypt, says: The companions of the priest Aqlimūn [= Philemon] brought to light the treasures of the Egyptians and their manuscripts, containing the sciences exhibited in berabi writing; they cleared out their monuments and found the mines of gold, emeralds and turquoises, etc. They restored the description of the arts, that is, of alchemy. And Miṣraīm instituted as chief of alchemy a man of the priestly caste named Muqaītam the Sage, who exercised his art on the eastern mountain, which took from him the name of Muqattam, because Muqaītam the Sage practiced alchemy there. The name of the sage was abridged, and this abbreviation served to designate the mountain, which was called Mount Muqattam, that is to say, mountain of Muqaītam the Sage.
Al-Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 2.2
[probable] After Baīṣar reigned his son Miṣraīm (also called Masr) ibn Baīṣar. Qlimūn discovered for him the treasures of Egypt, taught him his writing, and instructed him in the science of the Egyptians. Miṣraīm founded cities, dug canals, planted trees and built a beautiful city to which he gave the name of Darsan and which is the same as Al-Arish. From a woman of the caste of priests he had a son named Qoftim; then he built the city of Raqūdah, the site of the future Alexandria. When he died, they made for him an underground chamber 150 cubits long, all covered with white marble; in the middle was a pedestal covered with gold leaf and provided with four doors above each of which was a golden statue, bearing on its head a crown of gold and sitting on a golden throne with feet of emerald. On the breast of each statue were engraved words intended to protect the body, enclosed in a basin in the shape of a human body, made of green emerald and 40 cubits long. With him was buried all that was contained in his treasures: gold, silver, and precious stones. Among these were a thousand pieces of cut emerald, a thousand statuettes of precious stones, a thousand gold vases filled with admirable pearls, a thousand gold cups, a large number of silver ingots. A talisman was placed on his body to defend him against anyone who attempted to approach, and the tomb was engraved: “Miṣraīm, son of Baīṣar, son of Ham, son of Noah, died 2,600 years (or 2,700, according to others) after the Flood. He never worshiped idols, and went to the garden where there is no old age, no sickness, no grief, and no sadness.” He wrote here the name of the very great God who will not allow anyone to approach him, except for a king who will appear at the end of time and who will proclaim the religion of the King of Justice and believe in the resurrection, in the Holy Book, and the Prophet and propagator of the True Faith at the end of the ages. Then huge rocks were rolled over the subterranean chamber, and sand was spread over them, forming a barrier between two opposite mountains.
Al-Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 2.4
Ibrāhīm ibn Waṣīf Shāh, speaking of the stories related to Miṣraīm ibn Baīṣar, son of Noah, adds: He also taught them to make talismans; as the beasts came out of the sea and devastated their fields, their gardens, and their dwellings, talismans were made against them, and these beasts disappeared, never to return. They built, somewhere other than on the river, towns, among which Raqūdah, on the site of Alexandria. In the middle of Raqūdah was raised, on columns of gilded copper, a gilded dome also surmounted by a mirror made of various mixed substances; the diameter of this mirror was five spans, and the dome was a hundred cubits high. If, among the people who surrounded Egypt, and some of whom envied Egypt, there was someone who wanted to attack the Egyptians from the seacoast, the mirror, by means of some artifice, began to throw flames in the direction of the attackers and set them on fire. This mirror remained standing for a long time, but was overturned by the sea. It is said that it was in imitation of this mirror that Alexander built his tower, on which was also placed a mirror where one could see the attackers coming from the country of Rūm. But some king of this country, using cunning, sent an emissary who managed to overthrow this mirror, which was composed of glass.
Al-Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 2.9
Ibn Waṣīf Shāh, after recalling the story of Miṣraīm ibn Baīṣar ibn Ham ibn Noah, adds: They built on the sea cities, among others Raqūdah, location of the future Alexandria, and they placed in the middle a dome placed on pillars of golden copper; the dome was also golden. Above the dome was raised a tower surmounted by a mirror formed of various substances and whose diameter was five spans. The height of the dome was one hundred cubits. If any of the peoples of the vicinity wanted to attack and destroy them, or advanced towards the sea, the rays of this mirror were directed at the arrivals and burned them. The mirror preserved this virtue until it was overthrown and destroyed by the sea. Alexander, it is said, only rebuilt a lighthouse similar to the first, on which he also placed a mirror, where one could see enemies from the country of Rūm. But some king of Rūm managed, by trickery, to put an end to the protective virtue of this mirror which was made of glass prepared with art.
Al-Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 2.29
When Miṣraīm, says Master Ibrāhīm ibn Waṣīf Shāh, saw death coming, he made his recommendations to his son Qobtīm; he had previously divided the land between his children and assigned to Qobtīm the territory between Qoft and Aswan; to Ashmūn the region stretching from Ashmūn to Memphis; to Atrīb the entire Jauf, and to Ṣā from the city of Ṣā by Beheirah to the vicinity of Barqa. To his brother Farīq, he said: “I give you the territory that extends from Barqa to the West”; and Farīq became the master of Ifrīkīah and his descendants were Afarīq [i.e., the Africans]. And Miṣraīm commanded each of his sons to build a city in his own province.
Al-Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 2.2
[probable] After him reigned his son Qobtīm [= Qofṭīm], also called Qoft ibn Miṣraīm. He was the first to do marvelous things after the Flood, extracting metals, digging canals, building stelae and towers, and making talismans.
Al-Maqrizi, The History of the Copts 1
Master Ibrahim Ben Wasif Shah, the writer, says that the Qibt [Copts] descend from Qibtim, son of Misraim, son of Misr, son of Ham, son of Noah. That Qibtim was the first to do wonders in Misr [Egypt]; he worked the mines, and dug water-courses while ruling the land of Misr, after his father Misraim. He lived until the confusion of tongues, and came from it with the [Qibtieh] Coptic language which he knew; and died after a reign of eighty years. His sons and his people lamented together over his death, and buried him on the eastern side of the Nile, in a cave under the Great Mountain; and his son Qaphtorim then reigned in his stead over Misr.
Al-Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 2.69
Qaftarīm [= Qofṭarīm] took power after his father Qobtīm. He was, according to Ibn ibn Waṣīf Shāh the eldest and dearest of his father’s children. He was brave and tall, and it was he who laid the foundations of the pyramids of Dahshur and elsewhere. He also built the city of Dendera and the city of idols. At the end of his reign, ’Ād was destroyed by the wind. He obtained in the mines more metals than any of his predecessors. He had gold ingots as big as millstones, enormous emeralds like pillars, and in the desert of the West, blocks of white lead like castles. He made a great number of wonderful things. On the mountain of Qoft he raised a tower from which one could see the Eastern Sea, and he discovered in the same mountain mines of mercury from which he made statues as high as mountains that did not disintegrate or liquify. He also excavated the pond called Siadat al-Teīr (the bird hunter): if a bird passed over this pond, it fell and could not move until it had been taken. This pond, it is said, still exists today, but the tower collapsed. The king commissioned many wonders, and it was in his time that the cult of the idols that had been drowned by the Flood, which the demon had established, were again, by perfidy, worshiped by the people. This prince, it is said, founded the cities of the interior and placed therein wonderful objects; to the west of the Nile, beyond the oases of the interior, he built cities which he provided with many marvels to which were attached protective djinn; no one could approach or enter these cities without first making an offering to these spirits. Qaftarīm reigned 480 years and most of the wonderful objects were executed by him and his son Būdsīr [= Al-Būdashīr]. Therefore, the Saīd possessed more wonders than the Delta; Qaftarīm lived there. When death approached, the prince had a tomb made in the western mountain, near the city of the priests, in an underground corridor supported on vaults descending to the ground. He cut into the mountain a vast palace surrounded by niches cut into the wall; he reserved in the ceiling a corridor for the passage of the air, and he paved the floor and the rest of the building in marble. In the middle of the table he had a bench placed on eight feet, covered with melted crystal of various colors; in the ceiling were placed luminous stones and at each corner of the bench were statues of gold holding trumpets which they were blowing. Under the dome, another bench was plated with gold and mounted with emeralds; on the bench was a bed of silk where his body was placed after having been coated with preservatives. Beside him were placed small containers of camphor, and the body was covered with golden robes, the face remaining uncovered. He was wearing the royal crown, and near the bench stood four hollow glass statues of women with golden fans. On his chest, and over the clothes, was a precious sword with an emerald handle. They placed in storage chests all the treasures of the king, gold bars, crowns, jewels, hieroglyphics dealing with the sciences, and all sorts of drugs and talismans, and books of science in innumerable quantities. On the door was fixed a rooster of gold perched on a pedestal of green glass, with the wings extended; on this cock were engraved preservative formulas. At the entrance of each of the vaults two copper statues had been erected, holding swords in their hands, with their feet resting on slabs under which was hidden a mechanism. Whoever approached these statues was struck by their swords and died. On the ceiling of each vault was suspended a ball coated with a prepared ointment which remained luminous indefinitely. The door of the vaults was closed by blocks of lead. Above them, they laidhuge slabs and the gaps were filled with sand. On the door of the passageway they wrote: “This is the entrance that leads to the body of the superb king, the dreaded, generous, and vigorous Qaftarīm, endowed with valor and power, strength and victory. His star is in eclipse, but his memory and remembrance have remained. No one will be able to penetrate to him or reach him by any means until seven hundred and seventy revolutions of years have been completed.”
Al-Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 2.71
It is said, says Ibn Waṣīf Shāh, that Qaftorīm built the cities of the interior and made wonderful things, among others, water that stood in the form of a column without breaking apart or liquifying; from him also came the pond named Falesṭīn, that is to say, the taker of birds; indeed, if a bird passed over this pond, it fell into it and could not go out until it was taken. He also made a stone column surmounted by the image of a bird; if lions, serpents, or other evil beasts approached the city, the bird uttered a shrill whistle that put the animals to flight. At the four gates of this city he had erected four copper statues, which a stranger could not approach without falling into deep sleep; he fell asleep beside the statue and could only wake up if the people of the city came to blow in his face to remind him. If they neglected to do so, the sleeper continued his sleep near the statue, and finished it only at death. This same prince built an elegant turret of colored glass, placed on a pedestal of copper and surmounted by a statue made of a great number of compound substances and holding in its hand a bow from which it seemed to shoot arrows. If a stranger placed his gaze on the statue, he remained fixed in his place until the people of the city came to him. This statue itself indicated the direction of the four winds. It is still there today, it is said, but one abstains from going to this city, in spite of the considerable quantity of treasures and marvels that one meets there, for fear of this statue, because one dreads to gaze upon it. It shall remain standing until it destroys itself. Some king wanted to tear it down, but he could not succeed, and in this attempt, a large number of people perished. It is said that Qaftorīm set up a mirror in one of the cities in the interior, where one could see all that was asked of it; he also built at city to the west of the Nile and beyond the oases of the interior, where he performed many wonders; to watch over them he assigned spirits who forbade any approach, and no one could approach or enter without having first brought offerings to these spirits. One can still go to this city today, and one can take what one wants of its treasures without obstacle and without punishment.
Al-Maqrizi, History of the Copts and Their Church 2
Know that the Qibt of Misr [the Copts of Egypt] were in past ages a people of believers in false gods. They worshipped the stars, they offered sacrifices to them, and set up figures with names on them, as the Sabians did. Ibn Wasif Shah says, that the worship of idols first began in Misr, in the days of Qaphtorim, son of Qibtim, son of Misra'im, son of Bisr, son of Ham, son of Noah; that Eblis [the devil] set up the idols that had been thrown down by the flood, and [made it] an honour for the Qibt to serve them. So that Budsir, son of Qaphtorim, was the first soothsayer and worker of magic arts; and Menāush, son of Menqāus, was the first of the people of Misr to worship kine.
Al-Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 1.15
At that time, says Master Ibrāhīm ibn Waṣīf Shāh, there reigned Al-Būdashīr, a mighty king, who was the first to employ enchantments and magic, and could make himself invisible. His uncles, Ashmūn, Atrīb, and Ṣā each reigned in his province, but Al-Būdashīr subdued them by his bravery and his courage, and, like his father, his fame surpassed that of the kings who preceded him; thus he was more powerful than his uncles and they had to submit to him. It is said that he sent the Egyptian priest Hermes to Mt. Qūmr (the Mountain of the Moon), at the foot of which is the source of the Nile. Hermes’ mission was to raise (at the source of the river) bronze statues and to restore the lake from which the river’s waters flow. It was, they say, this priest who restored the two banks of the Nile, whose waters had been lost in the ground and whose course was sometimes interrupted. The palace where the statues were erected contained eighty-five figures built by Hermes to bring Nile water through pipes and hoses through which the water flowed. On leaving Mt. Qūmr, water entered a statue and came out through its mouth. Hermes then established a carefully graduated scale of known cubits. All the water was thus brought down to the various beds of the river which led to two lakes from which it emerged to enter into another lake which gathered together all of the output of water at the foot of the mountain. Through these statues, Hermes regularized the river that was to bring to Egypt fertility and well-being, and thus what had been harmful now became useful.
The water level was to reach eighteen of these cubits, each of which contained thirty-two fingers. All the surplus was directed, by means of canals, to the right and to the left of the statutes, and spread through the sands and across the countryside, beyond the equator, where it went unused. Without this precaution, the waters of the Nile would have submerged the country they water.
Al-Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 2.73
“Al-Būdsīr [= Al-Būdashīr],” said Ibn Waṣīf Shāh, “went to the West to see what was there; he discovered an immense territory furrowed with waters and springs and covered with grass. There he built towers and houses of pleasure, and established there a great number of people of his house who cultivated the country and built there so that all the land of the West was populated. It stayed that way for a long time. Then came the Berbers, who mixed with the inhabitants by marriages. Afterward, there arose misunderstanding and discord; wars came about that ruined the country, and the population disappeared, except for a few points called the Oases.”
Al-Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 1.10
Master Ibrāhīm ibn Waṣīf Shāh said that King ’Adīm, son of Naqtarim, was a violent and proud prince, tall in stature. It was he who ordered the rocks cut to make the pyramids, as had been done by the ancients. In his time there lived two angels cast out of heaven, and who lived in the well of Aftarah; these two angels taught magic to the Egyptians, and it is said that ‘Adīm, the son of Al-Būdashīr, learned most of their sciences, after which the two angels went to Babel. Egyptians, especially the Copts, assure us that these were actually two demons named Mahla and Bahala, not two angels, and that the two are at Babel in a well, where witches meet, and they will remain there until the Day of Judgment. Since that time, they worshiped idols. It is Satan, they say, who made them known to men and raised them for men. According to others, it was Badura who raised the first idol, and the first idol erected was the Sun, yet others claim that Nimrod ordered the first idols raised and the worship of them. It was also said that ’Adīm first made use of the crucifixion, for this purpose: a woman married to a person of the court had adulterous relations with a man of the artisan class. The king ordered them crucified on two poles, the back of one of the culprits facing the back of the other; and on each post was written the names of perpetrators, their crime, and the date of punishment. Therefore, adultery ceased. This king built four cities where all kinds of wonderful objects and talismans were deposited, and there he buried considerable treasures. To the east, he erected a tower on the summit of which was placed a statue turned towards the rising sun, both hands extended to prevent the creatures of the sea and the desert from crossing its borders; on its chest was engraved the date of its construction. This statue is said to have remained standing up to now; if it had disappeared, the waters of the East Sea would have invaded the land of Egypt. The same king also made a bridge over the Nile, to the point where Nubia begins; on this bridge he drew up four statues facing the four cardinal points; each of them was armed with two javelins to strike those who advanced on his side. These statues remained upright until the day they were destroyed by the Pharaoh of Moses. This king also had a temple erected at the door of Nubia, which has remained standing to this day. In one of the four towns of which we have just spoken, he had another black granite basin, filled with water, which never during the course of time was diminished or spoiled, for the builder captured the humidity from the air; the people of the country as well as the inhabitants of the city drank this water without it diminishing. The king had built this reservoir because the city was very far from the Nile. Some Coptic priests believe that this water remained consistent because of the proximity of the sea, where the heat of the sun produced fogs, which either by mechanical means or by magic, were partly resolved into water that was brought into this tank, using elements such as coolness or using the force of the wind; in any case, no matter the weather, this water did not diminish, whatever the people drank. This king also made a pretty cup which enjoyed the same properties, and which Hūamīl offered to King Alexander the Great. ‘Adīm reigned over the Egyptians for a hundred and forty years, and he died at the age of seven hundred and thirty years. He was buried in one of his marvelous cities or, according to others, in the desert of Qoft.
Some Copts say that ‘Adīm’s tomb was built in the Qoft Desert on the surface of the ground, under a cupola of bright green glass on top of which was placed a golden ball surmounted by a bird of gold encrusted with precious stones, with outstretched wings, charged with defending the entrance to the dome. The dimensions of the monument were one hundred square cubits. In the middle, the body of the king was laid out, on a braided gold bed, and a cloth of gold was spread over him and intertwined with jewels arranged with artistry. The height of the dome was forty cubits; one hundred and seventy manuscripts of scientific works were deposited inside, and seven tables with their services: a table of pomegranate-red beads with similar service; a golden table of Qlimūn, with service of the same metal; a table of the bright sunstone with its service (this stone is the emerald that makes the eyes of the vipers watching it melt); a table of worked red sulfur, and its service; a table of worked and brilliant white salt, with its service, and a table of solid mercury. Many jewels were enclosed in the dome, vases of magnificent workmanship, and around the body seven swords and cuirasses of brilliant white iron and handsome work, statues of gold horses harnessed with golden saddles and seven golden sarcophagi filled with dinars on which was depicted the image of the king; and all sorts of drugs, poisons, and medicines enclosed in stone vases were deposited with him. People who have seen this mausoleum claim to have remained for days and days without being able to reach it, and finally having approached it at a distance of eight cubits, the dome began to turn to the right and to the left, and, among other marvelous facts, they related that, passing from vault to vault, they never saw any other image than that which they had seen from the preceding vault; they said that they had seen the king’s face a cubit and a half long, and his beard very long and uncovered; they measured the length of his body and it reached ten cubits and more. Those who saw the mausoleum say that, having gone out for some work, they had discovered it by chance, so they had questioned the people of Qoft about it and only one old man could answer them.
King ‘Adīm recommended that his son Shedab bin ‘Adīm raise in each province of his empire a column on which he would write his name. So Shedab went to Ashmunein, erected a column, and inscribed his name on it. There he also built amphitheaters, and in the desert of Ashmunein he erected a tower surmounted by a two-headed statue dedicated to the two planets which were in conjunction at the time of its erection. From thence he went to Athrib, and built there a magnificent dome, high on columns and pillars erected above each other; at the top of the cupola was placed a small golden statue. He also built a temple for the planets and left for the district of Ṣā. There he erected a tower surmounted by a mirror made of mixed substances and in which one could see each province, then he left. Shedab bin ‘Adīm also built the temple of Armant, in which statues were erected in the name of the planets and made of all kinds of metals; this temple was beautifully decorated: It was encrusted with jewels and colored glasses, and covered with silk and brocade. In the towns of the interior, from Antinoë, he built a temple and built another at Athribis, his residence; it was he who raised the temple east of Alexandria. He also erected a black granite statue on the western bank of the Nile, and on the eastern bank he built several cities: In one of them was a standing statue of a man with his penis: If any man who was helpless or bewitched and unable to perform the sex act approached and rubbed the phallus with his hand, his manhood returned and he could perform coitus. In another of these cities was the image of a cow with enormous udders: if the milk of a woman dried up, it had only to approach the cow and rub it with her two hands for her milk to reappear. The same king again made a talisman in the district of Assiut to attract crocodiles. These animals came in throngs to Akhmim via the Nile, where they were killed, and their skins made into boats and other useful things.
Al-Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 2.74
Sedan [= Shaddāt] ibn ‘Adīm, says Ibn Waṣīf Shāh, is the one who built the pyramids of Dahshur with stones carved in his father’s time. He made the Nirandjat [1] books and the Armant Temple. He also erected a temple at Antinoë, a town in the interior; he established his residence at Athrīb and built a temple east of Alexandria. On the eastern bank of the river, he founded cities. It was in his time that Qūs, the high city, was built, where a whole population of scientists and artists was installed. The Ethiopians and the Blacks having invaded the country, he sent against them his son Minqaūs [= Manqāūs] at the head of a considerable army. He killed and took a number of them and enslaved those he had taken. This way of acting became for them a traditional custom. He opened the country’s gold mines and ordered his prisoners to work there and bring him the gold. He was the first to enjoy hunting, capture animals of prey, and obtain the breed of Slūghi dogs [= dogs of Salūq] by crossing wolves and domestic dogs. He executed talismans and wonders of all kinds in countless numbers.
[1] The French translator did not recognize the word, but it is an Arabicization of a Persian word referring to magic and the occult sciences: nīranğ, plural: nīranğīat.
Al-Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 1.10
King Manqāūs built a temple surrounded by statues assigned to all infirmities. On the head of each of them, he wrote the name of the illness that it cured. People used it for a long time, until a certain king overthrew them. He also made the statue of a woman with a smiling face that a distressed person could not look at without being relieved of his grief and sorrow. People approached her one by one, circled her and adored her, and this statue became one of the deities they honored afterwards. He raised another gilded bronze statue with two wings, which could not be passed by adulterers or fornicators, without them showing their nakedness; it was by means of this statue that adulteries were discovered, and this crime was no longer committed for fear of the statue. In the reign of Qalqūn, one of the wives of this prince developed a desire for one of his servants, but she was afraid of being discovered by the statue. So, one day, talking with the king, she turned the conversation on the adulterous, overwhelming them with invective and sarcasm. Qalqūn spoke to him about the statue and its virtue. “The king speaks truthfully,” replied the queen, “but Manqāūs was not very wise, for he took, as well as his sages, much trouble for the welfare of his people, and not for his own. It would have been better for him to erect the statue in the royal palace where his wives and slaves are, and if any of them had committed adultery, it would have been known and caught. The stature would have been a brake on the desires that would have fallen in their hearts.” “You are right," said Qalqūn, who sincerely believed the queen’s opinion; and he had the statue removed from the place it occupied to carry it to his palace; but she lost her virtue and the woman fulfilled her desire.
The same Manqāūs also had a temple built on Mount Quṣaīr, where magicians resided who did not allow the winds to favor the passage of the ships until after the latter had paid a tax which the magicians imposed on the king’s behalf.
Al Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 1.27
Ibn Waṣīf Shāh said: Manqāūs divided the revenues of the country into four parts: a quarter for the king who did with it what he wanted; another quarter allocated to the expenses necessary for the improvement of the land, the repair of the dikes, the cleaning of the canals, and the relief to be given to the inhabitants for cultivation; a quarter was buried in anticipation of unfortunate events that could occur; the last quarter was assigned to the army. At that time, the country’s revenues amounted to one hundred and three million dinars from one hundred and three districts, one million per district. Each of these dinars was worth, it is said, ten of our Muslim miṯqāl. Today Egypt is divided into eighty-five nomes, forty-five for lower Egypt and forty for Saīd; each of these nomes is administered by a priest and a military commander.
Al Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 2.66
When, says Ibn Waṣīf Shāh, King Manqāūs rode on horseback, the most astonishing performances were made before him; the crowd pressed to admire the execution. This king had a particular temple built for prayer, in which he placed a dome containing the image of the sun and planets, and which he surrounded with statues and marvelous objects. He went there on horseback and stayed for seven days. He erected two columns on which he inscribed the date of the construction, and these two columns still exist now; this is the place called Ain Shams. He brought tither treasures, talismans, drugs, and marvelous artifacts that he buried in Ain Shams and the surrounding area. After a reign of 91 years, this king died of the plague, according to some, or poison, according to others; a tomb was dug in the desert of the West or, according to another version, in the West of Qūṣ; they buried with him books of science and art, statues of gold, jewels, and a considerable quantity of gold coins. At the same time, they buried the statue of the spirit of the Sun in bright gold with two emerald wings, and the image of his wife. He loved her very much, and when she died, he placed her statue in the temples. This statue was of gold with two black tresses and wore a coat of precious stones arranged with art; the woman was represented sitting on a throne, and the king had it placed before him wherever he himself sat, to try to console himself for his loss. This statue was buried with him and placed at his feet, as if she were speaking to him.
Al-Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 78
This is what Ibn Waṣīf Shāh says: Minaūsh [= Menāūs] reigned in his turn and sought wisdom like his father. He had books brought to light, was generous to those who cultivated them, and showered them with gifts. He sought to attain the highest degree of perfection in the execution of marvelous objects; each of their kings, moreover, had endeavored to do for himself things which none of his predecessors had done. He strengthened himself in the knowledge of their books and had their annals engraved on stone. Minaūsh was also the first among the Egyptians who worshiped cows, and here is the reason: He had been afflicted with a disease so serious that he despaired for his life when, in a dream, he saw a gigantic djinn who told him, “You will not heal from your pain unless you consent to kiss the cow; for the constellation that presided over your horoscope is that of the two-horned bull. And Minaūsh did what the djinn asked; he had a pied bull brought to him and made them prepare a room for it in his palace, surmounted by a golden dome which was perfumed with incense. A special guard was charged to stand near him, and to clean its litter. The king who came to worship him, unbeknownst to his subjects, was cured of his illness. He was the first to use chariots during his illness. These chariots were surmounted by cabins with wooden domes, and those of his servants and his wives who so desired could have one of the same, and bulls dragged the chariot from place to place and from one place of pleasure to the other. When he arrived at a pleasant place, the king stopped there, and every time he passed through some ruined place, he had it restored. It is said that having seen that the bull who was dragging his chariot was pied and of an admirable form, he promised to give it special care and to have it march before him, so much did he like it. He even had it covered with a brocade cover. One day, finding himself in a remote place, far from his slaves and his servants, he approached the bull, which remained standing. And behold: The animal spoke and said to him, “If the king exempts me from walking, puts me in a temple, and adores me, and if he orders his subjects to adore me, I will fulfill everything for him that he will require; I will help him in his undertakings, I will make him strong in his kingdom and remove all calamity from him.” The frightened king ordered that the bull to be washed, perfumed, placed in a temple and worshiped. For a long time, this bull was so adored. Wonderful thing! The animal did not urinate or defecate; he ate only the ends of the green leaves of the reeds once a month. This confused the minds of the people. Such was the origin of the cult of the cow.
Menaūsh built redoubts in which he buried treasures, and on which he erected stelae. In the western desert, he built a town called Dīmās, in which he erected a tower and buried the heroes around him. This city, it is said, is still standing, and people who had come from the West and had gone astray have heard the hissing of the djinn and have seen a light reflected there. In Egyptian books it is said that this bull, who had been worshiped for a long time, ordered them to execute his image in hollow gold, to collect hairs from his head and tail, and the powder from his horns and hooves to be placed in the statue; then he told them that he was returning whence he had come, and ordered them to place his body in a sarcophagus of red stone and bury him in the temple, setting his statue on the sarcophagus at the moment when Saturn was at its apogee and in opposition to the Sun in the third quarter of the moon, while this star is in its greatest brilliance; the signs of the seven planets still had to be engraved on the statue. This was done, and the statue was adorned with all sorts of jewels, and instead of eyes, two enormous pearls were inlaid. After placing it in the sarcophagus, a tree was planted on his body in the temple; and they built a tower, eighty cubits high, which for a week changed every day of color, and returned every seven days to the first color. The temple was covered with all kinds of hangings, and a Nile canal was brought to the temple. Around the sarcophagus were talismanic statues with a monkey’s head and a human body, each of which was to ward off an evil and provide a good. At the four gates of the temple were placed four idols, under each of which were buried all sorts of treasures, for each statue were fixed offerings and incense, and these statues were placed in the tree. The city was known as the City of the Tree, and from this tree all the species of trees were derived.
[possible] Minaūsh was the first to celebrate Nūrūz in Egypt and his day was built Bahnasa. He erected pillars supporting a room of yellow glass surmounted by a golden dome which, at sunrise, sent the sun’s rays back to the city. Minaūsh reigned, it is said, over the Copts for 830 years, and was buried in one of the small pyramids of the South, or, according to others, west of Ashmunein. With him were buried a great quantity of silver, jewels and marvelous objects, the images (?) of the seven planets which see the dead and the living (?), a thousand gold and silver lamps, ten a thousand cups and vases of gold, silver, and glass, and a thousand useful ingredients in all kinds of arts. And on his tomb were engraved his name, the duration of his reign, and the time of his death.
Al Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 1.10
Menāūs, son of Manqāūs, built a town in the western desert, near the city of the magicians; it was called Qantarat and it was full of wonderful things. In the middle of the city, the king raised a dome, above which was a sort of cloud that in summer and winter produced a light rain; under the dome was a reservoir filled with green water, which served to treat and cure all diseases. To the east, he built a superb temple with four double doors. On each door was represented a head that was talking to its neighbor about the events of the day. Whosoever entered the temple in a state of uncleanness, the two figures of the door blew upon, and the impure man was seized with a violent tremor that left him only when he fell dead. It is said that in the middle of this temple the light descended in the form of a column, and whoever managed to kiss it could perceive the spirits distinctly, hear their words, and see their actions. At each gate of this city was the statue of a monk holding in his hands a manual treating some of the sciences. Those who wanted to know this science had only to approach the monk and rub the book with his two hands, which he then passed over his chest, and instantly this science was fixed in his chest. These two cities were, it is said, built in the name of Hermes, who is the same as Mercury, and still remains in the same state. It is said that a man came one day to meet ‘Abd al-‘Azīz ibn Marwān, Emir of Egypt [685-705 CE], and told him that, having lost his way in the desert of the East, he had come upon a ruined city where there was a tree producing all kinds of fruit, that he had eaten it and had collected a supply of it. A Copt assured him that it was one of the two cities of Hermes, and that there must be considerable treasures there. ‘Abd al-‘Azīz sent the man with an escort and a supply of water and provisions, but they searched the desert for months without finding any trace of the city.
Al-Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 2.79
Ashmūn, said Ibn Waṣīf Shāh, was the fairest of his father’s children, and the most eager to carry out lasting works capable of perpetuating his memory. It was he who built the rooms clad in colored glass in the middle of the Nile, and, according to the Copts, it is he who dug a subterranean passage which led from Ashmunein to Antinoë while passing under the Nile. According to the report, he dug it and built it for his daughters who went to the temple of the sun. This underground corridor was plated on the floor, the walls, and the ceiling, with thick colored glass. Ashmūn, it is said, reigned longer than his brethren: According to historians, he reigned for eight thousand years. After the 600th year of his reign, the people of ’Ād took away the kingdom and held it for seventy years, after which they withdrew by the Hejaz to Al Dathimah and to the Wadi Qūra which they cultivated, and where they built houses and workshops. It was then that God caused a calamity to fall on this people and destroyed them, and the government of Egypt returned to Ashmūn. It is said that this prince placed a copper goose at the gate of Ashmunein which, if some stranger came to enter the city, uttered a cry, waving its wings and so the people were warned of the foreigner’s coming, and could choose to send him away or let him in. In his time, the serpents having multiplied, they were hunted and from their flesh, they prepared drugs and remedies. Then, with the help of magic, they were pushed back to the valley of snakes (salt) in the mountains of Libya and Maraqiah where they remained imprisoned.
Al-Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 2.72
The city of Santariah [= Shantarah] is part of the Oasis and was built by Minaqiūsh [= Menāqiūs], the builder of the city of Akhmim, one of the ancient kings of the Copts. He had, said Ibn Waṣīf Shāh, the resolution and firmness of his father and was admired by the Egyptians. It was he who first built carousels and ordered his companions to exercise there. He was the first to build a hospital for people with acute and chronic conditions; he provided him with remedies and doctors, for which he paid a great deal, and placed administrators there. He established for himself a festival in which people gathered near him; he called it the “Feast of the King”: It took place on a certain day of the year; they ate and drank for seven days, and the king watched, seated on a throne set on columns, clad in gold necklaces and splendid garments, and gold brooches. Above the king rose a dome, inlaid with marble, glass, and gold. It was in the time of this king that Santariah was built in the desert of the Oases. He made it square and of white stones; in each wall a door opened from which a boulevard led to the opposite wall. Each boulevard had doors on the right and on the left opening onto streets leading to the center of the city. There was an amphitheater, with seven rows of tiers running around it, and it was surmounted by a dome of varnished wood resting on magnificent marble columns. In the middle of the amphitheater stood a marble tower surmounted by a statue of black granite, which turned at the same rate as the sun. On all sides under the dome hung statuettes that whistled and spoke in different languages. The king took his place on the highest level of the circus, having with him his sons, his family, and the princes; on the second tier sat the chiefs of the priests and viziers; on the third, the chiefs of the army; on the fourth, philosophers, astronomers, physicians, and masters of science; on the fifth, architects; on the sixth, the heads of the guilds, and on the seventh, the common folk. And each of the classes was instructed “to look at those who were below you and not those who are above you, because you will never be able to match them,” and this is the best course of action. Minaqiūsh’s wife killed him by stabbing, and he died after a reign of sixty years.
Al-Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 2.80
This prince, reports Ibn Waṣīf Shāh, was patient and resolute. He began to cultivate agriculture, build villages, build stelae, and collect the works of science and books left by kings and sages. He made wonderful things and built a city where he retired. This city was surrounded by a rampart on which were raised four stelae, one at each corner; between the stelae were eighty copper statues, holding various weapons in their hands, and each bearing on its breast an inscription mentioning its virtues. There was in Memphis a man of the caste of priests, one of the most versed men in magic, who taught them to take crocodiles and wild beasts; he taught magic to young men, and when they had become skilled, he taught it to still others. The king built a city for this priest, and this city is Akhmim. Minaqiūsh reigned over the Egyptians a little over forty years; then he died and was buried in the pyramid facing Al Atfih, and with him were buried considerable treasures, jewels, vases, and statues. On the tomb, the name of the king and the time of his death were engraved. The people of Akhmim recount that an individual from the East was attached to the temple; that he came every day to perfume it with frankincense and saffron, addressing his perfumes and incense above all to an image placed near the door; and every day he found under this image a dinner he took, after which he went away. He had done this many times, but at last he was denounced to the governor of the country by one of his slaves. He was arrested, but having given some money, he was able to leave the country.
Al-Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 1.10
The mother of King Milatus [= Bilāṭis] had an immense basin dug in the western desert, in the middle of which rose a column thirty cubits high surmounted by a basin of stone, from which water flowed constantly; around this pool were placed images made from stones of various colors representing animals, wild and domestic beasts, and birds; and every animal that came near the image that represented it remained attached to it so that it could be taken with the hand and used. She also had a pavilion built for her son. This prince was very fond of hunting. The queen put in this pavilion seats raised on pedestals of marble plated with gold and encrusted with jewels and enamels. The pavilion was entirely decorated with wonderful drawings and engravings. Water escaped from gushing springs and flowed through silver-flagged canals to gardens adorned with magnificent furniture. Around the pavilion were rows of statues whistling in all sorts of languages, and in front of the seats were curtains of brocade. The queen chose for her son her most beautiful cousins and the most beautiful princesses; she married him off and installed him in this garden, around which were seats for the viziers, the priests and the chiefs of the craftsmen who came to make a complete report to him all their acts, and to be served something to eat and drink. Milatus, who became king on the death of his father Marqūah [= Marqūrah], was still a child, and the kingdom was ruled by his mother, a judicious and prudent woman, who conducted business as in the time of Milatus’ father, in an admirable way, treating his subjects with justice and discharging them from several taxes. All his reign was happy; he spread abundance and happiness among men, as well as justice. Milatus had a day devoted to hunting; when he returned, he distributed gifts to his companions and served them food and drink. The other days he remained for one day seated, examining the situation of his subjects and meeting their needs, and the next he passed with his wives. He reigned thirteen years and died of smallpox.
Al-Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 2.18
After the death of his father Qobṭīm, says Ibn Waṣīf Shāh, Atrīb retired to his province, that is, to the city his father had built for him. It was twelve miles long and had twelve gates. He placed on its main street three domes raised on columns, one above the other. Of these domes, one was in the center and the other two at both ends of the city. Each dome was surmounted by a large watch tower. In each district was an amphitheater, places where one could sit, pleasure places exposed to the east. To the west of the city he dug a canal over which he placed bridges carrying uninterrupted lines of seats; around it were dwellings watered by the canal and communicating by bridges with gardens full of vegetation, beyond which extended orchards and flower beds. Each of the doors was endowed with a marvel; statues, moving images, talismans defending the approach of the door. At the entrance of each of the doors, and on each side of the door, was erected the image of a demon made of copper; if any good man approached, the statue on the right laughed loudly, while the demon on the left cried if some dishonest man approached. In each of the places of pleasure, he gathered what was most beautiful, tame animals and singing birds. On the domes of the city, he placed a statue that whistled when the wind blew and set up a mirror in which one saw distant countries. Opposite, in the east, he built a city where he established amphitheaters and, outside, he raised statues of different aspects; in the middle was placed a basin such that if a bird passed by, it fell into it and could not come out, so that it could be taken. He provided this city with a citadel of twelve gates, on each of which was a statue that did marvelous things. All around were planted gardens, and in the vicinity, on the east side, was built a belvedere on eight pillars and surmounted by a dome on which was a bird with outspread wings whistling three times a day: in the morning, at noon, and at sunset. In the interior were statues and many wonders. This king built numerous cities and installed [in office] a man named Bursān, who was engaged in chemistry, and struck dinars weighing seven miṯqāl, each and bearing his image. Atrīb reigned thirty-six years, and he attained the age of five hundred; they made him a tomb in the eastern mountain; they dug a subterranean gallery of glass and marble, and the body was placed on a bed of gold encrusted with precious stones. Beside him, his treasures were deposited, and the image of a dragon, which no one could approach without perishing, was put on the door. They threw sand over it and inscribed on the tomb his name and the years of his life.
Al-Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 2.19
After Atrīb, says Ibn Waṣīf Shāh, reigned his daughter who administered and wisely directed the kingdom and guided it with energy and vigor for 35 years, after which she died, leaving the government to the son of her sister, Qlimūn [= Felīmūn]; he returned to the viziers their prerogatives, reinstated in their ranks the priests whose opinions directed all things. He made the country more prosperous, and eagerly pursued science. In his time, the first Tinnīs was built, which the sea submerged, although it was originally at a great distance and the city was surrounded by crops, orchards and vineyards, villages, wine presses, and a territory more prosperous than any other. In the middle of the country, the king constructed a pavilion surmounted by domes and decorated with the most beautiful ornaments and the most beautiful engravings. He had it upholstered with draperies and skillfully arranged. As soon as the Nile began to rise, the king went to this city, settled there until the Nīrūz, then returned. The king had the idea of distributing the water and giving each village its share. In these villages there was a citadel surrounded by bridges, and every king came and worked to make it prosperous and to improve it; all made it their place of pleasure.
It is said that the two gardens of which God speaks in his sublime book, when he says “Propose to them the example of these two men: to one, we gave two gardens planted with vines which we surrounded by palms, etc.” (Qur’an 18:31), that these two gardens were those of two brothers of the royal household, between whom this region was divided, and who regulated the agriculture, industry, and construction admirably; the king came to entertain himself in these two gardens, which produced the most beautiful fruits and vegetables, of which they made the most delicious dishes and drinks. One of the two brothers, hospitable and charitable, marveled at this place, gave his share to charity; the other, selfish and avaricious, seeing his brother giving away all his possessions, made fun of him, and each time the first wanted to sell something, the second bought it from him, so that the first came to own nothing and the garden became the property of his brother, from whom he was obliged to beg alms. But the miser rejected him and drove him away, accusing him of prodigality. “I,” he said, “advised you to keep what you had and you did not do it; my avarice has profited, and I have become richer than you. My children are also more numerous.” And he turned away from his brother, happy to be the master of so much wealth and such a beautiful garden. But God gave an order to the sea which submerged the land and drowned it whole; and the proprietor began to whine and groan over his ruin, saying, “Would to God that I had not associated anyone with my Lord! For God said, ‘There is no army so small that it cannot be victorious with the help of God!’”
In the time of King Qlimūn, the city of Damietta was built; Qlimūn reigned 90 years and built a tomb in the eastern mountain; he placed all around it treasures, jewels, and all sorts of precious things; at the entrance, he placed statues that rotated by means of mechanisms, and they held in their hands swords they used to pierce anyone who wished to enter. On the right and left, he placed two golden copper lions equipped with a mechanism and which mauled those who came near. On the tomb they engraved these words: “This is the tomb of Qlimūn ibn Athrīb ibn Qobṭīm ibn Masr, who lived a long life. When death came to find him, he could not repel it. Let whoever comes to him take nothing away from him, but take only what is already with him.”
Al-Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 2.61
Master Ibrahim ibn Ibn Waṣīf Shāh says that Damietta is an ancient city, built in the time of Qlimūn ibn Atrīb ibn Qobṭīm ibn Miṣraīm, and to which was given the name of a young man whose mother was the magician of Qlimūn.
Al-Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 1.10
Farsūn [= Qarsūn] ibn Qilmūn ibn Athrīb [= Qarsūn ibn Felīmūn ibn Atrīb] built a tower at the edge of the sea at Qulzum, surmounted by a mirror which attracted the ships to the shore, and did not let them go if they did not pay a tithe; the tithe paid, the mirror was veiled until the ships had passed. Farsūn reigned two hundred and sixty years, and he had a tomb built behind the Black Mountain of the east; in the center was a dome surrounded by twelve chapels containing marvels all different from each other, and the name of the king and the duration of his reign were inscribed on this dome.
Al-Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 2.20
When, said Ibn Waṣīf Shāh, Qobṭīm ibn Miṣraīm shared the land between Ashmūn, Atrīb, Qofṭ, and Ṣā, each of them withdrew to the domain assigned to him. He, with his people, his children, and his servants, went to his province, which occupied the territories of Beheirah and Alexandria, and extended as far as Barca; Alexandria did not yet exist, and he settled in the city of Ṣā. Ṣā was the youngest son of Qobṭīm and his dearest child. As soon as he had taken possession of the government of his province, he watched over the prosperity of the country, founded towns and villages, erected temples, and executed marvelous objects, as his brethren had done, and endeavored to surpass them.
According to Marhūn the Indian, governor of Banah, he built towers along the sea from the border of the land of Ṣā to that of Libya and Marāqīah; on these towers were placed mirrors made of various amalgamated materials; one of these mirrors they intended to repel marine animals and to protect themselves from their depredations; another, if enemies arrived from the islands of the sea to attack them, directed the sun’s rays upon their ships, and set them on fire; in another, one could see the cities directly opposite, on the other side of the sea, and what their inhabitants were doing; in another, they saw the various provinces of Egypt, and consequently they knew the abundance and scarcity each year. He made baths that heated themselves, built pavilions and places of pleasure, and each day he went to one or the other with his private slaves and his servants. All around it ranged gardens in which the singing birds and tame beasts roamed freely; these gardens were crisscrossed with canals which flowed perpetually through admirable gardens. The windows of his palace were of colored glass that sparkled when struck by the sun and scattered the rays around. He had neglected nothing that could please and charm. And the crops spread without interruption through the desert from Rosetta and Alexandria to Barqah, and everyone could travel through the land of Egypt without provisions, thanks to the abundance of fruits and all kinds of excellent things, and they walked constantly in the shade and away from the sun. In these deserts he built palaces, planted trees, and brought in canals from the Nile. So, from the west to the western border, it was just an unbroken series of fields. And when the inhabitants had disappeared, there remained vestiges in these deserts; their dwellings have disappeared, the men have dispersed, but all the travelers who have entered these regions keep reporting that they have seen marvelous ruins there.
Al-Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 2.4
According to Ibn Waṣīf Shāh, the crops extended, through the desert of Rosetta and Alexandria, as far as Barqah; one could walk there across the land of Egypt and no provisions were needed, so much fruit and other good things were abundant; and one walked constantly sheltered by the shade of the trees against the heat of the sun. King Ṣā, son of Qobṭīm, raised palaces in this desert, planted large plantations there, and brought from the Nile canals which, starting from the western bank of the river, went as far as the western border of the country, through uninterrupted fields. And when the population had disappeared, its traces remained in this desert; the palaces are destroyed, the inhabitants are dispersed, but they continue to tell of this region what they saw there of the ruins and marvels, and surprising legends.
Al-Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 1.10
King Marqōnos was a wise man, a friend of astronomy, science, and philosophy. In his day, a singular dirham was struck; if the master of this dirham wanted to buy something, he agreed with the merchant to weigh the purchased merchandise simply by the weight of the dirham, without demanding anything more. Seduced by this proposal, the merchant accepted. When the bargain was concluded, the dirham came to weigh a number of rotoliz equal to ten times the double of its weight, and even twice that number of rotolis if the master of the dirham desired it. This dirham was found in the treasure of the people of that time, and later in the treasure of the Umayyads. They found still other dirhams struck, they say, in the same reign: When wanting to buy something, if they put this dirham in the balance of some merchant, they only had to kiss it, saying: “Remember the covenant,” and they bought what they wanted; returning home with the goods purchased, the buyer found his dirham had preceded him to his home; as for the merchant, he found in the place of this dirham a sheet of myrtle, a piece of paper, or some other round thing like the dirham. It was in the time of this king also that the glass vessels which were used for weight were made; filled with water or something else, they weighed no more than when empty. In his day also were made those vases that turned water into real wine by color, scent, and (intoxicating) effect. One of these vases was found at Aṭfiḥ during the vizierate of Hārūn bin Khomarawaīh bin Aḥmed bin Tūlūn; they were goblets of onyx, closed with a blue cap striped with white. Those who found him were Abū’l-Hasan, the jeweler of Khurāsān, and his companions. As they ate on the banks of the Nile, they drank water in this goblet, and found it to be wine; they got drunk and began to dance; the goblet fell and broke into pieces. Abd al-Hasan was very sorry and went to Hārūn with the pieces of the vase. Hārūn very distressed exclaimed: “If this goblet had been intact, I would have paid for it with a part of my kingdom!” As for the copper vases which changed the water into wine, they are attested under Cleopatra, daughter of Ptolemy, queen of Alexandria; these are numerous. It was in Marqōnos’ time when images of reptiles, toads, beetles, flies, scorpions, and other insects were made. If we put in a place any of these images, all those of its kind gathered there and could no longer separate from the image and they were easily killed. This king seems to have organized all that he did by the celestial constellations, according to their names and their appearance, and in this way, he accomplished all he desired. He also established in the Western desert an amphitheater of colored glass in the middle of which was a dome of transparent green glass. When the sun was above this dome, the rays were reflected back a great distance. On all four sides of the amphitheater he installed four elevated glass seats, each of them of a different color, and on each seat were drawn in glass, of a different color than the background, marvelous magic formulas, strange drawings and extraordinary figures, all in clear and transparent crystal. The king spent whole days in this amphitheater and established three festivals a year. At each feast the people processed, made sacrifices, and stayed for seven days; and they came willingly, for this amphitheater had no equal. No such amphitheater existed in the universe; it was finally destroyed by a king furious at not being able to make a similar one.
The mother of Marqūnos was the daughter of the king of Nubia; her father adored the star Sūha (in Ursa Major), to which he gave the name of God; she asked her son to build a particular temple for her. He built it, covered it with gold and silver, and set up an idol veiled by a curtain of silk; the queen entered with her slaves and her suite, and prostrated herself before the idol three times each day; she instituted a monthly festival in which victims were slaughtered and incense burned before the statue night and day; she enthroned a Nubian priest charged with watching over the idol, making the sacrifices and burning the perfumes; and she did not let her son rest until he worshiped the idol and invited his people to worship it. When the priest saw that the king professed a perfect worship for the star, he wanted to give the star Sūha representatives on the earth in the form of an animal that would be worshiped. For this he acted with cunning, and waited until by chance the vultures, having multiplied in Egypt, caused great damage. The king sent for this priest and asked him the cause of the increase in vultures. “It is,” said the priest, “your god who sent them, that you may make a statue of them that you will adore.” “If that will please the God, I will do it,” said the king. “The God will be satisfied,” said the priest. So, the king made a vulture of molten gold two cubits high and one cubit wide; its eyes were two rubies. Two pearl necklaces were fastened to its neck beneath tubes of green stones, and from the beak a pearl was suspended; tis thighs were adorned with red beads. It was set up on a chiseled silver pedestal placed in turn on a blue glass support, and it was installed under a vault to the right of the temple; a silk curtain was stretched before it. It was prescribed to burn aromatic herbs and odiferous gums, and a black calf was devoted to it, as were the first-born of the chicks, and the first fruits and flowers. After seven days, the king invited the people to worship the idol and the people came running. The priest, always preoccupied with the worship of this statue, made the king institute a feast. Forty days later, the Devil spoke through the mouth of the idol. The first thing he asked for was that sandalwood be burned at the middle of the month, and that the temple should be sprinkled with old wine from the surface of the jars; moreover, he announced to the people that it was he who had removed the vultures and put an end to the evil they were causing, and that in the future he would preserve them from all that they would have to fear. The ravished priest went to find the king’s mother to inform her of what was happening; The latter went to the temple, heard the words of the vulture, and she adored it joyfully. The king, informed in his turn, went on horseback to the temple; the statue conversed with him, prescribing certain things and forbidding others. The king adored it, gave it servants, and had the temple decorated with the most beautiful ornaments. And Marqūnos remained in the temple worshiping the statue and asking it what he should do. And the statue answered him.
In the practice of chemistry, he did what no king heretofore had done; it is said that he buried five hundred treasures in the desert of the West. It is said that he raised at the door of the city of Ṣā a column surmounted by a statue of a woman sitting and holding a mirror in which she gazed. If a sick person came to her and looked in this mirror, or someone looked for him, if he were to die of this disease one saw him dead, if he was to live one saw him alive. It was the same way for a traveler: If one saw him from the front, one knew he would return; if one saw him from behind, one knew he would linger on the way. If he were sick or dead, one could see him in the mirror. He also made the image of a monk sitting in a chair in Alexandria, his head covered with a kind of hood and holding a stick in his hand. If any merchant passed by him, he had to put in his hand a piece of his money proportional to his goods; if he wanted to go, even if it was far from the statue, without giving him any money, he could not do so and remained there fixed in the square. By this means, considerable sums were collected which were distributed among the incurables, the infirm, and the poor. In his day, all kinds of marvelous things were executed, on which he had his name engraved; it was also inscribed on all scientific objects, on talismans and statues. He made himself an underground tomb near the mountain of Sadām; this tomb was vaulted, and the vault had, it is said, a hundred cubits in length, a height of thirty cubits, and a breadth of twenty. It was covered in marble and colored enamels and the ceiling was made of stones. All around were arranged benches of glass, on each of which a wonderful object was placed. In the middle of the vault was a glass gallery at the four corners of which was an image charged with preventing people from approaching; between each two statues was a column surmounted by a luminous stone, and in the middle of the gallery was placed a gold basin in which was deposited the body of the king, after it had been embalmed with all kinds of preservative aromatics; all his treasures, gold, jewels, and the rest were shut up with him, and the door of the passage was closed with rocks and lead, on which sand was poured. He had reigned seventy-three years, and was two hundred and forty years old. He was handsome and his hair was magnificent; after his death, his wives led a life full of piety and kept the temple.
After him, Aīsad [= Ansād] reigned, and Ṣā, son of Aīsad (some claim that Ṣā was the son of Marqūnūs and brother of Aīsad). This prince built in the city of Memphis a mirror in which were seen the times when Egypt was to be prosperous or barren; he raised a city in the interior of the oases, and erected several towers near the sea; he also set up behind the Moqaṭṭam, a statue which was called the Statue of Deception; whoever was perplexed in an affair came to this statue, burned incense to it, and his business was cleared up. By his orders, a tower was built on the shore of the sea from which one could recognize the state of the sea and know what came to pass there as far as he looked, that is to say, at a distance of several days’ journey, and he was the first to use it. He is said to have built the greater part of the city of Memphis and all the important buildings of Alexandria.
Al-Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 2.71
[probable] King Sal ibn al-Sad [= Ṣā ibn Ṣā], or, according to others, ibn Marqūnos, built a city within the oases, surrounded by numerous palm plantations. This king resided at Memphis and reigned over all the provinces; he made marvelous objects and talismans, and restored the priests to their ranks, and drove the people away from vice and debauchery that had been the companions of Al-Sad ibn Marqūnos. He sent messengers to the extreme points of Egypt to inform him of what was happening on their frontiers, and he set up towers on the west of the Nile, on which fires were lit if anything happened or if someone approached from that side. When he was master of his entire country, he gathered around him the wise men, and examined the stars, an art in which he was very skillful. He saw that his country would be inevitably drowned by the overflow of the Nile and that he would be ruined by a man who would come from Syria. Therefore, he gathered together all the workers of Egypt and had a city built in the extreme oasis, whose rampart was fifty cubits high, and gathered there the sciences and the treasures. It is this city met by Mūsa bin Nusayr, in the days of the Umayyads, when he came from Maghreb; when he entered Egypt, he sought to find the farthest oasis he had heard about; he remained seven days wandering in the sands, between the west and the south; finally, a city appeared to him with a rampart and iron gates. It was impossible for him to open the gates; some men, having mounted the ramparts, had not looked inside the city so much as threw themselves into it. Unable to overcome the mystery of this city, Mūsa passed on after having lost many of his companions. In this desert, many people had pleasure houses, marvelous villas and treasures; but all this has been covered by the sands, although all the kings have endeavored to build, against the sand, talismans whose power has been obliterated with time. No one can ignore the enormous quantity of the buildings of these peoples, or their cities, or all the magnificent monuments that they built, for this people had a boldness that no other had. And traces are still visible, such as the pyramids, the stelae, Alexandria, the remains that meet in the desert of the East, the mountains they dug into to deposit their treasures, the valleys, carved by the hand of man, and all that can be seen in the temples of Saīd, and all that they have engraved in testimony to their science.
Al-Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 1.10
When Badares [= Tedāris] ibn Ṣā took over the government of the State from his father and his kingship was well established in Egypt, he built, west of Memphis, an admirable temple to the planet Venus; In this temple he erected a magnificent gilded lapis lazuli statue with a bluish-gold crown and enclosed it between two green emerald walls. The statue represented a woman with two braids of worked black gold; on her legs were two rings of transparent red stone, gold sandals on her feet, and a scepter of coral in her hand. She waved her fingers as if to greet those in the temple. In front of this statue was erected a second representing a cow with two horns and two breasts of gilded red bronze and a necklace of lapis. The face of the cow was turned towards the face of Venus and between the two statues, on a pillar of onyx, was laid a basin made of a mixture of all kinds of stones and containing a prepared water which cured all diseases. The temple was strewn with the grass of Venus, which was renewed every seven days. Priests were given seats plated with gold and silver, and thousands of sheep, goats, wild beasts, and birds were sacrificed to this idol. On the day of Venus, the king toured the temple, which he had furnished with furniture and curtains. He also placed there, under a dome, the image of a man riding a winged mare and holding in his hand a javelin from whose point was suspended a human head. This temple lasted until it was destroyed by Nebuchadnezzar at the time of Mālīk ibn Tedāris. This prince was a monotheist following the religion of Qobṭīm and Miṣraīm. He left with a large army, by land and by sea, and fought against the Berbers, Africa, Spain, the land of the Franks, as far as the ocean; there he erected towers on which he engraved his name and the story of his campaign; then he came back, dreaded by the kings of the earth.
Al-Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 1.23
The Sakha Canal was dug by Nadarīs [= Tedāris] ibn Ṣā ibn Qobṭīm ibn Miṣraīm ibn Baīṣar ibn Ham ibn Noah; he was one of the kings of the ancient Egyptians who reigned in the earliest ages. Ibn Waṣīf Shāh says: Nadarīs was the first king who ruled all the provinces. He reigned after his father Ṣā, and under him the land of Egypt was quiet. Nadarīs was wise and experienced and more energetic, powerful and knowing in public affairs. He practiced righteousness, established the temples and their priests in the best possible state, and extended his empire over all the provinces. He was said to have dug the Sakha Canal, and under his reign the revenue of the country rose to one hundred and fifty million dinars. An Amalekite of Syria dared to attack him, and marched against him, believing it permissible in this regard. Nadarīs entered Palestine, killed many, and reduced to captivity some sages whom he established in Egypt. The kings feared him. In the thirtieth year of his reign, the Blacks of the countries of Zanj and Nubia burst into his kingdom and gave themselves over to pillage. Nadarīs collected the army of the provinces of Egypt and prepared ships; he sent a general, named Philotheos [= Bilāṭis], with three hundred thousand men and another general with an equal army, and on the Nile he dispatched three hundred boats each carrying a magician who knew how to perform marvelous things. Then he himself marched on with a considerable army, meeting with a force of more than a million men, defeated them, killed a great number of them in admirable combats, and captured a considerable quantity of prisoners; his army pursued the Blacks to the land of elephants, in the country of Zanj. He took a large number of these animals, along with tigers and other wild beasts, and sent them to Egypt, where he tamed them. He had erected on the frontier of this country a monument on which he had inscribed an account of his expedition and his victory, and the date of his campaign. He then died in Egypt and was buried in a tomb where a number of images of the planets, gold, jewels, jewels and statues were transported; on the tomb they engraved his name and the date of his death. They erected talismans to drive away (the destroyers) and he left the kingdom to his son Mālīk ben Nadarīs.
Al-Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 1.10
To the west of Egypt was a city called Qarmīdah, whose inhabitants had a magician for a queen; Mālīk made war against them but without success and returned to Egypt. The queen of Qarmīdah wanted to destroy Egypt and, calling magic to her aid, she made a talisman that was thrown into the Nile. The water swelled and flooded the crops and killed them, crocodiles and toads swarmed, diseases spread among the Egyptians, and snakes and scorpions multiplied. Mālīk gathered the priests and sages in the palace where they would meet and engaged them to take care of this affair. So they looked in their [books of] stars and saw that this curse came from the west, that a woman was its author, and something had been thrown into the Nile; they knew where this spell came from and tried to repel it by their own science, and doing so, they got rid of the corrupt water and destroyed the dangerous beasts. A general was sent with an army against that city, but only one man was found there; a number of riches, jewels, and statues were found, including the statue of a priest, made of green emerald on a stone pedestal…. [lacuna] and the figure of a djinn in gold, whose head was a red stone, and the two wings of pearls, and which held in his hand a volume containing a great part of the sciences of this people; the two covers of this book were encrusted with precious stones; in addition, a sapphire bowl was placed on a pedestal of green enamel, in which was a water that expelled diseases; finally, a mare of silver, who, if someone pronounced a certain formula over it, and, after having burned certain perfumes. climbed on its back, it flew away with its rider. All these objects and many other wonderful things and other magical works were brought to Egypt, such as statues, treasures, and precious stones. At the same time, the man was brought (made prisoner in the city). The king asked him what was the most wonderful thing they had done. “One day,” he said, “a king of the Berbers, dragging after him an immense army and dreadful engines, attacked us. The people of the city closed their fortresses and went to pray to the idols. The high priest went to a large, very deep pond, where the inhabitants quenched their thirst, and, sitting on the shore, ordered the priests to stand around the basin; then he began to murmur over the boiling water, and from the middle of the lake came a fire, in the center of which appeared a figure like the disk of the sun and all luminous. The congregation fell prostrate before this apparition, which continued to grow until it had passed the dome, and it was heard that said, ‘You are safe from harm which your enemies [wanted to do to you].’ They got up and the enemies were dead, as well as all those who accompanied them. This occurred because the image of the sun coming out of the basin had passed by uttering a cry that had destroyed them.”
Kalkūn [= Kalkān] reigned over Egypt after the death of his father Khariba [= Khartabā]. It was in his time that Nimrod, who, having heard of Kalkūn’s wisdom and magical power, asked permission from this prince to visit him, begging him to come to meet him. Nimrod was then living in the countryside of Iraq and had subjugated a large number of peoples. Kalkūn went to meet him, carried by four winged couriers, surrounded by a kind of fire and surrounded by frightening images. He was in the midst of them, wearing a snake in a sling whose end served him as a belt; this snake had an open mouth. Kalkūn held a green myrtle wand in his hand, and every time the serpent waved his head, he hit him with his wand. Nimrod, when he saw him, was terrified and recognized the greatness of his wisdom. The Copts claim that Kalkūn rose in the air and sat at the top of the western pyramid, with a canopy over his head. If a painful situation befell the people of the country, they would gather around the pyramid. It is also said that he remained for days at the top of the pyramid without drinking or eating, and that once he disappeared for a time, so that he was thought dead; the kings then wanted to take Egypt and one of them, a king of the West, named Sadūm, attacked it with a large army and reached Wādī-Hajab. Kalkūn attacked the attackers, magically spread over their heads a cloud filled with suffocating heat, and they remained for days under that cloud without knowing where to go. Kalūn then rose in the air and went to Egypt to inform the Egyptians of what he had done; at his orders, they went out and found the army destroyed, men and mounts alike. All the priests feared him, and they engraved his image in all the temples. This king raised to Saturn a temple of black granite, in the province of the West, and instituted for him a feast.
Al-Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 2.3
Then reigned his brother Māliā ibn Hazaba [= Khartabā]. Ibn Waṣīf Shāh says: “Then reigned his brother Māliā; he was a greedy man who ate and drank to excess, indulging solitarily in his pleasures and absolutely neglecting the sciences. He entrusted affairs to his vizier, and abandoned himself to women; he owned eighty. His son Ṭūṭīs threw himself on him one day when he was drunk, and killed him and the woman who was with him.”
Al-Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 1.27
Under the reign of Nadarīs ibn Ṣā, the country’s revenues reached one hundred and fifty million dinars and, in the time of Kalkūn ibn Kharbata ibn Mālīk ibn Nadarīs, they were still a hundred and a few tens of millions of dinars. When the government of the first Egyptians ceased and the country was governed by the Amalekites, the state of Egypt was less prosperous and the first Pharaoh (Shepherd) received ninety million dinars, from which there were ten million dinars for the improvement of the country, ten million dinars for the maintenance of the staff of the king’s children and the poor, ten million dinars for the personnel in charge of affairs, for the army and the employees; and ten million dinars for the maintenance of the Pharaoh; the rest, fifty million dinars, was set aside for the Pharaoh.
Al-Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 2.81
Here is what Ibn Waṣīf Shāh says: Al-Wālīd ibn Dūma’ the Amalekite had left with a considerable army traversing the country and subjugating the kings. When he arrived in Syria, he sent one of his slaves, named ’Ūn, who went to Egypt and subjugated it. Then Al-Wālīd went in his turn, joined ’Ūn, who came to meet him, and entered Egypt, whose inhabitants he abused at his pleasure. Having formed the project to go to the sources of the Nile, he left with a large army, leaving the government of Egypt to ’Ūn, and remained forty years in his expedition. Now, after seven years of government, ’Ūn became arrogant and proclaimed himself king, refusing to recognize himself as a slave to Al-Wālīd, and saying that he was his brother. Thanks to magic, he imposed himself, he took away the free women, and everyone adhered to him. He married every woman descended from the kings of Egypt; every fortune he seized by killing its owner, and yet he honored the priests and respected the temples. One day, he saw Al-Wālīd in a dream. He said to him, “Who has permitted you to take the title of king? You are aware that it is a crime that deserves death; you have united with the daughters of kings and you have taken riches without having any right to them.” Then he filled a cauldron with oil, which was heated to a boil, and tore off his clothes to throw into it. Then an eagle fell on ’Ūn, seized him, carried him into the air, and laid him on the edge of a precipice on the top of a mountain, whence he fell into a valley filled with stinking mud. He awoke frightened and told his vision to the priests, who said to him, “We will deliver you from Al-Wālīd if you want to make an eagle and worship it, because it is he who delivered you in your dream. “I acknowledge him,” replied ’Ūn, “and the eagle said to me, ‘Recognize this place and do not forget it.’” And he made a golden eagle, having two precious stones instead of eyes, he put on it a girdle of jewels and made him a beautiful temple upholstered with silk. There they came to praise him and leave him offerings. In the end, the eagle spoke. And ’Ūn prostrated himself and worshiped him and invited his subjects to imitate him, which they agreed to do. On ’Ūn’s orders, all the workers of Egypt were assembled, and ’Ūn took all his followers to the Western Desert in search of a vast and unified terrain that one could penetrate only by difficult passages and steep mountains: puddles of water spread out in the vicinity. It is today the Fayum, which was then a swamp formed by the waters of the Nile and remained so until Joseph brought the waters of the river to Medinet (al-Fayum). They therefore departed and remained a month before turning to find the object of their desires. And there remained in Egypt neither a workman nor an engineer, nor anyone who understood the art of construction, working with large stones, or sculpture: All went there. He took with him a thousand men of the army and seven hundred magicians to help the builders, and with them tools and food in wagons, and the trace of these carts are still visible in the desert of the West up to the Fayum behind the Pyramids. When all the necessary stones were cut, the city wall was raised, a square of two parasangs on each side; in the middle, a well was dug into which the image of a pig made of copper mixed with other materials was lowered and which was placed on a pedestal of copper, the face turned towards the East. At the moment of the rising of the house of Saturn, at the time of its apogee, a hog was immolated; the face of the statue was smeared with its blood, some of his hair was burned, and the interior filled with blood, hair, bones, flesh, and gall; a little gall was put in the ears, and the rest of the pork was burned and the ashes deposited in a copper vial before the statue. On it, they engraved the virtues of Saturn. At the bottom of the well, four subterranean passages leading to the walls of the city were dug in four directions, and at each end were openings for the circulation of the air. Then the well was closed and surmounted by a dome placed on columns raised on the walls of the city. Boulevards were drawn, each boulevard leading to one of the gates of the city, which was divided into streets and houses. Around the dome, they raised copper statues of horsemen with javelins in their hands and faces toward the doors. The foundations of the city were made of rippled stone, over red stone, then yellow stone, green, and above all transparent white stone, all cemented with lead poured into the joints. In the center of each stone was an iron rod, as in the construction of the pyramids. The wall was made sixty cubits high and twenty wide. At the top of each of the doors of the rampart was a large eagle made of a copper alloy, the wings extended, and hollow. At each corner, a horseman held a javelin in his hand, his face turned towards the exit of the city. The water, brought to the eastern gate, flowed through the city towards the western gate and poured into cisterns; likewise, from the South Gate to the North Gate. Eagles were sacrificed to the eagle, and the winds brought life to the mouths of the statues, which uttered frightful voices. ’Ūn attached to each of them a djinn which was to prevent any individual, with the exception of the inhabitants, from entering the city. Then the worshiped eagle was placed under the dome in the center of the city on a pedestal with four corners; at each corner was the figure of a demon. The whole rested on a column which turned; the corner turned with it and remained in each direction (cardinal points) a quarter of the year. Finally, all this finished, ’Ūn brought to this city the jewels and riches of Egypt, royal objects, statues, works of science, silver powder, aromatics, and arms. He installed there the great magicians, the priests, the industrialists, and the merchants, and he divided the dwellings among them. The people of every trade mingled only among themselves. He built a suburb for artisans and farmers; on the canals, he put bridges where those who entered the city passed. Water flowed around the suburb. ’Ūn drew up signals and established guards. Behind the city, on the desert side, he planted vines, palm trees, and all kinds of trees, in separate fields. Behind them extended cereal crops on all sides. And all this was created out of fear of Al-Wālīd. Between this city and Memphis was three days’ walk. ’Ūn stayed there or went there, then ’Ūn came back to Memphis. There were four festivals a year, at the four times when the eagle changed position. Having admired all of this, ’Ūn felt his heart more reassured, until he received from Nubia a letter from Al-Wālīd instructing him to bring him food and prepare the markets. ’Ūn sent him back by land and water what he asked for, and gathered in the city his partisans and those whom he had chosen from the daughters of kings and grandees. Al-Wālīd having come nearer, ’Ūn went to the city, and strengthened himself, having left a substitute at Memphis. Al-Wālīd, advancing and having learned all that ’Ūn had done, became enraged and thought of sending an army against him, but when better informed of the state of the city, the fortifications, and the magicians who defended it, he wrote to ’Ūn to come to him, threatening him with the consequences that his disobedience might entail. ’Ūn replied: “On my part, there is no offensive word against the king, no attack, no act hostile to his country: I am his servant and stand in this place to repel any enemy coming from the West; and I cannot go to him because of the terror he inspires me. Let the king leave me where I am governor, and I will send him all the taxes and all the presents that he demands.” And he sent him considerable treasures and precious jewels. And Al-Wālīd gave up attacking him, and ’Ūn remained in Egypt until his death.
Al-Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 1.15
The same author adds: Al-Wālīd, son of Darma, the Amalekite, left with a large army, going from country to country, subjugating their kings and seeking peace at his convenience. Arriving in Syria, he heard about Egypt and the extent of its riches; he learned that the government had fallen into the hands of women, its kings having perished. Therefore, he sent one of his servants, named ’Ūn, to Egypt and entered after him, treating the inhabitants according to his caprice, seizing wealth and slaughtering a large number of priests. Then the idea came to him to visit the sources of the Nile and to know the peoples who lived on its banks. The preparations for the expedition lasted three years, at the end of which he set out at the head of a considerable army, annihilating the peoples through whom he passed. He thus crossed the country of the Blacks and having passed it, arrived at the region of gold where one sees the golden rods coming out of the ground. Continuing his march, he reached the lake where the Nile flows from the foot of the mountain of Qūmr. This is a very high mountain to which they have given the name Qūmr because the Moon never rises there, for the mountain rises up beyond the equator. Al-Būdashīr saw the Nile coming out of the mountain and flowing by streams and channels to the two lakes from which it emerged in the two rivers that meet in another lake. After having passed the equator, the Nile receives as a tributary a river coming from the region of the Makrān River in India, a river which also emerges from the mountain of Qūmr and which, from the beginning, is directed from side (towards the Nile). The Makrān River is said to be similar to the Nile; it rises and falls like it; also like the Nile, it is populated with crocodiles, and the fish that one meets there are similar to those of the Nile. Al-Wālīd, son of Daūma’, found the palace with bronze statues built by the first Hermes in the time of Al-Būdashīr, son of Qantarim, son of Qobṭīm, son of Miṣraīm.
Some historians report that the four (primordial) rivers come from the same source, sheltered under a dome in the land of gold, beyond the Dark Sea. These four rivers are the Saīḥūn, the Jaīhūn, the Euphrates, and the Nile. The land of gold, according to these writers, would be a portion of Paradise; the dome would be topaz (or emerald), and the four rivers, before reaching the Dark Sea, would be sweeter than honey, and more fragrant than camphor. This opinion is also that of one of the children of Al-Aīs, son of Isaac, son of Abraham, who arrived at this dome and crossed the Dark Sea. This man was named Gabīr. Others say that these rivers are divided into sixty-two parts, which determine seventy-two different languages used by the people. According to still others, these rivers are formed by ice which the heat melts; the melted snow then flows into these rivers whose ice waters the country they cross, as God considers appropriate for the sake of His creatures.
Arriving at the mountain of Qūmr, adds the historian, Al-Wālīd saw that it was a very high mountain, and he used cunning to reach its summit and see what was behind it. He discovered a sea black as pitch and putrid, and the Nile flowing towards the mountain in narrow streams. From this sea exhaled miasmas which destroyed a great number of the companions of Al-Wālīd, and he, having almost succumbed, hastened to descend again. Some authors assure us that he saw neither sun nor moon, but only a red glow like that of the setting sun.
As to what is reported from Gabīr, who crossed the Dark Sea without even wetting his feet, it is explained by declaring that he was a prophet and that God had given him wisdom. He had asked God to see the sources of the Nile, and the necessary strength had been granted. He walked, it is said, for thirty years through inhabited countries, and twenty years through deserted lands.
For Al-Wālīd, his absence lasted, it is said, forty years, after which, retracing his steps, he returned to Memphis and remained in Egypt, treating the inhabitants as slaves, kidnapping women, and plundering the treasures. His reign lasted a hundred and twenty years during which he was loathed and hated; but one day, having gone hunting, his horse threw him into a precipice; Al-Wālīd was killed and the people were delivered.
Al-Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 1.27
In the time of Al-Raīan [= Ar-Rayān] ibn Al-Wālīd, the Pharaoh of Joseph, the income reached ninety-seven million dinars, but this prince, wanting a perfect hundred million dinars, ordered the planting of all the possible kinds of crops, the repairing of the dikes, and the extension of the cultivated land, so that this sum was reached and even exceeded.
Al-Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 2.82
Then reigned, says Ibn Waṣīf Shāh, Al-Raīan ibn Al-Wālīd, who was Joseph’s Pharaoh; the Copts call him Nahrāūsh. When he ascended the throne, he was a prince of an admirable character, handsome in countenance, wise and thoughtful, and who promised to be amiable. He discharged his people from taxation for three years and shared treasures between his private friends and his subjects. He called to the government of the country a man of his family named Atfein, the same as the traditionalists call Al-‘Azīz. The king caused him to raise in the palace a throne of silver on which Atfein sat, and he only left to go to the king’s door. The latter gave his vizier authority over the officers and scribes, and Nahrāūsh took care only of what was happening behind the curtain. With Atfein accumulating all his authority and relegating him to his pleasures, Nahrāūsh plunged himself into his frivolity, neglecting business, not showing himself to the people, but the country was prosperous and the king did not ask for more. They built for him colorful glass lounges, surrounded by water where the fish lived freely and by colored crystals in which, when the sun’s rays hit them, a marvelous reflection was produced. Pleasure pavilions were built for him in numbers equal to those of the days of the year, and every day he walked in one of them. Each pavilion was tended and furnished with different furniture and draperies, but it was rumored among the kings of the vicinity that Nahrāūsh was concerned only with pleasure, and that the care of affairs rested on Atfein. The kind of the Amalekites, Abū-Qābūs ’Aqir ibn Yanūm, marched on Egypt and headed for its borders. To resist, Al-‘Azīz raised an army whose general was called Barianis; he struggled for three years; but the Amalekite took the upper hand, killed Barianis, razed towers and fortresses, and his yoke descended on the land. The people then went in crowds to the king’s palace and implored his protection. Nahrāūsh appeared, reviewed his army, and he set out with 600,000 combatants, not counting the valets. The two armies met beyond Hūf and fought a fierce battle. The Amalekite was defeated, and Nahrāūsh pursued him as far as the borders of Syria, killed a great number of men, destroyed the crops and trees, burned, hung and raised to the places where he had arrived stelae on which he engraved these words: “Whoever will cross this line, I wait for him.” He reached, it is said, Mosul, imposed a tribute on Syria, built a magnificent city near Al Arich, left a garrison there, and returned to Egypt, where, having assembled an army of all the provinces, he prepared to attack the king of the West. He therefore left with 700,000 men, crossed the land of the Berbers, of which he subjugated the greater part, and sent out in a fleet from Raqūdah a general who was to go to the islands of the children of Japheth and devastate them. For him, following the dirt road, he took the direction of the land of the Berbers, gave battle to them, and by treaty imposed the tribute on them; From there he continued his journey across Ifrīqīah and Qarṭājanna (Cartagena), and concluded peace with these countries by means of tribute and, continuing on his way, reached the spot where the Green River flows into the Sea of Rūm; this is where the copper statues are erected. He erected a statue on which he engraved his name and the story of his campaign, and imposed a tribute on the inhabitants of the country. Then, turning onto the great land, he reached Spain, where the king fought him for many days, and then, by means of tribute, promised to defend Egypt against the aggression of its neighbors. After that, he departed, but not by sea, and headed east through the land of the Berbers. All the people he met had to submit to him. From there he marched south, fought against many peoples, and sent a general to a town on the Black Sea [i.e., the Atlantic]. The king of that city went out to meet the general, who told him what Al-Raīan was and how he treated kings. “No one,” said the King, “has spoken of this to us.” The general then asked him some questions about the sea. “Has anyone ever sailed it,” he asked. “That is impossible for anyone,” replied the king, “because of the shadow cast by the clouds and which prevents you from seeing.” Al-Raīan having arrived, he was presented with presents, fruits, bananas for the most part, and a black stone which became white when put into water. The king, heading for the countries of Sudan, arrived at the kingdom of the anthropophagous Damdams who went to meet him naked. He conquered them, subjugated them, and took the road to the Obscure Sea; but, as fog was rising, he returned to the north and came to a red stone statue, which, with its hand, made a sign of turning back and which bore this inscription on the chest: “There is nothing behind me.” From there he walked to the City of Copper, but could not reach it; he found the Dark Valley where loud noises could be heard without seeing anyone, because of the thickness of the darkness. He went from there to the Valley of the Sands and, on his way, met statues bearing the names of kings. He raised up another statue on which he engraved his own name. Having learned of the desert, he crossed it to the ruins that stretched along the Sea of Darkness, where he saw lions roaring against each other. Judging that the land beyond held nothing but ruin for him, he turned back, returned to the Valley of the Sands, and crossed the Land of the Scorpions, where he lost some of his men; the rest of the army was protected from evil by the power of spells. Having crossed this region, he arrived at the City of the Sages, better known as the town of Kand, whose inhabitants fled before him to the mountain. He stayed there for a long time and his army was about to die of thirst. In the end, there came down from the mountain one of the most virtuous and wise, whose body was covered with hair: “What do you want?” said he to the king. O, stranger, too happy and too favored, why do you lose yourself and your army? Why is what you possess not enough for you and do not you trust your Creator? Look for rest, abandon fatigue and error, because that’s all you can acquire here.” The king, surprised at these words, asked him for water. The other having indicated he could, the king asked him about his country. “Our country,” he replied, “no one before you has reached.” “What are you living on?” “The roots of plants; that is enough for us, because we are satisfied with little.” “And what are you drinking?” “Rain and snow.” “Why did you run away from our approach?” “We have little desire to go with you, but we had no reason to fear you.” “What do you do when the sun gets hot?” “We retreat to caves excavated in the mountains.” “Do you need money? I will leave some with you.” – “City-dwellers alone need money; we do not use that. We are satisfied with what is sufficient for us; besides, we have so much that, if you saw it, you would despise your riches.” “Show me,” said the king. The man then led the king and some of his followers to a land at the foot of the mountain; there were gold ingots in quantity. Their guide showed them still a valley whose two banks were sown with emeralds and sapphires. Nahrāūsh ordered his companions to take some of the larger stones, which they did. The wise man, seeing that the king’s suite adored a statue carried in the expedition, invited the king to stay no longer on their land, and inspired him with some fear concerning the worship of idols. Nahrāūsh, having taken his leave, went off, and among all the peoples he met, he left traces of his passage. He finally arrived in Nubia, taxed the tribute by treaty, and raised in Dongola a statue on which he engraved his name and the story of his expedition. Then he took the road to Memphis; and in every city of Egypt the inhabitants, filled with joy and gladness, came to meet him with flowers and perfumes. At last he arrived at Memphis. The people of the town, led by Al-‘Azīz, came to meet him with flowers and perfumes of all kinds. Al-‘Azīz had prepare for him a pavilion of colored glass, adorned with the richest hangings. Around it trees and flowers were planted, and a basin filled with blue glass was dug into the depths of which were seen images of white glass fish. The king went down to this pavilion, and the people remained for days and days to drink and eat. Then Nahrāūsh reviewed his army and found that he had lost 700,000 of his men; on the other hand, he brought back more than 50,000 prisoners. His expedition out of Egypt lasted eleven years.
The kings, informed of his return, were full of respect for him, and his power was strengthened. On the east bank he built marble palaces topped with towers. He gave orders for the improvement of the country, repaired the embankments and cultivated the soil, so that the tax yield amounted to one hundred million dinars.
It was from his time that a young man from Syria, whom his brothers had sold by trickery, entered Egypt. The caravans stopped at the place now called Al Maūqef (the stopping). The young man was brought there, and he was put up for auction. It was Joseph the Truthful, the son of Jacob son of Abraham the darling of God. Atfein bought it to present it to the king. But when he arrived with him at his palace, his wife Zulaīkha, who was at the same time his cousin, having seen the new slave, said to her husband, “Let us keep him. We will raise him, and he will serve us.” And what happened to him is what God tells in the Qur’an. She hid her love until the day when she was conquered by him. Then, having withdrawn with Joseph, she appeared for him and confessed that she loved him, adding that if he consented to satisfy her desires, she would fill him with riches. But as he refused, she promised to give it up. She began to pray to him, and he always resisted, so long as in the end her husband appeared. On seeing him, Joseph moved away from Zulaīkha. Al-‘Azīz was helpless and could not approach women. And as Joseph was trying to apologize to Al-‘Azīz, “I was asleep,” said Zulaīkha, “when he came to abuse me.” But some of his people appeared and testified against his wife. “Leave that,” said Atfein to Joseph, that is, “leave the excuses,” and addressing his wife, “Ask forgiveness for your sin,” he said. The noise of the adventure reached Nahrāūsh, but he returned to his pleasures and lived away from men. The women of high society, acquainted with history, made fun of Zulaīkha; the latter invited some of them to a repast, and had two golden rooms prepared for them, which were spread with golden yellow brocade. Between the two rooms she had brocade curtains suspended, and she ordered the hairdressers to adorn Joseph and bring him out of the room opposite to where she would be with the women. This room was facing the sun. The hairdressers then took Joseph with them, and adorned her hair with all sorts of jewels; they decked him in a yellow brocade robe, topped with red disks inlaid with gold, where little green birds could be seen; the robe was lined with green. Under the robe, Joseph was wearing a red tunic and on his head was a crown of pearls and jewels. The hairdressers passed the ends of the hair under the crown, which fell on his forehead. They drew back the curls on his breast, uncovered his forehead, and placed the crown on it. In his ears they put two loops in jewels; behind the collar of his caftan, they let his hair intermingle with precious stones and gold, hanging between his shoulders; at his neck was suspended a gold necklace inlaid with red stones and splendid pearls. At his waist was fastened a gold belt with staples of colored stones and chiseled pendants. He put on white shoes with green embroidery on a background of gold; and the bottom of his kaftan was bordered with braids and braids, and many green stones were sewn there. On each cheek a lock of hair was curled up, his eyes were kohled and a green feather fan was put in his hand. The women having finished eating and drinking, Zulaīkha handed them knives with gem-sleeves to cut the fruit; these fruits were, it is said, oranges, and while her guests ate them, Zulaīkha said to them: “I have been told that you speak of me and my slave.” “How,” cried they, “can you say that? You are of a race too high for such a thing to exist; a person of your quality is placed higher than the children of kings by your beauty and nobility. How could you have been satisfied with your slave?” “You have not been told the truth,” said Zulaīkha, "and he is at my house for another service. Then she made a sign to the hairdressers, they lifted the curtain which separated the room where they stood from the other, and Joseph appeared illuminated by the sun on his face; and the room and all that it contained was illuminated by Joseph’s face. The latter stepped forward, fan in hand, and the women looked at him stealthily. Arrived near Zulaīkha, Joseph stopped and his fan kept the flies away from his mistress’s head. The women, all occupied in looking at him, and marveling at his beauty, cut off their fingers, thinking they were cutting their fruits, and did not utter a word. “What has happened” Zulaīkha asked them, “that you do not speak anymore and you look at my slave.” “God forbid it!” they replied; this one is not your slave; she is a magnificent angel. And there was none among them who lacked desire and love for him. “This is the one,” said Zulaīkha, for whom I am so much reproached.” “No one,” answered the women, “can blame you for it. Whoever blames you would be wrong. Take him therefore.” “I tried,” said Zuleikha, “but he refused me. Talk to him for me.” Then each one began to talk to Joseph, secretly trying to convince him and offering herself to him, but he always refused. Hoping to be accepted, they spoke to Zulaīkha and said, “Your mistress loves you and you hate her. You do not have the right to disobey her.” “I do not care,” said Joseph. Finally, judging any persuasion useless, they tried to take him by force. “No,” said Zulaīkha, “that would not be agreeable; but since he refuses me, I will deprive him of all pleasure, I will imprison him and take away all that I have given him.” Joseph replied, “Prison is preferable to what is required of me.” And she swore by her god who was a green emerald statue, named Atared (Mercury), that if he persisted, she would make good on her threat on the spot. And she had him stripped of his clothes, had him put on his coat and asked Al-‘Azīz to put his prison at her disposal to stop the slanderous rumors circulating about her. Al-‘Azīz consented and Joseph was thrown into prison.
The king saw in a dream someone who said to him: “Such and such have formed the plan to kill you. And he pointed to the baker and the king’s butler. When he awoke, the king summoned them, questioned them, and they confessed. According to some authors, only one of them confessed and the other denounced it energetically. The king had them imprisoned. The baker was named Rasan and the butcher Mortos. Joseph was also in the same prison consoling those who were there and promised them freedom. The two officers told him their dreams, as reported by God in his book, and the event was fulfilled as Joseph had announced. Later, the king had the vision of the cows and the ears; it was then that the butler spoke to him of Joseph, went to the captive, told him the king’s dreams, and returned to the prince, who exclaimed: “Let him come!” “I will not go out,” said Joseph, “before we have cleared up the women’s affair for which I was imprisoned.” Everything was discovered then and Zulaīkha made a complete confession.
They sent for Joseph, washed him, freed him from the filthiness of the prison, and had him wear the clothes that suited those who came to kings. On seeing him, the king felt his heart fill with affection for him; he filled him with favors, and questioned him about his dreams, which Joseph explained, as God has related. “Who will come to my aid?” Asked the king. “Me,” answered Joseph. And the king gave him a royal garment, put a crown on his head and made him walk through the city, escorted by the army, and bought him back to the palace where the king made him sit on the throne of Al-‘Azīz, taking on at the same time the functions of Regent. It is reported that after the death of Al-‘Azīz, the king gave his widow in marriage to Joseph. “This is better than how you wanted me,” Joseph told her. “Forgive me,” replied Zulaīkha, “my husband was helpless and no woman can see you without her heart being filled with love for you because of your beauty.”
The years of abundance having come to Egypt, Joseph gathered the grain from all sides, stored it, and collected a large quantity of it. And when the years of famine came, when the Nile began to decline and its level fell year by year, the country was so desolate that wheat was sold for fortunes of jewels, cattle, clothes, crockery (of value), land. Egypt would have been abandoned if Joseph had not been in charge of affairs. Syria was also desolated by the scourge and Joseph’s brothers came to Egypt as God reported. Joseph sent for his father who went to Egypt with all his family. Joseph, taking with him wheat from Egypt, went to meet him and presented him to the king. Jacob was then a venerable old man whom the king treated with respect. He asked him about his age, state, and religion. “I am a hundred and twenty years old,” replied Jacob; “for my condition, I have sheep that I graze and that I use. I love the master of the world, your creator and mine. He is the God of my fathers, your God and the God of all things.” Among the people of the king’s suite was a very powerful priest who said to the king, “I fear that the ruin of Egypt will come through the hands of this man’s children.” “How can we make sure of that?” the king asked. Then the priest said to Jacob, “Show me your God, O old man.” “My God,” said Jacob, “is too big to see.” “We see our gods.” “Certainly,” says Jacob, “your gods are of gold, silver, stone, precious stones, copper, and wood, used by the sons of Adam, who are the slaves of my God. There is no God but him, he is the sublime and the wise.” “A thing that cannot be seen with the eyes does not exist,” said the priest. Jacob, irritated, denied this: “God,” said he, “is not a thing like other things; he is the creator of all that exists; there is no God but him.” “Describe him to us,” asked the priest. “Only creatures,” said Jacob, “can be described; but he is the unique creator, the Elder, the Wise, the Eternal; he sees, but we do not see him.” And Jacob got up angrily. The king made him sit again and ordered the priest to be quiet. “We have found in the books,” said the priest to the king, “that the ruin of Egypt will come by the hand of these people.” “Will it happen in our time?” asked the king. “No,” said the priest, “not for a long time yet. But it would be best to kill him and leave no one of his race to live.” “Even if,” said the king, “the thing would as you say it will be, we cannot prevent it and we cannot kill these people.” And he gave to Jacob and his companions the valley of A Sedir, where Jacob remained until his last day. When he died, he was carried to the village of Abraham and buried with him.
Nahrāūsh, it is said, was a believer, but he concealed his faith, fearing that his authority would suffer. He reigned 120 years and, during his reign, Joseph created the Fayum. The Egyptians had begun to speak ill of their king: “He has grown old,” said they, “his intelligence is darkened; put it to the test.” And the king said to Joseph, “I have given this land to my daughter; it is only an overflow for the waters; put it in order for her.” And Joseph set to work; he managed to remove the waters, had the mud removed, dug the Menha and built Allahūn; he divided the waters and separated them; and all this in four months. Everyone was astonished at his skill. He was, it is said, the first in Egypt who practiced the art of engineering.
When Nahrāūsh died, his son Darmagūsh succeeded him. It is the same which carries with the historians the name of Dārim ibn Al Rīan; he is the fourth Pharaoh of the Egyptians. This prince followed a line of conduct quite different from that which his father had followed. Joseph was his lieutenant, but if, in certain cases, he adopted his opinions, in others he ignored them. It was in his time that Joseph died; they interred him and laid his body in a marble sarcophagus buried on the western bank of the Nile; and this shore became more and more fertile, while the eastern shore remained barren. The sarcophagus was then transported to the east, and this region became fertile in its turn, while the fertility of the western shore decreased. It was therefore decided to place the body one year on the east bank and one year on the west bank. Then they resolved to fasten the sarcophagus in the middle of the river by means of solid chains, and both banks of the river became fertile.
Al-Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 1.10
In the time of Dārim ibn ar-Rayān, who is the fourth pharaoh, named by the Copts Drimūs, a silver mine was found three days’ march from the Nile, and a considerable quantity of metal was extracted. a statue, in the name of the Moon, for he was born at the moment when this planet was in conjunction with the Crab, and he raised it above the alabaster palace that his father had built in the desert of the East. Around it, he raised statues, all of silver, which he draped with red silk, and instituted a festival which was celebrated every time the Moon entered the sign of the Crab.
When Aqsaīs [= Aqsāmis], the sixth pharaoh, seized power after his father Mo‘dan ibn Mo‘adiūs [= Ma‘ādiūs] ibn Dārim ibn Drimūs, he had numerous towers around Memphis. Above these towers were raised columns through which one could from one to the other; he also made at Raqudah, at Ṣā, and in the cities of Upper and Lower Egypt, buildings and towers which were lighted, and a plethora of talismans; he made a block of silver engraved with the image of the planets; this block, plated with porcelain, was placed at the top of a column in the middle of Memphis; he raised in his father’s temple a statue of Saturn in worked black gold. It was from his time that a balance was made to advise men: the two trays were of gold, the pointer of silver and the chains of gold; it was suspended in the temple of the Sun, and on one of the plates the word “Truth” was engraved, and on the other the word “Lie”; below were placed stones bearing the names of the planets. When there was a dispute between two people, the offender and the offended entered the temple. Each took a stone and pronounced a few words, then put one of them in one of the scales and the other in the other; the offender’s plate was lowered, and that of the offended rose. If a man wanted to undertake a journey, he took two stones, giving one the name of “Leave” and the other that of “Stay” and put each of them in a tray. If the two plates were lowered, without either rising above the other, he remained; if both of them rose, he would leave; and if only one plate was raised, he delayed his journey, but would eventually leave. They also consulted this scale for a debt, for the absent, and to know if a business was good or bad. They say Bokht Nasr, among other things he took to Babylon after the conquest of Egypt, carried off this balance. He placed in one of the temples of fire. During the reign of Aqsaīs was made an oven that roasted and cooked without fire and a knife which, put in place, attracted the animals who saw it and who came to slaughter themselves; this prince also prepared a water that turned into fire and a glass that changed into air and many other magical objects; he even left the necessary instructions to manufacture them.
For the temples, it was Sūrīd, the builder of the pyramids, who, according to Ibn Waṣīf Shāh, raised them all, deposited treasures in them, wrote the precepts of science, and established a djinn to protect them against whoever would destroy them.
Al-Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 2.3
It is asserted that Al-Wālīd ibn Al-Raīan was the Pharaoh of Joseph, and Al-Wālīd ibn Mu‘sāb the Pharaoh of Moses; among them [the Pharaohs] we still count Sanān ibn ‘Ālūān. Ibn Waṣīf Shāh says that the name of Pharaoh was given to him only because he committed many murders, sparing only a very intelligent girl, who, frightened by the number of his crimes, poisoned him in his 170th year.
[possible] After him, Gūriaq reigned; this princess treated her subjects kindly, amassed wealth, honored priests and scholars and magicians, extended their power, and multiplied temples. Those who would not submit to her authority went to the city of Atrīb and chose for king a man of the lineage of Atrīb. The story of what concerns him is in the chapter on Alexandria. Gūriaq is the first woman of Noah’s family who was queen of Egypt. After her death, his cousin Zalfa banūt Mamūn succeeded her. She was a wise and intelligent virgin who treated her subjects gently. Aī‘man the Atribite revolted against her, and summoned the king of the Amalekites, who sent him a general, to his aid. Zalfa sent an army to meet him; the two armies joined Al-Arich, and after a fight in which a great number of men perished, the partisans of Zalfa fled to Memphis, pursued by the enemy. Zalfa retreated to the Saīd and stopped at Ashmunein, and the war continued between her and the Amalekites, a war in which they were routed, abandoned Memphis after having devastated it, and retreated to the Gurf which they fortified. Egypt was then divided into two parts; Zalfa recommenced the war, but after three months of struggle, had to retreat to Qūs, pursued by Aī‘man. Seeing herself about to be caught, she poisoned herself.
Alfonso X, General Estoria 1.31 (fol. 160r)
A wise man of the Arabs who was named Al-Waṣīf and who wrote the history of Egypt said that the Pharaoh in whose time the Hebrew Exodus occurred was called Ṭalmā in Arabic. He is called Talmai in Hebrew, and the Egyptians, according to the account of Jerome and Eusebius, called him Acencheres, as we have told you already.
Al-Maqrizi, Al Khitat 2.4
Of all the preceding stories, says the author [al-Maqrizi], those of Ibn Waṣīf Shāh are obviously authentic. […] For Ibn Waṣīf Shāh is well informed about the Chronicles of the Egyptians.
Al-Maqrizi, Al-Khitat 2.57
And Ibn Waṣīf Shāh is the man who knows the best stories about Egypt!
Sources: U. Bouriant, Description topographique et historique de l'Égypte, vols. 1-2 (E. Leroux, 1895 and 1900); S.C. Malan (trans.), A Short History of the Copts and of Their Church (London: D. Nutt, 1873); Ferdinand Wüstenfeld (trans.), Die geographie und verwaltung von Agypten (Göttingen: Dieterichschse Verlags-Buchhandlung, 1879); P. Sánchez-Prieto Borja, Rocío Díaz Moreno, Elena Trujillo Belso: Edición de textos alfonsíes en REAL ACADEMIA ESPAÑOLA: Banco de datos (CORDE) [en línea]. Corpus diacrónico del español. <http://www.rae.es> [7 de marzo 2006]: General Estoria. Primera parte.
