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Reading Notes: Ancient Egypt, Part A



In the story "The Death of Osiris," Osiris's brother, Set, creates an ornate chest that match Osiris's exact dimensions. During a large feast, Set tells everyone that whoever's dimensions are a perfect match for the chest will be gifted the chest. All the guests tried fitting in the chest, but none fit. Finally, Osiris tries laying in it and fits perfectly. Before he can get out, however, the "evil followers" of Set nail Osiris into the chest, killing him. The party quickly becomes filled with sorrow rather than joy, and Osiris and his coffin are put in the Nile, which they float down until they set sail in the ocean. 

I think it would be interesting to tell a similar story to this one, in which people thought someone was doing a good deed for society, but it is secretly a sinister act. I could use the same basic premise by having someone create an object that is unknowably created for one specific person, people trying to win this object, and having the object ultimately lead to the person it was made for's demise. 

The chest is a conflicting object, because it is so beautiful but causes so much destruction. During the celebration, all the party-goers stop by to admire the chest and its decorations. Even after it becomes Osiris's coffin, it is described as "richly decorated."

Detail of a frieze on a wall of tomb QV66, the burial place of Nefertari (c. 1295-1255 B.C.), royal wife of Ramesses the Great, featuring the Egyptian god Osiris. Source: Wikipedia

Story source: Egyptian Myth and Legend by Donald Mackenzie (1907)
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