Papyrus Salt 124

The Papyrus Salt 124 (also known as the British Museum Papyrus 10055) is an ancient Egyptian papyrus dating to the beginning of the 20th Dynasty. This papyrus is a copy of a letter addressed to the vizier of the time, most likely Hori.

It brings various complaints against Paneb, a chief-workman at Deir el-Medina, a workmen’s community at Thebes, where the papyrus was most likely found. This papyrus gives insight into both the nature of the judicial system, and some of the corrupt practices that may have taken place in Deir el-Medina and other such worker’s communities at the time.

This papyrus is located in the archives of the British Museum, from one of the collections of early 19th century Egyptologist Henry Salt. Rather than being excavated by Salt, this papyrus was purchased in Egypt, probably in the city of Thebes near Dier el-Medina. A translation did not emerge until 1870, when François Chabas published a translation and short summary. It was not until 1929, when Jaroslav Černý published an English language translation that Egyptologists began to take an interest in both the papyrus and the story of Paneb.

Though the dating of the papyrus is not exact, scholars have attempted to infer the date around which it was written. A later complaint in year 29 of the reign of Ramesses III provides a valuable clue. A descendant of Paneb, bringing his own accusations to the authorities, references a trial of Paneb for one of the crimes he is accused of in the papyrus, under Vizier Hori. However, Hori held office from the reign of the Pharaoh Siptah up until the reign of Ramesses III, so scholars have sought to narrow the time down further. Dominique Valbelle proposed that Paneb had not been removed from office until after year 5 of Ramesses III, due to a papyrus dating to that year that listed Paneb's son Aapahte as still working, unlikely in the event that his father was dismissed from his position. However, later dating has proven that papyrus to date to year 5 of the reign of Siptah, when Paneb was unquestionably in power.

The Papyrus Salt 124 is 38 by 62 centimeters, and is made of 3 sheets glued together. Černý assumes that since the middle sheet is 27 centimeters wide, the other sheets were originally of comparable width, meaning that the third sheet (23 centimeters wide) might have been slightly cropped, while the first sheet (12 centimeters wide) was definitely damaged at some point, and several lines are incomplete, particularly on the first column of the recto, the front side of the papyrus. The frame of the papyrus is 45.4 by 68.3 centimeters (British Museum). Černý describes the papyrus as "very thin," with "a yellowish brown color" and "relatively pale" ink. The first column of the recto has at least one line missing, while the last line legible, line 21, is incomplete, as are the bottom lines of every column except the second column of the verso, which is left blank at the bottom of the page. Nevertheless, the British Museum rates the condition of the papyrus as "fair" (British Museum).

...
Wikipedia