Incense burner: arm (hieroglyph)

Incense censer
(horizontal, as ~arm)
in hieroglyphs

The ancient Egyptian Incense burner: arm is a horizontal hieroglyph representing various types of horizontal tools used to offer, and burn incense. In tomb scenes, it is sometimes depicted with a little cup-shaped box attached for keeping incense on the top surface; the person making the offering is occasionally seen holding an incense grain-pellet with lines of incense, or linked grains-in-a-line, which are equivalent to drifting smoke.

Incense was used from the beginning dynasties of Ancient Egypt.

The horizontal incense burner is a determinative in Egyptian language k3p, for "incense, to make smoke".[1] The phonetic value of the hieroglyph is kp.[2]

Incense burner: pot

Common
Incense Burner: Pot
in hieroglyphs
The other common type of hieroglyph for the burning of incense, is a small pot, with a flame, flickering from the top surface, "Incense burner: pot with smoke". The censer pot has one major usage in front of the feet of the "Soul" bird, the Ibis,

but is also replaced in rare instances with a meteor hieroglyph,[3]

, (not Gardiner listed).

See also

References

  1. ^ Betrò, Hieroglyphics: The Writings of Ancient Egypt, "Incense burner", p. 215.
  2. ^ Betrò, p. 215.
  3. ^ Meteor hieroglyph, (Wikimedia Commons)
  • Betrò, Maria Carmela. Hieroglyphics: The Writings of Ancient Egypt, c. 1995, 1996-(English), Abbeville Press Publishers, New York, London, Paris (hardcover, ISBN 0-7892-0232-8)