I responded. “Just before her death, Nefertari enthusiastically discussed this idea with Ipi and I am certain the creation of such a centre would have given her great happiness. Her soul will then have another and more pleasant destination on its visits to this world. Just as your spirit inhabits your statues, hers will dwell within the House of Life and inspire those who serve there.”
“My thoughts exactly. When I visit the new archive, I will feel her presence and receive her warmth and consolation.” Ramesses raised his beaker. “To Nefertari and the perpetuation of her memory. Sennefer, I will instruct Prince Khaemwaset to assemble a group of learned men to prepare a report on how this venture can be brought to fruition. I am sure he will appreciate your assistance. Now, before you become any fatter, when do I see my granite statues in Thebes?”
The king knew of my proposal to create large floating rafts to ship the statues. Imhotep and his colleagues had conducted trials and proved the idea feasible. The vizier issued a requisition for shipments of pine logs from the Levant and the first deliveries had already arrived at Aswan, where the great vessels were being assembled. Calculations showed each raft would need to be about fifty metres square, with a thickness of two metres, to carry the immense weight of each colossus with the equipment and the men who would man these unwieldy vessels.
No vessel of its size and shape had ever been built and there remained a degree of apprehension amongst the watermen about the practicality of the concept, familiar as they were with conventional boats. It was early agreed a ship of traditional design could not be built sufficiently strong to transport such great weights and, as I explained to Imhotep, we had no option other than to build rafts. The prospect of losing one of these statues to the waters of the Nile and the consequence was a thought too horrible to countenance, so much thought was being put into the vessel’s construction.
I told Ramesses we would ship the first statue in about three months. The voyage would take less than a week, barring mishaps, and moving the statue from the raft to the mortuary temple was a task of but a few days. In anticipation of the success of the floating platforms, construction of a new quay to accommodate the oversized vessels and the strengthening of the ramp up to the temple, commenced as soon as the final dimensions of the rafts determined. He said that if I sent a message to Pi-Ramess, he would voyage down to Aswan to watch the entire procession if his duties permitted. I thought his presence would do little to minimise the trepidations of not only the watermen but every living soul involved, myself included.
I foreshadowed this small concern to Ramesses, who laughed. “Do not worry, Lord Architect. You may find me amongst the gangs pulling on the ropes as you warned me this commission might end in failure. If it is successful, then we know the gods smile upon the work. If it fails, then I will know, as will you, the limits of men, machines and the gods’ grace. The high priest will make special offerings and prayers for the success of the movement of my statues, so it will be wise to ensure we give this matter our greatest attention in return for their blessing. I do not want the high priest looking down his nose at me if we fail. The cost in new buildings and lands to regain favour with the gods would empty even my treasury!”
Now that Ramesses had made his commitment to the new centre of learning, he despatched a messenger to Khaemwaset in Memphis who, in turn, sent directives to provincial governors, asking them to return to his office a list of learned men and information about the content of their regional archives. For my part, I studied the plans of the mortuary temple and worked out how the centre could be accommodated within the complex. Once I drew up the changes required and dictated instructions to my scribes, I left for Aswan with Ipi, two assistants and a chest full of architectural tools. Just before we departed, Ipi spoke of the deepening of pride in me she would garner through the success of my efforts. When I demurred and said the whole affair could end in dismal failure, she pronounced that to be impossibility, telling me again I was the world’s greatest architect and kissed me sweetly on my forehead. How could this task fail in the face of such fulsome blandishments?
We left for Aswan on a royal barque, one a little more luxurious than my own river transport. The rarest of woods had been used to panel the cabins, the furniture was of regal quality and the fabrics like gossamer. As our vessel pulled into the centre of the river, we were hailed by another vessel under sail and the additional propulsion provided by a bank of oarsmen. She drew abreast and Prince Merenptah waved to us. Rowers shipped their oars and the vessels were lashed together. The prince leapt on board, took my hand and greeted my wife with warmth. He had grown into a fine looking man, tall and muscular like a younger version of his father and with the same ease of confident bearing. His face was of fair countenance, finely chiselled and surmounted with dark tresses. Ironically, none of Ramesses’ children had inherited his distinctive red hair. He flashed us a ready smile, made an elaborate bow and announced.
“I am commanded by my father to free myself of onerous duties and sail to Aswan in company with the king’s great architect whose name is acclaimed across the realm. I am also commanded to present a trifle to the royal architect as a token of my father’s respect. Further, I am to present his beautiful wife with both a gift and an appropriate greeting from the queen.” With that, he kissed my wife on her cheeks and handed her a small alabaster box. She blushed with joy and perhaps a hint of nervousness as the bearer of the kiss was a possible successor to the king.
Prince Merenptah had served his time in the king’s regiments and now fulfilled the role of his father’s emissary on foreign missions since the retirement of the previous Royal Messenger to Foreign Lands, Lord Amenemipet. Ramesses told me, with evident pride, Merenptah was quick witted, diplomatic and possessed a fine grasp of administrative matters. Weighing heavily in his favour was his love of the hunt and other manly pursuits, attributes he shared with his father.
He begged “Lady Ipi, please open the casket. My mother kept several jewellers in thrall when she sought a gift she hoped you would like.”
My wife had not made the acquaintance of Queen Isetnofret, who rarely ventured from the Delta. This gift was a singular honour for my wife, who opened the casket and gasped with amazement. The queen had given her a diadem of the finest wrought gold worked through with carnelian and faience. It was delicate, exquisite and must have cost a small fortune. Ipi, obviously embarrassed with the quality of the offering, murmured her thanks and made to retreat to the privacy of our quarters, no doubt to try on the circlet. The prince, still smiling, sought to ease her discomfort. “My mother holds you in high regard. My father has oft remarked on your beauty and enchanting personality.” My wife blushed again and left us, happy to have gained the respect of the queen.
Merenptah turned to me. “Your present is a little larger and perhaps not as pretty but my father hopes you will understand the depth of his friendship when you see what he has prepared. He told me you are the one man in the kingdom he trusts completely and I should do my utmost to command your respect and affection. I hope in time I may win such favour. Come, we must go to my cabin to show you what I have brought.”
We boarded his vessel and walked into his deck pavilion, which was spacious and well appointed. In a corner stood a finely crafted cedar chest with panels of ebony inlaid with ivory. With a flourish, he opened its door to reveal a statue, about half a metre in height, of a man in my likeness, kneeling and holding a tablet. I bent down to see the inscription. It read ‘I, Sennefer, Great Architect and friend of Ramesses II, worships Re as he rises and throughout his life until he sets’.
It continued with a recitation of the works I had undertaken and came with an image of the king facing my own. The statue, sculptured from a block of greywacke, was painted in lifelike colours. Such carved images are placed in a recess cut into the façade above a tomb and the intended occupant usually created his own vainglorious message. The inscription finished with a statement ‘The King presented this to his Overseer of W
orks so eternity would know of his esteem.’ I looked at the prince, who beamed with pleasure. “To my certain knowledge, my father has never presented a statue to another in the kingdom. May I offer my heartfelt thanks for your being his confidant and friend?”
“I am at a loss for words, my prince, as this is an honour I am not worthy to receive. I will convey my thanks to your father when we next meet but this gift overwhelms me.”
“True men are as rare as perfect pearls. Let us take some refreshment as I have many questions about this project of which I know little. A thought - tonight you and your wife must join me at my table. The fare may be indifferent but the wine excellent. We have a few days sailing ahead of us and I insist you be my guests throughout the voyage. I am free to enjoy your company and, on my father’s instructions, I am to learn something of his friend and architecture. The river air clears the cobwebs of too much time spent in too many imperial offices talking to too many officials seeking to cover their behinds. With some luck we may even try our hand at some fishing.” How like his father he was. We spent many hours discussing many subjects and found time to fish. Very early, he told us, when we met privately, we should stop addressing him with his formal title and only use his nomen, Merenptah. By the time we reached Aswan, an informal and relaxed relationship had developed. My wife had been coaxed into easy conversation by his infectious laughter and humorous tales of royal and diplomatic life.
Well before we reached the quarry, the two immense statues could be seen lying on their heavy wooden sleds at the loading basin Nebamun had cut into the river bank. They lay, recumbent giants, one behind the other, amidst vast coils of palm fibre ropes and stacked pottery vessels filled with lubricating slurry.
What was almost as remarkable as the gigantic statues lying as though asleep in the sun, were the two massive rafts floating beside the river bank. When I conceived the idea of the rafts, I held visions of stacks of logs lashed together to form a crude platform. In doing so, I obviously underestimated the skills of the watermen and carpenters employed to build these vessels. As our vessel came to into the quay, Merenptah let out a whistle of surprise, my wife, who had scant knowledge of this part of the project, clapped her hands with glee and I, filled with false modesty, looked passively at the behemoths as they rocked majestically in the riverine current. “You did this?” my wife asked in wonderment.
I replied, a little abashed, that the watermen had something to do with the matter as I merely had an untested idea they had taken from the drawing board to fruition. Forgetting for a moment we stood next to the prince, she embraced me in full sight of the workmen loitering on the docks. Her intimacy caused much whistling and delight from the shore. The prince smiled and clapped me on the back.
“Truly, you are as gifted as my father stated and clearly a highly talented and innovative man. I see before me a miracle, no, two miracles. The gods obviously smile upon you and have blessed you with exceptional ability.”
Whilst I basked in this extravagant praise, a small punt left one of the rafts and made its way to the quay. Imhotep, and his assistant, Menes, alighted, bowed low to the prince and offered their greetings. Introductions were made.
“Imhotep, you have made excellent progress with the construction of these vessels. I expected to see piles of pine logs, heaps of cordage and an army of carpenters slaving in the sun.” He looked at me and decided, due to the presence of the prince and my wife, to show more than a waterman’s customary lack of respect for those who live on the land.
“Your Highness, Royal Overseer of Works, My Lady, we have completed most of the work on the rafts. Lord Sennefer, your idea has proven workable and will forever bring great benefits to riverine transport. We now place our trust in the gods and our modest skills to successfully deliver the vessels and their precious cargo to Thebes.”
Ipi beamed with pleasure at the praise given to her husband. The prince, assuming the mantle of authority, took his eyes off the rafts and turned his attention to Imhotep and Menes.
“Master Imhotep, on behalf of my father, King Ramesses, I extend to you, your artisans and workmen, his thanks for your endeavour. It is his wish to grant a special bonus in gold to you and your team. My scribe will arrange its distribution whilst I am here in Aswan. I am further commanded to advise you a blessing will be engraved at the Temple of Amum at Pi-Ramess in tribute to all those who serve the kingdom on our noble river. Your calling is of great import to the kingdom since you carry the bounty the gods gives to our land and your skills allow the safe passage of the king’s subjects along our waterway. You will now bring further honour to the king in delivering these devotional statues to Thebes.”
The two men, swollen with pride, bowed again and bade permission to leave. The prince stayed Imhotep and requested he join us later in the afternoon with the chief carpenter as he wished for them to explain how they accomplished the construction of the vessels. The waterman accepted the offer with alacrity, no doubt wondering where he could find some clean clothes at such short notice as his present garments were water stained and somewhat grimy. Merenptah, sensing his concern, said they would give no offence if they appeared at the meeting as they were. With an easy familiarity, he assured them he was no stranger to dirt and made a comment about the life of a field officer in the royal army. Much relieved, Imhotep went back to the punt and poled back to the rafts.
Nebamun, who had joined us, received a similar invitation. We made our way to the quarters reserved for us to refresh ourselves. My wife asked if she could retire for the afternoon thus leaving the prince and I free to hold our meeting with the artisans without them suffering the discomfort of talking in the presence of a noblewoman. Merenptah graciously thanked her for her forbearance. We lunched at the river’s edge on the loading quay where a large open pavilion was erected with tables and chairs arranged under the tentage. Steamed Nile perch and roasted gazelle were served with a selection of fruits, nuts and sweet cakes. Emmer beer and wine from pitchers cooled in the river complemented our fare. My assistants, two members of the prince’s retinue, Imhotep, Nebamun and the chief carpenter, Wenamun, completed the luncheon party.
When the artisans arrive, the prince took off his headdress, bade them eat and said he wished to know every detail of their problems and successes so he could relay, to his father, an accurate record of this innovation in vessels. A scribe was summonsed and he made himself comfortable on the ground with papyrus, inks and pens whilst we took our leisure at the table. Despite the linen tentage overhead and a slight breeze, it was a hot afternoon and beakers of beer and wine were passed freely amongst us by servants.
The artisans quickly realised they could talk freely as Merenptah established a rapport by encouraging them to go into fine details concerning the raft’s construction. He asked for clarification when words were used he was not familiar with as watermen frequently talked in an arcane river slang amongst themselves. It was soon apparent he was at ease with the low borne in our society, though he bore the same subtle authority his father evidenced, so the discussion did not degenerate into the sometimes crude humour of the river and carpenter’s shop. Wenamun and Imhotep took turns in describing the steps taken to build the platforms. It was decided to build mats of blocks and then lash the squares into one large interlocked grid. Each log had to be squared with adzes and holes drilled through both ends and along its length. Ropes, threaded through these holes, cross lashed the blocks together. The first tier was completely assembled on land, dragged into the water and moored to the quay. The squares of the second tier were then hauled off the shore, section by section, onto the foundation tier as it floated in the river. Holes were drilled through both layers and long wooden dowel pins driven into the blocks.
At intervals, ropes were substituted for dowel pins and the tiers spliced together. Wenamun related that his carpenters cursed having to work with pine as the timber was tough and coarse fibred. Drills blunted quickly and finally they resorted to burning holes with red hot copper
pokers. Imhotep’s choice of timber was vindicated as the resinous pine prevented the raft from becoming water logged and thus heavier. To reduce resistance, carpenters shaped one end to form a blunt bow and sheathed it with sawn planks pegged into the ends of the blocks. The bow plates were then adorned the images of Khnum and Hapi, guardian gods of those who work on the river and wadjet eye decorations, traditional symbols offering protection against a multitude of dangers.
Their shape had been altered by making them slightly longer than originally conceived. Three stern mounted tripods housed long sweeps that helmsmen would use to steer the vessel on its down-river passage. The watermen considered a mast and sails impractical on such a large vessel, instead Imhotep planned to attach two heavy masonry transports to the rafts by ropes to provide extra steerage. Finally, noting the raft’s upper surface was a sticky mass of resin coated blocks, carpenters covered the entire deck with thick sawn cedar planks. The idea of putting bollards around the edges was discarded as Imhotep thought that, if a statue started to slip, it would break the palm fibre ropes, pull out the bollards and impose stresses on the vessel that could cause it to disintegrate.
On this point we disagreed. “There must be no possibility of the statue moving once it is aboard. You lash down masonry blocks, obelisks and statuary on conventional craft, so you are to do the same with these colossi. You must consider the possibility of the raft coming to an abrupt halt should it ground on a sand bank or veer off course and drive into the river bank. If this were to happen, the raft will stop but the weight of the statue will cause it to lurch forward. If not secured by heavy ropes, it will break free. Put bollards around the edges of the rafts and use them as anchor points for securing ropes.”
The Golden Falcon Page 33