- ḥw.t-ꜥnḫ: Osing’s note on ḥw.t-ꜥnḫ (Das Grab des Nefersecheru, 1992, 49, note (l)) follows Gardiner (The House of Life, in: JEA 24, 1938, 157-179), who concluded that it referred to living quarters of the palace, in particular the rooms concerned with food preparation. Gardiner’s discussion is based largely on Old Kingdom sources, in particular the title ḥry-wḏb-ḥwt-ꜥnḫ which he translated as ‘master of the king’s largess in the Mansion of Life’. He observed that the title often occurs in association with other titles relating to ritual and ceremonial roles connected with the physical person of the king. Juan Carlos Moreno Garcia’s reassessment of this title (Études sur l'administration, le pouvoir et l'idéologie, AegLeod 4, Liège 1997, 140–3; Id., Ḥwt et le milieu rural égyptien du IIIe millénaire, Bibl. EPHE. Sciences historiques et philologiques 337, Paris 1999, 44–8) largely supports Gardiner’s, although he does not restrict the title or the ḥw.t-ꜥnḫ to food preparation and service. He suggests the ḥw.t-ꜥnḫ was a palace institution or area, perhaps incorporating the throne room, which may have been particularly concerned with the evaluation of resources, including food provisions. He (1997, 141–3) emphasizes that the limited occurrence of the title indicates only a small number of people were connected with the institution. The ḥw.t-ꜥnḫ is not be an unusual term in New Kingdom sources. Its restriction to the palace context and, therefore, the Memphite area (cf. Moreno Garcia 1997, 141 for the Old Kingdom), may explain its scarcity in published material. It’s particular association with a medical title in one case (Gaballa, in: JEA 59, 1973, 110, n. b) may imply that it still involved a close physical proximity to the king.

Commentary author: Elizabeth Frood (Data file created: 02/09/2025, latest revision: 02/09/2025)