---

The Liturgy of Funerary Offerings

By E. A. Wallis Budge

---

The Twenty-sixth Ceremony

This was followed by an offering of an iron vessel containing one hent measure of beer, 1 and at the same time the Kher heb said:--

"Unas, the Eye of Horus hath been presented unto thee, which was rescued for thee; there is no iron therein, and it belongeth to thee."

In the "iron vessel" we may probably see an allusion to the iron spear with which Horus defended himself against the attack of Set. If this be so we are to understand from the text that the strength of the iron

 

The Sem priest presenting an iron vessel of beer.

 

weapon is transferred to the vessel, which in turn transfers it to the beer. From the beer the deceased obtains the magical power of Horus which will enable him to repulse any attack made upon him by Set.

Footnotes

86:1 Or, "a vessel containing a hent measure of iron beer."