The Book of Gates
Also known as: Book of Gates, Gateways of the Netherworld, Book of the Twelve Gates
An illustrated underworld book detailing the sun god’s nocturnal journey through twelve gates of the Duat, culminating in the defeat of Apophis and the rebirth of the sun at dawn.
Description
The Book of Gates is a Ramesside funerary composition inscribed on royal tomb walls, charting Re’s passage through twelve night hours, each guarded by a gate and its deities. The text and images describe regions of the Duat, the provisioning of the blessed, punishments of enemies, the protection of the solar barque, and the climactic regeneration of the sun. Distinct tableaux include the binding of the chaos-serpent Apophis, the union of Re with Osiris, and the procession of humanity’s four groups before the sun. Unlike the more topographic Amduat, the Book of Gates is structured by liminal thresholds—named gate goddesses and their guardians—emphasizing ritual names, passwords, and divine order that allows safe transit to dawn.
Historiography
Earliest complete attestations occur in Seti I’s tomb (KV17), with parallel and partial versions in later Ramesside tombs (e.g., KV7, KV9). The composition was studied and collated from tomb scenes by scholars such as Alexandre Piankoff and Erik Hornung, who noted significant variation in captions, deity lists, and sequence details between copies. Later adaptations appear on sarcophagi and papyri, though the canonical presentation remains monumental and iconographic. Modern editions synthesize photographs, facsimiles, and hieroglyphic transcriptions to reconstruct the sequence of the twelve gates.
Date Notes
New Kingdom composition; first securely attested in the tomb of Seti I (KV17) and subsequently in Ramesside royal tombs (19th–20th Dynasties).
Themes
Major Characters
- Ra
- Osiris
- Isis
- Horus
- Seth
- Apep
Myths
- Ra’s Night Journey through the Twelve Gates
- Union of Ra and Osiris at Midnight
- Overthrow of Apophis
- Judgment and Blessing of the Justified Dead
Facts
- The composition is structured by twelve nocturnal gates, each marking an hour of the night.
- Earliest full exemplar is carved and painted in Seti I’s tomb (KV17) in the Valley of the Kings.
- Text and image work together; many captions are brief rubricated labels identifying deities and actions.
- The sixth hour depicts the union of Ra with Osiris, symbolizing nightly regeneration.
- The serpent Apophis is restrained by ropes and knives; protective deities neutralize his power.
- A distinctive tableau shows four groups of humanity presented before the sun god.
- Versions differ in deity lists and sequences across Ramesside tombs, reflecting flexible transmission.
- Unlike the Amduat’s geography, the Book of Gates emphasizes thresholds, gatekeepers, and spoken names.
- Later copies appear on sarcophagi and papyri, but the classic medium is monumental tomb decoration.
- The narrative culminates in sunrise, when the renewed sun emerges as Khepri.