Book of Thoth is a name given to many ancient Egyptian texts supposed to have been written by Thoth, the Egyptian god of writing and knowledge. They include many texts that were claimed to exist by ancient authors, and a magical book that appears in an Egyptian work of fiction.
Texts that are known or claimed to exist
The Egyptians stored many texts, on a wide range of subjects, in "Houses of Life", the libraries contained within temple complexes. As Thoth was the god of knowledge, many of these texts were claimed to be his work. The Egyptian historian Manetho said that Thoth wrote 36,525 books. The church fatherClement of Alexandria, in the sixth book of his work Stromata, mentions forty-two books used by Egyptian priests that he says contain "the whole philosophy of the Egyptians". All these books, according to Clement, were written by Hermes. Translation from Egyptian language and concepts to Greek language and concepts was not entirely accurate and some of the Egyptian authenticity was lost. Among the subjects they cover are hymns, rituals, temple construction, astrology, geography, and medicine. The Egyptologists Richard Lewis Jasnow and Karl-Theodor Zauzich have dubbed a long Egyptian text from the Ptolemaic period "the Book of Thoth". This Demotic text, known from more than forty fragmentary copies, consists of a dialogue between a person called "The-one-who-loves-knowledge" and a figure that Jasnow and Zauzich identify as Thoth. The topics of their conversation include the work of scribes, various aspects of the gods and their sacred animals, and the Duat, the realm of the dead.
Fictional book
The fictional Book of Thoth appears in an ancient Egyptian short story from the Ptolemaic period, known as "Setne Khamwas and Naneferkaptah" or "Setne I". The book, written by Thoth, is said to contain two spells, one of which allows the reader to understand the speech of animals, and one of which allows the reader to perceive the gods themselves. According to the story, the book was originally hidden at the bottom of the Nile near Coptos, where it was locked inside a series of boxes guarded by serpents. The Egyptian prince Neferkaptah fought the serpents and retrieved the book, but in punishment for his theft from Thoth, the gods killed his wife Ahwere and son Merib. Neferkaptah committed suicide and was entombed along with the book. Generations later, the story's protagonist, Setne Khamwas, steals the book from Neferkaptah's tomb despite opposition from Neferkaptah's ghost. Setne then meets a beautiful woman who seduces him into killing his children and humiliating himself in front of the pharaoh. He discovers that this episode was an illusion created by Neferkaptah, and in fear of further retribution, Setne returns the book to Neferkaptah's tomb. At Neferkaptah's request, Setne also finds the bodies of Neferkaptah's wife and son and buries them in Neferkaptah's tomb, which is then sealed. The story reflects the Egyptian belief that the gods' knowledge is not meant for humans to possess.
The Book of Thoth is often featured in fiction with Egyptian or supernatural themes. Novels that do so include Brood of the Witch-Queen by Sax Rohmer; Moses, Man of the Mountain by Zora Neale Hurston; Mumbo Jumbo by Ishmael Reed; The Rosetta Key by William Dietrich; and The Serpent's Shadow by Rick Riordan. The Book plays a role in Henry H. Neff's juvenile fantasy series The Tapestry and Lynne Ewing's young adult series Sisters of Isis. In the third arc of the mangaJoJo's Bizarre Adventure, the antagonist Boingo's supernatural ability is named Thoth and takes the form of a fortune-telling comic book. In the Japanese novelMyriad Colors Phantom World, the protagonist has an ability called "The Book of Thoth". The Book of Thoth also appears in video games. For example, it is a side-quest element in . In both the multi-player online battle arena Smite and Board Game Online, the Book of Thoth is a usable item. Also in Sid Meier's Civilization 6 it is present as a holy relic that generates faith and tourism. The Book of Toth and the tomb of Nefer-Ka-Ptah also are animated in the little movie The riddle of the sphinx, directed by the Ukraïnan director Vladimir Pekar.
