Important Documents of Ancient Egyptian Religion

The Pyramid Texts:

The Pyramid Texts are the oldest collection of religious inscriptions dating back to 3100 B.C. These texts are funerary inscriptions and were eventually divided and categorized. They eventually became part of The Book of the Dead.

The Rosetta stone:

Carved in 196 B.C., the Rosetta stone was found in 1799 A.D. by French soldiers in a town called Rosetta. The Rosetta stone is important because a man by the name of Jean-Francois Champollion deciphered it in 1822, allowing Egyptologists from there on to be able to read hieroglyphics. Although not itself a religious document, the deciphering of the Rosetta Stone enabled historians to read other religious documents of ancient Egypt.

The Coffin Texts:

Partially derived from the Pyramid Texts, the Coffin Texts contain nearly 1,200 spells. Identified first during the First Intermediate Period, the Coffin Texts signified that those who were wealthy enough (not just the Pharaohs) could have an afterlife.

The Book of the Dead:

Containing some of the information from the Pyramid Texts, the Book of the Dead was used as a funerary text in the New Kingdom to about 50 B.C. It can be translated to “Book of coming Forth by Day or “Book of the Emerging forth into the Light.”