LINES OF THE DAY

". . . But the past does not exist independently from the present. Indeed, the past is only past because there is a present, just as I can point to something over there only because I am here. But nothing is inherently over there or here. In that sense, the past has no content. The past -- or more accurately, pastness -- is a position. Thus, in no way can we identify the past as past." p. 15

". . . But we may want to keep in mind that deeds and words are not as distinguishable as often we presume. History does not belong only to its narrators, professional or amateur. While some of us debate what history is or was, others take it into their own hands." p. 153

Silencing the Past: Power and the Production of History (1995) by Michel-Rolph Trouillot

Tuesday, February 17, 2009

King Of the Cats


From Pharoah Nedeses and Queen Constantiti's visit to the Egypt yesterday, to the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
Already, early in Egypt's Old Kingdom*, between 5 and 6000 years ago, cats had their place -- as in charge. Here is a fragment from the walls commemorating and praising the King of the Cats and the cats in his keeping. Presumably, this King of the Cats is not four-legged, furred and tailed his own self. But he is in charge of the comfortable keeping of the pharoahs' cats, who control the vermin in the Pharoah's graneries and perform other hunting obligations, even retrieving small birds shot (with arrows, of course) in the more still waters.
Posted by at
Labels: ,

No comments:

Post a Comment

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)