Abstract
The study presents a new look at the Demotic story of Setne I. According to traditional interpretations, Setne is a scholar searching for the magical scroll containing the wisdom of Thoth, who has to pass through various dangers along his journey and, in the end, is forced to return the book back to the tomb where he found it.
The mysterious beauty Tabubu, whom he encounters after carrying the scroll out of the tomb of the scholar Naneferkaptah, is usually portrayed as a force of chaos, as one of the dangerous women described in coeval wisdom literature as creatures any wise man should avoid. However, a careful analysis of the text reveals Setne to be no scholar, his motivation as far from a pure search for knowledge and his desires being of a carnal rather than spiritual nature.
Moreover, a large part of the narrative appears to play out in the spiritual realm, which Setne reaches upon voluntary or involuntary intoxication. Finally, the story also shows that the memory of the real Setne Khamwaset permeated the literary tradition of the time, as the literary Setne, too, is portrayed as an ancient "archaeologist" who roams and restores tombs from long lost times.