Capricorn 25. During a ritual, a living woman is wrapped like an Egyptian mummy.
To foster her rebirth they had wrapped her in linen strips, in the manner of a mummy. After a day and a night, at dawn they unwrapped her as they sang their sacred hymns.
As the first of the inner bands fell away they found nothing — an empty space where she had been.
This became known as the sacred miracle called “The birth of Quanaan,” celebrated yearly on the anniversary of its occurrence.
On the 500th year of its observance, at dawn, a young girl, naked, wandered out of the forest. The priests took this as a sign, for 500 is the number of the Phoenix.
The old priestess of Quanaan had died the night before, and the young girl was placed on her sacred throne as the new priestess. It was said she would reign in the temple for 500 years without ever aging. That was 248 years ago, and she carries out her ministrations to this day, fresh and young as ever.