Noise of Cattle Lowing (Auditory Imagery)
Having fled Egypt without a plan, Sinuhe travels on foot through hot, dry desert until he is nearly dead from dehydration. However, just at the point of death, Sinuhe hears something that gives him hope: "I lifted up my heart, and gathered my limbs together, as I heard the noise of cattle lowing." In this example of auditory imagery, the sound of cattle makes Sinuhe realize he is near a herd and therefore other humans. As luck would have it, the cattle belong to a Syrian who recognizes Sinuhe from Egypt, and the man rescues Sinuhe with the gift of water and milk.
War Cry (Auditory Imagery)
When Sinuhe is challenged to a fight, he calmly readies his weapons and awaits the attack. After dodging the challenger's volley of attacks without trouble, Sinuhe responds with a single arrow in the man's neck. Sinuhe then comments: "I felled him with his own axe, and gave my war cry on his back, while every Asiatic was bellowing." In this example of auditory imagery, Sinuhe increases the realism of the scene by describing the sounds of rejoicing that flood in following his victory.
A Pyramid of Stone (Visual Imagery)
At the end of The Tale of Sinuhe, Sinuhe details the burial monument the king gives him: "A pyramid of stone was built for me, in the midst of the pyramids. [...] All the equipment to be put in a tomb shaft—its share of these things was made. I was given funerary priests; a funerary demesne was made for me, with fields in it and a garden in its proper place, as is done for a Chief Friend." In this example of visual imagery, Sinuhe delights in the grandeur of his final resting place and its surrounding land.
