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Formation of the Ancient Egyptian State Sonia R AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PHYSICAL ANTHROPOLOGY 132:501–509 (2007) Population Continuity or Population Change: Formation of the Ancient Egyptian State Sonia R. Zakrzewski* Department of Archaeology, University of Southampton, Highfield, Southampton SO17 1BF, UK KEY WORDS Egypt; craniometric variation; biodistance; population history; phenotypic diversity ABSTRACT The origins of the ancient Egyptian state temporal relationships were assessed by Mantel and Par- and its formation have received much attention through tial Mantel tests. The results indicate overall population analysis of mortuary contexts, skeletal material, and continuity over the Predynastic and early Dynastic, and trade. Genetic diversity was analyzed by studying cranio- high levels of genetic heterogeneity, thereby suggesting metric variation within a series of six time-successive that state formation occurred as a mainly indigenous Egyptian populations in order to investigate the evidence process. Nevertheless, significant differences were found for migration over the period of the development of social in morphology between both geographically-pooled and hierarchy and the Egyptian state. Craniometric variation, cemetery-specific temporal groups, indicating that some based upon 16 measurements, was assessed through prin- migration occurred along the Egyptian Nile Valley over cipal components analysis, discriminant function analy- the periods studied. Am J Phys Anthropol 132:501–509, 2 sis, and Mahalanobis D matrix computation. Spatial and 2007. VC 2007 Wiley-Liss, Inc. The origins of the Egyptian state have long been these with local preceding samples to establish whether debated, with, as a result of the prevailing diffusionist any diachronic or synchronic morphological variation is paradigms of the time (Armelagos and Mills, 1993), much found. early attention focusing on the ethnic affiliation or biolog- ical similarities of the early Dynastic (EDyn) groups. Pur- ported changes in the archaeological sequence associated PREVIOUS CRANIOMETRIC STUDIES with the formation of the state were attributed to the pop- A summary of the results of major previous studies is \ ulation replacement as a result of the arrival of a Dynas- presented here; for further details see Keita (1995, 2004). " tic Race of invaders (Petrie, 1920, 1939; Winkler, 1938, The earliest morphological studies of Egyptian crania 1939; Emery, 1961). More recently, Egyptologists have were chiefly concerned with the shape of certain anatomi- proposed a model for indigenous state formation, whereby cal complexes. These complexes, defined by extreme var- three protostates developed and merged through military iants as geographic groups, were considered to be \racial or other expansion (Trigger, 1983; Hassan, 1988; Bard, types" (Warren, 1897; Fawcett and Lee, 1902; Giuffrida- 1989, 1994; Kemp, 1989), while others have taken a more Ruggeri, 1915; Pearson and Davin, 1924; Stoessiger, Afrocentrist approach (Diop, 1974; Bernal, 1987, 1991). 1927; Woo, 1930; Morant, 1925, 1935, 1937; Jackson and The invasion model for state formation usually involved Cave, 1937; Risdon, 1939; Derry, 1956; Nutter, 1958). For the migration of a foreign population along the Wadi example, Randall-MacIver (1901), and Thomson and Ran- Hammamat from Asia (Winkler, 1938, 1939; Derry, 1956; dall-MacIver (1905), employing morphological observa- Kantor, 1965), or along a northern Egyptian delta route tions, concluded that southern Predynastic Egyptians (Bard, 1994). Evidence to support this hypothesis consists were a hybrid population, consisting of \Negroid" and of pottery from regions such as Palestine (Kantor, 1965), non-\Negroid" (Semitic) elements. The pattern of varia- and Near Eastern turquoise and shells (Arkell, 1975) tion in facial and nasal indices was similar for both sexes found within Predynastic Egyptian sites. Furthermore, through all periods from the Predynastic to the Roman Uruk cultural markers are found at sites in the delta period. This, they argued, meant that the distribution (Bard, 1994). The process of State formation, therefore, could not be considered simply a result of normal varia- has considered to have been affected, or even caused by new populations entering the Nile Valley (as proposed by Petrie and Winkler). This new group was considered to be Grant sponsors: The Wellcome Trust (Bioarchaeology Panel); St John’s either a small immigration (following Kantor, 1965) or a College, University of Cambridge; University of Durham (Addison Wheeler Fellowship); University of Southampton. large-scale population replacement (following Petrie, 1920, 1939). *Correspondence to: Dr. Sonia R. Zakrzewski, Department of The later model of indigenous development is based Archaeology, University of Southampton, Highfield, Southampton upon both agriculture and warfare, with the Upper Egyp- SO17 1BF, UK. E-mail: [email protected] tian nomes or districts conquering the Northern nomes in Lower Egypt. This model of state formation avoids popu- Received 8 May 2006; accepted 12 December 2006 lation migrations along the Nile Valley, and is reliant only on in situ development by the indigenous population. DOI 10.1002/ajpa.20569 The current article assesses the biological affinities of a Published online 12 February 2007 in Wiley InterScience large sample of EDyn Egyptian crania and compares (www.interscience.wiley.com). VC 2007 WILEY-LISS, INC. 502 S.R. ZAKRZEWSKI tion of a single type; rather they suggested the juxtaposi- Egypt with a constant morphological type being con- tion of two groups based upon the correlation between fa- served through Dynastic times in the north. Keita (1990, cial and nasal indices as the sole criterion for distinguish- 1992), through the use of discriminant function analysis ing these two racial groups. The first group were short or (DFA), noted the overlap of southern Egyptians and some broad-faced and platyrhine, while the second group was southern African series. long or narrow-faced and leptorhine. Morant (1925, 1935) The earliest sample, the Badarian, frequently appears argued that the Lower Egyptian type remained relatively to be relatively distinct. This could be due to their very unchanged from EDyn times to the Ptolemaic period, but gracile nature (Gaballah et al., 1972), with very little de- that during this time the Upper Egyptian type changed, velopment of the muscular relief; hence they have often and as the vast majority of southern Dynastic crania fell been considered to have a generally \feminine" character between the two extremes of the \types", some form of (Strouhal, 1971). In early studies the Badarian sample transition must have occurred. Morant considered both were usually also described as having rather small abso- types to represent very closely related populations; the lute dimensions, especially in terms of breadth, horizontal differences between them could be due to evolution circumference, and cranial capacity (Stoessiger, 1927; through selection or differing environments, or through Morant, 1935). Stoessinger (1927) described the group as the slow mingling of two different races. Risdon (1939) being distinct from Later Predynastic (LPD) populations argued that the population of Upper Egypt underwent through being more dolichocephalic and prognathic, gradual change from the Badarian through to the 18th somewhat narrower in the parietal region, and having Dynasty, and that by the New Kingdom, one group had shorter faces (and a lower nasal index). In contrast, almost entirely replaced the other in Upper Egypt. Elliot- Strouhal (1971) considered them to have high nasal indi- Smith (1915–1916) defined as a \Brown Race" the autoch- ces. He also summarized them as being dolichocranial, thonous population of the Nile Valley, although Giuffrida- orthocranial, mesenic to leptic, and chamaerrhine, i.e. Ruggeri (1922) considered this confusing as it blurred having narrow, average height skulls with average to nar- Caucasian and African \types". Elliot-Smith considered row upper faces, and a rather broad nose with marked the Brown Race to have been modified by \Negroes" in prognathism. It is interesting to note that these biometri- the south and by Near Eastern populations in the north. cal studies led the investigators to consider the Badarian By contrast, Giuffrida-Ruggeri (1922) concluded that the to be homogeneous, while the excavators (Brunton and Lower Egyptians were a Mediterranean white population Caton-Thompson) considered them to be heterogeneous while the Upper Egyptians were Ethiopians. (Strouhal, 1971). When Mahalanobis D2 was used, Falkenburger (1947), Strouhal (1971), and Angel (1972) the Naqadan and Badarian Predynastic samples exhib- all considered the southern Egyptian populations to be ited more similarity to Nubian, Tigrean, and some \Negroid" or hybrid in character, while the northern more southern series than to some mid- to late Dynastic populations were more European-like. Wiercinski (1965) series from northern Egypt (Mukherjee et al., 1955). The defined the basic or indigenous Egyptian type as being Badarian have been found to be very similar to a Kerma Badarian-like, but then said that this group was of Near sample (Kushite Sudanese), using both the Penrose sta- Eastern origin. Other authors considered the Badarian to tistic (Nutter, 1958) and DFA of males alone (Keita, \ " be a Negroid group (Morant, 1935, 1937; Nutter, 1958; 1990). Furthermore, Keita considered that Badarian Strouhal, 1971; Angel, 1972). Coon (1939) considered a males had a southern modal phenotype, and
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