DOCSLIB.ORG

EGYPT and the LEVANT Had Apparently Ceased

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
EGYPT and the LEVANT Had Apparently Ceased - Timothy Kendall - records of their existence are cemeteries of enormous burial mounds, thought to mark CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE their power centres: Ballana, Qustul, Zuma, Tangasi, el-Hobagi and others (Adams I977= 382-429; Lenoble 2004: I8~2, I93-203). Some of these tombs were very rich and belonged to rulers continuing Meroi'tic traditions, but literacy among them EGYPT AND THE LEVANT had apparently ceased. Missionaries from Byzantium and Alexandria converted the region to Christianity in the sixth century AD, and when written records resume, --._.-- the ancient land of Kush had been partitioned into three Christian Nubian (Noba) kingdoms (Anderson 2004: 202-8, 209-37). Manfred Bietak In 2004, construction began on the Merowe High Dam at the Fourth Cataract, about 360 kilometres north of Khartoum. This huge hydroelectric project, scheduled for completion in 2008, will create a lake 125 kilometres long, displace up to 70,000 people, and inundate a huge, remote tract whose settlement history, until now, has been completely unknown. This project has spurred a major international archaeological salvage campaign, reminiscent of that conducted in Egypt during the I960s. When its results are in, the history of Nubia will probably have to be radically rewritten - again (Ahmed 2004). esearch within the last two decades has shown that, from prehistoric times, NOTES R Egypt was not an isolated oasis of the river Nile but had close connections with the Near East. Not only have Natufian arrow tips been found near Helwan in Lower I Recent general reference works include Eide et aJ. 1994-2000; Torok 1997; Wildung I997; Egypt, but at Merimda, in the western delta, the entire lithic production and Morkot 2000; Smith 2003; Edwards 2004; Redford 2004b; Welsby and Anderson 2004. population type of the earliest stratum show strong Natufian connections (Eiwanger 2 Ongoing surveys reveal that many 'Southern Nubian' cultures continue well upstream of the confluence of the Blue and White Niles. 1984: 59-63). Moreover, the ceramic material is strongly influenced by the Palestinian Pottery Neolithic tradition. All the evidence suggests that there was a strong influx during this period, reaching the south-western delta. Immigration from Canaan can be deduced for the Chalcolithic Buto-Maadi culture from ceramic imports, local imitations and semi-subterranean dwelling types borrowed from the contemporary Chalcolithic culture of Palestine (Faltings I998, 2002; Hartung 200I: 322-7). Trade with the Levant was the main reason for this immigration, but the relatively lush living conditions of Egypt must surely have invited immigration by the inhabitants of neighbouring arid zones. Egypt needed raw materials such as coniferous timber from the Lebanon and commodities such as olive oil and wine which turn up from the Naqada lIe period onwards as far south as Abydos (Hartung 200I, 2002). The impact of Egypt can be felt in the late Predynastic and early 1st Dynasty in the southern Levant in a number of settlements with a high percentage of imported and locally made Egyptian pottery (Brandl 1992; Wilkinson 1999: 152-5). It has even been suggested that Egypt colonized this region for a time in order to gain control over the copper production in the Negev and the Sinai. This was discontinued during the 1st Dynasty and trading expeditions seem thereafter to have been dispatched to the Levant by sea, destined for Byblos. Towards the end of the 2nd/beginning of the 3rd Dynasty, the Sinai was depopulated (Gundlach 1994: 60-70), the local population probably deported to Egypt, and the Egyptian kings took over the exploitation of the mines. An increasing demand for timber from Lebanon induced the early Egyptian court to build a close relationship with Byblos in particular. The temple of this harbour town was the recipient of Egyptian royal donations from the end of the 2nd Dynasty onwards (Dunand 1939: 26-7, 161-2, 200, 267-8; 1937: pis XXXVI-XXXVIII, CXXV). Egypt's influence expanded during the Old Kingdom to include other - Manfred B ietak - - Egypt and the Levant - princely centres of the Levant. Trade developed favourably for both sides. Egypt exported luxury goods such as ointment and eye paint, faience jewellery, semi-precious stones, gold, toilet objects of wood, ivory, ebony and, most probably, fine linen. In turn, Egypt imported timber, pitch and resin, bitumen, olive oil and other types of oil, wine and other commodities not available in the Nile Valley. Such foreign enterprises might have stimulated immigration of foreigners from the Levant. Egypt was in need of workers, craftsmen and soldiers; and, for its seagoing ships, it needed experienced sailors and, we can assume, shipbuilders. For the consttuction of such boats Egypt depended entirely on cedar wood from Lebanon. In the 5 th Dynasty pyramid temple of Sahura there is a relief of a seaborne expedition to the Levant, most likely to Syria or Lebanon (Borchardt 1913: pIs 12, 13). The ships brought back products of this land and, most important, sailors and their families (Figure 29.Ia) (Bietak 1988). About 150 years later, a relieffrom the causeway of Unas shows typical Asiatic sailors on seagoing ships, while Egyptians manoeuvre river boats (Figure 29. I b) (Bietak 1988: 36). Towards the end of the Old Kingdom, Figure 29.Ib Causeway of Unas (end of the 5th Dynasty) at Saqqara with reliefs showing seagoing ships with Western Asiatic sailors under the command of Egyptian officers (photo C. Mlinar). the expression kepeny- (Byblos-) ships for seagoing vessels may indicate that such boats were originally designed at Byblos (Glanville 1932: 31; for a different opinion, see Save-SOderbergh 1946: 47-8). The evidence for the involvement of people from the Near East in the operation of the navy and maritime commerce in the Old Kingdom leads to the conclusion that there were communities of such foreigners in Egypt. Indeed, we have onomastic evidence of Asiatics living in Egypt during that period (Fischer 1959: 264-5; 1961 : 75; 1991: 63)· The discovery of a series of broad-room and bent-axis temples from the late Predynastic Period to the Old Kingdom at Tell Ibrahim Awad in the north­ eastern delta suggests settlements of foreigners along the easternmost Nile branch (Figure 29.2) (Eigner 2000; Bietak 2oo3a). It might not be a coincidence that the oldest determinative for the god Osiris, in the 5th Dynasty, depicts an Asiatic (Shalomi-Hen 2006: 94). It therefore seems possible that important aspects of this delta deity originated from an Asiatic vegetation god. Egyptian activity in the Levant was not exclusively peaceful. In tombs at Deshasha and Saqqara, sieges of Asiatic towns are shown (Piacentini 198]: Schulz 2002: 25-34). The expedition leader Weni, during the 6th Dynasty, reported a raid against a settlement beyond an area called the 'Gazelle nose', probably the Carmel ridge (Piacentini 1990: 18). This suggests that increasing distuptions at the end of the Early Bronze Age brought the relationship between the two regions to an end. The urban culture of the Levant broke down and gave way to a nomadic or semi-nomadic way of life, introduced by the Amorites. This situation anticipated the breakdown Figure 29.Ia Return of the fleet of Sahura (5th Dynasty) from the northern Levantine coast with recruited Western Asiatic sailors and their families under the command of Egyptian of the Egyptian Old Kingdom. officers. Image courtesy of the .Agyptisches Museum Berlin. - Manfred B ietak - -Egypt and the L evant - II (c. 191 1-1876 Be) (Altenmiiller and Moussa 1975) which shows that Egypt brought back booty and captives in great numbers from such raids, which reached as far as Cyprus. Western Asiatic people called aamll can be traced in Egyptian texts from the time of Senusret II until the end of the 12th Dynasty. (The etymology is still disputed: they are known under this name from the 6th Dynasty, heralding the arrival of the Amorites at the fringes of Egypt.) The Illahun papyri indicate that many aamu were concentrated near the residence of the 12th Dynasty at Itj-tawy (Lisht), in closed settlements called wenut. Asiatics were employed mainly in low-ranking professions such as workers, doorkeepers, messengers, singers in temples or serfs on private estates (Posener 1957: 152; Luft 1992; Schneider 2003: 232-90). In the 13th Dynasty there is evidence that elite households had Western Asiatic slaves in large numbers. They were given Egyptian names and were quickly assimilated (Albright 1954; Hayes 1955; Posener 1957; Schneider 2003: 207-28). Evidence from the Sinai (Gardiner et al. 1952: pIs XXIII, XXX, XXXVA, LI no. 163; 1955: 92 no. 85, 103 no. 95, 112 no. 11 0; Seyfried 1981: 188-201) indicates that people from Western Asia living in Egypt were employed as expedition specialists, some carrying weapons. Inspired by Egyptian writing, they developed for their own use the earliest alphabetic writing system, attested in the Sinai and along expedition tracks in the Western Desert (Gardiner 1962b; Darnell 2oo3c; Hamilton 2006; Goldwasser 2006b: 130-60). Anticipating a potential threat, Egypt monitored Nubian tribes and the city-states of Canaan. Magic was deployed as one remedy. The names of hostile places and their leaders were written on pots or figurines which were then smashed. The lists on the earlier collection of these 'Execration Texts', dated to the reign of Senusret III, often Figure 29.2 Left: temple with bent axis from Tell Ibrahim Awad, phase IIb. It seems (0 have contain several princes' names for a single toponym (Sethe 1926), while the later originated as a broad-room temple with a central podium and two entrances (after Eigner 2000: lists from the end of the 12th or even the 13th Dynasty contain many more toponyms fig.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Crossroads 360 Virtual Tour Script Edited
    Crossroads of Civilization Virtual Tour Script Note: Highlighted text signifies content that is only accessible on the 360 Tour. Welcome to Crossroads of Civilization. We divided this exhibit not by time or culture, but rather by traits that are shared by all civilizations. Watch this video to learn more about the making of Crossroads and its themes. Entrance Crossroads of Civilization: Ancient Worlds of the Near East and Mediterranean Crossroads of Civilization looks at the world's earliest major societies. Beginning more than 5,000 years ago in Egypt and the Near East, the exhibit traces their developments, offshoots, and spread over nearly four millennia. Interactive timelines and a large-scale digital map highlight the ebb and flow of ancient cultures, from Egypt and the earliest Mesopotamian kingdoms of the Akkadians, Babylonians, and Assyrians, to the vast Persian, Hellenistic, and finally Roman empires, the latter eventually encompassing the entire Mediterranean region. Against this backdrop of momentous historical change, items from the Museum's collections are showcased within broad themes. Popular elements from classic exhibits of former years, such as our Greek hoplite warrior and Egyptian temple model, stand alongside newly created life-size figures, including a recreation of King Tut in his chariot. The latest research on our two Egyptian mummies features forensic reconstructions of the individuals in life. This truly was a "crossroads" of cultural interaction, where Asian, African, and European peoples came together in a massive blending of ideas and technologies. Special thanks to the following for their expertise: ● Dr. Jonathan Elias - Historical and maps research, CT interpretation ● Dr.
    [Show full text]
  • Faithful Sayings Mahoney Ends His Film Aling, Charles F
    6 ISSUE BULLETIN OF THE OLSEN Conclusion Works Cited PARK CHURCH OF CHRIST Faithful Sayings Mahoney ends his film Aling, Charles F. “The Biblical City of Ramses” Journal of the Evangelical 17.47 acknowledging that he is Theological Society 25.2 (July 1982) 129-137. Ben-Tor, Amnon and Maria Teresa Rubiato. “Excavating Hazor, Part Two: Did November 29, a filmmaker and not an the Israelites Destroy the Canaanite City?” Biblical Archaeology Review 2015 expert in these fields, but 25.3 (May/June 1999): 22-29, 31-36, 38-39. he expresses his conviction Bietak, Manfred. Avaris and PiRamesse: Archaeological Exploration in the that this evidence deserves Eastern Nile Delta. Proceedings of the British Academy, 65 (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1981). Services consideration by the public. __________. Avaris, the capital of the Hyksos: recent excavations at Tell el- Rohl’s “new chronology” Sunday: 9:00 AM Dabʻa I (London: British Museum Press, 1996). 10:00 AM has its critics, and only Gardiner, Alan H. The Admonitions of an Egyptian Sage from a Hieratic Papy- time will tell if it with- rus in Leiden. (Hildesheim: Georg Olms Verlag, 1969). 11:00 AM stands the test of further Hayes, William C. A Papyrus of the Late Middle Kingdom in the Brooklyn Wednesday: 7:00 PM Museum. (New York: Brooklyn Museum, 1955). analysis and scrutiny. I too Levin, Yigal. “Did Pharaoh Sheshonq Attack Jerusalem?” Biblical Archaeology Did the Exodus Really Happen? am no expert, but in the Review 38.4 (July/August 2012) 42-52, 66. Elders: By Kyle Pope face of a world quick to Schiestl, Robert.
    [Show full text]
  • Ancient Egyptian Chronology.Pdf
    Ancient Egyptian Chronology HANDBOOK OF ORIENTAL STUDIES SECTION ONE THE NEAR AND MIDDLE EAST Ancient Near East Editor-in-Chief W. H. van Soldt Editors G. Beckman • C. Leitz • B. A. Levine P. Michalowski • P. Miglus Middle East R. S. O’Fahey • C. H. M. Versteegh VOLUME EIGHTY-THREE Ancient Egyptian Chronology Edited by Erik Hornung, Rolf Krauss, and David A. Warburton BRILL LEIDEN • BOSTON 2006 This book is printed on acid-free paper. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Ancient Egyptian chronology / edited by Erik Hornung, Rolf Krauss, and David A. Warburton; with the assistance of Marianne Eaton-Krauss. p. cm. — (Handbook of Oriental studies. Section 1, The Near and Middle East ; v. 83) Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN-13: 978-90-04-11385-5 ISBN-10: 90-04-11385-1 1. Egypt—History—To 332 B.C.—Chronology. 2. Chronology, Egyptian. 3. Egypt—Antiquities. I. Hornung, Erik. II. Krauss, Rolf. III. Warburton, David. IV. Eaton-Krauss, Marianne. DT83.A6564 2006 932.002'02—dc22 2006049915 ISSN 0169-9423 ISBN-10 90 04 11385 1 ISBN-13 978 90 04 11385 5 © Copyright 2006 by Koninklijke Brill NV, Leiden, The Netherlands. Koninklijke Brill NV incorporates the imprints Brill, Hotei Publishing, IDC Publishers, Martinus Nijhoff Publishers, and VSP. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, translated, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without prior written permission from the publisher. Authorization to photocopy items for internal or personal use is granted by Brill provided that the appropriate fees are paid directly to The Copyright Clearance Center, 222 Rosewood Drive, Suite 910, Danvers, MA 01923, USA.
    [Show full text]
  • Moses and the Exodus: What Evidence?
    Moses and the Exodus: what evidence? Abstract. To be or not to be is a crucial question regarding Moses as well as the Exodus because, according to the Bible, the character related to that famous event forms the basis of the Passover which meant the Promised Land for Jews and later the Paradise for Christians. However, according to most Egyptologists, there is absolutely no evidence of Moses and the Exodus in Egyptian documents, which leads them to conclude that the whole biblical story is a myth written for gullible people. Ironically, if one considers that “truth” must be based on two pillars: an accurate chronology anchored on absolute dates (Herodotus’ principle) and reliable documents coming from critical editions (Thucydides’ principle), that implies an amazing conclusion: those who believe Egyptologists are actually the real gullible ones. According to Egyptian accounts the last king of the XVth dynasty, named Apopi, “very pretty” in Hebrew that is Moses’ birth name (Ex 2:2), reigned 40 years in Egypt from 1613 to 1573 BCE, then 40 years later he met Seqenenre Taa the last pharaoh of the XVIIth dynasty and gave him an unspecified disturbing message. The eldest son of Seqenenre Taa, Ahmose Sapaïr, who was crown prince died in a dramatic and unexplained way shortly before his father. Seqenenre Taa died in May 1533 BCE, after 11 years of reign, in dramatic and unclear circumstances. The state of his mummy proves, however, that his body received severe injuries, in agreement with Psalms 136:15, and remained abandoned for several days before being mummified.
    [Show full text]
  • Hyksos, Egipcios, Nubios: Algunas Consideraciones Sobre El I1 Pe~Odointermedio Y La Convivencia Entre Los Distintos Grupos Etnicos
    HYKSOS, EGIPCIOS, NUBIOS: ALGUNAS CONSIDERACIONES SOBRE EL I1 PE~ODOINTERMEDIO Y LA CONVIVENCIA ENTRE LOS DISTINTOS GRUPOS ETNICOS Inmaculada Vivas SBinz Universidad de AlcalB de Henares ABSTRACT This article reviews some questions of the political and social history of the the Second Intermediate Period. The first part is based on recent discussion about the terminology related to the period, and the convenience or unconvenience of using certain terms in future investigations. The second part concerns the relationships among the dlflerent ethnic groups living in Egypt at that time, and the process of acculturation of the Hyksos in Egypt. An interesting hypotheses about king Nehesy is analysed, which proposes the existence of a dynastic marriage between a Nubian queen and a king of the XIVth Dynasty, both being the suppoused parents of Nehesy. I reject this hypotheses on the basis of archaedogical and epigraphical sources. The true origin of Nehesy remains a moot point, being still d~ficultto explain why this king had a name meaning "the Nubian". -Los estudios sobre el I1 Periodo Intermedio egipcio se remontan a1 siglo pasado', pero es desde hace apenas unas dCcadas cuando se ha sentido la necesidad de definir ese tCrmino. Los primeros trabajos sobre el tema eran breves anilisis sobre el final del Reino Medio y la llegada de 10s hyksos, sobre Cstos y su relaci6n con Israel, o la posible ubicaci6n de Avaris y el proceso de expulsi6n de 10s hyksos. Todos estos estudios son importantes para nuestras investigaciones pero muchas veces se basan s610 en fuentes arqueol6gicas procedentes de Siria-Palestina de las cuales se extrapolaban datos para la situaci6n de Egipto.
    [Show full text]
  • Who's Who in Ancient Egypt
    Who’s Who IN ANCIENT EGYPT Available from Routledge worldwide: Who’s Who in Ancient Egypt Michael Rice Who’s Who in the Ancient Near East Gwendolyn Leick Who’s Who in Classical Mythology Michael Grant and John Hazel Who’s Who in World Politics Alan Palmer Who’s Who in Dickens Donald Hawes Who’s Who in Jewish History Joan Comay, new edition revised by Lavinia Cohn-Sherbok Who’s Who in Military History John Keegan and Andrew Wheatcroft Who’s Who in Nazi Germany Robert S.Wistrich Who’s Who in the New Testament Ronald Brownrigg Who’s Who in Non-Classical Mythology Egerton Sykes, new edition revised by Alan Kendall Who’s Who in the Old Testament Joan Comay Who’s Who in Russia since 1900 Martin McCauley Who’s Who in Shakespeare Peter Quennell and Hamish Johnson Who’s Who in World War Two Edited by John Keegan Who’s Who IN ANCIENT EGYPT Michael Rice 0 London and New York First published 1999 by Routledge 11 New Fetter Lane, London EC4P 4EE Simultaneously published in the USA and Canada by Routledge 29 West 35th Street, New York, NY 10001 Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group This edition published in the Taylor & Francis e-Library, 2004. © 1999 Michael Rice The right of Michael Rice to be identified as the Author of this Work has been asserted by him in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilised in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers.
    [Show full text]
  • Theben Und Avaris Zur "Vertreibung" Der Hyksos
    Originalveröffentlichung in: Guksch, Heike; Polz, Daniel (Hg.), Stationen. Beiträge zur Kulturgeschichte Ägyptens. Rainer Stadelmann gewidmet, Mainz 1998, S. 219-231 Theben und Avaris Zur "Vertreibung" der Hyksos DANIEL POLZ RAINER STADELMANN in Dankbarkeit und Freundschaft RAINER STADELMANN hat seit je ein reges Interesse an den historischen Vorgängen, die am Ende der 2. ZwZt zum Beginn des Neuen Reiches führten. Auch aus diesem Interesse heraus regte er im Jahre 1989 eine großflächige und intensive Untersuchung der nur unzureichend behandelten thebanischen Nekro­ pole von Dra' Abu el­Naga an, mit deren Durchführung er mich betraute. Die mit der ersten Grabungs­ kampagne im Frühjahr 1991 gestartete und seitdem jährlich durchgeführte Unternehmung hat das Ziel, 1 die thebanischen Nekropolen der ausgehenden 2. ZwZt zu untersuchen . 2 Der folgende Beitrag ist eine Art Thesenpapier zur politischen Situation am Ende der 2. ZwZt in Ober­ ägypten und berührt somit ­ nicht ganz zufällig ­ ein Thema, das auch RAINER STADELMANN vor längerer 3 Zeit in einem Aufsatz behandelt hat . 1. Einleitung Die Vorgänge, die am Ende der 2. ZwZt zunächst zu einer bewaffneten Auseinandersetzung zwischen den Herrschern der oberägyptischen 17. Dynastie und den Hyksos, desweiteren zu einer landesweiten militärischen Aktion der Oberägypter und der "Vertreibung" der Hyksos sowie schließlich zur Gründung eines neuen gesamtägyptischen Staates führten, werden ägyptologisch im allgemeinen als ein in sich geschlossener historischer Prozeß betrachtet. Insgesamt lassen sich diese Vorgänge in drei 4 Phasen aufgliedern, die etwa folgendermaßen getrennt werden können : Phase 1 Zwischen den Thebanern und den Hyksos kommt es vielleicht schon im letzten Drittel der 17. Dyna­ stie, unter deren König Seqenenre, zu ersten militärischen Auseinandersetzungen, während derer Se­ qenenre tödlich verwundet wird.
    [Show full text]
  • Source Index
    Cambridge University Press 978-1-107-11336-7 — The Ancient Egyptian Economy Brian Muhs Index More Information SOURCE INDEX Note : An n following a page number indicates a note. Archives Book 15, 29.1–2, 207 Archive of Amennakhte, 112 Book 15, 92.2, 196 Archive of Amenothes, 248 Book 17, 52.6, 236 Archive of Ananiah, 192 , 193 , 204 Herodotus Archive of Djekhy and Ituredj, 202 , 205 , Book II, 30, 196 , 197 , 208 208 – 209 Book II, 154, 197 Archive of gooseherds of Hou, 192 , 193 , 205 Book II, 157, 206 Archive of Horemsaef, 82 – 83 Book II, 158, 317 Archive of Inena, 105 , 116 Book II, 159, 195 Archive of Menches, 245 Book II, 161, 195 Archive of Mesi, 100 , 112 , 128 – 129 , 130 Book II, 161–162, 313n 167 Archive of Mibtahiah, 204 Book II, 161–163, 169 Archive of Milon, 199 , 226 , 243 Book II, 163, 197 Archive of Pefheryhesy, 200 – 201 , 203 Book II, 164–166, 197 – 198 Archive of Petiese, 204 – 205 Book II, 168, 198 , 313 n 167 Archive of Petubast, 147 – 148 , 161 , 169 Book II, 169, 197 Archive of Totoes, 248 Book II, 177, 151 – 152 , 184 Archive of Tsenhor, 201 , 203 , 205 Book II, 178, 186 , 208 Archive of Zenon, 226 – 227 , 245 , 247 Book II, 179, 186 , 208 Book II, 182, 195 – 196 Biblical Works Cited Book III, 12, 15, 160, 207 Chronicles Book III, 91, 194 , 197 2 Chronicles 12:1–12, 170 Book IV, 42, 208 2 Chronicles 35:20–25, 206 Book IX, 32, 198 Isaiah 37:9, 170 Book VII, 7, 207 Kings Book VII, 89–99, 196 1 Kings 14:25, 170 Jerome 2 Kings 19:9, 170 Commentariorum in Danielem, 11, 5, 2 Kings 23:29–30, 206 234 , 236 2 Kings 23:31–34,
    [Show full text]
  • Pharaohs, Dynasties & Kingdoms in Ancient Egypt
    Pharaohs, Dynasties and Kingdoms in Ancient Egypt The kings of Egypt were called pharaohs by the later Greeks and Hebrews: the name originates from the Egyptian per-aa, meaning ‘great house’. Most Egyptian kings and queens are grouped in dynasties (a family in which all the rulers in a time period belong). There is no archaeological evidence for the earliest Egyptian kings, so we cannot be sure if they existed. There are good records of the kings after 3100 bc, so the period before this is called Prehistoric (meaning ‘before written records’) or Predynastic (meaning ‘before the dynasties’). Like most cultures, the Egyptians dated historical and political events according to the years during which people ruled. Some written sources, called ‘king lists’, list when each Egyptian king ruled and the dynasty to which s/he belonged. Egyptologists (people who study Egypt) date history and art according to the rulers and dynasties. The ‘king lists’ are found in works of writers from the Roman period as well as inscriptions and papyri. Josephus, Sextus Julius Africanus and Bishop Eusebius of Caesarea quoted a Greco-Egyptian priest, Manetho, who wrote a history of Egypt. In his history, which does not survive, Manetho divided the rulers of Egypt into thirty dynasties. The list begins at around 3000 bc and ends at 343 bc with Nakhthoreb (Nectanebo II, as the Greeks called him), the last native Egyptian ruler. The dates are all approximate. The early years (like 3000 bc) are accurate to within 150 years and the later ones (like 343 bc) are accurate to within one year.
    [Show full text]
  • Ahmose, Son of Ebana: the Expulsion of the Hyksos
    Ahmose, son of Ebana: The Expulsion of the Hyksos Ahmose, son of Ebana, was an officer in the Egyptian army during the end of the 17th Dynasty to the beginning of the 18th Dynasty (16th century BCE). Originally from Elkab in Upper Egypt, he decided to become a soldier, like his father, Baba, who served under Seqenenre Tao II in the early campaigns against the Hyksos. Ahmose spent most of his military life serving aboard the king’s fleet - fighting at Avaris, at Sharuhen in Palestine, and in Nubia during the service of Ahmose I, and was often cited for his bravery in battle by the king. These accounts were left in a tomb that Ahmose, son of Ebana, identifies as his own at the end of the water—for he was captured on the city side-and he Crew Commander Ahmose son of crossed the water carrying him. When it was Abana, the justified; he says: I speak reported to the royal herald I was rewarded with T to you, all people. I let you know gold once more. Then Avaris was despoiled, and what favors came to me. I have been I brought spoil from there: one man, three rewarded with gold seven times in the sight women; total, four persons. His majesty gave of the whole land, with male and female them to me as slaves. slaves as well. I have been endowed with Then Sharahen was besieged for three years. very many fields. The name of the brave His majesty despoiled it and I brought spoil man is in that which he has done; it will not from it: two women and a hand.
    [Show full text]
  • Noticing Neighbors: Reconsidering Ancient Egyptian Perceptions of Ethnicity
    The American University in Cairo School of Humanities and Social Sciences Noticing Neighbors: Reconsidering Ancient Egyptian Perceptions of Ethnicity A Thesis Submitted to The Department of Sociology, Anthropology, Psychology, and Egyptology In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements For the Degree of Master of Arts In Egyptology By Taylor Bryanne Woodcock Under the supervision of Dr. Mariam Ayad May 2014 ABSTRACT Ethnic identities are nuanced, fluid and adaptive. They are a means of categorizing the self and the ‘other’ through the recognition of geographical, cultural, lingual, and physical differences. This work examines recurring associations, epithets and themes in ancient Egyptian texts to reveal how the Egyptians discussed the ethnic uniqueness they perceived of their regional neighbors. It employs Egyptian written records, including temple inscriptions, royal and private correspondence, stelae and tomb autobiographies, and literary tales, from the Old Kingdom to the beginning of the Third Intermediate Period. The textual examples are organized by ethnic group and divided into four regions, beginning with those concerning the western groups and proceeding clockwise, ending with those concerning the southern groups. The analysis of these texts produces an understanding of the Egyptian conceptualization of ethnicity in general, and the conceptualization of distinct ethnic identities specific to the four regions surrounding Egypt. This enhances our understanding of the lexical differences through which the Egyptians distinguished their neighbors from each other. Egyptian written records do not support the belief that the ancient Egyptians only understood their foreign neighbors within the simplistic framework of four broad ‘races.’ Egyptian literature contained a multitude of primary ethnonyms for distinct ethnic groups, as well as a number of secondary, informal ethnonyms.
    [Show full text]
  • Tracking the Hyksos Across the Levant
    Hidden in Bones: Tracking the Hyksos across the Levant 1 2 3 Nina Maaranen1, Holger Schutkowskiby2 andNina Sonia Zakrzewski Maaranen3 , Holger Schutkowski , Sonia Zakrzewski Abstract Though the term Hyksos commonly refers to the overthrow the Egyptian rule.6 The Roman historian rulers of the Egyptian Second Intermediate Period, Josephus referred to the Hyksos as ‘Shepherd kings’, it is also used to describe the larger population from not only speculating on the etymology of the term but which these rulers derived. Archaeological, artistic also generating an ethnic denominator by identifying and textual sources suggest a Levantine origin of the the described Hyksos exile with the Israelite Exodus.7 ‘Hyksos people’; however, whether this was a single Not all early historians shared this interpretation, as homogenous group or several groups from a wider evident from the accounts of Africanus and Eusebius, area has remained uncertain. who were leaning towards a Phoenician origin instead.8 Non-metric traits, also called epigenetic traits, are The contradictions even in the earliest accounts normal variations of the human skeleton. The traits, exemplify the loss of actual information regarding though seemingly random in a single person, often the Hyksos and thus sent modern scholars into vastly have a genetic component that links biologically closely different directions when looking into the origin of related people together, enabling an exploration of the Hyksos rulers. While the Hyksos have sometimes biological affiliations not only within but also between been assigned with specific ethnic affiliations, such as populations. Hurrians,9 Amorites10 and Israelites,11 more generic As a non-invasive method, non-metric trait analysis descriptors have also been used.12 Early analyses on can be used to study biological closeness when there material culture led Engberg to propose a connection is no wish or possibility to use DNA analysis.
    [Show full text]