p PAINTING was used in ancient Egypt from the Predy-nastic era through the Roman period. It enhanced almost every surface in Egyptian art: tomb and temple walls; mud-brick structures such as palaces, domestic shrines, and houses; sculpture and relief; coffins, sarcophagi, and cartonnage; cosmetic objects, furniture, leather, linen, os-traca, papyri, pottery and tomb models. Painting added detail to carved, sculpted, and molded images and in the case of Qat surfaces, created the form and design itself. The color of paint identified, and codified with its symbolic value, information about the image. Specific styles, techniques, representational types, and ateliers are revealed in painted images and scenes, which were crafted in response to the political, social, and religious demands of their time. Any discussion of painting must of course be limited, given the wide range of surfaces that carried painted decoration in ancient Egypt. For our purposes, a general study of painting will be followed by a chronological survey of Hat painting with figural decoration, focusing on the largest category of painting, that on tomb walls. .Typology and Techniques. The Egyptian palette was composed of white (hd), black (km), red (dsr), blue (hsbd), green (wyd), and yellow (nwb or knit). A number of other colors were formed by mixing the above colors to form blue-red (tms), turquoise-green (mfkyt), yellow-orange-red (kt), gray (dJ}t?), grayblue, brown, and pink, among others. In the Old Kingdom, the basic palette consisted of black, white, red, green, yellow, blue, and gray. By the Middle Kingdom, red tones were expanded to form brown and pink; and later in the New Kingdom, additional shades of blue, yellow, and red were added. This palette continued through the remainder of Egyptian painting, becoming more pastel in the Ptolemaic and Roman periods. In painting, color had a symbolic and classificatory meaning to the ancient Egyptians. Black, the color of the fertile earth, symbolized fertility, renewal, and the underworld. Red symbolized fire, blood, the desert, and chaos; it was the skin color of the male figure in art. Yellow was a solar color connoting the sun, the flesh and bones of the gods; it was the skin tone of the female figure in art. White implied purity; green, growth, vigor, and resurrection. Blue, associated with water and the heavens, was frequently found in the bodies, beards, and wigs of deities;
in the post-Amama period it became associated with the skin color of Amun-re. The colors came from naturally occurring substances. White came from calcium carbonate (whiting) or calcium sulphate (gypsum). Huntite white was first employed during the Middle Kingdom and became more common in the New Kingdom, when it was used as a contrast to whitewash or as a base to bring out the luminosity of the overlaid pigments. Black was carbon from charcoal or deposited soot. Ochers, ranging from yellow to red to dark brown, originated from naturally occurring iron oxides. Beginning in the Middle Kingdom, yellow was also obtained from orpiment, which appeared as bright yellow. A lighter yellow was derived from jarosite. Realgar red was used in the New Kingdom and appeared as a bright orange-red. Introduced in the fifth dynasty, the color blue was composed originally of azurite (copper carbonate) from the Sinai and Eastern Desert; later it was manufactured from a frit compound of heated quartz, lime, and alkalis (natron or plant ash), ground malachite, and calcium carbonate. Green was made of naturally occurring powdered malachite or a mixture of malachite and calcium carbonate. Sometimes ocher yellow was mixed with a blue frit to produce green. Varnish (tree resin or beeswax) was also added or applied to color. Varnish, first used in the Predynastic period in tomb painting; was also applied on vessels, coffins, minor art objects, and statuary eyes. To make those minerals and compounds suitable for application, they were first ground into a powder. Natural gum, derived from indigenous trees such as the acacia or from glue, was combined with the colored particles. The pigment was then applied with a brush to stone, wood, plaster, linen, papyrus, leather, clay, or a wall prepared with gypsum plaster, which had been allowed to dry before receiving paint, in a technique known as tempera. In some cases, rapid execution or heavily trodden areas necessitated applying paint to a wet plaster surface, as can be seen on some of the royal palace floors at Tell el-Amama during the reign of Amenhotpe IV in the eighteenth dynasty. In the case of tomb walls of poor-quality stone, the wall received a mixture of Nile mud and hacked straw, sometimes reinforced with limestone chips, to create a level surface, which was finished with several layers of gypsum plaster and smoothed before painting. Walls
PAINTING of good stone were dressed, patched with gypsum plaster, .smoothed, and coated with a thin plaster wash. Walls in mud-brick buildings, such as palaces and houses, were plastered before they received painted decoration. To produce the so-called Faiyum portraits, encaustic was utilized; pigment was mixed with wax that was gently heated for easy application, and the mixture was applied to primed wood with the help of a palette knife (cestrum) or a brush. Brushes from all periods were made from a common Egyptian rush (Juncus maritimus), palm ribs, or wood, which were cut, bruised into bristles, and bound together with a string. The thickness of the brush determined the thickness of the line. From the third century BCE on, the marsh reed Phragmites communis was used as a type of quill pen. In wall compositions, scenes and figures were often constructed with the help of a system of guide lines. First the boundaries of the wall and the register lines were marked by a string dipped in red paint, which artisans stretched across the wall and snapped at intervals. Within this, a system of lines was drawn to aid the artist in building figures and scenes. Sometimes the draftsman drew forms freehand without the help of guide lines: After the sketch was correctly drawn, background wash was applied of white, gray; pale blue-gray or yellow around the figures and objects; individual colors were then painted in, and the forms were outlined again with the details delineated with a fine brush. Rows and columns were also drawn and the hieroglyphs painted in; when required, a final background wash was applied. Procedural exceptions exist—for example, in the Hall of Barks in the Temple of Sethy I at Abydos, where the background wash was applied last. Where the image was to be carved, the corrected sketch was chiseled into sunk or raised relief and then painted. Lighting for painters working in dimly lit areas was provided by lamps filled with oil and floating wicks that produced minimal smoke. In sculpture, relief, and the minor arts, color enhanced the surface and indicated detail. In the case of soft stone and wood sculpture and objects, a layer of plaster was applied and then painted; sometimes color was painted directly on wood or hard stone. Raised and sunk relief often received plaster to even out defects in the stone before color was brushed on. Linen funerary and votive cloths were plastered and painted. Car-tonnage, or alternating layers of shaped linen and plaster, was decorated with colorful vignettes. Funerary papyri made of strips of pressed papyrus reed laid in transverse layers were painted with scenes and texts, and then rolled to form "books" like the Book of Going Forth by Day (Book of the Dead). On Predynastic vessels, designs were painted in monochrome using a yellow-white calcareous clay slip (White Cross-lined Ware) or a red to purple-brown ocher
(Decorated Ware). In the New Kingdom, polychrome decoration appeared on pots, executed with mineral pigments such as ochers, frits, calcium, soot, and cobalt blue. Egyptian faience, the heated mixture of quartz sand with lime and alkalis (natron or plant ash) covered with a glaze, had details added in black or brown slurry (glazing powder) or paint. Bone and ivory contained designs incised and filled with color. Paint was applied in washes of solid colors placed side by side, which sometimes ran into one another, creating gradations of color. The deliberate use of shading and shadowing was infrequent. The Egyptian word "variegated" (sybj described the use of color to indicate textures such as fur, feathers, or scales. Color was also manipulated to create an illusion of depth in compositions with overlapping figures and objects, where near and far figures were rendered in alternating tones. Political, Religious, and Social Aspects. Beginning in the Early Dynastic era, specific royal iconography was developed to express the tenets of kingship and the strength of the state. Scenes of the king interacting with the gods and maintaining the order of the universe in painted temples and palaces displayed royal power to the people. The elite, who were legitimized by and governed for the king, showed their privileged position through the content and the quality of the decoration in their tombs and funerary equipment. The owner's titles, name, and chosen subject matter established his or her identity and status, and the style of painting revealed access to royal workshops and artists. The content and quality of the painted images of royalty and the elite proclaimed to the governed in visual terms the stability of the state, various ideologies, and the order of the universe. Painted scenes expressed the relationship between the living and the world of the gods and the dead. In temples, the beauty of the decoration would persuade the gods to reside there so that they would maintain the established order of the universe and continue the existence of the world. Scenes and commentaries in royal tombs identified the dead king with the sun god and his perpetual regeneration. Nonroyal tomb-chapels were places of assembly for family members and other visitors. Certain representations occurred in specific contexts. Gods' temples were decorated with scenes such as the king performing ritual acts before the gods, or deities embracing and giving gifts to the ruler. Decoration was organized into lower, middle, and upper horizontally stacked bands corresponding to subjects of terrestrial, divine, and celestial nature, respectively. Palace floors at the eighteenth dynasty royal cities of Tell el-Amama and Malqata were painted with pools of water teeming with fish, rimmed with plants and animals; ceilings were decorated with birds flying overhead. Palace throne daises and floors
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found at Tell el-Amama, Kom al-Samak (Malqata), and the nineteenth dynasty palace of Merenptah at Memphis were also decorated with images of bound prisoners over which the king, the preserver of order, would walk, symbolically subduing Egypt's foes. Scenes in royal funerary temples emphasized the king's offering cult and position in the cosmos and depicted events from his or her reign. Vignettes in the royal tombs were drawn from various "books" representing the solar cycle, the underworld, and the Book of Going Forth by Day, as well as showing the ruler in the presence of the gods. Objects and monuments intended for private patrons contained representations of deities and depictions concerned with supplying the deceased with food, as well as information to ensure his or her safe passage and rebirth
PAINTING. Detail from a hunting scene, showing birds flying over a papyrus marsh. This wall painting is from the eighteenth dynasty private tomb of Menna at Thebes. (Courtesy Dieter Arnold)
in the next world. Coffins, designed to protect the body and act as a home for the ka, were decorated with a false door, offerings, and offering scenes, and later with gods and funerary scenes. Funerary papyri and linen were painted with texts and vignettes from funerary "books." Figures of protective deities like Bes embellished household altars and walls, and goddesses such as Hathor adorned votive linens. Stelae were decorated with figures of the deceased before offerings, the king or deities; these were placed either in the tomb to provide magically for the owner in the next life, or in temples where the patron would be linked with the gods and the temple rituals. Tomb chapels with scenes of offering and images derived from funerary books or the patron's life ensured that he or she would not only be supplied with food and safe pas-
PAINTING sage to the beyond but also be remembered by the living who would celebrate the funerary cult. Images known as "scenes of daily life" were painted on walls and objects, and reflect real events from the life of the owner as well as ideal, ritual concepts. Motifs in tombs, such as the dead banqueting with family and friends or inspecting the fields, were ideal images that operated magically, to guarantee their provisioning; they also may record situations that occurred in life. Scenes of the dead fishing and fowling, or the production and bringing of foodstuffs, were meant to function allegorically to supply them with sustenance in the hereafter. Daily life scenes also displayed the deceased's family and social position in life, thereby linking the dead eternally to their personal and professional roles and guaranteeing them continued life and high status in the hereafter. A visual image and style was established for each king, and its essence was transferred to the painted figural representations of gods and men. The style of painting revealed the identifying features of the king, based on the artistic synthesis of his or her essential characteristics, idealized and expressed in proportions that were standardized for easy identification. Images of elite officials were done either in the likeness of their ruler, or sometimes in a more individual style. Painted portraits of non-royal people occurred in isolated instances; these can be identified by their variance from stylistic and typological norms, or their individuality, as in the case of the later so-called Faiyum portraits. Where exceptions to the perfected human form existed in painting, they often represented standard characterizations of rank and culture, such as fatness, leanness, age, sensuality, or the uncultivated commoner or foreigner. An exceptional break from the ideal royal form occurred during the Amarna period, when the distorted image of Amenhotpe IV and his family as the objects of worship along with the Aten betrayed a new ideology of kingship that was codified in art. In some periods, kings modeled the style of their art on previous models to ally themselves with the political ideals of former times. An example is offered by Montuhotep I, who consciously copied the decorative programs of Old Kingdom pyramid complexes in the painted relief decoration in the anterior of his eleventh dynasty mortuary temple at Deir el-Balm. Presumably, painters themselves also drew from earlier models in order to perfect their art or satisfy their patrons. During the Early Dynastic period, anonymous craftsmen and their products, previously created for the community, came under the patronage and control of the king and the state, who set the cultural norms, developed the canonical human form, and standardized artistic training. Painters worked in teams with other painters, sculptors, or craftsmen; they depended on their employers to supply them with commissions, materials, and the money
or goods to pay for their work. Teams of workmen personalized images and texts for the patron within conventional scenes and motifs. Biographical texts, the use of details and themes specific to the patron, suggest that the client (or his successor or delegate) selected the program of decoration. Mass-produced coffins, papyri, and stelae had blanks left for the purchaser's name, which implies that the subject matter was Grafted in advance, without a specific person in mind. In all painted works, the execution of the decoration was the artist's responsibility within the prescribed rules of figural portrayal, decorum, and placement of key elements (e.g., the false door) on the object or in the tomb. The artist's specific rendition of scenes, even with stock themes, attests to his individual contribution to the final painting. In all periods, painted relief was the preferred method of decoration in temples and tombs because of its permanence and durability. Where painting and relief follow within the same monument, the more important, prominently placed scenes are executed in relief. In the case of limited time, money, or access to resources, sketches originally intended to be cut into relief were completed in painting, presumably so they could act as effective images and function ritually within the monument. Flat painting was used in contexts where the rock was inadequate for carving, and in mud-brick constructions like palaces, houses, and shrines that could not support carved relief. Painting tended to be preferred in nonroyal contexts; where royal and sacred monuments of stone carried flat painting, it often seems to have been a quick alternative to relief. Perhaps flat painting was preferred because of its low cost and because it could be rapidly achieved by a team of workmen. Painting also allowed a more spontaneous artistic conception of form that could be exploited more readily in nonsacred monuments. Chronology. Flat painting appeared early in the Pre-dynastic period on pottery known as White Cross-lined Ware, From the Naqada I period to early Naqada II (4000-3400 BCE); designs were painted on the surface of the vessel with a fiber brush before firing. Images of the hunt, the flora and fauna of the Nile Valley, and geometric patterns embellish the exterior of these vessels, often with little consideration of their shape. The painted images on the succeeding Decorated Ware of the Naqada II to III periods (35003100 BCE) represent the world of man and perhaps historical events, arranged in groups of related figures. Potters painted Nile scenes composed of boats at the center of the jar, bounded by trees and birds along the river-bank, with desert animals beyond. Some of these pots are adorned with the large figure of a woman standing on a boat cabin with her arms raised, attended by smaller male figures. This female figure has been identified as a being, a goddess, a mourner, or a dancer. The repertory of scenes found on Decorated Ware also
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PAINTING. Detail from a harvest scene, including a depiction of two fighting girls. This wall painting is from the eighteenth dynasty private tomb of Menna at Thebes. (Courtesy Dieter Arnold)
occurs on linen from Gebelein and on a wall in tomb 100 at Hierakonpolis. Dating to Naqada lie, the painting in tomb 100 introduces new motifs and representational devices, such as the base line, which later would become a major device for ordering compositions. The plastered mud-brick wall is painted in yellow, red, green, white, and black on a light yellow background, with themes of hunting, ferrying, fighting, ritual running or dancing, and a chieftain subduing foes. The entire composition places traditional pictures of the hunt on the upper part of the wall and motifs of combat and triumph below, in an arrangement that focuses on the hereditary and divine nature of kingship. This representational cycle, found in what may have been a ruler's tomb, shows the beginning of royal and religious imagery that will be fully exploited in later royal monuments. In the first and second dynasties, the exteriors of mas-taba tombs are decorated with geometric designs that imitate hanging mats, painted in black, white, red, blue-green, and yellow on a white gesso ground. During the third dynasty, painted decoration moves inside the mas-taba. In the corridor chapel of Hesire at Saqqara, an elite official from the reign ofDjoser (c.2687-2669 BCE), depictions of funerary gifts are painted on the walls to reinforce
magically the objects actually buried in the tomb. The tomb also has painted fragments of men with cattle and a crocodile, once part of an early example of a "daily life scene" on the marsh. From the reign of Sneferu (c.2632-2608), the tomb chapel of Nefermaat and Atet at Meidum introduces a new technique of paste inlay. Colored mineral pastes were mixed with resin and set into a specific type of sunk relief composed of undercut edges and raised grids that held the color in place. The method aimed at permanence and even merited special description in Atet's chapel: "He made his gods in writing which cannot be erased." The famous masterpiece, the "Geese of Meidum" (Cairo, Egyptian Museum, JE 34571), was also found in the chapel of Atet, where it was part of a larger scene of the owner fowling with a clap net. The geese were painted in tempera with the palette of the Old Kingdom, which was expanded by overlaying colors and mixing hues to produce browns and grays. The solid color of the birds was enhanced by skill ful brushwork which created textures such as stippling, feathering, and mottling. Painted relief was the preferred mode of decoration in monuments of the Old Kingdom, although Hat painting was occasionally utilized. Painting appears as the dominant form of decoration in the sixth dynasty tombs of
6 PAINTING officials in the provincial towns outside the capital of Memphis. The Old Kingdom artistic tradition is clear in the composition, coloring, and execution of paintings in tombs as far south as Naga ed-Deir, but the hallmarks of a later painting style also appear. This style, with its conventions of representing attenuated figures with large eyes and ears, may have begun in Memphhe art of the fifth dynasty and moved out into the provinces, where it continues into the art of the First Intermediate Period, particularly in Upper Egypt. In the First Intermediate Period, painting is not rendered in any one uniform style, but rather is characterized by an influx of local styles. Generally, the best examples of what previous art surveys have termed "First Intermediate Period style" are the paintings found in the Upper Egyptian elite tombs at Thebes, el-Moalla, Gebelein, and Aswan. These tombs lay in the Theban domain, well out of reach of the Herakleopoli-tans, the inheritors of Memphite conventions and artists. In general, detail in Upper Egyptian painting is rendered as a series of patterns with colors laid in dissonant and often strident combinations. Principal figures are depicted unusually larger than the subsidiary figures who are scattered across the picture surface, with or without register lines. Paintings at sites in Herakleopolitan territory, like Bersheh, Assiut, and Beni Hasan, are executed in a more traditional Memphite manner with local style overlays. Painted stone stelae from First Intermediate Period sites reflect both the classic Memphite manner and particular local styles. Stone stelae began as niche stones in the second dynasty when they were inset at the back of the southern niche of elite mastabas. They are decorated with painted relief scenes of the deceased seated facing a table of offerings and a hieroglyphic list. By the First Intermediate Period, some stone stelae are decorated in flat painting and placed on the walls of the rock-cut offering chambers marking the offering place and close to the burials. Stelae are composed of a horizontal line of text above, and an image of the deceased holding a staff and scepter facing a pile of offerings—an image borrowed directly from relief-carved Old Kingdom false door jambs. The local variants in painting during the First Intermediate Period and the freedom expressed in them led to the innovation and technical proficiency of Middle Kingdom elite tomb painting. The floating register lines of the First Intermediate Period developed into the wavy lines of the desert hills, as rendered, for example, in the tomb of Senet at Thebes (tomb 60). Inventive scenes in the twelfth dynasty painted tomb of Ukhhotep III at Meir (Cl) show women laboring on the land and fowling, activities traditionally performed by men. These scenes build on similar themes that appeared in the First Intermediate Period tomb of Ankhtifi at elMoalla. Local officials' practice of
borrowing royal prerogatives in the First Intermediate period was imitated in the twelfth dynasty. In the tombs of Ukhhotep III (Meir nr. Cl) and Khnemhotpe II (Betai Hasan nr. 3), royal symbols are appropriated; and the nom-arch Wahka II in his tomb at Qaw elKebir shows the Nile god presenting him with offering gifts as if he were a king. In tombs and on other objects, the polychrome palette of the First Intermediate Period is a legacy to the twelfth dynasty. Generally, elite tomb painting at the beginning of the Middle Kingdom appears stiff and awkward; later, during the reigns from Senwosret II to Amenemhet III, it exhibits a greater sense of artistry and innovation. Consciously archaizing and innovative motifs contributed to the development of Middle Kingdom painting. In the twelfth dynasty tombs at Meir, artists borrowed the subject matter from the accessible sixth dynasty tombs but rendered their figures in the style of the Middle Kingdom. The sophisticated painting in the First Intermediate Period tombs at Beni Hasan inspired the virtuosity of painting seen in later twelfth dynasty tombs. Images of mythological creatures (snake-necked panther, winged griffin), scenes of manufacturing flint knives, spinning, weaving, and wrestling were introduced into Middle Kingdom tomb repertories. Wooden coffins, which appeared with dynastic times, are at first largely undecorated except for the palace facade design. During the sixth dynasty, painted rows of text run down the center and sides of the rectangular box, with wedjat-eyes on the exterior and a false door on the interior next to the face of the mummy. Sarcophagi of the First Intermediate Period and twelfth dynasty add more decoration to the sixth dynasty type. During this time, the Coffin Texts, descended from the Pyramid Texts of the Old Kingdom, are introduced into the sarcophagus interior. Offering piles, an offering list, and object friezes are painted in the interior of the casket in bright, clear colors. The cedar coffin of Djehutynakht IV from Bersheh (Boston, MFA 20.1822-1826) illustrates the technical excellence of painting at this time. The outer coffin is painted on the interior with a false door, an offering scene, and object friezes. The paintings show exquisite manipulation of color tones and texture layering, the use of a varied palette applied on white underpainting, and the suppression of defining outlines. Later in the twelfth dynasty, interior decoration on coffins vanishes, and the outer casing is painted with a cavetto cornice, and a false door or offering piles on the side of the box. Images of Isis and Neph-thys, the two goddesses associated with the resurrection of Osiris, sometimes appear at the foot and head of the coffin, respectively. These goddesses are among the first deities to decorate nonroyal objects; through their association with the god Osiris, they acted to identify the de-
PAINTING ceased with Osiris and aid his or her rebirth, in the next world. Painted funerary masks made of cartonnage were also utilized during the Middle Kingdom and were fitted on the wrapped mummy itself. During the twelfth dynasty, a new type of coffin was introduced, made of car-tonnage in a human form. This developed into the rishi-coffin of the seventeenth dynasty, named after the Arabic word for "feather," made manifest in the pair of folded, stylized wings that decorate the anthropoid casket from shoulder to toe. These wings may symbolize the wings of Isis spread in protection over the deceased. At the beginning of the New Kingdom, Thebes was the center of elite and royal burial. Elite chapels, cut into the hillside, take the form of a "T" with a transverse front hall, and an inner passage leading back to an offering niche decorated with statues or a stela. The subterranean sarcophagus chamber of the tomb is reserved for the burial and inaccessible. The entrance of the chapel is decorated with images of the deceased going in (toward the setting sun or Osiris) and out of the tomb (toward the rising sun). In the broad hall, ideally, the small walls contained a painted autobiographical stela on one wall and a false door, the contact point between the living and the dead, on the other. The decoration of the long walls was variable and could contain scenes of offering and banqueting before the deceased or the tomb owner fulfilling his official duties before tlie king. The painted scenes on the back walls of the broad hall, which were immediately visible upon entering the tomb, were particularly important for the self-presentation of the tomb owner. The longitudinal corridor was painted with mortuary images, such as the funeral procession or the Opening of the Mouth ritual. During the reign of Amenhotpe TV (1382-1365 BCE), the decoration shifted to painted relief in elite tombs at Tell el-An-iama, and focused on the king and his family. Late in the eighteenth dynasty, Theban tomb chapels returned to painted scenes of "daily life," but scenes of a religious nature increased. By the nineteenth and twentieth dynasties, the chapel acted as a type of funerary temple with decoration drawn largely from the Book of Going Forth by Day. Tine false door disappears, the stela is moved to the facade of the tomb, and the decorative program stresses the tomb owner venerating the gods. The end of the New Kingdom brought a decline in the number of painted monumental tombs, and images of the hereafter were transferred to coffins and papyri, which subsequently led to the flowering of papyrus and sarcophagus painting. Early eighteenth dynasty Theban tomb painting relies on Middle Kingdom style, which in turn was patterned on Old Kingdom models. The Old and Middle Kingdom elite tombs that dot the Theban landscape may have been examples for painters who sought die prestige of earlier periods by appropriating their style of painting. In the elite
tombs of the early eighteenth dynasty, the style of painting is stiff and depends on the basic color palette. Beginning in the reign of Thutmose III (1504-1452 BCE) and reaching full expression in the reigns of Thutmose IV (1419-1410) and Amenhotpe III (14101382), painting is freed, gestures are varied, the color palette expands, and line becomes fluid; the sense of space is enhanced by overlapping; and compositions are organized around groups. During the reigns of these last two kings, the style of painting and motifs vary according to the tomb owner's institutional group and appear to commemorate specific social concerns and ideologies. In the late eighteenth dynasty and the Ramessid period, elite tomb painting retains the expressiveness of the Amarna era, but it gradually becomes rigid under religious reformation and the return to the canonical ideal of the perfect type. Painted scenes continue to be organized in horizontal registers on the wall as in the eighteenth dynasty, but Ramessid tombs expand and extend them beyond the borders of the wall like a film-strip. Scenes are organized vertically, with images of the hereafter in the upper bands and mortuary cult representations in the lower bands. At Saqqara during the late eighteenth dynasty, flat painting is used in the side chapels and statue rooms of elite tombs. Elite coffins proliferated in a number of different styles during the New Kingdom. Until the reign of Thutmose III, ns/M-coffins continue to be employed, as well as painted funerary masks of cartonnage. Early in the eighteenth dynasty, another anthropoid coffin which was composed of painted and plastered wood came into use; texts are arranged in four evenly spaced vertical bands crossed by bands running across the lid, and a central band of text spreads from below the collar to the feet of the sarcophagus. Early in the dynasty, funerary and offering scenes fill the spaces between the bands, followed later by images such as the Four Sons of Horns, Anubis, and Thoth. The image of a vulture with outstretched wings, placed on the chest of the coffin, was replaced in the reign of Amenhotpe III with the winged goddess Nut. Until the reign of Thutmose III, the decoration is executed in polychrome on a white background that imitates the white linen of a mummy shroud. Later, black (the color of resurrection) serves as the background, which is decorated with gold leaf or gold paint (colors of the flesh of the gods and the sun). A new anthropoid coffin was introduced in the late eighteenth dynasty, with decoration rendered in gem colors (red, light and dark blue) on a yellow-gold background that is covered by a layer of varnish. In the Middle Kingdom there appeared wooden toilet and canopic chests plastered and decorated with figural scenes. Beginning in the eighteenth dynasty, chests for shawabtis (substitute laborers for the deceased) and other types of chests were introduced. The wooden box of King
8
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PAINTING. Painted wooden chest of Tutankhamun, showing the king in a battle against Syrian enemies. This eighteenth dynasty chest is now in the Egyptian Museum, Cairo. (Scala / Art Resource, NY)
Tutankhamun in the Egyptian Museum, Cairo (JE 61467), which held royal sandals, a gilt headrest, and cloth bundles, is plastered and painted with four scenes of the king in his chariot. On the long sides, the pharaoh at the center wages war against Syrians and Nubians, the traditional enemies of Egypt who signified the chaotic forces that must be subdued by the king. The same theme is echoed on the lid, which depicts the king hunting in the desert. The idea of order is symbolized visually by the register lines and symmetrical ranks of soldiers and horses, and chaos is implied by the tumbling mass of foreigners and animals. The short sides are painted with the heraldic symbol of Tutankhamun as a sphinx trampling the northern and southern enemies of Egypt, Flat painting decorated the walls of eighteenth dynasty royal tombs in the Valley of the Kings from the reign of Thutmose I until that of Horemheb, when painted relief again became the dominant form of decoration for the king's sepulchre. The iconography in these royal tombs was chosen from various funerary books which were transferred onto the wall like an unfurled scroll of papyrus; the yellow background color in the royal tombs emulated its hue. The Book of That Which Is in the Under\vorld, later known as Amduat, was the sole book that decorated the walls of the royal burial chamber. This book aimed at initiating the king into the underworld by describing the ways and functions of the beyond and explaining, hour by hour, the nightly voyage of the sun. When painted relief
became the preferred method of decoration in the royal tombs, the number of funerary books expanded; in the tomb of Ramesses VI, all the known books of the underworld and the sky, and an abundance of scenes from the Book of Going Forth by Day and scenes of divinities, adorn the walls. The painted decoration of the royal tombs in the Theban necropolis was the responsibility of the artisans who resided in the village at Deir el-Medina during the New Kingdom. Founded early in the eighteenth dynasty on the west bank at Thebes, Deir elMedina housed craftsmen, including carpenters, stonecutters, relief sculptors, and painters, who painted the royal tombs and their own tombs as well. Their chapels draw from the same pool of iconography as elite Theban tombs; however, the style of the tombs and the themes used in their burial chambers occasionally borrows from the royal sphere. Walls are painted yellow, figures mirror the royal figural style, and rarely, scenes found in the royal tombs occur in painters' sepulchers. A special group of tombs are painted with a palette of yellow, black, and red on a white background, in a style described as "monochromatic" by Bernard Bruyere (Tombes thebaines de Deir el-Miedineh a decoration monochrome, Cairo, 1952). These monochromatic tombs may have been painted by a distinct group of painters who also appeared in the scenes. The workmanship of specific Deir el-Medina artisans has been identified by comparing then-signed drawings on flakes of limestone (ostraca) with
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paintings in royal tombs. Ostraca, the ancient equivalent to notepaper,
PAINTING. Thutmose III standing and pouring a libation before Amun-Re. This eighteenth dynasty mural is from the shrine of Hathor at Hatshepsut's temple in Deir el-Bahri. It is now in the Egyptian Museum, Cairo. (Scala / Art Resource, NY)
are preserved from the earliest times until the Roman period, with one of largest caches coming from the village of Deir el-Medina. Ostraca
a wide range of colors that include thick applications of red, black,
illustrate aspects of the everyday world of the ancient Egyptians and
yellow orpiment, green, and blue frits on a white gypsum or calcium
candidly reveal the artistic process. Forms outlined in black, or
carbonate background. New Kingdom faience is decorated with figural
sometimes painted with the basic color palette, depict small-scale studies
scenes; images concerned with Hathoric activities, such as female musi-
of larger compositions, votive gifts with images of a deity, portions of
cians and aquatic themes associated with rebirth, often adorn these
animal fables, or motifs from house paintings.
objects.
Figural painting in the New Kingdom appears on polychrome and
In temples, certain features and sometimes entire scene cycles are
blue-painted pottery and faience. On polychrome pottery, the use of
executed in flat paint. A couple of fans rendered in color from a relief-
motifs of humans, animals, and plant life (also found on other media like
cut bark procession on the north wall of the Hypostyle Hall of the temple
furniture, textiles, and wall paintings), led to the development of large,
of Amun at Karnak prove that some details were rendered only in paint.
wide jars with funnel or bulbous necks to provide large spaces for
A small temple of Amenhotpe III at Wadi el-Sebua in Nubia is
decoration. Blue-painted pottery, with its predominant use of a pale blue
decorated completely in paint with traditional temple scenes. In the
color derived from cobalt alu-minate spinel, is decorated with images
funerary temple of Sety I at Abydos, painting appears alongside relief in
such as men or women on a skiff in the marsh and the figure of Bes. De-
the Hall of Barques, where it was intended to replace the carved
tails are executed in red and black, with occasional additions of white,
decoration. The -execution of the painting is more careful than the
yellow, and green. Polychrome pottery has
"freer" style found in elite Theban tombs, which reflects the ritual formality of temple decoration. The unfinished Ptolemaic temple of Thoth at Kasr el-Agouz on the west bank at Thebes contains painted decoration, notably in a
10
PAINTING
scene that represents the king dedicating the chapel to the principal deities of the temple. Mud-brick royal palaces, houses, and shrines were embellished with paintings. From the Middle Kingdom and Second Intermediate Period site of Tell ed-Dab'a, palace paintings are believed to have been completed by Minoan artists. From this period and the early eighteenth dynasty, the walls of the north palace at Deir el-Ballas (opposite Coptos) include painted images of armed men wielding battle-axes. Found in the entrance corridor, these forms invoke the king's domination over foreigners and act as talismans to guard the palace from the entry of chaotic forces. Other wall compositions depict royal life and ritual: the daughters of Amenhotpe IV sit on cushions beside the now lost representations of their parents from the King's House at Tell el-Amarna (Ashmolean Museum, Oxford 1893.1); and from the Great Palace at Tell el-Amama, images of servants remain from a destroyed scene of Amenhotpe IV returning to the palace after a ceremonial visit. Palace floors at Tell el-Amarna and Malqata painted with images of flora and fauna show rich detail and fluid improvisation, accomplished without pre-drawing. Although earlier remains of decorative painting exist—for example, from mud-brick houses at the Middle Kingdom site of Illkahun (Kahun)—the majority of examples come from the New Kingdom. At Tell el-Amama, the decoration of elite houses follows the same cosmic divisions as royal palaces. Houses are embellished with various motifs, such as sky-blue roofs, ceiling moldings of floral collars, and shrineshaped pendant friezes, and lower walls rimmed with papyrus plants. Paintings of household gods (Bes and Taweret) and women in various poses from private houses at Deir el-Medina and the workman's village at Tell el-Amarna may have been prophylactic, focusing on childbirth and other concerns of the female occupants. Private chapels associated with funerary and religious cults in the workman's village at Tell elAmarna and Deir el-Medina are adorned with paintings of gods, humans, plants, and abstract patterns. A substantial portion of Third Intermediate and Late period tomb decoration is achieved in painted relief; however, flat painting appears in the tombs at the Ramesseum and the Theban necropolis, the Bahriya Oasis, and Coptos. Associated with the Third Intermediate burials, particularly at the Ramesseum, are wooden funerary stelae which were plastered and brightly painted. Instead of the traditional stela scene of the deceased seated before the offering table accompanied by family members, these wooden stelae are decorated with a single scene of the deceased adoring a deity. Where earlier stelae were primarily donated by men and set up in memorial or tomb chapels, the new stelae were donated by men or women and were placed in burials beside the body. Wooden stelae
continued to be produced through the twenty-first and twenty-second dynasties and into the Ptolemaic period. An example of a wooden stela donated by a woman (Paris, Louvre E 52) dates from the Third Intermediate Period; on the front, it represents the "mistress of the house, Tap-eret" adoring the god Re-Horakhty, from whose solar disk stylized rays of lily flowers extend toward the face of the adorer. The two symbolic plants of Egypt, the papyrus on the left and the lotus to the right, emerge from the heads of the god of the earth and the god of the horizon and hold up the sign of the sky, which is painted blue. The cosmic setting and painted offerings of the stela symbolize Taperets provisioning by the gods, which would guarantee her life in the next world. Limited remains of papyri with figural painting are preserved from the Middle Kingdom. By the New Kingdom, papyri were abundant and included not only painted funerary books but also oracle and magical papyri, illustrated ancient animal fables, architectural sketches, and maps. The most popular funerary papyrus, the Book of Going Forth by Day, was an essential component in New Kingdom burials, where it was placed near the mummy for easy reference by the deceased. This is a body of spells, hymns, prayers, and accompanying scenes that allowed the deceased to come and go from the tomb without accident, receive offerings left by visitors, make use of his or her senses, pass the judgment of the weighing of the, heart, and celebrate with the gods in paradise. The formulae, written in black with chapter headings and titles in red, are accompanied by illustrated vignettes, beautifully colored in the New Kingdom, and later developed into finely crafted, uncolored outlines. Some papyri were mass-produced, with blanks left for the purchasers name and titles; others were products of the patron's compositional specifications. At the end of the twenty-first dynasty and the beginning of the twenty-second, vignette papyri with numerous illustrations and few texts were created from excerpts of a number of funerary works such as the Book of That Which Is in the Underworld, the Litany of Re, and the Book of Going Forth by Day, with new depictions. After a hiatus, the last of these reappeared during the twenty-sixth dynasty in a revised, standardized form of 165 spells with illustrations, continued into the Ptolemaic and Roman period. During the Third Intermediate Period, inner coffins were decorated with new scenes that reflected the passage into the underworld and the daily course of the sun, which associated the deceased with the cycle of transformation and eternal life. Coffin interiors show a variety of motifs, like the djed-pi\\ar (the backbone of Osiris), deities, deified kings, and images of the deceased offering before solar or underworld gods, executed in polychrome on a red or yellow background. During the reign of Osorkon
PAINTING 11
II, coffins composed of one to three caskets plus a car-tonnage case were painted in polychrome on a light background. Texts were shortened and images moved away from vignettes from funerary books and included instead simplified motifs of rebirth and symbols of protection. The depiction of the sky goddess Nut moved from the lid onto the floor of the coffin, where her outstretched arms enfolded the mummy, identifying the deceased with the sun which was born from her each dav. Coffins of the Late Period abandoned the cartonnage case of the twentysecond and twenty-third dynasties and introduced a
PAINTING. Stela showing the noblewoman Taperet before the god Re-Horakhty, who radiates beneficial rays toward her. This twenty-second dynasty stela is from Lower Egypt, now in the Louvre, Paris. (Giraudon / Art Resouce, NY) wooden coffin that represented the deceased as a statue on a pedestal with a raised backpillar. Vignettes and long texts from the Book of Going Forth by Day were restored, and the winged goddess Nut reappeared on the chest lid. Decoration of the inner and outer coffins was painted in bright colors on a white or yellow background made of plastered linen on wood. Also revived from the Third Intermediate Period were coffins composed of a wooden rectangular outer box with four comer posts decorated with falcons or jackals holding up a vaulted lid. This outer box was painted in clear colors with scenes of deities in
12
PAINTING
shrines divided by texts, or occasionally with an archaizing scene of the deceased seated before a table of offerings at either end. Images of the daily-nightly solar boats decorated the lid, which symbolized the sky. Votive and funerary linen cloths, shirts, and leather hangings remain from the New Kingdom, decorated either in ink or with multicolored drawings or paintings. Some royal burials of the seventeenth and eighteenth dynasties included linen sheets illustrating vignettes from the Book of Going Forth by Day. In workman's tombs at Deir el-Medina, linen cloths were found with painted representations of priests offering to the deceased, or the dead before an offering table. During the eighteenth and nineteenth dynasties, votive textiles—adorned with scenes of the living donor and family making an offering to Hathor— were presented as cult offerings in the goddess's shrine at Deir el-Bahri. An unusual leather hanging, also from this shrine (New York, Metropolitan Museum of Art 31.3.98), is painted with a harpist and erotic dancer and may depict an ancient fertility rite associated with Hathor worship. Other deities adorned linen shrouds: Taweret, Osiris, or in the case of female burials, Amentet, the Goddess of the West. In the Late period, the practice was revived of adorning linen strips with texts and illustrations selected from funerary books. During the Roman period, specially prepared portraits of the deceased were pasted on to mass-produced cloths decorated with figures of Anubis or Osiris. Painting during the Ptolemaic and Roman periods merged Egyptian thought and technique with the influence of the Hellenistic world. Ptolemaic and Roman tombs at Tuna el-Gebel (the cemetery of Hermopolis in Middle Egypt) and Alexandria, and Roman tombs at Panopolis, depict the deceased in the Greek manner, but in compositions with Egyptian details that may have been organized intentionally. For example, the outer room of the chapel in the family tomb of Petosiris (tp. Phillip Arr-hideaus, 323-317 BCE) is decorated with "daily life scenes" in a Hellenistic style, while the inner, more sacred room contains funerary scenes executed in an Egyptianizing style. Paintings of deities of the Ptolemaic and Roman pantheon adorn temples in Theadelphia and Karanis. Paintings of the genies of Pharbai'thos (genies connected with the protection of the body of Osiris) decorate the Osi-rian "catacombs" in the temple of Amun at Karnak, from the reign of Ptolemy IV. In the Dakhia Oasis, the temples of Ismant el-Kharab, dating to the Roman emperor Hadrian, are painted in both the Egyptian and classical Roman styles. Beginning in the early twenty-sixth dynasty and common by the Ptolemaic period, linen mummy shrouds were decorated with painted panels of cartonnage that covered the head, chest, lower rib cage, stomach, legs, and feet of the deceased; a funerary mask and footpiece were fitted
over the head and feet, respectively. Blanks left for the de-ceaseds name suggest they were not commissioned for a particular individual. The body cartonnage consisted of traditional funerary motifs, and the face often was gilded to identify the deceased with the golden color of the flesh of the gods and the sun god who guaranteed eternal life. From the first to the fourth century CE, funerary portraits were adopted by the Ptolemaic and Roman population. Termed "Faiyum portraits" after the region southwest of Cairo where they were first discovered, these painted panels were also found in Memphis, Thebes, and Antinoe in Middle Egypt. The Faiyum portraits are composed of rectangular panels of cypress, cedar, linden, lime, or fig wood, primed and painted with encaustic or tempera. Some representations were commissioned during the life of the patron, who sat for the portrait and hung it inside his or her house. Later Faiyum portraits exhibit few variations and appear to have been mass-produced. These portraits may have functioned as domestic art, ancestral portraits, commemorative objects in the living cult of the patron, or solely for burial. At death, the portraits were cut out of their frame and fitted into the wrappings over the head of the mummy. A few Faiyum portraits are evidently individual portraits, but most appear to capture the general likeness of the patron. [See also Artists and Artisans; Grid Systems; Portraiture; and Royal Tomb Painting] BIBLIOGRAPHY Arnold, Dorothea, and Janine Bourriau, eds. An Introduction to Egyptian Pottery. SDAIK, 17. Mainz, 1993. An introduction to the techniques, traditions, clays, fabric, and decoration of ancient Egyptian pottery. Baines, John. "Techniques of Decoration in the Hall of Barques of the Temple of Sethos I at Abydos." Journal of Egyptian Archaeology 75 (1989), 13-30. A discussion of decorative procedures in a temple context. Bierbrier, Morris L., ed. Portraits and Masks: Burial Customs in Roman Egypt. London, 1997. Essays from the 1995 colloquium on burial customs in ancient Egypt, concerning the material factors and social, archaeological, and spiritual contexts of "Faiyum Portraits." Davies, W. V., ed. Colour and Painting in Ancient Egypt. London, forthcoming. The most current treatment of the technical and artistic aspects of color and painting with essays by leading Egyptologists and conservators. Hartwig, Melinda K. "Institutional Patronage and Social Commemoration in private Theban Tomb Painting during the Reigns of Thutmose IV (1419-1410 B.C.) and Amenhotep III (1410-1382 B.C.)." Ph.D. diss. New York University, forthcoming. A study of the social, ideological and rhetorical purposes of tomb painting and its patronage by specific institutional groups. Heick, Wolfgang, Eberhard Otto, and Wolfhart Westendorf, eds. Lexikon der Agyptologie. Vols. 1-6. Wiesbaden, 1975-1986. Entries "Farben," "Grabdekoration," "Harz," "Leichentuch," "Malerei," "Mumienportrats," "Nefermaat," "Rischi-Sarg," "Sarg AR und MR," "Sarg NR-SpZt," "Stele," "Wachs," are concise summaries with excellent bibliographies. Hornung, Erik. The Valley of the Kings: Horizon of Eternity. New York,
PALACES 13 1990. A survey of the development of art, architecture, iconography, and religious symbolism in the royal tombs in the Valley of the Kings. James, T. G. H. "Painting and Drawing." In The DictionaiJ of Art, edited by Jane Turner, vol. 9, pp. 897-906. New York, 1996. A chronology of wall painting, drawing, and papyrus illustration in Egypt from the Predynastic to Ptolemaic period. Keller, Catherine A. "Royal Painters: Deir eJ-Medina in Dynasty XIX." In Fragments of a Shattered Visage: The Proceedings of the International Symposium ofRamesses the Great, edited by Edward Bleiberg and Rita Freed, pp. 50-86. Memphis, 1993. An exploration of the training, methods, materials, work process, tomb decoration, and identification of the Ramessid painters at Deir el-Medina. Lacovara, Peter. The New Kingdom Royal City. London, 1997. A study of the development of the royal city of Deir el-Ballas. Lucas, A. Ancient Egyptian Materials and Industries. Edited by J. R. Harris. 4th ed. London, 1962. A reference manual that although slightly out of date is still the best comprehensive treatment (a new version is currently being compiled). Mekhitarian, Arpag. Egyptian Painting. New York, 1954. The classic publication on the stylistic development of tomb painting, with particular reference to the New Kingdom, amply illustrated with superb photos. Peck, William H. Egyptian Drawings. New York, 1978. A summary of the conventions, materials, use, and subjects of Egyptian drawing on tombs walls, ostraca, linen, papyri, and faience. Pinch, Geraldine. Votive Offerings to Hathor. Oxford, 1993. A study of the types, decoration, and components of painted textiles, pottery, faience, and stelae votive offerings. Robins, Gay. The Art of Ancient Egypt. Cambridge, Mass., 1997. An accessible up-to-date survey of Egyptian art and painting that focuses on its context as well as the underlying social and religious structures that influenced it. Excellent discussions on coffin and papyri decoration; abundantly illustrated. Schuiz, Regine, and Matthias Seidel, eds. Egypt: The World of the Pharaohs. Cologne, 1998. English edition of a German compilation of essays on ancient Egyptian art and society chronologically arranged and well illustrated; with invaluable treatments on private and royal tomb decoration. Tefnin, Roland, ed. La Peinture Egyptienne Ancienne. Un Mond de Signes a Preserver. Monumenta Aegyptiaca, 7. Brussels, 1997. A collection of papers on the analysis of images with references to a semiological approach; includes methods of conservation in tomb and temple painting. MELINDA K. HARTWIG
PALACES. From the Early Dynastic period until the late New Kingdom, Egyptian palaces, temples, and royal tombs are closely related through the concepts of the divine nature of the king and the cosmological aspect of royal dominion. Early Dynastic Period and Old Kingdom. The form of the Early Dynastic palaces of the kings of Upper Egypt, known as pr-wr ("great house"), can be traced back to reed structures of Predynastic times. Early in the historic period, pr-wr became the word for "sanctuary" in Upper Egypt. A related term for "palace," pr-'J (also "great house") was extended to the ruler himself and is the source of "pharaoh." The decorated high palace facade surmounted by the Horus falcon (originally srh, "lordly,
exalted [building]") became the emblem of the divine ruler. The word 'h (originally "shrine") occurs in the terms for both "royal palace" Ch-nswt) and "palace (or fortress) of the gods" ('h-ntr). The palaces, temples, and monumental royal tombs of the early dynasties are models of the cosmos, and all are surrounded by paneled enclosure walls. In this early period, temples and tombs were built wholly of mud brick, with the exception of the doorways and sometimes the floors. Beginning in the third dynasty, tombs were built of durable stone; later, temples too were of stone. Palaces, however, being domestic buildings for earthly life, were constructed of brick throughout Egyptian history. The hieroglyphic sign for 'h, based on the early structural form, looks much like a donjon or keep, the heavily fortified inner tower of medieval European castles, within a similarly fortified enclosure. An example of such a structure of first dynasty date is the fortress on the island of Elephantine. It was abandoned and replaced by a more extensive complex to the west of the town which was dominated by a small, massive step pyramid; this building, called "The Headband of King Huny," was a kind of fortified tower which was perhaps topped by the royal pavilion. Another early remnant has been discovered at the ancient royal residence of Upper Egypt, Hierakonpolis: the foundations of a richly paneled monumental gate to a royal palace or temple. A palace of the first dynasty at Memphis is mentioned on sealings of Adj-ib. This has not been found, but the name of the early residence town and palace, Inebu-hedj ("White Fortress"), suggests the paneled facades of the large first dynasty mastabas on the northern cliffs of Saqqara and the magnificent white limestone enclosure of Djoser's funerary palace. A palace-like structure was unearthed by an expedition of the German Archaeological Institute in the early dynastic layers at Tell elFara'in, or Buto, the ancient royal residence of Lower Egypt. This may have been a provincial palace of the king; it includes all the typical secular elements—king's house, harem, gardens and pools, administrative center, armory, storehouses, and workshops. Every pyramid town had a palace where the king resided while overseeing the construction of his pyramid and its complex. Czech excavators have found traces of column bases near the pyramid of Sahure (fifth dynasty), confirming textual mention of a columned entrance hall in Sahure's palace. The fifth dynasty royal architect Senedjem-ib-Inti was praised by his king, Djedkare Izezi, for designing and building a large (126 X 630 meters/400 X 2,000 feet) royal palace, "Lotus Flower of Djedkare," within the king's pyramid precinct at Saqqara South. A monumental brick wall on a solid foundation of basalt blocks, discovered in 1994 about 1,250 meters (4,000 feet)
14
PALACES
east of the Great Pyramid, may have been the eastern enclosure of the palace or pyramid town of Khufu. In the late 1990s, a large palace complex of about 2,500 square meters was being excavated by an expedition of the French Archaeological Institute at Ain Asil in the oasis of Dakhla. It was the residence of the Egyptian governors of the oasis. It includes residential and administrative buildings with porticos, columned halls, warehouses, silos, and even shrines dedicated to the memory of the governors. Parts of a late sixth dynasty palace of a governor of the first Upper Egyptian nome have been found at Elephantine; it also included a memorial chapel to a governor, probably Hekaib. Middle Kingdom. During the Middle Kingdom, the various functions of the royal palace seem to separate and be relocated in more specialized buildings. Thus, a palace of Senwosret I at Thebes is named "Senwosret Is Observing the Primeval Hill," undoubtedly an indication that it was a ritual structure attached to a temple that, like the one at Medamud, incorporated a mound representing the site of first creation. The eleventh dynasty kings Antef and Montuhotpe may have had palaces near the temple of Karnak, at Medamud or el-Tod, or on the west bank of the Nile near the modern village of el-Taref, where the large saff-tombs of these kings were cut into the desert hillside. From the thirteenth dynasty, we have an account book detailing deliveries and expenses at the palace at Thebes during visits of the royal court over a period of several months; because this papyrus was found in Dra Abul Naga on the western side of Thebes, the palace was probably situated there on the hillside in front of Dra Abul Naga or Taref. The permanent royal residence and administrative center of the twelfth and thirteenth dynasties, however, was established by Amenemhat I at Itjtawy near modern Lisht. Poetic descriptions of the costly decoration of its state rooms appear in the Instructions of Amenemhat and in the Story ofSinuhe. Other royal palaces must have existed in the pyramid towns in Dahshur and the Faiyum. The acropolis of the pyramid town of Illahun, the only such community of the Middle Kingdom to have been excavated, is dominated by a large and spacious palace area and storage areas which could easily have accommodated the king's household, court, and administration for a long period. An extensive Middle Kingdom palace complex has been excavated at Bubastis, an important town and cult center of the goddess Bastet, near modern Zagazig. In view of the extensive palace complex built earlier by the governors at Dakhla Oasis, it is possible that the Bubastis complex was that of the governors of this rich and important province. Statues of officials found in one of its main rooms suggests that cult chapels for deceased governors may have existed here. However, a large lintel and frag
ments of door jambs and threshold depicting royal figures and the titulary of Amenemhet III indicate that the palace also accommodated the king on his visits to the temple of Bastet and the administrative center of the eastern Delta. Another palace, dating to the early twelfth dynasty, is found farther to the northeast in the area of Khata'ana; it is attested by a monumental gate with the names of Amenemhet I, renewed by Senwosret III. This same region has a palace from the early thirteenth dynasty, with a large garden; it may have belonged to a governor or even to a local ephemeral king. Shortly after the thirteenth dynasty, the Nile Delta was taken over by Middle Eastern settlers who proclaimed themselves kings. They were succeeded by powerful rulers, the so-called Hyksos (fifteenth dynasty), who established their capital at Avar-is (modern Tell ed-Dab'a), with a strongly fortified palace. This has recently been excavated by an Austrian team. Only the substructures and the platform on which this mighty palace once stood survived destruction by the Thebans, who used Avaris as a staging point for their campaigns against the successors of the Hyksos in southern Palestine. Thousands of fragments of murals featuring Cretan styles and motifs—probably the work of Cretan artists—evidence far-reaching relations and cultural interaction at this period. The architecture of the palace differs considerably from any of previous periods: whereas the typical earlier palace covers a large area with a series of rooms and large, columned halls without much variation in elevation, the Hyksos palace is characterized by a high platform built on massive brick casemates surrounded by columned halls and monumental staircases leading to a still higher platform, on which the royal apartments probably stood. At the end of the seventeenth dynasty, the Upper Egyptian rivals of the Hyksos kings erected near Ballas (ancient Ombos, the "Gold Town") two very similar palaces from which they launched their campaigns against the Lower Egyptian overlords. These palaces, comprising several platforms built on casemates, with surrounding columned halls and monumental staircases, are reminiscent of Minoan palaces on Crete and Thera. This type of palace is restricted to the period of transition to the New Kingdom, but it was resumed at the end of the twenty-sixth dynasty in the palace of Apries at Memphis, which may have been influenced by Greek palace architecture. New Kingdom. Of the Theban royal palaces of the New Kingdom, only the palace complex ofAmenhotpe III at Malqata has yet been discovered. The rest have been either buried under cultivated land or destroyed during later construction. Even their location is disputed. An obvious hypothesis is that the royal palace was situated south of Karnak between the temples of Karnak and Luxor, and excavations in this area, near the village of el-
PALACES 15
PALACES. Detail of the twelfth-dynasty coffin of Khnumnakhte. On the right is an eye panel. Below the eyes is a so-called palace facade, a painted imitation of a house exterior, complete with niches in the wall, reed matting, and a door with two leaves and a bolt. (The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Rogers Fund, 1915. [15.2.2]) place of leisure and entertainment for the beloved queen, Tiye, and a Goud, have indeed brought to light evidence of dense habitation from the Middle Kingdom to the Late period, with town houses but no traces of a
stage for the celebration of the king's serf-festival. This enormous
palace. A palace on the north side of the temple of Amun at Karnak is
palace city (about 350,000 square meters) included several state and
known from the records of Hatshepsut on the Red Chapel, but textual
residential palaces, an audience hall, temples for the serf-festival
evidence from the time of Hatshepsut and Thut-mose III clearly places
commemorating the king's thirtieth year of reign, and the necessary
the official Theban palace on the western side. The word used for the
kitchens, storehouses, wine cellars, and workshops, as well as
official royal palace is d^dw ("columned hall of appearance"), a word
administrative buildings and, probably, residences for the highest
that also appears in Old Kingdom texts. The designation hft-hr-nb-s
officials. The king's private apartments and the harem were probably on
("Opposite to Its Lord," i.e., the temple of Amun) points to an area
terraces on the hillside above the artificial lake, affording the royal
directly across from Karnak, on the western bank, on the hillside of Dra
family a view of western Thebes and cooling breezes. The palace area
Abul Naga and Taref. This is approximately the same area where the
has been only partly excavated and not well published, and, sadly, the
palace of the early Middle Kingdom may have stood.
last remnants of its walls—painted with geometric designs and vivid
This palace was surely rather moderate, in accordance with the
desert hunting scenes—are eroding and falling apart.
straitened circumstances of the early eighteenth dynasty, and could not
During the Amarna period, the Theban palaces were temporarily
be compared with the large palaces of the eastern Delta. Therefore, when
abandoned, but they might still be used during royal visits at the
Thebes under Amenhotpe III became a rich and glorious metropolis, a
beginning of the nineteenth dynasty. They must have fallen into ruin
new palace city had to be created south of the city at Mal-qata. It had a
soon thereafter, during the later years of Ramesses II, when the king no
large artificial lake—the modern Birket Habu—which served as a harbor
longer visited Thebes. To provide housing during visits there, his
for the royal fleet, a
successor Ramesses III enlarged his mortuary temple by
16
PALACES
the addition of two large palace buildings, the so-called High Gates. The
The plan of the palaces and temples and their arrangement along a
one on the eastern side served as a temporary royal residence for the
processional avenue is an accurate copy of the grand processional
king, and that on the western for his harem.
avenues connecting the temples of Amun at Thebes in the time of
Amama Period. Akhenaten, the heretic son of Amen-hotpe III,
Amenhotpe III, modified to the requirements of Akhetaten, where the
decided in his fifth year of reign to build a new royal city on virgin
various royal palaces replaced the temples and the royal family moved in
ground near modem Tell el-Amarna, far from the old centers of
procession instead of the barks of the gods. It is therefore not surprising
traditional religion. He built his city, called Akhetaten ("Horizon of
that this arrangement was not repeated in the following Ramessid period.
Aten"), in great haste, and in almost equal haste it was abandoned after
The boy-king Tutankhamun resided in the old palace of Thutmose I at
his death, never to be inhabited again. Therefore, the ground plan of its
Memphis, and probably also in Malqata at Thebes. Sety I began the
temples, palace, and residences are exceptionally well preserved. More
construction of a residential city and palace near the old Hyksos
information about the buildings comes from the decoration of the rock-
residence, Avar-is, at Qantir in the eastern Delta, the origin of the
cut tombs in the ridge to the west of the city.
Ramessid family. Inlays of faience and glazed tiles with his name are
The main axis of Akhetaten was a long, wide avenue several
evidence for his building activities. His glorious son, Ramesses II, chose
kilometers long—the Royal Road—flanked on both sides by temples of
this place for his famous residence, Piramesse. Its splendor is echoed in
Aten and palaces. The avenue began in the North City, which enclosed
glazed tiles and faience inlays from door frames, throne pedestals, and
the North Riverside Palace, a fortified complex with a residential palace
decorated windows—perhaps a window of appearance. Only traces of the
built on terraces on the cliffs, a large administrative building, barracks
walls have yet been identified, but we know that large stables,
for the royal bodyguard, and large warehouses and granaries; in
storehouses, and workshops for the production of weapons and faience
addition, there are some large houses, perhaps the residences of courtiers
were added to the palace. According to poetic descriptions, the palace
close to Akhenaten. Farther to the south lay the North Palace, another
was the center of the royal residence, with temples of the great gods lying
royal residence, with official reception halls and a suite of courts,
north, east, west, and south of it. Gigantic colossi more than twenty
gardens, and living rooms painted with bright scenes from nature.
meters in height adorned the temple pylons facing the palace.
According to inscriptions found there, this was the palace of Princess
Piramesse served for nearly two centuries as the residence of the
Meritaten, Akhenaten s eldest daughter and heiress, who was married to
powerful rulers of the nineteenth and twentieth dynasties. When this
his chosen successor, Smenkhkare.
glorious city was finally abandoned at the beginning of the twenty-first
After passing the Great Aten Temple, the avenue reached the Central
dynasty, much of its building stone was transported to the new residence
City, with the Great State Palace on the riverside and the King's House
at Tanis, and the brickwork was left to decay. The palace district at Tanis
across the avenue from it. The center of the Great Palace was an
has not yet been discovered.
enormous courtyard surrounded on all four sides by colossal statues of
Temple Palaces. This distinct type of palace has long been known
Akhenaten, and having a suite of large halls and open courts. These were
from Western Thebes. The best-preserved example was excavated to the
the state apartments, where the king performed the rituals of royal
south of the mortuary temple of Ramesses III at Medinet Habu.
regeneration and received dignitaries and foreign envoys: an impressive
Foundations of similar buildings have been found on the southern side of
background for royal propaganda. At the southern end of the Great
the Ramesseum and, more recently, in the southern court of the mortuary
Palace an extension for Smenkhkare was added at a later date, consisting
temple of Sety I at Qurna and near that of Merenptah. These palaces were
of a huge hall with 544 painted brick columns and walls encrusted with
built of mud brick against the southern sides of the temple courts, which,
glazed tiles. A brick bridge led across the Royal Road from the Great
as is typical of temple components, are of stone. The temple palaces
Palace to a smaller palace, the King's House; this was also a building of
exhibit small-scale versions of the main features of royal palaces: a
state, with the "Window of Appearance" where the king appeared to his
columned reception hall, richly decorated and painted; a throne room
courtiers, accompanied by his family, to give daily orders and distribute
with two to four columns and a throne pedestal; rooms for sleeping and
rewards. Adjacent to this palace was a personal roval chapel, the Small
rest on both sides of the throne room; and behind these rooms, small
Aten Temple, a /;fl-house or mortuary temple of the king with roval
apartments for attendants (not the harem). A significant feature of all
statues.
these palaces is the "Window of Appearance"
PALETTES 17 in the middle of the palace facade; the entrances are near the corners of the facade. These small palaces have long been regarded as temporary royal residences for kings visiting from their Delta residences to participate in the Theban festivals. However, a close examination reveals that they could never have served as residences, even for a short stay. There are no kitchens; the bathrooms have no functioning water drainage, and because the palaces are within the sacred precincts, this sort of service utility must have been prohibited on grounds of ritual purity. Large false doors carved on the roof of the throne room in Medinet Habu and in the rear wall of the Quma palace indicate that these buildings were intended for the use of the king in the after-world. They were probably "inhabited" by portable statues of the deified kings which appeared in the "Window of Appearance" and were carried in the processions and feasts of the necropolis. Similar palaces are attested by decorated architectural fragments that are beside other temples near important cult centers. At Memphis a rather large and sumptuous temple palace of Merenptah was uncovered, part of the larger complex of temples and palaces of the Memphite residence. At Tell el-Yehudiyya, glazed tiles of a palace of Ramesses III were found. The powerless kings of the twenty-first and twenty-second dynasties took over the temple palace of Ramesses III at Medinet Habu and transformed it into an official state palace. They probably lived in the eastern High Gate, which was large enough for their modest rituals and state appearances. It was not until the twenty-sixth dynasty, under the Saite kings, that sumptuous palaces were again built. Regrettably, the palaces of the residence at Sais have wholly disappeared, but at Buto parts of a large palace have recently been excavated. The best-preserved palace of this period was that of Apries at Memphis; today, however, only towering substructures and casemates bear witness to the glorious palaces of this ancient capital. BIBLIOGRAPHY Assman, Jan. "Palast oder Tempel." Journal of Near Eastern Studies 31(1972), 143-155. Bietak, M.. Erne Palastanlage aus der Zeit des spdten Mtltleren Reichs undandere Forschungsergebiiisse aus dern ostlichen NUdella (Tellt'dDab'a, 1979-1984), pp. 325-332. Vienna, 1985. • Kemp, Barry J. "The Palace of Apries at Memphis." Mitleilungrn des Dentsclien Archdologischen Instituls, Abteiliing Kairo 33 (1977), 101-108. Kemp, Barry J. "The Harim-Palace at Medinet el-Ghurab." 2.eitschrift fur Agyptische Sprache und Ahennnskunde 105 (.1.978), 122-133. O'Connor, David. "City and Palace in New Kingdom Egypt." Societes urbaines et Egypte et an Soudan, pp. 73-87. Cahier de recherches de 1'Institut de papyrologie et d'egyptologie de Lille, 11. Lille, 1.989. O'Connor, David. "Mirror of the Cosmos: The Palace of Merenptah."
In Fragments of a Shattered Visage, edited by Edward Bleiberg and Rita Freed, pp. 167-197. Memphis, Tenn., 1993. Stadelmann, Rainer. "Tempelpalast und Erscheinungsfenster in den Thebanischen Totentempeln." Milteilungen des Deuf.sc1i.en Archiiohgischen Instituts, Abteilung Kairo 29 (1973), 221-242. Uphill, Eric P. "The Concept of the Egyptian Palace as a 'Ruling Machine.'" In Man, Settlement and Urbanism, edited by P. Ucko, pp. 721-734. London,1972. RAINER STADELMANN
PALERMO STONE. See King Lists.
PALETTES. Objects characteristic of early Nile cultures, palettes also appear in the Near East as imports or local imitations. Traces of dyes indicate that they were used to grind and mix mineral pigments. Ocher, malachite, galena, pyrolusite, and hematite were ground and then mixed with resins, oils, and fats. The mixtures were used as body paints and cosmetics; powdered ocher was used to tint ceramic vessels, and in a funeral context it was sprinkled in grave pits or used to paint certain containers for human remains. Typologically, the origin of palettes is in Late Paleolithic grinders. In the Early Khartoum period (7400^4900 BCE), flat gneiss plates were also used for grinding ocher. In the Early Khartoum Neolithic (4900-3800 BCE), round, oval, and nearly rectangular palettes of sandstone, diorite, and porphyry appear in elite burials and in settlements. Similar objects have been found in sites of the Late Khartoum Neolithic (3800-2700 BCE). Farther to the north, sandstone palettes stained with ocher appear in Epipaleolithic cultures (e.g., Abkan, Elkabien). Palettes reached their zenith of popularity in the Egyptian Predynastic period; they are especially common in the South, though the oldest examples come from the North. In Faiyum A, several shapeless or roughly oval limestone and diorite palettes have been found. A shield-shaped palette and several fragments in siltstone, basalt, and granite come from Merimde. El-Omari has provided two examples of calcite palettes, one tetragonal and one oval. Several Upper Egyptian rhomboid or rectangular palettes of siltstone—one ornamented with a schematic drawing that may be a dog—are known from Maadi; tetragonal or unshaped local palettes of limestone are infrequent; some have schematic representations of unidentifiable animals or geometric patterns. Most Upper Egyptian palettes were found in men's, women's, and children's graves, frequently near the face of the deceased. In Southern cultures, the five oldest examples come from Tasa (limestone or calcite [Egyptian
18
PALETTES
alabaster], in geometric shapes). During the Badari culture, siltstone (earlier labeled as schist) becomes the dominant material, and two types of palettes occur: one is rectangular, with the long sides straight or slightly convex, and the short sides concave or with triangular indentation; the other is oval-pointed, sometimes with incisions on the points. Palettes are common in the Nubian A-Group and above all in the Naqada culture. Typological and chronological development is similar in both. The Naqada I phase is characterized by rhomboid palettes. Some are decorated on the top with stylized birds or horns; others are ornamented with schematically outlined, engraved animal figures (e.g., a crocodile or an elephant), or with signs (harpoon, horns) reminiscent of the later so-called nome standards. The most beautiful is the Stockholm Palette, decorated with a representation of a hippopotamus hunt: a man in a small boat, and before him a hippopotamus, joined to the hunter by a broken line, symbolizing the harpoon rope; behind appear other animals (hippopotamus, two herbivores). Toward the end of Naqada I (Phase Ic) there appear zoomorphic palettes: fish, tortoises, and the "pelta-shaped"—in fact, a stylized representation of a boat, with the ends sometimes modeled into schematic bird heads. During the Naqada II phase, the rhomboid palettes decrease, though examples still occur. Shield-shaped palettes are popular. Pelta-shaped and zoomorphic (fish, tortoise, elephant, hippopotamus, ram, horned animals) continue to occur. A particular subgroup comprises waterfowl. Birds or bird heads often decorate the tops of palettes, especially those that are shieldshaped. On these, there also occur signs ("Min's emblem" on the elAmra Palette), figures (a stylized cow's head and five stars on the d-Gerzeh Palette), and scenes. One of the oldest (Phase He) decorated with a relief is the Manchester Palette, depicting a man stalking a flock of ostriches. The identical shapes of the man's and the birds' heads may indicate that a masked hunter is depicted, and that the palette is associated with hunting magic. The period of Naqada III is marked by geometrization of palettes (square, rectangular, and round). The edges are frequently decorated with a simple geometric design forming a sort of frame. Other shapes are rare. Characteristic is the change in function of certain types: the geometrical palettes are utilitarian; the shieldshaped form are ceremonial palettes, and their decoration is connected with certain ideas. The latter were probably used in rites and rituals involving chiefs and rulers. The group of ceremonial palettes is comprised of two basic types: one type is decorated with zoomorphic and anthropomorphic scenes; the other is adorned onlv with so-called heraldic
and coronation animals, sculpted in tull relief. There are presently about twenty-five such palettes and fragments known, the majority of uncertain provenance, dated primarily to Naqada 111. Some of them have round dishes in the center, invoking the primeval function of the palettes, but not related to the sun cult, as has been claimed. The most significant in the first group is the Oxford Palette, found at the Hierakonpolis Main Deposit. It is shield-shaped; from the midpoints of the sides, sculpted in high relief, extend the figures of two wild dogs (Lycaon pictus), with their heads in full sculpture. On the obverse appear two scenes. The upper, occupying two-thirds of the surface, shows two fantastic animals— serpopards— whose long necks surround the dish. These creatures are licking a dead antelope, above which is a long-necked bird (ostrich?). Behind the serpopards' necks and below the dish there are three wild dogs. In the lower scene, three domesticated dogs in collars are attacking a herd of herbivores, symbolized by four animals. On the reverse, the proportions are reversed: in the upper scene (one-third of the surface), two lions attack animals identical to the dead antelope on the obverse. The lower portion is again a hunt: predators (a panther and a wild dog) and fantastic animals (a serpopard and a griffin) attack a herd of herbivores. At the bottom there is a man playing a flute (?), wearing an animal mask and a tail on his belt, with a giraffe next to him. The Oxford Palette is the only known example to contain such elaborate zoomorphic scenes. This group also includes objects (e.g., the Louvre Palette) decorated with a few figures, which are probably an abbreviation (legible to the ancients) of the more detailed scenes described. The animals seen on these palettes include wild dogs, serpopards, lions, birds, oryx, and ibex. Not all the figures are unambiguously legible to us, which results in differences in interpretation and numerous controversies regarding the symbolism and meaning of this group, The scenes and figures described above have been interpreted as chaotic and symbolizing "power," or as symbols associated with life and death, peace and struggle; the heraldic animals have been read as images of the divinities to whom the palette is dedicated, and the scenes themselves have been thought to be connected with the divine myth. Others interpret the palettes with zoomorphic decoration as the fil-st manifestation of the cult of the Divine Eye (the sun), and the animals as symbolizing particular mythological figures. A more likely explanation of the symbolism in this group of palettes is that they are connected with hunting magic. The hunting theme occurs very generally in predynastic art, initially in the same pictures as other subjects (cf. the Hierakonpolis painting). Later, perhaps because of the limited space for decora-
PALETTES 19 tion, the subjects were separated. Still, the early chiefs and rulers were still the "first hunters" for their subjects, and so magical operations were needed to aid them in performing this function and to ensure success in the hunt—a success also enjoyed by other members of society through the mediation of the king. This is also indicated by palettes that depict domestic dogs sucking the teats of heraldic wild dogs (Metropolitan Museum Palette, Muna-gat fragment). The magical intention was probably for the dogs to acquire the characteristics of wild nature. To the same categories of hunting magic we may also assign artifacts in which the function of the heraldic animals is served by herbivorous hunt victims (e.g., the White Oryx Palette). One of the more controversial motifs found on several palettes is a palm flanked by two giraffes. Its relatively frequent occurrence indicates that it is not coincidental. It has been regarded as a Near Eastern motif of adoration for the holy tree; as the symbol of long years of peace (the palm), observed by two "seers" (the giraffes); as the seat of the sun (the palm), and the props of heaven (the giraffes); or as a substitute for the pharaoh, similar to the srh. Since the motifs in question also occur on other Pre-dynastic artifacts, though often separately, none of these theories would seem fully correct. Although the palm may be a symbol associated with the state and authority, it is not a substitute for the pharaoh, but rather for the state, in both the territorial and ideological senses; the giraffes may incarnate primeval forces friendly to man, symbolizing at the same time a certain part of the country. The decoration of the Hunters' Palette (Phase IIIa/b?) stands on the borderline between zoomorphic and an-thropomoiphic decoration. Its center is occupied by a representation of hunting. On both sides appear two rows of hunters dressed in kilts, with animal tails fastened to their belts and feathers in their long hair. Armed with bows, lances, maces, and knives, they are hunting lions and herbivorous animals. There is a striking lack of heraldic or fantastic animals; yet nome standards appear in the hands of some hunters, as well as obvious hieroglyphic signs—thepr-mv shrine and the double protoma of a bull. This artifact, too, has been the subject of much controversy, serving for example as the foundation for a theory on dualism in Egyptian thought—an interpretation that should be subjected to criticism. Probably its subject matter is hunting with beaters, interrupted by the sudden appearance of lions, while in the hieroglyphic characters we may discern the symbol for the king or the kingdom. The obverse of the Battlefield Palette (Phase lllb?) is yet another on which animals have the dominant role. In contrast to the preceding example, however, the animals here are either an express incarnation of the ruler (the lion), or
they benefit from his victory: predatory birds and a canine predator on the Lucerne fragment. People are depicted here as defeated naked prisoners, or as corpses lying on the battlefield. Only one human figure, dressed in a long cloak (preserved fragmentarily), clearly belongs to the victors. An important role is played here by the nome standards (ibis, falcon), holding the captives with human hands. Standards serve a similar function on the fragmentary Bull Palette, perhaps the artistic masterpiece of this genre, which shows the figure of the victor-ruler in the shape of a bull. The reverse of the Battlefield Palette is decorated with the palm-and-giraffes motif. The fragment of the Libyan Palette is decorated on one side with registers containing rows of bulls, asses, rams, and trees. Next to the last is the hieroglyph 77?. On the other side, seven fortresses are being destroyed or built by animals holding hoes in their hands. The most famous is the Narmer Palette, found near the Main Deposit of the Hierakonpolis temple. On the side without a dish, under the symbols of Bat or Hathor and the royal srh, are two scenes. In the first, the king, wearing the White Crown and accompanied by a sandal-bearer, is about to smite a kneeling enemy with a mace; beside him is a pair of hieroglyphs (his name?). Facing the king is an emblematic group: a falcon with one human arm, leading a personified land sign by a rope, and perching on six papyrus stems that sprout from the sign. The second scene shows two naked dead enemies and the hieroglyphic markings of fortresses. On the other side are three registers. First, the pharaoh in the Red Crown inspects ten beheaded prisoners; before him are four standards and a high official (vizer, scribe, or priest); after him, a sandal-bearer. Above the corpses is something that is most likely the caption of a door leaf with a falcon behind it, and a boat with a falcon on a harpoon hovering above. Second, serpopards are held in bonds by two men; the dish is framed by the entwined necks of the animals. Third, a bull, symbolizing the pharaoh, is destroying a fortress and trampling an enemy. The Narmer Palette has been the object of much speculation and various, sometimes fantastic, theories. Among the most important are those that treat it as evidence of the victory of King Narmer over the following: the Delta and the unification of the country; the Northern rebellion, the last Lower Egyptian dynasty; or the Canaanites. Others treat it as a year-names tablet. The theory most nearly in accordance with the present state of research is that the palette constitutes the ritual confirmation of expansion, was used in magical rites preceding further expeditions or in rituals involving the ruler during his coronation or during holidays commemorating that event (the Appearance of the King of Upper and Lower Egypt), or for a sed jubilee. All the palettes under discussion may have some links with the cult and rituals surrounding the rulers of the day.
20
PALM
We should probably agree with John Baines (1995) in asserting that "although the reliefs look like propaganda, correlates in the everyday world would have had to be in living ceremonial, in what was proclaimed about the king, and in the architecture of palaces. The reliefs, however, must be interpreted on their own terms, as objects with a very small audience who were deeply involved with their meaning and creation," and not as part of a lost repertoire. In later periods, the function of the palette was limited to the utilitarian. Examples from the dynastic periods are rare, and are typically rectangular with a trapezoidal cross section. [See also Ceremonial Mace Heads.] BIBLIOGRAPHY Asselberghs, Henri. Chaos en be/versing: Docunienten tdt aeneolilhish Egypte. Leiden, 1961. Corpus of predynastic art, with extensive English summary. Baines, John. "Origins of Egyptian Kingship." In Ancient Egyptian Kingship, edited by D. O'Connor and D. Silverman, pp. 95-156. Leiden, 1995. Cialowicz, Krzysztof M. LKS palettes egyptiennes aux motifs zoo-morphes et sans decoration. Etudes de 1'art predynastique. Krakow, 1991. Typology of Naqada palettes and an analysis of zoomorphic scenes on ceremonial palettes. Hoffman, Michael A. Egypt before the Pharaohs. 2d ed. London, 1991. Predynastic Egypt through the perspective of archeological discoveries. Kantor, Helen J., "The Relative Chronology of Egypt and its Foreign Correlations before the Late Bronze Age." In Chronologies in Old World Archaeology, edited by R. Ehrich, pp. 1-46. 3d rev. ed. Chicago, 1992. Chronological foundations of the predynastic period against the background of neighboring countries. Kenip, Bany Ancient Egypt: Anatomy of a. Civilisation. London, and New York, .1989. An original approach to the origins of the Egyptian state. Needier, Winifred. Predynastic and Archaic Egypt in the Brooklyn Museum. New York, 1984. Catalog containing an exhaustive discussion of particular categories of artifacts. Payne, Joan Crowfoot. Catalogue, of the Predynastic Egyptian Collection in the Ashmolean Museum. Oxford, .1.993. Catalog containing an exhaustive discussion of particular categories of artifacts. Petrie, W. M. Flinders, Corpus of Prehistoric Pottery and Palettes. London, 1921. Petrie, W. M. Flinders. Ceremonial Slate Palettes. London, 1953. Quibell, J. E., and F. Green. Hierakoi'ipolis il. London, 1902. Artifacts from Hierakonpolis as seen by their discoverers. Regner, Christina. Schniinkpale.tten. Bonner Samrnlung von Aegypti-aca 2. Wiesbaden, 1996. Catalog containing a discussion of the typology, occurrence, and meaning of palettes. Ridley, R. T. The Unification of Egypt. Deception Bay, 1973. Corpus containing the majority of the decorated artifacts from the end of the predynastic period. Vandier, J. Manuel d'archeologie egyptienne I. Paris, 1952. A collection of basic infoimation on predynastic Egypt, including earlier theories, with extensive passages devoted to art. Williams, Bruce B. Decorated Pottery and the Art of Naqada III. Munchner Agyptologischen Studien, 45. Berlin, 1988. Brief discussion and analysis of late Predynastic art. KRZYSZTOF M. CIALOWICZ
PALM. See Flora.
PAN-GRAVE PEOPLE. The Middle Bronze Age in Nubia was roughly coeval with the Middle Kingdom and the Second Intermediate Period in Egypt (c.2061-1569 BCE). The various cultural affiliations, the developmental phases, and the subphases of the Nubian peoples that lived in this era have only been broadly defined; they are still undergoing the process of redefinition. Of particular interest, however, is a population belonging to the Lower Nubian tradition—but also found in the deserts bordering the Nile River and in other parts of Egypt—that was designated by early archaeologists as the Pan-Grave culture. The name was derived from their shallow round or oval graves (0.5-2 meters in depth [1.5-6 feet]), which resembled European baking or cooking pans. The Pan-Grave burials can be associated with the Med-jay, the fierce Nubian bowmen mentioned in ancient Egyptian texts; the term is also found in the toponym Mgy, and both may derive from the Egyptian term for "the one who moves about," testifying to their nomadism. The Medjay were attested to have been employed as mercenaries, as an expeditionary force in Egypt, at least as early as the Old Kingdom. They have also been associated with a group of mercenaries resident at Gebelein during the First Intermediate Period. The fortresses built in the Second Cataract region seem, at least in part, to have been needed to protect the area from incursions by this group. The Fort at Serra was named "repelling the Medjay," and the Semna dispatches recorded efforts to keep these peoples within their desert boundaries. The confines of the Pan-Grave peoples in the desert margins has been borne out archaeologically. Cemeteries of this population were often found to be on the perimeter of Nubian C-Group or even Egyptian cemeteries that were positioned closer to the Nile. Whereas the Pan-Grave ceramic assemblage included incised and black-top pottery, these ceramics differed considerably from Nubian C-Group ceramics made at that time. For example, PanGrave black-topped "luxury wares" were very finely finished with bodies having a distinct, level black rim; the incised wares were often of similar exceptional quality. The Pan-Grave burial customs and material culture were similar to those of the Nubian Kerma culture of that time. The oval tumulus graves of the Pan-Grave people resembled those of the Kerma culture, as did their practice of decorating the graves with the painted skulls of horned cattle, sheep, or goats. Daggers and axes have been frequently included in Pan-Grave burials, attesting to an owner's possible role as a mercenary. Distinctive Pan-Grave costume included sets of armlets or sashes made of rectangular mother-of-pearl
PAN-GRAVE PEOPLE 21
PAN-GRAVE PEOPLE. Drawing of a stela from Gebelein depicting a Nubian bownwn in traditional costume with his Egyptian wife and family. The stela is now in the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. (Courtesy Peter Lacovara; after Henry G. Fischer, "The Nubian Mercenaries of Gebelein" KUSH 9, 1961.)
plaques that were bored at both ends for stringing. Other elements of costume included beaded leather kilts, leather sandals, bead and shell necklaces, and wire torques. The range of the Pan-Grave people has been established as north to Middle Egypt and south to the Third Cataract of the Nile. Attestations of their presence as far south as Khartoum, however, may have resulted from some misidentification of ceramic types. As for the Pan-Grave peoples who migrated into Egyptian territory and were employed as military guards and bowmen, Janine Bourriau (1991) has suggested that this group was accul-turated into Egypt throughout the course of the Middle Kingdom. For example, a gradual evolution has been noted in some of the PanGrave cemeteries in Egypt, in which a segregated area with burials that follow a strictly Lower Nubian tradition give way to tombs found within
Egyptian necropoli. This evidence substantiates Egyp-tianization. Bourriau has also suggested that the Pan-Grave mercenary soldiers for the Egyptian army were replaced, during the Second Intermediate Period, by recruits from the Kerma culture. In fact, early excavators had actually confused the Kerma burials in Egyptian cemeteries with those of the true Pan-Grave people who had also been buried there. [See also C-Group; and Kerma.] BIBLIOGRAPHY Bietak, Manfred. 'The C-Group and the Pan-Grave Culture in Nubia." In Nubian Culture: Past and Present, main papers presented at the Sixth International Conference for Nubian Studies, Uppsala, 11-16 August, 1986, edited by Tomas Hagg, pp. 1-17. Stockholm, 1987. A thorough discussion of the differences between these two contemporaneous cultures.
22 PAPYRUS Boui-riau, Janine. "Relations between Egypt and .Kerma in the Middle and New Kingdoms." In Egypt and. Africa: Nubia From Pre-Hislory to islam, edited by W. V. Davies, pp. .129-144. London, 1991. A discussion of the composition of the Medjay switch—from the Pan-Grave to the Kernia culture—in the later Second Intermediate Period. Fischer, Henry G. "The Nubian Mercenaries of Gebelein during the First Intermediate Period." KUSH 9 (1961), 44-80. Hodge, Cai-leton T. "The Medjay/muri." Language Sciences S (1969), 1112. A review of the derivation and significance of the term. Hoffman, Inge. "Bietrag zur Herkunft der Pfannengraber-Leute." Zeilsclmft der Denfschen MorgenHindischen Gesellschaft, Suppl. 3 (.1.969), 11.13-1135. A concise review of the literature on the subject, with an extensive bibliography. Wainwright, G. A. Balablsh. London, 1920. PETER LACOVARA
PAPYRUS. As a writing material, papyrus was in use in Egypt from at least 3000 BCE until as late as the tenth century CE. It was manufactured from the papyrus plant, (Cyperus papyms), which grew along the Nile River. This plant is only one of some six hundred species with the genus Cyperus, which all belong to the far larger family of sedges (Cyperaceae). In antiquity, the papyrus plant was widespread in the Nile Valley, but it was overused and so nearly disappeared from there before modern times; it now nourishes chiefly in eastern and central Africa. It grows best in marshland, prefers shallow and still or relatively slow-moving water, or soil that is at the least waterlogged. A number of modern subspecies have been identified; it is not clear how these relate to the plant that was exploited in antiquity and then removed in making way for agricultural land. Ancient Egyptian terms for the "papyrus plant" were wyd, Iwfy, and dt, the last two also being used for "papyrus marsh." The most common term for the writing material made from the plant stem was dm', which could also signify a "manufactured roll," an "inscribed book," or a "document," as well as a papyrus employed to make other objects. A term for "bookroll" or "scroll" was '»'?, used of both papyrus and leather rolls, and for inscribed rolls, both literary and documentary. The Greeks referred to the writing material as either bublos (later biblos) or papuros. The latter term is generally explained as deriving from an Egyptian expression p.?-pr-'y, which might mean "the [thing] belonging to Pharaoh," and might indicate that papyrus was perceived to be the chief Egyptian product, or export, under royal control. No such phrase is actually attested in Egyptian, however, and the adoption by the Greeks of an Egyptian-language term (even if it had been borrowed indirectly) would suggest: that it was first in common use among Egyptians. The derivation is thus problematic. The question remains as to whether or not the culti
vation of papyrus and the manufacture of the writing material was in fact under state control. For dynastic times, we have scarcely any evidence. We know that papyrus could be bought and sold. It is argued that, during dynastic times, the sheer quantity of papyrus that we may deduce was consumed by the bureaucracy would rule out both the possibility of small-scale production to meet local needs, and that of a single, central "state factory." Large-scale production at many locations all over Egypt is generally guessed to be the most likely. Modern attempts at papyrus manufacture have in recent years begun to be able to rival the quality of the ancient product. They suggest that considerable skill and experience is required, that discrimination is needed in the harvesting of the plant, which may well have needed to be cultivated, and that probably only freshly gathered papyrus can be used. All this hints that small-scale, ad hoc manufacture is unlikely to have been successful or common. For Greco-Roman times, we have some documentary evidence concerning papyrus manufacture. There are indications of widespread factories in the Nile Delta, but there is no reason to suppose that papyrus was not made elsewhere in the Nile Valley. The trade in papyrus seems to have been centered upon Alexandria, on the Mediterranean coast. We have no decisive evidence as to whether the manufacture and trade were slate operated. If they were entirely state owned, it would be a little surprising that our sources did not reveal this. For the Ptolemaic period, our knowledge of the general methods of the administration would suggest at least that close state supervision would be likely. Some papyrus was available only from "royal sales offices," but there was patently no complete royal monopoly on sales. Our evidence for the process of manufacturing papyrus as a writing material is very restricted. From dynastic times, a few tomb scenes depict its harvesting. They are often associated with scenes of building papyrus boats, however, and there is no representation of making the writing material. Inferences about manufacture can be drawn from the examination of surviving papyri, and damaged fragments can be more revealing than wellpreserved rolls. A special case of this is fragments recovered from cartonnage, scrap pieces of papyrus formed with the aid of gesso and glue into molded mummy casings, especially during Ptolemaic times. The various wet processes used to extract the papyrus from the car-tonnage—both outmoded methods employing acid and present-day enzyme techniques—can reveal the structure of the material. Modern experiments in papyrus manufacture have led to several advances in understanding. They have particularly helped in considering the way in which papyrus strips bond together, and what details of the processing may encourage or impede the binding. From the Greco-Roman period, a description of the
PAPYRUS 23 making of papyrus sheets and rolls was recorded by Pliny the Elder. His
Thus a late New Kingdom literary text might typically be written on a
account is extremely difficult to follow, and it remains disputed how
roll only 10 to 12 centimeters (4 to 6 inches) high, whereas an account
Pliny obtained his information, how fully he understood it, and to what
roll of the same period might measure over 40 centimeters (15 inches) in
extent the surviving manuscripts may present a garbled text. Some
height. The latter would be a complete roll as manufactured, but the
details, however, seem plausible, and Pliny's account cannot be
former would be made by the user, who sliced through the roll to
completely ignored.
produce two, three, or four rolls of lesser height.
The stalk of the papyrus plant is triangular in cross section. It has a
In the classical world, papyrus exported from Egypt was regarded as
tough outer rind, which was discarded in papyrus manufacture. This
the chief writing material. The earliest papyri from Egypt written in
encloses a soft, spongy, white pith, given a degree of strength by many
Greek date to the fourth century BCE, but papyrus was evidently already
so-called fibers (fibrovascular bundles), which run the entire length of
widely used in Greece in the sixth century BCE, when, for example, pa-
the stalk and are very visible in the finished papyrus. The process
pyrus rolls were depicted in vase paintings. How early papyrus began to
probably proceeded by slicing or peeling the pith into thin strips, about 1
be exported to Greece is uncertain (and evidence for the use of writing is
to 3 centimeters (0.5 to 1.25 inches) wide. A series of these was laid
not evidence for the use of papyrus). Suggestions that it may already
down side by side. Sometimes they were arranged to be very slightly
have been known in the Bronze Age Aegean remain unsubstantiated,
overlapping, and sometimes just touching each other. Modern experience
although it was no doubt utilized in the Levant throughout the first
in manufacture shows that with care the latter arrangement can be
millennium BCE.
achieved without the risk that gaps may subsequently appear. A second,
Papyrus ceased to be used, in Europe as in Egypt, around 1000 CE.
similar layer of strips was then laid down upon the first, with the strips
Some papyrus documents have survived in the papal and other
running at right angles to those of the first layer. The resulting sheet was
chancelleries. Carbonized papyri from Herculaneum, one of the towns
then consolidated by pressing or by careful beating and was allowed to
buried by lava from Vesuvius, in Italy, were Greek philosophical texts,
dry. The component cells of the spongy matter of the pith (parenchyma
and they began to be studied as early as the eighteenth century.
cells) physically interlock, and the two layers of papyrus are held firmly
Throughout the nineteenth century, some accidental finds of Greek
together by this bond.
papyri in Egypt came onto the antiquities market. In the 1870s,
Evidently, the practice was to have the sheets made into rolls, and we
expansions in Egypt's agriculture led to the large-scale extraction of
have no evidence that single sheets as manufactured were available. A
fertile soil from the abandoned sites of ancient towns. There, great
writer needing a simple sheet of papyrus cut what was required from a
quantities of papyrus—chiefly in Greek, Coptic, and Arabic—began to
roll with a sharp knife, either before or after writing the text. Rolls were
come to light in the rubbish dumps of former Greco-Roman towns,
made by pasting a series of sheets together with a starch paste, each sheet
principally in the Faiyum but also, for example, at Hermopolis and
overlapping its neighbor by 1 to 3 centimeters (0.5 to 1.25 inches). There
Herakleopolis. The Greek papyri, in particular, were eagerly acquired by
is good evidence that a roll of twenty sheets was the standard length. The
foreign museums and libraries. For example, about 70,000 Greek papyri
user could cut the roll to obtain a shorter length, or paste rolls or parts of
from the Faiyum are now in the Vienna library's collection. In the 1890s,
rolls together for a longer text. A few papyrus rolls from dynastic Egypt
excavations began to be financed with the specific aim of discovering
are of extraordinary length (the longest known measures 42 meters/I 30
papyri. The most productive were the seasons at Oxyrhynchus in Middle
feet), but these are funerary books or other works that were not meant for
Egypt, beginning in 1896. Sites became progressively denuded by the
routine consultation. Literary or administrative rolls were much more
removal of fertile soil, but the era of excavations in search of papyri did
commonly only a few meters in length.
not come to an end until the 1930s.
Another dimension that varied was the width of the roll. The papyrus roll was normally used lying horizontally across the lap of the writer or reader. Egyptian scripts run from right to left, and so the roll was unrolled progressively from the left hand into the right hand. The width of the roll corresponded to the height of the individual pages of writing and is usually referred to as the "height" of the roll. This dimension varied greatly according to the kind of text, and from period to period.
BIBLIOGRAPHY Bierbrier, M. L. Papyrus: Structure and Usage. London, 1986. Cerny, Jaroslav. Paper & Books in Ancient Egypt. London, 1952; repr. Chicago, 1977. Deals with books and scribal practice in dynastic times. Leach, Bridget, and John Tait. "Papyrus." In Ancient Egyptian Materials and Technology, edited by lan Shaw and Paul Nicholson. Cambridge, 1999. Lewis, N. Papyrus in Classical Antiquity. Oxford, 1974. Lewis, N. Papyrus in Classical Antiquity: A Supplement. Brussels, 1989.
24 PAPYRUS RYLANDS IX Lucas, A. Ancient Egyptian Materials and Industries. 4th ed., rev. by J. R. Harris. London, 1962. Parkinson, Richard, and Stephen Quirke. Papyrus. London, 1995. Ragab, H. Le Papyrus. Cairo, 1980. Turner, E. G. Greek Papyri: An Introduction. Oxford, 1968. BRIDGET LEACH AND JOHN TAIT
and divided among them. After his death, his son, Petiese's father, refused to renounce his claim to the stipend of the prophet of Amun and was therefore forced to flee from Teudjoi with his family. In his absence, the priests demolished his house, defaced one of the stelae set up by his ancestor, and threw his statues into the river. Petiese, acting on behalf of his father, was able to obtain a small financial compensation from them; he rebuilt the house and moved the family back into it. At the time when
PAPYRUS RYLANDS IX, one of a group of nine Demotic papyri
his petition was drawn up, however, the priestly stipend that he claimed
discovered at el-Hiba (ancient Teudjoi) on the eastern bank of the Nile
was still being denied him.
River in Middle Egypt. They are all concerned with the affairs of a
The third part of Petiese's complaint purports to give copies, in
priestly family who lived there during the sixth and seventh centuries
Hieratic, of the texts on the two stelae erected by his great-great-
BCE.
The text, twenty-five columns in length, is a draft copy of a
grandfather in the temple of Teudjoi. The fourth part comprises three
complaint addressed by one member of the family, Pe-tiese, to the chief
hymns which condemn the wickedness of evildoers and extol the
finance minister of Egypt in the reign of the Persian king Darius I,
righteousness of the god Amun, who avenges the ones whom they have
concerning the injustices which he and his relatives suffered at the hands
wronged. Plainly, Petiese's opponents are destined for divine retribution.
of other priests in their native town.
Papyrus Rylands IX is important for the insights that it provides into
Petiese's complaint is divided into four parts. The first narrates the
Egyptian economic affairs, social and political history, temple
circumstances leading to its submission. In the ninth year of the reign of
administration, and legal procedure during the sixth and seventh centuries
Darius, a certain Ahmose came to Teudjoi and claimed a priestly
BCE. One
stipend, which he said was owed him. This could not be paid because the
the text is written in a tendentious manner and some of the statements
has to exercise caution in using it as a source of evidence, since
temple finances were in such parlous condition. Seeking an explanation
made in it are contradicted by contemporary documents. Nevertheless,
for this state of affairs, Ahmose was directed to the temple scribe, who
employed with due care, it has much to offer. Regrettably, the outcome of
happened to be the writer of the complaint, Petiese. As the latter
Petiese's complaint is unknown. The papyrus in which it is preserved is
recounts, he blamed the temple clergy, with whom he was in dispute, for
the latest of the texts in the family archive to which it belongs.
its financial woes. These priests learned of his accusation and sought to
Thereafter, the affairs of Petiese and his relatives are a closed book.
exact revenge. Lucky to escape with his life, Petiese fled to Memphis
North to Aswan in the South. Finding the temple of Amun at Teudjoi
BIBLIOGRAPHY Griffith, F. LI. Catalogue of the Demotic Papyri in the John Rylands Library, Manchester. Manchester and London, 1909. Vol. 1, plates 2347; vol. 2, plates 21-42; vol. 3, pp. 60-112 and 218-53. Original edition of text, including photographs, hand copies and glossary. Still not entirely superseded. Vittmann, Giinter. Der demotische Papyrus Rylands 9. Agypten und Altes Testament, 38. Wiesbaden, 1998. Most recent edition, with comprehensive commentary and bibliography.
with its staff depleted, and struggling under a heavy burden of taxation,
MARK SMITH
and asked the chief finance minister to take up his case and see that justice was done. That official instructed him to write a full history of his difficulties with the priests and how they arose, and it is to this account that the second part of the complaint is devoted. According to Petiese, his great-great-grandfather had been inspector of a large tract of Egyptian territory extending from Memphis in the
he arranged for its taxes to be remitted and restored it to its former prosperity, erecting a stela and two statues of himself there to commemorate his pious deed. As a reward, he was given the stipend of
PAPYRUS WESTCAR. The document known as Papyrus Westcar (P.
the prophet of Amun of Teudjoi and other benefices as well.
Berlin 3033, named after its collector) preserves the only extant copy of
Subsequently, he raised a second stela on which his various priestly
the Tales of the Court of King Khufu. Its provenance is unknown; the
offices were enumerated.
manuscript is usually dated to the Second Intermediate Period on the
The stipends of Petiese's ancestor were inherited by his son and
basis of the Hieratic hand, but it may be slightly later. The date of
grandson. However, when the latter, Petiese's grandfather, was sent to
composition is uncertain but is perhaps at the end of the Middle
accompany the king on a journey to Asia, his benefices were confiscated
Kingdom.
by the other priests
Twelve columns survive, of around twenty-six lines
PARADISE 25 each, and there are probably at least two columns missing from the start. The extant text opens with a series of tales set in various Old Kingdom courts (Djoser, Nebka, Snef-eru), which are being told to King Khufu by
Parkinson, R. B. The Tale of Sinuhe and Other Ancient Egyptian Poems 1940-1640 BC. Oxford, 1997. Recent translation, pp. 102-127. Simpson, William K. "Pap. Westcar." In Lexikon der Agyptologie, 4: 744-746. Wiesbaden, 1982.
his sons. The first tale is lost apart from Khufu's response, but it was
R. B. PARKINSON
probably preceded by a narrative prologue in which the king requested entertainment to avoid boredom. Each of the tales involves a magical wonder performed by a lector-priest, such as the movement of a body of water.
PARADISE. In Western culture the word "paradise" usually refers to a
Instead of a fourth tale, there is a narrative about wonders done in the
location: first, the Garden of Eden, where the first human beings lived in
presence of Khufu himself by a commoner called Djedi, in which
perfect harmony with their maker and with the rest of his creation, then
Khufu's behavior is less than ideal. Khufu is seeking some esoteric
the abode of the blessed dead where this primeval harmony has been
information for use in his great pyramid, but he is told that access to this
restored and where they live forever in bliss. Comparably well-defined
is possible only for the eldest of three children of the sun god, who will
and more or less permanent locations did not exist in ancient Egyptian
be born to a woman and who will succeed Khufu's dynasty. After this
religion. This does not mean, however, that the concept of an ideal world
comes an account of the birth of the first three kings of the fifth dynasty.
at the beginning of time did not exist. The opening lines of the Book of
The end of the tale is lost; the manuscript breaks off in the middle of the
the Heavenly Cow describe it as follows: "Once upon a time it happened
episode recounting the events following the triplets' birth. The
that Re, the god who created himself, arose after he had held the
manuscript is incomplete, although the lost final portion may have been
kingship and men and gods were still united. Then mankind began to
short.
plan a rebellion against Re, for His Majesty had become old." Other
The royal characters are historical (although the identity of one
texts also allude to this primeval world, the "era of Re" (rk R') or the
prince, Bauefre, is problematic). With one exception, the nonroyal
"era of the god" (rk ntr), and king lists often begin with a dynasty of
characters are otherwise unknown and are presumably fictional: the
gods, headed by either Re or Ptah, which comes before the dynasties of
actual mother of the first two fifth dynasty kings was Khentkawes, while
the human pharaohs. During this era gods and humans lived together in
in the Tales the mother is the wife of a priest, Rudjdjedet. The Tales
an undivided world, and it was humankind's fault that this harmonious
rewrite history, but apparently in order to entertain rather than for
situation came to an end. According to the version of the myth recorded
propagandistic motives.
in the Book of the Heavenly Cow, Re initially decided to annihilate all
The Tales are usually analyzed as prose, but they are probably loosely
human beings, but after a great many of them had been killed, he
structured verse; the extant text comprises around 530 metrical lines. The
eventually took pity on them; instead of continuing the massacre, he
language and style suggest a later date than that of other Middle Egyptian
withdrew to the back of the Heavenly Cow and retired from his duties,
fictional narratives, such as the Story of Sinuhe, but the looser structure
leaving the day-to-day running of affairs to his deputy, the god Thoth.
and the "lower," more frivolous tone may represent a contemporaneous
One of the earliest references to this myth is found in the Coffin Texts
tradition of narrative art that was more culturally peripheral, and that is
(Spell 1130), where the Lord of All says, "I made everyone equal to his
otherwise attested only in small fragmentary papyri. Many elements of
fellow, and I told them not to do evil, but it was their hearts which
parody have been detected, including allusions to the royal birth-cycle of
disobeyed what I had said." In chapter 175 of the Book of Going Forth
kings, rituals of the goddess Hathor, and royal commemorative
by Day, the creator god asks Thoth for advice after the Children of
inscriptions. Nevertheless, the Tales also include the themes of good as
Nut—i.e., the first generation of humanity—have rebelled against him,
opposed to bad kings, and of true as opposed to false wonders, although
and Thoth replies: "You should not witness evil, you should not suffer it.
the serious aspects of these are not fully developed. In many respects, the
Let their years be shortened and their months be curtailed, for they have
Tales can be seen as a forerunner of the Ramessid late Egyptian stories.
corrupted the hidden things in everything you have created." Human beings have destroyed the perfect order of creation; as a result, death
BIBLIOGRAPHY Blackman, A. M. The Story of King Kheops and the Magicians: Transcribed from Papyrus Westcar, Berlin Papyrus 3033. Edited by W. V. Davies. Reading, 1988. Standard edition of the text. Goedicke, H. "Thoughts about the Papyrus Westcar." Zeitschrift filr dgyptische Sprache und Alterumskunde 120 (1992), 23-36.
comes into the world and "paradise" is lost. A model of the original ideal world is found in the Egyptian temple with its perpetual cycle of rituals, the aim of which was the reigning maintenance of the perfect
26 PARADISE cosmic and social order (maat) established at creation. Only the reigning king, who was himself a god among men and a man among the gods and who was therefore able to act as the deputy of the gods on earth, had access to the inner temple; in everyday cultic practice, however, he was replaced by priests who acted on his behalf. Ordinary human beings had no access to the gods in the temple. Only after death were they reunited with the gods, whom they would then be able to worship directly, without a royal intermediary, as is shown by numerous representations on tomb walls and funerary objects, especially after the Amama period. The abode of the dead can hardly be described as Paradise, however. The spell from the Book of Going Forth by Day (or Book of the Dead, BD) quoted above contains a dialogue between Osiris, the god of the dead with whom the deceased himself is identified, and Atum, the creator god: "0 my lord Atum, why is it that I have to travel to the district of silence, where there is no water and no air, which is so deep, so dark and so impenetrable?— You will live there in peace of mind.—But one cannot even have sex there!—I have given blessedness instead of water, air and sexual pleasure, and peace of mind instead of bread and beer, so says Atum." Clearly the idea of being trapped forever in the realm of the dead provoked mixed feelings in the Egyptians, and although at death everyone who successfully passed the final judgment became an Osiris, most funerary texts put emphasis on the identification of the deceased with the sun god, who is not restricted in his movements but enters the netherworld at night, only to be reborn and resurrected in the morning. The mummified body of the deceased rests in its tomb in the underworld, but his ba, represented as a bird with a human head, is able to move in and out of the tomb. The ba joins Re on his eternal journey along the sky and through the realm of the dead: at sunrise, when Re is reborn, the ba leaves the tomb, and at night, when Re travels through the underworld, where he temporarily unites with the body of Osiris, the ba returns to the mummified body in the tomb. At first sight, the idea of a perpetual cycle would seem to be difficult to reconcile with the concept of a permanent locality such as Paradise. There is, however, a particular stretch of the daily journey of the sun god, and of the deceased with him, that has sometimes been called the Egyptian equivalent of the Greek Elysian Fields. Egyptian texts use two different names for this abode: the Field of Offerings (sht htpw), and the Field of Rushes (sht iyv). They are mentioned together as early as the Old Kingdom Pyramid Texts, and it remains unclear whether these names refer to two different locations or whether they are two names for one and the same place; obviously, they are closely related. Although they are occasionally said to be in the northern sky, most texts agree that they are situated in the east, at the place of sunrise: "the gate . . . from
which Re goes out into the east of the sky" is "in the middle of the Field of Rushes" (BD 149). In chapters 109 and 110 of the Book of Going Forth by Day, which describe and even depict these fields, the Field of Rushes is called "the City of the God" (i.e., Re); it is inhabited by the "Eastern Souls" and by Re-Horakhty (the rising sun) and the Morning Star (visible only in the eastern sky). Despite the term "city" used here, the Field of Rushes is really an inundated marshland divided by lakes and canals; according to the Pyramid Texts, the sun god purifies himself in the morning in the Lake of the Field of Rushes. In BD 109 and 149 it is described as follows: "Its walls are of iron, its barley stands 5 cubits high, with ears of 2 and stalks of 3 cubits, and its emmer stands 7 cubits high, with ears of 3 and stalks of 4 cubits; it is the blessed, each of them 9 cubits tall, who reap them alongside the Eastern Souls." This idealized farmland stands in stark contrast to the gloomy abode of Osiris, which is airless and without food, drink, and sexual pleasures, totally different from the picture that emerges from the opening lines of chapter 110: "Beginning of the spells of the Field of Offerings and the spells of going out into the day, entering and leaving the necropolis, attaining the Field of Rushes, dwelling in the Field of Offerings, the Great City, the Mistress of Air, being in control there, being a blessed one there, plowing and harvesting there, eating and drinking there, making love there, and doing everything that one was used to do on earth." In the vignette illustrating this chapter, the deceased, often accompanied by his wife, is shown paddling across the waterways of these fields in his boat and plowing, sowing, reaping, and threshing, often dressed in beautiful white linen garments which demonstrate that all of this hard labor should not be taken too literally: in actual fact, it is carried out by the deceased's substitutes, the ushabti statuettes which were an essential part of his or her funerary equipment. The deceased spend only part of their lives after death in this place of abundance, however. When the sun goes down below the horizon and Re enters the underworld, they too return to their tombs. The next morning they will rise from the sleep of death again, bathe in the waters of the Field of Rushes, and provide for their daily sustenance there. The food offerings that they receive every day along with the daily rituals carried out by their relatives or their funerary priests, are the earthly equivalent of the products of the Field of Offerings and the Field of Rushes. One of the most common scenes in Egyptian tombs from all periods is that of the deceased seated at an offering table stacked with tall loaves of bread. From the sixth dynasty onward, these loaves are often replaced by the reed-leaves which in the hieroglyphic script spell the word sht ("field"), and in later texts and representations the offering tables are expressly labeled "the Fields of Offerings." [See also Afterlife; Hell; and Judgment of the Dead.]
BIBLIOGRAPHY Bayoumi, Abbas. Amour clii champ des soiichets el du champ des offrandes. Cairo, 1941. Deals with both the Field of Rushes and the Field of Offerings, which are considered to be two separate areas. Based almost exclusively on the Pyramid Texts and the Book of Going Forth by Ray. Both this work and. that ofR. Weill are now somewhat dated, but so tar they have not been superseded. Hornung, Erik. Der agyptisciw Mythos van der Hinniielskuh: Erne Atiologie dei: Unvollkommenen. Orbis Biblicus et Orientalis, 46. Freiburg and Gottingen, 1982; 2d ed., 1991. Edition with translation and commentary of the Book of the Heavenly Cow. Contains excursus on the dynasty of gods and on the rebellion of mankind and their punishment. Kees, Hermann. "Earu-Gefilde." Reallexikon der agyptischen Religionsgeschichte, edited by Hans Bonnet, pp. 16]-162. Berlin, 1952. Short article on the Field of Rushes and the Field of Offerings, which are considered to be virtually identical. Leclant, Jean. "Earu-Gefilde." In Lexilwn der Agyptologie, 1: 1.156-1160. Wiesbaden, 1975. An up-to-date summary of what is known about the Field of Rushes; it also deals with the Field of Offerings. Lesko, Leonard H. "The Field of Hetep in Egyptian Coffin Texts." Journal of the American Research Center in Egypt 9 (1971-1972): 89-101. Annotated translation of the earliest version of chapter 110 of the Book of Going Forth by Day. Luft, Ulrich. Beitrage wr Historisierung der Gottei-well und der Mythenschreihung. Studia Aegyptiaca, 4. Budapest, ] 978. Study of the "Era of the God" and of the dynasty of gods which preceded those of the human kings. Mercer, Samuel A. B. The Pyramid Texts in Translation and Commentary. Vol. 4. New York, 1952. Pp. 65-68 give a useful excursus entitled "Marsh of Reeds and Marsh of Offerings in the Pyramid Texts." Munro, Peter. "Brothalften und Schilfblatter." Gottinger MiswUen 5 (1973): 13-16. On the interpretation of tile offering table as tlie "Field of Offering." Weill, Raymond. Le champ des roseaux et Ie champs des offrandes dans la religion funeivire et la religion generale. Paris, 1936. More comprehensive than Bayoumi's study, but even more dated, especially from a methodological point of view. Funerary texts, and the Pyramid Texts in particular, are considered to reflect a rivalry between the theologies of Osiris and Re, a view few Egyptologists would subscribe to nowadays. Weill opts for a sharp distinction between the two Fields, situating tlie Field of Rushes in the east and the Field of Offerings, undoubtedly wrongly, in the west. Worsham, Charles E. "A Reinterpretalioii of the So-Called Bread Loaves in Egyptian Offering Scenes." Journal of the American Research Center in Egypt 16 (1979): 7-10. Covers much the same ground as Munro's article. JACOBUS VAN DIJK
PATRIARCHY. See. Gender Roles.
PEOPLE. Tracking the movements and establishing the identity of peoples in the archaeological and historical records is a difficult and often ambiguous project. Physical anthropology is the best source of identification, but the early misuse of the "race concept" created overly simplistic definitions driven more by colonialism and racism than by science. Modern studies based on population genetics are much more complex and yield more ambiguous
PEOPLE 27 results. Historical linguistic evidence, especially names, is also used to establish group identities where historical records exist, as is often the case in Egypt and the surrounding regions. Archaeological data have been used to reconstruct the identity of ethnic groups in two ways; by characterizing artifact assemblages as culture areas, without necessarily establishing that they belong to a historically known group; and by matching groups identified in texts with an artifact assemblage. Unlike physical anthropology and linguistics, archaeological evidence is abundant and relatively easy to analyze, but all studies of this kind rest on the important assumption that a given artifact assemblage does in fact represent a cultural identity, rather than a sphere of cultural influence or culture contact—and this may or may not be true. Radical diffu-sionists in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries favored massive movements of peoples as the engine of cultural change. Thus W. M. Flinders Petrie's "Dynastic Race" concept linked cultural achievement with racial identity in the origins of pharaonic civilization. These models have, unfortunately, been revived by some Afro-centric scholars, who otherwise rightly emphasize Egypt's African origins. Diffusion and population movements did exist in the past, but they must be carefully demonstrated. For example, the identity of Uruk colonies (c.3500 BCE) in southern Anatolia was established by using a combination of architecture, material culture, and textual evidence. In a similar way, a combination of archaeology, text, and art history has documented an Egyptian colonial presence and the diffusion (and subsequent adaptation) of certain aspects of Egyptian iconography, ideology, and institutions in Nubia and in Syria-Palestine. Race of the Ancient Egyptians. The race and origins of the ancient Egyptians have been a source of considerable debate. Scholars in the late and early twentieth centuries rejected any consideration of the Egyptians as black Africans by defining the Egyptians either as non-African (i.e., either Near Eastern or IndoAryan), or as members of a separate brown (as opposed to black) race, or as a mixture of lighter-skinned peoples with black Africans. In the latter half of the twentieth century, Afrocen-tric scholars have countered this Eurocentric and often racist perspective by characterizing the Egyptians as black and African. A common feature of all of these approaches, including the last, is the connection of race to cultural achievement. At the same time, however, modem physical anthropologists have increasingly challenged the entire notion of race, replacing it with the more complex and scientifically based population genetics. The origins of the modern conception of race derive from the work of nineteenth-century anthropologists like L. H. Morgan and E. B. Tyior, who developed "scientific" unilinear evolutionary models for the development of human beings from "savagery" to "civilization." This model
28 PEOPLE profoundly influenced early Egyptological views of race. Racial groups were ranked by evolutionary categories linked to supposed intellectual capacities based on elaborate cranial measurements, allegedly providing causal links among phenotypic traits, mental capacity, and sociopolitical dominance. This methodology, not coinci-dentally, reinforced the existing Euro-American domination of Third World peoples with the claim of scien tifically "objective" methodologies based on race and evolution. Thus, the great achievements of ancient Egypt could not flow from black Africans, since theirs was an inferior race; so the "Dynastic Race" must have been white, or at least brown. As early as 1897, Franz Boas challenged this racial ideology, in particular the argument for connections among language, culture, and biology (i.e., race). Boas demonstrated that supposedly distinctive core racial indicators could change quickly in response to clothing styles, nutrition, and cultural and environmental factors. Ashley Montague, a student of Boas, played a key role in developing and disseminating this concept; he argued in Man's Most Dangerous Myth: The Fallacy of Race (New York, 1942) that the old paradigm of static races should be replaced by dynamic populations with overlapping characteristics. Far from being absolute, genetic traits are distributed in dines, or continuously varying distributions of traits inconsistent with racial categories. Modern physical anthropology has demonstrated that 94 percent of human variation is found within human populations, rather than between the major populations traditionally labeled races. Biological characteristics affected by natural selection, migration, or drift are distributed in geographic gradations. These encompass all the features used to define racial physical "phenotypes," including facial form, hair texture, blood type, and epidermal melanin (the chemical determining darkness of skin). These physical features cross alleged racial boundaries as if they were nonexistent, leading to the inevitable conclusion that there are no biological races, just dines. Physical anthropologists are increasingly concluding that racial definitions are the culturally defined product of selective perception and should be replaced in biological terms by the study of populations and dines. Consequently, any characterization of the race of the ancient Egyptians depends on modern cultural definitions, not scientific study. Thus, by modern American standards it is reasonable to characterize the Egyptians as "black," while acknowledging the scientific evidence for the physical diversity of Africans. Origins of the Egyptians in Northeastern Africa. In spite of the evidence against scientific race, both Egyptologists and Afrocentric scholars often continue attempts to define the Egyptians as members of an essentialist racial category, usually attempting to link them either to a sup
posed "Caucasoid" or "Negroid/Africoid" phenotype. Such models imply that the founders of pharaonic Egypt came from sub-Saharan Africa, western Asia, or Europe/Trans-caucasus. While there was some immigration from all these areas, physical anthropology has demonstrated the fundamental continuity of ancient and modern Egyptian populations. The evidence also points to linkages to other northeastern African peoples, not coincidentally approximating the modern range of languages closely related to Egyptian in the Afro-Asiatic group (formerly called Hamito-Semitic). These linguistic similarities place ancient Egyptian in a close relationship with languages spoken today in northeastern Africa as far west as Chad and south to Somalia. Archaeological evidence also strongly supports an African origin. A widespread northeastern African cultural assemblage, including distinctive multiple barbed harpoons and pottery decorated with dotted wavy line patterns, appears during the early Neolithic (also known as the Aqualithic, a reference to the mild climate of the Sahara at this time). Saharan and Sudanese rock art from this time resembles early Egyptian iconography. Strong connections between Nubian (Sudanese) and Egyptian material culture continue in the later Neolithic Badarian culture of Upper Egypt. Similarities include black-topped wares, vessels with characteristic ripple-burnished surfaces, a special tulip-shaped vessel with incised and white-filled decoration, palettes, and harpoons, The presence of formative pharaonic symbolism in the Lower Nubian A-Group royal burials at Qustui has led Bruce Williams to posit a common Egyptian-Nubian pharaonic heritage, although this notion has been much disputed. Other ancient Egyptian practices show strong similarities to modern African cultures, including divine kingship, the use of headrests, body art, circumcision, and male coming-of-age rituals, all suggesting an African substratum or foundation for Egyptian civilization (rather than diffusion from sub-Saharan Africa, as claimed by some Afrocentric scholars). Other Peoples in Egypt. Throughout pharaonic Egypt's long history, peoples from surrounding areas interacted with Egyptians. Many of them settled in the Nile Valley, where they assimilated to, and sometimes exerted some influence on, Egyptian culture. We can identify a number of these groups from Egyptian records, although it must be remembered that their depiction was often colored by the stereotypes of state ideology (see below). The main emphasis will be placed on groups who lived in or came to the Nile Valley in large numbers. Nubians. Nubian-Egyptian trade flourished during the late Predynastic period through the first dynasty, presumably accompanied by small numbers of expatriate traders and perhaps envoys. The Early Dynastic period raids that destroyed the Lower Nubian A-Group culture
PEOPLE 29 brought Nubians to Egypt as slaves and perhaps mercenaries. During the Old Kingdom, archaeological evidence from the Egyptian colonial settlement at Buhen at the Second Cataract reveals a population of impoverished Nubians, presumably slaves. Nubians are attested as soldiers and administrators during the late Old Kingdom, and large numbers of Nubian mercenaries were used during the civil wars of the First Intermediate Period. A group of these Egyptianized soldiers settled at Gebelein, where funerary stelae depict them as prosperous members of the local community. A statue of the Middle Kingdom founder Nebhepetre Mentuhotep with black skin may point to Nubian ancestry, although the use of black may simply reflect the statue's Osirian symbolism. Artistic and physical evidence suggests that his wives Ashayit, Hen-henit, Kemsit, and Sadeh were probably Nubian. Nubian-style tattoos were found on women in elite burials of the period. Nubians are featured in Middle Kingdom tombs at Beni Hasan and Meir. Later images showing a black-skinned queen Ahmose Nefertari, wife and sister or half-sister of the New Kingdom's founder, Ahmose, may indicate Nubian ancestry, although, again, black may symbolize the deceased's connection with Osiris. Vegetation in the Eastern Desert of Egypt and the Sudan could support a sizable seminomadic pastoral population. These people are identified in Egyptian sources as the Medja, who were grouped along with Nubians and depicted with the same physical appearance and dress. They have been identified archaeologically with the socalled Pan-Grave culture, whose characteristic cemeteries are found as far north as 27° north latitude in southern Upper Egypt and range into Sudanese Nubia. Archaeologically, they are related to the Lower Nubian C-Group and Upper Nubian Kerma cultures, but they represent a distinct tradition. Papyrus Boulaq records the visit of the Medja chief to the Egyptian court at Thebes in the thirteenth dynasty, attesting to close relations. Medja mercenaries were employed extensively during the Second Intermediate Period, in the seventeenth dynasty Theban campaigns to wrest control of Egypt from the Nile Delta-based Hyksos fifteenth dynasty. The characteristic Pan-Grave assemblage was found at the palace and town of Ballas, which may have served as a key staging area for the Egyptian reconquest of northern Upper Egypt and of Lower Egypt. Many Medja settled in Egypt and assimilated into Egyptian society during the Second Intermediate Period and New Kingdom. During the New Kingdom, the word "Medja" lost its ethnic connotation, becoming synonymous with "police," attesting to the Medja's considerable reputation as soldiers. The Lower Nubian princes of Egypt's New Kingdom colonial administration may have been drawn from acculturated Medja elite. Other Egyptianized Nubians, whether of the C-Group, Medja, or (less
likely) Kerman, entered New Kingdom society, often rising to prominent positions in the government. Egypt lost control of Nubia at the end of the New Kingdom, and by about 850 BCE a new power arose at Napata in Upper Nubia. By about 750 BCE, the Nubian pharaoh Piya gained control of southern Upper Egypt and had his daughter Amenirdis installed as heir to the key post of "Divine Wife of Amun" at Thebes; at the death of the twenty-third dynasty "Divine Wife," Shepenwepet, Amer-nirdis assumed the title and functions. In Year 21 of his reign, Piya defeated the Libyan prince Tefnakht, establishing the twenty-fifth dynasty as rulers over all of Egypt. A number of Nubians no doubt settled in Egypt during this period, intermarrying with Egyptians. Although Piya and his successors depicted themselves as the "saviors" of Egyptian civilization, their Egyptianization was not as comprehensive as royal ideology indicates. Monumental and presumably administrative texts were written in Egyptian, but they kept their Nubian names (possibly in a Nilo-Saharan language, suggesting an origin in central Africa), mode of succession, and elements of dress and regalia. Although Egyptian gods were adopted, temples renovated or built, and pyramid tombs adopted, these features were not slavishly copied but were adapted to suit Napatan needs and perceptions. After the Assyrian conquest, Kushite pharaonic culture continued to flourish in the South, becoming a prominent source of Egyptian influence in sub-Saharan Africa until the early centuries CE. Puntites. The earliest mention of Punt is on the Palermo Stone, which notes an expedition mounted under the reign of the fifth dynasty king Sahure. Contact continued sporadically until the New Kingdom. Visits to the land of Punt are not mentioned in Egyptian sources after the reign of Ramesses III (c.l 150 BCE). The scene of an expedition to Punt from Queen Hatshepsut's mortuary complex at Deir el-Bahri shows Puntites with red skin and facia] features similar to Egyptians, long or bobbed hair, goatee beards, and kilts. The so-called queen of Punt is represented as steatopygous. These same reliefs show the Puntites as a settled people, with houses placed on stilts. The flora and fauna shown indicate a location in coastal Sudan or Eritrea. At least some Puntites visited Egypt with their families, but it is unlikely that many settled there. Pygmies. A few references from the Old Kingdom seem to refer to the people known today as Pygmies. Small numbers of Pygmies were brought to Egypt as sacred dancers. They are found in the Pyramid Texts, involved in the frenetic mortuary dance. The safe arrival of a dancing Pygmy is a matter of concern to young Pepy II in a letter to the expedition leader Harkhuf, recorded in his tomb at Aswan. These references imply that Pygmies danced especially for the king, just as the king dances before the god.
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If necessary, a dwarf could substitute, suggesting that Pygmies were a great rarity and never present in large numbers. Today Pygmies live in the rain forests of central Africa, although there is considerable debate regarding the antiquity of their occupation there. Libyans. Although groups from Libya (such as the Tjemech) probably interacted with Egypt from early times, they do not reach prominence in Egyptian records until the New Kingdom. Libyans are depicted at Akhena-ten's court as emissaries or mercenaries. During the nineteenth and twentieth dynasties, Libyans were identified as Tjehenu and became one of four essential peoples or "races" depicted in the solar theology (see below). Egyptian texts mention two main groups, the Meshwesh and Libu. Slight differences in dress and appearance between the two groups may indicate a cultural distinction. Libyan incursions into the western Nile Delta were a serious problem for Ramessid kings. Accounts of military campaigns mounted against them indicate large numbers of cattle and sheep taken as booty, implying a significant pastoral component. The same texts mention towns, implying an urban civilization. Their most likely origin lies in Cyrenaica (coastal Libya), although the region is still relatively unknown archeologically. Some texts imply that they also ranged through the northern oases and Sahara. Archaeologically, the oases have a distinct material culture, often mixed with Egyptian pottery and artifacts reflecting contact and conquest at various periods. Several ongoing archaeological projects should permit a better definition of these groups. Libyans settled in large numbers in the Nile Delta, eventually founding the Bubastite twenty-second dynasty, based at Tanis. The third-century BCE Egyptian historian Manetho refers to Sheshonq I as the first of a series of Libyan chiefs who ruled Egypt for two hundred years. Theban records refer to him as "Great Chief of all the Meswesh," who had been used as police during the New Kingdom. The kings of the Bubastite dynasty were at least partly Libyan, and the Saite dynasty rulers may well have had some Libyan ancestry. Near Easterners (Asiatics). Evidence of contact with the Near East goes back to the Predynastic period. Although some scholars favoring diffusionist models have argued for a massive influx through the Nile Delta or the Wadi Hammamat via the Red Sea, the consensus today is for increasing contact and interaction focused on the Nile Delta and the Sinai. There is ample textual evidence in the form of names for the presence of SyrianPalestinians in Egypt's public institutions and private houses. For example, the Middle Kingdom Brooklyn Papyrus lists seventyseven servants of the lady Senebtisi, forty-eight of whom have Near Eastern names. Other texts show that new generations of families like these received Egyptian names, gradually assimilating into Egyptian society. Sev
eral stelae from this period depict servants labeled as Near Easterners, but with Egyptian names, dress, and hairstyles. Some may have come to Egypt as captives from military campaigns, although there was considerable movement of peoples going both ways for trade and diplomacy. Egypt gradually became more engaged with Near Eastern peoples during the later Middle Kingdom, through the establishment of a major point of immigration at Tell ed-Dab'a in the eastern Nile Delta. This site has all the hallmarks of a trade diaspora, an expatriate settlement serving as an interface between the two trading partners. Excavations document a gradual increase in the numbers and influence of Syrian-Palestinians at Dab'a over the course of the thirteenth dynasty. By the late thirteenth dynasty, Middle Bronze Age pottery makes up 40 percent of the assemblage, "warrior" tombs with typical weaponry and associated equid burials appear with great frequency, and monumental temples in the standard Middle Bronze Age layout rival those of sites in Syria-Palestine. A complex settlement hierarchy developed in Palestine during this period, anchored by major trade "gateways" at Tell ed-Dab'a in the south and Hazor in the north. At the end of the thirteenth dynasty, Tell ed-Dab'a became the capital of the Syrian-Palestinian fifteenth dynasty, the Hyksos, which established direct control over the northern half of Egypt and forced the Upper Egyptian seventeenth dynasty to accept a role as a vassal state. The Hyksos only partly assimilated to Egyptian culture, although it is likely that many of their descendants remained in the Delta after Egypt's "expulsion" of the early eighteenth dynasty, thereby becoming part of Egyptian New Kingdom society. Substantial numbers of Near Eastern peoples, mostly SyrianPalestinians but including individuals from Mi-tanni (Syria) and Hatti (Anatolia), were captured during the great military campaigns of the New Kingdom, which ranged as far as northern Syria. Others came as tribute from vassal states controlled by Egypt or as free traders, craftsmen, and scribes. Most prisoners were assigned to various royal and temple estates to provide labor in the fields, although some were parceled out as rewards to valorous warriors. Skilled Near Eastern craftsmen were employed in Egyptian workshops, and others were employed as servants in elite and royal households. Literate elites from the Near East were often employed in the Egyptian bureaucracy, where their linguistic skills proved valuable to the conduct of international trade and diplomacy; the ambitious might rise to high positions. The Canaanite Ben-ozen became chief of the department of alimentation and beverage and chief royal herald under Ramesses II. The chief draftsman in the temple of Amun, Pas-Ba'al, was possibly taken prisoner under Thutmose III, and his descendants occupied his office for six generations. An in-
PEOPLE 31 dividual with the Canaanite name Aper-E] became vizier under Amenhotpe III, and Chancellor Bey became a virtual kingmaker at the end of the nineteenth dynasty. Egyptians intermarried with Near Easterners, and slaves were sometimes adopted into Egyptian families. Although most Near Easterners assimilated to some degree, the cultural influence was not unidirectional. Levantine mythical and literary motifs, loan words, and deities such as Ba'al, Astarte, and Reshep all entered into the Egyptian cultural sphere during the New Kingdom. Mediterranean peoples. Archaeological, historical, and artistic evidence point to limited interactions among Egypt, Minoan Crete, and Mycenean Greece during the Bronze Age. Pottery and other artifacts from the Aegean appear in Egypt during the Middle and New Kingdoms. Egyptian objects also appear in the Aegean during this period. Minoan-style architectural frescoes from the beginning of the eighteenth dynasty at Tell ed-Dab'a in the Nile Delta suggest the presence of artisans from Crete in Egypt. Scenes of Aegean emissaries and traders, like those from the tomb of Rekhmire, vizier under Thutmose III, provide further evidence of interaction in the New Kingdom. A fragmentary list of Aegean place names from the mortuary temple of Amenhotpe III points to an Egyptian embassy for Mycenean Greece. It is not likely, however, that many of these Aegean peoples settled in Egypt. The "Sea Peoples" is a term used to encompass the movements of Mediterranean peoples by both sea and land at the end of the Late Bronze Age (c.1200-1100 BCE). The disruptions caused by this massive migration through the Anatolian Plateau and down the eastern Mediterranean coast brought down the great Hittite Empire and such coastal Levantine trading centers as Ugarit. Some captive groups were turned into mercenaries in the Egyptian army, most notably the fierce Sherden, who became elite royal bodyguards under Ramesses II. The Harris Papyrus notes that captive Peleset, Shardana, Weshesh, Den-yen, and Shekelesh were used as garrison forces and mercenaries under Ramesses III. The exact origin of each of these groups is a matter of considerable debate; the consensus favors the Aegean and western Anatolia as the origin of most of them. Some soldiers and their families were settled in coastal Palestine, where they are identified archaeologically with the Philistines. Others settled in Egypt. Papyrus Wilbour, a tax roll of farms in the Faiyum area, lists several Shardana as landholders. Greeks and Carians began to be used as Egyptian mercenaries in the Late period, settling at sites like Naukratis in the Nile Delta. Trade with the Mediterranean expanded during the Saite twentysixth dynasty, bringing other peoples from the Mediterranean shores to Egypt. The Persian king Cambyses II conquered Egypt in 525 BCE, but only small numbers of Persians actually came to Egypt,
with most of the nation s bureaucracy remaining in Egyptian hands. More Greeks came into Egypt during the struggles of native dynasts against Persian rule, and with the conquest of Egypt by Alexander of Macedon in 332 BCE. These immigrants founded several new cities in the Nile Delta, the most important being the port city of Alexandria. Its population numbered 300,000 Greek citizens and another 200,000 Egyptians, living in crowded mansions and tenements. The Macedonian elite established cities modeled on the Greek concepts of polis and tribe, with strict citizenship rules to keep out the "barbarian" Egyptian rabble. The royal family, the Ptolemies, remained to the end very Macedonian; Cleopatra VII was the first even to speak Egyptian. Temples with priesthoods of Greek origin were set up syncretizing Egyptian and Greek deities: like Dionysus with Osiris, Hathor with Aphrodite, and Amun with Zeus. Royal Ideology and the Depiction of Foreigners. Different peoples were separated on the basis of culture, language, and physical appearance in both the royal ideology and more prosaic sources. Unlike modem racist thinkers, the Egyptians recognized these features as separate categories; thus, an acculturated Nubian like the "Royal Fan-bearer" (a military title) Mahirp'er was acknowledged and depicted as culturally Egyptian, but with Nubian dark skin, facial features, and curled hair. Egyptian ideology separated the world's peoples into four groups: Egyptians, Near Easterners, Libyans, and Nubians. New Kingdom royal tombs provide idealized portraits of these different peoples. Egyptians have red-brown skin, black shoulder-length hair, simple white kilts, and small trimmed beards. Nubians are represented with black skin, scarification on the cheeks and brow similar to that still practiced in the Nubian Sudan today, short trimmed hair in braids or ringlets, hoop earrings, and decorated leather sashes and aprons worn over white Egyptian-style kilts. Libyans are shown with light skin and geometric tattoos, braided or ringleted hair with curled side lock(s?) and two ostrich feathers; they wear a loincloth(?) under a long leather cloak showing the natural patterns of the cow's hair. Near Easterners are depicted as Syrian-Palestinians with yellow skin, black bobbed hair with a headband tied at the back, elaborately decorated kilts, and ample (sometimes pointed) beards and mustaches. In other scenes, different hairstyles, dress, and facial features are used to differentiate other Near Eastern peoples—like the Anatolian Hittites or Syrian Mitanni—from the SyrianPalestinians. Egypt's ideological view of foreigners reflects goals and perceptions different from the administrative realities of dealing with diplomacy, trade, and empire. Antonio Lo-prieno has characterized the Egyptian view of the various peoples in Topos und Mimesis: Zum Ausldnder in der dgyp-
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tischen Literatur (Wiesbaden, 1988). Topos represents an idealized view of the world that serves a rhetorical, not necessarily a literal, end; mimesis reflects the reality of daily experience, if ultimately filtered through Egyptian cultural perceptions. The ideological topos applied to foreign peoples in Egypt reflects a propagandistic manipulation of reality aimed at an inner audience. In the celebrative central ideology, often expressed in monumental art and architecture, Egypt becomes the center of the universe, and all the foreign lands bow down to the pharaoh, regardless of their actual relationship. Foreigners represent chaotic, uncivilized threats to the inner order, ultimately disposed of by the ruler. The role of foreigners in the Egyptian foreigner topos is in opposition to maat (order, harmony, rightness). Maat exists in opposition to isfet (disorder, chaos), which constantly tries to upset the heavenly and earthly order. One of the most potent forces of isfet is the traditional foreign enemies of Egypt. Thus, foreigners are depicted as strangers and generalized as an ethnic group with negative qualities. They are not really people and are often compared with animals—their speech is unintelligible, like the jabbering of baboons. The characteristic dress and physical appearance described above emphasizes each group's otherness in the foreigner topos. On an even more abstract level, the traditional enemies of Egypt are referred to as the "Nine Bows." This topos appears iconographically as actual bows, sometimes combined with topical images of captive Near Easterners and Nubians. Footstools, statue and throne bases, processional ways, and even sandals carry the Nine Bows motif, so that the king would constantly trample underfoot the enemies of Egypt. The application of this principle reaches an extreme in the forma] Presentation of Tribute, where loyal native officials in Egypt's colonial administration appear in the topos of "pacified Nubian" described above, while at the same time their tombs, grave goods, and other monuments show that they were completely Egyptianized. A more realistic portrayal occurs in texts reflecting mimesis. Foreigners are treated as individuals, not as stereotypes. They are identified by name, can speak Egyptian like a "real" person, and thus are incorporated into the Egyptian cultural framework. Unlike the topical foreigner, they can act in a positive way. In everyday life, foreign influences and even deities were tolerated in Egypt. For example, despite state ideological representations of Near Easterners as uncivilized enemies, Levantine mythical and literary motifs, loan words, and deities such as Ba'al, Astaite, and Reshep, had all entered into the Egyptian cultural sphere by the New Kingdom. Although no indisput-ably Nubian deities appear in Egypt, elite military dress and accouterments, including leather kilts and hairstyles, were borrowed from Nubia. [See also Afrocentrism; Foreigners; and Race.]
BIBLIOGRAPHY Bernal, Martin. Black Athena. New Brunswick, N.J., 1987. Bernal provides a good critique of the racist biases of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries that minimized Egypt's African-ness and denied interactions with the Aegean. Unfortunately, he goes on to revive seriously flawed radical diffusionist approaches that posit massive migrations and influence of Egyptians on the development of Classical civilization. Boas, Franz. Race, Language and Culture. Chicago, 1940. A seminal work refuting the connection of biology (race) and culture. Celenko, Theodore, ed. Egypt in Africa. Indianapolis, 1996. The companion volume for an innovative exhibit exploring ancient Egypt's African roots, juxtaposing images from Egypt and other African cultures. Each section is accompanied by essays from Egyptologists and Africanist scholars, exploring related themes. Curtin, Phillip. Cross Cultural Trade in World History. Cambridge, 1984. Curtin draws on insights from anthropology and economic history to documents a broad and diverse group of trading relationships in the ancient and modern world, including the movement of peoples in the creation of trade diasporas, an expatriate settlement serving as an interface between the two trading partners. Diop, Cheikh Ante. The African Origin of Civilimtion. Chicago, 1974. A highly influential work that rightly points out the African origins of Egyptian civilization, but reinforces the methodological and theoretical foundations of colonialist theories of history, embracing racialist thinking and simply reversing the flow of diffusionist models. Keita, S. 0. Y., and Rick Kittles. "The Persistence of Racial Thinking and the Myth of Racial Divergence." American Anthropologist 99 (1997), 534-544. An excellent summary of the evidence against race as a scientific concept, with particular reference to the ancient Egyptians. Kemp, Barry J. "Imperialism in New Kingdom Egypt (c.1575-1087 B.C.)." In Imperialism in the Ancient World, edited by P. D. A. Gar-nsey and C. R. Whittaker, pp. 7-57, 283-297. Cambridge, 1978. An excellent consideration of Egypt's Nubian and Syrian-Palestinian empires, including an extensive discussion of foreigners in Egyptian ideology. Leahy, Anthony. Libya and Egypt, c. 1300-750 B.C. London, 1990. Liverani, Mario. Prestige and Interest: International Relations in the Near East ca. 1600-1100 B.C. Padua, 1990. Provides a perceptive, wideranging comparison of Egypt and the great powers of the Near East, contrasting ideological pronouncements emphasizing the internal prestige of the ruler with diplomatic correspondence reflecting political and economic interest. O'Connor, David. Ancient Nubia: Egypt's Rival in Africa. Philadelphia, 1993. Provides an excellent general introduction to the civilizations of ancient Nubia and their relationship with Egypt, including a number of case studies which employ new analyses of the University of Pennsylvania's early excavations. Redford, Donald B. Egypt, Canaan, and Israel in Ancient Times. Princeton, 1.992. A comprehensive survey of Egypt's interactions with Syro-Palestine, including discussions of the role of Near Easterners in Egypt. Sadr, Karim. The Development of Nomadism in Ancient Northeast Africa. Philadelphia, 1991. Sanders, N. K. The Sea Peoples. London, 1987. Discusses the origins of the Sea Peoples and their impact on the eastern Mediterranean and Egypt. Save-Soderbergh, Torgny, and Lana Troy. New Kingdom Pharaonic Sites. Uppsala, .199.1. A thorough report on the excavation of several Nubian cemeteries important to understanding the acculturation of Lower Nubians in the New Kingdom and the origins and role of the Lower Nubian princes.
PEPY I 33 Silverrnan, David. "Pygmies and Dwarves in Old Kingdom Egypt." Serapis 1 (1989), 53-55. Smith, Stuart T. "State and Empire in the Middle and New Kingdoms." In Anthropological Analysis of Ancient Egypt, edited by Judy Lustig, pp. 66-89. Sheffield, 1997. Contrasts the economic and social dynamics of Egypt's empire with the portrayal and role of foreigners in Egyptian ideology. Vogel, Joseph 0., ed. Encyclopedia of Precolonial Africa. Walnut Creek, 1997. Includes numerous surveys of various aspects of northeast African history and culture, including human origins, pastoralism, rock art, and tlie rise of Neolithic culture and origins of the ancient Egyptians. See especially articles by Holl on Pan-Africanism and Afrocentrism; Ehret on African languages; and Williams, Hassan, Wettestrom, and Fattovich on the origins of Egyptian civilization and its connections to adjacent areas. STUART TYSON SMITH
PEPINAKHT HEQAIB, whose "good (or familiar) name" was Heqaib ("ruler of my heart"), was a major official at Elephantine, an island in the Nile River near Aswan, during the reign of Pepy II. His principal title was "Overseer of Foreigners" (i.e., mercenaries). A rather bellicose "autobiographical" inscription in his tomb at Qubbet el-Hawa (Aswan) indicates that he was primarily responsible for controlling the military situation in Nubia and the Eastern Desert at a time when the attacks—presumably by the new C-Group population—on Egyptian expeditions to the south and east were increasing. The king dispatched him to devastate ("hack up") the Lower Nubian districts of Wawat and Irtjet, and Pepinakht reports killing numbers of Nubians and bringing back some unspecified number of captives, along with their cattle as booty. On another campaign, he claims to have brought back the chiefs of these districts, their children, and members of their entourages. Subsequently, Pepinakht was sent to the Red Sea coast to recover the bodies of an expedition leader named Ankhty and his men, who, while building a boat there for a trip to the land of Punt (on the Somali coast), had been murdered by the locals. Pepinakht drove off the tribesmen, trumpeting that he had "set the fear of Horus [i.e., the king] in the foreign countries," thereby pacifying them. In addition to his military activities, Pepinakht Heqaib performed administrative functions in the pyramid complexes of both King Merenre and King Pepy II. Pepinakht Heqaib appears to have enjoyed a considerable reputation in the Aswan region, for at some time after his death, he was deified and became the object of a cult among the officials at Elephantine that lasted until the Middle Kingdom. Excavations carried out principally by Labib Habachi and inscriptions in the tombs of later officials indicate that a series of shrines, complete with altars and statues, had been built on Elephantine Island in Heqaib's honor.
v^
BIBLIOGRAPHY Habachi, L. "Heqaib." In Lexikon der Agypiologie, 2:1120-1)22. Wiesbaden, 1974. Martin-Pardey, E. "Pepinacht." In Lexikon der Agyptologie, 4:929. Wiesbaden, 1982. Zibelius-Chen, K. Die agyptische Expansion nach Nubien. Wiesbaden, 1988. GERALD E. KAD1SH
PEPY I (ruled c.2354-2310 BCE), a king of the sixth dynasty, Old Kingdom. It is tempting to describe Pepy's reign as the zenith of the Old Kingdom, considering all his achievements, particularly the number of his architectural constructions and the quality of the works of art of his time. Despite some important recent discoveries, there are still many uncertainties regarding his reign. He was the son of Teti (r. 2374-2354 BCE) and of the queen Ipout. His titulature designated him as the Horus Merltawy ("beloved of the Two Lands"), "the son of Re, Pepy," the King of Upper and Lower Egypt Meryre ("beloved of Re"), with the prenomen Nefersahor ("excellent is the protection of Horus"). This titulature is attested by diverse documents (such as vestiges of cartouches in his own tomb and inscriptions at Tomas, in Nubia). His reign was so long that historians disagree about its duration. A census of cattle was taken twenty-five times during his reign (meaning that he reigned for at least fifty years—and the Manetho-nian sources attribute fifty-three regnal years to him). [See Manetho.] Pepy I was a great builder. His name is found at Bu-bastis, Abydos, Dendera (confirming his attachment to the cult of the goddess Hathor), and in Elephantine; he sent expeditions to the Wadi Hammamat and the copper mines of the Sinai; his presence is known at Tomas, at Abydos, and throughout Nubia. As the great inscription of Unas at Abydos shows, the army of Pepy I intervened in the Palestinian confines. The provincial administration grew very powerful during his reign. His serf-festival was celebrated in his thirty-sixth year, as attested by a number of documents, some of which are beautiful calcite (Egyptian alabaster) vases. A small statue of the seated king, also in calcite (Egyptian alabaster), has been found, as has another in schist, in which he is kneeling in the pose of one making an offering. Especially notable are fragments of a metal statue found at Hierakonpolis, expressing a natural grandeur. Pepy Is funerary complex, situated to the south of the middle part of the necropolis at Saqqara, has been the object of a long process of clearing. The French Archaeological Mission at Saqqara (MAFS) has gathered from the site many statues of kneeling prisoners, arms linked in front, their expressive faces presenting a striking ethno-graphical gallery of the peoples of Africa and the Near East. His pyramid was called Men-nefer-Pepy ("Pepy is ::
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34 PEPY II
PEPY I. The ivined mortuary temple ofPepy I at Saqqara. (Courtesy Dieter Arnold)
stable and perfect"); this name, Men-nefer, is the origin of the designation of the nearby capital, transcribed by the ancient Greeks as Memphis. The pyramid was originally 50 meters (160 feet) in height, and so was easily visible from the valley. Today, however, it has been reduced to a mound only .10 meters (32 feet) high, since it was stripped away on all sides (each of which was 76 meters/240 feet long). During the clearing away of the funerary chamber, almost three thousand blocks and fragments of many dimensions were gathered, and by matching adjacent pieces the walls could therefore be put in place again. Their hieroglyphs are magnificently engraved, often retaining their painting, which is in an eternally fertile green. These reliefs furnish long sequences of the Pyramid Texts, the most ancient funerary compositions of humanity, intended for the resurrection of the pharaoh. Several wives of Pepy I have been attested. There was a queen who was put aside after a harem conspiracy (and whose name has remained unknown). There were also two sisters from a noble family of Abydos, who were both named Ahkhesenpepy (or Ankhesenmerire). Through the excavations led by the MAFS to the immediate south of the king's pyramid, additional queens of Pepy I became known: Noubounet, Inenek/Inti (who carried the title of vizier), and Mehaa, the mother of a prince Hometeiykhet.
The continuing excavation should bring further discoveries. BIBLIOGRAPHY Oriantalia (Rome). Reports about the excavations of the MAPS in the funerary complexes of the king and his queens have been published regularly in the journal. "Pepy ;I." In Lexikon der Agyptohgie, 6:926927. Wiesbaden, 1982. JEAN LECLANT Translated 6"ora French by Susan Romanosky
PEPY II (ruled c.2300-2206 BCE), last important king of the sixth dynasty. Old Kingdom. According to traditional historiography, Pepy II was Horus Neter-Kliaou ("deity of apparitions"), the "son of Re" Neferkare. ("the ka of Re is perfect"), the King of Upper and Lower Egypt Pepy. After his reign, a poorly known period of Egyptian history began, leading into the First Intermediate Period. Possibly the increasing status of the governors of the nomes resulted from a weakening of the royal power brought about by the advanced age of Pepy II. Admittedly, though, many of the facts necessary to understand the fall of the Old Kingdom are missing. Pepy II was only six years old when his predecessor Merenre Antyemsaf died; a magnificent statue in the
PERSIA 35
PEPY II. The Pyramid ofPepy II at Saqqara. (Courtesy Dieter Arnold)
Brooklyn Museum shows, in exceptional fashion, the very young king seated on the knees of his mother. He was traditionally thought to have reigned until his hundreth year, thereby enjoying the longest reign in world history. New readings of the documents, however, significantly lower the duration. In fact, only one date is known, the "thirty-third census year," which would be the sixtysixth year of his reign. Many famous inscriptions date from this period. Hoi-k-huf, in his rock-cut tomb at Aswan, tells the story of the trade missions that he led to the South, as far as the country of Yam, in order to bring back "all kinds of rare and excellent products"; he also brought back a pygmy (from the forests of Central Africa) for the pleasure of his sovereign. Soon, Egypt's relations with the countries to its south became difficult. The prince and chancellor Mehu was killed there; his remains were brought back by his son Sabni in the course of another mission. In another direction, to the northwest of Egypt, signs of Pepy II are present in the oasis of the Libyan desert. At Byblos, to the northeast in Syria-Palestine, vases with his name attest to the pursuit of active commercial exchanges there. The funeral-}' complex of Pepy II, situated at South Saqqara, was excavated in the 1930s and published by the Swiss archaeologist Gustave Jequier; the sanctuary
is decorated with some excellent bas-reliefs. The pyramid, called Men-ankJi-Pepy ("Pepy endures and lives"), had concealed in its funerary chamber many passages of the Pyramid Texts, which are also present in the remains of the pyramids of three of his queens: Neith, Ipuit (Apuit), and Wedjebten. BIBLIOGRAPHY Beckeralh, Jurgen von "Pepy li." In Lexikon der Agypl.ologie, 6:927929. Wiesbaden, 1982. Jequier, Gustave. Les pvrantides des reines Neit et Apoiiit. Cairo, 1933. Jequier, Gustave. U'. monument funemire de. Pepi 11. 3 vol. Cairo, 19361940. JEAN I.RCLANT Translated from French by Susan Romanosky
PERFUME. See Toiletries and Cosmetics. PERSIA. In 529 BCE, the Greek general of mercenaries, Phanes of Halicarnassus, betrayed the Egyptian pharaoh Amasis (r. 570-526 BCE). Thus the Persian king Cambyses II was able to threaten the Egyptian frontier. After Amasis died, his successor, Psamtik III, was conquered and captured bv Cambvses in the battle of Pelusium (525 BCE).
36 PERSIA Egypt then became, with Cyprus and Phoenicia, the sixth satrapy of the Achaemenid Empire. With Cambyses II, the First Persian Occupation began Egypt's twenty-seventh dynasty, and it includes Darius I (r. 521^486 BCE), Xerxes (r. 486-465 BCE), Artaxerxes I (r. 465-424 BCE), Darius II (r. 423-405 BCE), and Artaxerxes II (405359 BCE). The Greek historian Herodotus traveled in Egypt about 450 BCE, so the Egypt he described was a Persian satrapy. Memphis continued as the capital (as it had been under the previous Saite dynasty) and was soon the residence of the Persian satrap, who headed Egypt's entire administration. Various officials and numerous scribes were employed, and among these were Egyptian scribes for reports in their native language, while the official language became Aramaic. The garrison posts continued to be situated in Mareotis, Daphnis, and Elephantine, yet everywhere in the Nile Valley, between the Delta and Nubia, there was a presence of Near Eastern foreigners, merchants, and soldiers— Phoenicians, lonians, and Car-ians—from all of the satrapies throughout the Achaemend Empire. The First Persian Occupation began with Cambyses, who undertook an "Africa" policy, with three unsuccessful expeditions against Carthage on the Mediterranean, against the oasis of the Libyan Desert, and against Nubia. Cambyses assumed a pharaonic guise, as indicated by autobiographical texts of Wedjahorresenet, a high official and court doctor. The texts are engraved on his naophorus statue (now in the Vatican Museum), a basalt statute brought from Egypt and discovered at Tivoli in the ruins of Hadrian's villa. Wedjahorresenet served under Amasis, Cambyses, and Darius I. For Cambyses Wedjahorresenet created the epithet mswty-R" ("Born of Re"), Cambyses was interested in removing the "foreigners" (evidently members of the army of occupation) from the temple of Neith at Sais, to purify the temple, to return to the goddess her annuity, and to reestablish the priests, ceremonies, and processions as they had been before. Ruin and oppression certainly could have occurred throughout Egypt during the violence of the conquest; but the evidence for the ferocity and impiety of Cambyses in Egypt, referred to by the Greek historians, is not supported by contemporary Egyptian documents. A stela from the Serapeum (the underground catacombs where the Apis bulls were buried at Saqqara) dated from the sixth year of the Cambyses rule, testifies that Cambyses did not kill Apis, but that instead, the sacred bull, born in Year 27 of Amasis, received solemn obsequies and was buried in a sarcophagus donated by the same Cambyses, and that the succeeding Apis, born during the reign of Cambyses, died of natural causes in Year 4 of Darius I (as is shown by another stela from the Serapeum). To understand the foundation of the antiCambyses tradition, it is worth considering the resentment on the part of the Egyp
tian priesthood, which had been stung by Cambyses' decree that drastically limited royal subsidies to the Egyptian temples previously in effect. The posthumous persecutions of Amasis by Persian conquerors is suggested by the Cambyses legend related by the Greek and Roman historians. In it, Cambyses, a grandson of Apries, took revenge against the usurper Amasis and reclaimed the throne of his grandfather. In 522 BCE, on the return trip home to Persia, Cambyses died from a leg infection incurred while in Syria. There, in the court circle of Susa, the rebellion broke out of the sorcerer Gaumata, claimant to the legitimate succession of Cyrus. The circumstances of the death (a dagger wound to the thigh that became gangrenous) are related by Herodotus as proof of divine punishment—since the wound was in the same spot that would have resulted from an attack on the Apis bull by Cambyses. According to Dio-dorus Siculus, Cambyses' death is punishment for his impiety. He is contrasted with the piety of his successor Darius I, who was generous toward the temples of the Egyptian gods and revoked Cambyses' decree. Darius I (522-486 BCE) was the son of Istaspe, satrap of Hyrcania; Darius was a tolerant and strong ruler who restored order in the empire and conquered a new province, India. According to Diodorus, Darius I was the sixth and last law-giver of Egypt, as confirmed by the Demotic papyrus mentioned above. In his third year of rule, Darius ordered his satrap in Egypt to convene the learned among the soldiers, the priests, and the scribes so as to codify the laws in use to Year 44 of the reign of Amasis. His committee of wise men sat for sixteen years, until Darius's nineteenth year. Between his nineteenth and twenty-seventh year, the committee was reunited at Susa and the laws were transcribed on papyrus in Aramaic and Demotic. Such a juridical guide for Egypt was needed by the administration of that satrapy, since they were generally Persian or Babylonian and their official language was Aramaic. The protection accorded to Egyptian temples and priests by Darius I was extended to the construction of a grand temple to Amun-Re, in the Kharga Oasis (an archive of Persian-era Demotic ostraca was recently found at Deir Manawir). Darius Is building activities in Egypt are also known from the hieroglyphic inscriptions in the quarries of Wadi Hammamat, from blocks with Darius' cartouche found at Elkab, and from those at Busiris in the Delta. A large number of the Saqqara Serapeum stelae have dates between the third and fourteenth year of Darius I. A small stela from the Faiyum (now in the Berlin Museum) is dedicated to Darius I in the form of the falcon-god HOI-US. The Vatican naophorus statue of Wed-jahon'esnet reveals that Darius ordered restoration work at the "House of Life" at Sais. Yet rebellion against the Persians was constant. Aryan-
PETAMENOPHIS 37 des, the first satrap of Egypt, was deposed by Darius I after rebelling. Pherendates succeeded him in 492 BCE and was the satrap to whom Peteese of Teudjoi referred his petition in Year 9 of Darius I, to obtain justice (Demotic Papyrus Rylands IX). To intensify contact with the Egyptian satrapy, Darius I accomplished an objective imagined but never carried out by Necho II—the opening of a navigable route from the Nile to the Red Sea. This was accomplished by means of a canal 45 meters wide and 5 meters deep (130 by 15 feet) that could be traveled for some 84 kilometers (52 miles), enabling navigation from Bubastis at Lake Timsah by the Bitter Lakes (Gulf of Heroonpolita) to the Red Sea in four days. Along the route of the canal were erected commemorative stelae of large dimensions—over 3 meters (10 feet) in height and 2 meters (6 feet) in width—in the three languages of the empire: Elamite, Akkadian, and Old Persian; they were located at Suez, at Chaluf or Kebret, at the Serapeum, and at Pithom (Tell el-Maskhuta). The waterway, which tended to silt up in the southern part, was put back into use under Ptolemy II (according to the stela discovered at Pithom) and also under the Roman emperor Hadrian. From as early as Cambyses, the Persian kings resorted to Egyptian sculptors and stonemasons, who are often mentioned on the Elamite foundation tablets of Persepolis. Many learned Egyptians, especially doctors, resided at the Court of Susa. Trade with Persia was important to Egypt. An Aramaic text, recovered by B. Porten and A. Yardeni, contains the accounts of many colonies and of maritime traffic for a port (probably Memphis) during Year 11 of Xerxes I (475 BCE). The captains of the ships—which brought gold, silver, wine, oil, and lumber—are indicated as lonians and have Greek names (e.g., Simonides, Moskhos, Tymok-ledes, Mikkos, lokles, Phanes', etc.); other ships' captains are perhaps Phoenician. The boats returned loaded with Egyptian natron (sodium carbonate), highly valued in antiquity for the manufacture of glass. From 404 to 343 BCE, the recovered independence of Egypt included the twenty-eighth, twenty-ninth, and thirtieth dynasties. The rulers of the thirtieth dynasty defended Egypt from Persia's attempts at reconquest, even resorting to alliances with the Greeks. Nektanebo I secured the support of the priesthood by a maneuver that consisted of a customs tax on merchandise that arrived at Naukratis in the Nile Delta (the Greek emporium from the time of the Saite kings), allotting 10 percent of the tax to the temple of Neith at Sais. Nektanebo's son Tachos (or Teos; r. 362-360 BCE) intervened militarily in an anti-Persian role in Syria, but his uncle, the general Tjaha-pimu, who was kept in Egypt as regent, took advantage by placing his own son, Nektanebo, by the Queen Udjashu, on the throne. This change was favored because of the discord incurred by the financial measures that Tachos
took. He limited the priests' revenues and a tax was imposed on housing and on the grain to be offered to Atria, in addition to the tenth due on ships and crafts. Tachos, betrayed by the Spartan general Agesilaos, fled Egypt, took refuge at Sidon, and then at the Persian court at Susa. Nektanebo II (r. 361/60-343 BCE) repelled two Persian invasions: one in 358 BCE, by the army of Prince Arta-xerxes; the second in 351 BCE, led by the same man, now Ar-taxerxes III Ochus. When he retook Cyprus and Sidon, he was able to land at Pelusium in the Nile Delta. From Pelu-sium, the Persians then took the other cities of the Delta and as far south as Memphis. Nektanebo II escaped to Nubia with his treasure. Classical sources accuse Arta-xerxes III of violence and brutality even more subtle than that ascribed to Cambyses. Then in 338 BCE, the eunuch Bagoas murdered Artaxerxes; in 336 BCE, he also killed the king's son and successor Xerxes. Under Darius III, the satrap Sabace fought and died at Issus. The last Persian satrap, Mazaces, lost Egypt to Alexander the Great of Macedon in 332 BCE. The Achaemenid Empire had ended, and Egypt had become a province once more. After Alexander, the Ptolemies and then the Romans became the masters of the Nile Valley, which was governed by foreign rulers until after World War II. [See also Achaemenids; and Late Period, the overview article and the article on the Thirty-first Dynasty.] BIBLIOGRAPHY Briant, P. Histoire de I'Empire perse. Paris, 1996. Curtis, John. Ancient Persia. London, 1988. Dandarnaev, M. A Political History of the Archaeinenid Empire. Leiden, 1989. Erich, Robert W., ed. Chronologies in Old World Archaeology. 3d ed. Chicago, 1992. Nissen, Hans J. The Early History of the Ancient Near East, 9000-2000 B.C. Chicago, 1988. Sherwin-White, Susan M., and Amelie Kuhrt. From Sardis to Samarkand. London,1993. Young, T. Cuyler, Jr., et al., eds. The Hilly Flanks and Beyond: Essays on the Prehistory of Southwestern Asia Presented to Robert J. Braidwood. Studies in Ancient Oriental Civilization, 36. Chicago, 1983. EDDA BRESCIAN1 "n-anslated from Italian bv Jennifer Worth
PERSIAN PERIOD. See Late Period, overview article.
PETAMENOPHIS. The most extensive private tomb constructed at any Egyptian site during the pharaonic era belonged to a littleknown chief lector-priest, Petamen-ophis, who lived from the late twenty-fifth into the early twenty-sixth dynasties. Although that title was the highest rank recorded on his tomb, the tomb's massive size indicated that he was one of the most influential individuals
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PETOSIRIS
in Upper Egypt at that time. Probably constructed during the earliest decades of the twenty-sixth dynasty, his tomb was located within a series of monuments built for local officials in the Asassif region of the Theban plain, dating from about 700-540 BCE. Sometimes considered an expression of an "Archaic revival," the tombs actually follow a four hundred year hiatus of tomb building; yet they incorporate features from nearby private tombs and mortuary temples of the preceding periods, rather than recalling elements of much earlier dynasties. These tombs are conspicuous for their size and complexity, as well as for their shared features, such as the massive mud-brick superstructures, the dramatic subterranean courtyards, the innovative use of architectural sculpture, and the multilevel burial chambers. The inscriptions from one of the seven known statues of Petamenophis indicate that he was consecrated as lector-priest in 662-661 BCE. Most probably, he achieved the rank of chief lector priest in following years. He lived during the era that coincided with Mentuemhet's term of office as governor of Upper Egypt, yet the mention of any king or "Divine Adoratress" (a female relative of a Nubian king, installed as religious leader at Thebes) is noticeably absent from Petamenophis' tomb. Anthes (1937) speculated that such an omission would be more likely during a period of foreign rule (during the rule of the Nubians of the twenty-fifth dynasty, rather than that of the twenty-sixth dynasty). Petamenophis' name does not appear on the Saite Oracle Papyrus, dated to 651 BCE, with Men-tuemhet and other Theban high officials of the early twenty-sixth dynasty. Nor is there any other evidence that Petamenophis lived far into the twenty-sixth dynasty. Mentuemhet clearly did, and perhaps he was a younger, regional contemporary of Petamenophis. BIBLIOGRAPHY Anthes, R. "Der Berliner Hocker des Petamenophi.s." Zeitschrifl fur agyptische Sprache und Alfertumskunde 73 (1937), 29. Bianchi, Robert Steven. "Petamenophis." In Lexikon der Agyptologie, 4: 991-992. Wiesbaden, 1982. Good additional bibliography. Eigner, Dicthelm. Die Moritintenlalen Grabbauten dcr Spatu'it in der Theban ischen Nekropole. Vienna, .1984, Provides a comprehensive overview of the Theban Late period tombs. Loukianoff, Gregoire. "Les statues et les objects funeraires de Peduamonapet," Annules d.u Service: des Antiquites de I'Egypti! 37 (1937), 219-232. Identifies objects bearing Petamenophis' name and titles, although some have been disregarded (see Bianchi, 1982). Porter, Bertha, and Rosalind L. B. Moss. Topographical Bibliography of Ancient Egyfrtiaii Hieroglyphic Texts, Reliefs, and Paintings, vol. 1, 1, 2d ed., pp. 50-56. Oxford, 1960. References, plans, wall scenes, texts, and finds from Theban tomb 33. Thomas, Nancy Katherine. "A Typological Study of Saite Tombs at Thebes." Ph.D. diss., Univ. of California, Los Angeles, 1980. Discusses the chronology of Late period tomb owners and the development of tombs. NANCY THOMAS
PETOSIRIS, (Eg., py-di-wsir, "he whom Osiris has given"; also called Kliapakhonsu) was high priest of Thoth and lesonis-priest (oikonomos, head of finance) of the temple of Thoth at Hermopolis during the second half of the fourth century BCE. He is famous today for the well-preserved family chapel that he erected at Tuna el-Gebel. The family of Petosiris had been proteges and appointees of the thirtieth dynasty. His father Es-shu had administered the temple at royal behest, probably under Nektanebo II, and it was one of Esshu's younger sons, Petosiris, who eventually took over his father's estate as "Master of All His Property," and "Greatest of the Five, Controller of the Cult-seats," priestly titles of the fifteenth (Hermopolitan) nome of Upper Egypt. With priesthoods at Horwer and Nefrusi, as well as the sacerdotal functions for Thoth and Amun-Re, Petosiris received his inheritance just when Egypt was about to endure the second Persian occupation, by the army of Artaxerxes III in 342 BCE. His vivid account of the devastation caused by this invasion— it cannot be dated later—is now graphically supported by the excavations at Mendes, which show the fury and methodical demolition of the site by the Persians: I have been faithful to the lord of HermopoUs since I was born, and his every counsel was in my heart. [He] selected me to administer his temple ... and I passed seven years as le-sonis-priest of this god, adminstering his income . .. when all the while a foreign ruler was doniinus over Egypt, and nothing was in its former place. For war had broken out in Egypt: the South raged and the North was in uproar, and people went about bewildered. No temple had its staff, and the priests were di.spersed(?); there was no telling what might happen therein in the future.
Petosiris shepherded his nome through this period of crisis and was later revered as a leading man of his city, "with many dwellings and fields and cattle without number." For the art historian, the tomb and family chapel loom large because they reflect the first impact of Greek art and culture on Egypt. Petosiris survived the arrival of Alexander in Egypt and witnessed the early influx of Greek settlers and their influence. Together with his son and successor, Tachos, he erected the bipartite tomb chapel, with an inner chamber over the sarcophagus dedicated to his ancestors, and an outer transverse hall provided an inter-columnar screen celebrating himself. While the inner chamber is decorated in the traditional Egyptian canon, the outer chamber features scenes from the traditional Egyptian repertoire of agriculture, animal husbandry, and viticulture, rendered under the strong influence of the classical Greek canon. Some aspects, such as the use of profile, echelon, and stance, hark back to a Nilotic past, but the musculature, individual likeness, irregular spac-
PETRIE, WILLIAM MATTHEW FLINDERS 39
PETOSIRIS. Relief front the Tomb ofPetosiris at Tuna el-Gebel. (Courtesy Donald B. Redford)
ing, and costume point to the advent of a classical Greek style. The reliefs are important in demonstrating how, at the beginning of Ptolemaic period, in contrast to what was to come later, even a provincial city such as Hermo-polis, far from the Nile Delta, was open to external influence. BIBLIOGRAPHY Briant, P. Ifistoire cle t'Enipire perse de Cyrus a Alexandra. Paris, 1996. Lefebvre, G. Le toinheau de Petosiris. Paris, 1924. DONALD B. BEDFORD
PETRIE, WILLIAM MATTHEW FLINDERS (1853-1942), archaeologist, bom at Charlton, Kent, on 17 June 1853. His father, William Petrie, was a civil engineer and surveyor; his mother, Anne, was the daughter of Matthew Flinders, the navigator and explorer. Petrie was a delicate child, educated by his parents at home. His mother taught him music, history, and French, and encouraged him in her own hobbies, geology and coincollecting, while his father schooled him in mathematics and science and taught him surveying. Together they measured Stonehenge, and Petrie surveyed ancient earthworks in the West Country. In 1880 he went to Egypt to
test the theory that the Great Pyramid had been built by divine inspiration. He surveyed the whole pyramid field, and his careful measurements refuted the theories of the "British Israelites," which brought him to the attention of scholars. Distressed at the destruction of the monuments by careless excavators and treasurehunters, he eagerly accepted the suggestion of Amelia Edwards, secretary of the newly founded Egypt Exploration Society, that he should excavate at Tanis in the Nile Delta. In his first season (1883-1884), he laid down new principles of scientific excavation in Egypt: careful recording of all finds, even broken objects unfit for museum display, and personal supervision of his workmen, whom he rewarded for what they found. Pottery and potsherds, until then discarded as rubbish, became valuable For relative dating purposes. In the following year, Petrie discovered two Greek cities in the Delta, Naukcratis and Daphne; a wealth of Greek pottery confirmed their identities. When he left the Egypt Exploration Society in 1886, Edwards helped him find private sponsorship. In the Fai-yum Depression, to the west of the Nile, he opened two brick pyramids, found a number of mummies of the Roman period with painted portraits, and excavated a Middle Kingdom town. In 1890, he was persuaded to dig in Palestine; at Tell el-Hesy he cut a section through the
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PETUABASTIS
mound, dating the levels there using recovered pottery from Egypt, with which he was familiar; for this he has been called "the father of Palestinian archaeology." At Tell el-Amama, one winter, he found the palace of Akhenaten, with its painted pavement, and Aegean pottery, which established a chronological link with the Mycenaean world. In 1892, Edwards died; she left money to found a chair of Egyptology at University College, London and wanted the new professor to excavate in Egypt and train students. She made it clear that Petrie was her choice. In 1905, he left the Egypt Exploration Society for good and founded the British School of Archaeology in Egypt; his wife Hilda (Uriin), whom he had married in 1896, acted as its secretary and main fundraiser for the rest of their lives, besides helping him in the field. One of Petrie's most important contributions to archaeological science was his system called Sequence Dating. Another was his discovery of the royal tombs of the first dynasty at Abydos (18991903). Methods and Aims in Archaeology (London, 1904) was to become a textbook for his students, many of whom, having survived the spartan regime of a Petrie camp, became archaeologists of the next generation. Petrie set an example with the prompt publication of his excavation reports; a number of popular books; the journal Ancient Egypt (which he edited); and lectures that fostered public interest in Egyptology. Elected a Fellow of the Royal Society in 1902 and a Fellow of the British Academy in 1904, he was knighted in 1923. In 1935, he moved to Palestine; his last fieldwork was on large tells near the Egyptian frontier. He died on 29 July 1942, and he is buried in Jerusalem, his last home. Petrie's "Journals" and letters from the field (from 1880 to 1926) are in the Griffith Institute, Oxford; copies of these, and his notebooks and diaries, are in the Petrie Museum at University College, London. BIBLIOGRAPHY Drawer, M. S. Flinders Petrie: A Life in Archaeology. London, 1985; reprinted, Madison, 1995. Petrie, W. M. F. Seventy Years in Archaeology. London, 1931. Uphill, E. P. "Bibliography: W. M. F. Petrie." Journal of Near Eastern Studies 31 (1942), 356-379.
twenty-second dynasty. The relationship of Petuabastis I to Sheshonq III is unknown, although they may have been brothers. The seat of the twenty-third dynasty, however, is not certain. Its last ruler, luput II, was named after Petuabastis I's coregent luput I, who reigned at Leontopolis (Tell Moqdam) as Piya's victory stela indicates; the burial of a Queen Kama(ma), mother of Osorkon III(?), was found at Tell Moqdam. Petuabastis I and his entire line probably reigned at Tell Moqdam, other monuments of theirs are known from the Nile Delta and Memphis and not only from Thebes, where it has been suggested that the dynasty may have reigned. In his fifteenth and sixteenth years of reign, Petuabastis I had a short-lived co-regent, luput I. The separate regime of Petuabastis I enabled the rebellious Thebans to withdraw recognition of the twenty-second dynasty kings in favor of the new line. Petuabastis II. This local king in Tanis is known from inscriptions at Tanis, an unfinished statue at Memphis, and blocks at the museum in Copenhagen. Petuabastis II was encountered in Tanis by Assurbanipal, king of Assyria, in 667-666 BCE, and dethroned by him in 665 BCE. He recurred in later Egyptian tradition in four of six Demotic tales in the Inaros-Petuabastis Cycle. The known manuscripts are of Greco-Roman date; one of them also names Esarhaddon of Assyria. Petuabastis III. A minor rebel king of the First Persian Occupation, or twenty-seventh dynasty, Late period, Se-heribre Petuabastis III had a reign of uncertain date. He may have been in power as early as the end of the reign of either Cambyses, who ruled from 525 to 522 BCE, or Darius I, who ruled from 521 to 486 BCE. BIBLIOGRAPHY Habachi, Labib. "Three Monuments of the Unknown King Sehetepibre Pedubastis." Zeitsehrift fur Agyptische Sprache und Altertumskunde 93 (1966), 69-74. Kitchen, K. A. The Third Intermediate Period in Egypt (1100-650 Be). 2d ed. with suppl. Warminster, 1996. Gives essential references with discussions. KENNETH A. KITCHEN
MARGARET S. DROWER
PHARAOH. See Kingship. PETUABASTIS, a name given to several kings of the Third Intermediate Period and Late period, meaning "gift of Bast." Petuabastis I (r. 813-C.773 BCE) first king of the twenty-third (Tanite or Libyan) dynasty of the Third Intermediate Period. The third-century BCE Egyptian historian Ma-netho called the dynasty Tanite, pinpointing the city of Tanis, in the eastern Nile Delta, as the place of family origin (not its capital), implying that it was an offshoot of the
PHILADELPHIA. See Faiyum.
PHILAE, an island at the First Cataract of the Nile (24°02'N, 32°59'E), on the southern frontier of Ancient Egypt, It is the site of the most beautiful of all ancient Egyptian temples. In the 1970s, the architectural structures of the original island were moved to their present
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PHILAE
religious complex devoted to the cult of Osiris. The ritual focus was Biga, the site of the abaton, one of the alleged tombs of Osiris; Philae was dedicated preeminently to Isis, his sister-wife, who became the epitome of the divine wife and mother and thus the most popular of all Egyptian goddesses in the Late and Greco-Roman periods. Although Isis was the major deity of the Philae, the site's location on the frontier between Egypt and Nubia meant that the cults of Nubia also featured on the island, where they were represented by significant cult buildings. The monuments are dominated by the great temple of Isis and its associated structures, which are concentrated in the west and center of the island on, or adjacent to, a granite outcrop which must have been chosen originally as an embodiment of the primeval hill on which the holy-of-holies of all Egyptian temples was claimed to rest. There is some evidence at Philae of cult activity in honor of Amun in the time of the Nubian pharaoh Taharqa who ruled Egypt between 689 and 664 BCE. These meager traces might well mean that the rise of this frontier religious center owed something to the kings of the Nubian twenty-fifth dynasty, to which Taharqa belonged; however, the earliest known cult building in honor of Isis was a small shrine erected in the Saite period by Psamtik II. This was followed by a further small temple on the granite outcrop, erected by Amasis. Therefore, it now seems that the Saite kings introduced the cult of Isis into this area and laid the foundations for her subsequent glorification on the island. The next evidence of building dates to the thirtieth dynasty and takes the form of a kiosk of Nektanebo I, which is now situated at the southwestern end of the main temple, and a gate of the same king embedded in the first pylon of the main temple. The gateway clearly formed part of a thirtieth dynasty enclosure wall, but all these features should be regarded as embellishments to the preexisting Saite temple enclosure, because there seems to be no trace of a substantial temple of thirtieth dynasty date. The building work in the main Isis temple area is overwhelmingly
been claimed that it imitates the waves of the primeval ocean surrounding the primeval hill on which all temples were claimed to rest. The temple shows an intriguing ground plan in that the main building has two axes: the main cult area accessed by the second pylon is skewed northeastward in relation to the court to the south. This feature probably arose from the interaction of several factors: the preexistence of the temple of Amasis; a determination to maintain the granite outcrop as the center of cult activity; and the configuration of the island itself—that is, any expansion of the central shrine to the south would have to be skewed to fit the available space. The temple in its final form is a much expanded structure that is entered by the first pylon (Ptolemy V-VI), which gives access to a court flanked on the left by a mammisi, probably begun by Ptolemy III but expanded and completed by Ptolemy VIII. This structure, typical of late temples, was, for ritual purposes, the site of the birth of Harpocrates, the son of Isis and Osiris. On the eastern side there stands a colonnade probably built by Ptolemy VIII. The much smaller second pylon, probably completed by Ptolemy VI, leads via a court and vestibule to the sanctuary dedicated to Isis and her son Harpocrates. Throughout the main temple area there are many examples of work added during the Roman period: for example, the birth-house contains reliefs dating to the reigns of Augustus and Tiberius, who feature alongside Antoninus in the inner part of the temple; the temple is accessed from the west via a gate associated with the emperors Hadrian, Marcus Aurelius, and Lucius Verus; and the enclosure also contained, to the north, a Claudian temple dedicated to Harendotes, the son of Osiris as champion and protector of his father. In the mid-sixth century CE the island of Isis was Christianized, and a number of churches were dedicated there, including one to the Virgin Mary and one to Saint Stephen, the former being the standard Christian substitute for Isis and the second a highly appropriate replacement for Harendotes. This cultic change brought with it the usual rash of mutilations to the pagan monuments. The buildings of the Isis enclosure are supplemented by numerous
Ptolemaic and forms part of the well-documented Ptolemaic policy of
subsidiary structures. To the south lies the long Outer Court, which now
promoting the Isis cult throughout the kingdom and beyond, although a
forms the main point of access to the temple enclosure. At its southern
substantial amount of the decoration was added in the Roman period.
entrance stands the kiosk of Nektanebo I, removed there no later than the
The core of the Isis temple—everything north of the vestibule—was
reign of Ptolemy XII and flanked by colonnades of Roman date on the
built by Ptolemy II just behind the ancient shrine of Amasis, which was
western and eastern sides. In addition, the eastern colonnade embodies
then demolished. Its decoration, as is normal at this and similar sites,
the remains of a temple of the Nubian god Arensnuphis (Ptolemaic with
was added sporadically for a long time. This temple was surrounded by
some Roman decoration), a well-preserved shrine of Im-hotep (Ptolemy
a brick girdle wall which almost certainly followed the line of that of the
V), and a further cult-place often ascribed on quite inadequate evidence
thirtieth dynasty and showed the undulating pattern in laving the brick
to the Nubian deity Man-dulis.
courses, which was typical of such late structures. This feature may have been used for entirely practical reasons, but it has also
PHILAE 43
PHILAE. Antique depiction of the temple area at Philae. period, and, becuase of the circumstances of its dismantling and There are numerous other buildings to the north, east, and south which are more loosely connected with the enclosure. At the water's
removal, there is possible a unique insight into its architectural
edge on the northeastern section of the island stands a spectacular
evolution until and including its conversion to a Christian center. In
Roman-period gate, which was probably a triumphal arch of Emperor
addition, the voluminous texts and iconography yield much information
Diocletian. There are also a temple dedicated to the cult of Rome and
on the last centuries of pharaonic religious thought and practice. In fact,
Augustus and two Coptic churches, as well as the remains of a Coptic
Philae was the last bastion of ancient Egyptian culture, and it is no
monastery. To the east of the great enclosure wall lies a temple of
coincidence that the latest datable hieroglyphic inscription (24 August
Hathor (Ptolemy VI/VIII and early Roman), a deity with close affinities
394 CE) comes from Philae.
with Isis who was associated, in particular, with the neighboring island of Biga. Finally, to the south of Hathor's temple and overlooking the Nile stands a beautiful but unfinished kiosk often ascribed to Trajan; it certainly received such decoration as it has in his reign, but the building itself may well be earlier. In addition to these major structures, the original island of Philae also contained mud-brick settlement remains on the northern part of the island and to the east and southeast. These areas would originally have housed the staff that served the temple, but the remains that were extant until the floodwaters destroyed them are described in the literature as Roman and Christian. It is difficult to overrate the importance of the religious complex at Philae. It provides us with a major late cult center which is exceptionally well-preserved. Beginning in the Saite period and continuing into the thirtieth dynasty, it underwent a spectacular flowering in the GrecoRoman
BIBLIOGRAPHY Bernand, A. Les inscriptions grecques de Philae. Vol. 1, Epoques ptolemaiques. Vol. 2, Haut et Bas Empire. Paris, 1969. This collection includes inscriptions from the Ptolemaic period to the late Roman Empire. Giammarusti, Antonio, and Alessandro Roccati. File, storia e vita di un santuario egiiio. Rome, 1980. Good, well-illustrated survey of the history and salvage of the site. Haeny, Gerhard. "A Short Architectural History of Philae." Bulletin de I'lnstitut Francois d'Archeologie Orientate 18 (1985), 197-233. An invaluable short account of the archaeological data gleaned from moving the temple to its new site. Iversen, E. Obelisks in Exile: The Obelisks of Istanbul and England. Copenhagen, 1972. Contains a discussion of the Philae obelisk now in Kingston Lacy, Dorset. Lyons, H. G. A Report on the Island Temples of Philae. Cairo, 1896. Like the following citation, an important early survey of the monuments on the site that is still of great value. Lyons, H. G. A Report on the Island Temples of Philae. Cairo, 1908. Porter, Bertha, and Rosalind L. B. Moss. Topographical Bibliography
44 PHOENICIA of Ancient Egyptian Hieroglyphic Texts, Reliefs and Paintings. Vol. 6, Upper Egypt: Chief Temples. Oxford, 1939-1970, pp. 202-256. Minutely detailed but not quite up-to-date guide to the site. Vassilika, Eleni. Ptolemaic Philae. Orientalia Lovaniensia Analecta, 34. Leuven, 1989. A pioneering study of the architecture, iconography, and work methods employed in the Ptolemaic buildings. Zabkar, L. V. Hymns to Isis in Her Temple at Philae. Hanover, N.H., and London, 1987. Analysis of eight early Ptolemaic hymns, with much useful discussion of Isis theology. ALAN B. LLOYD
PHOENICIA. See Lebanon.
PIETY. The concept of piety in ancient Egypt could be defined as a personal, individual expression of faith in and devotion to a deity, as opposed to institutionalized religious practice, which was traditionally the preserve of the king. The monarch was responsible for the maintenance of maat—the order of the universe, both cosmic and social, as established by the creator at creation—which included the maintenance of the relationship between the gods and humankind. This was achieved via the temple rituals conducted, in theory, by the king, but in practice by priests who acted for him. The ordinary person had no role in this activity. Historical Developments. Evidence for personal religion prior to the New Kingdom is limited. Some personal names, which in ancient Egyptian are often theophoric, hint at a personal relationship between the deity and the bearer of the name. These names are particularly common in the Late period: for example, Padiese, "he, whom Isis gave" (Greek, Isidore). Yet some are attested from earliest times: for example, Shed-netjer, "whom the god rescues" (from the first dynasty); from the Old Kingdom there were the names Khui-wi-Ptah (or -Re, -Horns, -Khnum, or -Sobek), "may Ptah (or Re, Horus, etc.) protect me." A few texts of the Middle Kingdom also make brief references to personal worship. The paucity of evidence for personal religion prior to the New Kingdom can be explained by the limits set by what John Baines (1985) defined as "decorum," a set of rules regarding what could and could not be expressed in image and/or text in certain contexts. These guidelines can be illustrated in the way deities appeared on nonroyal monuments. Until the Middle Kingdom, decorum excluded the possibility for nonroyal persons to depict deities on their monuments; they appeared only in texts, almost exclusively of a funerary nature, or in the form of their emblems. Not until the end of the Middle Kingdom were the first representations of nonroyal persons worshiping a deity inscribed on nonroyal stelae. Even there, a barrier usually in the form of a column of inscription
and/or an offering table separated the worshiper from the deity. Not until the early New Kingdom and onward did images of deities regularly appear on nonroyal monuments. Personal religion was encouraged by New Kingdom developments that contributed to a gradual breaking down of the barriers that separated individual and deity, such as the evolution and growth of festival processions of the deities. During the New Kingdom, evidence survives for a burgeoning of such processions, when the divine images were brought out of the seclusion of their temples and carried in a portable boat-shrine along a processional way. Although the images were hidden from view in the cabins of the boats (or barks, as they are often called), the ordinary person could approach them and seek the advice of the deity on all manner of personal issues, through an oracle. Among the earliest literary evidence for personal piety in the New Kingdom are limestone ostraca, dated paleo-graphically to the pre-Amama period, which carry short prayers addressed to the god Amun. These ostraca may have been placed along the processional way taken by the god, and they bear some of the earliest sentiments of love and devotion to a deity: "Amun-Re, you are the beloved one, you are the only one!" The growth of personal piety was accompanied by a diminution of the exclusive role of the king and official religion. As Jan Assmann (1984) has pointed out, one of the aims of King Akhenaten was to reverse that trend and restore to the monarch the central role in religion, as the mediator between the one god Aten and the people. His reform failed, indeed it succeeded in achieving the exact opposite—people were not prepared to abandon their old deities, and, since the official cults of the old gods were proscribed by the king, people were forced to turn to them directly. This situation probably explains the explosion of evidence for personal piety in both post-Amarna and Ramessid times, the latter dubbed by James H. Breasted in 1912 "the age of personal piety." The trauma of the Amarna period and its aftermath doubtless also contributed to the atmosphere of uncertainty that is evident in the following historical period. That uncertainty was illustrated by theophoric names, which contain the verb sd ("rescue," "save"), names such as Shed-su-Amun ("may Amun save him"). Although sporadically met in earlier periods, such names were most frequently used in the New Kingdom (Ranke 1935. p. 330 f.). The letter of the scribe Butehamun to the captain of the bowmen Shedsu-Hor ("may Horus save him") also reflected this phenomenon (Wente 1990, p. 196), as did the emergence of the god Shed, the personification of the concept of the rescuing activity of a deity demonstrated in the study of Hellmut Brunner (1958, pp. 17-19). The
PIETY 45 inscriptions of Si-mut Kiki (Wilson 1970) provide a particularly good example of some of the perceived dangers and illustrate the concept of a chosen personal deity, to whom the devotee was particularly attached and from whom protection was sought, a wellattested phenomenon of piety that made its first appearance at that time. As Assmann pointed out (1989, p. 75 ff.), a further religious development in the New Kingdom generated a change in the role of maat. Whereas it was previously held that one's fate depended on one's behavior (if one lived a life in accordance with the principles of maat then one would perforce flourish; if one transgressed against it one would be punished—the king being the one who upheld maat and meted out punishment), instead one came to be seen as directly responsible to the deity, who personally intervened in the individual's life and punished wrongdoing. The misfortunes from which people then needed to be saved were not only those of an impersonal kind but also included divine wrath, meted out as punishment for perceived wrongdoing. Sources. Archaeological sources for the practice of piety have survived in the form of shrines and votive offerings, but for a proper understanding of the phenomenon we are dependent on literary sources. These are varied, including biographical inscriptions, hymns, inscriptions on scarabs. Wisdom Literature and, in particular, the prayers (often penitential) of individuals. A very good example in a hymn may be found in those to Amun in the Leiden Papyrus (Prichard 1969, p. 369). The most important Wisdom teaching is that of Amenemope (Lichtheim 1976, pp. 146163). The prayers of individuals, inscribed on stelae dedicated to the deity as votive offerings, are very similar to the biblical penitential psalms expressing sorrow for wrongdoing and thanks for forgiveness. The bulk of our evidence comes from the Deir elMedina, in Western Thebes, from the village of the workmen who built the tombs of the kings. This bias is due primarily to the chance of good preservation of the site, rather than to any unique religious development that may have taken place there, although the fact that Thebes probably suffered from the excesses of the Amama period more than other places may also have been a factor. Ashraf Sadek (1987) presented the evidence from other locations, among which the Wepwawet sanctuary at Assyut (where more than six hundred small stelae were discovered) was particularly significant. The Elements of the Prayers. The following themes and terminology are regularly encountered in the prayers, hymns, and votive offerings: 1. The introductory words of praise and appeal to the deity often include a description of the deity who is
said to be "one who hears petitions (nhwt)," "who comes at the voice of the poor (nmhw) in need," "who comes at the voice of him who calls to him." 2. In the description of the transgressor, the writer claims to be a "silent one," that is, a devout person (gr); a poor, humble person (nmhw). By way of apology, the claim is made to be ignorant and senseless (iwty hyty), to be one who does not know good (nfr) from evil (bin). 3. The writer confesses to having committed an act of transgression (sp n thi), to having done what is abhorrent or "taboo" (bty or bwt), to having sworn falsely ('rk m 'dy) by the deity. 4. The deity punishes the transgression, often with sickness; very frequent is the expression "seeing darkness by day," an image for separation from the deity. 5. A promise is made to proclaim the might of the deity to all the world, to "son and daughter, the great and small, generations not yet born," to "the fish in the water and the birds in the air," to "the foolish and the wise." 6. An account is given of answer to prayer—the deity is said to respond to the pleas of the petitioner and "to come as a sweet breeze" to be "merciful" (htp) to "turn" ('n) to the petitioner "in peace" (htp). The Deities. There was a range of deities, from the major gods and goddesses worshiped throughout Egypt (such as Amun-Re, Ptah, Hathor, Thoth, Osiris, Wepwawet, Horakhty and Haoeris) to local deities (such as Mer-etseger, the personification of the western mountain, "the Peak," at Thebes). Also worshipped were deified kings, such as Amenhotpe I and less commonly, mortals, such as Amenophis, Son of Hapu, an official of Amenhotpe III. Amun was popularly worshiped in his forms py rhn nfr ("the goodly ram") and smn nfr n 'Imn ("the goodly goose of Amun"). The prevalence of the former was based on his animal symbol, the ram, being the most public form of the god. It decorated the prow and stern of his portable bark, and the avenues leading to his temples in Thebes were lined with statues of rams. The god Thoth, patron of scribes, was favored by this profession, and prayers to him appear in the Ramessid schooling literature. The Petitioners. One of the terms by which petitioners regularly referred to themselves in the penitential prayers was nmhw, "a poor, humble person." This does not mean that piety was a religion of the poor, since they would not have had the means to commission the monuments that provide us with our data. The people from Deir el-Medina who called themselves nmhw were relatively well-situated artisans, and most of the dedications found in the shrines around the Great Sphinx at Giza are by
46
PIETY
people of middle, lower-middle, or low rank, but even the viceroy of Nubia Huy, addressed a prayer of personal piety to his master, the king Tutankhamun. The king was also involved in this movement: Ramesses II's record of the Battle of Kadesh, inscribed on temple walls and pylons, did on a massive scale what the small votive stelae of the ordinary person did more modestly. In the prayer of Ramesses III to Amun at Karnak, sentiments and expressions are found that parallel those of the nonroyal prayers. Other terms used to designate the ideal god-fearing pious person were mfty, " a just one," comparable to the sadiq, "just," of the biblical tradition; 1fbhw, "the cool, quiet one"; and gr or gr my', "the silent one" or "the one who is justly silent." Their antithesis is sm or sm 1-3, "the hot or hot-mouthed one." The term "the silent one" is found in prayers of personal piety but is even better known from the wisdom teachings; it refers to those who do not assert themselves but who place their trust in the divine, recognize the supreme free will of a deity, and are totally submissive to that will. That attitude is succinctly summarized in chapter 25 of the Instructions of Amene-mope: "For man is clay and straw, God is his builder; he pulls down, he builds in a moment. He makes a thousand insignificant as he wishes, he makes a thousand people overseers when he is in his hour of life. Happy is he who reaches the West [i.e., the grave] being safe in the hand of god." There, worldly success—once seen as the result of correct behavior, of a life lived in accordance with maat— is held to be totally in the gift of a god; not success, then, but rather an unbroken relationship with a god, was the true mark of a successful life. The model frequently used for the relationship between the individual and a deity is that of servant (byk) and master (nb); as does a servant his master, so the devout person "follows" (sm.s) and is "loyal" to (sms hr mw/mtn) a deity. The confessions of fault in the penitential prayers refer to "actual sin"; the reference is always to some concrete, individual act or an inner thought or personal attitude. A concept of "general sin" is not found (i.e., the concept of the existence of a barrier between humankind and the divine that is not the result of an individual deed or thought but of the general condition of humankind—the Christian concept of "original sin"). The closest to the latter would be the statement on the stela of Nebra, that "the servant is disposed to do evil" (Lichtheim 1976, p. 106). Locations of Cults. Ashraf Sadek (1987) has collected the evidence for the locations of cults of personal piety. They include nonofficial shrines (such as the small chapels erected by groups of individuals at Deir el-Medina or the tiny shrines set up along the path from Deir el-Medina to the Valley of the Kings), as well as places provided at official cult centers (such as the eastern temple at Karnak,
dedicated to Amun and "Ramesses who hears petitions," or the monumental eastern gateway at Deir el-Medina, with its relief of "Ptah who hears petitions"). At the Tenth Pylon at Karnak, two individuals—Amenhotep, son of Hapu, and Piramesse—set up statues of themselves to act as mediators between the great god Amun and petitioners. The regular festival processions of the deities were also important occasions for the practice of personal religion; the promise in many of the penitential prayers—to make a public proclamation of the experienced greatness and mercy of the deity—was most probably fulfilled at such processions. The stela of Pataweret (Brunner 1958, pp. 6-12) from the Wepwawet sanctuary at Asyut provides valuable data on this aspect of personal religion. Divided into three registers, the bottom one depicts Pataweret's experience of the saving intervention of Wepwawet, called "the savior," who rescued him from being taken by a crocodile. The other two registers show where he expressed his thanks to the god. In the middle one he is shown alone, praying before an image of the god at a shrine. In the top register he is shown publicly praising the god during a procession. Although compositions comparable to those of personal piety in the Ramessid era are not known from later periods, many of the sentiments found in them appear in later biographical texts, and their formulas of piety live on in some of the Greco-Roman temple inscriptions. [See also Cults; Ethics and Morality; Hymns; and. Religion.] BIBLIOGRAPHY Assma.nn. Jan. Agyptische Hyninen und Gehete. Zurich, 1975. The most comprehensive collection of translations into a modern language of ancient Egyptian hymns and prayers; those dealing with piety are on pages 349-4.1.7. Assmann, Jan, Agypten: Tlieologie und Fronunlgkeit einer'frill-ten Hochktdtur. Stuttgart, 1984. An excellent treatment of ancient Egyptian religion, including piety. Assmann, Jan. "State and Religion in the New Kingdom." In Religion and Philosophy in Ancient Egypt, James P. Alien, et al.., pp. 55-88. Yale Egyptological Studies, 3. New Haven, 1989. A stimulating-study on religious developments in the New Kingdom. Baines, John. Fecundity Figures. Warminster, 1985. Baines, John. "Society, Morality, and Religious Practice." In Religion in Ancient Egypt: Gods, Myths, and Personal Practice, edited by By-ran E. Shafer, pp. 123-200. Ithaca, 199]. Considers piety within the larger context of ancient Egyptian society. Breasted, James H. The Development of Religion and Thought in Ancient Egypt. New York, 1912. Brunner, Hellmut. "Eine Dankstele an Upuaut." Milleitungen des Deutschen Archaologisclien instil uts, Abteilung Kairo 16 (1958), 5-19; reprinted in Hellmut Bmnnei; Das Horende Hen, pp. 173-188. Orbis biblicus et orientalis, 80. Freiburg and Giittingen, 1988. An important study on piety in tlie New Kingdom, which also traces the development of the god Shai, the personification of divine rescue. Brunner, Hellmut. "Personl.iche Fr&rnrnigkeit." In Lexikon der Agyp-
PIGS 47 lologie, 4: 951-963. Wiesbaden, .1982. A detailed article providing comprehensive references to sources on piety. Lichtheim, Miriam. Ancient Egyptian Literature: A Book of Readings. Vol. II, The Nev Kingdom. Berkeley, 1976. A modem and reliable translation of Egyptian texts, including a selection dealing with piety. Prichard, J. B., ed. Ancient Near Eastern Texts Relating To the Old Testament. Princelon, 1979. Ranke, Hermann. Die Agyptischen Pe.rsoiieniiam.en. Vols. 1-2. Gluckstadt, 1935 and 1952. Volume 1 gives a dictionary of names. Volume II is a comprehensive study of the meaning of ancient Egyptian names. Sadek, Ashraf Iskander. Popular Religion in Egypt during the New Kingdom. Hildesheim, 1987. A comprehensive study of all aspects of personal religion in Egypt. Wente, Edward, Letters from Ancient Egypt. Atlanta, 1990. Wilson, John A. "The Theban Tomb (No. 49) of Si-Mut, Called Kiki," Journal of Near Eastern Studies 29 (1970), 187-192. BOYO OCKINGA
PIGS. Although much has been written about the relationship between people and "pigs" (SJ], n'(t), and jph) in pharaonic Egypt, it is only in recent decades that some longstanding misconceptions have been exposed. It is now generally accepted that the local breed of domestic pig (Sus domesticus) descended from an indigenous progenitor, the wild boar (Sus scrofa), which formerly abounded in the Nile Delta, the Wadi Natrun, the Faiyum, and elsewhere. It became extinct around 1900, as a result of over-hunting. The oldest domestic pig remains presently known in Egypt come from the large settlement site of Merimda Beni Salama (western Delta), initially occupied in the early fifth millennium BCE. That pork formed an important element in the diet of some Predynastic Egyptians is confirmed by the presence of pig remains at sites throughout the country, particularly in Lower Egypt. In the Predynastic and Early Dynastic cemetery at Manshiyet Abu Omar (eastern Delta), burials of the poor frequently contain pig bones, while those of the elite have cattle bones. Pig meat may always have been regarded in ancient Egypt as table fare for those of humble station. A small number of votive pig figurines, of first dynasty date, have been recovered from several temple sites. Textual and zooarchaeological evidence indicates that pig-farming continued to be practiced during the Old and Middle Kingdoms. Swine are, however, conspicuously absent from the panoramic scenes of daily life decorating the tomb-chapels of the privileged classes of these epochs, nor are they mentioned in their extensive offering-list menus. Pigs were evidently regarded as an unclean food for the pious dead who sought to keep ritually pure in the beyond. The origin of this prohibition is obscure, but the pig's legendary associations with grubbing, dirt, and filth
may have prompted its lowly status, especially in religious and funerary contexts. This taboo varied over time, was probably never absolute, and may have applied exclusively to a certain segment of society, such as priests, or only at particular times of the year. It appears to have escalated sharply during the Late Dynastic period and beyond; the ancient Greek historian Herodotus (II, 47) also remarked on Egypt's underclass of swineherds. In the New Kingdom, information on pigs in Egyptian animal husbandry expands considerably. Inscriptions indicate that temples and wealthy citizens maintained large numbers of them on their country estates. The tomb-chapels of several notables of the first half of the eighteenth dynasty illustrate swine alongside other farmyard beasts. Pigs are also portrayed being driven over newly sown fields, treading seed into the muddy soil, a practice still current a thousand years later when Herodotus (II, 14) visited the country. Excavations during the 1980s in the workers' village at Akhenaten's capital at Tell el-Amarna have revealed an extensive pig-farm. Other evidence suggests the widespread consumption of pork, at least among the less affluent. Pig-breeding continued to be a relatively important economic activity in Egypt through the Greco-Roman period. In Egyptian mythology, the male pig was regarded as a symbol of evil. In Spell 157 of the Coffin Texts, and later in the Book of Going Forth by Day (Book of the Dead, chapter 1.12), the typhonic god Seth transforms himself into a black boar in his conflict with the sky god Horus. Reliefs on Horus's Ptolemaic period temple at Edfu show him triumphing over Seth, who is in the form of a large boar. Many scholars have interpreted this myth as the underlying cause for the selective shunning of pig meat in ancient Egypt. Conversely, beginning in the Third Intermediate Period, delightful statuettes and amulets in the shape of a rooting sow nursing her litter of piglets were popular; they represent the sky goddess. Nut, although some identify them with Isis. These objects were thought to endow their owners with fecundity. BIBLIOGRAPHY Bonneau, Danielle. "La sacrifice du pore et Liloition en Pachon." Chroniijiie d'Egypte 66 (1991), 330-340. Discusses the pig as a rare sacrificial animal, and the question of pork consumption in ancient Egypt. Firriage, Edwin. "Zoology (Fauna)." In The Anchor Bible Dictionary, edited by David Noel Freedman, vol. 6, pp. 1109-1167. New York and London, 1992. A thorough review of pigs in the ancient Near East, including Egypt, with special attention to pork prohibition. Hecker, H. M. "A Zooarchaeological Inquiry Into Pork Consumption in Egypt from Prehistoric to New Kingdom Times." Journal of the American Research Center in Egypt 19 (1982), 59-71. Survey of zooarchaeological evidence for pigs in ancient Egypt. Heick, Wolfgang. "Ein Verlorenes Grab in Theben-West TT 145 des Ot'fiziers Neb-Amun unter Thutmosis III." Antike Welt: Zeitsclirift
48
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fur Archdologie und Kttlturgeschichte 27.2 (1996), 73-85. Includes an excellent overview of the pig in pharaonic civilization, with many references. Houlihan, Patrick F. The Animal World of the Pharaohs. London and New York, 1996. The chapter devoted to farmyard animals includes swine; extensive bibliography. Ikram, Salima. Choice Cuts: Meat Production in Ancient Egypt. Orien-talia Lovaniensia Anacleta, 69. Leuven, 1995. Stresses that the archaeological and textual records prove that pigs were readily consumed in ancient Egypt, despite Herodotus's report. Miller, Robert L. "Hogs and Hygiene." Journal of Egyptian Archaeology 76 (1990), 125-140. Important study on the value of pigs in the subsistence economy of the workmen's villages at Deir el-Medina and Tell el-Amama. Redding, R. W. "The Role of the Pig in the Subsistence System of Ancient Egypt; A Parable on the Potential of Faunal Data." In Animal Use and Culture Change, edited by Pam J. Crabtree and Kathleen Ryan, pp. 2030. MASCA Research Papers in Science and Archaeology 8, Supplement. Philadelphia, 1991. Survey of pig use in ancient Egypt and its relationship to political centralization. Sirnoons, Frederick J. Eat Not This Flesh: Food Avoidances from Prehistory to the Present. 2d. ed. Madison, 1994. Interesting discussion on pork avoidance in the ancient Near East, including Egypt. te Velde, Herman. "Some Egyptian Deities and Their Piggishness." In Intellectual Heritage of Egypt: Studies Presented to iMsslo Kakosy by Friends and Colleagues on the Occasion of His 60th Birthday, edited by Ulrich Luft, pp. 571-578. Studia Aegyptiaca, 14. Budapest, 1992. The author studies the "piggishness" of the gods and the associations of the pig with Seth and other deities. PATRICK F. HOULIHAN
PIRAMESSE. From the early days of Egyptology, continuing attempts were made to locate the position of the Ramessid capital called "The House of Ramesses Beloved of Amun Great of Victories." It was believed to be identical with the biblical city called "Ramesses," from which the Israelites departed Egypt on their Exodus. In the Nile Delta, the vast ruins of Tanis, the region around Pelusium, and the frontier forts of Sile, Tell el-Maskhuta and Tell el-Rotaba, all situated on the eastern edge of the Nile Delta, were in turn identified and then dismissed as Piramesse. The French archeologist Pierre Montet insisted that Tanis was indeed the only Ramessid city that could be considered a candidate, because of the enormous numbers of Ramessid architectural fragments that he had uncovered there. Excavations in the vicinity of the modem village of Qantjr, led by the Egyptian Egyptologists Mahmoud Hamza (1928) and Labib Habachi (1940-1943), uncovered parts of palaces as well as dwellings of high Ramessid officials and brought the region of Qantir into focus. This work was continued, with a detailed evaluation of archeological remains within the region's topography, by the Austrian Egyptologist Manfred Bietak (since 1966). With further progress of the excavations at Tanis and Qantir, all data led to the final localization of the Ramessid capital in the region between Qanti and elKhata'na,
which has come to be generally accepted. Qantir/Pi-ramesse, the central area of which covers more than 10 square kilometers, is about 100 kilometers (65 miles) northeast of Cairo and about 80 kilometers (50 miles) west of Ismailia, not far from Faqus, in Sharkijeh province. In cooperation with the Egyptian Antiquities Organization and in collaboration with the Austrian mission, the Pelizaeus Museum initiated intensive work in the endangered archeological zone. Francis L. I. Griffith, the British scholar, could still note on an inspection of the area in 1886 that one finds at Qantir a low tell (settlement mound), which continues without interruption as far south as el-Khata'na, more than 2 kilometers (1.5 miles) to the south of Qantir. Today the area is almost completely leveled and prepared for agricultural exploitation, except for very limited remains at Tell ed-Dab'a. Already in antiquity, specifically during the twenty-first dynasty, most of the stone masonry, statues, obelisks, and the like had been removed from Piramesse to build new residences in such sites as Tanis and Bubastis. During the course of nineteen field seasons since 1980, five excavation sites have been opened; two of these were labeled Q I and Q IV, respectively. Both major sites contain, from top to bottom, badly damaged remains of cemeteries, followed by a more or less preserved habitation level; beneath this is a chariot garrison with attached multifunctional workshops and extensive horse stables; and below that is a foundry with installations for the industrial production and casting of bronze (Q I) and glass (Q IV). The latest excavations have revealed the remains of a palace-like structure below the royal stud (Q IV), comprising further stables, pillared halls, and a room with a polychrome stucco floor, including goldplating. These latter elements can. be dated to the reign of Ramesses II by inscriptions and are most likely connected to the systematic building activities of the new residence. They may also reflect a technological transfer in regard to metal processing. Evidence for this is provided by vast installations that demonstrate the melting of bronze by heating open crucibles from above, and the use of specialized furnaces for heating large-scale casting molds. Those installations cover an area well over 30,000 square meters and are unique in antiquity for their hightemperature technology and size. Altogether, the strata represent a period of a more than three hundred years of settlement history, from about 1300 BCE to the beginning of the first millennium, from the latter part of the eighteenth dynasty to the early twentieth. Earlier occupation levels (Middle Kingdom and Second Intermediate Period) are to be found at Tell ed-Dab'a. Traces of connections to foreign cultures and countries of the eastern Mediterranean are well documented at Pi-
PIRAMESSE 49 ramesse. Particularly interesting in this regard is the occupation level labeled the Chariot Garrison. Three large contemporary functional units may be distinguished. The north of site Q I contains a peristyle court lined with octagonal pillars which protected polychrome wall paintings from the frequent, sometimes violent rainstorms. The pillars show on their four principal sides the royal protocol of Ramesses II in a version that dates its erection to his first sect-festival in regnal Year 30. The clearest indication of the use of this court for chariotry, in addition to the numerous objects recovered, is the prints of horses' hooves in parts of the courtyard floor. The second functional unit—multifunctional workshops with intra-craft and cross-craft specialization—is situated within the south part of Q I. These include fireplaces of various types, crucibles of various types, tyeres, layers of ashes and burnt clay, slag, charcoal, casting molds, scrap metal, and recycled bronze objects, all of which indicate the presence of foundries in which not just bronze but also gold, silver, and glass were being produced or worked. Regional concentrations of humus layers, dunghills, and latrines, in combination with stone and bronze knives, hatchets, scrapers, and sickle blades, point to the processing of organic materials such as wood, leather, or reeds. Stone detritus such as flakes and nodules of flint, blue chalcedony, different varieties of camelian and agate, fragments of alabaster still bearing saw marks, smashed pieces of desert boulders, drill cores from rock crystal, pressure stones of bow-drills and their crescents, ball-hammers, and anvils suggest a wide spectrum of raw materials, techniques, and occupations. A specialized area served for the working of animal bones, receiving some of its raw material from a nearby zoo in which elephants, lions, gazelles, and other wild animals were kept. Taken as a whole, this cross-craft workshop reveals an interrelated web of dependent processes, linked together like a modern assembly line to repair and produce chariots and their equipment as well as bronze and glass. The third functional unit at site Q IV comprises within an area of more than fifteen thousand square meters six rows of twelve rectangular rooms each, a column hall being situated at the western end of each row. The function of this architectural complex, which has no known parallel, can be inferred from the whitewashed floors, tethering stones, and "toilets" built of limestone inside these rooms: all of them—column halls as well as the slender rectangular rooms—are to be designated as "stable rooms," the whole being a royal stud housing a minimum of almost 460 horses and their grooms. Finds of chariot finials include yoke saddle knobs and yoke knobs, mainly carved of alabaster, limestone, or marble. Similarly numerous planoconvex discs, made of the same materials, once decorated the terminal ends of the wooden frame of the chariot's
floor frame. Gold-plated bronze buttons, nailheads covered with gold leaf, punched gold bands, and rivets, together with a oncegilded linchpin, reveal that in addition to standard chariot types, lavishly decorated parade chariots were also manufactured and used here. This conclusion can be further verified by the recovery of a functioning pair of horse bits along with a nave cap made of bronze. Numerous weapons—short swords, arrows, javelins, and lance heads—as well as pieces of scaled body armor belonging to helmets and cuirasses, complete the picture of the charioteers' armory. Correlating the information gained by excavations to ancient Egyptian texts, we can recognize the architecture and its contents as the "armory" and at the same time the "headquarters of thy (the king's) chariotry," described in the hymns of Piramesse. Within the workshop we note limestone molds for embossing metal sheets, which are unparalleled in the cultural record of the ancient Near East. The identification of the designs engraved into these slabs is possible through Egyptian reliefs depicting Hittite soldiers carrying a shield whose outline exactly resembles the design and proportion of tine motif found on the limestone slabs; it is comparable also to the orthostats found at Zencirii, on which the Hittite weather god wears the homed crown and is armed with a lance, a short sword, and the same Hittite figure-eight shield. The Amama Letters contain lists of gifts sent by Tusratta, king of Mitanni, to Amenhotpe III, naming alongside other costly items, "nine leather shields, the urukmanmi of which are of bronze." Therefore I identify the Human word urukmannu with those metal parts that were produced by embossing bronze sheets using the above described molds, hammers, and punches, also found at Piramesse. Their presence within this metropolis can only be understood as proof that Egyptians and Hittites worked peacefully, side by side. This holds true also for the motif on the back side of the molds, depicting a highly stylized head of a bull, symbol of the Hittite weather god. The most likely explanation for the peaceful presence of Hittites in Egypt's Ramessid capital is the occasion of the diplomatic marriage between Ramesses II and the eldest daughter of the Hittite king Hattusili III, Maat-hor-nofru-re, which took place in regnal Year 34 of Ramesses II. In several texts, particular emphasis is placed on the friendly encounter of the formerly hostile troops, enabling the ancient historians to state that "both lands had become one (and the same) land." The shield molds with the Hittite motifs must have been used to maintain the shields of the Hittites who served as a palace or body guard for the queen in the Ramessid residence, an outward expression of the friendly union between the two superpowers of the day.
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Finds from the Mycenaean world are also present in abundance, most of them in the form of potter)7; there is also a scale of a Mycenaean boar's-tusk helmet. We also have evidence for the cults of several foreign deities, such as a relief depicting a statue of Astarte, the ancient Near Eastern goddess of war and love and protectress of the royal horse team, mounted on horseback; in addition, the name of the ancient Near Eastern god of war, Resheph, was found on a limestone door post. The former object is the archeological manifestation of a passage in one of the hymns of Piramesse, telling us that "Astarte [is situated] in her (the city's) east." Since the hieroglyphic name of Astarte is also preserved on one of the palmiform columns of the stable, it may be assumed that the stable at least was protected by this goddess. Altogether, we have more than circumstantial proof that the hymns on Piramesse are accurate in describing its splendor, contents, layout, and size, comparing Piramesse to other Egyptian cities such as Thebes, Memphis, and Heliopolis. Since 1996, the size and layout of the Ramessid metropolis has been further investigated in cooperation with the Bayerisches Landesamt fur Denkmalpflege, Munich, using a caesium magnetometer (SMART SM4G). With this device, sun-dried mudbrick walls, foundation pits filled with sand, and similar features of lower magnetism are clearly to be differentiated from cultural layers with higher magnetism. This enables us not only to measure but also to draw the outlines of individual buildings as well as the ground plans of city districts. Covering an area of almost 100 hectares, the investigated fields contain a palace area, vast living quarters consisting of villas and houses of the Amama type, with courtyards, gardens, streets, avenues, channels, and perhaps parts of a harbor. Several official buildings of still unknown function, one of them resembling in part the North Palace of Tell el-Amarna, and another one comparable to the so-called Foreign Office depicted in the tomb of Tjai at Thebes, are situated to the south of Q I and Q IV. It is hoped that the continuation of the magnetic investigation will lead to a map covering at least the city center with its area of more than 10 square kilometers. BIBLIOGRAPHY Bietak, Marifired. Avaris and Pirainesse, 2d ed. Oxford, 1986. Haye.s, W. C. Glai.e.d Tiles from a Palace of Ramesses 11 at Kantir. New York, 1937. Pusch, Edgar B. "Auslandisches Kulturgut in Qanlir-Piramesse." In Akten Mimcheri /985, edited by S. Schoske pp. 249-256. Hamburg, 1989. Pusch, Edgar B. "Bend-it liter die sechste Hauptkampagne in Qantir' Piramesse-Nord herbst 1988." Gottinger Misvllen 112 (1.989), 67-90. Uphill, Eric P. The Temples of Per Rciniesses. Wanninster, 1984. EDGAR B. PUSCH
PITHOM. Modern Tell el-Maskhuta was known anciently as Per Atum (hence biblical Pithom), Tukw ("The Estate of Atum in Tkw" [biblical Sukkoth]), Greek Heron-polis (Eroopolis, Heroon), and Roman Ero (Hero). This multicomponent stratified site (30°33'N, 32°60'E) in the Wadi Tumilat region of the eastern Nile Delta was occupied during the last two-thirds of the seventeenth centmy BCE, and again from around 610 BCE to perhaps the early fourth century CE. It experienced brief periods of decline in the fifth century BCE and again in the first century BCE through the first century CE. Probably founded in connection with overland trade to southern Arabia during the Hyksos period, it was a control point and entrepot on the sea-level canal of Necho II, which ran from the Nile to the head of the Red Sea via the Wadi Tumilat and the Bitter Lakes region. Tell el-Maskhuta was the first site excavated by the Egypt Exploration Society (Edouard Naville, 1.883). Prior to World War I, Jean Cledat conducted excavations, apparently largely in the temple precincts, which yielded numerous museum specimens but little of scholarly substance. More recently, the Egyptian Antiquities Organization, now the Supreme Council of Antiquities, has conducted numerous excavations in the northern cemetery, along the Ismailia Canal, and in a number of areas in and on the margins of the modern village. Most current knowledge of the site derives from a major series of surveys and excavations conducted by a multidisciplinary University of Toronto team directed by John S. Holla-day, Jr. Second Intermediate Period Occupation. During the Second Intermediate Period (Middle Bronze IIB), a small—roughly 2 hectares—unfortified village with strong Near Eastern or Hyksos characteristics occupied the center of what was to become the fortified site. It was essentially a self-subsistent entity, with numerous silos and, in the earlier strata, entombments within individual ownership plots (much as at Tell ed-Dab'a during the earlier occupational periods). Judging from plant remains preserved in cooking-fire ashes, the village was seasonal, with no occupation during the summer months. Farming (wheat and barley) and animal husbandry (cattle, sheep and goats, pigs, donkeys, and at least one horse) formed a major part of the local economy, although they were not, apparently, the major reason for the site's existence. Hunted animals included a small hartebeest, ostriches, and gazelle, reflecting a semi-arid savanna setting; and a variety of migratory waterfowl, indicating the regional presence of small lakes or swamps. At least some pottery—the local pottery constituted a subset of the Tell ed-Dab'a repertory—was made on site, and there is evidence for other industrial pursuits, such as weaving on the (non-
PITHOM 51 Egyptian) warp-weighted loom, and secondary copper-smelting. Flint blades (mostly segmented sickle blades) apparently arrived at the site fully formed; they were locally hatted or rehafted. That the inhabitants were not simple peasant farmers seems most evident from the burials, which were rich and mostly in tombs. These followed Near Eastern patterns, including ass burials outside of early "warrior" tombs, and were characterized by strong age and sex patterns in the distribution of grave goods. Bronze daggers, a battle-axe, knives, toggle-pins, and other items characterized most adult burials, with. amulets being reserved for juveniles. Gold and silver headbands and armbands, earrings, rings, and scarab mounts were not uncommon. Amethyst beads and an amethyst scaraboid probably were looted from twelfth dynasty tombs. It appears that Pithom, and other Near Eastern sites in the Wadi Tumilat, existed as adjuncts—with Tell el-Maskhuta perhaps being a major reception point—for long-distance overland trade in highvalue commodities with southern Arabia and the Horn of Africa. Presumably the need for such a difficult overland route arose during a period in which the Nile no longer was accessible to traffic bound for Avaris/Tell ed-Dab'a (Holladay 1997b). Eighteenth and Nineteenth Dynasties. The site was unoccupied from the eighteenth dynasty through the early twenty-sixth—a conclusion that could not have been reached by Naville, working prior to the development of a critical chronology of Egyptian and foreign pottery. Naville (1903, pp. 2-5) and others found significant monuments of the reigns of Ramesses II, Sheshonq I, and Osor-kon II, misleading Naville to declare that "the founder of the city, the king who gave to Pithom the extent and the importance we recognize, is certainly Ramesses II. ... It is he who built the enclosure and the storehouses.... We find here confirmation of the evidence derived from other monuments that he is the Pharaoh of the Oppression, as he built Pithom and Raamses, the site of which last is still uncertain" (1903, p. 13). Conclusive evidence against this theory lies in the fact that in deposits from the end of the Hyksos occupation of Tell el-Maskhuta until the building of the canal and new settlement under Necho II, the Wadi Tumilat Project found not a single fragment of eighteenth or nineteenth dynasty pottery out of the hundreds of thousands of sherds and intact vessels surveyed or excavated and studied at the site. As at Tanis, these earlier monuments were all transported easily by canal to the site, for the same purpose of enhancing the reputations of later kings. Late Saite through Early Roman Period. Locational and historical analysis, together with inferences from archaeological data, allow the firm conclusion that Tell el-
Maskhuta was founded in connection with Necho Us building of the Nile-to-Red Sea canal early in his reign. Following the Hyksos settlement and its immediate aftermath, the earliest succeeding construction made widespread use of "gleyed" soils excavated from below the Wadi's permanent water table. This building period was preceded by four burials northeast of the temple site, in a very limited excavation area, of entire young bulls—one the first shorthomed cow yet identified by skeletal elements in Egypt. Unquestionably there were a great many more of these currently unique "foundation sacrifices." Almost immediately afterward, some of the early houses were razed to make way for a massive 89-meter (27-foot) thick fortification wall. This suggests a turn in military fortunes, such as that ensuing on Necho's expulsion from the Near East in 605 BCE (Holladay 1982, pp. 19-23 and Fig. 13). Soon afterward, the site underwent massive destruction, presumably at the hands of Nebuchadrezzer II in 601 BCE. Other destructions occurred around 568, 525, and 487 BCE. About 13 percent of the fortified area was excavated by the University of Toronto team. Evidence was discovered for Saite and Persian domestic complexes, the latter possibly those of servitors of the temple of Atum. Within the Saite and early Persian period settlement areas, it appears that the primary socio-economic structure was the household-based small estate, with beehiveshaped granaries enclosed within a square one-story housing. Evidence for baking and cooking on more than a nuclear-family basis characterized enough of these and later granaries to suggest that this was probably the norm throughout. A ruined shrine gave evidence of a small Phoenician presence in the town, presumably the local equivalent of the "Camp of the Phoenicians" at Memphis. Large long-room Persian and Hellenistic granaries, at least two mass bakeries, and (apparently) temple-related industrial installations, including a stonecarver's workshop, a potters workshop, and more than one site of secondary copper-smelting were found. Somewhat later, massive late Hellenistic storehouses were built at the site. Those surveyed by Naville were north of the temple area, and the Toronto group excavated similar remains. Naville attributed his to the Israelites, quoting Villiers Stuart to the effect that they had been "built of bricks without straw" (1903, pp. 11-12; cf. Exodus 5.6-19), although he also (correctly) associated them with the Ptolemies. Where modem excavations were conducted, these storehouses seem to date, with frequent wholesale replacement, from the late third century to the last quarter of the second century BCE, but the little-explored northwestern ones, including those excavated by Naville, may begin as early as the reign of Ptolemy II. In that case, the
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PITHOM, Field Q at Pithom, from the tomb of Ptolemy II. This picture shows four of a row of ten or more bread ovens in a walled-in court to the east of a six-room granary (left). Three of the granary rooms were small and separated by transverse walls from three typically long rooms comprising the remainder of the structure. An earlier two-room granary of similar design, reused in this period at least in part as a potters shed, appears in the top left of the photograph. (WTP Photo M81 B50:28. Courtesy Wadi Tumilat Project)
smaller granary of the same date near the eastern enclosure wall must have been intended—with its bakery—primarily as a rations facility for a group of laborers or craftsmen. The very large storehouses must be linked to the site's canal-based importance and socioeconomic function, which is illuminated by the great "Pithom Tablet," or stela, of Ptolemy II, discovered by Naville. Outside the northern enclosure wall, evidence for a blocked-up Persian well and a later water-sweep suggest that agricultural activities—or a much more dispersed settlement pattern—may have obtained immediately outside the fortified townsite. Nearby, traces of dozens of small cooking circles on the ground surface adjacent to the enclosure wall probably suggest the presence of non-urban client peoples, whether sojoumers, local traders, or field-workers. A large Persian tomb and a separate shaft tomb with a massive limestone coffin were discovered by the Egyptian Antiquities Organization, together with store facili
ties and other large building remains, in an extramural area near the present village, southwest of the Atum temple. Part of another limestone coffin of probably'Hellenistic type was dredged up during the clearance of the canal to the north of the present site, and a third, anthropomorphic and probably Hellenistic, was found in the excavation of a nine-room tomb near the canal. These coffins, together with the large temple, its accompanying naos and statues, and the large Pithom Tablet indicate the presence of important Persian and Ptolemaic officials. For the Persian period, this conclusion is strengthened by the discovery of a burnt bulla of Artaxerxes I and a calcite (Egyptian alabaster) bowl with the cartouche of Artaxerxes I. Considerably to the west of the enclosure area, between the village and the present schoolhouse, an area of dense housing remains has been uncovered. Severely disturbed Roman remains (with frog lamps but lacking African Red-Slip ware and lamps with molded disks) overspread much of the site (Holladay .1982, pis.
PIYA 53 31-35), which, together with very slender coin information, suggests a terminal date before or during the early fourth century CE. Several square, domed tombs were excavated in a necropolis about 250 meters (800 feet) east of the fortified area. Though robbed, the remains showed injuries and an age curve consistent with a military population. Some inhumations, including children in amphora burials, were Christian, to judge from orientation and epi-graphic data. Trade-related Aspects of the Saite-Roman Town. Whereas Herodotus (Persian Wars II, 158-159; Rawlinson 1952, pp. 197198), the Periplus of the Erythrean Sea (Casson 1989), and the "Pithom Tablet" (Naville 1903, pp. 18-21, pis. 8-10) give more than usual attention to "mere commerce" involving the sea-level canal, the archaeological record of Tell el-Maskhuta yields an astonishing view of the body of traffic moved along the canal. For example, the very large percentage of foreign—particularly Phoenician— amphoras during the Saite and Persian periods; Greek amphoras during all periods; a small Phoenician shrine during the Saite Period, probably destroyed by the Persian invaders; and the four great stelae of Darius the Great, which began near Maskhuta and marched on down to Suez all describe how he completed the canal and caused oceangoing ships to go to Persia. The Persian and Ptolemaic periods were characterized by numerous incense altars (for South Arabian incense) and some minute Himarytic coins, presumably also South Arabian, as well as the Tell el-Maskhuta Bowls (Rabinowitz 1956), probably a trade gift to Hathor ("the lady," cf. Holladay 1992, p. 591), and literally thousands of Athenian tetra-drachma coins, presumably also trade gifts to the temple, but possibly merchant-bankers' hoards, found at the site. Similarly, quite apart from the Great Stele erected at Maskhuta by Ptolemy II, which lists the imports from his great African expedition, the huge storehouses of the Ptolemaic period would have no function in a town divorced from the means of moving large masses of materials on a routine basis. During the late Ptolemaic and early Roman periods, large "top" or "carrot"-shaped Egyptian amphoras, some apparently made at Naukratis (Coulson and Leonard 1981) became the container of choice and were exceedingly common. During this period, Roman and Palestinian amphoras were present, but not common. Ultimately, apart from the historical, archaeological, and (quantified) socioeconomic illumination afforded upon Hyksos activities in the Wadi Tumilat (Holladay 1997b) and the operation of the sea-level Saite and later canal, the site's most lasting contributions to Egyptian archaeology will lie in the extensive quantified publication of its stratified pottery assemblages (see Holladay 1982, pis. 1-35; 1997b, pis. 7.1-18; Paice .1987). These include Paice's stratigraphically derived chronology of Phoenician
amphoras, the publication of the plans of stratified domestic and industrial structures and installations, as well as their accompanying artifactual assemblages (for houses of the Second Intermediate Period at Maskhuta, see Paice, Holladay, and Brock 1996). BIBLIOGRAPHY Abdalla Ah, Mahrous. "A Marble Sarcophagus froiTi Tell el-Maskhuta." Journal of the Society for the Study of Egyptian Antiquities 19 (1989), 48-49. Casson, Lionel. The Periplus Mafis Erythraei. Princeton, 1989. Coulson, William, and Albert Leonard. Cities ofthe Delta, Part 1: Naukralis. American Research Center in Egypt Reports, 4. Malibu, Calif. 1981. Holladay, John S., Jr. Cities ofthe Delta, Part 3: Tell el-Maskhuta. American Research Center in Egypt Reports, 6. Malibu, Calif., 1982. Holladay, John S., Jr. "Maskhuta, Tell el-." In The Oxford Encyclopedia of Archaeology' in the Near East, edited by Eric M. Meyers, vol. 3, pp. 432437. New York, 1997. Holladay, John S., Jr. "The Eastern Nile Delta during the Hyksos and PreHyksos Periods: Toward a Systemic/Socioeconomic Understanding." In The Hyksos: New Historical and Archaeological Perspectives. edited by Eliezer D. Oren, pp. 183-252. Philadelphia, 1997. Naville, Edouard. '[he Store-City of Pithom and the Route ofthe Exodus. London,1903. Oren, Eliezer D. "The 'Kingdom of Sharuhen' and the Hyksos Kingdom." In The. Hyksos: Neu' Historical and Archaeological Perspectives, edited by Eliezer D. Oren, pp. 253-283. Philadelphia, 1997. Paice, Patricia. "A Preliminary Analysis of Some Elements of the Saite and Persian Period Pottery at Tell el-Maskhuta." Bulletin of the Egyptological Seminar 8 (1986/1987), 95-107. Paice, Patricia. "Persians." In Encyclopedia ofthe Archaeology of Ancient Egypt, edited by Kathryn A. Bard, pp. 611-615. London, 1999. Paice, Patricia, John S. Holladay, Jr., and Edwin C. Brock. "The Middle Bronze Age/Second Intermediate Period Houses at Tell el-Maskhuta." In Haus und Palast im alien Agypten: Internationales Symposium 8. bis 11 April 1992 in Kairo, edited by Manfred Bietak, pp. 159-173. Vienna, 1996. Redford, Donald B. "Pithom." In Lexikon der Agyplologie, 4: 10541058. Wiesbaden, 1983. Rabinowitz, I. "Aramaic Inscriptions of the Fifth Century B.c.E. from a North-Arab Shrine in Egypt." Journal of Near Eastern Studies 15 (1956), 1-9. JOHN S. HOLLADAY, JR.
PIYA (ruled c. 735-712 BCE), third king of the twenty-fifth or Kushite, dynasty. Late period. Piya, also known as Piankhy, was the first ruler of the Kushite kingdom to attempt to control all of Egypt; he is therefore to be viewed as the real founder of the twenty-fifth dynasty. His activities are known mainly from his monumental stela erected at the site of Napata (Gebel Barkal). Piya's first attempts to involve himself in affairs to the north of his southern kingdom of Kush (now in Sudan) led him into immediate conflict with the various princes and dynasts of a divided Egypt. In particular, he claims to have moved north to the ancient center of Amun worship, Thebes, in
54 PLUTARCH an effort to exert political and religious influence over that region. He first installed his sister Amunirdis as "God's Wife of Amun" at Kamak, and he appears to have received the tacit submission of Middle Egypt, where various garrisons held by local potentates blocked his way. On his famous stela of victory, dated to the twenty-first year of his reign, Piya is described as focusing particular attention on the city Hermopolis, led by Namlot, who subsequently betrayed him. Egypt at this time was nominally held by a weak and ineffective pharaoh, Takelot III (r. 750-720 BCE), who effectively ruled only his center in the eastern Nile Delta, Bubastis. Real control over the land was held by numerous monarchs, among the most powerful of whom was Tefnakhte, prince of Sais in the western Delta (r. 724717 BCE). It was Tefnakhte who organized the resistance to Piya after the Kushite ruler had effectively gained control of Hermopolis and, hence, of all Upper Egypt. After recounting the fall of Hermopolis in his stela, Piya then explains in detail his march to regain control of the old capital of Memphis and its final capture through another siege. At this point, the war became more complicated for the Kushite ruler. Although Piya claimed pharaonic jurisdiction over the entire Nile Valley—a theological claim as well as a political one—and although he had received approval from the priesthood at Heliopolis, Piya faced organized resistance from the western Delta. For more than a century, the northwest portions of Egypt had been assimilated by a series of Libyan military men, who eventually consolidated their power at the ancient commercial city of Sais. At the time of Piya's move to the North of Egypt, the leader of this center, Tefnakhte, was pharaoh in name and deed, and he effectively controlled all of the Delta northwest of el-Lisht. It was Tefnakhte who initiated opposition to Piya's control over Middle Egypt after Namlot, the ruler of Hermopolis, had switched his allegiance from Piya to the Saite ruler, and after other major cities in the vicinity also opposed the Kushite pharaoh. This political move was the effective cause of Piya's march north, eventually to capture all of Egypt and subsequently to take Memphis itself. Piya returned to his ancestral kingdom of Kush and erected his stela of victory in his twenty-first regnal year (c.715 BCE). Nonetheless, Tefnakhte was not deposed, and soon thereafter Sais resumed its opposition to the Kushites. Known mainly from the lengthy and detailed inscription on his victory stela as well as from decorated blocks at Thebes, Piya remains a shadowy figure, especially in contrast to his successors. He was not a native Egyptian and, as such, was vehemently opposed by the native rulers. They organized the resistance against him and the subsequent Kushite rulers. Nevertheless, Piya's religious piety—or at least his conservatism—was one of his hall
marks, and there is little doubt that his adherence to the longstanding Amun cult of Thebes, stressed in his stela of victory, was a primary reason why Thebes remained firmly under his control during his reign. BIBLIOGRAPHY Grimal, Nicolas-Christophe. La stele triomphale d.e Pi('ankh)y au Musee du Calve, JE 48862 et 47086-47089. Cairo, 1981. The most recent study of Piya's victory stela; contains an up-to-date translation with a detailed historical analysis. Kitchen, K. A. T/ie Third Intermediate Period in Egypt (1100-650 w). Warminster, 1973. An extremely detailed and significant work which covers the reign of this pharaoh in some detail. Spalinger, Anthony J. "The Military Background of the Campaign of Five (Piankhy)." Studien wr Alt&gyptisachen Kultur 7 (1979), 273-301. A detailed analysis of Piya's campaign in Egypt. Yoyotte, Jean. "Les principautes du Delta au temps de 1'anarchie libyenne." Melanges Maspero 4.1 (1961), 121-191. A seminal study of the Delta at the time of Piya's invasion that has not been surpassed. ANTHONY J. SPALINGER
PLUTARCH (c.46-120 CE), a greek historian and philosopher. Bom in Chaeronea in Boeotia, Plutarch was educated in Athens, mainly by the Platonist Ammonius, who had an Egyptian name and came to Athens from Egypt. Plutarch spent some time in Rome and also in Alexandria, but the small town of Chaeronea remained his permanent home. There, he filled various public posts and was a priest at nearby Delphi. His family life was very happy; his wife Timoxena bore him five children, while a circle of friends and pupils acted as a little academy under his lead. Plutarch was a prolific writer, and his many biographical works included Parallel Lives, about Greeks and Romans. His Moral Essays covered a wide variety of themes, such as greed, flattery, loquacity, superstition, education, and marriage; his style was popular, being both lively and instructive. In other essays a more ambitious approach appeared, in that themes were tackled that interested Stoics, Epicureans, and Platonists. As an avowed Platonist, Plutarch was in some ways open to Stoic influence; for example, in his emphasis on Providence. His intense interest in religious beliefs and practices in addition to his vast reading on the whole field have led to the considered claim by Jean Hani (1976) that Plutarch is antiquity's best historian of religions. The claim is strongly supported by Plutarch's superb treatise On Isis and Osiris (the De Iside et Osiride—although written in Greek, the Moral Essays are traditionally called by their Latin titles). In this work, a distinction should be made between the accounts given of myths and rites and the often added interpretations. The accounts showed, on the whole, a remarkable reliability when compared with the evidence of the Egyptian sources; the interpretations,
PORTRAITURE 55 in contrast, were often colored by Pythagorean, Platonic, Stoic, Gnostic, and even Iranian ideas; in chapters 46, 47, and 48 the dualistic basis of Zoroastrianism was presented in an expose, which has often been quoted as authoritative. For evidence on the contemporary cult of the Egyptian deities, Plutarch relied to some extent on his friend Clea, who held a double priesthood at Delphi—that of Isis and that of Dionysus. His book is dedicated to Clea. (It is possible, though not certain, that Plutarch was also an initiated devotee of Isis.) On a wide range of information about Egyptian religion, Plutarch was greatly indebted to a large number of Greek writers, whose compilations he probably used. Their quality varied, but most important among them to Plutarch was Manetho, a bilingual Egyptian and a high priest at Heliopolis under the first two kings of the Ptolemaic dynasty. BIBLIOGRAPHY Brenk, Frederick E. In Mist Apparelled: Religious Thanes in Plutarch's Moralia and Lives. Suppl. Mnemosyne, 48. Leiden, 1977. An able overview of Plutarch's approach to religion; perhaps the role of demonology is underrated. Griffiths, John Gwyn. Plutarch's De Iside et Osiride. Cardiff, 1970. Griffiths, John Gwyn. "Plutarch of Chaeronea." In Lexikon derAgypto-logie, 1: 1065-1067. Wiesbaden, 1982. Hani, Jean. La Religion Egyptienne dans la pensee de Plutarque. Paris, 1976. Not a line-by-line commentary, but a thorough discussion, arranged thematically, of the many remarks on Egyptian religion in the De Jside et Osiride and also in parts of Plutarch's other works. Hopfner; Theodor. Plutarch ilber Isis und Osiris, part 1: Die Sage and part 2:, Die Deiitungen der Sage. Monographien des Archiv Orien-talni,9. Prague, 1940 and 1941. The two parts were republished in one volume by Georg Olms (Hildesheim, Zurich, and New York, 1991). Only in part 1 does Hopfner provide a Greek text (based mainly on that of Sieveking [Teubner, 1935]); but he provides a translation throughout and a detailed commentary, which is enhanced by his thorough knowledge of the comparative literary material in Greek and Latin, as well as of the Greek magical papyri. He was not equipped, however, to deal properly with the Egyptian sources. Jones, C. P. "The Teacher of Plutarch." Harvard Studies in Classical Philology 71 (1966), 205-213. The role of Ammonius in Plutarch's Dialogues is examined in some detail. Russell, D. A. Plutarch. New York, 1973. Probably the best introduction to Plutarch's life and letters, with a full guide to all the writings and an attractive appreciation of their unique charisma. J. GWYN GRIFFITHS
POETRY. See Hymns; Literature; and Lyric.
POLYGAMY. See Marriage and Divorce.
PORTRAITURE. The origins of portraiture in ancient Egypt no doubt lie in the belief in eternal life. In the early
phases of Egyptian history known collectively as the Pre-dynastic period, there were attempts to preserve the body. In the Old Kingdom, the cadaver was wrapped in linen that was stiffened with resin or plaster. Lifelike details were molded or modeled, creating a sculpture from the body. Throughout Egyptian history, the everincreasing elaboration of funerary equipment reveals the desire to prepare the deceased for eternity; tomb sculptures represent a personal ideological imperative that preserves the identity of the deceased as a self-presentation of a virtuous life, both to the deities and to humans. The ancient Egyptians required abstract qualities or physical correspondence, and often both, in their portraiture, which was limited almost exclusively to sculpture. A pensive or contemplative expression, for example, is a frequent component of a lifelike rendering. Still more than outward appearance, the virtue of the individual represented his or her reality. Foremost in the Egyptian value system was a principle known as maat ("harmony, cosmic equilibrium"), which all persons were expected to preserve. Idealizing statues must have been portraits because they created a necessary fiction; they revealed the admirable qualities, especially the adherence to maat, by which the deceased wished to be remembered. They are the three-dimensional equivalents of the paintings of the judgment of the dead found on cartonnages and sarcoph-agi. In both sculpture and painting, the deceased is always represented as a sinless, upstanding individual. Unlike later artists, the Egyptian sculptor had little opportunity for personal expression or deviation from convention. Many strictures, including the patron's wishes, controlled the portrait's content. Tomb sculptures were private and directed primarily toward the deities. Public statues, particularly of royalty, were erected in and around temples and palaces to serve as the official images or selfpresentations to both mankind and the theological pantheon. Although the context and purpose of public sculpture often explain the variation in facial types, especially in royal statues, the aspects or character traits were not necessarily different between private and public statues. Furthermore, the official image of a ruler was but one element of the ideological program of his sculptures, regardless of context. His dress, insignias, and crowns—even the dazzling paint or luster of the highly polished stone—were critical elements in the dramatic presentation of his stature. A few scholars deny the existence of portraiture in Egyptian art, claiming that idealizing sculptures cannot possibly be realistic and that lifelike sculptures are formulaic or pastiches. Others insist that any lifelike attributes, particularly in the facial features, qualify a sculpture as portraiture. To be a portrait, the reasoning goes, an image must be recognizable and unable to be confused with the
56 PORTRAITURE representations of other individuals. Advocates of this argument do not necessarily require complete verisimilitude. They admit stylistic conventions—a unique configuration of the eyebrow or the outlines of the eye—as markers of identity, along with more specific details such as facial musculature. The problem with this interpretation is that it implicitly requires a physical correspondence between the subject and the sculpture. It also precludes a common means of association by an individual with a group or, in the case of royal portraits, with an earlier ruler. The genealogy of portraiture and the association of an individual with an earlier period contain a very specific political, social, or theological message. Therefore, the continuation of a portrait type may indicate a desire to be associated with a previous person or era rather than being proof of physical similarity. Despite the denial of an individual's "real" appearance, sculptures— as well as paintings and reliefs—of this type are portraits because they reveal the qualities by which the person wished to be known. There are other factors that must be taken into account when considering a historical portrait in isolation. For example, a statue can be identified with a particular individual in several ways. In its original context or through an identifying inscription, the identity would have been clear, regardless of the stylization, idealization, or similarity to earlier representations. Then again, the great majority of Egyptians would not have seen the pharaoh; hence, the degree of realism of a royal statue would have been lost on them. Furthermore, most sculptures have by now been removed from their settings, and many either are un-inscribed or have lost their original identifying text. Because the facial features of so many of these sculptures are non-individualized, they remain anonymous. Many sculptures were appropriated by later persons and transported to distant locations. Sometimes they were recut and reinscribed for the new owner, but occasionally they were simply reinscribed. Because the original face was left untouched, the recognition factor seems irrelevant. The new inscription gave the sculpture a new identity; hence, its inner qualities now applied to the new owner. Even when naturalistic details appear, the identity is often difficult to determine without an inscription. Although these works seem idealized, stylized, or formulaic to us, to the ancient Egyptians they were portraits because they conformed to the prevailing style that was appropriate for expressing the inner character of individuals or the role that they fulfilled. Thus, three different types of portrait are found in ancient Egyptian art: idealized and realistic portraits of real individuals and depictions of Fictitious or nonspecific individuals, such as a "foreigner." The third category combines the first two types because it is a "study" of a more
general nature, often with a seemingly realistic appearance. Realism does not consist of surface appearance; otherwise, any photograph would be a portrait. What makes a portrait is the artists elucidation of an emotional, psychological, or intellectual component, an inner life that transcends physical correspondence. Those components are not always recognizable; artists often transmit them in a personal code decipherable by no one else. In modern times, the artist's perception becomes the defining element of the portrait. This luxury of personal interpretation, however, was a freedom that the ancient Egyptian artist did not enjoy. That portraiture resists a single, all-purpose definition is not surprising, because it encompasses at least four sometimes opposing impulses: the publics expectations, the subject's wishes, the artist's vision, and artistic conventions. Despite the difficulties of interpretation, in very simple terms a portrait is a character study. It probes beneath the surface and reveals not the full range of the individual's psyche but one or a few aspects, which differ according to the needs that the portrait satisfies. Frequently a portrait is a labored or artificial study, especially when it serves an official or public purpose. Most often, a portrait captures a passing but revelatory mood and transfixes it for all time. Because the artist, subject, and viewer have different perceptions of the finished product, some scholars have rightly questioned the validity of the specific label "portraiture" and have suggested simply "representation" or "approximation" as alternatives. "Likeness" is another option, if it includes works that evoke the psychological or intellectual qualities of the individual and not merely the physiognomic details. Consequently, portraiture is one of the most confusing, illdefined, and controversial terms in the study of ancient Egyptian art. Part of the problem is the overemphasis on and misunderstanding of realism, which generally conforms to the modern expectation of anatomical verisimilitude. Realism, however, remains the greatest obstacle to the understanding of portraiture and is the focus here. Before the importance of realism to the Egyptological controversy can be assessed, some general observations on portraiture are necessary. The style or type of portrait varies according to the intended audience. A portrait created for public display relies heavily on physiognomy. Because the portrait is an official image, however— most often of government, business, and academic persons—the artist acquiesces to formulaic exigencies and endows the representations with heroic qualities, such as the abilities to lead, make difficult decisions, and endure crises. Individual qualities are subordinated to expected roles, and it is sometimes questionable whether correspondence exists. Realism thus serves an ideal or an expectation, but it does not necessar-
PORTRAITURE 57
PORTRAITURE. Red quartiite bust of Akhenaten, eighteenth dynasty. The bust is 12 centimeters (4.75 inches) high. (The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Rogers Fund, 1911. [11.150.26])
ily portray the individual. Realism is not an objective quality; it is subjective and mutable. The realism of a portrait depends on the viewers for whom it was created and the function that it served. Correspondence is perhaps more evident in portraits intended for the subject's personal enjoyment because something of the individual's inner qualities appear. Nonetheless, uncertainty about the realism remains. The artist may defer to the patron's vanity by subduing some features and emphasizing others. The subject may specify the qualities to be expressed or the manner of representation. The descendants of an illustrious ancestor sometimes commission a flattering portrait, as if to create an official image. Because the majority of human representations in Egyptian art appear to contemporary sensibilities as idealizing, generalizing, or even formulaic—slim, youthful, physically appealing figures devoid of lifelike features— they are not often regarded as portraits. By contrast, the slightest personal flourish—a furrowed brow, a pensive look, a distinctive nose—supposedly makes the representation the genuine item. Quite apart from the unwarranted primacy accorded to realism, this reductive reasoning is unfortunate on at least two counts. It omits the many nuances of realism, and it completely overlooks an intriguing related issue. Why are lifelike human representations generally confined to sculptures of men? Although numerous exceptions exist, Egyptian paintings and reliefs of both men and women are usually not individualizing, or fall within the category discussed above. Not until the Ptolemaic period do individualizing sculptures of women appear with any regulai-ity, and even then the artist depends heavily on iconographic attributes to portray the
identity of an individual queen. Before then, that women are generally depicted in all three media as beautiful, svelte, young, and flawless may seem an enlightened aesthetic, but an equally valid interpretation is darker and pessimistic: the individuality of women was unimportant. The lack of evidence for individualizing portraits of women is as much a social as an artistic commentary because it demonstrates that their role was limited and minimal. The sculptures and reliefs of Hatshepsut illustrate this point well; this female pharaoh is typically portrayed in the guise of a male. The only compromise that convention allowed is Hatshepsut's very occasional portrayal in female form in some of her portraits. The third portrait type is the most intensely personal, a representation intended neither as an official image nor as a private commission, but as an independent work. It is a category that either did not exist or was rare in ancient Egypt. The artist is free of constraints and expectations and endows the portrait with whatever qualities and sensations come to mind. Because these images are occasionally unflattering to the individual, they may seem more honest and realistic. For example, caricatures, especially the political and social varieties, are freighted with prejudice. Nonetheless, the majority of "independent" portraits are more benign, and on first consideration they are ostensibly the most important of the three types because they represent a personal, unbound, and therefore objective response; but they are no more realistic than portraits commissioned as official images or as more private and personal works. The representations of the same individual are subjective aesthetic responses that may differ from one artist to the next. Which portrait is the most realistic? Whether physical or internal, realism in portraiture is not an empirical, objective quality grounded in consensus. It is an ethos, a preference, or an interpretation, an ever-shifting variable, whose validity and expression depend on the audience, the subject, and the artist. Few ancient Egyptian portraits are free of stylization. The best illustration consists of the plaster masks found in the workshop of the sculptor Thutmose at Tell el-Amama, the capital of the eighteenth dynasty pharaoh Akhenaten. Some of the masks seem unretouched, but the majority are reworked or stylized to fit the prevailing artistic style. Although part of the individual's outward appearance is preserved, the alterations suggest that realism was not as important as the assimilation of the individual with the pharaoh by adopting his official style. Stylization occurs in even the most seemingly realistic portraits. From the fourth dynasty come numerous sculptures known as "reserve heads," which display highly individualizing features. Among the most "realistic" of all Old Kingdom artistic works, these sculptures are regarded as true portraits. In one case, evidence exists for their ana-
58 PORTRAITURE tomical veracity: the hooked nose on the head of Prince Nofer, now in the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, recurs among his tomb reliefs. The function of the reserve heads has been debated, but it is generally agreed that they preserve the deceased's vital character. Interestingly enough, that character or inner life is less in evidence than the meticulous surface treatment. However, on a related sculpture, the bust of Ankhkhaef, also in Boston, both the internal and external aspects are revealed. The significant point is that on all these realistic heads, stylization is also crucial. The eyes and the eyebrows are rendered in an artificial manner that is not lifelike but is a traditional aesthetic style. The awkward proportions of some of the heads, the peculiar treatment of their mouths, and their overall ungainly appearance indicates stylization or at least suggests that the heads are not completely lifelike. Because the mummies of numerous kings survive, a comparison between their heads and their artistic representations is often instructive. The aquiline noses of the mummies of the nineteenth dynasty pharaohs Sety I and Ramesses II are prominent throughout not only their sculptures but also their paintings and reliefs, which are among the most individualizing royal representations in these two media. Nonetheless, they display the same stylization around the eyes found in the reserve heads. Even the most anatomically detailed Egyptian representations can be deceptive, sometimes they are almost caricatures. The idealizing images of the deceased as slim and athletic have their counterpart in remarkably corpulent figures such as the renowned Old Kingdom statues of Kaiaperu in the Egyptian Museum, Cairo, and of Hemi-unu in the Pelizaeus Museum, Hildesheim. Although physical correspondence is a possibility, these statues may have been shaped by a class distinction. Both persons held important positions that freed them from need and from hard manual labor. Their dramatic bodily presence may have been a visual conceit manifesting their affluence. At the opposite extreme, the depictions in painting and relief of pot-bellied fishermen, emaciated and lame cowherds, bald and bewhiskered laborers, and carefully observed foreigners are probably more genre figures born of social commentary than actual individuals. The famous relief of the queen of Punt from Hatshepsut's temple at Deir el-Bahri and the innumerable scenes of other foreigners are meticulous in their detail; yet it is the peculiarity of the subject matter, its nonEgyptian otherness, that captured the artist's attention. The image of the queen of Punt may seem at first to be extraordinarily realistic, but it could well be a caricature. Unless the artist accompanied Hatshepsut's expedition to Punt, he would have relied on eyewitness reports, which no matter how reliable would have resulted in exaggeration and stylization. Likewise, for all their ostensible realism, the representations
of foreigners surely served as conventions or stereotypes; they are not necessarily realistic portraits of actual, historical foreigners simply because they seem to be individualizing. Still, not every secondary character is formulaic. From the tomb of Horemheb at Saqqara come several reliefs depicting stock figures such as mourners, some of whom have anatomical details (receding hairlines, everted navels) that are unparalleled in similar scenes and probably indicate actual persons. These surprising individual flourishes in ancillary figures provide much of the liveliness of Egyptian art and serve as reminders of the profit to be gained from close study of even the most formulaic or repetitive phenomena. Realism can be misleading also among representations of historical persons. The well-known statues of Senwos-ret III and his late twelfth dynasty successors in various collections, for example, have very lifelike, careworn faces, lacking the usual stylization of the eyebrows and eyes. Most remarkably, indications of advanced age are manifest in these statues as never before. Nonetheless, their expressions and appearances seem to be idealizations, evincing a quality or aspect of the king that was part of his official image, his self-presentation to deities and the public. Although the rulers of the waning twelfth dynasty may have had family resemblances that were accurately rendered in their sculptures, the close similarities between the sculptures of Senwosret III and his successors indicate that more than genealogy is at work. Actually, the rudiments of the style successfully exploited by Senwosret III first appear in the reign of Senwosret II. A new ideology expresses itself in the ponderous, haggard faces, which have their analogy in several pensive didactic texts related to kingship. The phenomenon of appropriation is the clearest indication that physical correspondence was not essential for portraiture. In the thirteenth dynasty and about a millennium later in the twenty-fifth dynasty, private persons followed the late twelfth dynasty royal style. The physiognomy of these nonroyal persons obviously had no importance in their self-presentation. Their borrowing or adaptation of the official image of earlier kings allowed them to share some of the ideological aspects inherent in the royal sculptures. Similarly, portraits of the early Ptolemaic rulers are often hard to distinguish from those of the thirtieth dynasty. This similarity may have been a deliberate royal policy to link the Ptolemies with Egypt's past or, alternatively, the continuation of a stylistic convention. The type was then copied by private individuals, who commissioned portraits that demonstrated a desire to be associated with the royal house. Exactly the same process recurs throughout Egyptian art, royal and nonroyal, not only in sculpture but also in painting and relief. Once a new official royal style was es-
POULTRY 59 tablished, it became the archetype among kings and commoners, who made their own modifications through successive generations. Among many examples, there are a Thutmosid and a Ramessid style. Sometimes the official image had an antiquarian aura. Because Ahmose and Amenhotpe I, the first two kings of the eighteenth dynasty, restored native rule after the Hyksos domination and saw themselves as the heirs of Nebhepetre Montuhotpe, the late eleventh dynasty pharaoh who reunified the country after a period of civil strife, they depicted themselves in his image. Many pharaohs, particularly Ramesses II of the nineteenth dynasty, appropriated the sphinxes and other sculptures of much earlier kings; sometimes the only alterations were not to the face but to the identifying cartouche. In many respects, portraits filled a general role. It was not necessarily just the facial features of an individual that mattered, but rather the role that was fulfilled. When the pharaoh died, the portrait could be reused acceptably by his successor because it represented the ideals of kingship and not merely the actual features of the individual ruler. New portrait types developed in order to show a ruler's desire—such as association with the previous pharaoh and the promotion of a dynasty—rather than his features. The representation of women in Egyptian art follows a similar pattern: their continual idealization indicates the limited social role of the eternally youthful, slim, beautiful woman. Portraiture enabled the Egyptians to promote themselves to their deities and their fellows alike in a desired or prescribed manner. The evidence for "realistic" representations of individuals needs to be treated with the utmost caution, because they potentially account for the most stylized type. Idealizing images at least portray an individual in a specific role, and as a consequence they should not be misleading to the modern onlooker. [See also Reserve Heads.] BIBLIOGRAPHY Ashton, Sally-Ann. "Ptolemaic Royal Sculptures from Egypt: Greek and Egyptian Traditions and Their Interaction." Ph.D. diss.. King's College, University of London, 1999. Assmann, Jan. "Preservation and Presentation of Self in Ancient Egyptian Portraiture." In Studies Presented to William Kelly Simp-son, edited by Peter Der Manuelian, vol. 1, pp. 55-81. Boston, 1996. Bianchi, Robert S. "The Pharaonic Art of Ptolemaic Egypt." In Cleopatra's Egypt: Age of the Ptolemies, edited by Robert S. Bianchi et al., pp. 55-80. Brooklyn, 1988. Breckenridge, James D. Likeness: A Conceptual History of Ancient Portraiture. Evanston, IH., 1968. Spanel, Donald B. Through Ancient Eyes: Egyptian Portraiture. Birmingham, Ala., 1988. Vandersleyen, Claude. "Portrat." In Lexikon der Agyplologie, 4: 1074-1080. Wiesbaden, 1982. SALLY-ANN ASHTON AND DONALD B. SPANEL
POTTERY. See Ceramics.
POULTRY. Taking full advantage of the abundance of avian life in their country, the ancient Egyptians' diet was enriched by birds, especially delicious and highly nutritious migratory waterfowl. Just how plentiful and comparatively easy water birds are to obtain in Egypt can be seen from the fact that from 1979 to 1986, by a conservative estimate, between 260,000 and 374,000 of them were taken annually without firearms in the Nile Delta alone, using essentially ancient technology. Moreover, there is sound ecological and other evidence indicating that four or five thousand years ago, the available wildlife was far richer. [See Birds.] By the middle of the first dynasty, as shown by a representation on a gaming disc found in the tomb (no. 3035) of the chancellor Hemaka at Saqqara, and now in the Egyptian Museum, Cairo, fowlers had perfected the technique of employing large, rectangular clapnets to capture huge numbers of these migrants. Most of this hunting presumably took place in the then-extensive swamplands of the Delta, but probably also in the Faiyum. Those birds not immediately killed when caught were fattened, even force-fed, and kept in a semidomesticated state until needed for food or sacrifice. Members of the aristocracy maintained, as did individual temples, substantial stocks of poultry on their domains. These birds had considerable economic importance. The vast repertoire of scenes from daily life decorating the walls of tomb-chapels belonging to the elite from the Old Kingdom onward routinely include the activities of busy poultry yards and aviaries. These places are shown teeming with various kinds of ducks, geese, cranes, and doves, and frequently have captions giving the birds' names and numbers. The famous fifth dynasty mastaba (tomb 60) of the highranking court official Tiy at Saqqara, for example, is noteworthy for its wide assortment of vibrant aviculture and fowling compositions. Such birds must have been so esteemed as table fare, that tomb owners evidently wished to eat them throughout eternity. Generous numbers of waterfowl are carried as offerings by bearers featured in tomb-chapels and temples spanning all eras, they appear among the piles of victuals heaped before the deceased, are put on funerary tables, are named in their extensive menus for the beyond, and are mentioned in temple offering lists. There is some textual evidence from the New Kingdom that birds were affordably priced in ancient Egypt. However, the specially raised and force-fed poultry on view in tomb scenes were undoubtedly reserved for the wealthy. Curiously, the eggs seem to be absent as food in funerary contexts, probably owing to a taboo. When images are carefully executed and paint is still extant, it is sometimes possible to recognize the precise
60 POULTRY
POULTRY. A mixed flock ofwaterbirds being trapped with clap-nets, including some pintails and European teal. This is a tempera copy of a detail from a wall painting in the tomb of the twelfth dynasty nomarch Khnumhotep III at Beni Hasan. (Reproduced from I. Rosellini, I monumenti dell'Egitto e della Nubia: Monumenti civili. Pisa, 1834)
species depicted. Some of these fowl also appear as standard hieroglyphs. Frequently identified table birds are bean goose (Anser fabalis) or graylag goose (Anser anser), r-? and sr; whitefronted goose (Anser albifrons and Anser erythropus), jrp; Egyptian goose (Alopochen ae.gyptia.cus), smn; ruddy shelduck (Tadoma ferruginea), bsbs?; pintail (Anas acuta), zt and hp; turtle dove (Streptopelia turtur) and palm dove (Streptopelia senegalensis), mnwt and 'by, common crane (Grus grus), i^yt, 'jw, and g^, and demoiselle crane (Anfhropoides virgo), wd\ Other valuable birds sometimes kept for food include swan (Cygnus sp.), di-idn?; wigeon (Anas penelope), wsyt; European teal (Anas crecca), probably sr and s; quail (Cotumix cotumix), p'rt; coot (Fulica atra), wh't; and possibly pigeons (Columba sp.). Pigeon cotes, a customary feature of the Upper Egyptian landscape well into the present century, probably did not exist during dynastic times, and are first attested in the archaeological record during the Greco-Roman period.
The impression one derives from pictorial and written sources of which kinds of poultry were viewed as desirable for dining is confirmed through zooarchaeological studies on bones from cemeteries and settlement sites. Burials of well-to-do people often had mummified victuals. A sumptuous funerary repast prepared for Tutank-hamun during the eighteenth dynasty, found near his tomb (no. 62) in the Valley of the Kings, consisted of one brant goose (Branta bemicia), one white-fronted goose, two bean geese, four teals, two shovelers (Anas clypeata), one gadwall (Anas strepera), and two ducks that were not identified. In the intact eighteenth dynasty tomb of the architect Kha at Thebes (tomb 8), the deceased was interred with a large amphora filled with eviscerated poultry, reportedly preserved with salt. Theban tomb paintings show birds being processed in this manner and stored in similar tall jars. Although Egyptian avicultui-alists doubtless experienced some success breeding these birds, owing to the
PREDYNASTIC PERIOD 61 sheer abundance of waterfowl in the wild and ease of obtaining them, there was not a strong incentive for captive propagation. Nevertheless, the growing demand for table geese eventually led to the complete domestication of a goose, probably the graylag, by the time of the New Kingdom. The Egyptian goose occasionally appears in avi-cultural scenes, but only during the Old and Middle Kingdoms. By the early eighteenth dynasty, this large indigenous duck had risen in distinction, becoming sacrosanct to Amun, the powerful god of the city of Thebes. It was surely for this reason that this species was kept as a pet by some Theban notables, and is displayed quietly sitting near them in their decorated tomb-chapels, even accompanying them on fowling expeditions, despite the bird's infamously aggressive behavior. Otherwise, domestic poultry evidently played a small role in Egyptian religious belief. Today's most characteristic farmyard bird, the chicken (or red jungle fowl. Callus gallus), was unknown to the ancient Egyptians until the nineteenth dynasty, and then only as a marvel imported from Southeast Asia by way of the Near East. The chicken did not become commonplace along the banks of the Nile until at least the Ptolemaic period. Classical writers, such as Diodorus Siculus (I, 74), in the middle of the first century BCE, mention the large-scale artificial incubation of poultry eggs by Egyptian avi-culturalists. Presumably, the practice of constructing hatcheries first developed during the Late period. It is also possible that the eggs of other species, such as the sacred ibis (Tlireskiomis aethiopicus), were incubated to supply the popular and burgeoning animal-cult industry with birds used as votive offerings. The earliest archaeological evidence for these installations comes from the sixth century CE. Hatcheries like this were still being used in some small villages of Upper Egypt as recently as the late 1950s. BIBLIOGRAPHY Boessneck, Joachim. Die Tienvelt des alien Agypten. Untersucht alt-hand kulturgeschichtlicher und ioologischer Quellen. Munich, 1988. This volume provides an authoritative discussion of poultry in ancient Egypt, based primarily upon zooarchaeological findings. Darby, William J., Paul Ghalioungui, and Louis Grivetti. Food: Tile Gift of Osiris. Vol. 1. London and New York, 1977. In this extensive survey of food in pharaonic Egypt, considerable space is devoted to birds. While valuable information is presented, numerous errors occur and mar the book's reliability. Houlihan, Patrick F. The Birds of Ancient Egypt. Wamninster, 1986. The only comprehensive study of the birds represented in Egyptian art and hieroglyphs, and includes an examination of those species maintained for food consumption; contains lengthy bibliography. Houlihan, Patrick F. The Animal World of the Pharaohs. London and New York, 1996. This handsomely illustrated book aimed at a general audience includes a chapter devoted to avifauna and its role in ancient. Egypt. Ikram, Salima. Choice Cuts: Meat Production in Ancient Egypt. Orien-talia Lovaniensia Analecta, 69 Leuven, 1995. The author offers
some interesting remarks about the processing and preserving of poultry using salt, and victual bird mummies. Mahmoud, Osama. Die wirtshaftliche Bedeulung der Vogel im Alton Reich. Frankfurt and Bern, 1991. Study of the role of birds, particularly poultry keeping, in the economy of the Old Kingdom. Vandier, Jacques. Manue! d'archeologie egyptienne. Vol. 5. Paris, 1969. Presents a superb overview and interpretation of the scenes of daily life relating to keeping poultry. PATRICK F. HOULIHAN
PREDYNASTIC PERIOD. Toward the end of the Upper Paleolithic, some important changes occurred in the cultures of Nubia and Upper Egypt, in which tools were made from blades and from geometric microliths on flakes in Mesolithic settlement camps that were larger than the hunting camps of the Paleolithic. Many grinding stones found in sites of the Afian culture in the Kom Ombo region (c. 12,000 BCE) were worn from constant use; these, and microlithic sickle blades with lustrous edges were also discovered in the northern Nubian Qa-danian (12,000-9000 BCE). The oldest cemetery in the Nile Valley (Gebel Sahaba) is associated with this culture. There, fifty-nine skeletons in contracted position (on the left side, with the head to the east) were unearthed. Some had flint points embedded in the bones as a result of a battle or a ritual. The Esnian Culture (11,000-10,000 BCE) was characterized by large camps, with numerous grinding stones and sickle blades. Around 9000 BCE, similar cultures waned, from climatic change, and the basis of human life in the Nile Valley became hunting and fishing until the end of the sixth millennium BCE. The Early Khartoum culture occupied central Sudan (c.7400^4900 BCE). Found there were some seasonal camps and associated cemeteries (e.g., Khartoum Hospital, Saq-qai) used by huntingfishing-gathering groups; also stone tools, bone tools, and the oldest pottery in Africa (Wavy Line, Dotted Wavy Line). Later (c.4900-3800 BCE) in this same area, the Early Khartoum Neolithic (Kadero, Sha-heinab) was based on animal husbandry (under Western Desert influence), although cultivation was unknown. In the Nile Valley (6000-5000 BCE), the origins of a farming economy resulted from the joining of local traditions with outside influences that came from the Near East and the Sahara. Near Eastern influences include the appearance of cultivated wheat, flax, oats, and goats. Sa-haran influences include domesticated cattle and the cultivation of barley. Egyptian pottery of the time, like the flint technology, also shows influence from both directions. Movement into the Nile Valley from the adjacent desert is most probably explained by the drought periods of the Middle Holocene, which put pressure on the inhabitants of the Western and the Eastern Egyptian deserts,
62 PREDYNASTIC PERIOD and even the Negev, to move toward the Nile, with all its swampy, miasmic problems. Early Predynastic Period. Both Upper Egypt, near Nubia, and Lower Egypt, near the Nile Delta and the Mediterranean, have yielded cultural materials of note. Faiyum A. In Lower Egypt, the oldest Predynastic culture (c.5200-4500 BCE), discovered by Gertrude Caton-Thompson (1934), became the subject of many research expeditions. Seasonal camps were localized on the banks of Lake Moeris and traces of Faiyuman habitation construction were found, with numerous fireplaces preserved, concentrated in the central part of the camps. Silos were dug into the ground lined with basketry, since the economy was based on cultivation: wheat, three varieties of barley, and flax (oldest evidence in Egypt). Animal husbandry (with some cattle, sheep, goats, pigs, and dogs) was less significant. Fishing in shallow flood basins had great importance, and a variety of animals was hunted. Simple wooden sickles with several blades, hollowbased arrowheads, numerous axes (made from flint, chert, dol-erite, and limestone), grinders, scrapers, rubbers, and bone items (harpoons, pins, needles, awls) are known. Undecorated pottery was used, of red or black surface (smooth, rarely polished) and simple forms—hemispherical bowls, large ovoid vessels, flat plates, and small pots. Rare personal ornaments included Red Sea mussel and amazonite beads. Burials are unknown. Merimde Beni Salama. At Merimde, another Predynastic culture (c.5000-4500 BCE) was found, at the southwestern edge of the Delta, by H. Junker (1929-1939) and J. Eiwanger (1977-1983). Junker distinguished two main phases and one transitional; Eiwanger three phases (within five layers), emphasizing that their continuity is unclear. Phase I was related to the Palestinian Neolithic A, but a flake industry pointed to a local Epi-Paleolithic heritage. Well-fired pottery was made from untempered silt, polished dark pink, with incised herringbone decoration; a lighter smooth pottery was made with characteristic thick walls and some diversity of form (hemispherical bowls, plates, cups). Flint tools were made of blades and flakes with unifacial or, rarely, bifacial flaking (scrapers, borers, axes, and small arrowheads similar to Near Eastern patterns). There were also numerous grinders and rubbers. According to many scholars, the ceramic and flint-working technologies, the anthropomorphic and scarce zoomorphic figurines, and the domesticated animals point to Near Eastern roots for the first inhabitants. Phase II, despite continuity in many areas, offered numerous African characteristics. Phase III represents a regional culture similar to Faiyum A. The uninterrupted succession of layers indicate the development of single society. Numerous animal enclosures and small oval huts with fireplaces were partially dug into the ground. Techni
cal advancement in ceramics and stoneworking and the presence of a workshop suggest craft specialization. There were also numerous products from bone, horn, ivory, terracotta, and shell. In Merimde, graves were found: small oval pits with contracted skeletons on their right sides, with heads to the south, wrapped in mats or skin. The economy was the same in all phases, with animal husbandry (cattle predominating from Phase II on; also sheep, pigs, goats, and dogs) and crop cultivation (wheat, probably barley, and sorghum), both still supplemented by hunting and gathering. El Oman". Known from a large site, the El Omari culture (c.4600-4400 BCE) is at the outlet of the Wadi Hof, north of Helwan. It was named after its discoverer and was investigated by P. BovierLapierre and F. Debono. Oval, round, and irregular pits were found, dug out from the wadi deposit or cut into the cliff and lined with mats, clay, and wicker. The economy was based on the cultivation of wheat, barley, broad beans, peas, and flax; animal husbandry was based on cattle, goats, sheep, and especially pigs. Fishing was important but hunting and gathering less so. Red pottery from two kinds of local clays was straw-tempered, polished, and smoothed, showing similarity to Palestinian Neolithic A and B. Moerian. Distinguished by B. Ginter and J. K. Kozlow-ski, the Moerian culture was a later phase of the Neolithic in the Faiyum (c.4400-3800 BCE). It is characterized by a flint industry on blades and bladelets that were struck from small concretions, affiliated with the Epi-Paleolithic technological tradition of the Western Desert. Two-thirds of the tools are backed blades, micro-retouched blades and bladelets, retouched blades, and perforators. Pottery, tempered with organic material and sand, includes hemispherical bowls, S-profile vessels, and pots with cylindrical necks. The Moerian economy was based on animal husbandry, hunting, and fishing. Lower Egyptian or Maadi culture. The oldest phase (c.38003500 BCE) parallels the Naqada I culture, represented by the Naqada settlement (a suburb of Cairo) and the early graves from Wadi Digia investigated in 1930-1953. The economy was based on agriculture (wheat, barley, and flax); animal husbandry (cattle, sheep, goats, pigs, dogs, and donkeys—used as a means of transportation— the oldest example of this in Egypt); and trade, supplemented by hunting and fishing. Three types of buildings occur: dwellings showing some similarities with the Chal-colithic stage of Beersheba culture. Possibly, the structures were built by arrivals from Palestine. The funerary rites differ from those of Upper Egypt, and animal burials were found (dogs, goats, and lambs). The material culture shows both Egyptian and Palestinian influences. Copper was important. Besides adornments, there were copper tools—fishhooks, pins, needles, chisels, and axes/adzes—
PREDYNASTIC PERIOD 63 which probably played an important role (as in Palestine). Raw materials were imported, from Wadi Araba in the Sinai, in the form of ingots—three were found, of uniform weight—and ore. Trade, especially with Sinai and Palestine, included pottery, basalt vessels, copper, flint rocks, Canaanite flint blades, Red Sea shells, pigments, resins, oils, cedar wood(?), and asphalt. Exports included pottery, basalt vessels, flint objects, shells, and Nile fishes. Upper Egyptian cultures. With the complexity of the cultural succession in this southern region, several systems of relative chronology have been proposed by Egyptologists. W. M. Flinders Petrie (1901) divided the Predy-nastic period into 80 Sequence Datings (S.D.): 1-29 were reserved for earlier cultures that were not known at that time; 30-37 were identified by the term Amratian; 3862 were called Gerzean; and 63-76 were Semainean. The lack of uniform typological criteria, the incorrect evaluation of Wavyhandled pottery, and the failure to take horizontal stratigraphy into account, caused eventual criticism. W. Kaiser (1957) then offered his system, based on the horizontal distribution of pottery classes and types of objects within Cemetery 1400-1500 at Armant; emphasizing the evolutionary character of the Naqada culture, he divided it into three periods, within which he distinguished eleven (later fifteen) subperiods. Based on a larger number of cemeteries, S. Hendrickx (1996) has proposed a modification of the system— taking into account the local differentiation—and extending his modification to the second dynasty. Tasa-Badari. Discovered by G. Brunton, the paucity of data made it impossible to determine whether Tasa was a separate culture, a preliminary phase, or a mutation of the Badarian culture (c.4300-3700 BCE). Its originality was manifested in the simple pottery (deep bowls and pots) of brown and grey-black; black or brownish-black polished beakers, decorated with incised lines filled with a white paste, constitute a special group. Tasa may have occupied part of central and southern Egypt to the Armant region, whereas the Badari essentially occupied the northern part of Upper Egypt (Matmar-Qau); some sites in the South, in the Wadi Hammamat, and on the Red Sea coast may indicate that the Badarian were relatively-mobile. The economy was based on crops (wheat and barley), animal husbandry (goats, cattle, and sheep), and hunting. In Hemmamiya are found pear-shaped grain silos (3 meters/10 feet deep), lined with mats or baskets, and nearby are 'huts, fireplaces, and animal enclosures. The best-known artifactual inventory comes from the graves,of the extramural cemeteries, where, besides pottery, hollow-based arrowheads were found, as well as saw-edged sickle blades, stone axes, bone needles, pins, awls, and combs; ivory bracelets, beads, rings, vessels, spoons, and combs; cosmetic palettes, shell and stone beads, ear
and nose studs, amulets, and clay boat models. Copper was rare but the presence of turquoise and seashells indicates trade contacts along the Red Sea coast. The origin of the Badarian culture is unknown, but some features can be traced to Palestine (ceramic decoration called "rippling," crop cultivation, animal husbandry), the Western Desert oases (flint-tool techniques, animal husbandry), and Nubia (pottery decorations, animal husbandry). The Badarians seem to have combined various local traditions in forming the first stage of Upper Egyptian culture. Naqada I (Amratian; c.3900-3550 BCE). The region of NaqadaMashasna, beyond the range of Badari, was the core area with the oldest finds and the largest population density (e.g., Ballas, Diospolis Parva, el-Amra, Abydos). Naqada I and Badari had coexisted, but in a later phase, the Amratian formed the first culture that spread over all of Upper Egypt. The majority of the information on this culture derives from its cemeteries, since its settlements are poorly preserved. Agriculture and animal husbandry had developed, but they were still supplemented by hunting and fishing. The funerary rituals were similar to those of Badari, but the average graves were richer and all status levels were still buried together. Gradually, at Hiera-konpolis, only the few wealthy had larger, and richer, graves. In Hemmamiya, houses and the first above-ground granaries were found. The existence of a Lower Egyptian kingdom at this period is not probable, but head coverings similar to the Red Crown of Lower Egypt were worn by some figures in rock engravings and paintings (from both the Eastern and Western Deserts); they may be local chiefs. From this period come the first attempts at Egyptian faience and there was some slight increase in copper objects—pins, needles, beads, bracelets, awls, and rings. Models made from cheap materials were deposited in graves (mace heads, knives, boats). Trade intensified in all directions but objects characteristic of Naqada I have been found mostly to the south in Nubia, very rarely to the northern region of the Delta and Sinai. The increase in trade was accompanied by social stratification, still progressing slowly, and the development of local elites. Middle Predynastic Period Lower Egyptian culture (.Maadi-Buto; c.3500-3200 BCE). The second phase of Lower Egyptian culture includes the last period at Maadi, the youngest graves at Wadi Digia, the cemetery at Heliopolis, and the oldest layer at Buto; the third phase occurs only at Buto. Among the most important finds from archaeological work in Buto were the discoveries associated with the expansion of the Naqada culture. In the first layer (contemporary to Naqada IIB), structures had walls of wattle and daub. Pottery consisted of vessels typical of the Delta and others of clearly foreign provenience. Layer III a was transitional,
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containing constructions and artifacts characteristic of Lower Egyptian Culture and the beginning of Naqada II D2. Layers III b-f and IV had exclusively Naqadian materials (II D2-first dynasty). Naqada II (Gerzean; c.3550-3200 BCE). The most important sites are Hierakonpolis, Naqada, el-Amra, Ma-hasna, Abydos, Matmar, Gerza, and Minshat Abu Oman Most characteristic of this phase is the expansion to the north—Naqada II, emerging from the regions of Naqada I, gradually led to the cultural unification of all Egypt. The expansion into the northern part of Middle Egypt began in Naqada IIC; the expansion into the Delta was no later than Naqada II Dl. It was primarily a territorial occupation, secondarily securing trade routes to the east. The basic principles of the equipment of Egyptian graves originated in this period, with the quantity and quality of grave goods reflecting the growing Naqada cultures social stratification. Separate necropolises appeared, containing exclusively large and rich graves. Graves of the elite are known from Abydos, Minshat Abu Omar, Diospolis Parva, and Hierakonpolis, testifying about social development and the creation of centers of authority. Although buildings are not well known from the period, the models of houses discovered in graves depict rectangular brick buildings, with wooden beams (lintels) over the doors. New kinds of pottery were made of tempered silt. Decorated pottery had scenes of birds and animals, triangles symbolizing the desert, and plants. Others with the portrayal of boats with human figures may point to the existence of rituals that involve the leaders/chiefs of clans/tribes. The oldest preserved Egyptian wall painting, at Hierakonpolis, may therefore be confirmed, since it shows hunting, triumph, and rites associated with boats. Such scenes in a grave context suggest the beginnings of the custom of "taking" symbolic and real events of life into the next world. Conical mace heads were replaced by pear-shaped mace heads, which, beginning in mid-Naqada II, become symbols of authority— one of the attributes of power in Egypt's royal iconography. The production of copper increased in importance, as did that of gold and silver. In general, metal was sought after, probably a sign of status. Flint was still the most important material for tool production, but techniques had advanced; in addition to traditional tools made from flakes, a new technique appeared—production of long blades, later processed by bifacial retouching (ripple-flake). The number of personal adornments of bone, ivory, and semiprecious stones increased markedly, as did bracelets, rings, beads, pendants, and amulets. The rich material culture indicates that groups of highly specialized craftsmen existed. Centers of production, such as Hierakonpolis, plus a relatively small number of workshops distributed products throughout
EgyptThe first Egyptian cities developed as the residences of
the elite. There, the majority of craftsmen also lived. The cities soon played a central role for the larger surrounding territory. For example, Naqada (Eg., Nubt, "city of gold") developed significantly in this period, based on trade in gold and copper from mines in the Eastern Desert. Changes in the environment and in society also transformed Hierakonpolis (Eg., Nekhen), regarded by the ancients as the capital of the Upper Egyptian state, into a major political and economic center. Naqada is equidistant (about 100 kilometers/64 miles in a straight line) from Hierakonpolis and Abydos, and other important population centers were grouped in their immediate vicinity. Strong economic centers of local authority arose and trade was conducted in every direction. Contacts with the Levant are indicated by small quantities of Palestinian pottery in Upper Egypt, as well as by the presence of Naqada II products in the Palestine region. Contacts with Sumer and Elam are yet debatable. Although raw materials (obsidian, lapis lazuli), products (cylinder seals), and certain art motifs (a hero strangling a lion) of Mesopotamia or Elarn appeared, their presence in Egypt may be the result of a series of indirect trade contacts, not from regular exchange. Sources have been identified, other than those previously supposed, for at least some of the imported goods. For example, obsidian tools were regarded as proof of connections between the Nile Valley and the Near East, but new analyses have shown beyond a doubt that that obsidian was acquired in Ethiopia. Contacts to the south are better confirmed: found in Upper Egypt was pottery characteristic of Nubian Group A (made of silt, with a large number of admixtures, and decorated with ornaments filled with white). Many Gerzean period products were also found in Nubia. Late Predynastic (Protodynastic) Period. Naqada III culture (c.3200-3050 BCE) was characterized by the abandonment or reduction in significance of certain population centers in Egypt's South (e.g., Matmar, Mahasna), the maintenance or even growth in significance of others (e.g., Hierakonpolis, Abydos), and the foundation of yet others (e.g., Elkab, Tarkhan, Tura). Social changes were of increasing importance, yet despite a certain variance in material culture, this period was a direct continuation of the Gerzean. A major settlement move from the desert to the vicinity of the Nile was necessary in Naqada III. Ecological changes that began in Naqada II were intensified, bringing with them a relative cessation in herding in favor of agriculture. Changes in the material culture indicate an accompanying alteration in the spiritual realm. Some objects were modified in shape, while their basic function was preserved; others, while their shape was preserved, had their functions changed—from utility to ritual-cult-symbolic (e.g., palettes). Pottery included decorated wares, cylindrical jars, cups, and large transport-storage jars, often with engraved and painted serekhs, indicating
PRICES AND PAYMENT 65 that the contents were intended for the royal court. The production of flint artifacts relatively decreased—due mainly to the expanded use of metal tools. The use of jewelry also increased, as did the role of sculpture and relief. In Coptos, no later than Narmer's time, three colossal statues of Min (4 meters/I 3 feet high) and three statues of lions (1.5 meters/4 feet long) were erected. Many items have elaborate scenes: palettes, ceremonial mace heads, and knife handles. In temple deposits at Hierakonpolis, Abydos, and Elephantine, a number of figurines—prisoners, children, women, scorpions, baboons—were made of various materials, some votive but some fragments of larger objects and furniture. They indicate development of the ritual-symbolic sphere—that associated with the centralization of authority. Glyptics and writing became increasingly important, clearly developed under the influence of impulses from the Near East, passing through a brief phase of imitation, then ultimately containing typically Egyptian motifs and inscriptions. The role of long-distance trade, conducted in all the traditional directions, increased considerably. Contacts with Palestine and the Sinai intensified, showing the importance of this nearby northeastern region and its goods (wine, oil, resin, timber, copper). The Protodynastic colonization of northern Sinai and southern Canaan lasted until the mid-first dynasty. The kings known from this period ruled over all of Egypt—"Uj," Iry-Hor(?), Ka, "Scorpion," and Narmer—have been dated to Naqada IIIB-IIICl. (c.3150-3050 BCE). Toward the end of the Protodynastic Dynasty "O," probably in the reign of Narmer, the kingdom of the pharaohs was established, more or less in the form known from the Early Dynastic (Archaic) period. The gradual (not by conquest) formation of an Egyptian state was therefore the last stage, not the first, from which the civilization of the Nile Valley grew. BIBLIOGRAPHY Adams, Barbara. Prednyastic Egypt. Shire Egyptology, 7. Aylesbury, 1988. Adams, Barbara, and Krzysztof M. Ciatowicz. Protodynastic Egypt. Shire Egyptology, 25. Buckinghamshire, 1997. Civilization and art from the last years of Naqada II to the middle of the first dynasty. Brink, Edwin C. M. van den, ed. The Nile Delta in Transition. 4th-3rd Millennium B.C. Tel Aviv, 1992. The Nile Delta in the light of new excavations and theories. Caton-Thompson, Gertrude, and Eleanor Gardner. Tlie Desert Fayuni. London,1934. Debono, Femand, and Bodil Mortensen. El Omari. A Neolithic Settlement and Other Sites in the Vicinity ofWadi Hof, Helwan. Archaolog-ische VeroffentRchungen, 82. Mainz, 1990. The first comprehensive publication and analysis of materials from the Omari culture. Ginter, Boleslaw, and Janusz K. Koztewski. Preiiynastic Settlement near Armant. Heidelberg, 1994, Results of the investigations by an expedition in Upper Egypt from the Institute of Archeology, Jagiel-lonian University. Hendrickx, Stan. ETkab V. The Naqada 1U Cemetery. Brussels, 1994. Hendrickx, Slan. "The Relative Chronology of the Naqada Culture:
Problems and Possibilities." In Aspects of Early Egypt, edited by Jeffrey Spencer, pp. 36-69. London 1996. Important and documented modification of the relative chronology of the Naqada complex. Hoffman, Michael A. Egypt before the. Pharaohs. Austin, 1991. Predynastic Egypt in the perspective of archeological discoveries. Kaiser, Werner. "Zur Entstehung des gesamtagyptischen Staates." MitteiluTigen Des Deutschen Arclidologischen Instittits Abt. Kairo 46 (1990), 287-297. The emergence of the Egyptian state and the modification of the relative chronology proposed in 1957. Kemp, Barry J. Ancient Egypt. Anatomy of a Civilisation. London and New York, 1989. An original approach to the origins of the Egyptian state. Krzyzaniak Lech, Karia Kroeper, and Michat Kobusiewicz, eds. Interregional Contacts in the Later Prehistory of Northeastern Africa. Studies in African Archaeology, 5. Poznan, 1996. The fourth volume of papers from one of the most important cyclical conferences on Predynastic Egypt. Midant-Reynes, Beatrix. Prehistoire de I'Egypte. Des premiers homines aux premiers pharaons. Paris, 1992. Exhaustive discussion of the material culture and social development of the prehistoric period in Egypt, against the background of the adjacent regions. Needier, Winifred. Predynastic and Archaic Egypt in The Brooklyn Museum. New York, 1984. Catalog discussing these categories of artifacts. Payne, Joan Crowfoot. Catalogue of the Predynastic Egyptian Collection in The Ashmolean Museum. Oxford, 1993. Another exhaustive discussion of these categories of artifacts. Spencer, A. J. Early Egypt. The Rise of Civilisation in the Nile Valley. London,1993. Vercoutter, Jean. L'Egypte et la vallee du Nil. vol. I: Des engines a la fin de I'Ancien Empire. Paris, 1992. The beginnings of Egyptian civilization, taking into account the development of art. Wendorf, Fred, and Ron-maid Schild, eds. Prehistory of the Nile Valley. New York, 1976. KRZYSZTOF M. CIALOWICZ
PRICES AND PAYMENT. These are a key feature of the commercial, market economy. The ancient Egyptian economy, based on redistribution and reciprocity, set prices in units of value that referred directly to commodities, rather than to the abstract concept of money. For the purpose of exchange and trade, the Egyptians first calculated the value of goods and services in units that were directly related to the necessities of life and, later, they calculated in terms of the weights of metals. Yet the Egyptians never fully abstracted the idea of money—goods and services, as well as metals, were valued concretely for what they were. Sources for the study of prices and payments do not survive from all periods of Egyptian history. Information about wages and rations are best known from documents of the Old, Middle, and New Kingdoms, while commodity prices are best preserved from the Ramessid period. Wage payments in the Old Kingdom are known from the Abusir Papyri. For the Middle Kingdom, there are temple documents, biographies, and archaeological data. New Kingdom wages are known from Deir el-Medina and from documents pertaining to shipping. All the sources indicate
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that wage payments were made in rations of bread, beer, grain, meat, and cloth, which were the daily necessities of life. Rations were expressed most frequently in units of bread and beer, the two staples of an Egyptian diet. Most likely, the lowest salaries, which were close to subsistence level, were actually paid in bread and beer. Just as modern coins are guaranteed to contain standard amounts of metal, each loaf of bread was baked from a standard recipe, using equal amounts of ingredients, and had a standard nutritional value. Uniformity was assured through a system called pfs, translated as "baking value." pfs could also be used by the employer to ensure that a predictable number of loaves would be baked from a known amount of grain. The baking value was based on the number of loaves or beer jars produced from a set measure of grain; the higher the value, the smaller would be the loaves, the weaker the beer, or the smaller the jars. Most wage lists assumed that a standard pfs was used in baking and brewing. Uniformity was also assured through the use of tokens or tallies. During the Middle Kingdom at Uronarti, ceramic tallies have been discovered in the shape of a standard loaf of bread. Presumably that tally could be used to check whether a worker's wages in bread loaves were all the same size. Beer jars were also of a roughly standard size. The standard basic wage was ten loaves of bread and one-third to two full jugs of beer per day (Egyptian beer was much less alcoholic than modem brews and higher in calorie content). That was the ration of the lowest paid staff members. Others were paid in multiples of the standard wage, varying from twice to fifty times the standard wage for highly paid people. Various methods could be used for apportioning wages. For example, documentation exists for a particular ship's crew in which the captain and other officials received twice the ration of the ordinary sailors. In another case, the highest paid official received thirty-eight one-third loaves while the lowest paid worker received one and one-third loaves. In an example from the Middle Kingdom the staff of a temple received a commission on all the goods that came to the temple. One inscription describes the way the staff was paid in "temple days": As for a temple day, it is 1/360 part of a year. Now, you shall divide everything which enters this temple—bread, beer, and meat—by way of the daily rate. That is, it is going to be 1/360 of the bread, the beer, and of everything which enters this temple for [any] one of these temple days which I have given you. In that temple, the regular staff received 2/360 of the total revenue of the temple, while the chief priest received 4/360.
In another case from the Middle Kingdom, an expedition leader received five hundred loaves a day as his "ration." Large sums like that were probably not paid out in actual loaves of bread or jars of beer. It is unlikely that an expedition leader could take his everincreasing number of loaves of bread—fifteen thousand loaves after a month—with him on an extended trip into the desert or that he could eat that much, even with a large family and servants to support. Thus it seems possible that five hundred loaves of bread was actually a unit for measuring out commodities, approximating the modem idea of a unit of money, a practice that allowed the ancient Egyptians to save and also to draw against an account of bread and beer. Because the standard measures for bread loaves and beer jars vary from place to place and time to time, it is difficult to calculate how much people had to eat and to determine how well people lived. The caloric value of the soldiers ration at Uronarti was about one-third kilo (0.5 pound) of barley per day. Baked into bread, this is the equivalent of 1,458 calories from bread each day. If these soldiers did any physical work, they must have received at least an additional fifteen hundred calories from beer and/or vegetables just to maintain their weight. The New Kingdom craftsmen at Deir el-Medina received all the necessities of life from their employer: their houses were owned by the state, food and clothing rations were given to them, as well as most of the other necessities, including water, fuel for their ovens, and the tools they needed to perform their duties. Yet the robust trade that they conducted among themselves indicates that those workers required additional goods and services that the state had not provided. Information about the prices of commodities was derived from Deir el-Medina. Prices were recorded on a few papyri and on numerous ostraca that date to a 150-year period during the nineteenth and twentieth dynasties. Many problems with the interpretation of those texts must be overcome, however, before commodity prices can be determined. The ostraca were written in the cursive Hieratic script by nonprofessional scribes who did not write as legibly as did professional scribes. The ostraca were often broken in antiquity and ink has faded during storage in museums. Moreover, the texts were never intended for others to read, but were persona] notes, so that many details that would have been known to the original reader were not recorded. Among the details that were often excluded was the date of when it was written. Such omission often makes it difficult to compare prices, although scholars have determined which ostraca are roughly contemporary by comparing the people named in them. This process has its own difficulties, because the small number of families living in the village drew on a
PRICES AND PAYMENT 67 limited stock, of personal names, making it difficult, for example, to pinpoint the generation of a particular Pen-taweret. Another difficulty in determining prices was the lack of description of the goods that were priced. Clearly, some variation in the price of two chairs was based on the quality of the workmanship, although the variation is almost never described in the ostraca. Finally, the precise meanings of words used to describe the commodities is often not understood. Sometimes, only the general category of the good can be determined from the writing. In spite of these difficulties, scholars have isolated four units of value that were used to price commodities: the deben (dbn), the senyu (snjw, originally called s'tj [shaty]), the hin (hnw), and the khar (hyr). The deben is a measure of weight used for gold, silver, and, most commonly, copper. One deben of copper weighs ninety-one grams. It was divided into ten kite. Copper weights seem never to be lower than five kite or one-half deben, while the more precious metals are found with weights of less than five kite. It is sometimes difficult to determine whether the actual weight of the metal is being described or its value in deben—or, indeed, whether the Egyptians made such a distinction. In the Cairo Ostracon 25242 verso, for example, twenty deben of copper was added to four deben as the vahie of a basket, demonstrating that the actual weight was difficult to separate from the idea of its value. Deben of copper and bronze were not distinguished by the Egyptians. Both were valued as one kite of silver. Silver deben were rarely mentioned in the ostraca, but are more common in the papyri. Papyrus, of course, was used to record official and thus more expensive transactions, while the ostraca were used by the villagers to record private, smaller transactions. This practice ensures that gold deben are never mentioned in the ostraca but appear occasionally in the papyri; it must be assumed that when the word deben is used alone on ostraca, copper deben should be understood. The senyu ("piece"?) is the second unit of value used by the Egyptians. It is a weight in silver equal to 1/12 deben or 7.6 grams. Its value is calculated as five deben, but that calculation does not always hold true (see below). The senyu is found as a weight or value only in the nineteenth dynasty and early twentieth dynasty up to the first half of the reign of Ramesses III. The senyu could be used to express a value in the same column of figures with deben. The Berlin Ostracon 1268 states the value of objects in senyu but the total of the column in deben of copper. The Varille Ostracon 25 -totals a razor valued at one deben, with a donkey valued at seven senyu. The hin, a third unit of value, is a measure of volume equal to 0.48 liters (about one-half quart). Its value is 1/6 senyu, but other calculations show that it was also equal to one copper deben. The value of the hin is probably
based on the value of one hin of sesame oil, said to be equal to one copper deben. Mrht-oil and 'd-fat were also measured in hin, but their values seem to vary in relation to deben, both more and less than one deben. Thus the value of one hin equal to one deben is based on sesame oil. The khar is a measure of the volume of grain, either emmer or barley, equal to 76.88 liters (about 80 quarts), which is divided into four oipe. The khar is translated as "sack" and was valued at two deben. Deben, senyu, and khar are all found together in documents ranging from the time of Ramesses II (Hieratic Ostraca 65) through Ramesses V (Hieratic Ostraca 28). The khar is most commonly found as a unit of value for baskets, both because the volume of a basket was equal to its value and because baskets are relatively inexpensive. The same principle is at work in the Cairo Osti-acon 25242, in which a bed is valued in deben while its legs are valued in oipe. Ostracon Deir el-Medina 21 also differentiates between expensive items in deben and cheaper items in oipe. The rough equivalent values among deben, senyu, hin, and khar, as given above, reveal the difficulty of calculating precise values for commodities, as well as fixed ratios among the four different units of value. One document values a basket at onequarter senyu for a volume of one-half khar. Since one khar is equal in value to two deben, the logical conclusion would be that one senyu equals four copper deben in value. Yet another example shows that one senyu of wss-garments is equal to five copper deben. Finally, another document values one hin of oil at 1/6 senyu. Since one hin is equal to one deben, the logical conclusion is that one senyu is equal to six deben. Clearly modern ideas about money and prices were not at work in ancient Egypt. Modern conceptions of money would not allow one senyu to be equal to either four, five, or six deben, yet this was the actual state of affairs in Deir elMedina. Perhaps the real difficulty in interpreting prices and payments is that modem scholars are attempting to systematize a procedure which was actually determined on a case by case basis. All of the prices discussed above were derived from specific barter agreements. Barter prices were much more fluid than the fixed prices in present-day western markets. Barter prices were set by the strength of each individual's desire to conclude an exchange and each individuals skill at arriving at a good price, in addition to some abstract idea of value based on weight or volume. Use value was probably more important than abstract value and all the commodities exchanged at Deir el-Medina were valued according to actual use: grain was for eating; silver was a raw material for making an object. The value of a good grew according to the need for it. Because the prices were set by barter, prices tended to cluster in amounts that are multiples of five, especially
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for amounts over ten deben. Numbers, then, were usually rounded to the nearest five. J. J. Janssen (1988) illustrated that principle by the following example. The Ostracon Deir el-Medina 72 verso described the purchase of a coffin in the following way: Given to him in exchange for the coffin: eight and one-half deben of copper; again five deben of copper; one pig made five deben; one goat made two deben; two logs of sycamore wood made two deben. Total: twenty-five and one-half deben. There, the value of the coffin was first agreed to be approximately twenty-five deben. Then values were established for the individual items brought to the exchange. The coffinmaker would decide how much use he could make of the two lots of copper, the animals, and the wood before determining the value he would assign to them. It is unlikely that those goods were accepted for resale at a profit, since that concept seems to be unknown to the Egyptians. The actual desire to own these items becomes much more important than the abstract value assigned to them in deben. There is evidence for inflation and price fluctuation during the course of the Ramessid period. During the reign of Ramesses II, one deben of silver was valued as one-hundred deben of copper. By the reign of Ramesses DC, one deben of silver was valued at sixty deben of copper. Janssen (1988) believed this change occurred by the reign of Ramesses III, when a typical m.s.s-garment was valued at five deben or one senyu. Thus the silver-to-copper ratio would be 1:60. It seems unlikely, though not impossible, that the government would have intervened in setting prices of this sort. Clearly, the Egyptian state regulated the standard measures of length and volume so that the basic ratio of one sack of grain to one deben of copper seems not to have varied. The best source for our knowledge of loans is also Deir elMedina. There are two kinds of loans attested from the village: one type is made with a fixed date for repayment and a penalty if that date is missed; a second type appears not to have a repayment date and is more likely to reflect an obligation for reciprocity between the lender and debtor. There is limited evidence that loans with fixed repayment dates were made from people of higher social status to those of lower social status, while reciprocal loans were made between people of more equal status. In sum, the Egyptians were able to conduct business in a way that met their needs without ever fully abstracting the concept ofmoney from their units of exchange value. An often robust economy ran smoothly, using various means of valuing labor and commodities without either money or true markets. [See also Coinage; Trade and Markets; and Weights and Measures.]
BIBLIOGRAPHY Bleiberg. Edward. "Debt, Credit, and Social Solidarity at Deir el-Medina." In Deir el-Medina in the Tliird Millennium AD. Leiden (forthcoming). Attempts to explain the two different methods of lending found in the village. Janssen, J. J. Commodity Prices from the Ramessid Period: An Economic Study of the Village of Necropolis Workmen at Thebes. Leiden, 1975. Groundbreaking study of the Deir el-Medina ostraca, which established the values for most commodities in ancient Egypt. Janssen, J. J. "On Prices and Wages in Ancient Egypt." Altorientalische Forschungen 15 (1988), 10-23. An important essay on the Egyptian concept of value. Janssen, J. J. "Debts and Credit in the New Kingdom." Journal of Egyptian Archaeology 80 (1994), 129-136. A consideration of reciprocal loans. Kernp, Barry. "The Birth of Economic Man." In Ancient Egypt: Anatomy of a Civilization, pp. 232—260. London, 1989. An account of the economy that gives less weight to redistribution and reciprocity. Menu, Bemadette. "Le pret en droit egyptien ancien." In Recherches sur I'histoire juridique, economic/lie, et sociale de I'ancienne Egypte, pp. 230-272. Versailles, 1982. EDWARD BLEIBERG
PRIESTESSES. See Priesthood.
PRIESTHOOD. For much of ancient Egyptian history, there was no class of full-time professional priests. The king served as Egypt's archetypal high priest of all divine cults, and is the only individual shown carrying out cultic activities in the temples. Until the New Kingdom, most priests served on a part-time basis while continuing to hold other administrative positions in the state or local government. Priestly service was prestigious, since the practitioner of cultic duties was filling an essentially royal role, acting as a liaison between humanity and the gods. It was also potentially lucrative, as priests on duty received a portion of the offerings presented to the gods and deceased kings in whose cults they served. Yet there is relatively little firm evidence regarding the qualifications for priesthood. The Egyptians attributed all priestly appointments to the king himself. Private "autobiographies," such as that of the Middle Kingdom chief priest at Abydos, Wepwawet-aa, describe the official's promotion to the priesthood as taking place within the royal palace—in the case of Wepwawet-aa, this was perhaps a ceremonial palace used by the king on visits to the sanctuai-y of Osiris. In actual practice, highly ranked priests and officials (other than the king) must also have played an active role in selecting priests, just as they did in the performance of cult rituals in the gods' temples. In the Old and Middle Kingdoms, local officials served as priests, often apparently inheriting the role, as did the local governor (hyty-'), who acted as the chief priest. In the New
PRIESTHOOD 69 Kingdom, when Tutankhamun restored the temples following the Amarna period, he stated that he selected the sons of prominent dignitaries as priests. By the Late period, according to the ancient Greek historian Herodotus, many priestly titles were inherited. Categories of Priests. Numerous categories of priests existed in Egypt, varying with different cults, regions, and historical periods. Among the earliest documented and longest-lived categories of priest were the hmw-ntr (hem; "god's servants" or "prophets"), who are first attested in the first dynasty. Associated primarily with temples rather than funerary cults, these priests performed rituals, prepared offerings, and participated in the economic activities of the temples, including the maintenance of temple estates. They were among the limited number of people who had access to the innermost parts of the temple and to the hidden cult image, the tangible manifestation of the deity. In temples of local deities, particularly during the Old and Middle Kingdoms, the overseer of /icm-priests (imy-r hmw-ntr) was almost invariably the local governor of the district. A lower-ranked class of priests, the w'bw (wab; "pure priests") assisted the /zem-priests in the maintenance of the temple and the performance of cultic activities. Priests in this category had apparently been initiated into the priesthood, but had not yet advanced to the rank of hem-priest; biographies refer to wabpriests being promoted to the office of /zem-priest later in their careers. While wdb-priests were not permitted to enter the temple's innermost sanctuary, or come face to face with the god's image, they did handle sacred objects and cult instruments. They were therefore required to observe strict rules of purity, and they can be identified in some representations by their shaved heads. In New Kingdom temples, wab-priests are shown carrying the god's image in processions. In temples, the hntiw-s, often viewed as secular officials associated with the temple, appear to have performed many of the same functions as the hem- and wab-priests, at least during the Old Kingdom, although they did not enter the sanctuary or see the god's cult statue. In ceremonies and rituals, including funerals, another priest, designated as the imy-hnt ("the one who is in front"), appears to have led the activities. The priest who actually recited the spells and rites, both in temple ceremonies and at funerals, was a "lector-priest" (hry-hbt). Priests of this category are recognizable by their characteristic attire of a kilt and wide sash, worn diagonally over the shoulder, and they are often depicted holding or reading from a papyrus scroll. Lector-priests are first attested in the Old Kingdom cult of Re at He-liopolis. Although the earliest holders of the title were members of the royal family, by the Middle Kingdom, any literate official seems to have been able to serve in this
capacity. Egyptian literature often portrays lector-priests as wise men and sages who can foresee coming events. In the Tale of King Khufu and the. Magicians, for example, lector-priests perform miraculous feats, and are privy to secret knowledge, unknown even to the king. The Middle Kingdom prophet Neferti, who warns of disaster, followed by salvation, is also said to be a lector-priest. Owing to their knowledge of the appropriate spells, lector-priests were among the principal practitioners of magic and medicine. They also took part in funerals, reading the necessary spells and assisting in the Opening of the Mouth ceremony. The significance of chief lector-priests in researching and preserving ancient religious texts is demonstrated by evidence such as the twenty-fifth dynasty tomb of the chief lector-priest Petamenophis, who revived the long-dead Pyramid Texts, along with the Coffin Texts, the Book of Going Forth by Day (Book of the Dead), and the Amduat (royal Underworld Books). From the Old Kingdom, sem-priests (smw) were associated with the Opening of the Mouth ceremony. In mortuary religion, they played the role of Horus in the funeral ceremonies, while the deceased was cast in the role of Osiris. Originally members of a high-ranking class of priests associated with the Memphite funerary deity, Ptah-Sokar, sem-priests came to be relatively common. From the end of the Old Kingdom onward, they are depicted in tomb scenes showing mortuary rituals. In the New Kingdom, they regularly take part in funeral ceremonies shown in the Book of Going Forth by Day and on tomb walls, especially in the Ramessid period, where they can be identified by their panther-skin robes. Sem-priests were the first priests to wear robes of this type, although by the New Kingdom, they were worn by high-ranking priests of Amun and others as well. Another attribute sometimes associated with sem-priests is the sidelock, a sign of youth that identifies them with Horus. Women in the Priesthood. During the Old Kingdom, women frequently held priestly titles, a practice that declined appreciably in the Middle Kingdom, and then reappeared later, in the Third Intermediate Period. Among the titles commonly held by elite Old Kingdom women was hmt-ntr ("god's servant" or "priestess") of Hathor, or less often of Neith. Queens and princesses also served in this capacity in the mortuary cults of their fathers and husbands. Although no female wah-priests have been identified during the Old Kingdom, the Abusir Papyri (see below) refer to women carrying out some of the duties of the waft-priest and receiving the same pay as their male counterparts. Two Middle Kingdom stelae identify women holding the title of w'bt. By the New Kingdom, when the priesthood developed into a full-time profession, women rarely played a role other than as musicians. Rare excep-
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PRIESTHOOD. A priest throwing grain to the fire, and a priestess with a flute. This wall painting is from the tomb of Amennakht at Deir el-Medina. (Boromeo / Art Resource, NY)
tions do exist, however, including a female second prophet of Amun and a female second prophet of Mut. At no period did women serve as overseers of priests (.imy-r limwt-ntr). Upper-class women served as singers and musicians in the temple cults of a variety of deities from the Old Kingdom onward, and many of the priestesses of Hathor may have been involved in musical performances during religious festival and other rites. From the Middle Kingdom until the end of the New Kingdom, the role of singer was almost the sole priestly activity of women. The hnr ("musical troupe") included women who danced and played music under the leadership of a woman identified as the wrt-hnr (the "chief of the musical troupe"). Prior to the New Kingdom, the usual term for"a woman serving as a singer in the temple was hsyt. The term sm'yl was first used in reference to individual singers during the New Kingdom, at which time it became one of the most frequently attested feminine titles. In addition to singing, temple chantresses apparently played a variety of musical instruments. In many instances, they are shown holding
a sistrum or a menat (a type of necklace sacred to the goddess Hathor), which was shaken to create music. Three Middle Kingdom women are known to have borne the title of "god's wife" Oymt-np') of a deity, serving in the cults on Min, Amun, and Ptah. Although the duties associated with this title during the Middle Kingdom are unclear, by the early New Kingdom the title of "God's Wife of Amun" had taken on considerable importance, the earliest examples being associated specifically with the queen. The first queen to hold the title was Ahmose-Nefertari, the wife of Ahmose and first queen of the eighteenth dynasty. Ahmose-Nefertari had served as the second prophet of Amun, an exceptional rank for a woman, but arranged by contract to exchange the title for the position of god's wife. Following her death, she was succeeded by Hatshep-sut and her daughter Neferure, and, from the reign of Thutmose III on, by a series of lesser-known women, who seem to have been related to the royal family only by marriage. New Kingdom "God's Wives" are shown taking part in temple rituals at Luxor and elsewhere, and sometimes bear the additional titles of "Divine Adoratrix" (dwyt-ntr) and "Hand of the God" (drtntr). In the Late period, "God's Wives" rose in significance to become the principal priests of the cult of Amun at Thebes (see below). Temple Priests. Temple reliefs typically portray the king as the sole practitioner of all divine cults, the quintessential high priest of every god's temple. Although the king presumably performed cultic activities on special occasions at major temples, a hierarchy of local priests was responsible for performing the daily cultic rituals in temples throughout Egypt. These rituals, recorded in scenes from a number of temples (notably the temple of Sety I at Abydos), were performed three times per day in major temples. These ceremonies involved: the ceremonial breaking of the sanctuaries' seals; the recitation of prayers and offering of incense; the awakening of the cult statue and its removal from the shrine by the hem-priesi; the undressing, cleansing, anointing, and reclothing of the cult image; the performance of the Opening of the Mouth to revivify the deity; the offering of food and other gifts; and, ultimately, the return of the cult statue, wrapped in clean linen, to its shrine. The Opening of the Mouth was perhaps the most vital element of the ritual, since it enabled the deity to act through his or her statue. Priests utilized a number of implements in this ceremony, one of the most characteristic being the psskf, a blade with which the officiating priest touched the mouth of a statue or of the mummy, thereby animating it. Finally, the priest backed out of the sanctuary, sweeping away his footprints behind him, and the shrine was resealed. During festivals, the priests at major temples were responsible for carrying the cult statue from the temple in a bark or palanquin and bringing it into public view. Be-
cause the priests themselves are rarely labeled in scenes of these activities, it is not clear whether those who conducted the divine image were particularly important members of the priesthood or the priests who happened to be on duty at the time. From the New Kingdom onward, chief priests were also instrumental in interpreting oracles—when asked a question, the god would answer by directing his portable bark, carried by priests, in the direction of the written response it chose. At least three institutions associated with the temple were devoted to storing and disseminating information and skills required for specialized categories of priests. In the "House of Gold" (hwt nbw), master craftsmen put the finishing touches on cult statues, which were then transformed into suitable residences for the deity by ceremonies, including the Opening of the Mouth. The "House of Books" (pr mdyt) housed the manuscripts of sacred texts, such as transfiguration spells, litanies of gods' names, religious treatises, and instructions for rituals. The "House of Life" (pr 'nh) not only housed the texts of rituals, including those for crowning the king and mummifying the dead, but also served as a point of reference for both priests and royalty, thus preserving ancient ceremonies and cult practices for future generations of priests. Funerary and Mortuary Cult Priests. Although stelae and tomb scenes usually show burial offerings being brought by family members, professional mortuary priests are documented serving in private memorial cults as early as the first dynasty. A class of specifically funerary priests included the servants of the ka (hmvvk-j), who provided for the immortal life force of the deceased person. Scenes in tombs from the Old Kingdom onward show priests participating in the funeral—wab-priests pour libation offerings, while lector-priests read aloud the funerary texts critical to transforming the deceased person into an immortal being. Lectorpriests also perform the int-rd ceremony, sweeping away the footprints of the celebrants after the ceremony has been completed. Mortuary literature, from the Pyramid Texts on, provides evidence that the funeral ceremony included not only the reading of religious texts, but also the performance of acts such as playing the role of deities associated with the myth of Osiris. The Coffin Texts, for example, include directions for those taking part in the ceremony, along with texts that must have been spoken aloud, presumably by a lector-priest. Women, who had served as funerary priests (Spmvt-kf) during the Old Kingdom, thereafter acted as (Aymourners, impersonating the grieving Isis and Nephthys. Sem-priests are identifiable by the end of the Old Kingdom, after which they are shown offering incense and performing the Opening of the Mouth ceremony on the mummy of the deceased. Beginning in the New Kingdom,
PRIESTHOOD 71 scenes of the funeral accompany several chapters of the Book of Going Forth by Day, and form an increasingly significant part of tomb decoration. A priest wearing a mask of the god Anubis is shown preparing the mummy for burial, and supporting the upright coffin in front of the tomb entrance, while the Opening of the Mouth takes place. The heir of the deceased is typically shown performing this ritual, touching the mouth with a ceremonial implement, such as an adze tipped with iron or flint. Wealthy and influential officials established mortuary endowments in the same way as kings, to perpetuate their memorial cults and to provide for mortuary priests. Several Abydene stelae refer to contractual arrangements with mortuary priests, and the twelfth dynasty tomb of the vizier Djefai-hapi I at Asyiut preserves the complete text of his mortuary contracts. According to the contracts, the priests are responsible for delivering offerings of bread and other items to the vizier's statues in the local temple, in exchange for being paid a portion of the offerings dedicated in the temple. Domestic Cult and Magic Priests. Many domestic cults, aimed in large part on protecting the home and its inhabitants from harm, required literate or learned individuals to perform the appropriate rites. Hence, priests were often called upon to serve in this capacity. Lector-priests, with their specialized knowledge of religious texts, were the principal practitioners ofapotropaic magic. They also appear to have been consulted in times of medical emergencies, as the Old Kingdom biography of Wash-ptah attests. A group of men identified as hkyw ("magicians") appears in association with the House of Life. Both lector-priests and physicians (swnw) also held specialized titles associated with specific types of magic, such as "Scorpion Charmer." Along with written and spoken prayers, these priests were familiar with, and able to produce, the correct amulets for protection and talismans for blessing. Organization. Among the best preserved evidence for the organization of the priesthood during the Old Kingdom are the archives of the royal cult temples of the fifth-dynasty king, Neferirkare Kakai, at Abusir. According to the carefully recorded temple accounts, the priests and other temple staff worked on a rotating basis, serving full-time in the temple for one month in every five-month period. Some staff members were employed on the temple estates in other capacities during the remainder of the year. The priests on duty were organized into workgroups, or "phyles." Each phyle was in turn subdivided into two subgroups, each headed by a shd, ("inspector"). The temple's inventory, income, and expenditures were meticulously registered at the end of each watch. During the Old Kingdom, while local rulers headed the temples of their own provinces, the chief priests of the
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state-sponsored temples of major deities were often members of the royal family, sons, or sons-in-law of the king. This pattern suggests a strong degree of royal control over the temples during this period. Certain deities and cult centers had specific tides for their chief priests: at He-liopolis, the chief priest of Ra was known as the "Greatest of Seers," while the chief priest of Ptah at Memphis was the "Greatest of Directors of Craftsmen," in recognition of Ptah's role as the god of craftsmen. The chief priest of Thoth at Hermopolis was tile "Great One of the Five," referring to the creator god and the four pairs of deities that made up the Hermopolitan Ogdoad. In the Middle Kingdom, the local governor continued to serve as the chief priest of the local temple, although in many cases these men were now appointed by the king. The excavations at Illahun, the town built for the priests maintaining the mortuary cult of King Senwosret II, produced a series of papyri, including the archives of the temple scribe, Horemsaf, who recorded both the temple's accounts and the correspondence of the chief priest. As in the Old Kingdom, priests served in rotating watches, but the number of watches was now reduced to four. The records document the distribution of offerings to several categories of priests, indicating their relative rank. The chief priest (imy-r h-mw-ntr) was the highest-paid, followed by the chief lector-priest (hry-hbt hbt hrytp). the lector-priests, the phyle regulator (mty m sy), the wabpriests and other priests associated with offerings and cult maintenance, and finally the temple scribe. The homes of the priests, and the layout of the town itself, corroborate the written evidence of the organization of the priestly community and relative status of the priests. At Abydos, the state constructed a town of similar structures to house the priests associated with the cult of Senwosret III, whose temple and cenotaph lie nearby. No temple archives of the New Kingdom has survived to provide evidence similar to that of the Abusir or Illahun material. Nevertheless, the priesthood is reasonably well documented, owing to the better overall preservation of temples and private tombs. Although secular administrators continued to serve as priests of many cults (at least early in the period), the priesthood emerged during the New Kingdom as a full-time profession. During the first half of the eighteenth dynasty, the old title for the chief hem-priest was replaced by a new one, the "first prophet" (hm-ntr tpi). At first, this new, full-time position was held exclusively by members of the royal family, but soon thereafter by other officials appointed directly by the king. The first prophet enjoyed considerable authority in the major divine cults, particularly that of Amun at Thebes, and his wife typically served as the leader of temple musicians and dancers. In the largest cult centers, such as Thebes, a series of full-time second, third, and occasion
ally fourth prophets assisted with the running of the temple. The first prophet of Amun at Kamak, responsible for the cult and revenues of Egypt's largest temple complex, was one of New Kingdom Egypt's most important officials. A pair of inscriptions dedicated by the priest Bak-enkhons record the progress of his career, stating that fourteen years of schooling and public service preceded his appointment to the rank of wafo-priest. Thereafter, he served as "god's father," third prophet, and second prophet—a process that took nearly four decades—before he received the title of first prophet. In the early part of the eighteenth dynasty, the first prophet at Karnak also held the title of chief prophet of Upper and Lower Egypt, and with it the duty of supervising, on the king's behalf, the affairs of all the temples in Egypt. During the reign of Thutmose IV, this office was transferred to another official, often the chief priest of Ptah, serving in Memphis. The first prophet of Amun became extraordinarily influential by the end of the New Kingdom, by which time the office had come to be hereditary. Also serving a crucial role in New Kingdom temple rituals was the chief lector-priest (hry-hbt hry-tp}, who, as in previous periods, oversaw the preservation and recitation of the texts, prayers, and rituals. In the larger temples, he was now assisted by a second, third, and sometimes fourth lector-priest. Lector-priests are also documented announcing the verdicts of the oracles that took place at festivals. Wafc-priests continued to function on a rotating basis as earlier, with four phyles of priests serving a one-month term. The "God's Father" (It-np-), occasionally attested in the Old Kingdom, became a regular priestly title in the New Kingdom. Among other responsibilities, "God's Fathers" led the processions held at festivals. The wives of priests, organized into phyles as were their husbands, served as temple musicians. Although the classes of priests continued essentially unchanged into the Third Intermediate Period and the Late period, the status of the priesthood of Amun skyrocketed. At the end of the twentieth dynasty, generals used the title of first prophet to take actual political control over southern Egypt, contributing to the disintegration of Egypt's central government. Some additional changes in the temple administration also took place during this time. The full-time priests were now assisted by part-time hempriests, arranged in phyles and serving on a rotating basis, resuming a priestly title that had gone out of use early in the New Kingdom. Most priestly offices by this period had become hereditary. When Egypt was reunited under the Saite and Kushite dynasties, the volatile office of first prophet of Amun was eliminated, and the "God's Wife of Amun" became the highest priestly title in Thebes. Although earlier "God's
PSAMTIK I 73 Wives" had clearly married and had children, those of the Late period were celibate, unmarried daughters of the ruler or a powerful priest, who adopted their successors. Their chosen successors eventually came to be known as the first prophets of Amun. In the twenty-fifth dynasty, the Kushite ruler Kashta enlisted the "God's Wife of Amun," Shepenwepet I, to adopt his daughter Amenirdis as her successor, thus solidifying his own claim to power in Thebes. Amenirdis was in turn followed by Shepenwepet II and Amenirdis II, during whose term of office Psamtik I expelled the Kushites to found the twenty-sixth dynasty. In order to establish his own rule, Psamtik, with the aid of the "Overseer of Upper Egypt," Montuemhat, arranged for his own daughter, Nitocris, to be adopted as heiress. The stela recording her installment as god's wife describes the elaborate ceremony involved, and lists the enormous endowment allotted to the office during this period. The invasion of Cambyses and the Persians brought the significance of the "God's Wives" to an end; although the title continued to exist in later times, it never regained its political importance. During the Greco-Roman period, the full-time clergy of major cults continued to be assisted by part-time priests, divided into four phyles; until 238 BCE, when Ptolemy III reorganized the system, adding a fifth phyle. Virtually all offices were hereditary. The highest-ranking member of the priesthood in this period was the high priest of Ptah at Memphis, although the priests of Amun at Thebes retained significant status. Several categories of priest below the rank of prophet included (among others): the sacred scribes known as hierogrammates (of which Manetho was one); the hierostolistes. who tended the cult statue; the'fwrologoi, astronomers who maintained the calendar of festivals; and the pastophoroi, who carried the gods' shrines in processions. "God's Wives" continue to function, albeit in a reduced role, and female wab-priests and /tem-priests are also documented. [See also Administration, article on Temple Administration; Cults; Economy, article on Temple Economy; Funerary Ritual; Offerings; and Temples.] BIBLIOGRAPHY David, A. Rosalie. Religious Ritual at Ahyclos. Warminster, 1973. Discusses in detail the daily temple ritual. Fischer, Henry G. "Priesterin." In I^exikon der Agyptologie, 4: 1100-1105. Wiesbaden, 1982. Provides a surnrnary, in English, of the evidence regarding priestesses and their roles. Gitton, Michel, and Jean LeClant. "Gottesgemahlin." In Lexikon der Agyptologie, 2: 792-812. Wiesbaden, 1974. Gives the fullest available summary, in German, of the title "God's Wife," with reference to individual holders of the title. Heick, Wolfgang. "Priester." In Lexikon der Agyplologie, 4: 1084-1097. Wiesbaden, 1982. A comprehensive summary, in German, of the major categories of priests and their organization. Pinch, Geraldine. Magic in Ancient Egypt. Austin, 1994. An informa
tive and easily readable account of Egyptian magical practices and practitioners. Quirke, Stephen. Ancient Egyptian Religion. London, 1992. An excellent survey of Egyptian religious practices accessible to the genera] reader, as well as the student or scholar, including a full discussion of the organization of the priesthood, the role of priests, and the development of their offices. Robins, Gay. Women in Ancient Egypt. Cambridge, Mass., 1993. An excellent survey of the role of women in Egyptian society, with a chapter dedicated to their position in the temple and their role in cultic activities. Roth, Ann Macy. Egyptian Phyles in the Old Kingdom. Chicago, 1991. A full scholarly study of the organization of temple phyles in the Old Kingdom, with a discussion of evidence for phyle organization in Middle Kingdom. Sauneron, Serge. The Priests of Ancient Egypt. New York and London, 1960. One of the most complete available works in English regarding the function and activities of Egyptian priests, with reference to original sources and to events of individual priests documented in Egyptian texts. Shafer, Byron, ed. The Temple in Ancient Egypt. Ithaca, 1998. A thorough summary of the major categories of priests and their organization, along with an excellent study of historical developments in the priesthood. DEMISE M. DOXEY
PROPERTY. See Landholding.
PSAMMETICHUS. See Psamtik I.
PSAMTIK I (664-610 BCE), first ruler of the twenty-sixth or Saite dynasty. Late period. Psamtik Is origins in the eastern Nile Delta indicate that he belonged to a group of powerful local potentates who had previously opposed the attempts of the Kushite (twentyfifth dynasty) kings to dominate the whole of Egypt. With probable tacit support from the Assyrians, led by Assurbanipal, Psamtik I consolidated his control over the North of Egypt, with a capital in Sais, before moving south to Thebes in 656 BCE. The inherent weakness of the Kushite dynasts meant that Psamtik's annexation of Upper Egypt was accomplished more by diplomacy than by force of arms. During his long reign, Egypt was once more unified. With a perspicacious talent for solidifying his kingdom, Psamtik set up a series of garrison posts at the various borders of Egypt (northern, western, and southern), and also hired foreign mercenaries, especially Carians and other Greeks. Owing to that policy, Psamtik I became well known to the Greeks, who called him Psammetichus. At the beginning of his second decade of reign, Psamtik attacked his Libyan neighbors in the northwest, in an effort to diminish their traditional influence in the Delta region. During the same time, a major Jewish quarter was
74
PTAH
founded at Elephantine, an island in the Nile near the Kushite border in the South. Close to the end of his life, Psamtik aligned his nation with Assyria, possibly through clever diplomacy; then, fearing no opposition from this declining empire, Psamtik marched north into Syria-Palestine. By the close of Psamtik's life, Egypt met the rising Neo-Babylonian Empire on the battlefield (616 and 610 BCE). It is probable that, at his death, Psamtik effectively controlled the shores of Palestine while exercising some commercial influence in Lebanon. Connected with this military activity was his development of a navy. Psamtik was the son of Necho I, a minor Saite king, who died on the battlefield opposing the Kushites, and who was married to a daughter of the high priest of He-liopolis, making Psamtik's northern ancestry evident. His most famous daughter, Nitokris, was appointed to be the "God's Wife of Amun" at Thebes in 656 BCE, nine years after he took control of the western Delta region. The events of the trip to the religious capital of the South, recorded on a monumental stela, indicate Psamtik's peaceful moves into Upper Egypt, as well as his adherence to the religious norms of Egypt's traditional religious center, Thebes, and of the temple of Amun in particular. BIBLIOGRAPHY Caminos, Ricardo A. "The Nitocris Adoption Stela." Journal of Egyptian Archaeology 50 (1964), 71-100. The standard study of Psamtik Is daughter's voyage to Thebes in 656 BCE. Kitchen, K. A. The Third Intermediate Period in Egypt (1100-650 Be). Warminster, 1973. An extremely detailed and significant work which covers the reign of this pharaoh in some detail. Parker, Richard A. A Saite Oracle Pa-iJyrus from Thebes. Providence, 1962. A useful study of a papyrus connected to Psamtik's domination over Thebes. ANTHONY J. SPALINGER
PTAH. The god Ptah was one of the major deities of Egypt, yet surprisingly little is known about his early history. With few exceptions, the major textual sources date from the New Kingdom or later, when Egyptian religion had long been shaped according to the dominating theology of Heliopolis. Nevertheless, Ptah is known to have been worshiped as early as the Early Dynastic period, the date of his image on a stone vessel found at Tarkhan, south of elLisht. There he is shown in his usual anthropoid form without indication of limbs—a form that he shares with some other ancient gods such as Min and Osiris—that was later interpreted as the form of a mummy. Wearing a tight-fitting skullcap, he stands on a pedestal in an open shrine, holding a scepter. Later representations usually show him with a straight beard; the scepter is almost invariably a wa^-scepter, which from the New Kingdom on is often combined with ankh and djed symbols. Occasionally the god is shown seated.
The evidence from the Old Kingdom is sparse and consists mainly of personal names and a few titles. Theo-phoric names composed with the name of Ptah appear at the end of the fourth dynasty and seem to have suddenly become very popular during the fifth, suggesting that the god had begun to play an important role on the level of personal piety. By contrast, royal names of the same period ignore Ptah, and he is virtually absent from royal inscriptions. In the Pyramid Texts, Ptah occurs only two or three times, always in connection with the provision of food for the deceased king. From the end of the fourth dynasty, titles referring to the priesthood of Ptah confirm the existence of a temple in the capital city, Memphis. Most of the holders of these titles are also connected with the royal workshops, particularly with the making of jewelry. Some of them also bear the title "Chief Controller of Craftsmen" (wr hrp hinwt), which soon becomes the title of the high priest of Ptah in Memphis. Clearly Ptah was associated early on with arts and crafts. Perhaps he was originally a local god who assumed the role of divine craftsman and patron deity of artists, craftsmen, and builders when Memphis became the capital of Egypt and, therefore, the location of the royal workshops. It is equally possible that he had been associated with the royal workshops even before these were transferred to Memphis. In any case, Ptah was the chief god of Memphis throughout Egyptian history, and the name of his temple— Hwt-ky-Pth ("Temple of the ka of Ptah")—became the name of the city of Memphis and ultimately of the whole country (Hikuptah > Gr. Aigyptos, "Egypt"). Little remains of this temple, but it is thought to have been even larger than the vast complex of Amun-Re at Kamak. Some of the god's epithets also refer to Memphis: "South of his Wall" means "having a temple south of the (White) Wall" (i.e., Memphis), or perhaps "whose (enclosure) wall is in the south (of M.emphis)"; "who is upon the Great Throne" refers to the Great Temple in Memphis; and "Lord of Ankhtawy" probably refers to the area on the west bank of the Nile between the city and the necropolis in the desert. Other common epithets of the god include "Lord of Maat" (the principle of world order), "Great of Strength," and "Benevolent of Face," an epithet that is often wrongly said to be restricted to gods depicted in human form. At an early date, Ptah was linked with Sokar, another Memphite god, who was chiefly a god of the dead; as Ptah-Sokar (later PtahSokar-Osiris), he plays a role in many funerary texts. Other deities worshiped in Memphis were the lion goddess Sekhmet and the lotus god Nefer-tum, with whom Ptah forms a triad (father-mother-child) from the New Kingdom on. He is also associated with the Memphite form ofHathor, the "Lady of the Southern Sycamore," who had a temple in the southern part of the city. From the eighteenth dynasty on, the sacred Apis bull of
PTAH 75
Memphis, originally an independent god, was viewed as the living manifestation of Ptah. In the Late period, the deified mortal Imhotep was regarded as his son. According to the ancient Greek historian Herodotus, the temple of Memphis also contained a statue of Ptah as a dwarf (Gr.,palai!.s ?. u? x s -f
bau shai fai hori chai (Bohairic only) (no name recorded; janjia chim(m)a (no name recorded)
"6" sh f h German "ch" German "ch" j
Achmimic only) "ch" of "church"
number 900
The resulting Coptic alphabet (Table 1) is made up of twentyfour letters taken over from the Greek and seven derived from Demotic to represent Egyptian sounds. Several letters stand for sounds that are sometimes represented with digraphs. The letter "i," i, is frequently rendered "ei," ei. The letter + is a Demotic form for the digraph TI the usage of which becomes standard for the spelling of certain words, such as the verb + "give." As in the Greek alphabet, a, renders the consonantal blend ks, and + the sound ps. Hieroglyphic Egyptian had different signs for the aspirated, laryngeal, and fricative sounds often represented in transliteration by the letter h. These consonantal distinctions had become confused by the rise of Demotic, and they collapse into one alphabetic sign rendered differently in different dialects. Two sounds heretofore important in the language—the glottal stop and the guttural, the aleph and ayin of Semitic philology respectively—have no alphabetic representation in Coptic. They are recognized in alphabetic script only implicitly and discerned in the Coptic lexicon only etymologi-cally in some dialects: glottal stops came over into Coptic as long vowels, and gutturals as doubled long vowels.
SCRIPTS: Coptic 217 In some syllabic combinations, the long vowels i and u are consonantal—that is, y and w, respectively—and are sometimes called semi-consonants. When i is consonantal, it may be so indicated by a diaeresis, but Coptic scribes observed this orthographic convention neither universally nor consistently. The consonantal u may be discerned only by its syllabic context. Coptic scribes used the superlinear stroke or, in some manuscripts, a superlin-ear accent mark, to indicate syllabification and aid in reading. Though not vocalic markers themselves, these strokes signal to the reader that a syllable comprised of one letter is to be read as the sound of the letter assisted by a semi-vowel—that is, a shortened short e sound, the shwa of Semitic philology. Superlinear strokes are also used to designate abbreviations and nomina sacra, and long superlinear strokes are frequently used in manuscripts to stand for an n at the end of a line of writing. Coptic was written in continuous script with no intervening spaces or marks between syllables, phonemes, or words. Occasionally the full stop was used to divide sentences, and the double stop, less frequently, to mark paragraph divisions. Even this minimal punctuation appears fitfully in manuscripts. The regularity of punctuation in printed Coptic texts, usually borrowed from Greek conventions, is a happy conceit of modem publication. As in much of ancient paleography, the scribe's use of punctuation and other diacritical apparatus was more a prerogative to be exercised than a rule to be followed. Some diversity in Egyptian writing derived from ancient dialectal differences in pronunciation. Spoken Egyptian no doubt possessed several dialects throughout its long life. The variant pronunciations and usage, and the orthography that gave them regular expression, were manifest in regional forms of literary Coptic. The number of distinguishable Coptic dialects, and the basis of distinction, are debated hotly among scholars. The regional origin and distribution of Coptic dialects is also a matter of dispute. Scholarly consensus recognizes a half-dozen dialects scattered along the Nile Valley. The two most widespread dialects, owing to their use in Coptic Christian literature, are Sahidic and Bohairic. Sahidic, the ubiquitous dialect of the south (Arabic, as-sa'id), is also called "Theban" after the ancient upper Egyptian city of Thebes. Sahidic was the dialect of Coptic scripture and liturgy from the third through eleventh centuries CE, and became the classical language of Coptic monasticism through the literary craft of Shenoute and his disciple Besa. Bohairic, so named because it was the dialect of Lower Egypt—that is, of the north (in Arabic, albuhairah)—was apparently native to the western Delta, including Alexandria and Ni-tria. The h sound, written as 3 in Sahidic, is rendered alphabetically in Bohairic as b or a, signs retained for this
218 SCULPTURE: An Overview sound only in this dialect from Old Coptic, in which it was occasionally substituted by the Greek letter chai (\). Bohairic Coptic became the ecclesiastical language of the Coptic Orthodox Church in the third quarter of the eleventh century CE. It remains alive in modern Coptic liturgy and the contemporary poetry of Pisenti Rizkallah. Less influential were the dialects of Middle Egypt. The Achmimic dialect of southern Middle Egypt takes its name from Akhmim, the premier city of the region. The Achmimic alphabet uses neither the hori of Sahidic nor the chai of Bohairic, but yet another version of the Demotic sign for the h sound, the sign 3. Fayyumic was the dialect of northern Middle Egypt, that is, the Faiyum. This dialect is immediately recognizable by the substitution of A I, for \>, r, in many of its words, and the use of superlinear dots between letters instead of strokes. The Subachmimic dialect was native to the region south of Akhmim as far as Thebes. It is a dialect of the texts found at Nag Ham-madi and of the literature of the Egyptian Manichees, both corpora dating from the fourth and fifth centuries CE. Another dialect, called Middle Egyptian, apparently originated midway between the Nile's northern and southern extremities. This nomenclature, however, is infelicitous, since "Middle Egyptian" is also the name of the classical phase of Egyptian hieroglyphics between 2000 and 1500 BCE. The Coptic dialect called "Middle Egyptian" is found near Oxyrhynchus, ancient capital of the nineteenth nome of Upper Egypt, and is thus also known as Oxyrynchite. Although the Egyptians started writing with pictures on ostraca and stelae three thousand years before the birth of Christ, later hymns, horoscopes, and hagiography called for shorter and shorter shorthand. With the rise of Christianity and the codex, the Egyptian language underwent changes to accommodate a new communications technology and a new faith. In so doing, ancient Egyptian became Coptic, and the Coptic alphabet became the means by which the people of Egypt wrote new oracles in a new version of the old language of the pharaohs. [See also Grammar, article on Coptic.] BIBLIOGRAPHY Ci-iim, W. E. "An Egyptian Text in Greek Characters." Journal of Egyptian Archaeology 28 (1942). 20-31. Crum, W. E. "Coptic Documents in Greek Script." Proceedings of the British Academy 25 (1939), 249-271. Davies, W. V. Residing the Past: Egyptian Hieroglyphs. Berkeley and Los Angeles, .1988. Goodwill, C. W. "On an Egyptian Text in Greek Characters." Zeiischrifl fur agyptischc Sprache unil Alterf.umslai.nde 6 (1868), 18-24. Griffith, F. L. "The Date of the Old Coptic Texts, and Their Relation to Christian Coptic." Zeitscitrift fur Afyptische Sprache und Allertumskunde 34 (.1.901), 78-82. Ishaq, Emile Maher. "Coptic Language, Spoken." The Coptic Encyclopedia, vol. 2, pp. 604-607. New York, 1991.
Kahle, Paul E. Bala 'IZQ./I. 2 vols. London, 1954. Voi. 1, pp. 193-268, offers a classic treatment of Coptic dialects and their effect on orthography, with an unparalleled survey of inscriptional, papyrologi-cal, and codicological evidence. Kasser, Rodolphe. "Alphabet in Coptic, Greek." The Coptic Encyclopedia, vol. S, pp. 30-32. "Alphabets, Coptic." The Coptic Encyclopedia, vol. 8, pp. 32-41. "Alphabet, Old Coptic." The. Coptic Encyclopedia, vol. 8, pp. 41-45. New York, .1.991. Layton, Bentley. "Coptic Language." In Interpreter's Dictionary of the. Bible, Supplementary Volume, pp. 174-179. Nashville, Tenn., 1976. Metzger, Bruce M. "The Coptic Versions." In The Early Versions of the New Testament, pp. 99-152. Oxford, .1977. Excellent overview of the translation of New Testament literature into the Coptic language. His discussion of dialectical evidence is especially helpful. Plumley, J. Martin. An Introductory Coptic Grammar. London, .1948. The first chapter (pp. 1-19) treats the alphabet, providing a good overview with helpful etymological explanations. Won-ell, W. H. Coptic Sounds. Ann Arbor, .1934. Still indispensable for helping the scholar of the language make sense of Coptic orthography and dialectical variation. ALI.EN DW1GHT CALLAHAN
SCULPTURE. {This entry survey's the various types of ancient Egyptian sculpture, with reference to stylistic development, media used, and the contexts and purposes of sculpture. It comprises five articles: An Overview Royal Sculpture Private Sculpture Divine Sculpture Wood Sculpture For related discussions, see Bronze Statuettes; and Relief Sculpture.]
An Overview Ancient Egypt produced more statuary than has any other civilization in the history of the world. Egypt's longevity, national wealth and stability, and the abundance, variety, and quality of its materials made this possible. The motivation sprang from the profound belief that spirits—both human and divine—needed to be housed, appeased, and nurtured within appropriate sculptures. Each statue provided a permanent body for the earthly habitation of a given god's or deceased individuals spirit. These statues were not considered to be alive, but the spirits residing within were, and according to Egyptian religion they received prayers and offerings and bestowed benefactions with lifelike vigor. The king controlled sculpture production with two priorities in mind: providing cult statues and temple decorations for the gods, whom he represented on earth, and furnishing himself with images to house his own spirit throughout the afterlife. Once his needs were well on their
SCULPTURE: An Overview 219 way to being met, high officials and eventually lesser officials could expect to be favored with portraits, shawabtis, or other sculpted offerings of their own. Frequently, these nonroyals' goods are inscribed with the words "A boon which the king gives to [name]." Pharaoh's control began with the substances from which sculpture was made. The most readily available and easily worked resources—clay and mud brick—were rarely used for sculpture after the Predynastic period, perhaps being too common for such lofty purposes. The finest materials—hard stones, fine metals, precious woods, and ivory—were difficult to obtain and were strictly governed. Gangs of workers overseen by trusted officials went on long journeys to acquire the best stones, organic materials, and metals for statuary. Sculptors themselves traveled to the quarries and carried out much of their work on the spot, thus lightening the stone block for transit. In some highly productive reigns, like that of Amenhotpe III, stylistic differences exist between sculptures in brown quartzite, quarried in the North, and those in granodio-rite, coming from the South, suggesting that different sculptors traveled to and worked in each quarry. Faience and glass relied on ubiquitous raw materials, particularly sand; however, the techniques and equipment required to create the finished products resided in the skilled craft shops attached to temples and palaces and were in the domain of pharaoh as ruler and as high priest. Thus, a vast and complex industry evolved to supply Egypt's tombs and temples with sculpture. It included not only the sculptors, but also quarrymen, miners, traders, hunters, transporters, painters, metalworkers, scribes, officials, and overseers. Each substance was imbued with meaning. Gold, the divine metal that never tarnished, was regarded as the skin of the gods; silver was their bones. Turquoise was sacred to Hathor, since both blue and green symbolized fertility. White equaled purity, making both limestone and calcite (also called travertine or Egyptian alabaster) appropriate for religious and funerary statuary. Wood was sacred to the mother goddesses. Nut, Hathor, and Isis, who were often depicted as trees providing shade and sustenance for the deceased. Red granite had solar significance; black granodiorite stood for Egypt's ancient name, Kemet, "the Black Land," and its fertile, silt-fed soil flanking the Nile. The color black also had underworld associations, and many statues of Osiris were made of black basalt. Quartzite, called hi^t ("wondrous") by the Egyptians, ranged from solar golds to reds, and it glinted appropriately in the sunlight. Egyptian sculpture was made to last for eternity. The blocky form used throughout the millennia served this purpose well. Backs of figures are often supported by pillars or slabs; arms are clenched closed to the body; legs
are attached to chairs or other supporting features. There are no jutting parts to break off. The center of gravity is kept low, so the statue is bottom-heavy and quite stable. For example, where the king is seated on a massive throne, most of the weight is well below the center line of the statue's height. Where a figure stands against pillars or slabs, these are cut thicker toward the bottom. To fulfill its purpose, statuary had to be recognizable to the appropriate spirit. Thus, the ancient Egyptians invented the twt 'nh, the "perfected likeness." That such images can be and often are true portraiture can best be proved by comparing representations of pharaohs like Ramesses II with their mummies. Further securing a statue's identity was a hieroglyphic inscription identifying the individual by name, title(s), and sometimes lengthy history. This was considered crucial to the statue's ability to function properly, especially when courtiers' portraits often bore the facial features of their pharaoh out of piety, flattery, or, perhaps, familial relationship. Anthropomorphic images of gods generally bear the features of the pharaoh in whose reign they were sculpted, because he was their representative on earth. They are identified by their attributes—headgear, staves, and other emblems, as well as by inscriptions. Divine animals—Hathor cow. Apis bull, Anubis jackal, Bastet cat, and Horus falcon—appear with each detail of conformation and deportment carefully and realistically recorded. These too are inscribed with the relevant names and epithets. Sculptors' names never appear on these images, as they did rarely on religious art until recent centuries. Although most records are now lost, it is known that the best Egyptian sculptors were famous in their day, some gaining enough wealth and prominence to have important tombs or large villas. Pharaohs discriminated among craftsmen, elevating particularly worthy individuals in their social standing. Officials close to the king must have vied for the opportunity to avail themselves of these masters' services. For example, Amenhotpe Ill's vizier, Amenhotep, son of Hapu, and his brother-in-law, the high priest Anen, were among the few nonroyals to be sculpted in granodiorite by the artist who had provided Amenhotpe III himself with his best portraits in that stone. One may speak of sculptors as individuals, but the production of a statue was a team effort. Most two-dimensional scenes of sculptors at work show several individuals chiseling or polishing different parts of the same statue. Actually, the word "crew" is probably more appropriate, since the master sculptor must have overseen his troops much as an ancient Nile barge captain ran his ship's crew. Texts from Deir el-Medina suggest that the teams of workers who decorated the nineteenth dynasty royal tombs were divided into right and left halves like the crews of Nile rowing ships.
220 SCULPTURE: An Overview Aesthetically, the composition of Egyptian statuary also relies on a strict division of sides. Frontality is a significant principle of Egyptian statuary, but profile views are equally important— sometimes more so, because the first view of a statue could be from the side rather than from the front. In fact, the hieroglyph for "statue" is the profile view of a (wooden) statue of a man holding a long staff in one hand and a scepter in the other. Three-quarter views of Egyptian statuary are often unsuccessful because there is a point at which'the torso and the buttocks of a seated figure do not line up, even though the front view and the side views are perfectly convincing. Animal figures, such as striding bulls, recumbent jackals, perched falcons, and sitting cats, are best viewed in profile, which in each case imitates the appropriate hieroglyph. To plan their work, sculptors relied on a grid system, traces of which are occasionally visible on unfinished bases and statues. Using grids made it possible to standardize figural proportions during a given period and to change them as successive tastes required. According to the Old Kingdom's classic proportions, the width of a standing man's shoulders equal one-third of his height from floor to hairline. Toward the end of the Old Kingdom, shoulders became narrower, but in the eleventh dynasty they approached the classic form again. Following a narrowing of proportions during the thirteenth dynasty and the Second Intermediate Period, eighteenth dynasty shoulders broadened once again during a period of imperialistic conquest and muscular might; then they narrowed toward the end of the dynasty during a trend toward ease and feminization. Centuries of destruction, reuse, and dispersal have caused parts of broken statues to become separated. Many modern efforts at reuniting long-lost parts have been successful after narrowing down the possibilities by first studying styles, materials, inscriptions, and proportions, and finally by examining and matching up likely prospects at their breaks. Historical Analysis. Egypt's great age and relative immutability make it difficult to capsulize its art without taking advantage of vast generalities. Some periods and types of sculpture are thus omitted from the following discussion. Reigns and dynasties were not equally strong in artistic activity. In fact, there are only five great eras of heightened creativity in sculpture: the late Predynastic period and Early Dynastic period, and the fourth, twelfth, eighteenth, and twenty-sixth dynasties, to which one might add the early Ptolemaic period. Each of these epochs is marked by a burst of energy—in terms of imagination, workmanship, and volume— directed at developing new ideas or revisiting latent ones with renewed zeal. Predynastic period. Most Predynastic sculpture is rather abstract or composed of generalized forms. Hu-
SCULPTURE: AN OVERVIEW. Fourth dynasty statue ofKhafre, now in the Egyptian Museum, Cairo.
man figures emphasize large, staring eyes and sexual attributes. The earliest sculpture in the round yet found is a half life-size oval terra cotta head with gouged eyes, nostrils, and slit mouth, unearthed at Merimda at the western edge of the Nile Delta. Dated to the end of the fifth millennium BCE, it recalls earlier Neolithic stone masks found near the Dead Sea. Ivory—both elephant and hippopotamus— was favored for small anthropoid statuettes in the Badar-ian period (5500-4000 BCE). A buxom female of 14 centimeters (5.5 inches), in the British Museum, stands on athleticlooking legs and has large, staring, incised eyes and a wide, bountifully incised pubic triangle. Dated to the Amratian period (Naqada I, 4000-3500 BCE) and totally different in style is the Louvre's 24-centimeter (9.5 inch) elongated male figure, its tapering legs close together, its genitaha emphasized, and its eyes inlaid. Yet a
SCULPTURE: An Overview 221 third style is represented by the Louvre s 6.5 centimeter (3 inch) bearded, robed figure, whose abstract composition resembles a chess pawn. Rather similar Chalcolithic ivory figures have been found near Beersheba in present-day Israel. Brooklyn's elegant "bird lady" of 33.8 centimeters (13.2 inches) represents a unique type of Egyptian late Predy-nastic terra cotta female with upflung arms, birdlike head, large breasts, and elongated yet steatopygic, cone-shaped lower body. The first mother-and-child (standing) composition appears at this time. Animal figures appeared in the form of slate palettes (Naqada 1/11) carved bilaterally into silhouettes of hippos, cattle, birds, turtles, jackals, giraffes, and fish. From the same time are flints chipped bifacially to form silhouettes, especially of birds and lizards, as well as the occasional quadruped. Fine stone vessels were also carved in animal form during the fourth millennium. The first considerable stone sculpture is Oxfords basalt, 39.5 centimeter (15.4 inch) bearded man, wearing a penis sheath, skullcap, and long, broad beard. It is pillar-shaped—nearly cylindrical—with legs clamped together, arms clenched flat to the sides. Although it vaguely resembles some Amratian and Gerzean ivories, its skillful carving suggests a date contemporary with a peak period of stone carving at the end of the Predynastic era and Early Dynastic period, when slate palettes and stone mace heads were in production. Early Dynastic period. Arch realism is the hallmark of the best Early Dynastic (Archaic) sculpture, whether in a delicate stone vessel carved in the shape of a folded leaf, like one in Cairo, or in the oldest three-dimensional representation of a pharaoh yet found, the British Museum's tiny stoop-shouldered king in ivory. Discovered by W. M. Flinders Petrie at Abydos, the latter depicts a thin-faced, perhaps aged king in white crown and diamondpatterned robe, striding left leg forward, as would become customary for standing male figures for the rest of Egyptian history. Found at Hierakonpoliss temple are the earliest known stone portraits of a pharaoh, a pair representing the second dynasty's last king Khasekhemwy, enthroned and wearing the White Crown; the pair are now shared by Cairo (graywacke, 56.5 centimeters/22 inches) and Oxford (limestone, 62 centimeters/24 inches). In contrast with Oxford's bearded man, these statues are the earliest examples in stone of what would become Egypt's sculptural rule: foursided composition wherein the profiles are as strong as the frontal view. Officials, too, began to have. their hard stone statues at this time. They were usually seated, wearing short layered wigs. Their quality, in terms of both composition and workmanship, is inferior to Khasekhemwy's.
A few stone animal sculptures are known from the Early Dynastic period, such as Berlin's 52 centimeter (20 inch) calcite baboon, and Cleveland's 15.4 centimeter (6 inch) calcite frog goddess, Heket. Faience, appearing around 3000 BCE, provided a new material for the creation of small figurines—rather lumpy, poorly articulated animals, along with the occasional human figure. The finest animal carvings from the period are Cairo's ivory lion game pieces, found in a tomb at Abu Rowash and dated to the first dynasty, and the heavily muscled and veined ivory bull-leg furniture supports from Abydos. Unique to the Early Dynastic period are the clay bucrania (bulls' heads) set around the perimeter of royal mastabas. Third Dynasty and Old Kingdom. From the third dynasty to the end of the Old Kingdom, nearly all known human figure sculpture appears to be funerary. As wealth increased, so did the size of royal tombs, the number of private tombs, and the amount of statuary. This dawn of monumental sculpture rose with the powerful and mysterious, over life-size (142 centimeters/55 inches), painted limestone statue of the third dynasty king Djoser from his serdab at Saqqara, now in Cairo. Like Khasekhemwy, he is enthroned and robed, with one hand on his thigh and the other across his chest. He is the first pharaoh to be depicted wearing a neme^-headcloth, here over a heavy, long wig. Probably carved by the same sculptor are the earliest known life-size portraits of private persons, the standing limestone statues of the official Sepa and his wife, Nesa, now in the Louvre. Nesa stands erect with her feet together, typical for statues of women. Sepa steps forward onto the left foot. He awkwardly holds a tall staff flat against his chest and leg and a baton against his right arm, so they would not protrude and break. By the fifth dynasty, such items were used only on wooden statuary. On stone statuary a more easily contained roll of cloth replaced them thenceforth. Egyptian sculpture blossomed during the fourth dynasty. While the only remaining portrait of Khufu, the builder of the Great Pyramid, is a tiny (7.5 centimeters/3 inches) ivory seated figure— the first royal to be shown bare-chested and wearing the short kilt—the magnificent portraits of Djedefre (though fragmentary), Khafre, and Menkaure more than compensate. Egypt's largest and most famous sculpture, the Great Sphinx (70 meters/224 feet long), guarding Khafre's valley temple and causeway, was carved in place from a colossal nodule of hard limestone. The composition of this pharaoh-faced recumbent lion, itself a god named Horemakhet, is so secure and so well developed that one suspects earlier models, but none exist. Found at his pyramid's valley temple and now in Cairo, Khafre's proud enthroned image is the most majestic of
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SCULPTURE: AN OVERVIEW. Family group statuette, eighteenth dynasty. This group of two men and a boy may represent three generations of male relatives—or the same person in different stages of life. The statuette dates from the reign of Akhenaten and is of painted limestone. (The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Rogers Fund, 1911. [11.150.21])
all pharaonic portraits. Bare-chested and barefoot, be wears only the short kilt and nemes. A falcon protectively clasps the back of the king's head in its wings. Deftly executed on the sides of the throne is a design that would become standard for such statues, the smy-tywy, representing the unification of Egypt. Khafre's over lifesize (168 centimeters/65.5 inches) image is carved in the hardest of Egyptian stones, a black-speckled gray diorite favored by this king. Most of Menkaure's portraits, found at his valley temple and now in Cairo and Boston, depict him in gray-wacke groups, either a dyad with his wife, or in triads flanked by deities. In either case, the women reach behind him clasping his far arm with one hand. Both his wife's and the deities' faces resemble his own pudgy face. Below
the neck their physiques are taut and perfect, the female forms clearly visible through the sheer, clinging fabric of their gowns. In the fifth and sixth dynasties, group statues with fairly generic faces become commonplace for officials, who sit or stand next to a relative or wife and sometimes children, often in the same affectionate embrace as Menkaure enjoyed. While in most periods private portraiture is a clone of royal imagery, the fourth dynasty is exceptional. The best portraits are highly individualized. Some are true masterpieces, like Cairo's brilliantly painted limestone portraits ofRahotep and Nofret (121 centimeters/47 inches), whose quartz and rock crystal eyes give them a particularly lifelike appearance; Hildesheim's ponderous Hemiunu (150 centimeters/58.5 inches) with his narrow eyes, aquiline
nose, double chin, and flabby chest; the Louvre's alert, pinch-faced red scribe (whose cross-legged sitting pose became the convention for this profession); and Boston's sensitive life-size bust of the careworn Ankh-haf. In the best likenesses, sculptors observed the natural asymmetry of the human face and preserved this feature of Egyptian portraiture throughout history. Ankh-hafs bust is a new type: an image finished from head to chest, not broken from a full statue. It may be related to the socalled reserve heads, realistic, life-size limestone portraits terminating at the base of the neck and without hair or ears, which were placed at the entrances to the subterranean burial chambers of some fourth dynasty mastabas at Giza. Many wooden statues of private individuals remain from the fifth and sixth dynasties, the favored trees being native acacias and sycamore figs. Ebony was imported from farther south in Africa. Wood.en statues were made in pieces attached by the same techniques used in furniture joinery, a fine example being a striding statue of the bald and rotund lector-priest Ka-aper (112 centimeters/60 inches) in Cairo. Inlaid eyes heighten the sense of realism. Some officials' wood statues depict them at various stages of life, such as Brooklyn's three statues of Metjetji, two of which wear youthful faces with rather generic features; the third and finest bears an older, personalized portrait. Unique to the Old Kingdom is a class of small painted limestone servant images for the tomb. Usually less than 20 centimeters tall, each one depicts a man or a woman working to supply the deceased with the necessities of life in the next world: kneading bread, brewing beer, or making clay pots. The first large-scale metal sculpture is Cairo's 177-centimeter (69 inch) copper statue of the sixth dynasty pharaoh Pepy I, found at Hierakonpolis with Khasekhem-wy's statues. Pepy's statue and a smaller one tucked inside were probably not cast, but rather hammered over a wooden core. The eyes were inlaid. A deftly carved small (21 centimeters/8 inches) calcite statuette of the same king, now in Brooklyn, recalls the robed Khasekhemwy statues, with the addition of a falcon perched sideways on the back of the throne. Pepy II appears as a small child in the earliest known enthroned mother-and-child composition, a calcite statuette in Brooklyn. After Pepy 11's reign, the government of Egypt collapsed, the Memphite families losing control of everything south of Saqqara. The ensuing one hundred and fifty years, known as the First Intermediate Period, saw little in the way of sculpture production. Middle Kingdom. As Egypt's political epicenter moved from Memphis to Thebes, so the construction of monuments moved away from Giza, Saqqara, and other Old Kingdom sites to Middle Egypt, Upper Egypt, and the Fai-
SCULPTURE: An Overview 223 yum. Pharaohs began to commission multiple monumental statues in series. Enough sculpture remains from the Middle Kingdom that in many reigns we begin to have a sense of statues not as individual entities but as elements in grand schemes. Stone sculpture revived under the strong rule of the eleventh dynasty king Montuhotpe II. His stolid, painted sandstone seated portrait of 138 centimeters (54 inches), found ritually buried at his funerary temple at Deir el-Bahri and now in Cairo, wears the Red Crown of Lower Egypt, making it official that this Southerner has conquered the North. Montuhotpe's design for the decoration of his funerary temple included a processional avenue flanked by rows of figures of himself, mummiform as Osiris. The twelfth dynasty king Senwosret I developed a rich sculptural program for his funerary complex at el-Lisht, including ten nearly identical, over life-size, unpainted white limestone statues of himself enthroned. Two cedar-wood statuettes of this same king, also found at el-Lisht and now shared by Cairo and New York, depict the king with a pleasantly round face, large, intelligent eyes, and a perfect physique. Senwosret HI and his son Amenemhet III commissioned more statuary than ever before to fulfill complex decorative schemes for their temples. Some were done in nearly identical multiples, like the group of over life-size granodiorite seated statues of a barechested Senwosret wearing kilt and names, made for the Montu temple at Medamud. The faces are starkly realistic, with sunken eyes, drooping eyelids, protruding cheekbones, hollow cheeks, distinct prognathisms, and huge ears. Some appear aging or indeed old, yet the bodies remain fit and muscular. More than one hundred portraits are known for Senwosret III, the greatest being Kansas City's monumental head in brown quartzite, a stone that was not used before the Middle Kingdom. Amenemhet III erected a pair of colossal 12 meter (38.5 foot) seated statues (now lost), also in the newly favored quartzite, not far from his Faiyum pyramid temple, the famous Labyrinth of Classical authors. An unusual life-size granodiorite double statue of Amenemhet III from Tanis, now in Cairo, shows him as twin images of a Nile god, carved in the same block. Sphinxes continued to be part of pharaonic imag-eiy, and female sphinxes also began to appear. The technology to smelt and cast bronze developed during this period, perhaps in the Near East, some examples having been found in the Judaean desert. The earliest are copper alloyed with arsenic, as in the magnificent statuettes of Amenemhet III in the George Ortiz collection, Geneva. Most dramatic is the half life-size bust of the king with inlaid eyes, wearing a separately cast nemesheadcloth.
224 SCULPTURE: An Overview During the Middle Kingdom, women began to appear in individual portraits, such as Cairo's large seated grano-diorite statue of Senwosret II's queen, Nofret, wearing a banded and curled Hathor wig, and Boston s monumental granodiorite image of Lady Sennuwy, found in the burial of her husband, the governor of Kerma. High officials were now allowed temple statues, apparently for the first time. Many have been found at Kamak. Officials also set up offering chapels at Abydos and filled them with stelae and sculpture, benefiting from the proximity to the Abydene deities. Hard stones such as granodiorite and quartzite were increasingly used for private individuals. New forms appeared, such as the block statue, wherein the individual squats, with his body—except for head, hands, and feet—enveloped in a robe, providing broad blank fields for long inscriptions. Toward the end of the twelfth dynasty, pair statues with spouses standing hand-in-hand reappear. A variation of this composition has members of a family, sometimes numerous, standing against a stela. New fashions materialized for both men and women, such as the male cone-shaped, chest-high, calf-length kilt, which provided room for longer inscriptions. The female dress was a tubular skirt suspended from two broad straps over the breasts. During the First Intermediate Period and through the Middle Kingdom, large wood statues of private individuals continued to be made for tombs at Asyut, probably from local wood. A wellcarved, brilliantly painted example with inlaid eyes, representing an official named Nakht, is in the Miho Museum, Misono, Japan. One of the most important life-size wooden statues remaining from Egypt was made toward the end of the thirteenth dynasty for the obscure king Hor. On its head is the carved wood hieroglyph for the word ka, suggesting that this is a divine statue for the ka of a dead king. Both the design and the execution of this statue are surprisingly fine, considering that it was made during a time of political and economic decline. Complex genre scenes and figures, carved in wood and then painted, were made to provide necessities for the afterlife. From Mesehti's eleventh dynasty tomb at Asyut, and now in Cairo, are two sets of model soldiers, the figures carved and equipped separately and attached to wooden palettes, each 190 centimeters long. Meketre's eleventh dynasty Theban tomb divulged several models: a group of barges carrying fishermen with nets; a diorama where the deceased sits in a kiosk with friends and family, inspecting twenty variegated cattle herded by a dozen herdsmen; a carpentry shop and a weaver's studio—each populated by ten or more figures contained in small, open-roofed boxes. Other painted wooden tomb companions include female offering bearers, sometimes well over
a meter tall, balancing heavy containers on their heads with one hand while carrying an extra vessel or animal in the other. Also specific to this period are well-modeled, prettily painted faience statuettes made as tomb gifts. Most impressive are turquoise-colored hippopotami with birds, insects, and plants drawn on them. The hippos' jaws and/ or legs were broken to render them ritually powerless to destroy the tomb owners' fields during the afterlife. Small white faience jerboa mice may have warded off other rodents from food offerings. Partially or completely nude adolescent girls with truncated legs, also in turquoise faience, may have been fertility figures. This type of figurine continued to be made, though much more crudely, in terra cotta during the Second Intermediate Period. Shawabtis, mummiform servant statuettes inscribed with promises to work in their owners' fields throughout the afterlife, were invented during the Middle Kingdom, as were canopic jars with heads sculpted in human form. Both became standard burial equipment for centuries to come. New Kingdom. The first images after the Second Intermediate Period, such as London's seated limestone figure (35 centimeters/I 4 inches) of Tetisheri, mother of King Sekenre Ta'o, were awkward, yet the New Kingdom was to become the most prolific period for Egyptian sculpture. Colossal size, number, and rich materials were emphasized, along with the highest quality of workmanship. Temple statuary increased both for kings and wealthy commoners. Sculpture production multiplied exponentially during the coregency of Hatshepsut and Thutmose III, in an attempt to exceed all that had been done in the past. Most of Hatshepsut's statuary comes from her funerary complex at Deir el-Bahri. Torn down and thrown into rubbish heaps by her nephew, Thutmose III, who outlived her, these statues have been found and reconstituted by the Metropolitan Museum. They include thirty-eight statues, ranging in height from 264 to 624 centimeters (8.6 to 20.3 feet), of the queen mummiform as Osiris, which were engaged to—that is, built up in courses with—the pillars and walls against which they stood. Those wearing the White Crown stood south of the temple axis; those wearing the Double Crown stood north. Freestanding statues and sphinxes lined the processional avenue used on festival days, while the way to the door of the sanctuary was lined with a variety of statues: sphinxes, freestanding statues of the queen, and kneeling statues. Most of these were in red granite, and many were colossal. The most personal is an over life-size (190 centimeters/74 inches) indurated limestone portrait of a narrowwaisted, small-breasted woman sitting in the ne.riies headdress and short kilt of a king. Her face is thin, with an aquiline nose and a narrow
SCULPTURE: An Overview 225
chin, features which tended to be softened in her more idealized imagery. Separating Hatshepsut's idealized portraits from those of her nephew is often difficult. At times the sculptors may have purposely generalized some portraits, allowing the cartouches added at the end to seal the statues' identities. Thutmose Ill's archetypical portrait is Turin's 188-centimeter (73-inch) tall figure in black granodiorite. It sits in Turin close to a similar statue of his grandfather, Thutmose I. Like him, Thutmose 111 wears the nemes and short kilt, his powerful legs slightly spread, the sacred bull's tail visible between them. These statues are more monumental, broader, and more muscular than Middle Kingdom statues, in keeping with their aspirations for and success at international conquest. Thutmose Ill's favorite types of statuary are illustrated in the tomb of his last and greatest vizier, Rekhmire. They include sphinxes, the king kneeling and holding nu-pots, enthroned statues, the king bearing a tray of offerings, and the king kneeling and extending a large vessel. The use of a rare, hard white marble occurred during this reign. More statuary remains from the reign of Amenhotpe III than from any other pharaoh to his time. His charming
SCULPTURE: AN OVERVIEW. Twenty-sixth dynasty statue of Osiris from Saqqara, now in the Egyptian Museum, Cairo. (Scala / Art Resource, NY)
facial features—almond eyes, small nose, and thick, sensual lips bent in a constant half-smile—are those of the serene emperor of a secure land. He transformed Thebes on both banks of the Nile with his architectural and sculptural program. In front of his vast funerary temple on the west bank, he placed two colossal (17 meters/54.4 feet), brown quartzite statues, now wrecks. Additional colossi, remains of which are in London, Paris, and Luxor, stood according to their geographic symbolism in one of the courtyards. Perhaps as many as a thousand statues, including stone lions, sphinxes, and crocodiles, decorated the temple. Across the river, the avenues between Karnak and Luxor were flanked by monumental statues of recumbent rams. Pylons were faced with colossi. Countless statues of the lion-headed female goddess Mut or Sakhmet were commissioned in dark granodiorite to till her sanctuary between the two great temples. Discovered in a pit in 1989 is the most interesting statue made for the Luxor temple, a life-size red quartzite statue of the king as a statue standing on a sledge. More typical of his oeuvre are the granodiorite enthroned statues, like those in London, New York, and Luxor. Many of these were recut by later
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kings and are now difficult to recognize. Amenhotpe's renovations stretched a thousand miles south in the Sudan to Soleb, where he supplied temples with processional avenues of statuary, including the great red granite lions now in the British Museum. The success of both Hatshepsut's and Amenhotpe's sculptural programs undoubtedly owed a great deal to the men who oversaw them, Senenmut and Amenhotep, son of Hapu, respectively. Both were honored with important portraits placed in temples. Senenmut's compositions include new inventions. In some he holds the statue of a deity (in Brooklyn, the serpent goddess, Renenutet), or embraces his queen's small daughter (Cairo). Amenhotep son of Hapu's sculptures are more traditional standing figures or cross-legged scribes, one depicting him as an old man. Other Amenhotpe III officials adopted the new compositions, like Cleveland's Minemheb, who kneels holding a shrine and divine statue, here Thoth's baboon. Tomb statuary also existed. Some life-size images were carved in the living limestone rock at Thebes, then painted, and some were carved separately, but their quality is inferior to hard stone temple statues. Of fine quality are small hardwood statuettes, sometimes with eyes inlaid in glass. Bronze statuary occurs rarely and more often as small funerary furnishings, such as mirror handles or ceremonial weapons, rather than as royal or official portraits. Dazzling small sculptures, probably temple gifts, were made in faience (the Metropolitan Museum's sphinx), wood (Berlin's tiny head of Queen Tiye), and glazed steatite statues (the Louvres Tiy, Durham's Amenhotpe). Red and yellow jasper were used throughout the New Kingdom on composite sculptures, but the most beautiful representative is the yellow fragment with sensuous female lips, now in New York. During the later eighteenth dynasty, female representations increased greatly in number and importance. Cairo's colossal limestone group from Medinet Habu shows a queen equal in size to her husband, with the royal daughters standing larger than life beside their parents' legs. Women also appear in exquisite small statuettes, such as George Ortiz's 48.5-centimeter (19-inch) tall serpentinite Princess Isis. Feminine dress became much more elaborate during this reign. Dresses were intricately pleated, and often worn with shawls. Wigs for both men and women became quite large and heavy with multiple tresses and braids. Amama period and Tutankhamun. In his later portraits Amenhotpe III appears rotund and Queen Tiye's figure sags, the realities of life appearing briefly in phara-onic representations. Their son Akhenaten advanced this realism to its extreme, adopting a wide-hipped, short-limbed, heavy-breasted, effeminate form for his own portraiture, for example on his colossi at East Karnak, now
in Cairo. This body type, coupled with an elongated face, has caused scientists to wonder if the king was diseased. In later years, however, his style was tempered, producing the Louvre's yellow stone statuette (64 centimeters/25 inches) of a well-fed Akhenaten enthroned, wearing the nemes and short kilt, a slight paunch spilling out over his belt. He is the first king to be shown almost always with pierced ears. More female portraits are known from this reign than ever before. The later years produced Berlins magnificent life-size painted limestone bust (48 centimeters/18.7 inches) of Akhenaten's queen Nefertiti, found in excavations of the workshop of the royal sculptor Thutmose at Tell el-Amama, along with many other portraits of Nefertiti, royal princesses, and other women, as well as some male portraits. On his return to Thebes, Tutankhamun carried many of the later Amama stylistic traits with him, including the long chin, flaccid body, long torso, and short legs, but none of these in the extreme. The sculptures from his tomb represent types and materials otherwise known only from tomb paintings: wood statues in active poses, such as harpooning, and complicated inlaid and painted alabaster sculptural compositions. Highly naturalistic animal figures carved in ivory, such as New York's small gazelle and leaping horse, may also come from this reign. Later New Kingdom. The nineteenth dynasty, especially the long reign of Ramesses II, called "the Great," was a period of revision and reuse of earlier monuments, as well as the construction of new ones. More colossal statuary remains from Ramesses II than from Amenhotpe III, perhaps because no subsequent king tore apart as many earlier monuments as did Ramesses. His statuary is more remarkable for its size than for its design, which is generally uninventive and academic. His best portrait however, is spectacular. Now in Turin, it is a variation of the traditional enthroned king (190 centimeters/74 inches). Holding a scepter and staff, he wears the hprs-crown; a long, finely pleated, fringed gown with sleeves; a pleated, fringed shawl over one shoulder, and sandals. The aquiline nose, small eyes, and pointed chin closely resemble the features of his mummy in Cairo. Queen Nef-ertari stands knee-high beside his leg on the Turin statue. The proportions of both figures are elongated, especially the limbs. Ramesses the Great left colossal statues at many sites, including both banks of the Nile at Luxor, but nothing is more astonishing than the twin temple complex for himself and his wife at Abu Simbel, where both architecture and statues—pylon colossi, Osirid figures engaged with columns, and cult figures—are carved from the living rock. These figures are more idealized than the Turin portrait and the costume more traditional. Many of Ramesses' portraits started out as portraits of
SCULPTURE: An Overview 227 earlier kings, which he recut and i-einscribed. He did not invent the practice, but he made tremendous use of it. Therefore, some portraits, like the Louvre's seated grano-diorite image, a recut statue of Amenhotpe III, appear awkward and not easily recognizable as Harnesses without his cartouches. Temple statuary for high officials continue to be common, as did fine hardwood statuary. Private individuals' proportions, like the royals', are elongated, and their costumes and wigs long and elaborate. Canopic jars lids now bear different heads—baboon, jackal, falcon, and human—for the four sons of Horus. A new sculpture type, the limestone "ancestor bust," seems to have been set up in household shrines before eventually being transferred to tombs. The Miho Museum's superb solid silver statuette (41.9 centimeters/16.3 inches) of a falcon-headed god, overlaid with gold and inlaid with stone, probably dates to this period. The decline after Ramesses Us death lasted through five dynasties until the Kushite revival of the twenty-fifth dynasty. The kings of the Third Intermediate Period, especially the Tanite kings of the twenty-second dynasty, specialized in reusing their predecessors' statues rather than creating new ones. They excelled in metal sculpture, however, such as the tiny gold statuettes— actually jewelry— from the royal tombs at Tanis, like the triad of King Osor-kon II flanked by Horus and Isis. Queen Karornama II's portrait (59 centimeters/23 inches) in damascened bronze, acquired by Champollion in Thebes, is one of the finest bronze sculptures from antiquity. Late period. When they gained power over Egypt and its wealth, the Kushites began to commission grand hard stone statuary for themselves. Berlin's granite sphinx of Princess Shepenupet II (82 centimeters/32 inches), Khartoum's monumental granodiorite King Tanwetamani, and Boston's Khonsu-ir-aa (43.5 centimeters/I 7 inches) are strong and important sculptures of the period, the first two at least from the Sudan. The finest work of the period, however, was produced for Egypt's central temples, such as Cairo's over life-size portrait of Queen Amenirdas and large statues of the mayor of Thebes, King Taharqa's great official, Mentuemhat, who virtually ruled Egypt. His portraits, especially his statue as an aged man, bear the arch-realism of the Old Kingdom. Bronze statuary becomes more common and technically finer. Two twenty-fifth dynasty furniture legs, one in Boston and one in Khartoum, incorporate naturalistically modeled, perfectly cast geese with carefully incised feathers, eyes, and bills. Kings and queens become much more commonly portrayed in bronze statuettes, such as the University Museum, Philadelphia's Necho, Berlins Ta-harqa, and Athens's Queen Takushit. Soon bronzecasting became a major industry in Egypt, and thousands of statuettes of divinities, both human—Osiris, Amun, Isis,
SCULPTURE: AN OVERVIEW. Horus-falcon guarding the hypostyle hall of the temple of Horns at Edfu, Ptolemaic period. (© Photograph by Erich Lessing / Art Resource, NY)
etc.—and animal—Bastet cats, Oxyrhynchus fish. Apis bulls, etc.—were produced to fill the needs of a rising middle class who wished to buy the favors of their gods. At the same time, faience genre statuettes, such as female figures with monkeys, were produced for magical use within Egyptian folk religion. These were popular outside Egypt as well, in ancient Kush and throughout the Mediterranean, including Greece. During the Ptolemaic period, the production of faience votive statuettes of deities, both anthropomorphic and theriomorphic, moved into high gear, and nearly every Egyptian collection has examples of the fine robin's-egg-blue figures made from the fourth century BCE on. More portraits of officials than of pharaohs survive from the twenty-sixth dynasty. Favorite poses are block statues and shrine offering statues. Middle Kingdom style was revived, sometimes so successfully that the later ver-
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sions are difficult to separate from the originals. Much Late period statuary is bland and academic, but the best approaches the realism of Mentuemhat's statue. By the end of the dynasty, temples like Karnak were virtual forests of statuary; the eventual clean-up resulted in burying tens of thousands of stone statues and bronze statuettes in a pit within the temple, where they were found some twenty centuries later. Persia's defeat of Egypt in 525 BCE nearly finished sculpture production in Egypt, although it revived briefly during the thirtieth dynasty, during which the native kings Nektanebo I and II refurbished temples and commissioned new statuary. Ptolemaic period. Egypt's Greek rulers continued the sculptural traditions of the Nile Valley even while introducing their own. Discovered in Alexandria Bay in the 1990s were parts of colossal statues, perhaps of Ptolemy II and his queen Arsinoe, which in good pharaonic tradition probably graced temple pylons along with sphinxes, of which many survive. In order to gain favor with Egypt's powerful clergy, the foreign kings had themselves portrayed in traditional pharaonic poses (more standing than enthroned) and wearing the royal nemes and kilt, but smiling, slim, and effete, lacking the imperial bearing of their predecessors. Happy queens appear in filmy gowns, virtually nude, holding the mnit or other feminine attributes. Hellenistic style breathed a new type of voluptuousness into Ptolemaic women, whose femininity is expressed in large breasts rather than in the wide hips and thighs of Karomama, Nefertiti, and Tiy. Some, perhaps many, of these are recut statues from much earlier periods, such as the Miho Museum's Arsinoe II, a visibly slimmed-down statue of Amenhotpe Ill's Queen Tiy. Vestiges of Egypt's traditional sculptural style lasted long after the death of the kingdom in 30 BCE. More than two hundred years later, funerary statues in the Romano-Egyptian catacombs of Alexandria were still being carved in limestone: standing figures, the left leg forward, wearing the traditional kilt, but with portrait and hair in Roman Antonine style. And Emperor Caracalla in the early third century was still depicted wearing the royal uraeus on his brow. [See also Archaism; Art; Artists and Artisans; Bronze Statuettes; Funerary Figurines; Grid Systems; Portraiture; Relief Sculpture; and Sphinx.] BIBLIOGRAPHY Aldred, Cyril. Akiienaten and Nefertiti. Brooklyn, 1973. Exhibition catalogue with many examples of Amarna and pre-Arnarna sculpture. Arnold, Dorothea. The Royal Women ofAmarna: Images of Beauty from Ancient Egypt. New York, 1996. Exhibition catalog with essays on Akhenaten's artistic revolution and the workshop of the sculptor Thutmose.
Arnold, Dorothea, Christiane Ziegler, et al. Egyptian An in the Age of the Pyramids. New York, 1.999. Exhibition catalog of Old Kingdom art, with essays on the conception and use of statuary. Bel-man, Lawrence M. Pharaohs: Treasures of Egyptian Art from the Louvre. Includes nineteen portraits in the round of pharaohs from Djedefre to Nero, and a precis of each. Bianchi, Robert S. Cleopatra's Egypt: Age of the Ptolemies. Brooklyn, 1988. Exhibition catalog analyzing the art of the Ptolemaic and Roman periods, with 140 entries on objects of all media ranging in time from the first Ptolemy to Caracalla. Bothroer, Bernard V. Egyptian Sculpture of the JMte Period. 700 BC to AD 100. Brooklyn, 1960; reprinted, New York, 1969. Exhibition catalog with the classic discussions of styles and statue types of the Late period. Bourriau, Janine. Pharaohs anil Mortals: Egyptian Art in the Middle Kingdom. Cambridge, 1988. Exhibition catalog with discussions of Middle Kingdom portraits and various types of small statuary and their uses. Delange, Elisabeth. Catalogue des statues egyptiennes dli moyen empire, 2060-1560 avant J. C. Paris, 1987. Catalog of the Louvre's Middle Kingdom statuary, with up-to-date discussion of style. Friedman, Florence Dunn, ed. Gifts of the Nile: Ancient .Egyptian Faience. Providence, 1998. Exhibition catalog describing the history and techniques of manufacture of faience and related materials, with 200 entries of objects of all periods. Hayes, William C. The Scepter of Egypt. 2 vols. Rev. ed. New York, 1990. A general history of ait, based on the Metropolitan Museum collections. Hornung, Erik. Idea Into Image: Essays on Ancient Egyptian Thought. Princeton, 1992. Essays, many of which deal with the ideas behind the creation and use of statuary. James, T. G. H., and W. V. Davies. Egyptian Sculpture. London, 1983. A handbook based on the British Museum's collection. Kozloff, Arielle P., and Betsy M. B.ryan. Egypt's Dazzling Sun: Amenho-tep III and His World. Cleveland, 1992. Exhibition catalog with discussions of the development of this pharaoh's sculpture program and its meaning, and descriptions of al) sizes and types of his statuary and their materials. Robins, Gay. Proportion and Style in Ancient Egyptian Art. Austin, 1994. Explains grids and figural style changes. Robins, Gay. The Art of Ancient Egypt. Cambridge, Mass., 1997. The most up-to-date discussion of the general subject, incorporating recently developed ideas. Russmann, Edna R., and David Finn. Egyptian Sculpture: Cairo and Liixor. Austin, 1989. An overview and stylistic analysis of Egyptian sculpture, based on the Cairo and Luxor collections. Saleh, Mohammed, and Hourig Sourouzian. Official Guide: The Egyptian Museum Cairo. Mainz, 1987. Contains images and discussions of many objects and types of objects discussed here. Seipel, Wilfried. Golt, Mensch, Pharao: Viertausend Jahr Menschenhild in der Skulptur des alten Agypten. Vienna, 1992. Exhibition catalog of 211 examples of figural sculpture from all periods. Valbelle, Don-unique. "Craftsmen." In the The Egyptians, edited by Sergio Donadoni, pp. 31-59. Chicago, 1997. Explores the identities, work ethics, and daily life of the sculptors. Wildung, Dietrich. Sudan: Antike Kwigreiche. am Nil. Munich, 1996. Exhibition catalog of art from all periods in ancient Sudan, including sculpture from the period of the Kushite domination of Egypt. Ziegler, Christiane. Les statues egyptiennes de I'Ancien Empire. Paris, 1997. Catalog of the Louvre's Old Kingdom statuary with up-to-date discussion of style. ARIELLE P. KOZLOFF
SCULPTURE: Royal Sculpture 229 Royal Sculpture Representations of the pharaohs in Egyptian statuary, known from the Early Dynastic to the Roman period had many functions: propagandistic, religious, didactic, commemorative, magical, and decorative. Found in temples, tombs, palaces and—exceptionally— private homes, they are made of various materials: most frequently stone, and less frequently wood, metals, or faience. The surfaces of the statues were usually painted, or sometimes overlaid with gold foil, but only a few statues now have parts of this coating. Like other cult objects, royal statues were believed to be endowed with life, which was granted through the Opening the Mouth ceremony. In other domains of Egyptian art, three-dimensional representations of the pharaohs were subject to a canon of iconographic and stylistic patterns, which, however, display a diachronic development. Even the most conservative archetypes change through the centuries, and each epoch introduces new types, which sometimes remain for a long time in the sculptor's repertory. Anthropomorphic representations of the ruler are most common, although his affinity with certain animals, particularly those that are zoomorphic incarnations of the most important gods, is frequently emphasized in various ways. The most popular type of statue showing the king as a syncretic, half-human and half-animal being is the sphinx, combining the body of a reclining lion with the head of a pharaoh. The oldest known statue of this type is a fragmentarily preserved sphinx of Djedefre (now in the Louvre), and its most monumental version is the Great Sphinx in Giza, from living rock, probably in the time of Khafre. Long rows of uniform sphinx statues bordered the streets leading to the main entrances of many Egyptian temples. A long sequence of sphinxes dating from the reign of Nektanebo I is still preserved in front of the Luxor temple. A particular type of royal sphinx the king's human head with a lions mane. First recorded in the statuary of Middle Kingdom (a statue attributed to Amenemhet III in the Egyptian Museum, Cairo), it is also found in representations of Hatshepsut (in the Metropolitan Museum) and Taharqa (British Museum). Among the iconographic variations of the sphinx with royal head, there are also figures with two human arms replacing the animal's forefeet and holding a cult object. This pattern is first found in the statuary of Amenhotpe III found in the temple of Monthu at Karnak. Another peculiar version of sphinx figurine, dating from the same reign and now in Cairo, shows the animal with two wings. Anthropomorphic effigies portray the king either alone or accompanied by one (dyad), two (triad), or more figures. These are members of his family or his ancestors,
various gods in their human, half-animal, or zoomorphic shape, or—rarely—other figures of the same king; exceptionally, a nonroyal figure occurs. The king represented alone more frequently appears seated, standing, or kneeling, and less frequently striding or prostrate. Seated royal statues occur as early as the second dynasty; the first known life-size representation of a king in this attitude is the statue of Djoser (Egyptian Museum, Cairo) found in Saqqara. Monumental versions of this archetype later decorated entrances to Egyptian temples. A pair of colossal seated statues was usually placed in front of the temple, one on each side of the entrance. A classical example of such decoration is the Memnon Colossi in Thebes, which originally adorned the mortuary temple of Amenhotpe III. Being an important instrument of political and religious propaganda, statues showing a sitting king usually bear a decoration in relief that has symbolic value. The heraldic scene depicting the unification of Lower and Upper Egypt usually decorates the outer faces of the lateral panels in the royal throne, and figures of bound foreign captives appear on the base of the statue. Thus, the king is portrayed as the ruler of all Egypt, victorious over the rest of the world. A representation of the king kneeling and offering two globular wine vessels is first found in the statuary of Khafre (now in the Pelizaeus-Museum, Hildesheim). Besides this classical version of a kneeling king, there are also statues of pharaohs offering various other ritual objects, such as the statuette of a god, a small shrine (Merenptah, in Cairo), or an offering table (Sety II in Karnak, Ramesses III from Tanis). A standing king can also be shown as the bearer of an offering or a cult object. Three statues attributed to Amenemhet III (Egyptian Museum, Cairo; Museo Ludovisi alle Terme, Rome), as well as statues of Thut-mose III (Cairo), Amenhotpe III (Cairo), and Osorkon (British Museum, London), represent the king offering fish. A similar statue ofHoremheb (British Museum) shows him offering flowers. Several sculptures portray a standing king in the gesture of adoration. The oldest known examples of the latter are statues of Senwosret III (four in the British Museum and in Cairo). A small figurine in Cairo, showing Ramesses IV in the same attitude, is made of faience. Among the iconographic innovations of the long reign of Amenhotpe III, there is a type of statue depicting a standing king as bearer of a standard at his side (Karnak North and Egyptian Museum, Cairo). This pattern became particularly popular in the Rammesid period. Several artistic innovations occur in the group of statuary showing a standing king. Unique of its kind is a wooden statue (Egyptian Museum, Cairo) representing the ka. of king Hori (thirteenth dynasty); the nude "double" of the king, wearing the wig and beard of a god,
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SCULPTURE: ROYAL SCULPTURE. Old Kingdom statue of the third dynasty king Djoser, now in the Egyptian Museum, Cairo. (Courtesy David P. Silvern-ian)
bears two raised arms on his head. Another unique statue from the reign of Amenhotpe III, is a large representation of the king's statue standing on a sledge; found in 1989 in the cache of the Luxor temple and now in the Luxor Museum, and unparalleled in many respects, it belongs among the masterpieces of Egyptian sculpture. Another unusual work is the only monumental representation of a Persian ruler of Egypt, the headless figure of Darius I found in Susa and now in the Iran-Bastam-Museum, Teheran. Its iconography combines Egyptian and Persian elements. An important group of statues and statuettes shows the king as a mummiform Osiris with hands crossed on his chest. Monumental versions occur in Egyptian temples,
on the frontal face of pillars in the facade. The pharaoh holds the usual attributes of Osiris. Small figurines showing a mummiform pharaoh with various tools in his hands are the shawabtis belonging to the equipment of royal burials. The largest group of such stone figurines ever found in a royal tomb came from the Taharqa's pyramid at Nuri, Sudan; the largest groups are now in the Archaeological Museum, Khartoum, and the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. The oldest statue showing a striding pharaoh (Egyptian Museum, Cairo) dates from the reign of Senwosret I. The attitude of prostration first appears in the statuary of Amenhotpe III (Metropolitan Museum of Art). In the few later versions of this pattern, the pharaoh is represented
SCULPTURE: Royal Sculpture 231 offering a ritual object, such as socle with one or more heads of gods (Ramesses IT, in Cairo), a socle with a scarab (Ramesses IX, collection of C. T. Trechmann, Great Britain), or a stela inscribed with a prayer (Osorkon II, Egyptian Museum, Cairo, and University Museum, Philadelphia), or a sacred barge (Osorkon 111, Egyptian Museum, Cairo). An important group of statues represents the pharaoh as a child. The oldest known example is a representation (Egyptian Museum, Cairo) of Pepy II as a seated nude boy; however, juvenile features do not necessarily represent a king in his youth. Recent studies of the art of Amen-hotpe III have proved that Egyptian sculptors endowed his effigies with a boyish facial expression in the last phase of his long life, specifically after his sed-]ubi\ee, in order to express the idea of his symbolic regeneration as king. A unique statue of Ramesses II, found in Tanis and now in Cairo, portrays the king as a squatting nude child with various attributes; it is a sophisticated anagram of his name, a cryptographic threedimensional composition of hieroglyphic signs constituting the name Ra-mes-su. Some other royal statues may also be "read" as anagrams of a king's name. The oldest known group Statues date from the fourth dynasty. The first dyads show Djedefre with his wife, and the first triads represent Menkaure with the goddess Ha-thor and the personification of one of the nomes of Egypt (Egyptian Museum, Cairo, and Museum of Fine Arts, Boston). Later, particularly in the time of Ramesses II, monumental triads become a popular instrument of political theology, showing the king as a child of an important divine couple or emphasizing his affinity to particular gods shown in his company. In exceptional cases, this propaganda includes other members of royal family or royal ancestors. Thus, Senwosret I is represented with his three predecessors (in a statue at the Egyptian Museum, Cairo), while a statue of Merenptah found in Heliopolis shows him with his father, Ramesses II, and the god Osiris. Another statue of Merenptah (from Bubastis, now in Cairo) portrays him with his son Sety II, while a colossal statue ofAmenhotpe III (also in Cairo) depicts him with his wife and their own propaganda; for example, the vizier Pa-nehsy is shown standing behind Merenptah and his wife in a work from Deir elMedina. A fine, large calcite dyad of Amenhotpe III, showing the king with the crocodile-headed god Sobek, was found in Dahamsha in Upper Egypt and is now in the Luxor Museum. Dyads and triads represent a group of persons fron-tally, standing or seated side by side. A specific case of this artistic concept appears in groups composed of two or more figures of the same king; the only visible difference between the parallel figures is in their facial features. The earliest such dyad is a double standing representation
(Staatliche Sammlung Agyptischer Kunst, Munich) of Newoserre Any, which allegedly emphasizes the double— human and divine—nature of the pharaoh. One of the two faces is young, while the other reveals features of advanced age. Next in date are the double royal statues of the Middle Kingdom. One, attributed to Amenemhet III and now in Cairo, shows the ruler as the Nile god offering fish, fowl and lotus plants. A group statue of Ramesses II (Egyptian Museum, Cairo) shows two kings kneeling in front of the god Heh, raising an altar. Unique in Egyptian statuary are the four colossi representing the seated Ramesses II, hewn in the facade of his temple at Abu Sim-bel. Their differentiated facial features probably express the Egyptian idea of totality symbolized by the sacred number four, which would fit the political megalomania of this king. Contrasting with the large number of groups of linear composition are the less numerous statues depicting an action between two or more persons. In many cases, their sophisticated, mostly asymmetrical composition appears as a three-dimensional version of scenes that occur repeatedly in Egyptian relief and painting. Although some conventions of this group were copied in subsequent periods, there are many innovative forms. One of the most popular patterns shows a small king seated on the knees of another person, usually a god or one of the kings parents. The king does not always have the features of a child. The oldest known example is a small ealcite statue (Brooklyn Museum, New York) showing Pepy II on the knees of his knees of her nurse, Satre (Egyptian Museum, Cairo). Her successor Thutmose 111 is represented in the same attitude with the goddess Renenutet (also in Cairo). An unfinished limestone statuette from Tell el-Amarna portrays Akhenaten kissing one of his daughters, who is seated on his knees. The theme of a child seated on his mother's knees was more popular outside the royal context. Its purely religious version, showing Isis with her child Horus, is one of the most popular images among Egyptian bronze statuettes; this later became the prototype of a popular representation of the Virgin Mary. Two types of group statues were particularly popular from the New Kingdom on: scenes of the coronation ceremony, and representations of an offering or adoring king kneeling in front of a seated divinity. In the first case, the god, seated behind the pharaoh, puts his hands on the king's crown and shoulder. Large sculptures showing the coronation ceremony are particularly numerous in the statuary of Tutankhamun; most of them probably constituted an integral part of the decoration of the Luxor temple. An unusual statue, found in Medinet Habu and now in Cairo, shows Ramesses III crowned by two gods, Horus and (probably) Thoth. Associated with the coronation groups is a type of statue showing a divinity striding
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behind a king and putting hands on him a gesture reminiscent of coronation scenes. This patterns is found, for example, in a large anepigraphic statue from Tanis and now in Cairo, showing a Ramessid king followed by a goddess. An iconographic invention of the Ramessid period is the threedimensional version of the scene showing a pha-raoh killing an enemy. First occurring in the statuary of Merenptah (Egyptian Museum, Cairo) this pattern was copied for Ramesses IV (Cairo) and Ramesses VI (Cairo, Turin), who appear accompanied by a lion. Representations of a pharaoh protected by an animal, or a zoomorphic incarnation of a god, are popular from the eighteenth dynasty. They paraphrase the earlier concept of a king protected by a falcon, the animal embodying Horus, the divine original of the pharaohs. In the Old Kingdom, the falcon is shown either folding its wings around the head of the king (first in the statuary (Museum of Fine Arts, Boston) of Khufu—a diorite statue of Khafre from Giza (Egyptian Museum, Cairo) is the type's classical example) or standing transversely behind the king's head. The first pattern was in use at least until the Ramessid period. A specific case is the royal child squatting in the shadow of a falcon, constituting an anagram of the name Ra-mes-su, described above. Beginning in the reign of Amenhotpe II, who is shown standing before the Hathor cow and the Meretseger snake (both in the Egyptian Museum, Cairo), the type of statue representing a small king in the shadow of a large animal is a standard pattern in royal statuary. Representations of kings protected by sphinxes with the heads of various animals—for example, of rams or falcons—occur particularly often. Several statues showing a falcon as the protector of the king date from the reign of Nektanebo II, the last indigenous pharaoh (e.g., in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York). Some royal sculptures served a magical function. An example is a group statue representing Ramesses III with a goddess (perhaps Isis, the work, from Heliopolis, is lost). The magic formulae engraved on its surface bring to mind the "healing statues" of nonroyal figures popular in the Late period. The individuality of each royal effigy was achieved not only by rendering specific facial features but also through the king's garments and other attributes. These details emphasize the affinity of the pharaoh with particular gods, define his ritual functions, or commemorate historical events of political or religious significance. Most frequently the king is represented barefoot, wearing a short apron and a broad collar on his nude torso. Some statues, including the oldest known figurine of the Early Dynastic period (British Museum, London), show him wrapped in the temple long overcoat worn by the pharaohs on the occasion of their serf-jubilee. Other kinds of long gown
characterize the king celebrating his coronation. A specific kind of dress ("Horus gown"), known since New Kingdom, identifies him with Horus; it looks like a large scalp of a falcon, the head of the animal forming a kind of hood over the king's head. Some statues show a pharaoh wrapped in a panther skin, which brings to mind his function as head priest. In many other cases this function is indicated more symbolically by a panther's head hanging from the king's belt. Headdress is one of the most diagnostic elements in royal attire. Pharaohs are represented wearing various kinds of kerchiefs, crowns, and wigs. The nem&s-cloth is the most popular royal headgear in Egyptian statuary of all periods. The most popular crown is the Double Crown composed of two elements symbolizing Lower and Upper Egypt; their combination, expressing the unity of the country, associates the king with the Heliopolitan god Atum, with whom he also shared the epithet "Lord of the Two Lands." Various kinds of feather crowns associated the king with different gods, particularly Osiris, whose most typical crown (the atef) often appears in royal iconography, especially in funerary contexts. From the New Kingdom on, many statues show a pharaoh wearing the Blue Crown hprs, which has the shape of a high vaulted tiara with sharp edges. The oldest known statues of a standing pharaoh wearing this crown (Brooklyn Museum; Egyptian Museum, Cairo; Pelizaeus-Museum, Hildes-heim) date from the reign of Amenhotpe III. Diagnostic primarily of a monarch's military victory, this crown is also associated with the coronation ceremony, as in the fine seated statue of Ramesses II in the Museo Egizio, Turin. Short wigs are often adorned with a circlet, sometimes with two ribbons hanging behind it. Some types of royal headgear co-occur with an artificial beard of rectangular shape attached to the headdress with lateral bands. A constant element of royal headdress is the uraeus set above the kings forehead. Its shape, and specifically the arrangement of its coils, varies according to the type of headdress and the artistic trend of the period, so that it is one of the most useful dating criteria in royal sculpture. Two parallel snakes often appear at the forehead of Kushite kings (twenty-fifth dynasty), whose iconography constitutes a specific chapter in Egyptian art. Another characteristic feature of their effigies is the tightly fitting skullcap, in which one may discern an affinity with the Memphire god Ptah, one of the most venerated divinities of that dynasty. All pharaohs share another common feature with Ptah: the rectangular shape of their artificial beard, contrasting with the beards of all other gods, which are curved forward at the base. Queens and other members of the royal family appear less frequently than kings in Egyptian statuary. Statues of
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various size, made of various materials, show the queen alone. She is usually portrayed in a long, close-fitting dress, with various types of headgear associating her with different goddesses. She often wears a wig, which sometimes supports a crown, frequently a feather crown. The scalp of a vulture seen on the heads of some queens emphasizes their affinity with goddess Nekhbet in their role as mothers. Like the majority of statues showing nonroyal subjects, most royal effigies are carved in one monolithic block with a back pillar, a rectangular plate at the rear of the statue. The inscription on the pillar usually contains significant information about the subject. For many reasons, these and other inscriptions found on royal statues may not be a satisfactory criterion in
SCULPTURE: ROYAL SCULPTURE. Middle Kingdom statue of the twelfth dynasty king Amenenihet III, now in the Egyptian Museum, Cairo. (Courtesy David P. Silverman)
their dating. Many statues were usurped by later rulers, sometimes more than once and their inscriptions were then recarved. Some pharaohs, deified and venerated by their descendants, are known to have posthumous representations that bear their names but belong stylistically to a later epoch. Archaization, the copying of earlier works, as well as other sorts of imitation and artistic inspiration, occurs frequently in royal statuary, which results in controversial attributions and interpretations. Many statues are preserved only fragmentarily, and if a fragment is an-epigraphic or bears only a part of its inscription, criteria of style and iconography remain the only tools for its chronological or topographical attribution. Each period had its particular style. Representations of some rulers display easily identifiable diagnostic features,
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SCULPTURE: ROYAL SCULPTURE. The nineteenth dynasty rock-cut temple at Abu Simbel dedicated to Queen Nefeitari and the goddess Hathor. On each side of the entrance are monumental figures of the queen, flanked on both of her sides by her king Ramesses It. (Courtesy David P. Silverman)
and a diachronic development within a reign may be observed only in exceptional cases. The latter is true of a few pharaohs whose rule was long and whose artistic production is known from many inscribed works (e.g., Amen-hotpe III, Ramesses II). In some cases, geographic attribution may be proposed as well. Differences of style prove that various workshops or sculptors were simultaneously active in various parts of the country, and even in the same center or temple. In regard to the rendering of facial features, it seems that Lower Egyptian workshops were generally more open to innovative trends and perhaps more inventive than Upper Egyptian artists. Contrasting with a naturalistic approach to the physiognomy of a king, often found in the work of Lower Egyptian sculptors, is the attachment of Upper Egyptian artists to traditional, classical, conservative patterns, especially after the Amama period. A late exemplification of such differences may be found in the representations of Nektanebo I. In spite of the naturalistic trends, it remains an open question, to what extent, if at all, Egyptian sculptors created "portraits" in the modern sense of a direct likeness of the object to its model. On one hand, the existence of gypsum casts of human faces (e.g., from Tell el-Amarna) proves that the desire to preserve the original facial fea
tures of a person for posterity was present in Egyptian mind. On the other hand, the idealized, impersonal, rather timeless features characterizing the majority of royal sculptures demonstrate that it was much more important to express the king's strength and selfsatisfaction than his physical likeness or any particular emotion. However, there are many departures from this general tendency, particularly in the periods of great political and social change. Thus, an unprecedented naturalism may be observed in the representations of some twelfth dynasty kings, such as Senwosret III and Amenemhet III. Their "pessimistic portraits," emphasizing the sadness of their tired faces, sometimes have the impact of psychological studies, bringing to mind the social problems known from this period's literature. Another period that reveals a naturalistic approach toward royal physiognomy is the "religious revolution" of Akhenaten, which seems to have been the culmination of a long evolution reflecting profound religious and political changes that started with the rule of Hatshepsut and reached their climax in the time of Amenhotpe III. Many representations of Akhenaten and his family endow their physiognomy with exaggerated, almost caricatural features which exceed the notion of "naturalism" to ap-
SCULPTURE: Private Sculpture 235 proach a mannerism that must have had a more ideological than artistic motive. Not only the overemphasized dolichocephaly of the king, but also his female characteristics—broad hips, thick thighs, narrow shoulders, thin arms, and the unnatural elongation of the face—characterize the unparalleled individuality of his effigies. The feminine aspects may be a visual expression of the bisexu-ality of the king in his identification with the primeval god. In spite of an official return to religious and artistic orthodoxy after the fall of Akhenaten, stylistic echoes of his sculpture are clear in many representations of later kings, in both statuary and relief. Specific iconographic and stylistic features also distinguish the statuary of the Kushite twenty-fifth dynasty. In respect to the physiognomy and attire of these kings, two tendencies may be observed. Besides representations following traditional patterns of pharaonic sculpture, there are statues emphasizing the Negroid facial features and strong musculature of the Kushites. A new type of head-dress with a double uraeus at the forehead, and a characteristic necklace with small ram's heads, also individualize the representations of these pharaohs. New trends in the style of royal statuary appear in the time of the last indigeneous thirtieth dynasty. They display rounded faces with protruding cheekbones, almond-shaped eyes with long thin cosmetic lines paralleled by a straight extension of the eyebrow, smiling mouths with slightly raised corners, and the slanting profile of the double chin. This prototype, possibly of Lower Egyptian origin, strongly influenced royal sculpture of the Ptolemaic period, even some effigies that were executed principally in the Greek style. From the beginning of Egyptian art up to Roman times, royal statuary had an obvious impact on the representations of Egyptian noblemen and gods. Both their facia] features and elements of their attire express a homogeneous trend which is also found in relief sculpture of the same period. This proves that royal sculpture and effigies of other subjects were made in the same workshops. [See also Portraiture; and Sphinx.] BIBLIOGRAPHY Amt'nophis III, Ie Pharaon-Soleil. Paris, 1993. Catalog of an important exhibition, with comprehensive documentation and studies on statuary' of Amenhotpe HI. Berman, Lawrence Michael, ed. The Art ofAnienhotep III: An Historical Analysis. Papers Presented at the International Symposium Held fil. the Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland. Ohio, 20-21 November 1987. Cleveland, 1990. Collection of articles presenting new approaches to the art of one of the most important periods. Corteggiani, Jean-Pierre. The Egypt of the Pharaohs at the Cairo Museum. London, 1987. Modern catalog of chosen masterpieces in the Egyptian Museum, Cairo, including original observations on royal statuai-y. Freed, Rita E. Ramesses the Great. Memphis, Tenn. .1987. Catalog of an exhibition presenting many statues of Ramesses II.
Haves, William C. The Scepter of Egypt: A Background for the Study of Egyptian Antiquities in the Metropolitan Museum of Art. 2 vols. New York, 1953, 1959. Catalog illustrating and describing many royal statues of the third and second millennia BCE. Josephson, Jack A. Egyptian Royal Sculpture of the Late Period, 400-246 B.C. Sonderschriften des Deutschen Archaologischen Instituts Kairo, 30. M.ainz, 1997. A detailed study of royal statuary of the last indigeneous dynasties and the beginning of the Ptolemaic period. Luxor Museum of Ancient Egyptian Art. Catalogue, Cairo, 1979. Presents masterpieces of Egyptian art from tile Theban region, including many royal statues. Mysliwiec, Karol. Royal Portraiture of the Dynasties XXf-XXX.. Mainz, 1988. First essay of synthesis on royal sculpture frorn the fall of the New Kingdom to the beginning of the Ptolemaic period. Russmann, Edna R. The Representation of the King in the XXVth Dynasty. Brussels and Brooklyn, 1974. The standard work on royal sculpture of the Kushite dynasty. el-Saghir; Mohammed. La decouverte de la cachette des statues du temple de Louxor. Mainz, 1992. Documentation and preliminary interpretation of a group of unusual royal statues found in 1989 in the Luxor temple. Vandier, Jacques. Manuel d'archeologie egyptienne. Vol. 3, Les gra.ndes epoques: La stattiaire. 1 vols. Paris, 1958. Essay on the first classification of royal statuary of Old, Middle, and New Kingdoms, according to chronological and structural criteria. Wildung, Dietrich. Sesostris und Amenemhet: Agvpten im. Mittteren Reich. Munich, 1984. A compendium of knowledge on Egyptian art of Middle Kingdom, including royal statuary. KAROL MYSLIWIEC
Private Sculpture Describing the private statuary of ancient Egypt calls for a variety of approaches. The corpus consists of thousands of objects created over a period of more than three thousand years, now displayed in countless museums and private collections. During that surprisingly long period, socioeconomic and political contexts, iconography, and styles clearly altered. Despite these changes, however, it is possible at a glance to distinguish an Egyptian statue from a Greek one. To fix the limits of Egyptian private statuary as a whole poses two immediate problems. First, there is the question of what is included in "statuary"; and second, within that group, what criteria enable a part of it to be labeled "private." The answers to both questions are less obvious than generally believed. Let us first consider the term "statuary." In the vocabulary of Western art, the word denotes works sculpted in a tri dimensional way. This feature makes them viewable from any angle and differentiates them from high relief, which depends on its material surface as a background. This Western definition applies to the majority of ancient Egyptian wood and bronze works, but not to the majority of stone works, most of which are supported by a pillar or dorsal panel. The most common theory for the use of these supports is that they prevented the stone sculpture from being broken and therefore deprived it of its magical
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essence. But it is interesting to note that some "block-statues," especially during the Ramessid and Late periods, have these supports when they are not actually required. Many other statues were sculpted within a hollow block, thus forming a niche or naos. They could also be sculpted into the wall of the hypogeum itself. Since Egyptian reliefs are always very low, as a rule representing the figure in profile, it could be suggested that two features that allow us to define the whole of Egyptian statuary are the pronounced ledge of the volumes and the frontality of the pose, but it need not be completely in the round. The definition of the private character of statuary is more complex. Where can the limit between "private" or "official" statuary be drawn? The answer varies according to the criteria that we decide to use. The most evident distinction takes into account the institutional quality of the person represented: a king is a king, and anyone else is a private person. But consider the queen: from the Middle Kingdom onward, queens wore the uraeus and other regalia, emphasizing their specific status, but during the Old Kingdom, except for the inscriptions, nothing differentiates them from nonroyal women. Is there then a difference in quality of execution or in style depending on whom the statue represents? Certainly not: many statues representing high officials are equal to or even finer than royal statues, and it is now clear that, during certain periods (for example the Middle Kingdom, as demonstrated by Wildung), the stylistic innovations were created by provincial workshops and later adopted by the palace workshops. This point leads to the problem of local workshops. That workshops existed independently of the court or the great temples cannot be denied, but there is little evidence for their organization. It has been deduced from their inscriptions that some private statues were made in the official workshops as a mark of royal favor. The king granted access to the quarries and authorization to use special stones like red or black granite, Bekhen stone (graywacke), quartzite, diorite, basalt, or fine limestone. Unfortunately, written documents of this custom are very rare, and stylistic analysis does not settle the problem. Moreover, it is possible that private statues, even those executed for commoners in the royal workshops, were made by apprentices, or inversely, that talented royal sculptors also ran local workshops. Is it possible to distinguish private and royal statuary on a typological basis? On the whole, it is not. From the time of the Old Kingdom, private individuals may be represented standing, seated, or kneeling, the three main poses of Egyptian statuary, equally typical of kings. However, specific types exist: it seems normal that commoners are never represented as sphinxes (a divine and solar metaphor of kingship), but it is more surprising that no
king is represented as a squatting scribe (a sign of scholarship), although several of them were highly literate and were even called sons of Thoth ("Thutmose"), the god of scholars. In the beginning of the twelfth dynasty, a new type, called the "block-statue," appeared. Its significance will be discussed later; it should be noted, however, that its pose is strictly private; it is not attested for kings or queens, though it is used for statues of princes, and it does not depict women. Can we then distinguish private and royal sculpture by their specific location? Here again, the answer cannot be definite. The most ancient serdab (a closed room connected only with the place of offerings in the tomb, through a small opening at eye level) belongs to the Step Pyramid of King Djoser (third dynasty). This room allowed the statue, conceived as the magical double of the dead, to be reanimated from the after-world by the living's gifts. This idea of the serdab was soon adopted by the officials of the Old Kingdom: many of their serdahs have been discovered, some of them with dozens of statues, usually in various poses. Inside the chapel itself, the dead could appear emerging from the world of the dead, either standing up (e.g., Meremka) or as a bust (e.g., Ankh-haf, Idw, Nefer-seshemptah). Similarly, royal statuary abounded in the chapels and courtyards of funerary temples. But, as early as the Old Kingdom, statues of commoners could be placed outside the serdabs, either in the chapel or at the bottom of the shaft, close to the mortuary chamber itself (e.g., the so-called reserve heads). From the Middle Kingdom into the New Kingdom, private statues became more obviously objects of public contemplation in the temples of the gods, often playing, as the royal statues did, the role of intermediary between gods and humanity. At the end of this evolution, during the Late period, the funerary statues disappeared, and private statues adopted the same locations as royal ones, such as courtyards and chapels of temples. It is clear only that royal statuary can be recognized by its iconographic regalia, particularly the uraeus (but not the sndt\oinc]oth, adopted by noblemen from the First Intermediate Period on and largely worn by civil servants of the Late period). Statues of queens (from the Middle Kingdom) have to be excluded from this study, as well as the statues of the "God's Wives" of the first millennium BCE. However, the statues of king's children need to be taken into consideration because no iconographic features differentiate them. The association with private statuary of the statuettes called "models" or "servant statues" is rather doubtful. These are anonymous figurines (with some exceptions), displayed in tombs during the end of the Old Kingdom and the Middle Kingdom. Alone or in groups, they represent the various activities of daily life, producing goods for
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tomb's owners in the afterlife. Some represent offering-bearers or even naked women lying on. a bed (commonly labeled "concubines to the dead"). Some of these figurines, particularly the standing offering-bearers, have much in common with some private statues, especially those carved in wood. It is possible that they were produced by the same workshops. However, they differ from private statues in that they do not normally represent individuals but rather types of activities, iconographically close to those carved on the walls of mortuary chapels. In short, as far as the artistic and sociological aspects are concerned, the only adequate method to differentiate between a specific group called "private statues" and the others lies in the distinction between works made in official workshops and works produced by private or local workshops. Unfortunately, because of the poor state of the documentation, this sole relevant feature can rarely be
SCULPTURE: PRIVATE SCULPTURE. Sixth dynasty-pain led group statue of the dwarf Seneb, with his wife and children. This statue is from Giza and is now in the Egyptian Museum, Cairo. (Courtesy David P. Silverman)
determined. Consequently, we must accept the modern Egyptological consensus, even unsatisfactory, and consider that private statuary comprises all statues that do not depict a deity, a king, a queen (except during the Old Kingdom), or a servant. What were the reasons that led the Egyptians, soon after the rise of the pharaonic state, to produce so many representations of men and women in the round? The first motive is undoubtedly linked to a conception of the after-life, the everlasting presence of the dead. This conception is fundamentally different from Judeo-Christian thought in which the superiority of a noble, immaterial and eternal soul is glorified, while the physical part of the human being is discounted. By contrast, Egyptian religion did not neglect any part of the individual, who was believed to consist of his vital force (ky), his name (rn), his soul (by), his body (made eternal bv the ritual of the mummifica-
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SCULPTURE: PRIVATE SCULPTURE. Twelfth dynasty serpentine, statue, of an official. (University of Pennsylvania Museum, Philadelphia. Neg. # S8-56178)
tion), and even his shadow (swyt). The material body and the spirit that animated it were then linked together metaphysically and indissolubly to reach the afterlife. In this very link resides the reason for the importance of private statuary in Ancient Egypt. It can also explain the humanist tendency of Egyptian art, which manifests itself through various features: typological (the poses), iconographic
(costumes are often very simple: the reality of the human being is exalted more than his social appearance), physical (young, "heroic" body, or, on the contrary, marked by the corpulence of prestige), and, finally, physionomic (an attempt at naturalism, if not realism: the anatomy is generally well respected, allowing the expression of the spirit). The poses used in private statuary are basically restrained, but enriched by many variations in the details. There are five main poses. In the first, the subject is standing, left foot forward and arms held straight by the sides, in later times holding a scroll in the fists (a metonymic representation of a commander's baton). The female counterpart of this type has the hands pressed flat on the thighs, or an arm bent across the chest; most have both feet together, or the left very slightly forward. In the seated pose, the arms lie on the thighs (one arm occasionally bent across the chest). This attitude is not at all passive and does not suggest repose: the psychological tension is perceptible. As the standing pose suggests walking, the seated pose suggests the individual's readiness to stand up and act. The kneeling attitude is attested as early as the third dynasty (statue of Hetepdief). Some occurrences are known during the Old Kingdom (for example, Kaemked), and it became more common during the New Kingdom and the Late period, either in the simple pose (hands flat on the knees), or in a more complex iconographic variation, bearing a naos, sistrum, or stela. Khufu's reign saw the emergence of a very interesting attitude, the cross-legged scribe statue (the most ancient ones were found in the serdab of Prince Kawab, son of the king). The man is squatting, his loincloth used as a tablet, an unrolled papyrus on his knees. Though frequent in the Old, Middle, and New kingdoms, this form became rare during the Late period and had completely disappeared at the time of the Ptolemaic kings. The scribe statue is, despite its traditional label, a noble attitude which exalts the intellectual capacities of the individual. Because no king, queen, or common woman is depicted in this pose, there can be little doubt that it was a sign of belonging to the particular social rank of high officials involved in the government of the state. The first examples of block-statues are two statues of an individual called Hetep, who lived at the very beginning of the twelfth dynasty. Such a statue represents a man seated on the ground, wrapped in his cloak. Like the scribe-statues, the blockstatues figure only noblemen— never a king, a queen, or a private woman. The meaning of the pose is uncertain. Some scholars have noted that a similar attitude of rest or waiting is still to be observed among Arabic populations. But this kind of ethnographic comparison has its limits: there is no equivalent of the pose depicted on any Ancient Egyptian relief or painting, where it could have been expected, for instance, in scenes
SCULPTURE: Private Sculpture 239 showing the owner watching workmen in his fields. However, wooden models from the First Intermediate Period and the beginning of the Middle Kingdom—the period during which the type of the block-statue was created— depict the same pose: on the deck of a boat, perhaps traveling to Abydos, a crouched dead man is shown wrapped in his shroud. On the other hand, many stone statues of this type were made through the Ptolemaic period, showing a slight difference in the treatment of the feet, which may be meaningful. In some cases they are bare, the cloak stopping at the level of the ankles; in others they are covered by the shroud, as in the royal Osirid pillars. Therefore, some scholars evoke the idea of the reborn dead freeing themselves from the shroud and the tomb in the moment of their resurrection. But this theory fails to account for the block-statues with bare feet that can be found at any period after the twelfth dynasty. In this case, the dress seems to be a normal cloak and not an Osirian shroud. It is important to note that this type of statue offered large flat surfaces for inscriptions, thus making them very useful for religious and biographical accounts, even if they were not principally destined to be so. Egyptian private statuary does not consist only of isolated statues: an important part of it consists of groups. The simplest example is the husband-and-wife group, or dyad, depicted either seated or standing (the prototype is the parallel statues of Rahotep and Nefert from Meidum, from the beginning of the fourth dynasty). The woman may appear on the left or right side of the husband, and her height can vary slightly: sometimes equal to the man's height, sometimes less. She is often represented beside him, tenderly putting her arm around his shoulders or waist. She can also be shown kneeling, rendered very small-scale, against her husbands leg and touching him with her hand (the oldest example is the fragmentary statue of Radedef and his wife, fourth dynasty). There is an exceptional group of a man represented as a block-statue, with his wife kneeling beside him (twenty-sixth dynasty). In these conjugal groups, different features usually designate the man as more active, such as the left foot placed farther forward or an arm slightly hiding the wife's shoulder. However, many groups are depicted in perfect equality and symmetry; the couples depicted hugging, in particular, can be linked by their arms forming an X. Because of the large number of variations, no typological system can be strictly defined (for a useful enumeration of the variations of pose, clothing, and hair up to the end of the New Kingdom, see Vandier 1958). Children are figured like their mother, either the same size or at a smaller scale, in between or beside their parents' legs. After the New Kingdom, family groups disappear from the repertory of private sculpture. The meaning of these family groups is obvious, but the
statues called "pseudo-groups," have a more obscure meaning. Often during the Old and the Middle kingdoms, statues show the same individual represented twice, thrice, or even four times, as in the rock-cut chapel of Meresankh III, the wife of Khafre at Giza. Members of the family may accompany the multiplied figure. Furthermore, it often happens that an accompanying figure appears identical in name, size, and. physionomy, but differs in clothes, hairstyle, attitude, or titles. In contrast to royal and divine costumes (sndt-loincloth, feminine frock with braces, and tripartite wigs), which conform to the archaic tradition, private statuary offers us a more accurate idea of the evolution of fashion. However, it would be naive to rely wholly on it, since no Egyptian image is strictly documentary. Wearing a certain piece of clothing could have particular meanings that we fail to understand. Statues depict the male Egyptians of the Old Kingdom, kings or commoners, exclusively wearing the loincloth, while their wives wear a dress to the neck or held by braces. There is no image of any king of the Middle Kingdom wrapped in a cloak, but civil servants wore long skirts and often wrapped themselves in a thick cloak (a fashion which also offers die sculptor the possibility of a large degree of abstraction in the rendering of the human body). The difference between royal and private representations can also be observed during the eighteenth dynasty and the Ramessid period: the images of the Kings (even the woman-king Hatshepsut) wear the traditional loincloth, leaving the torso naked, while the officials develop a more complex fashion based on draperies and pleated dresses, as well as cloaks and shawls made of thin linen. With a very few exceptions, royal (and divine) iconography seems to be purely institutional, in contrast with the more natural representation of nonroyal human beings. The Third Intermediate Period represents a break in this evolution and is characterized by archais-tic tendencies: blockstatues covered with inscriptions abound; the archaic sndt-loincloth is readopted by commoners; and the scroll in the men's fists recalls the noble and simple attitude of Old Kingdom officials. After the sophisticated fashions of the New Kingdom, austerity returns. Nudity is another interesting question. The Western mind opposes, as far as moral values are concerned, nudity, perceived as negative, and a normal modest way of dressing. There is no evidence that the Egyptians shared exactly this view. An example shows this fact very clearly: at any period of Egyptian art, images in relief or painting invariably depict women or goddesses wearing a strap-dress which reveals bare bosom, the straps being seen from the front and the breast in profile. However, when the same dress is depicted in statuary, the breast is never visible, but covered by the straps. Statues of women com-
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SCULPTURE: PRIVATE SCULPTURE. Seated statue of Sitepehu, "Overseer of Priests," during the reign ofHatshepsut, eighteenth dynasty. This sandstone statue is from Abydos. (University of Pennsylvania Museum, Philadelphia. [Neg. # S8-32892])
pletely naked appear rarely in private statuary (some examples exist from the First Intermediate Period), but the feminine body is often more unveiled than hidden by the sculpted dress. It does not matter whether the gown is straight or pleated: the body seems to be inscribed in the transparent dress, revealing with great precision the shape of the breast, stomach, and thighs, even the hollow of the navel. The neckline is frequently omitted, and the presence of a dress is often suggested only by a slight flare above the feet. Masculine nudity is far from rare; it is especially common between the end of the Old Kingdom and the beginning of the Middle Kingdom, but is limited
to tomb statues. Many officials are represented naked, holding a long stick, symbol of their important social and administrative position. The effect, for us, is surprising, In some cases, the naked body may have been wrapped in clothes or in pieces of linen, but this cannot be certain, because the exceptional climate of Egypt has preserved much textile material. Another explanation could be that the dressed statues of men, hiding the anatomic signs of their sexual capacity, might have seemed insufficient to secure the complete restoration of the vital functions in the afterlife. As far as the female's body was concerned, it is evident that the transparency of the dress was sufficient
SCULPTURE: Private Sculpture 241 to secure the magical process. Young children, both boys and girls, are usually depicted naked. With a finger in the mouth and often with a special hairdress (a single lock hanging from the right side of the shaven skull), they are either alone or part of a family group. Like statues of private women or family groups, this type is no longer attested during the first millennium BCE. The question of Egyptian portrait is highly controversial. Were the statues of private individuals intended to be portraits in the modem sense of the word? Did the sculptors seek any resemblance at all? It is, of course, hard to prove, because comparison with mummies gives very few clues. The best approach lies in comparing statues that depict the same individual. But the resemblance of these statues—especially those found in the serdabs of the Old Kingdom—might be only the result of the routine work of a master sculptor or of a workshop. On the other hand, we can observe that some important officials are depicted in several statues, all different from one other (Amenhotep, son of Hapu, eighteenth dynasty, or Mon-tuemhat, twenty-fifth to twenty-sixth dynasties). It is also theoretically possible to compare statues and reliefs depicting the same individual. However, besides the methodological problem of comparison between statues in the round and twodimensional figures, such a double set of representation is very unusual. Two examples are often put forward: a reserve head of Nefer, and a statue of Prince Hemiunu, both from the time of Khufu (fourth dynasty), whose tombs have some fragmentary reliefs depicting them. Unfortunately, in contradiction to frequent claims, the reserve head has clearly been reworked, and the face of Hemiunu is severely damaged, thus making an objective comparison impossible. We must admit that the face of a private statue usually depicts a conventional physiognomy. However, it is clear that certain artists did seek, if not a perfect resemblance, at least a naturalistic expression of the human face (especially of male faces). But "naturalism" does not mean "realism." Several factors do not permit us to talk of a search for realism, as in a modern portrait. The first is that Egyptian statuary of any period clearly prefers to represent not the real age of the individual depicted, but an ideal, middle age, mixing the strength of youth with the intellectual qualities of maturity. Another factor is the influence of the king's physiognomy on his contemporaries, which cannot be ignored, even if it is inappropriate to talk systematically of "mime-tism" (the twelfth and eighteenth dynasties offer good examples of this phenomenon). Finally, returns to the past are stylistically and thus physiognomically frequent during the history of Egyptian sculpture, especially after periods of political and economical crisis (beginnings of the Middle and New kingdoms), as well as during the whole Late period. These manifestations of archaistic tendencies
sometimes went as far as the reuse of ancient statues, with or without physiognomic alterations. However, the best works of private statuary in periods of political stability were produced by artists anxious to reproduce human reality, taking into account every aspect of the human being, the correct analysis of the anatomical structure of the body, and a strong expression of intellect and spirituality, This humanistic and naturalistic tendency, bom at the very beginning of the Old Kingdom, reached a climax during the fourth and fifth dynasties and reappeared under the twelfth dynasty (from local workshop experiments, as the statues of the sanctuary of Heqa-ib at Elephantine tend to prove); then, after a long idealistic phase during the New Kingdom (apart from the aesthetic adventure of Amarna), it came back strongly under the Nubian twenty-fifth dynasty. Finally, it came to an end with masterpieces in the Ptolemaic period, a series of priests' heads carved in hard stones, green or black, splendid works of art which achieve brilliantly a humanist endeavor begun with statues like those of Ankh-haf, Hemiunu, or Kaaper (the "Sheikh el-Beled"), three millennia earlier. The study of Egyptian art clearly urges us to give up the linear sketch inspired by Greek art: more than a linear evolution, the history of the Egyptian private statuary is a constant fluctuation between an idealized vision and a more concrete approach to the human being, moving back and forth between tradition and innovation, [See also Portraiture.] BIBLIOGRAPHY Freed, R. E. Egypt's Golden Age: The Art of Living in the New Kingdom. A Picture Book. Boston, 1981. A sumptuously illustrated book devoted to the artistic perfection of the objects of daily life during the New Kingdom, showing many statuettes and figurines of exquisite quality. Habachi. I- Elephantine IV: The Sanctuary of Heqaib. 2 vols. Mainz, 1985. Heqa-ib was a governor of the First nome of Upper Egypt during the sixth dynasty. His popularity led to his deification. During the twelfth dynasty, a splendid series of private statues was placed in a small sanctuary devoted to him on Elephantine Island. Hornemann, B. Types of Ancient Egyptian Statuary. Copenhagen 19511969. Presented as a series of files (in boxes), an extended collection of drawings showing all the typological variations Egyptian statuary offers. Indispensable for any k'onographic study. Maiek, J. In the Shadow of the Pyramids: Egypt during the Old Kingdom. London, 1986. A i nteresting general introduction to the arts of the Old Kingdom. Some very beautiful pictures of private statuary. Smith, W. S. A Hisioly of the Egyptian Sculpture and Painting in the Old Kingdom. 2d ed. London, 1949. This quite old but still monumental book presents a brilliant synthesis of royal and private statuary of the Old Kingdom. The study is based mainly on the excavations of H. Junker and G. A, Reisner in the cemeteries of Gixa. Technical, aesthetic, and symbolic problems are treated; illustrations are numerous and excellent tor the time. Spanel, D. Through Ancient Eyes: Egyptian Portraiture. Birmingham, .1988. The introductory pages of this exhibition catalog are probably the best text devoted specifically to the problem of the Egyptian portraiture (royal and private). The author reviews the
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simple cleavage between the "objective" portrait of Western tradition and the conventional idealization of Egyptian art, demonstrating that the question of objectivity is unsolvable and pointless. Vandier, J. Mannel d'archeologie egyptienne. Vol. 3, La stattiaire: Paris, 1958. The indispensable reference book on royal and private statuary from the beginning of the Old Kingdom until the end of the New Kingdom. The theories on stylistic evolution and schools of sculpture are greatly out of date, but this book provides a detailed typological and iconographic account of the statuary (attitudes, clothes, wigs, ornaments; types and variations). It contains a detailed index of the statues, according to their date and museums. Unfortunately, a planned volume on the Late period was never published. ROLAND TEFNIN Translated from the French by Angelique Cordials
Divine Sculpture Divine sculpture housed the spirits of Egypt's myriad gods and goddesses. Although they were not considered to be the deities themselves, the statues were believed to be alive. In fact, each one was brought to life through rituals performed in the sculptor's workshop where it was made. From minuscule to majestic, in stone, metal, or fired materials, these figures were carefully identified images in which the appropriate spirits resided, and from which they bestowed favors. Some spiritual imagery was inspired by the appearance of the sky: the formations and movements of the sun, moon, and stars. Thus, the Milky Way was believed to arch across the sky as a nude, golden woman through whose body the Sun passed at night to be reborn on the horizon each morning. Other concepts developed from natural forces or from elements of nature on Earth. The divine guardian of the cemetery, Anubis, came to be represented as a jackal, probably because this animal tended to live at the edge of the desert where the Egyptians buried their dead. Divinities are represented in three different forms: human figures, animal figures, and mixtures of the two, either animals with human heads or humans with animal heads. Some can be represented in either human or animal form. The pure human figures are so generic that they can be distinguished from one another only by their inscriptions and by their crowns or other attributes. For example, the goddesses Isis and Maat, both depicted as slim young women wearing patterned sheath gowns, are individualized only by their headgear—a throne-shaped crown for Isis and a feather for Maat. It is superficially easier to identify those entities depicted as animals, since Egypt's fauna was rich enougli to provide a different species for each deity. However, as major cults became more complex and new cults arose, many of the animals developed multiple identities. For example, in the early centuries the falcon almost always represented the sun god Horus. By the
late New Kingdom, the falcon-headed human figure could represent Re, Horus the Elder, Horus the Son, Montu, or PtahSokar-Osiris, as well as some other minor deities, depending on which crown it was wearing. Divine sculpture had several different applications: cult statue, votive statue, temple guardian figure, funerary guardian figure, architectural element, implement or vessel, and personal amulet. Gods and goddesses in human, animal, or mixed form occur in most of these applications. Cult Statues. The cult statue of a deity inhabited the Holy of Holies, the innermost sanctuary of its temple. The temple's high priest was the only human being with access to the sanctuary, and it was his job to meet the cult statue's personal needs. From the time the priest greeted the statue in the morning (with choirs singing hymns in the background) until he left the sanctuary at the end of the day, removing his footprints with a whiskbroom, he devoted his waking hours to bathing, perfuming, clothing, and feeding the statue. On festival days the cult statue "appeared" to the masses by being carried inside a small, portable shrine on a model boat resting on parallel poles, borne on priests' shoulders along wide processional avenues. People waited along the route in hopes of reading omens in the movements of the boat. Such festivals were crucial to the general faith because they allowed average human beings nearly direct access to their gods. No statue in the world today can be securely identified as the central cult statue of any ancient Egyptian temple. Because temples were refurbished from time to time, it is possible that a series of cult statues, not just one, served each of Egypt's temples for the centuries they were in use. Some sculptures, however, have the right characteristics to stake claims as cult statues. The earliest, dated to the end of the fifth millennium BCE, is an oval, painted terra cotta human head with hollow eyes, nostrils, and mouth, found in 1982 at Merimda west of the Delta, and now in the Cairo Museum. A hole under the chin suggests that it was once fastened to a post. The tremendous rarity of manufactured sculpture at such an early date favors this being the earliest known cult statue. One of the most impressive early (c.3200 BCE) full female figures is a 33.8-centimeter (13-inch) tall terra cotta statuette of a semi-nude female with a birdlike head and upflung arms, now in the Brooklyn Museum. She may be the most ancient example of an Egyptian sky goddess, whose form is discussed later in connection with its use on ritual implements. The earliest known stone example larger than an amulet is the 39.5-centimeter (15-inch) tall (preserved to just below the knees) basalt male figure in the Ashmolean Museum, Oxford. Standing stiffly frontal with arms pressed to its sides, the "MacGregor Man," named after its former
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SCULPTURE: DIVINE SCULPTURE. Statue of the god Plah of Memphis, eighteenth dynasty. Dedicated by Amenhotpe 111, the statue is now in the Museo Egizio, Turin. (Alinari / All Resource, NY)
owner, wears a closely cropped hairstyle resembling a skullcap and a long, flat triangular beard reaching nearly to the waist. The face is riveting: large, heavily outlined eyes, thick eyebrows joining in the center, long aquiline nose, and a wide, thin-lipped mouth. The sole item of clothing is a belt holding a large cylindrical penis sheath, which is usually recognized as an item of divine costume in ancient Egypt. This statue is so startling that some have futilely questioned its authenticity. Its style recalls Predynastic ivory amulets dating to the middle of the fourth millennium BCE, and its rather generic nature suggests that a god rather than a specific individual is represented. Echoes of this figure recur in the Old Kingdom (around 2575 BCE) in a gneiss (diorite) statuette of a god wearing a plain round wig, beard, and penis sheath, now in the Brooklyn Museum; and in the New Kingdom (around 1400 BCE) on a limestone statue of a god wearing a tall plumed crown, long smooth wig, beard, and penis sheath, found at Kar-nak and now in the Cairo Museum. Far more glamorous, and probably dating to the early nineteenth dynasty (c. 1300 BCE), is a falcon-headed, seated human figure in the Miho Museum in Misono, Japan.
More than 41 centimeters (15.5 inches) tall, it is solid-cast in silver and weighs 16.5 kilograms. It was once entirely covered with sheet gold, pieces of which still adhere to the surface. The eyes are inlaid with rock crystal, and the wig with a precious material called "Egyptian blue," which was manufactured in royal and temple workshops. It recalls an ancient description of a god: "bones of silver, flesh of gold, and hair of real lapis lazuli." The loss of this statues crown, attributes, and inscriptions prevents us from identifying the divine spirit that inhabited it. The Miho statue recalls a magnificent, realistically modeled head of a falcon wearing a tall plumed crown (in all, 37.5 centimeters/14.5 inches in height), beaten from heavy sheet gold and inlaid with obsidian eyes. It was probably made to top a nowlost copper cult statue of the sun god Horus. This gold falcon head, now in the Cairo Museum, was excavated in 1897-1898 at the temple at Hierakonpolis, about 75 kilometers (47 miles) south of Luxor, where Horus had been worshiped as patron deity since predynastic times. Votive Statues. Most of the representations of divinities left to us from ancient Egypt are votive statues, given to temples and shrines by kings, courtiers, scribes, priests,
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military officers, or even municipalities in the hope of a benefaction from the god or goddess in residence. Most common is the single figure, either standing or enthroned. Among the grandest of these are hundreds of life-size and over life-size hard stone statues created during the eighteenth dynasty reign of Amenhotpe III in honor of his favorite deities—for example, the womanly Nephthys, now in Paris, and her look-alike Neith, now in Marseille, the monumental jackal-headed Anubis, now in Copenhagen, and the huge scarab beetle at the comer of Karnak's sacred lake. The largest series by far comprises the dozens of over life-size statues of the lion-headed goddess Sakh-met, many of which are inscribed with the names of the cities and towns that donated them. All these statues were made for specific locations in Amenhotpe's temples. Their placement was neither random nor merely decorative. Instead, it followed intricate iconographic schemes relating to Amenhotpe Ill's concept of the cosmos. Thus, in addition to the individual powers that a given statue had, when it was placed into a specific cosmic grouping, the aggregate performed quite a potent magical function. The facial features of divine images always resemble those of the king during whose reign they were produced. In some instances, a new king had little time or resources to commission large numbers of divine statuary in his own image. He would simply have the cartouches of earlier kings abraded out of the stone and replaced with his own. Sometimes the results were ridiculous, as when the aged military-man-become-pharaoh, Horemheb, had his name cai-ved onto two huge statues in Kamak temple, one of the god Amun and one of his consort Amunet, in place of the cartouche of the boy king, Tutankhamun, who commissioned them, and whose sweet, youthful features adorn them. Divine imagery occasionally incorporates more than one figure into a single sculptural block. Menkaure, the builder of the smallest of the three great pyramids at Giza, commissioned a series of triads (three figures side by side in the same block) as gifts for his own funerary temple at the base of the Giza plateau. The goddess Hathor, shown as a woman with her identifying crown of horns and disk, is a key figure in these triads. The third figure in several instances is a deity wearing the headdress of an Egyptian nome (geographic subdivision). This may indicate that these nomes paid at least some of the cost of the statue. Triads and dyads (two figures side by side in the same block) remained infrequent, but important, compositions for royal displays of devotion. In the Luxor Museum, a monumental and glorious calcite (Egyptian alabaster) dyad of the crocodile-headed god Sobek, enthroned, with his arm around a shoulder-high Amenhotpe III is one of the greatest statues in a reign of superlative sculpture. A nearly life-size granodiorite triad in the Louvre has Osiris
flanked and embraced on one side by a Ramessid pharaoh and on the other by Horus. The theme of a god or goddess in animal form protecting or guiding the pharaoh occurs frequently. A magnificent example is the over life-size diorite portrait of the mighty fourth dynasty king Khafre, found near his valley temple at Giza. An appropriately sized falcon Horus, god of the sky and of the living king, perches behind the king's head, clasping the royal headdress in his wings. Much later, in a nineteenth dynasty sculpture in Cairo, the relative sizes of pharaoh and falcon are nearly reversed. Here, Ramesses II as a young boy crouches on the talons and beneath the beak of a huge falcon, which, the inscription tells us, is not Horus but Hurun, a Near Eastern god. In even less realistic relative size, standing knee-high to a Horus falcon four times his height, is Nektanebo II, the last ruler of the thirtieth dynasty, in a series of sculpted portraits. It became quite common in the New Kingdom and later for images of important nonroyal officials to be incorporated with divine imagery. One composition involved the deity, in animal form, protecting the individual. For example, a number of small statuettes depict the baboon representing the god of wisdom, Thoth, squatting on his haunches on a shrine watching over a scribe who sits cross-legged below. A rarer type involves Hathor as a striding cow protecting a courtier—for example, the twentysixth dynasty official Psamtik—beneath her chin. In. the eighteenth dynasty this composition had been reserved for royalty, as in the limestone sculpture from Deir el-Bahri, now in Cairo, where Hathor protects Thutmose III beneath her chin, while his son Amenhotpe II nurses at her udder. In the New Kingdom, the pharaohs favorite officials were often given the privilege of commissioning portraits of themselves presenting divine statuary as gifts. In such a composition, the image of the deity becomes a sculpture within a sculpture, as in Brooklyn's statue of Queen Hats-hepsut's highest official and consort, Senenmut, who kneels holding an image of the serpent goddess Renenutet before him, or Cairo's statue of the twentieth dynasty official Kenu, who presents a whole triad of the god Amun, his wife Mut, and their son Khonsu as an offering. During the Late period, as something approaching a middle class arose in Egypt and as bronze became a more widely used commodity, it was possible for large numbers of individuals to commission bronze statuettes or to purchase ready-made ones as personal gifts for shrines and temples. These statuettes, usually no more than 20 or 30 centimeters (6 to 10 inches) tall, were mostly single human or animal figures. Among the few groups are Isis with her little son Horus on her lap, and mother cats, sacred to the goddess Bastet, with their kittens. Since bronze, as well as other precious substances, was con-
SCULPTURE: Divine Sculpture trolled by the royal palace, the statuettes are inscribed with the opening line of the traditional offering formula, "A favor which the king gives to [X] so that [the deity] might grant every good thing." Many of the thousands of votive sculptures, large and small, existing today have been preserved by the housekeeping efforts of priests who periodically gathered up the oversupply of temple gifts and buried them in large pits within the temple precincts. French archaeologists discovered a huge cache of such material—more than seventeen thousand statuettes in bronze alone—at Karnak in the early years of the twentieth century. Many of these have found their way into collections around the world. In 1989, an Egyptian team found twenty-four monumental stone statues from the reign of Amenhotpe III in a pit inside the great court of Luxor temple. They are now housed in a special wing of the Luxor museum. Guardian Figures. A third major application for divine sculpture was the guardian figure, usually an animal or a humananimal mix. The most famous of these is the great sphinx at Giza, representing the god Harmachis (Honis of the Horizon), which was carved in place from an outcropping of limestone to serve as a sentinel over the funerary structures of Khafre, who built the second-tallest of the nearby pyramids. From the fourth dynasty onward, the crouching lion with the head of a pharaoh, wearing the nemes-headcloth, became a favorite guardian figure. Among the largest sphinxes outside Egypt are a red granite Middle Kingdom colossus, now in the Louvre, and a red granite pair commissioned by Amenhotpe III for an unknown site and now in St. Petersburg, Russia. Amenhotpe III also had divine guardian figures made in pure animal form. The most famous of these are his pair of mirror-image red granite lions representing the moon god Khonsu, from the Soleb temple in Sudan and now in the British Museum. In addition, he furnished the approach to Soleb with an avenue flanked by monumental recumbent rams carved in gray granite, some of which are still in place. Sacred to the god Amun-re, each ram protects a small mummiform figure of Amenhotpe between its bent front legs. Apparently Amenhotpe made red granite versions for Kamak temple. During the nineteenth dynasty the criosphinx, a ram-headed lion representing Amun-Re, became the predominant guardian figure at Karnak, and during the early fourth century BCE, Nektanebo I lined the two-mile-long avenue from the southern gate of Karnak temple to the northern gate of Luxor temple with hundreds of human-lion sphinxes bearing his own portrait. Today many of these still monitor the Theban gates and avenues where believers once stood on festival days waiting to catch a glimpse of the cult statue. Divine sculpture also served as guardian figures in the funerary sphere. Tutankhamun's tomb provides a full array of beautiful examples. His canopic shrine is guarded
SCULPTURE: DIVINE SCULPTURE. Statue ofthe lion goddess Sekhmet, eighteenth dynasty. The statue, 7 feet (2.13 meters) high, and made of diorite, is one of some six hundred statues of Sekhmet that were placed in the Mut precinct at Karnak. (The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Gift of Henry Walters, 1915. [15.8.3])
on each side by one of four identical goddesses in gilded wood— Isis, Nephthys, Neith, and Selkis—individualized only by their crowns. Another shrine, equipped with wooden carrying poles, is surmounted by the alert figure of Anubis as a jackal-watchdog.
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The most ubiquitous of all funerary guardian figures were the Four Sons of Horus, whose names and effigies adorned the jars holding the soft organs of the body, which had to be preserved separately. Until the end of the eighteenth dynasty and in Tutankhamun's burial, the jar lids are in the form of human heads (the pharaoh's with the royal headcloth). Thereafter, the lids are individualized for each of the Four Sons: jackal-headed Duamutef, who guarded the stomach; ape-headed Hapy, the lungs; human-headed Imsety, the liver; and falcon-headed Qebh-senuef, the intestines. These divine guardian figures can be found in nearly every museum collection. Architectural Elements. Architectural elements—especially columns and pillars—also incorporate divine images. The wrapped mummy shape of Osiris, the god of the dead, suited temple columns and was incorporated by Senwosret I into the pillars of a twelfth dynasty structure at Kamak (later reused at a different part of the same temple), and it appears in the nineteenth dynasty at the Ramesseum, Ramesses II's funerary temple on the west bank of Luxor. Hathor's face with bovine ears topped the columns of many temples built in her honor, for instance at Dendera, where she adorned all four sides of each capital. Actually, these columns were huge enlargements of a type of musical rattle, the sistrum, which was sacred to Hathor. Vessels and Implements. Other divine forms were shaped perfectly to serve as vessels or implements. The chubby figure of the divine dwarf Bes, god of hearth and home, made a fitting container for perfumes and ointments. The nude, outstretched form of the sky goddess Nut, the embodiment of the Milky Way, was well suited as the handle for a ritual implement often called a cosmetic spoon, which was popular during the eighteenth dynasty. Although they come in a variety of shapes, the spoons' iconography usually represents Nut as she is about to swallow the Sun (her son) at the end of the day, before it passes through her body during the night, so that she may give (re-)birth to it the next morning at dawn. Amulets. Finally, almost every form of divine sculpture that existed in large scale was also made in the smallest of sizes to be used as personal amulets, charms, or beads. Thus, we find single figures of Sakhmet, Anubis, and other deities; groups oflsis and Horus; triads ofAmun-Rc, Mut, and Khonsu; ram's heads, cats, baboons, winged scarabs, and all the other sacred avatars were sculpted in semiprecious stone or molded in metal, glass, faience, or Egyptian blue, and fitted with suspension loops or perforations so that they could be worn for good luck and protection both in this life and in the afterlife. [See also Amulets; Canopic Jars; Funerary Figurines; and Sphinx.]
BIBLIOGRAPHY Bmnner-Traut, Emma, and Helmut Brunner. Osiris, Kreuz, und Halbiiwnd: Die Drei Religionen Agyptens. Mainz, 1984. Exhibition catalog in which the first .140 entries include many images of divine statues and statuettes as well as implements, vessels, and amulets in divine form. el-Saghir, Mohammed. 77-ie Discovery of the Statuary Cacliette of Luxor Temple. Mainz, 1991. The official publication of the 1989 discovery of two dozen votive statues from the reign of Amenhotpe III in the great court of Luxor Temple. Fazzini, Richard, et al. Ancient Egyptian Art in the Brooklyn Museum. Brooklyn, 1989. Excellent essays on some of the works cited here. Hornung, Erik. Conceptions of God in Ancient Egypt. Ithaca, 1982. The classic work on this subject. James, T. G. H. Ancient Egypt: The Land and Its Legacy. Austin, 1988. A guidebook to Egypt and its art, including divine sculpture, with special emphasis on the history of discovery and exploration of the monuments. Josephson, Jack A. Egyptian Royal Sculpture of the Late Period 400-246 s.c. Mainz, 1997. Includes illustrations and stylistic discussions of divine images of this period where they join with the royal, including sphinxes. Kozloff, Arielle P. "Divine Art." In Searching for Ancient Egypt: Art, Architecture and Artifacts, edited by David P. Silverman, pp. 39--45. Dallas, 1997. A brief introduction to the spiritual development of the ancient Egyptians and their divine imagery. Kozloff, Arielle P., and Betsy M. Bryan. EgyJJt's Dazzling Sun: Amenho-tep HI and His World. Cleveland, 1992. Exhibition catalog with discussions of divine statuary, including animal forms and divine images on ritual implements and vessels. Morenz, Siegfried. Egyptian Religion. Translated by A. E. Keep. Ithaca, 1973. Includes a lengthy discussion of the creation and daily life of the cult statue. Reeves, Nicholas. The Complete Tutankhamun: The King, The Tomb, The Roya! Treasure. London, 1990. Robins, Gay. The Art of Ancient Egypt. Cambridge, Mass., 1997. The most up-to-date discussion of the general subject, incorporating recently developed ideas. Russmann, Edna R., and David Finn. Egyptian Sculpture: Cairo and Luxor. Austin, 1989. An insightful history of Egyptian sculpture, including divine sculpture, based almost entirely on the collections of Egypt's two major museums. Saleh, Mohamed, and Hourig Sourouzian. Official Guide: The Egyptian Museum Cairo. Manz, 1987. Contains images and discussions of many of the objects cited here. Roehrig, Catharine H. "Cult Figure of a Falcon-Headed Deity." In Miho Museum: South Wing. edited by Takeshi Umehara et al., pp. 18-21. Misono, 1997. Originally published in Ancient Art from the Shumei Family Collection (New York, 1996). Seipel, Wilfried. Gott, Mensch, Pharao: Viertausend Jahr Menschenbild in der Sktilptur lies alien Agypten. Vienna, 1992. Exhibition catalog of 211 entries, including many examples of divine sculpture, most of which are votive sculptures or presumed cult statues. Wildung, Dietrich, and Gunter Grimm. Goiter: Pliaraonen. Mainz, 1978. Exhibition catalog of 175 entries, many for divine sculptures. ARIELLE P. KOZLOFF
Wood Sculpture Throughout most of the history of ancient Egypt, sculpture in wood has appeared alongside that in stone. The vulnerability of the former material, however, has resulted
SCULPTURE: Wood Sculpture 247 in a lack of understanding of the frequency of wood sculpture. Conditions that only superficially affect stone sculpture have a far more destructive effect on wood, and many instances are known of wood sculpture being found in a state impossible to preserve or even to record. This is the case, for example, for the Old Kingdom necropolis of Giza, where the majority was found to have been eaten by termites or reduced to pulp. This example underscores how remarkable it is that any wood sculpture has survived at all, let alone in a state that enables Egyptologists to assess stylistic development. The fact that wood is more vulnerable than stone was known to the ancient Egyptians, too. Nevertheless, they decided that the material was appropriate for carving sculpture and became highly skilled at it. The inscriptions accompanying workshop scenes rarely referred to the statues depicted, but the tools shown are a good indication of the material in question—an adze in the hand of a workman is an indication that the material is wood, whereas hammers and mallets tend to be confined to working stone. The statues are usually shown in a completed state, regardless of the type of tool or action. Throughout Egyptian history, the majority of wooden sculpture appears to have been made from native timber, that is, from acacia, sycamore, and tamarisk. Imported woods such as cedar and ebony were occasionally used, and in the New Kingdom they were the favored materials for royal sculpture in wood. Few statues have as yet had their material analyzed, so our knowledge of the woods used in ancient Egypt may yet change. As the indigenous woods did not yield sizable lengths of workable timber, statues larger than 30 to 40 centimeters (12 to 16 inches) were usually made from several separately carved pieces joined together by dowels, and mortise and tenon joints. The joins are almost invariably at the shoulders and the fronts of the feet. If the left arm is bent forward to hold a staff then the forearm is a separate piece. Life-size statues are made up of more pieces than smaller ones and patching is common on larger statues. The best-known example is the Sheikh el-Beled in the Cairo Museum. The patching and doweling visible on this statue would not have been evident on the finished product as statues were completely covered in a layer of paint or painted plaster on which many details of costume and jewelery were added. Sadly, this painted layer has usually deteriorated completely, along with much potential information on styles and fashions. The statues from the tomb of Metjetjy (sixth dynasty) are examples where the painted layer is still extant. As so few statues have survived to our time, it is virtually impossible for scholars to identify individual workshops. In the Old Kingdom, Memphis and its necropolis clearly had its own workshop, with similar ones being set
SCULPTURE; WOOD SCULPTURE. Statuette of King Senwosret I wearing the Crown of Lower Egypt, twelftli dynasty. Made of painted cedarwood, the statuette is from the tomb of Irohotep at Lisht. (The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Museum Excavations 1913-1914; Rogers Fund supplemented by contribution of Edward S. Harkness [14.3.17])
up in the provinces as the period progressed. Asyut, Meir, and Beni Hassan were prolific producers of wooden statues during the First Intermediate period and the Middle Kingdom, and it is possible to discern characteristics peculiar to one place or another: for example, the eyes painted on statues from Beni Hassan are generally much
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larger than elsewhere. The lack of a complete sculptural record, however, invites caution when postulating the existence of stylistic schools. From the New Kingdom onward, series of wooden statues are carved for different locations. The Ahmose-Nefertari statues from Thebes and the kneeling figures holding Ptah shrines from Saqqara, for example, indicate that separate workshops were producing local "lines." The later periods are characterized by a virtual dearth of wooden sculpture, so very little is known about workshops during this time. In the Old Kingdom, statues were placed in the tomb, first in a serdab and toward the end of the period in the burial chambers, to ensure that the ba of the deceased had somewhere to return if anything happened to the body. Groups of statues depicting the tomb owner in various guises were popular, particularly during the reigns of Unas (fifth dynasty) and Pepy II (sixth dynasty). These groups often consisted of several wooden statues and a stone one, despite stone being the more durable material. This distribution appears to have more to do with what the ancient Egyptian wanted to achieve in the afterlife than with the relative costs of the materials involved. Important court officials were as likely to have provided themselves with wooden statues as with stone ones; the comparative durability of slone, however, has biased our record of this phenomenon. Depictions on the walls of Old Kingdom tombs show the tomb owner performing two basic sets of tasks: in one he is a passive participant, receiving offerings or overseeing his servants in the fields or elsewhere; in the other he takes a more active role by striding, hunting, or fishing. The task for artisans was how to convey these two aspects. Stone was ideal for impervious and inanimate form but wood was able to depict naturalistic, lifelike effects and thus convey an active role. In mixed Old Kingdom statue groups the stone statue is virtually always a seated figure, or else a standing figure with pendant arms. The legs are carved either together or with the left only slightly advanced. The wooden statues are striding, the left leg advanced with a staff held in the left hand. Even when the statues have pendant arms, the left leg is almost without exception advanced, thus conveying the idea of movement. Female statues are invariably passive, standing figures in the Old Kingdom. The statues preserved are confined to the period until the reign of Unas and then from the reign of Merenre forward. The earlier statues are larger in format than later ones, which begin to show a wider variety in wig and dress styles. At the end of the Old Kingdom a female tomb owner was found with wooden statues for the first time. Pair statues also existed but very few have survived. At the beginning of the Old Kingdom, statues
are large (greater than 60 centimeters/23 inches), of high quality, and rare. After the reign of Merenre, quantity increases and the average size of 30 to 50 centimeters (12 to 20 inches) decreases. Statues in different costumes and wigs appear with inscriptions listing different titles, but not enough inscribed groups survive to enable scholars to associate particular costumes with specific titles. The costumes are nearly always a variation on the theme of the short gala kilt or the long, apron-fronted kilt. The former skirt is worn mostly with the staff and scepter pose, the latter with the arms pendant and with the right hand often holding a flap of the skirt. The echelon-curl wig in several variations was the most popular. The inscriptions on wooden statue bases throughout the Old Kingdom are invariably lists of names and titles. It is not. until the very end of the period that the well-known offering formula "for the /ca of" the deceased appears. During the First Intermediate Period and the Middle Kingdom this becomes an almost invariable part of the inscriptions, and is the reason why wooden statues are often referred to as ka statues. The Old Kingdom statues, however, had not yet acquired this specific offering purpose. At the end of the Old Kingdom, female offering bearers in wood appeared in the tombs for the first time. They are threedimensional personifications of the funerary estates illustrated on the walls of the tombs. At first appearance, they are far superior to the small servant statues which form part of the scenes of daily life so popular in the First Intermediate period and the Middle Kingdom; the scenes from the tomb of Meketra are true masterpieces of their kind. As the period progresses, however, their special import decreases and their presence seems to become perfunctory. The quality also declines dramatically. The wooden sculpture of the owners of the tombs and their wives remains of a relatively high quality during the Middle Kingdom, but their overall size decreases after the eleventh dynasty. The range of wigs and costumes for both males and females is much wider than in the Old Kingdom, but the accompanying texts on the bases are more stylized and thus still prevent us from linking the costumes and wigs to specific occupations, with the notable exception of the statue of Yuya in the Metropolitan Museum, who is wearing the vizier's costume. Female statues tend to have very pronounced waistlines and hips as the period progresses; statues from the earlier periods being more true to life in this respect. The techniques of manufacture remained the same as for the Old Kingdom. During this time local workshops in the provinces produced the majority of wooden sculpture, for example, at Asyut, Meir, Beni Hasan, and Dahshur. The earliest extant royal statues in wood date from the twelfth dynasty—two
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SEAFARING
splendid statues are attributed to Senwosret I—and from this time on, statues of the king and his consorts became more common. The most magnificent statue in this genre is the ka statue of King Awibre Hor of the thirteenth dynasty, now in the Cairo Museum. Up to this point in time, wooden sculpture follows an unbroken line of development. The quality of the works produced during the First Intermediate Period did not change, nor did the availability of materials. The general impression is one of realism and movement. There is very little extant wooden material from the period between the Middle and New Kingdoms, making it impossible to trace the line of development between the two, or any effect that the Second Intermediate Period may have had on the production of sculpture. The relatively numerous statues from the first part of the eighteenth dynasty continued to be inspired by the Middle Kingdom and are full of force and character. Model scenes, however, had disappeared as had the female offering bearers. After the reign of Thutmose III statues became far less numerous, but they revived under Amen-hotpe III as the first statues to display Amama traits. The figures are very elegant, but more stylized; their realism decreases. At this time the majority of the statues were female, many of them nude, and there is also a group that probably were originally the handles of mirrors. In the immediate postAmarna period, statues became relatively numerous again, both males and females, and are generally of a high quality with complicated dress and coiffures. After the reign of Sety I female statues virtually disappear, but male statues continue to be popular through the twentieth dynasty. Two pair statues, both masterpieces, are known from the eighteenth dynasty, and show the tomb owner and his wife seated side by side. Wooden shawabtis are known from the Middle Kingdom on, but the best examples date to the New Kingdom. During the later New Kingdom sculptors were less inclined to innovation and all types of statuary duplicated those made in stone (e.g., standard bearers and naophor-ous statues). The realism of the earlier periods declined into frozen conventions. Royal sculpture in wood is now relatively common. There are several known statues of Amenhotpe III in ebony, accompanied by Queen Tiye. Royal tombs were supplied with large wooden statues (e.g., Thutmose III, Tutankhamun, Horemheb). Statues of queens are uncommon, especially in the later part of the period, an exception being the statues of the deified Ah-mose Nefertari. Royal tombs and temples of the period were provided with resin-coaled or gilded wooden statues, which were placed in wooden shrines. With the exception of those from the tomb of Tutankhamun, they are all poorly preserved, During the later Egyptian periods, private wooden stat
uary all but disappears. Like most art from that time, the few surviving examples are in an archaizing style imitating Middle Kingdom examples. Divine statuary appeared in the burial chambers of private tombs: kneeling figures of Isis and Nephthys were placed on either side of the sarcophagus; ba-birds, falcons and akhom figures as well as Anubis jackals were placed on top. Ptah-Sokar-Osiris figures, often with a cavity containing a papyrus roll, were also popular. [See also Models.] BIBLIOGRAPHY There are no books that deal specifically with wood sculpture. Some of the more general art books do have sections discussing wood. Eaton-Krauss, Marianne. Tlie Representations of Statuary in Private Tombs of the Old Kingdom. Agyptologische Abhandlungen, 39. Wiesbaden, 1984. A thorough discussion of two-dimensional representations of tomb statues of both wood and stone in wall scenes in Old Kingdom mastabas. Harvey, Julia. "A Late Middle Kingdom Wooden Statue from Assiut in the Walters Art Gallery." The Journal of the Walters Art Gallery 49/50 (1991/92), 1-6. A comparative study of some female wooden statues from the Middle Kingdom. Harvey, Julia C. "A Typological Study of Egyptian Wooden Statues of the Old Kingdom." Ph.D. diss.. University College, London, 1994. (In preparation for publication). Reeves, Nicholas. The Complete 'lutankiianiun: The King, The Tomb, The Royal Treasure. London, 1990. See in particular the section dealing with ritual figures and magical objects on pp. 130-139 for the wood statues from the tomb. For similar statues from other royal tombs see the relevant sections in: Reeves, Nicholas and Richard H. Wilkinson. The Complete Valley of the Kings: Tombs and Treasures of Egypt's Greatest Pharaohs. London, 1996. Smith, W. S. A History of Egyptian Sculpture and Painting in the Old Kingdom. 2d ed. London, 1949. Fundamental study of Old Kingdom art including wood sculpture. Tooley, Angela M. J. Egyptian Models and Scenes. Shire Egyptology Series, no.22. Princes R-isborough, 1995. An introduction for the general reader to models and scenes, including offering bearers, not only in wood but also in stone. Vandier, J. Manual d'archeologie egyptienne, vol. 3, les grandes epoques: La Statuaire. Paris, 1958. This is the most comprehensive discussion of Egyptian statuary to date, and is a mine of information and illustrations from the Old Kingdom to the end of the New Kingdom. JULIA HARVEY
SEAFARING. Clay and stone models from Neolithic sites attest to the early development of river navigation in Egypt. Papyrus, tied in bundles, was used to form rafts or canoe-like craft that let people use the Nile in new ways. Illustrations of boat shapes more suited to wooden construction appear in the late Predynastic period, along with single masts with sails. Because the Nile current flows north to the Delta at up to four nautical miles per hour, and the prevailing wind blows from north to south, journeys on the river were relatively easy once the sail
SEAFARING 251 was in use. Portage around the rocky cataracts at Aswan and farther south overcame those obstacles. Major and minor canal works were part of Egyptian state projects from the earliest kings, culminating in a Persian-period canal between the Red Sea and the Nile wide enough to handle two ships passing. At sea, ships probably stayed near the coast on routes identified by landmarks passed on from generation to generation, at least until the Late period. In the late Predynastic and Early Dynastic periods, evidence for seafaring is mostly indirect. Simple drawings of wooden boats scratched on the walls of the Wadi Hamma-mat, a resting point on the route between the Nile and the Red Sea, may show vessels being carried across the desert as in later times. First dynasty boat depictions show mostly ceremonial wooden boats, but one label from Ab-ydos differs: two blocky vessels are associated with the words for an imported wood (mrw) and Lebanon, leading some scholars to suggest that we are looking at either cargo ships or ships made from imported wood. Large, long, coniferous timbers and many imported objects in first dynasty and later sites offer evidence for trade with the eastern Mediterranean, where the nearest forests belonged to the ancient Syrian-Palestinian cultures. Inscriptions at Byblos in Lebanon may be linked to the second dynasty ruler Khasekhemwy (c.2714-2687 BCE). Contact with Mesopotamian civilization seems to have come along this northern sea route during the late Predynastic and Early Dynastic periods, because few artifacts can be traced along the proposed southern route through the Persian Gulf and around the Arabian Peninsula to the Red Sea. The first secure written evidence for Mediterranean seafaring by Egyptians comes from the Palermo Stone, which mentions forty ships, loaded with cedar, in the early fourth dynasty reign of Sneferu. Also from the Old Kingdom is a gold Egyptian ax head found in Lebanon and inscribed "the boat crew 'Pacified-is-theTwo-Falcons-of Gold' port gang." Both Khufu (fourth dynasty) and Sa-hure (fifth dynasty) used the "Two Falcons of Gold" epithet. Khufu's name is on vase fragments found at Byblos, and the 4 3meter-long (135 feet) royal ship of Khufu is built almost entirely of imported cedar. The earliest detailed portraits of seaworthy ships come from decorated blocks in the mortuary temple for the fifth dynasty ruler Sahure (2458-2446 BCE) at Abusir. Twelve ships are illustrated, with careful attention to construction, rigging, and passengers, who include a mixture of Egyptians and Syrians. In addition to a strong sewn girdle around the hull's bulwarks, the Sahure vessels include a massive hogging truss, invented to counter the physical stresses of seafaring. The hogging truss, looped around each end of the
ship, was tightened with a device known as a Spanish windlass, which kept both ends under tension, thus maintaining the hull's integrity and shape. Like other Old Kingdom boats, this fleet relied on bipod masts—two-legged, fixed masts that spread the force of the sail across the hull. Although the sails are not set in these illustrations, they probably were long and narrow, like those commonly illustrated for river vessels of the same period. Large, forked spars helped spread the fixed sails, and helmsmen used quarter-rudders for steering. Sahure also sent an expedition to the land of Punt in his thirteenth regnal year. Punt, probably modern Somalia or Eritrea at the southern end of the Red Sea, fed Egyptian appetites for incense, precious woods, and other raw materials. Pepy II (r. 2300-2206 BCE) also recorded an expedition to Punt, and there are stone fragments carved with seagoing ships from the time of Unas (r. 2404-2374). The Sahure text records eighty thousand measures of myrrh alone, so we must imagine fairly large ships with crews able to navigate the reef-lined shores of the Red Sea more than fortyfive hundred years ago. These oceangoing, cargo ships were known as kbn.t ("Byblos") or h'w ships even until the Late period. In the Middle Kingdom, there are no extant illustrations of seagoing ships, but there are other sources of evidence for seafaring. The cedar Dahshur boats and many fine cedar coffins point to abundant imports from Lebanon, and gold jewelry featuring Red Sea shells is fairly common and has been interpreted as an indication of seafaring. In addition, scraps of boatlike planks and carved limestone anchors at Wadi Gawasis on the Red Sea testify to seagoing activity there. Abdel Monem el-Saved of the University of Alexandria excavated shrines, anchors, and what seems to be a campsite on the ancient shore. His work shows that this site—rather than Quseir, for which there are no pharaonic finds—was the anchorage for travel to Punt. In addition to fragments of limestone with the cartouche of Senwosret I (r. 1971-1928 BCE), el-Sayed found anchors, some inscribed with narratives describing voyages to Punt in ships built at "the dockyards of Coptos" and carried, in pieces, across the Eastern Desert by a crew of nearly thirty-eight hundred men. Cedar plank fragments from the site feature mortises and plank dimensions which correspond well with what we know of extant Middle Kingdom watercraft. Other finds show that Mersa Gawasis was used during the reigns of Amenemhet II (Year 28, c.1900 BCE), Senwosret II (Years 1, 5, and 6, c.1897-1891 BCE), and Senwosret III (r. 1878-1843 BCE). Inscriptions suggest that both Punt and perhaps mines in the Sinai were reached by sea from Mersa Gawasis during the twelfth dynasty. Middle Kingdom texts, particularly the Instructions of
252 SEALS AND SEALINGS Ipuwer from the end of the period, and the Story of the Shipwrecked Sailor, deal with seafaring. Comments by Ipuwer indicate unhappiness with the lack of Egyptian ships trading with Byblos for resin and other goods related to rituals, while the Shipwrecked Sailor mixes fact and fantasy about a Red Sea trip to the Sinai that resulted in his spending months on an island with a lapis lazuli and golden snake after his 54-meter-long (180 foot) ship sank. Spells from the Book of Going Forth by Day (Book of the Dead) also provide us with a glimpse of Nile-based navigation and practice during this time. Seafaring in the New Kingdom seems a more common occurrence, with refinements in rigging and steering gear traceable through images and models of ships. No physical remains of New Kingdom hulls have been found as yet. The most spectacular images come from the mortuary temple of Hatshepsut (r. 15021482 BCE), at Deir el-Balm where a fleet of kbn.t ships sets sail for Punt and returns loaded with all kinds of cargo, including incense trees, monkeys, and natives. Hatshepsut boasts that she reopened the ways to Punt, and this extraordinary series of illustrations suggests that she invested heavily in the expedition. Five ships with upright bows and curved papyriform sterns, hogging trusses, and single masts with broad sails are shown entering and leaving the anchorage at Punt. Only one includes an illustration of beam ends; otherwise, artistic attention was lavished on the rigging. Fifteen oarsmen shown on the side facing the viewer would have required about a meter of room each, suggesting the ships were at least 22 meters (70 feet) long. We have no indication of width, although the standard reported for Egyptian (and other) cargo ships is three times longer than broad. Thutmose Ill's reign provides us with dockyard records that monitored the movement of ships as well as single goatskins and reused timbers, the first use of menesh for a ship type (in the expedition to Syria-Palestine, Year 30, c.1474 BCE), and further records of cedar acquired and goods stored at harbors for Egyptian use. An Amarna tablet refers to the king's ships in Tyre, and seagoing ships seem to be illustrated by Ramesses III in the Sea Peoples' battle scene at Medinet Habu. Egyptian grain was exported to Palestine and Anatolian Egyptian vassals, according to cuneiform texts there, but whether Egyptian or local ships were used is not known. A number of authors argue that the keel was introduced during the New Kingdom, but there is little evidence to support this hypothesis. There are central, longitudinal timbers at the ends of models and in depictions which extend beyond the planked sides of the hulls, but these stop short at the waterline. The Late Bronze Age shipwreck at Uluburun, Turkey (c.1306 BCE) has no frames, and its "keel" provides longitudinal stiffening but
protrudes only about 2 centimeters (0,75 inch) beyond the planking on what was undoubtedly a seafaring ship of the highest quality. During the Late period and on into Roman times, a number of textual references make it clear that there was a continued investment in seafaring by the rulers of Egypt. In addition to trading vessels and warships, Egyptian shipwrights built enormous cargo ships, including obelisk carriers for Roman emperors from Augustus to Constantine. One that was built for Caligula was so immense that Claudius filled it with cement and sank it as a significant part of the foundations for harborworks at Os-tia, the port of Rome. The ancient Egyptians began traveling on the Nile at least seven thousand years ago, and probably had started sea voyages in wooden boats by about fifty-five hundred years ago. Although no seagoing ship has been excavated, abundant evidence for Egyptian routes to the Levant and the Red Sea points to an active merchant fleet and a competent navy for much of Egyptian history, particularly from the New Kingdom onward. [See also Ships and Shipbuilding.] BIBLIOGRAPHY Jones, Dilwyn. A Glossary of Ancient Egyptian Nautical Titles and Terms. London, 1988. Comprehensive collection and translations. Jones, Dilwyn. Egyptian Bookshelf: Boats. London, 1995. General overview of evidence for Egyptian walercraft. Kemp, Barry. Ancient Egypt: Anatomy of a Civiliialion. London, 1989. Landstrom, B. Ships of the Pharaohs. London, 1970. Unsurpassed collection of pictorial evidence lor Egyptian watereraft, but the interpretations are dated. Lipke, P. The Royal Ship of Cheops. Oxford, 1984. Detailed report on the reconstruction of the Khufu ship. Patch, D.C., and C. Ward Haldane. The Pharaoh's Boat at the Carnegie. Pittsburgh, 1990. Investigation of the Middle Kingdom Egyptian boat at the Carnegie Museum. el-Sayed, Abdel Monem A. 1-1. "New Light on the Recently Discovered Port on the Red Sea Shore." Chroniqiw d'Egypte 58.115-116(1983), 2337. Summary of finds and interpretation of the Mersa Gawasis anchorage. Vinson, Steve. Egyptian Boats and Ships. Buckinghamshire, 1994. Specialist information in an accessible, well-illustrated format. Ward, Cheryl. Sacred and Secular: Ancient Egyptian Ships and Boats. Boston, 1999. This volume for specialists and nonspecialists examines the cultural context and the physical characteristics of twenty ancient rivercraft. CHERYL WARD
SEALS AND SEALINGS. Sealing was used in Egypt from the Early Dynastic period onward to ensure that documents and the contents of containers or rooms were preserved intact. This sealing was done by pressing a cylinder or stamp seal against a prepared surface of Nile mud, leaving a distinctive impression imprinted on the clay. Although the mud sealing could be broken easily, the
SEALS AND SEALINGS 253 seal decoration theoretically could not be reproduced without the seal itself. The primary purpose was to reveal any unauthorized tampering with the contents of the letters, pottery vessels, baskets, boxes, sacks, storerooms, or tombs that had been sealed. Evidence from the seals themselves and the mud seal-ings they produce tends to be complementary. Many extant seals come from the antiquity trade or have been excavated in funerary contexts. Dating is complicated by the possibility of seals being heirlooms or objects recovered years after their creation, and again pressed into service. The archaeological context of sealings is a firmer indication of date because, once broken, sealings were not reused. Seals were often worn on necklaces or rings and thus functioned as jewelry or amulets. The presence of sealings is evidence that seals were functional and not merely ornamental. Both sealings and seals provide significant chronological data as well as evidence for reconstructing Egyptian administration and cultural contact with neighboring lands. Cylinder Seals. The earliest type of seal commonly used in Egypt was cylindrical in shape and was pierced lengthwise for a cord or wire, on which it could be hung from the owner's wrist or neck. Incised decoration or writing was placed on the exterior of the seal; the impression would repeat the same design as long as the seal was rolled across fresh mud placed over jar openings or over cords tying together other goods. This type of sealing was most useful for large objects because the design could be extended indefinitely. The earliest evidence for cylinder seals comes from the Uruk period (about 3700 BCE) in southwestern Iran and southern Mesopotamia. By the end of the fourth millennium, this type of tubular seal was used throughout the ancient Near East, coming rather late to Egypt. The idea of sealing and the decorative motifs used on the seals could have been transmitted to Egypt through trade goods on which clay sealings had been affixed. The iconography of Predynastic Egyptian cylinder seals with patterns of cross-hatching and fish motifs shows its closest affiliation to be with material from Susa, suggesting southwestern Iran rather than Mesopotamia proper as the source for the seals found in Egypt. While some early cylinder seals were imported from western Asia, others may be Egyptian-made, but of foreign inspiration. Sealing was not characteristic of the Predynastic period in Egypt; fewer than twenty seals are known from Predynastic cemeteries, and these may have been exotic pieces of jewelry or trade goods. About half of the examples were acquired by purchase or are without clear archaeological context. Excavated cylinder seals have come from Abusir el-Meleq (tomb 1033), Ballas (tomb 307), Nag el-Deir (tomb 7304), Naqada (tombs 1863 and
29), Matmar, and Zawiyet el-Aryan. Predynastic cylinder seals have also been recovered from the Nubian sites of Gerf Hussein, Saras West, and Kashkush. In all cases the archaeological context is of later Gerzean (Naqada II) date. The late Predynastic cylinder seals from Egypt form a coherent group of small (2-3 centimeters/1-2 inches) stone (mostly limestone) seals. Sealing and writing were both adopted by the central government bureaucracy of a unified Egypt to extend and ensure state control over the country; first dynasty seals and sealings form some of the earliest collections of hieroglyphic writing. Seals and sealings of the new state have been recovered from both Palestine ('En Besor) and from A-Group contexts in Nubia. The tombs of the governing class of Early Dynastic Egypt were full of large jars containing provisions for the afterlife. These were topped by large cone-shaped lumps of clay, often set atop a small saucer placed over the jar opening. A cylinder seal was rolled up one side of this cap and down the other; sometimes this was repeated with a second seal, and the two impressions cross at the top. The royal names preserved on first and second dynasty sealings are of primary importance in dating and sequencing tombs in the major cemeteries of the period. Emery suggested that many of the Abydos tombs were only cenotaphs (memorials), with the pharaohs actually being buried at Saqqara. The first dynasty Saqqara tombs, however, are better explained as the burial places of the high officials identified in the sealings. Sealings from a number of kings often appear in the same Saqqara tomb, and there are more first dynasty Saqqara tombs than there are pharaohs for this period. Sealed grave goods from royal storehouses would have been assigned as rewards or payment to the officials actually buried in the tombs. Small cylinder seals belonging to individuals have been found in lower-class Early Dynastic burials, most notably at the site of Nag el-Deir. Most are made of black steatite, but some are made of wood and ivory. They are decorated with hieroglyphic signs that seem to represent the owners' names. Usually these seals have a representation of the human figure seated in front of an offering table, such as is depicted on Old Kingdom false doors and stelae. Thus, these seals seem to be an inexpensive version of the funerary stela, with the primary function of preserving the name of the deceased. There is no evidence that these private Early Dynastic cylinder seals were ever used to seal anything. Although the private funerary use of cylinder seals did not continue into the third dynasty, the royal and official use of the larger seals with complex designs and texts continued throughout the Old Kingdom (third to sixth dynasties). Seals were such an important part of the state bu-
254 SEALS AND SEALINGS reaucracy that an official from Meir records in his tomb that his seal of office never spent the night apart from him. Important groups of Old Kingdom sealings have been found at Abusir, Beit Khallaf, Giza, and Buhen in Nubia. They provide evidence for bureaucratic activity, as well as for dating and for identifying officials and tombowners. For example, the box sealings in the Giza tomb of Queen Hetepheres show that she was buried in the reign of her son Khufu, rather than that of her husband Sneferu. Sealings in the Giza mastabas were used to seal canopic chests. After being passed around the chest in two directions, a string was tied at the top; the knot was covered with a lump of clay across which a cylinder seal was rolled. Cylinder seals continued to be made in Egypt throughout the Middle Kingdom, during which period, as the traditional form of seal, they were favored for royal names. Many examples would not have been suitable for use as seals, being made with multiple lobes or having glaze filling up the incised characters of the royal name. By the First Intermediate Period, therefore, cylinders seem to be treated more as a type of amulet rather than as a working badge of office. Cylinders continue to appear as an archaic form in the Second Intermediate Period, New Kingdom, and even later. Seal Amulets. The use of seals as amulets becomes increasingly important with the introduction of a new type of seal in sixth dynasty Egypt. These seal amulets appear in circular, oval, and rectangular shapes, with a flat base on which a design is carved. A number of these seals have small ring-shanks on the back and thus are referred to as "button seals" (Knopfsiegel in German). The backs of many of these seals are simple domes or pyramids. Others are carved in the shape of a wide variety of human and animal figures—crocodile, hippopotamus, frog, lizard, ape, and hawk— sometimes just the head of which is shown. Soon scarab (beetleshaped) seals, along with cowroid and hemispherical seals, were introduced. Although at first just one form among many, by the end of the First Intermediate Period the scarab had become the dominant Egyptian seal type. The seal amulets are made of glazed and unglazed steatite, limestone, faience, pottery, bone, ivory, and rock crystal. Their design repertoire consists largely of geometric motifs, linear maze patterns, and magical symbols, but it also includes human, animal, and insect figures done in a linear style. With the introduction of scarab and ovoid seal amulets toward the end of the First Intermediate Period, the geometric designs are replaced by floral motifs with spiral and scroll patterns. This type of decoration is in stark contrast to the traditional hieroglyphic inscriptions found on cylinder seals. Early scholars, such as Pe-trie and Frankfort, sought to explain this phenomenon through foreign influence from Syria, Anatolia, or the Ae
gean. Some influence in the choice of seal type and in the geometric or spiral designs may have reached Egypt from abroad, since a steady commerce connected Old Kingdom Egypt with the Phoenician port city of Byblos on the Levantine coast. Ward (1970) has argued plausibly for a native Egyptian origin of the First Intermediate Period seal amulets. The key factor here is archaeological context; no pottery or other objects with foreign associations have been found in connection with seal amulets. There is no pattern of foreign influence, but rather a clear distinction in the status and social class of the seal owners: the seal amulets are associated with the burials of individuals of relatively low social status and wealth. The forerunners of the seal amulets may be a series of cylinder seals from the late Old Kingdom described by Fischer (1972). These cylinder seals are decorated with motifs that resemble hieroglyphs but are used in a decorative fashion. Frequently the designs are arranged so that one half faces one way and the other half faces in the opposite direction in a tete-beche (head to foot) arrangement, also found among seal amulet designs. As central control loosened in the sixth dynasty, a more popular taste in seal design came into play; its decorative patterns first emerged with hieroglyphic signs and then came to dominate the seal motif repertoire. The seal amulets represent a provincial art style rather than the formal art of the pharaonic court. Although small quantities of seal amulets have been found in Lower and Upper Egypt, the vast majority of known seal amulets (399 of 575, by one count) have been recovered from Brunton's excavations in Middle Egypt at the sites of Matmar, Mostagedda, and Qau/Badari, most of them from burials of women and children. For example, Brun-ton records 229 seals from Qau/Badari, 48 percent of which were found with women, 5 percent with children, and 4 percent with men. The seals accompanying men were often scarabs. The position of these seals is most often at the neck, where they would have been hung from a string, either alone or with beads or other amulets as part of a necklace. In some cases the seals seem to have been placed with other toilet articles in a box near the body. Some seals (mostly scarabs) were found placed in the hands of the deceased. Although fully capable of being used as seals, these objects apparently served rather as protective amulets or had a decorative function as jewelry. Middle and New Kingdom Sealings. Sealings show that scarabs or ovoids were being used as personal seals in early twelfth dynasty Thebes. These seals were not inscribed with their owners' names and have the same type of decoration as the seal amulets. Two identical sealings found on the Hekanakhte correspondence are decorated with a spiral design and the hieroglyph for "seal." Another impression with C-scroll decoration was recovered from
the Theban tomb of Meketre. The great silver scarab of Meketre's estate manager Wah shows the type of seal from which these impressions were made. It is decorated with S-scrolls and such hieroglyphic motifs as cobras and the sign for "life." Further evidence is provided by around fifty seal impressions and hundreds of fragmentary, undeco-
rated clay sealings (.bullae) recovered from East Karnak in 1991. Along with spirals, scrolls, rosettes, and hieroglyphic emblems, linear and stick figure motifs appear on the East Karnak sealings. Comparable collections of late twelfth and thirteenth dynasty sealings are known from Lower Egypt (Abu Gha-
256 SEALS AND SEALINGS lib), from a royal mortuary town (Kahun) near the capita], from Upper Egypt (Abydos), and from a number of fortresses in Nubia. The largest number and best-published sealings from this period come from the Nubian fortress of Uronarti; almost five thousand sealings were recovered from this site by Reisner and Wheeler. About half of these were large door or sack sealings that bore the name of the Uronarti storehouse—"Storehouse of the Fortress of Hst-iwnw." Some of these were overstamped with private seals, indicating that an individual was taking personal responsibility for the security of the goods involved. Often the fingerprints made while pressing down the seal are still visible. New Kingdom jar sealings are known from palace, funerary temple, village (Deir el-Medina), and tomb contexts at Thebes and other sites in Upper Egypt and Nubia. Important collections from Malqata (reign of Amenhotpe III), Tell el-Amarna (reign of Akhenaten), and the tomb of Tutankhamun show three major types of jar sealings: cylindrical, domed, and cap-shaped. Paintings from Theban tomb 188 (Parennefer) depict the act of impressing the seal against the mud sealing. The sealer holds the seal in the right hand and a bowl in his left, which would have contained water with which to wet or clean off the seal. The stamp seals contain inscriptions identifying the jar contents, such as "honey for the serf-festival" or "wine from the estate of the Aten."New Kingdom Theban tombs were generally closed with some form of sealing. Most notable is the seal of the royal necropolis with the figure of the Anubis jackal represented over three rows of three captives each, found in the tomb of Tutankhamun and elsewhere in the Valley of the Kings. The use of scarabs, seals of other shapes, and signet rings to seal papyrus documents continued through the New Kingdom until the Greco-Roman period. Seals and sealing performed a number of roles throughout ancient Egyptian history. They served as security devices, for both the state bureaucracy and private individuals, for documents, containers, and spaces. Seals were used as protective amulets, funerary labels, and personal ornaments, sometimes in addition to, but often to the exclusion of, their sealing function. Although usually decorated with hieroglyphic inscriptions containing names, titles, and/or protective emblems, Egyptian seals performed many of these same functions with only simple decorative patterns. [See also Amulets; and Scarabs.] BIBLIOGRAPHY Baines, John, ed. Stone Vessels, Pottery and Sealings from the Tomb of Tut'ankhamun. Oxford, 1993. Note articles by Colin Hope ("The Jar Sealings," pp. 87-138) and Olat' E. Kaper ("The Door Sealings and Object Sealings"). Boochs, Wolfgang. Siege/ und Siegein ini Alien Agypten. (Kolner
Forschungen zu Kunst und Altertum, 4.) St. Aagustin, 1982. Concentrates on textual and inscriptional evidence for how seals were used in ancient Egypt. Brunton, Guy. Qau and Ba.da.ri I-Ill. (British School of Archaeology in Egypt Publications, 44, 45, 50.) London, 1927-1930. Excavation report of the largest collection of First Intermediate Period seal amulets. Dunham, Dows. Second Cataract Forts II: Uronarti, Shalfak, Mirgissa. Boston, 1967. A fuller treatment of the Uronarti material with the same illustrations appears in George A. Reisner "Clay Sealings of Dynasty XIII from Uronarti Fort," Ktish 3 (1955), 26f. Dunham also includes seal impressions from Shalfak (pi. 71) and Mirgissa (figs. 9-12). Fischer, Henry. "Old Kingdom Cylinder Seals for the Lower Classes." Metropolitan Museum Journal 6 (1972), 5-16. Frankfort, Hcnri. Cylinder Seals: A Documentary Essay on the Art and Religion of the Ancient Neat-East. London, 1939. Classic presentation of the influence of Mesopotamian glyptic on Egypt; see especially pp.292300. Gibson, M., and R. Biggs, eds. Seals and Sealings in the Ancient Near East. (Bibliotheca Mesopotamia, 6.) Malibu, 1977. Publication of a symposium concerning the role of seals in ancient Near Eastern society. Note articles by Janet Johnson ("Private Name Seals of the Middle Kingdom," pp. 141145) and Bi-uce Williams ("Aspects of Sealing and GIvptic in Egypt before the New Kingdom," pp. 135-138). Hope, Colin. Malkala and the Birket Habu Jar Sealings and Amphorae. Egyptology Today, S.2. Warrninster, 1978. Provides basic typology of New Kingdom jar sealings, including list of depictions of sealed jars in tombs from Tell el-Amarna and Thebes. Kaplony, Peter. Die Rollsiegd des Alten Reichs. (Monumenta Aegypti-aca, 2-3.) 2 vols. Brussels, 1977, 1981. Old Kingdom cylinder seals studied by motif and king's name, with an extensive section on the seals from Abusir. Martin, Geoffrey T. Scarabs, Cylinders and Other Ancient Egyptian Se.a!s: A Checklist of Publications. Warminster, 1985. Extensive bibliography of older material, but does not include excavation reports. Petrie, W. M. Flinders. Buttons and Design Scarabs. (British School of Archaeology in Egypt Publications, 38.) London, 1925. Reprinted by Aris & Phillips in 1974, this seminal publication contains illustrations of seals and scarabs from the Egyptian collection in University College, London. Pittman, Holly. "Cylinder Seals and Scarabs in the Ancient Near East." In Civilizations of the Ancient Near East, edited by Jack M. Sasson, vol. 3, pp. 1589-1603. New York, 1994. General survey useful for placing Egypt in its Near Eastern context. Podzorski, Patricia V. "Predynastic Egyptian Seals of Known Provenience in the R. H. Lowie Museum of Anthropology," Journal of Near Eastern Studies 47 (1988), 259-268. Reisner, George A., and W. S. Smith. A History of lire, Giw Necropolis It: The Tomb of Hetep-heres the Mother of'Clieops. Cambridge, Mass., 1955. Chapter 6, "The Mud Impressions," covers the sealings from the tomb of Hetepheres and other seal impressions recovered by the Harvard-Boston Expedition to Giza. Reisner, George A., and N. F. Wheeler. "The Art of Seal Carving in Egypt in the Middle Kingdom." Bulletin of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston 28 ()930), 47-55. Good general introduction, with emphasis on the socioeconomic context of the Uronarti sealings. Ward, William A. Egypt, and the East Mediterranean World 2200-.1900 B.C.: Studies in Egyptian Foreign Relations during the first Intermediate Period. Beirut, .197.1. Reviews interconnections between Mi-noan glyptic art and Egyptian seal amulets, arguing for the native Egyptian development of spiral decoration.
SEA PEOPLES 257 Ward, William A. "The origin of Egyptian Design-Amulets." Journal of Egyptian Archaeology 56 (1970), 65-80. STEVEN BLAKE SHUBERT
SEA PEOPLES. This evocative name has been adopted by modern historians from occasional Egyptian usage in order to describe neatly a number of different groups involved in a bewildering migration around and across the Mediterranean Sea over a period of at least fifty years in the later twelfth and early eleventh centuries BCE. This was accompanied by widespread destruction of individual settlements and the collapse of wider political entities from Greece to the Levant. Its causes are still poorly understood, but there is no doubt that it ranks among the most significant and formative episodes in the history of the eastern Mediterranean, since it marked the end of the Bronze Age and the beginning of the Iron Age. Egypt, on the southern periphery of this movement, was affected less than more northerly areas. Although the attempted invasions of the country by the Sea Peoples presented a major challenge to the pharaohs of the nineteenth and twentieth dynasties, and the successful repulsion of them was recorded in detail, the impact of the Sea Peoples on Egypt in the longer term was insignificant compared to that of the Libyan tribes with whom they were at times allied. Our knowledge of the Sea Peoples, insofar as Egypt is concerned, derives primarily from the textual and pictorial records carved in the reigns of Merenptah (c.1237-1226 BCE) and Ramesses III (c.l 1981166 BCE). This can be supplemented by scattered references in other inscriptions and papyri, notably Ramesses II's accounts of the Battle of Qadesh and a literary text, the Story' of Wena-mun. For the wider picture, we rely on texts from the Hit-tite kingdom in Anatolia and from Ugarit in Syria, as well as on an increasing body of archaeological data from the whole of the eastern Mediterranean. The Homeric epics may also have a contribution to make to our understanding, but the historical relevance of much of their subject matter remains controversial, particularly in chronological terms. The Egyptian inscriptions are mostly official accounts created as part of a scheme of temple decoration in which the primary aim was to exemplify a particular king's performance of his role as protector of Egypt. They are triumphal in tone and naturally present the outcome of battles as overwhelming victories for the pharaoh. They list enemies killed or captured but make no reference to Egyptian casualties. They are nonetheless important for the detail they give of the direction and composition of the attacks on Egypt, and for the pictorial evidence they provide on the appearance, costume, and weaponry of the
Sea Peoples. The Peleset, for instance, are characterized by feathered headdresses and short tasseled kilts, and the Sherden by horned helmets. The letters from Ugarit, written in the last days of the city's existence, offer a quite different and touching insight. They show a population bewildered by the speed and unexpectedness of the attacks and unable to protect themselves because their own fighting forces had been sent to help allies faced by the same problem. Although the possibly quite diverse origins of the different groups that made up the Sea Peoples are not known with any certainty, there is a broad consensus that they came mainly from the Aegean and Anatolia, and archaeological discoveries increasingly suggest that upheavals in the Mycenaean world lay behind their abandonment of their native countries. The following names— which occur in various combinations in Egyptian texts— are generally regarded as coming under the umbrella term "Sea Peoples": Denyen, Ekwesh, Lukka, Peleset, Sherden, Shekelesh, Teresh, Tjeker, and Weshesh. These are not exact renderings of the names because the Egyptian script did not record vowels, and so, by a different convention, the Denyen appear in some modem books as Danuna, the Ekwesh as Akawasha, the Sherden as Shardana, and so on. Attempts to relate them to particular geographical areas rely largely on resemblances between the names they bear in Egyptian texts and names known from other, especially Hittite and Classical, sources. For example, the Sherden/Shardana have been linked with Sardinia—either as their original homeland or as the place where some of them eventually settled— on the basis of the similar consonantal structure of the two words, but a connection with Sardis has also been mooted. It is likewise proposed that the island of Sicily got its name from the Shekelesh. Connections with the Greek world have been reinforced by suggestions that the Akawasha are Achaeans, while the Denyen should be equated with the Danaoi, or mainland Greeks. Such identifications are inevitably conjectural—often there are two or more equations that are equally plausible phonetically—and, since no written languages can currently be associated with any of these peoples, they are likely to remain so. We can be certain only that the Peleset, wherever they came from originally, settled in the Levant as the people we know today as the Philistines. For this group alone among the Sea Peoples has it been possible through archaeology—and despite the derogatory caricature of them created in early Israelite texts—to reconstruct their sophisticated material culture. Precisely what caused this enormous upheaval is also unknown. Famine has often been invoked by way of explanation, and prolonged crop failure certainly could have led to wholesale migration in search of food. A short-
258
SEA PEOPLES
SEA PEOPLES. Depiction of battle with the Sea Peoples. On the right, Ramesses III and his soldiers fight on the shore, the king standing on corpses of the enemy. Below them, Egyptian officers lead away bound prisoners.
age in Anatolia seems to be indicated by Merenptah's sending of grain to the Hittites, although this might only have been a temporary measure. A marked rise in the price of grain in Egypt in the twentieth dynasty has also been noted in this context. Again, this is an insufficient basis from which to extrapolate a crop failure in regions far distant, and the price rise in any case postdates the invasions of the Sea Peoples. Another idea recently mooted is that a volcanic explosion in Iceland may have played a part, but the treering dating of this eruption to 1159 BCE—probably just after the reign of Ramesses III had ended—would seem to make this also too late to have been a major factor. In fact, archaeological evidence for widespread climatic change is largely lacking, and political and military strife in the Mycenaean world may well have been the main catalyst. Fine questions of cause and effect depend to a large extent on still unresolved questions of relative chronology between the different areas involved. The two actual invasions of Egypt that are known to us occurred about forty years apart, in Year 5 of Merenptah's reign and Year 8 of Ramesses III. Since these were separated by a civil war lasting some twenty years, it is quite possible that there were others, which went unrecorded or the record of which has not survived. However that may be, the Egyptians had certainly had contact with some groups among the Sea Peoples long before the period at which the hostile and destructive coalition associated with the name in Egyptian sources is likely to have come into being. The Lukka are mentioned as marauders from the sea in the Amarna Letters, dating to the reign of Amenhotpe III, 150 years earlier, and Sherden warriors
were already serving in the Egyptian army under Ramesses II, as the many temple records of the Battle of Qadesh attest. In the subsequent battles against the Sea Peoples, some soldiers from the same geographical and ethnic background fought on the Egyptian side against their compatriots. Allegiances doubtless changed easily enough in the circumstances. Some fragments of painted papyrus, excavated in 1936 but only recently published, contain rare and tantalizing scenes. They were found at Tell el-Amarna and hence presumably date to the reign of Akhenaten. Very unusually for the medium, these show episodes of a battle, including Libyans in the act of killing an Egyptian. Another scene depicts a group of running infantry in which soldiers of Egyptian appearance are mixed with others whose headgear strongly resembles the boars'-tusk helmets of the Mycenaeans. No text survives on the fragments to explain their significance, but, given the long-standing Egyptian predilection for the use of foreign troops, it is a reasonable inference that warriors from the Mycenaean world were already part of the armies of pharaoh in the late eighteenth dynasty. This would not be surprising in the light of the intensification of the relationship between Egypt and the Aegean that is apparent in the reign of Akhenaten's father, Amenhotpe III. This is epitomized notably by faience plaques bearing the king's name that have been found on the Greek mainland, and by a "geographical list" of Aegean place names inscribed on the base of a royal statue found in his mortuary temple at Thebes. The carving of the list beneath the king's feet was a traditional device of sympathetic magic to prevent these countries from harming
SEA PEOPLES 259 Egypt; it need not imply that the actual relationship was anything other than amicable. Visitors had been coming to the Egyptian court from Crete and the Greek mainland since the reign of Hatshepsut, as is shown by paintings in Theban tombs. These depict Minoan and later Mycenaean figures—probably both envoys and traders— bringing expensive gifts to the Egyptian court. Remarkable discoveries of fresco fragments, Minoan in style, content, and technique, made recently at Tell ed-Dab'a in the Delta and now dated by the excavator to the reign of Amenhotpe I, show that there were already significant contacts between the Theban kings and their Aegean counterparts still earlier, in the sixteenth century BCE. Whatever the reality of the Libyan danger hinted at by the papyrus fragments from Tell el-Amarna, recognition of a threat to Egypt from the west can be inferred from the campaign of Sety I into Libya, recorded on the north wall of the hypostyle hall at Kamak. This was followed under Ramesses II by the construction of a series of forts along the western edge of the Delta and on the Mediterranean coast. Recent excavations at one of the latter, Zawiyet Umm el-Rakkham, about 300 kilometers (200 miles) west of Alexandria, have begun to show the site's other role as an important trading station, accessible to marine traffic bound in either direction along the coast, but also well positioned at the African end of the route from Crete. Non-Egyptian items predominate among the pottery, which has yielded many examples of storage and transport jars typical of the Late Bronze Age eastern Mediterranean. Routes to Egypt used for peaceful trading could easily become a means of entry for hostile forces, and it was essential to protect them. A sense of impending danger from the west may have been among the factors that prompted Ramesses II to secure his northeastern frontier by coming to terms with the Hittites after the indecisive Battle of Qadesh early in his reign. A peace treaty and marriage alliance followed, which must have left both great powers feeling free to exercise control over the small city-states within their respective spheres of influence without challenge. This idyllic situation was not to last long. Inscriptions in the temple of Amun at Kamak reveal that in Year 5 of Meren-ptah, several of the Sea Peoples approached Egypt from the west as part of a Libyan force. The largest contingent seems to have been the Ekwesh, while Sherden, Teresh, Shekelesh, and Lukka were also present. After a six-hour battle near Buto in the northwestern Delta, the Egyptians claimed victory. If the numbers of the enemy dead and captured are a reliable guide, the Sea Peoples made up about one-third of the invaders. Following the usual practice, the male prisoners were incorporated into Meren-ptah's own army. In the next Sea Peoples' assault on Egypt, in Year 8 of
Ramesses III, the Libyans were not involved, although they attacked separately in Years 5 and 11. Instead, the onslaught came from the northeast, partly by land and partly from the sea, and was the work of a coalition that had previously attacked the Hittites, Cilicia, Syria, and Cyprus. The conflict is vividly described in reliefs on the walls of the mortuary temple of Ramesses III at Medinet Habu. On this occasion, the peoples named are the Tjeker, the Shekelesh, the Weshesh, the Denyen, and the Peleset. Again, the Egyptians gained an overwhelming victory. The scenes show that, on this occasion at least, the foreigners included women and children in carts, and there can be no doubt that what we see is not just a military force but a population on the move. The upshot of this campaign was the settlement of the Peleset, and also some of the Tjeker and Sherden, on the coastal plain just north of Egypt. The impact of me Sea Peoples movement outside Egypt was immense. Egypt's principal adversary for the role of great power in the eastern Mediterranean, the Hit-tite kingdom, was destroyed, as were many of the rich cities of the Levant over which the Egyptian and Hittite kings had earlier fought. Trade routes were inevitably disrupted. New populations settled over much of the eastern Mediterranean, notably on Cyprus and in the coastal regions of Syria and Palestine. Of these, the Peleset seem best to have preserved a distinctive identity. The effects on Egypt are less easy to gauge. In contrast to the substantial settlement of Libyans, only the Sherden among the Sea Peoples remain visible to any significant extent. Their continuing military importance is shown by the fact that, in the historical retrospective that closes the Harris Papyrus, a summary of the reign of Ramesses III, they are explicitly named among those to whom the king's report is addressed. Numerous Sherden, mostly with Egyptian names, are recorded as settled in Middle Egypt in the land survey from the reign of Ramesses V recorded in the Wilbour Papyrus. They had presumably been given plots of land in return for their military service, had doubtless intermarried, and were in the process of being assimilated to native ways. There are also several passing references to individual Sherden in the late twentieth dynasty archive from Deir el-Medina known as the Late Ramessid Letters. Thereafter, even they disappear from sight. The effort needed to resist the incursions of both the Libyans and the Sea Peoples must, however, have weakened the authority of the later Ramessid kings. The country's resources were probably seriously depleted, and any hope of reviving imperial glories beyond Egypt's frontiers had vanished. The kings' preoccupation with military affairs in the north must also have fostered a growing sense of independence and of hereditary right in the Theban
260 SEASONS priesthood. The Sea Peoples can thus be said to have contributed to the division of Egypt at the end of the New Kingdom. Political relationships changed internally and externally. The St.oiy ofWenamun, describing events at the end of the twentieth dynasty, depicts the Tjeker continuing to behave in a piratical fashion. Wenamun himself, as envoy of the Theban priesthood in search of cedar for a new sacred boat for the god Amun, but also as a representative of a weakened Egypt, is shown seeking to establish commercial and diplomatic relations with the country's new neighbors. BIBLIOGRAPHY Barnett, R. D. "The Sea Peoples." In Cambridge Ancient History, vol. 2, part 2. 3d ed. Cambridge. 1975. Still useful review of the main sources. Cline, Eric. Sailing the Wine-Dark Sea: International Trade and the Late Bronze Age Aegean. Oxford, 1994. A comprehensive treatment of a topic that ofters important background to the migrations. Davies, W. V., and Louise Schofield, eds. £gyp(, the Aegean and the Levant. London, 1995. Important collection of essays on eastern Mediterranean interrelationships in the second millennium BCE. Dothan, Trude. The Philistines and Their Material Culture. Rev. ed. Jerusalem, 1982. Classic account of this much vilified people, Dothan, Trude, and Moshe Dothan. People of the Sea: The Search for the Philistines. New York, 1992. More popular treatment of the same subject as the previous entry. Drews, Robert. The End of the Bronze Age: Changes in Warfare and the Catastrophe ca. 1200 B.C. Princeton, 1993. Regards developments in weaponry and methods of warfare as particularly important in explaining events in this period. Edgerton, W. G., and J. A. Wilson. Historical Records of Harnesses III. Chicago, .1936. Translations of the Medinet Habu inscriptions. Gitin, Seymour, et al., eds. Mediterranean Peoples in Transition, Tliirteenth to Early Tenth Centuries BCE, in Honor of Trade Dothan. Jerusalem, 1998. Publication of a symposium dedicated to one of the leading authorities on the Philistines, which contains a very wide range of stimulating papers offering fresh evidence and new perspectives both geographically and thematically. James, Frances W., Patrick E. McGovem, and Anne G. Bonn. The Late Bronze Egyptian Garrison at. Beth Shan: A Study of .Levels VII and VIII. Philadelphia, 1974. Detailed report on the excavation of one of the forts constructed to protect the northeastern frontier of Egypt against invasion by land. Moran, W. The Ainarna letters. Baltimore and London, 1992. Authoritative translations of the correspondence which forms one of the most important sources for international relations in the fourteenth century BCB. Redford, Donald B. Egypt, Canaan, and Israel in Ancient Times. Princeton, 1992. Chapter 9; the author is rather more confident of precise identifications of names of Sea Peoples with specific places than are many other scholars. Sandars, N. K. The Sea Peoples: Warriors of the Ancient Mediterranean. Rev. ed. London, 1985. A good introduction to the complexities of the subject; adopts a broad geographical perspective and integrates textual and archaeological evidence. ANTHONY LEAHY
SEASONS. See Calendars.
SECOND INTERMEDIATE PERIOD. In Egyptian history, the term "Intermediate" denotes periods between those of political unity, a criterion affecting control of material and human resources. An aspect of mass human relations, unity may be perceived and expressed variously by individuals or groups, or by later commentators, according to context. This fluidity qualifies precise borders in time and space. The Second Intermediate Period may be summarized as follows—from the end of the Middle Kingdom to the start of the New Kingdom. There were three centers: Itjtawy, the residence founded by Amenemhet I south of Memphis; Tell ed-Dab'a, the largest settlement excavated in the eastern Nile Delta; and Thebes, the focus of Upper Egypt. Groups of kings are identified with "dynasties" in the king lists of the third-century BCE historian Manetho and with groups of kings in the sole surviving cursive pharaonic king list, the Ramessid-era's Turin Canon. The Second Intermediate Period is omitted in the two surviving hieroglyphic Ramessid-era king lists from Abydos. During the last phase of the Middle Kingdom, all Egypt was ruled by a series of short-reigning kings (thirteenth dynasty) based at Itjtawy, of unknown relation to the family of Amenemhet I (twelfth dynasty) and, in nearly all cases, to each other. Tell edDab'a was then a large site with a substantial Levantine population. Thebes was the administrative center for Upper Egypt and occupied Nubia, as in the twelfth dynasty. The Second Intermediate Period may be divided into three phases. In phase 1, the thirteenth dynasty ruled from Itjtawy, with Thebes as their southern administrative center. Eastern Delta sources include kingly titles for at least two of a series of rulers, probably based at Tell ed-Dab'a (fourteenth dynasty). These two local "kings" indicate an end to unity, at least in some aspects. In phase 2, Itjtawy is no longer attested as a capital; the series of kings with Egyptian names continued, but only in southern Upper Egypt and based at. Thebes (seventeenth dynasty). A series of foreign kings (the "Hyksos") dominated Egypt, probably based at Tell ed-Dab'a (fifteenth dynasty). Contemporary sources attest to no separate group or groups of rulers in either Upper or Lower Egypt; "Dynasty 16" in Manetho may reflect later interpretations of royal names. Phase 3 was characterized by warfare between the fifteenth and seventeenth dynasties, attested only for the reign of the Hyksos king Apophis against the Theban rulers Sekenenre Ta'o, his immediate successor Kamose, and his son and second successor Ahmose. The last expelled the Hyksos, reuniting Egypt; his reign thus straddles the Second Intermediate Period and the start of the New Kingdom. The seventeenth dynasty royal palace, settlement, and fort at Deir el-Ballas, south of Dendera, are ex-
SECOND INTERMEDIATE PERIOD 261 actly coeval with this period and perhaps served as strategic headquarters for the Theban military operations. The break in the record leaves historians to rely on the later king lists in attempts to reconstruct the sequences of rulers. At present there is no clear sequence, or even total number, of kings for any dynasty, although for the first half of the thirteenth dynasty the sequence seems well preserved in the Turin Canon. Surviving seventeenth dynasty burial equipment and the description of a series of tombs in the twentieth dynasty Tomb Robbery Papyri provide, if not a possible sequence, one (perhaps incomplete) group of kings. Historians disagree on the point within the thirteenth dynasty when unity ended at the secession of the eastern Delta. Foreign sculpture appears in early thirteenth dynasty archaeological levels at Tell ed-Dab'a, indicating a non-Egyptian elite expressing different traditions in monumental form soon after the end of the twelfth dynasty. Yet the thirteenth dynasty brother kings Neferhotpe I and Sobekhotpe IV are attested in the eastern Delta and, significantly, at Byblos in Lebanon. The pyramidion of .king Memeferre Aya is the latest thirteenth dynasty monument found in the Delta, and his reign also seems last in a group of kings attested from distinctive royal scarabs. Byblos may have provided a model for thirteenth dynasty relations with Tell ed-Dab'a, with a foreign governor in control of a local population but acknowledging his nonroyal status before the Egyptian king. On available evidence, Nehesy was the first Delta ruler to claim kingship, marking a visible end to the unity of the Middle Kingdom. The relation of these early Delta kings (fourteenth dynasty) to the Hyksos (fifteenth dynasty) is unclear, as is the manner in which the first Hyksos became king. Likewise, the transformation of the thirteenth dynasty at Itjtawy into the seventeenth at Thebes is not documented. There is no contemporary evidence for or against later tales of foreign invasions and military election of the first Hyksos; New Kingdom and Hellenistic accounts may unite elements from a wide variety of sources, from displaced references to other periods or kings, to literary tales originally without historical reference. During the last phase of the Middle Kingdom and phase 1 of the Second Intermediate Period, eastern Delta sites became Near Eastern in material culture. Precise dating and causes of the population overspill from the Levant are uncertain, but already in the mid-twelfth dynasty, an inscription of Amenemhet II records among booty from the sack of two foreign places 1,554 Near Eastern captives. Influx by war might have been compounded by economic migration, with establishment of foreign trading emporia in the eastern Delta in the early thirteenth dynasty. Salable ("slave") status of Near Easterners in late Middle Kingdom legal documents may reflect origins as war captives, in which case it would
not necessarily extend to all Near Easterners. At least thirty-six funerary monuments, in addition to documentary papyri, attest to Near Eastern estate workers in Egypt. In papyri, Near Eastern names may be used for identification, with Egyptian second names. On funerary monuments, Egyptian names generally replace Near Eastern and often refer to the owner of the deceased, such as Senebhenutes "may her mistress be well"; sometimes name forms stress alien identity, such as lunertaer ("we come to our land") and Tepnefer ("good start [to a campaign]"). Owners of such slaves ranged from viziers to middle-ranking officials, and their attested professions are food and textile producers, house servants, and temple doorkeepers. For thirteenth dynasty Thebes, Papyrus Brooklyn 35.1446 records an estate dominated by Near Eastern textile workers, but this seems to belong to a vizier, and so may not be typical of their proportion in Upper Egyptian households. Abydos stelae may also record the personnel of estates around the royal residence, rather than in Upper Egypt. Therefore, geographical distribution of such workers is difficult to assess from the texts, in contrast to the large-scale eastern Delta influx attested in settlement and burial sites. In material culture, phase 1 of the Second Intermediate Period continues the late Middle Kingdom pattern; even the notable increase in foreign pottery within Egypt may have begun under Amenemhet III of the twelfth dynasty. Titles in the administration follow the model of precision evident since the reign of Senwosret III; and there continued to be occupation of Lower Nubia and some presence at Byblos and Gebel Zeit, if not at Sinai. By phase 3, however, every area of life had been affected by major changes. These may be ascribed to the Hyksos directly, as rulers of foreign origin, or indirectly as a result of the new position for Egypt in eastern Mediterranean and Levantine trading contacts. A new content in trade can be deduced from the appearance of small closed forms of export pottery, called "Tell el-Yahudiyya ware"; in the late Middle Kingdom, examples of this Levantine invention ("Lisht juglets") were already common on Egyptian sites. The small-scale closed Levantine vessels contrast with earlier forms and imply a trade in such precious liquids as scented oils, prefiguring the Late Bronze Age distribution of the Mycenaean stirrup jar. Like the latter, Levantine juglets fostered local imitations on a large scale in Egypt and elsewhere. The distribution of Late Middle Kindom and Second Intermediate Period phase 1 Tell el-Yahudiyya ware indicates strong Egyptian-Syrian contact, whereas production and distribution in phase 2 suggests greater focus on the southern Levant. This coincides with the development of massive fortified urban centers in that area, and the history of Egypt under the Hyksos must be seen against this
262 SECOND INTERMEDIATE PERIOD background in trade and neighboring settlement patterns. Substantial platforms in the eastern Delta have been ascribed to the Hyksos, though their date and function are as yet uncertain. In warfare, texts relating to the Second Intermediate Period's campaigns during phase 3 attest to the introduction of horses and chariotry. Also related to war, tin-copper alloys of bronze generally replace arsenical copper alloys by the New Kingdom, ushering in the Late Bronze Age. These and other advances in technology, such as the vertical loom, are generally ascribed to the Near East, and foreign kings within Egypt might have accelerated their import. Still, some northern Levantine/Mesopotamian techniques might have been blocked rather than helped by the strength of the Hyksos and the southern Levant, particularly as regards luxury court products. For example, glassy faience scarabs are attested in the late Middle Kingdom, but core-molded glass vessels first appear in Egypt only under Thutmose III in the expansionist phase of the early New Kingdom. Most imports of technology have yet to be dated with precision from laboratory analyses, and several features ascribed to Hyksos rule may not have arrived in Egypt until the early New Kingdom (vertical loom, certain weapon types, spread in use of tin-copper alloys of bronze). Minoan-style frescoes uncovered at Tell ed-Dab'a derive from rubble, and their original context remains debated; they may belong to an eighteenth rather than fifteenth dynasty structure. In either event, they help to account more concretely for Aegean elements in the Ahhotep treasure at Thebes (the Aegean sphinx and the gallop pose). For phase 3 of the Second Intermediate Period, the frescoes confirm a Mediterraenan circuit that included the Aegean civilizations, with shipping and the corresponding importance of the storm in religion. The principal deity of the fourteenth and fifteenth dynasties was Seth, associated with foreign lands and ungovernable weather; a Ramessid-era stela marks the four hundred years of his dominance in the eastern Delta, as if mytholo-gizing a continuity from the time of Avaris to the time of its successor Piramesse, the Delta residence of the Rames-sid kings. Late Middle Bronze Age Syrian cylinder seals celebrate a storm god of the sea allied with the motif of the bull; the Minoan fresco technique has also been discovered at Levantine sites. The international web of storm god, bull-leaping, and fresco-painted rooms reflects, on the religious plane, a new economic and political world common to the Hyksos and the reunifying Theban kings. It did not remove from Tell edDab'a traditional motifs of royal titulary and the devotion of kings to established Egyptian deities; the Hyksos kings styled themselves "Son of Re" and included the name of the sun god in their throne names.
Evidence for literacy among the Hyksos is ambiguous. The greatest surviving mathematical manual from Egypt, the Rhind Mathematical Papyrus, opens with a formula identifying the copyist as a subject of the Hyksos king Apophis as Son of Re and ruler of Egypt. The palette of the scribe Itju from the Faiyum explicitly assigns to King Apophis mastery of the divine script under the aegis of the divinities Thoth and Seshat. Yet in script and monumental production, the Hyksos generated little more than their fourteenth dynasty predecessors and less than their seventeenth dynasty rivals. This is a question of quality as well as of scale, since the better preservation of evidence in Upper Egypt distorts the record. Fifteenth dynasty hieroglyphic inscriptions are almost entirely confined to their names on old sculpture, including one granite altar, and there is no evidence for original Hyksos sculpture or quarrying. The dedication by Apophis inscribed on a granite block found at Bubastis displays shallow and irregular carving. In this, the Hyksos remained alien to the Egyptian tradition of kingship. Near Eastern features at Tell ed-Dab'a include religious mud-brick architecture and equine burials. Royal names and titles incised on un-glazed steatite scarabs and scaraboids constitute the bulk of text from their rule; here die Hyksos use Egyptian script and language, drawing both on late Middle Kingdom tradition around the residence and on the first Levantine output of steatite scarabs. By contrast, there seems to be virtually no production of seal-amulets in the Theban area, and there are no certain royal name scarabs for the seventeenth dynasty before crude examples for Ka-mose. Only under Ahmose, perhaps following the re-conquest of the Memphits and Delta areas, does Egyptian glazed steatite scarab production return to equal the highest quality of the Middle Kingdom. Less monumental forms of communication and inscription are poorly attested in both parts of Egypt; there are no letters or administrative papyri surviving for the fifteenth or seventeenth dynasties. The most extensive literary manuscript of the period, the Westcar Papyrus, was probably drawn up and buried at Thebes under the seventeenth dynasty; its Hieratic handwriting continues a late Middle Kingdom development toward rounder, but now more precisely defined, signs and groups. The manuscript preserves an otherwise unattested series of tales of wonder set in the Old Kingdom's fourth dynasty court; its reference to the births of three future kings may draw from king-list data on the fifth dynasty, but it suggests the historical coincidence of three royal brothers in the mid-thirteenth dynasty as a possible date of composition. This leaves the Rhind Mathematical Papyrus as the principal Hieratic document associated with the Hyksos, dated by its copyist to Apophis as king of Egypt. The Second Ka-mose Stela reports interception on the Oasis Road of a
SECOND INTERMEDIATE PERIOD 263 letter in clay from the Hyksos king Apophis to a new ruler of Kush; this appears to imply another writing tradition, either an oasis custom or, more obviously to us, that of Mesopotamian cuneiform. In Upper Egypt, Hieratic os-traca from buildings near the palace at Deir el-Ballas record name lists for supplies or deliveries, including one with reference to pigs. This indicates that any alternative methods of communication in the Northern kingdom were not adopted in the South. Developments in the South of Egypt, under the seventeenth dynasty, were conditioned by both the Hyksos occupation in the Delta and the growth in the power of Kush to the south. When Egyptian Middle Kingdom fortresses in Nubia were abandoned is not certain or whether the withdrawal was gradual, sudden, or dictated primarily by cost or by force. Current consensus places their gradual abandonment in the second half of the thirteenth dynasty. The garrison commanders in some instances transferred allegiance to the ruler of Kush, as attested at Buhen. They were reconquered under Kamose and Ahmose. Relations with the southern peoples may not have been as one-dimensional as the political history of war suggests. At Deir el-Ballas there were cooking pots of the type found at the Kushite capital, Kerma; this indicates a Kushite element at the seventeenth dynasty residence at exactly the time of the Egyptian reconquest of Lower Nubia, though one might posit war captives to explain the alien presence. Such southeastern desert nomads seem to have been known collectively in Egyptian texts as "Medjay." These appeared as security guards in the Egyptian Nile Valley from the late twelfth dynasty, when one Medjay was guard at the Illahun pyramid complex of Senwosret II. During the Second Intermediate Period, a Nubian-related strain becomes discernible in Egyptian cemeteries from a different burial shape (shallow and circular), goods, and pottery. These "Pan-Grave" people may be the Medjay of the texts. By the end of the Second Intermediate Period, their burial customs are no longer distinctive, indicating gradual Egyptianization of the group. The texts continue to distinguish them well into the late New Kingdom, when royal necropolis guards were still titled "Medjay." In Egypt's Southern kingdom, administration at first continued the late Middle Kingdom pattern, with highly precise titles for officials. A key source is the Juridical Stela from Kamak, recording transfer of the office of mayor of Elkab under a seventeenth dynasty king Nebiry-erau. This records inheritance of public office, within the constraints of royal approval, in a leading family of the day, where relatives and ancestors include viziers and princesses. Late Middle Kingdom titles persist in the surviving Elkab tombs, with a notable proportion of military officials, such as the "Commander of the Ruler's Crew."
SECOND INTERMEDIATE PERIOD. Lid of a coffin from. the Second Intermediate Period. (The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Rogers Fund, 19.12. [12.181.299])
The use of "King's Son" as a military title becomes evident, anticipating the New Kingdom title "Viceroy (literally "king's son") of Kush." In phase 3 of the Second Intermediate Period, administrative titles seem to have been swept away, and the latest Second Intermediate Period and earliest New Kingdom stelae either omit titles altogether before a personal name or give a simplified term such as "scribe." There is also a marked change in the cutting technique of stelae; crudely incised relief predomi-
264 SECOND INTERMEDIATE PERIOD nates in seventeenth dynasty stelae from Edfu, Thebes, and Abydos, often with a spiked lotus motif and awkward limb joins, whereas those from the period around reunification return to elegantly proportioned figures in raised relief. At a higher level, sculptors worked in limestone in both two and three dimensions throughout the period; the two sphinxes of'Sankhenre Montuhotep from Edfu demonstrate the talents available, and competent temple reliefs are attested at various sites, notably for Nebkhepperre In-tef. It is not clear that any seventeenth dynasty king commissioned work in hard stone. [For difficulties in dating Sekhemrawcidjkhau Sobekemsaf, see the article Thirteenth Dynasty] As far as is known, all seventeenth dynasty kings were buried at Thebes, on the foothill facing Kamak across the river (Dra Abul Naga). Portions of their burials survive. Royal tombs outside the Valley of the Kings were vulnerable in the major breakdown in civil order under Ramesses IX in the twentieth dynasty; upon restoration of order, a royal commission inspected the tombs, as recorded in the Tomb Robbery Papyri. The burial of one king, Sobekemsaf, was found to have been looted; it is possible that the tombs outside the Valley of the Kings were already emptied under Ramesses IX, well before the caching of the royal mummies from the Valley of the Kings was begun at the end of the reign of Ramesses XI. In the 1820s, royal coffins and other burial equipment were found, bearing the names of kings mentioned in the Tomb Robbery Papyri. The site was explored again in the 1859-1860 season, and these two early clearances indicate that the royal tomb was cut in the rock, and it had a frontal court, stone pyramidion, and small obelisks. In 1881, the body of King Sekenenre Ta'o, from phase 3 of the Second Intermediate Period was found with that of his son Ahmose and several royal women contemporary to his period in the cache of New Kingdom pharaohs. Burials may have been treated differently according to kinship, status, location, and date of the caching operation; the burial of Queen Ahhotep was discovered separately in 1859. Seventeenth dynasty royal burials contained a mummiform coffin of variable quality, with feathered decoration and royal headcloth. Canopic equipment was of painted wood. Burial goods included limited precious materials, notably the silver diadem said to have been found in the gilt coffin of King Intef, and a green jasper heart scarab set in gold, naming King Sobekemsaf and deriving in form from thirteenth dynasty human-faced heart scarabs. Funerary texts on these objects are sparse, but they also survive in fragments of a shroud in the gilt Intef coffin. The nowlost coffin of Queen Montuhotep contained the earliest full series of what became, in the New Kingdom, the Book of Going Forth by Day (Book of the Dead). There is no directly comparable late thirteenth dynasty royal material; the
edition of funerary texts from the Coffin Texts into the. Book of Going Forth by Day might have been occasioned by the move of the royal court to Thebes, depriving access to ancient centers of learning at Heliopolis, Memphis, and Hermopolis. The Ahhotep burial and mention of the Hyksos king's sisters anticipate the prominence of royal women in the early eighteenth dynasty (notably Ahmose Nefertari). Exceptional tides of Ahhotep, wife of Sekenenre and mother of Ahmose, perhaps reflect circumstances of royal succession and war, but they may have been composed after reunification. Retrospective elevation to special status is attested for Tetisheri, grandmother of Ahmose, in his stela establishing an ancestor cult for her. The final phase of war is attested in detail for restricted episodes. Hostilities may have begun under Sekenenre Ta'o, whom a New Kingdom tale set in conflict with Apophis; his skull bears the imprint of a Near Eastern-style blade. The campaign of his successor Kamose is recounted on his two Kamak stelae and one contemporary Hieratic copy; the relation of Kamose to both predecessor and successor is unknown, as is the date of the conquest of Avaris (the Hyksos capital at Tell ed-Dab'a) by Ahmose. Sporadic detail on the expulsion of the Hyksos from the Delta and expansion into the Levant comes from the autobiography of Ahmose, son of Abana, in his tomb-chapel at Elkab. On the ground at Tell ed-Dab'a there is a gap in settlement after Ahmose. Possible references to reunification are obscure journal excerpts on the back of the Rhind Mathematical Papyrus, noting unusual climatic conditions that are interpreted by some historians as a byproduct of the Thera eruption. The nature of the departure of the Hyksos is unknown. [See also Dab'a, Tell ed-; Fifteenth Dynasty; Hyksos; Kamose; Papyrus Westcar; Seventeenth Dynasty; Thirteenth Dynasty; and Yahudiyya, Tell el-.] BIBLIOGRAPHY Berlev, Oleg D. Trudovoe naselenie Egipta v epokhu Srednego Tswslva [The working population of Egypt in the Middle Kingdom]. Moscow, 1972. Although not translated into English, this includes in chapter 4 (pp. 74-95) the only full study of Near Easterners in late Middle Kingdom funerary monuments and papyri, with the data cited above. Students of Egyptology will be able to consult the lists of conventionally transliterated names and titles of Near Eastern estate workers (pp. 89-93) and their masters (pp. 93-94). Bietak, Manfred. Avaris and Piraimsse: Archaeological Exploration in the Eastern Nile Delta. London, 1986. Revision of a 1981 monograph first published in 1979 in Proceedings of the British Academy 65 (.1979), 225289. Preliminai-y account by the excavator of the key Hyksos site Tell ed-Dab'a. Bietak, Manfred. "Connections between Egypt and the Minoan World." In Egypt, the Aegean and the Levant, edited by W. V. Davies and L. Schofield, pp. 19-28. London, .1995. Includes examples of the Minoan fresco fragments unearthed at Tell ed-Dab'a. Bourriau, Janine, "Nubians in Egypt during the Second Intermediate
Period: An Interpretation Based on the Egyptian Ceramic Evidence." In Studien zur altagyptische.n Keramik, edited by Dorothea Arnold, pp. 2541. Mainz am Rhein, 1981. A cogent example of archaeological correction of textual evidence. Habachi, Labib. The Second Stela of Kamose. Abhandlungen des Deutschen Archaologischen Instituts, Kairo, 8. Gluckstadt, 1972, The first ed,ition of the most important royal text on tlie war against the Hyksos. Haves, W. C. A Papyrus of the Late Middle Kingdom in the Brooklyn Museum (Brooklyn 35.1446). Brooklyn, 1955. The first edition, with historical interpretations different from those in Quirke (1990). Kemp, Barry J. "Old, Middle and Second Intermediate Period c.2686-1552 BC." In The Cambridge History of Africa, edited by J. Desmond dark, pp. 658769. Cambridge, 1982. Represents the prevailing consensus on the history of the period. Ryholt (1997) has recently sought to redefine in particular the fourteenth and sixteenth dynasties; this contributor has retained the Kemp vei-sion. Oren, Eliezer, ed., The Hyksos: New Historical and Archaeological Perspectives. Philadelphia, 1997. Quirke, Stephen. Tiw Administration of Egypt, in the Late Middle Kingdom: The Hieratic Documents. New Maiden, 1990. Discussion differs on some points from that of the first editor, Hayes (1955). Redford, Donald B., "The Hyksos Invasion in History and Tradition." Orientation 39 (1970), 1-51. Redford, Donald B. Pharaonic King-lists, Annals and Day-Books. Mississauga, Onl., 1986. The remarks on the Turin Canon should be read in conjunction with the recent reappraisal by Ryholt (1997). Ryholt, Kim S. B. The Political Situation in Egypt during the Second Intermediate Period C.I 800-1550 B.C. Carsten Niebuhr Institute Publications, 20. Copenhagen, 1997. A wide-ranging reevaluation of the archaeological and textual sources, with comprehensive bibliography and list of sources for kings. Note that definitions of dynasties differ from those in Kemp (1982), and archaeologists have yet to review several conclusions based on specific contexts. Still, the reappraisal includes invaluable discussions of key data such as royal scarabs and the Turin Canon. Winlock, Herbert E. Tlie Rise and Fall of the Middle Kingdom in Thebes. New York, 1947. This includes the principal discussion of the burial equipment of Theban kings of the Second Intel-mediate Period, with revisions of several points in his previous article on the subject, in Journal of Egyptian Archaeology 10 (1924), 217-277. STEPHEN G. J. QUIRKE
SED FESTIVAL. See Festivals.
SEDMENT. See Herakleopolis.
SEKHMET. See Feline Deities.
SEMNA. See Forts and Garrisons.
SENENMUT, chief steward of Amun during the co-regency of Hatshepsut and Thutmose III (c. 1502-1482 BCE). Senenmut was one of the most influential officials
SENENMUT 265 of his day. His parents. Ramose and Hatnofer, were of common birth, and several of his early priestly titles link him to the town of Armant, south of Thebes, which may have been his place of origin. Senenmut probably began his career under Thutmose II (c. 15161504 BCE), with an appointment as the tutor of the royal princess Neferura and as steward of the estates of both Neferura and her mother, Queen Hatshepsut. This early connection to the households of two royal women served him advantageously when, at the death of her husband, Hatshepsut became regent for the youthful Thutmose III. Early in the new reign, Senenmut carried out a commission for the queen to extract a pair of obelisks from the granite quarries at Aswan, where he inscribed a graffito in commemoration of his achievement. In accordance with contemporary practice, he also carved out a memorial chapel for himself at Gebel es-Silsila, the source of sandstone for Theban temples in the New Kingdom. With the self-declared accession of Hatshepsut to the throne of Egypt several years into the reign of Thutmose III, Senenmut was awarded his most important title, that of great steward of Amun, giving him responsibility for administering the burgeoning wealth of the priesthood of the temple of Kamak. At the same time, he commenced construction on his tomb complex in Western Thebes, which consists of a decorated funerary chapel situated on the hill of present-day Sheikh Abd el-Quma and a rock-cut burial chamber situated in the Asasif Valley near Hatshepsut's mortuary temple. The size of his chapel and the quality of its decoration are unsurpassed for their time; the burial chamber is adorned with funerary liturgies, chapters from the Book of Going Forth by Day (Book of the Dead), and an astronomical ceiling that are unusual for a private tomb. Twenty-five statues of Senenmut, or fragments thereof, have been identified. These show him in a large variety of poses and gestures, often representing original statue types that were to become part of the Egyptian sculptural repertoire: holding the princess Neferura, offering an oversize sistrum, embracing a votive representation of a seipent or a cryptogram of Hatshepsut's name, and presenting a surveyor's measure. These statues and other monuments are inscribed with a large number of administrative and honorary titles, many having to do with priestly duties and the stewardship of the temple of Amun at Karnak. One set of titles refers to functions, such as that of stolist, that Senenmut may have carried out at the coronation or serf-festival of Hatshepsut. Although he is frequently identified in modem literature as the architect of Hatshepsut's temple at Deir el-Bahri, his title as royal architect appears on just one statue and in his burial chamber.
266
SENNEDJEM
Senenmut is last attested in the sixteenth year of the reign of Thutmose III and Hatshepsut. His burial chamber was left unfinished and was never used, while many of his monuments show the erasure of his name, signifying a somewhat haphazard posthumous attack. Although some scholars have seen this persecution as evidence of Senen-mut's participation in contemporary palace intrigue or as punishment for the usurpation of royal prerogative, neither view can be substantiated. His fate remains, in the end, an abiding mystery. BIBLIOGRAPHY Dorman, Peter F. The Monuments of Senenmut: Problems in Historical Methodology. London, 1988. A reconsideration of Senenmut's career, introducing new evidence from his Theban tombs, with emphasis on the chronology of Hatshepsut's reign and Senenmut's posthumous name erasures. Dorman, Peter F. Tile Tombs of Senenmul: The Architecture and Decoration of Tombs 71 and 353. Publications of the Metropolitan Museum of Art Egyptian Expedition, 24. New York, 1991. Excavation records of the funerary chapel and burial chamber of Sene.nmut. Lansing, Ambrose, and William C. Haves. "The Egyptian Expedition, 1935-1936," Bulletin of the Metropolitan Museum of Art 32 (January 1937), pt. 2: 3-39. Preliminary report on the excavation of the intact burials below Senenmut's funerary chapel (tomb 71), including those of his parents, Ramose and Hatnofer. Meyer, Christine. Senenmut: Eine pmsopographische Untersuchung. Hamburg Agyptologische Studien, 2. Hamburg, 1982. A thorough analysis in German of Senenmut's monuments and a presentation of the major stages of his career. Schulman, Alan R. "Some Remarks on the Alleged 'Fall' of Senmul," Journal of the American Research Center in Egypt S (1968-1970), 29-48. An objective evaluation of the evidence surrounding Senenmut's demise. Simpson, William Kelly. "Senenmut." In Lexikon der Agyptologie, 4:849851. Wiesbaden, 1984. A brief and convenient summary of Senenmut's career. Winlock, Herbert E. "The Egyptian Expedition, 1925-1927," Bulletin of the Metropolitan Museum of Art 23 (February 1928), pi. 2: 24-58. Preliminary report on tlie discovery and excavation of Senenmut's burial chamber (tomb 353) near Hatshepsut's temple. PETER DORMAN
SENNEDJEM, important courtier of the late eighteenth dynasty. Although his tomb near Akhmim was desecrated in antiquity, later quarrying and treasure-seeking operations additionally destroyed evidence. The tomb can be dated to the reign of Tutankhamun of the eighteenth dynasty; its decoration shares themes found in the Amama tombs (royal chariot procession and window of appearances scene). Sennedjem's titles are best preserved on the lintel over the portico of the tomb, which was difficult for desecrators to reach. His title of office was "Overseer of (male) Nurses," but his titles of rank indicate that he was an important person in his own right: "Prince," "Count," "Sole Companion," "Fan-bearer on the Right of the King." An archaic and, in the New Kingdom,
rare title "Judge and District Administrator," indicates that he played a central role at a king's (Amenhotep III or IV/Akhenaten) serf-festival. Immediately following the title "Count," the title "Father of the God, Beloved of the God," indicates that he participated in the royal coronation. In a later alteration to the lintel inscription, the title "God's Father" was inserted in front of the title "Overseer of Nurses." Research since the 1980s indicates that this title—as distinct from "God's Father, Beloved of the God" earlier in the title sequence— was held by men related to the king. Since it was inserted secondarily, the king in question cannot have been Tutankamun, under whom the tomb was begun, or any of his predecessors. The obvious candidate is Ay, known also to have come from Akhmim. Unique to the chariot procession is the appearance of another person in the royal chariot; this person is arguably Ay (before he became king). That Sennedjem included Ay in this way in his tomb decoration is another indicator of the familial relationship between them. In the struggle for power at the end of the eighteenth dynasty, won by the general and later king Horemheb, the family of Ay and Sennedjem, including the general Nakhtmin and another "Overseer of (male) Nurses" Senqed (who shared Sennedjem's tomb), fell from power and their monuments were desecrated. BIBLIOGRAPHY Ockinga, Boyo G. A Tomb from the Reign ofTutankfiamun at Akhmim. The Australian Centre for Egyptology Reports, 10. Warminster, 1997. BOYO OCKINGA
SENWOSRET I (r. 1971-1928 or 1958-1913 BCE), second king of the twelfth dynasty, Middle Kingdom. Senwo-sret I established the power and prestige of the Middle Kingdom. The first-bom son of Amenemhet I, he was informed of his father's death and a plot against himself on his return from an expedition into the Western Desert. Senwosret hastened to the palace at ei-Lisht and seized possession of the throne (see the Story' ofSinuhe). It has been said that Senwosret had been his father's co-regent in the last ten years of the latter's life, yet the documents cited in support of this thesis are not conclusive. The Instructions of Amenemhet, an apocryphal testament of the deceased king, denies the existence of such a coregency by saying that Amenemhet descended in the solar bark after his assassination and expressed his regret for not having named his eldest son, Senwosret, as his legitimate successor before the court (Obsomer 1995, but cf. Jansen-Winkein 1991). Once established as king, Senwosret I continued to im-
SENWOSRET I 267
plement his father's policies. He consolidated the power of the state by developing a central administration under the vizier's authority (see the Reisner Papyrus) and by ensuring the loyalty of the most powerful nomarchs, who were satisfied with basking in the favor of the king; these included Djefa-Hapy of Asyut, Ameny of Beni Hasan, and Sarenput I of Elephantine. In the Story of Sinuhe (Obsomer 1999), the monarch is glorified as benevolent toward his loyal servants and ruthless against his enemies. The writing of the Loyalist Instruction has been attributed to the reign of Senwosret I. The arts flourished during this period, and numerous royal construction projects were undertaken at Elephantine (Satis Temple, Sanctuary of Heqa-ib), Tod (Montu temple), Karnak (Amon temple, whose White Chapel preserves the register of lands of the thirty-six nomes), Coptos (Min Temple), Abydos (Osiris
Temple, which enjoyed an extremely popular cult, and the stela of SENWOSRET I. Statue ofSenwosret I in the Egyptian Museum, Cairo. (Courtesy David P. Silverman)
the vizier Mentuhotep), Heliopolis, and other cities. After the completion of the funerary complex of Amenemhet I, his royal pyramid was erected at el-Lisht. Shortly before his assassination, Amenemhet I dispatched the vizier Antefoqer with an army to conquer Lower Nubia (Wawat). This victorious campaign enabled the Egyptians to establish their presence north of the Second Cataract, where they erected the fortress of Buhen (according to stelae from the fifth year of reign). There they controlled the C-group of Nubians (at Ikkur and An-iba) and extracted the rich natural resources at Toshka (gneiss) and Wadi el-Hudi (amethyst). In Year 18, a major expedition was undertaken to the south: while the king remained at Buhen, General Mentuhotep led a military campaign in Upper Nubia, possibly as far as Kerma,
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which probably forced the land of Kush into paying tribute. There is little evidence of relations with Asia. From documents discovered near the Red Sea (Wadi Gawasis) we know of an expedition to the land of Punt in Amenem-het's twenty-fourth regnal year. In Year 25 of the reign, hunger and starvation began after a poor harvest. Several expeditions were organized to the quarries of Hatnub (to acquire calcite [Egyptian alabaster]), to the Sinai (for turquoise and copper) and to the Wadi Hammamat (for gray-wacke); at the last site, in Year 38, the herald Ameny oversaw the transport of 210 stones by more than 18,000 men (Farout 1994). Senwosret I died after a forty-five-year reign and was succeeded by his son Amenemhet II. He was subsequently deified at Buhen as the founder of the Egyptian empire in Nubia. BIBLIOGRAPHY Farout, D. Bulletin de I'lnstitiit franpais d'archeologle Orientate, 94, 1994. Jansen-WinkeIn, K. Studien wr Altagyptischen Kultur, 18, 1991. Obsomer, C. Sesostris ler: Etude clironologique et historiclue. Brussels, 1995. Simpson, W. K. "Sesostris I." In Lexikon der Agyptologie, 5:890-899. Wiesbaden,1984. Vandersieyen, C. L'Egyple et la vallee clu Nil. Vol. 2. Paris, 1995. See pp.57-75. CLAUDE OBSOMER Translated from French by Elizabeth Schwaiger
SENWOSRET III (r. 1878-1843? BCE), fifth king of the twelfth dynasty, Middle Kingdom. Senwosret III was best known for his military achievements, distinctive portraiture, imposing monuments, and administrative refonns; these inspired both deification and his later incorporation into the legendary King Sesostris of classical times. How long Senwosret III ruled and whether he shared his throne remain controversial topics. After clearing the canal at the First Cataract of the Nile for his fleet, he led four campaigns into Nubia to oppose the power of the Kushites and to protect trade. He extended Egypt's southern boundary to Semna, at the southern end of the Nile's Second Cataract, beyond which Nubians were permitted to pass only to trade or on official business. Stelae at the boundary recorded that Senwosret III surpassed his forefathers, admonished the Egyptians to maintain "my boundary," and described himself as aggressive, thoughtful, and merciful, whereas he described the Nubians as avoiding confrontations—only to attack when he withdrew. He built or expanded fortresses along the Nile from Buhen to Semna South and his ships advanced at least as far as the Dal Cataract. In the Levant,
he captured a district called "Skmm," perhaps the biblical Shechem. The pronounced facial features of his statues distinguished Senwosret III from previous Egyptian kings. With heavy eyelids, pouches under the eyes, lined brow and cheeks, and down-turned mouth, he was portrayed as thoughtful and weary, whether as a young or old man, depending on the severity of the modeling. Those images of a concerned king were reflected in hymns that praised Senwosret III for protecting Egypt and extending its boundaries. Some of his monuments are exceptional. At Deir el-Bahri, statues of Senwosret III are the first that are known to represent an Egyptian king standing in a posture of prayer (with his hands flat on his kilt). A stela there also continued the eleventh dynasty funerary cult of King Neb-hepetre Montuhotep. A relief in Senwosret Ill's temple at Medamud depicted him either anticipating or celebrating the rejuvenation serf-festival (usually after thirty years of rule). Aside from a limestone casing, his pyramid at Dah-shur was the first constructed entirely of mud bricks— the complex has many parallels with Djoser's. Exquisite jewelry was discovered in the burials of the female members of his family. He also built a temple complex at Ab-ydos, which included a tomb that was either a cenotaph or his burial place. Senwosret III further consolidated Egypt's government by ending the authority of all but the last of the nomarchs (the governors of the nomes, or provinces), a process started earlier in the twelfth dynasty. The officials' sons were probably then brought into the bureaucracy at the capital, rather than confirmed in their fathers' local positions. Senwosret III became a patron deity in Nubia during the Middle Kingdom. Later, during the New Kingdom, temples were dedicated to him there, and the Nubian king Taharqa had an altar erected in his memory. Greek and Roman authors, most notably Herodotus and Diodorus Siculus, combined recollections of Senwosret III, Senwosret I, and Ramesses II into accounts of a king Sesostris— a conqueror, builder, and lawgiver. The length of Senwosret Ill's reign is uncertain. Some sources indicate that he ruled as many as thirty-nine years and reliefs at Dahshur mention a first .serf-festival, but the highest contemporary dates with his name are from the nineteenth year of his kingship. Although it is most unlikely that he was core-gent with Senwosret II, he may have shared his throne with Amenemhet III. BIBLIOGRAPHY Arnold, D., and A. Oppenheim. "Reexcavating the Senwosret. Ill Pyramid Complex at Dahshur." KMT 6.2 (1995), 44-56. Bourriau, Janine. Pharaohs and Mortals. Egyptian Art in tin'. Middle Kingdom. Cambridge, 1988.
SETH 269 Delia, Robert D. "A Study of the Reign of Senwosret III." Ph.D. diss., Columbia University. New York, 1980. The most complete biography of the king; it is being revised for publication. Delia, Robert D. "Khakaure Senwosret III, King and Man," KMT, 6.2 (1995), 18-33. A more general account of the king. Franke, Detlev. "The Career of Khnumhotep III of Beni Hasan and the socalled 'Decline of the Nomarchs.' " In Middle Kingdom Studies, edited by Stephen Quirke, pp. 51—67. New Maiden, .1991. Simpson, William Kelly. "Sesostris III." In Lexikon der Afyptologie, 5: 03-906. Wiesbaden, 1984. The essentials of the king's reign. Wegner, J. "Old and New Excavations at the Abydene Complex of Senwosret III." KMT 6.2 (1995), 59-71. ROBERT D. DELIA
SESOSTRIS. See Senwosret.
SETH. The god of confusion, spirit of disorder and personification of violence, and bad faith was nevertheless venerated by the Egyptians as a god with whom one had to come to terms. Disorder, at least to a certain extent, was accepted as a reality of life and as essential to the living order. Seth was also known as the god who brought death into the world by killing Osiris. Osiris had to die, but Seth gave him an untimely, sordid, and lamentable death. Seth and Horns fought for the rulership of the world, the kingship of Egypt, and the function of Osiris. In this battle Horus lost the light of his eye, and Seth the semen of his testicles. Seth, god of exuberant male sexuality not yet channeled into fertility, induced Horus to take part in pederastic acts and homosexual violation. The fruit of their relationship was the moon god Thoth, the son of the two lords. This pair of gods could also be referred to as the "two combatants." When they are mentioned by name, Horus as the royal god and prototype of the Egyptian gentleman always comes first, and Seth as the spirit of disorder comes second, for Horus has the more central and Seth the more peripheral position. Although these two gods were the mythological symbols of all strife and the primal antagonists, they were separated, reunited, and reconciled. The justification of Horus in the verdict of the gods on their case always had an exclusive tendency; in chiefly later variants of the myth, Seth is punished and driven out. But as long as Horus and Seth are reconciled, they unite the two lands of Egypt by joining the sedge and papyrus so that pharaoh can rule over a country of order and peace. The pharaoh is a Horus reconciled to Seth, or a gentleman in whom the spirit of disorder has been integrated. Together these two gods rule over the world through the pharaoh whom they purify and crown, but still each one has his special half of the world: Horus has Lower Egypt and Seth has Upper Egypt, though this bi-partition may also be reversed. During the New Kingdom,
Horus is lord of the Black Land, the fertile Nile Valley, and Seth is lord of the Red Land, the desert and foreign countries. Not only the bipartition of the world but also many other contrasts were connected with these gods: north and south, heaven and earth, earth and underworld, right and left, black and red, being born and being conceived, rulership and strength, life and dominion. Seth was also famous in a third and more positive role, first noted in the Coffin Texts: standing on the prow of the boat of the sun god Re, he repelled the evil snake Apophis. This aggressive warrior god and powerful thunder god, with his mighty scepter weighing 4,500 pounds, was employed by the sun god to conquer the reptile. In the myths of many cultures worldwide, the figure of the trickster— as this Egyptian god of confusion may be called— not only tricks gods and men, but is also the slayer of monsters. A fourth aspect of Seth is that of the divine foreigner. His identification with Baal, the god of the Semites, is connected with the vicissitudes of the history of Seth and his cult. The first certain attestation of Seth can be found on the protohistoric votive mace head of King Scorpion on which appear clear depictions of dog-, pig-, or ass-like so-called Seth animals with the typical long curved snout, truncated ears, and raised tails. In later artifacts Seth may be represented in animal form as a sitting, standing, or lying Sethanimal, but also in human form, often with the head of a Sethanimal. More than twenty different animals, and even a bird and a fish, have been suggested as the mysterious Seth-animal. It seems best to accept the old idea of Champollion that it is a fabulous animal, like the griffin, supposed to live in the desert. It is not impossible, however, that this fabulous animal had the body of a dog or ass and the head of a pig. In writing system, the Seth-animal served as a determinative classification sign for about twenty-five words denoting confusion in cosmic, social, and personal life, such as "storm," "tumult," and "illness." The kings of the first dynasty and also of Dynasty "0" were associated with Horus-falcons, but king Peribsen of the second dynasty replaced the falcon with the Seth-anima], and King Khasekhemwy put both falcon and Seth-animal above the serekh in which his name was written. But whether this indicates a Seth rebellion, as New-berry suggests in Ancient Egypt. (1922, pp. 4046), remains to be proved. Neither can it be proved that Seth was the god of the original inhabitants of Upper Egypt, the predy-nastic Naqada I culture who were subjugated by the Horus worshipers. It is interesting to note that Naqada, or Ombos, was the most important cult center of Seth in later times. The belief that one religion's devil is the god of a conquered religion is not uncommon and is not to be rejected in itself, but there is not enough proof that this was the case for Seth in Egyptian religion.
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Already in the Old Kingdom, but especially in the imperial Ramessid period of the nineteenth and twentieth dynasties, Seth was viewed as the lord of foreign countries. The Libyan god Ash, the Western Semites' god Baal, and the Hittite god Teshub were recognized as forms of Seth, although such identifications or even combinations with other Egyptian gods are rare. Seth remains a god apart (wd'), as he is called since the Coffin Texts. Nevertheless, he had his traditional place in the Ennead of He-liopolis up into the first millennium BCE. His marriage with Nephthys remains a rather formal affair and, atypi-cally, does not produce a divine child. It is at least doubtful whether Seth was ever held to be the father of Anubis, the child of Nephthys. That the crocodile Maga is said to be a son of Seth accentuates its demonic nature. Seth, whose exuberant sexual activities result in his being invoked in love charms and whose testicles are a symbol as a pendant of the Eye of Horus, has relations with the goddesses Hathor and Neith, and especially with the foreign goddesses Anat and Astarte. In texts the name of Seth is often substituted by "son of Nut," as if this violent, noisy thunder god is still a big boy. He is, however, not depicted being tended by his mother, like Hoi-us by Isis. The texts of the first millennium BCE cursing Seth do not forget to mention that his own mother has turned against him. Special cults of Seth were established on the border of the desert and at the beginnings of caravan routes: at Om-bos, Sepermeru, the oases in the Western Desert, Avaris, and Piramesse. The frontier god or disorderly foreigner became the equal of Re, Ptah, or Amun as a god of state, court, and army when the Ramessid pharaohs of the nineteenth and twentieth dynasties had their residence in Piramesse near the border in the northeastern Delta. Even pharaohs took their name from him: Sety ("man of Seth") and Sethnakht ("Seth-isstrong"). The remarkable reputation of Seth in mythology and his reputedly violent and disorderly character did not prevent some Egyptians from adopting him as their local 01-personal god. Personal names show that some did not hesitate to ascribe to Seth the same qualities that others assigned to more reputable gods: "Seth-is-great," "Seth-is-gracious," "Seth-is-kind," "Seth-is-content," "Seth-gives-salvation," "Seth-causes-to live." One title of a high priest of Seth was sd-hnv, which means "he who raises the voice" or "who causes commotion" or "who kicks up a row." We do not know whether this expression indicates the social position and behavior of the priesthood of Seth, or whether it is simply a nickname given by outsiders who abhorred Seth. In the first millennium BCE the Seth-animal disappeared from art and hieroglyphic writing. As an enemy of the gods, he was represented as an. ass with a knife stuck. in his head. In the western oases, where he was venerated
SETH. Depiction of Seth at right, teaching Thutmose III to shoot with the. how, from a relief at Kaniak.
as a god until the end of Egyptian religion in the fourth century C.E he was represented with a falcon's head, like Horus, his alter ego. The turning point from veneration to demonization of Seth in the Nile Valley must be dated shortly after 700 BCE, in the time of the pious Kushite pharaohs of the twenty-fifth dynasty. BIBLIOGRAPHY Bana, Wilfried. Gottinger Mi.w.llan 129 0992). 33-38. Bietak, Manfred. "Zur Hei-kunft des Seth von Avaris." Aegypten und Levante 1 (1990), 9-17. Biw.e, Michele. Myttie. el rowan en Egypce o;i(c;e».i;e; Les aw.nt.ures de Horns et Seth dans Ie papyrus Chester Beatty 1. Leiiven, 1996. A dissertation on the late Egyptian stoi-y of Horus and Seth. Goldwasser, Orly. From Icon to Metaphor: Studies in tile. Semiotics of the Hieroglyphs. Freiburg and Gottingen. .1.995. Remarks on the Sethanimal, pp. 99-106. Kaper, Olaf E. "The Statue of Penbast: On the Cult of Seth in the Dakhleh Oasis." In. Essays cm Ancient Egypt hi Honor of Herman le Velde, edited by J. van Dijk, pp. 231-241. Groningen, 1997. Discusses the ongoing veneration of Seth in the western oases in Greco-Roman times. Kaper, Olaf E. Temples and Gods in Roman Dakhleh. Dissertation, Groningen, 1997. Remarks on the Seth cull, pp. 55-85. Loprieno, Antonio. Tbpos und Mimesis. Wiesbaden, .1988. See especially pp. 73-84 on Seth as a foreigner. Parkinson, Richard B. "Homosexual Desire and Middle Kingdom Literature." Journal of Egyptian Arcliacf.ilogy 8.1 (.1995), 57-76. Discusses the "homosexuality" of Horus and Setli. Soukiassian, Georges. "Une etape de la proscription de Seth." Gol-linger Mis^ellan 44 (.198)), 59-68. On the turning point from. the veneration to the demonization of Seth.
SETNA KHAEMWASE CYCLE 271 te Velde, Herman. "Seth." .In Lexikon der Agyptologie, 5: 908-911. Wiesbaden, 1984. te Velde, Herman. "Egyptian Hieroglyphs as Signs, Symbols and Gods." Visible Religion 4/5 (1985-1986), 63-72. Remarks on the Selh-animal in hieroglyphic script. te Velde, Hen-nan. Seth, God of Confusion. Leiden, 1967, 2d ed., 1977. Details of texts, iconographic material, and older literature. The second edition has an updated bibliography. te Velde, Herman. "Some Egyptian Deities and Their Piggishness." In The Intellectual Heritage of Egypt: Studies Presented to Las-do Kakosy, pp. 57.1-578. Budapest, 1992. Remarks on the identity of the Seth-animal. van Dijk, Jacobus. "Anat, Seth and the Seed of Pre." In Scriptum Signa Vocis: Presented to J. H. Hospers, pp. 31-51. Groningen, 1986. Discussion of Seth as a foreigner and his relation to Baal. Westendorf, Wolfhart. Gottinger M.iswllen 97 (1987), 71-79. HERMAN TE VELDE
SETNA KHAEMWASE CYCLE. Among the Demotic literary texts of the Ptolemaic and Roman periods, there survive narratives belonging to two "cycles." Each text of the Setna Khaemwase cycle has as its main character the historical figure of Khaemwase, son of King Ramesses II, who bore the priestly title of sm or stm, the Demotic form of which has traditionally been rendered as "Setna." The individual texts do not make reference to one another or form a recognizable chronological sequence, but they all seem to follow the same pattern of plot, in which Setna comes face to face with the spirit of a powerful magician of the distant past. Two stories are relatively well preserved. One of these is often called simply "the first Setna story" (or "first Khaemwase"), but has the ancient title "The Story of Setna Khaemwase and Naneferkaptah and His Wife Ahweret and Her Son Merib." The second story tells of Setna and his son, Siosiris. Other, more fragmentary texts appear to belong to different stories, except that one of a number of brief passages of narrative inscribed on jars, published by Wilhelm Spiegel-berg, Demotische Texten auf Krugen (Leipzig, 1912), tells of the birth and education of Siosiris, but in wording different from that in the second Setna story. The date of composition of the stories remains a matter of conjecture. The earliest surviving manuscripts that certainly belong to the cycle are of Ptolemaic date. One of the North Saqqara papyri, possibly from the fourth century BCE, involves a character "Ptahhotpe the Setna," but there is no reason to see any link with the later Setna cycle. It is not yet clear whether the Setna stories stemmed from an oral tradition. It is conceivable that they belonged in a long-standing written tradition. However, one possible line of speculation is that the first story assumed its present written form within the Ptolemaic period, while the second did so in the early Roman period. The beginning of the first story is lost, but it is evident
that Setna Khaemwase has encountered the spirit of a magician of the remote past, Naneferkaptah, in his tomb. The spirit of the magician's wife explains how her son, she herself, and her husband all paid with their lives for the theft of a magical book that the god Thoth had written with his own hand. Setna accepts a challenge from the magician to gamble for the book. After Setna has lost three times, his amulets nevertheless allow him to escape from the tomb, taking the book with him. However, he is soon punished by a nightmare episode: at the temple of Ptah he catches sight of the beautiful daughter of a priest, and becomes so infatuated that he signs away all his possessions to her, disinheriting his existing children, and finally ordering their deaths. Awakening, he returns the book to Naneferkaptah, and is able to give the magician's family a proper burial together in one tomb. In the second story, Setna's own son is the reincarnation of a magician who has begged Osiris to be allowed to return to earth in order to rescue Egypt from the threats of a Nubian sorcerer. Before unmasking and destroying his rival magician, he conducts his father Setna on a tour of the underworld, demonstrating that a poor but virtuous man may be honored there, while the rich may be punished. The first story is remarkable for a subtlety of plot and of characterization beyond that of most Demotic literature, and happens to allude to a number of aspects of Egyptian society not mentioned elsewhere. The disputed magical book may seriously reflect Egyptian funerary concepts, and, despite evident touches of humor, the story makes a number of moral points. The underworld episode in the second story has been much discussed, both as showing the absorption of Greek ideas into an Egyptian view of the afterlife, and as revealing Egyptian ideas that may have passed into Christianity. BIBLIOGRAPHY Fowden, Garth. The Egyptian Hermes: A Historical Approacli to the Late Pagan Mind. Cambridge, 1986. See pp. 59-68, on "Books of Thoth and Technical Hermetica," Griffith, F. L. Stories of the High Priests of Memphis: The Sethon of Herodotus and the Demotic Tale of Kl-iamuas. 2 vols. Oxford, 1900. Remains the standard edition of the two best-preserved texts. Lichtheim, Miriam. Ancient Egyptian Literature: A Book of Readings. Vol. 2, The Late Period. Berkeley, 1980. The latest full English translations of the two best-preserved texts, with introduction and notes, pp. .125-151. Piccione, P. A. "The Gaming Episode in the Tale of Setna Khannvas as Religious Metaphor." In For His Ka: Essays Offered in Memory of Klaus Boer, edited by D. P. Silvei-man, pp. 197-204. Chicago, 1994. Tail, W. J. "P. Carlsberg 207: Two Columns of a Setna Text." In The Carlsberg Papyri I: Demotic Texts from the Collection, edited by P. J. Frandsen, pp. 19-46. Carsten Niebuhr Institute Publications, 15. Copenhagen, 1991. JOEtN TAIT
272 SETYI SETY I (r. 1314-1304), second king of the nineteenth dynasty. New Kingdom. Sety Is throne name was Men-maat-re "Enduring is the Divine Order of Re," and his birth name, Setekhy, means "he who belongs to the god Setekh." His Horus name, whm-rnswl, "repeating the creation" alludes to the beginning of a new era after the disturbances of the Amarna period—Sety I was the first king to succeed legitimately to the throne after his father Ramesses I. It may also allude to the beginning of a new Sothis cycle that nearly coincided with the ascent of Ramesses I during his short reign of two years. There is no proof at all, however, for a coregency between the two, or for a coregency between Sety I and his son Ramesses II. Sety's mother was Queen Satre, owner of tomb 38 in the Valley of the Queens; she is not identical with the lady Tju of the Four Hundred Year Stela, nor are Ramesses I and Sety I identical with the viziers of the same name on this stela, who are probably their ancestors. Sety's queen, (Mut)-Tuya, was the mother of the future king Ramesses II and of a daughter, Tja. Renowned as an extremely pious son and king, Sety I enclosed a large mortuary chapel in his own funerary temple in Thebes for his father Ramesses I and built another one at Abydos where he is depicted with two brothers and three or more sisters in front of Osiris and his deified father. Sety I reigned only about ten years, but his
deeds and achievements equal those of a longer reign. Dynamic battle reliefs on the outer northern wall of the Great Hypostyle Hall in Kamak show him as a triumphant warrior-king in two campaigns: one occurred in southern Palestine against the ShasuBedouin, the other took place in the Orontes Valley in Syria, where he repelled Hittite troops and regained the town of Kadesh. His building activities included the restoration of temples, reliefs, and sculptures from Elephantine in the South to He-liopolis in the North. At Thebes, he constructed the Great Hypostyle Hall in front of the temple of Amun at Kamak and on the western side of the Nile River, he built a mortuary temple and spendid royal tomb (tomb 17 in the Valley of the Kings) with elegant, colorful reliefs and an astronomical ceiling. In Abydos, he constructed a mortuary temple for the great gods of Egypt and his royal ancestors, the kings of Egypt from Menes until his reign, which was a national shrine and the most beautiful temple of ancient Egypt. To secure the revenues of this temple, Sety I reopened and explored the gold mines of the Eastern Desert and Nubia, laying out caravan roads and drilling wells for expeditions into that wild and desolate region. In the eastern Delta he inaugurated a splendid summer residence that later, under his son Ramesses II, was to become the famous city of Piramesse. When Sety I died in his mid-forties, he was buried in a magnificent anthropoid sar-
SETY I. Relief from Abydos depicting Sety I offering Maat. (Courtesy David P. Silverman)
SEVENTEENTH DYNASTY 273 cophagus of calcite (Egyptian alabaster) that was decorated lavishly inside and outside with scenes and texts from the Book of Gates. His well-preserved mummy was later reburied in the cachette of Deir elBahri and recovered in 1881, revealing the impressive face of a great king. BIBLIOGRAPHY Kitchen, Kenneth A. Pharaoh Triumphant: The Life and Times of Ramesses II. Cairo, 1990. Kitchen, Kenneth A. Ramesside Inscriptions. Vol. 1, Translations. Cambridge, Mass., 1995. Mumane, William J. Ancient Egyptian Coregencies. Chicago, 1977. Murnane, William J. The Road to Kadesh. 2d ed. Chicago, 1990. Redford, Donald B. Egypt, Canaan, and Israel in Ancient Times. Cairo, 1993. Reeves, Nicolas, and Richard H. Wilkinson. The Complete Valley of the Kings. Cairo, 1996. Stadelmann, Rainer. "The Mortuary Temple of Seti I at Gurna: Excavation and Restoration." In Fragments of a Shattered Visage. Monographs of the Institute of Egyptian Art and Archaeology, 1. Memphis, Tenn., 1991. Vandersleyen, Claude. L'Egypte el la vallee du Nil. Vol. 2, L'Epoque Ramesside: La XIX' Dynastie. Paris, 1995. RAINER STADELMANN
SETY 11 (r. 1221-1215 BCE), fifth or sixth king of the nineteenth dynasty. New Kingdom. This pharoah, a son of Merenptah (r. 12371226 BCE), left as his most important monuments a three-chambered bark shrine just behind the first pylon at Karnak and a royal tomb in the Valley of the Kings (tomb 15). The exact chronological relationship of the reign of Sety II to that of Amenmesse is unclear; Amenmesse may have preceded Sety II, or he may have reigned independently in Upper Egypt and Nubia during Sety Us rule. Sety II's principal wife was Tawosret. The extent to which she exercised actual authority during his reign is unknown, but it is plausibly conjectured that she governed Egypt as regent during the reign of Sety Us son Siptah, who died young, and she appears to have assumed sole power in Egypt after Siptah s death. Aside from Sety 11's monuments in Thebes, he is known from Hermopolis, and his reign apparently saw the production of Papyri Anastasi IV, V, and VI. Sety Us body was among those discovered in the royal mummy cache in the tomb of Amenhotpe II (of the eighteenth dynasty). BIBLIOGRAPHY Chevrier, Henri. Le temple reposoirde Seti II. Cairo, 1940. STEVE VINSON
SEVENTEENTH DYNASTY. An Upper Egyptian succession (c. 1665-1569) of local rulers in the Theban area. It is partially contemporaneous with the fifteenth dynasty
of Lower Egypt. These two dynasties form the end of the Second Intermediate Period. In Manetho's history, the seventeenth dynasty consists of five kings and is erroneously labeled "Shepherd Kings again," a term referring to Manetho's fifteenth and sixteenth dynasties. The Turin Canon lists fifteen kings for the same period, which seems to be more in accordance with the number of kings known through contemporary inscriptions. Some of the these kings, however, are known only from the Turin Canon and left no monuments that have yet been identified. Despite several earlier and recent attempts, there is still no clarity with regard to the genealogical relationship between the early kings of the seventeenth dynasty and the last kings of the (Upper Egyptian) thirteenth dynasty. There is also some doubt as to the sequence of kings during the seventeenth dynasty; only for the later part of the dynasty is the sequence of kings reasonably well established through inscribed monuments of the time. Almost all the known monuments that mention kings of the seventeenth dynasty come from sites in Upper Egypt. The nature and context of sources reveal that the political influence of these kings did not extend beyond the area delimited by Abydos in the north and Edfu/Hiera-konpolis in the south. It is, however, interesting to note that the finding-places of these monuments seem to indicate royal building and other activities in areas of considerable strategic, economic, or religious importance. Within the Nile Valley, these sites include Abydos, Deir el-Ballas, Coptos, Medamud, Elkab, and Edfu, and outside the Nile valley, the "Farshut Road," Wadi Hammamat, and Gebel el-Zeit. The main political center, at least at the end of the seventeenth dynasty, seems to have been a city in the vicinity of the modem village of Deir el-Ballas, rather than Thebes, the capital of the eighteenth dynasty. At Deir el-Ballas, on the western bank of the Nile, remains of a large city with two fortified "palaces" have been uncovered. Inscribed blocks indicate that the Theban rulers Djehuty, Sekenenre Ta'o, and Ahmose were involved in building activities in the city. Opposite Deir el-Ballas, on the eastern bank, lies the important city of Coptos, the point of departure for quarrying, expeditions to the eastern desert and caravans to the Red Sea. From here, the seventeenth dynasty rulers were able to control activities on both the river and the caravan routes. Among the rulers of the early and middle parts of the Seventeenth dynasty, only a few have left important records: Nebkheperre Antef V is attested in various places throughout Upper Egypt, especially in Coptos, and probably also on a block from a small chapel on the Theban end of the Farshut Road, the main route to the oases of the Western Desert and the north-south caravan routes. More than any other ruler of this dynasty, Antef V is also known from numerous scarabs, both contempo-
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rary and later. King Sobekemsafl is known for building activities of some scale; blocks and quarry inscriptions with his name are attested in Kamak, Medamud, and Wadi Hammamat. From the middle of the dynasty comes a monument that sheds some light on the political situation in Upper Egypt. Created during the reign of Sewadjenre Nebiriaw I, the famous Juridical Stela (discovered in the temple of Amun in Kamak) commemorates a sale of the office of governor of Elkab between members of an important military family. Several members of this family held the position of vizier, while others seem to have been connected with the royal families of the thirteenth and seventeenth dynasties. The text of the stela demonstrates the relative independence and power of local clans. For the rulers at the end of the dynasty, records are more numerous and diversified, granting us some understanding of the political situation as well as of the genealogical relations of the royal family of this and the early eighteenth dynasty. At least four consecutive kings of this period—Sekenenre Ta'o, Kamose, Ahmose, and Amen-hotpe I—were members of the same family, despite the fact that in the Turin Canon the seventeenth dynasty ends with Kamose. All these kings were to some extent involved in military campaigns against the contemporaneous rulers of the fifteenth dynasty, the Hyksos, who ruled the Nile Delta and parts of northern Egypt from their capital at Avaris (modem Tell ed-Dab'a). A Ramessid literary text seems to indicate a major quarrel between Sekenenre Ta'o (c.1600-1571 BCE) and the Hyksos king Apophis. The fact that the skull of Sekenenre's well-preserved mummy shows several lethal wounds, some apparently inflicted by non-Egyptian weapons, has been interpreted as the result of the personal involvement of the king in a military clash with the Hyksos. It is, however, more likely that Sekenenre Ta'o's son and successor, Kamose, started the so-called wars of liberation against the Asian rulers in the Nile Delta. Two royal stelae erected by Kamose in the temple of Kamak as well as the famous Carnarvon Tablet and several biographical private inscriptions, commemorate the king's raids against his northern opponent. Under Kamose's successors, Ahmose and Amenhotpe I, the wars continued, and the Hyksos were finally expelled from Avaris, The royal cemetery of the seventeenth dynasty lies in the northern part of the Theban necropolis in an area called Dra Abul Naga, where a number of royal coffins (today in the Cairo Museum, the Louvre, and the British Museum) and other objects of royal burials were found. However, to date no royal tombs of this period have been positively identified. Dra Abul Naga is also the site of a large private cemetery of the period. During recent excavations there by a joint expedition of the German Archae
ological Institute and the University of California, Los Angeles, several rock-cut tomb shafts and mud-brick superstructures were discovered. [See also Dra Abul Naga; Hyksos; Kamose; and Second Intermediate Period.] BIBLIOGRAPHY Beckerath, Jurgen von. Untersuchungen zur politischen Geschichte der Zweileii Zwischenwt in Agypten. Agyptologische Forschungen, 23. Gluckstadt, Hamburg, and New York, 1964. Comprehensive study of the topic, but partially outdated. Bennett, Chris. "The Structure of the Seventeenth Dynasty." Gottinger Miszellen 149 (1995), 25-32. Detailed study of the genealogy of the kings of the seventeenth dynasty. Habachi, Labib. The Second Stela of Kamose and His Struggle against the Hyksos Ruler and His Capital. Abhandlungen des Deutschen Archaologischen Instituts, Kairo, 8. Mainz am Rhein, 1972. First comprehensive publication of the Kamose Stelae; needs to be checked against more recent publications. Polz, Daniel. "Excavations in Dra Abu el-Naga." Egyptian Archaeology 7 (1995), 6-8. Redl'ord, Donald B. Egypt, Canaan and Israel. Princeton, 1992. Winlock, Herbert E. "The Tombs of the Kings of the Seventeenth Dynasty at Thebes." Journal of Egyptian Archaeology 10 (1924), 217-277. Although somewhat outdated and partially incorrect, still the roost comprehensive account on the location of the royal tombs of the seventeenth dynasty. DANIEL C. POLZ
SEXUALITY. Sexuality in the universe of the Egyptians can be assessed at different levels. It is interlinked with fertility and erotica in a common aim, the procreation of the species and the continuation of life, even after death. A primitive awareness of sexuality is apparent in Predy-nastic figurines, but it is only during the Old Kingdom that we find a more sophisticated approach to the subject, which during the entire pharaonic period was veiled in symbolic conventions. The available evidence for the attitude of the Egyptians toward sexuality is literary and pictorial. The written sources are by no means abundant, and the interpretation of representations is far from straightforward. With the exception of certain unofficial depictions of sexual intercourse, in pictorial language the means of expression are restrained and often disguised in a coded language. In the corpus of literary texts, information must be gleaned from stray references. Divine Sexuality. Few members of the Egyptian pantheon are specifically credited with a sexual identity, though some are placed in situations where this is implied, such as triads of gods united to conform to a conventional mother-father-child pattern. Though distinguished in appearance and grammatical gender as male or female, some deities appear almost asexual. An exceptional case is that of the Syrian goddess Anat, who is said
SEXUALITY 275 to be "a woman acting as a warrior, clad as men and girt as women." When sexuality is emphasized in the world of the gods, it is seen not only as a natural characteristic distinguishing the two sexes, but also as a power, a weapon to be exploited for the benefit of some and the disadvantage of others. Some deities, like Min or the composite god Min-Amun, display their male sex in no uncertain terms in order to emphasize their position as powerful fertility gods. Min is depicted with an erect phallus; the color of his skin is the deep black of the fertile Nile silt that contains the life-sustaining seeds; and his heraldic plant is the Cos lettuce, whose stem exudes a sap reminiscent of seminal fluid. Bes, the dwarf god, uses his disproportionate characteristics of short body and long phallus in order to establish his image as protector of the woman's world from the moment of conception to childbirth. His look-alike Nekhet, meaning "the strong one," appears in literature and art as a virile god: his iconography includes, in addition to his erect member, birds' wings and composite headgear made of the heads of animals. Among goddesses whose sexuality is of prime importance, Hathor must be mentioned—goddess of love, fertility, music, joy, and inebriation. Although these goddesses sometimes have a companion of the opposite sex (Hathor of Dendera cohabits with Horns of Edfu once a year, for example), they preserve their individual sexual identity, which functions in relation to the public whether they are on their own or not. The case of Osiris and Isis is different, for their destinies are linked in their sexual embrace: the fate of one is the raison d'etre of the other. According to popular belief, Osiris, mythological king of Egypt, is overcome and murdered by his brother Seth in a struggle for the leadership of the world. His body is dismembered and scattered along the Nile. Knowing that a complete body was essential for survival in the after-world, Isis, his sister and wife, painstakingly searches for and assembles the pieces of his body. But until she works her magic with him, it remains a dead body. By positioning herself over his abdomen she "revived what was faint for the Weary One," as it says in one of the many hymns in her honor. In pictorial representation Isis is usually performing this crucial act in the guise of a bird hovering over the corpse of Osiris. At this moment she conceives an heir, the young Horus, who is later to undertake a battle with Seth for the rulership of the world; finally, Horus is declared the winner. Osiris, fulfilling his destiny as a dead king, becomes king of the underworld. The miracle of conception, brought about entirely by the magical ministrations of Isis, became a beacon of hope for many Egyptians who aspired to achieving rebirth in the after-world. This se-xual concept is of vital importance for an understanding of Egyptian funerary beliefs. In popular literature, Isis appears a number of times
in a role where she makes specific use of her sexuality for her own ends. During the trial concerning the case of Horus and Seth, a number of amusing episodes take place, including one in which Isis transforms herself into a beautiful maiden and lures Seth to condemn himself and his vile acts. Seth, in turn, is seen in a homosexual encounter with Horus, whereby, through the intervention of Isis, Seth is made to eat Horus's sperm. This is seen as a sign of defeat for Seth and a triumph for Horus. Female sexuality in the divine sphere is displayed when a new sacred bull is installed in the city of Memphis. According to Diodorus (1.85), when the new bull, recognized by its special markings, is carried in procession on a state barge and placed in its new abode in the temple, for forty days women stimulate its power by lifting up their skirts and displaying their genitals to it. The tale of the struggle of Horus and Seth contains a related incident: Re, who presides over the court, becomes angry and exhausted. Hathor, in this case playing the part of daughter of Re, "came and stood before her father, the master of the universe. She uncovered her vulva for his face, and the great god smiled at her." Royal Sexuality. In the corpus of miscellaneous texts from the Old Kingdom known as the Pyramid Texts, the sexuality of the king is mentioned together with his other physical needs. Through recitation of spells, he is encouraged in general to be sexually active. When the dead king commutes in the universe, there are no moral limits, and he may cohabit with all the females available. By the time of the New Kingdom, royal sexuality is described in a particular literary genre known as "theo-gamy," or divine marriage. This was created in order to legitimize the divine institution of royal marriage and succession. Here, the royal husband is watching from the sidelines while the mighty god Amun enters the stage, allegedly in the guise of the king, but with easily recognizable characteristics such as "the scent of god." According to divine plan, the queen is to submit herself to the god in order to conceive an heir to the throne of suitable divine parentage. The queen soon acknowledges the divine qualities of her partner and becomes the receptacle for his seed. This event was narrated first by Queen Hatshepsut (playing the part of the divine issue), then copied by Amenhotpe III and Ramesses II. A related theme is reflected in the Greco-Roman birth-houses, the so-called mamniisi, built at right angles to the main axis at the entrance of major temples (Dendera, Edfu, etc.). Here was celebrated the birth of the son of the resident divine pair, whose qualities are mirrored in the ruler. The world of the gods and the life of the king are interwoven. Private Sexuality. In Egyptian nonroyal funerary belief, sexuality plays a crucial part. The way in which this was clad in metaphorical language was first understood
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by Desroches-Noblecourt in 1954, followed up by important discussions byWestendorf (1967) and by Derchain in the 1970s. Certain aspects of the pictorial repertory in tombs with wall decoration, particularly from the Middle and New Kingdoms, make sense only when interpreted in the total context of funerary beliefs concerned with a continued existence after death. Rebirth was seen as a re-enactment of birth, and so the necessary preliminaries for the miracle of conception had to be available, this time in the decoration and equipment of the tomb. The crucial concept of sexuality and the preamble to sexual intercourse were underlined by the presence of beds and headrests, and more subtly in certain of the scenes of daily life. The "banquet scene" abounds in erotic symbolism: heavily made-up participants, often wearing flimsy garments; the omnipresent lotus flower, a common symbol of rebirth; the unguent cone and garments soaked in scent; heavy wigs and jewelry; the presence of mandrake fruits and intoxicating beverages—all details that, along with other symbols of female sexuality such as vervet and duck, relate to sexuality. In the Theban tombs of the eighteenth dynasty, the framework of the banquet scene is the annual Valley festival, celebrated in honor of Amun of Karnak visiting Hathor of Thebes. In Roman times this was explicitly interpreted in terms of divine cohabitation. It was an occasion when, under the influence of intoxicating beverages originating at the offering tables of the gods, the participants gathered in the tombs to communicate both with the divine and with their deceased relatives "coming out." The sexual atmosphere of the occasion is suggested by the symbolic imagery of the representations. The fishing and fowling scenes in tombs of Middle and New Kingdom date, and perhaps even of the Old Kingdom, refer not to the tomb owner's sporting activities but to his capacity for procreation; the scene showing him hunting game in the desert with bow and arrow points in the same direction. Many of these interpretations can be substantiated by plays on words, a common Egyptian device. Looking back to the Old Kingdom, with the later representations and their interpretation in mind, it is possible to see a link. The prominence of the lotus flower in wall decoration is a case in point. The flower, later proved to be symbol of rebirth, a token of affection among lovers, and even a slightly narcotic remedy facilitating the lifting of the spirit, is prominent because of its exaggerated size in the representations. The motif of the bed and the conjugal pleasures enjoyed on it is referred to in some sixth dynasty tombs, where the tomb owner's wife plays the harp in bed. The fact that this is part of funerary decoration makes clear its role as a prerequisite for rebirth. In Egypt, where death played such a prominent part in life, it was inconceivable in conventional funerary belief to foresee a continued existence without the essential ac
tivities performed on earth to sustain life: breathing, eating, drinking, and copulating. These concepts were taken either literally or in sublimated form, the deceased person having been transformed to a glorified spirit. Sexuality in Focus at Tell el-Amama. Nowhere is the question of sexuality more in focus than in the brief reign of Akhenaten. In the Amarna period, concepts were reconsidered and openly displayed in a different form, although sometimes the essence of the message was unaltered. The canon of representation centered on the king's own physiognomy, carefully worked out with the artists to portray him as the fertile manifestation on earth of the solar disk (Aten), incorporating both the male and female creative principles—just as the solar deity had proceeded alone to create the world. Akhenaten's outward form was adapted to the female (narrow shoulders, broad hips, accentuated breasts): male characteristics were confined to codes of dress, such as his bare upper torso and king's crown. In one case (a colossus from Kamak, now in the Cairo Museum), he is shown without his kilt and with no genitals. In art, the king's subordinates are rendered with similar female contours. A final detail of what can best be termed "unisex" consists in abandoning the usual skin color of red for men and yellow for women for a more or less uniform dark orange for both sexes. It is perhaps significant that in the Amama period the conventional sexual symbolism in funerary art disappeared, in itself evidence that the so-called scenes of daily life were far more than representations of leisure activities. [See also Children; Erotica; Family; Fertility; and Marriage and Divorce.] BIBLIOGRAPHY Uerchain, Philippe. "Symbols and metaphors in literature and representations of private life." Royal Anthropological Institute News 15 (1976), 7-10. A summary of the interpretations of the so-called scenes of daily life. Desroches-Noblecourt, Christiane. "Poissons, tabous et transformations du mort." Kemi 13 (1954), 33-42. A pioneering article on sexual symbolism in funerary belief. The author expanded her ideas on sexual symbolism in interpreting the Valley of the Queens as a giant vulva in Les dossiers d'archeologie 149-150 (1990), 4ff. Manniche, Use. Sexual Life in Ancient Egypt. London and New York, 1987. The only monograph on the subject, presenting source texts in translation and numerous illustrations. Troy, Lana. Patterns ofQueenship in Ancient Egyptian Myth and History. Uppsala Studies in Ancient Mediterranean and Near Eastern Civilizations, 14. Uppsala, 1986. A fundamental study on the sexuality underlying Egyptian thought, with particular reference to the royal family. Westendorf, Wolfhart. "Bemerkungen zur "Karnmer der Wiedergeb-urt" im Tutankhamungrab." Zeitschrift filr Agyptische Sprache und Altertumskunde 94 (1967), 139-150. A crucial work for the understanding of the sexual symbolism of certain motifs in scenes of daily life. Westendorf, Wolfhart. "Schiessen und Zeugen: Eine Gememschaft-
keit afrikanischer und agyptischer Vorstellungen." In Festschrift HinW: Agypten und Kitsch, edited by E. Endesfelder et ai., pp. 481-486. Berlin, 1977, LISE MANNICHE
SHADOW 277 Redtbrd, D. B. Egypt, Canaan and Israel in Ancient Times. Princeton, 1992. A different approach from the preceding. KENNETH A. KITCHEN
SHABTIS. See Funerary Figurines. SHABAQA (r. 712-698 or 716-702 BCE), fourth king of the twentyfifth or Kushite dynasty, Late period. In the second year of his reign, Neferkare Shabaqa invaded Egypt from Kush ending the western Delta-based regime of Bakenranef (Bocchoris). (The Apis bull embalmed in Bakenranefs Year 6 had its vault sealed in Year 2 of Shabaqa.) Shabaqa celebrated that conquest and the securing of his borders by issuing a commemorative scarab: "He has slain those who rebelled against him in both South and North, and in every foreign land. The [Near Eastern] sand-dwellers faint because of him, falling down through fear of him; they come of themselves as captives and each among them seized his fellow." In 712 BCE or later, Shabaqa cooperated with Assyria by extraditing the fugitive lamani, ruler of Ashdod, to Sar-gon II's army commander. In 706 BCE (or earlier), a text of Sargon II (Tangi Var) shows that lamani was handed back to the Assyrians by Shabtaka, perhaps as coregent with Shabaqa. The finding at Nineveh of clay bullae in Shabaqas name (from long-lost missives) may also indicate the pharaoh's pacific policy regarding Assyria. Egyptian intervention (in the guise of Prince Taharqa) in Palestine against Assyria in 701 BCE, is less likely to have occurred during Shabaqas reign than in that of Shabtaka, who caused Taharqa to bring an army some two thousand miles from Nubia and proclaimed his intentions by his militaristic titles. Under whichever reign, the Egyptian forces were defeated. Within Egypt, Shabaqa showed an interest in various temples: at Memphis he buried another Apis bull and had an ancient cosmogony of the god Ptah inscribed on a basalt slab; he is also mentioned at Den-dera, Esna, and especially Thebes. His sister, Amenirdis I, served in priestly office as God's Wife of Amun at Thebes, while the high priesthood of Amun devolved on his son, Haremakhet. Other Kushite (Nubian) dignitaries were also given posts in Thebes. In Nubia, Shabaqa worked at Kawa and built his pyramid tomb at el-Kurru. BIBLIOGRAPHY Eide, Tormod, et al., eds. Fontes Historiae Nubwrwri, Textual Sources for the History of the Middle Nile Region between the Eighth Century BC and the Sixth Century AD. Vol. 1, From the Eighth to the Mid-Fifth Century BC. Bergen, 1994. A comprehensive presentation in English of texts frorn, and concerning, Nubian rulers. Kitchen, K. A. The Third Intermediate Period in Egypt (1100-650 BC). 2d ed. with supp). Wamiinster, .1996, Standard work for its entire period; full documention for the reign of Shabaqa, and discussion of varying views.
SHADOW. One of the major components in the Egyptian concept of an individual was the shadow (shut; swt), along with the body, the ka (ky), the ba (by), and the name. Like the body, the shadow was seen as a physical entity, and its relationship to light was understood. The Prophecy ofNeferti, describing the absence of sunlight, says "no one will distinguish his shadow." The term swt is used not only with reference to the shadow of individuals but also for the shade cast by any object, such as trees and buildings: the Sphinx Stela of Thutmose IV describes how the king "rested in the shadow of this great god" at noon. The term is also employed as a metaphor for protection—understandable in Egypt's climate—both from the heat of the sun and in a broader sense, as that extended by a god over the king, by the king's arm over his subjects, or even by the king's sun-shade over bystanders. In common with the other elements of an individual, the shadow was viewed both as a component of its owner and a separate mode of existence. The image of a god carved on a temple wall could be called the god's shadow, and the temple itself was sometimes known as the shadow of its deity. Most references to the shadow of a human being occur in funerary texts dealing with the afterlife. The earliest instances appear in the Coffin Texts of the First Intermediate Period and Middle Kingdom, where the shadow is usually mentioned together with the ba. Like the latter, it can be viewed as a mode of existence after death. In some cases, however, the ba and shadow seem to be two parts of a single entity: "Go, my ba and my shadow, that you (singular) may see the sun." Since the deceased's ba is regularly said to possess physical powers such as eating, drinking, and copulating, the shadow in such cases may have been understood as that of the ba itself. Other passages in the Coffin Texts present the ba and shadow as distinct entities. Both are closely associated with the body in the tomb: the ha is said to be "in the earth" while the shadow is "in the inaccessible places" (the burial chamber), and the deceased states that "my ba belongs to my body, my shadow belongs to its arm." Like the ba, the shadow returned to the mummy at night: the Coffin Texts speak of "my ba and my shadow going on their feet to the place where that man [the deceased] is." In some cases, however, the shadow is more closely allied than the ba to its body. This is reflected in a passage from
278 SHAWABTIS the Pyramid Texts and Coffin Texts that describes the deceased's consumption of the gods' bas "while their shadows remain with their owners." Unlike the ba, the shadow was rarely depicted, but it occasionally appears in funerary literature as a human silhouette, sometimes with an eye. [See also Ba; Ka; and Names.] BIBLIOGRAPHY George, Beale. Zit den altagy'prischen Vorstellungen vom Schatten als Seek. Bonn, 1970. This is the only recent work that deals with the shadow in any detail. JAMES P. ALLEN
SHAWABTIS. See Funerary Figurines.
SHEEP AND GOATS. The time of the introduction into Egypt of domestic sheep (sr) or (wt hdt) and goats (w ly) or (r) has long been debated by researchers. Like many other of Egypt's domesticates, the wild progenitors were not native to the Nile Valley. The earliest undisputed evidence for domestic sheep arid goats in Egypt has been recovered from the Faiyum Oasis and the site of Merimda (c.5000 BCE). Because both domestic sheep and goats were known in the Near East by this time and the progenitor of the domestic sheep (Ovis orientalis) was indigenous to that area, domestic goats and sheep were probably herded by easy stages across the Sinai and the northern coast of Egypt into the Nile Valley and the Faiyum Oasis. From known tomb wall scenes, Egypt possessed in succession two different types of sheep that were only once depicted together. Until the Middle Kingdom, there was a hairy, thin-tailed breed with twisted horns extending laterally from the head; this breed was kept mainly for its meat, milk, and hide. Later, there was a woolier breed, possessing a shorter, thicker tail and recurved horns. This was not the fat-tail sheep of the modern Middle East, which was introduced into Egypt no earlier than the Roman period: the ancient Greek historian Herodotus described fat-tail sheep in his travels, but he made no mention of them in Egypt. The long, bristly outer hairs of earlier Old Kingdom and other similar breeds are known as kemps. In wild sheep and in primitive domestic breeds, the undercoat is shed each spring and falls in dense mats that can either be gathered or plucked from the animal and spun or made into felt (a matted fabric). In advanced domesticated forms of sheep, such as the Middle Kingdom breed, kemps are absent and the fleece consists entirely of the woolly undercoat. Woolen textiles were accordingly scarce in Egypt until the Middle Kingdom, when the woolier
breed was introduced. The Old Kingdom sheep showed an improvement over the wild ancestor, since the kemp was woolier, the hair grew all the year round, and it did not moult. The loss of the ability to shed was an advantageous trait, developed through domestication, to reduce wool loss; it does require an added investment, since such sheep must be sheared. The benefits of sheep as providers of wool, butter, cheese, and milk undoubtedly made an impression on the ancient Egyptians, who kept them until their usefulness as a meat producer outweighed their ability to produce those secondary products. The large herds that were reported to have been kept during the New Kingdom probably served, therefore, as a source of wool and dairy products and only after productivity waned were they slaughtered for meat. The virility and aggressive nature of the ram no doubt contributed to its role as a symbol of fertility and power. The ram was identified with the god Khnum at Elephantine and worshiped in at least six other Upper Egyptian nomes. In Lower Egypt, the ram was identified with Osiris at Mendes and worshiped in one other nome. Herodotus wrote that, on occasion, rams were sacrificed to Amun at Thebes; Amun was frequently represented as a ram, a ram-headed god, or a god with ram's horns. Evidence for some restrictions on sheep consumption is recorded by ancient historians. Plutarch reported that priests shunned mutton, and he added that the inhabitants ofLycopolis (Asyut) were the only people to eat mutton because the wolf, whom they held to be a god, ate it. Plutarch also reported that the Egyptian priests did not wear woolen garments: "priests, because they revere the sheep, abstain from using wool as well as its flesh." In external appearance, the ancient Egyptian goat resembled the sheep in many respects. It was high-legged, short-haired, and had a long face with a straight nose. Scimitar-homed goats existed in Old Kingdom times, but by the Hyksos period the horn appeared twisted, "corkscrew" in shape, and the profile of the goat's nasal area was straight. The angle between the horns varied a great deal, especially when the horns pointed toward the back of the animal. As a rule, the females were horned, although a few representations show hornless goats. The modern goat of Egypt with its convex nose, drooping ears, and long hair is not a descendant of the ancient forms, but rather is a more recent introduction. Goats are browsers. Because of their adaptation to particularly harsh environments, goats are perhaps the most versatile of all ruminants in their feeding habits, a factor that has greatly affected their success as a domesticated animal. They also have, relative to sheep and cattle, a wider tolerance of habitat types: they are able to feed and breed on a minimum of food and under extremes of temperature and humidity. Goats complement a flock of
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SHEEP AND GOATS. Rams depicted on a relief from the tomb ofNeferat Saqqara. (Courtesy David P. Silverman) York, 1971. Unique work on the origin of African domesticates; certainly sheep by browsing on thorny scrubland while the sheep graze on a must for those interested in the animals of this continent. grasses. Goats might even have been of assistance to farmers in Janssen, Jac. J. Commodity Prices from the Ramesside Period. Leiden, helping to clear land. 1975. Good source for reviewing the relative worth of Egyptian Both the tomb illustrations depicting only short-haired varieties commodities, such as sheep, cattle, and other livestock and food stuffs. and the large number of goat remains recovered from excavations Janssen, Rosalind and Jac. J. Janssen. Egyptian Household Animals. Haverfordvvest, 1989. Laypersons' guide to the domesticated animals of of all periods suggest that goats were raised primarily for their Egypt; entertaining but poorly referenced. meat, skin, and possibly milk, and not for their wool. Goat meat Reed, Charles. "Animal Domestication in the Prehistoric Near East." was a common dish for the peasant and working class, and goat Science 130 (1959), 1629-1639. An example of how domestic sheep and leather was used to produce a diverse number of objects. Although goats developed and reached Egypt.
the goat did not attain the same level of adoration as the ram, it was used as a sacrificial animal. One text relates that 1,089 goats were sacrificed to the Nile god, and Herodotus wrote that goats, not sheep, were the preferred sacrifice at Thebes. Prices of sheep and goat are not as well documented as those of cattle, but nineteenth dynasty documents indicate that the price of "small cattle" (i.e., sheep, goats, and pigs) fluctuated between one and three deben (the monetary unit, presumably copper). [See also Animal Husbandry.] BIBLIOGRAPHY Cluttoii-Brock, Juliet. A Natural History of Domesticated Mammals. Austin, 1987. Standard text for reviewing the origins of domestic animals. Epstein, H. The Origin of Domestic Animals in Africa. 1 vols. New
DOUGLAS J.BREWER
SHENOUTE (fl. 370-465 CE), Upper Egyptian abbot and first major author in Coptic, known in Greek as Si-nouthios and in Latin as Sinuthius. Few dates from Shen-oute's career are known. He became a monk around 371 CE, abbot in 385, and in 431 attended the Council of Ephesos and perhaps traveled to Constantinople in the retinue of Archbishop Cyril of Alexandria (412-444 CE). Shenoute reported that Cyril offered him the episcopal office, which he refused. Shenoute died in 465 (based on S. L. Emmet's reconstruction [1993] of a date under discussion for a century). From his uncle Pgol, Shenoute took over the monastery of Atripe (Monastery of Apa
280 SHESHONQ I Shenoute, DayrAnba Shinudah, and known in English as the "White Monastery") located on the western bank of the Nile, opposite the ancient nome capital of Panopolis (present-day Akhmim). Under his (modified Pachomian) rule, the monastery prospered; tradition mentions as many as four thousand monks and nuns in different houses. The monastery church, built around 440 CE as a three-aisle basilica with a triconch sanctuary, influenced later Egyptian church architecture. In early modem times, the monastery (well into the Middle Ages a center of monophysite spirituality and learning) had fallen into ruins. The large monastic library, where nearly all extant copies of Shenoute's work were preserved, was then dispersed into museums worldwide. Shenoute was the first major writer in Coptic who nonetheless accepted Greek literary and rhetorical culture. Shenoute's work consists mainly of copies of the sermons preached in the monastery church, letters to monks and nuns on subjects of monastic discipline, and letters to other correspondents. As identified by Emmel (1993), they were transmitted in two major collections, the Canons (mainly on monastic life) and the Discourses (on various homiletic and pastoral themes). Shenoute's theology followed the position of Theophilus of Alexandria (385-412 CE) after the archbishop's anti-Origenist about-face in 399 CE. Shenoute's works mirror his greatest interests: theological-exegetical and homiletic-pastoral. Shenoute's Life was composed by his successor Besa, and it survives in several non-Western versions, including in Sahidic (fragments) and Bohairic Coptic and in Arabic, Ethiopic, and Syriac; it stressed his charitable work—his assistance to the lay population during famines and nomadic incursions—and his crusades against the remaining Egyptian paganism of his day. [See also Coptic Literature.] BIBLIOGRAPHY Besa. The Life of Shenoute. Introduction, translation, and notes by David N. Bells. Cistercian Studies Series, 73 Kalamazoo, 1983 Translation of the Bohairic Coptic Life of Shenoute, with a general introduction to his life and works. Emmel, Stephen Lewis. "Shenoute's Literary Corpus." Ph.D. diss., Yale University, 1993. Painstaking reconstruction of Shenoute's literary legacy; the point, of reference for any future research with an exhaustive bibliography of his writings. Frandsen, Paul John, and Eva Richter Acre. "Shenoute: A Bibliography." In Studies Presented to Hans Jakob Polotsky. Edited by Dwight Wayne Young, pp. 145-176. East Gloucester, 1981. Leipoldt, Johannes. Schenute von Atripe und die Entstehung des national dgyptischen Christentums. Texte und Untersuchungen, 25.1 Leipzig, 1903. Outdated, but still useful evaluation of Shenoute's personality, his theology, and the life of the monastery under his rule. Shisha-Halevy, Ariel. Coptic Grammatical Categories: Structural Studies in the Syntax of Shenoutean Sahidic. Analecta Orientalia, 53. Rome, 1986. Corpus-based grammar of Shenoutean Coptic.
van derVliet, Jacques. "Spatantikes Heidentum in Agypten im Agyp-ten im Spiegel der koptischen Literatur." In Begegnung van Heidentum und Christentum im spalantikeii Agypten. Riggisberger Be-richte, 1, pp. 99130. Riggisberg, 1993. Discussion of Shenoute's antipagan polemic and activities. HEIKE BEHLMER
SHESHONQ I (r. 931-910 BCE), first king of the twenty-second Bubastite or Libyan dynasty. Third Intermediate Period. Ramesses III settled Libyan prisoners as conscripted troops in the eastern Nile Delta around 1180-1174 BCE, and one family eventually emerged at Bubastis, as a local chiefdom of the Meshwesh, five generations before Sheshonq I. Bubastis was midway along the route between Memphis and Tanis, Egypt's capitals in the twenty-first dynasty, and Sheshonq's forebears forged family links with both the high priests of Ptah at Memphis and the royal family in Tanis. Thus, his uncle Osorkon (the Elder) ruled briefly as fifth king ("Osochor," r. 990-984 BCE) of the twenty-first dynasty. Sheshonq became the right-hand man of Psusennes II, whose daughter, Maat-kare B, married Sheshonq's eldest son Osorkon (I). When Psusennes II died without an heir, Sheshonq I took the throne, beginning the twentysecond dynasty (c.945-725 BCE). Sheshonq I tightened royal rule in Upper Egypt: he appointed his second son luput as high priest of Amun in Thebes and military governor of Upper Egypt, and he encouraged intermarriage of his family with those of The-ban notables. To divide political power south of Memphis, he installed his third son Nimlot B as commander at Herakleopolis near the Faiyum. This king carried out modest construction at various temples: traces are known from Tanis, Bubastis, Tell el-Maskhuta (Pitham), and Memphis itself; his son luput built a tomb-chapel at Ab-ydos. Much later, to celebrate his war in Palestine, Sheshonq I founded two great structures in Thebes and Memphis and a temple at el-Hiba. The structure in Thebes was the great colonnaded forecourt fronting Amun's Kamak temple, accompanied by the Bubastite Gate and triumphal victory scene. In Memphis, there was a parallel court and gateway at the temple of Ptah, seen by the Greek historian Herodotus (Kitchen 1988, 1991). El-Hiba produced parts of another finely carved triumph scene, but no place-names are preseived. Abroad, Sheshonq I made an alliance with Abibaal, king of Byblos in Phoenicia, by sending a statue to which Abibaal added his name. Sheshonq I probably desired to secure timber through this relationship. In the twentieth or twenty-first year of his reign, he invaded Palestine, officially because of a border incident (noted on the Karnak Stela), and he left a triumphal monument at Megiddo.
SHIPS AND SHIPBUILDING 281 The success of his campaign is admitted in 1 Kings 14.25-26. He had earlier used the fugitive Jeroboam to help break Solomon's realm into two factional kingdoms that would be more easily conquered (/ Kings 11.40, 12.16). On his return, Sheshonq I ordered the major works at Karnak (Silsila Stela of Year 21), at Memphis, and at el-Hiba (temple with triumph scene), but these great works lay unfinished after his sudden death in Year 22. BIBLIOGRAPHY Edwards, I. E. S. "Egypt: From the Twenty-second to the Twenty-fourth Dynasty." In The Cambridge Ancient History, edited by John Boardrnan et al. Vol. 3, pt. 1, The Prehistory' of the Bolkons, The Middle East and the Aegean World, Tenth to Eighth Centuries B.C., pp. 534-549. Cambridge, 1982. Kitchen, Kenneth A. "A Note on Asychis." In Pyramid Studies and Other Essays Presented to I. E. S. Edwards. London, 1988. Kitchen, Kenneth A. The Third Intermediate Period in Egypt (1100-650 BC). 2d ed. with suppl. Wai-minster, 1986. Standard work for its entire period, full documention for the reign of Sheshonq I and discussion of varying views. Kitchen, Kenneth A. "Towards a Reconsti-uction of Raroesside Memphis." In Fragments of a Shattered Visage. London, 1991. Redford, Donald B. Egypt, Canaan, and Israel in Ancient limes. Princeton, 1992. A different approach from those of Edwards and Kitchen. University of Chicago, Oriental Institute. Epigi-aphic Survey. Reliefs and Inscriptions at Karnak III: The Bubastite Portal. 4 vols. Chicago, 1953. The definitive publication (drawings and photographs) of the Karnak triumph scene of Sheshonq I. KENNETH A. KITCHEN
SHIPS AND SHIPBUILDING. Thousands of models, texts, and representations testify to more than 120 types of ancient Egyptian watercraft in use for several thousand years. Even more important, however, are the twenty full-sized vessels that provide evidence about how the Egyptians built and used their boats. The vessels from Abydos, Khufu's pyramid, el-Lisht, Dahshur and Mataria fall into two main categories: (1) elegant, ceremonial hulls or (2) working boats, as simple as a papyrus skiff or as complex as a freighter that could carry hundreds of tons. Building wooden ships and boats in a land with few trees required a tremendous investment of labor and resources and provided the state with comparable, often intangible, rewards. When the first bundles of reeds or logs were made into simple Nile rafts is not known, but boat models from the Badarian culture (c.5500-4000 BCE) indicate canoe-like craft, probably constructed of reed bundles that were tied together. Representations dating to the Naqada II period (c.3500 BCE) suggest that several kinds of wooden boats were being built, in addition to large papyrus rafts; although skilled woodworkers could produce thin. Hat boards, the fastening techniques were then simple and
unsuited to boatbuilding. By the beginning of the Early Dynastic period (c.3100 BCE), worked wood included timbers with all of the major fastening techniques later used to build boats. The introduction of copper tools at about that time accelerated the construction process. Egypt's increased societal demand for warships, freighters, and ritual craft in pharaonic times hastened the development of their nautical technology. The ancient Egyptians relied so completely on the Nile River for moving about that the symbols for "north" and "south" are simple glyphs that anyone could understand: a boat with its rigging collapsed on deck, riding with the Nile's current, symbolized "north"; a boat with an upright mast and billowed sail to catch the constant north wind meant "south." The first image of a sail in all the world comes from ancient Egypt. In their religious texts, boats were associated with regeneration and with the waters of the primitive and chaotic abyss. Watercraft also served as some of the earliest symbols for the nascent state and kingship, in part because until the Roman period, only a few roads extended more than a few kilometers beyond the Nile Valley. Therefore ships were used for taxation, redistributing goods, transporting warriors, and a hundred other sacred or mundane tasks. Even the dead depended on water transport to their tombs; then magical spells summoned a reluctant ferryman and his boat to carry the dead person to the gods in the sky. Construction Techniques. Builders used a variety of tools including saws, axes, adzes, and chisels to work both imported and local woods. Imported cedar of Lebanon CS) was preferred for ceremonial and seagoing vessels, but abundant supplies of locally available tamarisk and acacia woods were used to build the more numerous and economically significant freighters. Ceremonial boats had long timbers sculpted and carved to precise curvatures, wasting at least half of the original wood, while freight boats depended on flatter and shorter planks and frames that were frugally sawn from trimmed trunks, seemingly in standardized shapes and sizes that took advantage of a tree's natural curvature. Like most watercraft in the world until about 1000 CE, ancient Egyptian examples were built shell first; after laying down a central plank or keel, shipwrights built the shell of planking, by fastening timbers together along their edges, inserting framing last. More labor efficient, modern boatbuilding is skeleton first, in which a keel is laid down, framing attached, and the planking shell added last. Egyptian ships and boats relied on thick planks with joggled edges, fastened by a combination of mortise-and-tenon joints and ligatures or lashing. Mortise-and-tenon joints, called menkh, provided the primary means to join plank edges, both in carpentry and in watercraft. Unlike later Mediterranean craft, the known ancient Egyptian riverci-aft do not use pegs to lock the
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SHIPS AND SHIPBUILDING. The solar boat of King Kfiufu, late fourth dynasty. (Courtesy Dieter Arnold)
tenons in place, perhaps to simplify the (documented) disassembly and reassembly of Egyptian ships. Shallow-draft vessels were the rule on the Nile, with working boats about three times longer than they were wide. The known ceremonial boats are typically five to eight times longer than their maximum width. Both working and ceremonial hulls used framing, inserted after the planked shell was built, to support the vessel's sides. Longitudinal carlings and stringers, transverse beams and even the ultra-high ends of some ceremonial types were interlocked in an elaborate geometry, to create and maintain hull integrity. Freighters were built more sturdily and had added strength from hogging trusses, to balance massive loads—such as a 740-ton statue or a pair of 330-ton obelisks. When evaluating the technology of hull
construction, it is important to remember that a thousand years of boatbuilding preceded the Old Kingdom. Although a number of boat graves (boat-shaped mud-brick structures) are documented outside the royal graves at Saqqara and Helwan, little is known beyond maximum possible dimensions for the vessels. In 1991, archaeologists at Abydos discovered the oldest known planked boats. Their initial investigations of the twelve boat graves (each 19-26 meters/60-80 feet in length) revealed flat-bottomed, canoelike craft that date to the first dynasty. The majestic royal ship of Khufu (c.2640 BCE) from late in the fourth dynasty (Old Kingdom) serves both to enchant and confound modern scholars. At more than 43 meters (135 feet) in length, its imported cedar hull is perhaps the most complex artifact of its time. Its shortest
SHIPS AND SHIPBUILDING 283
SHIPS AND SHIPBUILDING. A bark depicted in a wall painting from Abydos. (Courtesy David P. Siiverman)
plank is 7 meters (22 feet) long; hundreds of tenons and nearly 1.5 kilometers (1 mile) of rope were required to assemble it. By the time that models made to accompany Tutankhamun's body to the grave were carved during the New Kingdom, about 1325 BCE, the shape of the Khufu hull had become the standard form of solar boats. No one knows how early that association began, however, and it is likely that several meanings were conflated. The sun god Re possessed two watercraft: one for traversing the sky by day and one for night; that became an important part of divine mythology shortly after the fourth dynasty, according to the Pyramid Texts. Known today as solar boats (barks; in British English, barques), models of the long and narrow vessels included a specific roster of accessories—such as mats, a seat or throne, and hawks and other emblems. Khufu's reconstructed vessel shares general features (cabins, mats) but none of the specific items consistently associated with solar boats. It may be a vessel type strongly associated with the pharaoh, whose own association with Re was so strong that the boat became inseparable from the growing worship of the sun god. Wooden hulls that imitated the shape of papyrus rafts came to play important roles in funerary practices, such as transporting the newly mummified person to Egypt's most holy pilgrimage sites. Gods had their own sacred
boats, and the sacred boat could be a divine manifestation of the god. Almost 120 words for boats and ships exist, with 32 used in the Old Kingdom Pyramid Texts. "Byblos" ships (kbn.t) and "Cretan" ships (kf.t.u) were special terms for seagoing craft believed to reflect either the origin of the raw materials (e.g., cedar from Lebanon) or a style of building associated with that cultural group. Thutmose III used /mw.iv-ships and Wenamun, a late New Kingdom priest, sailed to Lebanon in a traveling ship (br.bjr). The most common words are -jmw (ship or boat) and wjy, used to designate ceremonial ships until the New Kingdom, when this word became used for warships and ships of the king. The general word for freight ship, or freighter, is h'w. The ancient Egyptians developed advanced nautical technology fairly early—to move people and royal officials From one place to another, as well as distribute raw materials and grain. Egyptian rivercraft seem always to have carried their loads on deck, as their method of construction relies on spreading the weight of cargo across the hull, rather than concentrating it in the hold. Some scholars suggest that artistic convention is responsible for the many images of deck cargo, but structural reasons make deck loads imperative for the river freighters. Seagoing hulls may have more closely resembled undecked
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Mediterranean ships, but until one is found, it will be difficult to make accurate interpretations of the paintings showing sea travel. During the fourth dynasty, the 4-ton granite plug for Khufu's pyramid had been loaded aboard a ship at Aswan and shipped down river. By the eighteenth dynasty, gigantic monoliths weighing 740 tons and more could be moved from one end of the country to another. In addition to such spectacular feats, the nation's food supplies moved up and down the Nile from field to town to temple, accompanied by scribes and officers of the pharaoh. Thousands of images and models of watercraft attest to both the expertise of ancient shipwrights and the importance of watercraft within the Egyptian economy, society, and culture— roles emphasized by any study of monumental art and architecture, international contact and exchange, and the administration and protection of the kingdom. [See also Seafaring; and Transportation.] BIBLIOGRAPHY Jenkins, N. Boat beneath the Pyramid. New York, 1980. Dated but wellillustrated look at the royal ship of Khufu and cultural context for watercraft. Jones, Dilwyn. A Glossary of Ancient Egyptian Nautical Titles and Te-nns. London, 1988. This volume collects references to watercraft, their operators, and their operation from ancient texts. Jones, Dilwyn. Egyptian Bookshelf: Boats. London, 1995. General overview of evidence for Egyptian watercrait. Landstrom, B. Ships of the Pharaohs. London, 1970. Unsurpassed collection of pictorial evidence for Egyptian watercraft, but the interpretations are dated. Lipke, P. The Royal Ship of Cheops. Oxford, 1984. Detailed report on the reconstruction of the Khutu ship. Patch, D.C.. and C. Ward Haldane. The Pharaoh's Boat at the Carnegie. Pittsburgh, 1990. Investigation of the Middle Kingdom Egyptian boat at the Carnegie Museum. Vinson, Steve. Egyptian Boats and Ships. Buckinghamshire, 1994. Specialist information in an accessible, well-illustrated format. Ward, Cheryl. Sacred and Secular: Ancient Egyptian Ships and Boats. Boston, 1999. Examines cultural context, as well as physical characteristics, of twenty ancient hulls for specialists and nonspe-cialists. CHERYL WARD
SHIPWRECKED SAILOR. The Story of the Shipwrecked Sailor is one of the most mysterious and inspiring of all Egyptian texts, as the many publications and variety of interpretations confirm. Source of Attestation Date. The Shipwrecked Sailor is sourced in a single papyrus from the Middle Kingdom, the Papyrus Petersburg 1115. The period has now been widely established as most probably the twelfth dynasty. Less consensus exists with regard to the completeness of the papyrus and/or the account. While some scholars sup
port the existence of an original, longer papyrus, much speaks for the completeness of the text i tself, especially its contents and the logic of its composition. Contents. The story occurred in Thebes. A naval expedition to the south has obviously returned without success. Its leader, a nomarch, nameless as all other protagonists in the story, is afraid of having to report to the king. A follower tries to console him by telling the story of his own experience, which takes up most of the account: sole survivor of a shipwrecked expedition, he reaches an island ruled by a huge, 30 meter (100 foot) snake deity. The situation, which appears dangerous at first, soon turns to the good and the snake deity prophesies a safe return home for the shipwrecked sailor. The deity then begins to tell of its own fate as the presumed sole survivor among seventy-five snake deities after a cosmic catastrophe. (The fate that befell his daughter, especially mentioned in the tale, remains unclear.) The prophecy is fulfilled; the story ends in a sentence whose meaning has not been clearly established, leaving the question of the nomarch's ultimate fate unanswered and the overall meaning of the story open to interpretation. Meaning. The variety of interpretations reflects the puzzlement this story has generated: fairy tale, sailor's tale, teaching fable, eschatological story, allegory, royal propaganda writ, antiroyal opposition document, or text with esoteric knowledge. Accordingly, the island has been viewed as a real, fictional, or mythical place. The snake deity has been variously interpreted as a god of creation, a mythical creature, or even. as an embodiment of the king, while the shipwrecked sailor has been seen as an antihero or as a genuine adviser. The conclusion has been understood partially as positive/optimistic but also as negative/pessimistic. The numbers mentioned in the story (e.g., seventy-five snakes, four months' residence on the island) have been assessed as being incidental, without meaning/significance, or strongly symbolic (e.g. seventy-five manifestations of the sun king, annual cycle of seasons in four months, and more). Recent studies emphasize, above all, the ambiguity and many layers of the text, which allow for different approaches to interpretation that complement one another. In other words, the understanding of the text as a piece of entertaining literature or as a text with a "teaching character" (on whatever level and with whatever intention) would have depended on the education of the reader. Form. The complexity, and thus the literary value, of the story is also discernible from its carefully crafted composition: its character of a "story within a story within a story'" (i.e., functioning simultaneously on three levels in terms of time and logic) is generally recognized today as a structure that invests the story with a literary quality. Composed in verse and grouped in a first level as thought
SHU 285 couplets, the whole text is clearly divided into twenty "chapters" which are in turn structured in four major con-textually-coherent sections. Stylistic means such SiSparal-lelismus membromm or centered structure (the whole story is roughly based on an A-B-CD-C'-B'-A' pattern) are clearly evident throughout. BIBLIOGRAPHY Baines, John. "Interpreting the Story of the Shipwrecked Sailor." Journal of Egyptian Archaeology 76 (1990), 55-72. In-depth discussion of the different options for interpretation. Burkard, Gunter. Uberlegungen zur Form der ligyptischen lM.era.tur: Die Geschichte des Schiffbruchigen als literarisches Kunslwerk. Agypten undAltes Testament, 22. Wiesbaden, 1993. Completely revised translation of the Shipwrecked Sailor in the context of studying the structures of Egyptian literary texts; the poetic (verse) form of the text is reconstructed. Poster, John. "The Shipwrecked Sailor: Prose or Verse?" Studieu wr Alt&gyptischen Kultur 15 (1988), 69-109. Overall convincing reconstruction of the verse structure of the text with English translation. Kui-th, Dieter. "Zur Interpretation del- Geschichte des Schiffbruchi-gen." Studim zur Aitcigyptischen Kultur 14 (1987), 167-179. Especially important for the elaboration of different levels of interpretation. GUNTER BURKARD Translated from German by Elizabeth Schwaiger
SHU. As a member of the Heliopolitan Ennead, Shu was one of the eldest deities in the Egyptian pantheon. In the Heliopolitan cosmology, the creator god Atum created Shu and his female counterpart, Tefnut. This act of creation by Atum is described variously as having been accomplished by means of masturbation, by sneezing, or by spitting out these two deities. Thus, Shu and his sister-wife were the first, sexually differentiated gods in the Egyptian pantheon. As the first male god, Shu had warlike traits like Onuris and became associated with the pharaoh. Shu was a cosmic deity whose role in Egyptian religion, while hard to describe, was nevertheless essential for the existence of human life. Shu was the god of life; he was manifest in the wind, air, light, and water that were necessary for life to function. As a force of life, he was a creator who was present at birth. The acts of hearing and speaking were both associated with him. Typically, Shu was thought of as the god of dry air and represented as a man wearing a feather on his head. In depictions of the Egyptian cosmos, Shu was shown kneeling and lifting up the sky goddess Nut, separating her from her husband, the god of the earth, Geb. Shu's role was to support the heavens and to provide the space for life to develop on earth. It was Shu who separated darkness from light, and he was often perceived as a column of air, or as the empty space between heaven and earth. Shu's name (svv) meant "dryness" or "emptiness."
SHU. Blue glazed faience statuette of Shu, Ptolemaic period. (The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Rogers Fund, 1953. [53.122])
This empty space was not considered as a void, but rather an arena for the possibility of activity. Shu might also be envisioned as the rays of the sun. Shu was mentioned in his role as a creative life force in both the Pyramid Texts and the Coffin Texts, but is not well known outside these religious texts until after the New Kingdom, when Shu became connected with the gods Onuris, Khonsu, HOI-US, and Sopdu and was worshipped along with them in their local cults. He was listed in the Turin Canon of kings as one of the early divine rulers of Egypt before this role was assumed by a mortal man. A more detailed description of Shu's reign in Egypt was found on a shrine originally from Saft el-Henna that dates to the sixth to fourth centuries BCE. Shu was related to the ram-headed god of Mendes, Banebdjedet, whose identity incorporated the first four divine rulers of the world: Re, Shu, Geb, and Osiris. The main cult center of Shu and his consort Tefaut was at Tell el-Yahudiyya. The Greek name for this city was Leontopolis (the city of the lion), and Shu and Tefnut were worshiped here in leonine form. The local version of the Heliopolitan creation myth describes Shu and Tefnut as lion cubs who, when grown, guarded the eastern and
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western horizons, thus protecting the rising and the setting of the sun. Shu was also thought of as the offspring of the sun god, Re. BIBLIOGRAPHY Hornung, Erik. Idea into Image: Essays on Ancient Egypt Thought. Translated by Elizabeth Bredeck. New York, 1992. Morenz, Siegfried. Egyptian Religion. Translated by Ann E. Keep. Ithaca,1992. Quirke, Stephen. Ancient Egyptian Religion. London, 1992. te Velde, Herman. "Schu." In Lexikon der Agyptologie, 5: 735-737. Wiesbaden, 1984. JENNIFER HOUSER-WEGNER
SHUPPILULIUMAS. Hittite king, contemporary with Amenhotpe III and the following era, under Akhenaten, the Amama period. Shuppiluliumas—roughly "he who originated in the pure pool"— was the son of the unfortunate Tudkhaliash III, during whose reign the Hittite state had suffered considerable setbacks. By contrast, the reign of Shuppiluliumas is considered so successful as to represent the beginning of a new dynasty and the Hittite Empire. His accession date is uncertain but certainly fails in the last third of Amenhotpe Ill's reign (c.1380 BCE). Shuppiluliumas is the author of an Amarna Letter of uncertain date (EA 34) which indicates that the two lands were initially friendly. The first (and main) antagonist of Shuppiluliumas was the Mitannian monarch Tushratta, with whom he contended for control of northern Syria. In much of the minor turmoil reported to the Egyptians in the Amarna Letters one can see the consequences of the Hittites' struggles with the Mitannians, which had rippled throughout Syria-Palestine. The Hittite defeat of Tushratta in the "Great Syrian War" made Haiti the dominant power in northern Syria. Yet the decline of Mitanni and its replacement by the rump state of Khanigalbat also had the unintended consequence of liberating Assyria, then probably under the rule of Adad-nirari (I). Shuppiluliumas's Syrian ventures also brought Kadesh into the Hittite orbit. This town was to be a major focal point in later struggles between Egypt and Hatti. Another interesting event in Shuppiluliumas's reign was his marriage to a Babylonian princess, probably a daughter of Bumaburiash. She was given the name of Ta-wannannash and became the chief queen of the realm. Perhaps the most fateful (and enigmatic) incident in HittiteEgyptian relations during the reign of Shuppiluliumas occurred when he dispatched his son Zannanash to Egypt at the request of an Egyptian queen, almost certainly Tutankhamun's widow, who wished to marry a Hittite prince. Unfortunately, Zannanash was assassinated en route, and in a letter found at Boghazkoy, his father
threatens the Egyptians with war over what he views as Egyptian treachery. This event apparently led to about fifty years of conflict between the two powers, eventually culminating in the Battle of Kadesh. Shuppiluliumas may have fallen victim to a plague, possibly brought back to Hatti by Egyptian prisoners seized at Amqa. He was immediately succeeded by the crown prince, his son Aranwandash, who reigned briefly before another son, Murshilis I, assumed the throne. BIBLIOGRAPHY Beckman, G. Hittite Diplomatic Texts. Edited by H. A. I-Io&ier, Jr. (SBL Writings from the Ancient World, 7.) Atlanta, 1996. Contains a good selection from Hittite treaties and diplomatic correspondence, not only between Egypt and Hatti but also with other contemporary countries, Goetze, A. "The Struggle for the Domination of Syria (1400-1300 B.C.)." In Cambridge Ancient History, vol. 2, pt. 2, pp. 1-20. 3d ed. Cambridge, 1975. A good description of the history and society of the Hittite nation and its empire during the time of Shuppiluliumas. Murnane, W..I. The Road to Kadesh: A Historic Interpretation of the Battle Relief of King Si'ty I at Kaniak. 2d ed. Chicago, 1990. A wide-ranging study, primarily concemed with international affairs in tlie Near East at the time of Shuppiluliumas and the Amarna period. Moran, W. L. T/ie Amama Letters. Baltimore and London, 1992. The best translation of the Amarna coirespoiidence, providing much indirect evidence for the results of Shuppiluliumas's foreign policy. OGDEN GOELET
SIHEIL. See Aswan. SILVER. Although gold deposits from the Nile Valley contain relatively large amounts of silver, this prized metal was not available there in either the native state or in the high yield ores of silver sulfide or silver chloride. The silver-gold alloy called electrum, however, occurs naturally in both Egypt and Nubia, and this native alloy was often employed as a "white" metal. Such use is understandable since electrum visually mimics silver when the silver component approaches 20 percent of the alloy; it also darkens with age (oxidizes, as silver does), leading to the misidentification of much early silver-rich gold as pure silver. This confusion may also account for the Egyptian word for "silver" (nbw hd), which contains the hieroglyphs for both "gold" and "white." By the fifth dynasty (2510 BCE), the word was reduced to rJ.d, and it clearly refers to "silver," while dyn came to designate all grades of "electrum." The presence of small silver ornaments, notably beads, occurs in Neolithic archaeological finds from the Naqada II period. While some may have been imported, the majority were crafted in Egypt. The most likely source of imported silver was the Near East, an area rich in galena, an
SILVER 287 argentiferous lead ore. In the ancient Near East, silver was extracted from this lead ore through cupellation, a two-step process in which the lead was first separated from the ore, then silver extracted from the lead. The temperatures required were relatively low (800°C), as was the yield—a ton of smelted ore resulted in only a few ounces of silver. Egypt depended on foreign sources for work-ready silver, since in the Nile Valley silver refining did not occur until late in the first millennium BCE, with the adoption of coinage. Both textual and archaeological evidence indicate that silver entered Egypt through trade or as tribute from the Levant, Turkey, and Greece. Silver technology had been developed in that region around the fourth millennium BCE, and Sumerian texts indicate that its value was considerably less than that of copper. John Harris suggested (1961) that in Egypt, silver was more valuable than gold until the middle of the second millennium BCE, and that the relative value was 2:1. Silver's value then diminished, a result perhaps of increased production and its consequent devaluation in the ancient world's trade market. The lack of native silver did not prevent Egyptian metal-smiths from developing special skills in working the material, since many of the techniques employed by goldsmiths found ready application in silversmithing—melting, hammering, annealing, soldering, chasing, repousee, gilding, casting, wire making, and granulation. In wall scenes and other illustrations, workers of the prized "white" metal were often shown in tandem with other metalworkers, though not as frequently as goldsmiths were shown. Twenty silver bangles were included among the funerary equipment of Queen Hetepheres (fourth dynasty, c.2550 BCE), which testifies to the artisanry of Egyptian metalsmiths, as well as the status afforded silver. Those sheet-metal bracelets, found enclosed in a custom-fitted box, were inlaid with thin slices of camelian, turquoise, and lapis lazuli, colorfully arranged in a series of butterfly patterns. These stones were not set in the usual cloisonne manner (within thin wires), but were fitted into flat pockets made by depressing the silver sheet, after it was softened through annealing. As a result, the stones are flush with the surface—a feature often associated with inlays set into wood or stone. An analysis of the silver by Dr. H. E. Cox and A. Lucas in 1927 revealed: silver (90.1 percent), gold (8.9 percent), and copper (1.0 percent); there were trace amounts of lead. The burial goods of Queen Hetepheres included several exceptional gold vessels, as well as furniture lavishly decorated with gold sheet and appliques, but the quantity of silver was minimal (a finding that supports the theory' of silver's then high value). The Tod Treasure, a hoard that included 153 silver vessels and numerous silver and gold ingots, was found buried
near the foundation of a Middle Kingdom temple in Upper Egypt. The treasure was contained in four bronze boxes bearing the name of Amenemhet II (r. 1929-1895 BCE), and it may have included trade items or gifts from abroad. Vessels, crafted in the SyrianMinoan style, were found folded or crushed, suggesting that such worked silver was regarded as a raw material, to be reworked. The fact that silver was scarce and imported undoubtedly added to its allure, as did its symbolic associations. Linked with the moon, it was affiliated with the god Thoth and used to craft headdresses and amulets incorporating the lunar disk. Of even greater significance was silver's connection to "the bones of the gods," which may account for the large amount of the gilt silver (gold-coated silver) in Egypt (gold, "the flesh" of the gods would have covered "the bones"). An exceptional example of gilt silver is that of a royal pectoral, inlaid with glass and semiprecious stones, in the collection of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. Dated to the Second Intermediate Period (c. 1750 BCE), the jewel has a sheetmetal silver framework that was hammered to a thinness of only 1 millimeter. Electron-beam microprobe analysis of the metal by Richard New-man in 1990 indicated that the silver, probably derived from lead sulfide ore, was relatively pure, with small amounts of copper (2.5 percent), gold (0.3 percent), and lead (0.1 percent). Included among the Third Intel-mediate Period royal tombs at Tanis were a number of exceptional silver vessels, stands, the hawk-headed coffin of Sheshonq (r.931-910 BCE), and four miniature coffins inscribed for King Sheshonq II (c.850 BCE). The sheer quantity of silver utilized in these funerary items is indicative of the quantity of silver that was available to these Delta kings. Several silver vessels and implements from the Napa-tan burial of Queen Khensa, a sister and wife of King Piye (747-716 BCE), demonstrate the continued importance of silver in the Nile Valley during the first millennium BCE. One, a hemispherical container with half-covered top and twin spouts, while another, with vertical sides, is inscribed with the names of the queen. Somewhat later, in the twenty-fifth dynasty, the bejeweled alabastron of King As-pelta (593-568 BCE) was fashioned, a calcite vessel having a gilded silver collar with pendant drops and inlays of Egyptian blue and semiprecious stones. The jeweled decoration consists of a sheetsilver backplate with five ornamental registers fabricated from gilded silver strips that are soldered to the base. A microprobe analysis of the silver (base) revealed the following composition: silver (93.3-94.6 percent), gold (4.2-5.1 percent), and copper (1.81.9 percent). Throughout Greco-Roman Egypt, silver maintained its privileged status; like gold, it continued to be refined, made into coinage, and fabricated into luxury items.
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BIBLIOGRAPHY Gansicke, J. "King Aspelta's Vessel Hoard from Nuri in the Sudan." Journal of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston 6 (1994), 14-40. Harris, John. Lexicographical Studies in Ancient Egyptian Minerals. Berlin, 1961. Kemp, Barry, and Robert Merrillees. Minoan Potter}' in Second Millennium Egypt. Mainz, 1980. Kenclall, Timothy. Kush: Lost Kingdom of the Nile. Brockton, 1981. Lacovara, Peter. "An Ancient Egyptian Royal Pectoral." Journal of the Museum of fine Arts, Boston. 1 (1990), .18-29. Lucas, A,, and J. R. Harris. Ancient Egyptian Materials find Industries. London,1989. Moorey, P. R. S, Materials and Manufacture in Ancient Mesopotamia: The Evidence of Archaeology and Art. BAR International Series, 237,1985. Ogden, Jack. Jewellery of the Ancient World. New York, 1981. Schee), Bernd. Egyptian Metalworking and Tools. Aylesbury, 1989. An excellent introduction to ancient Egyptian metalworking. PETER LACOVARA AND YVONNE J. MARKOWrrZ
SINAI, a peninsula (including its eastern extension in the Negev) encompassing a triangular desert region, in which the Mediterranean coastal plain forms a land bridge that connects Africa and Western Asia. The peninsula's central continuous plateaus of Al-Tih and Egma and the southern mountainous region of Gebel Musa contain a mineral-bearing area bounded to the west by the Gulf of Suez, the Bitter Lakes, and the Wadi Tumilat, and to the east by the Gulf of Elat and the Rift Valley in southern Arabah (between Elat and the Dead Sea). In ancient times, the Nile River's annual inundation enabled the cultivation of cereal grains and other crops in the Nile Valley and the Nile Delta's flood plains, which supported a large population, in contrast to the neighboring Sahara and Sinai deserts; these became progressively more arid and less populated after the Predynastic period (4000-3050 BCE). The Sinai provided a geographic filter through which materials and sociocultural exchanges passed between Egypt and the Near East, but it also formed a sufficient barrier to allow for the early development of a distinct Nile Valley civilization, one which evolved throughout antiquity. Despite the Sinai's desert terrain, greater precipitation and open mountain scrub forests occur near its southern end and many springs and oases (e.g., Wadi Feiran) have supported continuous, albeit small and fluctuating, nomadic and sedentary populations. Throughout antiquity, both Egyptians and bedouins mined turquoise and copper in the southern Sinai (including copper in southern Arabah). Tn contrast, the northern Sinai maintained relatively higher populations, and it became both a strategic region that protected Egypt from invasions and a military and commercial route that connected Egypt with Arabia and Palestine. Historical Overview. The Sinai contains many seasonal campsites that have been dated to the Paleolithic
(700,000-5500 BCE), the Neolithic (5500-4000 BCE; Egypt's Badarian and Faiyum A cultures), the Chalcolithic (4000-3300 BCE; Egypt's Naqada I and II), the Early Bronze I (3300-3050 BCE; Egypt's Naqada II and III), and the Early Bronze II (3050-2687 BCE; Egypt's first dynasty and second). Nevertheless, Egyptian contact with Western Asia (the Near East) is not well attested until the late Predynastic (Naqada II and III) and the first dynasty. During those periods, Egyptian artifacts (e.g., flint knives, ceramic vessels, stone vessels, and items with royal names in serekh frames) appeared in Palestine and at many of the 30 Chalcolithic and the 250 Early Bronze I and II campsites in the northern Sinai. In the southern Sinai, Egyptian Predynastic potsherds were about 1 percent of the pottery found at two Chalcolithic sites and seven Early Bronze I and II sites. In addition, the presence in Egypt of Syrian-Palestinian and Mesopotamia!! material culture (e.g., pottery, cylinder seals, and architectural and artistic elements), plus items of turquoise and of copper, confirm that Egypt maintained contact with the Near East (through the northern Sinai) and with the southern Sinai during the Predynastic period and the first dynasty. By the second dynasty, however. Near Eastern artifacts decreased in Egypt, paralleling the decline in Sinai sites of Egyptian pottery. Old Kingdom. The nature and extent of early Old Kingdom relations with the northern Sinai await clarification, since few Early Bronze III (2687-2374 BCE) sites are attested in this region; sixth dynasty pottery (e.g., Late Mei-dum vessels) and First Intermediate Period activity occurred at many of the 280 Early Bronze IV to Middle Bronze I (2374-1991 BCE) sites in the northern Sinai. Some Egyptian accounts (e.g., the sixth dynasty Biography of Weni) refer to Old Kingdom raids across the northern Sinai into Palestine, while late First Intermediate Period texts (e.g., the Admonitions oflpuwer and Instructions for Merikare) mention West Asian incursions into the Nile Delta after the Old Kingdom's collapse. Old Kingdom activity has been well attested in the southern Sinai. The Wadi Mughara (termed the "terraces of the turquoise") contains camps, copper-smelting sites, turquoise mines, and rock tablets that were dated to the kings of the third dynasty to the sixth. The Mughara tablets depicted some Egyptian deities that were worshiped in Sinai: a goddess (possibly Hathor), a jackal figure (Wepwawet, "opener of the ways"), and an ibis-headed figure (Thoth, "lord of the foreign countries"). To the northeast, Wadi Kharig yields a mining camp and an inscription of Sahure from the fifth dynasty. Egyptian activity disappeared from the southern Sinai during the First Intermediate Period. Middle Kingdom. In the Middle Kingdom and in the Second Intermediate Period, Egyptian pottery and some sherds of Tell elYahudiyya ware were found at five settle-
SINAI 289
SINAI. Remains of the temple ofHathor at Serabit el-KJiadim in the Suwi. Various stelae are still standing; mining expeditions dedicated them to the goddess Hathor, who was associated with turquoise. (Courtesy Dieter Arnold)
ments in northwestern Sinai and at many of some one hundred campsites in north-central and northeastern Sinai. Egyptian texts, such as the Story of Sinuhe and the Prophecy of Neferti, record Amenemhet Is establishment of fortifications ("The Wall of the Ruler") in northwestern Sinai, possibly at Tell Heboua and/or at Tell er-Retabeh in the Wadi Tumilat. Later Egyptian texts (e.g., the Kamose Stelae) mention the infiltration and control of the Delta and Middle Egypt by Near Easterners (the fifteenth dynasty Hyksos, called "foreign rulers"). The Hyksos controlled a fortress 350 by 400 metres (some 1,140 by 1,320 feet) at Tell Heboua, which produced two stelae of King Apophis (r. 1605-1565 BCE). Middle Kingdom activity intensified in the southern Sinai. Mughara was found to contain rock inscriptions of Amenemhet III and IV near the turquoise mines. Wadi Kharig had an inscription of Senwosret I beside a camp and two turquoise mines. Wadi Nasb contained a stela of Amenemhet III and a possible thirteenth dynasty cartouche (of Sobekhotpe II?). Rod el-'Air yielded Middle Kingdom graffiti and a nearby campsite. Serabit el-Khadim contained statuary and inscriptions of Amenemhet I through Amenemhet IV from the turquoise mines and a temple to Hathor ("Lady of the turquoise").
During the Second Intermediate Period and early eighteenth dynasty. West Asian (Hyksos?) activity in the southern Sinai may be attested through the presence of some sherds of Tell elYahudiyya ware and some Hyksos-style scarab seals at Serabit elKhadim. In addition, Mughara, Wadi Nasb, and Serabit el-Khadim have perhaps thirty-five undeciphered Proto-Sinaitic inscriptions, including one stela that depicts an Egyptian mummiform deity (Ptah). Proto-Sinaitic is a script used to write a Semitic language (with twenty-seven to twenty-nine consonantal, pictorial signs, of which twenty-three to twenty-six derive from Egyptian hieroglyphs); it resembles the Proto-Canaanite alphabet of 18001500 BCE. New Kingdom. Early in the eighteenth dynasty, Ah-mose captured the Sinai fortress of Tjaru, defeated the Hyksos at Avar-is (Tell ed-Dab'a), and conducted three campaigns against Sharuhen (Tell el-'Ajjul?) in southwestern Palestine. Ahmose then initiated the New Kingdom "empire" (albeit in the form of raids rather than occupation forces prior to Thutmose III) in the northern Sinai and in Syria-Palestine, and he renewed Egyptian turquoise mining and copper smelting in the southern Sinai. New Kingdom texts designated the northern Sinai as the "Ways of Horus," which included a series of forts and res-
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ervoirs depicted by Sety I at Kamak Temple. More than one hundred and fifty New Kingdom sites are between el-Qantara and Raphia in northern Sinai and numerous sites in northeastern Sinai form ten clusters, with a central fortress or administrative structure, a reservoir, magazines, and satellite campsites. Three New Kingdom sites at Tell Heboua (l-III) straddle a causeway between the western and eastern lagoons (probably TJ dnit: "the dividing waters"), possibly representing Tjaru (erroneously equated with Tell Abu Sefah, the Romans' Sile). The "eastern" canal, found several kilometers to the southeast, may also be dated to this period. The eastern frontier fortifications included Ramessid forts at Tell er-Retabeh (Wadi Tumilat) and Kom el-Quizoum (today's Port Suez; Ptolemaic Clysma). The Isthmus of Suez aiso contained in situ, albeit possibly reused, gateway blocks of Ramesses II at Serapeum; a stone shrine of Sety I and a stela of Ramesses II at Gebel Abu Hassa; a stela of Ramesses II at Gebel Mourr; and New Kingdom (?) or later (Roman) activity at Ain Moussa (e.g., a shawabti funerary figurine). Those sites facilitated maritime and overland expeditions to an eighteenth dynasty anchorage and pharaonic site (numbers 345 and 346) in el-Merkha Bay, from which ancient expeditions accessed Mughara and Serabit elKhadim. Another route to el-Merkha Bay traversed the Eastern Desert via Wadi Araba to cross the Red Sea. Later biblical texts recount the Exodus of the Hebrews (Israelites) from Egypt, a crossing of the "Reed-Sea" (the Bitter Lakes [?]), and a sojourn in the Sinai. Egyptian sources however, contain no references to the Exodus, and its date and details remain controversial there. The earliest reference to Israel and its destruction in Palestine (c.1232 BCE) is found on Merenptah's Hymn of Victory stela ("Israel Stela"). New Kingdom activity concentrated at Wadi Nasb and Serabit el-Khadim, in contrast to Mughara, which yielded one inscription dated to Queen Hatshepsut and Thutmose III, plus a reported, albeit unconfirmed, inscription of Ramesses II. Wadi Nasb contained a copper mine, two furnaces, luyeres, slag heaps with New Kingdom faience, and an inscription of Ramesses IT. Rod el-'Air produced some graffiti. The plateau at Serabit el-Khadim yielded twenty turquoise mines with two inscriptions of Thutmose IV. Mines G and L contained copper-smelting tools (e.g., two stone foot-bellows and tuyeres), forty-seven stone molds (for metal axes, adzes, knives, chisels, mirrors, and ingots), stone tools, stone containers, a faience bowl, and New Kingdom potsherds. The plateau also yielded a small shrine of Ptah (with three stelae dedicated to Hathor), the Hathor Temple, and five sandstone quarries used for this temple's construction. New Kingdom expeditions repaired and embellished
the Middle Kingdom shrines of Hathor ("Lady of the Turquoise") and Sopdu ("Lord of the East") and constructed a western series of chambers (with Hathor-headed columns and pairs of stelae) and an enclosure wall, during the reigns of Amenhotpe I, Hatshepsut and Thutmose III, Amenhotpe II, Thutmose IV, Amenhotpe III, Sety I, Ramesses II, Merenptah, Sethnakhte, and Ramesses III, IV, and VI. The temple yielded royal and private stelae and statuary, as well as votive items: beads (from necklaces), bracelets, scarabs, figurines, plaques, sistra, throw-sticks, and containers of alabaster (calcite), faience, glass, and pottery (including Mycenaean and Cypriot potsherds). Many votives bore the cartouches of most New Kingdom rulers from Ahmose through Ramesses VI (including an unpublished votive of Horemheb), but excluded were Amenhotpe IV (Akhenaten), Semkhkare, Tutankhamun, Ay, and Amenmesse. From the nineteenth dynasty to the twentieth, expeditions initiated copper mining and smelting at Wadi Re-qeita (in southeastern Sinai) and in southern Arabah. The Arabah contained a rock inscription at Timna, from the time of Ramesses II, and one from Ramesses III at Site 582, as well as a Hathor shrine at Site 200, which produced votives with the cartouches of Sety I, Ramesses II, Merenptah, Sety II, Queen Tawosret, and Ramesses III, IV, and V. Late in the twentieth dynasty (in the time of Ramesses VII to XI) and in the twenty-first to twenty-fifth dynasty, evidence of Egyptian activity disappeared from the southern Sinai and declined in the northern Sinai, which retained settlement at Retabeh, at some sites in northwestern Sinai, and at thirty Iron Age sites between Wadi el-•Arish and Wadi Ghazzeh. The Negev and Gulf of Elat, however, became an important region that linked SyriaPalestine with the Arabian spice trade. Epigraphic evidence indicates that Egypt conducted military activity into Palestine during the reigns of Siamun, Sheshonq I (who also invaded the Negev), Osorkon I (biblical Zerah?), Osorkon II, Shabtaqa, and Taharqa. Late period. The Assyrian kings Sargon II (722-705 BCE) and Sennacherib (705-681 BCE) expanded their empire into southern Palestine, subjugating Arab tribes in northeastern Sinai in 720, 716, and 701 BCE. They were succeeded by King Esarhaddon, who failed to invade Egypt in 674 BCE, but who in 671 BCE captured the Nile Delta as far south as Memphis. His successor, Ashurbani-pal, invaded Egypt in 667 and 664 BCE, during which he restricted the Kushite kingdom to Nubia and established the vassal ruler Necho I at Sais in the Delta. The Saite Dynasty rulers Psamtik I and Necho II renewed Egypt's domination of Syria-Palestine between 612 and 601 BCE, while, according to the Greek historian Herodotus, Necho built a trireme shipping base on the Red
SINAI 291 Sea. Northwestern Sinai contained Saite forts at Tell De-fenneh, Tell Qedwa, and Tell el-Maskhuta (Pi thorn), and occupation continued at thirty sites in northeastern Sinai. The aforementioned eastern canal may have been used in this period, since it connected Defenneh and Qedwa. In 601 and 568 BCE, the Babylonian empire destroyed the forts at Qedwa and Maskhuta but failed to capture the Delta. King Cambyses crossed the northern Sinai and defeated Egypt in 525 BCE, initiating the First Persian Occupation of Egypt (the twenty-seventh dynasty, 525-^405 BCE). The Persians established more than two hundred settlements in northern Sinai and extended a canal from Maskhuta to the Red Sea. Despite a renewal of Egyptian independence from the twenty-eighth to the thirtieth dynasty, the Persian Empire reoccupied Egypt from 343 BCE until Alexander the Great occupied it in 332 BCE. Greco-Roman times. During Greco-Roman times (332 BCE395 CE), settlements in the northern Sinai increased to more than three hundred sites (ports, fortresses, and waystations). The southern Sinai regained its importance as a source of turquoise and it has yielded numerous Na-bataean and Aramaean inscriptions at places such as Wadi Mukhattab (near Mughara) and Wadi Hesif esSeghair (near Serabit el-Khadim). The Hathor temple at Serabit elKhadim produced some (probably) Late period amulets, a Roman potsherd, an early Roman glass sherd, and an inscribed Meroitic offering table (c.300 BCE-350 CE). By the fourth century CE, the southern Sinai had become a refuge for hermits and a destination for pilgrims visiting settlements in Wadi Feiran, the Monastery of Saint Catherine (Mount Sinai), and other sites ascribed to the Hebrew sojourn in the Sinai. [See also Eastern Desert and Red Sea.] BIBLIOGRAPHY Andelkovic, Branislaii. The. Relations between Early Brom.e Age I: Canaanites and Upper Egyptians. The University of Belgrade, Centre for Archaeological Research, 14. Belgrade, 1995. Examines the presence of imported Early Bronze I Egyptian and Canaanite artifacts in Palestine and Egypt; provides good bibliography, maps, site plans, and line drawings of artifacts. Also includes sites in the Nile Delta, the northern Sinai, and the Negev. Beit-Arieh, Itzhaq. "Serabit el-Khadim: New Metallurgical and Chronological Aspects." Levant 17 (1985), 89-116. Deals with copper-smelting technology and artifacts from Mines G and L at Serabit el-Khadim; discusses the association between the Proto-Sinaitic inscriptions and copper-smelting activity. Bowersock, Glen W. Roman Arabia. Cambridge, Mass., 1983. Includes Nabataean. and Roman activity in the Sinai and Negev; lias maps, site plans, photographs, and a good bibliography. Chartier-Raymond, M., et al. "Les sites miniers pharaoniques du Sud-Sinai: Quelques notes et observations de terrain." Colliers de recher-ches de I'lnstitut de papyrologie et d'Egyptologie de Lille 16 (1994), 31-77. Concerns a 1991 survey of ancient Egyptian turquoise and copper-mining sites, with bibliographical entries in the footnotes;
also contains a report by D. Valbelle on a. 1993 expedition to Serabit elKhadim. Articles are summarized in English. Fontaine, Alfred L. Monographic cartogra.phique de i'lsthine de Suez, de la Peninsule du Sinai, du nord de. la chains. arabujue suivie d'un catalogue raisonne sur les cartes de ces regions. Memoires de la so-ciete d'Etudes historiques et geographiques, de 1'Isthme de Suez, 2. Cairo, 1955. Useful cataloging of published maps of the Sinai Peninsula; good bibliography, historical background to cartographic work in this region, descriptions of the sites on the maps, and an index to sites and explorere. Gardiner, Alan H., and T. Eric Peet. The Inscriptions of Sinai. Part II: Translations and Commentary. Edited and completed by Jaroslav Cernv. Memoir of the Egypt Exploration Society, 45. London, 1955. This publication provides a well-referenced study with ancient Egyptian names for Sinai, routes, the composition of expeditions, mining techniques, and a catalog of translated inscriptions from Magharah, Wadi Nasb, Wadi Kharig (Kharit), Rod el-'Air, and Serabit el-Khadim. Gardiner, Alan H., and T. Eric Peet. The Inscriptions of Sinai. Part I: Introduction and Plates. 2d rev. ed. by Jaroslav Cerny. Memoir of the Egypt Exploration Society, 36. London, 1952, Represents the correction of and addition to inscriptions illustrated in the first edition, during the 1930 and 1935 Harvard University expeditions to Serabit el-Khadim. Giveon, Raphael. The Stones of Sinai Sprnk. Tokyo, 1978. Well-illustrated general treatment of the history of exploration and explorers in Sinai, Egyptian mining at Wadi Maghara and Serabit el-Khadim, Egyptian deities worshiped in Sinai, an overview of Gi-veon's survey and excavations, some new plans of Egyptian camps, and some new inscriptions. Gophna, Ram. Excavations at 'En Besor. Tel Aviv, 1995. Republication of 16 articles written between 1976 and 1993; includes recent summary and some new discussions of the excavations of the Early Bronze I site of 'En Besor in southern Palestine on the northeastern edge of the Sinai; Egyptian activity is mentioned at this site. Good bibliographies deal with the First Dynasty in the Sinai and southern Palestine. Pinch, Geraktine. Votive Offerings to Halhor. Oxford, 1993. Examines several categories of artifacts and aspects of the Hathor cult at sites in Egypt and Sinai (Timna and Serabit el-Khadim); incorporates many unpublished items (from Museum collections) excavated at Serabit elKhadirn. Rainey, Anson F. Egypt, Israel, Sinai: Archaeological and Historical Relationships in the Biblical Period. Tel Aviv, 1987. Eight articles deal with Egyptian activity and interrelations with Canaanites, including two treatments of the Hebrew Exodus. Bedford, Donald B. Egypt, Canaan, and Israel in Ancient Times. Princeton, 1992. Provides a recent examination of archaeological and epigraphic evidence on the nature and extent of Egyptian contact with West Asia across the Sinai, from the Palaeolithic to 586 BCE: contains a new study on the Hebrew Exodus. Rothenberg, Beno, et al. The Efyplian Mining Temple at Timna. Researches in the Arabah 1959-1984, 1. London, 1988. Well-illustrated publication of the excavations at an Egyptian New Kingdom shrine at Timna, with historical background, technical articles, special studies, and catalogs of the pottery, objects, textiles, wood, faunal, and floral remains. Extensive bibliography for each section. Sass, Bejamin. The Genesis of the Alphabet and Its Development in the Second Millennium B.C. Agypten und Altes Testement, 13. Wiesbaden, 1988. Includes an extensive examination of the Proto-Sinaitic inscriptions; has a good bibliography. Stern, Ephraim, ed. The New Encyclopedia of Archaeological Excavations in the Holy Land. 4 vols. 2d rev. ed. New York, 1993. Exten-
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sively revised and many new detailed articles on the Paleolithic to the Arab eras, good bibliographies, maps, plans, and photographs for sites and region in Palestine and the Sinai Peninsula. GREGORY D. MUMFORD
SINUHE. The Story ofSinuhe is preserved in five Middle Kingdom manuscripts, including two from Thebes, and more than twenty New Kingdom copies, including scribal exercises, which present slightly different versions of the text. The text is complete; the number of surviving manuscripts is high for a fictional narrative, suggesting that Sinuhe was highly regarded. The earliest manuscript is the Theban Papyrus Berlin 3022, from the second half of the twelfth dynasty. The story's setting and eulogistic elements may suggest that it was composed shortly after the end of the reign of Senwosret I. It is approximately 570 metrical lines of verse long. The narrative is introduced as the funerary autobiography of Sinuhe, a courtier whose service began under Amenemhet I: The Patrician and Count, Governor of the Sovereign's Domains in the Lands of the Asiatics [Near East] the True Acquaintance of the King, whom he loves, the Follower Sinuhe, says . .. The following first-person narrative includes a particularly wide range of other genres, including ritual songs and dramatic monologues. It is written in verse, with high-flown diction, and in a self-consciously fine style which is consistently varied, subtle, and resonant. The forty stanzas can be divided into five thematic sections. In the first section of the tale, the expected pattern of a courtier's ideal life is shattered when Sinuhe overhears of the sudden death of Amenemhet I, and he flees abroad, where he eventually establishes himself in the Palestinian kingdom of Retjenu. The second section is occupied by his conversation with the ruler of Retjenu, Amunenshi, in which he affirms and extols the glory of the new king, Senwosret I. In the central section he tells how success abroad under Amunenshi's favor failed to bring him happiness, and the fourth section comprises an exchange of letters between Senwosret I and Sinuhe, in which the latter is exonerated from blame for his flight and is summoned back to Egypt. The final section recounts his homecoming with a lyrical ritual in the royal court, in which he is reestablished and reborn as a true Egyptian. The mockinscription concludes as he is buried in the royal necropolis. There are touches of local color in Sinuhe's experiences abroad, and the tale presents the conflict between Egyptian and foreign values, which is articulated in the struc
turally central duel between Sinuhe and a Palestinian rival. With an emphasis on personal reflection, the tale offers an introspective assessment of Egyptian cultural values. Much of it centers on the question of Sinuhe's motivation, in particular what led him to flee—a question that is continually left unresolved and is developed with a theodic aspect. Sinuhe has frequently been discussed in connection with propaganda, but the propagandistic elements are integrated into a complex and multivalent whole. The tale has been much anthologized and analyzed; originally regarded as a copy of a historical inscription, it is now widely valued as the masterpiece of Middle Kingdom fictional literature. It is the subject of an article that marked a turning point in the Egyptological analysis of literary texts: John Baines's "Interpreting Sinuhe" (1982). BIBLIOGRAPHY Baines, John. "Interpreting Sinuhe." Journal of Egyptian Archaeology 68 (1982), 31-44. A landmark in the study of Egyptian literature. Barns, John W. B. The Ashnwiean Ostracon ofSinuhe. London, 1952. Edition of one manuscript with philological commentary. Blumenthal, Elke. "Die Erzahlung des Sinuhe." In Mythen und Epen, vol. 3, edited by Elke Blurnenthal et al., pp. 884-911. (Texte aus der Umwelt des Alten Testament, III.5.) Gutersloh, 1995. Translation with Full bibliography. Gardiner, Alan H. Notes on the Story ofSinuhe. Paris, 19)6. Early philological commentary, still of value. Koch, Roland. Die Erzahlimg des Sinuhe. (Bibliotheca Aegyptiaca, 17.) Brussels, 1990. Standard edition of the text. Parkinson, R. B. The Tale ofSinuhe and Other Ancient Egyptian Poems 1940-1640 BC. Oxford, 1997. Recent translation, pp. 21-53. Simpson, William K. "Sinuhe." In lexicon der Agyptologie 5: 950-55. R. B. PARKINSON
SISTRUM derives from Greek seiein ('to shake') and is a musical instrument, a rattle that is shaken. As a sacred rattle, it is used in the divine cult, in religious processions, and in funerary cults. It was used from the Old Kingdom and was still popular in Roman times, so its use spread with the cult of Isis wherever the Romans went. The sound of the sistrum is metallic, produced by a number of metal disks, strung onto a set of transverse bars, set horizontally into a frame of varying design. Its sound was thought to echo that of a stem of papyrus being shaken. The papyrus plant is at the base of the mythological environment of the sistrum—the papyrus thicket from which, on the one hand, the cow-goddess Hathor is seen to emerge and where, on the other, the goddess Isis raised her infant son, Horus. Both goddesses are closely connected with the sistrum. In addition to the symbolic significance of its sound, the shape and decoration of the sistrum relate it to the divine. The two main types are the arched sistrum, made of metal, and the wads-shaped sistrum, usually made of
faience. The handle of the arched form is either plain, in the shape of a papyrus stem (most common), or in the shape of a miniature column adorned with the head of the goddess Hathor. The god Bes may also be molded as part of the handle. The frame holding the horizontal metal rods with their disks is a parabolic loop. Known from the eighteenth dynasty, yet based on earlier prototypes for which we have the hieroglyphic designation but no picture, the arched sistrum was called shrn or ib. In the nao^'-shaped sistrum, the upper portion is in the shape of a sanctuary or door, across which the metal rods are placed. The handle of this instrument usually has the decoration of a Hathor head, and the pair of volutes flanking the door are shaped like the cows' horns of the goddess. A vulture may crown the naos, and the handle may be covered with the incised plumage of the bird. This type of sistrum whose acoustic effects would be extremely limited, was known as ss, ssst, or ssst, reflecting its primeval musical roots. The symbolic value of the sistrum far exceeded its musical potential. The decoration sometimes included the royal uraeus (cobra), referring to the myth of the Solar Eye. In this myth, Hathor is in her role as the rebellious daughter of Re, to be appeased by music and dance. Based on this proven effect of the instrument, the sistrum was, from the New Kingdom on, the instrument that pacified and satisfied any deity, whether female such as Hathor, or male. In the temple of Amun-Re at Kamak, a nao.s'-shaped sistrum was a prime cult object, perhaps through its connection0 to Hathor, who sometimes represented the female procreative element needed to sustain his virility. In Late period representations, the sistrum was held by priestesses adoring the deity face to face; this intimicy was a female prerogative. Other deities, too, benefited from the presence of the sistrum. As the sistrum reflected in such a visible manner the presence of the gods, it is no wonder that in the Amama era, it was virtually deprived of decoration, except for the papyrus handle. But it is significant that it was held by the queen or the princesses during the cult of Aten, the sun disk. The instrument belonged in the realm of cosmic deities. According to the ancient Greek historian Plutarch, the sistrum's arch was the lunar cycle, the bars were the elements, the twin Hathor heads rendered life and death, and the cat—often included in the decoration—was the moon. Many of these instruments carry the names of royal persons. When the sistrum is depicted, it was often in the hands of royal family members. In the Sfory ofSinuhe we learn that the princesses received him with music and song. The musical instruments were not refined wind or string instruments, but the sistrum. In the Westcar Papyrus, when the goddesses dress up as itinerant musicians
SLAVES 293 to gain access to the birth chamber of the mother of the children of Re, they, too, accompany themselves only by the sistrum. The sistrum was suitable for beating a rhythmical accompaniment in open-air processions. Apuleius, the Roman philosopher, described a procession in honor of Isis, in The Golden Ass, where the rhythmic pattern was three beats followed by a pause on the fourth. In more remote times, such as the religious feasts celebrated in Thebes during the New Kingdom, we also find groups of women shaking sistrums in honor of the divine procession. These celebrations were for Amun-Re, such as the Opet festival depicted on the walls of the Luxor temple or the Valley Festival rendered in countless Theban tombs. The world of the funerary cult is depicted in the Valley Festival, for the sistrum is seen presented to the tomb owner and his wife by their daughters. In fact, "bringing" and "receiving" were the key words, rather than making music or maintaining a beat, for the blessings that Hathor bestowed were the focus of the ceremony: the feeling of well-being and eternal life. The scenes show the sistrum often carried by its loop, looking similar to the ankh, the sign of life, of which it may be seen to be an equivalent. Closely connected with sistrum playing is Ihy, the infant born of the union between the sky goddess Hathor of Dendera and the god of light Horus of Edfu. Through his music he performed the part of intermediary between the adorer and the goddess. The sistrum is frequently paired with the menat, a heavy necklace that when grasped by its inverted keyhole-shaped counterpoise, would produce a variant rattling sound. The use of the sistrum has survived in the Coptic church, where it is directed at the four cardinal points, to demonstrate the extent of God's creation. BIBLIOGRAPHY Manniche, Use. Music and Musicians in Ancient Egypt. London, 1991. Chapter 3, "Music for the Gods," includes mention of the role of the sistrum. Ziegler, Christiane. "Sistrum" in Lexicon der Agyptologie, 5: 958-963. Wiesbaden, 1984. LISE MANNICHE
SIXTH DYNASTY. See Old Kingdom, article on Sixth Dynasty.
SLAVES. In human society, everyone who has a master or a lord is the servant or slave of that master or that lord. Few are without a lord (human or divine), so everybody is basically someone's servant or slave. Typically, in ancient Egypt, a priest was a god's slave (hmntr); a subordinate
294 SLAVES in a nobleman's domain was the servant or slave in the lord's private estate (byk n pr-dt); or the slave/servant of the lord's ka (hm-k^); and so on. Correspondingly, a social inferior when addressing a superior often used the polite circumlocution "the servant/slave here" (byk im), designating the speaker. Conspicuously, one important title of pharaoh is l}m ("body"), which etymologically might mean the slave/servant par excellence (of the gods). Anyone might be called the slave/servant of a god. The consequence of such usage was that native terminology may be misleading to scholars. In reading Egyptian texts, therefore, context is the only criterion for determinating connotation. While interpreting documents the different forms of servitude must be considered, according to the various rights and services of the human involved. Unfree people might include not only slaves but also, in fact, others with various degrees of encumbered liberty. Therefore, a slave was the person owned by a master, as was any other chattel—used as the master pleased—to the extent of being disposed of by inheritance, gift, sale and so forth. In documents, groups have been recognizable by the collective noun mr.(y)t (written with the hoe-sign). Those groups belonged to individuals and institutions (e.g., temples). Since the Old Kingdom, they were frequently mentioned along with land and cattle. In the Middle Kingdom, they could be acquired by bequest or another arrangement. In the New Kingdom, they could be recruited from captives or given in an endowment. Their apparently permanent relationship to the land and their master suggests that they were a type of slave. A similar term, mr.t (written with the canal-sign), denoted other groups who were seemingly not in connection with land and cattle but who were assigned to individuals and institutions. Individuals from such groups have not been identified, unless they were identical with the king's slaves {hm-w nswit) who, during the Middle Kingdom, were often transferred to estates of priests, nobles, and officials. The king's slaves had to work for their master and were considered his property. Their occupations were not confined to agriculture, as they were also employed in households. With the passage of time, their children undoubtedly inherited their status of servitude. The principal and oldest cause of slavery was capture in war. In ancient Egypt, the general rule was that all captives—not only those from fighting forces—become a royal resource. The king could then resettle them in colonies for labor; he had equally the right to grant some of them to temples and to meritorious individuals; also they might be booty for his soldiers who had showed bravery in the field. The captives thus assigned to an individual could be as many as nineteen slaves, both male and female. Temples might receive unlimited numbers—inscriptions abound in references to many thousands. (Al
though the evidence dates to the New Kingdom, this state might have prevailed earlier). In the Brooklyn Papyrus of the Middle Kingdom, Near Easterners ('ym)—men and women—were interspersed with Egyptian servants, outnumbering them. They seem to have been more highly regarded than the Egyptians— a distinction stemming, perhaps, from the fact that as prisoners of war or descendants thereof they belonged to a social stratum superior to that of Egyptians servants, most of whom were probably people who had committed unlawful acts or their descendants. A trade in (possibly captured) people from foreign countries was also possible. The Bologna Papyrus of the New Kingdom reports that Near Eastern slaves (hm w) were brought to Egypt on a ship. Another type of enslavement was that of the birth child of a slave mother, whether or not the father was free. Such slaves could have been the offspring of a union between master and slave. Fatal exposure of undesired newborn children was not infrequently practiced in Egypt and the Near East; it has also been attested in Greco-Roman Egypt. Foundlings were ownerless property who might be picked up to become slaves. Yet the extant documents afford no evidence of such a practice during pharaonic times. Some slaves were originally free persons who, having committed illicit acts, were forced to forfeit their liberty, perhaps with spouse and children. The status of slavery could, moreover, be created through self-sale into servitude, as several Demotic papyri of the sixth century BCE illustrate. Some were drawn into contractual terms of sale, whereby the persons involved (man or woman) undertook to become (along with their children) the slave of a master. As this procedure was familiar in common law, such contracts are best explained as self-enslavements in satisfaction of debt. If the debtor was unable to pay oft' the debt, the creditor discharged the debt by acquiring the debtor as a slave. In fact, such contracts revealed the person giving up, in addition, all that he owned. Information about slave-dealing in ancient Egypt is scanty, though sale of slaves was not an uncommon business. There was no public market but instead dealers appear to be itinerant, approaching their customers personally. The transaction itself, with a document containing clauses usually used in sales of valuable commodities, had to be performed before officials or a local council (qnbt). From an inscription narrating the acquisition of some fields with thirty-five slaves (men and women), the inference is that the administration held special registers for slaves. Furthermore, a special tax was probably paid on the occasion; one known transaction was negotiated before the treasury scribe (in the Leiden Papyrus; 727 BCE). The price of slaves varied. In the Leiden inscription, thirty-two slaves (privately handled) were valued at 1 de-ben and 1/3 kite in silver. During the twenty-fifth dynasty
SLAVES 295 and the twenty-sixth, the average price was about 2.9 de-bens. In Ramessid times, a dealer received goods at 4 debens and 1 kite. for a young Syrian girl (according to the Cairo Papyrus). Although the slave is a personal chattel, forming part of the master's property and although the master enjoys a number of rights, she or he was under some obligations. So, upon acquiring a girl, her mistress gave her a name. The mistress nourished the slave children and brought them up. On a statue of a man with his wife was depicted, as a token of affection, their young slave (Theban tomb 216). From the contents of an eighteenth dynasty letter: child slaves were not allowed to be set to hard work. The master might exploit, at discretion, the abilities of the slave, employing the slave in domestic service (as guardian of children, cook, brewer, washer, etc.), as gardener or fieldhand, in a stable, as a craftsman or otherwise industrially (as weaver, sandalmaker, etc.). The master might also make the slave leam a trade so as to better benefit from any skill. One of the items in an inheritance consisted of some trade agents (swt.yw), who presumably were trained slaves. When a master caused a servant/slave to leam to write, a slave could be promoted to a manager in the master's estate. As to the groups called mr (y)t, those were organized in fieldwork under the supervision of overseers. Captive slaves, however, were mostly assigned to the king and the temples, and their status entailed manual labor. The master was also entitled to dispose of a slave by a legal act. It is significant that slave services were often transferred in favor of religious endowments. King Apries of the twenty-sixth dynasty, for example, decreed that a district near Memphis be dedicated to the god Ptah, together with its slaves (mr l), cattle, and their produce. An individual might also create an endowment and furnish it with resources, as did the eighteenth dynasty overseer of Amun's domain, Sen-mut, with respect to certain offerings. He ceded fields and at least two slaves (male and female hm) for baking bread and brewing beer. On an eleventh dynasty stela, Intef recorded two deeds that were made with two men for the celebration of certain ceremonies in his favor after his death: he gave twenty packages (?) of cloth to one man and ten to the other, besides a man and a maid (slaves) for each, along with other privileges. On his statue Amun-mes, the steward of Amun's temple, narrated the donation of all his property to the god Amun, consisting of male and female slaves (hm), houses, gardens, cattle, and all that he had obtained. In one Demotic contract of 516 BCE, concerning the transfer of a slave along with his children to a new master, a lady, that slave gave consent to the negotiation; furthermore, he declared himself, with children and belongings, slave vis-a-vis the new mistress. The number of slaves owned by an individual varied
considerably. An official of the thirteenth dynasty had well over forty Near Eastern servants in his personal possession. On one stela, its owner reports, "I have acquired three male slaves and seven females in addition to what my father granted me." On an eleventh dynasty stela, its owner recounted boastfully, "[Whereas] my father's people were house-bom—as property [ht] of his father and his mother—my people are likewise [from] the property of my father and my mother [but also from] my own property, which I have acquired through my activity." In Demotic marriage settlements, the husband may promise his wife saying, "To the children you shall bear for me shall belong everything I own, [be it] a house, land, slaves, animals, chattels." As to the slaves, such an engagement was put into effect when a husband came (for example in the Turin Papyrus) to divide his estate, including thirteen slaves, men and women, among his presumptive heirs. In an inheritance, where slaves form part of the estate, there might be various ways to dispose of them: the co-ownership of the beneficiaries might be either maintained or distributed separately, eventually even by fractions in one and the same slave. In such a case, the slave got several masters, each entitled to a share in that slave's work; such a share was determined by a monthly number of the "slave's days" (hf-w n byk). Subsequently, a master might sell or buy or otherwise transact merely a share in that slave's work. Differences arose when persons other than the master lay claim to the slave's services. In one case, the problem about a slave girl was looked into by the local authorities; it was settled, however, in the viziers office, according to the Berlin and the Bologna Papyrus. In another text, the conflict about a woman slave was eventually decided by the municipal council (qnbt). Also, in claims to a woman slave with her son, some people opposed each other in yet another conflict; that woman was reported to have been. abducted later. The flight of slaves was a social phenomenon that affected the lower economic strata. When a slave escaped, the master's actual power ended; however, the master could pursue the fugitive and ask the authorities for assistance in the recapture of the runaway. If, during the New Kingdom, the slave was retrieved, the fugitive was to be given back to the master; if not, the person(s) suspected of having harbored the fugitive could be challenged to swear in the temple (according to the Strasburg Papyrus). The fugitive's best chance was to escape Egypt altogether. Yet, there might be conventions, with neighboring states or reciprocal clauses that provided for extradition. By the treaty of alliance between Ramses II and the Hittite king Hattusili, fugitives, even of humble birth, were bound to be restored to their native land. As in many ancient legal systems, the Egyptian slave was capable not only of negotiating transactions but also of owning personal property. In the Wilbour Papyrus of
296 SNAKES the New Kingdom, not less than eleven slaves (hm) appear—on the same footing as others, as individual holders of agricultural land— though their status regarding the land property is not clear. An illuminating stela deals with, among other things, two slave women (hm), who each gave her own plot of land to the master/mistress in exchange for various commodities. They acted independently, as owners of property. If engaged in commerce on behalf of their mistress, slaves had to be competent to negotiate business with a third party. For example, a freeman was recorded in the Leopold Papyrus to be working under the supervision of a Nubian slave, who belonged to the high priest of Amun. Regarding judicial procedure, the papyri that report the investigations of the New Kingdom tomb robberies shed particular light on slaves. In fact, they reveal, among other persons, several male slaves implicated in those crimes. During the hearings, slaves were not maltreated any more than other culprits—occasionally they had to undergo torture and swear not to speak falsely. Sometimes a slave denounced another. In most cases, however, the testimony was outright against the master, who was accused of robbery. Though many slaves acted as witnesses, only some were incriminated of complicity. While one was placed under arrest, another was found innocent and was set at liberty. To date, no evidence exists relating to the marriage of slaves; seemingly a union of male and female was contu-bemium (cohabitation sanctioned by the master). Yet in the New Kingdom, a king's barber gave his own niece as wife to his own slave and a lady accepted as husband for her slave, her own younger brother. In either case, however, the slave (male or female) had first to be manumitted in public. In the latter case, the mistress extended freedom to all her child slaves, with the view of adopting them and thus bequeathing to them her estate. Furthermore, in a sixthcentury BCE Demotic contract, one Hor engages himself—along with offspring and earnings—to become the son of another, who would then exercise authority over him. Presumably, Hor was the slave who was emancipated in return for continuing to look after his master, as a son caring for his father; Hor's children were then equally bound to that effect. In ancient Egypt, no case is yet known of a slave purchasing freedom or a master releasing the slave by ransom. Finally, there was the small community of Deir el-Medineh, discussed in the Brooklyn Papyrus, in which some fifteen women slaves were attached to either of two departments of the workmen's gang. Possibly the women had to grind the supplied grain into flour for the workmen's families. They remained state property, since the administration provided them with sustenance (mainly grain and water). Besides, there were privately owned
slaves, both men and women. The chief workman, Nefer-hotep, for example, possessed some "house-bom" slaves; his father was said to have had at least five. Another inhabitant ascertained, "One took our twelve slaves in replacement for [some tools]." Several records also indicate that shares in a private slaves work could be transacted for bequests and other legal acts. [See also Law; and Work Force.] BIBLIOGRAPHY Allam, S. "Ventes et cession de quotes-parts en esclaves." Actes du Colhque "Le Commerce en Egypte ancienne." Cairo, 1996. Bakir, Abdel-Mohsen. Slavery in Pharaonic Egypt. Cairo, 1952. Heick, Wolfgang. Materialien wr Wirtschaftsgeschichte des Neuen Reiches. Vol. 3, p. 512 ff. Mainz, 1963. Heick, Wolfgang. "Sklaven." In Lexikon der Agyptologie, 5: 982-987. Wiesbaden, 1984. S.ALLAM
SNAKES. Snakes (hfyv was the most common Egyptian term for the members of the suborder Ophidia) were found throughout Egypt—in the desert sands, in old walls, in fields, by the Nile and in its swamps, on threshing floors, in houses, and in livestock enclosures and pastures. Poisonous snakes would have posed a threat to humans and domestic animals alike. A papyrus in the Brooklyn Museum which served as a manual for a doctor treating snakebite reveals that the Egyptians had an intimate knowledge of their biology. Although the beginning of the papyrus is broken off, it would once have listed the names of thirty-seven types of snakes distinguished by the ancient Egyptians; at least thirty-six species have been identified in modern Egypt, but the ancient typology most likely did not correspond exactly to the modern one. The papyrus gives a physical description of each snake and its habitat, along with precise descriptions of the symptoms produced by each snake's venom, whether or not the wound is mortal, and the name of the god or goddess of which the snake is considered to be a manifestation. Following the list of snakes is a list of remedies to cure bite victims (some of which are specified for certain types of snakes, and some for specific symptoms); these remedies include emetics, compresses, unctions, massages, incision of wounds, and fumigations. Magical incantations were sometimes spoken over the remedies. The ingredients in the remedies include liquids and substances of mineral, animal and vegetable origin. The most common ingredient is onion, still used frequently in Egyptian folk medicine today to treat snakebite. One of the poisonous snakes the Egyptians had to contend with was the homed viper (Cerastes comutus). When the homed viper attacks, it rasps its coils together before springing forward. The rasping sounds like the letter f,
SLAVES 297
SNAKES. Detail of a wall painting showing the deceased tomb owner adoring a huge serpent called "son of the earth." A. twentieth dynasty painting from the tomb of the foreman Inherka at Thebes, which portrays a vignette from Chapter 87 of The Book of Going Forth by Day (Book of the Dead). (© Patrick Francis Houlihan)
and the homed viper was used as the hieroglyph to write this sound (fy is the Egyptian word for "viper" as well). The Pyramid Texts allude repeatedly to the menace of serpents, and they recur in religious texts throughout ancient Egyptian history. First attested in the First Intermediate Period, the snake god Apophis was considered the enemy of order, or Maat. As early as the reign of Ramesses III, Apopllis became the subject of a ritual recorded in several magic books. During religious processions and lunar feasts, images of Apophis were fashioned from papyrus and wax and then subjected to various tortures, representing the triumph of Re and Maat over the chaos symbolized by Apophis. Not all snakes were considered bad. Deities associated with poisonous snakes were sometimes considered beneficial. The goddess Renenutet often appeared in the form of a hooded cobra. Her name is derived from an Egyptian word meaning "to nurse," and she was closely associated with the fertility of fields, and consequently was consid
ered the goddess of the granary. Offerings of the first fruits were made and hymns sung to a statue of Renenutet when grain was brought to the granary or when wine was stored in the cellar. She also had close ties with woven material and personified linen. Although her name first appears in the Old Kingdom in the Pyramid Texts, she is not depicted in art until the New Kingdom. She was worshipped throughout Egypt, but her cult was of particular significance in the Faiyum. The snake goddess Meretseger personified the pyramid-shaped peak that rises above the Valley of the Kings. She may have been an object of a domestic cult in the nearby village of the royal tombbuilders and their families, Deir el-Medina, because snake figurines were found during excavations, many of which were covered with cooking soot, suggesting she provided protection for the kitchen. Certainly nonpoisonous snakes would have been considered beneficial to the household, as they are sometimes regarded today in Egypt, because they eat rodents.
298 SNAKES
SNAKES. Limestone statuette of a female serpent deity, reign ofPsamtik I, twenty-sixth dynasty. (University of Pennsylvania Museum, Philadelphia. Neg.#S8-62621)
The uraeus was the image of the Egyptian cobra (Naja haje), worn in the front of the king's headdress. Here the snake represents the snake goddess Wadjet, associated with the Lower Egyptian sanctuary of Buto. Her counterpart was the vulture goddess Nekhbet of Hierakonpolis in Upper Egypt. Wadjet acted as a mythical mother and midwife of the king. A creation myth explains how the uraeus came into being. The god Atum had created the god Shu and the goddess Tefnut, who represented air and moisture, and they had gone out into the world. Atum sent his eye out to fetch them, which it did, but when it saw that it had been replaced by the sun, it became furious and transformed
itself into a cobra, which Atum appeased by placing it on his brow. Thus the uraeus came to be considered a protector of kingship. Winged snakes are depicted in Egyptian art and are found frequently in religious texts painted in the royal tombs in the Valley of the Kings. Wadjet was sometimes depicted as a winged snake. The Greek author Herodotus claimed to have seen skeletons of flying snakes when he visited Egypt. It is not known how the idea of winged snakes originated, but among the suggestions that have been put forth are the resemblance of the posture of the snake's neck and anterior of its body to wings when it is excited, the fact that homed vipers throw themselves at
SNEFERU 299 their victims, or the resemblance of a shedding snakeskin to wings. Snakes appear in several Egyptian literary works. A central character in the Story of the Shipwrecked Sailor is a cobra who saves the shipwrecked sailor and looks after him on his island in the midst of the sea for four months. At the birth of the eponymous character in the Story of the Doomed Prince, the fates decree that he will die as a victim of a snake, dog, or crocodile. He escapes the first of these fates after his wife puts out some beer to attract the dangerous snake out of its hole; the snake drinks it, passes out, and is hacked up by the woman. [See also Amphibians and Reptiles.]
BIBLIOGRAPHY Anderson, John. Zoology of Egypt: Volume First, Reptilia and Ba-trachia. London, 1898. Contains systematic descriptions of a number of snake species. Broekhuis, Jan. De Godin Renenwelet. Bibliotheca Classica Vangorcumiana, 19. Assen, 1971. Publication of a dissertation in Dutch on the goddess Renenutet, with an English summary on pp. 149-152. Johnson, Sally B. The Cobra Goddess of Ancient Egypt. London and New York, 1990. An overview of the uraeiis and a typological study of uraei during the Predynastic through Old Kingdom periods. Keirner, Ludwig. Histoire de serpents dans I'Egypte aiicienne et mo-dcrne. Memoii-es de 1'Institut de I'Egypte, 50. Cairo, 1947. About snakecharming and worship in ancient and modern Egypt. Leitz, Christian. Die Sdilangennamen in den cigyptischen mid gnech-ischen Ciftbuchem. Mainz, 1997. Lexicographic study of names of Egyptian snakes in Egyptian and Greek. Marx, Hymen. Checklist of the Reptiles and Amphibians of Egypt. Cairo, 1968. Includes the most complete list of snake species in Egypt published to date. Sauneron, Serge. Un rraite egyptien d'ophiohgie. Cairo, 1989. Publication of the papyrus identifying snakes and the treatment of their bites. N1COLE B. HANSEN
SNEFERU (r. 2649-2609 BCE), first king of the fourth dynasty. Old Kingdom. Sneferu's Horus-name Neb-ma'at, "lord of the cosmic order," alludes to the divine nature of the king as the sun god Re. His birth name, Sneferu, means "the one who performs perfection" or "the perfected one." During the Old Kingdom, the royal father of a king was never explicitly named as such, nor was a crown prince given this title during the reign of his father. It is believed however, that Sneferu was the son of his predecessor, Huny. At the end of the Instructions of Kagemni, we read: "Then the Majesty of King Huny died, and the Majesty of King Sneferu was elevated [to the position of] beneficent king of this entire land." Sneferu's mother was Queen Meresankh, who was venerated together with Sneferu at Meidum and is indicated as his mother on the Palermo Stone.
This fifth dynasty monument records the most important historical events of each reign on a year by year basis; the enumeration of the regnal years is given in terms of a biennial counting of revenue—the year of the first counting, the year after the first counting, the year of the eighth counting and so on. For Sneferu's reign, only the years of the sixth through the eighth counting are preserved, however, the year after the seventh counting is omitted. The main events of these years were the building of a large fleet of ships—including seagoing vessels made of cedar from Lebanon—a raid into Nubia during which Sneferu is alleged to have brought back thousands of people and cattle to be settled in Egypt, the establishment of fortified settlements, and the construction of a new palace, probably that at Dahshur. A monument at Wadi Mughara that shows him smiting a local chieftain implies that he was active in the Sinai as well. The Turin Canon attributes only twenty-four years to Sneferu. This is in conflict with the contemporary year counts on quarry marks and building stones. On the blocks of the Meidum pyramid, the fifteenth, sixteenth, and seventeenth times of counting, corresponding to the twenty-ninth, thirtieth, and thirty-first years of his reign, are well attested; at Dahshur, the dates of a fifteenth, sixteenth, and even a twenty-fourth time of counting are frequently observed. According to the biennial counting system, these dates result in a reign of forty-six years; the twenty-four years of the Turin Canon should therefore be doubled. A long reign is evident from the building activities of Sneferu, including five pyramids: the small step pyramid at Seila, the Meidum pyramid, the Bent Pyramid at Dahshur/South with its cult pyramid, and the Red Pyramid at Dahshur/North, comprising altogether more than 3.6 million cubic meters of stone—one million more than the Great. Pyramid of Khufu at Giza. All this construction notwithstanding, Sneferu was regarded throughout Egyptian history as the exemplar of the good king (for example, in the well-known Westcar Papyrus story), who was deified and identified with Horus as early as the Middle Kingdom at Sinai, as well as at his pyramids at Meidum and Dahshur. His principal queen was Hetepheres I, the mother of Khufu. The elder branch of the family at Meidum included the prince buried in mastaba. .17, perhaps the first crown prince, and the princes Nefermaat and Rahotep, together with their wives, Atet and Neferet. BIBLIOGRAPHY Fakhry, Ahmed. The Monuments of Sneferu at Dahshur. Vol. I, The Bent Pyramid. Cairo, 1959. Smith, William Stevenson, and George Andrew Reisner. A History of the Giw Necropolis, vol. 2, The Tomb ofHetep-heres, The Mother of Cheops. Cambridge, Mass., 1955. Stadelmann, Rainer. "Snofru und die Pvramiden von Meidum und
300 SOBEK Dahschur." MitteUungen des De.utsch.nn Archdologischen Instituts, Ahteilung Kairo 36 (1980), 437-49. Stadelmann, Rainer. "Beitrage zur Geschichte des Alten Reichs: Die Lange der Regierung des Snofru." Mifteilungen des Deutschen Archdologischen Inslitius, Abteilung Kairo, B. 43 (1986), 229-40. RAINER STADELMANN
SOBEK. A crocodile god representing the Nile floods and fertility, Sobek (Eg., Sbk; Gr., Suchos) was also a symbol of royal power, leading several late Middle Kingdom pharaohs to incorporate his name into their own. Sobek became a primordial deity and creator god in the New Kingdom owing to his assimilation with Re. By the Ptolemaic period, he was identified with numerous deities, taking on the aspect of a universal god. Sobek was depicted as a crocodile wearing a tall plumed headdress, or as a human with a crocodile's head. Among his earliest portrayals is an Early Dynastic cylinder seal showing a crocodile on a standard. He also appears as a crocodile in temple reliefs, seals, royal statuary, and papyri. Beginning in the Middle Kingdom, Sobek or Sobek-Re sometimes took the form of a ram or a ram-headed human; in the New Kingdom and later, he might
appear in fully human form; in the Greco-Roman period, he took many different forms. Sobek's characteristics were already partly established by the time of the Pyramid Texts, which portray him both as a benevolent god of the Nile floods and as potentially ferocious and destructive. The Coffin Texts associate him with the Nile and its floods, the riverbanks, and fertility. Both the Coffin Texts and Middle Kingdom hymns to Sobek assimilate him into the Osirian myth and associate him with Horns. The hymns also identify him with Re, with whom he was syncretized from the Middle Kingdom onward. Epithets of Sobek in the New Kingdom describe him as a creator god. During the Ptolemaic and Roman periods, he was depicted at the bow of the solar bark, defeating the enemies of Re. Ptolemaic hymns not only continue to demonstrate his role as a creator but also refer to him as the supreme universal deity. The cult of Sobek originated in marshy areas where crocodiles were common and later became so widespread that evidence of it is found throughout Egypt. His most prominent and earliest documented sanctuary was at Shedet in the Faiyum, later called Krokodilopolis by the Greeks. During the twelfth dynasty, when the reigning kings focused great attention on the Faiyum, Sobek became one of Egypt's principal state gods, reaching partic-
SOBEK. Stela featuring a representation of Sobek, now in the Brooklyn Museum of Art. (Courtesy of Stephen Phillips)
SOCIAL STRATIFICATION 301 ular prominence under Amenemhet III. Another major cult center was situated at Kom Ombo in Upper Egypt, where several New Kingdom pharaohs dedicated buildings. Sobek's cult at Gebel esSilsila is particularly well attested during the nineteenth dynasty. In the Theban area, he was worshipped at Gebelein and Dehamsha, where the eighteenth dynasty sanctuary included a complex installation for housing and feeding sacred crocodiles. Roman sources relate accounts of priests feeding sacred crocodiles in the Faiyum, and Ptolemaic and Roman period crocodile cemeteries have been found at a number of sites. Neith was the mother of Sobek, and his father was Sen-uwy (the Greek crocodile god Psosnaus). Although he was identified with a number of different deities in pharaonic times, including Hathor, Hoi-us, Khnum, and Re, Sobek was not portrayed as having a wife or children until Greco-Roman times, when he was worshipped at Kom Ombo and Philae with Hathor as his consort and Khonsu as their child. BIBLIOGRAPHY Brovarski, Edward. "Sobek," In Lexikon der Agyplologie, 5: 995-1031. Wiesbaden, 1984. Dolzani, Claudia. llDio Sobk. Rome, .1961. Hart, George. "Sobek." In A Dictionary of Egyptian Gods and Goddesses, pp. 20.1-202. London, 1986. Quirke, Stephen. Ancient Egyptian Religion, pp. 51, 73, 75. London, 1992. DEMISE M. DOXEY
SOBEKNEFERU (r. 1790-1786 BCE), last ruler of the twelfth dynasty, Middle Kingdom. Her name was originally pronounced Nofrusobek, but it was later reinterpreted. The Greek form was Scemiophris, as preserved in a quotation from the Greek-speaking Egyptian historian. Manetho of the third century BCE. According to the Turin Canon, a papyrus in the Museo beizio in Turin, Italy, she ruled for three years, ten months, and twenty-four days. Her reign has left few traces; apart from some small objects, there are a handful of architectural and statue fragments, three of which were found at Hawara and Herakleopolis. Like the earlier rulers of her family, Sobekneferu concentrated her building activities in the Faiyum. Three of her statues discovered near Tell ed-Dab'a in the Nile Delta were probably moved there in Ramessid times. That she exercised full dominion over her realm is shown by an inscription marking the height of the flood made at the Nubian frontier fort at Kumma during her third year. Manetho stated that Sobekneferu was Amenemhet IV's sister, but her own inscriptions emphasized her relationship to her father, the illustrious Amenemhet III. Like
some earlier female rulers of Egypt, she probably gained her position through the lack of a viable male heir; unlike the others, however, she assumed the full royal titulary, where her feminine gender was carefully noted. Two of her statues from the Delta show her in women's clothing, although in traditional male attitudes, trampling the Nine Bows (that represented the subdued enemies of Egypt) and kneeling before the gods. One (in the Louvre in Paris) has women's clothing with the royal costume worn over it. The persistance of her name in New Kingdom grafitti and on king lists show that she was regarded as a legitimate ruler. Nevertheless, her reign was brief and her burial place has never been identified, although the dismantled northern pyramid at Mazghunah in the Faiyum has been suggested. BIBLIOGRAPHY Herman, Lawrence, and Bernadette Letellier. Pharaohs: Treasures of Egyptian Art from the Louvre. Cleveland, 1996. Illustrates Sobekneferu's Louvre statue with its unique costume; includes discussion and bibliography. Byran, Betsy. "In Women, Good and Bad Fortune Are on Earth: Status and Roles of Women in Egyptian Culture. Sobeknen-u." In Mistress of the House, Mistress of Heaven: Women in Ancient Egypt, edited by Anne K. Cape! and Glenn E. Markoe, pp. 29-30. New York, 1996. Summarizes what is known about this ruler. ROBYN A. GILLAM
SOCIAL STRATIFICATION. Ancient Egypt often seems to have been a civilization obsessed with status. A characteristic feature of Egyptian art is the hierarchical scaling seen in relief and statuary, whereby the larger a figure is depicted, the greater is his or her relative status compared to other figures in the composition. Expressions of relative status are particularly noticeable in the sphere of mortuary provision: the size of a tomb, its location, and the wealth of its contents all indicate the social position of the tomb owner. In general, Egyptian art presents a world where status was reserved for a small elite of literate males clustered around the person of the king. However, other, more diverse sources suggest a rather more complex picture of social stratification. Certain social groupings cut across traditional class divisions; and, like all aspects of ancient Egyptian civilization, social stratification underwent significant changes over time. Origins and Historical Overview. The earliest communities in Egypt for which we have archaeological evidence emerge as relatively egalitarian, without marked differences in status based on wealth or birth. In Lower Egypt an egalitarian social structure seems to have characterized local communities until the last third of the fourth millennium BCE, when the Nile Delta became intimately involved in the process of state formation. From
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the early fourth millennium ВСЕ, the graves at sites such as Heliopolis South and Wadi Digia show a distinct lack of wealth differentiation, while the pattern of settlements at Merimda and Maadi suggests a simple social structure composed of family units. The first evidence of incipient social stratification is found farther south, in Upper Egypt. It was in this part of the country that the process of political and economic centralization, which ultimately led to state formation, had its origins. For the early fifth millennium ВСЕ, Badarian graves show limited evidence of social inequality, suggesting the beginnings of a stratified society in Upper Egypt. Differences in grave size and wealth become more marked in the following Naqada I period: burials of certain individuals are distinguished by special artifact types (such as mace heads or ivory tags) which seem to have served as badges of status. Wealthy child burials are also encountered, a sure sign of inherited status: greater expenditure on the burial of an infant than on those of adults from the same community clearly indicates that hereditary lineages had developed, whose authority depended on birth rather than achievements. Taken together, the mortuary evidence indicates the crystallization of social distinctions and the development of an increasingly stratified society in Upper Egypt during the Naqada I period. In the following Naqada II period, political and economic power seem to have become concentrated in the hands of a few hereditary lineages whose influence (if not authority) extended over sizeable territories. This trend accelerated in the final phase of the Predynastic period, Naqada III, reaching its culmination in the formation of the Egyptian state at the very end of the fourth millennium ВСЕ. After the unification of Egypt, all political and economic power was concentrated in the hands of a small ruling elite, presided over by a king claiming divine authority. Written records from the beginning of the first dynasty indicate that Egyptian society was divided into two groups; the small, ruling elite of royal kinsmen (p't) and the mass of the populace (rhyt). This distinction is reflected in mortuary archaeology in the area around Memphis, the first capital of Egypt: the royal relatives who occupied the highest offices of state were buried in huge, imposing tombs on the edge of the desert escarpment at North Saqqara, whereas the majority of the city's population was interred across the river at Helwan/el-Ma'asara. It has been suggested that, during the first few dynasties, a talented individual from outside the p't might achieve high office, since the administration was expanding as the early kings developed sophisticated mechanisms of rule. However, given the meager evidence for Early Dynastic administration, it seems more likely that political and economic power were restricted to the king and his imme
diate circle. The populace was literally subject to the king: early royal art depicts the rhyt as subjugated peoples, almost on a par with Egypt's foreign enemies. Early Dynastic society seems, therefore, to have been characterized by a marked division between the governing and governed classes. Only in the fourth dynasty is there evidence that the highest offices of state were opened up to persons of non-royal birth, giving individuals from humbler backgrounds the chance to better their social status. Nonetheless, there was probably little change in the overall structure of society, which remained basically pyramidal in form: at the apex there was the king, fount of all authority and channel of communication between the people and the gods; beneath him were the royal family and the literate officials who made up the government; forming the base of the pyramid was the bulk of the population, most of them illiterate agricultural workers. At all times, the political influence of the peasantry remained virtually nonexistent. At the end of the Old Kingdom, the breakdown of central authority and the political fragmentation of the country brought a blurring of social distinctions; practices and beliefs previously restricted to the royal sphere were adopted by a broader section of society. This process is most noticeable in funerary religion, where it has been dubbed "the democratization of the afterlife." From the First Intermediate Period onward, it was acceptable for anyone at death to identify himself or herself with Osiris; correspondingly, anyone could now hope to participate in some sort of life after death, a promise that had been effectively the preserve of the king during the Early Dynastic period and Old Kingdom. It used to be thought that the images of national distress so vividly described in Middle Kingdom literature represented firsthand accounts of social turmoil during the First Intermediate Period. It is now widely accepted that they reflect, rather, a particular preoccupation of Middle Kingdom, literate society. Nonetheless, the First Intermediate Period stands as something of a watershed in the development of Egyptian society. The reestablishment of centralized government at the beginning of the Middle Kingdom was accompanied outwardly by a return to Old Kingdom social structures, but in practice society was somewhat more fluid, with limited opportunities for advancement, irrespective of birth (see below). This trend became more pronounced in the New Kingdom, which is distinguished from preceding periods by the appearance of a significant "middle class," comprising craftsmen, traders, and minor officials. These people provided a link between the traditional, polarized classes of ruling and ruled, as did the various occupational categories which began to emerge as social groupings in their own right. One of the late New Kingdom Tomb Robbery Papyri contains a list of households on the
western bank of the Nile at Thebes. Most of the households were in the village of Maiunehes, a community that had grown up around the mortuary temple of Rames-ses III. Different categories of householders include senior civil officials, priests, scribes, military personnel, junior officials, craftsmen, and agricultural workers: a representative cross-section of late Ramessid society. The list also reveals the relative social fluidity of New Kingdom Egypt, whereby a priest might also hold a civil appointment, bringing him into contact with a wider range of people. A further picture of late New Kingdom society is provided by the Wilbour Papyrus, which lists land holdings in a stretch of Middle Egypt during the reign of Ramesses V (c.l 143 ВСЕ). Among those renting fields from the large land-owning temples are temple personnel themselves, wealthier farmers, and military colonists. The military aspect of New Kingdom society is striking, and important for questions of social mobility (see below). The foreign campaigns waged by New Kingdom pharaohs affected Egyptian society in another important way: they resulted in large numbers of prisoners of war entering Egypt. From this time on, an underclass of slaves was to remain a feature of the Egyptian hierarchy. Egyptian society in the Late period may be conveniently divided into six groups: slaves, who were the property of their masters and enjoyed few legal rights; serfs, who were tied to the land, and who formed a significant element of the population; and four occupational categories of free citizens (commoners—mostly agricultural workers—warriors, priests, and administrative officials). By comparison, the Greek historian Herodotus identifies seven principal occupations—priests, warriors, cowherds, swineherds, tradesmen, interpreters, and pilots. Many of the groups are the same; the fact that Herodotus recognized interpreters and pilots as separate groups probably reflects his own particular experiences when traveling in Egypt, rather than Egyptian society in general. As at all periods, most of the population remained tied to the land, either legally or by force of circumstances, with few opportunities for social advancement. By contrast, the warrior class enjoyed high standing in Late period Egypt; most "warriors" originated as Libyan mercenaries who had settled in Egypt during the New Kingdom and Third Intermediate Period. In common with the priests, they probably felt some degree of corporate identity, perhaps even communal interest. Social Mobility. From the beginning of Egyptian history, authority and literacy were inextricably linked. The general designation "scribe" simply indicated an official, since the ability to read and write secured access to the administration and hence a degree of political influence. For most of Egyptian history (until the Late period), the proportion of the population who could read and write is
SOCIAL STRATIFICATION 303 unlikely to have exceeded 5 percent, effectively restricting the reins of power to a tiny minority. The Wisdom Literature of the New Kingdom makes passing reference to education, but it remains unlikely that scribal training (which must have formed the most important element of education) would have been accessible or available to any but a very few children from lowly backgrounds. The single factor of literacy must, therefore, have been a powerful impediment to significant social mobility in ancient Egypt. Throughout much of Egyptian history, there was a tension between the hereditary principle—whereby important offices often passed from father to son within a family—and the theoretical right of the king to appoint all officials. At certain periods, for example the late New Kingdom and Late period, powerful families monopolized some of the highest civil and religious positions. The "Petition of Petiese," preserved on Papyrus Rylands IX, illustrates how one family monopolized the office of high priest of Amun-Re at Teudjoi during the twenty-sixth dynasty. Although royal ratification was required in theory for each new appointment, several generations of Petiese's family succeeded to the office following the hereditary principle. In periods of strong central government, the king exercised his right to make appointments; at other times, there was little royal control over who held the most important religious and civil offices. The "Petition of Petiese" also illustrates how families worked together to promote the interests of their members. Thus, in difficult circumstances, Petiese II could turn for support to his relatives who held the office of high priest of Amun-Re at Thebes. Such family networks must have been an important feature of officialdom throughout Egyptian history. For example, in the late eighteenth dynasty, Yuya and Tuya—a couple of nonroyal birth from a relatively modest background—were accorded the exceptional privilege of a burial in the Valley of the Kings, entirely because of the fact that their daughter had married the king, Amenhotpe III. The accession of Ay, after the death of Tutankhamun, may have been eased by his apparent connection with the same family. Birth into a noble family was not the only means of achieving high office, and from the early Middle Kingdom on there are examples of individuals from humble backgrounds who reached the higher echelons of the court through their own achievements. On his stela from Ab-ydos, an eleventh dynasty official named Mentuhotep implies that he was a self-made man: he boasts of being "one whose [own] counsel replaced for him a mother ... a father ... and a son." In the New Kingdom, those brought up at court with the future king could expect to be appointed to high office when their childhood companion came to the throne. It was also possible for those from
304 SOCIAL STRATIFICATION lowlier backgrounds to rise to prominence. For example, Ahmose, son of Abana, was the son of a simple soldier, but he succeeded in acquiring land and wealth through his valiant actions in the war of liberation against the Hyksos under King Ahmose. In a similar way, Amenhotep, son of Hapu, one of the most powerful officials in the reign of Amenhotpe III, boasts in one of his statue inscriptions of having built his career on personal qualities rather than high birth. At times when the usual system of royal succession broke down, it seems to have been easier for men of humble birth to rise to positions of power. Thus, Senenmut, who probably began his career as a simple soldier, enjoyed rapid promotion when Hatshepsut became regent for the young Thutmose III. Although Senenmut never held one of the chief offices of state, his position as the queen's "chief spokesman" and intimate gave him tremendous authority. In a similar way, Akhenaten raised individuals from lowly backgrounds to high office. An official named May held the influential post of "fan bearer on the king's right hand," as well as being "royal chancellor," "overseer of all the king's works," and "overseer of the soldiery of the Lord of the Two Lands." In his tomb biography, May attributes his success to royal favor: "I was a man of low origin both on my father's and on my mother's side, but the ruler established me; he elevated me ... he caused me to associate with nobles and companions [though] I had been one who held last place."At the end of the Amarna period, the extirpation of the Thutmosid royal line allowed two military men of nonroyal birth, Horemheb and his colleague Ramesses I, to gain the highest office in the land, the kingship. The military formed a powerful section of New Kingdom society, and there was the potential for a successful soldier to reach the highest echelons of government. As "chief army commander" under Tutankhamun, Horemheb had effectively been the king's deputy; he was thus well placed to claim the office of kingship on the death of Ay, Tutankhamun's ephemeral successor. Horemheb also drew on military discipline to restart "with the finest of the army" the major temple priesthoods, demoralized after Akhenaten's religious reforms. Being childless, Horemheb appointed another trusted army officer, Ramesses, as his heir. The succession at the end of the eighteenth dynasty emphasizes the degree to which the military saw itself as a distinct social group with its own identity and interests. With each break in dynastic succession throughout Egyptian history, it is possible that the figure who emerged as the new king came from outside the royal family. Not surprisingly, perhaps, there is little evidence for the family background of such rulers. It was considered inappropriate—and, no doubt, unwise—to refer openly to a king's origins if these might cast doubt on his
legitimacy. For example, it is likely that Amenemhet I, first king of the twelfth dynasty, had been vizier under his predecessor; perceived illegitimacy may have been one reason behind his apparent assassination. Though hedged about with divinity and ritual, the kingship may always have been viewed by powerful and ambitious individuals as a goal, an opportunity for the ultimate in social advancement. In the late Ramessid period (twentieth dynasty), society reverted to a more rigid structure, with fewer opportunities for social mobility. Important offices of state now became the prerogative of a few influential families and were passed down from generation to generation with little direct reference to the king. Texts from this period also suggest a resignation to one's social status; this change of tone contrasts sharply with the optimistic outlook of some of the wisdom literature from the earlier New Kingdom, which reflects a distinctly "middle-class" view of society and its opportunities. Although Egyptians of the Middle and New Kingdoms might hope for social advancement if their skills and achievements gained official recognition, Egyptians of the Late period faced the opposite prospect: debt or punishment for a criminal offense could force an Egyptian into serfdom or slavery. As an underclass, slaves became a significant feature of Egyptian society only in the New Kingdom. At first, slavery was more or less restricted to foreigners, captured in battle or traded from abroad. However, during the Persian period, when slavery was recognized by law, we find Egyptians acting as slaves to Jewish mercenaries on the island of Elephantine. Two aspects of social stratification that have generated much interest are the positions of women and foreigners in ancient Egyptian society. High-status tombs (which, with few exceptions, were built for male members of the government apparatus) present a male-oriented view of society—the man dominating his wife and children, both iconographically and ideologically—that may not accord with the reality of daily life in an average Egyptian home. Documentary evidence from the New Kingdom workmen's village of Deir el-Medina suggests that women took a leading role in the local economy, in addition to managing household activities. Although it was extremely rare for women to achieve high office in their own right, their political influence may have been significantly greater than the male-dominated sources would have us believe. Likewise, official Egyptian ideology (and the iconography by which it was expressed) despised foreigners as inferior barbarians. However, there is plentiful evidence for foreign mercenaries having been recruited into the Egyptian army throughout pharaonic history. As a general rule, foreigners settling in Egypt were accepted as long as they adopted Egyptian customs and conducted themselves—at
SOKAR 305 least in public—as Egyptians. During the Third Intermediate Period, foreign dynasties (such as the twenty-third and twenty-fifth) were even able to claim the kingship, but made strenuous efforts to portray themselves as traditional Egyptian pharaohs. [See also Administration, article on State Administration; Inheritance and Disenfranchisement; Military; Officials; Priesthood; Royalty; Scribes; Slaves; Women; and Work Force]. BIBLIOGRAPHY Bard, Kathryn A. From Fanners to Pharaohs: Mortuary Evidence for the Rise of Complex Society. (Monographs in Mediterranean Archaeology, 2.) Sheffield, 1994. Mortuary data (grave size and contents) from two Predynastic cemeteries are used to chart the rise of social stratification in Upper Egypt. Dorman, Peter P. The Monuments of'Senenmut: Problems in Historical Methodology. London and New York, 1988. A detailed study of the career of Senenmut, including discussion of his family background and his sudden rise to power in the reign of Hatshepsut. Heick, Wolfgang. "Die soziale Schichtung des agyptischen Volkes im 3. und 2. Jahrtausend v. Chr." Journal of the Economic and Social History of the Orient 1 (1959), 1-36. A unique article commenting on the evidence for changes in social stratification during the historical periods of ancient Egyptian civilization. Kemp, Barry J. Ancient Egypt: Anatomy of a Civilization. London, 1989. Chapter 7 of this general work includes a section discussing the composition of society in the New Kingdom. Maiek, Jaromir. In the, Shadow of the Pyramids: Egypt During the Old Kingdom. London, 1986. A detailed examination of Egyptian civilization during the Old Kingdom. Chapter 6 looks at the structure of Egyptian society and the working of government. Robins, Gay. Women in Ancient Egypt. London, 1993. The best treatment to date of the role and status of women in ancient Egypt. Trigger, Bruce G., et al. Ancient Egypt: A Social History. Cambridge, 1983. Four chronologically based chapters cover the full span of. Egyptian dynastic history. A large part of chapter 4 deals with social stratification in the Late period. Vernus, Pascal. "Quelques examples du type du "parvenu" dans 1'Egypte ancienne." Bulletin de la Societe Francaise d'Egyplologie de Geneve 59 (1970), 31-47. Probably the only discussion of social mobility in ancient Egypt. TOBY A. H. WILKINSON
SOKAR. The name of this divinity (Eg., skr; Gr., So-karis), according to a hypothetical etymology based on Coffin Text Spell 816 and a twelfth dynasty papyrus, is derived from sk r ("cleaning of the mouth"), a word used in the context of the Opening of the Mouth ceremony, in which Sokar plays a role. Such word play, does not, however, constitute a true etymology. Nor (pace Brovarski 1987) does the name appear to be related to "Saqqara," which probably comes from the name of a Berber tribe, the Beni Saqqar. In iconography established by the Old Kingdom, Sokar is depicted as an anthropomorphic figure with the head of
a falcon, evoking his earthly representation and his divine ability to fly in the underworld, on earth, and in the heavens. He is shown either standing or seated on a throne, garbed in the cloth of a funerary god. He wears a White Crown and holds a scepter and a whip, the regalia of Osiris. Sokar is also represented in predatory form, again enveloped in fabric. As a falcon, he can be related to Horus, and like him wears the Double Crown. His solar functions are indicated by the presence of the disk and the uraeus. When in human form, Sokar occasionally wears the atef-crown. Sokar's emblems include a barge, onions, and geese. The barge, or hnw, represents solar triumphs and is set on a sledge. At its prow may be the head of an antelope or a bull, an int-fish, and birds (falcons or swallows) along the edge of the hull. The moundshaped .fty/'chapel at its center culminates in a falcon's head. At the stem are three or four rudder pins. On the night preceding the procession of this barge, the deceased wears an onion necklace to prepare for the solarization of Sokar-Osiris. A luminous rebirth occurs on the morning of the twenty-sixth day in the month ofKhoiak in the /ZMW-barge, which is protected by five geese, daughters of Re, and their barges. The transport of the hnw was organized by the high priest of Ptah in Memphis. In the Old Kingdom, the festival of Sokar was already an annual event in the fourth month of the yht season, on the twenty-fifth and twenty-sixth days. It involved a visit to the royal necropolis and offerings to the dead. In the Middle Kingdom, it incorporated Osirian aspects of festivals in Abydos. Later it became a solemn occasion marked by a procession of Sokar's /ww-barge in the great temples of Egypt. It celebrated the continuity of the cult of the divine king linked to the resurrection of Sokar and to the revival of the great cosmic cycles. Egyptological tradition, however, defines Sokar as an essentially chthonic deity acting in the funerary world of the Memphite necropolis. Funerary and offering formulae that mention Sokar appear only in the Middle Kingdom. The Pyramid Texts describe Sokar as a god active in the rebirth of the king and in the ceremonies of confirmation and transfer of royal power. In the Middle Kingdom, he assumes a specific role in the transfiguration at death and in the Opening of the Mouth ceremony. In his role in the rites of statues as a metallurgist, he resembles Ptah, who transforms stone and wood. The entity Ptah-Sokar associates the wealth of the soil and its power of growth. The Book of Going Forth by Day (Book of the Dead) in New Kingdom times presents Sokar as an image of the world unified in Osiris, linked to the aforementioned festivals or to foundation rituals. The terrestrial Ptah-Sokar becomes Sokar-Osiris, the nocturnal incarnation of the sun during the fourth and fifth hours of the Book of That
306 SOKAR Which Is in the Underworld (Amduat). He enables the sun to complete its course during the night and to be reborn in the morning. In the New Kingdom, Priests of Sokar bear the same titles as the Memphite clergy of Ptah did in the Old Kingdom, but now they almost always refer to the high priests of Heliopolis. Henceforth, an entity reuniting the three divine forms, Ptah-SokarOsiris, expresses creation-metamorphosis-rebirth. In the Late period, numerous tombs are equipped with PtahSokar-Osiris wood statuettes in anthropomorphic form with a falcon's head or in full animal form as a falcon. This rests on a base containing the Book of Going Forth by Day, or a grain mummy reminiscent of the "beds of Osiris." In the Ptolemaic period, the Osirian form of Sokar reached its zenith, becoming the focus of the Osirian festivals in the month of Khoiak. Sokar is related two groups of deities: the Memphite group formed by Khnum, Herremenuyfy, and Chesmu, and the solar group constituted by Nefertum and the five divine daughters of Re, all present at the feast of Sokar. The "Memphite" Khnum is among the Memphite divinities listed in the Sokar chapel and the hall of Sokar and Nefertum in the temple of Sety I at Abydos. Nephthys may be Sokar's companion, or, less often, Seshat. Called "father and mother," Sokar has no family as such, even though a grammatical doublet—Sokaret—appears; Red-oudja is identified as "son of Sokar" in Spell 941 of the Coffin Texts. In the Pyramid Texts, Sokar is called a native of Ro-setjau, a site near the Sphinx of Giza, but ultimately indicating any necropolis, and of Pedju(-she), the lake of Abusir. He is also master of the styt, which refers to the cabin of the hnw-barge, his sandy environment mentioned in the Book ofTlwt Which Is in the Underworld, and a chapel dedicated to him in the temple of Horus at Edfu. Two other names for the sanctuary of Sokar are pr-hnw ("house of henu") and Ifwt-Skr ("chapel of Sokar"), referring to the functions of housing the divine barge and the statue of the deity. There are also chapels dedicated to Sokarian aspects and integrated in a temple consecrated to a mother major divinity. There is still no archaeological evidence of a temple solely dedicated to Sokar; however, the deity is known from sites throughout Egypt, initially through textual documentation and later, from the Middle Kingdom onward, through iconographic sources. In the Old Kingdom, Sokar is present from the Memphite necropolises to Helwan. Already well established in the Fai-yum during the Middle Kingdom, the deity appears in the tombs of Deir el-Bahri. It reaches Thebes with the declaration of that city as the new capital. From the beginning of the New Kingdom, the deity is found at Kamak; during the reign of Hatshepsut it occupies an important place in the chapel-cavern of Anubis on the second terrace, as well as in the Thutmose I chapel on the third terrace at Deir
el-Bahri. Thutmose III dedicated a suite of rooms to Sokar in Akhmenu. In the tombs of Western Thebes, Sokarian elements occur for the first time. Amenophis III consecrated to Sokar a monumental architectural ensemble in his temple of "millions of years" in Thebes. The well-established Sokar cult of Western Thebes continued to develop in the Ramessid period, with numerous representations of Sokarian rites in private and royal tombs. At Gumeh, the Hall IX of the temple of Sety I was dedicated to Sokar, who was also given a cult site in the temple constructed by the same king at Abydos. A group of rooms in the Ramesseum was consecrated to him by Ramesses П, who also had the deity represented on the peripheral wall of the temples of Amun-Re and of Re-Horakhty at Kar-nak. The most important source for the cult of Sokar exists in the second court of the temple of "millions of years" of Ramesses III at Medinet Habu; In addition. Room 4 of this complex is a chapel for the h-nw-barge. The hnw-barge becomes dominant in the late Sokarian iconography. Sources include a few Theban sarcophagi from the twenty-first dynasty; the silver sarcophagus of Sheshonq II (twenty-second dynasty) with falcon mask, discovered in Tanis; statues from the twenty-second and twenty-third dynasties; the chapel of Osiris Heqa-Djet at Karnak (twenty-third dynasty); Theban Tomb 32 from the Saite period in Western Thebes; and the temple of Hibis at Chargha (twenty-seventh dynasty). The sanctuary of Alexander at Kamak and Louvre Papyrus N 3176(S) prove that Akh-menu was active until the Ptolemaic period. Sokar and his barge are, however, infrequently represented in Thebes during Ptolemaic times: on the propylaeum of Khonsu at Kamak; at the temple of Montu in North Kamak; in the temple of Hathor at Deir el-Medina; in the temple of Hatshepsut at Deir elBahri; and on the small temple at Medinet Habu. By that time the Sokarian cult had moved to the temple of Horus at Edfu (Halls XIII-XIV) and that of Hathor at Dendera (Hall XVI and the six roof chapels), in the context of the Osirian celebrations in the month of Khoiak. The last representation of Osiris-Sokar with a falcon's head was done under Emperor Caracalla at Philae. BIBLIOGRAPHY Brovarski, E. "Sokar." In Lexikon der Agyptologie, 5: 1055-1074. Wiesbaden, 1984. Gaballa, G. A., and K. A. Kitchen. "The Festival of Sokar." Orientalia 38 (1969), 1-76. Graindorge, С. "Les oignons de Sokar." Revue d'Egyptologie 43 (1992), 87-102. Graindorge, С. Le dieu Sokar a Thebes au Nouvel Empire. Gottinger Orientforschungen, 4/28. 2 vols. Wiesbaden, 1994. Graindorge, С. "La quete de la lurniere au rnois de Khoiak: une histoire d'oies." Journal of Egyptian Archaeology 82 (1996), 83-105. Graindorge, С. "L'vignon, la magie et les dieux." Encyclopedic religieuse de I'Univers vegetal, pp. 317-333. Orientalia Monspeliensia, 10. Montpellier, 1999.
SPHINX 307 Porter, В., and R. L. B. Moss. Topographical Bibliography of Ancient Egyptian Hieroglyphic Texts, Reliefs, and Paintings. Vol. 2, Theban Temples. Oxford, 1991. Source of the numbers of temple chambers cited in the present article. CATHERINE GRAINDORGE Translated from
SOTHIC CYCLES. See Calendars.
SOUL. See Akh; Ba; and Ka.
French by Elizabeth Schwaiger
SOMTUTEFNAKHT, son of Pediese, whom he followed in office as "Shipmaster of Herakleopolis" (an important city in northern Middle Egypt, near the Faiyum) during at least the fourth to thirtyfirst years of the reign of Psamtik I of the twenty-sixth dynasty, or c.661-643 ВСЕ, and perhaps a little longer. His father, Pediese, son of a Theban priest, had been appointed by a Kushite ruler (probably Taharqa), and lived on in retirement during Years 4 to 18 of Psamtik I. Pediese became allied to the local dynasty at Sais, marrying a princess of their line (Takhered-en-ta-ihet-weret). She bore Somtutefnakht, his son, who was possibly brought up at Sais. Thus, Necho I and Psamtik I bound in alliance to themselves the main princedom of northern Middle Egypt. When in Year 9 (656 ВСЕ) Psamtik I induced the authorities in Thebes to recognize his rule, he sent his daughter Nitokris there to be the future "God's Wife of Amun." It was to Somtutefnakht that he entrusted her and the impressive fleet that went with her, as is clear from the wording of a magnificent granite stela (the Nitokris Stela), and from a series of damaged scenes (the "Piankhy blocks") found at the temple of the goddess Mut in southern Kamak, in which Somtutefnakht appears. Two statues that Somtutefnakht dedicated in the eastern Nile Delta attribute to him the important title of governor of Upper Egypt. A younger Pediese, Somtutmakht's cousin, is said to have served as assistant to both Pediese senior and Somtutefnakht. BIBLIOGRAPHY Bakry, H. S. K. "Two Saite Statues of Samtowetefnakhte from the Delta." Kemi 20 (1970), 19-36. Benson, M., and J. Gourlay. The Temple of Mut in Asher. London, 1899. Photographs of scenes showing Somtutefnakht, pp. 257-258 and plates 20-22. Caminos, Ricardo A. "The Nitocris Adoption Stela." Journal of Egyptian Archaeology 50 (1964), 71-101. A definitive study of the stela recording the transfer of Psamtik I's daughter to Thebes as "God's Wife of Amun," in care of Somtutefnakht. Griffith, F. U. Catalogue of the Demotic Papyri in the John Rylands Library, vol. 3. Manchester, 1909. Includes the basic publication of Papyrus Rylands IX, which offers a useful but lopsided account of the Pedieses and Somtutefnakht (stressing the former at the expense of the latter). Kitchen, K. A. The Third Intermediate Period in Egypt (1100-650 B.C.). 2d ed. with suppl. Warminster, 1996. Essential study of Pediese and Somlutefnakht, with appropriate sources and further references. KENNETH A. KITCHEN
SPHINX. The sphinx is a purely Egyptian creation, first attested in the early fourth dynasty, about 2575 ВСЕ. Around the end of the second millennium ВСЕ, Egyptian sphinx images were exported to Syria-Palestine, where local artists imitated them, mostly in basrelief and especially as female figures. From there the idea and form of a female sphinx of malevolent character was transferred into Greek myths, such as that of Oedipus. In Egypt sphinxes were generally associated with the sun god and with the king as a "living image" (jssp-'nh); this word may well have been the origin of the Greek word sphinx, although in Greek this word had the meaning "strangler," perhaps in association with the Greek interpretation of the sphinx as a malign creature. The Great Sphinx at Giza, the most immense sculpture ever made by men—73.5 meters (235 feet) long and over 20 meters (64 feet) high—is the earliest example of this type of statue: part lion and part man, a creature metamorphosed into a divine being combining the strength of the most powerful wild animal and the intelligence of a human being, it is a great intellectual innovation. Two-dimensional images on slate palettes of the Early Dynastic period, three hundred to four hundred years earlier, depict the king as a wild lion or griffin destroying his enemies; in the Great Sphinx, animal power is tamed by human intelligence and is thus transformed into a divine calm. A fourth dynasty date for the creation of the Sphinx is certain, but there is some question as to which of the kings residing at Giza envisaged and commissioned this unique sculpture. The possibilities are four: Khufu, builder of the Great Pyramid, or his successors Djedefre, Khafre, and Menkaure. Djedefre, who constructed but did not complete a pyramid on top of the northern hill of Abu Roash, has been suggested because he may have had several sphinxes of lesser size in his pyramid complex, which would be the earliest known sphinxes besides the Great Sphinx but this is not a strong argument. The pyramid complex of Menkaure lies too far from the Sphinx. Hence both Djedefre and Menkaure can be eliminated, and only Khufu and Khafre remain. Most Egyptologists prefer Khafre because his name is mentioned on the Dream Stela of Thutmose IV in a context that includes the Sphinx. However, this large and elaborate stela, found by Caviglia in 1818, was erected by Thutmose IV in front of the Sphinx after he had become king. In the long inscription, Thutmose reports that once,
308 SPHINX when he still was a prince and head of the royal charioteers, he was hunting in the desert of Memphis near the pyramids. At noon he fell asleep in the shadow of the Sphinx and was then told in a dream that if he cleared the sand away from the flanks of the Sphinx, he would become king of Egypt. Of course he obeyed, and after ascending the throne he asked the people of Egypt to praise "Osiris of Rasetau (which is the area of the pyramids), the goddess Bastet, and the gods and goddesses of the resting place or sanctuary of ... khaef." The last name can be reconstructed as Khae [Re], or Khafre. This part of the inscription—which has now disappeared completely, eroded by subterranean water—is the only evidence for the identification of the Sphinx with Khafre. There exists an older stela, however, erected by Thutmose's father Amenhotpe II, on which the king reports a similar visit to the area of the pyramids, where he admired the wonderful buildings—and here the text is completely preserved—of the resting place, tile sanctuary of Khufu and Khafre. Thus, in the same context, both kings are mentioned. The Dream Stela of Thutmose IV is therefore by no means clear inscriptional proof that Khafre was the creator of the Great Sphinx. In the upper register of each stela, Amenhotpe and Thutmose make offerings to images of the Sphinx, which is called Horemakhet (Gr., Harmachis, or "Horus in the horizon"). This ,name of the god Horus is an innovation of the New Kingdom; it retains, however, the old word yht ("horizon") from the name of Khufu's pyramid, Akhet-Khufu. It is frequently assumed that the Great Sphinx was carved from a single rock within the quarries of Khafre, but a careful investigation of the quarries at Giza contradicts this. According to the latest investigations, the quarries of the Great Pyramid of Khufu extend from the northern and eastern ridges of the Giza plateau in the area south of the Great Pyramid. The southern limit is marked by a rock face on which the causeway of Khafre is built. Recent excavations have brought to light the remains of a construction ramp leading to the south side of the Great Pyramid. This ramp is situated south of the Great Pyramid and north of tine causeway of Khafre in a depression which was once part of Khufu's quarries. The extension, of Khufu's quarries is the reason that Khafre's causeway does not run perpendicular to the east side of the pyramid, and also the reason that his valley temple is not situated in the axis of the pyramid complex but displaced to the south. This means that Khafre had to take account of some earlier, very important structure that already stood there. This can only have been the Sphinx. Thus, the large rectangular ditch in the center of which the Sphinx was carved surely belongs to the quarries of Khufu, as can be demonstrated by comparison of the different components of the rock formation in the
body of the Sphinx and the layers of core stones of Khufu's pyramid. The sequence of the stones quarried from the different strata and used in the pyramid can be determined by their degree of erosion. Khufu was a great innovator who chose the commanding position on the ridge above what is now Giza. Each of his creations is somehow new: his pyramid layout, his cult temple, the cemeteries, and even his statuary. As the surviving fragments show, Khufu utilized all types of Egyptian statues except the kneeling form; all are at once innovative and supreme achievements. It is thus reasonable to assume that the Sphinx, too, is his creation. There are also firm stylistic and iconographic considerations that point to Khufu. The only attempt at such an iconographic investigation has been that of Mark Lehner (1997), in his painstaking excavations and restoration of the Sphinx. He tried to superimpose the contours of the head of Khafre's famous statue with the Horus falcon (Cairo Museum CG 14) on that of the Sphinx; however, neither the contours of the face nor those of the nms-\vig fit, even though Lehner took the result as further support for his thesis that the Sphinx is a work of Khafre. Most of Khufu's statuary is probably still hidden in his as yet unexcavated valley temple, so as a basis for comparison we have only a famous small ivory statue from Ab-ydos bearing his name, and two heads ascribed to Khufu— one in red granite, with the White Crown, in the Brooklyn Museum, and another rather small one in limestone, in the Bavarian State Collection in Munich. Of Khafre, several life-size statues and hundreds of fragments are preserved, all together representing about sixty or seventy statues. It may be questionable to compare a colossal sculpture like the Sphinx with statues of normal or even very small size; on the other hand, art historians have dated some famous artworks by comparison with portraits on coins. The overall form of the Sphinx's face is broad, almost square. The chin is broad. By contrast, the features of Khafre are long, and noticeably narrower, and the chin almost pointed. The Sphinx wears the earlier, fully pleated type of nemes headcloth, like that of Djosers statue. The same nemes headcloth, also fully pleated, can be seen on a statue fragment from Khufu's pyramid temple now in the Boston Museum of Fine Arts. In one important detail, the nemes of the Sphinx has no band in the form of a raised hem over the brow—again, the older type of the nemes as on Djoser's statue. From Djedefres statues onward, the raised hem band over the brows becomes the norm. Under Khafre, only the lappets of the nemes headcloth are pleated, never the nemes peak or the nemes hood as is attested on the Sphinx. The side wings of the nemes headcloth of the Great Sphinx are deeply hollowed, but on Khafre's statues hardly at all. On all of Khafre's statues
SPHINX 309
SPHINX. Quart::ite sphinx ofThnlmose. HI, eighteenth dynasty. (The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Rogers Fund, 1908. [08.202.6])
the headcloth corners curl up, but they do not do so on the Sphinx. The Sphinx has a uraeus cobra on the lower edge of the headcloth. In contrast to those of Khafre and Men-kaure, it shows high relief with naturalistic detailing of the serpent's neck and the scales of its hood. The eyebrows of the Sphinx bulge powerfully forward, and they are pitched high and slope down toward the temples. The eyes are deep-set but strongly modeled. They are large and wide open, typical of sculpted heads from the time of Khufu. The ears are fundamentally different: those of the Sphinx are very broad and folded forward, while those of Khafre are elongated and situated closer to the temples. A decisive criterion is the absence of a beard. The Sphinx has no indications of hair on its chin, nor is there any trace of a break under the chin. The fragments of a pleated god's beard which are now in the British Museum and in the Cairo Museum are certainly of New Kingdom origin, added to the Sphinx when it was identified with
the god Horemahket. The rounded divine beard is an innovation of the New Kingdom and did not exist in the Old or the Middle Kingdom. When this beard was added, a small platform was carved out of the Sphinx's chest on which the beard and a newly added royal statue rested. In the Old Kingdom there is a strict rule: if a king wears a beard, it appears in all his representations, round plastic and relief, in Upper as well as Lower Egypt, without exception. In the fourth dynasty one can observe that Snef-ei-u never has a beard. Neither does Khufu, either on his small ivory statue or on the Brooklyn or the Munich head. From Djedefre on, however, all kings, including Khafre and Menkaure wear the ceremonial beard. The fact that the Sphinx had no beard is strong evidence that the Great Sphinx is an original creation of Khufu. The Great Sphinx was carved out of a high rock, which dominated the southeastern corner of Khufus quarries. We will perhaps never know how Khufu and his master artist envisaged the Great Sphinx. There must have been
310 SPORTS a prototype, perhaps in Heliopolis, the city of the sun god; later texts mention a great Sphinx of Heliopolis. Whenever sphinxes were placed in front of Egyptian temples, they had a solar aspect and connotation. Thus, the idea of a creature in the form of a sphinx which is the form of appearance—that is, the phenotype—of the sun god might already have existed in Heliopolis from the times of Djoser, who had a shrine in Heliopolis, and of Sneferu, who identified himself with the sun god as Nebmaat, Lord of the Right World Order. In front of the Great Sphinx lie the architectural remains of a large but uncompleted temple. The design of this building with large niches to the east and west indicates a solar connection. The temple is surely of fourth dynasty date, but it is not certain who began it, Khufu or Khafre. The axis of the temple is not on the axis of the Great Sphinx, nor was there a direct exit from the temple to the Sphinx statue. Pairs of sphinxes were found lying in front of each gate of the valley temple of Khafre. The traces of the plinths were clearly visible during the excavation of the temple. Fragments of the forelegs of a large sphinx of Khafre were found in front of his pyramid temple. In the Middle Kingdom, sphinxes become more numerous and new types appear. The great Louvre sphinx (A 23) of Amenemhet II is clearly inspired by the Great Sphinx of Giza. For the first time, powerful queens and princesses are depicted as female sphinxes. At the end of the Middle Kingdom, a group of sphinxes of Amenemhet III amplify the grandeur of this parthuman part-lion creature by replacing the neines headcloth with a lion's mane surrounding the royal face. None of these sphinxes were found in situ; they were certainly transported from different locations to royal residence cities of the New Kingdom— Memphis, Piramesse, and Tan is—and may even have been resituated several times. Originally they may have been present in the temples of the sun god in Heliopolis. In the New Kingdom, we find sphinxes with the heads of rams and hawks in front of the temples of Amun at Karnak and Re-Horahkty at El-Gebua in Nubia. In one mortuary temple, a sphinx with the head of a crocodile was unearthed. All these creations display a definite connection with a sun god, whether Amun-Re, Re-Horahkty, or Sobek-Re. Avenues of sphinxes line the processional ways leading to temples or even connect temples over long distances, as at Karnak and Luxor. Two large sphinxes were lying in the first court of the mortuary temple of Sety I at Gumeh. It is probably the carving of this pair of sphinxes that is illustrated in the tomb of Paser (tomb 106) at Western Thebes. Sphinxes of various materials, including painted and gilded wood and metal, are a common decoration on processional barks of gods and kings in the New Kingdom. In decorative art a sphinx is often depicted fighting or
trampling enemies, as on a shield of Tutankhamun, or in Middle Kingdom pectorals, where falcon-headed sphinxes are shown smashing enemies. In pictures on jewelry and ivories, the ancient tradition of the king as a violent lion or a fierce griffin remain alive. Roman emperors brought Egyptian sphinxes to Europe to decorate their temples and palaces. In the palace of Spalato (Split) of Emperor Diocletian at least thirteen sphinxes were unearthed. The rediscovery of ancient Egypt resulted in a revival of ancient Egyptian motifs, especially the sphinx. Impressive male sphinxes now decorate entrances to castles and bridges, as in Saint Petersburg, while female sphinxes adorn gardens and pavilions in European cities or beautify furniture, fireplace surrounds, or even luxurious table services. [See also Egyptomania; Khafre; and Sculpture, articles on Royal Sculpture and Divine Sculpture.] BIBLIOGRAPHY Dessenne, A. Le Sphinx: Etude iconographique. Paris, 1957. Egypt: The World of the Pharoahs. Koln, 1998. See pp. 73-75. Esmael, F. A. Book of Proceedings: The First International Symposium on the Great Sphinx. Cairo, 1992. Hassan, Selirn. The Sphinx: ITS History in Light of Recent Excavations. Cairo, 1949. Lehner, M. "Reconstructing the Sphinx." Cambridge Archaeological Journal 1 (1992), 3-26. Lehner, M. The Complete Pyramids; Solving the Ancient Mysteries. London, 1997. Shaw, I., and P. Nicholson, eds. The Dictionary of Ancient Egypt. In Association with the British Museum. London, 1995. RAWER STADELMANN
SPORTS. Although no word equivalent to "sport" existed in the ancient Egyptian language, there was clearly a cultural element that is best expressed by this modem word. The expressions sdji-hr and swtwt incorporate the idea of "active diversion." as an essential component. In Egypt is found one of history's oldest sports cultures, surpassing in age, scope, and depth of sources even the Sumerian sports culture. The rise of the sports culture in Egypt coincides with the height of ancient Egyptian civilization at the beginning of the third millennium ВСЕ, some twenty-three hundred years before the first Olympic games in Greece. If such marginal areas are included as games, hunting, and dance, Egyptian sports are represented in about two thousand figurative documents over three thousand years—an amazing wealth of sources compared to other early high cultures. This is further enriched by many written documents, of which the inscriptions of the athletic kings of the eighteenth dynasty are the most interesting. The study of these rich sources has only begun in the past three decades, and today we can
SPORTS 311 speak of the existence of an actual sports culture in ancient Egypt. The Sports of Kings. Archaeological discoveries in Egypt may well provide evidence about the very origins of sports. At the tomb complex of King Djoser (third dynasty) in Saqqara, a running track has been preserved in the southern court of the Step Pyramid, the oldest pyramid in Egypt. The conception was that the track, outlined in durable stone, was used by the dead king for a ritual run, when he had to display his good physical condition as a guarantee that he was able to fulfill the duties of a king and ensure the safety of his people, even after a thirty-year reign. The run itself, which the king probably performed as an exhibition on the occasion of his sad-festival, is a relic of early hunting societies in which the chief would safeguard the survival of his tribe with a successful hunt. The fact that this demonstration of physical ability endured in ceremonies in the historic period—though it took on a more ritual character in which the king's physical strength and power were magically reaffirmed—does not obscure its prehistoric origin. In one of the three representations of the running king in Djoser's tomb, the runner is clothed only in a penis sheath and is accompanied by the standard of the god Wepwawet ("opener of the ways"), a figure interpreted by some as a deity derived from the pack of dogs that would have run with the hunter of earlier times. The physical skills of the king do not become emphasized until the eighteenth dynasty, after the expulsion of the Hyksos invaders. The traumatic experience of the first foreign reign in Egypt would henceforth define the image of the hero-king, who began to display athletic traits, especially under Amenhotpe II. The text on his Sphinx Stela describes the king as not only an outstanding runner and skill ful helmsman of a 200-man rowboat, but also as an unrivaled bowman whose arrows pierce copper ingots, trade currency in the Bronze Age. (This motif appears in altered form centuries later in Homer's Odyssey, in the competition held for Penelope's suitors, an event still linked to the legitimation of a ruler.) The archer king stands erect in a chariot drawn by two horses, a technical innovation whose introduction to Egypt in the Hyksos period had far-reaching social consequences. The role of king now requires proof of the ruler's ability to handle this status vehicle and the animals competently, an activity that required constant training of driver as well as horses. The Sphinx Stela clearly depicts the pharaoh's additional skill as charioteer and horsetrainer. Rarnesses III (twentieth dynasty) had himself immortalized in his funerary temple in Medinet Habu in an image showing the pha-raoh selecting a pair of horses for training. The athleticism of the eighteenth dynasty Egyptian kings must be understood as a "sporting tradition" (Hayes)
that was passed on from father (Thutmose III) to son (Amenhotpe II) to grandson (Thutmose IV), and shared by other kings. Not only is there impressive inscriptional and pictorial proof—for example, the panel showing the young Amenhotpe II at archery practice with Min, the mayor ofThinis (tomb 109 at Western Thebes)—but also original equipment (composite bows and six chariots from Tutankhamun's tomb) to give us a firm notion of the sporting practices of the time. The boundary between sport and hunt was very fluid, since this equipment could also be used for hunting. Competition. With Amenhotpe II, even the strict rule that a pharaoh could not be a participant in a sporting competition was overthrown. The idea of a defeated pharaoh, as might happen in competition, had no place in the royal dogma. Therefore, the king's sporting exhibition is always presented as an athletic demonstration without adversaries. As an exception, adversaries are mentioned in an inscription in Medamud commemorating an archery competition involving Amenhotpe II, yet they seem to have stood little chance against this royal athlete, according to the fragments that remain of this text. Despite the exclusivity of royal sport founded in ideology, the concept of sports records developed during the eighteenth dynasty and is documented in a comparison of recorded quantities and norms of achievement in archery, for several kings. The reigning king, confronted with the task of "expanding that which exists," outperformed not only his own previous record but also those of his predecessors. Historical reality differed from the dogma. Egyptians were familiar with the phenomenon of competition, as deduced from the many documents on combative sports, the use of the motif of the suitors' contest in the S/ory of the Doomed Prince, or in the evidence of sporting events. How strong the competitive element ultimately was is clear when the gods handle the dispute of who would succeed their deceased king. The Contendings of Horus and Seth recounts how Horus and Seth, both seeking the throne, agree to a diving competition, which fails and is followed by another competition in boating. The highest possible position in the Egyptian cosmos is therefore assigned by competition. Jacob Burckhardt, whose coining of the expression "the agonal Greek" placed Hellenic culture above all others in ancient history, was wrong when he maintained that only the Greeks had knowledge of athletic competition. Sport Traditions among Commoners. At first glance, the sporting traditions of private individuals are less ideologically bound than sport in the royal milieu, although there too the royal dogma can bear some influence. Running. For the common man, running was a popular sport, owing to its natural character and uncomplicated organization, as was indeed the case in Greece;
312 SPORTS however, there were hardly any Egyptian sources attesting to running as a sport until the discovery of the "Running Stela" of King Taharqa (690-664 ВСЕ). It provided a text of great importance, not only for the history of running but also for the hitherto sparse sporting history of the Late period. The stela (685/684 век) tells the story of a race among soldiers selected from Taharqa's forces, over a distance of approximately 100 kilometers (65 miles, from Memphis to the Faiyum and back), with a two-hour break at the turnaround point. The recorded time of four Egyptian hours for this distance is barely credible, in view of their daily training and modem performance levels. It was a great honor for the successful runners to attend a celebratory meal together with the royal bodyguards and to win prizes. Diodorus Siculus provides a further reference to a similar approach to long-distance training in the mention of a historically unidentifiable king who apparently ordered his sons and their contemporaries to run 180 stadia every day before breakfast. Fighting sports. Sports based in combat are strongly represented in the form of wrestling, fencing with sticks, and boxing. Of the three, wrestling is most frequently attested and is found throughout Egyptian history. As a motif, wrestlers appear at the dawn of Egyptian history on the City Palette, and by the fifth dynasty the first full representation is known of a wrestling match in several rounds. In the vizier Ptahhotep's tomb in Saqqara, inscribed names clearly establish that the six pairs of wrestlers shown in various positions are in fact a single pair, whose fight is recorded in episodes. The same principle is perfected in the Middle Kingdom tombs of Beni Hasan. Of the thirty-three rock-cut tombs of the nomarchs (administrators) of the Oryx nome, no fewer than nine depict wrestling scenes, as Shedid's studies (1.994) have shown. The images of wrestlers, usually on the tomb's eastern wall, stretch across several registers and may include multiple pairs. A count from the published tombs is given in Table 1. Approximately 2 percent of the scenes are dedicated to fighting on the floor. The wrestlers in the Beni Hasan tombs are naked except for a girdle, which offers many possible grip variations (similar to Japanese Sumo wrestling or the Glima style practiced in Iceland). Because of the pictorial context (military scenes), the wrestlers may TABLE 1.
Number of wrestling pairs in the published tombs of the nomarchs at Beni Hasan. Tomb no. 59 220 122 6
Tomb Owner
Number of Pairs
2 15 17 29
have been soldiers who used wrestling as a form of physical training. Wrestling is still in evidence in the New Kingdom in this context. A group of Nubian soldiers have a standard that identifies them clearly as wrestlers. It appears that the Nuba, who practice this sport today and whose dress even attests to continuity, can look back on a thirty-five-hundred-year tradition of wrestling prowess. The wrestling theme was also modeled on ostraca and in statuettes. Occasionally, a referee—once shown with a trumpet—supervised the contest, as in the tomb of Neheri in Bersheh, and in the depiction of wrestlers below Ramesses Ill's appearance window in Medinet Habu. Some scenes of wrestlers are accompanied by short inscriptions that prove to be boastful epithets (challenging speeches). Despite the abundant visual material on wrestling, little is known about the rules that governed the sport. Aside from the fact that grips and reaches to all parts of the body were allowed, and that the match continued even after the contestants had hit the floor, one can only deduce from the frequent pose of a victor standing above his unconscious opponent that victory was gained by wrestling the opponent to the point of incapacity; the victor then assumed a pose of triumph before the spectators. The sources on wrestling often appear in combination with depictions of stick-fencing, or nabbut, a sport still practiced today in the Nile Valley. Two contestants, often soldiers, stand face to face, holding short batons; each wears various protective gear, such as shieldlike boards on the lower arm, or shields made of leather worn on the chin and forehead. The baton-wielding hand is sometimes protected as well. If the fight takes place on the roof of a boat cabin, as in the example in the tomb of Khons (tomb 31 at Western Thebes), the limited space creates an effect similar to that of a modem boxing ring. Illustrations of boxing matches in ancient Egypt are extremely rare. They are undoubtedly shown in the ritual erection of the djedpil\ar in the context of the .serf-festival of Amenhotpe III, depicted in the tomb of Kheruef (tomb 192 at Western Thebes), where six pairs of fighters box bare-fisted in dancelike poses. In another example, boxing (along with wrestling and fencing) seems to be illustrated in a festive offering of tributes to Amenhotpe IV in the tomb of Merire II in Tell el-Amarna. Sporting Events. Competitive sports in Egypt sometimes occurred during festivals, in which context they would occupy a more or less fixed position in the program; this may have developed later into events exclusively dedicated to sports. Although the topic has not been systematically researched, in addition to the examples already given—the royal л-erf-festival with its ritual, run, the ritual raising of the (//('-(/-pillar, and the three events in the tribute celebration to Amenhotpe IV—there is Amenemhet Baqti III Cheti Baqti I
SPORTS 313
some evidence pointing in this direction. Below the appearance window in the tomb of Ramesses III in Medinet Habu is a depiction of a sporting event that gives an immediate impression of international character. Ten pairs of fighters contend in wrestling and fencing matches before an audience of Egyptians (including royal children) and foreign spectators. The unusual element is that each pair consists of an Egyptian and a foreigner (Near Easterner, Libyan, or Nubian), and that all the foreigners seem to be losing. No doubt the Egyptian royal dogma of the ever-victorious pharaoh dictated how the athletic event was depicted—in conformity with ideology, instead of with the open fairness essential in modern sports competitions. A unique sporting event is jousting (no longer documented in the New Kingdom), which was practiced during a festival marking the end of the working season in the marshes. While this scene appears about fifty times in Egyptian sources, other sporting events are rare as a main theme. A possible rowing competition under Tutankha-mun is notable, as is a still unconfirmed funeral game for Thutmose III, which may have been depicted four generations after his death in the tomb of Amenmose (tomb 19 at Western Thebes). Finally, there is the large celebration on the occasion of a completed pyramid-building project, discovered on the causeway to the pyramid temple of Sa-hure (fifth dynasty). On this occasion, elaborate games,
SPORTS. Middle Kingdom wrestling scenes, from Beni Hasan.
including wrestling, fencing, archery, and possibly rowing, were held in conjunction with the setting of the last stone (bnbn) on the royal funeral structure. [See also Games; and Hunting.] BIBLIOGRAPHY Carrol, Scott T. "Wrestling in Ancient Nubia." Journal of Sport History 15(1988), 121-137. Decker, Wolfgang. Aunotiene Bibliographic wm Sport im alien Agyp-ten. St. Augustin, 1978. This annotated bibliography, containing some 700 titles upon first publication, is updated in Stadion 5 (1979), 162-192; 7 (1981), 153-172; 8/9 (1982/83), 193-214, as well as Nikephoros 1 (1988), 245-268; 2 (1989), 185-215; 3 (1980), 237; 4 (1991), 224; 5 (1992), 221t'.; 6 (1983), 210f.; 7 (1994), 257; 8 (1995), 208; 1,1 (1998), 195-197. Decker, Wolfgang. "Die Lauf-Stele des Konigs Taharka." Kolner Bei-trage wr Sportwissenschaft: Jahrbuch der Deutschen Sporthoch-schule Koln, St. Augustin 13 (1984), 7-37. Decker, Wolfgang. Quellentexte in Sport und Korperhtdttir im alien Agyplen. St. Augustin, 1975. Contains all Egyptian texts on sports in German translation (with the exception of the Runner's Stela of Taharqa, discovered after publication). Decker, Wolfgang. "The Record of the Ritual." In Ritual and. Record: Sports Records and Quantifications in Pre-Modeni Societies, edited by John Marshal Carter and Arnd Kriiger, pp. 185-215. New York, 1990. Decker, Wolfgang. Sports and Games in Ancient Egypt. Translated by Alien Guttmann. New Haven, 1992. Decker, Wolfgang, and Michael Herb. B'ddatlas wm Sport im Alien Agypten: Corpus der bildlichen Quellen zu Leibesilbimgen, Spiel, Jagd, Tanz und verwandten Themen. Handbuch der Orienlalistik, 1: Der
314 STATE Nahe u.nd Mittlere Osten .14, 1-2. 2 vols. Leiden, 1994. Inclusive and comprehensive source corpus on Egyptian sport and related topics, containing some 2,000 documents, described in detail (including location, date, material, image content, and bibliography); roughly half are illustrated in the second volume. De Vries, Carl E. "Attitudes of the Ancient Egyptians toward PhysicalRecreative Activities." Ph.D. diss.. University of Chicago, 1960. First important monograph on Egyptian sport. Hawass, Zahi, and Miroslav Verner. "Newly Discovered Blocks from the Causeway of Sahure." Mitteiluiigen des Deutsclien Archciolog-ischen Institute, Abfeilung Kairo (1996), 177-186. Haves, Williain C. "Egypt: Internal Affairs from Tuthmosis I to the Death of Amenophis III." In Cambridge Ancient History, vol. 2, pp. 313-^Иб. 3d ed. Cambridge, 1973. Note especially the chapter on "The Sporting Tradition," pp. 333-338. Littauer, M. A., and J. H. Crouwel. Chariots and Related Equipment from the Tomb of Tut'anVhamun. Tut'ankhamun's Tomb Series, 8. Oxford, 1985. McLeod, Wallace. Composite Bows from. the Tomb of Tiit'ankhamun. Series Tut'ankhamun's Tomb Series, 3. Oxford, 1970. McLeod, Wallace. SelfBou's and Other Archery Tackle from the Tomb ofTut'ankhamun. Tut'ankhamun's Tomb Series, 4. Oxford, 1982. Shedid, Abdel Ghaffar. Die Felsgraber von Beni Hassan in Mittelagyp-ten. (Zaberns Bildbande zur Archaologie, 16.) Mainz, 1994. Touny, Ahmed E. Demerdash, and Steffen Wenig. Sport 111 Ancient Egypt. Leipzig, 1969. Van de Walle, Baudouin. "Les rois sportifs de I'ancienne Egypte." Chronique d'Egypte 13 (1938), 234-257. WOLFGANG DECKER Translated from GenTian by Elizabeth Schwaiger
STATE. Ancient Egypt was the world's first nation-state, and the ideology of the state—its strengths, weaknesses, functions, and structures—lies at the heart of Egyptian history and civilization. The ancient Egyptian state was a multifaceted and complex creation, fashioned by Egypt's early rulers from the political fragmentation of the Predy-nastic period, then developed by subsequent generations of kings to suit particular circumstances of their own times. Like all aspects of ancient Egyptian culture, the state was an evolving concept that reflected the changing political and economic realities for the three millennia of dynastic history. State: Definition and Functions. When referring to Egypt as a state, it is important to clarify the meaning of the term, but there is no definition generally accepted by political theorists, historians, archaeologists, and anthropologists alike. Nonetheless, the term as applied to ancient Egypt may be broadly defined as a territorial entity with a system of exercising recognized legal authority over its population. Anthropologist Elman Service, in his Primitive Social Organization: An Evolutionary Perspective, Id ed. (New York, 1971) devised a fourfold classification of societies, based on a number of factors—including social, economic, and religious organization; settlement patterns; and architecture. According to his classification,
the state is the most developed form of society, characterized by several key features: (1) a class-based hierarchy under the authority of a ruler; (2) a centralized bureaucracy that levies and collects taxation and that imposes laws on the population as a whole; (3) the existence of a priestly class; (4) the demarcation of political frontiers, often fortified; and (5) urban settlements, with palaces, temples, and other large public buildings. From the beginning of the first dynasty, ancient Egypt demonstrated most, if not all, of those features, with the important addition of writing as an aid in administrative control. There can be little doubt that, throughout dynastic times, ancient Egypt met the present-day criteria for statehood, even if ancient Egyptian seems to have lacked a word for "state." Although it is often difficult to distinguish between "state" and "society," and "state" and "government," for present purposes, society may be defined as "the collective body over which the state exercises its authority," and government may be defined as "the apparatus with which that authority is exercised." The ancient Egyptian state may be appropriately described as a complex political and cultural organism, operating on a number of levels, but its role at the core of ancient Egyptian civilization may best be understood by examining its functions throughout Egyptian history. The principal function of the early Egyptian state was the location and collection of resources, to support the royal court and its projects. Large-scale construction programs were a major goal of the state administration, since they served to promote the power and prestige of the head of state. To finance the grandiose and labor-intensive schemes, the state needed to control the economy, to divert resources from the productive to the nonproductive sector, and this was achieved through taxation. According to this view, the Egyptian state may be characterized as essentially self-seeking; however, centralized control of the economic system incidentally benefited a large sector of the population. Many state employees worked only on a part-time basis, sharing their duties with others on a roster ("phyle") system, and by this means, the number of state employees receiving redistributed income was artificially inflated. Thus from the early dynasties, the state became a net provider for a significant number of people, balancing its role as the agency that levied taxation. The second function of the state was to administer the law and dispense justice, in accordance with the Egyptian concept of moat ("fairness and balance"). As champion of maat, the king embodied the ideals of justice and truth, which lay at the ideological heart of the Egyptian state. In other words, the expectation of fairness and protection from the state—and, by extension, all state officials— lay at the very heart of the state's existence. As head of state, the king was the ultimate arbiter in legal cases, although
STATE 315 in practice this role was delegated to the king's chief minister, his vizier. In particular, the state may have played an important role in safeguarding private property and in ensuring fairness in disputes over land rights (which seem to have been common concerns, at least in texts from the New Kingdom). Although in theory all land belonged to the king/the state, there is good evidence for private ownership of land in various periods, and private landholding was probably always a feature of the Egyptian economy. Security of another kind was provided by the state—defense against foreign aggression and the violent incursions of those who lived on Egypt's desert margins. Raids on the prosperous communities of the Nile Valley by jealous, hungry neighbors were a constant threat and are attested from periods of weak central government. Once again, as champion of maat, the king's sacred duty was to protect Egypt and defend its people from hostile attack. The defeat of Egypt's enemies forms a central element in state iconography, from the very earliest periods, and real coercive power may be assumed to lie behind the images of all-conquering might. In addition to legal and personal protection, the state provided its citizens with economic security. Part of the agricultural surplus received by the state as taxation would be retained at the royal residence, to be stored as "buffer stocks" of both food and seed. This grain represented vital insurance against years of poor harvests. Only the state, with its huge resources and facilities, could gather and store the necessary amounts to provide a viable economic "safety-net." For a base population of peasant farmers, almost entirely dependent on the land for subsistence, that type of security must have had real value. In return for ceding sovereignty to the state and recognizing it as the ultimate authority, the populace was guaranteed good security for both person and property. Here, then, is the essential contract between the government and the governed that formed the basis of the Egyptian state, and which may help to explain its longevity. State Formation and Dissolution. State formation in Egypt (often referred to by Egyptologists as "the unification") was a gradual process that occurred during the latter half of the fourth millennium ВСЕ (the Predynastic period), culminating in the foundation of the dynastic state with the beginning of the first dynasty. The development of Egypt's administrative structures and mechanisms that allowed the early kings to bolster their own authority continued at least until the beginning of the fourth dynasty, some five centuries later. Our understanding of state formation—which resulted in a unified state from a collection of competing Predynastic territories—has been radically enhanced by recent archaeological work in Egypt. The state-building process was characterized by two separate but related factors: cultural development and political development. The first involved the northward spread
of advanced Upper Egyptian technologies into the Nile Delta, leading to a single cultural tradition throughout Egypt by the late Naqada II period; the second involved the consolidation of territories—whether by political alliance or military force—to create one united kingdom by the beginning of the first dynasty. The process of political consolidation soon extended Egyptian control north into the neighboring land of southern Palestine and south into Lower Nubia; but during the latter half of the first dynasty, direct control of sites in the Near East was abandoned in favor of loose trade agreements. Various factors have been proposed to account for the process of state formation in Egypt. Single factors (or "prime movers")— such as irrigation, population pressure, or trade—were once stressed, but a multicausal explanation is now favored. The desire to gain access to, and ultimately to control, trade routes seems to have been an important motive for Upper Egyptian expansionism in the late Predynastic period. Palestine and, to a lesser extent, Nubia were sources of prestige commodities required by the elites of Upper Egypt to display their growing authority. Widespread climatic changes, the role of cult centers, the charisma of individual rulers, and the importance of writing in the centralization of political and economic power were all significant additional factors in the formation of the Egyptian state. The impetus for the process may also have been inherent within a settled agricultural society that had strong ties to the Nile Valley and its special ecology. "Game theory" has been suggested as a model, by which a sense of sovereignty and the competitive urge for greater control of resources may have set in train a sequence of events that culminated in the unification of Egypt under a single ruler (see Barry Kemp's Ancient Egypt: Anatomy of a Civilization, London, 1989). Ideology was at the heart of the early Egyptian state, and theocracy (divine kingship) was promoted as the only acceptable form of government. The king's divine role in unifying the Two Lands (Upper and Lower Egypt) became the essential myth of the theocratic state. Some of the elements of royal ideology and iconography were derived from important regional centers, creating psychological ties that bound the provinces to the court. Craftsmen employed in the royal workshops created a "great tradition" of court culture, which aspiring individuals sought to emulate and which was actively disseminated through royal patronage of provincial temples. This distinctive cultural tradition became an important factor in promoting the stability of the state and the position of the king at its apex. The other key elements of the early state were the creation of a large, centralized bureaucracy and the instigation of administrative practices to supervise and control every aspect of the Egyptian economy. During periods of strong central rule, the apparatus of government devel-
316
STATE
oped by the early kings successfully balanced and restrained the potential sources of conflict within Egypt. In fact, the concept of the state that developed in the formative period of ancient Egyptian history may be justly regarded as the greatest achievement of dynastic civilization; it was certainly the most enduring. Three thousand years of Egyptian history included periods of political instability, when a weak central government caused the state to fracture into competing territories. The three Intermediate Periods represent the temporary failure of Egypt's state apparatus to contain provincial aspirations and other potential sources of disunity. Such structural weaknesses may be a feature of any complex political system, and—with the exception of the Hyksos infiltration from the Near East at the end of the Middle Kingdom—the roots of state dissolution were to be found within Egypt itself. For example, the weakening of central authority that marks the end of the Old Kingdom is generally attributed to the state's inability to balance its competing centralizing and centrifugal forces. By the late fifth dynasty, central responsibility for provincial governments had already been diluted by the appearance of powerful local governors; economic stress caused by unusual Nile flood levels (which seem to coincide with the decline in pyramid building at the end of the sixth dynasty) may have placed too heavy a burden on an already weakened central administration. At the end of the Middle Kingdom, forces outside Egypt (increasingly powerful polities in both the Near East and Upper Nubia) took advantage of a second period of state weakness, once again marked by unusual Nile levels, exacerbated no doubt by a succession of short reigns that would have strained belief in the all-important doctrine of divine kingship. Egypt became prey to the expansionist ambitions of neighboring cultures, and disunity ensued. The integrity of the state depended on the king maintaining his supreme political, military, and religious authority. Toward the end of the New Kingdom, the military in general and certain ambitious individuals in particular (elements in society that the New Kingdom government had sought to keep in check) gained the coercive potential to threaten the kingship. The king seems to have become an increasingly remote figure, content to delegate executive authority to others. Eventually, the internal pressures on the state proved too great, and the government was formally divided in two along geographical lines. Unity was reestablished under the kings of the twenty-sixth dynasty, and, for most of the Late period, Egypt successfully maintained a centralized state based on earlier models (although Egyptians no longer ruled Egypt, but Persians, Greeks, and Romans). State Structure. As both supreme secular authority and the gods' representative on earth, the king was the
institutional and ideological pivot around which the Egyptian theocratic state revolved. In theory, all power was derived from the king (who, in turn, derived his power from the supernatural sphere), and it was the king who exercised all authority—political, religious, and military. In practice, some delegation of authority was essential and, by the Old Kingdom at the latest, the Egyptian state had developed a sophisticated apparatus of government, with a hierarchical structure and several branches. The complex interrelationships between these different branches combined with the limitations of the available evidence make it difficult to delineate the structure of the state accurately. Important structural changes did take place during the long course of Egyptian history, though the evidence is stronger for some periods than for others. Very few administrative documents have survived from the Old and Middle Kingdoms, so it is difficult to give a full picture of the early governmental apparatus, let alone chart changes over time. Even for the best-documented periods, such as the New Kingdom, the finer details of the administrative system remain unclear, although much is known about some individual departments and offices of state. The general paucity of documents written on papyrus means that researchers trying to explain the workings of the Egyptian state often have to rely on the titles borne by government officials. These titles are not always straightforward to interpret, since some indicated general rank within the government hierarchy rather than a particular administrative office. Throughout its history, Egypt was probably characterized by a certain flexibility of responsibility among its government personnel. The structure of the state may be divided for convenience into three broad areas: the king and members of the royal family; the government of Egypt; and the government of Egypt's foreign possessions (when Egypt ruled an empire beyond its own borders). As close relatives of the king, members of the royal family probably shared some of his supernatural authority and so would have been in a position to wield considerable secular power. In practice, close members of the king's family were often appointed to senior positions within the government. This had the dual function of binding potentially ambitious individuals in loyalty to the king as it reinforced the king's grip on the levers of power. Another means by which centralized control was maintained was the practice of having each government department headed by a small group of officials who reported directly to the king. The danger of a reclusive state apparatus too remote from the people seems to have been offset, at least partially, by regular royal progresses (travels) throughout Egypt and by royal visits to major shrines on the occasion of important annual festivals. On such occasions, the king would no doubt dispense justice, and his visibility would help to
STATE 317 strengthen the bonds between the court and the populace. The king would also be able to gather information unfil-tered by his ministers, in an effort to maintain his personal command of the state apparatus. Although the government of Egypt was centralized at the royal residence in Memphis, and important decisions of state would have been made in the palace, the day-today running of affairs was delegated to the provincial administrations. From the late Old Kingdom until the end of the Middle Kingdom, and again in the Late period, each region (nome) was governed by a single individual (nomarch), often exercising considerable power with little reference back to the court—the theoretical fount of all authority. The structure of provincial government for the New Kingdom is poorly documented; town mayors perhaps had an enhanced role in implementing the state's policies. Relations between the central government and the regions played a crucial role in determining the cohesion of the state; a breakdown in the equilibrium between the two invariably resulted in the dissolution of the unified state. In most areas of government (except religious and military duties), the king's representative—and the effective head of the administrative and judicial systems—was the chief minister, the vizier. The vizierate is the most important constant feature of Egyptian internal government during the Old, Middle and New Kingdoms. In the Late period, despite substantial continuity from earlier periods in most aspects of government and state structure, the office of vizier, while still attested, may have ceased to exercise significant administrative responsibility. By contrast, during the Second Intermediate Period, the viziers seemed to have provided stability during a time of short reigns and weakened central authority. The increased administrative complexity that characterized the New Kingdom brought an enhancement of the vizier's role. From the reign of Thutmose III of the eighteenth dynasty until the end of the twentieth dynasty, the vizierate was divided in two: a Southern vizier based at Thebes exercised authority over Upper Egypt, while a Northern vizier based in Memphis— who must have been the more influential, given his daily access to the king at the royal residence— was responsible for Lower Egypt. Other offices of state with less sweeping powers remained intact. The department at the heart of the Egyptian state was the treasury, responsible for assessing, collecting, storing, processing, and redistributing taxation in the form of agricultural produce. This income supported the royal court, royal building projects, and the legions of government employees. From the first dynasty, the state carried out a regular census of the country's agricultural wealth, and it maintained detailed records of Nile flood levels, to calculate both the productive capacity of the land and the
appropriate level of taxation. The treasury was headed by the "Royal Chancellor," a central title within the administration, attested from the early first dynasty. In the Old Kingdom, state building projects—such as pyramid construction—were the responsibility of a separate official, the "Master of the Kings Works," who ranked second only to the vizier; his duties would have included organizing the huge work force of corvee labor needed to build royal monuments. As well as deriving income and supplies from taxation, the state also engaged in foreign trade to acquire prestige commodities not available in Egypt. Although foreign trade is often stated to have been a royal (state) monopoly, there is in fact no evidence that this was the case throughout most of dynastic times. Private individuals may have engaged in smallscale trading ventures from time to time, although it is inconceivable that any individual would have had the resources to compete with the state in this sphere. State-sponsored expeditions, whether to Nubia (for example, the mission conducted by Harkhuf in the sixth dynasty) or to the turquoise mines of the Sinai (in particular during the twelfth dynasty), are well attested. The greatest proportion of imported goods that entered Egypt were channelled through the treasury, perhaps giving the king de facto monopoly of foreign trade. Throughout dynastic times, the temples formed a crucially important part of the state structure. From the earliest dynasties, local temples seem to have been used as agents of the state, helping to propagate royal rule and court culture. As such, they were periodically subject to decrees issued by the king regarding their maintenance or granting exemptions from state taxes. Only in the New Kingdom was there an emergence of powerful, quasiindependent temple institutions, in particular the Great Temple at Karnak, presided over by the high priest of Amun. During the following Third Intermediate Period, the high priests of Amun (who temporarily combined the office with that of "Great Army Commander") exercised real political authority as rulers of an Upper Egyptian territory. At other periods of Egyptian history, the state-temple dichotomy was something of an illusion: the administration of temples was essentially part of civil government, even in economic matters (as the Wilbour Papyrus makes clear); and every religious office from the high. priest down was theoretically subject to royal approval. Moreover, loyal officials and royal relatives were often appointed to religious positions, and the temples never gained any coercive power. Thus, although the high priests were high-ranking men of state, their potential political influence remained extremely limited. Limited power was not true, however, for the men at the head of another branch of the New Kingdom state, the military. Whereas during the Old and Middle Kingdoms
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armies had been raised on an ad hoc basis for military campaigns, Egypt's involvement with the Near East during the New Kingdom— following the expulsion of the Hyksos—necessitated a permanent, professional army. The military arm of the state became increasingly important, and kings of the eighteenth and nineteenth dynasties were keen to be seen as war leaders, adopting military iconography and sometimes leading their armies into battle. The military was organized and despatched from the royal residence at Memphis, theoretically guaranteeing royal control. Moreover, the office of supreme military commander ("Great Army General") was often granted to the crown prince, to ensure the army's loyalty to the reigning king. Nonetheless, it was a military man, Horemheb, who was best placed to claim the throne after the final extirpation of the eighteenth dynasty royal line; Horemheb chose another military man, Ramesses I, as his successor; and it was General Herihor who played the decisive role in the break-up of the Egyptian state at the end of the twentieth dynasty. The militaristic character of the New Kingdom state was reflected, too, in the conquest of foreign lands, to form what is often termed the "Egyptian Empire." The Middle Kingdom state had effectively annexed Lower Nubia, which it controlled by means of a series of huge forts, stretching as far south as the Second Cataract. Yet the foreign conquests of the New Kingdom were on an altogether larger scale, encompassing the whole of Nubia, as well as territories to the northeast in Syria and Palestine. In the governing of its foreign possessions, the New Kingdom state followed two radically different approaches. The northern lands, in SyriaPalestine, were never fully integrated into the Egyptian realm; each territory was ruled by a local governor who had sworn allegiance to the pharaoh (though this did not prevent political maneuvring at Egypt's expense, as illustrated in the diplomatic correspondence of the Amarna Letters). Fortresses were controlled by individual battalion commanders, with no unified military command structure. By contrast, the government of Egypt's southern conquests, Lower and Upper Nubia (or Wawat and Kush in Egyptian terminology), was based closely on the system used for Egypt itself. A single battalion commander controlled all the Egyptian troops stationed in Nubia, giving him considerable coercive power; the "Battalion Commander of Kush" was to play an important role in the internal power struggles that characterized the end of the twentieth dynasty. Civil authority in Egyptian-controlled Nubia was exercised by the "Viceroy (or Kings Son) of Kush," assisted by two deputies, one for Wawat and one for Kush. The main duties of the viceroy were the collection of taxes and tribute and the organization of gold-mining activities, the latter being the main reason for New Kingdom involvement in Nubia.
Following the end of the New Kingdom, Egypt lost control of its foreign conquests. Nubia was to become important in its own right, the indigenous rulers of Kush temporarily conquering Egypt to rule as the twenty-fifth dynasty. Sporadic Egyptian campaigns went to the Near East during the Late period, but increasingly, Egypt was the object of imperial expansion by neighboring powers: Assyrians, Persians, and Macedonians. Alexander the Great's conquest of Egypt brought to an end the existence of the independent, indigenous Egyptian state. [See also Administration, articles on State Administration and Provincial Administration; Imperialism; Kingship; Officials; Royal Roles; and Taxation.] BIBLIOGRAPHY Claessen, H. J. M., and P. Skalnik, eds. The Early State. The Hague, 1978. Papers on the phenomenon of early states; part one contains an important essay discussing the different theories of state origins, and part two includes a contribution on the early state in Egypt. Cruz-Uribe, E. "A Model for the Political Structure of Ancient Egypt." In For His Ka: Essays Offered in Memory of Kiaiis Baer, edited by David P. Silvennan, pp. 45-53. Studies in Ancient Oriental Civilization, 55. Chicago, 1994. Proposes a new model tor the organization of the state, based on the interconnecting spheres of influence of the king and a few significant families; the author argues that powerful families played an important role in all periods of Egyptian government. Roth, Ann Macy. Egyptian Phyles in the Old Kingdom: The Evolution of a System of Social Organization. Studies in Ancient Oriental Civilization, 48. Chicago, 1991. A detailed discussion of the origins, early development, and significance of a key feature of the Egyptian state administrative apparatus. Seidlmayer, Stephan Johannes. "Town and State in the Early Old Kingdom.: A View Prom Elephantine." In Aspects of Early Egypt, edited by Jeffrey Spencer, pp. 108-127. London, 1996. The results of recent archaeological fieldwork are deployed in a case study of how the early Egyptian state exerted it's authority over a local community geographically distant from the capital. Strudvvick, Nigel. The. Administration of Egypt in the Old Kingdom. London, 1985. Exemplifies the technique of prosopography—the use of titles as a source for the study of ancient Egyptian administration; highlights the major offices of state in the Old Kingdom and charts changes in the structure of the administration. Trigger, Bruce G., et al. Ancient Egypt: A Social History. Cambridge, 1983. Four chronologically based chapters cover the full span of Egyptian dynastic history. Van den Boom, G. P. F. The Duties of the Vi:jer: Civil Administration in the Early New Kingdom. London, 1988. Translation and commentary of the text from the eighteenth dynasty Theban tomb of the vizier Rekhmire, known as "The Duties of. the Vizier." .Includes the most comprehensive discussion of the vizier's role in the early New Kingdom. Warburton, David A. State and Economy in Ancient Egypt. Fiscal Vocabulary of the New Kingdom. Orbis Biblicus et Orientalis, 151. Fribourg and Gottingen, 1997. Discusses the concept of the state— the different theories that have been offered to explain early state behavior; proposes a "general theory of war, custom, and technology." Also presents the theoretical aspects of economic systems and the intenelationship between state and economy during the New Kingdom. Wilkinson, Toby A. H. State Formation in Egypt: Chronology and Society. BAR International Series, 651. Oxford, 1996. A useful summary
STELAE 319 of evidence and theories concerning the formation of the Egyptian state; favors a multicausal approach, stressing the importance of local factors to account for regional variation in the pace and effects of state formation. TOBY A. H. WILKINSON
STATUARY. See Sculpture.
STELAE. The Latin word stela (pi. stelae) derives from the Greek stele, which means pillar or vertical tablet. (In English, the usual Forms are "stele'V'steles.") In Egypt, stelae are slabs of stone or wood, of many different shapes, usually bearing inscriptions, reliefs, or paintings. Stelae were erected as tombstones and as boundary markers but also as votive and commemorative monuments. From the first dynasty onward—when the earliest stelae were used in Egypt—until Roman times, a considerable change in the shapes of stelae, their decoration, and their
types of inscriptions occurred. As tombstones, they were originally erected outside the tombs, to mark the offering place and to name the tomb owner. In temples and sanctuaries, they were set up by individuals to worship the gods but also to commemorate special events, such as successful expeditions to the mines in the desert or victories over foreign powers. In addition to their funerary and votive uses, stelae were also used as boundary markers for fields, estates, administrative districts, or even countries. There are several ancient Egyptian expressions for the term stela, which reflect its different purposes. Wd is the most general expression, and it means "monument of any kind," "tombstone," "boundary stone," "monument in a temple," and more, according to Adolf Erman and Hermann Grapow. Origins and Chronology. The earliest stelae were erected in Egypt during the first dynasty to mark the tombs of the kings and their courtiers in the cemetery of Abydos in Upper Egypt. Royal stelae of the first and second dynasties consisted of large stone slabs with rounded
STELAE. Painted limestone statuette of Roy, an eighteenth dynasty scribe and royal steward, holding a round-topped stela. The inscription on the stela is a hymn to the sun god Re. (The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Gift of J. Pierpont Morgan, 1917. [17.190.1960])
320 STELAE tops, inscribed with the name of the ruler. They were always set up in pairs, but their original position within the royal funerary complex is still unclear. Herbert Ricke (1950, p. 15, fig. 2) believed that the stelae have marked the offering place outside the superstructure of the royal tomb; but as Gunter Dreyer (1991, p. 104) has pointed out they could also have been placed on the roof of the superstructure. Certainly, they were not set up inside the burial chambers of the tombs. The stelae of the courtiers in Abydos are much smaller and less carefully executed than those of the royal tombs. Unlike the royal stelae of the first and second dynasties, they were not set up in pairs and do not have rounded tops. They were probably inserted into the walls of the superstructures of the tombs or erected in front of them. Sometimes they do not bear just the name and title but also an image of the standing tomb owner. During the second dynasty, the use of tomb stelae gradually decreased. Owing to the enlargement of the tomb superstructures as the Old Kingdom progressed, the offering place was moved into a niche in the panel decoration that covered the fa9ades of the tombs; the false door evolved from this niche. The false doors in the tombs of the third dynasty in Saqqara consist of a door niche as well as a rectangular slab stela, which shows the tomb owner in front of an offering table. Similar slab stelae have already been found in the tombs of the second dynasty in Helwan, a large cemetery on the eastern bank of the Nile River, near the modem city of Cairo. Although those slab stelae are closely connected with false doors, during the fourth dynasty such stelae also appeared detached from false doors in the Giza mastaba tombs. A direct connection between those slab stelae and the round-topped stelae from the first and second dynasties in Abydos cannot be established. The so-called classical stelae of the Middle Kingdom had their origin in those stone slabs, which were set into the brick maslahas of. the provincial cemeteries of the late Old Kingdom and the First Intermediate Period. A considerable number of such stelae from the sixth to the twelfth dynasty were discovered in the cemeteries of Naga-ed-Deir and Dendera in Upper Egypt. They are rectangular or of irregular shape and were originally inserted into the walls of the cult chambers or the pits of the tombs. George A. Reisner (in Dows Dunham, Naga-ed-Deir Stelae from the. First Intermediate Period, Museum of Fine Arts Boston, 1937, p. 120) differentiated between two types of stelae from the First Intermediate Period: 1. Almost square stone slabs decorated with a scene that shows the tomb owner in front of an offering table; this type resembles the slab stelae and false-door tablets of the Old Kingdom.
2. Vertical rectangular slabs with rounded tops that depict the standing tomb owner. During the eleventh and twelfth dynasty the so-called classical stela of the Middle Kingdom evolved from this type. Most stelae of the Middle Kingdom were vertical rectangular slabs, with a rounded top that symbolized the firmament. There were also rectangular stelae with a torus roll and a ca.ve.tto cornice, two elements that also appear on false doors and derive from early reedand-mud constructions. In the New Kingdom, the shapes of stelae were very similar to those of the Middle Kingdom, apart from some few innovations: for example, round-topped stelae as well as rectangular stelae with a torus roll and a cavetto cornice also contained a triangle as the upper part, a reminder of a pyramidion (the tip or capstone of a pyramid). Another innovation was the kneeling statue that held stelae in front of them (known as stelophorous statues). Painted wooden stelae occurred for the first time during the New Kingdom, but they become more frequent from the Third Intermediate Period onward. They were usually of a vertical rectangular shape, with a rounded top, but compared to earlier stelae the rounded top was given a flatter curve. Function of Stelae. Often, stelae were erected in front of tombs or inserted into the walls of mastabas and rock-cut tombs to name the tomb owner; that had become common practice during the first and second dynasties, and was again common during the First Intermediate Period and thereafter. In the rock-cut tombs of the New Kingdom, stelae were placed in the open courts to represent the owner; they were also found on the side walls of the transverse halls, where they were cut out of the bedrock. There, the stelae marked the secondary offering place in the tomb, while the main offering place in the longitudinal hall usually consisted of a statue niche. By the end of the eighteenth dynasty, stelae were increasingly inserted into the facades of the tombs. In the Late period, tomb stelae were not only placed in the superstructure of the tomb but also directly in the underground burial chamber. Stelae also served as commemorative monuments. A large group of such stelae from the twelfth and thirteenth dynasties originated in Abydos. At the end of the Old Kingdom, Abydos developed into an important cult center for the god Osiris; it then became a famous place of pilgrimage, where festivals and processions were regularly held. Most of the stelae were erected along the procession roads, and some of them were also placed in small sanctuaries (cenotaphs), with statues and offering tables. Those stelae were established as substitutes, through which their dedicators could participate in the festivals and
STELAE TYPES OF STELAE
CORVETTO |\f CORNICE
TORUS ROLL
MIDDLE KINGDOM
NEW KINGDOM LATE PERIOD
LUNETTE
TEXT DEPICTION
DEPICTION
DEPICTION
TEXT TEXT
STELAE. Arrangement of the sections of typical stelae. (Courtesy Regina Holzl)
might profit from the divine offerings. Sometimes commemorative stelae were set up in temples by kings or noblemen, to bear witness to successful military campaigns, royal building activities, dynastic marriages, and other official events, but they could also contain royal decrees. A great number of votive stelae were dedicated to the
gods. Presented to temples and sanctuaries by individuals, to express their personal devotion, they were also part of small altars erected in private homes, as was often the case in the houses of Deir el-Medina, a village in Western Thebes. There, from the eighteenth to the twentieth dynasty, lived the craftsmen engaged in the work at the royal tombs. "Magic" stelae were also erected in houses and
322 STELAE
STELAE. Painted wooden stela showing the singer ofAmon playing a harp before the god Horns, twenty-second dynasty. This stela is now in the Louvre, Paris. (Giraudon / Art Resource, NY)
tombs, as protection against dangerous animals, such as snakes or scorpions. Stelae also marked the boundaries of fields, estates, administrative districts, and cities. For example, Akhena-ten's newly founded capital of Amarna, in Middle Egypt, was marked by fifteen rock-cut boundary stelae on which the king explained why he had chosen that site for his new political and religious center. Also on Egypt's southern border with Nubia and in Egypt's newly conquered Near Eastern territories, the pharaohs were very eager to set up boundary stelae as a manifestation of their power.
Types of Decoration. Stelae usually have depictions and inscriptions, executed in raised or sunken relief, or painted onto the surface. The space within the top curve of a stela is called the lunette, and it is composed of special decorative elements. On Middle Kingdom stelae, the decoration of the lunette is clearly differentiated from the rest, the lower part of the stela, whereas in the New Kingdom the depictions in the lunette and those in the first register below it are blended into each other. In the.Late period and also in the Ptolemaic period, a clear distinction was made between the lunette and the rectangular
STELAE 323 part of the stela, although some still follow the decorative scheme of New Kingdom stelae. Typical elements used in decorating the lunettes were, for example, udjat-eyes and the winged sun disk—both symbols of protection and defense. Udjat-eyes have been interpreted as a combination of the eyes of a falcon and a wildcat. This image was also used as an amulet and was, for example, depicted on coffins and sarcophagi. The winged sun disk was originally a royal symbol and was usually depicted above temple entrances. Symbols for "life" and "regeneration," such as the sn-ring or the 'nh-sign, as well as depictions of deities (especially the jackal god Wepwawet), have also appeared in the lunettes. Some additional decorative elements that were used during the Late period included barks with deities in them, scarabs, floral elements, and stars. During the Middle Kingdom, the rectangular part of a stela usually contained several horizontal lines of inscription, above the depiction of the stela's owner and, occasionally, some of his relatives. On the so-called family stelae of the late twelfth and the thirteenth dynasties, from Abydos, a large number of figures were represented with the owner. Most of them were his relatives, but some might also be high officials, without any family connections, whose appearance on the stela raised the prestige of its owner. In the New Kingdom, the first register of the rectangular part of a stela was decorated with adoration scenes, showing the owner and his family worshiping the gods. On tomb stelae of the Late period and the Ptolemaic period, the deceased was primarily shown among deities of the hereafter. The depictions were usually accompanied by short texts, but longer inscriptions were set below them. Votive stelae were often dominated by large images of the god to whom the stela was dedicated, and they contain very little text. Often the deities take the shape of animals, as was the case on the many stelae dedicated to the god Amun, on which he was depicted as a ram. Numerous stelae dedicated to the god Apis were found in the Serapeum, the tomb of the sacred Apis bulls in Saqqara; such stelae usually show the dedicator in adoration before the Apis bull. During the nineteenth dynasty, votive stelae with depictions of large ears were used for the first time. The ears belonged to the gods, and they ensured that the prayers of the dedicators would be heard. Stelae with ears are classed as "magic" stelae, like the socalled cippus from the Late period, a type of stela with the image of the child god Horus standing on a crocodile and holding snakes, scorpions, and other dangerous animals; such stelae were thought to provide protection against harmful creatures. Types of Inscriptions. Stelae inscriptions were usually written in hieroglyphs but occasionally also in Hier
atic, the cursive writing of the ancient Egyptians. Late period stelae were also inscribed in Demotic, a written and spoken language that evolved during the twenty-sixth dynasty, Some stelae from the Ptolemaic period also have texts in Greek. The earliest stelae of the first and second dynasties had only the name and title of the owner; by the Middle Kingdom, stelae were inscribed with various kinds of texts, the most common being the offering formula—a prayer through which the owner of a stelae expressed the wish to participate in the offerings that the king donated to the gods. Besides the offering formula, which remained the most common prayer on stelae throughout Egyptian history, stelae also had genealogies, dedication formulas, and other texts. Votive stelae were usually inscribed with hymns to the gods, while commemorative stelae had autobiographies or descriptions of certain important events. For example, the Kamose stela was erected to commemorate the victory of the pharaoh Kamose over the Hyksos ruler, about 1570 BCE. Successful military campaigns were also mentioned on the boundary stelae that were set up by Senwosret III of the twelfth dynasty, in Semna and Uronarti, lower Nubia, and by Thutmose I and Thutmose III of the eighteenth dynasty, on the banks of the Euphrates River and on the Gebel Barkal in upper Nubia, respectively. [See also False Door.] BIBLIOGRAPHY Bier-brier, Morris L., ed. Hieroglyphic Texts from Egyptian Stelae, etc. Vols. 10-12. London, 1982-1993. All three volumes contain descriptions, photographs and line drawings of stelae from the Ramessid period, many of them originating from the workmen's village of Deir el-Medina. Dreyer, Gunter. "Zur Rekonstruktion der Oberbauten der Konigs-graber der 1. Dynastie in Abydos." Mitteilungen des Deutschen Arch-aologischen Instituts Kairo 47 (1991). Erman, Adolt, and Hermann Grapow, eds. Worterbuch der agyptischen Sprache. Berlin, 1926; reprinted 1971. Eyre, Christopher J. "The Semna Stelae: Quotation, Genre, and Functions of Literature." Studies in Egyptology': Presented to Miriam Lichthehn, edited by Sarah Israelit-Groll, vol. 1, pp. 134-165. Jerusalem, 1990. Habachi, Labib. The Second Stela ofKanwse and His Struggle against the Hyksos Rider and His Capital. Abhandlungen des Deutschen Archaologischen Instituts Kairo, 8. Gliickstadt, 1972. Hermann, Alfred. Die Stolen der TItebanischeit Felsgrdber der 18. Dynastie. Agyptologische Forschungen, 11. Gliickstadt, 1940. Still relevant study on eighteenth dynasty stelae from rock-cut tombs, including discussions on their purpose as well as their shapes, decorations, and inscriptions. Khodzhash, Svetlana. Tife Egyptian Reliefs and Stelae in the Pushkin Museum of Fine Arts, Moscow. Translated from the Russian by Oleg Benlev. Leningrad, 1982. Offers explanations, descriptions, and photographs of nearly all types of stelae from the Old Kingdom to Roman times. Muller, Hans W. "Die Totendenksteine des Mittleren Reiches, ihre Genesis, ihre Darstellung und ihre Komposition." Mitteilungen des
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Deutschen Archaologischen Instituts, Ahteilung Kairo 4 (1933), 165-206. Discusses origins and development of shapes of stelae as well as their purposes. Munro, Peter. Die spcitiigyptischen Tolenstelen. Agyptologische Forschungen, 25. Gliickstadt, 1973. Extensive study on funerary stelae from the Third Intermediate Period to the Ptolemaic era. Murnane, William J., and Charles C. Van Siclen III. The Boundary Stelae of Akhenaten. London, 1993. New and complete edition of the boundary monuments of Tel] el-Amama, published in the fifth volume of Norman de Garis Davies's The Rock Tombs of El-Amania (London,1908). Ricke, Herbert. Bemarkungen wr dgyptischen Baukunst des Alien Reiches 1, Beitrage xur agyptischen Bauforschung und Altertum-skunde Heft 5. Cairo, 1950. Simpson. William K. The Terrace of the Great God at. Abyclos: The Offering Chapels of Dynasties 12 and 13. New Haven, 1974. Study on Middle Kingdom stelae from Abydo.s, their purpose and location. Stewart, H. M. Egyptian Stelae, Reliefs and Paintings from the Petrie Collection. 3 vols. Wanninster, 1976-1983. Publication on stelae from all periods now in the University College, London. REGINA HOLZL
STONEWORKING. In ancient Egypt, stone was used for building purposes as well as for utilitarian and revered objects; almost all kinds of available stone were used, both hard and soft. The relative hardness of stone can be described and compared to the Hardness Scale of Minerals devised by Friederich Mohs (17731839). Mohs arranged them in ten ascending degrees, from the softest (1, talc) to the hardest (10, diamond), with the rest listed between (2, gypsum; 3, calcite; 4, fluorite; 5, apatite; 6, orthoclase; 7, quartz; 8, topaz; and 9, corundum). Two important tools for working hard stone (rwdt) were the tubular drill and the straight-edged saw, both of copper (by) in use with a quartz sand (s'y) abrasive. Before c.3500 BCE, some stones were drilled by the common marsh reed (Phragmites communis), rotated by a bow with dry quartz sand, but after that date, the Naqada II (c.3500-3150 BCE) stoneworker (lyn-inr) copied the reed's tubular shape in copper and, later in dynastic times, in bronze. The reed effectively drilled hard limestone (Inr hd; Mohs 3-5), calcite (often mistermed "Egyptian alabaster" or "alabaster," ss; Mohs 3-4), and marble (Mohs 3-5). Although pure calcite and pure limestone (both calcium carbonate) are usually of Mohs 3 hardness, variations in composition and/or mineral inclusions cause some varieties (particularly limestone which is usually combined with magnesium carbonate) to be harder— ranging between Mohs 3 and 5; modern-day drilling and cutting tests indicate this range for Egyptian calcite, limestone, and marble. Holes in harder stone—such as basalt (bhnw; Mohs 7-8)—were made in ancient times by grinding with handheld borers of sandstone or borers of other stone material used with a quartz sand abrasive, continually
twisted clockwise and counterclockwise. Perforations for stone beads were often made by similarly twisting borers of flint (ds) back and forth. [See Calcite and Limestone.] The copper tube (which in use leaves a removable core) was sometimes driven by a bow, its string twisted around a tightly fitted wooden shaft and its top end rotated in a stone bearing-cap. For example, the perforated lug handles on Naqada II hard-stone vessels show striated tapered holes, typical of this drilling technique. Bow-driven copper tubes of 110 millimeters (6 royal fingers or 4.25 inches) in diameter were used to drill rows of adjacent touching holes in cutting out the center of Khufu's (Cheops') granite (myt) sarcophagus that is still inside the Great Pyramid at Giza. As long ago as 1883, W. M. Flinders Petrie discussed the dimensions of tubular-shaped holes and saw cuts in his The Pyramids and Temples of Gizeh. Copper tubes varied from approximately 6 to 125 millimeters (0.25 to 5 inches) in diameter, with wall thicknesses of 1 to 5 millimeters (less than one-quarter inch), similar to saw-blade thicknesses. Small diameter, thin-walled tubes were created from beaten sheet copper, while large diameter, thick-walled tubes were probably cast in vertical sand molds. The weighted, straight-edged stone-cutting saw, cast horizontally (up to 2.5 meters [8 feet] in length with a thickness of about 5 millimeters), was employed to cut hard-stone architectural blocks and to roughly shape sculpture, beginning in the first dynasty (c.3050-2850 BCE). From the third dynasty onward (2687-2632 BCE), it was used to cut calcite and harder stone sarcophagi to size. Present-day tests on granite, limestone, and calcite by drilling and sawing resulted in ratios of the weight of copper worn off the tools to the weight of the abraded stone removed—these were 1:0.9, 1:8, and 1:12, respectively; the usual consumption of sand and the amount of time for drilling or sawing 1 cubic centimeter of those stones were 250, 50, and 45 grams and 40, 5, and 2 minutes. That data allowed for some calculation of the approximate sand and copper consumption, as well as the manufacturing time, for a specific artifact. For example, the sawing, drilling, and finishing of Khufu's granite sarcophagus required about 37 metric tons (tonnes) of sand, 430 kilograms of copper, and 21 months of man-hour time to make. The finely ground resulting waste powders contained minute quartz, stone, and copper particles, quite dangerous to health (causing silicosis). In present-day tests, limestone and calcite powders were used to make faience cores, and granite powders created blue glazes that were similar to some ancient faience (thnt). The waste powders were also probably used to make a paste for drilling varieties of quartz (Mohs 7)—agate, amethyst, carnelian—and other stones for beads with a pointed,
STONEWORKING
STONEWORKING. Figure 1. Mallei used in stoneworking, from Deir el-Bahri. (University of Pennsylvania Museum, Philadelphia. Object # E 2434)
bow-driven copper drill. However, eighteenth and nineteenth dynasty (c. 1569-1201 BCE) bead drillers at Thebes, Upper Egypt, each spun up to five bronze drills simultaneously with one bow. Present-day experiments confirmed the feasibility of that massproduction technique. Vessels of breccia, diorite, basalt, porphyry, schist, and serpentine were made in large number in Naqada II times, because of the introduction of a combined drilling
and boring tool; the vessels were always shaped before they were hollowed. Representations from dynastic times depicted a stoneweighted wooden shaft, angled at the top for a handle. The shaft was crafted from a forked branch, with its main stem cut away above the fork. A copper tube was forceably fitted onto the end of the shaft; the tool was moved back and forth, clockwise and counterclockwise, by wrist action. Several ever-widening tubes were worked
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STONEWORKING. Figure 2. Test bas relief in soft limestone, made by mallet-driven copper chisels. The edges were scraped by flint tools. (Courtesy Denys A. Stocks)
at the same spot, to weaken the central mass safely, although in a large vessel adjacent holes were drilled around the mouth's perimeter to create the perforation effect. For a bulbous vessel, a forked shaft lashed to the main shaft drove a series of ever-larger figure eight-shaped stone borers, which widened the original drill hole. Vessels of gypsum (Mohs 2) were bored out by crescentshaped flints that were on forked shafts, as were inverted, truncated-cone borers that shaped such gypsum vessels' mouths. Domestic trading in, for example, stone vessels, palettes, and flint knives, increased from Naqada II to Naqada III (c.3200-3050 BCE). In particular, Upper and Lower Egyptian Predynastic and later dynastic stone vessels were valuable trade objects, used in exchange for essential foreign raw materials, such as cedar wood from Lebanon. Most stone types, including soft limestone and hard sandstone for building were quarried using picks and axes of granite, quartzite, chert, and flint. Very hard stone, however, such as granite, was detached by pounding with handheld dolerite balls. Conversely, the curved parts of sculptures were gently bruised into shape with hafted stone mauls. Limestone tomb walls were shaped and smoothed with flint and metal chisels and adzes; flat-tapered copper and/or bronze chisels fashioned soft limestone building blocks after their rough shaping by stone
tools. Present-day tests revealed that the copper or bronze chisel (mdyt) and adze (mshtyw) were only effective for cutting the softer stones (Mohs 3 and 2)—limestone, red sandstone, and gypsum (Figure 2)—and so bas-reliefs and incised hieroglyphs in all other stones, including true calcite (a mineral with hexagonal crystallization), were necessarily worked by disposable (throwaway) flint tools. (Flint, although hard [Mohs 7], is brittle; it chips or flakes along a grain or cleavage line.) The shaping of hard-stone artifacts, such as vessels, and the cutting of hieroglyphs, was accomplished by driving rudimentary flint punches and chisels into the stone, thus chipping away small pieces (Figure 3). The tools suffered gradual destruction. Occasionally, the hieroglyphs in harder stone were made smooth with stone grinders; but the hieroglyphs in softer stones, such as calcite and schist, were frequently scraped to a sharp edge with flint tools. After grinding, stone surfaces were polished with waste-drilling powders; flat surfaces were tested by three equal-length wooden rods. Two of the rods were joined by a length of string attached at the top of each. These were stood apart on the surface, with the string pulled taut. The third rod, held against the string and shifted along the surface, would then indicate high spots needing further work (marked by a finger coated in red ocher). Sloneworkers lived in communities near the sites of
STORAGE 327 Stocks, Denys A. "Derivation of Ancient Egyptian Faience Core and Glaze Materials." Antiquity 71 (1997), 179-182. Explains the possible use of waste powders, obtained from drilling and sawing stone with copper tools and sand, for making ancient faience cores and blue glazes. DENYS A. STOCKS
STONEWORKING. Figure 3. The biliteral sign nb cut into granite by test flint punches and chisets. The sign was polished by sandstone grinders and drilling powders of the waste material.
royal building and manufacture, for example, at Illahun in the Faiyum, Deir el-Medina at Thebes, and at Tell el-Amarna and Giza. Others toiled in palace, house, and temple workshops. [See also Technology and Engineering; Tools; and Vessels.] BIBLIOGRAPHY Arnold, Dieter. Building in Egypt: Pharaonic Stone Masonry. New York, 1991. Discusses, in depth, all types of building in stone and the associated methods of stoneworking; there are extensive references.. Lucas, Alfred. Ancient Egyptian Materials and Industries. 4th rev. ed. by J. R. Harris. London, 1962. Offers a comprehensive appraisal of materials, including stone, worked by ancient Egyptians. A revised edition is presently in preparation. Petrie, W. M. Flinders. The Pyramids and Temples of Gizeh. London, 1883. Petrie, W. M. Flinders. Tools and Weapons. London, 1917. Describes and illustrates a large number of Egyptian tools, many of them excavated by Petrie. Stocks, Denys A, "Ancient Factory Mass-Production Techniques: Indications of Large-Scale Stone Bead Manufacture during the Egyptian New Kingdom Period." Antiquity 63 (1989), 526-531. Describes the epigraphic evidence for ancient multiple-bead drilling and presents the results of tests on reconstructed tools. Stocks, Denys A. "Making Stone Vessels in Ancient Mesopotamia and Egypt." Antiquity 67 (1993), 596-603. Gives the connections between stone vessel manufacture in ancient Egypt, and Mesopotamia, in addition to a comprehensive description of Egyptian stone vessel production methods and tools. Stocks, Denys A. "Technology and the Reed." Manchester Archaeological Bulletin 8 (1993), 58-68. Discusses the drilling capabilities of reed tubes, their adaptation and use as blowpipes and bellows equipment, and as a design pattern for the duplication of stone-cutting tubes manufactured in copper and bronze. (Available directly from the Department of Art History and Archaeology, University of Manchester, United Kingdom.)
STORAGE. Egypt's economy depended on collecting and redistributing grain, manufactured goods, and raw materials. Storage, therefore, played an integral role in the smooth functioning of the major institutions of state and temple. Palace, temples, and individuals all maintained "granaries" (snwt) for food. Palaces and temples also established treasuries, each called the "House of Silver," that were intended to stockpile valuables. Workshops within a palace or temple were called the "House of the Plow"; there workers manufactured and stored finished goods including pottery, wooden furniture or even bread. The bureaucracies of the granary, treasury, and workshop were interconnected, although their relationships and the relative power of each of the bureaucracies shifted in response to the king's need to maintain control over Egypt's resources. The Archaic Period and Old Kingdom. In the earliest periods, granaries are attested from archaeological examples, such as those excavated at Merimda-Beni Salama during the Badarian culture (c.5000 BCE), while treasuries are known from seals of officials who worked there as early as the first dynasty (c.3050-2825 BCE). Workshops located in the "House of the Plow" are represented on tomb walls by the fifth dynasty (c.2513-2374 BCE), though various kinds of industrial sites, such as those for manufacturing pottery and flint tools have been associated with earlier prehistoric periods. It is unclear when the "House of the Plow" was established to maintain them. Models of granaries were found in tombs of the first two dynasties. They were shaped like cones on a round base or were domed with an opening for filling and emptying. The models resemble real granaries found throughout Egyptian history. Actual granaries were sometimes associated with tombs during this time, and they exhibit the same design as models, incorporating mudbrick vaulting coated with clay. Relief sculpture of granaries in tombs of the third and fourth dynasties show them filled with grain and fruit. By the sixth dynasty, granaries were represented alongside storage for manufactured goods. The proximity of food and manufactured items in those reliefs suggests a connection between granaries and the "House of the Plow" in this period. The granary, however, had it's own bureaucracy in the Old Kingdom, headed by an overseer; scribes, inspectors, and chiefs were also assigned to work in the granary. Peh-
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STORAGE. A depiction of five granaries at Thebes, surrounded by a brick wall. Three of the granaries have already been filled.
emefer was both "Overseer of the Treasury" and "Overseer of All the Granaries of the King." This double appointment might indicate that both bureaucracies were sometimes controlled by the same individual; some scholars, however, believe that Pehemefer held these titles sequentially rather than simultaneously. In the first and second dynasties, the treasury was directly connected to the palace as a subdivision of the "Council Chamber of Provisions," By the fourth dynasty, the treasury had become important enough that the council chamber was subordinate to it. The treasury controlled the collection, storage, and disbursement of taxes, income from the royal domains, goods manufactured and stored in the workshops, and raw materials from expeditions to Sinai. The granary and workshop were probably the actual sites of storage for the treasury. Throughout Pharoanic Egypt, the "House of the Plow," or the workshop, was a place for food preparation, manufacturing of finished goods, and also storage of its creations. The "Overseer of the Workshop" was responsible for delivering the offerings to the temples from storage facilities and for the reversion of offerings to the priests. These workshops were attached both to the palace and to temples, though they were always founded and controlled by the king, even when used to meet cultic needs. By the reign of Pepy II (2300-2206 BCE), some workshops existed independently of other institutions. These workshops owned land attached to newly built towns. The Middle Kingdom. From the Middle Kingdom, little evidence exists for a separate department of government that ran the granary. Though the titles "Overseer of the Granary," "Dragoman (Keeper) of the Granary," "Overseer of the Archive of the Granary," "Scribe of the Granary," and "Doorkeeper of the Granary" are all attested, the title "Overseer of the Granary" is much rarer
than in the Old Kingdom. The functions of the department were possibly handled in this period by the vizier or the treasury department. In Papyrus Boulaq 18, dating to the thirteenth dynasty, there is no mention of a separate palace granary, though that document deals extensively with provisioning the palace. The sources of grain for the palace mentioned in the document are "Upper Egypt, the Treasury, and the Bureau of What the People Give." The New Kingdom. Information on the granary, treasury, and workshops expands for the New Kingdom. From that period, detailed information for both royal and temple institutions is widely available. Thutmose III (r. 1504-1452 BCE) centralized the administration of the granary under the direction of Ya-munedjekh, "Overseer of the Granary of Upper and Lower Egypt"—the granaries were actually situated throughout the country. Papyrus Petersburg 1.116A mentions granaries that provided provisions for the king, the "God's Wife of Amun" (referring to the Queen), and the Treasury, which controlled royal domains, fields of the pharaoh, and it's own fields. Each of these granaries controlled a large number of silos found throughout the country. The later Ramessid kings continued the practice of centralizing control of the granaries, though they moved the overseer's office from Thebes to Memphis and later, perhaps, to Tanis. In this period, scholars denote separate parts of the granary, since during the twentieth dynasty, a distinction was made between grain stored in the "magazine" and in the "corridor," yet the basic design of the granary remained unchanged; the meaning of this distinction is not understood. In contrast to central control of the granary from Thebes, kings of the eighteenth dynasty maintained separate treasuries for Upper and for Lower Egypt. Both the overseers of the treasury were, however, located in Thebes
SYMBOLS 329 in the eighteenth dynasty and reported to the vizier. The treasury's importance grew ever greater in this period because it was responsible for administrating products entering Egypt from both Syria and Nubia. The treasury also provisioned the workers in the Theban necropolis with both food and materials. Reliefs at Medinet Habu supply an idea of the contents of an ideal treasury: room 10 held furniture and jars of ointment; room 11 held chests filled with precious metals, stones, and libation vases; room 12 held ritual staffs and various raw materials; and room 13 held libation vases, necklaces, statues, chests, and raw materials. Although the organizational principle is not clear, this depiction surely represented the ideal treasury of a temple. The workshops of the New Kingdom are best known from documents and reliefs of the mortuary temples of kings. In Medinet Habu, for example, the workshop was clearly responsible for supplying offerings for daily rituals and for festivals. The workshop was divided into rooms, each of which was named for a specific kind of bread, beer or, sweet that was supplied to the cult. The rooms were sites both of production and storage. The rooms identified at Medinet Habu as "store rooms" would hold four times the 12,562 sacks (965,767 liters) needed for the ritual calendar at that temple. Thus, it seems likely that the rooms were also used for other functions, such as manufacture; this idea is confirmed by reliefs that show both storage and manufacturing in the same location. The personnel of the workshop were either slaves or serfs. During the eighteenth dynasty, they were directed by the "Overseer of the Workshop," as can be observed in paintings in the tomb ofRekhmire at Qurna. By Ramessid times, the overseer's title had become honorary and the actual direction of this department was performed by a "Superior of the Workshop." The hierarchy among granary, treasury, and workshop shifted from period to period and perhaps even from reign to reign. Papyrus Petersburg 1116A for example, speaks of a "workshop of the harem," which works for the granary of the treasury. Often, as here, the terms for "granary" or "workshop" are used without clear reference to its governing institution; but in such contexts the ancient reader would have known the bureaucratic structure. The assumption that tile reader was aware of an understood meaning makes it difficult for modern scholars to ascertain many details of the bureaucracy of storage. Yet the fact of constant changes in those bureaucracies points to the central place that storage held in the Egyptian economy: no one person or bureaucracy was allowed to take complete control of the storage system in phara-onic Egypt, thus insuring that no real power base could be established that might threaten the royal house. [See also Basketry, Matting, and Cordage; Taxation; Vessels; and Weights and Measures.]
BIBLIOGRAPHY Andrassy, Petra. "Das pi'-sn' in Alten Reich." Studies wr Altas^yp-tischen Kultur 20 (1993), 17-35. Addresses the changes that occurred in the structure of the workshop during the reign of Pepy II. Haring, B. J. J. Divine Households: Administrative and Economic Aspects of the New Kingdom Royal Memorial Temples in Western Thebes. Leiden, 1997. Contains the best. up-to-date discussion of storage in granaries, workshops, and treasuries at mortuary temples during the New Kingdom. Heick, Wolfgang. Zur Veru'altung des Mittleren und Neiten Reichs. Leiden, 1958. The classic study of the bureaucracy during the Middle and New Kingdoms. Polz, Daniel. "Die in'-Vorsteher des Neuen Reiches." Ze.itschrift filr Agyplische Sprache 117 (1990), 43-60. Traces the changes in the title of the "Overseer of the Workshop" during the New Kingdom. Schmitz, B. "Schatzhaus." In Lexikon der Agyptologie, 5: 536-543. Wiesbaden, 1983. A good summary of the history of the treasury. Schmitz, B. "Scheune, Scheunenvorsteher." In Lexikon der Agyptologie, 5: 591-598. Wiesbaden, 1983. A good summary of the history of the granary. EDWARD BLEIBERG
STRABO. See Ancient Historians.
SUN. See Astronomy; Hymns, article on Solar Hymns; and Myths, article on Solar Cycle.
SYMBOLS. By definition, symbols represent something other than what they actually depict. Generally, they are based on conventionally agreed-on meanings; but unlike signs, which usually stand for something quite concrete (as in the case of mathematical or linguistic signs), symbols usually stand for something less visible or tangible than the symbol itself—for example, in modern American culture the dove is used as a symbol of peace, and the hawk as a symbol of war. Symbols must frequently be differentiated from what Egyptologists call "attributes," which generally represent something by the display of one of its parts (as in the use of the crown for the king, the crook and flail for Osiris)—a case of synecdoche; and from emblems, which are distinctive badges that represent an individual, group, office, or nation (as in the use of the serekh, representing the palace facade, to display the Egyptian king's name). Of course, attributes and emblems often exhibit some of the characteristics of symbols. Symbolic Expression in Egyptian Culture. The civilization of ancient Egypt was symbolically oriented to a degree rarely equaled by other cultures. It was through symbols that the Egyptians represented and affirmed many of their ideas, beliefs, and attitudes regarding the nature of life and reality. Symbols often depict aspects of
330 SYMBOLS reality that are difficult to represent through other modes of expression, and the ancient Egyptians used them constantly in this manner. Symbolism, in fact, has been described as a primary form of ancient Egyptian thought, and it is necessary to understand the pervasive nature of this way of thinking in order to fully grasp the role of symbols in Egyptian society. Artists, architects, and craftspeople utilized symbols in the design and construction of objects ranging from temples, tombs, and other monuments to the smallest items of everyday life. Yet this constant incorporation of symbols was not merely a matter of decoration or playful visual punning. The use of symbolism allowed the ancient Egyptians to impose their view of life on the surface of perceived reality by incorporating or imagining symbols in the objects, forms, and activities that surrounded them. This is not to say that symbols were employed only in the representational forms of art and architecture, for symbolism was manifested in many other areas of life, such as the practice of formal and informal magic, or religious ritual. Egyptian religion and magic both relied to a great extent on symbolism to accomplish their ends; as a result, the symbolism inherent in a given work is often an expression of underlying religious or magical beliefs that give the work life, meaning, and power. Because symbols are different from the things they represent, some kind of association must always be present to link the symbol to its referent, the aspect of reality it represents. In Egyptian symbolism these associations are usually visual. In fact, the Egyptian language appears to have had no single word that exactly parallels our term "symbol"; the closest and most common approximation is probably twt ("image"), which underscores symbolisms largely visual basis. But symbols are not limited to the visual. Sounds (for example, the onomatopoeic equation of the ram's "baa" with the ba of the god) and perhaps even scents (incense offerings) and other sensory perceptions (perceived divine odors) could hold symbolic content for the Egyptians. But it is largely the expression of visual symbolism that has survived, and this provides the bulk of the evidence considered in this article. In any type of symbolism, however, symbol and reality were inextricably intertwined in ancient Egypt. Thus, a person's name (both written and spoken) not only identified and represented that person as an individual but was also a veritable part of the individual's being, to the extent that to deface or destroy the name, and thus prevent, its being spoken or seen, helped to destroy the existence of the person named. Once established, the symbolic aspect of an object became a part of its identity which was rarely ignored entirely, and frequently expressed to the full. Because light-reflecting mirrors shone like the sun, for example, for the Egyptians it was perhaps preferable that
mirrors be circular, and that any decoration applied to them relate in some way to solar symbolism. Not only were symbol and reality inextricably intertwined in Egyptian thought; symbols were also used to adjust perceived reality and to impose on it a meaningful and acceptable framework. This is seen especially in the fact that the Egyptian use of symbols represents a system in which the existence of conflicting facts was often successfully resolved by means of the ambivalent nature of the symbols themselves. Symbols frequently have several meanings and may openly contradict themselves in their expression, yet, in symbolic thought, the two opposing expressions may be viewed as complementary rather than contradictory. An animal such as the crocodile, for example, could symbolize not only death and destruction but also solar-oriented life and regeneration, because both appear to be true aspects of the creatures observed and mythical nature. Despite its fearsome and destructive aspects, the crocodile faces the morning sun as though in adoration and also hunts fish, the mythological enemies of the sun god. A similar polarity is seen in the Egyptian perception of many aspects of the natural world and in the character of many Egyptian gods. Osiris, for example, may be said to symbolize both death and regenerate life. Either meaning, or both, may be implicit to the use of a given symbol, depending on context. The manipulation of contradictory facts through the use of symbols was not always complete, however, and in some cases symbols compete or consciously stress contradictions in the same setting. For example, the Egyptian kings position vis-a-vis that of the people is one of great power, and he is their protector, yet the king is at the same time dependent on the gods and receives their protection. Both aspects of reality are true, and both factors receive independent symbolic representation, though usually in different contexts. To a certain extent, the function of symbols in Egyptian art, life, and thought was also contradictory. The symbols may be esoteric or exoteric—they may be utilized both to reveal and to conceal: to reveal by evoking important aspects of reality, and to conceal through limiting the audience that understands their message. Both aspects are integral parts of Egyptian symbolic expression and were employed according to context and need. Aspects of Egyptian Visual Symbolism. In Egyptian culture the more important and frequently encountered aspects of visual symbolism are form, hieroglyphs, relative size, location, material, color, number, action, and gesture. These are considered separately below. Form. Egyptian art utilizes form symbolism at two levels, which may be designated primary and secondary, or direct and indirect types of association. At the first level, objects are shown in the forms they are meant to repre-
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sent and gain symbolic significance through association and context—for example, the use of the d/ed-pillar as a symbol of support. At the secondary level, symbolic association occurs when significant forms are represented indirectly, as in the case of the clenched-hand amulets which represented sexual union. In many cases, images that are widely disparate in form may actually relate to the same underlying symbolic theme; conversely, even small modifications of form may result in significant changes in symbolic meaning. The former may be seen in the array of symbols associated with the goddess Hathor, ranging from the papyrus plant to the cow; modification of a form is frequently seen in representations of the human figure, where different poses— kneeling, seated, standing, striding, etc.—may imply very different meanings. In formal architectural decoration, programmatic modification of forms—as in the location and color of solar disks in tombs, or the transition from plant bud to fully open capital forms of columns in temples—is frequently employed to symbolize spatial and temporal aspects of the cosmos. Hieroglyphs. A specialized subset of form symbolism, hieroglyphic symbolism is one of the most frequent sources of symbols encountered in Egyptian art and may be expressed in several ways. In ideographic representa
SYMBOLS. Emblematic purification dish from the Early Dynastic period. This slate dish is a three-dimensional hieroglyphic inscription, in the form of an ankh surrounded by the symbol for ka; it can be read as "life to the ka." (The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Rogers Fund, 1919. [19.2.16])
tion (the depiction of a figure or object in the form of a hieroglyphic sign), hieroglyphic forms may function as representations of individuals and as manifestations of the gods themselves. Rebus representation (the spelling out of personal names or titles by combining hieroglyphic signs with syllabic values in the composition) was also commonly used for two- and three-dimensional representations of kings, and not infrequently for others. While visual metaphor (the use of a sign to suggest something else with. which it is somehow associated) is relatively infrequent, visual analogy (the use of hieroglyphic signs for things that they resemble) is particularly common in Egyptian art. In the latter type of representation, objects are made in the form of hieroglyphic signs they resemble—a mirror case or a vase in the shape of an ankh sign, or a headrest in the form of the horizon hieroglyph. This type of mimicking of forms is usually being tied in some way to the meaning or significance of the object. The forms of hieroglyphs were also "projected" by the Egyptians onto actual objects in two ways. On the one hand, hieroglyphic forms were used in the design and production of various objects; on the other, natural objects were viewed and represented in the form of hieroglyphic signs which they resembled.
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SYMBOLS
Only the educated elite of Egyptian society could properly write and read, and it was for them that most artworks were produced. Nevertheless, many people probably recognized at least some of the more common hieroglyphs and could understand common examples of hieroglyphic symbolism. Size. The stratified sizes of god and human, king and subject, tomb owner and servant, or parent and child are usually symbolic of relative status and power within Egyptian compositions. This is particularly clear in scenes recorded on temple walls and in other settings which show the Egyptian king at a much larger scale than his enemies, heightening the hierarchical effect of the representation by emphasizing the helplessness of the enemy and the king's superhuman stature. In two- and three-dimensional colossal representations of kings and gods, the stratification is actually based on the relative scale of the colossus and the viewer. In a similar manner, even fully adult children are frequently depicted standing beside their parents as tiny figures, even though their figures, hair, and clothing leave no doubt as to their actual maturity. While Egyptian artists also used reduction of scale for purely artistic, compositional reasons, such instances are usually clearly discernible from symbolic ones. The principle of same-sizing—to suggest equality or nearequality of status—may be achieved through both isocephaly and equality of scale. Isocephaly may indicate equality between subjects by placing heads of figures at the same level, or it may maintain a hierarchical difference by ensuring that an individual of lesser importance does not look down on a more important figure. Although isocephaly is frequently the result of use of the same drafting grid for both figures in Egyptian representations, many examples exist that indicate conscious same-sizing. Equality of scale does not always imply equality of status, however, and in New Kingdom battle scenes a single enemy figure may be depicted at the same scale as the Egyptian king in order to represent the enemy as a whole. The adjusted size of individual body parts or areas for symbolic reasons must also be considered under this heading. Bodily proportions may be adjusted or emphasized as a means of suggesting maturity or status—as in the purposefully corpulent rendering of temple statues and tomb representations of private officials, and in some cases in royal representations. Many so-called fertility figurines clearly exaggerate male or female sexual characteristics for symbolic and magical purposes. Location. The symbolism of location may be absolute or relative, referring on the one hand to the specific location of a representation, object, building, or place (such as a sacred site), and on the other to the positioning or alignment of something in relation to some other representation, object, building, or place. From very early times, funerary scenes depicting pilgrimages to sacred
sites are clear indicators of the importance of locational aspects in ancient Egyptian religion. Even when the sites were not actually visited, they maintained a symbolic role that involved the spiritual continuity of the veneration of the sacred place. While locational symbolism thus frequently applies to actual specific sites, absolute locational symbols are often paired or juxtaposed as representatives of a more abstract geographic or cosmic dichotomy, such as Upper and Lower Egypt, east and west, or heaven and earth. This type of oppositional or symmetrical pairing is often expressed, in turn, through relative locational symbolism, which may range from the careful arrangement and alignment of elements within individual compositions or funerary (tomb goods) and religious (temple furniture) assemblages, to the architectural and decorative programs of whole buildings such as temples and tombs, and even the planning of groups of buildings and cities. Sometimes the orientation is according to a simple right/left, east/west, or north/south dichotomy; in other cases, it reflects subtler divisions within the structure of the individual composition or building. Small-scale manifestations of this kind of relative placement may be seen, for example, in the "prepositional" placement of representations of kings before the figures of protective deities such as the overshadowing Horus falcon, the Hathor cow, and the sphinx in its various forms. This orientation implies the idea of protection for the king and is reflected in the hieroglyphic formula "protection behind him," commonly written behind the king. Similarly, to be "beneath" another figure might connote inferiority or subjugation, as may be seen in the carefully controlled relative placement of figures in scenes of victory over fallen enemies, and in the depiction of captives on the bases of royal thrones and footstools. Material. Various materials held symbolic significance for the Egyptians, and not least of these were precious metals. Gold was regarded as divine on account of its color and brightness (symbolic of the sun) and its untar-nishing nature (symbolic of eternal life). The flesh of the gods descended from the sun god Re was said to be of gold, and thus many images of deities were formed from this substance or gilded. Silver also had divine associations: the bones of the gods were said to be of this substance, and it was used extensively as a symbol of the moon in mirrors and in figures of lunar gods such as Khonsu and Thoth. Many more common materials were also symbolically important. Among stones, for example, the black coloration of basalt gave it a natural association with the underworld, and lapis lazuli was symbolic of the heavens because of its blue ground color and starlike golden specks. Similarly, materials as diverse as wood, wax, and water could suggest one or more symbolic associations; water, for example, functioned as a symbol of purification and
acceptance, and also of life, renewal, and fertility. The symbolic importance of a substance was often based on its natural color, but a substance might also be important because of some unusual characteristic or through mythological associations. Color. This was one of the most important aspects of Egyptian symbolism and is the underlying reason for the symbolic associations of many materials. Individual colors could suggest different things according to context and use, however. Red, the color of fire, the sun, and blood, could symbolize any of these things, or the more abstract concepts of life and destruction associated with them. Blue was naturally associated with the heavens and water, and in the latter association could represent the concept of fertility Yellow, a primary solar color, was used extensively for solar-related objects such as the scarab and the golden bodies of the gods. Black, although a color of the netherworld and its deities, could also be used in non-funerary contexts and was symbolic of fertility through its associations with the rich black earth of the Nile Valley. Green, the color of luxuriant vegetation and thus of life itself, could signify health and vitality, and the sound or undamaged eye of Horus is often depicted in this color. White was sometimes used as a symbol of purity; but as a solar color, white could also be used as an alternative to yellow in some contexts. The interchange of colors that exists in Egyptian art is partly a result of the somewhat different classification of colors used by the Egyptians, and partly of the principle of equivalence, whereby different colors were treated as one owing to physical similarities (for example, the white, yellow, and red appearances of the sun), or because of abstract, symbolic connections between them (e.g., black and green as colors of regeneration). Number. Several numbers held symbolic significance for the Egyptians, especially the integers 2, 3, 4, 7, and their multiples—all of which are usually, in some way, expressions of unity in plurality. It is thus unity rather than diversity that is stressed in many of the dualities seen in Egyptian art. The phenomenon of duality pervades Egyptian culture and is at the heart of the Egyptian concept of the universe, which views the many evident dichotomies of light and dark, sun and moon, east and west, and so on, as expressions of the essential unity of existence. Similarly, while three was the number associated with the concept of plurality, three was also a number of unity inherent in plurality, as may be seen in the many divine families which Egyptian theology constructed of a god, his wife, and their child, or in the characterization of Amun, Re, and Ptah as the soul, face, and body of god. To a great extent, although they may often connote simple plurality, symbolic use of the numbers four, six, seven, nine, and twelve also follows this pattern of unity in plurality. Larger numbers, such as one thousand (as in the offering
SYMBOLS 333 formula "a thousand loaves of bread") and greater, usually symbolize plurality alone. Actions. Actions depicted in Egyptian art may be performed by gods, humans, or animals. They may be real, mythical, or iconographic, and may also be classed as ritual or nonritual. Any of these types of action may have symbolic significance. Real actions are simply actions that take place in the real world. Many representations of the Egyptian king engaged in some kind of ritual activity depict real events in which the king actually participated. By contrast, images showing the king involved in mythically related activities may represent something that was acted out (as in certain temple rituals where costumed priests may have represented various deities), but these actions also appear to have been depicted largely for symbolic purposes. The motif of ritual slaying of enemies may well have been a real action at times, but it is frequently depicted in a mythical, generic manner. When actions in Egyptian art are of an apparently realistic nature but are depicted in an exaggerated or unrealistic manner for symbolic or pro-pagandistic purposes, they may be described as monographic actions. The majority of formal actions depicted in Egyptian art are of a ritual nature; that is, most aspects of the activity—time, place, and manner—were carefully prescribed and conducted according to an established pattern or protocol. Each detail of such ritual actions may have specific symbolic significance. Nonritual actions, however, are the actions of everyday life, though these may sometimes have symbolic significance; thus, representations of pouring and throwing in some contexts may relate covertly to physical sexuality and hence to birth and the rebirth of the afterlife. Gestures. A particular aspect of the symbolism of actions, gesture symbolism—using the positioning or movement of the body, head, arms or hands—is the most complex and least understood aspect of Egyptian visual symbolism. This is largely because Egyptian artists usually worked within established formulae for the depiction of the human body, and this conventional depiction serves both to obscure certain types of gestures and to summarize others, with gestures usually being "frozen" in the representations at a single characteristic point. Many, if not most, gestures depicted in Egyptian art functioned as nonverbal communication, however, and connoted general or specific meanings relating to themes such as greeting, asking, praising, offering, speaking, rejoicing, and so on. As a result, despite the frequent difficulty of analysis, many of these gestures may be observed in specific contexts and interpreted with some certainty. Over all, two types of gestures can be differentiated: independent and sequential. Gestures such as that exhibited by mummiform representations of Osiris with the
334 SYMBOLS arms folded across the chest exist in isolation and have complete meaning in and of themselves without reference to any other gesture, action, or context, and may thus be termed "independent." More complex gesture patterns also exist, however, where a certain pose or gesture seen in representations actually occurred within a sequence of continuous action. These sequential gestures are found in contexts such as ritual funerary activities and formalized expressions of praise and offering and are understandably more difficult to reconstruct and interpret. It should also be remembered that a number of similar gestures actually represent different poses with different meanings; on the other hand, truly different gestures may sometimes function within the same range of meaning. Interpretation of Symbols. In a given representation, artifact, or monument, one or several of the above symbolic dimensions may be present. In fact, it is rare that an Egyptian work has none of these elements; and the presence of symbolic aspects must be addressed in any thorough analysis of Egyptian artistic and architectural work. Although different symbolic aspects may be emphasized in different settings or types of work, certain basic principles may be widely applied. Generally speaking, while a single, salient symbolic aspect is evident in a given representation or object, other aspects may reinforce this association or provide additional levels of meaning. Once a symbolic association has been established between an object and its symbolic referent (e.g., the color red = sun), anything with the same characteristic may be said to be symbolic of that referent. Once an object or characteristic has become symbolic of a given referent, then its other characteristics may also be interpreted in terms of the same symbolic association. For example, the heron is associated with the Nile primarily because of its aquatic habits, but its blue coloration also ties into the same association. The swallow is associated with the sun primarily because it flies out from its nest in the ground at dawn and returns at dusk—and also because of its red coloring. Interpreting the various types of symbols—discovering what. they meant for the ancient Egyptians themselves— is not always a simple matter, however, and may be approached from a number of physical and psychological viewpoints. Even at a purely Egyptological level, the interpretation and understanding of symbols requires a careful approach. Primarily, we must beware of assuming that a given aspect of a two- or three-dimensional representational work or architectural structure had some symbolic significance for the Egyptians without reasonable indication. that this was the case. Because it developed in an open system of thought that allowed and encouraged the free association of ideas, Egyptian symbolism is easily misunderstood. This was as
true for ancient and medieval observers as it is for us today, as we see, for example, in many of the "interpretations" of Egyptian symbols recorded by Plutarch. He tells us, for example, that the cat was regarded by the Egyptians as a symbol of the moon on account of its activity in the night and the "fact" that it produces increasing numbers of young (corresponding to the daily increase in the moon's light), and especially because its pupils expand and contract like the full and crescent moon. Yet how much, if any, of this reasoning was true for the ancient Egyptians' original association of the cat with the moon is difficult to ascertain. Even when care is taken in this regard, it must be remembered that symbols can be fluid things. Their meanings may certainly change over time, and it does not always follow that the symbolic significance of a given element in one composition will be identical in another work of earlier or later date. The symbols utilized in Egyptian art may also exhibit different meanings in different contexts in the same period. In funerary contexts, feather patterning may be symbolic of the wings of certain protective goddesses, or of the avian aspects of the ba of the deceased. Textual evidence suggests even more possibilities, associating or identifying the deceased with a hawk, a swallow, or some other bird, so that in certain cases where context does not render a clear choice, it is difficult to decide on the specific significance of such a symbolic element—or if there could be some kind of generic symbolism meant to embrace many or all of these possible ideas. At the same time, many different symbols may be used for the same symbolic referent (e.g., the swallow, baboon, and bultl-fisli, all used for the sun), but in many cases relatively little study has been devoted to the reasons for the choice of given symbols in different settings. The Egyptians themselves were conscious of the ambiguity in their own symbolism and even seem to have encouraged it. Enigmatic statements in religious texts are not infrequently glossed with several divergent explanations, and the principle doubtless applies io representational as well as literary use of symbols. There is often a field or range of possible meanings for a given symbol, and while we may select a specific interpretation that seems most likely according to context, we must remember that other symbolic associations may also be involved. This is not to say that ancient Egyptian symbolism is inchoate, inconsistent, or imprecise, but that a flexible approach must be maintained in attempting to understand its workings. Successful analysis must avoid unfounded speculation, yet at the same time it must attempt to incorporate the intellectual flexibility that the Egyptians themselves displayed. [See also Amulets; Color Symbolism; Gesture; Insig-nias; and Scripts, article on Hieroglyphs.]
SYRIA-PALESTINE 335 BIBLIOGRAPHY Allean, Rene. La science des symboles. Paris, 1976. Deals with the study of general symbolism and interpretive methodology. Anthes, Rudolf. "Altagyptische Mythologie, Symbolon und Symbolik." Grune Blotter, Mine.ilungen und AufsdUe. 23.2 (.1967), 1-20. Contains some interesting points. Baines, John. "Temple Symbolism." Royal Anthropological Institute News 15 (1976), 3, 10-15. Surveys the programmatic use of symbolism in Egyptian temple architecture and decoration. Biedei-man, Hans. Dictionary of Symbolism: Cultural .Icons and the Meanings behind Them. New York. 1994. Instructive examples of symbolism in modern societies. Bowra, C. M. Heritage of Symbolism. London, 1943. An older work which still provides some useful general discussions of symbolism. Cooper, 1. C. An Illustrated Encyclopaedia of Traditional Symbols. London, 1978. Compendium of general symbolism. Derchain, Philippe. "Symbols and Metaphors in Literature and Representations of Private Life." Royal Anthropological Institute News 15 (1976), 7-10. Looks at aspects of the societal use of symbolism in ancient Egypt. Dominicus, B. Gesten und Gebarden in Darsteltungen dr.s Alten und. Mittleren Reiches. Heidelberg, 1994. Goft, Beatrice L. Symbols of Ancient Egypt in the iMte Period: The Twentyfirst Dynasty. The Hague, 1979. Discussion of selected symbols used in funerary contexts; see also the review of this work in Bibliotheca Orienlalis 39 (1982), 529-533. Hornung, Erik. Idea into linage: Essays on Ancient Egyptian Thought. Translated by Elizabeth Bredeck. New York, 1992. Translation of Gelst der Pliaraonenyit (Zurich, 1989). Provides good background to the Egyptian use of symbolism in various contexts. Jung, Carl. Man and His Symbols. New York, 1964. The archetypal view, which has been widely influential in assessing symbolism from the psychological perspective. Kendal, Timothy. "Kings of the Sacred Mountain: Napata and the Kushite Twenty-fifth Dynasty of Egypt." In Suda.n: Ancient Kingdoms of the Nile, edited by Dietrich Wildung pp. 161-171. New York, 1997. The symbolic nature of Gebel Barkal, pp. 166-170, provides an excellent example of Egyptian visualization of symbolic forms in nature. Lurker, Manfred, ed. Bibliographie tin- Symbolik, Ikonographie und Mythologie. 4 vols. Baden-Baden, 1968-197). Contains excellent bibliographies for the study of general symbolism. Lurker, Manfred. Symbols dv.r Alien Agypter. Weilheim, 1964. Needham, Rodney, ed. Rig/it and Left: Essays on Dual Symbolic Classification. Chicago, 1973. Broad study of the symbolism of duality. O'Connor, D. "Beloved of Maat: The Horizon of the Royal Palace in New Kingdom Egypt." In Ancient Egyptian Kingship, edited by D. O'Connor and D. Silverman, Leiden, 1995. O'Connor, D. "Mirror of the Cosmos: The Palace of Merncptah." In Fragments of a Shattered Visage: Proceedings of the International Symposium of Harnesses the Great, edited by E. Bleiberg and R. Freed, Memphis, Tenn., 199.1. Raven, Marten J. "Magical and Symbolic Aspects of Certain Materials in Ancient Egypt." Varia Aegyptiaca 4 (1988), 237-242. Discusses many examples of nonvisual and nonauditory associated symbolism. Schott, Siegfried. "Symbol und Zauberals GnindtbnTi altagyptischen Denkens." Sludium Generate 6 (1953), 278-288. An older but still useful study of symbolism in Egyptian thought. Westendorf, Wolfhart. "Symbol, Symbolik." In Lexikon der Agyplolo-gie, 6: 122-128. A short but useful survey linked to some, but not all, related articles in LA. Whitehead, Alfred North. Symbolism: Ils Meaning and Effect. New
York, 1927. Philosophical and semantic aspects of symbolism in its wider spheres of operation. Wilkinson, Richard H. Reading Egyptian Art: A Hieroglyphic Guide to Ancient Egyptian Painting and Sculpture. London and New York, 1992. Focuses on the area of hieroglyphic symbolism. Wilkinson, Richard H. Symbol and Magic in. Egyptian Art. London and New York, 1994. Sui-veys the individual aspects of Egyptian symbolism. RICHARD H. W1LKINSO.N
SYRIA-PALESTINE. Since prehistory, the nature and extent of interactions between Egypt and Syria-Palestine (the Levant) had fluctuated across the North Sinai land bridge and through maritime contacts. Although Wadi el-Arish in North Sinai forms the traditional geopolitical and sociocultural border between Egypt and the Near East, Egyptian and Near Eastern raids and territorial expansion across this desert frontier periodically modified the political borders. Late Predynastic (Early Bronze Age I). The late Pre-dynastic (Naqada II-III; c.3500-3050 BCE) in Egypt corresponds to the Syria-Palestinian Early Bronze Age I (also termed EB T.A-C, or Proto-Urban for EB IA-B). Although much of Syria-Palestine was inhabited by pastoralists and nomads, at this time settlements (mostly unfortified) and city-states began to emerge (e.g., Arad, Jericho, Megiddo, Beth Shan, and Tell Farah North). Syria and Palestine formed intermediaries for maritime and overland trade between Egypt and Mesopotamia, while maritime and overland routes may have connected Mesopotamia to Upper Egypt via the Red Sea and Eastern Desert (Quseir to Naqada, Coptos, and Hierakonpolis). Near Eastern imports and influence appeared at this time in Egypt (e.g., at Maadi, Buto, Minshat Abu Omar, Giza, Abusir, Saqqara, Matmar, Naqada, and Abydos). They encompass lapis lazuli from Badakshan, pottery (late Uruk ware), cylinder seals (Protoliterate style), architecture (decorative wall cones at Buto), and artistic motifs (a "hero"-figure separating two animals; ship designs) from Mesopotamia; silver from Anatolia(?); pear-shaped mace heads, wood and resins (pine, cedar, and cypress or juniper), and pottery ('Amuq-style) from Syria; copper ores perhaps from Feinan (South Arabah); turquoise from Sinai; and olive oil, wine, salt, sulphur, bitumen (Dead Sea), resins, stone vessels, flints, and imported and locally copied pottery from Palestine. For instance, more than four hundred Palestinian pots appear in Tomb U-j at Abydos (Naqada ITIa2), while Palestinian pottery includes Red Polished ware ("Abydos ware"), Light Faced Painted ware, some Combed ware, and jars (with lug-handles, ledge-handles, and knobs), bowls, and loop-handled cups. Egyptian items occur at more than thirty EB I sites in Palestine (e.g., 'Ein Besor, Arad, Lahav, 'Ereini, and Tel
336 SYRIA-PALESTINE Halif), reaching Megiddo to the north and Transjordan to the east. In North Sinai, the ratio of EB I-I.I Egyptian to Palestinian pottery is 80 percent to 20 percent. Yadin, Yei-vin, Dessel, and Amiran/Ben-Tor hypothesize variously that the intense EB IB Egyptian material presence and influence in North Sinai and Palestine represent the product of an Egyptian invasion, a colony, a symbolic expression of sociopolitical power, or trade. Locally copied and imported Egyptian products include copper tools (axes, knives), flints (knives, sickle blades, chipped stones), stone palettes, pottery vessels (bowls, lotus-shaped bowls, bread molds, bottles, jugs, juglets, store jars, globular and drop-shaped jars, and cylindrical pots), clay sealings and vessels (with serekhs bearing the names of Ka, "Scorpion"?, and later kings). Imports from Egypt consist of alabaster mace heads, alabaster and faience vessels, pendants, beads (faience, calcite, camelian, ostrich shell, and gold), Nile mollusks, catfish, and a faience baboon statuette. Egyptian construction techniques appear in mud-brick buildings, such as at EB IB 'Ereini, which contains much Egyptian influence and is interpreted by some as a colonial "capital." Some human remains from EB I burials are said to resemble "African" (i.e., Egyptian) populations. Egyptian pottery (e.g., possible Nubian ware) appears at Habuba Kabira in North Syria, while possible Egyptian gold occurs at Tepe Gawra (Mesopotamia). Early Dynastic Period (Early Bronze Age II). The Early Dynastic (Archaic), Period (first-third dynasties, c.3050-2632 BCE) spans Early Bronze Age II. Settlement intensified in EB II SyriaPalestine, and many sites were fortified. Contemporary and later Egyptian texts, including the Palermo Stone, assert direct Egyptian contact with Palestine through the smiting of Near Easterners ("Asiatics") and the "east." King Khasekhemwy's statue base from Hierakonpolis records the exaggerated massacre of more than 48,000 northerners, reflecting intense military activity in Sinai and Palestine. Egyptian sculptures and other depictions display Near Easterners with beards, long hair, a headband, a short kilt, and arms often bound behind their backs. Redford (1992, pp. 32-33) lists the names applied to Near Easterners: "shoulder-knot people," "kiltwearers," "kilties," "people of the bow," "archers," "the wild men of Asia," "northerners," "those-who-are-across-the-sand," and A'amu ('ynw, a West Semitic-derived word for "Asiatics"). Egyptian products and influence continued in EB II South Palestine. Finds include imported and locally made pottery, stone vessels, a knife handle (at Ai), clay sealings and inscribed pots (some bear serekh-names of Narmer, Hor-Aha, and Den?), and architectural influences in mud-brick and stone buildings. Egyptian items also appear in Syria. A major port town in Lebanon, Byblos, yielded a stone vessel fragment of King Khasekhemwy and a sec
ond/third dynasty alabaster jar sherd naming Neferse-shernre ("scribe of the royal tree-cutters"); Egyptian-style pottery occurs in the 'Amuq region of Syria. Mesopotamian products and influence continued in Egypt during the first dynasty in the form of architecture with elaborate niches and buttresses, and cylinder seals, but these disappear by the second dynasty. Levantine products found in Egypt match the preceding period, but include seals with stylistic similarities to ones at Byblos, and cedar in royal burials at Abydos. Imported Red Polished ware becomes scarce in sites from the second and third dynasties: Red Polished ware continues, and Combed ware increases. Egyptian trade with the Near East appears in texts and jar sealings citing foreign items. One official is titled "Administrator of Foreign Lands." Texts term maritime ships "Byblos-ships." Late references note ship-building in Khasekhemwy's reign. Artistic motifs common to Egypt and the Levant include persons smiting prisoners and lions and bulls trampling foes. Old Kingdom (Early Bronze Age III). The Old Kingdom (fourth-sixth dynasties, c.2632-2191 BCE) spans Early Bronze III. Although extensive urbanization continued in Palestine, many sites suffered abandonment, resettlement, or destruction, culminating in the termination of EB III. Egyptian activity and influence is less evident in North Sinai and Palestine, but continues in Syria. Old Kingdom texts refer to the desert regions and possibly southwestern Palestine as Hariu-sha' (hryw-s'), "(the land of) the Sand Dwellers." Pyramid Text 716 alludes to Egypt's defense against Near Eastern incursions, mentioning the double-ram gate that repels the Fenkhu. Other texts locate the Fenkhu in West Syria and Lebanon, while the region to the east is termed Qedem, and the population is labeled A'amu. Mesopotamia!! texts from the third and second millennia BCE mention "the land of Amurru," which includes "the West," "the West-land," and all regions west of the Euphrates to the Mediterranean ("the sea of Amurru"). In another text, the Sumerian king of Lagash, Gudea (c.2100 BCE), obtains cedar from the mountains ofAmana (Amanus) and stone from Basalla in the Amorite mountains in Syria-Palestine. Imported Palestinian pottery appears in Egypt as late as the fourth dynasty, when Combed ware potsherds peak in quantity (one Combed ware pot yielded aromatic resin from a. coniferous tree). The archaeological record, however, reveals decreasing Egyptian contact with EB III Palestine. The attribution of a cache of Early Dynastic calcite vessels from Ai ('"Ei Tell") to EB III is contested and otherwise placed in EB II; L. E. Stager notes that only one Egyptian drop-shaped pot is known from EB III Palestine. In contrast, the textual-pictorial record reveals Egyptian military activity against Near Easterners (A'amu), who are taken captive (sqr.w-'nh, "bound for
SYRIA-PALESTINE 337 life"). The fifth dynasty tomb of Yenty at Deshasheh depicts Egyptians besieging a fortified Near Eastern town. Sixth dynasty texts from Weni's tomb (reign of Pepy I) describe campaigns against "sand-dwellers" in Sinai and Palestine, during which Weni destroys villages, enclosures, and vineyards, and cuts down fig trees. Weni uses a ship to reach a place near "Gazelle-Nose," which is equated with Wadi Tumilat (eastern Delta), Mons Cassius, or Mount Carmel in northern Palestine (possibly reflecting Megiddo's destruction evident in level XVI). Egyptian contact with northern Palestine and Syria is better known archaeologically. The EB III temple at By-blos contains fragments of architecture (uraei friezes, obelisks); Egyptian votive offerings for the "Mistress of Byblos" (Hathor/Ba'alat) include statuary, stone vessels, and artifacts of private and royal persons of the fourth, fifth, and sixth dynasties. Egyptian texts locate Byblos (Kpny), sometimes called "Fort Byblos" (Wntt Kbn), in the cedarproducing land of Negaw (Lebanon). Ebia, a major Syrian city, contains Egyptian artifacts. Syrian imports and influence appear in Egypt (e.g., at Giza; Saqqara, Meidum, and Matmar) and include lumber, pottery (Red Polished ware, Metallic Combed ware, flasks), wine, olive oil, fruit, resins, animals, and people. By the late third dynasty, an increasing number of foreigners (captives or migrants) occur in texts listing laborers working on state construction projects. Texts mention Lebanese cedar for ship construction, palace doors, and masts. The Palermo Stone entry for Sneferu cites cedar from Lebanon. The remnants of Lebanese cedar, fir, cypress, and juniper occur throughout Egypt in funerary boats, sarcophagi, and beams in pyramids. Cedar resin is attested in embalming rituals. Texts cite Asiatic and other interpreters in Egypt, while relief fragments from Sa-hure's pyramid complex at Abusir illustrate the maritime transport from the Near East to Egypt of bears, pottery, and male and female persons of various ages, interpreted as merchants or captives. First Intermediate Period (Middle Bronze Age I). The First Intermediate Period (seventh to early eleventh dynasties, c.21902040 BCE) parallels Middle Bronze I (elsewhere EB IV, EB-MB, EB IV/MB I, Caliciform, or Intermediate Bronze Age). Many EB III Palestinian towns were abandoned or destroyed, and shifting populations established new towns and seasonal camps elsewhere, including more than 390 new camps in the Negev. In contrast, settlements continued in Syria (e.g., Ebia and Byblos), and these yield evidence, albeit problematic, for some Egyptian trade or residual influence. The impoverishment, decentralization, and disintegration of Egypt's Memphite government in the late sixth dynasty coincided with the advent of widespread changes (c.23001950 BCE) in climate and vegetation: higher temperatures, droughts,
soil erosion, deforestation, and resulting low crop yields. This led to increased mortality rates in human and domestic and wild animal populations through famine and disease, as well as rising strife in the socio-cultural, economic, and political spheres, evident in corruption, reversals in social status, rising provincial centers, civil war and nomadic incursions from arid regions. Although Egypt's destabilization coincided with a dramatic reduction in Egypto-Asiatic relations (imported Levantine pottery disappears from Egypt), North Sinai yields Palestinian "caliciform" pottery and Egyptian Red Sealing-Wax ware. A later text, the Admonitions oflpuwer, mentions the cessation of contact with Byblos, but this text and others—the Instructions for Merikare and the Prophecy of Neferty—also report Near Eastern ("archers") incursions into the Nile Delta; this situation awaits confirmation by increasing archaeological work on this period in the Delta. Middle Kingdom (Middle Bronze Age IIA). The Middle Kingdom (late eleventh and twelfth dynasties, c. 2040-1786 BCE) coincides with Middle Bronze IIA (eke-where termed MB I). Around 2040 BCE, the Theban ruler Nebhepetre Montuhotpe I (mideleventh dynasty) reunified Egypt, defeating the tenth dynasty Herakleopolitan ruler in Middle Egypt, and other rulers and Asiatics in Lower Egypt. The stela of a contemporary official, Khety, at Deir el-Bahari, records expeditions to Sinai (Biy-v), activity against Asiatics, and the retrieval of turquoise, metals, and lapis lazuli. Other late eleventh dynasty texts note military and other contact with the Near East. A stela from Deir el-Ballas cites activity in the "Oedem-lands" (eastern Syria). A captioned head-smiting scene mentions using a throw-stick against "the eastern foreign lands." A king's steward, Henenu, is said to subdue "them-who-are-across-the sand," and to obtain lumber from "the cedar slopes." General Antefs tomb displays Egyptians besieging a fortress defended by Asiaticstyle persons. At Abisko near Aswan, a graffitto of Tjehemau mentions a campaign to kill the Asiatics of Djaty in Palestine. After a brief resurgence of civil war in the late eleventh dynasty, the twelfth dynasty emerged under the leadership of Amenemhet I, who moved the capital to Itjtawy (el-Lisht) near Memphis. The Prophecy of Neferty and Story ofSinuhe indicate that he fortified the eastern Delta (the "wall of the ruler") to prevent incursions from Sinai and Palestine. The Middle Kingdom state adopted magic—the so-called Execration Texts—to prevent internal and external threats to Egypt's security. This magic involved ritually cursing existing and potential enemies by writing names of Near Eastern and other chieftains, their personnel, regions, and cities on pottery vessels and clay figurines of bound captives, which were then broken and buried.
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Weinstein, Redford, and others observe that these texts (Mirgissa, Berlin, and Brussels groups) display a reduction in names for Near Eastern regions and chieftains in contrast to increasing town names throughout the twelfth dynasty. At this time, MB IIA populations abandoned many MB I seasonal camps and resettled EB I-III towns, fortifying some towns but leaving many unfortified. Middle Kingdom texts call Syria-Palestine "Retenu," which includes Upper Retenu (northern Palestine) and Lower Retenu (Syria). Late eighteenth-century BCE letters from Mari (Tell Hariri in Syria) locate the region of Amurru south of the city of Qatna in an area dominated by Hazor (northern Palestine). The toponym "Canaan," which usually encompasses Palestine, first appears in a Mari text that cites the "men of Canaan" in the town of Rahisum. Of interest, the Mari archives (c. 1820-1760 BCE) contain 24,000 cuneiform tablets, some of which mention trade connections throughout the Levant, but they lack references to Egypt. From the late eleventh dynasty, few Egyptian objects appear in Palestine, while the twelfth dynasty shows some increased contact and military activity in the Near East. The Story ofSinuhe relates the flight to Syria-Palestine of a royal bodyguard who is wrongfully implicated in the assassination of Ameiiemhet I. Sinuhe visits Byblos in Lebanon and Qedem in eastern Syria; he mentions a land called "Yaa," and finally settles in Upper Retenu (northern Palestine), which contains some Egyptian residents (fugitives?). One text, from the time of Senwosret I, asserts that the dangers— lions and Near Easterners ("Asiatics")—faced in travel abroad are sufficient for emissaries to will their belongings to their children. A stela of general Nesu-montu (reigns of Amenemhet I and Senwosret I) reports action against the "Sand-dwellers." Other early twelfth dynasty officials allude to Egyptian contact with Lebanon; for example a fleet of ships is built of Lebanese cedar. Redford and others list epithets of officials that detail military action against Near Easterners: throat-cutter of "them that are in Asia"; one who silenced "them-that-are-across-the-sand"; one who repressed "the enemies of Asia" and "rebels of the northern lands"; and one who destroyed "the wild bow-people, namely them-thatare-across-the-sand." A text from Saqqara, dated to Amenemhet II, documents the sending of an army in ten ships to Khenty-she (the Lebanese coast) to attack places in "Asia." A text of Khu-Sebek, dated to Senwosret III, records a campaign into Retenu to attack Skmm (She-chem?). A commander of troops under Amenemhet 111 has an epithet describing him as opening the land of the "Asiatics." Archaeological evidence shows less definite Middle Kingdom contact with Palestine. Weinstein tallies fewer than fifty Egyptian and Egyptianizing items from secure
MB IIA-A/B contexts: scarab and scaraboid seals, calcite and faience vessels, and camelian jewelry. Other Egyptian products, such as stelae and statues of royalty and officials (e.g., Djehutihotep at Megiddo) occur in insecure contexts. In contrast, more Egyptian contact appears in Syria: The royal cemetery and temple at Byblos produce Egyptian-style architecture, statuary, stone vessels, and other artifacts with private and royal inscriptions (Amenemhet III-IV). Nine royal tombs at Byblos use Egyptianstyle reliefs, hieroglyphic texts, and titles (hyty-', "count"; iry-p't, "hereditary prince"). In the later tomb of King Antin, hieroglyphic texts call him "ruler of rulers" and "foreign ruler." Ugarit has a statue of one of Amenemhet II's daughters and two sphinxes of Amenemhet III. Weinstein and others contest the various hypotheses claiming extensive Egyptian economic, diplomatic, and military activity (including a Middle Kingdom "empire" with garrison posts) in MB IIA Palestine, based on various texts and Middle Kingdom statuary and stelae found at Syrian-Palestinian sites. Most of the statuary cited as evidence for an empire is either ex situ (a later introduction) or could simply reflect contemporary royal gifts, votives, and other exports. One twelfth dynasty epithet describes an official accompanying the ruler's monuments to distant lands, but this may reflect reciprocal gift-giving rather than a marker of empire. Redford and others assert that the otherwise abundant Middle Kingdom texts lack evidence for the administrative infrastructure and garrison posts required to maintain an Egyptian empire in Palestine. Near Eastern products and people appear in Egypt. Beni Hasan tomb 3, of Khnumhotep, depicts a caravan of Near Easterners on donkeys coming to Egypt from the land of Shut (Transjordan?). Archaeological and textual-pictorial sources reveal Canaanite imports of cattle, cedar, perhaps silver, olive oil, wine, and pottery. The Saqqara text of Amenemhet II lists several expeditions that bring Near Eastern tribute, booty, and prisoners to Egypt from Hnty-S (coastal Syria), Tmpyv (western Syria), Iwys (Al-she), and lyy (Alasiya, or Cyprus). Late Middle Kingdom (Middle Bronze Age IIB). The late Middle Kingdom (thirteenth dynasty c. 1786-1665 BCE) spans Middle Bronze IIB (elsewhere MB II). Although an Egyptian votive of Neferhotpe I appears at Byblos, evidence of Egyptian activity decreases in MB IIB Syria-Palestine, which displays an increase in settlement size, fortifications, and destruction levels at many sites. In contrast, textual evidence shows many Near Easterners residing in Egypt during this period, prior to the "Hyksos" seizure of control in northern Egypt. The verso of Papyrus Brooklyn 35.1446, dated to Year 2 of Sobekhotpe III, reveals that Near Easterners formed as much as 56 percent of children and adult servants working in one Theban
SYRIA-PALESTINE 339 household. At this time, Tell ed-Dab'a (northeastern Delta) yields houses (with courtyards), funerary pottery, and other artifacts that match the architectural styles and material culture found throughout MB 1IB-C Syria-Palestine. Second Intermediate Period (Middle Bronze Age IIC). The Second Intermediate Period (fourteenth-seventeenth dynasties, c. 1664-.1569 BCE) encompasses Middle Bronze IIC (elsewhere termed MB III). Many scholars (e.g., Grimal, Ahlsti-om) accept or reconstruct the fourteenth ("Xois"), fifteenth-sixteenth ("Hyksos"), and seventeenth ("Theban") dynasties as contemporary rivals ruling in the Delta and Nile Valley, based on surviving excerpts from classical treatises and Manetho's third-century BCE history of Egypt. Other scholars, however, assert that the fourteenth dynasty reflects a royal pedigree for and preceding the Hyksos rulers of the fifteenth, and place the sixteenth and seventeenth in a linear succession of Egyptian rulers centered at Thebes in Upper Egypt who inherit the remnants of the thirteenth dynasty's kingdom. A Near Eastern invasion of Egypt probably occurred during the weakened rule of the late thirteenth dynasty, a time of the rise and fall of warring Amorite states throughout the Levant: Khana in the middle Euphrates, Yamkhad centered on Aleppo in Syria, Qatanum in the middle Orontes region, and Hazor in Galilee, Second Intermediate Period and later texts report an invasion and settlement of Near Easterners in the eastern Delta. The name "Hyksos" (Manetho's "shepherd kings") appears in later classical texts but is derived from a Middle Kingdom term, If.^ h^swt ("rulers of foreign lands"), commonly applied to Palestinian rulers. A text of Kamose (seventeenth dynasty) defines these invaders as "Asiatics" ('ymw), and calls King Apophis a "ruler of Retenu" and "a Syrian chief." After invading the Delta, the Hyksos soon captured Memphis, removing statuary to Tell ed-Dab'a. They subsequently dominated Upper Egypt as far south as Thebes, which lies north of a Hyksos garrison post at. Gebelein, and received taxes from Egyptian vassal nomes. A stela of Kamose and later texts note the establishment of Near Easterners in garrisons ("the places of the Asiatics") throughout northern Egypt. The late seventeenth dynasty Theban rulers fought the Hyksos: Seqenre-Ta'o's skull bears axe and dagger wounds that match Hyksos-style weaponry. Kamose erected two stelae detailing several campaigns, the last of which reached the Hyksos stronghold and capital at Avaris but failed to defeat or dislodge the Hyksos. Kamose indicates that the frontier between the Hyksos (fifteenth dynasty) and Egyptian (seventeenth dynasty) territories lay at Cusae in Upper Egypt (Nome .15). The Hyksos material culture assemblage found at east
ern Delta sites—Tell ed-Dab'a, Tell el-Maskhuta, and Tell elYahudiyya—is basically identical with the material found at MB IIB-C sites in Syria-Palestine. The presence of donkeys in some burials at Tell ed-Dab'a is also attested in Palestine. The Hyksos rulers and officials retained West Semitic names, which number a large proportion in epi-graphic materials from the Delta. The Hyksos rulers also promoted Egyptian culture, however, commissioning statues copying Middle Kingdom styles, stelae, and buildings decorated with Egyptian art and hieroglyphic inscriptions. Their titulary retains the Egyptian title "son of Re," while their names contain the theophoric element -re'. Although Canaanite deities such as Ba'al, 'Anat, Ashtarte-Qudshu, Horon, and Resheph dominate the Hyksos pantheon, some of these Canaanite deities appear in their equivalent Egyptian forms: Seth represents Ba'al, and Ha-thor, "Mistress of the Two Trees," represents 'Anat. Further Canaanite influence in Hyksos religion is represented by a large Canaan ite-style cultic precinct at Tell ed-Dab'a. Extensive maritime contact between the Hyksos and the Near East is attested in Kamose's second stela, which describes the harbor of Avaris as containing hundreds of cedar ships with cargoes of products from Retenu: gold, silver, turquoise, lapis, incense, fat, honey, moringa oil, willow, boxwood, sticks, fine woods, and numerous bronze axes. Despite the early eighteenth dynasty kings' attempts to eradicate Hyksos monuments, the Hyksos and the Second Intermediate Period introduced many long-lived foreign innovations to Egypt: chariots and horses, composite bows, body armor, musical instruments (lutes, lyres), and game boards. Many West Semitic terms appear as loan words in hieroglyphs, such as names for military equipment (e.g., markabata, "chariot") and personnel (kusiiia, "charioteer"; maryannu, "chariot officers"), During MB IIC, large fortified towns appeared throughout Palestine, surrounded by huge ramparts and trenches. Although scholars debate the nature and extent of Hyksos influence in Palestine, the Hyksos probably either dominated or formed alliances with city-states in southwestern Palestine; at the time of their expulsion from Egypt, the Hyksos retained access to and control of Sharuhen (Tell el-'Ajjul?) in southwestern Palestine. The quantities of material wealth and the decrease in Palestinian sites yielding destruction layers suggest that MB IIC was a prosperous and relatively peaceful period. Extensive trade connections with Egypt are attested by Egyptian statuary, gold jewelry, amulets, scarabs, and calcite vessels at many Palestinian sites. Egyptian/Hyksos epigraphic material and artifacts occur in the MB IIC temple at Byblos. Small black/gray perfume juglets with whitefilled punctate designs (commonly called "Tell el-Yehudiyya ware" after their original find spot) characterize the Hyksos period
340 SYRIA-PALESTINE and occur throughout Palestine, Syria, Cyprus, Egypt, and Nubia. Early Eighteenth Dynasty (Late Middle Bronze Age IIC and Late Bronze Age 1A). The reigns from Ahmose to Hatshepsut (c.1569-1482 BCE) span late Middle Bronze IIC and Late Bronze 1A occupation levels in northern Mesopotamia and SyriaPalestine. Many MB IIC Amor-ite sites and kingdoms were destroyed (Man, Khana, Yamkhad) or reduced by Egyptian, Hittite, Human, and Tndo-Aryan invasions at different times between 1569 and 1482 BCE, and were replaced by new AryianHurrian kingdoms and vassals in the Levant (Mitanni, Khanigalbat, Alalakh, Kadesh?) and southeastern Anatolia (Kizzu-wadna in Cilicia). King Ahmose (c. 1569-1545 BCE) expelled the Hyksos from Egypt, capturing Tjaru (Tell Heboua) in Sinai and Avaris about his regnal years 11-12. He spent three years in defeating the Hyksos at Sharuhen and organized one campaign into Syria-Palestine as far as Byblos, initiating a policy of extending Egypt's frontiers northward to prevent future invasions. Amenhotpe I (c. 1545-1525 BCE) sent an army into Syria, fighting at Tunip, Qedem, and other places near the Orontes River. Thutmose I (c.1525-1516 BCE) campaigned once in Retenu, fighting troops in "Naharin" (eastern Syria, locally called "Mitanni"): he reached the Euphrates, where he erected a boundary stela, and hunted elephants in Niya in the Orontes region. Thutmose II (c.1516-1504 BCE) subdued Shasu bedouin in the Sinai and possibly the Negev region, while Hatshepsut (coregent with Thutmose III, c. 1502-1482 BCE) dispatched an expedition to Byblos for cedar. Mid-Eighteenth Dynasty (Late Bronze Age 1B). The long reigns of Thutmose III and IV span Late Bronze 1B (c.1481-1410 BCE). Egyptian texts reflect ethnic and political changes in LB 1A Palestine, borrowing new names for Palestine (Kharu, or Hyw, derived from Hurru-lsind) and its inhabitants (Kharians, Kharu). Prior to Thutmose Ills sole rule (c.1481-1452 BCE), the kingdom of Kadesh in the Orontes region formed an anti-Egyptian coalition of 330 Levantine princes, who gathered at Megiddo to confront Egypt. Thutmose 111 mobilized an army in his year 22/ 23 (c.1481 BCE) and traversed Palestine, rewarding loyal vassals; a later tale alludes to his capture ofJoppa, which would become a major grain storage and chariot depot. Thutmose III held council at Yehem and decided to take the narrow and potentially disastrous Aruna Pass through the Carmel Range to Megiddo, bypassing the safer western and eastern routes via Yokoneam and Ta-naach. His strategy worked: He outmaneuvered and dispersed the divided Near Eastern forces; however, a breakdown in Egyptian discipline allowed the enemy to reach Megiddo and resist for seven months before surrendering and swearing oaths of allegiance; the ruler of Kadesh evaded capture.
Despite this victory and the establishment of a fortress in Lebanon, Thutmose III led sixteen more expeditions into SyriaPalestine. He directed expeditions in Years 24, 25, and 26/28? to assert Egypt's authority and collect tribute. He quelled a rebellion in Syria in Year 29, capturing Wartet and Ardata. Further Syrian discontent necessitated a campaign in Years 30 against Kadesh, Sumur, and Ardata, and in Year 31 against Ullaza, collecting Near Eastern tribute. In Year 33, Thutmose fought and defeated an army of Naharin (Mitanni). He erected a boundary stela at the Euphrates adjacent to Thutmose I's stela, collected tribute, received gifts from Babylonia and Khatte (Anatolia), and hunted elephants in Niya. In Year 34 he toured Syria, receiving booty, tribute, and gifts from Retenu, Djahy, Nukhashshe, and Cyprus. Year 35 required a major campaign against Djahy, in which Thutmose captured Arayana and defeated a Mitannian army in Naharin. During five campaigns in Years 36 to 40, Thutmose fought Mitannians and others in the district of Nuges, placed a garrison at Ugarit (noted in a text dating to Amenhotpe II), toured Retenu, subdued Shasu bedouin, and received tribute from Retenu, Djahy, Alalakh, and other states), as well as gifts from Cyprus and Khatte. In Year 42 (or possibly Year 37), Thutmose III led a major campaign against Syria, capturing Arqata, Kadesh, their satellite towns, and Tunip, which contained an Egyptian base. He fought against the land of Takhsi and Naharin and received tribute. Amenhotpe II (c.1454-1419 BCE) fought against Takhsi in his Year 3, during his coregency with Thutmose III. A renewal of Mitanni's domination and influence in Syria and a pending rebellion against Egypt's garrison in Ugarit precipitated Amenhotpe Us Year 7 suppression of rebels in Retenu and Syria, which culminated in the mass deportation of 89,600 people—Khurians, Nukhashsheans, bedouin, and Apiru. The capture of a Mitannian messenger in southern Palestine revealed Mitanni instigating unrest among Egypt's Palestinian vassals, who later rebelled and were subdued by Amenhotpe II in Year 9. Mitanni and Amenhotpe II later negotiated peace, possibly owing to Khatte's rising threat to Mitanni and Egypt's desire to stabilize its northern empire. The new frontier followed the Orontes River south to Kadesh and east to the Euphrates, officially distinguishing Egypt's northern vassals—Ugarit, Byblos, Beirut, Sidon, Tyre, Amki, Kadesh, the land of Upe, and Damascus—from Mitanni's vassals, Mukishe (Alalaikh), the Nukhashshe lands, Niya, Tunip, and Qatna, Despite the Egyptian-Mitannian peace, which brought exchanges of letters and gifts, and Thutmose IV's marriage to a Mitannian princess, Thutmose IV (c. 1419-1410 BCE) still needed to suppress rebellions in Syria-Palestine and established a fort in Khurru, Syria. The northern empire now contained the provinces of Canaan (Palestine), Upe (Damascus region and Beka' Valley), and Amurru (west-
ern Syria), which were administered from Gaza, Kumudi, and Sumur (which replaced Ullaza), respectively Each headquarters city had a commander, garrison, and storehouse. Late Eighteenth Dynasty (Late Bronze Age 2A). The period from Amenhotpe III to Horemheb (c.1410-1323 BCE) covers LB 2A. Early in Amenhotpe Ill's reign (c.1410-1382 BCE), 'Apiru nomadic warriors infiltrated western Syria and created the militaristic kingdom of Amurru (an earlier indigenous name that now designated western Syria). Although it gained recognition as an Egyptian vassal, Amurru began expanding its territory, threatening neighboring vassals like Byblos; it was implicated in the seizure of Sumur, Egypt's northernmost headquarters city. Despite a campaign against Amurru by Amenhotpe III in his Year 5, by Mitanni— probably on Egypt's behalf—and by Amenhotpe IV (war scenes. Years 1-5?), Amurru continued its expansion, capturing Sumur, Tump, and Byblos, and threatening Amki and Ugarit. 'Apiru disruptions in Palestine prompted Amenhotpe IV (c. 1382-1365 BCE) to place a military governor in Jerusalem to secure this region. In early LB 2A, Khatte (i.e., the Hittites, also rendered "Hatti") began fighting Mitanni for control of Aleppo in Syria, sending envoys to Egypt in Year 3 of Amenhotpe IV; later (c.1377 BCE) it successfully invaded, defeated, and seized Mitanni and its vassal territories of Aleppo, Mukishe, Nukhashshe, Niya, and Ishuwa. Although Khatte avoided attacking Egypt's territory, it defeated the troops of Kadesh and Abina, Egyptian vassals assisting Mitanni against Khatte, made a treaty with Egypt, and released the captured rulers of Kadesh and Abina. During Amenhotpe IV's reign, some former Mitannian vassals attempted—without success—to defect from Khatte to Egypt. Infighting expanded and intensified among Egypt's vassals, some of whom defected to Khatte, thereby placing Egypt's frontier south of Nahr el-Kelb (the Eleutheros Valley). Although Hittite texts mention rebellions by Kadesh, Amenhotpe IV failed to regain Kadesh in his Year 15. He was succeeded by Senkhkare (c. 1365 BCE) and then Tutankhamun (c. 1364-.1355 BCE), the latter of whom also tried and failed to retake Kadesh. Tutankhamun's widow wrote to King Shuppiluliumas requesting marriage to a Hittite prince, but the prince was murdered en route by his Egyptian escort, thereby ending the eighteenth dynasty's royal line and allowing Ay to ascend the throne (c.1355-1352 BCE). An unprovenanced Egyptian text of contested authenticity records Horemheb (c. 1352-1323 BCE) campaigning in Syria, where he briefly regained Ugarit and reached Carchemish. Nineteenth Dynasty (Late Bronze Age 2B). This dynasty (c.1322-1149 BCE) encompasses Late Bronze 2B. During Ramesses Is reign (c. 1322-1321 BCE), crown prince Sety campaigned in the "Fenkhu-lands," and re
SYRIA-PALESTINE 341 turned in his first regnal year to suppress a Shasu bedouin uprising in northern Sinai and Syria-Palestine. Sety I (c.1321-1304 BCE) defeated rebel vassals besieging Rehob and Egypt's garrison at Beth Shan. He received the submission of vassal princes in Lebanon, possibly visited Ullaza and Kumudi, and erected victory stelae at Beth Shan and Tyre. Although Sety I regained Amurru and Kadesh (where he erected a stela), the Hittites recaptured them, precipitating Ramesses II's (c.1304-1237 BCE) Year 4 campaign to secure Amurru, which defected to Egypt. In Year 5, Ramesses II attempted to retake Kadesh, failed, and returned to Egypt, leaving his Palestinian vassals in rebellion. He reasserted Egypt's suzerainty over Syria-Palestine in Year 6/7 (?), pacifying Canaan and Moab, in Year 8, fighting in Galilee and central Syria at Dapur; and in Year 10, attacking Dapur and erecting a stela at Nahr el-Kelb. Although rising tensions between Egypt and the Hittites led to an increase in Egyptian troops at Beth Shan in Year 18, later political developments culminated in a peace treaty between Egypt and Khatte in Year 21, fixing the Egyptian/Hittite border from Nahr elKelb to Damascus. For the remainder of the nineteenth dynasty, Egyptian-Hittite relations grew friendlier: Ramesses II married a Hittite princess in Year 34; a Hittite prince, later King Tudkha-lia IV, visited Egypt in Year 36/37; Ramesses II married another Hittite princess in Year 40/45; and the Hittite and Egyptian royal families corresponded frequently. Meren-ptah (c. 1237-1226 BCE) provided Khatte with grain shipments during a famine. In his Year 5 he repulsed a Libyan invasion and reported peace with Khatte, the loss of Khurru (Syria now belonged to Khatte), the plundering of "the Canaan," and the capture and/or destruction of Ash-kelon, Gezer, Yanoam, and Israel. (Since Sety Is reign "the Canaan" often referred to Gaza, the capital of the Egyptian province of Canaan, or Palestine). Information about Egyptian with the Near East relations is sparse for Amenmesse (c.1226-1222? BCE), Sety II (c.1222-1215 BCE), Siptah (c.l 215-1209 BCE), and Tawosret (c.l 209-1201 BCE), but their names, except perhaps Amenmesse, occur on items in Sinai and Palestine. Egyptian texts mention Syrians living in Egypt, including a Canaanite, Bay, who rose to vizier under Siptah and Tawosret. Early Twentieth Dynasty (Iron Age 1A). The reigns of Sethnakhte and Ramesses III-VI (c. 1200-1149 BCE) cover Iron Age 1A. The Elephantine Stela from Year 2 of Sethnakhte (c.l 200-1198 BCE) mentions that he restored Egypt after Near Easterners—that is, the vizier Bay—had usurped the throne. Ramesses III (c.l 198-1166 BCE) repulsed Libyan invasions in Years 5 and 11, and defeated an overland and maritime invasion by the Sea Peoples into Palestine and Egypt in Year 8; elsewhere, the Sea Peoples devastated Anatolia—including Khatte, Cyprus, and Syria. Ramesses III incorporated numerous captives into the army, stationing, clothing, and provisioning them
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in garrisons. Papyrus Harris I records that Ramesses III subjugated bedouin in Seir (Edom in South Arabah), established a temple in "the Canaan," and constructed many naval and cargo ships to transfer produce from Djahy to Egypt. The temples of Amun at Thebes, Re at Heliopolis, and Ptah at Memphis owned fleets to transport cattle, grain, oil, cedar, and personnel from more than 159 Palestinian towns belonging to them. Texts dating to Ramesses IV (c. 1166-1160 BCE) note the receipt of Near Eastern livestock, products, tribute, and slaves. Ramesses IV's Wadi Hammamat stela of Year 3 calls him "a destroyer of foreign lands who rounds up Asiatics in their valleys." Deir el-Medina ostracon number 11 (reign of Ramesses V, c.l 160-1156 BCE) mentions Syrians living in Egypt. Egypt's northern empire may have continued as late as Ramesses VI (c.l 156-1149 BCE), whose name is the last one found at Serabit el-Khadim in the Sinai, and occurs on a ring from Deir el-Balah in the northeastern Sinai, on a bronze statue base at Megiddo, and on a scarab from Alalakh. New Kingdom (Eighteenth-Twentieth Dynasties). Egypt obtained male and female Near Eastern slaves through warfare, royal gifts, annual vassal dues, and slave markets. Although many captives were branded and tattooed with the king's name, and communities of captives were often transplanted throughout Egypt's empire (e.g., Libyans placed in the Near East), the family members of rulers of conquered Levantine cities were taken as hostages to Egypt. Within Egypt, slave populations were replenished through the offspring of slaves or were redistributed throughout society as rewards, gifts, inheritance, or barter. Slaves had legal rights, owned property, and sometimes obtained freedom through adoption by owners, marriage to Egyptians, or royal or official intervention. Near Eastern slaves and residents mentioned in documents often bear names citing deities (Ishtar-ummi, "Astarte Is My Mother"; Pa-tjai-Baal), or their place of origin (Pen-Hazor, "the one from Hazor"; Pa-assur, "the Assyrian"), but frequently give their children Egyptian names (Pa-ameru, "the Amorite," calls his sons Merire and Useretmin). Near Eastern personnel and slaves are recorded in the army, garrisons, temple and palace workshops, royal funerary temples, the royal harem, and in the k}p or "royal nursery," an elite institution in which the sons of high-ranking officials and vassal rulers were educated in the Egyptian language and customs. These people appear as conscripts, mercenaries, laborers, brick-makers, doorkeepers, potters, masons, carpenters, shipwrights, vintners, concubines, maids, singers, dancers, weavers, interpreters, administrators, magicians, doctors, and cupbearers to the king. They may even attain viziership (like Aperia in the late nineteenth dynasty). Other Near Easterners were transient visitors, such as merchants,
messengers, emissaries, and the pastoralists who entered Egypt to water their flocks in the summer; the last are depicted arriving in Egypt by overland caravans and ships. Near Eastern influence increased dramatically in the New Kingdom owing to massive influxes of slaves and migrants, as well as intense Egyptian contact with its Levantine vassals and neighbors. Near Eastern innovations, products, and influence appear in many forms: weaponry, such as composite bows, and chariotry; metallurgy, with new techniques of making jewelry; vertical looms; the production of glass; music and the new lyre and flutes; ship-building techniques; provisions like pomegranate wine; clothing and its decorative motifs—Egyptians, including Amenhotpe III, often wear Syrian wrap-around garments with fringes; vegetation, as Thutmose III imports and depicts exotic plants, art motifs and details; cuneiform script, used in international correspondence; foreign tales like Astarte and the Sea or The Tale of 'Anat and Seth; and at least 391 Semitic loan words, which reflect many aspects of Egyptian society and culture. Egypt received large quantities of raw materials: lumber, metals and minerals, gems, glass, and incense; craft products including weaponry, jewelry, and metal vessels; provisions such as oil, wine, and honey; and domestic and wild animals—cattle, sheep, goats, Syrian elephants, and bears. Near Eastern deities, such as Resheph, Qudshu, Ba'al, 'Anat, Horon (an Amorite god of shepherds), and Soped ("lord of the east"), were introduced or assumed greater importance in Egypt in this period. For instance, a temple to Ba'al existed at Memphis, while Amenhotpe III requested a visit by the cult statue of Ishtar of Nineveh to cure an ailment. In return, archaeological and textual sources indicate that a broad range of Egyptian items, livestock, personnel, and influence were dispersed from Egypt to its vassals, garrisons, and Near Eastern neighbors. We find messages in Akkadian, ships, anchor stones with hieroglyphs, architectural elements, funerary and commemorative stelae, statues, statuettes, ushablis, local figurines with Egyptian motifs and elements, and anthropoid coffins. Evidence exists for wrapped and perhaps mummified bodies at Tell el-Saidiyeh and Megiddo. Horses were traded, and provisions exchanged. A wide range of luxury goods and craft objects are also mentioned in inventories. Egyptian and Kushite or Nubian residents, servants, traders, messengers, and members of military and other expeditions appeared throughout Syria-Palestine, while some Near Easterners married Egyptians. Many Levantine hostages were returned, after adopting Egyptian names, language, and customs, to inherit the rulership of vassal city-states. Near Eastern texts term these vassal rulers "mayors" (Akkadian, lynannti), "supervisors" (Akkadian, rabisu), and "governors" (Canaanite, sakin mail).
SYRIA-PALESTINE 343 Late Twentieth Dynasty (Iron Age 1B). The reigns of Ramesses VII-XI (c.l 149-1076 BCE) cover early Iron Age 1B (c.l 149-1000 BCE). An Assyrian text from the Year 3 (c.1071/70 BCE) of King Assur-bel-kala mentions a gift of a crocodile and an ape from an Egyptian king (Ramesses XI, c.1106-1076 BCE, or Smendes, c.1076-1050 BCE). A contemporary Egyptian text details the maritime journey of an Egyptian priest, Wenamun, to Byblos to obtain cedar for the divine boat of Amun, and reveals much information on postimperial Egyptian trade and other relations with Philistia and Phoenicia, especially Byblos. [See ako Byblos; Canaan; Gaza; Hyksos; Israel; Jerusalem; Joppa; Kadesh; Lebanon; Megiddo; Mitanni; and Sinai.]
BIBLIOGRAPHY Aharoni, Y. The iMiid of the Bible: A Historical Geography. 2d ed. London, 1979. Contains many references and indexes for ancient Near Eastern toponyms. Ahlstrom, G. W. The History of Ancient Palestine. Minneapolis, 1993. A comprehensive synthesis of the archaeology and history of Palestine, including Egypto-Asiatic relations. Andelkovic, B. The Relations between Early Bronze Age I Canaanites and Upper Egyptians. Belgrade, 1995. A wen-illustrated synthesis of imported EB Age I items and influences within the Egyptian and Palestinian material culture assemblages, arranged by region and site. Ben-Tor, A. "New Light on the Relations between Egypt and Southern Palestine during the Early Bronze Age." Bulletin of the American Schools of Oriental Research 281 (Feb. 1991), 3-10. Bietak, M. Avaris the Capital of the Hyksos: Recent Excavations at Tell edDals'a. London, 1996. An overview of the Austrian excavations at Tell edDab'a with many illustrations. Bietak, M. "Egypt and Canaan During the Middle Bronze Age." Bulletin of the American Schools of Oriental Research 28) (Feb. 1991), 27-72. Bleiberg, E. The Official Gift in Ancient Egypt: Inw. Norman, Okla., 1996. A study of 179 contexts for the official exchange of gift-s (imi;) between Egyptians, and Egyptians and foreigners, of different status. Donadoni, S., ed. The Egyptians. Translated by R. Bianchi et al. Chicago, 1997. English translations of studies by various specialists, including sections on soldiers, slaves, and foreigners, by S. 'Ibada al-Nubi, A. Loprieno, and E. Bi-e.sciani, respectively. Ehrich, R, W., ed. Chronologies in Old World Archaeology. 1 vols. 3d edn. Chicago, 1992. An invaluable synthesis and .synchronizing of the prehistoric to 2000-1500 BOB material cultures of different regions and subregions of the world using sequence dating, relative dating, and absolute dating (calibrated radiocarbon dates). Esse, D. L. Subsistence, Trade, and Social Change in Early Broiiy Age Palestine. Studies in Ancient Oriental Civilization, 50. Chicago, 1991. A recent assessment of international relations between Palestine and neighboring regions, with illustrations, distribution maps, plans, photos, and an extensive bibliography. Hayes, W. C. A Papyrus of the Late Middle Kingdom in the Brooklyn Museum (Papyrus Brooklyn 35.1446). Brooklyn, 1955. Translation and discussion of a late Middle Kingdom papyrus with information regarding Egypto-Asiatic relations and other matters, dating from Amenemhet 111 to Sobekhotpe III. Hoch, J. Semitic Words in Egyptian Texts of the New Kingdom and
Third Intermediate Period. Princeton, 1994. An extensive work with many references, a study of Egypto-Asiatic relations in the realm of language for the eighteenth to twenty-fourth dynasties. Hoffmeier, J. K. Israel in Egypt: The Evidence for the Autlienticity of the Exodus Tradition. Oxford, 1997. Although the main focus concerns the Exodus tradition, it also provides many references, an index, and a synthesis for "Asiatics" (Canaanites and Israelites) in Egypt before and after the Exodus period. Kitchen, K. A. Pharaoh Triumphant: The Life and Times of Ramesses II, King of Egypt. Warminster. 1982. On events including a summary of the periods preceding and postdating this king. Levy, T. E., ed. Tlie Archaeology of Society in the Holy Land. New York, 1995. Articles by various authors with an up-to-date overview, references, and illustrations concerning different aspects of ancient society in Syria-Palestine from the prehistoric to Ottoman periods. Maiek, J., and S. Quirke. "Memphis, 1991: Epigraphy." Journal of Egyptian Archaeology 78 (1992), 13-18. The best facsimile copy of an important Middle Kingdom text concerning relations with the Near East. Mark, S. from Egypt to Mesopotamia: A Study of Predynastic Trade Routes. Studies in Nautical Archeology, 4. London, 1997. Mumford, G. D. "International Relations between Egypt, Sinai, and Syria-Palestine during the Late Bronze Age to Early Persian Period (Dynasties 18-26; c.l 550-525 B.C.)." Ph.D. diss. University of Toronto, 1998. O'Connor, D., and E. H. Cline. Amenhotep III: Perspectives on His Reign. Ann Arbor. 1998. For international relations, see chapter 7, which includes Egypt and the Levant, Anatolia, Aegean, Mesopotamia, and Nubia. Oren, E. D., ed. The Hylisos: New Historical and Archaeological Perspectives. University Museum Monographs, 96; University Museum Symposium Series, 8. Philadelphia, 1997. This major work has the most up-to-date synthesis concerning the Hyksos and contains many articles by experts on this period of Levantine history, archaeology, and international relations. Redford, D. B. Egypt and Canaan in the New Kingdom. Beer-Sheva, Studies by the Department of Bible and Ancient Near East, 4. Jerusalem, 1990. A synthesis of textual material regarding officials, administration, infrastructure, maintenance, taxation, Egyptian cultural impact, and other relations with the Near East by Egypt's New Kingdom empire in Canaan. Redford, D. B. Egypt, Canaan, and Israel in Ancient Times. Princeton, 1992. A well-referenced synthesis from the Predynastic to the Saite period. Ward, W. A. Egypt and the East Mediterranean World 22001900 (i.e.; Studies in Egyptian Relations During the First Intermediate Period. Beirut, 1971. Although more material is becoming available for the First Intermediate Period from ongoing excavations, few treatments are devoted to relations with the Near East during this time period, and this remains an invaluable synthesis of material predating 1970. Weinstein, J. M. "The Egyptian Empire in Palestine: A Reassessment," Bulletin of the American Schools of Oriental Research 241 (Winter 1981), 1-28. Although more recent studies have appeared regarding Egypt's New Kingdom empire, this article remains an invaluable contribution to our understanding of Egypt's relations with Palestine and provides a thorough assessment of archeological evidence. Weinstein, J. M. "The Significance of Tell Areini for Egyptian-Palestinian Relations at the Beginning of the Bronze Age." Bulletin of the American Schools of Oriental Research 256 (Fall 1984), 61-69. In-depth treatment of Egypt's relations at Tell Ai-eini and other sites in southwestern Palestine during the Early Bronze Age. GREGORY D. MUMFORD
T TABOO. In Genesis 3.1-7, all creation is divided into two categories, good and evil; the fruit from the tree in the middle of the garden would, if eaten, then provide the insight and means to distinguish between the two. The Egyptians looked on their universe in terms of a similar dichotomy. The concept bwt, which bears a certain resemblance to some definitions of the term "taboo," was the mechanism through which the two categories were differentiated. "Taboo" is one of the few Polynesian words to be incorporated into European language and thought. Careful distinction must be made between at least three uses of the term. First, there is the everyday, casual application to various phenomena (things, persons, notions) that should be avoided. Those subject to the violation of this form of taboo may experience emotions ranging from offense to anger, while feelings of agonizing guilt may plague the perpetrator of the violation. A second use of the term is found in the various technical definitions that historians of religion and anthropologists have worked out, based on comparative material from a great number of cultures. Here we find numerous reports on, and analyses of, prohibitions and "taboos," and even a cursory inquily into the material will show clearly that there is a striking uniformity as to what is declared "taboo" in the most diverse societies at the most diverse times. The key words are "impurity," "contagion," "penalties," and similar expressions. Thus, for example, menstruation taboos are among the most universal, and the Egyptian material is no exception. The fate of the laundrymen is pitied in the Instructions of Dua-Kheti; their position in the social hierarchy is so humble that they have to wash the clothes of menstruating women. References to menstruation seem to show that contact with women during this time might even be dangerous. This would explain why the menstruation of wives or daughters was accepted as a legitimate cause for a worker to stay at home, as is documented in the wellknown absentee lists from Deir el-Medina. The phenomena that form the substance of this group are prohibitions of which we are conscious. We know when we violate these taboos, and we know that their violation will make us "taboo" as well. Depending on the specific cultural circumstance, we may also be cleansed of our impurity. What
may pass for a taboo in ancient Egypt often comes under this heading. Third, there is the mechanism—prominent among the features known from the Polynesian material—whereby taboos are used as a means of establishing and maintaining social strata. Thus, appropriation of property and power was accomplished by declaring something taboo, and the political power of a person was delimited by the taboos he could impose. Taboos could be rendered invalid only if overruled by the taboos of a superior of the original instigator of the taboo. In Egypt things were different, but the king, as god, could make something bwt. He could not, however, exercise this power indiscriminately or at will, but only in order to reestablish the original, primeval order of the world (maat). The development of the ancient concept bwt can be followed for more than two millennia. At the end of this time, which coincides with the Greco-Roman period, hwt is often used in a sense that comes close to some of the technical definitions of taboo produced by the historians of religion, but the core meaning of bwt was very different, because it was an integral part of the Egyptians view of the universe as the result of a process of differentiation. In Egypt, the world was created according to, and by means of, maat, a word that is often rendered as "world order" or "truth," but which also implies plenty and abundance—of food, for example. Creation resulted from the transformation of a part of nonexistence, or potential existence. In the Egyptian conception of being, the continuity of existence required repeated, cyclical contact with nonexistence. Yet at the same time, the latter had to be combatted, because it embraced not only potential being but also all the forces antagonistic to maat that were commonly part of true and immutable nonexistence. In theory, an Egyptian might commit acts that would cause him to die the "second death," which meant being forever associated with those same evil, uncreated, maalantagonistic forces. Violating a bwt would bring this about, because bwt served to define all that was not of maat. In order to understand better the nature of the Egyptian dichotomy between what might be labeled "good" and "evil," we must look at the earliest evidence for an expression of the opposition between maat and bwt. Here,
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346 TAHARQA at first it seems surprising to find hunger, thirst and feces as prototypes of things bwt; but on second thought, if in the earliest times the epitome of good, maat, was abundance of food, then lack of food would be bad. If nourishment is maat, then excretion becomes bwt. Further, these bwt things also applied to the realm of the dead and gods. The deceased declares in his funerary inscriptions that he has had no contact with feces, just as visitors to tombs and temples were admonished not to enter after having had contact with things which were bwt—not because this would be detrimental to the visitors themselves, but because of its harmful impact on the dead or the gods. The ultimate concern of the Egyptians was salvation, which meant participation in the eternal cycle of life and death of the created world. Dying, in the normal sense of the word, led to other and more varied forms of existence. Death was an element of existence and, as such, it was within the realm of maat. Life emerged from death. However, in order to attain the desired state of a spirit or god in the afterworld, the deceased must have acquired a detailed knowledge of the essential properties of the hereafter. This implied a rejection of the idea of the afterworld as a reversed world—a world where, for instance, nourishment is feces and where the inhabitants move about upside down—as envisioned by demons representing the realm of nonexistence. In other words, the deceased must know the difference between what is of maat and the phenomena classified as bwt. And thus, whereas in Genesis knowledge was damning, in Egypt it was a prerequisite for salvation. We may hypothesize that food and excrement played this role in the conception of the world because they are of such vital importance for life. These two categories further attained their status as prototypical symbols of good and evil because sharing food is the principal act of social incorporation in all societies. The dead is in a state of transition, and in that so-called liminal phase, he is subjected to a number of trials and tribulations. Interrogations are one of the ordeals that the dead must go through in order to prove himself a god. By virtue of its met-onymic character, food is one of the principal means of putting his ability to the test. He is in a state of want and, still in tern-is of metonymy, hunger, and is therefore encouraged to eat what purports to be the lifegiving food of the afterworld. However, only by choosing the right kind of food in the afterworld could the dead become one of its blessed inhabitants. The historical experience of the Egyptians, especially that of the painful transition between the Old and Middle kingdoms, provoked renewed reflections on the characteristics of evil, and the timehonored categories of excreta were inadequate to articulate the complex relationship
between good and evil. During the Middle Kingdom, a process of rethinking was initiated. From the standpoint of the great dichotomy, the rest of the history of Egypt was a period of intensifying preoccupation with the problem of evil, reflected in the ever-increasing number of phenomena that were classified as bwt. In this process, the contact with a bwt became harmful also to the living. The body's orifices and their counterpart, the thresholds of buildings, retained their status as being marked by bwt, and eventually the concept of bwt gave rise to numerous injunctions and prohibitions. Thus, access to temples required abstinence from sexual activity, observance of rules of cleanliness, and avoidance of certain types of food, such as pig, fish, or honey, depending mainly on the local cosmology (customs already seen inscribed on tomb walls of the Old Kingdom). In fact, each nome had its specific bwt, and each god had his bwt. The concept of bwt was further used to delimit acceptable moral standards, even to the extent that the Egyptians distinguished between various forms of dying and killing: a man could be killed and still be "alive," but if he died as a result of having been sm^-killed, he would be annihilated—that is, die the "second death." In the Late period there is finally some evidence that one could be cleansed of a bwt. [See also Curses; Diet; Ethics and Morality; and Piety.] BIBLIOGRAPHY Douglas, Mar).'. Purity and Danger: An Analysis of the Concepts of Pollution and Taboo. London, 1966. Author of the hypothesis that laboo is a universal and indispensable means of establishing classificatory systems; the phenomena that are at the periphery" of or fall between clear-cut categories are tabooed. Frandsen, Paul John. "BWT—Divine Kingship and Grammar." InAk-ten des Vierlen liitenialioiuilen Agyptologen Kongressiss Mi'mchen 1985 Studien zur altagyptischen Kultur, Beihefte, 3, pp. .151-158. .1989. Works out the present definition of hwt. Frandsen, Pa.u.1 John. "Tabu." In I^exikon der Agyptologie, 6: .135-142. Wiesbaden, J985. Discusses major groups of taboos. Kadish, Gerald E. "The Scatopliagous Egyptian." Journal of the. Society of the Studies of Egyptian Antiquities 9 (1979), 203-21.7. Follows Douglas in his interpretation of a certain type of texts. Montet, Pierre, "Le fruit defendu." Kenn 2 (1950), 85-1)6. Steiner, Franz. Taboo. London, 1956. Excellent survey and critique of earlier research. PAUL JOHN FRANDSEN
TAHARQA (r. 690-664 BCE), sixth king of the twenty-fifth or Kushite dynasty, Late period. Taharqa was the son of Piva (Piankhy) and was a younger brother of Shabtaqa, his immediate predecessor. Born late in Piya's reign, Taharqa was reared at Napata and came north to Egypt at age twenty, along with a party of royal siblings, at the behest of Shabtaqa early in the seventh century BCE. Contro-
TAKING OF JOPPA 347 versy surrounds Taharqa's alleged participation in the Egyptian military intervention recorded in 2 Kings 19.9, since it has sometimes been doubted that, in 701 BCE, he would have been old enough to go on campaign, even if the title "king" in the biblical passage is viewed as an anachronism. Moreover, a recently discovered stela of Sargon from Iran may further complicate the issue: it seems to imply that Shabtaqa was on the throne as early as 705 BCE. Coming to the throne in 689 (backdated to 690) BCE, Taharqa enjoyed a successful decade and a half in power. He moved his residence to Memphis in the north and began a long-range program of rebuilding and temple endowment. His work is still visible in temple additions at Napata, Kawa, Edfu, Thebes, Abydos, and Memphis. In the sixth year of his reign (685-684 BCE), an especially high inundation of the Nile River brought an abundant crop and the annihilation of the rodent population. Seen as a gesture of divine favor, the miracles of that year were enhanced by the visit of the queen mother from Nubia to see her son ensconced on the throne of Egypt in the capital of the land. A policy of foreign intervention was established at that time, directed against two of the traditional trouble spots for Egyptian hegemonic claims: the Levant and Libya. Taharqa astutely took advantage of the temporary weakness of the Assyrian Empire, attendant on the ineffectiveness and eventual assassination of Sennacherib. A series of little-known campaigns in Palestine and Lebanon (reflected only in the donation lists from the temple of Kawa in Nubia) is identified for the period extending to around 679 BCE. These resulted in a short-lived sphere of Egyptian influence along the coast from Ashkelon to Byblos. A major expedition into Libya achieved sufficient success that Taharqa could claim victory and transport booty and chattels back to Egypt, destined for the estate of Amun. These military accomplishments were celebrated to such an extent that later generations remembered Taharqa as one of the last great conquerors in the pharaonic tradition. Taharqa's fortunes fell with the advent to power of the Assyrian king Esarhaddon (681-669 BCE). Whatever treaty or concordat Taharqa's predecessor had signed with Assyria was considered abrogated, and in 674 BCE the Assyrian army descended on the Nile Delta, intent on adding Egypt to the empire. Rebuffed on that occasion, Esarhaddon returned in 671 BCE and won the day. The Egyptian frontier defenses were outflanked, and Taharqa was forced to abandon Memphis and flee to the Sudan. Although he made a triumphal return to the north after the Assyrian troops withdrew, Taharqa was not to survive. The mere threat of a new invasion by the Assyrians was enough to drive him once again to Napata, where he died in 664 BCE.
BIBLIOGRAPHY Grimal, Nicolas. A Hisloiy of Ancient Egypt. Translated by lan Shaw. Oxford, 1992. Leclant, Jean. "Taharqa." In Lexikon der Agypiologit!, 6:156-184. Wiesbaden, 1986. Onasch. Hans-Ulrich. Die assyrischen Eroheningeii Agyptws. Wiesbaden, 1994. Redford, Donald B. "Taharqa in Western Asia and. Libya." Ere.tz Israel 24 (Jerusalero, 1993), 188'*-191*. DONALD B. REDFORD
TAKING OF JOPPA. The modern name of a fragmentary tale preserved on the verso of Papyrus Harris 500 (Papyrus British Museum 10060). Written during the Rames-sid period, the papyrus also contains the Stoiy of the Doomed Prince and, on its recto, a series of love poems. Like these other works. The Taking (or Capture) of Joppa is written in literary Late Egyptian; it was probably composed not much earlier than the papyrus itself. The story, whose beginning is lost, is set in the time of Thutmose III (eighteenth dynasty, C.I 500 BCE). The surviving portion opens with the Egyptian army laying siege to the Palestinian coastal town of Joppa (modern Jaffa). A member of the Egyptian force named Thoth (or Dje-huti) has apparently invited the ruler of Joppa (identified in the story only as "the enemy of Joppa") to a parley outside the walls of the town, where he plies the ruler and his retainers with food and drink. Once the retainers have lapsed into drunkenness, Thoth offers to surrender himself, his family, and goods. Perhaps misunderstanding the offer, the ruler asks to see the pharaoh s baton. Thoth first shows him the baton, then strikes the ruler senseless with it and has him manacled. At this point Thoth conceals a force of Egyptian soldiers in two hundred large baskets. Word is sent to the ruler's wife that the baskets are part of the tribute of Thoth's surrender. The baskets are brought into Joppa, whereupon the Egyptian soldiers emerge and seize the town and its inhabitants. The story ends with Thoth sending word of his victory to the pharaoh in Egypt. The extent to which Tlie Taking of Joppa reflects historical events is uncertain. Thutmose III listed Joppa as one of the towns subjugated during his first military campaign, in Year 22-23 of his reign. In the story, however, the pharaoh is absent in Egypt when Joppa is taken. Assuming the story to have some basis in fact, it is possible that it reflects a subsequent rebellion of the city after the campaign of Year 22-23. This, in turn, may explain Jop-pa's status in the later eighteenth dynasty, when it was administered directly by Egypt rather than ruled as a semi-independent vassal state like most of its neighbors.
348
TANIS
A general named Thoth, who was also "Overseer of Northern Countries," is known to have served under Thut-mose III and was undoubtedly the model for the tale's hero. The historicity of details in the story itself is purely conjectural. The Taking ofJoppa is clearly a work of literature, like the other works preserved in Papyrus Harris 500. As such, its main literary interest lies in the ruse by which the Egyptians succeed in capturing the town, which prefigures the Trojan Horse of Homer's Iliad. BIBLIOGRAPHY Gardiner, Alan H. Late-Egyptian Stories. Bibliotheca Aegyptiaca, 1. Brussels, 1932. Publication of the ancient Egyptian text in hieroglyphic transcription, pp. 82-85a. Goedicke, Hans. "The Capture of .loppa." Chronique d'Egypte 43 (1968), 219-233, Translation and coninnentary. Wente, Edward F. "The Capture of Joppa." In 'Ilie Literature of Ancient Egypt, edited by William Kelly Simpson. pp. 8.1-84. Rev. ed. New Haven and London, 1973. Translation. JAMES P. ALLEN
TANIS, the capital, royal cemetery and principal Mediterranean port of Egypt (31°N, 32°E) during the Third Intermediate Period (c.1081-711 BCE). Its role as a great metropolis was brief, for it had little history before that period and declined thereafter. As an archaeological site, Tanis, in the northeastern Nile Delta, is characterized by an eclectic reuse of materials that were usurped from other locations and earlier reigns. The village of San el-Hagar was built upon the western quay of Tanis, which occupied the eastern bank of the Tanite Nile distributary, the Bahr Saft, now only a small stream that dissipates into Lake Manzalla. The site of Tanis comprised two geziras (sandy hills above the Hood plain); the southern hill is called Tulul el-Bid, and the northern Tell San el-Hagar. This northern tell, the largest in Egypt, comprises more than 177 hectares, and rises as high as 32 meters (100 feet). Its once fertile fields are now salty steppe, a condition that has prohibited modern occupation and preserved the site from recent destruction. During the Old and Middle Kingdoms, the region was known as the Field of Dja'u and was considered a favorable fishing and fowling preserve. It belonged to various Lower Egyptian nomes; originally in the thirteenth nome, it fell within the fourteenth during the Middle Kingdom and ended as capital of the nineteenth in Ptolemaic times. The first mention of the town is known from a nineteenth dynasty building block of Ramesses II (ruled C.I 304-1237 BCE) used originally in Memphis. At Tanis, twentieth dynasty burials lie under an enclosure wall, indicating a settlement; however, the greater metropolis was not founded until the nineteenth year of the reign of
Ramesses XI (c.1.087 BCE), last king of the twentieth dynasty, when Egypt was divided between two potentates: High Priest Herihor took Upper Egypt, while Generalissimo Smendes seized Lower Egypt, and opened Tanis as a port, since Piramesse had ceased to function. The Story ofV/enamun, a tale of trade in the Levant, depicted Wena-mun embarking from Tanis on a mission for Herihor, under Smendes and his wife Tentamun, at the end of the twentieth dynasty. Smendes (r. 1081-1055 BCE) eventually founded the twenty-first dynasty. He was probably buried in Tanis, since one of his canopic jars, a funerary object, was found in the vicinity. Smendes's successor, Psusennes I (r. 1055-1004 BCE), selected a depression of virgin sand some 8 meters (25.5 feet) above flood level, between four ranges of hills on Tanis's northern gezira, for the foundation of a temple to Amun; there a large brick enclosure wall was built from stone quarried from eariier structures at Piramesse. Joint inscriptions of Psusennes I and Pinudjem I within that temple indicate a reconciliation between the thrones of Tanis and Thebes. Psusennes I constructed a mastaba (tomb 3) at Tanis, in the southeastern corner of the enclosure, decorated with reliefs of himself offering to afterlife deities. He was interred there with rich furnishings, including usurped New Kingdom royal sarcophagi (one belonging to Merenptah of the nineteenth dynasty), a silver coffin, a gold death mask, and copious jewelry. General Wendjebaendjedet and Homakht were also buried within the mausoleum of Psusennes I. Another king of the twenty-first dynasty, Amenemope (r. 1000-990 BCE), was buried in the adjacent structure (tomb 4), with another usurped sarcophagus, a gold death mask, some jewelry, and some objects of Siamun's, although this tomb was too small to have also contained his burial. Siamun (r. 984-965 BCE) built the temples of Mut and Khonsu in a southwestern enclosure, completing the ensemble of temples after the fashion of Karnak and making Tanis into a northern replica of Thebes. The kings of this dynasty whose burials have yet to be located are Smendes, Oso-chor (c.990-984 BCE), Siamun, and Psusennes II (c.965931 BCE).
Sheshonq II (r. 931-910 BCE) of the twenty-second, or Libyan, dynasty, was buried intrusively in the antechamber of Psusennes I, with much Finery, including a silver falcon-headed coffin, a gold death mask, jewelry, and silver canopic vessels. Osorkon I (r. 910896 BCE) built a new four-chamber mausoleum (tomb 1) adjoining the southern wall of that of Psusennes I. It had scenes portraying funerary themes, but it was robbed in antiquity. Takelot 1 (r. 896873 BCE) and Osorkon II (r. 873-844 BCE) were buried in Osorkon Is mausoleum. Osorkon II usurped many of the earlier monuments of the Amun temple and built the East Temple, using granite palmi-
TANIS 349
TANIS. Tlie ruins of the. temple of'Amun. (Courtesy Dieter Arnold)
form columns of Old Kingdom date, that were reinscribed by Ramesses II and himself. Sheshonq III (r. 819-767 BCE) built the West Gate of the temple precinct, constructed out of reused obelisks and temple blocks (some from the Old and Middle Kingdoms). It was fronted by colossal statuary usurped from Ramesses II. He was buried to the north of Amenope in a separate structure (tomb 5), inscribed with royal mortuary books, but his tomb was robbed in antiquity. Two other destroyed tombs with unknown occupants were discovered— to the south of this structure (tomb 2) and to the west (tomb 6). Kings of the twenty-second dynasty whose burials have yet to be located are Takelot I (r. 896-873 BCE), Sheshonq IV (r. 763-725 BCE), and Sheshonq V, the blocks of whose kiosk were reused in a wall around the Sacred Lake. The Late period Nubian king Piya (ruled c.731-712 BCE) of the twenty-fifth dynasty conquered Tanis and King Taharqa (r. 690664 BCE) made it his royal residence for a brief time. Some archaizing reliefs of the dynasty have been found reused in the Sacred Lake's wall. Tanis then passed back and forth between the Nubians, the Assyrians, and the Saites until the twenty-sixth dynasty when Psamtik I (r. 664-610 BCE) built a kiosk at Tanis. It was adorned with a procession of nome gods but was dis
mantled and reused in later structures. No significant work was then undertaken at Tanis during the ensuing First Persian Occupation. In the thirtieth dynasty, Nekta-nebo I (r. 380-363 BCE) probably erected the enormous outer enclosure wall of brick, as well as a temple to Khonsu that was annexed to the northern side of the Amun temple, near the North Gate; but it was not completed until the Ptolemaic period. The temple to Horus near the East Gate was also begun in the thirtieth dynasty and completed by the Ptolemies after the Second Persian Occupation. Ptolemy I (r. 305282 BCE) built the East Gate of the precinct. Ptolemy II (r. 282-246 BCE) and Arsinoe dedicated a small brick chapel; some fine Ptolemaic statuary was also found in the vicinity. Ptolemy IV (c.222-205 BCE) built a temple in the southwestern Mut enclosure. Some Ptolemaic-era houses were built over the Amun temple, indicating that it was no longer in use. By the Roman period (27 BCE-337 CE) the port of Tanis had silted up, and Tanis became a minor village. At that time, most of the temple limestone was burned for its lime. In Byzantine times (337-641 CE), Tanis served as a small bishopric, but it was eventually abandoned in Islamic times and was not resettled until the reign of Muhammad Ali, Pasha, under the Ottoman Empire. Excavations at Tanis in the nineteenth century con-
350 TAWERET cerned the collection of statuary. In the late 1700s, Napoleon Bonaparte had the site of Tanis surveyed; in 1825, Jean-Jacques Rifaud sent two of its large pink granite sphinxes to Paris, to the Louvre Museum. Other statues soon went to Saint Petersburg and Berlin. Henry Salt excavated in Tanis during the British protectorate, and Ber-nardino Drovetti found eleven statues, which were sent to the Louvre, to Berlin, and to Alexandria (now lost). Au-guste Mariette undertook the first large-scale excavations at Tanis from 1860 to 1864, discovering the Four Hundred Year Stela (with a Ramessid inscription in honor of Seth in Near Eastern garb) and several royal statues (many of Middle Kingdom date). Mariette identified Tanis with the Hyksos capital of Avaris on the basis of his unusual finds; moreover, the ubiquitous inscriptions of Ramesses II, naming the city of Piramesse, led Mariette to surmise that his site was also the Ramessid royal residence (most of his finds are now in the Egyptian Museum in Cairo). M. W. Flinders Petrie dug at Tanis in 1884, and made a detailed plan of the temple precinct; he also copied inscriptions and excavated exploratory trenches. He found some Roman-era papyri that are now in the British Museum in London. Pi