Origins of a Great Civilisation Part II

The period known as the Naqada phase lasted 800 years, from 4000 bc to 3200 bc (Shaw, 2000). It is a period of consolidation through military conquest and cultural assimilation. From 0 to the 2nd dynasties, we not only saw the development of art and pottery in the Amratian phase but the aggressive expansion and rise of kingship in the Gerzean phase culminating in the Pre-dynastic phase when full unification of Upper and Lower Egypt had been fully achieved (Josephson and Dreyer, 2015). Upper Egypt, or ta shemau in Egyptian, was rather different from Lower Egypt, or ta mehu in Egyptian, in both culture and art so it was only a matter of time before these two cultures conflicted with each other. Feeding off of our previous entry therefore, it becomes necessary to discuss Lower Egypt’s, having discussed Upper Egypt earlier, art and culture, their burial customs and finally the assimilation into Buto and transition into the Pre-dynastic phase.

The Merimda Head courtesy of
Brown University

The Maadian complex or Maadi-Buto culture is located near the modern city of Cairo. It contains a dozen sites or more which include a cemetery and the settlement itself. According to Ian Shaw, the Maadian culture first appeared in the Naqada I phase but soon disappeared in the Naqada II phase through cultural and military expansion (Shaw, 2000). He continues to say the Maadi culture is a descendant of earlier Neolithic sites such as the Faiyum region, Merimda, Beni-Salama, and El-Omari (Shaw, 2000). The culture also differs completely from its Upper Egyptian counterpart as well which is to say that the cemeteries were less prominent and pottery not only was globular but lacked decoration too. The information ascertained therefore comes from the settlements themselves rather than the cemeteries (Shaw, 2000). University College London even says that the pottery was made by hand and had a dark hue to it (UCL, 2000). Additionally, there is however the absence of greywacke palettes that are so prevalent in Upper Egypt as mentioned in the previous entry because of the use of limestone palettes which hints at their luxurious nature of the greywacke.

Arrowhead made of stone
          from the Fayum region courtesy of the Met Museum

There is also evidence of Palestinian influence in the region, particularly in the worked flint, Shaw reports (Shaw, 2000). Discoveries show edged blades known as Canaanite blades, which later developed into razors, were used in funerary rituals in the Old Kingdom. Additionally, catfish darts, dorsal fins and polished ivory and bone have been found in and around the Maadian complex as well (Shaw, 2000). Copper was also of great importance to the Maadian complex too. Both Shaw and the UCL have documented the appearance and use of copper in the form of needles, axes and rods. Whilst other cultures in the area such as Merimda use stone to construct these tools, Maadi used copper ore which was readily available in the nearby regions of Timna and Fenan on the Sinai Peninsula.

Burial sites, as well, in and around the Maadian complex are simple with oval pits with the deceased placed in a foetal position accompanied by a mat and some pottery vessels (Shaw, 2000). The University of College London states as well that the hand was located in the front of the face (UCL, 2000). The cemeteries here are also located some distance from the settlements. Comparing Maadi with other Northern cultures, it is observed that other tombs are better equipped without the luxury that is evinced in Upper Egyptian tombs. Shaw here concludes that, although social stratification is discernible, there is a possibility that the graves contain a mixture of dogs, gazelles and humans which adds to the social change (Shaw, 2000).

simple oval pit of the deceased with pottery courtesy of
Mathilda's Anthropology

As the Maadian culture transitioned into the Pre-dynastic phase, Egyptologists have discovered an increase in Naqada pottery whilst at the same time a decrease in Maadian pottery which is evidence of the cultural assimilation between the cultures of Lower and Upper Egypt (Shaw, 2000). This gives us the impression that the Maadian culture did not abruptly end but rather was a slow process. Another culture around this time was that of Buto which was located nearby. It is in the opinion of the author and Ian Shaw that Buto is the culture that usurped Maadi simply because it developed its own culture, myths, ideology, beliefs and rites whilst at the same time was better suited for trade. Its strategic importance and location allowed the region to supersede that of Maadi which led to its decline and demise. It seems that this change was inevitable for the next phase in Egyptian history that was the Naqada III phase which is where full unification was successfully achieved (Shaw, 2000).

A couple of copper ingots from
Maadi-Buto culture courtesy of
Mathilda Anthropology

Drawing heavily from Ian Shaw’s exhaustive book, what has emerged is another perspective when it comes to Ancient Egypt. Lower Egypt, unlike its rival Upper Egypt, was a descendant of the Faiyum region, Merimda, el-Omari and Beni Salama. Pottery was hand-made and globular with a dark hue but really no geometric shapes or animal forms which explains the lack of art in Lower Egypt. There is Palestinian influence as well in the region with discoveries of edged blades also known as Canaanite blades which were later used in funerary rites of the Old Kingdom. Burial sites contain the deceased in foetal positions with their hand in front of their face accompanied by pottery, mats and/or fabrics or sometimes nothing at all. Finally, the transition or the disappearance of the Maadian complex took a long time rather than abruptly ending but was a slow process achieved through cultural assimilation into the Buto culture. Buto’s strategic and location allowed for Buto to supersede the Maadian culture which seemed necessary and inevitable for the next phase in Egyptian history to take effect, the Naqada III phase.

References

Josephson A. Jackson, Dreyer, Günter. 2015. Naqada IId: The Birth of an Empire. Journal of American Research Center in Egypt. Volume 51. 165-178.

Shaw, Ian. 2000. The Oxford History of Ancient Egypt. Oxford University Press.

“Maadi- Topic Overview.” University College London. 2000. n.p.

Origins of a Great Civilisation Part I

            Drawing on conclusions from a couple of Egyptologists, it is herein endeavoured to discuss the anthropology of sorts on the origins of Ancient Egypt through some rather interesting phases in its history. It is well known that Rome was not built in a day and so it was with Ancient Egypt as well. The history referenced in this essay however are three phases that make up the background of Egypt giving birth to art and written language that would not only dominate Egypt but shape it as well for the next three millennia. Before the Old Kingdom however there were three phases that led to the birth of the Old Kingdom, itself. These phases were the Amratian phase, the Gerzean phase and finally the Predynastic phase. These phases can also be called the Naqada I, II, or III phases respectively too.

Grave from the Naqada III phase in Hierkonpolis (HK 11)

            The Amratian or Naqada I phase is really no different from the Badarian culture which came before the Amratian phase, according to Ian Shaw. The dead in both, the Amratian and Badarian cultures, were buried in oval pits in a contracted position, lying on the left side. There was a mat placed underneath the deceased whilst the head rested on a pillow occasionally (Shaw, 2000).  There were also instances in which animal skins and clothing were found in the graves as well. Shaw also takes note that although single individual burials were popular there are multiple burials which more frequently involved women rather than men.

Hierkonpolis, with its maceheads and palettes, seems to have been a very important site not only in the Amratian phase but Gerzean and later in the Predynastic phase because of this diversity in material and grave goods which inform us that there was also a system of hierarchy (Shaw, 2000). During this phase, pottery began to change was well. Instead of solid colours such as red and black, which reflects how the Egyptians viewed their own land, there were geometric shapes of animals on the wares as well.

Representations of bearded men also began to take shape during the Naqada I phase. This would further be enhanced during the Gerzean phase as well. The first examples of these bearded men appeared on carved ivory and the tips of hippopotami and elephant tusks with triangular beards.

Tomb 100 found in Hierkonpolis

The Gerzean or Naqada II phase is somewhat different when compared to its earlier Naqada I counterpart however in that it was dominated by expansion, (Josephson and Dreyer, 2015). Where we see advancements in art and pottery in the Amratian phase, the Gerzean phase was preoccupied with war and aggression. Josephson and Dreyer state that the emergence of kings, replacing chieftains or headmen, was probably the first major advance of the Naqada II phase which led to ambitious conquests of more territory (Josephson and Dreyer, 2015). The Gebel el-Arak knife, now in the Louvre Museum, is a perfect example. It depicts battle scenes whilst the opposite side depicts naval battles. There are also appearances of early kings wearing the white crown and/or holding a scepter on knives and ivory carvings, including the Gebel el-Arik knife.

Josephson and Dreyer also note negative evidence, though, on our understanding of the rise of kingship in the Naqada II phase with the mention of the Hierkonpolis tomb 100. In this tomb there are painted scenes of battles, boat processions, hunting, and herding which seem to indicate that this idea of kingship was already in place (Josephson and Dreyer, 2015).

Gebel el-Arik now in the Louvre Museum, Paris

Writing also appears during this phase in Egyptian history in the form of pictograms. Josephson and Dreyer state that writing conveyed complex concepts such as elephants trampling snakes which indicate the control of chaos (Josephson and Dreyer, 2015). Ian Shaw adds to this by saying that writing had two purposes which were economic and administrative but puts the invention of writing itself in the Naqada III phase rather than the Naqada II phase (Shaw, 2000). It is in the opinion of the author however to agree with Josephson and Dreyer on this issue simply because the artefacts found like pottery and seals date to the Naqada II phase rather than the Naqada III phase.

Moving on however to the Naqada III or Predynastic phase, Egyptologists credit this phase with the unification of Egypt proper, (Wilkinson, 2010). Ian Shaw supports this as well in his book but he contributes the unification not merely to one king, like Wilkinson, but a series of kings from dynasties 0 to 2 culminating in the birth of the Old Kingdom which began in the 3^rd dynasty. Wilkinson also states that Egypt created the first nation-state in that the city states of Mesopotamia were controlled by the high priests and it was only later when they finally condensed their power into a monarchical system. It was they who wielded such power rather than one king (Wilkinson, 2010).

Scorpion Macehead now in the Cairo Museum

It was during this period that we find palettes and maceheads such as the Narmer Palette, the Dog Palette, Battlefield Palette and the Narmer Macehead which attest to the struggle for unification in Egypt (Wilkinson, 2010). According to William Stevenson Smith, Egypt during this time was trading with the city states of Mesopotamia. This is evinced in the Narmer Palette, now in the Cairo Museum, where we see serpopards (long-necked monsters) which are of Mesopotamian origin (Smith, 1998). He goes on to say that Egypt did not limit herself within her borders or Mesopotamia but traded with Libyan tribes, the Sinai and Lebanon as well (Smith, 1998).

To conclude, it is noteworthy that each phase whether it is Amratian, Gerzean or Naqada III (Predynastic) was distinctly different. We touched upon the development of art and pottery in the Amratian phase and the development of kingship in the Gerzean phase and finally the goal of unification in the Predynastic phase through a series of kings from dynasties 0-2. Drawing from these gold mines of information, it is now possible to piece together at least some form of Egypt before pharaohs and kings that came not only to dominate the country but rule it as a god in the coming Old Kingdom.