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.