Egypt: History - First Intermediate Period

First Intermediate Period

In the First Intermediate Period as the age separating Dynasty VI and XII is called, Manetho, or rather the Manetho known to us from the chronicles of his exceptors, is seen at his worst. is !e"enth Dynasty consists of se"enty kings of Memphis, who reigned for se"enty days. is #ight Dynasty, likewise Memphite, comprises twenty$se"en kings and %&' years of reign. Dynasty IX and X are (oth eracleopolitan, with nineteen kings apiece and a total duration of )*& years. Dynasty XI is of Diospolite or +he(an origin, counting sixteen kings with the meager allowance of forty$three years. !uch is the account gi"en (y ,fricanus. +he figures offered (y #use(ius are somewhat less fantastic, (ut inspire confidence -ust as little. For all this stretch of time only one king is mentioned, namely ,chthoes, who is placed in Dynasty IX. .f him the authorities state that he was more cruel than all his predecessors, (ut in the end was smitten with madness and killed (y a crocodile. +his scrap of pseudo$history is o("iously compara(le to the already /uoted legends concerning 0heops, Pepy II, and 1otices, (ut the existence of ,chthoes is not open to dou(t. In spit of all defects, our Manetho does pro"ide a framework into which the findings of research fit reasona(ly well, as will (e seen from the enumeration of fi"e o"erlapping stages hereafter to (e discussed in some detail. +hese are2 rapid disintegration of the old Memphite regime following upon the o"erlong reign of Pepy II3 (loodshed and anarchy resulting from the collapse of the monarchy and the ri"alries of the pro"incial feudal lords or 4nomarchs4, also possi(ly fomented (y the infiltration of ,siatics into the Delta3 rise of a new line of Pharaohs with an ,khtoy 5Manetho4s ,chthoes6 at the head and eracleopolis as their capital3 e"er$growing importance of +he(es under a yet more energetic family of warrior princes of whom the first four (ore the name of Inyotef 5,ntef in older histories of #gypt6 and the remaining three the name of Menthotpe 5Mentuhotep63 ci"il war with the eracleopolitans from which Menthotpe I emerged as "ictor, reuniting the +wo lands and pa"ing the way for the Middle 7ingdom$$this ushered in (y ,mmenemes I, one of the greatest of all #gyptian monarchs 5Dynasty XII6 .ur last chapter dealt with the eight (y no less than eighteen kings prior to making its great leap to the last rulers of Dynasty XI. It is not easy to reconcile any of the ,(ydos names with the four which alone are preser"ed in the 0anon, (ut it seems likely that the fourth cartouche from the end ga"e the Prenomen of that I(i of the +urin fragments who4s significant pyramid was disco"ered (y 8eguier at!a//ara. +he recurrence of the name 1eferkare4, which had (een the Prenomen of Pepy II, as either whole or part in no less than six names of the ,(ydos series shows how great was still felt to (e the solidarity of these petty rulers with the most "enera(le of the Pharaohs of Dynasty VI. 9ut perhaps the most persuasi"e e"idence of their short$li"ed domination is offered (y some inscriptions disco"ered (y :aymond ;eill at 0optos in %*%<$%%. =nder the ruins of a structure of :oman date were found carefully towed away a num(er of decrees car"ed in hieroglyphic on sla(s of limestone, some dating from the reign of Pepy II, and most of them designed to protect the temple of Min and its priesthood from interference and the cor"ee. 9ut among them as many as eight were apparently dispatched on the same day in the first year of a 7ing 1eferkare, the last king (ut one in the series of the ,(ydos list. +he addressee was in each case the "i>ier !hemai and each royal command was concerned either with him or some mem(er of his family. .ne of the decrees confirmed him in his "i>ierate in all the twenty$two nomes of =pper #gypt, while another recorded the appointment of his son Idi to the post of ?o"ernor of =pper #gypt in the se"en southernmost nomes. , third decree grants precedence o"er all other women to !hemai4s wife 1e(ye, who is descri(ed as a 47ing4s eldest daughter4, and perhaps e"en more remarka(le is a fourth making ela(orate arrangements for the funerary cult of (oth hus(and and wife in all the temples of the land. +here is no hint of unrest or political distur(ance in any

of these texts, though we may possi(ly read into them a desperate anxiety on the king4s part to conciliate one specially powerful =pper #gyptian magnate. +hus the chances are that all the reigns corresponding to Manetho4s Dynasty VII and VIII were compressed into a relati"ely short space of time, perhaps no more than a /uarter of a century. ,t what precise moment serious disorders (roke out it is impossi(le to say, (ut their reality is (eyond a dou(t, and there is no reason to think that they persisted, whether continuously or intermittently, until well on into Dynasty XI. It is the picture of a rill re"olution that is painted in one of the most curious and important pieces of #gyptian literature that ha"e sur"i"ed the ha>ards of time. +his extremely tattered papyrus in the @eyden collection dates from no earlier than Dynasty XIX, (ut the condition of the country which it discloses is one which cannot (e ascri(ed to the imagination of a romancer, nor does it fit into any place of #gyptian history except that following the end of the .ld 7ingdom. +he (eginning is unfortunately lost, and with it the circumstances in which the speaker made his lengthy harangue. , long series of (rief paragraphs first portrays the ha"oc into which the land has (een thrown (y the machinations of low$(orn ad"enturers and ,siatics pushing their way into the Delta. , few examples will suffice to illustrate the tone and su(stance of the narration2 +he (owman is ready. +he wrongdoer is e"erywhere. +here is no man of yesterday. , man goes out to plow with his shield. , man smites his (rother, his mother4s son. Men sit in the (ushes until the (enighted tra"eler comes, in order to plunder his load. +he ro((er is a possessor of riches. 9oxes of e(ony are (roken up. Precious acacia$wood is left asunder. +he general uphea"al has re"ersed the status of rich and poor2 e who possessed no property is now a man of wealth. +he poor man is full of -oy. #"ery town says2 let us suppress the powerful among us. e who had no yoke of oxen is now the possessor of a herd. +he possessors of ro(es are now in rags. ?old and lapis la>uli, sil"er and tur/uoise are fastened on the necks of female sla"es. ,ll female sla"es are free with their tongues. ;hen their mistress speaks it is irksome to the ser"ants. +he children of princes are dashed against the walls. +hese /uotations, chosen at random, might, it is true, reflect the distorted "ision of a die$hard aristocrat, (ut there are others descri(ing the political confusion of the times, the dissolution of the laws, and the destruction of pu(lic offices and records which cannot well (e so constructed. #"en the person of the king seems to ha"e (een su(-ected to "iolence, though the sentence where this appears to (e stated is of not /uite certain interpretation. !till more important are a few passages which affirm the part played (y foreigners in the restriction of true #gyptian territory to =pper #gypt, #lephantine and +hinis (eing towns specifically mentioned. +he many pages of nostalgic lamentations are followed (y ad-urations to piety and religious o(ser"ance, and it is these which -ustify the title 4,dmonitions of an #gyptian !age4 (y which the entire composition is known. .pinions ha"e differed as to the way in which the remaining portions of the (ook are to (e understood. !ome ha"e thought to find a reference to Pepy II dying in extreme old age and succeeded (y a child too young to ha"e any sense. 9ut these e"ents, if really alluded to, must ha"e lain in the author4s past and that king upon whom the wise Ipuwer heaped reproaches for his weakness and indolence may well ha"e (een among the last of the Memphite line. owe"er that may (e, the trustworthiness of the @eyden papyrus as a depiction of #gypt in the First Intermediate Period is indisputa(le. ,nd here for the first time #gyptian literature sounds that note of despairing pessimism which (ecame a commonplace with the writers of the succeeding centuries e"en when no longer -ustified (y pre"ailing conditions. ;e ha"e thus to picture to oursel"es the Memphite kingdom as growing weaker and weaker until it failed any longer to command the allegiance of the nomarchs farther upstream. Direct information from the Delta now ceases entirely. #xpeditions in /uest of the tur/uoise of !inai are at an end, not to (e resumed until the approach of Dynasty XII. If a (ar(arous$ looking cylinder with the cartouche of 7hendy and a scara( with the name of +ereru really (elong to the kings so named in the ,(ydos list, this would (e an indication that they had to look to !yrian skill for e"en such trumpery o(-ects. It was perhaps in the extreme south that conditions (ecame most gra"ely unsettled. +he casual mention of a 7ing 1eferkare4 in a rock$ tom( at Mo4alla, some A< miles south of @uxor, places the inscriptions of its owner 4,nkhtify among the earliest records of the age. +his 4,nkhtify was the 4great chieftain 5or 4nomarch46 of

the nome of 1ekhen4, the third nome of =pper #gypt, that of which ieraconpolis opposite #l$ 7a( was the capital. e tells how orus of #dfu, the god of the next nome to the south, had (idden him set it in order, with the result that he took o"er the chieftaincy, and tran/uili>ed the region so thoroughly that a man would e"en em(race the slayer of his father or of his (rother. Many are the incidents of 4,nkhtify4s prowess which he descri(es in laconic sentences interposed (etween this force and +he(es and 0optos, whose com(ined soldiery had attacked the fortress of ,rmant. 4,nkhtify4s references to his marital successes are of great o(scurity, (ut if his account can (e trusted he managed to cow the inha(itants to (oth the east and the west of +he(es, so that at all e"ents we are here dealing with a time (efore the dynasty of the Inyotefs had esta(lished for themsel"es an in"inci(le supremacy. More significant than all these allusions to deeds of "alor are the repeated mentions of years of famine in which 4,nkhtify claims to ha"e supplied other towns (esides his own with gifts or loans of corn. +his (eneficent acti"ity of his extending e"en as far north as Dendera. ;e need not take too seriously the statement that 4the entire south died of hunger , e"ery man de"ouring his own children4, (ut the inscriptions of other more or less contemporary princes constantly harp upon the lack of grain, a lack which we may surmise was due to the impossi(ility of undistur(ed agriculture as to a succession of low 1iles. It may here (e noted that the deplora(le state of =pper #gypt is clearly reflected in the clumsiness of its artistic efforts. #"idently #gyptian ci"ili>ation was at its lowest e((. 0oncerning the rise of the 4 ouse of ,khtoy4 we are left almost completely in the dark. eracleopolis is the modern Ihnasya el$Medina, a town to the west of the ri"er opposite 9eni !uef )) miles south of Memphis. 1ot a shred of local e"idence has sur"i"ed to indicate its early importance, (ut Manetho4s description of his 1inth and +enth Dynasties as eracleopolitan is amply confirmed (y testimony from elsewhere. ,s regards his ,chthoes it turns out that no less than three distinct kings chose to retain the name for their second cartouche. +he king who without proof, (ut not without pro(a(ility, is assumed to ha"e (een the first, adopted Meryi(towe 549elo"ed of the heart of the +wo @ands46 as his orus name. 9y way of emphasi>ing his claim he did not hesitate to e/uip himself with a full Pharaonic titualry. +o ha"e raised himself to such a height he must ha"e possessed an exceptionally forceful character, (ut all that remains directly to authenticate his existence is a copper (ra>ier in the @ou"re, an e(ony walking$stick from Mer, and a few other e/ually insignificant o(-ects. , second ,kh$toy whose Prenomen was ;ahkare4 is known only from a finely decorated coffin from #l$9ersha, where his cartouches seem to ha"e (een inad"ertently written in place of those of the real owner, the steward 1efri. Bet a third king of the name ,khtoy 1e(kaure4 is attested only (y a weight from Petrie4s exca"ations at #r$:eta(a and (y a mention of him in one of the few #gyptian works of fiction that ha"e sur"i"ed in their entirety. +his tells the story of a peasant from the outlying oasis of the ;ady 1atrun who was ro((ed of his donkey and his merchandise on the way to eracleopolis, (ut poured out his complaints to the thief4s liege$lord with such elo/uence that he was detained in order that his supplications, reproaches, and in"ecti"e might (e written down for the so"ereign4s delectation. In the +urin 0anon no less than eighteen kings (elonging to the same royal line were originally recorded, and the name ,khtoy occurs twice, each time unexpectedly preceded (y a 1eferkare4, while all the ad-oining names are damaged, unidentifia(le, or lost. It is from some tom(s at ,syut that we o(tain our most trustworthy glimpse of the eracleopolitan era. +he inscriptions in these three tom(s are marred (y the twin defects which are the (ane of so much of our hieroglyphic e"idence, namely extensi"e lacunae in the text and our still inade/uate knowledge of the #gyptian language. 1e"ertheless the information that they afford is illuminating. +he earliest of the three tom($owners would hardly ha"e retained his name ,khtoy had he not (een a partisan of the eracleopolitan faction. Indeed, his youth seems to ha"e (een passed in a time of comparati"e calm. e tells how he was taught to swim together with the royal children, and was made a nomarch while still a (a(e of a cu(it in height. +hough he mentions that he recruited a regiment of soldiers, the achie"ements upon which he most prided himself were irrigation works and the encouragement of farming. e ends his main narrati"e with the words 4 eracleopolis praised ?od for me4, the #gyptian way of expressing gratitude. In the next oldest tom( Prince +efi(i plumes himself upon his impartial (eneficence and the sense of security which his soldiers inspired2

;hen night came, he who slept upon the road praised me. house.

e was like a man in his own

1one the less the nomes of the south were on the mo"e, pro(a(ly under the command of one of the early Inyotefs. +efi(i relates that he came into conflict with them, and we cannot dou(t of his success, though the half$lines that told the se/uel are among the o(scurest of a narrati"e where e"erything is o(scure. It is in the tom( of his son, again an ,khtoy, that the most explicit account of the ci"il war is to (e found. , eracleopolitan king Merykare4, of whom we shall hear more later, is named twice. Prince akhtoy, for some unexplained reason addressed in the second person, is credited with ha"ing induced the so"ereign himself to sail upstream2 ....he cleared the sky, the entire land with him, the princes of =pper #gypt and the magnates of eracleopolis, the region of the Mistress of the @and (eing come to repel fighting, the earth trem(ling....all people darting a(out, the towns....ing, fear falling upon their lim(s. +he magistrates of the ?reat ouse are under the fear of, and the fa"orites under respect for, eracleopolis. It appears that the king4s fleet reached !hashotp, a town a little to the south of ,syut, (efore returning amid re-oicing to his capital. Dou(tless out of thankfulness for a signal a success, 7ing Merykare4 ordered extensi"e repairs to (e made to the temple of ;epwawe, the -ackal god of ,syut. If any part of #gypt was relati"ely peaceful in these trou(led times, it was assuredly the portion midway (etween Memphis and +he(es. Many cemeteries of the central pro"inces, like those at 9eni asan and ,khmim, ha"e yielded fairly rich funerary e/uipment. 1o finer sarcophagi of the period ha"e (een unearthed than those from #l$9ersha, at this time the (urial$place of the 4great chieftains of the are 1ome4, whose seat of administration was 7hmun, the later ermopolis and the modern #l$,shmunen. , new family of princes had come into power, replacing the .ld 7ingdom nomarchs who4s tom(s had (een situated at !heikh !a4id a little farther to the south. +hese places were well within the domain of the eracleopolite kingdom, (ut curious e"idence has come to light showing that their rulers4 loyalty to the northern cause was considera(ly less than whole$hearted. +he walls of the tom(s are free from any compromising indications, (ut such a(ound at the ala(aster /uarries of atnu(, a little way out in the eastern desert. ere the lucky find of a large num(er of ink$ written graffiti not only heaps flattering epithets upon the local nomarchs, (ut accompanies their names with wish$formulate such as 4may he li"er for e"er4 or 4the protection of life (e around him like re4eternally4, formulate (oth earlier and later elsewhere reser"ed exclusi"ely for the Pharaoh. !till more strange, these graffiti are dated in the regneal years, not of the contemporary king, (ut of the pro"incial princes themsel"es. +wo of the earliest are credited with thirty and twenty years of rule respecti"ely, a sure sign that they were less plagued (y distur(ances than the nomarchs farther to the south where the ri"al kingdoms were finally to meet in (attle. Very incongruously manner these inscriptions express fidelity to 4the king4s house4, though the king4s name is carefully suppressed, except once when an otherwise unknown Meryhathor is mentioned. It must (e imagined, howe"er, that the laudatory phrases are completed without reference to re(ellion and (loodshed. .ne prince e"en seems to allude to a fight with his own fellow$citi>ens, though as usual the expressions are so "ague that we cannot (e /uite certain of their importance. ,lso there are apparent contradictions which we are utterly at a loss to resol"e, as when a ship4s captain who li"ed under Prince 1eheri tells us that in the king4s (usiness he tra"eled as far south as #lephantineand as far north as the papyrus marshes of the Delta, a feat surely impossi(le in the political conditions of the times. It remains to characteri>e a literary composition which, had it (een preser"ed in a less ragged and corrupt condition, might well ha"e thrown more light on a particular phase of the eracleopolitan domination than all our other e"idence put together. +he text is contained in three papyri, one in @eningrad, another in Moscow, and the third in 0openhagen, all of them written no earlier than the end of Dynasty XVIII, and all riddled with lacunae and o(scurities of e"ery kind. It is a (ook of wise counsels addressed to the king Merykare4 with whom we (ecame ac/uainted in the tom(s of ,syut. +he name of the father is lose, (ut he may well

ha"e (een an ,khtoy, though not the first of the name. Perhaps the earliest portion, had it (een (etter preser"ed, might ha"e (een the most interesting of all, since it offers ad"ice as to how unruly (ut popular "assals can (est (e dealt with. !tress is laid on a(ility to speak well and persuasi"ely, and imitation of the ancient models is strongly recommended. Bet it is desira(le to look to the future, a trait of character upon which no(les of the period particularly plumed themsel"es. It is wise to fa"or the rich, since they are less open to corruption that the poor. 8ustice and kindness to the oppressed are all the more essential since after death there comes a Day of 8udgment when a man4s deeds, howe"er far (ack in the past they lie, will (e re/uited as they deser"e. +he recruiting of young troops and the endowment of them with fields and cattle are o("iously wise precautions. Bet nothing is more important than re"erent ser"ice to the gods and the (uilding of monuments in their honor. It is exasperating that -ust those sections which deal with concrete e"ents are the most o(scure of all, and the scholars who ha"e used them with the greatest confidence ha"e sometimes exceeded what is philological permissi(le. 1e"ertheless, the claim of the royal counsel$gi"er to ha"e taken +hinis 4like a cloud$(urst4 is unmistaka(ly worded. In the same passage he seems, howe"er, to ha"e expressed regret for the de"astation which he had caused in what was always the most sacred region in all #gypt. !till, this incursion of the ercleopolitans so far south seems to ha"e (rought a(out a temporary lull in the hostilities (etween the (elligerents, since now 4thous standest well with the !outh3 the (earers of loads come to thee with gifts...the red granite 5of ,swan6 comes to thee unhindered4. Far more perplexing are the paragraphs dealing with Merykare4s relations with the Delta and with the ,siatic (ar(arians to the east. +here is a reference to D-ed$eswe, the area around the pyramid of +eti at !a//ara, and the actual mention on that site of many priests de"oted to the funerary cult of this "ery eracleopolitan monarch pro"es that he must ha"e (een (uried there, though his pyramid has ne"er (een found. , passage descri(ing the nature of the ,siatics has (een translated a(o"e, and re"eals at least that Merykare4 was in close contact with them. +he (ook ends with exhortations to (e industrious, with earnest emphasis upon the responsi(ilities of kingship, and with the warning that ?od, e"en if is power (e hidden, ne"ertheless sways the fortunes of men, for e is the creator and ar(iter of all. @ast of all come the words2 49ehold I ha"e spoken to thee the (est of my inner thoughts3 set them steadfastly (efore thy face4. In the .ld 7ingdom, +he(es, later to (ecome the southern capital and second in importance among the cities of #gypt only to Memphis, was no more than an insignificant "illage stretching along the eastern (ank of the 1ile. Indeed, at that time it was perhaps the hum(lest of four small townships which lay within the confines of the fourth =pper #gyptian nome, the others (eing A< miles to the south$east, ermonthis 5,rmant6 opposite across the ri"er, and Medamud to the north of +he(es near the eastern desert. ,ll four o(ser"ed the cult of the warlike falcon$headed god Mont-u 5Mont6, ultimately raising stately temples in his honor. It is unknown how +he(es or ;ise, to gi"e the town its #gyptian name, came to outstrip its companions so "astly, (ut the (eauty of its situation may ha"e (een the decisi"e factor, for the entire land might (e searched in "ain for e/ual magnificence of scenery. +he western desert, at no great distance (eyond the fields, is dominated (y the massi"e (luff of the 7urn, (eneath whose lofty eminence smaller hills offer unri"aled opportunity for rock$tom(s. +o the north, almost facing the +emple of Mont at 7arnak, there winds into the mountain the long and narrow gorge of 9i(lan el$Moluk 4the +om( of the 1o(les4, at the end of which the monarchs of the 1ew 7ingdom caused their mysterious sepulchers to (e hewn. ,(out a mile to the south and separating 7urna and Dra4,(u4n$1aga the shorter and wider recess called Der el$9ahri after the 0optic monastery which came to (e placed there leads to a sheer cliff of indescri(a(le grandeur. .n the east (ank a large area of radiant fields discloses far away a line of hills (ehind which the sun rises in all its glory. For the modern tourists the attraction of +he(es is enhanced (y the accessi(ility and good preser"ation of its many monuments, ad"antages which apart from the pyramids and their surrounding masta(as are sadly lacking in the neigh(orhood of Memphis. ,mong the multitude of tom(s interspersed among the houses of the modern "illage of 7urna only three (elong to the .ld 7ingdom, and of these only one (elongs to a 4?reat 0hieftain of the nome4, a small and mean affair suggesting that its owner was a personage of little

conse/uence. +he ease with which, as we ha"e seen , 4,nkhtify of Mo4alla o"erran the region around and (eyond ,rmant prompts the (elief that it was not until a good deal later that the +he(an territory (egan to take the lead among the pro"inces of the south. +he initiati"e was undou(tedly due to a no(leman su(se/uently remem(ered as Inyotef the great, (orn of Iku, and on another stele descri(ed as 4hereditary prince Inyotef. e is included in the disorderly enumeration of kings of that name in the already mentioned +a(le of 7arnak. +here are three stele which may fairly claim to (e contemporary records of this prince, on two of which he or his homonym is descri(ed as 4?reat 0hieftain of =pper #gypt4, while on the third he is 4?reat 0hieftain of the +he(an nome4. It seems simpler to presuppose only a single ancestor of the name, and at all e"ents we are -ustified in picturing to oursel"es an Inyotef$4o 54Inyoref the great46 who su(-ugated parts of the south far (eyond the territory of his won metropolis, yet did not dare to assume the predicates of royalty. +he first Inyotef to ha"e his name enclosed in a cartouche has left no contemporary monument, and apart from the rather dou(tful mention in the +a(le of 7arnak, is known only from an all$important relief of the reign of 1e(hepetre4 Menthotpe disco"ered in the temple of +od. ere that monarch is shown gi"ing an offering to Mont, while (ehind him stands the local goddess +-enenti. !he is followed (y three kings who must surely (e Menthotpe4s immediate predecessors in retrograde order. #ach of them (ears within a cartouche the title and name 4!on of :e4Inyotef4, (ut they are differentiated on a (lock a(o"e the separate orus names 5C6 lost, 5A6 ;ah$4ankh, and 5%6 !eher$towe. +hus !eher$towe 4Pacifier of the +wo @ands4 was the first royal Inyotef and either a son or a descendant of the hereditary prince of the same name. ;inlock con-ectured, perhaps correctly, that he was the owner of the northernmost of three great tom(s of a peculiar type exca"ated in the plain in a line (etween the temple of Mont at 7arnak and the opening into the Valley of the +om(s of the 7ings. +hese tom(s are called saff or 4row4 (ecause they ha"e doorways which gi"e them the appearance of (eing surrounded (y porticoes on three sides. It seems pro(a(le that they were the (urial$places of the first three Inyotefs, since it is definitely known that one of them, perhaps that in the center, (elonged to the orus ;ah$4ankh Inyotef II. 9y a curious chance there is a reference to this in the papyrus of the reign of :amesses IX 5c. %%%) 906 descri(ing the official tour of inspection to examine the royal tom(s which it was feared had (een tampered with (y the tom($ro((ers. ere we read2 +he pyramid$tom( of 7ing !i$re4 In$4o which is north of the ouse of ,menhotpe of the Forecourt and whose pyramid is crushed down upon it3 and its stele is set up in front of it and the image of the king stands upon this stele with his hound named 9ehka (etween his feet. #xamined this day3 it was found intact. Mariette found the lower part of this "ery stele in %D'<, and depicted upon it were not merely one dog (ut fi"e. =nfortunately it was left to (e (roken up (y nati"es, (ut what remains of its inscriptions is of great interest. ,fter telling how he (uilt or restored a num(er of temples, ;ah$4ankh narrates that he esta(lished his northern (oundary in the tenth or ,phroditopolite nome of =pper #gypt. +hen he goes on to say that he captured the whole of the ,(ydos territory and opened up all its prisons. +hese extensions of his dominion are confirmed on the monuments of se"eral of his officers of state, the finest of which (elonged to a chancellor named +-et-i, whose main pride, expressed in certainly exaggerated terms, was that he was put in control of the "ast treasure (rought to his lord not only from =pper and @ower #gypt, (ut also as tri(ute from the chieftains of the desert countries. Form ;ah$4ankh4s own sepulchral stele we learn that it was set up in his fiftieth year, this length of reign pro"ing, like the similar indications in the inscriptions of the princes of the hare nome at atnu(, that at least in the tract of land under his sway tran/uil conditions pre"ailed. +his would naturally (e fa"ora(le to good craftsmanship, and it is interesting to see that the sculptors of reliefs at +he(es had (y now de"eloped a highly indi"idual and not unpleasant style of their own, particularly in the forms of their hieroglyphs. +his artistic skill, howe"er, goes hand in hand with a great crudity on other stele, showing that the re"i"ing culture was not yet at all sure of itself. 1either ;ah$4ankh himself nor his successors hesitate any longer to employ the proud title 47ing of =pper and @ower #gypt4, though a num(er of years had to elapse (efore it corresponded to the truth. +he next king was another !i$:e4 Inyotef, who adopted as

his orus name on which meant 4!trong, lord of a ?ood !tart4 51akht$ne($tep$nufe6. It deser"ed to (e mentioned here that such deli(erately in"ented names often ha"e a greater significance that is apt to (e attri(uted to them. If they do not register historical facts, at least they may em(ody aspirations, and examples of (oth possi(ilities will come to our notice (efore the end of this discussion. Inyotef III was the last of his name for se"eral centuries, and all that is known of his doings is that he restored the ruined tom( at ,swan of a god prince named ekaye(. Inyotef III was followed (y the first of se"eral Pharaohs who exchanged the family name of Inyotef for Menthotpe, a name which signifies 4Mont is content4. ,nd contented the local god had good reason to (e, for Menthotpe I4s long reign of fifty$one years witnessed, after many years of conflict, the reunion of all #gypt under a single ruler. It is only comparati"ely recently that the personality of this great king has (egun to emerge from the o(scurity which pre"iously surrounded him. ;e owe it to . !tock to ha"e recogni>ed that three separate titularies, pre"iously attri(uted to three distinct Pharaohs all (earing the name Menthotpe, really (elonged to one and the same so"ereign, each titulary reflecting a different stage in his career. !uch a radical change of titularyis almost uni/ue in the Pharaonic annals (ut is -ustified (y the momentous e"ents which it reflects. ,t the (eginning of his reign Menthotpe I, like the earlier rulers of his house, dispensed with a Prenomen, and was satisfied to (e called the orus !4ankh$i($towe 4 e who makes to li"e the heart of the +wo @ands4, i.e. possi(ly who re"i"es their hopes. , 9ritish Museum stele which is among the few monuments recording this phase notes that in his fourteenth year +hinis re"olted, perhaps there(y gi"ing the signal for the king4s northward ad"ance. In the next phase Methotpe often prefixed the Prenomen 1e(hepetre4 to his surname, at the same time using the orus name 1e(hed-e, which means 4@ord of the ;hite 0rown4. Presuma(ly this was intended to signify his now well$esta(lished so"ereignty o"er =pper #gypt. 1othing dated has sur"i"ed from this period, (ut the orus name in /uestion tells its own tale. From the thirty$ninth year onward, and pro(a(ly a good deal earlier, the orus name is metamorphosed into !am$towe 4=nifyer of the +wo @ands4, while the Prenomen, still to (e read as 1e(hepetre4, is strangely written with an oar instead of with the indeterminate o(-ect. +his latter fact led to the ultimate Prenomen (eing wrongly read a 1e(herure4 and (eing attri(uted to a Menthotpe different from the two (earers of the 1omen already mentioned. Discarding this mistake, instead of the fi"e distinct Menthotpes or Metuhoteps counted (y most historians in Dynasty XI, we shall here acknowledge only three.