A Beginner’s Guide to the Sources of Ancient Egyptian History

The study of Ancient Egypt history is one of the most intriguing intellectual enterprises. On the banks of the Nile River developed a great civilization that has left numerous relics, hieroglyphs, monuments, and pictorial representations. However, the first question that arises when a novice researcher starts his journey is how do we know what we know?

Unlike modern history that is mostly preserved in the form of newspapers, state archives, video recordings, etc., the history of Ancient Egypt is not easy to restore. Historians and archaeologist suggest distinguishing several types of primary sources that throw light on different aspects of the past society and its culture. Understanding these divisions may help beginners to comprehend how modern researchers interpret the lives of the Nile River Valley people.

1. Native Written Sources and Their Meanings

Researchers consider the Egyptian inscriptions and papyrus as the most direct window into the minds of the Ancient Egypt people. The Egyptians used to have three types of writing: Hieroglyphics, Hieratic and Demotic scripts.

A. Hieroglyphics

This is the most striking and majestic script that has been discovered on the stone walls of Egyptian temples, palaces, tombstones, and obelisks. The hieroglyphs were used as integral elements of the royal power and statecraft tradition. All the major official decrees and public proclamations in Ancient Egypt were performed in the form of giant stone slab inscriptions decorated with carved-out hieroglyphs and surrounded by appropriate pictorial scenes. Victory stelae on the pylons of temples narrate the victories of the Pharaohs and his/her commanders and portray the conquered tribes and nations in subordination to the victor, the supreme god, and the king.

B. Hieratic and Demotic Scripts

The less impressive but more informative writings stem from the everyday practice of the scribes who used to copy on papyrus Hieratic signs. This kind of script was primarily used for accounting, commercial documents, contracts, treaties, and personal letters. Towards the end of the Late Period, a new simplified Hieratic script called “Demotic” was developed to write popular books and contracts.

Ancient Egypt people also used to write on ostraca, pieces of broken pottery or limestone flakes. This fragile material was the Egyptian equivalent of modern-day scratch paper. Thousands of ostraca have been discovered by archaeologists that contain various household notes and grocery lists, informal social messages, physicians’ prescriptions, and school exercises. The finds of ostraca provide modern researchers with an insight into the routine life of the ancient non-elite society.

2. The Ancient Chronology and the Royal Lists

The first challenge that the modern Egyptologist faces is the chronology issue. The three millennia of the ancient dynasties need to be properly organized into a coherent narrative that would make sense to the modern reader.

A. The Ancient King Lists

Ancient Egypt had its own set of chronicles and official documents called the Royal Lists. The most famous of them are the so-called Palermo Stone, an Old Kingdom Hieroglyphic inscribed slab, the Abydos King List carved on the Seti I temple wall, and the Turin Royal Canon papyrus.

All three lists contain valuable information about the early kings and the major events of their reigns. For instance, the Abydos King List provides researchers with a comprehensive account of the successive Pharaohs that ruled Ancient Egypt since the dawn of history, when the first ever ruler Menes had united the country. The Turin Royal Canon is the most detailed one since it not only includes the Pharaohs’ names and the duration of their rule but also estimates the length of reigns in days, months, and years.

B. Manetho’s Division of the History of Egypt

There also exists an ancient literary source that describes the chronological division of Egypt’s history. The Third-century BCE priest Manetho included in his Aegyptiaca History of Egypt the division of the chronology into the 31 dynasties. According to Manetho, each dynasty was ruled by a big family from the same city. This classification is still used by modern historians to understand the socio-political development of Ancient Egypt.

3. Archaeology: Unearthing the Ancient Civilization

Unlike written sources, the findings of archaeologists digging ancient Egyptian villages and cities provide the modern researchers with unbiased evidence on all aspects of the Nile River valley people’s life. The written sources can be misleading since they may contain various ideological twists or be subject to forgeries. However, the actual material sources are free from human interference. On top of that, the discoveries of the ancient material culture often provide unexpected findings that cannot be confirmed by the written sources.

A. The Archaeological Sources Interpreting Different Aspects of Ancient Society

There is a plenty of different material sources interpreted by Egyptologists in order to understand better how the Ancient Egypt people conducted their daily lives. The architectural remnants of the ancient world interpret mostly the socio-spiritual aspect of the Ancient Egypt history. The mighty pyramids, temples, their granite obelisks, and colossal statues of gods and pharaohs help the modern researchers to understand the mental world and spiritual beliefs of the ancient villagers.

Yet, the excavated ancient settlements,, and mining camps allow the historians to investigate the concrete historical events and processes. For example, the archaeological findings in the Deir el-Medina village help to decipher how exactly the local laborers lived, managed their time, and performed their daily tasks.

B. The Use of Material Sources Interpreting Daily Life and Living Standards

The daily life of the ancient non-elite society can be reconstructed thanks to the numerous archaeological discoveries of simple households’ utensils and tools. The variety of ancient pottery found by the excavators in the everyday settlements helps the Egyptologists to determine the approximate dating of the settlement based on the ceramics typology.

Other artifacts, such as copper chisels, wooden mallets, blades of flint, and bronze swords, disclose the technological history and the ancient craftsmanship. Many findings of jewelry, palettes, toys, and sandals provide the researchers with evidence of the aesthetic and leisure culture of the Ancient Egypt people.

4. The Use of Modern Scientific Equipment

The contemporary historians and archaeologist possess a variety of modern technical devices that allow them to conduct their research without damaging the ancient relics.

A. Bioarchaeology Providing Valuable Medical Evidence

The most interesting scientific practice is Bioarchaeology that allows the medical scholars to investigate the mummies and skeletons of the ancient people with the help of modern technologies. These non-invasive explorations enable the scientists to determine the age, diet, childhood illnesses, healed fracture, and even the blood relation of the ancient village residents. For instance, the bioarchaeology of the pyramid workers’ tombs has demonstrated that these people took good care of themselves and were skillful workers who could receive the medical treatment for their workplace injuries.

B. Geology Core Samples Interpreting Climate Patterns

The other helpful method of studying the Ancient Egypt history is the analysis of the geological core samples taken from the different areas of contemporary Egypt. The scientists investigate the sediment content of the core samples to have a better understanding of the climate throughout different epochs. These data is crucial for the Egyptologists since the Nile River discharge volume, its salinity, and temperature gradient impacted the agricultural yields and, as a consequence, the socio-political development of the region. Moreover, the geologists work in cooperation with physiscists to determine the radiocarbon dating of the relevant historical sources.

5. Foreign Sources Interpreting Ancient Egypt History

The historians also analyze the foreign records of Ancient Egypt history that describe different aspects of the Nile River valley people’s life.

A. The Amarna Letters Interpreting International Relations of Different Dynasties

Some of the most valuable sources for deciphering the socio-political history of Ancient Egypt are the so-called Amarna Letters. This corpus of 300 cuneiform tablets was discovered in the Middle Egypt area and represents the diplomatic correspondence between Egypt and the neighboring countries of Babylon, Assyria, Mitanni, and Hittite.

B. Classical Writers Interpreting Different Aspects of Ancient Egypt History

The historians also closely examine the works of the ancient Greek and Roman authors who visited Egypt and described the country in their writings. Although many of the foreign scholars exaggerated some of the peculiarities of the local culture or mistook folk tales for the ancient history, these sources contain valuable descriptions of how the different cultures perceived Ancient Egypt throughout the centuries.

Conclusion

The process of deciphering the history of Ancient Egypt is a complex one that requires the integrated efforts of many scholars. A small number of primary sources, especially the ones originating from the dawn of the Ancient Egypt history, limit the research in terms of authenticity and completeness. The majestical hieroglyphs inscribed on the stone walls of the ancient temples narrate the official version of the socio-political events that occurred in the past. The everyday papyrus documents and ostracon inscriptions, in their turn, represent the unofficial and non-censored perspective on the ancient history. The chronological records of the dynasties and royal families, kept in the form of special primary sources, help the modern historians to create a comprehensive narrative of the ancient socio-political development. Finally, the findings of modern archaeologists digging the ancient settlements provide the evidence of the daily life and living standards of the ancient village laborers and craftsmen. All this combined effort of the scholars from different fields of science enables the modern society to have a greater understanding of the unique ancient culture that developed many centuries ago on the banks of the Nile River.