How Do We Know About Ancient Egyptian History?

For centuries, the civilization of ancient Egypt was surrounded by mystery. People could admire the giant pyramids and beautiful temples, yet the meaning of the pictorial writing carved on the rocks was lost long ago. Today, thanks to modern Egyptology, archaeology, and scientific research, our knowledge of the everyday life of the ancient Egyptians, their labor, battles, and governance is close to being complete.

The reconstruction of the ancient Egyptian history requires the deciphered hieroglyphs, monumental inscriptions, classical historical writings, papyruses, and archaeological findings. All these pieces of information help to build a complete picture of the material and spiritual culture of the ancient Egyptians over three millennia.

1. Reading Hieroglyphs: Deciphering Ancient Script

The most crucial step in deciphering hieroglyphs was learning to read.

A. Rosetta Stone

In 1799, the French troops discovered the Rosetta Stone near Rashid (Rosetta). It was a slab of black basalt with a decree issued at Memphis in 196 BC in the name of Ptolemy V. The text was carved in three different scripts:

• Hieroglyphic – monumental script;

• Demotic – ancient Egyptian cursive;

• Ancient Greek – the language of administration.

B. Champollion and Hieroglyphs Deciphering

In 1822, Champollion managed to decipher hieroglyphs, comparing the names of Ptolemy and Cleopatra inscribed on the Rosetta Stone with their Greek equivalents. Champollion discovered that each hieroglyph can represent either a sound (a phonetic component) or a meaning (determinative). His study of hieroglyphs laid the foundation for reading dozens of ancient Egyptian texts.

2. Royal Records, Annals, and King Lists

The annals and chronicles of the kings of Egypt, their victories, constructions, and reigns are some of the most crucial sources for reconstructing ancient history. Different kinds of royal lists, annals, and monumental inscriptions were traditionally used to determine the chronology of dynasties.

A. The Palermo Stone

The fifth dynasty old kingdom inscription is a preserved part of a black basalt tablet. It contains the names of the earliest dynastic Pharaohs, festivals, constructions, censuses, and measurements of the Nile floods.

B. The Turin Royal Canon

The papyrus with the Turin King List, dated back to the reign of Ramesses II and found in Italy, contains the most complete list of the Egyptian kings. Unlike other canonical lists found on stone tablets, the papyrus includes all the rulers, even those shorter-lived and illegitimate ones, and the foreign Hyksos kings and intermediate dynasty rulers. The reigns of the kings are given with days, months, and years.

C. Monumental Temple Lists

The pharaohs of the New Kingdom carved obelisks or monumental lists of kings on the rock faces of their temples to emphasize their legitimacy to rule Egypt and claim to be the son of Amun.

The Abydos King List: 76 kings carved in chronological order on the temple walls of Seti I;

The Saqqara Tablet: 58 kings depicted on a stone slab found in the rock-cut tomb;

The Karnak King List: the inscriptions on the walls of the temple of Thutmose III record the offerings of the Pharaoh to 61 of his predecessors.

3. Epigraphic Inscriptions and Historical Reliefs

The inscriptions on stone were the ancient Egyptian equivalent of newspapers. They contain numerous stories of kings, reports of wars, and details of military campaigns.

A. Military Campaigns and Victory Stelae

The ancient kings recorded their victories and military campaigns in stone. The most famous examples are:

Narmer Palette – the history of the first Egyptian dynasty carving on the palette of King Narmer;

Merenptah Stele – record of the war with the Sea Peoples and the first mention of Israel;

The Kadesh Inscriptions of Ramesses II – the battle with the Hittite king is engraved on the walls of the Luxor, Karnak, and Abu Simbel temples.

B. Tomb Autobiographies

The wall inscriptions of the private tombs narrate the biography of the deceased – a governor, general, or chief administrator. They tell us about military service, trade, tax collection, and the legal cases of the locals. The best-preserved example is the tomb inscription of Weni the Elder, representing the late Old Kingdom.

4. The Papyruses: Literature, Everyday Life, Science

Most of the papyruses were written on a special paper made of papyrus reeds and mummies. Climate and burial practice helped to preserve ancient scrolls.

A. Administrative and Legal Issues

The Abusir Papyri – the fifth dynasty papyruses contain information about the maintenance and storage of food, the rotation of the priests’ shifts, and the layout of the building’s construction.

The Tomb Robbery Papyri – in the late New Kingdom period, the authorities kept a detailed record of the looters’ confessions. They were brought to trial for stealing treasure from the Valley of the Kings.

The Kahun Papyri – this Middle Kingdom manuscript contains correspondence, legal papers, and private letters of the citizens.

B. Literary, Medical, and Mathematical Texts

The literature of ancient Egypt reflects the worldview of the ancient Egyptians. Some papyruses contain medical texts (Edwin Smith and Ebers papyruses) describing human anatomy and different treatments of the diseases. The mathematical calculations of the scribes about the harvest yield or building the pyramids’ angles are also a part of the literature.

5. Ancient Historians’ Narratives

Before discovering deciphered hieroglyphs, the ancient historians had a chance to describe the marvels of ancient Egypt.

A. Manetho’s History of Egypt

An Egyptian priest called Manetho wrote a history of Egypt in the third century BC for the Ptolemaean dynasty in Greek. He divided the long history of Egypt into 30 dynasties for his work Aegyptiaca. Until now, his narrative is considered the most reliable source of information for Egyptologists.

B. Classical Travelers

Herodotus – the famous 5 th century BC Greek historian visited Egypt and wrote the second book about the landscapes, people, tombs, mummies, and their art. Other Greek writers Diodorus Siculus, Strabo, and Plutarch described the culture and life of the ancient Egyptians in their works.

6. Archaeology, Excavations, and Bioarchaeology

Besides the literary sources, the ancient life and history of the Egyptians can be reconstructed from excavated material.

A. Literary Sources on Ancient Egypt

The findings of cities, citadels, industrial complexes of ancient Egypt (Deir el-Medina), and tombs provided the evidence needed to examine the life and work of the ancient Egyptians. For example, the excavated treasures from the Valley of the Kings and the discovery of King Tut’s tomb in 1922 revealed the details of metalworking, woodworking, and textile production.

B. Modern Research and Analysis

Modern Egyptology benefits from a multidisciplinary approach, studying historical evidence found in different sources: paper, stone, and people.

CT Scanning and DNA analysis of mummies and skeletons help to determine the cause of death, tribal affiliation, nutrition, and health conditions of the ancient Egyptians.

Radiocarbon dating determines the carbon isotope in the organic matter, helping to identify the period when the different artifacts were used.

Satellite imaging discovers new traces of ancient walls, roads, and tombs buried under the sand or modern farms.

Conclusion

The knowledge of the ancient Egyptian history is ever-growing, and new sources contribute to the continuous revision of the old findings. Hieroglyphs, deciphered with the help of the Rosetta stone and papyrus sources, allow the modern historians to read the stories carved on the temple walls. The classical historians’ narratives give a comprehensive view of the country’s culture and society. Finally, the excavated material provides scientists with tangible evidence of the everyday life of the ancient Egyptians.