Early-Middle Bronze Age Flashcards
1
Q
Periods included
A
- Mesopotamia - Early Dynastic I-IIIb, Ur I, Dyn of Akkad, Ur III, Babylon I
- Egypt - Dynasties III-VI, (Old Kingdom), Dyn VI-XI (First Intermediate Period), Dyn XI-XIII (Middle Kingdom), Dyn XIII-XVII (Second Intermediate Period)
- Palestine - Early Bronze Age (I-IV), MIddle Bronze Age (I-IIC)
- Greece - Early Helladic I-III, M Helladic, L Helladic L
- Crete - E Minoan II-III (Prepalatial Period), M Minoan IA- II (Protopalatial/Old Palace), M Minoan IIIA, IIIB, L Minoan IA (Neopalatial (New Palace))
- Hati - Hittite Old Kingdom
2
Q
Great Palace at Knossos
A
Middle Minoan IB, c1850 BC: First Palace built
Middle Minoan IIB, c1700 BC: destroyed by earthquake
Middle Minoan IIIA: Second Palace built; badly damaged by earthquake
Middle Minoan IIIB: Second Palace rebuilt; badly damaged by earthquake
Late Minoan IA: Second Palace rebuilt (again)
3
Q
Emergence of Minoan ‘Palaces’
A
- Minoan ‘Palaces’ = emergence of state
- When, How and Why?
- Why Crete?
- Main features and functions? Palaces or Temples?
- Who for?
4
Q
Fall of Jericho
A
- Mid 16th c BC
5
Q
Sack of Babylon
A
- Mid 16th c BC
6
Q
Kerma Culture
A
- 17th-16th BC
- Uprisings became a problem for Egyptian kings in the Second Intermediate Period
- Collaborated with Hyksos in 15th dyn
- Distinctive luster high polished wares (pottery) and monumental architecture but no texts
7
Q
2nd Cataract fortifications
A
- largely associated with Senwosret III
- e.g. Buhen
8
Q
Lahun Pyramid
A
- In the fertile Fayoum area
- Pyramid of Senwosret II
9
Q
Beni Hasan
A
- Provincial centers remain important -almost a feudal set up
- Large tombs of local governors continue to be built in an unbroken sequence from the first intermediate period to the 12th dynasty
- In late 12th dynasty, there seems to be a reform and the tombs of provincial governors stop, and some officials are buried near the king at the Capital
- Major provincial cemetery in Middle Egypt
- Includes a group of Nubian traders in depictions on tombs
10
Q
Lisht
A
- 12th dynasty capital of Amenemhat I c.1940-1920 BC
- Previously Thebes
- One of the originators of many of the reforms of the Middle Kingdom but is assassinated
- Amenemhat I resurrects straight forward pyramids near Lisht
- New capital of Ishtawi for most of the Middle Kingdom
11
Q
Murder of Amenemhat I
A
- Dyn XII 1940-1910 BC
- Assassinated - written down, nominally written by him but includes his assassination
- Instruction of King Amenemhat I, gives record of his death and instructions on what to do after death to get into the afterlife
12
Q
Great Ziggurat
A
Ur, Ur III Dynasty, 21st/20th c BC
-Some of the earliest material which is still surviving, although it has been heavily restored
13
Q
Deir el-Bahari
A
- Temple built by Mentuhotep II, reunified of Egypt after First Intermediate Period to the Middle Kingdom
- Much more monumental building and more artistic and architectural originality
14
Q
Dynasty of Akkad
A
- First dynasty not focusing on Ur
- Akkad, central mesopotamia
- One of the first well documented periods
- First major attempt at reunification of Mesopotamia and chunks of the Levant
- Leaders include Sargon I and Naramsin
- One of the first major imperial expansions
- 23rd–22nd C BC
15
Q
Saqarra
A
- Step Pyramid - first pyramid and first major monument built of stone
- Built in 2600 BC, Dynasty III for Djoser by architect Imhotep
- Contains the earliest life sized statue of a pharaoh inside the tomb - limestone statue, traces of paint, precious stone eyes
- Djoser’s name written in red ink on the Turin King list - recognition that the beginning of Dyn III marked something special/different - monumentally and politically as it is quite a feat to be able to amass the resources needed and construct a pyramid
16
Q
Pepy II
A
- Old Kingdom (Dyn VI, 2200 BC) comes to an end under his reign, followed by First Intermediate period
- Last major pyramid (at South Saqqara) for centuries
- After him, everything goes to shit - irregularities in Inundation/Nile heights, causing economic problems? Or he was old and senile, children fighting for the throne
- Longest reigning king in history with 94 years of reignal, though contemporary records don’t go past the early 60s
17
Q
Yam
A
- Another trading area in Kush/Nubia - location unknown
- Come on and slam, and welcome to the Yam
18
Q
The Punt Hunt
A
- First record from the reign of Sahure, Dyn V
- Trading expeditions lead to this country
- Location unknown - thought to be on the coast of East Africa, Sudan, Eritrea or Ethiopia
- Had to travel through the eastern desert and build ships on the Red Sea coast, then sailed down to Punt
- Source of luxury goods
19
Q
Khufu boat
A
- Giza, Dyn IV, 2500 BC
- Found buried in a pit next to the Pyramids of Giza
- Entirely built of traded Lebanese cedar
- Wood also used to make furniture, such as that found in the tomb of Khufu’s mother - v high quality, rich, gold covered crafts
20
Q
Ur Early Dynastic
A
- Mesopotamia not a unified entity to begin with - number of city states which vie for power
- Elaborate gold objects from tombs e.g. gold rhyton and headdress of Queen Puabi
- Dominated by Royal Tombs and a Ziggurat
21
Q
Seth-Horus Myth
A
- Evidence for problems in the 2nd dynasty - tombs have been robbed, ransacked and burnt king lists have a gap,
- Suggested that these events were turned into the Horus myth, depicted on a wall at Edfu
- Could depict a real civil war or war between a family?
- Difficulties between a king who followed Seth and one that followed Horus
22
Q
Naqada culture
A
- Predynastic culture
- 3400-3200 BC
- Some of the best pottery from Egypt - quality went dramatically down hill when metal became the more popular material
- Crouched, shallow desert pit burials with pots
- Culture takes name from small Egyptian village
23
Q
White Temple
A
-Stone temple unusual for mesopotamia
-Niche paneled facade typical of early mesopotamian and egyptian monumental buildings - what kind of links exist between early meso and egypt?
Uruk, Uruk III c. 3000 BC
24
Q
Early Mesopotamian City-States
A
Uruk, Ur, Ubaid, Kish, Nippur
25
Uruk
- Stone cone temple
- Predates anything monumental in Egypt by 400-500 years
- Uruk Vi, 3400 BC
26
Unification
- 3000 BC
- Narmer unifies south and north
- Founded Egypt and first capital at Memphis, which is administrative center until the Roman period
- Due to the water table little is known about early Memphis
- Many officials of the time are buried overlooking Memphis
27
Dashur
- Dyn 4, Sneferu builds 3 pyramids at Dashur in his relatively short reign, indicating very robust economy
- All a bit shit but a lot bigger/better than what came afterwards
28
Byblos
- Key trading node on the coast on the Levant - particularly important for Egypt as their trading route into the Levant
- Also Lebanon very good source of pine and cedar wood - problem in Egypt and Mesopotamia is that their wood, mostly palm trees, is very shit and difficult to build with
29
Story of Sinuhe
Story of Sinuhe, one of the classics of Egyptian literature, lots of copies of it including school boy copies
-Sinuhe, the hero, hears of Amenemhat I's death, runs away from Egypt and to Syria-Palestine to have adventures
30
Senwosret III
- Reforms which centralise power and remove power from the provinces seem to be carried out by Senwosret III
- Also has a lot to do with borders between Egypt and South Nubia
- In the 12th dyn, border of Egypt regressed to 2nd cataract and fortification carried out around that border
- Senwosret expands this to large fortress complex running for miles along the river
- Buhen fortresses at Semna/Kumm narrows - two fortresses on either side of the river - military frontier to prevent raiders passing from Nubia to Egypt, and to enforce a trading monopoly for the state
- Nubians could only come past the cataract to trade at an official trading post
31
Sobekneferu
- First female pharoah
- Reigns for 4 years at the end of the 4th dynasty
- Daughter of Amenemhat II? No male heirs?
- Bit of a mess after her - no one line, self made commoner kings with short reigns
32
Hyksos
- Palestinian invaders of the 15th/16th/17th dynasty of the North East Delta who then expand downwards (second Intermediate Period)
- Established themselves at Tell el-Daba
- Collaborated with Kerma to push South while Kerma pushed North to restrict the native rulers to the area around Thebes/ into the desert
33
Babylon I
- King Hammurabi (of law code fame)
| - 18th c BC
34
Santorini
- Eruption of Thera
- Difference in pumice findings and carbon 14 dates
- Appears to happen around the end of the Middle Bronze Age, around the 16th c
- Contemporary to disasters such as fall of jericho, babylon, and hyksos and kerma invasions
