First Intermediate Period of Egypt

First Intermediate Period of Egypt

The First Intermediate Period is the name conventionally given by Egyptologists to that period in Ancient Egyptian history between the end of the Old Kingdom and the advent of the Middle Kingdom. As such, depending on when individual historians place the 'downfall' of the Old Kingdom - with the end of either the Sixth or the Eighth Dynasties - the First Intermediate Period (sometimes abbreviated as "FIP") can be considered to embrace the Seventh, Eighth, Ninth, Tenth, and most of the Eleventh Dynasty.

Conditions of the First Intermediate Period

While there are next to no official records covering this period, there a number of fictional texts known as Lamentations from the early period of the subsequent Middle Kingdom that may shed some light on what happened during this period. Some of these texts reflect on the breakdown of rule, others allude to invasion by "Asiatic bowmen". In general the stories focus on a society where the natural order of things of both society and nature was overthrown. One particularly interesting phrase talks about times of high taxation even when the waters of the river Nile were abnormally low ("Dry is the river of Egypt, and one can cross it by foot"). Since traditionally people were taxed by the inundation level of the Nile in a given year, where people were taxed by what they should have been able to grow instead of what they actually did grow, suggesting a long period of relatively low inundations that historically often led to famine (an instance of which was recorded on the Famine Stela at Elephantine). The high taxation also implies an inherent breakdown of rule, reflecting an arbitrariness not evident during the Old Kingdom.

It is also highly likely that it was during this period that all of the pyramid and tomb complexes were robbed ("Those who were entombed are cast on high ground"). Further lamentation texts allude to this fact, and more directly at the beginning of the Middle Kingdom we begin to see mummies decorated with magical spells that were once exclusive to the pyramid of the kings of the sixth dynasty.

Around 2160 BC a new line of pharaohs (the Ninth and Tenth Dynasties) consolidated Lower Egypt from their capital in Herakleopolis Magna, descended from a pharaoh named Akhtoy. In the meantime, however, a rival line (the Eleventh Dynasty) based at Thebes reunited Upper Egypt and a clash between the two rival dynasties was inevitable.

Rise of the Middle Kingdom

Around 2055 BC a descendant of Inyotef defeated the Heracleopolitan Pharaohs, reunited the Two Lands, and ruled as Mentuhotep II thereby ending the First Intermediate Period.

no centralized government. took place during 2200 BC


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем сделать НИР

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Third Intermediate Period of Egypt — The Third Intermediate Period refers to the time in Ancient Egypt from the death of Pharaoh Ramesses XI in 1070 BC to the foundation of the Twenty Sixth Dynasty by Psamtik I in 664 BC, following the expulsion of the Nubian rulers of the Twenty… …   Wikipedia

  • Second Intermediate Period of Egypt — The Second Intermediate Period marks a period when Ancient Egypt once again fell into disarray between the end of the Middle Kingdom, and the start of the New Kingdom. It is best known as when the Hyksos made their appearance in Egypt, whose… …   Wikipedia

  • FIRST INTERMEDIATE PERIOD — (c. 2181–2055 BC)    The term used by Egyptologists to denote the period from the end of Dynasty 6 to the reunification of Egypt under Dynasty 11. The era is marked by the collapse of royal power and the growth of the authority of the local… …   Ancient Egypt

  • DYNASTY: FIRST INTERMEDIATE PERIOD — C. 2181–2000 BC Seventh/Eighth Dynasties c. 2181–2125 BC Ninth/Tenth Dynasties c. 2160–2130 BC, c. 2130–2040 BC Meryibre Khety Wahkare Khety Merykare c. 2050 BC Eleventh Dynasty c. 2125–1985 BC Rulers of Thebes Mentuhotep I c. 2125 BC Sehertawy… …   Ancient Egypt

  • EGYPT — EGYPT, country in N.E. Africa, centering along the banks of the River Nile from the Mediterranean coast southward beyond the first cataract at Aswan. The ancient Egyptians named their land Kemi, the Black Land, while the neighboring Asiatic… …   Encyclopedia of Judaism

  • Egypt, ancient — Introduction  civilization in northeastern Africa dating from the 3rd millennium BC. Its many achievements, preserved in its art and monuments, hold a fascination that continues to grow as archaeological finds expose its secrets. This article… …   Universalium

  • Egypt Eyalet — ايالة مصر (Arabic) Eyalet i Mısır (Turkish) Egypt Eyalet Province of the Ottoman Empire …   Wikipedia

  • EGYPT —    The Egyptian civilization arose in the Nile valley at about the same time as that of Mesopotamia, and their development followed a similar trajectory. It is possible that indirect links existed between the two regions since prehistoric times,… …   Historical Dictionary of Mesopotamia

  • Ancient Egypt — was an ancient civilization in eastern North Africa, concentrated along the lower reaches of the Nile River in what is now the modern nation of Egypt. The civilization began around 3150 BC [Only after 664 BC are dates secure. See Egyptian… …   Wikipedia

  • Outline of ancient Egypt — Ancient Egypt was an ancient civilization of eastern North Africa, concentrated along the lower reaches of the Nile River in what is now the modern country of Egypt. Egyptian civilization coalesced around 3150 BC (according to conventional… …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
… Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”