THE WARS IN SYRIA AND PALESTINE

OF THUTMOSE III

CULTURE AND HISTORY OF

THE WARS IN SYRIA AND

THE ANCIENT NEAR EAST

PALESTINE OF THUTMOSE Il

EDITED BY

BY
B. HALPERN, M.H.£. WEIPPERT

TH. PJ. VAN DEN HOUT, I. WINTER

DONALD B. REDFORD
VOLUME 16

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 This book is printed on acid-free paper.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Redford, Donald B.
The wars in Syria and Palestine of Thutmose III : by Donald B. Redford.
p. e. - (Culture and history of the ancient Near East. ISSN 1566-2055 ; v. 16)

Includes English translations of Egyptian texts.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN 90-04-12989-8

I. Egypt-History-Eighteenth dynasty, ea. 1570-1320 B.C. 2. Egypt-History, Military.

3. Thutmose III, King of Egypt. 1. Title. II. Series.

DT87.2.R442003

932'.014-dc21

2003045204

To Alexander and Aksel

ISSN 1566-2055
ISBN 90 04 12989 8

© Copyright 2003 by Koninklyke Brill NT{ Leiden, The Netherlands

ALL rights reserved. No part qf this publication may be reproduced, translated, stored

in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic,

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Authorization to p/LOtorO!~y items.for inteTl/a/ or !ler.\onaluse is granted

by AOllinklijke Brill provided tltat tlte appropriale.fee.1 are paid dirert(l'

to 'lite CO/iJ'ni!,ht Clearallle emtcr, 222 ROIell'ood J)ril'e.SllIte 9/ (J

1)(/III'trI, ,1/,1 (J 192'/, ( S. J.

Nfl (lTr Ili/dn//ll t!l'lI/lIf

1'111'l'111l1~ 11f1. 1'11'1111 IllNiII

 CONTENTS

List of Figures and Plates IX

Forword Xl

Abbreviations Xlll

Introduction xv

PART ONE

THE DAY-BOOK EXCERPTS

CHAPTER ONE The Day-Book Excerpts, First Part 1

Excursus I: The Council of War 18

Excursus II: The Sequence of Events 25

Excursus III: Toponym Lists and City Destruction 43

CHAPTER Two The Day-Book Excerpts, Second Part ........ 57

PART TWO

OFFICIAL AND PRIVATE STATEMENTS

CHAPTER ONE Sittings of the King 101

I. The Gebel Barkal Stela 103

II. Seventh Pylon Reveals 119

III. Festival Hall Decree 127

IV. Sixth Pylon (South, East Face) 137

V. Barque-shrine 145

VI. Karnak, Room III (East Wall) 149

VII. Philadelphia 39-12-3 150

IlAJ'TER Two Encomia 153

1. The Ermanl Slela 153

II. The Buhen Temple Text 159

HI. The Blito Stela Inscription 162

YIll CONTENTS

CHAPTER THREE Biographical Statements and Epithets 165

I. The Royal Barber Si-Bast 165
II. The Butler Neferperet 166 LIST OF FIGURES AND PLATES
III. The "Soldier" and Lieutenant-General Amun-em-heb 167 (Karnak Day-Book Excerpts)
IV. The Construction Engineer Minmose 173
V. The Keeper of the Seal and Superintendent of the
Gold Lands, Sen-nufer 174 Part 1, cols. 1-28
VI. The Great W(zmw of the King Antef 176 Part 1, cols. 29-67
Part 1, cols. 67a-82
Part 1, cols. 83-110
PART THREE Part 2, detail of col. 9
Part 2, eols. 3-32
HISTORICAL ANALYSIS
Part 2, detail of col. 11
Part 2, eols. 33-46
CHAPTER ONE The Early 18th Dynasty 185
Part 2, cols. 85-97
CHAPTER Two The Nature and Size of the Expeditionary
Part 2 (pylon), eols. 1-20
Force 195
CHAPTER THREE Rates of Speed on the March and the
Part 1, eols. 7-13

Transit Corridors into Asia 202

Part 1, eols. 48-67

CHAPTER FOUR The Battle of Megiddo: The Growth of

art 1, cols. 67a-80

the Tradition 206

Part 1, eols. 83-94 (part)

CHAPTER FIVE The Problem of the 2nd through 4th

Part 1, eols. 82-94 (part)

Calnpaigns 210
art 2, eoIs. 3-9 (bottom)
CHAPTER SIX The Strategy of Years 29 to 31 217
CHAPTER SEVEN The Eighth Campaign (Year 33) 220
Phoenicia and Syria

CHAPTER EIGHT The Political Configuration of Syria and

aharin

Mittani's Riposte 229

CHAPTER NINE The Strategy of Years 36-42: Retrenchment
and Diplomacy 233
CHAPTER TEN The Uprising of Year 42 238
CHAPTER ELEVEN Military Activity in Asia between
Years 42 and 53 24 I
CHAPTER TWELVE The Exactions of the Conquered 24.1
CHAPTER THIRTEEN Diplomatic Gifts from Foreign
Powers 250
CIIAPTER FOURTEEN The Beginnings of the Administration
of the Northern Lands .. 25.1

Epilogue I) ')B
(!lell '\ 1)11 I
 FORWaRD

WOlk is an attempt to subject the Asiatic Campaigning of

ne,sl III to a new investigation. To that end, in parts I and II

aring on his exploits in the north have been assem­

,1I"(l'd, and translated with commentary on text and content.

III JltOvides an analysis on 14 outstanding issues which arise in

I or the king's dealings with Asia.
tllll.\inal rrom which the present work has expanded was that
111(' author's doctoral dissertation in which all dated inscrip­
r'l'hutmose III were assembled and studied for their bearing
IJ II ollology of the 18th Dynasty. Spurred on by the rigorous
Isiflll or my then adviser, the late Ricardo Caminos, I began
r the collection of dated texts as the core of a history
111\411. Although diverted in my endeavour by teaching and
II III Ilics, J continued over the years to amass material. Already,
\(' I (wo decades ago it became apparent that the military
III lhis remarkable Pharaoh would themselves occupy a sub­

flllltl1e, to the exclusion of the "civil" internal history of the

lllel so I purposed to pursue the military aspects alone. The
haillHan or the Service des Antiquites, Garnal Mokhtar, and
Ihid inspector Sayed Abdul-Hamid kindly permitted me to
kltldt'opies and take photographs in the ambulatory and "Hall
\~"s" ,lt Karnak. Subsequendy all the texts in Part II, 1 were
iii I~l kcl by the author.
11t~ 11Htny persons whose helpful interaction with the author
this book, I should like first to thank my wife Susan. From
batc to assistance with the graphics her involvement has
ial. I am also highly indebted to my colleague Baruch
11 ftll Inrol'mation on current excavations at Megiddo, and for
Idatlng to the scholarly substance of this work. The late
.1I11il1oS and (he late Charles Nims both contributed con­
illfilllll,llion and advice. With several other scholars I have
('..Ititfid t'Oll1l1lilllic<ltion on a variety or topics: Christine
It 'y I" lHIJlJH I '. till' I,l(l' I Hlbib lIabachi, Claude Golvin.
JlI ivill'll,l'd til 11.1\,(' I'llllllirllwd ,IS silpel\,isol' 01' I'eader or
flIlllU lirllflhll'll WillISI' \\111 I c11111 tl) nt Illdil ('( Ily ICltH'IH·... upon
xii FORWaRD

tile subject mattn of 1111'1 book: Edward Bleiberg, James Hoch,

;regory Mumford. Jo:IIIIl ~1()ITis, Abdur-rahman el-Aeidy.
The author has \\111 ~.lll ,\ ilh the aid of new photographs taken ABBREVIATIONS
by Gerald Allaby, SOl11l lhlll photographer of the Akhenaten Temple
Project, as well as hi OWII 1I.1I1c1-copies. The facsimile copies of the
I lily-book Excerpts "\1111019") inked by my student Heather Evans, AAAS Annales archaeologiques Arabes Syrienne
It"ve been left to shcl\\ Iht' l:te LInt"tC pretty much as they are today. MO Archiv fur Orientforsehung
PI.1I1S and maps W('ll' cl1'\\\,1I II}' my wife Susan. AlPHOS Annuaire de l'institut de philologie et d'histoire orientale
AJA American Journal of Archaeology
ANET Ancient Near Eastern Texts Relating to the Old Testament
ARM Archives royales de Mari
ASAE Annales du service des antiquites de l'Egypte
BA Biblical Archaeologist
BASOR Bulletin of the American Schools of Oriental Research
BES Bulletin of the Egyptological Seminar
BIFAO Bulletin de l'institut Fran<;ais d'archeologie orientale
BMMA Bulletin of the Metropolitan Museum of Art
BN Biblische Notizen
BSEG Bulletin de la societe egyptologique de Geneve
BSFE Bulletin de la societe fran<;aise d'Egyptologie
BZAW Beiliefte zur Zeitschrift fur die alttestamentliche Wissenschaft
CAD Chicago Assyrian Dictionary
CAH Cambridge Ancient History
CG Cairo, Catalogue generale
dE Chronique d'Egypte
RIPEL Cahiers de recherches de l'Institut de Papyrologie et
d'Egyptologie de Lille
T Coffin Texts
DE Discussions in Egyptology
GA The EI-Amarna Tablets
M Goettinger Miszellen
IEJ Israel Exploration Journal
.lAOS Journal of the American Oriental Society
JANES Journal of the Ancient Near Eastern Society
JARCE Journal of the American Research Center in Egypt
.l C Journal of Cuneiform Studies
.lEA Journal of Egyptian Archaeology
.Jl~Sll Journal or lhl' Economic and Social Ilistory of the Orient
.J NES .Jolllilal of Nl'd' I~,tstcrn Studies
.JSS I:r\ .JO\lII1,t1 or til(' Soc il't} fill tl1(' StllCly of' E~ptiall Antiquitil's
XlV ABBREVIATIONS

KRI K.A. Kitchen, Ramesside Inscriptions

KUB Keilschrifturkunden aus Boghazkoi
LD R. Lepsius, Denkmaeler aus Aegypten und Nubien INTRODUCTION
LelA Lexikon der Aegyptologie
MDAIK Mitteilungen des deutschen Instituts fur aegyptische Alter­
tumskunde in Kairo The sources for Thutmose Ill's Asiatic wars are more extensive than
MDOG Mitteilungen des deutschen Orientgesellschaft those for any other comparable period in Egypt's history.l For this
MIOF Mitteilungen des Instituts fur Orientforschung we have to thank, not only the king's penchant for setting his mighty
NAWG Nachrichten der Akademie der Wissenschaften in Goet­ deeds on record (for whatever reason), but also the aura (Egyptian
tingen fJdYt) he created during his own lifetime which caused men to hang
OCD Oxford Classical Dictionary on his words and to measure themselves by participation with and
OLp Orientalia Lovaniensia Periodica service to this "god by whose direction men live, the father-mother
Pkah Kahun Papyri [of mankind]. "2 Weare also fortunate that the period of time cov­
I~JB Palaestina-:Jahrbuch ered by the king's campaigning (whether one adopts low, middle or
p-M B_ Porter, R. Moss, Topographical Bibliography of Ancient high chronology) falls within a time span partly illumined by archives
l!.'gyjJtian Texts, ReLiifs and Paintings from Western Asia; and, while Thutmose is as yet unmentioned by
pT Pyramid Texts cuneiform sources which are contemporary, these sources offer a
RA Revue assyriologique number of tantalizing possibilities for interleaving Egyptian and
RB Revue Biblique Levantine history. The present contribution will provide a transla­
RdE Revue d'Egyptologie tion and commentary on the sources (the so-called "Annals," obiter
RHA Revue Hittite et asianique dicta [seance transcripts], encomia and private biographical state­
SAK Studien zur altaegyptischen Kultur ments), a series of excursus on specific topics, and a synthesis of the
SSEA Society for the Study of Egyptian Antiquities evidence in narrative format.
TA Tel Aviv
TT Theban Tomb
UF Ugaritische Forschungen
Urk. Urkunden des aegyjJtischen Altertums
VT Vetus Testamentum
Wh. A. Erman, H. Grapow, Woerterbuch des aegyptischen Sprache
WZKM Wiener Zeitschrift fur die Kunde des Morgenlandes
ZAS Zeitschrift fur aegyptische Sprache und Altertumskunde
ZAW eitschrift fur die alttestamentliche Wissenschaft
ZDMG Zeitschrift der deutschen morgenlaendischen Gesellschaft
ZDPV Zeitschrift des deutschen Palaestina-Vereins

I cr JhlLIiIIOII~ 11"111.111-. 01 J H HillY 111\/lIn' 01/1/1' 1.1/17 Rllmall 1~"'"piYf I INn\

'Olk II} Jill \11 th.1l \\l I-.Illl\\ 111011 .tI)(l1i1 Ihl SYII.11I 1.lIl1p.lIIl;IIS of" Th III 11100,1' III
111 thl' I 'Ilh (,'Ill 1\ ( thall thow of SlIli, hn, 01 \'-1111' III Ihc Ilh "Ilh <:.. 111 \ J) I
hI.. IV, 1077 'I (, (1'1 ... \\lIld. all' III 1{C·l-.hlllllc 1110111111.
~

o
Z
H
 CHAPTER ONE

THE DAY-BOOK EXCERPTS: FIRST PART 1

No earlier than year 40 2 a decision was taken to publish an excerpted

and embellished account of the first campaign. The wall chosen to
receive the text was the south wall of the north block of Hatshepsut's
rooms, now the side wall of the northern ambulatory around the
barque shrine. 3 Having partly hacked away the scenes on this wall,
Thutmose III resurfaced it at this point and carved the scene of his
dedications to Amun and the beginning of the account of the first
campaign. 4 Beyond (west of) the door leading to the north block of

I See P-M II, 97-98 (280-282) and 89-90 (240-242, 244-45); Urk. IV 647-756;

personal photographs and facsimiles (courtesy of the late Ramadan Saad and Sayed
Abdul Hamid of the Egyptian Antiquities Organization, both of whom permitted
the author to copy and photograph the inscription). Major discussions are to be
found in the following: A. Wiedemann, Aegyptische Geschichte (Gottha, 1882), 340-58;
J.H. Breasted, Ancient Records qf Egypt II (Chicago, 1905), 163-227; idem, A History qf
Egypt (New York, 1909), 284-321; E. Meyer, Geschichte des Altertums II, 1 (Stuttgart,
1928), 120-40; M. Noth, "Die Annalen Thutmosis III' als Geschichtsquelle," ZDPV
66 (1943), 156fT; H. Grapow, Studien z;u den Annalen Thutmosis des dritten und z;u ihnen
verwandten historischen Berichten des Neuen Reiches, Berlin, 1949. L.A. Christophe, "Notes
geographiques i propos des campagnes de Thoutmosis III," RdE 6 (1950), 89fT;
E. Drioton, J. Vandier, L'Egypte (4th ed; Paris, 1962), 398-406, 443-45; S. Yeivin,
Bibliothelw Orientalis 23 (1966), 18-27; P. Barguet, I.e temple d'Amon-re a Kamak (Paris,
1962), 151-53; W. HeIck, Die Bez;iehungen Aegyptens z;u Vorderasien im 3.-2. Jahrtausend
v. Chr (Wiesbaden, 1972), 120-56; M.S. Drower, "Syria c. 1550-1400 III. The
Egyptian Challenge," in CAR II, I (2nd ed; Cambridge, 1973),444-59; AJ. Spalinger,
Aspects qf the Military Documents qf the Ancient Egyptians (Yale, 1982), 134-42; W. HeIck,
Politische Gegensatz;e im alten Aegypten (Hildesheim, 1986), 49-52; M. Liverani, Prestige
and Interest. International Relations in the Near East. Ca. 1600-1100 B.G. (Padua, 1990),
172-79,255-66; N. Grimal, A History qf Egypt (Oxford, 1992),213-17; D.E. Redford,
Egypt, Canaan and Israel in Ancient Times (Princeton, 1992), 155-61; H. Klengel, Syria,
3000 to 300 B.G. A Handbook qf Political History (Berlin, 1992), 91-95; A. Dodson,
Monarchs qf the Nile (London, 1995), 84-88; B.M. Bryan in I. Shaw (ed), The Oxford
History qf Ancient Egypt (Oxford, 2000), 245-48; J.K. Hoffmeier, in W.H. Hallo (ed),
The Context qf Scripture n. Monumental Inscriptions from the Biblical World (Leiden, 2000),
7 13; G. Cavillier, llJaraone guerriero (Torino, 2001), 127-32; H. Cazelles, "Biblical
and Prebiblical Historiography," in V.I'. Long (cd), Israel's Past in Present Research
(Winona Lake, 1999), 99 and n. 7 8, 105 6; 11. Gocdickc, The Battip of M~f(i.{ldo
(Ballil11ol(', ~OOO"
1 S('(' bc'l,m, Pil. bO Ci'••
, I)·~I 11 '~J1d c·d. pl.lII XII, luom VIII
l' J)UIIII:lIl. 'I1't 1/t'l11l/wnl' /II 111'/1'1/111'/1 J~/lblflllI III I/llll1r/(ol \/rlll/ldlllll/;1' I AIJlllull.
I ClIl'l (1\
4 CIIAPTER ONE THE DAY-BOOK EXCERPTS: FIRST PART 5

Hatshepsut's rooms a scene (now gone) occupied the upper three­ ner as m /:t3~ in.n.sn m s~rw-cnb m /:td. nbw k3w cwt, and perhaps another
quarters of the w,d I space ()t. a distance of approximately 1. 75 meters. item, which would accomodate the space almost exactly.
This scene was later carved down and replaced by six rows of women Clearly at this point the excerpting scribe departs from his prac­
holding sistra. Its presence prevented the carvers of the text from tice of quoting the day-book, and merely refers the reader to where
utilizing the full height of the wall for the inscription until col. 84. additional information can be got. But is this leather role which is
As is well known today,S the so-called "annals" of Thutmose III kept in the treasury identical to the "day-book of the king's-house"?
at Karnak derive in the main from entries in a day-book. The lat­ It cannot be, Not only is the repository of the document different­
ter almost certainly is to be identified as the day-book of the king's the king's day-book was kept in his housel-but nowhere in the
house, rather than a fictitious army day-book, and therefore will have excerpted journal entries are commanders ever mentioned by name.
focused primarily on the king's movements. 6 While the account of Moreover the day-book uses the term wd.yt, not nct, to designate cam­
the first campaign is clearly embellished in a rather skillful way, the paigns. We must be dealing here with a separate document, and the
remainder of the entries comprise laconic lists of commodities accom­ lact that it was deposited in the treasury means that it was of pecu­
panied by brief notices of the king's (and the army's) actions. (I see liar concern to that institution rather than the palace. It is tempting
no necessity, however, to classify all extended narrative passages as to identifY the leather role as a listing of all captives, implements,
ipso facto midrashic additions to the original). There is no overriding treasures, commodities, produce and livestock not brought n b3w /:tmf,
need to postulate a source for the lists different from the day-book­ and therefore not in the day-book; but rather Egypt's income from
Boulaq XVIII shows that the day-book was vitally interested in lists 7­ expeditions, forays and "walk-abouts" wherein the king's presence
and for the 7th campaign it is in fact cited with respect to food was marginal to the proceedings. 12 A remarkable parallel to the type
stuffs. 8 Two additional sources, separate from the day-book, are also of document the leather role must represent exists in a papyrus the
mentioned. One is an unspecified ledger tallying foodstuffs and kept fragments of which were retrieved in the IFAO by George Posener
in the proM} the other is the leather role, placed in the temple, some years ago. 13 This is a record of income in gold and galena
which listed in detail and calendrically military operations on the received by the treasury of Amun some time during the 20th Dynasty.
first campaign. lo This list is specified by the repetition of m in the The document is organized by (a) date, (b) number of the expedition,
equivalence of Hebrew beth essentiae. II The scribe broke the infor­ (c) the official responsible for the goods, (d) the produce itself. The
mation down in the following order: (a) date, (b) the number of the locument clearly originated in the chancery of the temple, and was
expedition, (c) the name of the commander. At this point the text eposited in the archives. 14 The implication of these source-citations
is interrupted by a very long lacuna which Sethe ingeniously and is clear: the Karnak text represents excerpts onlY of the day-book, not
improbably fills. Undoubtedly the text continues in some such man­ the complete record.

12 The treasury role may well have covered forays undertaken while the siege

5 Thanks to the work of Crapow, Noth, Heick and Spalinger (see preceding was in progress, but there is no justification in invoking the toponym list: Heick,
note), who have delineated the laconic style and use of infinitives, characteristic of FJe<.iehungen, 127. A similarly unjustified use of the list would turn it into the towns
the form. )r origin of the anti-Egyptian coallition at Megiddo: H. Klengel, Syria 3000 to 300
6 D.B. Redford, "Tagebuch," in LdA VI (1986), 151-53 (with references). B.C. (Berlin, 1992), 91. See further below, pp. 00.
7 A. Scharff, ZAS 57 (1922), 5lIT. I'C Y. Koeni~. "Livraisons d'or et de galcne au tresor du temple d'Amon sous Ie

8 Urk. TV, 693: II. XXI' l)yn'Lstic" in Iiol/images SOli/man (Clliro, 1979), 185 220.
q Urk. IV, 694:7 8. It is curious that records of the harvest are kept in the trea­ II S.S. Eichler, Oie Verwaltung de.l '1lClllses des Amun' in del' 18. Dynastie (Hamburg,

sury, ral her I han the granary (T leick, Die Vema/tung del' a~lfY/Jtl:IChfl! Staat I Leidcn, :lOOO), 131 37, 'I'll(' [(lImat enables us to identify such expcdit ions, unaccompanied
19581, I82fl: 190 (for treasury record-keepers). Perhaps the treasury was rcspollsi­ by lilt' kinl.:. Ulldc·t \urh ('xpl('\\ilJn\ .,\ "kil1l/;'s ITICSSell!(l'r at Ihl' head of the army"
hk 1(1I IClOdstlllh ill fill ei!(1l parts. {~t \; ,lllllJ/.l~,.t,\ N"h",!I"l/Ir (" "\ (f\\(/l;frI" (I '/IW!I'W) danl (e, lOural rgy/JlullIl'> pro
III (,1. IV, lib I b:.1; se(' also R('dlold, I'hmuonn Alii./( (/III, ,1////"iI IlIId nil) I/(Iokl "Ill" [(;('1\('\;\ IlJ71l! Il II !)() [III. 110 1'j')I,I'~1 Ch('\.l·I(·;uI,/'rolllpllK/'aplllede\ ((/dltl
1\ I ISSlSS;ltl!(.1 I'lBb, ()fl ~J'l, S(',' !ll'!m\., pp. ~l'l :II lot (Ii ,'IIs.,i,," 1///(,1111/(\ 'm/,/lI'lIl1t' II" III/, .r! '111/"" 11l,1Ii,. 1'l'111 I'll! 01 'kUl!(\. .II.\I'tll, kadillj.\ II\('
~"Idilll'l, (;""//""11, ,('( Ibi! 'j HlIlIl'ft hlll\l' 111111\ (tA \\ 111:.1:I'l ~J()
 6 CHAPTER ONE THE DAY-BOOK EXCERPTS: FIRST PART 7

Those parts which reflect literary embellishment,15 especially in the h,we been read and/or recited orally in the hearing of the popu­
section devoted to the first campaign, present us with the problem I.lce at large. It was the king's obiter dicta at a seance that was intended
of authorship. The author reveals himself as a person distinct from to flU that gap. Although an intent of self-promotion through the
the king, an external narrator in fact,16 and therefore difficult to promulgation of the performance of worthy, mighty deeds would
identify. The statement in Tjanuny's autobiography referring to his ,('('m to link Thutmose's inscription to private biographies, this intent
service to Thutmose III in writing up the king's "victories" might (lilly partly accounts for its presence. The texts in the ambulatory
indicate authorship of the present texts; 17 although it is doubtful that Ifld in rooms VI-VII are for the perusal of the god and his senior

he was old enough to have been present on Thutmose's early cam­ priests: they are archival in nature and were so consulted 1500 years
paigns. 18 The qualifYing phrase trw m sf mi iryt, "done into writing I.ller. 22
as it was done," points to composition, not merely copying. This, I f there is a logical sequence in the king's thinking which he wishes
one might argue, involves something more than the role of a simple In convey, it must run something like this. 1. I rescued Egypt in the
archivist, recording in a diary. If anything, Tjanuny would be claiming breach, as foreign peoples advanced to attack us. 2. It was my father
that he composed, as well as, perhaps, supervising inscripturation. '9 \mun that led me on a good path. 3, He granted me title deed to
When we turn to the question of the "readership" (or the audi­ foreign lands and what was in them. 4. In gratitude I gave him the
torsfO for whom the text was intended, we encounter an anomaly. goods and chattels I garnered in foreign lands, and here is the tally.
An upper grade of priest alone could have had access to the texts l. Here also is the list of monuments for my father this wealth
in the ambulatory around the barque-shrine and to those in rooms ,t1lowed me to build. 23
VI-VII. And since the sources of all save the texts on the east face
of the south wing of pylon 621 were written compositions, none would
TransLation 24
I) "Horus, Mighty Bull: appearing in Wese, [the Two Ladies: with
('nduring kingship, like Re in heaven; Golden Horus: mighty of
15 There can be no question here of an oral base. The passages are not deriva­ strength and of holy of diadems], (2) the King of Upper & Lower
tive of the king's words transcribed at a seance. The very fact of being a sort of Egypt, lord of the Two Lands, Menkheperre, son of Re [Thutmose ...
midrash on a written text, i.e. the day-book, militates in favor of literary creation in
the first place. given life eternally!].
16 M. Bal, Introduction to the Theory if Narrative (Toronto, 1985), 122. (3) His Majesty commanded to have published [the victories which
17 Urk. IV, 1004:9-10. The phrase smn m sf, "to fix in writing," though it can his father Amun had granted him in] (4) an inscription 25 in the tem­
refer to the writing of oral statements in any medium (cf. Urk. IV, 336, 338, 339;
A.M. Blackman, JEA 27 [1941], pI. X, 15; S. Schott, Bucher und Bibliotheken in alten ple which His Majesty made [for his father Amun, with the intent
Aegypten [Wiesbaden, 1990], 509) is specifically employed by Thutmose III to carv­ to have publishedJ (5) each individual campaign together with the
ing a text on stone: Urk. IV, 684:9-10 (and below, p. 60), 607 (chamber of ances­
tors), 734: 15 (the day-book excerpts themselves); cf. Grapow, Studien, 7 n. 3.
18 Since he survived into Thutmose IV's reign (B. Bryan, The Reign if Thutmose
IV [Baltimore, 1991], 279-80), his birth ought to be dated later rather than ear­ 22 Tacitus Annali ji.67 68.
lier in Thutmose Ill's reign. A birth date in the second decade of the latter's reign 23 Apart from wd. pn, "this inscription," it is not certain to which genre the
would have him approaching 70 under Thutmose IV! It seems somewhat unlikely, I~gyptians would have assigned the present text. While "tribute" (Barguet, Temple,
therefore, that he was a witness to the campaigns of years 29 and 30 (A. & A. 151) or "victories" (Alt, ZJ)PV 70, 34) arc not exactly genre terms, they do indeed
Brack, Das Grab des 7januni. Theben Nr. 74 [Mainz, 1977], 90), have a certain application in the present case.
1'1 Cf, T'he same locution used of the celebrated Middle Kingdom literati: 21 Locatec! on Ihe north wall of Ihe ambulatolY surrounding the barque shrine,
P. Chester Beally IV.3.5ff;.J. Assmann, "Kulturelle und litcrarische Texte," in IH"wath the SC'('II(' (kpi(lil1~ Thutll10se III giving bequests to Amun. (Sec below,
A. LopriCllO (eel), Anrimt /Igyptian Literature. I/islory and FOT71n (Leiclen, 19%), 75. (iI!, I ,Inc! pi I
"', Se(' Ihe pn's('nl wriler, "Scribe and Speaker," in E. Ben Zvi .lnd t\J II. Floyd .\ II d' 1I'II,lily ;1 II 1"('.~I,IIl(11I11{ sit'l,r (SI hOlt, Hlielm 11/11/ BihlioliuAm, 62 63); but
:(.t1~, WI/Ill/iii (lnd Sp/'I'f!l lI/ Iwltlr al/l/ ,II/urnl Arar J'~lIlnll J'trI/l!lm \tl,IIII,I, 2000" oll,t'ion,lilv with fPfl'II'1H1 III ,lilY 11,1 1,II'l"d on ,I ~lrllH' 'UII,\(I'; R Aillhes, /)/1
Illl 'Ill I I F'rb",,1\,}mflm !'Oil /lll/nll" (J..np, 111 1'1')/1), Illl ')1 In {IA 1\ hili III ''1'(' 1)('lm\,
Sn 1ll'11l\\', pIli t '2, 1111 1\ p !l0i. J3/, "\\1111," ,.!pIMt
 8 CHAPTER ONE THE DAY-BOOK EXCERPTS: FIRST PART 9

booty [which His Majesty] brou[ght back in victory26 from] every I he extent to which we can retroject conditions derived from 19th
(6) [foreign land] which his father Re had granted him. I>ynasty descriptions and depictions two hundred years earlier. In
p.lI'licular, in the present passage should we restore atm, "fortress"?
Regnal year 22, 4th month of proyet, [day 25. 27 His Majesty was I his is the common designation in later times 33 paralleled by anly
in(?)J28 Sile* on his first victorious campaign [which his father Amun III the Late Period;34 but whether this is sufficient reason to adopt

had granted him, in order to extendJ29 (8) the frontiers of Egypt, in I he restoration remains doubtful.
valor, [in victory, in might and in justification]."
<J) For it had been a period of [many]35 years [that Retenu had
Site Almost certainly to be identified with Tel Hebwa, c. 10 km. NNE I.lpscd into]36 (10) brigandage*, while everyone was committing [theft]37
of Qantara east, the excavation of which under the direction of Dr. l'4ainst his fellow,38 and [... .]. (11) Then it transpired, in later times 39
Muhammed Abdul-Maksoud, has given ample evidence of Hyksos Ii 1<1 t the garrison* which was there 40 (12) was (now) in the town of
occupation and massive New Kingdom fortifications. 30 While a "Ilaruhen*, while (the territory) from Yarusa* (13) as far as the dis­
fortification at Sile existed already in the Middle Kingdom,31 most I,lllt marshlands had broken out in rebellion against His Majesty"
of our information concerning Sile comes from the post-Amarna
period when the coastal road from the Pelusiac mouth to Gaza was 1/rd.3 Far from the specific content Sethe would have, the present
operational and fortified with block-houses;32 and it is questionable pcricope follows a pattern known elsewhere,41 and especially in the
1 t'lrospective of the Great Harris Papyrus,42 the order is (a) a gen­

nal statement concerning the land being in disorder, (b) a statement

26 Sethe's restoration is unnecessary. The restoration favored here adequately fills I cgarding "each man," (c) a description of the subsequent state of
the available space.
27 After Champollion.
28 The restoration is doubtful. Sethe (.Z'AS 47 [1910], 75) restored [sf ~mj btm n]
on the basis of the use of the phrase by Ramesses II: KRl II, I, 12. Wi3, "to pro­
ceed" might also be possible: Alt, ZDPV, 70, 37f. II Sir AH. Gardiner, Ancient Egyptian Onomnstica II, (Oxford, 1947), 202*; idem,

29 Contrary to Sethe, this restoration would fit the available space perfectly. /life Egyptian Miscellanies (Bruxelles, 1933), 108:9; KRl II, I, 12,
30 M. Abd el-Maksoud, "Un monument du roi cAa-s~-rc N,hsy a Tell Heboua 'II H. Gauthier, Dictionnaire geographique II, 121; O. Koefoed-Petersen, Publication de

(Sinai Nord)," ASAE 69 (1983), 3-5; idem, "Une nouvelle forteresse sur la route /1/ Gbptothek Ny Carlsberg. Les Steles egyptiennes (Copenhagen, 1948), 54.
d'Horus: Tell Heboua 1986 (Nord Sinai)," CRJPEL 9 (1987), 13-16; idem, "Excavations 'lj There seems to be inadequate space for Sethe's restoration; for cf3 cf. Urk,

on the Ways of Horus," CRJPEL 10 (1988), 97-103j D. Valbelle, M. abd el-Maksoud, I V, 344:4. But see also Urk. IV, 1543:5.
"La marche du nord-est," in J. Yoyotte (ed), L'Egypte du Delta. Les capitates du nord '16 Cf. The present writer, "The Historical Retrospective to the Beginning of
(Dijon, 1996), 60-65; M, Abd el-Maksoud, Tell Heboua (1981-1991), Paris, 1998; I'hutmose Ill's Annals," in M. Gbrg (ed), Festschrift Elmar Edel (Bamberg, 1979),
G. Cavillier, "Some Notes about Thel," CM 166 (1998),9-18; idem, "Reconsidering '\:18-42; the late W J. Murnane (oral communication, and later in "Rhetorical
the Site of Tjarw (Once Again)," GM 180 (200 I), 39-42; Old identifications with Ilistory? The Beginning of Thutmose Ill's First Campaign in Western Asia," JARCE
Tell el-Ahmar or Qantara (S. Ahituv, "Sources for the Study of the Egyptian­ :.W [1989], 183-89) favored restoring rql. On a further investigation in 1999 I still
Canaanite Border Administration," IF] 46 [1996], 220 n. 6) are now obsolete. Icel that the original read Rt[nwJ: abbrasian seems to have caused a false curve in
31 For sources see F, Gomaa, Die Besiedlung Aegyptens wiihrend des Mittleren Reiches .tn oliginal t.
(Wiesbaden, 1987), II, 222-24. It remains a moot point of discussion whether "the 17 The traces suggest it: they do not suit Sethe's b3k: ZAS 47, 81.
Wall of the Ruler" should be located here: ibid., 130 and n. 36. For the 18th 18 The restoration sn.nwj is almost certain, The whole finds a close parallel in
Dynasty see J.-L. Chappaz, "Un nouveau prophete d'Abydos," BSEC 14 (1990), f..ebensrniide 1/1 /13: iw Izcd,3.tw s nb ~r i1t S/l-nwj, people "engage in pillage, and
23-31. For jar-sealings of Thutmose III from Hebwa, see M,A Maksoud, Heboua, 'veryone robs his fellow."
Enquete archeologique sur la Deuxieme Pbiode IntermMiaire et le Nouvel Empire a l'extremiti jq 1l3w 9lo/, almost "later reigns": for this meaning of the term, see D.B. Redford,

orientale du Delta (Paris, 1989), 271. I'lwaollic Aillg·lwl.l, A/uw/J alld Oqyobooks (Mississauga, 1986), 139 n. 55. Goedicke's
32 E. Oren, "The 'Ways of Horus' in North Sinai," in AF. Rainey (cd), Egypt, Ulldl']"standin~ or till' phrase as a reference to a period in Thutmose Ill's life is
Israel, Sinai (Tel Aviv, 1987), 69 119; D.H. Redford, li'gypt and Canaan ill Ihe New hip;hl> illgellious: 'I7lc RaUlt 0/ ,Iff/fit/rio (Baltimore, 1999), 16.
Kingdom, Beer Sheva, 1990; G, l'vlumrorcl, flllrrtlalililwl Rrlalilllll brlWCr/1 F.gyPI, Si/wi and HI jln'slIlll.till} till' ,\llll'cedl'lll \\,ts tile plan' Ilame partly lost in the lacuna in

Svria Pattlllllt dllllll.r: Iht 1Alt I1m/l.r ,Igt til Fmtv 1'01/1/11 Pmllt/I l niVl'r,il> uf Toronto; I III !J, \\llIl h \\t· h.1\1 If,tOler! "RI'lt·IlII."
Phl> di""II,\111111 Ill(lA ,ch '\ ,rl' nll\\ ,\ It 1'1 \>('(11, II" 11'111 I o/lImlll III Inrtmt CI RI·r!fill d. JI/ltg'lilll, :,Ii'l 7°l
I"""h/I'III Rnm,f, 1//11/ 1"I'tu'"ltI/lV II 111\1'1 'ily llf I'lllllilln, PhI> IlIIIH·tIUIIIlf1: ;,Illll' ;1. 1'. (;IIlIU!r-t. 1... I'a/rrnll 111/11/1 1II,( .. ,illl. 1'1'11 :.!1')IJ"
 10 CHAPTER ONE THE DAY-BOOK EXCERPTS: FIRST PART 11

things. This pattern fits the present passage precisely, and would Itflcyt Although sometimes referring to foreign troups,49 the word
appear to cast some of its historicity in doubt. lIormally applies to Egyptian standing firces, as opposed to part-time
That having been said, the contents of cols. 11-13 rest on his­ 1I1ilitia. 50 While the latter could be called up for expeditionary ser­
torical substance. The texts recording the first campaign imply the \ irc when set-piece battles were in the offing,51 the standing army
complete hegemony exercised by Kadesh over territory as far south lIas apportioned for garrison duty to Kush,52 Asia,53 and Egypt. 54
as Megiddo the headman of which, himself, is virtually absent from
the account! The extent of the personal property of the king of \ltoruhen55 Apart from the obvious fact that Sharuhen was in the
Kadesh in the north Jordan Valley43 indicates that, in the events Ilt-CP south, no unanimity has been reached on its location and iden­
leading up to the campaign Kadesh had aggrandized its territory Illy. Suggestions include: Tell el-Ajjul, on the coast south of Gaza;56
and increased its power to the point of being, however briefly, the 1't'1I el-Farah (south), 25 km. South of Gaza;57 or Tell Haror, 15 km.
major player in Levantine politics. But this sudden prominence was '-.,Cluth-east of Gaza. 58 Whatever a priori argument may be advanced
of recent date: references to the city in the sources, both cuneiform III the context of the present passage, the proposed identification will
and Egyptian, begin only in the 15th cent. 44 This absence of earlier h;lve to satisfy the known association of Sharuhen with the Hyksos.
evidence firmly places the new regime at Kadesh within an L.B. I Ivll el-Ajjul, although showing abundant MB IIC-LB Ia occupation,
context. The interface between the period of the three great king­ poscs difficulties for the proposed identification. 59 If this were the
doms of the Syrian Middle Bronze Age, viz. Yamkhad, Qatanum
and Hazor,45 and the world of Thutmose Ill's conquests consists pre­
cisely in the arrival and rapid expansion in Coele and southern 0" Cf. Urk. IV, 686:3.
Syria46 of an Indo-Europaean element, the Mittanian elite and their "' R.O. Faulkner, JEA 39 (1953), 44; H. Goedicke, CdE 86 (1968), 221; M. Guilmot,
IS 99 (1973), 101.
"Hurri-warriors." This must be placed in the 2nd half of the 16th 01 Usually by decimation: Great Harris Papyrus 57, 8-9.
Cent. B.C., and understood as pursuant to the establishment of the Sir A.H. Gardiner, JEA 38 (1952), 31; T.E. Peet, The Great Tomb Robberies if
state of Mittani. 47 It resulted in the replacement of older regimes egyptian Twentieth PJ;nas!y (Oxford, 1931), pI. 20:2, 18; 30:25.
.. P. Chester Beatty V, recto 5,12; Urk. IV, 1237:15-16 (below, p. 112); 1312:9;
with new ones, featuring personal names of Aryan derivation. Whether II Nelson,]' Wilson, Historical Records if Ramses 111 (Chicago, 1936), 54 and n. 1ge;
at any point this Drang nach Suden transformed itself into a conscious I' Sallier I, 7, 4; P. Anast. Iii, vs. 5, 3; 6, 2 (where the garrison is specifically linked
I .1 coastal fort).
attempt to invade Egypt must remain open, but the possibility is .. Urk. IV, 1002:1; P. Bologna 1096:14; A.H. Gardiner, Late Egyptian Stories
very tempting. 48 11",xelles, 1931), 82:3; KRJ I, 322; III, 262; divided into two "contingents" (s3) in
<llIlh and north: ].-M. Kruchten, Le deeret d'Horemheb (Bruxelles, 1981), 14, 46.
" On the vocalization and derivation of the toponym, see M. Gbrg, "Gruppen­
, Iirribung und Morphologie. Zur Bedeutung ausserbiblischer Ortsnamen am Beispiel
43 Urk. IV, 664: 17-665:4; H. KJengel, Geschichte ~riens im 2. Jahrtausend v. Chr. ""I 'Scharuhcn,'" EN 71 (1994), 65-77. The use of dmi, inspite of the determina­
(Berlin, 1965-70) II, part B, 157. II " has nothing to do with "territory" (Goedicke, The Battle if Megiddo, 18-19), but
44 Ibid., 142-43.
I I.lthcr the standard term used for Asiatic settlements: D.B. Redford, "The Ancient
45 KJcngel, ~ria 3000-300 B.G. (Berlin, 1992), 44-83.
I ~"pLian 'City': Figment or Reality?" in W, Aufrecht (ed), Aspects if Urbanism in
46 In northern Syria and south-eastern Anatolia a Hurrian presence is detected
I "I/I{/li!y, from Mesopotamia to Crete (Sheffield, 1997), 217 n. 17.
considerably earlier: sources in T. Bryce, The Kingdom if the Hittites (Oxford, 1999), '" A. Kempinski, IE) 24 (1974), 145ff;].R. Stewart, TeLL el-Ajjul (Goteborg, 1974),
57-59. 1,' 1; further refcrcnccs in E. Morris, The Architecture if Imperialism, ch. I, 18-19;
47 For the consensus which has emerged, see among others M.C. Astour, "Les \ \la'aman, TA 6 (1979), 75 n. 12.
hourrites en Syrie du nord: rapport sommaire," RHA 36 (1978), 9 12; idem, "Ugarit Sources in S. AhilllV, Canaanite Toponyms in Ancient Egyptian Documents (Leiden,
and the Great powers," in G.D. Young (ed), Ugarit in RetToslJect (Winona Lake, 1981), .'IB I" 171 73.
7 10; KJcngel, ~ria 3000 300 B.c., 84D; D.B. Redford, 1~'gyIJt, Callaan and israel in .1". Rain('y, in S. AhilliV anc! others (eds), Avralzam MaLamat Volume (Eretl; IsraeL
Ancient Times (Princeton, 1992), I:H 38. .J ('llIS,tI"Ill, 1HlJ'i. I7H'" H5"'.
III Cf. W. I leick, IJf;:.ielu/1/gm AflfJ'lJtfl/.! ;:'UT Vordl'Yn.,im, 120. A 1'l,lgl11elllary bio­ nil,,' t1iflll "II it" of ('01 ,,'rdy characI('rizing the c('ramics of LB Ia b, sce
g'.IphiLII ll"xl in Ih,' lomh of Y,1I11ll IIl'djl"h (t'rA. IV. fill}'11 m.lY Ilkl to lhl" 1('1)1'1­ ;011('11. II" 1.,1, 11,011/(' \1.\1'," in \. U('nTol (I'd), ?7Jf ArrhafoLogy if A7Iciml
Iioll "I I of' FOI"lvlIl"'~1 of R"\l'llll 111 1t'1ll'IJ'OII 1IIl' 1,11111 .11 ft'"l1 I" \Olllli 1 (;'\I'W IIll\fll. 111 11:1 JlI ',7' \ 1.('oll,lIt1.!r, "'II,,' 1,,11" UIIlI1/(' Ag('," 11.15'
III II Illlllh, a~ I,ll 1,1' I (1!II1!)), 'I ~l'l
 12 CIIAPTER ONE THE DAY-BOOK EXCERPTS: FIRST PART 13

Egyptian strong-point I>erore Thutmose Ill's year 23, and the fron­ Iltlusion. More to the point is the use of Yursa as a point of lim-
tier stood at Yursa, how cOlild Gaza to the north have been a secure Ilion in relationship to Sharuhen. As Rainey has shown,65 it can
Egyptian possession? Why was the garrison not located there? Again: 1I11y lie north of Sharuhen, and if the latter be Tel Haror, his
why, if Tell c1-i\jjul were the oilly secure Egyptian strong-point, did klltification of Tel el-Hesy (54 km. South ofJoppa) is very appeal­
not Thutmose III stop l!tere 011 tbe march? Yet his la-day march 1~.1,6 In the toponym lists Yursa occurs two stations from Joppa (no.
would have passed close to the site without even mentioning it!60 I ) , which would mean a longish 27 km.

Too much can be made or the Amenophis III (> Ramesses II) list
from Amara West. 51 Nos. 65 to 7[, although located generally in "1{I'gnal year 23, first month of shomu, day 4; the day of the festi­
the south, are not in order: 11:31 ... 1 (65 = possibly Thutmose III 63) 11 of the Icing's accession* (14) (celebrated at) the 'Town-of-the­
is followed by Rapha (66) and Sharu/hen] (67), but then comes R3­ I} I tier's Seizure,'* [called] Gaza [of Kharu] (15) First month of shomu,
n-[m]3 (68, cf. Thutmose III 59), Mulja<.zi (69 = Thutmose III 61), l.ty 5: 67 departure from this place in valor, [in victory,l (16) in might
Socoh (70 =
Thutmose III 67) and Joppa (71 =
Thutmose III 62)! IIld justification, to overthrow that [vile] doomed one, [and to extend]
Tell Farah lies in a terrain unsuitable to the description, and its I 7) the frontiers of Egypt, inasmuch as his father [Amun1 had
archaeological record does not coincide with what might be expected. J1<1ained [val]or and might (18) that he might take possession."
Rainey's choice of Tel Haror is to be given preference. It is an
immense site and clearly controlled the Negeb over to the coast. It IIrY-nsw This is the day following the death of a Icing's predeces­
remains moot whether we should identify it as the center of a 111,1<8in the present case 69 the first he had celebrated alone on the
Herzogtum extending through the Shephelah to the Yarkon, but the 111 one. Are we to infer that his failure to delay his departure until
suggestion is tempting. 62 It· had enjoyed the anniversary at home, points to the urgency of

I\(' crisis?
rarusa Alt argued 63 that, as none of the Philistine cities except Gaza
was mentioned in the toponym lists, Yursa must have lain north of \l!t.n p3 1#3 There is scholarly unanimity that this phrase indi­
these, as the southern limit of the rebellious area. He proceeds to l.tlcS that Gaza already was an Egyptian possession at the time of
locate it near Muhazzi and J abneh, equating it with Tel el-Ful, 18 I 111I tmose's first campaign. 70 But who effected its capture may still
km. SSW of Lud. 64 None of this makes much sense if the lists are Ill' debated. The writer once argued that it had been Thutmose III
correctly viewed as itineraries (see below): Ashdod and Ashkelon did IllIllself who had taken the city at some point while Hatshepsut yet
not figure simply because they were not on the routes chosen for II'ig-ned;71 but if that were the case would not ~mfhave been used

60 The presence of scarabs of Thutmose III in the south coastal plain is, of course, 'c, Avraham Matamal Volume, 185*'
no proof of the king's passage: T. Dothan, Excavations at the Cemetary qf Deir el-Batah I,,, Tel ]emme seems less suitable: G. Cavillier, "The Ancient Military Road
(Jerusalem, 1979), 99. wtwecn Egypt and Palestine Reconsidered: aRe-assessment," GM 185 (200!), 30.
61 KRI II, 216; Garg, "Zur Diskussion um die Lage von Scharuhen," EN 58 bl The filling of the lacuna is problematical. I have opted for omission of regnal
(1991), 17-19. 1 .11' which would admittedly be anomalous. Even something like m.s or dd.tw r.s
62 R. Gophna, J. Portugali, "Settlement and Demographic Processes in Israel's I by no mcans certain.
Coastal Plain from the Chaleolithic to the Middle Bronze Age," BASOR 269 (1988), "~I Scc thc prcsent writer in lfistory and Chronology qf the Egyptian 18th Dynasly. Seven
17-21; S. Bunimovitz, "The Changing Shape of Power in Bronze Age Canaan," Sl/lIlir\ (TornillO, 1967), 26.
in Biblicat Archaeology Today. 1990 SuppLement (Jerusalem, 1993), 146. The reduction " Cf. \\'. I kirk, "lklllcrkungl'll Zll dell Thronbcstcigungsdaten in Neuen Reich,"
of this major enclave by Ahmose thus would increase in historical importance; bill II/Itlilc/a Hihlim r/ (him/alia 12 (I <)59), I 16
such an estimate as that it "significantly weakcnccl the systcm of Canaanite cities" II CC 1\1"\1'1, (;nc!lII!J/r. II, I, 12/; UJ Katzcllstein, .lAOS 102 (1982), III 12;
(N. Na'al1lan, "The Ilurrians and the I':ncl of thc l\liclclle BIOII/I' AgI' in I'.tll'stinl'." II Bly,lIl, O\jlllr/I//.I/tIIl I!I I//Ilm/ 1'.4'1,/1/, 21>, (;. 1\llll1lfc)I(l, l///row/ill//o! Hela/ill//\' he/ween
1./7'fI/// 'If) 11<)9Ij. Jill SC1'ms O\Tlclla\\11 I ~h/. \1/111/ ,,,,,/\.',/1/ 1',,1"/111(, I'h. 2. p. III
I. 1111'1'" Srlmllm :111 ('/II!Ju!J/r rlfl JOIhn hfl/d I \1 II Ilit h, I'h'l;, 10:'>.
II/11M' I {(J"," II, '.~ hll II. 27; 1'1. ,).1" Ilollll1l'il·I.·· Rl'l (lI1~ld, IllIg Egypt \ P.II t
1/1/'/ )'}fl ,11111 II I
1\ till 1'llIllIloItillll III till' ~liclclil' 111111111 \11' ill l'a[,oMilH·... 14't"'1/" 1')11 ' ), IlIh,
14 CHAPTER ONE THE DAY-BOOK EXCERPTS: FIRST PART 15

instead of p3 M3? Perhaps the expression is formulaic and means ) in Aruna, unable to fight?84 And further: [there are two roads
something like "ruler's (personal) expropriation" or the like. h'leL (33) one of the roads is really [good for US85 as it debouches
lj34) Taanach, while the other [really] leads to [the] (35) northern
"Regnal year 23, first month of shomu, day 16: ae 2 the town of "Id of Djefty*, and then we would come out nor[th of Me]giddo.
Yehem*. [His Majesty] gave orders for (19) a consultation with his II So may our mighty lord proceed upon [whichever] of [them]
victorious army, speaking as follows: 73 '[that vile] doomed one (20) Idesires]. 86
of Kadesh* is come, and has entered into Megiddo-he is [there] 7) (But) let us not go on that [difficult] road!' Then [they brought]
(21) even at this moment!-having gathered unto himself the [chiefs II rncssengers(?) [to speak to His Majesty(?) concerning that weighty]
of all] the for[eign lands who used to be]74 (22) loyal to Egypt, .IIIICil (39) they had spoken before."87
together with (places) as far away as Naharin* [-dogs at his heels!J75
(23) (namely) Khurians, and Qodians*, their horses and their troops 11/ Modern Jemmeh, 4 km. North of Socoh. 88 The word comes

[being very many indeed]; (24?6 and further: 77 it is rumoured that 1/11 a root meaning "to watch, protect";89 and together with other

he is saying: "I shall make a stand to [fight with His Majesty]78 (25) I,ll I'S in the vicinity named in the toponym list, indicates the strate­

in Megiddo." Tell me [what you think about it.' Then]79 (26) they I oncern shown by local authorities over the approach to the pass.

spoke before His Majesty: 'What would it be like to proceed [upon] III the list Yehem (no. 68) is followed by lj3-b3-d-n no. 69 (possibly

this80 (27) [ro]ad which grows progressively narrower? It is [reported] 81 .111 the root lj-B-S, "to guard, take care of"r and M-k-t-r, no.

(28) that the enemy are there, standing upon [the high ground82 and I "watch-tower".91
are incr] (29) easing in numbers. Would not the horses have to go
in single file and the [army] (30) personnellikewise?83 Shall our own filii
vanguard be (already) (31) fighting, while the [rearguard stands here] 111'-\ identified with the site of Tel Nebi Mend,92 the mound has
the scene, since 1921, of excavations by the French93 and the

72 Helck, Beziehungen, 121, cf. 168 n. 55. The preposItIon r implies both motion
towards and resting in a place. There is not the slightest reason to assign the war I he fact that, according to the text, they are still at Yehem when these words
council to the next day. Obviously "day 16" labels the information which follows. I lIt1ered, has occasioned some difficulty: ef. Faulkner, JEA 28 (1942), 5 n. e;
73 This first r-ntt deals with the presence and composition of the enemy: cf. ~, Beziehungen, 123-24. The text cannot be right, the argument goes, as they
II I () Aruna on the 19th, after the council. The latter, then, as we have it, must
Christophe, RdE 5 (1950), 98ff. There is absolutely no reason nor necessity to sep­
arate the date from the council, as Noth does: ZDPV 66 (1943), 161-64. II II Iiistorical. The problem lies, however, not in the unhistorical nature of the

74 Wnw would barely fit the lacuna; ntt is possible. "'4srat," but in a too specific rendering of c3, "here" which refers to the gen­
75 The restoration is based on Piankhy stela, 3. But we could have another loca­
\ II inity. Cf. AJ. Spalinger, "Some Notes on the Battle of Megiddo and Reflections

tive indicator further qualifying Naharin. A restoration "M[aryannuJ" does not fit I~yptian Military Writing," MDAIK 30 (1974), 222-23.

the context: Goedicke, The Battle if Megiddo, 31. , I{('ad rifr n.n. There is no justification to restore nb.n, and the suffixes on the

76 Much of columns 22~24 are now missing; cf. Copies of Lepsius and Sethe. , ".fer to the road, not the king: Goedicke, The Battle if Megiddo, 37.

77 The second r-ntt introduces the enemy's intentions.

lhe mn-sign is by no means certain. Read 11.91 or w3tlmtn etc.
78 Following Sethe in restoring c~3; but l~n would fit equally well. There is no I'lie restoration is difficult. Sethe's brw pi hsy is by no means certain. It seems
need to restore c3, "here." , likely that confirmation is here adduced by the officers regarding the road
I I I they had just offered the king. There is no new information on the basis
79 There is too much space for Sethe's restoration.
80 The use of the deictic does not prove that something earlier has been omit­ wlndl the king decides to act.
ted, but must be understood as a common prolepsis employed commonly in nar­ "i,'(' Ahituv, Canaanite Topol1ynlS, 197-98; P. del' Manuellian, Studies in the Reign
rative to help organize a receiver's "message space": W. Noth, Handbook if Semiotics /III/hi\ /I (Jlildesheim, 1987), 70 n. 121.
(Bloomington, 1995), 138-39. (;/. !loch, Scmitic Word!, 54 55 (no. 57).
81 The soldiers continue to speak: Faulkner,}F.A 28, 3. A supposed iw./w r rid 11. .1' A. MlII'lOnell, Ilebrew in ii,s West Semitic Setting T A (Leiden, 1989), 191.
(lin:! would be rare: Grapow, Studiel1, 61. Idllltifl('d with a site ahout 10 kill. WNW ol'Jcmmch: Heick, Beziehungen, 122-23.
82 Read In b3rwt and understand a Ililly written stativc. The nOlens' fear was 'lI'dirke'~ icll'l1lillratioll with Kaclt'~h Naphtali (77/f Battle oj Megidrio, 28)
;\llark flOlll till' acl\,lIl(,lge o[ high Io\louncl, the Optillllll11 t,WIII' In l'lllploy Oil all 111/\(' gr;lllIitoll~, oIl1d lIil'~ 111 tl1l' fal (' of Ihl' implit it idelliity of the Kadesh
('III'Ill) 100k(·c1 III ,I l1.1now d!'file I"Ir1l11 wi ')'1 .1'1' (i~, ') ,1I'c1 pI :.! IIIPIIIIIllll't! .1Ilt! 1111 III 011 lh, ()11lI1I('), a, principal ('11('111)' of the EIO'1Jlial1s
/It 11',1'1111\ a III1'IIHII." Q\ll.lIol1, :" ill 1':11(' l"~)l'tHlIl (I' 1',,)11111(1', \rt/f/?,....I'I;',It, 1I$(11I1I1I
11/ dlt (:,ammalv.. \\'1f"~1"1I1"I1, l'Itlt", '.l '.l·1 I); 1:,lIcllII"I, (.,nmmnr, p,IO' ~I 1"'7.111.1. ,lIlJJIOI/ nrrhJnlol!lQlIt rl 1,1t .\'rIJl .1/",,1 I'I.!I Ifll'.!, 1'.11'\. 1(1'11
 16 CHAPTER ONE THE DAY-BOOK EXCERPTS: FIRST PART 17

British. 94 Kadesh enjoys a strategic location as a control point for \ ('fit when Egyptian arms had been carried as far north as Aleppo
the east-west transit corridor emerging from the Mediterranean coast Illd the Euphrates, Qode as a northern limit might have suggested
via the Eleutheros valley.95 If, as suggested above, the rise to promi­ II'W On the other hand, it was probably during this period that
nence of Kadesh as a protege of Mittani had been of recent date, oll11al Mitannian influence under Parattarna, had extended to north
the arrival of the new regime in the town probably dates to the out­ ',ria and Kizzuwadna;102 and, if Mitanni were ultimately the pro-
going 16th Cent. B.C., or phases E-F of the excavation report. 96 HIler of Kadesh, Qode might well have felt constrained to con­
tllllLe to the force at Megiddo.
Naharin
To be identified with northern Syria and the gezira beyond the >/1 fly
Euphrates. 97 Recent discussion has focused on a return to under­ I IH' site is usually identified as Tel Abu Shusha, 5 km. North-west
standing the word as a dual with nunation. 98 One might suggest, in Megiddo towards ]okneam. 103 It is difficult to conceive of this
light of its synonymous use with Mitanni, that the Euphrates and 'Ille being a real option, as it would have left the Egyptian rear
the Balikh are intended. risk of attack at several places.

Qgdians (ommunique in the Majesty of the Palace, L.P.H:* 'I [swear]!104

Qode is usually identified as a district of north Syria adjacent to () As surely as Re loves me, and my father [Amun] favors me,
Naharin, Amurru and Cilicia, apparently distinct from Kizzuwadna lId my [nose] (41) is rejuvenated in life and dominion! It is on this
with which it is sometimes compared. 99 The name occurs in our pre­ \llll1a road 105 that My Majesty shall proceed!I06 (42) Let whoever of
sent passage for the first time in Egyptian texts and, failing an accept­ III so desires go by the (43) roads you have mentioned, and let

able West Semitic or Anatolian Vorlage, is probably an Egyptian term. Iiol'ver of you (44) so desires come in the following of My Majesty.
Denials to the contrary, it is tempting to link the word with the root 11111) let them not think, these (45) doomed ones, the abomination
qd, "to go round, to describe a curve,"IOO in which case it would Rl; "Has His Majesty proceeded upon (46) another road? He has
share both semantic and geographic aptness with mw qd, the "curv­ ~1111 Lo fear us!" for that's what they will say!'
ing water," i.e. the Euphrates. /01 Whether the implications of the 17) Then they said to His Majesty: 'Let thy father [Amun-re lord
term-did the Kadesh coallition realty extend as far away as Cilicia?­ Ka rnak] do [what Thy Majesty wishes(?)]. 107 (48) Behold! We are
are to be understood as sober or hyperbolic, is difficult to deter­ I Your Majesty's train wherever [Your Majesty] may proceed! (49)

mine. It may be that, from a vantage point two decades after the III it is behind (his] master that a servant's place should be.''',

94 P. Parr, "The Tell Nebi Mend Project," AAAS 33/2 (1983), 99-117; idem, R. Beal, "The History of Kizzuwatna and the Date of the Sunassura Treaty,"
"The Tell Nebi Mend Project," JACF 4 (1991), 78-85. IIldio 55 (1986), 424-45.
95 SJ. Bourke, "The Transition from the Middle to the Late Bronze Agc in Il, Kleine Schriflen Zllr Geschichte des Vi/lkes Israel I, 103 n. 3; HeIck, Beziehungen,
Syria: the Evidence from Tell Nebi Mend," Levant 25 (1993), 155. I Sec also R. Giveon, The Impact if Egypt on Canaan (Freiburg, 1978), 30.
96 Ibid., 160-62. .). Wilson, "The Oath in Ancient Egypt," JNES 7 (1948), 140 (no. 66), ef.
97 HeIck, Beziehungen, 277-78; H. Klengel, .'iYria 3000 to 300 B.G. (Berlin, 1992), I nos. 7 8) 133 (no. 15), cf. Idem in J.B. Pritchard, Ancient Near Eastern Texts relat­
90-1. II Ilir Old 7 estomenl, 235.
98 Hoch, Semitic Words in Egyptian Texts, 187-91 (no. 253). I'he LOponym merely names the road, in contradistinction to the other two:
99 A.H. Gardiner, Ancient Egyptian Onomaslu;a (Oxford, 1947), I, I34·*- 36*; G. Wilhelm, \J Spalinl\l'I', JljJ)Jj'jK 30 (1974), 222.
The Hurrians (Warminster, 1989), 23 24; 1'. Schneider, AsialiJche Penonennamen ill 1/1(' wtitinll; i{ w} .w(/3 can only be an early wl'iting of the non-periphrastic
aegylJtischen OJteLlen des neuen Reichej (Fribourg, 1992), 203 4; P. Grandel, RCIIIIJeJ 1/1. '>lId J't'J}',(' i.ilJldm: .lungt·, .vcuorffi'/1lilche, I :~6 ~2. Several examples arc known
/lis/oire d'ull regne (Paris, 1993), 185; idcm, I", POPYlllJ 11l1m:1 1 (C,liIO, 1')')1), 211. f~ 1)t!ollll'c1 Jlrillr(' Ci,IO; Iltllm & Sl,th 5,7; ;VII'S N,21; Anastasi i.3, 10,3; 24,4.),
IIKI I Vb. V, 7B: I 8. :1' tUl1LtlltptH,lllt l1y with Iht' I1Hlll hIlly c!l-wIOIWc! pt'liphl,ISis lJ('in~ simply an
1111 f·;. 1';c1I'I, "Dil' ()Jl"lallll'llli~«'ll ill dC'1I 'J'I'll1pl'ill \011 \k~h", ,\lIlllI'"h IIlld Soll'h ItJllt~ Ill' ,h,IlI'c1 WIlI.lIlllt '(l,lIl IIII1 IlHll(lhlllll~'ll ,il c1i'lim lilln.

illl"iud,lll" Ii\ II l'lllO 7' I'IH' •I'MllI llfll II I 1\ IlIflllltlt P... h"lh llllh m.lY III, (.llltC·1 illt''!

 18 CHAPTER ONE THE DAY-BOOK EXCERPTS: FIRST PART 19

Dddt m bm n stp-s3
A more serious drawback, it is sometimes alleged (or at least assumed)
This phrase has nothing to do with "the royal tent" (pace Faulkner,
for an historian to use the texts with a KCinigsnovelle Tendenz, lies in
op. cit., 3), but is the formal phrase indicating an executive decision
the behavioral template which informs the pieces in question. The
and, as such, indicates the seriousness of the present occasion; ef.
genre expectations inherent in the reception regime give rise to a
Urk. I, 62: 1, 63:2-3 (work orders), IV, 325: 17 (commission to trade),
limited set of motifs centering upon the figure of the king. III These
409:15 (temple construction), 1021 (authorization to expropriate cattle); range from the disposition and motivation of forces in a set-piece
KRI I, 50:12-13 (charter); ASAE 5 (1905), 282 (temple personnel). battle to the actions and mind-set of the king: enraged at foreign
Ireachery, exhibiting perspicacity in contrast to his human advisers,
e1aring and accepting of risk, marching at the head of his troops,
EXCURSUS I: THE COUNCIL OF WAR charging headlong into the massed ranks, saving Egypt in the breach,
protecting his army single-handed, executing the criminal enemy,
The sentence in col. 19 introduces the rhetorical insertion placed lavishing rewards on those loyal to him, engaging in the hunt (insou­
within the quoted day-book entry, and extending to col. 49. There tiant of danger a fa Sir Francis Drake), loving horses and hounds,
probably was some notice of a council of war within the day-book Ilild so forth. This type of role forces its own adoption at an exis­
entry for that day; but the exact verbatim statements would not have lelltial level: effective action, not shared essence, confers legitimacy.
been recorded. lOB While the character of the form has often been I 'he king may well have been, to paraphrase the Pyramid Texts, the
discussed, the validity of its use by the historian has seldom been person of a god, a Heliopolitan, older than the eldest, dwelling in
considered. It might be argued in the present case that slight irreg­ t he horizon for ever and ever, begotten of Yellow-face etc. But now
ularities and discrepancies render this section of the annals some­ he is also chosen in the here and now on the basis of what he does
what suspect: confusion as to where the council actually took place, or will do. I 12 The role these activities and attitudes delineate, though
the hyperbole in the description of the enemy forces, the erroneous(?) lOoted in the image of the ndsw of the First Intermediate Period, Il3
statement regarding the deployment of the enemy at the mouth of was established in detail pursuant to the 18th Dynasy victory; and
the pass, premature description of the march before the reference remained the informing element in the royal persona for well over
to Aruna l09 etc. But this is the kind of unevenness that one might " millennium.
put down to the fading of collective memory. If the date of inscrip­ But is the role, because it is stereotypical, to be rejected by his­
turation was nearly two decades after the event, (see below, 53-54), torians for its failure to convey specifics in an individual instance?
and the composer a young scribe who had not been present on the I )ocs it correspond to reality, or is it a heavenly mask rather than
campaignllO (see above, pp. 3-4), one cannot wonder at a degree of
rhetorical reworking that sacrifices some factual accuracy.
III Cf. M. Liverani, Prestige and Interest. International Relations in the Near East ca.

/WO 1100 B.C. (Padova, 1990), 172-79; idem, "Ancient Propoganda and Historical
(;riticism," in j.S. Cooper, G.M. Schwartz (eds), The Study if the Ancient Near East in
108 On the war council, see Y. Yaclin, The Art if Wa1fizre in Bible Lands in the Light l/ir 2/ st Century (Winona Lake, 1996), 283-89.
if ArchaeologicalDiscovery (London, 1963), 101-2; Heick, Beziehungen, 123 24; AJ. 112 Cf. E. Blumenthal, "Konigsideologie," IdA' III (1980), 528-29; R. Moftah,
Spalinger, Aspects if the Military Documents if the Ancient Egyptians (New Haven, 1982), \'II/dim Zllln aegyptischen KOlligsdogma im neuen Reich (Mainz, 1985), 106-14; R. Gundlach,
10 1-3; 136; E.H. Kline, The Battles if Armageddon (2000), 12 J 4; A. Loprieno, "The Wellhcrrschcr und Weltordnung," in R. Gundlach, H. Weber (eds), ugitimation und
King's Novel," in A. Loprieno (ed), Ancient Egyptian Literature. Hillory and FOn/zs (Lciden, "'mA/ion des IImschm (Stuttgart, 1992), 40 -43; D.B. Redford, "The Concept of
1996), 280-81. h.IIlK~hip during lhe 18th Dynasty," in D, O'Connor, D.P. Silverman, Ancient Egyptian
109 Heick notes (Beziehungen, 124) that the' use of the' phrase "I\runa road" must /til/gl/uP (Lckkn, 1IJIJ5), 157 8,1.
mean that the three roads divcrg-cd .101ith of that town. III D. I)OXI'y, /WY/JllIln .NOli lOyal hili/hrt,1 if tlte Middle Kingdom (Leiclen, 1998), 196;
110 By "composer" I do nOI mean to imply thai lill' killg il.1l1 110 h.II1(1 in the .:1'. 1:, BllIllll'lllh,d, 1llll'/IIIrlIII/IKfII 1/1/1 IIrl.')'p,illltm !lri'I/I:i;11II1I dl',1 mill/erell Reiches, Berlin,
composilion, and WI' mlisl l"til"1 im.lj.\ilH· .1 spl'dc'\ of 11Io;1l11\ It IIdclc'e1 e1il liltion 1!l70
20 CHAPTER ONE THE DAY-BOOK EXCERPTS: FIRST PART 21

a terrestrial record?114 It is perhaps not as clear-cut as these ques­ The 6th through 4th Centuries throw up unmistakable examples,
tions imply: the conjuring of the ideal may well be occasioned by described by Greek pens (where no native source is available) of
the event. Only an independent source, or a concerted thrust in cir­ Egyptian kings and royal pretenders acting in conformity to the royal
cumstantial evidence, can decide the issue. All sources, of course, for Ideal. Consider Tachos, ignoring sage advice in his efforts to dash
us moderns at least, fall under the heading propaganda, i.e. that which 1M afield and confront the vile Asiatic on his home turf; 117 or
is to be propogated in support of the dissemination, or continued \kktanebo II determined to charge headlong into the foe,118 and
1lg
validation, of an ideology; and all, no matter which society or cul­ I H'slowing largess on him that was on his water. Murders por­
ture is involved, will originate with the priveleged elite and display trayed as high-handed acts are nothing more than the execution of
their bias. 115 In a sense this defines, rather than complicates the his­ Il'bcls against His Majesty.12o It is amusing to hear the Greek assess­
torian's task: a form/critical approach is a sine qua non. I1wnt of deeds hallowed by the Pharaonic stereotype as displaying
But at the practical level of history-writing, can the Kiinigsnovelle \'v€ O <I>p0(JUVTl, "empty-mindedness."

be used as a believable source? For the reigns of Kamose, Ahmose, In the present case, though Thutmose Ill's war council conforms
Thutmose I and Hatshepsut we have no independent sources which to the demands of the ideal, the historicity of the event cannot be

might provide balance in our assessment; and the same lack bedev­ dlslI1issed out of hand. The entire sequence of the action which fol­
ils our present enterprise. But from the outgoing 18th Dynasty sources lows assumes a decision of some comparable sort had been taken
from Asia Minor, North Syria and Mesopotamia describe events for 11\ I he king. If not we are obliged to damn the account as made of

which we have also an Egyptian version; and for the first millen­ Ilole cloth, which seems highly unlikely.
nium Assyrian, Babylonian and Greek accounts of events in Egyptian
history provide invaluable comparanda. 19) Command qf His Majesty to lay] (50) a charge on the entire army:
Interestingly, with this new textual material at our disposal, the \t1lend ye!121 We shall proceed upon (51) that l22 road which grows
idealogical role adumbrated above appears, not as a meaningless I ngressively na[rrower.' Then His Majesty took] (52) an oath say­

mask with no relation to reality, but a real informing element in the 111.\: '[ shall not allow [my victorious army] to go [forth] (53) ahead
king's every day activity.116 Far from an ideal pattern existing at an ,If My Majesty from this place!' For lo! It was His Majesty's desire
ethereal plane, unachievable and unreal, the role of Pharaoh in the 11.111 (54) he should go forth at the [head of his army] himself.
atmosphere of the Kiinigsnovelle exerts a hegemonic influence on the 1/~'very man] was made to know l23 (55) how he was to march, the horses
king in forcing him to conform to what is expected. The role demands It Illg in single file and [the victorious king] 124 (56) at [the head of

performance, not reading. It is not wishful thinking to suggest that 111 I army.
perhaps Ramesses II did operate at Kadesh much as the texts and
reliefs say he did; that Pi(ankh)y's concern for horses was real and
derives from a working ideal, not cras commercialism; that Taharqa's
courage and daring actually did conform to the stereotype. Dioc!orus xv.92.3.

Plularch Agesilaus xxxviii.4; xxxix.3-4.

Ibid., xx.xvi.6; cf. Plutarch Pers. xxxvii.4.

114 On "historical" vs. "Ideal" see M. Schade-Busch, :Cur Kiinigsideologie Amenophis' H. Porten, Y. Yardcni, Texlbook qf Aramaic Documentsfrom Ancient E~pl I. Leiters
III (Hildesheim, 1992), III. Clearly in such an ideologically "comrnilled" text it lI-tll'lll, 1986),46 17; Diodorus xiv. 19; 35.3-5; S. Ruzicka, Hislona 48 (1999), 24.
would be folly to penetrate no deeper than knowledge of what the document says: ~l'l' Sl,the, UrA. IV, 652 n. a. lJis restoration seems unlikely: ef, Faulkner,
cf. M. Liverani, "Memorandum on the Approach to Historiographic Texts," On'ellialia I1.L. I( is conceivable Ihat the II is a second dative introducing something
42 (1973), 179-81. til mIl, "10 Illl' chariolry anc!/ or people to proceed upon etc."
115 N.-C. Grimal, Les lerrnes de la propagallde r~~ale fgy/Jlienlle de La XIX' d~Il{/\lie cI 10. IIIl cOIlI!;lll't\ Will il114 with II is occasioned by the erroneous 19th Dyn.
conqllele d'Alexalldre, Paris, 1986. When (Ill inclepellc!elll voile PJ()POllllc!~ .\ point of Illltli'lIl III III/II
view, the fury of Ihc elile i~ ullbric!led: (L W. I kirk, f)/r IJ·It" Itll Ill/III/! IIrnAr/l' 1'111' c1'I'lllllll,lli\I'of "lllilll·\\llh h'lild ('1-I11OlIlh" ~('('nlS certain: flace Gocelickr,
(\ ViesbHc!ell, I CJ77, 12 I 'j \ {'guido, ,!fi.
", ('I I>IOc!OIIi Oll !·'I(\PII.11t ~11lJ.\~IIlJl· ,70 7'1 ('llU \0 Itt 1\\"IIIl,hlr- ~Jl.Il" IWIt"1 Ih.1I1 Itm.j
22 CHAPTER ONE THE DAY-BOOK EXCERPTS: FIRST PART 23

Clearly, the Yehem stop, which probably extended for two days was I 'hereupon] (65) His Majesty issued a chaLLenge l32 on [this] ro[ad:
the venue for not only the council of war, but also for the instruc­ IIW up the bat] (66)-tle lines!' And they were discomfitted, for that
tion and final disposition of the line of march. It is unlikely that i1I'1 doomed one [took to flight(?); while the army] (67) broke into
marching in single file was necessary from the outset: only after horus qf cheerini 33 [to the ruler(?)J"
Aruna would such a deployment have been necessary. The textual
embellishment seeks to lay stress on the king's courage and solici­ I'wceeding by His Majesry1'34 (67a)135 [to(?)]136 the outer road [... c. 112
tude for his army. I (32 cm.) ] (68) qf [His Mq.jesry ... behind him] 137 while Amun
,r. '12 col. ] (69) of [... c. 112 col. ... The ...]s [to(?)] you(?),
"Regnal year 23, first month qf shomu, day 19. [Lively) reveiLLe (57) in the I II (70) [... 112 col. ...] the army [gave praise] to His Majesty for

tent qf life, prosperiry and health at the town qf Aruna. '25 Pro[ceeding) (58) greatness of his sword more than (71 ) [any other king. 139 Regnal
northwards 'by My Majesty under (the aegis of) my father [Amun-re, "3, first month qf shomu, day 20.;(?).] 140 the camp qf [His] Majesry's
lord of Karnak, while Wepwawet] (59) was before me, Reharakhty /was set]141 in (72) Aruna, (but) while the rear qf the victorious army
spr[eading brightness over My Majesty,] (60) my father Montu IiiI' Majesry was in the environs(?Jl42 qf (73) Aruna, the van was gone
strengthening [My Majesty's] arm, and [Khonsu(?) ....] (61) over inlo the vaLLey qf [Qilna (74) and they fiLLed the opening qf the vaLLey.143
My Majesty.'26
Proceeding [by His Majesry at the head qf] his [arnry]-now th[ey were I hell they said to His Majesty, l.p.h. (75)-now His Majesty had
(already) drawn up] (62) in numerous squadrons l27 [(but) the enemy me out with his victorious army and they (now) filled the
were] isolated: '28 [the] (63) southern flank l29 was in Ta[anach, in the
hills(?), the] (64) northern flank was at the southern bend '30 [of the
\'IS: Wh. II, 204, "to summon or anounce" often, but by no means always,
valley of Qina. 131 1 IIIIie context. Elsewhere the challenge to, or announcement of battle is con­
I by smi, "to report" (Heick, Die Lehre fir KO'nig Merikare [Wiesbaden, 1977],
fitfT, "to forecast" (N.-C. Grimal, La Stele triomphale du roi Pi(ankh)y, 24-26
l()
125 Helck ("Das Datum der Schlacht von Megiddo," MDAIK 28 [19721, 101-2) I h(' traces suit the restoration, and the clear presence of swh3 decides the
assumes the "awakening" was in Yehem, followed by "(Marsch) nach Aruna." This j'or IJnw used in such contexts, see Wh. III, 164:21 (~n n ~s, "rhythmic song"),
enables him to place the march through the pass on the 20th. G. Lello ("Thutmose ""Il'r, Catalogue des instruments de musique egyptiens (Paris, 1979), 102 (an n dd r.dd],
Ill's First Lunar Date" ]NES 37 [1978], 329) thinks the king woke before dawn, rI,vl "mic chant which he speaks"); Edfu V, 34: JO (anw nhm, "the exultant
and therefore the scribe correctly noted "day 19"; when dawn broke it was day rimal, Stele triomphale, 72 n. 178; see S. Schott, Bucher und Bibliotheken im
20. For full discussion, see below. In,'l'fJten (Wiesbaden, 1990), 320.
126 On the restora.tion and meaning see below. I il(' king is clearly the actor in cols. 65-67, and again in col. 68; so that a
127 Sethe's restoration is wholly gratuit:ms. 1st sin] is to be restored, taking "army" 0111)11 [wd3 (zmj] or [c~c.n ~mj ~r c~] is quite in order.
as antecedent. '\01 secn by Sethe. The column is placed immediately west of the granite
'28 Sethe (Urk. IV, 653:10) restores [n gm.nj ar] we, ["he never found a] singlc I .,ding 10 the Hatshepsut block. See fig. 3.

[doomed one)." The preferred restoration would characterize the deployment of 1'1"1 hnps ~r-r3.
the enemy as m wcw, "isolated, alone," and by implication afar off. The next sen­ 1/1 13j is just possible.
tence, then, specifies this condition. A restoration "one" spy or deserter came to ", ,h("s reading is incorrect: see facsimile, fig. 3. A masculine plural noun is
give the king information (Christophe, RdE 5, 100 n. 9) would require considerably \'"kllt(' which might with difTiculty be restored as ~sbw or aprw, followed by di
more space than is available. There is no need to restore wnn at the bottom of col­ I, "('S of (111,?).
umn 62 (Goedicke, The Battle if Megiddo. 51): the two clauses provide the circum­ III\' 1I ,l('eS agrec with Faulkner: o/!. cit., p. 9, n. x; and the context strongly
stances of the deployment. his WlllClllioll Ihal "tile lroops arc rejoicing over their safe passage": ibid.,
129 Goedicke's "attack force" (The Battle if Megiddo, 52, 69) is unjustifiable: the , Ck,lIly, howcV('r, llwy arc Ilot yel lhrough the pass.
extent of the disposition of the enemy is all that is being set on record; cC P. Chester ('I: t1ht ll\,ioll bdow.
Beatty II, 9, 3 (A.H. Gardiner, Late Egyptian Stories [Bruxclles, 19321, 35). tlW'A 1l',wl,Ilion Ok. IV, h:i I'{j) i\ lInli"ely. Thc Iran's suit w3/~v ihw.
I~O See Faulkner, op. cit., pp. 3, 7fT tllI:'A til/II ',1'1'111\ 10 I\'qllli I !oo Ill\l('h \P,\«(' lOt what is availabk. Perhaps
I:" Assurcdly nOl ncar Djefty, as Yeivin, ]NE~' C) IC)'lll lllt' ,111111, lla1/ilrf, 10'
The \1orthern fl<l\1k ban'ly lOlichec!lhe hill, ,olllh 0111 ... ,. ,II 10 II. I 1I111~1 Il'fl:1 III 1111' IIlIIII'\\' 01"'111111( ill till' IlIlIIIH"I~1 1'lIti or lilt' p,,,,; fill
RriF rl, lorJl; \\%011, 1\1"1, 2:l!i n, 27 " IIO\\' plf'\11ill'll 111'011 10 UlI,IId Ih" I'xIt.
24 CHAPTER ONE THE DAY-BOOK EXCERPTS: FIRST PART 25

valley-just this time let our mighty lord listen to us! (77) Let our mL Year 23, first month if shomu, day 21-the exact day if the psd­
lord guard for us the rear of [his] army [and his people],t44 so that "1St. »
the rear of the army may emerge for us clear (of the pass); and then
we shall fight (79) these foreigners, and we shall not be worried
[about] the rear of (80) our army!' EXCURSUS II: THE SEQUENCE OF EVENTS
Halting by His Mqjesty outside l45 and taking a seated position (81) there,
protecting the rear if his victorious army. Now by the time the [rear if/ 46 (82) debate over the chronological implications of psdntyw has now
the expeditionary firce reached the (point qf) exit,147 on this road, the shadow 1t ~ course, and all possibilities seem to have been considered. 153
(83) had tum[ed]; and when His Mqjesty arrived south if Megiddo on the wc shall be concerned only with the datum in question, and
bank'48 if the brook Qjna, seven hours had elapsed in the day.149 IIplication for the internal sequence of events. Faulkner's emen­
Then the camp was pitched there fir His Majesty. A command was issued III or the date from "21" to "20"154 has been criticized as gra­

to the entire army [as fillows]: '[G]et ready! Sharpen your weapons! For bat­ [1I1~, cven though he based himself on the constraints of the event
tle will be joined with that vile doomed one in the moming, and on that account if( orded. That the scribe might have made a mistake
l55 is not in
One [now(?) will(?)] (85) rest l50 in the firtified campl51 if life, prosperity and Ill' itself unusual: in several passages in Thutmose's accounts
health.' Preparation if the rjJicers' mess and rations fir the attendants. Posting Ii )(' rs are suspect. 156
sentries fir the army with the words: 'Steady! Steady! Wide awake! Wide awake!' I Iw pericope encompassing col. 56 to 80, i.e. the events begin­
Livery reveille in the tent if life, prosperity and health. They came to tell His on the 19th of the month, ranks as the most enigmatic in the
Ma:jesty: 'the wilderness is in good shape, and so are the troops (on) south and t (. account. They comprise the following sections:
north. '152
Ily I;u' the best analysis of the discussion to 1987 is that of P. der Manuelian,
ill Ihe Reign of Amenophis II (Hildesheim, 1987), 1-19; for additional discussion
lid IhaL date see Helck, "Was kann die Aegyptologie wirkJich zum Problem der
144 Are these the king's household troops or camp-followers, presumably the smsw hronologie in der Bronzezeit beitragen?' Chronologische Annaherungs­
of col. 84? See Faulkner, op. cit., pp. 4-5 n. d; Goedicke, The Battle of Megiddo, 59. III der 18. Dynastie," in P. Astrom (ed), High, Middle or llJw? (Gothenburg,
145 The omission of int indicates in the daybook original this passage followed the 22 23; E. Hornung, "Lang oder Kurz? Das Mittlere und Neue Reich
first half of (74) in which int In served as antecedent. See Heick, Beziehungen, 125. 1'1"ns," ibid., 30-31; K.A. Kitchen, "The Basics of Egyptian Chronology in
146 See discussion below. lIH1l1 Lo Lhe Bronze Age," ibid., 40-41; J.K. Hoffmeier, "Reconsidering Egypt's
147 See Wilson, Ancient Near Eastern Texts, 236. See fig. 4. rt III Lhe Termination of the Middle Bronze Age in Palestine," Levant 21 (1989),
148 Goedicke, The Battle of Megiddo, 61-62. II '); for Lhe contretemps between Leitz and Krauss, see C. Leitz, "Bemerkungen
149 C( AJ. Spalinger, GM 33 (1979), 51 and discussion below. I I.tlonomischen Chronologie," Aegypten und Levante III (1992), 97-102 (esp. 100-1);
150 The lacuna at the bottom of col. 84 is only 20 em. deep, scarcely enough I", ,IIISS, "Was ware, wenn der altaegyptische Kalendartag mit Sonnenaufgang
room for an extended predicate. Therefore it may be that !lip at the top of (85) '"111('11 hatle?" BSEG 17 (1993), 63-71; Leitz, "Der Monkalender und der Beginnen
fiUs that function (inspite of the expected daybook infinitive style): cf. Urk. IV, II'gypLischen Kalendertages," BSEG 18 (1994), 49-59; J. von Beckerath, "Das
1303:13, 1312:18: Edel, ZDPV, 69, 143. II, IId,lI ium des Papyros Ebers und die Chronologie des aegyptischen Neuen
151 CCT!)! signifies an enclosure, with a circumvalJation for protection: J.K. Hofmeier, , It, I. Cegenwartiger Stand der Frage," Aegypten und Levante III (1992), 23-27;
"Tents in Egypt and the Ancient Near East," JSSEA VII (1977), 16. The root can . Chronologie des pharaonisclzen Aegypten (Mainz, 1997), 50-1 and n. 192. For a
denote waUing in with hostile intent (cf. W. Heick, Historisch-biographische Inschriflen -\'111 /o\cncraJ discussion of psd;ltiw, sec L. Depuydt, "The Hieroglyphic Representation
der 2. Zwisclzenzeit (Wiesbaden, 1975), 89); cf. also the bird cellt which might be f lill 1\!()on's Absence," in L. Lesko, (cd), Ancient Egyptian and Mediterranean Studies
translated a "cooped fowl": J.-C. Goyon, Confirmation du p01woir royal au nouvet an II IIJr I!ll mliam A. J Vard (Providence, 1998), 71 89; idem, Civil Calendar and Lunar
(Cairo, 1972), 116 n. 287. The word here musL refer Lo the central, royal sector 'I/r III JIl(l(/11 1'cPl (Lollv.Lin, 19(7), 14·0 4 I; A. Dodson, "Towards a Minimum
of the camp as a whole, the word for the laLler beinK ihw (cr. Col. 71, 8'1), a very Ghronlll(~'Y lif 11/1" Nrw Alllj;dom and '1 hird lll/cnllediate Period," BF.S 14 (2000), 7 18.
broad designation for both an army encampnwnL (AnasL. 1.17.Ci 8; ARf IV, 4:3; I~ .7t' J '}fl I lJ 12." I I.
W. Spiegelberg, "Briere c1er 21. Dynastic aus EI·IIiIl\·h," <lIs 'i'i 11922\, 25), a l~ I~ \ I',ll kl't', "TIll' HI I{ll1tlin/o{ oj tlw LunDr Month in AncienL EgypL," ]NF.S
work camp (KJU IV, 327:<)) or e\'('11 <I s(,II>I(' <;,udilll't. lAir 1'-4,'ljll/f1fl SIII",I, '15: I). (I ~170). 2111

I\~ II. e()('c1icke "The CO<lSI is CIt-.l1 .. ill SllIdi", -1/ VIII (I'~ und Rrli~IIII/ ,lr"'1/11f111 IQ Uf. TIll: pq~lhk (1llllwiOtl OWl ";ll- 'Itld 10" III till' '(Tlillil rc)lIm~irl~ LIH'

I 1<;ol"tIinl("n, IlJllll. ·111', fI')) Wid\(, to Itld hJ~,(' t i'l ·lkMIfI)(~1 or filil's" b\lt Ih~ III' ~ll'I~iddo: {IrA 1\ hftll:I, h71:li (HI( \ ,lttl lUI' II I!ll 1]) ,I\( 'InllH"lHl\

Ihell "II pit-IllY of n:llllplt'a of 1ll1U', "\\~I.\tdllllcl. "jlclCIlW""): /l'b. II. I O·I.~I· II • "hl'l" "'I~" i~ "'1"i.... 1 {l,k. 1\', 7'11'''1; M'" 111',11 I~ IllW, p. 1:11 ('"2r' fill
26 CHAPTER ONE THE DAY-BOOK EXCERPTS: FIRST PART 27

1. The reveille and prqfectio (56-61). Here the day-book entry is I.lve to conclude that the king and part of his troops either returned
glossed by an elaboration and rationalization of the archaic scene .) camp or spent the night in the pass, after having revealed their
of the Smsw-ljr preceeding the royal figure: falcon-falcon-canine )nsition to the enemy! This seems unlikely on the face of it. The
and "cushion".157 These are poetically transmogrified into Re­ Ilgcncy inherent in the statements made during the council of war
Harakhty, Montu,158 Wepwawet and possibly Khonsu. It may be mint to the general consensus of the absolute necessity of clearing
significant that this is the verbatim, first person l59 marginalia of II(' pass expeditiously, not dawdling in it. Moreover the specificity
Thutmose III himself, a concession to a species of archaic legit­ .1 I he daybook regarding elapsed time in terms of hours, argues the
imation. .. "TOW focus of time spans within a single day.
2. The disposition of the enemy forces (61-64). This can be con­ But one consideration makes the observations of the preceeding
strued as derived entirely from a daybook entry, and not neces­ 1.llagraph less than convincing. If the king, who had cleared the
sarily an intelligence report coming from a different source. 160 l.\SS .first, stationed himself at its mouth until the rearguard had made
3. The challenge and skirmish (64-71). Though the lacunae begin I, exit, he must have remained there while the entire army passed
to increase at this point, the king clearly issues a challenge and 1I11. Some part of these passing troops, either the van or the rear,
a skirmish ensues, presumably at the mouth of the pass. 161 The I qualified as having emerged from the pass at noon. Sethe restores
king is lauded by his troops and debouches "to the outer road." II/'ilcw, "leaders,"162 but this introduces a difficulty. The definite arti-
The whole is a slightly embellished excerpt from the daybook. I,· /13 militates in favor of a masc. sing. noun, not a plural. If the
What is clear is that bifOre the entire army debouched from the \';111 of the army is here described,163 the word can only be some
pass a skirmish had already taken place. I iling of ~3ry, and what follows must be a bound construction. But

Arrangements for the army's advance (71-79). This section begins 11('11 there would be insufficient space left for the writing of m3cw.

with the situation at an unspecified(?) moment: the camp at Aruna, Ille arrangement of signs at the top of column 82 strongly suggests
the van in the pass, the rear still in the district of Aruna. While (1IIler a miswriting of cq or di iW.W: 164 "(those) who had entered (i.e.
the daybook is quoted in (71) to (74), a midrash is inserted (74-79) into the valley)," or "(those) who had been despatched (i.e. the expe­
to amplify the daybook excerpt in (80), and explain why the king llilionary force)." If the van is intended Thutmose III must have
stationed himself at the valley mouth: it was not through cow­ 1I:lllc.'lined at the exit to the pass for several hours qfter the noon
ardice, but simply because his officers had requested it. 1111111'; if the rear is meant, he could have quit his post at once, and
I"ached the brook easily by 1 PM.
The question is: if reveille occurred at, or even before, dawn on the \Vhich scenario is to be preferred will depend on our understand­
19th, could all these events have transpired by mid-day? The dis­ Illg of the temporal clause in col. 83. Here we are told that the king
tance covered is c. 9 km. And the terrain could not have been easy. Il.lchcd the brook Qjna iw wnwt 7 m phr m hrw. Parker l65 has cast
Moreover a skirmish had to be fought at some point. There is ample \\ ('kame light on this passage by pointing out that the reading of a
space in lacunae for a change of day, which might alleviate the Il,ldow-clock underlies the choice of expression. If "7 hours" are
difficulty, and also help us to accomodate the psdnryw entry (see fur­
ther below). But if night passed and the 20th day came, we should
IW Urk. IV, 655:9; idem, Kommentar zu den aLtaegyptischen Pyramidentexte IV, 201;
I .",Ikner, op. cil., 9 10 (n. Aa).
Ib! I leick, Bu.iellullgen, 125.

1;7 W. Kaiser, "Einige Bemerkungen zur aegyplischen Friihzeil, I. Zu den .i'msw­ II,. \.('. a passiv(' parliciple wilh 3 m.p!. su~junctive: cf. Gardiner, Egyptian Grammar
/fr," ZAS 84 (1959), 119 32; 85 (1960), 11837. 1',2 ,Il I (i, Tlw inclusioll or lhl' infix <I> in lhe subjunctive of this anomalous
1~1\ Laler ralsely reslored "Amun." ell> i, I10l ,llway~ wl;llt'n ill L.tlC EKYPliall: d: Takin~ or Joppa 3, 10.
11'1 The "lch"-slyk: CI,lpOW, S/Udltn, 51. IU It \ P.1I kl'l' "SUll1l Rdlc'c liol1~ nn Iht, 1.1I1H1t Dales of Thulmose III and
I'" Ilclck, II, HIIIIII.llf11, I 'J. 'j I{UIIWA"'S II,·' Itl \\ I, "'1111)1"011 \ \ .~I )),1\ I~ ,·d~l. S/lIdlf\ ill ,17lcimt Egypl, tilt A~l(rnll
11,1 So lIL'hlly 1,.lIllklH'l. IIfI. 1'1/,. p. ~l 11. I, ,\'1111,111 (1\1I~11l1l, 1~1lI1), 11
 28 CHAPTER ONE THE DAY-BOOK EXCERPTS: FIRST PART 29

understood to have elapsed after the "turning" (phr), i.e. noon,166 then c might suspect that a foreshortening of some sort has occurred.
7 PM would have found the sun already set, a shadow-clock use­ I 1l1pting to invoke homoioteleuton: rsi to the sentries, and rsi

less, and the phrase m hrw, "in the day," inappropriate. Moreover Ill' the king; r-mitt of the troops, r-mti of the date. One could
such a translation would mean that camp was pitched, sentries set III (' postulate the omission of the date in the first case, and a
and the army fed after dark! There seems every reason, therefore, r Iit'scription of the day's activities in the second.
to translate the clause "when 7 hours had turned in the day," that lhe objection has been made that the addition of a full day would
is to say, it was approximately 1 PM. This, in turn, obliges us to ,dIll c an implausible 24-hour stalemate. 170 But this could be dis­
restore the bottom of col. 81 as ist Pb.n p3 [Pbwy . ..] etc., thus yield­ ,I ,tS eisagesis. The skirmish which would have apprised the
ing a statement on the successful exit of the entire army at noon, Illln of the route the Egyptians had opted for would have taken
and removing any difficulty inherent in the king's reaching the brook 111 t.he late morning (19th), and the enemy high command at
an hour later. II II h would have learned of it presumably in the afternoon. They
The implications of this understanding of the text are far-reach­ 1.1 t h('n have had to withdraw all their forces northward for rede­
ing. In order to completely exit the pass by noon, the entire army 'nll'llt, a maneuver that could not be undertaken in the total
must have begun to debouche at first light; but already the king was \('ss of a moonless night (especially in view of the notorious
stationed there to ensure safe passage! The reveille, profectio, chal­ " llr the night evinced by the ancients). They must have waited
lenge and skirmish dated to day 19 cannot possibly have taken place I t h(' following morning (20th), and the withdrawal could have
on the same day the army exited the pass. A calendric notation of IlW<! most of the day. That is why, it could be argued, the report
day 20 must be missing in a lacuna, most probably in col. 71. In ,I to the king on the morning of that day indicated the field
other words, the king and an advanced guard must, against all logic, l'kar: the enemy had not yet redeployed.
have returned to camp or remained in the pass overnight.
There remains one additional possibility of accomodating the psd.­ tI year 23, first month if shomu, day 21-the exact day if the pSQntyw­
nryw date on day 21. While the daybook of the king's house pro­ l/I/Jearance if the king at earty moming. The entire army was commanded
vides the major source for the present inscription, there is no guarantee I lin, in battle line. 17I (85) ... .]
that quotations are completely excerpted. 167 The norm in daybook I II. Mc~esty mounted his chariot of electrum, arrayed in his weapons
entries requires the calendric notation to come before the "annalis­ \\,11 like Horus the dextrous, action-meister like Montu the Theban,
tic" infinitives conveying the action of the day; and this was the case ,ill his father [Amun] strengthened his arms.
in the passage in cols. 56-57. The surviving daybook excerpts from IIltlOlllhernflank l72 if His Majesry's army was upon the southern slope [if the
the reigns of Amenophis II and Thutmose IV show this practice to I Ii/ OJ Jna;l73 the north-jiank was on the north-west if Megiddo, 174 with
be consistently followed. 168 Yet in the passage in col. 85 no date pre­ \/fljcsry in their midst, his father [Amun] the protection of his limbs,
ceeds the r.ry m enb formula. Clearly the king wakes in the morning icl th(' energy of the mighty one l7S [pervading] (86) his members.
and receives the situation report. Then the day changes to 21. 169

,"wl!iell im Felcllager des Pharaonen," Welt des Grimt I, 1 (1947), 2-4. It is a

fI,"t1.1 to denote the beginning of the day's activities: pace Spalinger, "Some
So Faulkner, op. cit., 10, n. bb; Heick, Beziehungm, 125.
166 \ddlllllll,,1 Remarks on the Ballie of Mcgiddo," GM 33 (1979), 51.
On the selectivity of the excerpting scribe, see WJ Murnanc, "Oncc again
167 I',I\II"IH'I, 0/1. cil., p. II, 11. hh.
the Dates for Tuthmosis III and Amenhotep II, .lANES 3 (1970 71), 4 and n. 13. PlOb,lbly\{ III/ lleW •.• ]. Tilere is too lillie space for anything like r c(z3 tJltyw . ..
168 Cf. Urk. IV, 1310:18,1312:18; 1314:8; 1315:10 II; 1736:1. Ih" I 1'~Ul11ll1illll of til(' daybook entl y connects directly with the putative sf
169 Spalinger (MDAIK 30, 226) believes the reason for the omissioll of the date
is that the king arose and reccived the report \,hile it ",IS still d,uk dllli tll('I('[(Jr(' I·
f);I' II)' i, tillite' (1r,lr; 1111'11 i, illSllflll iC'111 'p,UI' 1(11 lIT 1/1.'1/.
tcchnically part of the preceedin~ ddY 'I'lli' l(,pOII, 11ll\,c\c·l. Illlpll(, Ih,lt tile' 1"1 III lllcll'lIII ICl\C I Illc ","II ,111,1 I) \ . 'I,hklll, I/ni/ddo III 'llIr JC)')2 /0 19!r
rain can be If(1/ 10 be (1I'i11 III ,lily 1,1,1' Ihe In hilI( ,1/ T1) /1/ {rb dl'llll11 w,lkllll( III UI'III~OIlrlll, ~()()()J, 1() I:.!:.!,
Ihe IIIlI/l/11lK. nllt 1111 11I1I,h' J ,nil~un. 01', Ill., h I (iI\IPOW, .\tudlm, :I~, ,\, .\h, "11"dl,1 II( Ira Sf'lh, III ull I'lllh.lhilll)' '!i,II<l\\illll Snlu
30 CHAPTER ONE THE DAY-BOOK EXCERPTS: FIRST PART 31

Then His Majesty bore down on them at the head of his army. shouted and praised Amun [for the victory] he had given to his son
They saw His Majesty bearing down on them and they fled head­ on [this day.
long straight [to] Megiddo through fear, having abandoned their Giving adulation] to His Mqjes0J and extolling his might.
horses and their chariots of gold and silver. They were hoisted up Then they presented the booty they had got: hands, prisoners-of­
by their clothes into this town, for the townspeople had shut the war, horses chariots of gold and silver and [undecorated ones (90)
place Up;176 [so they cast] (87) clothes over to hoist them up into ,(lid all their weapons of war. . ,
this town. l77 Then His Majesty laid a charge] 180 on his army, saying: 'Quit
Now if only His Majesty's army had not given their attention to \ourselves W[elJl81 ....] mighty [...]! Behold! [this town] is given [to
plundering the possessions of the doomed ones, they would have IIlC through the command] 182 of Re on this day! For every chief of
taken Megiddo immediately.178 IVCry re[belli]ous [northe]rn land is inside it, so that to take Megiddo
For the vile doomed one of Kadesh and the vile doomed one of Is to take 1000 towns! Quit yourselves well! Look! The land [is ...]'"
this town were hawled scrambling, to get them into their city, for
the fear of His Majesty had entered (88) [their vitals], and their arms Illis entire section is an embellishment of a simple record of the
were we[ak. ...] His uraeus had overpowered them." lImy cheering its commander. The speech of the king, though plau­
I i>lc, was not in the daybook and shows the benefit of hindsight.

The daybook entry denoting the battle and victory is here completely
suppressed in favor of a "literary" treatment. The writer is at pains l) I) [... c. 2 meters ... commands were issued to the] 183 troop comman­
l84
to explain the failure to take the town and puts it down, rightly or dl/l to draw up [their squads and let} every [man know] his position.
wrongly, to the army's attention being diverted by the sight of rich They surveyed l85 [this] to [wn] , (which was) surrounded by a ditch
booty. Nevertheless some sort of engagement had taken place, to 111<1 enclosed by leafy woods of all sorts of their fruit trees, while
judge from the 83 dead and several hundred captives (see below). IllS Majesty himself was at the fort east l86 of this town, stationed
That a rout ensued may be put down to the likelihood that the t1wrc) and [on watch] (92) [over it day and night ... nearly 2 meters ...
Canaanites had not completely redeployed before Thutmose charged. :onstruction if a block-house provided] with a sturdy circumvallation [ ... 54
1/. . • • • X cubits] in its thickness; dubbing it 'Menkheperra-is-the-trapper-if­

"(88) Thereupon their horses and chariots of gold and silver were I • Isiatics. '

seized as easy [prey], their [weapons] lying strewn like fish in the Posting people for sentry dU0J at His Majes0J's fortified camp, with the word:
fold of a net,179 while the victorious army of His Majesty appropri­ \/((Idv! Steady! Wi[de awake! Wide Awake!]'"
ated their possessions. For the tent of [that] vile [doomed one] was
captured [....] (89) [... c. 9 groups ...] Then the entire army

Restore wa.
I

Read i~r. There is no room for any statement of intent to lay seige.
176 There is, however, just enough room for ~r. [m]. Sethe's restoration is too long (Urk. IV, 660:6), although the passage must
177 On the historicity of this account, see Heick, Beziehungen, 126; Yadin, The Art ontainec! a reference to the town to provide an antecedent for m-!lnwf
if Waifare in Bible Lands, 97. Restore rdil m Itr /l.
178 The construction is another anticipation of Late Egytian: Gardiner, Agyptian 'f. P.-M. Che~ereau, RdF; 42 (1991), 56-57; idem, Prospographie des cadres miti­
Grammar, sec. 455 at n. 28; for negative consuetudinis (bw irf sam) used in classic ••• I)lll'lll dll I/OIWei rmph, (Paris, 1994), 42 4·3 (a comparatively rare title). Mrifyt
Late Egyptian, cf. P. Chester Beatty I, 15.2-3. Restore [(Ir c~ rl: a trace of r is "It'll I('/Hlt'n'd "illf'"llry": AR.. Schulman, Mililary Rank and Title (Munich, 1964),
visible. 101; IIII'm, .7 J NC/I' I:i I<)7fl" Hi; (r: D. Meeks, Allllee lexicographiqlle III (Paris, 1982),
17'l Cr. Faulkner, 0/). ci/., 14, n. pp. The restoration .IAW, "squad roils" i~ doubly (L 11"~~11I\l,,1I1y tI\(')' W('/(' lll(' (tl1l1l1lOll 1001 soldiers.
inappropriate. The enemy had fled: tlwy were not tlapped .,~ IIII' .IIIIilt wOlild SUi{­ :s:.
:r. C. (;11111.11 ',1 \M, 'TO/IIIII/IIl/' IIr 1~(I/I/AhJ.v (//1 mUIr, d, Caire (Cairo, 1981),
~esl); mOl ('OVl' I llll' suhjecl IH'I(' is equipllH'nt (hiuiol. ,uld \\":II""I1Y= 1.1111,'1 th.1Il II, ,Ill
1ll'1 '011111'1 (II "(':lSh'llI IllIt Ilf
32 CHAPTER ONE THE DAY-BOOK EXCERPTS: FIRST PART 33

This pericope occasions difficulties in interpretation through (a) inde­ ICommand try] 194 His Majesry (93) [.... nearly 2 meters.... not allow­
terminate verbal forms, (b) lacunae, (c) apparent repetition. The try His Majesry's army that on}e rf them [go} outside this (siege)-wall except
II,!!.
instructions to the men and the use of lJ3i "to measure," suggest that II scrounge(?j195 at the door rf their firt.
196
what follows will be the record of the construction of siege works. (Now everything His Majesty did to this town together with that
The "ditch" and at w3d, which might be rendered "pallisade," seem ilc doomed one and his vile army, are set down by specific day
to satisfY this expectation. But then a fort (atm)187 is mentioned and, 1I1d specific foray(?)197 And the name[s] of the com[(94) manders ...
after the lacuna, the construction of a strong circumvallation. The meters . .. they] are published on a leather role in the temple of
following solutions may be considered. First, the verbal forms i~w \mun] this day.)
and in~w are to be taken as statives, and describe how the recon­
naissance party found Megiddo: surrounded by a fosse and orchards. lite list is specified by the repetition of ms in the equivalence of

The king then takes up a position at an already-existing tower to the \\'cst Semitic beth essentiae. 198 The scribe broke the information down

east,188 and a thick ring-wall is subsequently built. Second: the ver­ It the following order: (a) date, (b) the number of the expedition,

bal forms in question are "daybook" infinitives which are then resumed I the name of the commander. At this point the material is inter­

by the more extended midrashic embellishment. The fort at which IIj)ted by a very long lacuna which Sethe ingeniously and improb­

the king stationed himself will be a proleptic reference to a part of lilly fills. Undoubtedly the text continues in some such manner as

the circumvallation completed only later. Third: the text represents !13k in.n.sn m s!};rw-cna m ~d nbw k3w cwt and perhaps another item,
stages in the siege preparations-an initial fosse and pallisade, then Itich would accomodate the space available almost exactly.
a block-house on the east, and finally a formal siege wall. I\s pointed out above, the scribe at this point interrupts his quo­
It is difficult to choose among these options. Other source texts II ion of the day-book of the king's-house, and merely alludes to

dwell almost exclusively on the siege wall. The Gebel Barkal Stela l89 lIother source wherein the commodities are listed. The fact that
uses dd~, "to besiege, shut up"; the 7th Pylon reveals 190 refers to a hey were not included in the day-book must mean that they were
sbry mna, "a good circumvallation"; Karnak Room IIp91 mentions a III intended for the king's privy purse (if this is the correct under­
"circumvallation made (very) thick"; the Ptah Temple Inscription I Illding of the word inw) , but rather for the treasury itself. The

describes a "thick wall" .192 In fact, the first solution above does least ( I ibe by implication not only underscores the royal background to

harm to a face-value reading; and the word picture is graphically II(' publication of the day-book excerpts, but also contributes to our
illustrated by numerous New Kingdom reliefs of Canaanite cities. 193 Illdcrstanding of how the commodities and personnel, captured in
While reference to "fruit trees" often conjures up parallels only in II(' roreign campaigns, were to be distributed. 1. Gifts (undoubtedly
misuse, i.e. the chopping down of orchards, in the present instance I )t'cted and prescribed) were brought directly to the king for receipt
the addition of w3d, "green, leafY" must indicate living trees. 110 the privy purse. 2. A consignment of foodstuffs, similarly collected

It the spot, was transferred to the harbor depots. 3. The grain from

• W.d fits the context better than ist.

187 Or "fortified gate"? 'bb, which Wb. (I, 178:8) separates from ebb "to glean," and ebb "speer, pitch­
188 This can scarcely be a part of Megiddo's own fortification system. A slight ~ " and assigns a gratuitous meaning "to knock" (R.O. Faulkner, A Concise Didionary
tumulus in the terrain north-east of the present tell might be significant (B. Halpern, 1/llldle Egy/J/ian rOxford, 1962],41). That atm.m refers to the Egyptian siege works
oral communication). ;ivl'l1 rise LO the notion of "surrendering" (Wilson, ANET, 237 n. 38). In fact
189 Below I, p. 109. III(' lext says is that thl' EIO'Ptians permitted the besieged to scrounge herbs and
190 Below II, p. 121. n II ,Il lht' gate of the town itself.
191 Below VI, p. 149. Il,t'Slll11ably Oil the ilO'lll-\H'st side of the town: 1. Finkelstein, D, Ussishkin,
192 Urk. IV, 767: I0 12, Gocdickc has suggested ('IlL, I/III/Ir qj 1/(~IIId(), RG) thai " II I. 'j IIr I f)y'} I f)'JfJ 1"\((//'(///(11/1 (.Jerllsalem, 2000), 592,
the COl1strU('liol1 of a (,oul1t('J'-pallisade (,oIKeiltl,lll'd on till' v.,"t~ ,111',1 'illtl ill,ly 1101 '\n lIslI,tlly IllI',III, tll !oIll by \\,111'1 II·h. II, 20G:7 21; D, Meeks, Annee lexieo­
haw c'(lclHled ('ol11pleICI} ,1I olllHl tilt' tIm II ql I [ll)!I()! 111'1 11111;1 nllllt· !l1'IIlI,1i 1I11,lIllt' of "t1,lvl'lIinK" is also possible;
I" <:1.1 B 1'1111 h,lI cI l'cI Ilir 1111/1'111 \rrl1 !-,ml In I !Jm t', p, :1
121 Katlc'all 1111 '\'J'J I( ;;11,1 1111 'I'I() () 1'1111'11111\ 1111 :llIdllll'l, (
34 CHAPTER ONE THE DAY-BOOK EXCERPTS: FIRST PART 35

the farms of the Esdraelon was taken in charge by controllers and "iot wrought in gold with poles(?po4 if gold, belonging
given over to the palace. 4. Certain items Ouxury products and manu­ I that fallen one, l',
factures?), as in the present case, were assigned to the treasury. 5. dzariot wrought in gold, belonging to the chiif if (97)
On selected campaigns the army itself was allowed to keep the booty. \ legiddo(?), l',

The day-book of the king's house recorded no. 1 and perhaps no. mrated chariots if the chiifs if this country who were

2, the granary no. 3, and presumably the treasury no. 4. Whether IIIi him, 30POS

any tally was kept of no. 5 is at present unknown. 199 wts if his vile army, 892206

924
"Then the chiefs of this foreign land came and were on their bel­
lies, doing proskynesis to the power of His Majesty, to beg breath I': good suits if mai~ 207 belonging to that doomed one, 1
for their nostrils, so great was his sword and so mi[ghty the power ,'; good suits if mail, belonging to the chiif if
of Amun....] (95) [.... c. 1.85 m. ....] the foreign land, while \ I'~ Iiddo, 1
[every] chief came through the power of His Majesty bearing their I : I Suits if mail, belonging to his vile army, 200208
benevolences of silver, gold, lapis and turquoise, and carrying grain, 502

wine, beef and wild game to His Majesty's army-one contingent I'Clod: poles wrought in silver, if the tent if that vile

(of Asiatics) went south with the benevolences 2oo-while His Majesty ·//It'd one, 7

[re]appointed20' chiefs (96) [to every town.... c. 1.80 m. ...]" I he army of [His Majesty (98) captured....

I 80 m. ....] 387

This is an editorial expansion not derived from the day-book. The til 1,929

extant text appears to omit the formal oath which later sources refer 2,000

to (see below, p. 110); but in the long lacuna following the statement Il 20,500)"

of the re-instatement of the chiefs there is ample space for the oath. 202
In the Festival Hall and 6th Pylon inscriptions (below, p. 110) the hllrdcn of the first part of this section is the tally of the booty209
oath is promissory and assumes the form of an undertaking to deliver \ !torn the camp of "[that vile doomed one and of the chief of]
taxes; in the Barkal Stela (below, p. 110) the chiefs abjure future ddo"; and Sethe's restoration might well be emended to rat IifCw
rebellion and nothing is said of taxes. It is likely that the day-book, lliw n etc. The fact that 340 prisoners were taken and 83
beyond a brief notice of oath-taking, did not include the specific text.

"[Tally if the captures taken ry His Mqjestls army from the town if) Megiddo:
I h:i, k, Bu:.iehu1lgen, 440.

PO. Ws, 340 Hands, 83 I c, l/'l/1Jwt ncct nt WIW n b3st tn ntyw ~ncf which would nicely fit the available

Mares, 2,041 Foals, 191

Stallions,203 6 Colts, [ ..../

199 For archival practice, see R. Parkinson, S. Quirke, Papyrus (Austin, 1995), ch. 3.
200 Christophe, ap. cit., 97; and further below, p. 245. The passage indicates littll'
more than how the plunder (or some of it) got to Egypt on this occasion.
201 I.e. he allowed them to reoccupy their former IMlriTl10111\", I wCluld not inll't
pret this as indicating prior loyalty to Egypt: (f. Ilonll\( WI RITrlll"tdl rilll( I~KYpl's
Part, , ." IRlIont 21, 185.
'(>1 Jlt·kk. 8n.irhulIgm. I'H.
In / h.'/ I II t)( II ,Srmrl;r Wrmh 111 F.j,'l'/Iti(//l '/ ,.~IJ. 18 IP. II. 12) ooinu 11111 I h,lt. ill
1111111;\\\ III l~.ln\l itk JllOtl'li,,', IIII' wUI'·hur
36 CHAPTER ONE THE DAY-BOOK EXCERPTS: FIRST PART 37

enemy dead left on the battlefield shows that the affair was not what was later taken {by the king}216.from the estate properry qf
entirely a rout, and that the two armies did in fact engage, for how­ lied one which [was in Ya]no'am*, in Nugasa* and in Harenkaru, *
ever short a time. The number of horses is roughly twice the num­ pith the properry qf these cities which had sided with him, which was
ber of chariots, with about 200 left over as a reserve. 210 III (99) [ ... chiifs qf these towns, 3,' maryannu, ... Women qf that
The second part gives totals of the army's confiscation of live­ /IIII' together with the chiifs who were with him, ...; maryann]u belong­
stock. We have opted here for the view that this did not come from 111m, 38; children qf that doomed one and the chiifs who were with
a day-book entry, but was perhaps a composite of a treasury item rnaryannu 217 belonging to them,S; male and female ser­
with an estimate for sheep and goats. Evidence suggests (admittedly I'lvicing (tiftJ their children, 1,796; those who surrendered218
sparse) that army personnel were sometimes assigned the responsi­ 11~('t'ted from that doomed one through hunger, 103 men;
bility of driving captured livestock back to Egypt. 211 ,503. Not to mention-Gems and gold: plates, various vessels
An interesting observation may be derived from the chariot totals. I ... c. 1.80 m. , , , ,J; a large mixing-cauldron219 qf Human work­
The king of Kadesh and his army212 from the Orontes valley account I. (/II)S, plates, handled-cups,220 various drinking vessels, great cauldrons,22 1

for 893 chariots. To these must be added the chariot of the chief [+ x]; making 1,784 deben raw gold:222 found still being worked
of Megiddo and, to make up the grand total of 924, 30 additional rrq;lsmen and much raw silver: 966 deben, 1 kedet; Silver: statue qf
chariots now lost in the long lacuna. Since the chariot groups are I () I) [work" .. , which was in this town(?) , , , " 1;
identified by personal ownership, the lacuna by necessity must be
restored as above. Thus, excluding the Syrian component, Thutmose I/lW is at a lower plane on the surface of the wall and appears to be

claims to have faced the chief of Megiddo and 30 other chiefs, in I!IOII of an erasure. Could the original have been ~r-s3 nn, with nn being

I' hy illiterate hatchet-men for "Amun"? On the otller hand it might be a

sum 31 "kinglets." The total of joshua's conquests (Josh. 12:24) at

r ,!Ilralion by Thutmose himself to make plain royal agency and right of
once springs to mind. The tradition of the 31 conquered kings is J'I.ltion.
variously assigned dates and circumstances of origin, all the way from I III the derivation of maryannu from marya, "young man," with reference to a

pre-monarchic213 or Solomonic,214 to Post-exilic. 215 It is tempting to I (hariot-owning, "feudal" aristocrats, see C.H. Gordon, Ugaritic Textbook
11)65), no. 1551; M. Mayerhofer, Die Indo-Aryer im Alten Vorderasien (Wiesbaden,
entertain the suggestion that the Hebrew preserves a folkloric remenis­ Ib, 29; A. Kammenhuber, Die Arier im vorderen Orient (Heidelberg, 1968),
cence of the Megiddo coallition. • II. Reviv, "Some Comments on the Maryannu," IF] 22 (1972), 218-28;
/l1'~idlllngen, 4·83-85, 513; idem, "Marjannu," LrlA'III (1980), 1190-91; M.S.
I "Sy,-ia c. 1550 to 1400 B.C.," CAH II, I (1973), 494-95; G. Wilhelm, The
\'Varminster, 1989), 19; N.P. Lemche, The Canaanites and their Land (Sheffield),
II I I; P. Raulwing, Horses, Chariots and Indo-europeans (Budapest, 2000), 117­
'1Iit' the maryannu were free of taxes and could even engage in trade (Cf.
210 Ibid. I', Economic Structures if the Ancient Near East [London, 1985], 137), they were
211 Cf. Urk. TV, 1020:7-1021:10: "What the king's butler Nefer-peret brought off, \l'Il! to the palace: M. Heltzer, "Problems of the Social History of Syria in
while he was in His Majesty's suite in the land of Retenu: cattle of Djahy-4 cows; l..llll Bronze Age," in M. Liverani (ed), La Siria nel tardo bron::;o (Rome, 1969),
Egyptian cows-2; bul\(s)-I; total 7; bronze milk-jug-I-in order to deliver them 1'111' helps to explain their presence in this passage, functioning as assigned
to the (Thutmose III mortuary temple)." III I,ldies and children: cf. Hoch, Semitic Words, 135-37.
212 Mfcj !lsi of col. 97 (= Urk. IV, 664:1) must refer to the king of Kadesh. UIIIVw: Wb. "', 194-:12, in the sense of "one who has ceased from war, who
213 Y. Aharoni, The Land qf the Bible (London, 1979), 230-32 (toying with the pos­ 111,11' to terms": cr: PT I768c; H. Goedicke, JEA 46 (1960), 63; idem, Koenigliche
sible equation with the Canaanite coallition temp. Deborah); B. Halpern, The Emergence '11/\ dcm Alle/l Rrirh (Wicsbadcn, 1967); S. Farag, RdE 32 (1980), 75ff (15 + x).
qf Israel in Canaan (Chico, 1983), 83; cf. R.S. Hess, "Early Israel in Canaan," in H'li h, Srmitic I Vmd\, ~ 21' (no. 36).
V.P. Long, Israel's Past in Present Research (Winona Lake, 1999), 494. CIIII1!I' c!u ]\1.'snil c!u BliissOIl, f-l'J /10111.\ el jZlilleS egyptiens designant des vases ou
214 Cf. V. Fritz, "Die sogennante Liste der besiegten Koenige in Josua 12," <})PI' dl/lltl P,II is, '1):15), 101 5.
85 (1969), 136 61. !.'MI; \V Wesll'nc!1l1 C, Anl'/lIIh,',\ J1(I//(llwcrlnll/lrh (lI('i(klbcr~, 1977), 172. Probably
21'> J van Seters, In Search if llistory (New Haven, 1(83), 329; d. Idrm, ':JOSIIlIiI's ),.1 lur multi JlUIJ1Il!,I' IIlixilllo\hlml
CampaiR11 of Canaan and Near Eastern IlislOric)RI,lph} " ill I AlIll.l l'cI" IlIarl\ P(/\I i\'bw 11 1111' J I 'b. 1\ 'JIlO I Ill'll k, IIrlrhl/ll~l'/I, 100; R.O. FaulkJ,('r, A CO/lcir,
in P,rH'nl NrlflJrrh, 176 (c()l11parin~ Assyrian C<lIl1IM1i/1I IC'JIIIII ~,\,I',1111"11, "Thl' Iktii]1larJ tif ,III/MIt 11(1/1/:11 () fllld 1%' IIld III ,Ill unWll1 k.,c! st.lle, nllt 11('('­
COltcllll'~t 01 C'lIl,I,\I1," in I. Fil1k('I'II'ill, N 1\,1',,111.111 nil/, I'rom .VomMISIII III ,lIlmnlrll) klil\l·d II)' ~hllp('. UII gold \\ III ':dt 1lt\11 l.tI " III P " l'Whlll'Il11,
\\,,,hl1ll1ll1l1 1'1'1 I ')7'l 71 1,111' ,II tc I IlIl1dullll') llil, ,II/(ltlll lillIl/all ,1/ It ~ (1II1II1l1h,lI', :WOO IIII (i:',
38 CHAPTER ONE THE DAY-BOOK EXCERPTS: FIRST PART 39

Statue of that doomed one which was in it] its head being of gold <1> I,d name, presumably the same as is transcribed Ya-an-ba-mu; and
Staves with human headJ223 3 II ('west Semitic qyin is almost always rendered by c in Egyptian,23I
Ivory-ebo?ry-ssndm wood,224 worked with gold: root is clearly Ncm. 232
Chairs of that doomed one, 6
Footstools belonging to them, 6 1\

Ivory-ssndm wood: II' problem of this toponym centers upon whether or not it is to
&rotaUar0 6 equated with Nukhashshe in North Syria. 233 There are, however,
Ssndm wood-worked in gold with several gems: 'Ilc ulties with this view. 234 First, Nugas in the present passage is
A bed in the firm of a krkr225 of that doomed one, worked in gold all over; ,I to be a town, while Nukhashshe in north Syria is a district. 235
Ebony, worked in (102) gold: I (lnd, it is inconceivable that the region Nukhashshe, of infintely

A statue of that doomed one which was in it, its head of lafpis ... c. 85 lIn importance than a town in the Jordan valley, should have
em....] this [...] II relegated to second place in the list. And finally, it is clear that

Vessels of bronze Egyptians were able physically to pillage these three towns in
Much clothing belonging to that doomed one." first campaign, an impossible task if one of them lay 250 miles
lite north, in territory not to be reached by Thutmose for 11 years.
Yanocam 226 \ ould seem more appropriate to look for Nugas in the vicinity
Of those references the context of which serves to help locate this Yanucam, i.e. in the upper Jordan valley or in Transjordan. 236
site, EA 197:8 places it within the bailiwick of Biryawaza of Damascus; dnrtunately, the toponymy of this area as presently known,237 does
and the Kom el-Hisn text groups it with toponyms of the Damascus I nITer clear candidates;238 but one might note in passing the rel­
and Bashan regions. Several sites have been proposed, including Tell c' frequency of NI:IS in the onomasticon of Transjordan and the
el-Abeidiya,227 and Tell es-Shihab;228 but the old and tempting III Jimes. 239
identification with Tell en-Na'am,229 south-west of the Sea of Galilee,
has of late been revived. 230 The name seems to derive from a per­ I loch, Semitic Words, 413.
Not N/fM: T. Schneider, Asiatische Personnenamen in aegyptischen Q.!1ellen des Neuen
1'\ (Freiburg, 1992), 56.

(Jardiner, Onomastica I, 146*, 168*-71*; M.C. Astour, "Place Names from the
223 /fro; pet. The reference is to finials in the form of (aristocratic) human heads. ',110m of Alalakh in the North Syrian List of Thutmose III: A Study in Historical
224 Wh. IV, 279:7-9. A commodity highly prized by the Egyptians in foreign '''graphy,'' ]NES 22 (1963), 238; E. Edel, Die Ortsnamenlisten aus dem Totentempel
exactions (D.B. Redford, Egypt and Canaan in the New Kingdom [Beersheva, 1990], "//his III (Bonn, 1966), 4, 65; Heick, Beziehungen, 344; E. Morris, The Architecture
53-55), and widely used in costly furniture (Heick, Beziehungen, 397-98), even though pm'alism (PhD Dissertation, University of Pennsylvania, 2001), 120-21.
it sometimes came in the form of large beams (JJ. Janssen, Commodity Prices from ;f. Na'aman, TA 4, 171-2.
the Ramessid Period [Leiden, 1975], 373). Perhaps to be identified with boxwood: II. KJengel, Geschichte Syriens II, I, 18ff; idem, Syria, 3000-300 B.C. (Berlin,
R. Gale and others, "Wood," in Nicholson, Shaw (eds), Ancient Egyptian Materials and l"" 151-56; Astour, "The Partition of the Confederacy of Muhis-Nuhasse-Nii by
Technology, 337-338. 'pduliuma: a Study in the Political Geography of the Amarna Age," Orientalia
225 "Couch, divan": Hoch, Semitic Words, 333-35. 1%9),386 n. 1.
226 Sources in S. Ahituv, Canaanite Topo11:Jlms in Ancient Egyptian Documents (Beersheva, ~r. Na'aman, TA 4, 17lf; AJ. Spalinger, "The Historical Implications of the
1984), 198-200; the best discussion to date with complete references is in M.G. II ') Campaign of Amenophis II," ]SSEA 13 (1983), 99. Conceivably, Der Nahhas,
Hasel, Domination and Resistance, 146-5 I. ; III of Lud might also be a candidate: F.M. Abel, Geographie de La Palestine II (Paris,
227 Y. Aharoni, The Settlement if the Israelite Tribes in the Upper Galilee (jerusalelll, II 251; J. Simons, Geographical and Topographical Texts if the Old Testament (Leiden,
1958), 125fT. "I, st',. 322, 24.
228 N. Na'aman, "Yenocam," TA 4 (1977), 168 78. 'k,' S. Millrnann, Brilrdgr Zllr Siedlungs- und Territorialgeschichte des nordlichen
22'1 Sir A.II. Gardiner ,Allciell/ Egyplian Onomaslica (Oxford, 1(17), I, I 1(j*; M. NOlh, 1I/.1lalldtl (Wil'shad('n, 1970).
Zf)PI' 60 (I (53), 217; JA. Wilson, apud J. B. PI;lrh,ml, IlIrtmt Atar Fm/nll '1 t\/I III (MIl 11lC' plohl"1ll li,'s in thl' llll(·,'rtainty of the root: NI:IS, "bronze/ser­
Nrlll/1ll1f til 11/f Old "fI/amm/ (P,inrrlOn, I <)5 c), , ')37 n, I') ,\. All, M,III,\i/m//m :111 \. l\lt1l toll('ll, Ilrhml' 11/ 11\ 11"11 Smullr SfUillg I. a Comparative Lexicon [Leiden,
In/llullt, tin III/w\ !lmtl ~11I11I('h, I CJ:-ll)" I, 2,'i:1 11,1; IIII.:\.;, I/IV/hlfl '1 I. I'll. 1:17 ''I. )ill) 01' ~(;S, "P"'S~' ,ltl\C 111('( \" ,{lId '1.72 73).
, ILISI'I, "I' rtl I 17 'iO L. "'IWltit' I , \\' 1I,IIIIIII{'111111'1, lI,h'tl/ltl1f\ 111111 Ilrlllll/l/I/!Lfl /,ftilcoll <;1lI11 Allm
40 CHAPTER ONE THE DAY-BOOK EXCERPTS: FIRST PART 41

Harenkaru "chiefs of these towns, 3; maryannu ..." Sethe then continues, quite
As the present writer has pointed out elsewhere, it is difficult to plausibly, with [~mwt arw pf ~nc wrw nryw ~ncj. .. mryn]w etc. The
maintain the alleged identity of this place name with Hrkr (no. 101 \ho1e thus resolves itself into three subsections: the town chiefs and
in Thutmose Ill's list).24o One might be tempted, if the word under Ilcir maryannu, the wives and their maryannu and the children and
discussion is composite, to see the initial element preserved in Hauwar, Ilcir maryannu. Then comes the support staff and, anomalously,
Haluwe or Hawara in northern Transjordan. 241 What -kr would stand hose}Tom Megiddo who capitulated before the siege ended. 2. Bejewelled
for is anybody's guess. 242 Ildalware. There is significantly(?) no break-down by number of
l'I11S, only by weight (172.3 kg.). 3. Unworked gold and silver, again

All commentators have presumed that columns 99 to 102 243 com­ I koned by weight (87.9 kg.). 4. Two silver statues. 5. Three staves.

prise the list of personnel and goods confiscated from the three towns; Six ivory chairs with their footstools. 7. Six ivory offering tables.
and, with the excision of the passage describing those who volun­ One inlaid bed. 9. One ebony statue. [....] 10. Bronze vessels.
tarily surrendered,244 this undoubtedly is the case. It remains unclear, I Clothing. Items 2, 10 and 11 are unnumbered. This could mean
however, whether the towns themselves formed a sort of southern loll the composing scribe lacked specifics in the day-book he was
Herzogtum of the king of Kadesh. 245 The solution turns on the expres­ 111g" as a source, or that the items were inserted as "padding."
sion at pr n arw pf nry m + town name (col. 98): if the relative adjec­ \1 though the list ostensibly refers to the three towns, the items
tive resumes pr, "estate," then one can make the case for a kind of I not specified as coming from one or other of them. One is left
barony. But if, on the other hand, the antecedent is at, the text ponder whether the following numerical deductions inspire
could not be made to say that the tripolis itself constituted his fief, Ilfidence. After subtracting the 103 who capitulated, the total stands
but that only some of his moveable property was to be found there. 246 ),'1-00 neatly divisible by 3 to yield 800 from each town. Again:
The parallel of at n n3 n dmiw (Urk. IV, 665:3) supports the latter B7 children can be divided nicely by 3 into groups of 29, and
understanding, as it clearly distinguishes between the property of putative (though necessary) 474 lost in the lacuna reduces to 158
"these towns" themselves and that of Kadesh. I town. Two chairs, two footstools, one cane and an altar may
The personnel and goods in question break down under the fol­ .lpportioned to each of the three; and one statue per town is an
lowing heads. 1. Personnel. The long lacuna of col. 99 permits, nay 111.tlly obvious allotment. Are we confronted by a case of scribal
demands, the following restoration: wrw nw n3 n dmiw, 3; mrynw. .. " llll.\i ng"?247 Twenty years beyond the event were the real figures
ilolblc? The curious rat inyt ~r s3 {nn} which introduces the tally
Ighl indicate a later addition to the day-book source.
\\ l1ile it may be too daring to conceive of a Herzogtum on the
Testaments (Leiden, 1983), 652-53; J-T. Milik, J- Starcky in F.V. Winnett, W.L.
Reed, Ancient Records .from North Arabia (Toronto, 1970), 158 no. 112. )r the present pericope, the tally sheet makes eminent sense in
240 "A Bronze Age Itinerary in Transjordan," JSSEA 12 (1982), 63. I ()ntext of the coallition. The king of Kadesh and his cronies
24( Mittmann, op. cit., p. 32 (69), 66 (155), 127f (334).

242 Gal perhaps, meaning "heap, pile"? Or gur, "dwelling, store" or the like?
I ,elected this Tripolis in the upper Jordan Valley and western
243 Urk. IV, 665:5-667:7. Iloin as a haven for the camp-followers-wives, children, servants,
244 Urk. IV, 665: 11. Clearly the reference is to 103 men who fled the siege. illns, goldsmiths-while the confederated armies prepared to
245 As Heick, Beziehungen, 137. Less likely, it seems to me, would be property
1<:11 on Egypt. 248 As part of a diplomatic and cultic gesture, he
belonging to Megiddo, the chief of which is conspicuous by his absence through­
out most of the record: AJ. Spalinger, "From Local to Global: the Extension 01
an Egyptian Bureaucratic Term to the Empire," SAK 23 (1996), 353.
246 No real resolving of this problem is to be sought in the apparent masculine
form of IZQi: from Old Egyptian at has shown such all ambivall'nrl' (cr, E. Edl·l. 1"(1'111"_,,, III say. in light of the above, it is inadmissable to use these figures
Ilt(l'/[Vjitisc!" Cml/lllwtik [ IRome, 19551. ser, 351; (;.Irclllll" (1/'1111111111 we 92:2 auci i, fill pllpul.\lion (·sliIllOlll·S. as GOI'c!irke docs: The Battle qfMegiddo, 104-5.
ill l.lll· El\yptiall Illv surh .1 tl'llc!el1ry 1O\v<ucls fUI[IIIII\l1 Illl 1.. 1" III ronmlrr F jllU/,:C' II i, lll\lll 'lill~ III Ulltl IhOlI thc' tlll,1i or 1II(/1)'{/1111 II , viz. 43, exceeds the total
,Vr/lllrll)l/JIIIChf I Wil'slhlcll·u. I C)%I. 'J I'i II th,ll 1111 n{y 01 fI,!', IV, IIti~,: I Illuld .1 rnnrynl/l/ll rI,I'!.1I \!;ll,lklt ,lilllot lhi, til1ll' 31: DJ Wisrman, 171e A/alakit
C'l1811y I dn III hi .I~ 10 1....IIIIIlII. 1"',1: II I )'I<'~ llll~ II'JIII .1 III 1111 1IIf/r}'flllllll d.ISS in Ihl' lI-ipolis. or
42 CHAPTER ONE THE DAY-BOOK EXCERPTS: FIRST PART 43

had placed ex voto offerings in the local shrine(s), much as his con­ II' case in Egypt. 254 Quite clearly it became royal land, a status which
temporaries and perhaps he himself were doing at Qatna. 249 For l!larned in place throughout the period of the Egyptian empire. 255
their temerity in allowing themselves to be used by his arch enemy, I he amount of land which can be calculated to have produced this
Thutmose confiscated the cities of the tripolis for the estate of Arnun. 250 ,II harvest has been estimated at 50,000 dunams, or about 118 of
Ill' plain. 256 It may be noted, however, that if the total yield repre­
"Now the arable land was made into fields 251 and entrusted to con­ Ills the known Egyptian rate of 10 113r per arura (i.e. the contri­

trollers of the king's house 252 L.P.H., to reap their harvest. Tally of Ilion of tenant share-croppers), then we would be dealing with c.
the harvest which H.M. took from the fields of Megiddo: wheat f13r (lOa acres. 257 One final note: the cereal harvest falls in June in
207 ,300( + X),253 (103) not to mention what was cut in foraging by southern Levant,258 It would have been then that the army super­
His Majesty's army." ,c! the harvesting, very shortly after the siege began. The depri­
lion of the beleaguered coallition must have been devastating and
The arable land around and to the east of the town was thus orga­ III oralising.

nized into farms and administered by bailiffs, as would have been

EXCURSUS III: TOPONYM LISTS AND CITY DESTRUCTION

had the chief of Kadesh stripped the maryannu from his own city and obliged them
to accompany him on his march to Egypt?
249 J Bottero, "Les inventaires de Qatna," RA 43 (1949), 1-40, 137-215; idem,
II discussion of the sources for Thutmose Ill's First Campaign
"Autres textes de Qatna," RA 44 (1950), 105-22; on votive statues of kings and 1110t be considered complete without addressing the roster of places
their role in "Amorite" society, see W.W. Hallo, "Texts, Statues and the Cult of ,I.tims to have subverted. There has been a consensus for many
the Divine King," in Congress Volume. Jerusalem 1986 (VT Suppl. 40; Leiden, 1988),
liS that the toponym lists which the king had inscribed on the
62-64.
250 One wonders whether a place called Hekalayim (in the same region?) was II .lnd 7th pylons at Karnak259 constitute a vital source for West
confiscated also at this time for Amun. On the problems of location and associa­ I III demographics and the history of the Egyptian conquests dur­
tion, see R. Giveon, "Remarks on Some Egyptian Toponym Lists concerning
Canaan," in M. Gorg (ed), FSElmar Edel (Bamberg, 1979), 138-40. t 11(' 15th Cent. B.C.260 But the question is: how did the Egyptians
251 C&t, "field (for cultivation), fann": AH. Gardiner, The Wilbour Papyrus II (Oxford,
1948), 66-70; worked by chwt;yw, "farmers": S.L.D. Katary, Land Tenure in tJze Ramesside
Period (London, 1989), 11 and passim; idem, "Land Tenure in the New Kingdom:
the Role of Women Smallholders and the Military," in AK. Bowman, E. Rogan, Jlelck, Beziehungen, 391; S. Ahituv, "Economic Factors in the Egyptian Conquest
(eds), Agriculture in Egyptfrom Pharaonic to Modem Times (Oxford, 1999), 61-82. lIhlan," 1E] 28 (1978), 94. The field-administration here seems remarkably sim­
252 Rwdw, a broad designation for "controller, agent" (WO. II, 413: 12-26), one <I liial of kllO/o-land in Egypt: Katary, Land Tenure, 169-74.

who acts on behalf of another, almost "bailiff" in the context of land: AH. Gardiner, C'f. The discussion in N. Na'aman, "Pharaonic Lands in the Jezreel Valley
Ancient Egyptian Onomastica (Oxford, 1947), I, 32*; AG. McDowell, Jurisdiction in tJze h. I..lte Bronze Age," in M. Heltzel', E. Lipinski, Societ;y and Economy in the Eastern
Workmen's Communit;y of Deir el-Medina (Leiden, 1990), 59-65; D.A Warburton, State rlneall (Lcuven, 1988), 177-86
and Economy in Ancient Egypt (Fribourg, 1997), 19; B. Menu, Recherche sur l'histoire \hituv, op. cit., 98.
juridique, economique et sociale de l'ancien Egypte II (Cairo, 1998), 253-54; frequently C'J Eyre, "Village Economy in Pharaonic Egypt," in AK. Bowman, E. Rogan,
assigned to run farms both at home and abroad: Gardiner, Wilbour II, 21; KJU 1, '/lilt ill Egypt from Pharaonic to modern times (Oxford, 1999), 47.
52: 14; II, 333:3-4; LD III, 140c; they were also responsible for the produce and I{ I). Barnell, "From Arad to Carthage: Harvest Rites and Corn Dollies," in
storage: K1U II, 381-82; VII, 190:13, and ideally suited to the depots on military Illdill VOlUIIl8 (.Jerusalem, 1989), 3*.
transit corridors: Gardiner, The Royal Canon of Turin (Oxford, 1959), obv. 8, x+ 1 6; ",~I JI, 88(235), 167(497), 170(499).
(to create two types of controller is misleading hair-splitting: J-M. Kruchten, ~II' olmon~ others, W. Mueller, Die palaestinaliste Thutmosis'III, Leipzig, 1907;
"L'Evolution de la gestion dominiale sous Ie nouvel empire egyptien," in E. Lipinski II J)le a~IV'/J/ilchtll hl/en pala(SlinenJischer wzd syrisc!zer Orlsnamen, Leipzig, 1937;
(ed), State and Temple Economy in the Ancient Near Easl jLcuven, 19791,517 22). On <II", IllllldbooJ....fi}/ lite SllId)! o/llg)'/Jlifllz 'j o/JogralJltical Lists relating to Western Asia,
eXIJeditions dzevauc!zes in which the king absented himself, the purpose or which was I, 1'):17; E. I';,kl, J)/t (h/llllllllmlil/m 11111 dem 'j oltl/lem/Jel Amenoplzis 111, Bonn,
the acquisition of goods by rorcr, a rwdw might lead thl' aIm)' (,1.. IV, 1112:20. ,\ I (: III 10\, I II/II lIlrhwlJ:1'1I 'In h,nop,I)'111I1 \cltm lI'iet!rrp,ab( /Jala(.ltillisclzer OrLfIlamell,
For their costume, set· R.W. Smith, D.B. Redfmd III IJ..I/tlw/, 11111111 l'roll't1 I 1!171 R (;1\1'011, "OllSII,llIlI'lIliSlt II," !.tlJ IV l'lfl2), h21 22; D.B. Reclrord,
III/Iwi /)/1((1/'1'1/(1 Wallninsll'l, 11)77" pI. 'lO 'J:) pp. Illl 'I 111,' 1\L'.t 11I1I110II\ 1I1 1l,lIllll1d.1II 1\S/' I I') 1'!H'l" '1:-) 7,1 \\ilh lill't<ullIe
I hI hl!lIll t. ,tlnlll\' wholly nll'mll! ,II lilt' PrellC'lIl lUI II. :.1); S \1111\1\', Cannnmit loll(JnymJ .; ,\1. (,IIII' l/rolllli};,' {III ..;,n,~nd/ldlll dl'l
Ir,rulJ. \\'1I'.lIa<l'·II. I'III!I
 THE DAY-BOOK EXCERPTS: FIRST PART 45
44 CHAPTER ONE

come into possession of these names? The proto-syllabic orthogra­ to list places destroyed: the caption states otherwise m no
phy used to render the names into Egyptian26 1 is well-developed and !I terms. 266
displays a scribal confidence and fluency in dealing with the Canaanite ~I( l that in numerous cases sequences of names in the list
II kntified as lying upon transit corridors points the way to
language. The prima facie probability, therefore, is that the Egyptian
t plausible interpretation of Thutmose's toponym lists, viz. a
scribes knew of the names long before the campaign. They were not
IIlwn itineraries in Western Asia.
267 It was once thought that
simply heard by the recording scribe on the lips of the besieged
I I\cd from a distillation of the army "day_book,"268 but not
head-men as they emerged from the gate of Megiddo,262 or in the
II difficult to make any part of the list conform to a known
mouth of the dying as another fortified town crashed to ruin. That
the names represent districts, the late Middle Bronze Age polities of" Il\arch, but the very term "day-book of the army" does not
the Levant,263 has little to say for it. The lists show no signs of being III fact what we have in the inscriptions of pylons 6 and 7
organized along the lines required by political subdivisions, i.e. a \,;lllline "road-map," a list of itineraries well known to mer­
\11<1 emissary, transmogrified by Thutmose III into a plero­
hierarchical arrangement of towns; and the presence of natural fea­
tures (such as springs, valleys, mountains, wadys etc.) shows that the IlIl1lpendium of conquest. In typical Egyptian fashion the
11[" human settlements, best remembered in sequence, stands in
landscape was of more importance to the writer than political orga­
nization. By far the most implausible interpretation is that of a list hili of the total population at war with Egypt, and represented
270
II aosm by the besieged in Megiddo.

of towns assaulted, captured and destroyed by the Egyptian troops

on the march. 264 This has led, in the extreme, to actually pinpoint­ .,I'aman has rejected the author's contention that Thutmose Ill's

271
ing the time of destruction to the few days between the departure illi.tn list derives, at least in part, from itineraries. He claims
I (hat in our survey of the Via Traiana
272 we were assuming
from Gaza and the arrival at Yehem!265 If this were the case, not
I' set out to prove; "that no other Egyptian topographical list
only would Thutmose have displayed a skill in the rapid reduction
of fortified enclosures that deserted him completely at Megiddo, but
he would also have taken momentary leave of his senses by assault­
ing "mountain," "valley," "spring," "stream" and "wady"! In fact. , J.K. Hoffineier has pointed out: "Some Thoughts on William G. Dever's
I~h"yptian Destructions and the End of the Palestinian Middle Bronze Age,"
nowhere in the lists is there a statement or implication that the text ') 1990),84. Earlier (Levant 21 [19891, 185) he had drawn attention to the
IInllS of the verb (13~, "to plunder."
I' I kick, Beziehungen, 217ff; sources listed in n. 217 above.
I(llirord, Pharaonic King-lists, Annals and Daybooks (Mississauga, 1986), 122 n. 69

III < (·s of the discussion.

261 Cf. J. Roch, Semitic Words in Egyptian Texts, 487-512.

262 As Thutrnose Ill's superscription might be taken to imply: Urk. IV, 780.
Il ", 122 23.

~1 Corg (in "Kinza (Qadesch) in hieroglyphischen Namenslisten?" BN 44

263 S. Yeivin, JEA 36 (1950), 51ff; cf. The writer, J55EA 12, 59; Y. Aharolli,

M. Avi-Yonah, The MacMillan Bible Atlas (New York, 1968), 146, 152. I, .)'l 26) introduces K-n-1a(5)-t (no. 93) as a difficulty in my construing nos.
264 This contention has led to the toponym lists being used as a sort of colin' 10 1 ,IS ,l Transjordanian route, pointing out that 1 normally renders West Semitic
tion of "proof texts" to be held in reserve, as it were, to be appealed to in ordl'1 Ie 1.lds 10 note thal this is normal usage only when i or u vowels follow, and
1<1 haw chosen to ignore the well-attested use of 1 with following a vowel to
to "prove" that the Egyptians were responsible for the destruction of this or thaI
"'I' 111 Iloch, Semitic J Vords, 511 12). Thus *Gintat for no. 93 is obligatory. It
town: cf. among others, W.G. Dever, "The Middle Bronze Age: The Zenith of thl'
Urban Canaanite Era," BA 50 (1987), 175; idem, "Rurrian Incursions and thc End II :d"t) ill' poinled Ollt, (in anlicipalion of an article on the Tjekker to be pub­
of the Middle Bronze Age in Syria-Palestine: a Rejoinder to Nadav Na'aman," ill I 511<1Illy) that we do well to separale Oul in Egyptian scribal usage, those words
d llOlll We,t Sl'l11ilic; for when Ihey werc obliged to render non-Semitic,
L.R. Lesko (ed), Ancient Egyptian and Mediterranean Studies in lJorlOf if William A. II 11/1/
(Providence, 1998), 91-96 and passim. It is curious that the lists of pylons 6 and , 1''''IMl'an WOlds, difkn'l1l e'lllivalel1('('s apply. Thus, L is used for Wesl Semilic
(south), i.e. The "Palestinian" list, arc taken seriously by Dever, while the "SYI iall" Illltll'linK \~11o\l was hl',lld ,IS ,j laleral or ;lpproxil11anl sibilant.; bUl the same
u ,nl to l('IHIt'1 II~ dO/lhl, ,ound" in Ihi, l,ISI' lid + 1/<..
extension (pylon 7, north) is dismissed: "The Chronolo~ of SYI ia-I'"lestine ill Ihl
Second Millennium B.C.E.: A Review of Ihe Issues," H1SOR 2HH I <JlI2), II;
.J.K. Ilorrmeicr, IA'OI1I 22 (1990l, H5.
I" lilt 1lin 11,111' ,llld thl' 1'.lId of tltt l\lultllt' 111011/1' \~l' ill P,lIl'slim'," 1,(1'(1/11
I~'£11 ), 1111 n 7
lh~ Cf. nnw, HI 50, 17'i 7h; 1111'1//, In'll'" 1.:J. i1!)Il();, jll no, II, III
" 111<11111' j\II.<' 111I1t'1;1I)' ill 'l'llItUjlllt!;III,"' ).'\/<;.11 I~ (11)11'21, "~'I 71.
46 CHAPTER ONE THE DAY-BOOK EXCERPTS: FIRST PART 47

is drawn from an itinerary"; that certain of the sites identified have JH'rsonified representations brought forward for ceremonial execution,275
no LB I pottery; and that Pihil is not part of this section. In fact Illis is important, as Egyptian iconography could easily have pro­
none of the above constitutes a valid criticism. The point of depar­ c hlced a list of symbolized place-names, committed to physical destruc­
ture was the appearance of Edrei in position no. 91 of the Palestinian ()/I.276 But that template the Egyptians did not choose to use, and
list and Yaruta in no. 100, both to be identified with places in Ill' a very good reason: better to have a subverted community,

Transjordan, and the ensuing survey, based on the working hypoth­ It-prived of autonomous authority which can still produce for the
esis that the places between were in sequence. Such an hypothesis 1\ crlord, than an annihilated, ruined waste.

is by no means new: places from no. 57 to 71 do, in fact, make up While Thutmose's toponym lists do not, therefore, have any bear­
two sequences. Na'aman simply begs the question when he states Ilg on destruction levels in Palestinian sites, it is undeniable that
that no other toponym list is based on an itinerary.273 Anastasi I \lllnerous towns in the region were committed to destruction some­
proves that those scribes who needed to commit foreign place names IllC during LB I. The agent remains elusive and the debate promises
to memory did so in the sequence of an itinerary; and the inclusion Il' cxpected acrimony.277 Without trying to identify the former at

in Thutmose Ill's list of terms for land formations and water only liS juncture, I should like to offer some observations regarding the

makes sense if the whole is cobbled together from a set of itiner­ II/Instances under which ancient cities were destroyed.
aries; for such generic designations function solely as directional or "he phenomenon of a 20th Cent. mechanized army effecting the
locational indicators for the traveller. The objection relating to a dis­ I ,( ruction of urban areas in street and house-to-house fighting has
connect between ceramic survey and toponymic evidence carries no ('rrised a certain influence on the minds of some ancient histori­
weight. The list encompasses places, not necessarily settlements. There IS faced with the need to explain destruction levels. While there
are, moreover, too many examples of surface surveys deceiving later I ccrtainly cases in antiquity in which determined resistence by
excavators with assertions of the absence of certain periods at a site. knders necessitated house-to-house fighting, in the main the set­
As for Na'aman's own explanation of the origins of the lists, it seems Illcnts in question were large and qualified for the appelative "city"
to be offered in the reference to "the principle (sic) of 'main force ('VelY sense. Destruction levels are viewed, more often than not,

plus flying column'" or simply "haphazard order"; (are not the two 1he immediate result of an assault on the city by shock-troops
mutually exclusive?). While the latter is little more than a counsel cI sappers who, in the heat of the fray, undermine foundations,
of despair, the former is based on the untenable assumption that the 1l1OIish walls and round up captives before marching on to the
list derives from an army day-book. Since the latter is a figment of I fortification. The suspicions created by the stratigraphic record­
the imagination, the document in question being the "day-book of 1 (. are seldom texts to verify the hunches
278-suggest an army of
the king's-house,"274 we ought to address the rationale behind its 'Ical proportions with equipment for assault and siege.
composition. And it is easy to demonstrate that the recording scribe I lilly in part are these suspicions confirmed. For the Archaic Period
stayed with the king and recorded his movements, not those of some c I Old Kingdom plenty of graphic evidence exists showing the
279
putative "flying column." l "111(1' down of the mud-brick walls of cities under assault. The

In subsequent reigns, with significant exceptions (e.g. Amenophis Ill, Il.S. Hall, TIle Pharaoh Smites his Enemies (Munich, 1986), 17ff, figs. 28, 29, 45,
Sheshonq I), it was the list as conquest-symbol that dominated iLs lid /lalsim; A.R. Schulman, Ceremoniat Execution and Pubtic Rewards (Freiburg, 1988),
usage. It is thus often included with the head-smiting scene (already
IlIc- "City Palette" and the Ramesside representations on Karnak south wall
under Thutmose III himself) in which onc is Lo uncicrsLand Lhc 1\ Ic' ,mel the Ramesseum pylon are precisely lists of symbolized destruction.
~I'C' Iwlow, n. 295.
\l1d ('Vl'1l wlU'11 t11c'I(' an', tlU' 1)(',lI'ill~ of the textual evidence on the archae­
m Dcws 11(' otherwise' explain the IH"iplus of A('~(·.l1l c I\(('~ ill till' Kwn (·J·llosli i, lIllt'lI (·Cjuj\,()(.d: l'l. Tllc' apt 1C'I1l<trk~ or A. .lorn" review or S. Forsberg,
Ic"<ts: E. I':del, J)" Ortl/lllmmllltl'll
1111\ tll'IIl '11I/fII/rlll/,-1 I, 1/,1 1/1 Ill/II II. fl)flh n~l/lIlIlw/l 1)11/11111', III .7tyj.\ (ilJ 12lJO 1" 21 B I I).
I Rrdlmd, Pllt/ratlll/e II/IW iiI/I. fl/I/II" I/I/(/ f),/y book" I c' Y. Yildm, IIII' 1~1l11l'\1 R"I"C'I,llIllllClI1 III a Sil'l\l' S((·IIC· ... 110 '1'2 lll)72),
48 CHAPTER ONE THE DAY-BOOK EXCERPTS: FIRST PART 49

verbs for such action, b3 and ab3, are often used in passages pro­ Now, apart from the military skill required, successful assault on
viding word pictures of the actions denoted, and clearly indicate the I fortification requires optimal conditions. First, the place under

demolition of mud-brick structures with hoes. 28o New siege techniques, I t lack must be relatively small, moderately fortified, sited in acces­

however, developed in Mesopotamia in the late 3rd and early 2nd I hie terrain and manned by a minimum number of troops. Any

Millennia B.C., spurred on the development of more massive and I.lrge city, the defences of which show strategic planning on a large
intricate circumvallations to provide against siege towers (dimtu) and I ,tic, will be very difficult to carry. Even in classical times the addi­

battering-rams (iiisibu).281 In the Egyptian sphere of influence these lOll of rams and artillery to the weaponry of both attackers and

reached a peak of perfection during MB III in Palestine where they it'lcnders did not appreciably speed up the siege. 285 Strongly fortified
are associated with the new cultural influences and, by inference, Jl ies manned by resolute defenders might well require months to
later with the Hyksos. It is these that, in many cases, suffered destruc­ 1 duce.
286 Second, the attacking force must enjoy a substantial supe­
tion in the interface between MB III and LB IA.282 Evidence exists l'llI'ity in numbers, and outclass the defenders in quality of equip­
from Ramesside times and later, both graphic and textual, demon­ 1l'1lt.
287 And third, no "relief force" should be in the vicinity. The
strating the capability of the Egyptian armed forces at that time to I (lSpect, or even suspicion, of the presence of a large enemy army

mount successful assaults on cities through bombardment, sapping Ililin easy reach of the town under assault, is sufficient reason to
and scaling. 283 But for the early 18th Dynasty all the evidence points III off the attack.
to a woeful lack of expertise in "poliorketic" warfare. 284 ()n several occasions in Egyptian history the conditions adum­
l.tled above may be inferred, but not in the aftermath to the Battle
~lcgiddo. The enemy coallition, though deprived of much of its
89; A.R. Schulman, "Siege Warfare in Pharaonic Egypt," Natural History 73 no. 3 11 lament, remained intact within the walls of the city. Moreover,
(March, 1974), 13-23; D.B. Redford, "Egypt and Western Asia in the Old Kingdom,"
It Egyptians could not be sure that a relief force might not be lurk-
JARGE 23 (1986), 125-44.
280 Wh. I, 415:13-17; 111,253:2-11; W. Heick, Die "Admonitions". Pap. Ieiden J somewhere in Lebanon or southern Syria, or that one might not
344 recto (Wiesbaden, 1995), 10-11 (of cities and townships); IT 1837a-b (of fortresses); I dy be recruited. Thutmose therefore had limited tactical options.
Weny 21ff (region); Palermo Stone obv. Iii. 10; v.8; vi.2 (city); S. Farag, RdE 32
(1980), 75ff (8+x[region], 16+x[cities]); Kamose I, 14 (fort); II, 12 (domicile).
11' forces, in both equipment and training, were capable of only
281 CAD III (Chicago, 1959), 145. Tel Hebwa and other east Delta centers mighl ylllg rormal siege to a town in the hope of starving out the defend­
once have revealed examples of the new architecture; but it is ironic that today the 1'1, Il would be folly to contemplate fragmenting his forces by send­
best preserved fortifications of this type are in Middle Kingdom Nubia (where such
sophisticated defensive works certainly were not needed: AW. Lawrence, "Ancient if Illimerous detachments hither and yon to assault and destroy
Egyptian Fortifications," JEA 51 (1965), 69-94; A Vila, "L'armement de la forter­ hi town and that. Even if a town opened its gates and surrendered,
esse de Mirgissa-Iken," RdE 22 (1970), 171-99; W.B. Emery and others, Buhen. 77/1 l( .tclual destruction would take much time to prepare and would
Archaeological Report, London, 1979; R.G. Morkot, The Black Pharaohs. Egypt's Nubilill
Rulers (London, 2000), 56-58; AL. Foster, "Forts and Garrisons," in D.B. Redfol d h.t liSt materieI,288
(ed), The O:ifOrd Encylcopaedia if Ancient Egypt (New York, 2001), I, 554-56.
282 Useful lists in j, Weinstein, "The Egyptian Empire in Palestine: a Re-asse,;,;
ment," BASOR 241 (1981), 1-28; W.G. Dever, "Relations between Syria-PaleslilH
and Egypt in the Hyksos Period," in j,N. Tubb (ed), Palestine in the Bronze and !lOll
Ages (London, 1985), 71-72 (and the extensive bibliography); cf. also AF. Raim'} II... of the investments of Avaris and Sharuhen shed light on why from Amenophis
"Egyptian Military Inscriptions and some Historical Implications," JAOS 107 (1987 Il.ltshcpsut there are few if any references to assaults on cities in the context
89-92; Dever, "The Chronology of Syria-Palestine in the 2nd Millennium B.C.!': n'I' 1j.\11 warfare. The Egyptians knew their limitations, and simply shied away
A Review of Current Issues," BASOR 288 (1992), 15; N. Na'aman, "The J]un-iall 'i ,lit h venlures
and the End of the Middle Bronze Age in Palestine," Levant 26 (1994), 175 87. I I:. Winter, Greek Fortifications Toronto, 1971), 156-57; 217-18; 313 and passim.
28, Sec the useful review of the Icxikon in M.e. Ilas"l, /)ominotioll and Relil/l'l/( (f \kxandcr at Tyrc: Arrian ii.19 24; Diodorus xvii.46 (7 months); at Gaza:
IIgyptian Military Activi?J ill the SOllthem Ifl}{/III 1300 / /85 B.C:. !..eiclen, 1998),28 IHI .i Ii 17 (2 mOlllhs).
also O. Keel, "Kanaan[iisrll(' SOhncrilen auf i\egyp!i\clwl1 1\'IlI\ll'ltt'111 f~," 1"1 2.1 11)7 ~l 11.1, t'Ol1ditiol1 ,lppli('c1 in Ill(' li/<\hlening allaeks of Alexander in the East:
11311; JB. PI ill'harcl, 'Ilie ,fllllflli Neill' hrlll 1/1 Hrlrnn PIIII( 1"11111 I l}(iC)" fillS. 'I:.! I, I 1\ 'I I, \ '} I l'tl'
I'll), 'riO. 3'11, 'III Ill' I' ~loI11t'I, PIIII/lrlllifl I iI,ml, IU.')!" p. i-I I III -n I1fl. n,\): I) II (,onloll 1111" :ll1d Swotd 111<' 'II·chl1iqlle of \)",;ltUrlion," Anliqui!y 27
\ (' (.IlIl1;t! IJI Sid, Imlllili/ltilt dr I'I (tll/IJO I ( III", 11)111\, pp. '17, 'l'i (ol~. :lll, 1:.1 , Ill) ',') \\ ( •. 1'.aal, '11" /)",1111,1/(/" of (W.. ", I/,i/'Inrrlllrlll/ 1,I1IIt/1, Oxrord,
I... P II 1\.1 III 1", '/1/ SllJ!f II fIIl,lI' (1IIo"l1l1l1llloll, 1111111\ 211 'J III' illll'lll1ll1,II,1t
50 CHAPTER ONE THE DAY-BOOK EXCERPTS: FIRST PART 51

Nowhere in the voluminous records of the first campaign is there I\J amIot, before he goes off to participate in the siege of Hermopolis,
the slightest allusion to destroying cities. The day-book excerpts in destroys the walls of his own city to prevent it being occupied while
296
subsequent campaigns in fact demonstrate that such destruction did he is absent, and used against him on his return. More common
not happen in the vast majority of cases. The "destruction" (skij28') was the methodical demolition of fortifications, either by the victor
meted out to cities is specified as the destruction of crops and the or the defeated at his command, after the battle was won and the
demolition of orchards,290 and very rarely the razing of hamlets.29I lily captured. 297 In fact, in the superscription to the toponym list of
While such action had a deleterious effect on the economic prospects pylon 6, the removal of the conquered to Egypt is pursuant to the
and business life of a community,292 the city itself remains intact and demolition of their cities. 298
not subverted by the invaders. Often the texts use ~3~, "plunder":
the picture this verb sketches is that of the Egyptian army march­ The Lists qf Years 40 and 24
ing into a town intimidated into opening its gates and taking whal
they want. 293 But the texts do not say or imply that the towns were ., .... c. 1.10 m.....] the chiefs of Retenu in regnal year 40.
destroyed. In those rare cases in which fortified towns were assaulted,
/Imevolence qf the chiif qf As.ryria:
the event is singular enough to be noted: Amenemheb comments on Making 20 deben, 9 kidet
true lapis lazuli,299 1 large block,
(only!) two in his long, quarter-century career! In most cases-Aleppo Total 3
true lapis, 2 blocks,
and Carchemish on the 8th campaign,294 Kadesh and Tunip on oth­ Making] 30 [de]ben
pul[verized(?pOO
ers-the well-defended strongholds simply sat out the siege and defied 50 deben, 9 kidet 30'
Total,
the attackers. To ascribe, then, the MB III/LBIA destruction levels 3 lumps
Fine lapis qf Babylon,
to assaults of Egyptian forces while on the march is most unlikely (/ [ 1
As.ryrian vessels qf variegated colof302
priori, and is supported by not a single item of evidence.
[...] (104) very many [...]
There is, however, another agent (with a clear motive) involved
in city destruction, and that is the population itself, either acting
with an eye to self interest, or at the command of a conqueror?'
Piankhy I. 7; Grimal, Stel.e triomphale, 18.
Well known from the 3rd Millennium on: D.R. Frayne, Royal Inscriptions rif
"/HI/amia. Earfy Periods II. Sargonic and Gutian Periods (Toronto, 1993), passim; H. Tadmor,
289 M.G. Hasel, Domination and Resistence, 75-6; 251-2. II/Icriptions rif Tzglath-pil.eser III, King rif As.ryria (Jerusalem, 1994), passim; cf. also
290 Urk. IV, 687:5, 689:14 (Ardata), 689:8 (Kadesh), 689:13 (Sumur), 716:14 (temll "-"IRs 14: 13; 25:8-10; Neh. 6:6 (rebellion equated with walling a city).
in Nukhashshe), 729:13 (territory of a city), 729:15 (Tunip), 1231:14-16. I!rk. IV, 780:7. Cf. E. Feucht, "Kinder fremder Volker in Aegypten," SAX 17
291 Urk. IV, 697:8, 1231:7 (hb3), 1302:2 (b3). "Il)), 191 and n. 45.
292 S.W. Cole, "The Destruction of Orchards in Assyrian Warfare," in S. Parpol., On lapis, see J.R. Harris, Lexicographical Studies on Ancient Egyptian Minerals (Berlin,
(ed), As.ryria 1995 (Helsinki, 1995), 29-40; B. Oded, "Cutting Down Orchard, III .I, 124-29; A. Lucas, J.R. Harris, Ancient Egyptian Materials and Industries (London,
Assyrian Royal Inscriptions,-the Historiographical Aspect," ]AC 12 (1997), ~l:l II 1.1 198 200; S. Aufrere, L'Univers mineral dans la pensee egyptienne II (Cairo, 1991),
M.G. Hasel, "A Textual and Iconographic Note on prt and mnt in Egyptian M ilit",\ [1'i; B. Aston and others, in Nicholson, Shaw (eds), Ancient Egyptian Materials and
Accounts," GM 167 (1998), 61-9; R. Westbrook, "Social Justice and Cr('all\1 "logy (Cambridge, 2000), 39-40. See also A. Shortland, "Social Influences on
Jurisprudence in Late Bronze Age Syria," ]ESHO 44 (2001), 31. Il,'vclopment and Spread of Glass Technology," in A. Shortland (ed), TIle Social
293 Urk. IV, 697:7, 704:5-7, 730:12, 1236:6, 1303:15, 1305:18, 1308:5, 1·11:2'1 •• vr
\1 Technological Change. Egypt and the Near East 1650-1550 B.G. (Oxford, 2001),
and passim. II.
29< KJengel, Geschichte !iJriens I, 38, I 82f. IllIt cf. ibid., III.
295 For the reduction of sites in Late Bronze Age Palestinc and their ('OlllTl1l1l1 CI. 25 kg.

tion in valleys and on the coast, see T.L. Thompson, '[he Sel/ltlllfllt r!/ Paleltm, 1/1 It is tempting to idcntify this with the polychrome "Nuzi-ware" (so-called),

Bronze Age (Wiesbaden, 1979), 59; I. Finkelsteill, "The SOl iopolitical 0, gallll.;lIlClIl 1.11 ,ll this time from ('ast of the Tigris to North Syria: D.L. Stein, "Khabur­

of the Central Hill Country in the S('cond Millennium H C.I':.... ill Ihbllml lulm Ilid Nu"i W,m': Iheir ()I ig-in, Relationship and Significance," Assur 4.1 (1984),

Today 1990 (jerusalem, 1993" 122; S. BlIllill1ll\ 1\1., "Tltc C:h,ln~lIllo! Shall" 01 JlClW I A Nl1/i," ill I~.M. l'vh'y<'l's (I'd, ·nte O~ford Hncyc!opedia rif Arclzaeology in

in Bron"e A~e' Callaan," IIi/d., I!J; \. Sh.l\ll 'l,·ttllllll·l1t Jl,II11'lllS III till' A~'l\I(J1l 1,1\/1\ [\,c'\\ YIlIk, 11)1)7'1, 171 SC't· .1i'"1 (; Wilhelm, 'lite IIl/mOIlI (Warminster,
Vall,')- ill Ih,' HIOIlIl' alld h IJl\ I\!!"~ l i n ~:.!()()()J. :.! II 1:1 fill J.7 II.
 52 CHAPTER ONE THE DAY-BOOK EXCERPTS: FIRST PART 53

Benevolences if the chiifS if Retenu: I'he lacunae in these columns are particularly distressing, in that
- a Chiif's daughter (with) ...
Illcy conceal the crux of several problems, The lacuna in col. 103,
{her] jewellery if gold and her native lapis,
('xeluding the partly preserved standing-chief figure, measures approx­
[attend]ants, [per]sonal servants,
II\lately 1.10 m., or enough to accomodate 14 groups. The gap is
[male and female slaves be]longing to her, 30
Iinrortunate, as within it the long account of the first campaign ends,
male and female slaves if his benevolence 65
Illd a new section begins. Sethe's restoration, viz. "[Tally of the
[horses] 124
1H'l1evolences brought to the Might of His Majesty by the chJiefs in
chariots worked in gold, with a pole
'('gnal year 40" yields an anomalous word order. Elsewhere in the
(overlaid with) gold, 5
\nl1als the regnal year always comes first, and is followed by the
chariots worked in gold, with a pole
I,lily of the benevolences etc." A firtiori one might argue for a
(overlaid with) antimony paste(?Y03 5
Ilm'rent restoration, one in which the notions of introduction and expla-
Total, 10
Ilion take precedence in the scribe's purpose; but it is difficult to
Oxen(?) And short-horns 45
I I onstruct specific phrases.
3lo
Bulls 749 I'he date31I itself should have occasioned more concern among
[Sheep 5,603 lI1\tnrians. Most ignore the problem. 312 Some reconstructions are
Gold, (in the firm if) dishes J l'llloostrably wrong. 313 Long ago Breasted tried to come to grips
(l 05) weight not recorded30 4 wi lit the problem by emending "40" to "24" thus creating two benev­
Silver, (in the firm qf) dishes and sheet-(silver) Deben 104, 5 kedet II lice lists for the same year. 314 The writing of the numeral "40,"
Gold, an axe inlaid with lapis, 111\\ ever, is not at all similar in the present passage to the arrange­
Bronze, harness inlaid with gold, horse's bridle305 [ ]306 I III of digits in "24", and by reason of the same kind of dissimi­

(l06) Incense3° 7 823 jars Illy it is unconvincing to argue that a hieratic numeral may have
Honryed wine 1718 jars , I \ misread.
Antimorry: wood (overlaid with?) antimony; much pigment; ivory, boxwood, "It(' tcxt itself, at the point where the campaign of year 40 would
mrw-wood 308 psg-wood,309 bundles if sticks, and marry fire-drills----all the fine I xpccted, is sadly broken. It is true that Breasted restored a 15th

products if this fireign land [.... c. 3.20 m.....J IlIJlaign at this point, but on very tenuous evidence. Breasted makes
(107) to every place His Majesty journeyed, where camp was ICIng lacuna which apparently ends with the words sp snw315 (East
pitched." north wing of pylon 6), the beginning of the 16th campaign;
1It1" thc 15th campaign he relegates to the first four columns of the
11\1 pylon. This reconstruction is unlikely, since the 14th campaign
303 Cgt: see J1!b. I, 235:6 (costly wood from Assyria-yet neither occurrence names
Asshur directly); see Harris, Lexicographical Studies, 63 (suggesting a loan word). One
thinks of Akkadian egu, "antimony paste": CAD IV, 47.
304 A scribal entry in the daybook stating that the figure was never entered, pre­ (),ll' l11ip;ht reasonably argue for the presence of such phrases as r rdit rb, "to
sumably for the weight of the gold dishes. II • f..-y bl3 rdi.1l II IlmJ itJ Imn m-c wrw etc. "another wonder his father Amun
305 Read s~nw [n](?)htr; (the horse's head is discernible). Probably derive from s(m ,'Id UpOI1 II.M. through] the chiefs of Retenu in regnal year 40."
"to control, pull back, restrain" (Wb. IV, 218-19). 'rill' I\TOLIP is wriuen no dilTerently than any other calendric of this sort in
306 The rest of the column, c. 3.20 m., is wholly lost. Sethe, possibly correctly, hI' 1(' addressed, and can be translated in no other way than "regnal year."
t
restores charioteer's accoutrements: armor, quiver, arrows. \ (tl! exal11plt', l\LS. Drower (CAll II, I, 458) who denies records exist for
307 See V. Loret, La Resin de tMbirtt (sontez) chez les anciens Egyptirns (Cairo, 1949), q h )'(',11; rl'. E. t-.leyer, C'eschic!tle des ALlertlims II, 1 (Stuttgart, 1928), 130.
20 23. (~L :-.. (;rirnal •. 1 Illliory q!.lnciCll/ !'.foipt (Oxford 1992).214 (3 campaigns up
'lOB Scc below, pt. II, p. 27 n. 63.
I).
,w, Cr: I kick, Bf<:.iflllll/~fll, 398, 153 11. 56; rf. AI~o /11.1:. fiOIlH' killd of (;,IlI11('Il( ill Inorlll Rnll/llIl!/I'.gl/IIIlIChir,lgll I~)(li. 191 11. a; rf. Sethe's riposte in
l'~ilJili( (;01 <!Oll. l~l/l/llr 'If\/hollA, IlO. 201(); fill( \\llIllklft "hetlwr \111 .1 illl ('1101. • ••7'2 7:1.
d I loll, (.(//IfIII/III, /I 'mil. I'z'i ')1 110. 1'l7 \\',fllIl/ly 1I11c11'llll11lld hy hilll ." "1\\1' IlIlll~": II/I. til.• ~I'(", :','2 I
54 CHAPTER ONE THE DAY-BOOK EXCERPTS: FIRST PART 55

would conclude on the north wall of the fore-hall with the account I Year 24: Tally if the benevolences brought to the might qf His Majesry
of the supplying of the harbours, a pericope which in other cam­ (()untry qf Retenu:
paign accounts is followed by the Nubian tribute lists. But columns III/Ievolence qf the chiif qf As.ryria: [ c. 3.45 m ]320
1 to 4 on the pylon constitute precisely such a list! Obviously then, I bands qf qualiry calj(?) leathe?21 for a chariot on wooden finials;
as Sethe has clearly seen,316 columns 1 to 4 are the conclusion to II ilLow,322 192 mkrywt-partp3 [.... c. 3.55 m.....]
the 14th campaign in year 39. Thus the text of the day-book excerpts I I... 12 cm....] yokes, 343; boxwood, 50; mmJ-wood, 190;
HHI,324 kanaktu-oil(?j325 206; moringa
326 [...], vessels [.... c. 3.55
on the pylon skips year 40, the reason undoubtedly being that men­
tion of it had already been made. I
Why the "campaign" of year 40 was included immediately fol­ \(Y I ... 13 cm....] 1,552 (+ x), kdt- 327 sticks (?), 20; nri-wood
lowing the account of the first campaign, is difficult to explain. It is '\0 cm....] various [woods], 363 (+ x); willow (?) various
clear from its content that the first part of the published day-book I , or sticks], 5,000 (+ x) [ ... c. 3.60 m....]"

excerpt, on the south wall of the Hatshepsut block north of the bar­
que shrine, was intended to be a lengthy, narrative account devoted olumns conclude the text on the north wall of the inner
I

to the Megiddo campaign. Unintended column space at the end 01 I\Otyaround the barque-shrine. Once again it is the specific
the embellished account made it feasible to continue, and logically, "I these columns that constitutes the crux interpretum. Whatever
with the ifftct of the victory: now, pursuant to the noising abroad 01 Ill) ror its being "pre-empted" by the excerpt from year 40,

Pharaoh's mighty deeds, awe of him (ifytf) reaches the ends of the ( "regnal year 24" cannot be gainsaid (see above): we are,
world. To illustrate this, material is taken from events of the most ( (In fronted in this section by a record of income from Syria

recent year, 40, which would then become, ex hypothesi, the date of I r!fler the close of the first campaign.
the inscripturation of the first part of the excerpts. The hypothesis Illlipation of the historical analysis, it is important to note
of an illustrative selection to explain the contents of col. 103 to lOb H{m ing. First, as will be demonstrated below, the phrase br
finds support in the initial phrases of col. 107: r st nb nt pilr.n b17lj indicates the presence of the king in the Levant; it is not
imJ m i3m. Sethe's ingenious, but highly probable, restoration (ist wn ,f \)enevolences brought from Retenu. Second, the presence
nw Rtnw317 br j3t at nbt rifrt)318 simply bolsters the case for a generit 110m Assyria raises the interesting possibility that years 40
328
description which has all the earmarks of a concluding statement. All I \\(:re juxtaposed because of the identity of the source.
the manufactured items and foodstuffs, of which examples have just
been given, were borne-"yearly" (r tnw mpt) might well have been
I .srlhe saw (Urk. 671: 9 and n. "b-c") is now no longer present.
present!-by the foreign chiefs to wherever His Majesty chose to sct Il'h. 11,131:11; possibly to be derived from West Sem. MH(H), "failing":
up his camp. 319 II 11.\. lJ tner, Hebraisch und Aramiiisches Lexikon . .., II, 537; Murtonen, Hebrew
lillie Selling I, Ba, 216. One wonders whether the word has anything
~, "band," Janssen, Commodity Prices, 289.
{ it 1111('1, UnlerJudwngen fiber ArzneimittelpJlanzen im Allen Aegyplen (Hamburg,
Ill. Sali, .lUb,wrmla: N. Baum, Arbres el arbustes de l'Egypte ancienne (Leuven,
i
11lp~ CI. CT V, 74t; D. van cler Plas, J,F. Borghouts, Cr!fJin Texts Word
! l'II)B), 133.
" cil, 177 7B.
Ill, I'h %.
;1 12()
316 Urk. IV, 724; and see below. . (// ·fl7. Itnllll, (III Clt., 'W 1.
317 This is the only modificalion I would make: S(,tlH' ilppl',US to 1)(' tl'Y1l1l1 II Ihi, It'il II' <llllllIl tht' \\.IY in \\hidl th(' ,\(,(,oullling' was dOlle? Did
link the scntence spccifically with the year 10 ('Iltry. (1)11111 iU \\111 ,h dal(' 111111 C<ll1lp,ll!{ll' Sholild W( !l0sllIlal(' .l11olhel
'1111 [Irk. IV, 671 :3, Ul'f.1' III ",hidl dah' lllle! ('lIklllhil:l\ (l'lke! pi,\( C' .h a I I il('1 iOIl to W'O
11'1 Sec Itlllh('1 Iwlow So\' "AlitI'!' ,
56 CHAPTER ONE

Third, and of the greatest importance: there is no reason to think

that one or two additional year dates were not once present in the
text at this point. In fact just before the lacuna in col. 109 the pres­ CHAPTER TWO
ence of "vessels" suggests the summation entries that usually bring a
year-section to an end. THE DAY-BOOK EXCERPTS: SECOND PART

I Iil' second part of the Day-book excerpts is to be found in Room

VA at Karnak. I The columns run, as they did in the first part,
<1111 east to west along the south face of the north wall, and north­
Illlh along the east face of the northern massif of the 6th pylon.
11(' same face of the south massif was reserved for a related text,
a speech by the king listing benefactions to the gods, especially
2
1111111. What inscription occupied the south wall of the room is
I Ik Ilown, although the king's speech clearly began somewhere along
II wall.
I here are some unanswered questions relating to the format and
I I' ioning of this second part of the excerpts. In particular were
I, climensions of room y3 decided upon first, and the inscriptions
Iliposed and formatted at a later date? This might provide an
plallation for a degree of compression and foreshortening of the
I look text, the absence of campaigns three and four and the
, . . pcctedly short account of the 6th campaign (year 30).4 The space
,t1,tble, it might be argued, could not be increased. But when was
(lth pylon built, and with it the peripheral shrines and the
II' ( hamber (Y)? If we assign an early date, say year 24, which has
11 ~enerally accepted since Borchardt,
5
we would have also to
'pI the corollary that for 18 years the surface remained undec­
l('el!G The assumption that the first building phase of Thutmose
L "Ild with it pylon 6, was undertaken in anticipation of the first

,\I \zi 111 and others, Karnak et sa topographie. 1. Les releves modemes du temple d'Amon­
/984 (Paris, 1998), 137.
" Ill'low, pp. 137fT.
I Ill' present barque-shrine of Philip Arrhidaeus is larger than that of Thutmose
i d Ilatslwpsut's "Red Chapel" which preceded it, and has destroyed the sym­
"I IOClIl1 V: P.F. Dorman, TIle !v[olll1ments if Senenml1t (London, 1988), 59.
I bilow, p. fiH,

IJ(I/I~r.\d/l(h(r dtl ,111111111((11//1,11 11111 !(nmak (liilcksheim, 1905), 22.

'
Ii 11iI 1 mltltl1n of' I Ill' d'lyllllnk ('"n'rpls 1IlH'C]lIivocally assiWls a elale of year
thl' il1'lIlJlIIllII: (,I, 1\ n 1 ) I \\ nh lill 11l'( ('ssaty ('llll'nd"liol1 '.
58 CHAPTER TWO THE DAY-BOOK EXCERPTS: SECOND PART 59

jubilee, rests on rather shaky ground. The usual schema as well as benevolences received, however, conforms precisely to what is expected
the degree to which the jubilees were celebrated, conflicts with the of the journal of the king's house. 13
size and intensity of the foreign campaigns which drew out of Egypt An explanation of the conundrum implicit in the preceding para­
the manpower needed for building operations. 7 The construction of graph might be found in the postulate of an intermediary stage of
the Akh-menu between years 24 and 30 cannot be denied, but was recording, between the original (and voluminous!) day-book and the
anything else built during this period? published inscription. Perhaps in anticipation of an inscription on a
The general plan and aspect of the central part of Karnak today wall, some master-scribe will have done a digest of the day-book,
owes its form to Thutmose III;8 but the chronology of his building under the king's direction. 14 (That the king was directly involved
operations, and even their scope,9 defY easy arrangement. In assign­ seems to follow from the gist of column 2). A clue may be obtained
ing a date around year 24 for the construction of the 6th pylon and to the technique employed by a perusal of the introduction to the
adjacent shrines, Borchardt seems to have been influenced by the record of the <7th campaign>. Here the scribe has, by introducing
date given on the black granite stela found in Karnak room VI.IO lhe pericope by the last day of the regnal year,15 given himself away:
But this text is not itself dated, and year 24 clearly refers to con­ what he presents is a digest, a distillation of the year's events and
struction "east of this temple," i.e. the Akh-menu. 11 Until new evi­ records, ending with that date. His sources too he conscientiously
dence comes to light, we shall have to live with ambiguity.12 lists: the day-book 16 and treasury records.'7 The record of the 8th
campaign provides a good example of the sort of precis the com­
There is considerable evidence to suggest that the second part of posing scribe created. 18 Section A will be his introduction, stripped
the Day-book excerpts is edited and foreshortened, in contrast to the nf the calendric and the serial number. Sections B, C, E and L will
first part, devoted to the Battle of Megiddo. First, all calendrics are 1)(' derived largely verbatim from the Day-book of the King's-house,
dispensed with, and a simple statement added as to the king's where­ again without calendrics. To judge from the entry for the 7th cam­
abouts that year. This does not resemble known day-books which have Jl~lign, 19 the tally of benevolences destined for the harbor depots (F)
survived, in which daily entries provide the informing principal. \\ill depend ultimately on the day-book, as will G. Section D seems
Second, the individual campaigns (wdYt) are numbered, a practice In come from personal remeniscence, while the token gifts of the
which, as we have argued below, is a later attempt at structuring. 'reat powers (H to K) represent, perhaps, treasury records.
Third, military operations are reduced in description to one-line,
laconic statements, which may reflect core formulae in the original I lie king's introduction uses some of the same vocabulary as in the

day-book, but with further detail omitted. The inclusion of lists of III roduction to the first part: the intent to publish, the victory cred­

Ill'd to Amun, each campaign recorded specifically, the brave's rep­

IIl.ltion residing in accomplishment. But since this avowed intent is

7 I have argued elsewhere (Pharaonic King-lists, Annals and Day-books, 184-85) thai
the jubilees of Thutmose III must have been celebrated, if at all, on an attenuated
scale. I).B. Redford, "Tagebuch," IdA' VI (1986), 151-53.
8 B. Letellier, "La cour a peristyle de Thoutmosis IV a Karnak," Hommagp, 'Ijanuni himself comes to mind: see above, p. 4 and notes 13-14. There may
Sauneron (Cairo, 1979), 68; L. Gabolde, "Canope et les orientations nord-sud dc I ,,1)(' the protagonists at least claim it-an element of eye-witnessing involved:
Karnak, etablies par Thoutmosis III," RdE 50 (1999), 278-82. IV, 1004:4; 1441: 16 18; cf. 940. If this is in fact the case, it might explain
9 Cf. C. Wallet-Lebrun, ("Notes sur Ie temple d'Amonre a Karnak," B1FAO B~ It of the "rough edges," gaps and generalizations which seem to deny the Vorlage
[1982],356 62; 84 [1984], 316 33) who opens an interesting debate on the build('1 , <Illy-book.
of pylon 4 and the acljacent columned hall. {'rJ... IV. 690:14.
III Cairo 3'1012: P-M II, 94; lJrk. IV, 833 38; lloJ(hardt, Baulf,mhichlr, ~~. I rJ... IV. (;91:7.
P. Ilarguct, IA' 7 Plllpit d: 11110/1 rr iT hrtnWA (Paris. 1()(j:J I Ih 11 I I,J... IV. '~C)'~:II
II (l,t... IV. 8:11:13. S( (. 1>1'10\\ 'I Ill' II ,lml.\II011 ha~ IWI'11 pi ()\ icll'c1 with section designations, cor­
I' Sl'l 1111 ,1lI1hlll\ filllllloll1illl4 "'1111 1"/l'tI, 1o JiUlltJJt 111111 Illllld i 1111 ()pn,111l11l 1l!l11~ 10 llolhllljl 1I11ll.U III th(, 011",111,11
of' I hili 111<1',1 III .11 1o..IIII,d., 111 1;"/,,1,,,1/ 7 S Uri 1\ fill ~ 1\ J.I
60 CHAPTER TWO THE DAY-BOOK EXCERPTS: SECOND PART 61

so similar to that which justifies the first part, it is difficult to see A good case might be made that the formal numbering with which
why two sections were in fact necessary. The only explanation must all scholars are familiar was imposed long after the events them-
be a sudden change of intent: the decision to publish the First selves, and may in fact be confined to this specific inscription at
Campaign and a sampling of later successes was taken in year 40. Karnak. The original day-book entries probably began with nothing
Two years later, on the completion of pylon 6 and Room VI, the more than "regnal year X, month X, day X: His Majesty was in
king suddenly decided to continue this type of publication by pre- Djahy etc." When, after 25 years, the scribes decided to bring order
senting a digest of the rest of the military expeditions up to the time to the list of campaigns by adopting a formal and official sequence,
of inscripturation. some of the early years may well have occasioned difficulty. Had
(2) "His Majesty commanded to have the victories his father [Amun] the king really marched out in that year? And do we deny a num-
had given him published upon a wall of stone in the temple which ber to marches in which only a deputy had led the host? Complicating
His Majesty had made anew [for his father Amun, in accordance matters further wfiyt could be used to designate any royal or private
with the counci]l of [His Majesty him]self 20 [in order that] 'every' journey, even those of a peaceful nature 2i
campaign [be published] specifically, together with the booty21 that The sequence of campaigns, originally recorded without number
His Majesty brought from it. It was done in accordance with [that in the day-book, served only internal chancery needs. They seem to
which was in writing ...] "22 have been devised for the inscription in the temple itself, perhaps
It is noteworthy that in none of the demonstrably early references for some "ease of reference" to the reader. To the best of our pre-
to campaigning is the march singled out as a Wfiyt,23 and numbered sent knowledge the system was not extended to those few expedi-
sequentially. Even as late as what would be expected to be called I ions that followed year 42.
the "7th campaign" that designation is nowhere used. 24 This absence Some appreciation of the relative importance ascribed to each
should come as no surprise, as it conforms to a norm that is fol- campaign may be had by comparing the column space devoted to
lowed consistently in the New Kingdom. None of the early 18th each (measurements are approximate). To contain the information
Dynasty kings on present evidence numbered their campaigns, and given in the ambulatory for the activity in years 24 and 40 (cols.
Amenophis II did so without precision. 25 Thutmose IV and Amenophis 103-110), about four columns were devoted to each. Since each of
III refer to numbered campaigns only sporadically.26 Finally: no vet- these columns measures c. 5.60 metres in height, each year receives
eran of foreign wars ever numbers a campaign he reminisces about. oIpproximately 22.40 m. of column space. For years 29 through 42
the following table gives the relevant information: 28

20 Read [mi nd]t net ~mf] d[sf]. The sense requires an expression of the royal
initiative, not the god's. Column space Column number
21 On ~3~ in this context, seeJK. Hoffmeier, Levant 21 (1989), 185; M.G. Hasel, 8 columns, 85 em. 1-8+
Domination and Resistence, 73. Curiously, this generic, covering statement is not exactly C. 2 columns 9-10
consonant with usage later in the text which mentions not only ~3~ (Urk. IV, 686:2,
690:15,704:9,730:12) and life (711:4,10; 716:17), but much more frequently inw: 8 columns, c. 40 em. 11-18+
688:3,689:17,691:13,699:4,700:16, 701:11, 705:17, 707:16, 717:8, 719:13, 17; 12 columns 19-30
721:14, 724:15, 726:13, 727:13. Doubtless the initial use of ~3~ covers whatever Nearly 8 columns 31-38
was taken or received in the context of a military presence or activity. This should
caution us against pressing locutions and lexical items to closely. 10 columns 39-48
22 A very common locution, undoubtedly to be restored here: cf. The present
writer, "Speaker and Scribe," in E. Ben Zvi, M.H. Floyd (eds), Writings and Speech
in Israelite and Ancient Near Eastern Pro/i!zecy (Atlanta, 2000), 166 68.
23 AJ. Spalinger, AS/Jects if the !I;filitary Documents of the Ancient 8gyf!tianl (New I laven, :f. R.I\. Caminos, A 7 ale qf I Voe (Oxford, 1977), iv.lO; J-M. Kruchten, Le
1982), 227 28. I t/'/J(Jrtmhfb (BIlIX('lIcs, 19H I), pI. X, line 29; Y. Koenig, "Les livraisons d'or
2. (j,A. IV, 690: 1'1 ". dc' ll,d('IIl' ,III II ('SOl dll [I'l11pll' d'AI11IlI1," /lll/lImO{;'! Saul/eroll (Cairo, 1979), 198
2' P dc') ~1.11l1l('li,lll, Stilt/if \ 11/ tilr Rr'ATfI rif' Iml'l/(JjJhil II (Hiltll'~hl'illl, 1!J117J, 'I:i h.
16 f'rA J\ I ")'11 Iii 17 I hli'.!:'I. \I h 11lhll1l1l 11\ RlIlIIll \ \ H(l)II""llll,ltc I} 1.70 111 1,111
62 CHAPTER TWO THE DAY-BOOK EXCERPTS: SECOND PART 63

[36 ? 49-?] ?ffiring praise to His Mqjesty by his army, giving adulatia to (4) [Amun]
[37 ? ?-] 86 01 the victory [he had] given his son, and they gratified His Majesty's

38 6 columns and 1.80 m. 87-92+ Iwart more than anything.

39 6 columns + ? 93-97+ 3 After that His Mqjesty proceeded to the storehouse if Wring:
(40) Y!ering a hecatomb to [Amun-re]-Horakhty consisting if mg-homs, short­
41 6 meters 4-9 IJIIIS, jOwl [incense, wine, fruit, and all good things on behafJ if the life, pros­
42 11 columns + 10-20 Ilily and health if the king if Upper and Lower Egypt] Met-kheper-re, given
tfl' .for ever and ever!
If we take 8 columns of 4.70 m. each as an average for a campaign, . ~allY if the plunder brought .from this town, namelY the (5) garrison 31 if
then the campaigns in years 36 and 37 would have disposed of 11 'II/I doomed one if Tunip*:
long columns of the above length, and 27 short columns (above the
north door) of indeterminate length. The latter, since they would :hiif if this town 1
have to account for the equivalent of 5 full columns (i.e. c. 23.50 '17t(w)r-troops* 329
m.), would each have measured a fraction more than 85 em. in lilver 100 deber
length. This compares favorably with the length of the "short" columns gold 100 deber
in the northern ambulatory, recording the first campaign, which are lapis, turqoise, vessels if copper and bronze.
87 em. deep. As one might have expected, the campaigns of years
33, 35 and 42 occupy most space; for less obvious reasons year 30 I hen seized upon were the cargo boats 32 [and the *tyw-ships, and
is given the least. I. \patched loa]ded 33 with various things, with male and. female slaves,
While the table makes clear that there is insufficient space for the lipper, lead, emery(?),34 (6) and all fine things, after His Majesty
inclusion of year 40, Sethe's highly ingenious restoration 29 does not <1111 neyed south to Egypt, to his father [Amun-re] with a joyous

recommend itself. Sp sn.nw is a guess: not even sp is certain. Most !l1.lI1. 35

likely mpt tn (rather than a regnal year) stood at the beginning of I'hen His Majesty sacked the town of Ardata 36 with its grain, and

column 5, as at the end of col. 7 and elsewhere. 30 That being the II i(~ fruit trees were cut down. Now [His Majesty] found [the har­

case, the lacuna in col. 4 would have been filled by a regnal year \', ,Ie) of] Djahy at its fullest, and their trees 37 laden with their fruit;

date followed in turn by a campaign number and, as would be hIli wine (7) was found lying in their vats like flowing water and

expected, the account of military action, and the tally of the benevo­
lences. There is thus only one campaign alluded to in this pericope.
See above, p. II.
llI1w, a generic word: J-M.A. Janssen, Two Ancient Egyptian Ship's Logs (Leiden,
Year 29 (see Fig. 6) '(h, 22; D. Jones, Boats (London, 1995), 53-57.
Restore skryw swd3w 3tp: cf. W. Heick, Historisch-biographischen Texte der 2.
(3) "Regnal year 29. Now [His] Majesty [was in Dj]ahy, destroying hl'llzeil (Wiesbaden, 1975), 24(18). It is unlikely that the ships were captured
the foreign lands which had rebelled against him on his 5th victo­ '"' or their cargo: the text makes plain that they were seized to provide trans­
. . I (or the plunder of the campaign to Egypt after Thutmose III and his army
nous campaIgn. d II turned by land, a parenthetic insertion at this point: S. W<l.chsmann, Sea-going
Then His Majesty plundered the town of War[e]t* c. 11 r... d Seamanship ill the Brollze Age Levant (London, 1998), 10, 39.
groups ...] Ilanis. J..e.\icographi.cat Studies, 163 65.
I h.ll is to say, apparently, the sending or the plunder by ship followed the
111\11(' of' 111(' kil1/o; allc! the end or the campaign.
\t'ld Ardal,7 kill. South ('a~t ofTlipoti: c;arclil1er, OnolllaslJica, I, 131*; Hclck,
I, 110. Ill:.! II. Ii, KI('IlK('I, \!J()jo'tO 1%1).67 11. 58; idem, Syria 3000 to
1'1 l'rA IV. 72fl
I/{;, , Ih~ II ·l~!l.
IrA 1\ r,ll! II. 70t·ll. 7O'.H, 707:lfl. 717 Ii, 71 1.1:1
Il~' IlIlphllltioll IIIl' plllr," po~w~i,,'~ I cll'l 10 till Im.d IIlil.l\hil.lI1\s.
64 CHAPTER TWO THE DAY-BOOK EXCERPTS: SECOND PARl 65

their grain on the threshing floors (ready for) threshing. More plen­ IS written Iwn-r3-1, a form attested elsewhere in the oj Kingdom
tious was it than the sand of the sea-shore! And the army wallowed II1d accepted with the place in question. 42 In the Fnt passage,
in their substance! however, the scribe has given quite a different wrj beginning
Tal[Y if the benevolences brought to His Mqjesty on this campaign: \\iln w3 and terminating with t. 43 Only in the Geberkal stela is
1 similar writing attested for a place which all havelmed to be

male and female slaves 51 l Jllaza. 44 It would be curious if, in this same inscri t , only two
horses 32 I ,uTIpaigns apart, the same toponym should be writt1 two quite

silver, dishes 10 .lifTerent ways. One wonders in the present case wh the con­
(8) incense, oil, honry 470 jars
onantal structure of another place-name has not infll~d the writ­
wzne 6,428 jars
Illg'. Very close to Ullaza, within the later bailiwick unurru, lay

bronze, lead, lapis, malachite38

Ill' port of Wakhliya, possibly to be identified with r)li. 45 In the
oxen 618
It!.\hl of the weakness of Phoenician C0Jin and its teI1;y to inter­
- flocks 3,636 I hange with alif46 it is tempting inspite of the cune~, to recon­

- fine bread: a very great variety if loaves \llIct a derivation from *W3L, "near, proximate, aary."47 The
- cereals: wheat, meal [all sorts if fine fiuit] if this land. I .gyptian scribes would thus have correctly rendere~ root, and
heir alif would have to be consonantal, not a matermis.48
And so His Majesty's army were in their cups and anointed with
oil (9) every day, just as though at festival time in Egypt!" I/lnip
!\.l1own from the 17th Cent. B.C. on,49 Tunip spring1Jrominence
War[eJt & Ullaza Hllilically during the 18th Dynasty as an independ~tate subor­
The location of Ullaza has long since achieved a consensus among Itl\ate to Mitanni. The precise location continues tCy certainty,
scholars. Most modern research would place it north of Tripoli at hough it cannot have lain as far north as Alalaklrhe textual
the mouth of the Nahr el-Barid, near or identical with the classical
Orthosia. 39 The text more precisely locates the site on a body of
water Ns-r3-n3 (formerly misread Mm). As HeIck has seen,40 this word
II. Gauthier, Dictionnaire des noms geographique . .. I (Cairo, lQ)5; J Simons,
must indicate a stream, rather than the coast, and we are justified 1./Il1lbook for the Study of Egyptian Topographical Lists Relating to M Asia (Leiden,
in linking it with the Eleutheros itself. But its reading and identification '117), list XIII, no. 56.
I 1\ tethering-rope (V 13) is by no means certain; the island18) is equally
remain doubtful. One thinks of an original nsm, but this yields no ",~ible.
sense. It is tempting to suggest confusion in a hieratic original between I Urk. IV, 1237:15; below (pt. 2), p. 13.
ns and d., for a putative J)-r3-nJ would point to SR + nunated plural £<:A I 14: 12 (Moran, Amama Letters, 189); Klengel, Geschichte \. II, 268; idem,
.\ /(I, 3000 to 300 B.C., 162.
as Vorlage. "Pebble"-stream would be an acceptable rendering. Z. Harris, A Grammar of the Phoenician Language (New Ha'l936), 27; for
The orthography of the Egyptian transliteration of the town name IIl1'iform h for alif, see W. von Soden, Grundriss der akkadischen Sp(Rome, 1952),
occasions a difficulty. In the entry for the 6th campaign41 "Ullaza" 1 'lG.
;r. C.L. Harding, An Index and Concordance of Pre-Islamic ian Names and
,tlll/iollS (Toronto, 1971),649.
\s in Old Aramaic: JA. Fitzmyer, The Aramaic Inscriptions of(Rome, 1995),
38 Harris, Lexicographical Studies, 102-4. 1'1 Hb.
39 Strabo xvi.2.12; Hekk, Beziehungen, 306; KJengel, Geschichle Syriens II, 77 n. 2; KJ(' I1gcl , Geschichte Syrims II, 79 80; how much carlier (cf. • Astour, "The
idem, Syria 3000 to 300 B.C., 35; W.L. Moran, 17le Amama f..elter;, 392; WJ Murnane, 11'lory of Ebla," I\blai/ic{/ 3 119921,911.32) remains cOI'Ucctl.lr
Tlte Road 10 Krulesh (Chicago, 1985), 64; S. Smith's idcntificatiol1 with ~kl('lIkia (7he S. Smith, Irlnmi, 56; lejected by 1110st subsequent studi<{ollr, J,N/IS 22
SI{/llI~ if Idrimi I Londol1, 19'1<)1. 77 78) is far frOl1l cOI1\iJl( illl(. IOG:i" ~:l:l, W 11e'lrk, "J)il' 1.111;(' d('1 Stadt Tunip," lI1" 5 (1971h H7'; 1\~lOlIr,
Hl Br:lehllll.S!fII. :lOb. 1'IlI11p/ll.lll1.lth ,lilt! liS Rq(101l .1 (:llllltlbu(ioll to til(' Ilis(oJ(;(·Il/ol1.lphy of
I I rA 1\ ht)()· 17 1111111 Sy,i,l,' Onmil/ba'ih 11)77 ~ll hi
66 CHAPTER TWO THE DAY-BOOK EXCERPTS: SECOND PART 67

evidences I presents the consistent picture of a city within reach of HeIck's more recent derivation from tohera(h) is phonetically impos­
the coast, between Amurru and Nukhashshe, north-west of Qatna sible. 62 Semantically Albright's DHR would yield acceptable sense if
and Kadesh. 52 The ease with which it is reached from the coast sug­ I he troops in question were noted for their speed and agility. It has
gests it was west of the Orontes;53 but the manifest contiguity of its I)een accepted that the Egyptian consonantal structure is exactly co­
boundary with that of Alalakh must mean that it controlled much extensive with the root; but one might consider a preformative
of the middle Orontes valley.54 The most recent choice is Tell I form from a root HL(L). Tehilla(h) would yield "praised, exalted,"63
Ashame. 55 denoting "excellent" or "crack" troops.

77z(w)r- Troops I'he text of year 29 poses some questions of interpretation and cred­
It has become customary to render this term "foreign troops" or Ihility. Where, to begin with, is the little episode in column 4 (= Urk.
"foreign auxiliaries,"56 an odd translation in the present context, as IV, 685:13-16) taking place? The use of an Egyptian expression,
Thutmose encountered "foreign" armies everywhere he went in Asia; ,tlheit one difficult to find as here constituted,64 would suggest an
yet only here did he see fit to acknowledge "foreignness"? Thr is used I :gyptian locale, or an "Egyptian-like" installation, in the town itself. 65
of some Hittite troops but not in a context that would suggest their nllt there is no need to resort to extremes. The king is striving for
ethnicity was what distinguished themY Clearly the word means !llcutions in Egyptian that will suit the kind of Canaanite sacred
something else. Contingents are usually designated for what they do, pace he has encountered: snc, a secure, walled-in block for storage
or how they appear. On the assumption the word was West Semitic,58 IIlei production, in which offering, wdn, is habitually carried on. The

Albright long ago tendered DHR, "to dash (of a horse)," as the root Illlilding, I would suggest, is the local temple, numerous examples of
sought for,59 while more recently HeIck suggested a derivation from \\ hich are attested archaeologically.66 The sacrificial act of the king
the root THR, "be pure."60 Phonologically both are barely admissi­ is a gesture of triumph, performed to the supreme Egyptian god,
ble, Idl and It I only occasionally being rendered by Egyptian t. 61 Illlploying the livestock and foodstuffs of the enemy as victimsY
I I,ough the c3bt is Egyptian in nature, the dedication on behalf of
lite life of the king would have resonated among the onlooking
( :, lI1aanites. 68
51 Well reviewed by KJengel, Geschichte Syriens II, 75-76.
52 G. del Monte, J Tischler, Die Orts- und Gewaessernamen der hethitischen Textf
(Wiesbaden, 1978), 440; cf. the order of march in Urk. IV, 729-30: outward:
Arkata-[...]-kana-Tunip; homeward: Tunip-Kadesh. Beziehung ... Aegiiis, 136.
53 Helck, Beziehungen, 139-40; A. Altmann, Bar-Ilan Studies in History (Ramat Gan, Murtonen, Hebrew in its West Semitic Setting I, Bb (Leiden, 1989), 157.
1978), 5 n. 12; KJengel, Syria 3000 to 300 B.G. (map "Syria, 2nd mill."); see also • IVdl!)'t, "offering place," occurs in late New Kingdom contexts (Wh. I, 392:12)
above, n. 304. "I wsbt wdl!)' in Ptolemaic (Wh. I, 391:15): cf. P. Spencer, the Egyptian Temple: a
5. M. Dietrich, O. Loretz, "Der Vertrag zwischen Ir-Addu von Tunip und \III/graphical Stutfy (London, 1984), 71-80; P. Wilson, A Ptolemaic Lexicon (Leuven,
Niqmepa von Mikis," in G.D. Young and others (eds), Crossing Boundaries and Linkill,1i 1'1'17), 262.
Horizons (Bethesda, 1997), 225. Morris, Architecture if Imperialism, 124-25.
55 H. KJengel, "Tunip und andere Probleme der historischen Geographie Millel ;r. J-M. Tarragon, "Temples et pratiques rituelles," in M. Yon and others
syriens," in K. van Lerberghe, Immigration and Emigration within the Ancient Near I~'(I\/ <lSI, f.e Pays d'Ougarit autour de 1200 avo ].C. (Paris, 1995), 203-10; W.G. Dever,
(Leuven, 1995), 128 and n. 16. l',d,lrl's and Temples in Canaan and Ancient Israel," inJM. Sasson (ed), CivilizatiollS
56 A.R. Schulman, Military Rank, Title and Organization (Berlin, 1964), 21 24; idflll, 'It I' Anciell/ Near l:-asl (New York, 1995), I, 610.
"A Problem of Pedubasts," ]ARCE 5 (1966), 35 n. g; P.-M. Chevereau, Prosopograp//I n the nature or Bronze Age sacrifice, see B. Bergquist, "Bronze Age Sacrificial
des cadres militaires egyptiens du nouvel empire (Paris, 1994), 90 91. in the Eastern Mediterranean? A Study of Animal Sacrifice in the Ancient
5) W. Heick, Die Beziehung Aegyptens und Vorderasien Zllr A~l{iii.1 bil in! 7. ,llIhrh. I~ast," in J. Quaegebellr (cd), Ritl/al Gnd Sacrifice in the Ancient Near East (Leuven,
Chr. (Darmstadt, 1979), 135. 1'''' I I 113. For the king at Ugarit as ('hier priest and sacrificer, see D. Pardee,
~R This is not ('ertain or course; cr. Wilson in ,LNgl, ~.I:~l) 11. '~. II\I! Stlldi('s al the ('lid of 111<' 20lh (;ellillry," BASOR 320 (2000), 77 78.
~'I '17Ir l'oraHIII/I011 o! "KI'P/11II1 SyllabiC Orlhogrllphy 1'.('\\ 11.1\( n I q'~I), :i' :1' II "'It'II1-V'I, "J)i(' )1,II,\sl\\III'( h,dl ill Alalakh," in E. Lipinski (cd), Palace
1;' 1/( uhungm. ')7) 1/ III'" I'.nl/l"m~ 11/ II" 111""'1\"/1 /<.1/11 II IA'\IwII, IlJ71)" 118 19; G. del Olmo
," Ilo,h I'II/rlli/l Ilmdl, lOll 7 ,"I{O\,t1 \·,PI'( II olllll' \'1<\.111\1(' (;1111," 11\ <.l!I,lIw·!lnll NII/I11/ (///1/ \'rllnflrr, r)1 lili
68 CHAPTER TWO THE DAY-BOOK EXCERPTS: SECOND PART 69

The plunder brought off from Waret prompts a certain skepticism. ,thers were brought to be detainees 72 in Egypt; and whenever any
The garrison, including the chief of the town, number 330, i.e. thrce 1J('se chiefs died, His Majesty would have his [son] go to assume
hundreds and three tens, a typical general number, scaling down as is Ilosition.
customary in Egyptian. Gold and silver are numbered at 100 each.
The failure to give any totals for lapis, turquoise, metalware or the I if the children if the chiifs brought in this year: 36 persons
contents of the freighters reinforces the suspicion that, for some rea­ nd female slaves 181
son or other, the compositor is generalizing in want of any specific 188
figures at all for this part of the campaign. lOis (11) worked in gold and silver (as well as those)
To find the harvest gathered in, Thutmose and his troops musl III led 40"
have left Egypt around the same time as on the first campaign.Since
in the Levant the wheat and barley harvest is not finished until the ":£twn
first week in June, the Egyptians could not have found the grain 011 writing of the word (fig. 5) usually understood as sfryt is only
the threshing floor until about the middle of the month. If we arc l,(rt decipherable. The f-sign is certain, as is r. Plural strokes
to take the record seriously as to the fruit being ripe on the trees, "I'
1'1 in triangular distribution between the reed-leaves. The initial
the time cannot be earlier than August, since figs and olives do nol omewhat doubtful: n certainly seems to be an acceptable alter­
ripen until early in that month. Finally, the presence of wine in the II (. (see facsimile, fig. 5). From the presence of the hill country
vats suggests a date no earlier than mid-September, by which tim(' Il'lIlllnative the scribe indicates the word applies to a region, rather
the vintage has begun. Since the first sed-festival ought to have becll , ,l town. Wilson wished to construe initial sf as the verb "to
only 12 months in the future and should have been anounced around l>y,"73 which Heick (rightly) rejected. 74 From its position in the
the 29th anniversary of the accession 69 the king may have bcell 1,IIive it would appear that this tract lay between Kadesh and
slightly delayed in his departure. In connection with the sed-festival, c <last, i.e. through the Eleutheros, precisely where, a century

the sizable quantities of food and drink should be noted. 70 I Amurru was to be located. 75 From the uncertainty of the writ­
I he linguistic affiliation of the word remains in doubt. One might
Ic Illpted, as was the present writer, to construe it as an Egyptian
Year 3071
d derived from s(w)fr, "to dry out."76 But if the orthography sug­
"Regnal year 30. Now His Majesty was in the country of Retellil ,t local word, one might cite the city *Shurashu,77 or perhaps
on the 6th victorious campaign of His Majesty. 'p,u'e the later (Iron Age) Sisu in the Lebanon. 78 If an initial n
Arrival at the town if Kadesh; sacking it, cutting down its fruit-trees ([Ilfl ,,,I instead of s, the root NSR springs to mind, with its sugges­
pulling up its grain. CIf aeries and mountain heights.

Proceeding via the 'Arid-region'(?) *, arrival at the town if Sumur* and arri1'fl1
at the town if Ardata. Doing the same to them.
Talty if the (10) benevolences brought to the might if His Majesry by Iii
chiifs if Retenu in this year:-now the children of the chiefs and t!1cit
l •. dan, Virlory and Border, 66 (for discussion and references).
I "Ttl, 239; ('[ E. Eckl, ,(DPV69 (1953), 153 n. 58; Galan, Victory and Border, 82.
/I. Irllllllgtll, I (in II. 7(i.
60 K. Martin, "Scdrcsl," LdA" V (1984), 783 84. " cit, Vallx, ""e pays de Canaan," in W.ll. Hallo (ed), Essays in Memory if
70 R,eclrorcl, I~'gy/JI and Canaan in Iilr Nrw I\i,l/:dolll (lkl'1 SIW\,I, 1\)<)()). hi. NOlc' ,d~cl IIrr Nn,- I 1;1\('11, 1%8), 27.
lhal lhe full year, "3D," i.e. Ilw ddlc nltlw juhilc'c' II'C I'IVC'S tlw IC'ast m!l1l110 sp,\< f lIb, Iv ~,lC)il) II,
in till' l'l1li,c il1sniplion: SCI' ,Ibm(·. p fi'J. LOl dOli I !J:rlllllr 'I r\llwl/A, 110 ') I!):l.
I FOI 1111 Iccrud nf Ih" C,1111p,l1~'n nil till' 1\1111:1111 IId,I, M'C' Iwlow, p. l:icl. I (;1,1\'1\1111, 11}~)'",1II ant! /If/hrltl//if/n 0"'1//;(/" \\iIlOllil 1.. lkt', 197.1,,203.
70 CHAPTER TWO THE DAY-BOOK EXCERPTS: SECOND PART 71

Sumur The inclusion in the gloss of the snw, "brothers," presumably linked
The exact location of this most important town has yet to be deter­ with wnv rather than msw, invites comparison again with Amenophis
mined, but the thrust of the evidence clearly points in a single direc­ II's list. 85 The great importance in Canaanite society of the pater­
tion. A location in the Akkar plain near the coast, opposite the entry nal uncle/brother-in-law (cam) is well known;86 but in removing a
to the Eleutheros valley, has won almost unanimous acceptance. 79 chief's siblings as well as his offspring, Thutmose was not simply
The most recent suggestion has fastened upon Tel Kazel, a choice acknowledging a societal fact. The chief's male siblings and his sons
which would satisfY all the demands of the textual evidence. 8o represented the total pool out of which future chiefs would come.
The tally is disjointed in its composition. It begins with the expected By maintaining complete control over that pool, Thutmose elimi­
formula, then is interrupted by a clearly explanatory gloss. When it nated any chance of hostile governance, save by outright insurrec­
continues it lapses into an inconsistency: the second "tally" is not tion or invasion, both of which forms of extreme action would have
only of chiefs' children, as the wording has it, but of a body of per­ forfeited claims to legitimacy.
sonnel with their means of locomotion. The fact that the scribe felt
it necessary to explain the practice of control excercised by Pharaoh
rear 31*
over Canaanite patrimonies stresses the novelty of the technique at
this point in the narrative. In no previous campaign had offspring "Regnal year 31, first month of shomu, day 3.81
of Canaanite headmen been seized for this purpose. On the first Compendium (Sbwy)88 of His Majesty's plunder in this year.
campaign noble families had fallen into Egyptian hands, but they - Plunder brought from the town qf Ullaza 89 which is on the bank qf Ns­
had been part of the confiscated propertySl to be taken back to fill r3-n3*:
Amun's workhouse. It is here, on the Phoenician coast, seven years
after the victory at Megiddo, that Thutmose III conceived of this Prisoners-qfwar 492
ingenious mechanism of control,82 Commandd o [qf the vile army(?)]91 qf the son qf the doomed
one qf Tunip < 1>
The numbers in this segement are more revealing than the artificial
figures for year 29. Thirty-six children presumably represent a com­
offspring: A. Dodson, JJ. Janssen, "A Theban Tomb and its Tenants," JEA 75
prehensive assessment of the number of municipal territoria through (1989), 125-138,
which Thutmose had marched, and which he had subdued, viz. The .5 See above, p. 60.
Akkar plain, the Eleutheros and the Phoenician coast. Amenophis 86 Koehler-Baumgartner, Lexikon III, 792; Murtonen, Hebrew in its West Semitic
Selling I, 320; R. de Vaux, Les institutions de l'Ancien Testament I (Paris, 1961), 63-64;
II, in a similar comprehensive listing of Syrian chiefs, gives the figure Il. Huffmon, Amonte Personal Names in the Man Texts (Baltimore, 1965), 196-97;
127,83 roughly four times as many political subdivisions. The 36 are J van Seters, The Hyksos. A New Investigation (New Haven, 1966), 188; idem, Abraham
accompanied by 181 servants, or approximately five servants per in History and Tradition (New Haven, 1975), 72-74; T. Schneider, Asiatische Personennamen
III aegyptischen Qyellen des Neuen Reiches, Freiburg, 1992), p. 70; H. Avalos, "Legal and
child,84 and each has a chariot and horses (with some in reserve). Social Institutions in Canaan and Ancient Israel," in J.M. Sasson, Civilizations qf the
Incient Near East I (New York, 1995), 624-26; M.R. Adamthwaite, Late Hittite Emar
LClIven, 2001), 13-15, 191, 213. In the Emar texts the "brothers" seem to exer­
79 Heick, Beziehungen, 314; Klengel, Geschichte Synens, II, 32 n. II (with references); cise political control.
idem, "Sumur/Simyra und die Eleutheros-Ebene in der Gesehiehte Syriens," KLlO .7 For discussion see above, p. 59.
66 (1984), 5-18. 811 Below, p. 153.
80 J. Sapin, "Peuplement et milieu de vie dans la vallee du Nahr el-Abl'ach ...," 8q Above, pp. 64.r.
Universite St. Joseph. Annales de geographie 3 (1989), 3958; JP. Thalmann, M. AI­ ,~) There is not til(' slightest reason to translate this word "equerry" (R.O. Faulkner,
Maqdissi, "Prospection de la Trouce cle Horns. Les sites ell' 1<1 plaine du Akkar ~}/lcise Diclionary (if Middle IWlllian IOxrorcl, 19621, 173) or the like. It is from the
syl;cn," COTllri/JIIlion jran(ai.\f a l'arc/d%gif .ryn·fI1 (Damascus, 1989), 98 101. 1001 "to COIll111,1I1d" (I,. Lesko, A Diclionary (if Lale Egyplian II I Providence, 19841,
III AhoV(', pp. 17 49. 117 18 ,mel 'lJ,plit" \0 lllilil.lI) pl'rSOIlIl(,1. Cr. UrA. IV, 111 1:9 (el1emy officers); KR[
KJ S. AII;\ III , ",\fll/': Kind"1 /Villksl{llIppl'/PII)(llIktt·/Ahg,IIll'1l " silo I!} Ill!}:.?,,:l. 1[, !ll'i'J ,/o(lUlIp 101I1111.llldl'l P 11.1l1i, 77,11 p.II,tlll'l til nt'dll,1
I IA 1\ I :lOlI I!} " ,\ 1,111111,1 01 I I (III S, p,1I'.111'8 111//1' ft011l /I Id ill 111111' I1101l/(11 Iflr mir 1/11'.
III 11111 h 11lI1lp.1l1Ihll' III 11ll' 1lIIIlIIwr III ··illll'lId.IlIt~·· :II 1111' 1,llIlIhll[ll', III 111\<11 rhnl' Ii 110 111111111111 IIl(lrt ~I'II1I'. 1M 1\ h!lI II ")
72 CHAPTER TWO THE DAY-BOOK EXCERPTS: SECOND PART 73

Hetman if the . .. [...] ... 92 who were there 1 accomodate them properly in the place [where] th[ey are done into
Total 494 men writing. 96 ... c. 1.10 m ....
Horses 26 Now]97 report was made of the harvest of the land of Retenu,
Chariots 13 consisting of much grain, (16) wheat, barley, incense, fresh oil, wine,
fruit and all the sweet products of the foreign land. They may be
(12) ... and all their military equipment. consulted at the treasury, just like the census of the labor of the
Then His Majesty plundered this town in short order, all its property being I... c. 1.15 m ....
(declared) a 'Come-and-Get-itp93
- Benevolences if the chiifS if Retenu who came to do pros~nesis to the Var]ious [vessels] 34
power if His Majesty in this year: With malachite, and every gem-stone if this foreign land, and many blocks
(17) if glass9 8
m[ale] and fe[male slaves [... c. 77 em....]94 [... and all] the fine [products] of this land,
if this foreignland, 72 Then His Majesty arrived in Egypt ... (Kushite section not trans­
silver 761 deben 2 kdt lated)."
chariots worked in silver 19
(13) ... equipped with weapons if war;
The format of the record of this campaign, the <7th>, is anom­
long-horns and oxen 104
.dous. Several considerations suggest the reason. The summation of
short-horns and bulls 172
booty, as the heading is phrased, dated to the last day of the year,
Total 276 points to military activity too extensive to be broken down into com­
- flocks 4,622 ponent incidents. The /:t3q the harvest and the inw clearly exceeded
- raw copper 40 ingots I he available space on the wall, and so the composing scribe declines

- lead [.... c. 1.10 m .....] I() list them all. The stocking of the harbors involved a considerable
- gold: boxes9 5 decorated(?) With metal inloy(?) 41 t'xpenditure of labor and perhaps even construction in several cities­
- ... and all their presents (14) and all the fine plants if this foreign land. one thinks of Wakhlia, Sumur, Ullaza and Ardata.-and more detailed
records of these enterprises were probably kept in other archives.
Now every harbor His Majesty came to was supplied with fine bread, ,\ loreover, apart from the prisoners and military equipment, the
various breads, oil, incense, wine, honey, [various fine] fr[uits of this property of Ullaza was given over to the army, and would not have
foreign land, and ... c. 80 em ... Now all this ...] was more numer­ I)cen recorded by army scribes.
ous than anything, beyond the comprehension of His Majesty's
army-and that's no exaggeration!-(15) and they remain (on record) Year 33
in the day-book of the king's house L.P.H. The tally of them is not
given in this inscription so as not to increase the text and so as to \.')9 "(19) Regnal year 33. Now His Majesty was in the land of
Rctenu

'ill Lit. "To do whaL is appropriate to them". Read iry 5[n m 55 im]

9~ See facsimile, fig. 7. Iwcyt is not an option: the writing wiLh two(?) Inilial ayins '17 There is no rcason wilh Selhe (Urk. IV, 694:3) to restore the negative parti­

would be anomalous. The Lraces could suiL C/J1W. On such a "lIelman," perhaps, I It" A denial would nol have involved Lhe long lisl of iLems.
sec the evidence in A. Pohl, "Einc Gedanken zur Ilabiru-Fra~e," WZIV\15·\ (1957), "R Cf, V, Tattol1·Bro""n, C. Andrews, "Before the lnvenlion of Glass-blowing,"

157 60. 11\ II. Tail (I'd, Fil" 'IlwlI\al/d rran IIf G/II\\ (Lol1don, 1991), 26, Presumably from
'11 11 iI'fA: i,l', tell IIt I' ,lIllly, and lht'lt'fore 1101 lisll'd ill 11U' d.ly·lllltlk 1I00llI"111 Syd.l, 01 1\lill'lIli: C;Jd S(h~,.lIl1. 11'\, of D, Oall's <11111 olhers, H\ra/J(/li07/\
'•• StIll( " IlSltll,lIillll I rk IV, hlJl:lh 17' i~ !\"1I1111fHl~, 'II I rll UTI/A, hI!. I ill H ISOU '117 ")()()()" III
JJ ).111 ,I'll, (" '1/I1/1,IIlr I'mr_, .IWIrI ,II, {("tII ""/ I'm' { 1,cldC'lI. I ~1/;111 I 1111" ~I'( IIl1m 1111' !c'IlI'II,1I III 1111 lIil,llI I dl'll'll< I'
74 CHAPTER TWO THE DAY-BOOK EXCERPTS: SECOND PART 75

B. Arrival [at . .. Destroying . .. c. 1.40 m. .... 100 to] the east if this water, 24) j\!Iale and female servants 513
after he had set up another also beside the stela if his }ather, (20) the King lIorses 260
if Upper and Lower Egypt, Okheperkare :old 45 dbn 9/10 kdt
C. Then His Majesty sailed north,IOI plundering the towns and razing the vil­ vessels if pjahy workmanship
Silver:
lages if that doomed one if vile Naharin. [.... c. 1.80 m.....

D. [.... c. 1.70 m.....] Then he [went] sailing an itr in pursuit '02 (:twriots worked in gold . . . . equippedJ with all

of them. Not one of them ever looked (21) back, but fled pell­ their weapons if war (Sic)

mell, like herds of wild game, while the panicking horses were'03 1,lIlIg-horns (25) short-hams, oxen 28

[.... c. 2.25 m ....] from the entire army.104 lerds 564

Chiefs 3 Flocks 5,323
(22) Their wives 30 Inrense 828 containers
Men who were captured 80 \'weet oil with [.... c. 1.95 m.....]
Male and female servants and their children 606 1/1 the aromatic plants if this country and multitudinous varieties if fruit
Those who surrendered and [their] wives [.... c. 1.95 m .... ,\ nd so (26) the harbors were stocked with everything in accor­
Dbis. Arrival at . .. 105 sacking it, destroying the orchards], pulling up their dance with their tax quota and in accordance with their yearly
gram ( Iistom, and the labor of Lebanon in accordance with their yearly
I Iistom, and the chiefs of Lebanon [.... c. 1.85 m....
E. Arrival if His Majesty at the town (23) if Niya on the homeward jour­
nf!Y, when His Mqjesty had come having set up his stela in Naharin, extend­ Iknevolence of the chief of ... in this
ing the frontiers if Egypt [.... c. 2.20 m .....] \ ('ar(?)] 2 [...]-birds of
F. [Talfy] if the benevolences brought to His Mqjesty by the chiifs if this for­ unknown (variety)
eign land: ,06 I birds of (27) this country who remarkably! give birth daily'07
Benevolence of the chief of Sangar*
True lapis [...]+ 4 dbn
Ersatz(?) lapis 24 dbn
[00 Sethe's restoration here is not certain. See commentary. apis of Babylon l08 [.... c. 1.60 m.....]
[O[ Discussion of My/ tJn!y in their application to travel on campaign outside Egypt
and the Nile Valley seems to have reached an impasse: cf. Sir A.H. Gardiner,
I Benevolence of the chief of Asshur ,09 in] th[is] y[ear]:

Ancient Egyptian Onomastica (Oxford, 1947), I, 161 *-2*; S. Smith, TIle Statue qf Jdrillll True lapis: a ram's head

(London, 1949),45-6; Heick, Beziehungen, 150; M.S. Drower, in CAH II, I (Cambridg-e, True lapis (28) 15 kdt

1973), 456; P. del' Manuelian, Amenophis 11, 186 n. 71; Klengel, ~ria 3000 to 30(}
B.G., 93. In the vast majority of cases (Wb. III, 354:9-355:8; D. Meeks, Annee leli With [various] vessels.
cographique I [Paris, 1980], 289; W.E. Crum, A Coptic Dictionary [Oxford, 193!)j. Iknevolence of Great Khatte* in this year:
717-18; W. Westendorf, Koptisches Handwoerlerbuch [Heidelberg, 1977], 393, 395) it ilver 8 sheets, making
is the (compass) direction north that predominates. The translation "downstream"
has perhaps been influenced by the wholly unwarranted assumption that Thutmosl' 401 dbn
III "conquered" Emar, and that therefore he must have proceeded south down til('
Euphrates. Emar's appearance in the toponym list (Urk. IV, 790, no. 192) is UIJClT'
tain, and must in any case be restored: M.C. Astour, "An Outline of the (I islOl\
of Ebla," in G. Rendsberg (ed), Eblaitica III (Winona Lake, 1992), I I.
102 10.5 km., Sethe's tJdi is by no means certain: for discussion see Ciardi II('I
:I('arly chickens arc intended. Their ('astern origin (Heick, Beziehungen, 286-7)
Onomastica. 161 2*; Smith, /drimi, 45 6; R.O. Faulkncr, "Thc Euphrales Campaigll known l!l til(' al1eiellls: L1l(' Canaaniles called them "Akkadian birds": A.L.
of Tuthmosis III," .lEA 32 (1946), 40 n. 9; (leick, Be<.iehllll/!.f1I. 150. 1"1"'111\('1111, ,JI1{/(llt ,Ilf.\llf!olfllllla (Chirag-o, 1977), 317. Therc is no reason to restore
[0:\ Construc (11nll SHW as .N1; N2 is lost in Ill(' lacuna. IJll..h.1 ,IS II('lrkl; lh(' ~in points to Ihe Ilollh-rast.
1111 The lVlilanllian alIllY?
101 lhl plobll'1I1S 111111'11'111 III lh("I' 11'11I1S. s(·(·JR. ((allis, I.rricofirGphiral Studies,
[11', TO\\ll llall\!' "
,,., I'tl'Mllllllll\ lilt 11Iid·( )ltlllll'~ I'.dlc·\' i§ illll'lIded, hOIll 1'\iY<l 10 O;lItl:l 1c!I'IIt1ll<'ali"lI lI~'"11'd ,,~. IIII' IIl1ll1ll' "I IIII' I!lfl
76 CHAPTER TWO THE DAY-BOOK EXCERPTS: SECOND PART 77

- 'White Stone' 2 large blocks 1)(' conceived as having won such distinction after the far-flung raz­
- T3gw-wood [.... c. 1.80 m ..... l,tS of Khattusilis and Mursilis in the second half of the 16th Cent. 119
L. His Majesty arrived sqfi]!y in Egypt when he came .from (29) Naharin,
extending the .frontiers if Egypt (Pwentite and Sudanese labor taxes
Commentary
follow).
~'Il'l he's restoration of col. 19 is anomalous. All that can be restored
Sangar \ ilh certainty, in fact, is date, statement of presence, arrival at [X],
The contexts in which this word occurs clearly indicate that it des­ It-slroying [X], razing of crops and orchards. There is no justification
ignates Babylon, liD as does the cognate Shinar in Hebrew. 111 The II restoring a reference to Qatna l20 as Sethe does, even though some
debate over its derivation is an old one, centering at one time on ,holars have accepted it as a certain reading! As in year 31, the
the (false) identification with Sumer. 1l2 The correct Vorlage is Sum. !lImber of the campaign is omitted. Since it becomes almost a for­
SINGI.URI, i.e. Sumer and Akkad. J13 Whatever the route and cir­ IJlria by which the campaign is referred to, d,3t p!lr-wr must once
cumstances of its reaching the west, it was popular in the Levant at '.lve stood in the lacuna. 121 In all probability, however, it will have
the time, whence the Egyptian chancery picked it up. wcn followed immediately by r i3bty mw pn, "to the east of this
,ltCT." The stock wording on the Constantinople obelisk is insufficient
Great Khatte 'Istification for Sethe's restoration. There is no reason to restore a
Only in Thutmose Ill's record of years 33 and 41 is the name ljt3 I, "stela," in the gap before "[ea]st of this water." The use of fry
followed by the adjective C3. 11 4- In the Iron Age a similar term is Ill'rc is proleptic and emphatic: 122 If the Philadelphia fragment l23 dates
used by Assyrian scribes, but with different application. I 15 The adjec­ II Thutmose Ill's reign, we may add specifics to this entry: the new

tive "great" in Egyptian lexical usage could refer equally to physi­ lela was set up on the north of Thutmose 1's.
cal size, or prestige, I 16 although in the context of political subdivisions ~ol. 20 must once have contained reference to a victory, since
both nuances were probably present. There is here an appreciation II(' opening phrases following the lacuna describe the rout. We should
of the composite nature of an imperial state (matiiti in Akkadian)117 of I'store something like irt b3yt c3t wrt in ~mf im.sn iw.sn ~r bh3 or the
international renown, in contrast to the metropolitan states of the l2
likc \ This in turn presupposes a prior statement regarding the pres­
Levant, each with its circumscribed territorium. 118 Khatte could only lice and deployment of the enemy, perhaps something like c~c.n
~/I.1l ~mf r n3 n b3styw. This would occupy c. 1.55 m. and leave
15 20 em. for Sethe's c~c.n + verb.
110 Cf EA 35:49, where it stands parallel to Khatte.
III Heick, Beziehungen, 278.
112 J. Skinner, Genesis (ICC; Edinburgh, 1910), 210; E.A. Speiser, Genesis (Anchor
Bible; New York, 1964), 106. 11'1 For an attempt to pinpoint the identity of the Hittite king in question (Zidanta
113 Cf S.N. Kramer, The Sumerians (Chicago, 1963), 297; M.C. Astour, "Political II or Iluzziya II) see T. Bryce, The Kingdom qf the Hittites (Oxford, 1999), 129 and
and Cosmic Symbolism in Gen. 14 and its Babylonian Sources," in A. Altmann II <)7 (following the high chronology); cf. O. Carruba, Oriens Antiquus 15 (1976), 303
(ed), Biblical Motifs: Origins and TranifOrmations (Cambridge, 1966), 76. 'I lIc1khaliyas II).
114 Gauthier, Dictionnaire geographique IV, 188. ." Pace such historians as Drioton and Vandier L'Egypte (Paris, 1962), 403;
115 Heick, Beziehungen, 279; G. Roux, Ancient Iraq (Harmondsworth, 1966), 246. ;rimal, II llistory qf Egypt (Oxford, 1992),215; Klengel, 0Jria 3000 to 300 B.C.,
116 Wb.I, 161:5 8, 19-21; 162 passim. "Brave and chivalrous qualities" is decid­ ) I \ny visit to that town would be on the return.
edly too romantic: H. Brugsch-Bey, A History qf Egypt under the Pharaohs (London, , Why the incident should be qualified as "the king's apparent (my italics) cross­
1881), II, 2. II .. or the Euphrales" (B. Bryan, in L Shaw ledl, 77le OiJord History qf Egypt [Oxford,
117 One is reminded of "EAA.a<; n l!EYUAT]: Liddd-Scott, 535b. tll)() I, 2\(j) is difTindt to fatholl1.
liB Even Ugarit, one of the largest, occupied a sea-frontage of onl} 60 km.: C. Cf. II'IJ. V. 1 I I :5, and the use of !tl~ in Coptic: \Y. Till, !trlptitches Grall1/1/atik
Bliecellati, Cities alld Natiolls qf IllIrimt Syria (Ronl(', 1(7), 39. On Ihe \aglll'ness and 1<. '111% 1'1:,:, '. ~('('. '2'27 28; \Y. \\'1'st(,l1dnd~ Iwplildlel llrllldwiiltnh//th (I lcidelherp;,
inappropriateness of ill(' term "cily-st,lIe." SI'I' S. BlininJO\ill., "Thl' Ch,lnging Shapl' l!t 7 :l'l
01 !'mH'1 in Bnllifl \'(t' <:,1I1,1,ln" In Ihblull/ /lIhlltl1/"/.,'1' 101/1/1' /')'J() SUlllilt/llfIIl lIdm\, pl '1 I \ II
/,·III,.tlt·llI, I 'I'll, I II ",~ 1\ lH I I )
78 CHAPTER TWO THE DAY-BOOK EXCERPTS: SECOND PART 79

The list of captures arouses suspicion. 125 The chiefs captured num­ Tally (32) of the towns plundered in this year: 2 towns;

ber three; each must have 10 wives, and each must have 202 ser­ T owns which capitulated in the region of

vants-cum-children. 126 If the captured men be "apportioned" the Nukhashshe*:

1

number is close on 27 per chief. Can these figures be trusted? Or Total

3

is the scribe basing himself, not on a written record (which perhaps Individuals as plunder which His Majesty

he did not have), but on someone's reminiscence? It would have to brought off [.... c. 1.65 m..... people

be, after all, the most remote district ever attained by Thutmose III. brou]ght by capture,
90

What problems of logistics would distance and river transport have Those who capitulated, their wives and

posed, both for an accompanying commisariat and for prisoners? (33; see fig. 8) their children [....]

The lacuna in col. 22 will presumably have contained a reference Horses 40

to the beginning of the return to Egypt. The plundering of an Chariots worked in silver and gold 15

unnamed town (or towns?) will have followed. If the "uprooting of Gold: vessels (Sic)

the grain" corresponds to reality, and not formulaic demands, the Gold in sheets 50 dbn, 8 kdt
season must still have been summer. [Silver: vesse]ls of this country together with sheets 153 dbn
To judge by the placement of the section dealing with the receipt [ ... 40 em....]
of benevolences, it must have taken place after the visit to Niya (and Catde 326
Qatna?)127 or in the mid-Orontes valley. Col. 25 lists large quanti­ ~bcl~~ ~
ties of food-stuffs which must have been ear-marked for deposit in Flocks of goats 50(?)
the harbors, notice of which is given in the following section. But Donkeys 70
we are not obliged to understand the gifts from the 4(?)128 "Great Much T3gw-wood,130 (34) "black-wood," ssndm-wood,131 qni- [...],132
powers" as having been given at the same time. In fact, the qualification much [...] I 33-woo d, together with tent-poles worked in bronze inlaid
m mpt tn shows that the gifts were received simply within the same with gems: 6; and the various fine woods of this foreign land.

calendar year. 129 Benevolen[ces of] the chiefs of Retenu in this year:

Horses 41 (?)

[Chariots wor]ked in gold and silver and

Year 34
(those only) painted 90(?)

"(31) ... Regnal year 34. Male and female servants

702

Now His Majesty was in Djahy [.... 1.75 em.....] his [...] capit­ Gold
55 dbn, 6 kdt
ulating to His Majesty completely and abjecdy. Silver: various vessels (35) of local
craftsmanship [...] dl:m [...]
Gold, silver, Uapis], bitumen(?)134 various gems: vessels [...]
125 It is questionable whether these are prisoners-of-war from the river battle just
described, chiefs, wives, servants, children and capitulators sound more like the
inhabitants of conquered towns.
126 Drower (CAH II, 1,457) fails to appreciate the problem, and uses the figures
as proof that the 8th campaign "was little more than a raid"! 130 Unknown wood: Hoch, Semitic Words in Egyptian Texts, 373-74.
127 See below, pt. 2, pp. 28-29. 131 Above p. 38.
128 It is conceivable that in the lengthy lacuna in col. 27 another land was listed 112 Perhaps related to the medicinal herb: R. Germer, Untersuchungen iiber die
between Babylonia and Assyria. But what could it be? Azy? AJashiya? Ir:.neimittelpJlGIlZfl1 im Altell Aegypten (Hamburg, 1979), 369.
1~'1 The gifts themselves arc small enough to be considered "tokcn" ~Ul1ounts: h 111 Probably read stpw, "much cut wood" (not Sethe's htpw),
birds (albeit of spccies rare (elr EiO'ptian cyes), a Jl,dtry alllOllnl of I'lpis, SOJlle VI'S 111 Oil 111(' JllOblt'Jll o[ III1lW, sec Harris, IL\icof,TGphicaL Studies, 17 I 72; for bitu­
,cis of pl('slIll1,IIJly mlll1l101\ lyP(' 1':\('11 Ilw I k14 of sllvC'I linlll ~hall(' IMI('S 111 111('1\, ('('Ilainl> ollt,\illaIJI(' ill 1101 tit Syria, se(' M. Serpico, in PT. Nicholson, 1. Shaw
(011111.11 i .Oll "illt ,~I1,11 ,hIs W IH ("\;("I1,lIll1l,d I.Hl'l III thl "t'W h,illL!dolll ('ds), ,J/ll/rIIl j·.i!'llii/f/ll \1111'1111/1 (//1// l,tll/wIIlJ')' Call1hIid/i4('. :WOO" 15 I lb.
80 CHAPTER TWO THE DAY-BOOK EXCERPTS: SECOND PART 81

Native l35 copper 80 ingots Nukhashshe

Lead 11 ingots This tract of land, identical with Iron Age Lu'ash,140 has long since
Paint 100 dbn been (correctly) identified as lying east of the Orontes between Qatna
Fresh myrrh, malachite, [....] and Ebla. 141 The name is Hurrian in origin,142 and, since the earli­
[Long-horns] and short-horns 13 est occurrence is in fact the present text, the appearance of the
Herds 530 toponym probably reflects the rapid Hurrian expansion at the end
Donkeys 84 of the 16th Cent. B.C. Perhaps significantly at Ugarit Niya is implied
Bronze: many weapons, many vessels of to be part of the Nukhashshe lands. The terrain is steppe and pas­
copper t lire land, afflicted with the semi-aridity, heat and low rainfall of the
Incense 693 jars Syrian gezira to the north-east. 143 The sparseness of the population
(36) Sweet oil with fresh oiIl36 2,080 [jars] .1I1d the pastoral nature of the subsistence base combined to resist
Wine 608 jars Jlolitical unification, and explains the Egyptian designation w, "dis­
T3gw-[wood] [(a) cha]riot t rict." Interestingly, of the 4 entries in the daybook excerpts listing
Ssndm-wood, oil-bushes l37 and all the woods of this foreign land. I hose who capitualated (~tpyw), two are in the context of Nukhashshe
Now all the harbors of His Majesty were stocked with every good years 34 and 38).
thing which [His] Majesty received [in Dja]hy, and Keftiu-ships, But the inhabitants of Nukhashshe are not designated f3sw, "wan­
Byblos-boats and Sektu-vessels 138 loaded with logs and boards and I('rers, transhumants," and are kept distinct from the Apiru as well. l44
(37) large lumber which the [garris]on I39 of His Majesty had cut. ('his must mean that a more sedentary lifestyle characterized the
Benevolence of the chief of Asy* in this year: IlOpulation of this tract east of the Orontes, and we should proba­
[Bronze] 108 1/2 ingots Illy qualify Nukhashshean society as sedentary-rural and agro-pas­
Sheet bronze 2,040 dbn toralist. 145 But the territory was not a political unit: there were "kings"
Lead 5 ingots tribal sheikhs?) of Nukhashshe. 146
Lead (in) nws-form 1,200 (units)
Lapis 110 dbn
110 Gardiner, Onomastica I, 168*-70*.
Ivory 1 tusk 1" Sources and discussion in Klengel, Geschichte Syriens II, 18; idem, Syria 3000 to
[...]-wood 2 staves ..." 110 B.C., 94 and n. 55; E. Edel, Die Ortsnamenlisten aus dem Totentempel Amenophis III
(The taxes from the Sudan follow) BOl1n, 1968),4(10); 65; Heick, Be<.iehungen, 152; G.F. del Monte,]. Tischler, Repertoire
IIgraphique des textes cuneiformes VI. Die Orts- und Gewiissernamen des hethitischen Texte
\\icsbaden, 1978), 291-92.
II'! KJenge1, Geschichte Syriens II, 20 and n. 13.
135 Ifr 1J3stf: See Harris, uxicographical Studies, 56. 11\ E. Wirth, Syrien. Eine geographische Landeskunde (Darmstadt, 1971), 104-5;
136 B3q: oil from the balanos or moringa, or perhaps, olive: see L. Manniche, All I Kerbe, Climat, frydrologie et ambzagements frydro-agricoles de Syrie (Bordeaux, 1987),
Ancient Egyptian Herbal (London, 1989), 122-23; M. Serpico in Nicholson, Shay, Iii\) 67.
(op. cit., 393-99; D. Meeks, "Oeliculture et viticulture dans l'Egypte pharaonique," IH Cr. Urk. IV, 1309: I ,3. Strikingly, however, the figures are very close: 15,200
in M.-C. Arnouretti (ed), Oil and Wine Production in the Mediterranean Area (Athens, :-.h.tsu Lo 15,080 NLikhashsheans!
1993), 3-38. 11', I. Finkelstein, "Pastoralism in the Highlands of Canaan in the Third and
\37 Akk. kaniiktu: CAD VIII (1971), 135-36. ,., ond Millennia B.C.E.," in O. Bar-Yosef and A. Khazanov (eds), Pastoralism in
\38 On these ship designations, see T. Save-soderbergh, The Nal!Jl qf the Eighteenth I J'lIQnt. Archaeological A1aterials in Anthropological Perspectives (Madison, 1992), 134; on
Egyptian 0nasry (Uppsala, 1946), 46-50; E. Martin-Pardey, "Schiff," in uiA'v (198'1" " gr ,tin of Nukhashshe, see AJ Spalinger, "Egyptian-Hittite Relations at the Close
605; D. Jones, Boats (Austin, 1995), 73; S. Wachsmann, Sea-going Ship" and Seamamillp Iht' Alllarna Perioel anel some Notes on Ilittite Military Strategy in North Syria,"
in the Bron<.e Age Levant (London, 1998), 51 2; C. Ward, "Ships and Ship-bLlilding," n I ICJ79.63.
in D.B. Redford (ed), n,e Oiford F:ncyclopaedia qf Ancient 1~~'J!pt III (New York, 2001" EA IbO:21, 1bf): 17; Sp,lIin/oll'I, liP. nt., fi7 11. B. Al Emar, on (\1(' nOrLhern fringe
283; Lhe Lerms, like "EasL Indiamen," in(\icHLe L!w boaL's IHlll11.t1 Iun (,In(\ LIH'rc Ilkh.lshsllt', 1111' lintits ()II killl(ship ,lilt I th(' jlOW('1 of \111' ('Itlers arc l1oleworLhy
fort' ils Iype), not Ihe SOUI'< c of iLs tilllbn! IlIlIt'~: I), I'lr-lllill/ol \ l.illlill'C1 I,il"" hip: 1..,11 IlIOIl/( \~t EIll'lI ill Anciel1t
IVI J{cst!lll /Inri III till Iill II 11.1 1111 1I.llt'A Alii I /JF2·! (I!)1)2j. :',1). 11; (i. Ikt klllllll. "Rt'lIl PIOPl'lI" S.llt'5.1l Inl.1l .. III C; I)
82 CHAPTER TWO THE DAY-BOOK EXCERPTS: SECOND PART 83

A.ry and occupied during the period in question, Asu would seem to be
The problems of identifYing and locating this place continue to defy too close to Aleppo and Mittani to have enjoyed the independence
resolution. Long identified with Cyprus 147 the identification must now required of the place mentioned in the Egyptian texts. 155
be given up, as Alashiya, the undoubted toponym designating the When compared with year 33 the plunder of year 34 is extremely
island, is found in texts along with Azyl48 and was current even in modest, and the tally of three settlements confirms the impression
the Middle Kingdom. 149 In fact under Thutmose III a decline appears of a razzia into the steppe on a small scale. The presence of tent­
to have set in in contact with CypruS. 150 Since the "Poetical Stela" poles suggests that the enemy chief's camp was successfully raided.
seems to place it in the west, an Aegean location for Asy may be The venue for the receipt of benevolences may be located on the
obligatory. One is very tempted to see in the ethnic term A-si-wi­ lower mid-Orontes, not far removed from the scene of hostilities in
yajA-si-wi-yo of Linear B 151 and the Hittite Assuwa on the west Nukhashshe: the presence of large quantities of oil and oil bushes
coast of Asia Minor the Vorlage of the Egyptian transliteration. 152 points to the vicinity of Tunip.156
On the other hand, it is curious that the digamma is not reflected
in the Egyptian transcription. 153 Another candidate, more acceptable
Year 35
philologically, might be Asu (= Tel Hadidi) between Carchemish and
Emar on the right bank of the Euphrates. 154 Although a large city, "Regnal year 35. Now [His] Majesty [was in] Djahy on his tenth
victorious campaign.
Young and others(eds), Crossing Boundaries and Linking Horizons (Bethesda, Md; 1997), Now His Majesty arrived at the town of Ar'anu* and that vile
106-7; M.R. Adamthwaite, Late Hittite Emar (Louvain, 2001), 187-93. doomed one [of NaharJin had collected horses with their people
147 See for example V. Karageorghis, Cyprus from the Stone Age to the Romans (London,
land ... c. 80 cm.... and their armies(?)] (40) of the ends of the earth­
1982), 66-67; The identification may have been abetted by the enormous amount
of copper given in this year: Heick, Beziehungen, 290. they were [more] numerous [than the sands of the seashore!-] intent
148 W. Heick, Die Beziehungen Aegyptens und Vorderasiens zur Agais bis ins 7. Jahrhundert on fighting with His Majesty.
v. Chr. (Darmstadt, 1979), 35. Then His Majesty clo[sed] with them;157 and then the army of
149 S. Farag, RdE 32 (1980), 75ff (8+x, 16+x).
150 R.S. Merrillees, The Cypriote Bronze Age Pottery fiund in Egypt (Lund, 1968), Kis Majesty performed the charging manoevre with the cry 'It's-up­
195-96. lor-grabs!'158 Then His Majesty overpowered [these] foreigners through
151 Cf. M. Lejllellne, "Sur Ie vocabulaire economique mycenien," in E.L. Bennet
jr. (ed), MYcenaean Studies (Madison, 1964), 89, 104 n. 68.
Ihe power of [his] fa[ther] Amu[n.... and made a great slaughter
152 See del Monte-Tischler, Repertoire geographique des textes cuneiformes VI, 52-3; among those doomed ones] (41) of Naharin. They proceeded to flee,
J. Strange, Caphtorl Kiftiu. A New Investigation (Leiden, 1980), 19, n. 19; P.W. Haider, ~tumbling one upon the other, in front of His Majesty.
Griechenland-Nordajrika (Darmstadt, 1988), 17 and n. 60-61; F. Woudhuizen,17ze
Language qf the Sea Peoples (Amsterdam, 1992), 28~33. The later spelling 3sy3 (if cor­
rect) lends support to the identification: E. Edel, "Afrikanische und asiatische orts­
namen in ptolemaischen Listen," in J. Osing and others (eds), The Heritage qf Ancient
Egypt (Copenhagen, 1992), 37-8. In light of the fact that the day-book excerpts for 155 Needless to say Asu is not to be equated with I+n of tbe North Syrian list
Asy feature substantial quantities of metal and ore, it may be worth noting that Urk. IV, 791[2l5], 792[263]), as W. Mayer, "Del' antike Name von Tall Munbaqa,
Tudhaliyas I (outgoing 15th Cent. B.C.) after his defeat of the Assuwan confeder­ die Schreiber und die cbronologische del' Tafelfunde ...," MDOG 122 (1990), 49.
acy, dedicated a fine bronze long-sword from the spoil: A. Unal and others, "The 156 cr M.C. Astour, "Ancient North Syrian Toponyms derived from plant Names,"
Hittite Sword from Boghaz-koy-Hattusas found in 1991 and its Akkadian Inscription," ill G, Rendsberg and others (eds), The Biblical World (New York, 1980), 7 no. 56
Museum 4 (1991), 46-52. Note also that the Aegean is the likely source for copper 'Timip fa kanakti). On oil-trees in general, see F.R. Kraus, "Sesam in alten Meso­
found in Egypt in the Late Bronze Age: Z. Stos-Gale and others, "The Origins of pOlamie," in W.H. Hallo (cd), Essays in Memory qf EA. Speiser (New Haven, 1968),
Egyptian Copper: Lead-Isotope Analysis of Metals from El-Amarna," in W.V. Davies 112 19; H.G. Guterbock, "Oil Plants in Hittite Anatolia," ibid., 66-71.
(ed), Egypt, the Aegean and the Levant (London, 1995), 127 35. 1\7 T(m Imc., 'Vb. V, 389: 12 390:8; Cf. Spalinger, Aspects qf the Military Documents
"3 One might counter with the hypothesis that the form had beel1 fixed long /lltlte AI/rient /~"'gyplia/L) (New lIaven, 1982), 87. The idea is that of movement toward
before tbe J 8th Dynasty rules of lranslitl'raliol1 wcre in placc. Btlt how carly did ,I IH'rsO!l or thillf.\ with the object of eventually touching: cf. Gardiner, Late Egyptian
the Egyptans know of Ashuwa? \'tfllU.l (BIIIXclb, IlJ:ll), 10:'1 (of the ~ky cr,L,hing to the earth); Urk. IV, 840:2 3
1'1 R II DOlllc'milllll ""1','11 11adidi: 01 Ihllll/C' AgI' City Oil I ltc' ElIJlhl,IlI'~," If IIlH' .,tlltH' not fllting lilt Illllrhing! ,ttlulhl'I'; fell til(' pn'SI'!lt idiom cC, W. TIdck,
I"11t/,,,I,,. 'l' :11 IC}711 'n .( ,,/,,1/, "S,d,",!!,' E_" 1\.1111111, ;II 'I'dl I (,ulicli III till' ) .lIplll,I\(·~ II/l/arllflt bWKI<l/lltllt/" In/' rI" 'J ":"1I'/1I1t""nl \\H',b,lcll'Il, I cl7 r)" III
1{IHI \'"lIn'," /1,1 III 111II~1;. '17fl. SCC' c1i§c 1I§'~\l11l I will"
 84 CHAPTER TWO THE DAY-BOOK EXCERPTS: SECOND PART 85

Tally of the captures which His Majesty br[ought off] himself Gold [....J
from these foreigners of Naharin [.... c. 1.50 m..... bronze: suits T3gw wood and [alll the [fine] herbs [of this land....] 162
of](42) maip59 2
Bronze: hel[mets] 160 '*Ar)anu
Tally of the captures which the army of His Majesty brought off The location of this place is uncertain. Helck, citing Dussaud, would
from [these for]eigners:
locate it 20 km. North-west of Aleppo. 163 Astour equated it with clas­
Prisoners of war 10
sical Ariandum, but declined to locate it. 164 Most others have sim­
Horses 180
ply followed Helck. 165 Unfortunately no toponym in the extant portions
Chariots 60
of the "Syrian" list on pylon 7 exactly fits the transliteration of the
[.... 2.50 m..... (43) ... 4 groups ...
present passage. 166 Helck's placement would make some sense, as it
Bronze]: inlaid harnesses 15
would indicate a route for the army's march virtually identical with
Bronze: suits of mail [....J
lhat of year 33. On this occasion, however, the Mitannian tactic was
Bronze: helmets 5
10 intercept the Egyptian forces before they reached Carchemish and
Hurrian bows 5 161
I he river Euphrates.
The plunder done in another [... c. 2.50 m ....] The account of the engagement is of more than passing interest,
(44) [.... Benevolence of the chiefs of Retenu(?) III this year(?) as, apart from the first campaign, this is the only other passage in
Horses] 226 which battlefield tactics are described, if only briefly. The phrase an
Chariot worked in gold 1 II ill int in particular provides, one would be lead to predict, a pre­
Chariot(s) worked in silver and gold 10 [+ X] cious insight into the use of sound in the fray. For is certainly an
[....] gold in [...] (45) [... unknown length....] the word used for a type of recitation or speech l67 often rhetorical
[incense] 84 jars 1il nature,168 or shouted aloud by a throng. 169 Iti inw has been treated
[wine] 3,099 [jars]" by Gardiner,170 and has achieved conventional acceptance as an
(46) [.... Now every depot was supplied with various fine things, in "cxpression for disorderly or erratic movement or conduct."171 The
accordance with their] yearUy practice], the labor taxes of [Lebanon pre-sent passage is thus rendered by Faulkner "a ragged chorus of
likewise] and the harvest of Djahy, consisting of [grain, incense, fresh
oil, wine ....]
[Benevolence of. .. (47) ....]
1"2 The benevolence of another specific foreign land may have been listed here.
Vessel[s of. ..]
1"3 Beziehungen, 153; Drioton-Vandier, L'Egyple, 405.
1'01 "Place-names from the Kingdom of Alalakh in the North-Syrian List of
1IJilimose III: a Study in Historical Topography," ]NES 22 (1963), 235.
I"j Drower, CAH II, I, 458; Klengel, Syria 3000 to 300 B.C., 94 n. 56; none of
hi' I titLite toponyms approximating Ar'anu seems to suit: del Monte and Tischler,
N'/Iatoire geographique des tex/es cuneiftrmes VI, 32-34.
159 See above, p. 35 n. 207. II.. Cf. Nos. 169 (l-r3-ny-r3), 233 (l-r3-[. ..J), 288-89 (I-y-r3 nr).
160 Dbn n tp: Wh. V, 438: I; W. Wolf, Die BewajJhung des altaegyptischen Heeres (Leipzig, 1"7 J Vb. Ill, 289; S. Schott, Bucher und Bibtiotheken im allen Aegypten (Wiesbaden,
1926), 97; T. Kendall, "Gurpifa fa awili: the Helmets of the Warriors at Nuzi," in ')'lO), 320 (no. 1454).
M.A. Morrisson, DJ. Owen (eds), Studies on the Civilization and Culture qf Nuzi in Honor II! Aphorisms: cr. Peasant B, I, 19, 37; K. Sethe, Aegyptische Lesestucke (Leipzig,
qf Emest R. Lacheman (Winona Lake, 1981), 201-31; by Amenophis n's time hel­ II )fIl, flO: 19, 84: 1I 12; Nefcrety 49 50 (Heick, Die Prophezeihung des Nfr.[j (Wiesbaden,
mets were being received as part of the New Year's benevolences: N. de G. Davies, 1(1;0" 12.
"The Egyptian Expedition, 1927 1928," BMMA 23 (1928), no. 12(2), 49 fig-. 6.; EXlI.lvagal1t grcctings by courtiers: Urk. TV, 1095:7, 2042: I, II; cheers of spec­
D.B. Redford, in TIle Akhenalen Temple Project 11. Rwd mnw and tlte !rump/io/lJ (ToronlO, ill~. hRJ V, 18(i:(i 7; work-song- of laborers: JJ. Tylor, F. LI. Griffith, The Tomb
19118), 18 20, 25 n. 103; A.R. Schulman, ibid., 62 6.1. "/Ibm III 1':1 hllb Londoll, Jill) I" pI. 3, rcf.'(. 2; an entertainment song: Wb. III,
1"1 The 5) Suits, 5 helmcts and 5 bows souncl likc' (he C'lJUlplllC'lll of ('hario­ II :21; C. /.il'~I(,I, (,lIlrtloj("r rlrl "'Itrummll til 1/1/I.liq'" ~i,f)!/Jlifll.\ (Paris, J 979), 102.
(C'ITS. \\1' .tn' ill a ~h'soJlolalJli,ln lo(',tli' 111'1(', \~h('n '\Il h 11l·1111\ II ,Iud body .lIIllOI 170 "'1hl Idllllll /1 11/." 7F I 'J! 1C)'IB 1'21 'r,
OIIUlllollc'c! "
171 I{ ,0 J.llllkl1c'I, I (,'1//(11' !Jul/lllum' 11/ ,\ luldlr !'.J..1'J,/lltrll/ Oxford, I cHi:.!" 3 I.
86 CHAPTER TWO THE DAY-BOOK EXCERPTS: SECOND PART 87

shouts."I72 But no enemy is intimidated by disorderliness or erratic included the "harvest of Djahy" as part of the food stocks. The
behaviour: it is the firm chant in unison by the All Blacks that strikes remainder, despite Sethe's fanciful and unjustified restoration l79 remains
terror in the opposition! Moreover other examples of the expression beyond recall.
do not seem to fit. 173 fly means to wrest complete control over some­
thing and ini to appropriate it for oneself. "This N has assigned the
south-wind as his keeper and the north-wind for his nurse: he has rears 36 and 37
gone within his bai, and it is his akh that controls him and takes him The record of the campaign of year 36 is now lost. It must have
over."174 Again: "I was one that restored what was ruined, and made begun in the long columns immediately east of the north door of
acceptable what was delapidated, with a positive outlook (wrif-ib), free the antechamber (room V), and continued in the short columns
from (the desire for) seizing and keeping."175 As for a temple, "a cur­ above that door. To date no fragments from this part of the wall
tailment had occurred in its divine endowment and its temple-staff are known.
likewise; seizure and appropriation faced its property and their bound­ The campaign of year 37 is mostly lost. It must have begun above
aries were not fixed."176 Foreigners (metaphorically designated) are the door and occupied the 3 long columns immediately west of thc
free to wander into Egypt and settle down for there are no Egyptians door. To judge by the presence of nbw within 30 cm. of the top of
to drive them off: "this land is (in fact) itt inf' which in the context col. 84, most of this space was once occupied by a long list of plun­
can only mean "free for the taking."177 Hatshepsut's obelisk inscrip­ der and benevolences followed by the list of southern commodities
tion throws up some difficulty:178 "My heart is directing me to make (see fig. 9).
him two obelisks.... indeed my heart is itt int while thinking of what "(85) Skr-mineral,180 haemetite(?), 181 green porphyry(?),182 eye-paint ...
the plebs might say, those who see my monuments in future years [... c. 95 cm....J
and who may speak of what I have done. Beware lest ye say ...!" Wild ga[meJ, fire sticks"
The whole passage exudes forceful speech and determination: it is (There follows the list of exactions from Kush and Wawat)
not the place to exhibit and admit erratic behaviour! What the queen Although the items presented by locals as benevolences need not
appears to be saying is: I'm (freely) taking the initiative, I'm seizing originate in the area itself, the mineral content of part of the list
the moment, I'm taking this opportunity. If seizing and appropriat­ ,tnd the presence of wild game might point to a locale on the steppe.
ing are keys to the understanding of this expression, then the war­
whoop of Thutmose's men involves the injunction: seize and take
(the enemy and their possessions) as spoil; colloquially: "let's get 'em!" rear 38
or "its up for grabs!" 1(86) ... Regnal year 38. Now His Majesty was in....J (87) on the
The final columns in this section (46-48) are too fragmentary for 13th victorious campaign. Then His Majesty dest[royed the towns
connected translation. The formulaic pericope of the provisioning or. ... which were in the distJrict of Nukhashshe.
the harbors followed and for the first time in the day-book excerpts

179 Urk. IV, 714.

172 Loc. cit. 100 Harris, Lexicographical Studies, 183; a rare word presumably of West Semitic or
173 H. Quecke, "1ch habe nichts hinzugefugt und nichts weggenomen. Lur \kkadian origin, although none of the known roots seems to fit: cf. Murtonen,
Wahrheitsbedeuerung koptischer Martyrien," in Fragen an die altaegyptische Literatur I'rbrew in its West Smnitic Setting, I (Bb), 423; J. Hohenberger, Semitische und Hamitische
(Wiesbaden, 1977), 414-15 and n. 57. II iltlltiimme in Nilo hamitiscllen (Berlin, 1988), 179, 187.
174 11i sw inn sw; CT VI, 310h.
IHI Didi: lIani.s, op. cit., 155fT; A. Lucas, JR. lIarris, Ancient Egyptian Materials and
I". KIll II, 388:2. '1I"'lIll1r\ LOI1c1on, 1'l8'l" 'J95; I. Shaw, "Min('rals," in Redford (cd), Oif!ml Elll)iclopaedia
17b KRI 11, 326:5.
bUIl'll1 F-\I}jil Nc\\ "ork, '200 I" II, 117.
I 7 Ilckk, NT.I}, 'Jl (Villa).
lit! Ibh!y: ILIITI' op. 01 tIll 7 S. ,\\lIIl'lt', !.'lI/w'rn mllltmi da/ll la /11'71\" ~1fi'/ltimlle
I I. (rA 1\, 'J(i:l I 10
;lito, ll)!ll}, II, 71d.
88 CHAPTER TWO THE DAY-BOOK EXCERPTS: SECOND PART 89

Tally of the captures which His Majesty's army brought off in the Long-horned cattle
12
district of Nukhashshe: [Short horns ...

Prisoners-of-war 50 Wild game] 1,200

Horses [ ] Donkeys l89 46

Chariots [worked in gold and silver equipped] with [their] l90

Deer 1

weap[ons] (88) of war (90) Ivory 5 tusks

Those of the district of Nukhashshe who capitulated [ together Altars of ivory and of ssndm-wood
with their wives and their children [...] Rock crystal(?) 191 68 dbn
[Tally] of the benevolences brought to the Power of His Majesty [Bronze: suits of mai]l 11 [+ X]
in this year [Br]onze: speers, shields, bows and various weapons of war.
Horses 328 Aromatic wood of this foreign land, and a variety of gifts of this
Male and female servants 522 foreign land
Chariots worked in silver and gold 9 Now all the harbors were stocked with every good thing in accor­
(Chariots) painted 61 dance with their yearly custom (for) both [northward] and south­
Total 70 ward journeys, (with) the labor of Lebanon (91) likewise, and the
Genuine lapis: one collar [....] harvest of Djahy, consisting of grain, fresh oil, incense [wine and
[Silver(?)]: a mixing cauldron l83 and plates (89) <adorned with>184 honey].
faces of (wild) game and the face of a lion,185 and vessels of all sorts Benevolence of the chief of Asy:

of Djah[y] workmanship [....] Native copper [....]

[....] 2,821 [dbn], 3 1/2 kdt l86 Horses [?]

Native copper 276 ingots Benevolence of the chief of Alalakh in this year:
Lead 26 ingots Male and Female servants 5
Incense 656 hbnt-measures l87 Native copper 2 ingots
Sweet oil and fresh oil and Ssndm-wood 65 <logs>(?)
cedar-oil(?) 188 1,752 containers Along with all sorts of aromatic plants of his land."

Wine 155 (jars) (Produce from Pwenet, Kush and Wawat follow)

183 See above, p. 43 n. 187.

184 Perhaps restore !lnmt: ef. Urk. IV, 722:3.
185 Cf. N. de Garis Davies, The Tombs if Menkheperrasonb, Amenmose and Another
(London, 1933), pI. III. IHq all the difficulty of identifying the equus asinus in Asia and distinguishing it
186 It is unclear to what this figure refers, unless it is to the combined weight of fi'I111 other species, see DJ. Brewer, Domestic Plants and Animals. The Egyptian Origins
all the silver vessels. \\ ,trminster, n.d.), 99. One wonders whether the donkeys listed here and in year
187 For incense only here: Wb. II, 487:17. Often used for beer, wine and honey: II wcrc to be used as pack-animals for the transport of oil and incense jars, of
Wb. II, 487:14-l6; pictured in the tomb of Rekhmire (in N. de G. Davies, 'Ill" 1111 h large amounts were requisitioned in both years: see E. Ovadia, "The
Tomb if Rekhmire at Thebes [New York, 1943], pI. 33 34) as a two handled amphora I )"!lwsUcatioll of the Ass and Pack Transport by Animals: a Case of Technological
of "Canaanite" type: J. Bourriau, "Relations between E/{ypt and Kerma in the I 1t,II1AT," ill O. Bar-Yosef al1d A. Khaanov, Pastoralism in Ihe Levanl. Archaeological
Middle and ~ew Kingdoms," in W.V. Davies (ed), 1'1,'Ypt and '!/iica: Nllbia ./iOlIl 1/ 'Irlll/ll 111 AlllhlOplllogical Pmprrlives (Madison, 1992), 19 28. Interestingly it has been
Prrhistory 10 !Jlalll (Londoll, 1991), p. 138(1<1); also us('d as a unit of llwasure: '1'.(;. "stl'd lhat the t()\~n-l1<lnH' "Emar," for the city Iyini{ on the northern fringe of
II. Jan1l's, 711r 1l,I.anal.hlr Papm alld Olhrr f..ar{)' "flrldlc Aillgrlolll f)o(t/lllrIIII London, NlIkh'lshslH', nW<lnt "donkey 1()\~I1": JC. WeslcnhoJ.t., "Emar the City and its God,"
II)(j'J, liB. " \.111 IA'I!lt'll\lH' nl. 1.(111.1:/11/1:1"1 (/1111 (:/I/IlIrf.1 //I (;0I11f/(/ (LclIvel1, 1999), 145 52.
R (;111111"1 Inlmllllltlllgm III, 9O.J \,111(111'1, ,I/rlll/lri r/'m,h"'/IIK'r (/'.1/'1/(/111' P,lllS, !IHif)" V, Bih.
1'1]'1 I I II) Itl J 1.1111 Il.\ufI/l1(I!,II/((I/ SIlIdlrJ, 110 II.
90 CHAPTER 1WO THE DAY-BOOK EXCERPTS: SECOND PART 91

Commentary Goats 1,183

There is no reason to believe that specific towns within the territory Bronze [.... c. 1.80 m ....
of Nukhashshe were mentioned herein. As in year 34 when Nukhashshe All] (96) the sweet-smelling [herbs] of this foreign land together
had been the scene of operations, the Egyptians were campaigning with a variety of fine gifts of this foreign land.
in the steppe where no significant settlements were located qualify­ Now all the harbors were stocked with every good thing, in accor­
ing as metropolitan states. The locals, following a transhumant lifestyle, dance with their yearly custom (for) both northward and [southward]
preferred to give themselves up, as they had done in year 34. journeys and (with) [the labor of Lebano]n likewise, and the harvest
As in year 34 the collection point for the benevolences seems to (97) of Djahy, consisting of grain, incense, fresh oil, sweet [oil] and
have been the lower middle Orontes. The quantity of oil and the wi[ne].
[(I; see fig. 10)195.... 196
presence of ivory would seem to confirm it.
Benevolence of the chief] of Asy:

Ivory 2 tusks

Year 39 Copper 40 ingots

"(93).... Regnal year 39 Lead I ingot

Now His Majesty was in the land of Retenu on the 14th victori­ (The lost benevolence of some other Asiatic[?] land follows, and
ous campaign, after coming [from overthrowing the]192 doomed then the produce of Kush and Wawat)
Shasu*.
Tally of the be [nevolences of the chiefs of Retenu....] Shasu
M[ale] and female servants 197 The word, probably a participial formation, derives from a root
(94) Horses 229 meaning "to move around, to wander,"197 and thus in origin was
Gold: dishes 2 Ilscd to describe transhumants in a Near Eastern setting. The dis­
Together with sheet (gold) 12 dbn [...] kdt covery of what appears to be the tetragrammaton in a toponym list
Genuine Oapis] 30 dbn (I'om Soleb mentioning Shasu,198 has sparked a lively debate over,
110t only Hebrew origins,199 but also Shasu distribution in the Levant.
Silver: dishes and a mixing cauldron adorned with a bull's head
And various vessels 325
Together with sheet silver, making 1,495 dbn, I kdt
Chariot(s) [worked in silver and gold ... 1.55 m ....] ,05 At this point the text is resumed on the east face of the north wing of the
manufactured(?) ... hIll pylon. Sethe assumes that the columns enjoy the same height, c. 4.70 01., as
1111 the north wall, but this is by no means certain. The figure might have to be
(95) white gems, rock crysta]l93 natron, mnw-stone and all sorts of
III( rcased (or decreased) by over 50 em. In the following translation I have refrained
gems of [this] fo[reign land] It 11111 estimating the amount of loss (see fig. 10).
Incense, sweet oil, fresh oil, cedar-oil(?),194 I'N, Selhe quite correctly postulates the sometime presence here of a benevolence
Itoln some specified foreign land: Urk. IV, 724:7.
honey 364 [containers] 1'17 /Vb. IV, 412:3 7; W. Westendorf, Koptisches Handwbrterbuch (Heidelberg, 1977),
Wine 1,405 jars lit.
Cattle 84 'IR. Giveon, "Toponymes ouest-asiatiques a Soleb," VT 14 (1964), 244; idem,
1" JJMouillS SltOsou des documents egyptiens (Leiden, 1971), 26-28 (doc. 6a); J. Leclant,
I. s fbuilles de Saleb (Nubie soudainaise): quelques remarques sur les ecussons des
upit's enVOlttt'S clc' la salle l1ypostyle du secteur IV," NAWG 1965, 214ff
J'II(' point of cit'palllllc has usually bcen the (alleged) Transjordanian local­
I'" The laculla is sli~htly lon~er than Sethe admits (UrA. IV, 721 n. r·d). Read Il~IIIIHI of til(' Solch topollyms: rC S. 11c111l1alln, Ilra,1 in Egvpt (SBT II, 27, 1973);
Ih, Ib,/ 11:1 III· 1)('( N,lJlll'.J\.\II'~ III dt'l 11I'lhrilll'n VOIl SO!<'h," FlIlIrlh IVorld CongrmofJewi..sh
I'll S('(' ,lilll\I', nil)/' j J jl·I\J',.1l1'1l1. 1%7 'J I'~ 1h ,,1'111, I 11/I/tll')! II/IIl/lfl III Old 7tllamm/ Timtl
• SI'!' ,t1HI\" n 11111, II;ull'1plll,I, IlJ7rl), iii; :\1. \\I'IJlIlf'lt, "Slllllll~ Ill' Ntllll.lrI'·1l cll" J'\\I·ilC'Ilj.lhl1aIl'(,llcl,.
92 CHAPTER TWO THE DAY-BOOK EXCERPTS: SECOND PART 93

While a "land of the Shasu" is known,200 the specifics of the Soleb All this, of course, helps us little in localizing the encounter in
list have invited identification with Transjordan, specifically Edom. 2ot year 39; but a Lebanese venue cannot be ruled out. The normal
An alternate location for the Soleb group, promoted with cogent voyage to Byblos and the passage through the Eleutheros would have
arguments, has been suggested in the Lebanons and southern Syria.202 laken the Egyptians very close to the c(y)n f3sw, "the spring of the
As though it were a choice of "homelands," there have been some Shasu," of Anastasi i.19.2. 209 A punitive encounter en route to the
who have attempted to "straddle the fence."203 hcnevolence collection point on the Orontes seems much more likely
We seem to have lost sight of the fact that the Shasu acquired I han an escapade in the extreme south.
this name apud the Egyptians precisely because they were always per­
ceived to be "on the move."204 Undoubtedly a number of "Shasu"
Year 41(?)
were to be found in Se'ir,205 but the inhabitants of the central high­
lands of Cis:Jordan could also fall under this head. 206 The fact that IfI·).... Regnal year 41(?). Now His Majesty was in the land of. .. on
nomads could not enjoy an autarchic existence, but had to interact his 15th victorious campaign. Then His Majesty sacked the town
with sedentary communities, explains the extensive dispersal of groups or ... extent qf lacuna unknown. ...] ...210
qualifying for this term. 207 Adding to the breadth of the "semantic Benevolences of the chiefs of Retenu, brought through the power
space" occupied by the Shasu is the Egyptian proclivity to extend or His Majesty in (5)[this year ... extent qf lacuna unknown. ...]
its application to Asiatics in general.208 Qead] 40 ingots
Bronze: sui[ts of mail], hacking-swords,211
Bronze: javelins (6) [.... extent qf lacuna not known. ... of] this
Uber die Shasu des aegyptischen QuelJen," Biblica 55 (1974), 265-80, 427-33; T.L. [for]eign land,
Thompson, "The Joseph and Moses Narratives. Historical Reconstructions of the
Narratives," in J. Hayes, M. Miller, Israelite and Judaean History (Philadelphia, 1977), Ivory 18 tusks
157-58; I. Finkelstein, The Archaeology qf the Israelite Settlement (Jerusalem, 1988), 345; Ssndm-wood 241 logs(?)
N.P. Lemche, The Canaanites and their Land. The Tradition qf the Canaanites (Sheffield, Cattle 184
1991), 44 and n. 75; H.N. Rosel, Israel in Kanaan. <:.um Problem der Entstehung Israel
(Frankfurt, 1992), 61-65.
200 Cf. Urk. IV, 36: 13; E. Edel, "Die Ortsnamenlisten in dcn Tempeln von Aksha,
Amarah und Soleb in Sudan," EN II (1980), 73.
201 W.A. Ward, "The Shasu 'Bedouin,'" JESHO 15 (1972), 50-51; M. Weinfeld, h, Shosu," GM 57 (1982), 27-33; Giveon, ShOsou, 152-62; c[ KRI VII, 125:5-6
"The Tribal League in Sinai," in P.D. Miller (ed), Ancient Israelite Religion (Philadelphia, II I I' someone is described as "having borne himself away into the land of the
1987), 303-14; N.P. Lemche, Prelude to Israel's Past (Peabody, Mass., 1998), 60. "1 land has taken to wife(?)] the daughter of their marya<nnu>." The latter
202 M.C. Astour, "Yahweh in Egyptian Topographical Lists," in FS Elmar Edl'i I,ll Illy did not belong in a nomadic society!
(Bamberg, 1979), 17-33; M. Gbrg, "Thutrnosis III und die S3sw-region," ]NES 38 Identification and location cogently argued by Rainey (Tel Aviv 2 [1975],
(1979), 199-202; G.W. Ahlstrom, Who were the Israelites? (Winona Lake, 1986), 59 60. I I; cf. The discussion and literature in H.-W. Fischer-Eifert, Die satirische Streitschrifl
203 M. Gbrg, "Toponymie und Soziographie. Zur nicht-urbanen Bevblkerungsstruktul 1"/llJroJ Anastasi I (Wiesbaden, 1986), 164-65 (p).
Nordpalaestina im 14 Jahrh. V. Chr.," EN 45 (1988), 51-61; idem, "Zur Identitill If' rp SIl, "a second time," is to be read, it could easily qualify some incident
der 'Seir-Uinder,'" BN 46 (1989), II; K. Kitchen, "The Egyptian Evidence IlII III' Il'cord of' this year, rather than part of a "disclaimer." See above, p. 53.
Ancient Jordan," in P. Bienkowski (ed), Ear!; Edom and Moab. The Beginning qf Iii IIp.iu) 11 iq{lw: on the khopesh or "sickle-sword," see H. Bonnet, Die Wriffell d/'f
Iron Age in South Jordan (Oxford, 1992), 26. tin tllien Orients (Leipzig, 1926, 85 94; W. Wolf, Die BewaJfi1UlIg des altaegypli
201 N. Na'aman, "The 'Conquest of Canaan,'" in 1. Finkelstein and N. Na'alllall /I/'/'w (Leipzig, 1926), 66 68; S. Schosske, "Krummschwert," LdA'ill (Wiesbadell,
(eds), From Nomadism to Monarclry. Archaeological and Historical Aspects qf Em!; lIrati I U19 21 ;J.K. Ilon!neicr, "Military: Matelid," in Redford (cd), OiifOrd c7u:;'flopaedia
(Jerusalem, 1994), 234. In(1I1 1<;,.')1)/11 (New York, 2001),408. While the sClibe was faced with the prob­
20' Giveon, S/z6sou, 131 34· (37). The extra r in Sm of the Solcb list (ASl<llll ,-,I It IId('ril1~ il1lO Egyptidll a word fiJr "sword," dearly lip.\" alone did 110t mec(
loco cit.) should occasion no mis~vings: the orthography presages the l,lIte E,.,rypll,ul '1I")('n)('I1I, hill h,ld 10 Il,· 1'"lh"1 qllalified. Significantly Ihe phrasl' IIsed n·n'ls
insistence on doubling the sign to indicate a trilled Iri. .Ie (lOll of ,I Ilillllt",IX(, u· h'lIklll/o\, It 1('llldil1s 10 1)(' dl'tided \\I1('tl1('\ this
1,", Sce the present author in [\gyJiI, COlloan IIl1d lIrII,11Ii ·1//fIfIIl I//nfl ;Plinll lOll 11\ r:lll ,I llill~ 1/tv1T" III 111I I)PI' ~ nowlI 1,111'\ ill IIH' I.lle Broil/C' 1\1\1' N.I\
1<)<):2), '27!l 7<l , Ih, Sm I'rold", I')llIcl<lII, IU7UI, !II !l'i), ;IIICI pl"SIIIIl,lillv ,I (l1flt!IW( 01 lit,
, \ \1 Kh.v;IIIll\·, J\"/11I/I/I IIlId III, ()ulc"d, I (;"Id, C,IIII!J,'d!:c, Imll; R. (;1\"1111, ~1Il1l"lhr.,. kllllWII ill 1\lIl1lOli:t:,).1 >, .\111111)', ",\Iillill!( ,Iud ~1,lllwOlk III \111'1('111
'\1111"" III IIII' 1.111': XXIII I »lIll.I)·," , 11 .\,ia," ill .J.;<,1. S.I~'flll, ("(\', (:w,/i~/IQ/lJ QJ I}" 111/Clrnl A,m hllli (i\,'w \ olk,
I: N. /':II'f\IIIDn, "'Ille '1'1)\\11 01 Ihi Ill, 1'1 J.I 1"
94 CHAPTER TWO THE DAY-BOOK EXCERPTS: SECOND PART 95

Sheep (7)[.... extent if lacuna not known. ...]2'2 incense likewise. Now His Majesty was upon the coastal road with the intent of
Benevolence of the chief of Great Khatte in this year: destroying the town of Irkata* together with the towns which were
Silver (8) [.... extent if lacuna not known. ...]" in (11) [its district(?)... extent if lacuna not known . ..
(There follows the record of the imposts of Kush and Wawat) Arrival at ...]kana. Destroying this town together with its district
Arrival at Tunip; destroying the town, uprooting its grain and
chopping down its orchards.
Commentary
(12) [ Arrival at ...; destroying the town(?)218 ... extent if lacuna
I have restored "this year" at the beginning of col. 5 (rather than not known Now as for the plunder, His Majesty bestowed it upon]
Sethe's "regnal year 41 "), thus resuming a regnal year date which the citizens of the army219 who had brought it off.
once stood at the head of col. 4. 213 The latter could not possibly Coming in safety; arrival at the district of Kadesh; plundering
have been "40." Not only was this year referred to already in the three towns therein.
first part of the day-book excerpts, but the list of benevolences which Tally of the plunder brought from them:
follows is markedly different from those of year 40. That a narra­ (13) [.... extent if lacuna not known. ...

tive of some military venture once stood in col. 4, after a date, mil­ Troops(?)f2o of vile Naharin who (functioned) as garrison troops221

itates strongly in favor of understanding this escapade as a wd;yt; and in them, with their horses
the same argument may be applied to the following columns con­ Heads, male & female 691
taining the record of [year 42]. Thus, since col. 93 214 informs us that Hands 29
the 14th campaign took place in year 39, up to year 42 Thutmose Horses 48
III was perceived to have gone on at least 16 campaigns. Whether (14) [.... extent if lacuna not known. ...
that of year 40 was classed as a wd;yt remains moot; but the passage Tally of the benevolences of the chiefs of Retenu] in this year:
in col. 107 215 might indicate that the king was in Asia. In that case Male and female servants 295
the total number of campaigns might be understood as "17." Horses 68
Gold: 3 dishes
Silver: dishes and a cast mixing cauldron, together with silver (15)
Year 42
r· ... extent if lacuna not known. ...]
(10) [ Regnal year 42. Now His Majesty was in the land of. .. on
his th 216 victorious campaign ..... approx. 8 groups. ... the lan]ds
of the Fenkhu217

213 There is certainly sufficient room to restore an additional place name and the
"ecord of an assault.
21q As cnaw (n mIc) as a general designation of the "conscript" rank and file, as
212 There is no clear evidence that the lacuna once contained the formulaic opposed to the officer class and the professional soldiers (wcw), see A.R. Schulman,
description of harbor-stocking: the preserved words "[in]cense likewise" is found in \lilitary Rank, Title and Organization in the Egyptian New Kingdom (Munich, 1964), 33-4;
no other examples of the formula. On the other hand, the component phrase \). Spalinger, Aspects qf the Military Documents qf the Ancient Egyptians (New Haven,
n tnw mpt suggests that by definition it was a yearly event. 1<)82), 95 6; G. Husson, D. Valbelle, L'Etat et les Institutions en Egypte des premiers
213 See above, p. 93. pl/(lraons aux empereurs romaiTL5 (Paris, 1992), 141-2.
214 Urk. IV, 721:9-10. III Sethe's restoration is a guess: Urk. IV, 730:16. When the text resumes after
215 Urk. IV, 671 :3; see also above, p. 55. 11t(' lacuna it clearly is continuing with the "plunder" from the 3 towns.
216 Sec above. ~I A1wllj(lVb. II, 55:7 9): auxiliaries manning fortifications: cf. H. Goedicke, The
217 See pl. ll, p. 41, n. 112; Sethe's restoration (UrA. IV, 729:5) i~ /o\ralllitoll~. I'lli/orol qf .!Vdi·l')l/ B.lltiIl10I(', 1<)77). 155 11. 190. It approximates the semantic range
With morc plObability 011(' miKhl re~lon' "Nm, Ili~ ~Iajc~t} {('lIl1'd 0\('1 lO till' !II I\kkadi.\Il 11/1/.11111/11 "101.111 "Oil lroop~ fill pi olcctioll)": M. Liverani, "Political
lalld~ 01' 1IIl' )0'('111.1111." l..t:lci\OIl ,lIld Pohill.d I<lt-tl10~1l1 ill IIIl AIll.IIIl,1 IA'llns," IJrrytlll 31 (1983),50.
96 CHAPTER TWO THE DAY-BOOK EXCERPTS: SECOND PART 97

Lead 47 ingots perhaps significantly, it is qualified as "tribal" rather than urban

Lead in dbn-form(?) 1,100 (with headmen).228 In the Amarna Age it remained under the admin­
Paint, emery(?),222 and every fine gem of this foreign land; istration of "elders", and continued to attract suspicion of a rebel­
Bronze: suit(s) of mail and 'various' weapons of war (16) [.... Extent lious disposition. 229 Though inland, the town would have to be
if lacuna not known. ... and all sorts of] aromatic [plants] of this for­ approached by the Egyptian forces by way of the coast.
eign land.
Now all the harbors 223 were stocked with every good thing in * { . .]-kana
accordance with their yearly custom along with the harvest of this The identity of the place has not achieved any unammIty among
land. scholars. Since the list of towns follows a geographical sequence­
(17) [Benevolence of the chief of....(??24 Irkata, [...]-kana, Tunip, [...], Kadesh-it follows that [...]-kana
Benevolence of the chief of Great Khatte(?) In this year(?).... must be located between the Akra plain and Tunip. If the K + N be
Silver. ...] together with dishes with the faces of bulls, amount­ construed as the second and third radical of the root, it is tempting
ing to 341 dbn and 2 kdt Lo restore [Mf]kn, "settlement," in the sense, perhaps, of "encamp­
True lapis: 1 block Amounting to 33 kdt ment, tabernacles."23o Almost certainly it is to be located within the
T3gw-wood: 1 fine stave plain or the Eleutheros Valley.
Native copper (18) [.... Extent if lacuna not known . ...
Benevolence of the chief] of Tanaya*: *TanG:J1a
Silver: a jug of Keftiu workmanship 225 along with vessels of .rhe references to "Keftiu-workmanship" militates in favor of a loca­
iron 226 I ion in the Aegean. Edels's initial suggestion of Rhodes 231 was quiLe
... with silver handle(s) 4, making 56 dbn, 3 kdt gratuitous, and his later equation with Adana in Cilicia232 founders
(TIe imposts if Kush and Wawat ftllow) on geographical and historical considerations. 233 Although not com­
1l10n in loan-words and personal names,234 the use of Egyptian ta to
*Irkata render the voiced alveolar is well attested in toponyms;235 and thus
The site is to be identified with Tel Arqa, c. 20 km. south-east of .tn equation with (later) Greek t1avaot or the land designation from
Sumur, across the Nahr el-Kabir. 227 Hostility to Egypt is implied in
its inclusion in the Execration Texts of the 18th Cent. B.C. when,
\'18 G. Posener, Princes et pays d'Asie et de Nubie (Bruxelles, 1940), 93 (E 61). How
this relates to the similar place-name c3-3-q-tm (K. Sethe, Die Aechtung fcindlicher
hl/Jlen, Vii/ker und Dinge azif altaegyptischen Thongifasscherben des Mittleren Reiches (Berlin,
Harris, Lexicographical Studies, 163.
222 11)26), e22, n 2) is unclear.
Partly erased, and later restored as imn.
223 1<) Cf. EA 100.

224 There is sufficient space to restore the benevolence of a third country. 10 cr. C.H. Gordon, Ugaritic Textbook (Rome, 1965), no. 2414; R.S. Tomback,
225 Cr. Davies, Menkheperrasonb, pI. 4-5; J. Vercoutter, Essai sur les relations entre.\ I Comparative Semitic Lexicon of the Phoenician and Punic Languages (Missoula, 1978), 316;
Egyptiens et Pre-hellenes (Paris, 1954), 113-15; idem, L'Egypte et le monde egeen (Cairo, \ MLlrtonen, Hebrew in its West Semitic Setting I, A (Leiden, 1989), 423.
1956), no. 31, 330; Heick, Beziehungen . .. Aegais, 67-69. On the chronological impli­ I Die Ortsnamenlisten aus dem Totentempel Amenophis III (Bonn, 1966), 37, 53-55.
cations, see P. Warren, V. Hankey, Aegean Bronze Age Chronology (Bristol, 1989), "Nelle Identifikationen topographischen Namen in den KonventionalJen Namens­
144-46; P. Warren, "Minoan Crete and Pharaonic Egypt," in W.V. Davies and " ,lInmenstellllngen des Ncuen Reiches," sAl( 3 (1975), 63-4 (9).
L. Schofield (cds), Egypt, the Aegean and the Levant (London, 1995), I 18. P.W. 1laider, Grieclllmland-Nordofrika. llzre Beziehungen zwischen 1500 und 600 v.
226 For the rarity of such a manufacture, see Harris, Lexicographical Studies, 58 (iO; Darmstadt, 1988), 6.
for discussion see A. Lucas, JR. Harris, Ancient Egyplian MatcrialJ and Indllltrie.l (Ilh I .J. 1loch, Smzilic I Vord.l ill Ji'l,ptian Talr q! Ilze New Kingdom and Third Intermediate
ed; London, 1988),240; S. AlIrrt're, L'Univm miniml danl la jlm,lrr (s,'l'lltimnr II (Cairo. Plint('lon, 19(1), 511; T. Schncider, Asiatische Personennamen in aegyptischen
1991), '131 IT; J O~den, in PT. Nit holson, I. Sha\\ l'd\, Jnrlmt ";{I'I111f1ll Mlilmll" drl "rum Rmh'l 10'1 ibulIIl(. 19CJ2), 2()<l 95.
and ·Ircllll%/.'Ji (Call1l)1id~e, ')000" IhG !ill. :1'. ,\I·l..la McWclclo 111111/111, I r It! 1/1 Ardala ((!rk. IV, 697:5), T-ya wilh
", IIl'id., 1/1,,1111111("'" I :i'\ II Klc'lllo\d, \rna .WOO 11/ IIJO II,{:. (Un lill I Il'}? I Ii:.! /).IlII (Elkl ()r!.l/lwTlm/III,. ]0,. II' It! 1/(1 DOlb,lII (lrJ... IV, 781 no. 9), I t/l
II I'lll I(f, IC'llC('~1 clO!llilll III.. 1\', I:lOI -II, Ii, III 1/". I"liclolll.l 1.<1('1. Ortl/ll/llIlI/lil/l'll. 9) 15CJ!"
98 CHAPTER TWO

which it derives, becomes very attractive indeed. 236 If this be the

case, and in light of the early application of this ethnic term,237 it is
most tempting to identifY Tanaya with the plain of Argos, and more
specifically the kingdom of Mycenae. 238

Comments
With respect to the Mittanian garrison, one should note the arti­
ficiality(?) of the numbers. The total 720 (691 + 29) is divisible by
the number of towns, in this case 3, thus yielding 240 men per town
accompanied by 16 horses, or 8 chariots per garrison. Whether this
affects our judgement of the historicity of the record must remain
moot.

PART TWO

OFFICIAL AND PRIVATE STATEMENTS

236 W. Helck, review of Edel, Ortsnamenlisten, in Giittinger gelehrte Anzeigen 221 (1969),
73; J. asing, Aspects de la culture pharaonique. Qyatres lefons au College de France Paris,
1992), 33.
237 Liddel-Scott, Greek-English Lexicon (9th ed; Oxford, 1990), 369.
238 W. Helck, Die Beziehungen Aegyptens und Vorderasiens zur Agdis bis ins 7. Jahrhundell
v. Chr. (Darmstadt, 1979), 52; F. Schachermyer, Mykene und das lJelhilerreich (Wien,
1986), 73; others attempt to extend the range of the lerm: Ilaider, op. cil., 8 9 and
n. 32,42 (mOsl of the Peloponnesc), M. Liverani, PrrlllKf allti IlIlmll, 257 and n. I~)
(1111' Ael1.<"\I1); cr. OSilll1.' loc. cil. For Lli IfA JlOllt·ry {CHlIld in 1:ItYPI Imlp, '1!11111l10\c'
III, ~C'l' 'Cl\lIct·~ 111 P,\ MOllIlIJOY, ,1f~("'lIrml Potlm', (11/ II//",rlm/III/l (hilmi, Iqtr~,. :i
 CHAPTER ONE

SITTINGS OF THE KINGl

I 'he ~mst-nsw, "sitting of the king," reflects a formal convening of

Ille court for the purpose of announcement. In its fullest form this
Iype of record includes (a) date, (b) appearance of the king enthroned,
c) the introduction of the courtiers, (d) the king's statement, (e) the
,ldulation of the courtiers. Most of these "seance"-texts show signs
of' editing and the editor sometimes speaks himself. His asides (when
Ilol bridging or introducing) and the court's response are adulation
110m of gratification of the goodness of god and the king which has
jllsl been made known to them. Thutmose Ill's speeches often describe
OJ" allude to foreign campaigns, but only to stress the role of Amun

III granting the victory. This, then, provides the explanatory grounds
I()J" the king's construction and endowments which often follow in a

formal list: they are undertaken by the king in gratitude to Amun.

\ Vhile the form need not presuppose the reality, there is a good a
liori case to be made, on the basis of graphic evidence showing the
2
II anscribing of verbatim statements, that an historical "seance" may
3
111 fact underly such texts.
The royal speech as a form shows careful attention to rhetorical
( Il1bellishment and is often metrically arranged; but the application
,lI' lilerary theory has limited value. 4 There is nothing of the "Novella"
ill the seance-texts. By its very nature Novella exists in another

1 Some of the texts which follow can be found treated in S. Grallert, Bauen­
\/if/Ill Weihen. Aegyptische Bau- und Restaurierungsinschriften, von den Arifcmgen bis zur 30.
I>lIInstie (Berlin, 2001), 262-89.
N. de G. Davies, The Rock Tombs if el-Amama (London, 1903-8), I, pI. 8; VI,
1''' 18, 20, 29.
This is not to deny that, as we now have them, such texts may have under­
"II" midrashir expansion and redaction.
I By lIsing the v,'ry term "literature" we force our appreciation into modern para­
"1l'1('I~; the word, ,tfler :tU, in its modern sense is scarcely 200 years old: R. Williams,
J"'vlt~nd\ (London, I CJHG), lor nl. ,tlld rlill lhe risk of eisagesis. On the difficulty
111'ncllll14 ,I 10\1' Illti 11(' 111,1011(',11 (ntjllil) illlO anrielll "Iilnary" tt'xts, see R. llodge,
,11m (/\ /)1\(tJllTlr 1I,t1 II It1llf ( 1'11)0" 17 .mel d P dc' 1\1 ;Ill. -nlr Rrm/mrr /0 7 heary
~ 11I1I1l':lplllt, II)!}" ;l!l :10; I ) ,I~lc-tllll. IJlnmy I "ron' Ie hlmel. 1'1%" I:i II
102 CHAPTER ONE SITTINGS OF THE KING 103

10
dimension wherein only a pretense is made at asserting anything, I. THE GEBEL BARKAL STELA

and thereby suspends the illocutionary commitment to assert truth. s

Such a pretense is precisely what the royal interlocutor at a seance 1. Date and Titulary.
denies engaging in: the stock-in-trade of a Novella (iw-ms and ebe in
Egyptian) is at all times vigorously denied. 6 The king's speech at a "Regnal year 47, 3rd month of akhet day 10, under the Majesty of
seance is rather Verkiindigung, in an atmosphere of "... and-now-it­ Horus,
can-be-to1d ...", to the surprise and gratification of the listeners.
The form of the /:tmst-nsw text evolves out of statements which can Mighty Bull: Risen in Thebes; the Two Ladies' (Man): with endur­
be traced back to the First Intermediate Period, which borrowed ing Kingship like Re in Heaven; Horus of Gold: with Uplifted Crown
from forms established in the late Old Kingdom. 7 Its roots lie, not and Mighty Power; King of Upper and Lower Egypt, Menkheperre,
in genres intrinsically royal, but in the self-presentation of an indi­ bodily son of Re whom he loves, Lord of every foreign land, Thutmose
vidual to the world and posterity and thus must be seen as sharing nefer-khepru.
the same semantic space as the biographical statement. 8 Although
people listen and respond, the form is not a dialogue. The motivation 2. Occasion.
comes from human society in the world of the ndsw: 9 The "Perfect
God" of the Old Kingdom needs no self-promotion, being already 'rhis is what he did as his memorial for his father Amunre, Lord of the
timeless and primordial. It is only when the "Time of the Residence" Thrones of the Two Lands, in the Fortress 'Smiting-the-Foreigners':ll
ends, and the Perfect god ceases in actuality to exist that those who lhe construction for him of an eternal shrine. '2
claim the Horus-throne must prove they deserve the ideological man­
.. , for he has magnified the victories of My Majesty more than
tle. Nowhere do the successor rulers of Herakleopo1is and Thebes
(those of) any king who ever was. I have seized the southern­
more clearly betray their origins than in their recourse to this form
ers at the behest of his ku, and the northerners in accordance
of self promotion; and Thutmose III is very much their heir.
with his directive!' (May he make 'Son-of Re, Thutmose hiq­
wese, given life like Re for eved')

5 J.R. Searle, "The Logical Status of Fictional Discourse," in Expression and Meanill~
Studies in the Theory of Speech Acts (1986). 10 GA Reisner, ZAS 69 (1933), pL 3; A. de Buck, Egyptian Readingbook, 56ff; Urk.
6 It lacks that open-ended signification, that "simultaneously signifYing and unfulfilled IV, 1288ff; see also P-M VII, 217; 1. Shirun-Grumaeh, "Die poetisehen Teile der
nature" (R. Barthes, "Literature and Signification" in R. Barthes, Critical ES.l(/)" (;('bel-Barkal Stela," in S. Groll (ed), l!-gyptological Studies (Jerusalem, 1982), 117-86;
[Evanston, 1972], 268-69) that some would see as the prime quality of a literal) II Cummings, Egyptian Historical Records of the Late Eighteenth Dynasty I (Warminster,
Novella. I'Hl2), 2ff; P. Derehain, "Auteur et societe," in A. Loprieno (ed), Ancient Egyptian
7 See AJ. Spalinger, "Drama in History: Exemplars from Mid Dynasty XVJJl,' Ilrmlure. History and Fonns (Leiden, 1996), 87.
SAX 24 (1997), 269-300 (esp. 271-72). The earliest royal examples thus far rrco\ II A1nnw Sm3 tJ3styw: R. Morkot, "Nubia in the New Kingdom: the Limits of

ered (lacking, apparently,the specific court-frame) are the statements of Wahankh 1'1'YJ'tian Control," in W.v. Davies (ed), Egypt and Africa. Nubiafrom Prehistory to Islam
Antef II: Cairo 20512: J J. Clere, J. Vandier, Textes de la premiere periode intennMimr I ,lindon, 1993), 294·; idem, The Black Pharaohs. Egypt's Nubian Rulers (London, 2000),
(Cairo, 1949), no. 16; D. Arnold, Graeber des Alten und MittLeren Reiches in EI '11In I 7 I. Presu mably the fort and shrine lay at Gebel Barkal, and were perhaps swept
(Cairo, 1976), Trif. 42, 52. But certain passages in Merikare strongly suggest th.lI ,Iy by the buildings of later times. E. Morris (The Architecture of Imperialism [PhD
self promotion through "published" statement was the order of Ih(' day durinF; Ihl II ,1'1 (.\lion, University or Prnllsylvania, 200 I], eh. 2, 72) suggests the fort may ante­

9th and lOth Dynasties also: W. Hrlek, Die {Llnf flir Kijlli~ Afrrikare (Wicsbackll I" ThlllIllOS(' TIl.
1977), XXlTl, XXXI, XXXv. IVIi. III, 28B:12 Ij; I). l\1l'('k~, AnnIe hicographiqlle T (1980),278; TT, (1981),
n N. Kloth, "Beobachtllngcn Zll dcn biographi,r11l'1l IIl\llllif1(,1I dc" 1\11('11 R('ichl JIl (ICJfl2), 21B. "(·~l'l.llhl(ic', 1(·lm~ni,·. rnul." Cr. G, GOyOll, ASAR 49 (1949),
sA I( 25 (1998), Ifig 205. \ (" III 1\11I1I11 Ill' tilt I lilly 1\1'"1I\(,1I0"); C.M. Zivi(', ('·I.;,n 1111 druzihne mil
'I n,1l RC'dfiml. I'hn/l/llw AU/IlIIl!.\, lruml\ IIn,( lJ.r)'·/HK)/u (~h'lm."\Ill{a, IflHhl. 1.111 '\'1 :iltlll, IlJ7h,. 'JIll! 1111
104 CHAPTER ONE SITTINGS OF THE KING 105

3. Encomium. and turning them into something that had never existed, wal­
lowing in their (own) blood!
The perfect god who seizes with his arm,
It is his uraeus that overthrew them, his flaming one that quelled
Who smites the southerners, and decapitates the northerners
his foes;
And lops off the heads of the bad scruffies;
The vast army of Mittani was overthrown in a matter of minutes,
Who makes slaughter of the Montiu of Asia, and overthrows
Completely destroyed as though it had never existed [through]
those of the sand-dwellers who rebel; the bellicosity of the 'Devourer,'
Who ties up the lands at the end of the world, and smites the Through the action of the Perfect God, mighty and strong in
bowmen of Nubia; battle,
Who reaches the limits of the foreign lands that had attacked Who alone, and on his own, makes a slaughter of everyone­
him,13 turning hither and yon on the battlefield in a rage! The King of Upper & Lower Egypt Menkheperre, may he live
for ever!
4. Reminiscence of the First Campaign.
6. Encomium: Falcon & Bull. (Pattern 3:2-3:2-3:3)
Every foreign land all together, were standing as one,

Prepared to fight, without any running away;

He is Horus with Flexed Arm!

Trust was placed in many squadrons, and there was no end to

A good fortress for his army, a refuge for the people;

the men and horses. One who throws back all lands as they were on the move against

They came on stout-hearted, with no fear in their hearts; him,

(But) he with the mighty power felled them, he with the flexed Rescuing Egypt in the breach, a saviour who fears not the rapa­
arm who tramples upon his enemies! cious!
He is a stout-hearted bull!
5. Encomium: the Fighter (mainly 3:2 pattern) His southern boundary stretches to the 'Horn of the Earth,'
south of this land. 15
He is a king who fights by himself, to whom a multitude is of His northern to the Marshes of Asia and the supports of heaven.
no concern, for he is abler than a million men in a vast They come to him with bowed heads, seeking the breath of
army, and no equal to him has been found; life.
a fighter aggressive on the battlefield, within whose scope no
one is (left) standing, Reminiscence of the 8th Campaign.
one who overpowers every foreign land in short order at the
head of his army. He is a king, triumphant like Montu!
He flashes across the two arcs (of heaven) like a star crossing One who takes, but from whom no one can take, who tram­
the sky,14 who plunges into the thick ranks aggressively(?), ples all the rebellious foreign lands­
breathing fire against them,

" Not a specific place. bllt a general concept derived from the image of a cos-
III \)nvidt·. and si/(nif}ing an t'xlrel11ily: see II. Gauthier, Dic/ionnaire geographique I,
liOn the expression ini dnv see .J.M. Galan, Vic/ol')! andlJ01dn. '1l'IIlIinologv Helal('(1 I" I 1l:J; E. 1101 1111 II/(. "/111 g"\Iilil iltlirlw RollI' des Kiinigs in del' 18. Dynastic,"
10 IlIIprrinlilm in Ihe \1Iiiilh Iljlllll/V (Iliidesheim, 1995), 12H 32. \/1) 11ft I> 111:>7, I ') I R <:.I1I1I1Ill •••/ hI' .\/1rI1I1'I rind RorA ""rrip/ionl q/lbrim (London,
lIOn Slill sYlllhnli\lll ill \(·I.uinll to 111(' kin/(. SI'I' ~t Sd 10\1 I, 1111'" h. <JI fllll/l.S:l/llrolo):1 Elltll II "lid II 'I; AJ .... p.dIlIW·I', . \ ...... I·W RI fl'\('IHI' til ,111 I~!-\)Jltian <:al11Jlail(lI
/111",,,/111/1 III Ild,It'slwlIll Iq<}'j I<)<}. TIl I'lIIhll1llW III ill I\~I;I." 7SF.S ~17 11<}7I\ I
106 CHAPTER ONE SITTINGS OF THE KING 107

They had no champion in that Land of Naharin,!6 whose lord Now that's a king to be boasted of, for the prowess of his arms
had abandoned it through fear. I houghed his cities and his in battle!
townS!7 and set them on fire. My Majesty turned them into One who crossed the 'Great Bender'21 in pursuit of him who
ruins which shall never be re-founded. I plundered all their had attacked him, at the head of his army,
inhabitants, who were taken away as prisoners-of-war along with Seeking that vile doomed one [throughout] the lands of Mitanni;
their numberless cattle and their goods likewise. I took away But he had fled from before His Majesty to another land, a
from them their provisions and uprooted their grain, and chopped far-off place, through fear.
down all their trees (even) all their fruit trees. (And so) their
districts, they belonged to (anyone) who would make an appro­ Thereupon My Majesty set up my stela on that Mountain of
priation for himself{?), t8 after My Majesty destroyed them; for Naharin, a block quarried 22 from the mountain, on the west
they have turned into burnt dust 19 on which plants will never side of the Great Bender.
growagam.
8. The Return from the 8th Campaign.
Now when My Majesty crossed over to the marshes of Asia, I
had many ships constructed of cedar upon the mountains of I have no opponents in the southern lands, the northerners
God's-land, in the vicinity of the Mistress of Byblos, and placed come bowing down to my might. It is Re that has ordained it
upon carts with oxen drawing them. They travelled in the van for me: I have wrapped up that which his effective one encir­
of My Majesty to cross that great river that flows between this cles (i.e. the earth), he has given me the earth in its length and
country and Naharin. 20 breadth. I have bound up the Nine Bows, the islands in the
midst of the Great Green, the Hau-nebu and all rebellious for­
eign lands!
16 Cf. B. Bryan, "The Egyptian Perspective on Mittani" in R. Cohen and R. When I turned round and went back to Egypt, having dompted
Westbrook (eds), Amama Diplomacy. The Beginnings qf International Relations (Baltimore,
2000), 73-74. For an extended discussion of occurrences and form of this word,
Naharin, great was the terror in the mouth of the Sand-dwellers. 23
see J. Roch, Semitic Words in Egyptian Texts qf the New Kingdom and Third Intermediatl' On that account their doors were shut, and they did not ven­
Period (Princeton, 1994), 187-91. It is of some interest that, while in Thutmose's ture out for fear of the bull!
direct speech his idiolect leans towards "Naharin", the editor (with clear referencc
to the 8th campaign) prefers "Mitanni." Clearly nhryn, with the nunation common
to north Syria and the strype, derives from the Euphrates rather than the Litani
(pace C. Vandersleyen, L'Egypte et La vallie du Nil [Paris, 1995], 300-2).
17 By using niwwt, "cities," Thutmose's idiolect again shows a preference distjnrl 1\llphrates (Strabo xvi. !. 11), Trajan in his crossing of the Tigris (Dio lxviii.26.1),
from the usual chancery practice of the Egyptian court, which rarely uses the word ,lIld Constantills crossing the Euphrates: Amrruanus Marcellinus xxi.7.6.
of Asiatic settlements: cf. D.B. Redford, "The Ancient Egyptian City: Figment 01 21 Wh. I, 548:14-16; C. Vandersleyen, Les gumes d'Amosis (Bruxelles, 1971), 165-66;

Reality?" in W.E. Aufrecht et al. (eds), Aspects qf Urbanism in Antiquity flom Mesopotamia Spalinger, op. cit., 37 n. b; Galan, Victory and Border, 149; Bryan, op. ciL, 73; 245;
to Crete (Sheffield, 1997), 217 n. 17. In the account of the 8th campaign in Ihl' how the Egyptians understood the name is less an issue than the derivation: Pill' WI',
Day-book Excerpts (above, p. 00) dmyw and w~ywt are used. On the relative sizl' 'Ihe Great Pilr', bears an uncanny resemblance in construction to Sumerian bura­
of main city compared to its satelites, see G. Buccelati, Cities and Nations qf A 11(/('/11 IIlIna, "the Great Bura (river)," D.O. Edzard, G. Farbera, Repertoire des noms geo­
Syria (Rome, 1967), 40-1. ~/(//Jhiques des textes cuneijOrmes (Paris, 1977), II 256.
18 Presumably read (w)di nj, a nominalized participle; less likely a loan WOld 22 Although wd can refer to inscriptions on walls and prepared natural surfaces
I r Ihe examples cited in S. Schott, Bucher und Bibliotheken im alten Aegypten [Wiesbaden,
from some such root as NDP (cf. A. Murtonen, Hebrew in its West Semitic SeUili/!, Pall
1, sec. Bb (Leiden, 1989), 274 ["scatter, throw"'J), in which case the translation 1<)90],61 63), the use of Idi, "extract, quarry" (cf. Urk, IV, 25:9) clinches the mat­
1'1 in favor of a frec-standing stela-block of local stone. For the location and his­
might be something like "windblown."
19 Tkw seems to be visible: one wonders whelhn the lemn derives frOIli OArA), 1<11 iral ramifications, sec above p. 00.
2'\ IVb. JlI, 135: 12. I t is 1I lIl' thaI ,[,hUlInose's homeward mareh from the Euphrates
"to crush, pulverize, grind": C.II. Gordon, U!!.an·';( h\lboof.. CR.clJl1(', 19(5), :3fl5 (!i:',fl
MlIrtonen, oli. nt., 118. "()\Ilel Il.l\(' (OnrlOlllcd him ,II til(' !lllt"'t with 150 km. of desert (M, Astour, "The
J'l This l,lClic,lI plo} or Thlltnw,c' liwd 011 ill fllll-.lolc', IlIld l~ lold of Srll1l1;lIlIU IIi,wl y or EIlI,t," III (' 11 (;,u dIm c: RC'lld.,blllll; l'd", }\'b!ait;cfl llJ IWinona Lake,
III IWI C111"11111. or lilt !rHhl' 1)llldlll II' II 1Ii III 01 /\II'X;IIHII" 111 111' ('Ill'lsilll! of Ihl l'IIJ?I, !If! lUll thl'll' is IHI 111'1'11 III l<llhlllll 111<' pll"C'llI p.l",ll\l' .1\ thaI 'IH'rifie.
108 CHAPTER ONE SITIINGS OF THE KING 109

That's an active king! had come to grapple with My Majesty by the hundreds of thou­
A good fortress for his army, a wall of iron sands and by the millions, the very best of every foreign coun­
When he throws back every land with his arm, without a carr try! Mounted on their chariots were hundreds of chiefs,25 each
for (even) a million men! with his own army. Lo! they were in the Qj.na-valley, ready at
Deadly marksman every time he tries-no arrow of his ever the narrow pass. 26 (But) good fortune was with me where they
misses! were concerned; for when My Majesty charged them, they fled
One with flexed arm whose like has never come along, mighty at once falling over one another in their haste to enter Megiddo.
Montu on the battlefield! My Majesty besieged them for a period of 7 months 27 before
they emerged outside, begging My Majesty as follows: 'Give us
9. The Hunt in Niya. thy breath!28 our lord! The people of Retenu will never again
rebel!' Then that doomed one together with the chiefs who were
Here's another victorious accomplishment which Re ordained with him made all their children 29 come forth to My Majesty,
[or me. He did it again for me-a great triumph at the water­ bearing many gifts of gold, silver, all their horses that they had,
hole of Niya: 24 he let me engage several lots of elephants, (in their chariots 'viz.' chariots of gold and silver, and those which
fact) My Majesty took on a herd of 120. Never had the like were (only) painted, all their coats of mail, their bows, their
been done by any king since the time of the god, even by those arrows and all their weapons of war. These with which they
who of old had received the White Crown. I say this without had come from afar to fight against My Majesty, they now pro­
boasting or exaggeration in any of it; (for) I did it in accor­ ferred as gifts to My Majesty.
dance with what [Amun-re] ordained for me, he who directs There they were, standing upon their walls, hailing My Majesty
My Majesty on the right road by his good councils. He joined and asking that the breath of life be given them. 30 So My Majesty
the Black Land and the Red Land for me, and what the sun­
disc encircles is in my grasp!
,., Not "330." The plural is intended in each case to convey a vague number (in
10. Reminiscence of the First Campaign. nrending node, as is customary in Egyptian), thus "hundreds and tens."
'I, The toponym Qj-n3 refers to the valley, not the plain (as AJ. Spalinger, "Some
\"tcs on the Battle of Megiddo and Reflexions on Egyptian Military Writing,"
I will tell you something else! Listen up, you people! On m} ImAIK 30/2 (1974), 227). The sign n3 in group orthography does not necessarily
first campaign he commended to me the lands of Retenu which I.ll1d for C+V, and is frequently used in nunated forms: see Hoch, Semitic Words
'I f~"'gyptian Texts, 446; T. Schneider, Asiatische Personennamen in aegyptischen (Luellen des
\mel! Reicltes (Freibourg, 1992), 379. Therefore the hypothetical vocalization could
" easily be *qayin. The identification with qina(lt) , "lament," (EJ. Pentiuc, "West
Because of the desert nature of all the approaches to Egypt, the term (which oriK "ell1ilic Terms in Akkadian Texts from Emar," ]NES 58 [1999], 94-5) is not oblig­
inally designated Asiatics or the Negev and Levant: W. Heick, Beziehungen. [Wiesbadel1, lI11ry: some connection with metal-working seems equally plausible: L. Koehler,
1971], 18), the term was gradually extended to all foreigners (R. Giveon, Les Bedouil/' \\ Baumgartner, Hebrdisches und aramdisches Lexikon zum alten Testament III (Leiden,
Shosou [Leiden, 1972], 172 [18]), whether nomadic or sedentary (cf. K. Setht', 1(1113), 1025 26; Murtonen, Hebrew in its West Semitic Setting, 375.
Aegyptische Lesestiicke fir akademischen Gebrauch [Leipzig, 1929], p. 82: 13; and lhe prt' '7 On the reading see S.N. Morschauser, "The End of Sdj(3)-tr(y)t, 'Oath,'"

sent example). See also B. Couroyer, "Ceux-qui-sont-sur-Ie-sable: les Hcriou-sha," INeE 25 (1988), 97 n. 54.
RB 78 (1971), 558-75. \). Lorton, the ]Ilridical Terminology qj'lnternational Relations in Egyptian Texts through
24 Probably to be identified with Qal'at el-Mudiq, the citadel of !\pal11ca: E. Edt'l /101/ XVlll (Baltimore, 1974), 13644.
ZDPV 69 (1953), 14849; A. Alt, ZDPV 70 (1954), 35 and 11. 7; W. Urick, Be~iehul/l!.rJ1 I For the possibility or an extenckcl use or msw in this context, see S. Allam,

307; H. Klcngcl, Gesclziclzle Syriens i7ll 2. ]ahrtausfIld v. u. Z. (Bcrlin, 1965), I, '15 n. I: 1/\((/ Kindes/Vfllksg-llIppl'lProdllktl'l!\bg-aben," sAX 19 (1992), 5 6.
The marshes in questio!l were those or EI-Gab, which tht' ritadl'i O!l('(' oWllook('d Ih(' S('('Tll' Ill', t' ( h t l ibt'd is ont' that by the 19th Dynasty has entered the
the erlm'lii, "plain of rceds" in Ehlaitl': 1\1. !\slour, "I JistOlY of 1';1>1<1," ill C.I I. GOIt!OIl pl'rtnil(' of holllit' ll'IiI'I~: TIlt' holllit'nll'l1ts or a town, at tht' moment or surrender,
G. R('lld~hurli t'd~. I-.'hill/i/(li 'i Winona I~lkr, 11l1l? p, I) II 'iI, l'!qlhallts \\('11 I ,hll\\ II hiit'd \\Ith <,upphr.ltil\v illh,lhil,ult~. I ,li~illl( ihlllds ill capitulatiol1, bllrn­

kl'pl lilt I l' \\..11 illlll (;11'( ll' RlllIl.!11 11l1H'~: Stt <lhll "\ i -) Ill; J1hilll~11 :ll<l~, 1'//11 ,INmltm Ill! ('11<,( ,IIHI hllldllll' III II 1111'11 \Illlllil dllldll'll ltl\\.ud~ lill ,ldv,lIltilllo\ rOlHlu('ro,"

i, ill n. "c'l'!, "h.aIlUI(u.im 111' ~lIhll"tllt·ll uul :l<'lOflll\l 11<'11 '1 ('lIIl'ch,'hd r / ! I Ill?'!
110 CHAPTER ONE SITTINGS OF THE KING III

had them take the oath 31 as follows: 'We will not again act It was my mace that felled the Asiatics, my scepter that smote
evilly against Menkheperre, living for ever! our lord, in our life­ the Nine Bows!
time; since we have witnessed his power, and he has given us I have tied up every land, Retenu is beneath my feet!
breath as he pleased.' The barbarians are serfs of My Majesty, they labor for me of
It was my father [Amun] that did it-it was indeed not (by) one accord,
the arm of man!32 Then My Majesty let them go back to their
cities, and all of them rode off on donkeys, for I had confiscated 1:2. The Taxes of South and North.
their horses. I took their townsmen as plunder to Egypt and
their goods likewise. ... taxed in products of labor 33 on a million varied things of
the 'Horn of the Earth' (including) the plenteous gold of Wawat
11. The King's First Song. without limit or number. There, each and every year, 'Eight'­
ships and many ordinary vessels to (be manned by) crews of
It was my father that gave me this, [Amunre Lord of Karnak], sailors, are constructed for the Palace L.P.H., over and above
The effective god of good fortune, whose counsels never mis­ the labor quotas of the barbarians in ivory and ebony. Lumber
carry comes to me from Kush in the form of planks of dom-palm
Who sent My Majesty to seize all lands and countries together. without limit (for) woodwork, and native acacia, My army which
I overthrew them at his command, on a road of his making, is there in Kush cut them in the millions [, ..] many ordinary
For he had allowed me to smite all the foreigners, and not one vessels which My Majesty confiscated by force. Each and every
could face me! year true cedar of Lebanon 34 is hewed for me in Dj]ahy, and
brought to the Palace L.P.H, Lumber comes to me, to Egypt,
brought south [. , ,] true [cedar] of Negau,35 the best of God's­
land, sent off with its balast in good order,36 to make the jour­
413-67; AJ. Spalinger, "A Canaanite Ritual found in Egyptian Military Relie[~;' ney to the Residence, without missing a single season each and
JSSEA 8 (1978), 47-60. Needless to say, none of the children is to be construed as
sacrificial victims to the god as a last ditch attempt to snatch victory from the jaws
of defeat; they are simply being offered to the Egyptians, in anticipation of the
obligatory handing over of the "children of the chiefs." On the shared semantic See in General, M. Liverani, Prestige and Interest. International Relations in the Near
space of cn!J and bala!u, see M, Liverani, "Political Lexicon and Political Ideologies (fl. 1600-1100 B.G. (Padova, 1990), 255-66; and below, p. 245.
in the Amarna Letters," Btrrytus 31 (1983), 53, Rmn-n: J. Simons, Handbook for the Study if Egyptian Topographical Lists relating to
31 Sr!f3 tryt: Wb, V, 318:10-11. The rendering "negative promissory oath" (K, '111 Asia (Leiden, 1937), I, no. 294; for the orthography sec Heick, Beziehungen,
Baer, JEA 50 [1964], 179) may fit most occurrences (but cf. P. Cairo 86637 recto I
xxiii. I, where the context could easily indicate an affirmative), but that is simply 1'. MOnLet, "Lc pays de Negaou pres de Byblos, et son dieu," Syria 4 (1923),
because fealty most often involves a negative wish in the mind of him that admin­ I ')2; idem, Kemi 3 (1930), 121; R.A. Caminos, Late Egyptian Miscellanies (Oxford,
isters the oath: loyalty means that you refrain from doing this or that. It may also .1, 1394·0; S. Ahituv, Canaanite Topony11lS in Ancient Egyptian Documents (Lciden,
extend to a notion of expiation: Morschauser, op. cit., 103. That the oath is admin II" 150 51. If there was only one fortification erected by Thutmose in the coastal
istrative rather than judicial introduces a false dichotomy into Egyptian thinking It-II of Lebanon (sec below, p. 214), the reference in Amenmose's tomb (N. de
For discussion and sources, see A.G, McDowell, Jurisdiction in the Workmen's Comrmmil)' I),l\ies, 'lhe 'lombs if Menkheperrasonb, Amenmose and Another [London, 1933J, pI.
if Deir el-Medina (Leidcn, 1990), 202 8, I It';uly locat('s it in Ne~aw, and we may be safe in locating the region north
32 This spiritualization of guidance and cause in terrestrial events, in contradis II, hlos. While thc term was dearly an Egyptian construction (Heick, Beziehungen,
tinction to human agency, becomes a hallmark of the nationalistic theology of Amllll, , It mig-Itt be daiwd ultil1lately from NCR, "to cut wood (as a carpenter)":
cf, KJU V, 244:9 II, "What a fine thin~ it is, finer than potsl of thin!f." for thl .11)11. lj:llrilir 1lrwdbooA, IlO. Ih09.
one who relics upon thee, the one that trusts in thee! Y('a. thOlI hast let every lalld R'·.lCIiIl~ 1II.'/m' lIIi iI', ,llld COllstruillg' tht' first word with the passag-e in
and every forcig-n couiliry know that thou lUt the powel of I'h,lI'lOh 1..1',11., Ihy l<ltlitiollS :1,11 \\ Ih'kl., /)If "ltllIIlIIllIIIIIII ':. I'll/I. 1.I'/tlrn I 'fll Rer/o [\Viesbaclen,
child, owr ('wry lalld alld every lilll'iKll C'tlllnU), Iholl ,1I1 Ihl 0111' th,lI "Iont' h.1S I. p, H). 1111 .lddltlllll of tl1l' ..1t",ld ,ktl'II11IlI,III\'!' 1('( ails Iltl' 1:11," ('\,('lltll<ll­
Ill,ldl' lilt' land 01 EAypt stltlllK, thy l'lIld, ,lIl1l tht,!t i., 110 h11111,111 ,11.\1 lin Itt h,llId' I'tibl'd 111 \\,'11,11111111 'J Ill, .\ItI'IIl.lll\"" 11',111 m.fm III 1111 ill "(S('llt of! III
ill II Iliit ol1ly thy '"I',lt p<l\H'II" 111111 dirl'llioll, It ballaS! III /-tood 0111,'1
112 CHAPTER ONE SITTINGS OF THE KING 113

every year. My army, which constitutes the standing force 37 in behind them and flames in front of them! one of them
Ullaza,38 comes [to My Majesty(?) yearly with ...] which is the screwed up his courage nor looked back. Th'lad no horses,
cedar of My Majesty's forcible confiscation, through the coun­ (for) they had bolted into [....] to let all the ~igners see My
sels of my father [Amun-re] who consigned all the foreigners Majesty's power. So I turned back southwaJ with a happy
to me. I left none of it for the barbarians, (for) it is the wood heart, and celebrated my lord [Amunre Lorf Karnak], the
he loves; he has enforced (it) so that they operate regularly fOI one who ordained the victory, and set dread Qe in the hearts
'The Lord,' (even though) they be irked being in a state 01 of the barbarians [....] in my reign, when placed fear of
peace(?) [...]. me among [all] the foreigners, so that theyd on me afar
off-
13. A Miraculous Victory. All that the light shines upon is bound up ler my sandals!

[I will tell you another thing which happened to] My [MajestyJ 1'1. The King's Second Song. (Pattern: mainly 3:)r 3:2)
Listen up, you people of the Southland who are in the HoI>
Mountain (popularly called 'Thrones of the Two Lands' and I myself, My Majesty, speaks [to you....]

little known);39 then you will know the Manifestation4o of [Amull l....] victorious(?)

re] in the presence of the Two Lands entire! for I am very skilled in the martial art, wh my precIOus

[....] the [...] had sneakily come to launch a night engage father [Amun-re Lord of Karnak] granted~,
ment, at the posting of the regular watch, when two hours had He has made me 'Lord of the Portions,'44 I r what the sun­
elapsed (in the night).4l Coming of a celestial body,42 moving tll disc encircles,
the south of them-an incomparable event-dashing forward Mighty is [....] northerners,
straight ahead. Not one of them could stand their groulld My terror extends to the southern marches, hing is beyond
[.... They fled, tumb] ling over headlong; for lo! there was Ifi Il my compass!
I Ie has sealed up for me the entire earth, tJe is no end to
what accrues to me in victory!
37 See above, p. II.

38 See above, pp. 64-65.

lie has placed my power in Upper Retenu, ..]
39 It would appear that the words are addressed to Egyptians (nnt)-Thllllll<
I.. · .]
is sensitive to racial differences, and would have used slryw or a3sryw if he h" ,I I'hey bring me their offerings to the place \\re My Majesty
intended autochthonous foreigners-and it is a fair guess that these were resid...
garrison troops in Napata. The phrase n ra.twf is difficult, and could be takl'l\ happens to be, at all times,
a sdm.tf "before it was known", perhaps indicating that the two appelatives \\1 I'he highland produces for me what is in her, try fine product,
successive stages in local toponymy (cf. C). Eyre, "Is Historical Literature 'polll
cal' or 'literary,?" in A. Loprieno (ed), Ancient Egyptian Literature. History alld hi
What she hid from former kings she has op.ed up [to My
[Leiden, 1996],421-22). But it could also apply to the remoteness and poor kllOWI Majesty]
edge of the place. 1. . . . 1
40 E. Graefe, Untersuchungen zur Worifi.imilie f!j3 (Cologne, 1971), Dok. 208; I. Shill I
Grumach, Offenbarung, Orakel und Kiinigsnovelle (Wiesbaden, 1993), 20 21, 12:i
IC old, lapis, turquoise] and every precIOUS gl,
passim.
41 Presumably the watch was set at nightfall, which would mean that 101,t1 da'
ness had closed in by the end of the second hour.
42 As in the case of Akkadian kakklibu (cf. TIle As\)'rian Dictionary VIII ICIIII IS;.III, 11/ bl/t~: thl' expression sig-nals the end of the calTiAn alld lhe return
1971], 48[21), sb3, "star," is used of any celestial objl'('[; ef. Ib.'J lId, "ShOOliIW I'hlll' 1,111111l'refOle be no qllestion lhat the incident question occurred
meteor," KRJ II, 151 :9. The prl'Senl dl'sniplioll sO\llHls indl'I'd like thill of ;\ 1111'1 It' IIIII/Itrl/l'\IllIMign ill Asia, and nol thl'
C south.
falling' to earth. Note that, by lISillH 111, i.I'. till' 111[111111\1' Iltllllllml' '[Ppl',Il' to I of' lllllu~ ,lIlel Sl,th; thl' nil III I'ra I "~ .. is a mistake 11\('d {mill ,I mis
quotillg li'OIIl ;[ cia} book l'llll, I r Rcdfl1\d l'It"'tw//,'{ Jimrli'I', JI/IIII/\ (/I/d I If Ilw tlllil· WI! (f (; ro-Jiilll'l JItlllllllll" 1'II/tII'(/J!/lI/IIt" 'linlullc ~ IIHi:l II
\11"",11111,1. IllHll I'U ')'\
114 CHAPTER ONE SITTINGS OF THE KING 115

All plants of sweet aroma which are from Pwenet, [....] for monuments of my fathers, all the gods of Upper
All fine products of the Southland, and everything that comes and Lower Egypt. I hewed out a Processional-barque48 of cedar
forth by commerce45 to My Majesty- [...] upon the shore of Lebanon in the fortress ["Menkheperre­
They are his, that I might stock his house, that I might recom­ is-Conqueror-of-the-Vagabonds" ...]49
pense him for his protection, [....] the chiefs, the lords of Lebanon, fashioned royal ships
[00 00] to sail south in them, to bring all the marvels [of Kh]enty-she 50
[....] on the battlefield, to the Palace, L.P.H.;
I shall indeed give the presents and the wonders of all lands, the chiefs of [....]
And the [best] of the plunder of his mighty arm, for he has the chiefs of Retenu conveyed these flag-staves by means of
ordained it for me over all the foreigners!' oxen to the shore,5! and they it was that came with their (own)
products of labour to the place where My(sic) Majesty was, to
15. Response of the Court. (Pattern unclear) the Residence in [Egypt....]
[.... the ... came] bearing all sorts of fine gifts, brought as
'Then these courtiers [....] marvels of the South, taxed with products of labour each year,
'[... Amunre Lord] of Karnak, the great god of the First like any of My Majesty's serfs.'
Occasion,
The primaeval One who created your beauty, he gave you every 17. Response of the People. (Pattern unclear)
land
And he managed it, since they know you came forth from him! 'What th e peopIe say..52 "[. ...]
He indeed it was that guided Your Majesty on roads [of his [....] the foreigners have seen your power, your renown cir­
making], culates to the Horn of the Earth, awe of you has cowed the
[....]" hearts of them that attacked [you ...] people [...]

16. King's Concluding Statement: the spontaneous compliance of

48 Lit. "barque (dpt!) of rowings," referring to the official outings of the god, when
the conquered. he is rowed upon the river: J!I!b. III, 375:7-14. Presumably we are dealing with the
Wsr-~3t Imn, which Thutmose commemorates among his benefactions to Amun (C.F.

'E....] My [Majesty]; I [have set] my terror in the farthest Nims, "Thutmose Ill's Benefactions to Amon," in Studies in Honor if John A. Wilson
(Chicago, 1969), fig. 7:5-7; see below, p. 00), which is curiously (and mistakenly?)
marshes of Asia, there is no one that holds back my messenger!46 linked to materials brought back from the First Campaign.
It was my army that sawed flag-staves 47 on the terraces of cedar, 49 See below, the 6th Pylon text: p. 00.
50 Originally land associated with market-gardens and the pyramid: W. HeIck,
on the mountains of God's-land [...] Untersuchungen zu die Beamtentiteln des aegyptischen Alten Reiches (Gluckstadt, 1954), 107-8;
R. Stadelmann, BIFAO 81 (1981), 153ff; H.G. Bartel, Altorientalische Forschungen 17
(1990), 234-38. By the Middle Kingdom the term has been applied to the Phoenician
coast: S. Farag, RdE 32 (1980), 75ff 7 + X, 18 + X; W. HeIck, Historisch-biographische
Texte der 2. Zwischenzeit und neue Texte der 18. Dynastie (Wiesbaden, 1975), p. 32 (10).
5) Thesc stood on the south face of the 7th pylon (P-M II, 171 [501]), and the

45 Swnt: see B. Menu, "Les echanges portant sur Ie travail d'autrui," in N. Grimal, informat.ion of the accompanying inscription is consonant with the facts of the pre­
B. Menu, Ie Commerce en Egypte ancienne (Cairo, 1998), 197. senL text: "[... j crccting for him (i.e. Amun) precious Rag-staves which he had cut
46 M. Valloggia, Recherche sur les "messagers" (WfJWfJ'w) dalls les sources egyfJtiemles pro­ ut in Khcnty-she, dragged from the mountains of God's-land by the c3mw of
fanes (Geneva·Paris, J976), 93 (36). Rctenu [.. .1": UrA. IV, 777: 12 13. Sec above, n. 35.
17 It is unclear on how many occasions nag-Slaves weI"(' elll and blOUghl to Egypt, 12 St/dt 1711/; this is 110t a formal response, but a gc·ncric refcrence to the kind of

and in whieh rl'~nal yeals. The paSS<lRl' 1>l'lm\ 's('l' p II:i ll'klS to Im,ll <l~('n('y ()) ,11 It 'ldilioll gCJl(" ,lWei by d1\' kinK's ole IS: cf. Red fc)]"(1 , "Scribc and Speaker," in
ill cullil1/o\ lhe wood: ,lI1e1 Sell'lluh (',/, 1\1 ')'~I 3h 1I1l'lIlioll' III 111>1'1 ,lll1ly nor E. Bell I'd ,lIlel 1\1 II I'lord II/t/ill,li\ (///{/ ,\/JI'/'Ih 11/ lImt/ilf (lnd Allcielli Nrar J::a.;tem
1m ,Ii Ul Itl' ,ll ('011111 of (lIl1Ul/o\ hll·( IIllil IOIlL' ,It,lh !'rri/llirr t \d,lIl1,1 ?ClllClI, 171
116 CHAPTER ONE SITIINGS OF THE KING 117

[....] any [bar]barian that might violate your governance! It vast extent of the king's dominion through Amun's agency

is your father [that has brought about] your [victory over every the whole earth voluntarily yields its produce (with a refer­

foreign land!" ence to plants.

His Majesty was in his palace on the West of [Thebes .. .]." all handed over to the coffers of Amun

15. Response of Court (link missing)

- the king's debt to Amun (with reference to "the road [of his
Textual AnalYsis
making]")
1. Date & Titulary 16. King's concluding statement* (link missing)
2. Building Inscription
- sawing of flag-staves, construction of barque and royal ships,
(in gratitude for the magnification of victories)*
transport of flag-staves.
3. Encomium 17. Response of the people Oink missing)
- general military success (ending with p~w sw, "who had - the cowing of the foreigners through Amun's agency.
attacked him," i.e. derived from the circumstances of the First
Campaign) The date falls within a span of c. 6 or 7 years within which con­
4. General Reminiscence of the First Campaign struction work was initiated at Elkab,53 Deir e1-Bahari54 and Heliopolis. 55
5. Prowess as a battlefield warrior (ending in Cartouche) The initial format is that of the formal building inscription involv­
6.-7a. Encomium (built of the titulary: Horus, bull, Montu) ing the formula ir.nj m mnwj. .., but to this is appended a long
"... who takes and none can take from him ..." dited sequence of the obiter dicta of the king. The edited sections
7b. The 8th Campaign* constitute a sort of midrashic introduction and interspersed com­
" ... they had no champion.," ending in a reference to trees mentary,56 metrically composed (usually on a pattern 3:3 or 3:2).
& foliage. Sections 15 and 17 preserve, respectively, the response of the court
7c. Prefabricated carts of wood to cross the river (with reference and the oral tradition expected to be generated by the king's speech.
to Naharin).*
7d. Gloss on crossing the river.
7e. Setting up stela (wd.) on the mountain of Naharin.* 53 A Weigall, ASAE 9 (1909), 108 (year 47[?], first month of proyet).
8a. Re has ordained (wd.) far-flung victories.* 5{ J. Lipinska, Melanges q/ferts a Kazimierz Michalowski (Warsaw, 1966), 129; idem,
8b. Metaphor of the rampaging bull.* ., r'.A 53 (1967), 27 and n. 6 (year 43, v, 24); Sir AH. Gardiner, J. Cerny, Hieratic
Ostraca (Oxford, 1956), pI. 56:5 (year 43, vi, I); A Erman, Hieratische Papyri zu Bertin
8c. Gloss on prowess in battle, with a reference to archery. III, no.S. 10621, 10615 (year 43, vi, 2); W.C. Hayes, ]EA 46 (1960), pI. 12:16
9. Elephant hunt* !ecto-year 44, vii, 21); ibid., pI. 12:17 (recto-year 45, viii, 15); thus two years
"... who directs My Majesty on the right road ..." (·Iapsed from the start of work for the hauling of stone for the walls, and three
) ears (ibid., pI. 13:21 [recto], year 49, v, 23) to work on the roof. For statuary, See
IO. First Campaign, with references to the road through the pass.* I.ipinska, Deir e/-Bahari IV. The Temple oj Tuthmosis III. Statuary and Votive Monuments
ending in "it was my father that did it ..." Warsaw, 1984), 12-16. The building was unfinished at Thutmose Ill's death: AJ.
I I. The King's song* "I)('neer, ]EA 69 (1983), 173.
'J\ P-M IV, 4, 61; Urk. IV, 1373 (year 45: donation ofland); 832 (year 47: build­
beginning "It was my father that gave me this ..." IJlg of temenos wall); c[ also 830f (gates); W.M.F. Petrie, Heliopotis, Kaft Ammar and
ref('rences to "the road of his making ..." and ending III \/utrqia (London, 1915), pIs. 45; L. Habachi, TIle Obelisks oj Egypt (New York, 1977),
Hil 66 (obelisks); rC A.-A. Saleh, TIle E~cavations at Heliopolis I (Cairo, 1981), 32;
b3AooSII Il.i . .. \ Radwan, "Zwei Stc!ell aus ckm 4·7. Jahre Thutmosis' III," MDAIK 37 (1981),
I~. T.I\.l's* /11111' III b3kw etc.)
IO:~ 7.
1111111)('1 from Klish and ('('dar from l,chilI1011.
Otl til\' 101111 S('(' AJ Spa Ii tlK('I, ..11/)('(/1 of Ihf ,\ fililary J)O{/llllents oj the Ancient
l/tllll '\ .11t It)!l') 'J{):) ., Oil lis plopall,.t1Hlisti( itllellt, see E. Bleibcrg, "Historical
I:i \111.1( Idoll' \'1( 1m}';' Itn\.; missing
rl~XI • .t. PolllH'.t1 I'Iop,III,IIHI" dill t11~1 IIH \;('11 l\.illKdol11" 811111'1111 oj Ihf r:g..'/Jlo"~u,i({/I
I-I "1I11! s('(olld 'lllll''' (link JIlI,SIII
'/inal 7 II !IIIVf>" I'
118 CHAPTER ONE SITTINGS OF THE KING 119

It seems most probable, therefore, that the royal words were uttered was clearly directed towards the assembled court in a palace setting
at a formal ~mst-nsw (royal seance) or acy-nsw, "royal appearance," (cf. 15, 17); yet in one pericope, as the text now stands, the people
as was common during the 18th Dynasty for the issuance of pharaonic (colonists?) at Napata are addressed (section 13). One might, then,
reports and directives. 57 The final preserved line appears to locate construe the speech as a general statement, edited for copying and
this seance somewhere at Thebes, but not necessarily on the west distribution to specific places. 59
bank. 58
The informing element which orders the sequence of material is
not chronology, but topical reference or homophony. The general II. THE SEVENTH PYLON REVEALS
60

encomium in sections 3 through 5, ending in a cartouche, leads to

an extension constructed upon titulary (6-7a). The reminiscence of 1. Introductory Speech.
the 8th campaign (7b) ends with a reference to trees and foliage,
which accounts for the anachronistic placing of 7c with its reference [ long lacuna ] my [...] Amun-re-Harakhty, who appeared
to wooden boats and carts. Mention of the land of Naharin (7c) [ long lacuna ] before him to the interior of [...]: the rule
leads across the gloss (7d) to mount Naharin (7e); while use of the of the Two Lands, the thrones of Geb and the office of Khopry
word wd, "stela," (7e) is resumed in 8a by the verb wd, "to ordain." were announced on my behalf in the presence of my father,
The metaphor of the rampaging animal (bull) in 8b links up, across the perfect god, 'Okheperenre, given life for ever! while all the
the gloss (8c) with the hunt of rampaging animals (elephants) in 9. people [exulted....]61
Sections 9, 10 and 11 are all connected through the figure of "the (2) [... long lacuna ...] Regnal year 1, first month of shomu,
road" ("the right road" [9], the valley (road) [10], and the "road of day 4. There occurred the Appearance of the king's-son, Thut- ­
his making" [11]). Similarly "they work for ... (b3k.sn) at the end of mose, given life for ever and ever [as king ... long lacuna ...],
11 is resumed by b3kw, "products of labor," in 12. From this point while every [... ]62 was about its duties, performing commend­
on the poor preservation of the text makes it impossible to detect ably withal, in what My Majesty is content to have done and
linkages. in what is good for the temple.
One unifying element in the document is the fixation with the My Majesty speaks so that I might inform you 63 that My
plant- and arboreal world. Nine times throughout the text Thutmose Majesty's bent is towards excellence [ ] (3) performing bene­
in his reported speech mentions plants, wood or wood products, factions for him that begat him in [ long lacuna ...] exactly
sometimes at great length (cf. sections 12 and 16). One wonders
whether the recency of the specific constructions in wood mentioned
\q Cr., in this vein, the Buto text tailored for the local cult (below, p. 162); or
in 16 provided the occasion for the speech. This (edited) royal address llie several Karnak seance transcripts and triumph stelae (below, p. 127ff) which
, "tHer upon matters Theban. It may also be significant that, for the most part, the
IIlridents told for the edification of the southerners took place in the north, far
I,'moved from the find-spot of this stela.
57 Urk. IV, 256: 17 (Thutmose I: announcement); 349: I 0 (Hatshepsut: announce­ til Urk. IV, 178-191; P-M II, 169-70 [498c]; P. Barguet, Le Temple d'Amon Ii
ment); 1255:2 (Thutmose III: announcement); 1380: 12 (Thutmose III: appointment); I"I/lwk (Paris, 1962), 271; ef. Also C. Cannuyer, "BreIans de 'Pharaons' Ramses XI,
1385:6 (probable: Amenophis II: appointment); 1345:9 (Amenophis II: parade); Cr. IIiOlltmosis 111 et Hatshepsout," in S. Israelit Groll (ed), Studies in Egyptology presented
D.B. Redford, History and Chronology qf the Egyptian 18th PJ;nasry. Seven Studies (Toronto, Ilin'am Liehtheim I (Jerusalem, 1990), 105-9.
1967), 5-6; G.P.F. van den Boom, the Duties qf the Vizier. Civil Administration in the iI On the circumstances of Thutmose Ill's accession, see below, p. 191.
EarlY New Kingdom (London, 1988), 17 (2). ,,' Selhe reSlores smdt, "support staff," for which see D. Valbelle, in Melanges
58 The location of the 18th Dynasty palace at Thebes north of the 4th pylon i~ "Iurs .lean Clerc (LilJc, 1991), 123 28; JJ. Janssen, Altorientalisehe Forsehungen 19
now well attested: see Redford, "East Karnak and the Sed-festival of Akhenaten," 1'1c}2), 13. It would seel11, how('ver, thal some word such as wnwt would be more
in C. Berger and others (ed), Hommages Ii Jean J-eCUlIlt I. JI·/Ildr., jllwraollique,s (Cairo, I'pillpriatt'.

1994), 4·92. The position of the locatjve pericope is 1111l1~U,i1, ,1\ lll()~l otlH'r exam Ihi~ i~ thl' uiliquiIO\l\ fill'll1ltl.l III .Ill in[c)JJnatiol1 specch: D.B. Redfeml, Bulletin

pk~ locate the event imml'clialt'ly following till' clatl' Nn·t111 1<1 l~ 111('1(' is Illl 1ig)J1It1It1J"iml Smum!' 'i \fIlii III J \\lIh 1.11,'( varianl tii.i. (l1I.tn: h/?.! IV. 3:5;

1,'aSlln til illMgilll' til(' killlo\ ,leli"'1 inl/. hillw'lf III t!l"M' I"III,"U 01 (,11111 l1.u kill! • ,1!l.Iill, hh !ill, lI'i I () II i 1', 11,11111 7:1 '
120 CHAPTER ONE SITTINGS OF THE KING 121

(?) in everything [... lacuna ...] My Majesty's desire is towards 4. Reminiscence of the First Campaign.
doing a good deed to him that fashioned my beauty. I am
[indeed] the one he caused to appear as king under him him­ [His Majesty journeyed to] Retenu to crush the northern for­
self,64 so that I should do good things for him that begat me, eign countries on his first victorious campaign, following the
I should act for him as a worker in the field (producing) more ordinance for him of Amun-re, Lord of Karnak, the one who
and more 65 (4) [....] who fashioned his beauty! leads him well, and grants [him ti]de(?)68 to all the foreign coun­
tries-the Nine Bows bunched up beneath [his sandals....]
2. Response of the Court. "(7) [... long lacuna ...] every [...] of [....] their horses in
[... long lacuna ...] I made a [great] slaughter [among them....]
These courtiers [answered His Majesty: " champion of the his [...] placed in a fortress of their own construction which
Lord of the Gods ... [....] for his house in [ long lacuna ... in turn was enclosed by a good circumvallation. My Majesty
Amun-re] king of the Gods, as a new work for the ages of eter­ sat down by it like a ready lion, I kept watch over it night [and
nity! [....] May you celebrate, yes! may you keep on cele­ day ]
brating 'living, renewed, rejuvenated like Re every day'!" (8) [ long lacuna ... wh]ile the chiefs who had come to
fight against [My Majesty despatched(?).... the children(?)] of
3. Announcement of Construction Work. the chiefs [bearing....] Then My Majesty brought the wives
of that doomed one and the children, as well as the wives of
"His Majesty authorized construction in stone, assigned (5) [... so the chiefs who were [with him] and all their children. And
that Karnak] might be (as glorious) as heaven, firm [ upon its My Majesty gave these women [and (9) the children to the
supports.... King of Upper] and Lower Egypt, Menkheperrc, work-house of my father Amun....] and their labour [was
Uiving] for ever! [... long lacuna ... I constructed a ... with assigned] to the temple of Amun. 69 Moreover My Majesty autho­
a ...] upon it in electrum, and the 'God's-Shadow' commen­ rized [.... three towns to my father Amun, 'viz.' Nugas the
surate with a dignified portraya1. 66 It was named 'Menkheperre name of one, Yeno'am the name of another, and Harenkar]
is [.... of mon]uments, a favorite spot of the Lord of the Gods, the name of the remaining one. 70 Their labour was assigned
a fine resting station for his enneadY All the vessels were or to the temple of my father Amun, as a tax quota of each year.
silver, gold, various [precious] stones (6) [... long lacuna ... j So My Majesty took these wives of the doomed one of Kadesh
daily [... .]. Now My Majesty established a festival [...] in as plunder71 (l0) [.... for] my father Amun, with a tax quota
excess of what was [before ... long lacuna ...]." on labour in the course of 'every' year.

64 S. Morenz, f<-gyptian Religion (Ithaca, 1992), 96.

65 The image is that of the tenant farmer, burdened with the annual harve,t
quota: CJ. Eyre, "Village Economy in Pharaonic Egypt," in A.K. Bowman, E. Rag-all [Il]t-c, if eorreedy read: Wh. I, 156:14; D. Meeks, Annee lexicographique III (1982),
(eds), Agriculture in Egypt from Pharaonic to Modern Times (Oxford, 1999), 47. ','1; while mOSl frequendy used of "customary procedure," and therefore "ritual"
66 On the fwt-nlr, see H. Kees, Opfirtanz d. aegyptischen Ktfnig (Munich, 1912), 237; I S. SChOll, Blicher und Bibliotheken im alten Aegypten [Wiesbaden, 1990], 117-20),
C. de Wit, Le Role et Ie sense du lion dans l'Egypte allciell1ze (Leiden, 1951), 67 B, \Vas lhe c10sesl approximation of Akkadian rikiltu, "treaty": Redford, "The Hyksos
R. Stadclmann, MDAiK25 (1969),160;]. Assmann, RdJt 30 (1978),31. II Ili~tory and Tradition," Orientalia 39 (1970), 43 n. 1; K. Zibelius, "Staatsvertrag,"
[,7 Selhe's reading- mn mnw (Urk. IV, 183:11) apparenlly dol's not quite fill the I, I V (1981), 1223; Galan, Victory and Border, 79 n. 416.
available space: C.F. Nims, "Places about Thebes," ]VFS I I 1c)5S), 113 alld 12: S('l~ ill gel1('( 'll, E. Feuchl, "Kinder fremden Volker in Aegypten," in A. Egge­
(3). The ,[luClure is, 11()~\e\('r, quite clearly a way-statiol1 al1d Jlrobably Oil th(' south :.. hI ed, F('.\lIrhrijl jilT .7UT~l'/l lion BerAfrath (Ilildesheim, 1990), 24 49; continued
('111 <lxis. ;\ (('sloraliol1 IlIIn,·JIIIIl 1II1l1/1II1l1' would S('('111 tn fil, ,lilholll.\h it Wf1IJlcI illllo ,Ill 17 (llJc)()" 177 ~()I
dll«' .1 \,lti,UIl; (Of tlu W,ty-st<ltlllll III q\Il'~11011 M'l' P. 1.Il,HI II Clw\"Ii!'(, ['II S(·t' ,l!)Cl\C', p. '11lfl
OUl"'''' d'/ltI/III,'"",,/ tI i1l/1lltlA 'Call 0 IlJ1lJ pi lJ (!llo( ks I(I'l, 1211 I 1'0\ ,h-" \I .11111 ,n Iwlllw, p. I :i',
122 CHAPTER ONE SITIINGS OF THE KING 123

5. Reminiscence of the Second(?) Campaign. 6. Incidents during the 8th Campaign.

Now when [My Majesty journeyed to Retenu 72 on my ... vic­ (15) [.... His Majesty was in the dist]rict of Qatna 79 on the 8th
torious campaign .. Y3 of Egypt, extending her boundary for victorous campaign, close to the bank(?) [... long lacuna but
ever, then My Majesty set this crew to (the task of) overlaying none] therein [exceeded the limits] of his strength. Then [ ]
the 'Monstrance-of-[his]-beauty,' even the great riverine barque I [se]lectedSO [ ••• the stron]gest of (those of) his fathers (but)
Wsr-b3t-Imn, hewed [of fresh cedar .. (11) ..] there was no (16) [... lacuna ...] in order to make strong bows,
Now My Majesty performed a feat of strength with my own and the one that would be found sl strongest among them ...
arm, in the midst of [....] my [...]. I came forth on the earth, [... lacuna ...] My [Majesty] (but) none exceeded [the limits
ready for it and stout-hearted. 74 Then they [fled headlong] from of] the strength of any of my [army ].
before [my] Majesty, and their towns were plundered. (17) Thereupon [...] was made [ lacuna ...] for [My]
(12) [... four groups ...] of Bakhu. 75 There was none (left) Majesty (but) none therein [exc]eeded the limits of my strength.
standing within the scope [of My Majesty. I seized ... long Look! [.... Then they brought ...] to My Majesty [ ] his
lacuna ...] and mrw-wood/ 6 namely all the products of north­ [....], a mistress of strength [as at] the First Occasion [ ]
ern foreign lands, when My Majesty returned from this foreign (18) [... long lacuna ...] the likes of her [had never been
land. I thereupon authorized the establishment of new [festi­ seen] in this land, [...] every [....] its length (measuring) 2
vals] for my father [Amun ... cubits, a palm and five fingers, with various fine costly gems,
(13) [... long lacuna ...] in these festivals over and above [its] width [...]
what they had been formerly, on behalf of the life, prosperity (19) [.... long lacuna ...] her arrow (measuring) 1 cubit, 1
and health of My Majesty. Moreover [I ... palm and 5 fingers [...] in a target(?) [...] set(?) to be a memo­
(14) [... lacuna ...] 177 made he[rds] for him [.... the festi­ rial in [ ]
vals of] heaven at the beginning of the seasons, and milch-kine (20) [ Then] My Majesty's heart was exceedingly glad
according to the offering menu. They were milked, and their [...] first [ long lacuna ...] (21) 'Son of Bast, champion of
milk placed in container[s of electrum... .]7s Egypt' was [its na]me [... given] all [life, stability, dominion]
and health like Re [for ever]!"
72 Or "came back from ..."?
73 It is by no means clear that a second campaign is being alluded to in this While the text is certainly based on the records of a bmst-nsw, too
passage. On the other hand, the final phrases of the preceding passage suggest
finality and termination to the account of the first campaign; while the present peri­ liulc is preserved to establish editorial arrangement. Presumably a
cope, with its mention of battles, tasks assigned the conquered, booty, tribute and
festivals, sounds very much like another military expedition. It might be noted that
mrw-wood (12) is elsewhere mentioned as forcible seizures in the campaigns of years
23 and 24: Urk. IV, 672:3; (that of year 40 is among the gifts: Urk. IV, 670:11). Illscription on the barque shrine recording gilded furniture and vessels: P-M II, 95
74 The first person determinatives in this passage are Gardiner G7, as though "75), and 98-99; but there they are listed as 5 mhr of gold.
the original was derived from hieratic. 7'1 Mishrife, 18 km. north-east of Horns: Comte Du Mesnil de Buisson, Le Site
75 Probably designating the (mountains of) the East: D. Meeks, "Notes de lexi­ (//(lteologique de Mishrije-Ogtna, Paris, 1935; at 100 hectares the largest site in Syria
cographie," BIFAO 77 (1977), 80 n. 1; thus the eastern limits of the campaign? \I.e. Astour, JAOS 88 [1968], 136), but during the Late Bronze a mere shadow
76 Probably cypress or a type of cedar: A. Lucas, JR. Harris, Ancient Egyptian "I ils political power in the Middle Bronze Age: H. Klenge1, Geschichte ~riens im 2.
Materials and Industries (4th ed; London, 1989), 432 34; R. Gale and others, in PT. '(l/triOl/Send v. Cltr. 2. Mittel und Siidsyriens (1965), 132-33. Given his position 5 gen­
Nicholson, 1. Shaw, Ancient Egyptian Materials and Tec/mologies (Cambridge, 2000), II,ltiollS before the Amarna Age, Naplimma may well have been king of Qatna at
349 51; used for furniture (Urk. IV, 114·9:9), shrines (Sethe, Argypli,sc!IP !"eseslllckr, 1111' lime Thutrnose HrJ;ved:.J. Bout-ro, "Les inventaires de Qatna," RA 43 (1949),
71 :5), and doors (B. Letellier, "Le eour ,\ pt'ristyll' de Tholltrnosis IV ,\ Karn;lk," 1,0 (1:31), 15H (I'l<)), 17H (tl'l).
1I001111lllKfl Saunmm [Cairo, ICJ7CJ], 5fi), It is f<lllncl ,II110llR tlw "booty" lists ill y<'HIS III [{,'ad [\ 1l/I.n,l,
":3, '21 ,llld 10' ItA. IV, (illl'7, (i7'2"I, (i70 II 1'''''1\'1' Idl/l.!l':b fill III C,Il(IUH I, F.1i>/ltulII (,'mll1l11f11, WI'. %'3 ('xx. at S;l (mther
"'1" :lhm! lIutl 7,) Ittlll(' IOlllfl\ll1l th.11I I' tlHI' lIoH·II (l th, S.lqq,II,1 I A'tln (111 (i. [\1('1 ibn' 7CJ;
• t 'f, 11,~ 1\ 7I I I :llll: III I :lll'.! ~ '1III'w Ill")' II" 1111'111 ill III'l I III '!'hllllllml E, Etld, ,lItorglll/utl., (ilt/lIIlI/tlM. I (!tOIlH', I !J'll .... lall'
 124 CHAPTER ONE SITTINGS OF THE KING 125

date headed the whole. The statements which follow have to do with their erection and inscription must postdate year 33. The flag-staves
appointment and legitimacy, with reference to the gods and the royal for the 7th Pylon are referred to in the slot-inscriptions on the pylon
progenitor, and the king's intent to act upon his gratitude. Then, itself: "awesome flag-staves which he selected in Khen?J!-she, dragged
somewhat prematurely we might imagine, the court responds. from the mountains of [God's]-land [by] the Asiatics (c3mw) of
It is section 3, the announcement of construction work, that pro­ Retenu."89 The locution recalls the wording of Gebel Barkal, sec. 16
vides the explanation for the contents of the text. The planned con­ (where oxen do the dragging). The 7th pylon flag-staves are again
struction of the Way-station (sec. 3) leads to an explanation of its mentioned on a fragment originally to the south wall (north face?)
endowment from the proceeds of foreign conquest (First and 2nd[?] of room VI at Karnak, and now built into the Sety II construc­
campaigns: sec. 4), as well as a record of the construction of the tion. 90 "[My Majesty] erected for him (Amun) great flag-staves, dragged
barque to be transported along this southern processional way (sec. from the mountains(?) of Lebanon, for the [great] pylon ..." It may
5). This in turn leads to the recounting of an incident on the 8th be that it was Menkheperrasonb, the high-priest, who was responsi­
campaign at Qatna, a source spot for cypress (mrw?),82 involving bow ble for the work on the shrine, obelisks and flag-staves on this occa­
manufacture. sion91 along with Sen-nufer who procured the timber from Lebanon. 92
Inspite of the reservations of Nims,83 it is most tempting to iden­ Significantly, in the annals the sale record of "poles (wb3w) and staves
tify the building mentioned in section 3 with the peripteral shrine­ (s3wt)" being specifically shipped to Egypt by boat is on the 9th cam­
station south-east of the 7th pylon84 (on the gate of which is inscribed paign, in year 34. 93
the present text). The name of the gate of this shrine85 can be restored The notice regarding the captivity of the wives of the king of
to accomodate the reference in the present text, viz. "Menkheperre­ Kadesh and the wives of other Syrian leaders invites an attempt at
and-Amun-are-Enduring-of-Monuments" (Mn-bpr-rc Imn mn mnw). identification. On no other campaign is it recorded that so many
Since the shrine was built about the time of the second jubilee (year high-ranking women were targeted for capture and deportation. 94
33-34),86 we arrive at a firm date early in the 4th decade of the One wonders whether the buried princesses discovered by Winlock,95
reign for the constructions along the southern processional way: the ,dl of whom bear West-Semitic names, constituted part of this cap­
7th pylon and court, the peripteral shrine and the two obelisks,8? I ivity. The names are singular in that they all show a mem in intial
The latter, of which one stands in Constantinople, the other lies in position which seems beyond coincidence, and suggests, rather than
fragments in situ, contains the epithet of Amun "who grants title (nt-c) a component of the radical, a preformative mem, possibly a participial
in the lands of Mitanni, more numerous than sand";88 and therefore formation.

82 G. Dossin, Les archives rqyales de MaTi I, 7:5.

83 Above, n. 55. 8~ Urk. IV, 777:12-13.
84 P-M II, 173-74. '10 Urk. IV, 737-38; presumably once part of the text continued on the south
85 Barguet, Le Temple d'Amon-re a Karnak (Paris, 1962), 266. massif of the 6th pylon (below, IV). The same text mentions a granite shrine.
86 Cf. Urk. IV, 595: II "first occasion of the repetition of the sed-festival may he q, N. de G. Davies, The Tombs qf Menkheperrasonb, Amenmose and Another (London,
celebrate many more!" 1933), pI. XI. He uses the locution m3.n.i, "I witnessed ..." which probably implies
87 L. Gabolde, "La eour de letes de Thoutmosis II," Karnak IX (1993), 62 63. Ilversight.
The obelisks were said to have been erected "at the double door of the temple," .) See below, p. 00.
which must refer to pylon 7 (Urk. IV, 642: II, 17). The orientation will have set 'n Urk. IV, 707: 13, and above p. 79.
the side with the 5-fold titulary, towards the south, with the side with references '" Only in year 40 is a foreign princess mentioned as having been brought to
to Delta deities (Neith, Atum) appropriately enou~h farin~ norlh. But with this ()I i­ I:Kypt; but Ilw rir('lumtances resemble a diplomatic marriage: see above, p. 00.
enlation, the northern and soulhern allusions of the (exts Oil Ihe ol!Wt IWO sicks '" I J.I~. Winlock, 'Ilir 'f rralll/l' II! 'l7l1rf 1'1.fJ'Iilion Prillmsfs, New York, 1948; w.e.
would losl' Ih,'it din" lion,,1 siKniftc,ulrt· II;ty('~, 'Ilir .)(11111'1 'l! Fgt/JI 11,)('\\ \llIk, IlI'j'J II, l:lO 10; cf. C. Liliquis(, "Granulation
l,A. 1\ ",Ilq B,uI4UC'1 I,mlil, no.
I.. I Cd),\( Ill, 111, O/l,I,,!.., ,,/ 1'J.'l/li ~('\\ IIH) (;1;1" ('llllll1ll1llWI.d ."Id Sl~lt .111 111\( 'til(.lliolls .Il SC'I"IWei Siles, ca. 2500 1400
YIlI~ 1'177 II II C.li.... HI\mi 'l!)ll 'II (I!I'I·I:. :.!'I '11.
 126 CHAPTER ONE SITTINGS OF THE KING 127

1. Mnh(t): Schneider96 rightly rejects Helck's derivation from NW:ij, king on the battlefield, a rout of the enemy, the capture of towns
and opts for a comparison with Pre-Islamic Arab. manhaa, "wise."97 and the seizure of booty (including plants, timber and milch-cows).
But a superior derivation, from West Semitic, is to be found in Now of the six campaigns between one and 8, only three (nos. 5
NHH, "to lament."98 through 7) appear in the annals; and none of these reflect a set­
2. Mr(w)-ta: One thinks initially, perhaps, of a feminine passive piece battle, as does the present pericope. In light of the presence
participle (G) from the root MRR, "to be bitter, strong,"99 or MRH, of mrw-wood in the booty of the 2nd campaign (above, n. 63), it is
"to be unruly."loo But, while the emphatic -ta can render a feminine tempting to construe the present text as a reference to Thutmose
inflection,lol it can also frequently stand for West Semitic d. 102 One Ill's initial "break-out" after the Megiddo victory, into the lands fur­
thinks of maruda, "homeless," from RWD, "to wander."103 ther north.
3. Menawa: Schneider lO4 derives from MNH, "to take note of, love, The final section (6) refers to a bow-testing foray of the king on
count," thus "thing desired." But, in view of the likelihood that all his 8th campaign, in the workshops of Q?-tna. The weapons for test­
three names show mem-preformative, to postulate a participial form ing included ancestral relics as well as newly-made items. The rhetor­
from NW3, "to hinder, frustrate, fall down."los ical trope fastens upon the inability of the locals to provide bows
It is by no means clear that another campaign is being alluded beyond human capability to draw. First the natives, then the Egyptian
to in the first pericope of section 5. The text might be restored to troops, then Thutmose III himself find the artisans' products infe­
read "Now when [my majesty returned home in victory, having over­ rior. Finally, under circumstances the lacunae render difficult to
thrown the enemies] of Egypt etc." The construction of the sacred fathom, a superior weapon is produced and suitably named. 106
barque would then have taken place upon the First Campaign (sat­
isfying the implication of the Nims text, for which see below), and
its gilding upon the return. III. FESTIVAL HALL DECREE 107
If, then, a rough chronological sequence is being followed, the
second pericope of section 5 Oines 11-14) may be placed between
1. Anouncement if Building Plans and Endowments
campaigns one and 8. It appears to record a feat of strength by the
"(1) Year following 23,108 first month of shomu, day 2. A royal seance
LOok place in the audi[ence hall 109 on] the west, in the Palace 110
96 T. Schneider, Asiatische Personennamen in aegyptischen Qyellen des Neuen Reiche,! lof. .. 2/3 col. ...]
(Freiburg, 1992), 127.
97 G.L. Harding, An Index and Concordance qf Pre-Islamic Arabian Names and InscriptiOllJ
(Toronto, 1971), 570. 106 See W. Decker, Qyellentexte zu Sport und Kijrperkultur im alten Aegyplen (St. Augustin,
98 L. Koehler, W. Baumgartner, Hebrdisches und aramiiisches Lexikon zum Allen Testamenl 1975), idem, Sports and Games qf Ancient Egypt (New Haven, 1992), 34-41.
(Leiden, 1974), III, 638. 107 Sir A.H. Gardiner, "Tuthmosis III Returns Thanks to Amun," JEA 38 (1952),
99 C.H. Gordon, Ugaritic Handbook (Rome, 1965), no. 1556; H. Huffmon, Amorile () 23, pIs. II-IX; Urk. IV, 1252-62; S. el-Sabban, Temple Festival Calendars qf Ancient
Personal Names in the Mari Texts (Baltimore, 1965), 233. /'!:D,pt (Liverpool, 2000), 22-31. (Text retrograde, proceeding from king facing right
100 Koehler-Baumgartner, op. cit., II, 598. III double crown. Interestingly, in the Berlin Leather Roll i, 2, Senwosret I is also
101 J. Hoch, Semitic Words in Egyptian Texts qf the New Kingdom and 77zird Intermedialt '-lid to appear at a seance in the 43dw wearing the double crown).
Period (Princeton, 1994), 511. 108 This archaizing formula, reminiscent of Old Kingdom methods of dating (ef.
102 Hoch, ibid., nos. 528, 533 (dala[h], "door"); no. 535 (daha(hl), no. 224 (migdol). '>lr A.Il. Gardiner, "Regnal Years and the Civil Calendar in Pharaonic Egypt,"
103 Cf. Koehler-Baumgartner, op. cit., II, 598; A. Murtonen, Hebrew in its II 'e.11 r
/,' I 3 I 1945J , 16) was perhaps occasioned by an attempt to emulate a formula
Semitic Setting (Leiden, 1990), 395; cf. Thamudic MRWD: F.V. Winnetl, W.L. Reed, III Sl'llWosret I on a block once standing in the south wall of the southern Hatshesput
Ancient Records from North Arabia (Toronto, 1970), 85, no. 4. For "wandering" as ,I hlntk: Impt} III IJt [mpt} .9 (own copy: er. SSEA Newsletter 3 (1973), 2f, fig. 1:1). The
gestus for lamentation and depression, see M.L. Barre, '''Wandering aboLlt' as ,I 1 I Ill' ill qu('stion (a royal audience) was recarved by ThLitmose III perhaps to com­
opos of Depression in Ancient Near Eastern Litel<uLlI'(' ane! tile Bible," ,7NF.S bll 1'11'-11(' fill' it Middle Killi{doll1 SCl'ne removed in r(,novations (L. Habachi, "Devotion
(2001), 177 87. I I \I1111t1C1~i~ III In hi, Pll'd"«''''llIS: a pmpns of a Meeting of Sesostris I with his
1111 Op. ClI., 121. r HI1II1'I'\," ill ,HrlllllJ:fl 1/,,"lIl1/r I !C'aill1. lilli'll, TIC) ')9). Thl' SCt'1I1' is now nanked
Ill' J(m'hl,'! B,111I1l~.lltl\l·I, (1), rtl., III, (il(); ~t\llI()1lt1l ojl. (/1., :.17:1; d. ,tI"l "1\\11, Ihl t "'III cle- I.t Jt·lIlIlWA't· ...
"10 \\.llltki lllllll ,Ill" Illlfhllllll, "jl, rtl., :l:17 It· "II (J,UII '.11' \ \ Ildd:, .l!UW II (1'I'l1 'lOll; II COl'dilkt', !,il/ll/!hr!lr
 128 CHAPTER ONE SITTINGS OF THE KING 129

(2) Resting" l in the gate ll2 which is at the northern gate of the 2. TIe First Campaign
temple, while purifYing [ ] with divine purification [.... Then were
(7) between the mountains of Djahy I 15 [ ••• 4/5 col. ... Then said]
introduced the courtiers and they were at once on their bellies
(8) these courtiers who were in My Majesty's suite: "[six groups]
in his presence. Then His Majesty said to them: 'behold! It is my
upon the road
intent]
[... 2/3 col. ...]
(3) to refurbish this temple of [my] father [Amun], lord of Karnak,
(9) we have come to this foreign land, but the [chief, 10] ok! he
after my majesty found ruination I 13 therein-a bad business(?) [... 2/3
has gone into hiding!"116 Thereupon [.. 2/3 col. ...]
col. ...]
(10) very much concerning it. My Majesty said to them: "[As
(4) a public appearance ll4 therein, on the great seat with libation
surely as] Re [lives for] me, as surely as my father [Amun] favors
and incense [as at] the 54 seasonal [feasts]. Now that's [... 2/3
me [....." Then My Majesty appeared upon]
col. ...]
(11) the chariot, having taken my [weapons], and resting upon
(5) with long-horns, short-horns, bulls, fowl ince[nse and] all good
[... 2/3 col. ...]
[things] on
(12) in battle array. The gr[ound] fully reflected my [dazzling]
behalf of the life, prosperity and health of [My Majesty ... 2/3
sheen! They [fled ... 2/3 col. ...]
col. ...]
(13) the remainder of them in my hand [... 4/5 col. ...]
(6) an enormous gift! 'I' have filled his house [... 3/4 col. ...]
(14) a circumvallation, consisting of a thick wall,1I7 given the name
[... 3/4 col. ...]
(15) they could not snuff the breath of life and exhaustion over­
came them in [... 3/4 col. ... after]
(16) a long time. They said: 'How great is your power, 0 our
Dokumente aus den Alten Reich (Wiesbaden, 1967), 70-I; P. Spencer, The Egyptian Tempie. lord and sovereign! [... 3/5 col. ...]
A Lexicographical Study (London, 1984), 131. (17) therein. Then all foreign lands of the remotest north came
110 Usually taken to be the palace on the West Bank, i.e. one supposes the royal
doing obeissance [to the power of My Majesty, to] request [the
rest-house associated with the mortuary temple: W. Heick, Zur Verwaltung des Mittleren
und Neuen Reicks (Leiden, 1958), 5; R. Stadelmann, "Tempelpalast und Erscheinungs­ breath of life], to the effect that [...] destroyed [.... Then]
fenster in den thebanischen Totentempeln," MDAIK29 (1973), 221-42; P. Lacovara, (18) My Majesty relented towards them/ 18 after I had heard the
The New Kingdom Rqyal City (London, 1997), 33-41. But this cannot be squared with
the reference to the "northern lake" (col. 2)-surely Karnak is meant-nor with
many instances of supplication [....] when [...] entered [... 3/5
the phrase "in the palace," which implies that imy-wrt applies only to d3dw, i.e. it 01. ...]
is the western hall of the palace. One is forced to the conclusion that the palace in (19) 'We shall consign to him all the products of our labor, like
question is the one at Kamak, north of the 4th pylon: M. Gitton, "Le palais de
Karnak," BIFAO 74 (1974),63-73; D.B. Redford, "East Karnak and the Sed-festival any of His Majesty's dependents!' Then [... 3/5 col. ...]
of Akhenaten," in Hommages a Jean Ledant I (Cairo, 1994), 491-92. This would (20) who had intended to bring destruction upon Egypt.
explain the king's allusion to "this temple" in col. 3.
III It is unclear whether the subject of this infinitive is the king or something
else. If the former, is this an amplification of the locative indicators of the preced­
ing column?
liZ Rwyt: see G.P.F. van den Boorn, The Duties qf the Vizier (London, 1988), 65 66
and the literature cited there. This was the spot where administrative and judicial
decisions were taken and announced: E. Devaud, Les Maximes de Ptahhotep (Fribourg,
1916),28:220,227; 41:442; Anast. 1.15.1. II~ Clro r1y a rrference to the Megiddo pass.

II~ Spw, "fragments," resulting from ruin or destruction: Mrrikarr, 70; Edwin lib U3p: /Vb. III, 30 31; a judgement seemingly at variance with the facts.

Smith 153. 117 Cf. {Irk. IV, 181:16 (.I/lW (11'..1 In sbty mnlJ).

III I.r. thc f('Slival n'i('bralrc! on ix.l: s('c A. C,i1l11l1, /)" allar/(J11111(hr FrllA.almdl'r 11K PhI' /I.\n: (r. ll1(- IIS.lA'- !nil'\·\('d in R.O. Faulkner, II CO/lcise Dictionary of J'v/iddle

l/I dm 'J ('/II/1r11l rlrr J(llrdlllrh T(lIIll1rhr FJJ()rhr \\i,-,h.ldcli I()() 1,_ I~)'l, po :117 FoLl'li/JI/(/fl Oxfind, 1%1" IU
130 CHAPTER ONE SITTINGS OF THE KING 131

3. Inauguration if Festivals (31) My Majesty has authorized to have made [for him a statue
in the form of a 'Receiver]-for-Life,'125 commensurate with My
My Majesty has [au]thorized the inauguration of a festival [... 3/4
Majesty's beauty, for the riverine processional [... 2/3 col. ...]
col. ...]
(32) this statue, in the processional of the lake [... Now] My
(21) My Majesty has authorized the permission of [.... Amun-re,
Majesty has [authorized] that the prophets and priests of the porter­
lord of Kar]nak ... [... 3/4 col. ...J
groupl26 be shod [... 2/3 col. ...]
(22) cattle, fowl, incense, oryxes, gazelles, ibexes, wine, beer and
(33) this Tabernacle 127 [....] which My Majesty [made] for him
all good things on [behalf of the life, prosperity and health of My
anew.
Majesty ... 2/3 col. ...]
(23) provision of clothing 119 and the presentation of oil 120 through­
out his estate, as is done at the New Year's festival; and the per­ 4. A Further Military Exploit
mission that raimentl 21 be issued [... 2/3 col. ...]
Item: 128 on the first of proyet [day ... His Majesty was in Retenu....]
(24) My Majesty has authorized the inaugural establishment of an
(34) the lands of the Fenkhu,129 after [.... at the] approach l30 of
endowment for 'my' father Amun in Karnak, consisting of bread
[My] Majesty. It was the power [of] the majesty of this noble god
[... 2/3 col. ...] from(?) the loaves
that overthrew them in the moment of his strength, while [... 2/3
(25) of the daily offering menu, more than what it used to be,
col. ...J
when [My Majesty] came back from the land of Retenu on [the
(35) with their chattels, [their] cattle and all their property. Tally
first victorious campaign ... 2/3 col. ...]
thereof: children of the [chiefs], 20 [+ x; Asiatics (males) ...]; females,
(26) regnal year [x] + 4,122 second month of akhet, day 26, consist­
500 [+ x ... 2/3 col. ]
ing of various breads, 1000; beer, 30 jugs; vegetables [... 2/3 col. ... 1
(36) oil, incense and [ ] by the hundreds and thousands. Then
(27) wine, 3 jars; fattened geese, 4; [....] sryt-loaves, lO [+ x ... 3/4
[... 3/4 col. ... I left none of itJ
col. ...]
(37) to anyone (else). [Their] labor is directed [to the te]mple of
(28) festivals of the beginning of the seasons.
Amun in Karnak. Now [My Majesty has] authorized [... 2/3 col. ...]
Item: 123 on [... My Majesty authorized the inauguration of an
(38) an endowment before my father [Amun-re, lord of Karnak]
endowment. ...]
at all his festivals. [Now My Majesty] has [auth]orized [... 2/3
(29) all sorts of fine vegetables, to consign [....] in the course or
col. ...]
every day [... 2/3 col. ...]
(30) field-hands 124 to provide grain for this [endowment]. Now My
Majesty has authorized [... 2/3 col. ... Now]
125 See KRl II, 596:12; H.G. Fischer, "Varia Aegyptiaca 3. Inscriptions on Old
Kingdom Statues," ]ARCE 2 (1963), 24-26; idem, "Some Iconographic and Literary
omparisons," in Fragen an die altaegyptischen Literatur (Wiesbaden, 1977), 157 n. 9.
119 Grimm, Die altaegyptische Festkalender, 318-19. 126 F3yt: Wb. I, 574:8.
120 Ibid., 319 (III.2.2.5). 127 See A.H. Gardiner, Papyrus Wilbour. Commentary (Oxford, 1948), II, 16-17.
121 fiflJw: cf. Urk. IV, 112: 14 (where the context makes it clear that clothing of 126 See above, n. 106.

some sort is intended); cf. Grimm, op. cit., 317 (III.2.2.2). 129 Long identified with the Phoenician coast: R. Eisler, ZDMG NF 5 (1926),
122 See discussion below. 154-56; mentioned in contexts of hostility from as early as the Old Kingdom:
123 Ijprt, lit. "that which happened," see D.B. Redford, Pharaonic King-lists, Annall .J. Leclant, "Une nouvelle mention des Fnbw dans les textes des pyramides," sAX
and Day-books (Mississauga, 1986), 166. Here apparently used for itemized evel1ts II (198'1-), fig. I; Cf. PT (Aba) 537 (= Faulkner 308); CT III, 394f-g, 458; WJ.
within a single year. ~Iurnanc, the Road to Kadesh (Chicago, 1985), 71, n. 41 (literature). There can be
124 for the status of these field-hands, see S.L. Katary, {..and Tenure l:n lhe Ral/lfwdi little dOLlbt that the term has g-cneral application to the coast north of Carmel: cf.
Period (London, 1989), I I, 17 and passim; B. l\knll, Rfchrrc!zfllllr thi.llojrr jll71dUlur, Ih L1S(' witl1 r('f('I'('I1((' to the ("(J,lstal possessions of the Ptolemies: Er!.fu III, 24·1; Urk.
Crouomiqur rt socialr de I'auciell /W/llf (Cairo, 11)08), 1% 07; S.S. Eirhll'I', J)if Vent'IlIIIlU./i II, 78:~; d. ,,1'0 I',il/II I, ~lO, R'i, l'i2, III, 23~, 28R; 111, I~ I; VII, 165; Delldera IT,
rtf! 'llmllr\ rtf! ,Imun' m tlrr III 1»)'I1n1111 II,lInhlll~, 'i()()O), (it hei '1IIe1 tilt' liu'r,lllHI' no; IV, h(); \II, l\

II1C'IC' l'Ill'c1 I'" Conslllll' 111//1/1". II' 1111' I1Hl\illll <l1I.tills! (',Ie h olhll of hmtill' fmel's.

132 CHAPTER ONE SITTINGS OF THE KING 133

(39) a great gift of a foreign land! [... 4/5 col. ...-1 (49) to you, the doing of what he has granted, surpassing what
(40) [....1 53 [dbn1, 6 kdt; fifth-quality(?)131 gold, ne"" dbn [... 3/4 [the anc] estors [did], in order that your majesty might act for him,
col. ...] and find a deed of excellence [... 2/3 col. ..." ... the name of which
(41) it in [...] this(?) weight [...] in silver: new dbn 595; 5th qual­ is to be]
ity(?) [silver, new dbn x +] 63. Total [... 3/4 col. ...] (50) 'Menkheperre-is-effective-of Monuments-in-the-House-of­
(42) it [...] this(?) weight [...] of red jasper, 132 new dbn 596. Total Arnun,'138 a temple [...] of fine white Tura limestone 139 [... 2/3
[... 3/4 col.] col. ...]
(43) exacted from the best [of every foreign land] in the course (51) doors of cedar, worked in [....] of electrum and of [silver],
of every day, as the labor of [... 3/4 col. ...] gold, lapis 140 and turquoise [... 2/3 col. ]
(52) of silver together with gold ... [ ] Now see! My Majesty
has had every hieroglyphic text published [on ... 2/3 col. ...]
5. Construction if the Akh-menu
(53) in order to fix the instruction[s for ever!l
[oo oo] Now My Majesty has authorized the inaugural establishment of
(44) the earth had slipped away and begun [to undermine] the an endowment for [my] father [Arnun-re ...] in order to do [... 1/2
walls grievously.'33 Behold! My Majesty will make [... 3/4 col. ...]
col. ... Egypt] (54) [....] morning an evening in the temple of millions 'of years'
(45) in order to turn the countries into her dependencies. It is the which My Majesty has made in [the House of Arnun].
[heavenly] horizon of Egypt, the Heliopolis of Upper and Lower Now [My Majesty] has authorized [ 1/2 col. ...]
Egypt. [To it] 134 come [the foreign peoples [... 2/3 col. ...] (55) anew for [my] father [Arnun ] to do that which is com­
(46) the bird-pools135 with fowl, [in order to] provision their noble mendable in the course of every day in this great temple of millions
shrines, when he 136 had extended their frontiers 137 [... 2/3 col. ...1 of [years,141 which] My [Majesty has made ... 1/2 col ... milch­
(47) their gifts upon their backs [...] through the might of my kine] 142
father [Arnun1, who ordains valor and victory for me, who granted (56) of Retenu to make [herds l43 for the house of] my father
[... 2/3 col. ... to be] IArnun]. They were [milked] and their milk placed in container[s
(48) Ruler of the Black Land and the Red Land, to beatify their of electrum ... 2/3 col. in the house]
[...], after he assigned me his inheritance and his throne, in order (57) of Arnun in [ ] Now My Majesty has authorized that the
to seek out [beneficent acts ... 2/3 col. ..." Thereupon the courtiers king's eldest son [Arnen]emhet be appointed as overseer of cattle for
'd" ....]
sal: I hese [herds ... .]"

131 Cf. J.R. Harris, Lexicographical Studies in Ancient Egyptian Minerals (Berlin, 19(i I), J:lll G. Haeny, Basilikale Anlagen in der aegyptischen Baukunst (Cairo, 1970), 7-17; idem,
36; S. Aufrere, L'Univers mineral dans la pensee egyptiennes (Cairo, 1991), 394 n. 37. ~ew Kingdom 'Mortuary Temples' and 'Mansions of Millions of Years,'" in
132 /fnmt: Aufrcre, L'Univers mineral, 553-54. The main source is in Nubia and 1\ Shafer (cd), Temples of Ancient Egypt (London, 1998), 96-99.
the Sudan: PT. Nicholson, 1. Shaw, Ancient Egyptian Materials and Technologies (Cambridge 139 Perhaps it was the Icing's initial intent to use this stone, but in the event sand­
2000), 29-30. 11111(' was employed: see Harris, Lexicographical Studies, 71.
133 See below for discussion. Illl Found principally in Badakhshan: A. Lucas, J.R. Harris, Ancient Egyptian Materials
I:ll Read n.s. '/1/ Indus/fUI (London, 1989), 399. A gift of lapis from Assyria had been received
I"l\ IlMw at the first cataract: F. Gomaa, Die Besiedlunl!, ,1~/fI'f1/fI1\ wtihrflld dOl nul III yt'ar 2\: UrI... IV, <i71 :9, and aboV(' p. 122.
ilrrfll Rrirhrl I (Wi('sbackn, 19B<i), 12 13. tI PlObably Akhl1l1'll\l i\ in I('Il(it'd: lla(,lly npud Shafer, Tern/Iles, 96.

III. AI1Hlll'? Rt'ad TIll/rut '(',. {,A. 1\, 11111: 10. ,l!)!)\!' p. 122.

(;,II,lIr I II/liT) rllld fllI/dn. :)7. Rt ,lei Iryll'/; II {,~ 1\ IIIII!! ,1/1d ,l!lll\t p. 12:'.

134 CHAPTER ONE SITIINGS OF THE KING 135

Commentary It seems more likely that, as in the case of other regnal year-dates
and calendrical notations in the annals, stone-cutters have failed to
There are several indications that the present text, though scarcely
distinguish digits from tens, and that the original in the present case
inscribed before the erection of the Festival Hall (A kh-menu) , was writ­
was intended to be read "24". If that is the case, the !]prt-notices in
ten up no later than the middle of the third decade of the reign.
col. 28 and 33 follow within the regnal year given in col. 26, as
These may be listed as follows: 1. Reference to an otheriwise unknown entries "of the xth instant" as it were. The additions to the speech
crown-prince (57) who apparently did not survive; 2. Reference (sec.
thus record the following actions and events. I. On ii, 26 of year
2 and 4) to only two campaigns, the second of which cannot be
24, approximately six months after the speech, the king authorized
identified with any from no. 6 on (see above); 3. no allusion of any an endowment for some regular offering. 2. On an unspecified day,
kind to the 8th campaign; 4. Fixation solely on the construction,
still in the 24th year, field-hands (PaWs?) were assigned to provide
decoration, endowment and staffing of the Akh-menu, which was com­ ror the endowment, and a royal statue and tabernacle authorized to
pleted well before the close of the third decade of the reign, in antic­ be made. 3. Sometime in month v of the same year, a disturbance
ipation of the first sed-festival. '44
among the Fn!]w was quelled.
The text was composed on the basis of a seance given by the king As the text is now composed sec. 5, the announcement of the
during the festivities surrounding the anniversary of his accession, plan to build Akh-menu, its endowment and the regulations for the
just two days prior to the start of his 24th year. 145 The speech deliv­
priests (not translated) would be part of the addition to the original
ered on this occasion encompasses (a) a general statement of intent transcript of the year 23-24 seance. The Akh-menu clearly loomed
to refurbish the temple (col. 3-6), (b) an account of the first cam­ large in the king's estimation of his construction works at Thebes,
paign (col. 7-20), (c) the inauguration of festivals and endowments the black granite stela from room VI in the Karnak temple being
(col. 20-25). Part (b) is clearly inserted to explain the king's grati­ wholly devoted to the story of its construction. 150 Though consider­
tude to Amun, and the source of the goods listed in (c). .I bly later in date than the Festival Hall text,151 the black granite
At this point, and apparently without an editorial indicator, the
stela agrees with it in essentials, and provides a date for the incep­
text of the original speech is expanded by the addition of later dcc­
tion of the work. 152 "(3) ... for the [Inunda]tion viz. of the Nun at
larations. 146 In col. 26 comes a date, only partly preserved, but
accepted by Gardiner as year 7. 147 This is very doubtful. Year 7 is
signalized in the record by the commencement of work on Senmut's
tomb,148 and the Deir el-Bahari causeway.149 In year 7 Thutmose 111 1"0 Cairo 34012: P-M 11(2), 94; on the Akh-menu and its appurtenances, see
must still have been very young, plans to build Akh-menu still unthought 1'. Martinez, "Reflexions sur la politique architecturale et religieuses des premiers
of, and official endowments proclaimed in the name of Hatshepsut I..Ig-ides," BSEG 13 (1989), 107-16; H. Ernst, "Ein Weihgeschenk Thutmosis' III
II' Amun-re. Del' Sonnenaltar im Re-Heiligtum im Achmenu zu Karnak," <AS 128
1(01), 1-6.
1.\1 Indicators of date are: the comprehensive nature of the reconstruction pro­
144 Cf. "First Occasion of the sed-festival-may he celebrate many more!" Urk. 1\ ',1111 envisaged, including not only the area of the central Karnak shrine, but also
594; Barguet, Temple, 171; "first year(sic) of the sed-festival": ibid., 173; E. Hornul1g, <Irk aeross the river (Urk. IV, 834:2-4); the recourse to protestations of accuracy
E. Staehelin, Studien zurn Se4fest (Geneva, 1974), 31-32. I I Urk. IV 835: 11-14) a characteristic of inscriptions later in the reign, his denials
145 The Festival Hall decree announces the plan to build Akh-menu, but thl ,I encroachment (Urk. 835: 10), and his harking back to an unlikely "wonder" at
ground-breaking ceremony was not undertaken until vi,30 of the 24th year (U,A Ih,' ground-breaking ceremony: Urk. IV, 837. See J. von Beckerath, "Ein Wunder
IV, 836:7). The date in the decree text, therefore, must refer to the outgoing YCi\J tI, ~ Amun bei del' Tempelgrundung in Karnak," MDAIK 37 (1981), 41-49.
23: G. Haeny, Basilikale Anlagen in der aegyptischen Baukunst des neuen Reichs (Wieshadcl1 " For discussion and references, See P. der Manuellian, Studies in the Reign qf
1970), 90 n. 44. I lI'nophis Jj (Jlildcsheim, 1987), 7 10. The whole point of the passage in Urk. IV,
14b It is conceivable, of course, that the entire inscription was drafted latcl, sa)' II % is that while the king was awaiting the arrival of ps!inryw, whenever that
in ycar 25 or 26, with the original transcript or till' S(',\I1((' ,t~ ill(' ('on'. \\<1IIld haw rallcl1, Amun stoll' a march on everybody on the occurrence of his
117 ]1':.1 38, 12 II. 5. Illill !I'ast (whil h was til(' l,tsl d,ty or lhl' Gth month, eilher 29th or 30th) to stretch
" II1IlI hilllSl'1f RI';ld Ihi~ \\,ty. til(' 1l.l~S,lll;l' has lillie i)I';u ing on absolute chronol­
'lit
11K \V C. II,tyl's, O\lrarn lint! NII/llr SlllIlfl

\, 1'\\ k, 11)1:.1 1'1 I'j li2. ,drill, \I n.1IIt

11,1\11, ,l/nUIt 1:1, fill, 1;/\

: III \\('1111', 11111111111\1' 111'. \1l1 .lIl1l ,lilt! Ihl' Iky,illtlillg of tlw Ncw Kingdom,"
I~" :1 I (1'17'11. 21>1> I>
136 CHAPTER ONE SIITINGS OF THE KING 137

his coming [hadJ be[atenJ against the temple,153 (so) I built it for been filled in by artificial land-fill, thrown in from the west; and
him with a loving heart, and I made him content with what I did. nearly 100 bullae dated stylistically from Dyn. 6 through 13, sug­
The first occasion of temple- (4) planning was to the east of this gest an early New Kingdom date. A 4-metre wide wall had been
temple-town. For lo! My Majesty found the enclosure of mud-brick, built been built on a N-S alignment over the land-fill, but this had
with earth mounding up to conceal [itsJ wall. [So My Majesty had 1 been shortly abandoned; and in the later 18th Dynasty this eastern
the earth removed from it to extend this temple: I purified it and terrain could be characterized as "mud-flats."158
removed its dirt, and took away the rubble which had encroached
(5) [onJ the town area. I leveled (bwsi) this (part of the) site which
supported the enclosure-wall, in order to build this monument upon IV. SIXTH PYLON (SOUTH, EAST FACE)159
it .... I did not put up anything over somebody else's monument."!:>1
This description is consonant with Festival Hall inscription col. 44:
1. Introduction
debris had mounded up to the east of the Middle Kindom temple
and had even encroached upon the town. I had originally taken i~)'1 (I) "[Regnal year ... there occurred a royal seance 160 in ... and the
to mean "sanctuary" with reference to the cella of the Middle courtiers and priests were introduced.... Thereupon His Majesty
Kingdom temple. 155 But much more common is the meaning "quar­ said: '....J in the foreign land of Retenu, in the fortress which My
ter" of a town. 156 This part of the built-up area of domestic OCCll Majesty built in his (Amun's) victories amidst the chiefs of Lebanon,
pation could not have been located on the site of the later Akh-mcnu the name of which is to be "Menkheperre-is-conqueror-of-the vaga­
and the sanctuary of the "Hearing Ear": the phraseology in this pas bonds". 161
sage suggests an extremiry, and we would be correct in locating L1w Now when it had moored at Thebes, my father Amun was (2)
town quarter in question east of the Middle Kingdom temple, and I· .. 1/2 col. ...J
not north or south of it. This makes sense of Thutmose's further
claim that in this sector he was not in danger of building over till'
2. Victory Feasts
construction of some earlier king, for no one had built there sim (
the Old Kingdom. \Iy Majesty inaugurated for him a victory feast when My Majesty
This word picture of conditions in East Karnak when Thutmosl (arne back from the first victorious campaign, having overthrown
III contemplated his building program dovetails perfectly with tIll \ ilc Retenu and extended the frontiers of Egypt in year 23, as the
archaeological record. 157 While densely inhabited in the Old Kingdol1l flrsl(?) Of the victories that he ordained for me, he who directed (3)
East Karnak had been largely abandoned in the Middle Kingdom Imc on good ways ... 1/2 col. ...
A sizeable depression some 200 m. east of the later Akh-menu h<ld Let there be celebrated the first of the victory feasts on the ...J
tidY of the first festival of Amun, to make it extend to 5 days;

153 The reference is probably to a destructive annual flood: cf. For the SeC'ollll
Intermediate Period M. Abdul Qader, "Recent Finds. Karnak, Third Pylon," Jl.\.l 8 ibid., 41 n. 23.
59 (1966), pI. III. L. Habachi, "A High Inundation in the Temple of AmCllll' It ,'I P-M II(2), 90(245); Urk. IV, 738-56.
Karnak in the 13th Dynasty," SAX i (1974), 207-14. I The restoration of Sethe (Urk. IV, 739:12-15) is gratuitous. Much more likely,
1501 Urk. IV, 834-35. I v1('W of the fact lhal a body of service personnel is being addressed (col. 26-30~
155 KRI II, 884: 13. "I translaled here), the ()C'casion was a speech similar to the three examined above.
ISO Admonitions vi.IO (parallel to IIlrt, "midan"); Anast. lii.5.3, iv.12.'i; R \ I TIll' {'SSI'nlial word for "transhumanl," thell foreigners in general with a pejo­
Caminos, Lale Egyptiall Mila/lalliel (Oxford, 1951), 91; W. EtiC'!lsl'l1, f)rll/litlldlfl (,Ill I 11\{ 1I\1,11I({': Wh, IV, 170; VV. W{'stendorf, KO/Jlisches l1alldworlerbuclt (Wicsbaden,
(Copel1hagen, 1951), 23. 1077'" 'll I; 1\. ],opril'llo, '111/1111 /IIltl ,\ IlIl/rIIl. ::::'11111 ,IIlIlalldrr ill df! (J~t:Y/Jlisrhen Literalar
" Sl'!' D.H. Rl'Clfonl, "'1 III 1'(' SI'a'OI1' III I':lo\ypt \I "*'11111 1{l'Jllllt 1lI1 til(' :.!lhh \\~I',h'ldl'lI IIJ!lfl 'W; (f tIll 1I1,Ip1l11' S('I'1I1' of pl'l"i!'(Ulion ill P. ])Iwll, 'l7Ie 'lomh
'illl1llolIL'.1l 171h Sl ,\'0111 III EXl.IV.IOWII ,II I 1'1 K,\llI.lk," .7S'l/~1 III (I !)l):.!l, :.! I ,Ill. Iff/flIIA/I, pI I ri'
 138 CHAPTER ONE SITTINGS OF THE KING 139

let there be celebrated the second of the victory feasts on the da) work the fields to produce grain to fill the storehouse of the divine
of "Bringing-in-the-god"!62 of the second festival off Amun, to make mdowment (7) [... 1/2 col. ... For my father Amun, he who led]
it extend to 5 days; Ine on a good path.
let the third of the victory feasts be celebrated at the 5th festival Tally of the male and female Asiatics and male and female Nubians
of Amun in Henket-onkh l63 when [Amun] (4) comes [at his beautiful whom My Majesty gave to my father Amun, beginning in year 23
feast of the Valley .... and down to when this inscription was put upon this temple: lf3rw,
My Majesty has established a] great hecatomb l64 for the victol) 1,588 168 (8) [... 1/2 col. ...]
feast which My Majesty has inaugurated, to include bread, beer,
long-horns, short-horns, bulls, fowl, oryxes, gazelles, ibexes, incense, 5. Cattle
wine, fruit, white-bread of the offering table, and all good things
\'y Majesty made a herd of the cattle of] Upper and Lower Egypt,
) herds of the cattle of Djahy, and one herd of the cattle of Kush;
3. Feast if Opet 165 (otal: 4 herds, to be milked, the milk thereof being placed in con­
(5) [... 1/2 col. ... month] 2 of Akhet, day l3[+x] when the majest) l.tiners of electrum on a daily basis; in order to present (it) in offering
of this noble god proceeds to make his water journey at his "Southern !lJ my father (9) [Amun.... 1/2 col. ...] 169

Opet." My Majesty has established a great hecatomb for this day,

at the entry to Southern Opet, to include bread, long-horns, sholt 6. Towns
horns, bulls, fowl, incense, wine (6) [fruit and all good things ...
\ly Majesty [ga]ve to him three towns in Upper Retenu, Nu-g-sa,
as the name of one, Yenocam the name of another, and Ij-r-n-kJ-rw
4. Prisoners if War Ii(" name of the last, fixed with a tax quota in labor yearly, for the
[... 1/2 col. ...] on the first of the victories which he gave me, to 11\ ine endowment of my father Amun. I7O
fill his work-house,!66 to be weavers, to make for him byssos, lllH
linen, white linen, shrw-linen, and thick cloth; to be farm-hands l !;7 to 7. Precious Metals
10) [I consigned to him ... 2/5 col. ...] all sorts of [jewellery?] of
Ii\ l'r, gold, lapis, turquoise, "black-copper,"!71 bronze,172 lead, trw­
162 S. Schott, Altaegyptische Festdaten (Mainz, 1950), 37; N.-C. Grimal, La stele III
111l1'ral,173 emery(?) in very great quantities, to make all sorts of mon­
omphale de Pi(ankh)y (Cairo, 1981), 44-45, n. 112.
163 The royal mortuary temple: P-M II (2), 426-29. I1I('OlS for my father Amun (11) [... 1/2 col. ...]
164 C3bt, the largest offering-type known in Ancient Egypt, involving evcn ~~1Ic1

animals: see R.A. Caminos, The Chronicle qf Prince Osorlwn (Rome, 1964), 103; D. Meek
Annee lexicographique I (Paris, 1980), 58; III (Paris, 1982), 43; often done in SOil\(
one's name: W. HeIck, Die Lehrefiir Koenig Merikare (Wiesbaden, 1977),82; UrA. 1\
1851 :6; H. Sterberg, Mythische Motiven und Mythenbildung in den aegyptisclzen TempPln /111
Papyri der griechisch-rijmischen Zeit (Gottingen, 1985), 36 n. I) and amounting to larg('
given to the faithful: Urk. IV, 86:6, 343:11; especially common at the sedj;'.I/II"/
D.B. Redford, "An Offering Inscription from the Second Pylon at Karnak," III I'he figure is remarkably close to the tally (1,796) of P.O.W.s given in the
Studies in Philology in Honour 0/ Ronald J. WiLLiams (Toronto, 1982), 125 31. I: ,Is: sec above, p. 37.

165 Schott, Festdaten, 85. I Sce above, p. 133.

166 .~nc: sce D. Polz, "Dic Jl1C- Vorsteher des Neuen Reirhes," <;AS I 17 IlJ'l() I ~('(' aboV(', pp. 3Hf1:

43 GO; S.S. Eichlt'r, Die Vl'17/1aliulI~ dtl 'Jlalilel del Allltll!' lfl d/7 18, I)YllIlI/lf 11.u1l11l11 1 11.111 i~, !.I'\/(li/iltljllltrn! Studtfl, 57: llT1fllllifird copper.

"(00). 97 II :i. t.. 111lI1, [i:i,

110, Sl'l' .t1l1lw. p. I'W .", 1/1/11. :.!:n

140 CHAPTER ONE SITTINGS OF THE KING 141

8. Poultry found that the cultivation of srt-grain was very good in the [...]s of
(16) [... 176 1/2 col. ...]
My Majesty created for him gaggles of geese to fill the poultry­
yard,174 for the divine daily offering. Indeed, My Majesty gave him
2 fattened geese on a daily basis, from a tax-quota established for 12. Obelisks
ever for my father [Amun (12) ... 1/2 col. ...]
[My Majesty authorized] a divine endowment for the 4 great obelisks 177
which My Majesty made, as something new for my father A[mun],
9. Additions to Offering Menu including various breads, 100; beer, 4 jugs, (thus) for each one of
these obelisks 25 loaves and I jug of beer.
My Majesty established for him ....] consisting of various bread,
1.000. Now My Majesty authorized the doubling of this divine offering
of various breads, 1.000, when My Majesty returned from defeating 13. Statues
Retenu on the first victorious campaign, in order to perform what
My Majesty established a divine endowment for these statues of (17)
is commendable in the great temple "Menkheperre-is-Effective-of­
[My Majesty ... 1/2 col. ...] alcoves l78 of this door.
Monuments" (13) [... 1/2 col. ...] various [bread], 634, consisting
of the rations of the daily offering menu, in excess of what it used
to be. 14. Evening Collation
My Majesty established for him an evening collation,179 including
10. Agricultural land bread, fowl, incense, wine, fruit, white bread of the offering table
and all good things in the course of each and every day. My Majesty
I requisitioned for him many fields, gardens and ploughlands, the
established for him a Ij3w-bt offering, including (18) [... 1/2 col. ...]
best of Upper and Lower Egypt, to make farms and to provide the
grain thereof [for the daily divine offering (14) [... 1/2 col. ... I
established for him a divine endowment. ...] on a yearly basis, includ­ IS. Min Festival
ing bread, long-horns, short-horns, bulls, fowl, incense, wine, fruit
My Majesty established for him a collation at the Min festival, includ­
and all good things from a tax quota of each year.
i ng cattle, geese, incense, wine, fruit and all good things. Quantity
or the collation prepared, in toto: 120 items; on behalf of the life,
II. Endowment for the Sun-god prosperity and health of My Majesty.180
My Majesty established a divine endowment in order to perfonJl
what is commendable for 'my' father Re-Harakhty, when he rises l
(IS) [... 1/2 col. ...] My Majesty [established for] him a divilH"
endowment of srt-grain, in order to perform what is commcndablt
in it, on new-moon day and on the 6th day of the month in til(
daily offering menu, as is done in Heliopolis. For lo! My Majcst\ 17i> Selhe's restoration (Urk. IV, 747:10) is gratuitous.

1,7 See above, p. 124.

1/8 For lfillt as "statIle-alcove," sec P. Posener-Krieger, Les archives du templejUneraire

V~/tn'rJ...are·ilok(1i(Cairo, 1976), JJ, 'H9, 503 n. l.

171 flnnw: <li31 mw: n. Meeks, "Noles ,!c Iexicographi('," IU1~' 2B :197(;), !)2 'I. -I Cr. n. l\l('('k~, C. Fahlrc!-Ml'l'ks, Daily /-i/e qf the Egyfitian Gods (Ithaca, 1996),
at Kaillak locatec! south 0(" the si\rr('c! lake. Il~CJ.
I , CI. CT Ill, 21a, (;. COil Ii, RlINl/l/l1 Ita ''K1l.I1/I11I f \(1/1111111 lid Iruim fUIl;I/I/11 r/tl/ I Flll till' !wI.llol1lh Clll 11ll' rllle'l's !wh,t1f ,II Ihe /l,lil\ ("cast, S('l' II. Gauthier, /1!J
fIlml/lllll/ll (Flllll'llt I', 1'l]'I 117 , till tI,m .\/11/ ('"ilt., 1IHI l, 1:.!!Hl,
142 CHAPTER ONE SITIINGS OF THE KING 143

16. Jereboams if Wine of my father [Amun ...] after My Majesty found offerings being
made therein with only(?) libation and incense (24) [... 1/2 col. ... as]
My Majesty authorized the provision of 5 great hbnt-jars l81 (for) wine
a tax quota of each year.
(19) [... 1/2 col. ... on a] yearly [basis], over and above what it
I have not spoken boastfully to elicit adulation for what I have
used to be.
done, saying: 'I did something fantastic!'187 when I really did not do
it. I never acted for men, so that one might call it boasting. I did
17. The Upper Lake these things for my father (25) [Amun ... 1/2 col. ...] the one that
says something fantastic that was not done; because he knows heaven
My Majesty made for him something new, the 'Upper Lake,'I!I"
and he knows earth, and he (can) see the entire earth in a moment!"
planted with all kinds of fruit trees, to produce herbs therein for the
daily divine offering. My Majesty authorized it as something new,
over and above what used [to be ... 1/2 col. ...J including beauti­ Commentary
ful women of the entire land.
The text balances the final day-book entries on the opposite wing
of the 6th pylon, and provides a fitting conclusion and corollary to
18. King's Affirmation the account of the foreign wars,l88 The intent is to record the inau­
guration of feasts, endowments and bequests to the gods (mainly
Now My Majesty made all the monuments, all the laws and all the
Amun) in gratitude for the victory and in obedience to the divine
instructions l83 which I made for my father [Amun....] inasmuch
will. A direct admonition to the priesthood (not translated above)
as I know his power, I am skilled in his excellence which resides in
clearly indicates, it might be argued, who would be the readers of
the body,184 I know (21) [... 1!2 col. ... never neglected] what he
the texts in rooms VI-VII of the temple. The close relationship
ordered to be done, in whatever he wanted to happen or in any­
between the texts on both wings of the pylon militates in favor of
thing his ku habitually desires. I did it for him as he commanded,
assigning the same date to the inscripturation, viz, Year 42.
my heart directing me, and my [ha]nds acting for my father who
The fact that bequests to Amun constitute the entire content of
created me, and doing all good things for my father (22) [... 1/'
the text, helps to establish the subject and purpose of this first sec­
col. ... For lot It] was My Majesty that invented all the good things,
tion. Reference to the fortress in Lebanon and to something mooring
in enlarging monuments, in building for the future, in ritual direc­
at Thebes on the return, suggests that the subject was the con­
tives,185 in purifications, in instructions, in provisioning this temple
struction of Amun's barque. 189 The latter will have been constructed
of my father [Amun....] ... (23) [... 1/2 col. ...] his heart dail).
For lo! It was My Majesty that put the food supply of the seasollal
feasts on a yearly basis, and the 'Manifestation'186 in the residellce
187 The text uses an, "(fulsome) expression, cant," often used of outlandish claims
in sycophantic contexts: Urk. IV, 1095:7; KRJ V, 185:6-7; Berlin 1157 (= Sethe,
ll'gyptische usestucke, 84: 11-12).
188 Sethe's designation of the present text as "StUcke VIII" of the Annals obscures
181 Cf. Urk. IV, 171:5 and 174:3 (totaling 5). the fact of its fundamentally different origin and intent (A. Gnirs, "Die aegyptische
182 See below, p. 147. Autobiographic," in A. Loprieno (ed), Ancient Egyptian Literature. History and Forms
183 On religious "laws" etc. in a cultic context, sec D.B. Redford, "The so-caliI'd I Leiden, 19961, 214 and n. I 15). The present text records a seance to which is
Codification of Egyptian Law under Darius I." in j,W. Watts (ed), Pl'nia alld 'Iow/, .lppended an instruction (tjJ rd) for the priests. There is no evidence of day-book
The Theory qf /mjJeriaL Authorization q! the Pentateuch (Atlanta, 2001), 154 58. "ntries as a SOUITC'.
1111 On the intuitive, divine esscnce, the vouC; innatc in all livin~ thin~s, sc'c' ( I~ 18'1 Sel' abo\(', (;c'bl'l Itukal, Sl'c. Iii; 7lh Pylon Reveals, sec. 5; below, Barque

IV, 974:9 10 "the divinc A.o'YOC; which is in l'Wry body"; cr. CT II, I]b; VI, 2(ifl hI) Shrill(' p. Ilh Stlh( s 1I,lol,lIion of "Ihll'c' months" (llr. rv, 739:15) has no foun­
18' For lit ( in nillic ('()lllI'Xls, SC'(' S. SrhOtl, 111/(/'11 11/111 I1lhl/tlt;'I'~1'II 1/11 1/1/1'11 1"s,'lI'I, datiol1 whalbC)('\l'1 \1111 II 1111111 1tJ,.l'iy I ,onwlltin~ like "" hewed a barque for my
Wi,'sbil,ic'n I CIC)O I 17 'lh L'lh"1 \11111111 III lhl' IOlllKII 1,11)(1 III J{1:II'nll. I II 1111\ tlwl1 !Jc'('oml's the antecedent
'sC'l ,1110\( Jl I')' fill lhl' o"fllx ill 'itA. IV, 'olO::l,
144 CHAPTER ONE SITTINGS OF THE KING 145

probably while the siege of Megiddo was in progress, and despatched There remains one disquieting possibility. In view of the fact that
south with an Asiatic crew 190 to complete the decoration. 191 references to the fort in the Lebanon and construction of the bar­
The opening pericope thus provides a valuable, though alleged, que Userhatamun date in the main from much later in the reign,
connection between the construction of Amun's barque and the could the king have conflated events and falsely retrojected accom­
fortress in the Lebanons, with a clear implication that both were plishments of later campaigns into the glorious first? The records,
accomplishments of the First Campaign.192 Now ship-building and however, clearly show a precision which belies falsification.
the timber used for it were virtual monopolies of the Byblos area, The order in which items are listed may originally have displayed
as far as Egypt was concerned, from time immemorial;193 and aftr­ a rationale, but the loss of half the length of columns has robbed
tiori, one would locate any activity associated with boat-building in us of the wherewithal to establish connections. A chronological frame­
that region. But Thutmose Ill's coastal campaigns in Phoenicia seem­ work is not strongly marked, beyond giving priority of place to deci­
ingly did not begin until the 5th campaign.194 Should we, then, honor sions arising from the victories of the first campaign. Generally
the present implication of a date in the first campaign, and locate speaking, it may be said that the institution of the feasts is followed
the fortress in southern Phoenicia, in the environs of Tyre or Sidon, 195 by the sources of the endowment whereby these gala occasions are
within easy reach of Megiddo?196 The route along the coast from to be funded. But the focus shifts erratically to the offering menu of
Carmel to Beirut or even Byblos itself, is easily negotiated in antiq­ the daily service. Collocation of Re-harakhty's cult with obelisks is,
uity in 4 to 5 days;197 and Tyre too was noted for ship-building and of course, appropriate. 200
therefore easy access to timber, certainly in the Iron Age. 19B In fact,
the prominent position Tyre occupies in the Amarna Period l99 could,
arguably, derive from interest taken in fortifying the area under the V. BARQ,UE-SHRINE201
founder of the empire.
I) "[Regnal year. There occurred a royal seance; the courtiers
were introduced Thereupon His Majesty said: '....
190 Note the determinative in Urk. IV, 663:1: L. Christophe, RdE 6 (1951), 97
191 7th Pylon reveals (p. 122, above). (X + I) [ I erected(?) A col] umned hall, an intermediate cham­
192 See also above p. 114; p. 122. hn202 [ ]
193 P. Montet, Kbni 16 (1962), 86-87; Urk. I, 134: 15; CT I, 262b; B. Altenmiillct.
~ncretismus in den Sargtexten (Wiesbaden, 1975), 133; K. Sethe, "Byblos und delll
(X +2) My Majesty ereected] for him a great gate of gold (named):
Libanongebiet: zur altesten Geschichte des aegyptischen Seeverkehrs," <AS 45 (1908 \mun-is-great-in awe,' of [....203 I constructed]
7ff; P.E. Newberry, "Three Old Kingdom Travellers to Byblos and Pwenet," ]/';'J (X + 3) a great broad hall and(?) a columned hall (for?) coffers,204
24 (1938), 182-84; in general, see M. Saghieh, Byblos in the 77zird Millennium B.c:..
Warminster, 1983. or sandstone worked in electrum and [all sorts of] gems [....]
194 See above, pp. 62ff.

195 Cf. T. Save-soderbergh, 77ze Navy if the Eighteenth Egyptian Dynasty (Uppsala
1946), 36; M. Noth, "Die Stutzpunktsystem der Pharaonen," in Kleine Schriften ,,11/
Geschichte des Volkes Israels III (Munich, 1959), 134-35. 'IW) Cr. C.C. van Siclen, "Obelisks," in D.B. Redford (ed), O:ifOrd Encyclopaedia if
196 Whether this would necessitate conjuring up a special "side-expedition" to Lill ·!",iCII/ Egypt (New York, 2001), II, 561-64.
area, while the Megiddo seige was in progress is debatable. But the notion that Ollt 'Ill P-M II, 97; C.F. Nims, "Thutmosis Ill's Benefactions to Amun," in G.E.
of toponym lists we can manufacture collateral campaigns ranging over the Golall I ,,,Iish (ed), Studies in Honor if John A. Wilson (Chicago), 1969), 69-74; own copy
Beka'a and Galilee (Heick, Beziehungen, 127-9; 134-35; accepted by M.S. DrawI·t ".Ihted); text in retrograde.
in CAH II, 1 (3), [1973], 452) depends upon what I feel to be a misinterpretatioll (htib: P. Spencer, The Egyptian Temple. A Lexicographical Stud)! (London, 1984)
of those lists; see above, p. 00. I 117; the Akh menu is meant.

197 Strabo xvi.2.22 25; L. Casson, Travel ill the Ancielll I Vorld (Toronto, ICJ71 The 6th Pylon: Nims, Gp. cil., 72, C. Wallet-Lebrun ("Notes sur Ie temple
191 92. \nIOll-ri" it Karnak," BlFAO 8\ [19841, 322) proposes an interpretation of the
I'IH I.M. Diakonoff, "The Naval Power unci Tracie of Sidon," 11;7 12 (I qq' ,'f~S ,IS tlw 11[\111(' of the g,lte or the 4th pylon.
ICiH CJ3; I. Saggs, iraq 17 (1955), 127(f;.). EI'lyi, ]/':\'/}() :11 l'lIlH" II 10. 'J'!: SIH'IIII'l, tlJI. I'll., 71, 7). WalktlA'lmlll (0/1. nt., 323) il1gocniously proposes
1"1 cr. EA I 17:Cj2 "prinl'ip'll llty"); I'l() III ''''( 1,,1111 pid uf fl\l' killK"); I.'iCl·7 II,I,n j, ,I
tlll~l.lkt·11 11'[11111111 lit till hWllIlh fCII 111, "south." 111 view or the gonld
I') I h ,11\11//(/\\/11/ ("( 11\ of thl' klllg''" I r)~):I:2 111\11/11/11"" ("nt\ lIf l\l.I},lli" "IllS Ilwntillllni ill (1)(' fllllllwillil rollllllll lIlil WCllldl'l. \~hl'tlll'l thl' rollll1llwd
146 CHAPTER ONE SITTINGS OF THE KING 147

(X+4) gold and precious gems, viz. The best of the products of My Majesty erected for him his seat of oral witness 2!0 [The rub­
the southern lands, brought through the power of My Majesty [....] ble which wasp!! there which had encroached
(X+ 5) its like, for the divine processional. (X+ 14) on the town area 212 was taken away. I erected a temple
I carved out for him a great barque, Userhatamun [was its name ....] there out of a single block of [...]-stone [...]
(X+6) worked in electrum, its hold was decorated with silver,205 (X+ 15) opposite(??!3 the strong-box(??14 Which is in it.
with a god's-shrine amid ships worked 'in' electrum, in [cedar, the Now My Majesty had found the southern pylon 215 of brick, the
best of the terraces, which I brought back from] southern gateway [of ...]
(X+7) Upper Retenu on the first victorious campaign which [Amun] (X+ 16) [st]one of inferior workmanship, the door leaves of cedar
ordained [for me] and the columns of wood. Thereupon My Majesty made it (over) in
(X+8) I erected [.... which] My Majesty [cut?] with my very own [stone....]
hands in the terraces of cedar, worked throughout with gold and (X+ 17) its [gateway] being of granite, its great door of copper,
with insignia [... which my father Amun granted me] with the name of 'Amun-Great-of-Diadems,' restored in [....]
(X+9) in valor and victory. (X+ 18) [....] visible, with the inlaid figure upon it of electrum,
My Majesty consigned to him many offering tables of electrum, the 'God's-shadow' being like Amun [....J
JPst-vessels 206 nmst-vessels [....] (X+ 19) [... of granJite.
(X+ 10) mnit-necklaces,207 cauldrons and collars without end (made) My Majesty dug for him the Southern Lake, freshened and length­
of various gems. ened [....]
My Majesty erected for him a sh[rine(??08 of. ..] (X+20) [.... of] God's-land, the temple therein was refurbished
(X+ 11) in the [house of Amun] of sandstone of excellent work­ in lustrous alabaster of Hatnub [....]
manship, the great strong-boxes(?)209 being of electrum and ... (X+21) [.... in his holy seat of the west, elevated [....]"
[... its ...]
(X+ 12) worked in gold and various precious gems, its gates of
Commentary
granite with doors of copper and inlaid figures of [...]
(X+ 13) black copper and ibw-copper. If the fragmentary column (x+21) refers to the construction of pjeser­
akhet at Deir el-Bahari,216 then the present seance must be one of,

hall was the one south of the barque chamber (room VII) wherein treasures were 210 Derive from mtr, in the common miswriting, influenced by mty. For the instal­
stored. Unless it be a mistake, one might think ofa generic 13, "coffer":JJ.Janssen, lation in question, immediately to the east of Akh-menu, and oriented east, see P-M
Commodity Prices from the Ramesside Period (Leiden, 1975), 204:~5. II, 215-18; L. Habachi, "Nia the web-priest and Doorkeeper of Arnun-of-the-hear­
205 While "hold" suggests something below decks (cf. 2nd Kamose Stela, 12), the ing-ear," BIFAO 71 (1972), p. 81 and n. 2 (bibliography). C.F. Nims, "The Eastern
wndwt was also a place of honor where one sat: PT 602; P.Ch. Beatty III, pI. 7A, Temple at Karnak," FSRicke (Bauforschung XII), 107-11.
recto 9: 17; CCG 1564:; see H. W. Fairman, JEA 30 (194:4:), 7 n. j. Perhaps it was 211 Urk. IV, 835:3-4:.
the exterior of the hull that was decorated with silver. 212 See for similar wording Urk. IV, 835:4:, and discussion above, p. 136.
206 Comte du Mesnil du Buisson, Les noms et signes egyptiens designants des vases ou 213 Or "in accordance with," whatever that might mean.
o~ets simitaires (Paris, 1935), 118, 156. 214 One might think of IJtmt, "seal," or "sealed document" (contract: W. Boochs,
207 In light of the close connection between mnit-necklaces and Hathor (G. Robins, M 52 [1981], 19-21; H. Goedicke, DE 5 [1986], 75). But the phrase itself, as
Women in Ancient Egypt [Cambridge, 1993], 164:; D. Vischak, "Hathor," in D.B. well as the clear parallel in (x+ 11) suggests something concrete. One thinks of locked
Redford, (ed), Oiford Encyclopaedia if Ancient Egypt [New York, 2001], 85) as well as ntainers, or rooms perhaps: P. Posener-Krieger, Les archives du temple JUneraire de
music (L. Manniche, Music and Musicians in Ancient Egypt [London, 199 i], 63 64), Nymrkari-Kakdi (Cairo, 1976), 1, 19 20; CT I, 209.
it seems plausible that what wr are dealing with in the prest'nl passap;(' is ('quip­ 21\ Thl' 7th pylon: Nims, 11/1. (il., 73(VIII).
ment for the songstressrs of Amun. m Nims, 11/1. (II., 7 I. On 1111' tl'mpl\' ,\,(' P. Dorman, 77le A10llwnents if Senenmut
~lJH Nims (11/). (il., 71 Il, Ill' opts fill (;11111. Bill bill would M'I'III 1''111:111)' alll·ptal>ll'. London IllllB 1711 J 1.lplIl~,1 "I )1'11 I,j H,li1<l1 i, Thull110sis [II l('mple: Seven
I'" SI'l' Iwlow, Il '111 'il'a,nll' 01 \YOlk," ,IS,1f ') 11)11'1 h III 1\1 l)ulll1ska, "Some R\'lllarks aboul
148 CHAPTER ONE SITTINGS OF THE KING 149

if not the latest in the king's transcribed speeches preserved for II' I,ted no. 5 (wooden flag-staves?);220 but if this identification is cor­
The construction of this shrine, begun round v,24 of the 43rd year.' I (I, why are they separated from pylon 7, for which they were

was nearing completion in v,23 of the 49th year218 hence the pH 111('nded?221
sent text must be dated no earlier than the last half of the fifiiJ
decade of the reign. Indeed, since the text continued beyond ('01
(X+21), it may well be that additional construction work was listed VI. KARNAK, ROOM III (EAST W ALL)222
perhaps the final touches to the mortuary temple Henket-ankh, ill
which case the present text may date after year 50. 219 'II/'rscription
The constructions the king records may be listed as follows: 'I Effecting the consecration of a divine offering by the king him­
: If to his father] Amun-re, lord of Karnak, at the time when vile
I. [Akh-menu] , (x+ I) :1\( Il'nu was overthrown.
2. 6th Pylon gate, (x+2)
3. Hall for the reception of southern gold, (x+3-4) I. I:]223 inaugurated [offerings] for my father [Amun... ,]
4. Barque of Amun, (x+5-7) 1' To put down]224 the lands of the Fenkhu who had taken
5. [Objects] of cedar from Lebanon, (x+ 7-9) to attacking my frontiers
6. Cult objects, (x+9-1O) \. I.... he had mustered(?)] battle squadrons to my majesty's dis­
7. Sandstone construction with granite gates, (x+ 10-13) pleasure. (But) they then fell flat on their faces
8. Oracular shrine of Amun, (x+13-15) rtumbling over each other(??25 .... to the town] of Megiddo.
9. 7th Pylon, (x+ 15-18) Thereafter My Majesty encircled them in a circumvallation (sbry)
10. Sacred Lake, (x+ 19) made (very) thick
II. Way-station, south of 7th Pylon, (x+20) ) I....] and they could not snuff the breath of life, enclosed as
12. pjeser-akhet, (x+21) they were in a fort of their (own) building.
() l....] Then the Asiatics of every foreign land came with bowed
It is difficult to elicit the principle on which the items are ordered. heads, doing obeissance to the power of My Majesty.
Although nos. I and 12 are chronologically separated by 25 years, [....] and these foreigners and those who were in the vile Megiddo
the sequence of the rest does not appear to be based on chronol II, [came forth .. , . to request peace(?) from My Majesty. They said:
ogy. A spatial arrangement explains the order only in part: nos. 2 I '.... 0 sovreign(?)] of great power! Menkheperre [son of Amun]!
6 and 7 have to do with rooms, gates and paraphernalia adjaccnl rant that we survive, and we shall consign to Your Majesty
to the barque shrine itself, and nos. 9-11 deal with construction Oil ur labor
the south side of Karnak. But the placement of nos. 5 and 8 break 'I l....] that which Your Majesty has done in this land for ever!'
the sequence. One might argue that no. 4 (wooden barque) slig Thereupon My Majesty authorized that they be given the breath
f life
10, [....] all their vessels, and bearing [....] (remainder too fragmen­
larv .from translation)
the Function of the Tuthmosis III Temple at DeiI' cl-Bahari, in R. Gundlach I'dl,
Aegyplische Temliet Slmklllr, Funklion ulld Programm (Ilildeshcim, 1(91), 33 15.
m Lipinska, ]FA 53 (1967), 27 and n. 16; Sir All. Gardincl,.J. (:('II1Y, 1II/'TIllII S('(' above, p, I 15,

Ol/mca ( h:ford, 195(j'" pI. 5{j:5; 1\. Erman, I hrrallllhr Pa/lYllll Ilnllll III, I (){j'J II Oh I') '\III1S, 0/1, cil" 72,

\\'.C. Il.lycs,}I~ I \(i I%0,,> I P \1 II, HH?:lI,; {,I. 1\, rl7 (i:{; 0\\11 copy; collated.

Ilml pi I :l:'1I Il'('to pp, (.Xlt'111 of loss I1I1~J\lI\\1I

I I/"t! 11'( to I h; 011 lilt' /lllI'I!.rstlll(!It~ 01' till' 111(1111111)' It""pl,', M'(' II. Ri('~l', I ~ /),;' III pITh.lp' /II 1/, d {Irk. IV, 1107:11,
'jtllmJnn/~/1 !llI/lmam'llI ( 1110, Jl('1 h,IP~ /1/ "OI!!,)'I
150 CHAPTER ONE SITTINGS OF THE KING 151

Commentary Commentary
It is not altogether certain that the present text records a formal This tantalizing fragment excites a strong urge to reconstruct the
seance. Sethe may be correct in postulating a simple nsw dsf ddf226 context. The restoration !ry, "another," recalls the general comment
although this locution smacks of popular Ramesside rhetoric. 227 Once and sequence of the Day-book Excerpts for the 8th campaign. 233
again, the reason for including a sketch of the Battle of Megiddo is There is no need to restore dmi, "town," as the antecedent off and
to provide background and to explain motivation for the bequests no justification whatsoever in restoring Carchemish by conftating
to Amun. sources of diverse genre. 234 What follows is the record of something
The date of the present text can be given within rather restricted "being brought.... therefrom"235 to the king on the river bank, an act
parameters. Occupying, as it does, a wall surface contemporary with of singular nature. Goods as benevolences, prisoners, chiefs, chattels-
the construction of the 6th pylon, it can date no earlier than year all find numerous parallels in other texts. But the phrasing of the pre-
42,228 when the second section of the Day-book excerpts was inscribed. sent passage suggests something unique, and quite out of the ordinary.
In all likelihood it was put up at about the same time, and no later Two solutions to this conundrum might be put forward, the first
than the middle of the decade. already advanced by Spalinger. In the bottom line the suffix f
demands an antecedent, which in context can only be a human male
or a masculine toponym. The former is more likely, as stelae are
VII. PHILADELPHIA 39-12-3 229 usually identified by their human owners, not the town in which
they are erected. Spalinger236 suggests the antecedent is a "foreign
"[.... (x+ 1) Then His Majesty found the stela of. .. and he com- prince," and since the locale is the banks of the Euphrates, the prince
manded the erection of] ano[ther230 st]ela to its north, on the east. in question must surely have been the king of Mittani. Moreover
Then was brought [....] (x+2) [.... seiz]ed(?)231 therein for His the monument must have enjoyed a current significance, that is to
Majesty, upon the bank of the Euphrates. Never before had any- say, it must have set on display Mittanian claims at that moment in
thing like it been done (by any king....]232 (x+3) [Then His Majesty lime: it would have been pointless to carry off "his" stela if the
returned in safety to Egy]pt, and his stela was brought from the end owner had been some forgotten worthy of remote antiquity. Are we,
of the earth and set up on the west of the city within [....]," then, to imagine the Egyptians carting off a kudduru or the like?237
But was this their usual practice? How many foreign monuments
can one point to in Egypt, captured on the battlefield and returned
.IS trophies? One thinks, rather, that the celebratory associations of
oIny public monument of foreign, enemy, origin would have impelled
226 Urk. IV, 757: 17. (he Egyptians to smash it to bits, not treasure it as a trophy!
227 It is true, however, that the phrase has an earlier history: cf. Berlin Leather
Roll, ii.6; Urk. IV, 257:5; 364:10; for Ramesside examples, see Sethe, ZAs 44,37-38;
KRI II, 310:7; V, 28:9, 39:6, 45:12, 51:7-8, 80:6, 191:6.
228 Urk. IV, 734: 14.
11 Urk. IV, 697:4-5; above, p. 00.
229 AJ. Spalinger, "A New Reference to an Egyptian Campaign of Thutmose III
I As Heick, lac. cit. Amenemheb's is a personal reminiscence and offers no indi-
in Asia," ]NES 37 (1978), 35-41. The fragment was commented on by Heick ("Wo I II ions as Lo where precisely the stelae were set up.
errichtete Thutmosis III seine Siegesstele am Euphrat?" edE 56 [1981], 241 44), The Lraces before im clo not suit Helck's smnw: the sign is more likely Gardiner
whose eggregious restorations are not to be relied upon. There is no indication how U 10.
many lines the stela once contained. It may have some significance, however, IhaL Ip. cit., 40 4 l.
the pre-occupation with stelae clearly comes at the encl. U. Seidl, J)it babylollLI/hm hiLtiduru Reliif.: S'ymhole meso/Jotamischer Cott/zeilen, Freibourg,
"\0 The lraces suiL fry.
1911'), lot lhl'ir IIS(' S('(' W SOlllllll'rfdcl, "The KassiLes of AncienL Mesopotamia:
1:\1 "Arm.holclin~.sLick" may be reSLOreci before im. fh l~lIIS, (Iohlin, Cllltllll'," III J,M S,\"-SOIl I'd, CII1111.;,atioll.\ of the Ancient Near Rilll I(
m Possibly Il'slOle til p.'ill't (I, or sOI1H'lhilll! simil'lI. \\ \ 1lI k Pl'l'! I)')() ".
152 CHAPTER ONE

A second explanation suggests itself. The feat of bringing a stela

from the "end of the earth" to be set up on display in Thebes
redounds to the reputation of Pharaoh only, and especially if it is CHAPTER TWO
his stela. 238 I would like, therefore, to suggest a restoration in the
first two lines as follows: ist in[w inr c3 m dw r ihw ati] im n ~mj ~r ENCOMIA
sp3t etc., "then was brought [a large block to the camp, and carve]d
there for His Majesty upon the bank etc." It was the act of quar-
rying, carving and transporting this stela, for Pharaoh himself, that "Encomia" is not a genre term, and corresponds to no Egyptian
constituted the amazing feat worthy of celebration. word; but covers a variety of forms and presupposes several different
One final point regarding the ownership of the present text. While contexts.] "Collection" (s~wy) and "triumph stela" (wd n natw) are
most scholars have assumed it to be Thutmose III whose exploits the genres common in the 18th Dynasty, although both descend into
are here recorded,239 nothing in the fragment proves it. If Minmose's the Ramesside age and are represented either by direct progeny or
quarry inscription24o refers to the living king's deeds, then we must modified forms. They represent written compositions, but in a style
conclude that Amenophis II also erected a stela in Naharin. If he reminiscent of oral delivery and masquerading as extemporized cre-
is the king in the fragment, then the earlier stela he found must ations. They may point to a culture of hymnodic adulation, at home
have belonged to Thutmose III or even 1. in a court setting, but certainly intended for dissemination by pub-
Iic recitation.

1. THE ERMANT STELA 2

A. Titulary
( I) "Live Horus: Mighty Bull, Appearing in Thebes; the Two Ladies-
man: Enduring of Kingship like Re in heaven; Golden Horus: Holy
of Forms, of Violent Might; King of Upper and Lower Egypt, Lord
of the Two Lands, Cult-master, Menkheperre, bodily son of Re,
rhutmose-Lord-of-Truth, beloved of Montu, Lord of Thebes who is
ill Ermant, living for ever!

I In general, see J. Assmann, "Eulogie--Koenigs," LdA' II (1977), 40-46; idw,

\'l;t kLindcn und Verklaren. Grundformen hyrnnischer Rede in Alten Aegypten,"
III A. Lopricno (ed), Ancient Egyptian Literature. History and Forms (Leiden, 1996),313-34;
\) H. Redford, "Ancient Egyptian Literature-an Overview: Courtly Literature," in
),,\1. Sasson, Civilizations if the Ancient Near East (New York, 1995), IV, 2235-37;
\{ H. Parkinson, "Two New 'Literary' Texts on a Second Intermediate Period
I',''!) t us?" in J. Assmann (cd), Literatur lind Politik im pharaonischen und ptolwaischen
,If,')jilm (Cairo, 1999), 187 90; RJ Lcprohon, "Encomia," in D.B. Redford (ed),
Oll,"d IEncyclopaedia q! Annmt F..gJ'pl (New York, 200 I), 1, 470 71.
2:18 It is most unlikely that the o1>jcr! was an all('('~l1 al S[t'ld: to l('nlO\'(' it wOltlcl R. MOlld, O. Myt,/s, 'Ilie 'Innp!l'., Ii/Annant (London, ), pI. 88; Heick, Urk. TV,
be almost a ~a('Jilc~e. I~ 1:1 17, I\. dl' BUl'k, FV)jlll/l/l N,·/lII/lJ:'IrIIII., (il ()(i; ~I'C AJ. Spalit1!\cr, AspertJ qf the
"\" SCt \l()tri~ lllhliretlat' of 11/1111'1/01111/1, 1:l7 II ,\.\ 1),1(/1/111'1/1\ 0/11/1 I". "I l!(l/'hnm \'1:"1:, 11}1l:.' :lllll 'i; CJ Eyn', "Is IlislOlical
ItA 1\ 1111\'1\ L11l'1;111l1" ·I'nhlll~"· "' 'LitfI\IIV't' ill t... pdt'lIn, Iltrlmt J~')/ltil/ll 1"lfmlllll' "II 'lG.
154 CHAPTER TWO ENCOMIA 155

B. Date & Introduction per, several fingers 9 thick, transfixed by his arrow which protruded
4 three palms (length) out the back-in order to grant the prayer of
(2) Regnal year 22, second month of proyet, day 10. 3 Compilation
the entourage lO that his arms (continue) vigorous in valor and might.
of the deeds of valor and might which this perfect god performed,
viz. Every successful act of physical prowess,5 beginning with the first
generation6 which the lord of the gods and the lord of Armant made D. Narrator)s Comment
for him (the king), (namely) the one who enlarged his victories in
I speak accurately without deceit or misstatement of what he did,
order to cause (3) his fame to be related for millions of years to
(for it was) in the presence of his entire army; there is not a word
come-excluding the deeds of physical prowess which His Majesty
of exaggeration in it.
performed day and night; (for) if one related each specific act indi-
vidually, they would prove too numerous to be put into writing.
E. Hunting
C. Archery If ever he spent (7) a moment of relaxation, hunting in a foreign
country, the size of his catch would be greater than the bag of his
He (4) shot at a copper target, all the wooden ones having shattered
entire army. He slew 7 lions by shooting in the space of a moment,
as though (they had been) papyrus;7 and His Majesty put one such
and he brought off a herd ll of 12 bulls in one hour, and by the
example 8 in the temple of Amun. It was a target of hammered cop-
time breakfast time came, the tails thereof were on his (own) rump.12
He cut down 120 elephants in the land of Niya l3 on his return from
3 Cf. M.S. Drower, in The Temples if Armant, 183 n. b. Miss Drower argues inge-
Naharin, (8) when he had crossed the Euphrates, destroyed the towns
niously, but convincingly that this date alludes to the beginning of Thutmose Ill's
sole reign after the death of Hatshepsut: see Spalinger, Aspects, 200; N. Grimal, A on both its banks, consumed with fire for ever, and set up his tri-
History if Ancient Egypt (Oxford, 1992), 213; B. Bryan in I. Shaw (ed), The OJiford Ilmph stela upon its bank. 14 He got a rhinocerus by shooting, in the
History if Ancient Egypt (Oxford, 2000), 245. It is most unlikely that the date refers southland in (9) Nubia, after he had proceeded to Maw l5 in pursuit
to the date of mobilization of the army, with which the sequence of an imaginary
"Kriegstagebuch" began (so Alt, ZDPV 70 [1953], 35). There was no "day-book of r him that had rebelled against him in that land. He set up his
the army," only a "day-book of the king's-house," and its calendrical record stretched stela there, as he had done at the ends [of Asia].
far into the past
4 S~wy: JIVb. IV, 212:9-15; the term can refer to compilation within accounting
and the like: cf. Urk. IV, 690:15 (booty), 780:4 (foreign lands); JEA 46, pI. XII, 16
recto (quota of stone); Sir A.H. Gardiner, Late Egyptian Miscellanies (Bruxelles, 1933),
136:10-11; P. Boulaq XVIII 27:18 (income), R.A. Caminos, The Chronicle if Prince ignation in question. There seems, therefore, no reason to question this translation:
Osorkon (Rome, 1964), 136 (offerings); M. Megally, Recherches sur l'economie, l'adminis 1'. Beylage, "pr(})] ~r s3 = f versus pr0J.(w) jm = f d(j) (.w) r 13. Eine weitere Bemerkungen
tration et la comptabilite egyptienne iJ. la XVIII' 4J!nastie apres le papyrus E. 3226 du UJUur, ~ll den koenigliehen Schiesstexten der 18. Dynastie," SAK 24 (1997), 24 and n. 12.
(Cairo, 1977), 54. But in the present passage it hovers on the edge of a "genre" 9 Or "three fingers."
term: S. Schott, Bucher und Bibliotheken im alten Aegypten (Wiesbaden, 1990), 354, nos. 10 I.e. the court. If, however, "posterity" is intended (cf. W. Decker, Sports and
1573-74. It may stand as an 18th Dynasty prose precursor to the more formal :mnes if Ancient Egypt [Yale, 1992], 36) one might opt for Gilula's rendering of n~t
royal hymn ("song"-stela) of the 19th Dynasty which, by contrast, is lyrical: Redford. ." "tnlst, believe" (JNES 36 [1977], 295-96) and the passage would read "to make
Scribe and Speaker ..., in Ben Zvi, Writings and Speech . .., 187. l)l)stcrity believe that his arms had been strong etc." The whole would reside within
5 See B. van de Walle, "Dne hyperbole egyptienne devenue proverbiale," AlPHOS I he context of IJrorif offered to future generations.
20 (1968-72), 497-504. 11 For amn, "herd," see Wb. III, 381:15; R.O. Faulkner, A Concise Dictionary if
6 1jt tpt: while at is often used in the sense of "corporate body" (P. Kaplony, II/drlle Egyptiall (Oxford, 1962), 202, In light of the implicit dismemberment and
Orientalia 34 [1965], 147 and n. 3; j.-C. Goyon, Corifirmation dll IJOllUoir royal all. l!Ollt'rl 11,1) ing associated with such an incident, could we have a mistake for flnw, "hides"?
an (Cairo, 1971], 103 n. 196), and thus "a body of contemporaries," or "generation" I' I.e. so swiftly did he complete his early morning hunt.
(CT II, 34d, 34·7a, 358b; Mo'alla inser. 14 lVI, B2j; Lcidcn Y, I) it may in t1w I' For location, S('(' above, p, 108.
present instance sustain an ('xtcnded meanin~ of' "unitary body" (of i(('ms, deed" I For localioll, S('(' abov(', p. 151,
obj('c1s, WOlds etc.), ima~inecl in S('qll('Il«(': d. SchOll, BUIllrr, nil, I.'{ 19, Ilfi.'f, J{i7'J, I Fw II\(' Im\llioll of i\.l.m ('Ith ('al,udct?" ~e(' D. O'Connor, "The Location of
16I1.'f. Olll' mighl l'IlII'II.till in Ilw JlH"1'1l1 p.I·',I~(' ,I mlloqui,li "{II ,I of II1\' lell " 11"111 )1· I n l'IIlT 1"2 'Ilii ". Zihll1\!', lfriAtllll\IIl, Orll IIlld Vlllkrmmllm ;/1 him
:( I" I.dll "Sdllt''''pOlII('XIt dll Ill, \)yll,hlil \1/1 7 1I1711 'il'tl "'I/lfll", IlIId Il/fIIl/luII,/1 J'.\/In (Wi! h,ult-II, I fJ7:.!) II I) 20; Idl'm, f)". (/'!:)'llllIl'h
.\fl/, till' 'all',Hld ,II PlllkJl'11, illIllt 1\1.11111' IIf 1,·pl'IlI·lIl1'lIl II)' IIIl' ~Plllf\(' Ilt-a- """ /lath Xul"m (Wic,.h:"lclI. 11.II\lIl. Ill:.!, ()II IIIl' &I Il 11111 1'1111 hlllll, q I' I. "illllk
156 CHAPTER TWO ENCOMIA 157

F. Asiatic Campaigns: General Comment events he recounts, but nonetheless present and sometimes self-
identified. 20 He speaks in narrative prose, with a regime of acceptance
He never ceased l6 going (back) to the land of Djahy to slay the dependent on strong averral and appeal to evidence. His style at face
rebels there and to reward those who were loyal to him-each [cam- value resembles oral composition and delivery, 2I (although in the pre-
paign], indeed, being attested spe [cifically] by its date; 17 and he would sent case this may be a compositor's fallacy). He is, however, aware
return(?) (11) every time, his attack a victorious success, that he might of day-book entries and uses them to anchor his text and perhaps
restore Egypt to its condition when Re was [king] in it. give it authority.22
The organization of the material depends upon thematic associa-
G. First Campaign tion, and cannot be relied upon for chronology. The feat of marks-
manship in archery at home suggests archery on the hunt; and the
[Thereupon His Majesty left(?)] 18 Memphis to slay the vile lands (12) location of the hunt in foreign lands leads into allusions to wars on
of Retenu as his first deed of victory. It was His Majesty that opened foreign soil. This, then, justifies a more formal review of purely mil-
its road and blazed its every trail for his army. After it had made itary escapades.
[.... Megi]ddo l9 His Majesty set off upon that road (13) which grows The rhinocerus hunt introduces two issues: the relationship of the
very narrow, at the head of his entire army, while all foreign lands pericope in the stela to the scene on the pylon at Ermant, and the
were assembled by it, standing ready at its mouth [.... 12 groups ....] date of the incident itself. The unity of reference in the first instance
(13) fallen exhausted, fleeing on foot to their towns, with the chief might be called into question by the appearance of later usage,23
who was in [.... 15 groups .... Then] (15) they made suppli[cation] and the reference to a "first campaign."24 If the king in question were
with their possessions upon their backs. His Majesty returned in hap- Thutmose III, we should be forced to conclude that the king had
piness, every foreign land being subject [to him .... long lacuna .... at sometime renumbered his campaigns. 25 It might prove more conso-
(16) ...]s coming at one time with their tribute. nant with the facts to assign the pylon scenes and glossing texts at
Ermant to a later (Ramesside?) reign. Choice of this theme might well
H. Sixth Campaign have been dictated by the passage in the nearby stela of Thutmose III.
The date of the stela itself depends in part on the contents of sec.
[....] (17) [....] Regnal year 29, fourth month of proyet, day [....] E. Clearly it postdates the 8th campaign of year 33. Equally per-
suasive in the matter of a date is the argument based on the pur-
Remainder lost pose of the exercise: a collection of the mighty deeds of the king,
by the time of writing too numerous to be reviewed in a single
Commentary
The Ermant stela represents an account of events at a distance. On
20 R. Hodge, Literature as Discourse (Baltimore, 1990), 48-50; M. BaI, Introduction
the semiosic plane the speaker is an external narrator outside the 10 Ihe Theory qf Narralive (Toronto, 1985), 122.
I Cf. The use of sd.d: Urk. IV, 1245: 1; cf. 1281:3; the present writer in "Speaker

wd Scribe" ... (Ben Zvi, Writings and Speech . ..), 171ff.

Die Nashijmer (Hamburg, 1977), 241-96. Whether the incidcnt is commemoratcd 011 22 Of the three which appeared, one apparently gives the date of Hatshepsut's
a scarab from Tanaach must remain moot: R. Giveon, The 1m/Jact if Egy/Jt 011 Canaan passing,the [second] the date of the departure from Memphis on the First Campaign,
(Fribourg, 1978), 824, fig. 39. ,lIle1 the third the start of the 6th campaign (on which see above, pp. 68ff).
16 Sec Spalinger, Aspects, 202. '/1 Usc of the dcfinite articl(' (F. Junge, Neuagyptisch. Eirifiihrung in die Grammatik

17 Rcad mtrw is m[w Il wd;yt] nbt r jUl.\. This claim lO !,n'ri,t, rt'C'Ordin~ is simi- IWi('sbael(,I1, 1996J, 54 55), Pr-c3 for the king, and the expression ~r tJpsj (S.N.
lar 10 a passa/o\c ill lhc day-book cxrc'11ts: {Trt IV, 5(i I: I I (i52:2, t\lorsrh,tlls('r, "The Mi~hly Sword of Pharaoh," Varia Aegyptiaca 4 (1988), 151 64).
IH I\s I kirk has S('('n lIt:"hllll/{Nl, 121, 1(i8 II. :i:l tlH'n' a ('IICHI~b ~Jl;H'(' IH'n' (ell '. (:f Sp,liil1jo\('I, ,11/lrlll, ,)()'2 ,wei 11. %, ('(lIT('rlil1~ tl1(' pn's('nt writ('r in History
,I d,lI(' ,llId Llkndlle,1! IInl,lliOll, Po: ~ibl)' I nlOll' ".,1.'1 !tmJ ·f (.//In/wllllo.'l' (!lllu 1~'lJlI/l1II 111/1/ I~flllll)' Sn'l'll Slud" \ Toronto, I'l(7), 61 62.
I" l.dl'1 J)/1i 7llih II 1'\ dUlIhl till Jt'~IOJ:lllnll III/d., fi2 II. :1').
158 CHAPTER TWO ENCOMIA 159

session. The overtones point unmistakably to the sort of sweeping entry of the day-book the army had set out during the final days of
retrospective popular late in the reign after year 42. Now the rhinocerus year 22. 31 Similarly, general dates throughout the remainder of the
hunt is linked to the setting up of a boundary stela in the south, an edited day-book excerpts specifY only the year in which the king was
act compared with the similar marking of the northern boundary in Asia, not the year in which he departed from Egyptian soil which
(8th campaign), clearly the prototype. 26 One must look, therefore, would in aU cases be one year lower. Thus, in the present case,
for an occasion, after the 8th campaign and a fortiori later than year which clearly quotes the entire day-book entry for the departure, a
42, when the king was in Nubia; and one finds such an occasion in hypothetical general reference would have assigned the number "30."
the campaign whose return is commemorated on the island of Siheil. 27 In short, the lost portion of the Armant stela must have described
Since the return is dated early in the 50th year (ix, 22), the bulk of the 6th campaign, not the 5th. 32 It is noteworthy that the composi-
the expedition must have occupied the last half of year 49. 28 It is tor should have followed his account of the first campaign with that
tempting to construe year 49 as the terminus a quo for the Ermant of the 6th, but the reason is not elusive. Both campaigns were directed
stela. 29 against the same enemy, viz. Kadesh.
Scholars have generally agreed that the date in line 17 of the stela
served to introduce the account of a military campaign, especially
since the preceding pericope covered the first campaign. This assump- II. BUREN TEMPLE TEXT 33
tion is strengthened by the fact that the calendrics indicate a date
late in the regnal year, in the very month in fact in which the king A. "Regnal year 23, under the Majesty of Horus-mighty-bull: Appear-
set out on his first campaign. Thus the lost account in the Armant ing in Thebes, king of Upper and Lower Egypt, Menkheperre,
stela can only have been that of a campaign which started at the
close of year 29 and occupied the early months of year 30. Now Beloved of Amun-re, lord of Karnak
the first campaign and those initial royal acts proceeding from it Who appears to view (2) as when the sun-disc shines,
bear the general date of year 23,30 whereas according to the precise Whose rays make festive the Two Lands,
As when Re shines on the horizon of heaven!
The perfect god, possessed of happiness, (3) the son of Re,
26 Cf. Urk. IV, 1246:5, mi irt.nf The time reference is unmistakable. The far-
Thutmose perfect of form, beloved of Horus, lord of Buhen.
flung southern campaign must, therefore, have post-dated year 33, by how long the
text gives no indication. It cannot be possibly dated to year 31: R.G. Morkot, TIle
Black Pharaohs. Egypt's Nubian Rulers (London, 2000), 73. B. Who united with his ennead to create him in their images,
27 J. de Morgan and others, Catalogue des monuments et inscriptions de l'Egypte antique
I (Cairo, 1894),85(18); Urk. IV, 814; Gauthier, Livre des rois II, 260 (XXV); T. Save-
soderbergh, Aegypten und Nubien (Lund, 1941), 153; J. Leclant, Grientalia 61 (1992), He (4) bequeathed him his inheritance (while yet) in the womb,
288. For he knew that he would champion (sic) him;
28 The southern boundary stela mentioned in the Ermant stela may be the one
at Kurgus, at the end of the transit corridor from Korosko, a renewal of a marker He affixed his diadems (as) King of Upper and Lower Egypt
of Thutrnose Ill's grandfather: AJ. Arkell, A History oj Ihe Sudan to 1821 (London, Upon the Horus-throne of the Living;
1961), 89; P.L. Shhinnie, "Trade Routes of the Ancient Sudan, 3000 B.C. to A.D. He promoted (5) fear of him, he produced his (sic) slaughter
350," in W. Davies (ed), £"f!)Ipt and Africa (London, 1991), 51; S.T. Smith, Askul ill
Nubia (London, 1995), 181. For additional evidence that Thutrnosc III's interest in Among the population (htw) of the lands of the Fenkhu.
his final years centered upon the south, see the late (or posthumous?) statue of him
erected at Elephantine: G. Andreu, "La collection egyptienne du musce DobrlT ,i
Nantes," BSFR 14·8 (2000), 22 4, fig. I.
2'1 Supporting such a late date arc other E"mant blocks whieh seel11 to speak 01 11 Sec ,l!JOVt', p. 8.
Thuirnose III as "possessed of jubilee Is ... 1:" Sir A.II. (;a,.dinel, "Blocks from lilt' IJ As Alt (;:/)PI' 70, :W I)" Wilsol1 (,INIO, 238 11. I) al1d llelck (Be<.iehungell, 140).
Tempk 01 TlIlllIl10sis III ,II AlIlldnl," in SI/ldi ill IIlmWIIIJ III l/i/1II11111 Hlllfillm (PIS,I, Ill(' lalle'l (1lrioll\l, Iwhnl'd Ill(' d,II(' 10 111,11 k til(" 1l'IUII1 rrom Ihe 5th, which would
Iqlb" (J'l fI, pi \. II(" .111 .1I\Olllilly IIlckcd
I (,1 I Ii. 1\ 7'l1 7. 1·1; flllh l.nd 1"/IIIm Jl \I \ II III I I Wi. I J'~ 1\ HOh I ()
160 CHAPTER lWO ENCOMIA 161

C. 'I am a king who gets things done [for) him, E. Perfect god, valorous and vigilant

His beloved son who acts (6) on his behalf. Possessed of diadems like Horakhty,
I built his house, I constructed his monuments Inspiring great fear and awful dignity,
Inasmuch as he allowed me to take possession if the Two Lands. [...] of ...(?) In the hearts of foreigners.
For a son seeks for what is good for his (sic) father, All lands are under his authority, and the Nine Bows all pros-
And brings to fruition the desire if him from whom he came; trate beneath his feet
Keeping the memory alive, rebirthing what is old,
Keeping every god's name alive, (77ze fragmentary last lines contain the king's cartouches)
Repeating births for him through them.'
Commentary
He has seized this land on its south, and the Pool of Seth is
under his authority; Possibly a precursor of the 19th Dynasty "Song"-stela, the present
He has sealed it off on its north as far as the Pool of Horus- text is cast in the form of a lyrical paeon. The metre is irregular,
It is all this, (9) that the moon shines on, but favors a choppy 2:2 pattern. The structure consists of 4 stanzas
And the sun-disc encircles when he shines-what [Geb] and with the following content:
Nut enclose [...]
A. Royal titulary (possibly 5 stichoi)
D. (10) His Majesty stood on 'The Horns of the Earth' to fell the B. Legitimacy, filial relationship and extent of rule (15 stichoi)
wild men of Asia; C. The king against the (Megiddo) coallition and Libya (15 stichoi)
D. Concluding encomium (7 stichoi)
I am the mighry bull, appearing in 77zebes,
Son if Atum, beloved qf Montu, Authorship is completely external, though the text itself is inscribed
(11) One who fights for his army himselj, in the sight if the Two Lands under the aegis of the viceroy. Whether the passages in the mouth
-that's no exaggeration!- f the king derive from his spoken words must remain moot; but
I came forth from the house if my father, the king if the gods [Amun), they exhibit such generic rhetoric that to postulate direct quotation
who ordained victory for me, . . . seems unnecessary.
Part of this text is identical to the wording of texts at ElIesiyeh
(12) The king himself, he took the road, which bear the date year 51 or 52. 34 Because the viceroy Nehy was
His valiant army before him like a fiery flame; assumed to be associated with the Ellesiyeh inscriptions also, one
The mighty king who acts with his arm, might have argued the uncertainty of the true date of our Buhen
Dexterous, with none (13) to compare him to; lexl. Could the hymn have been composed late in the reign and
Slaying the wandering foreigners(?), crushing Retenut(sic), I)ack-dated at Buhen, to enhance what was known to have been an
Their chiefs are living captives, with their chariots (14) wrought I/I/l1LlS mirabilis, viz. 23? The hypothesis, however, is no longer ten-
in gold, harnessed to their horses. .Ible. Nehy does not appear in the Ellesiyeh stelae, his closest attes-
The lands' of Tehenu are reckoned, doing obeissance to I lis t.llion being 8 km. c!istant!35 The latest text mentioning him dates
Majesty's power,
Their tribute on their backs (15) Igrovellingl as dogs d~,

Seeking that they be given the breath of life!

I.. {nlfn/ll"'''.1 tI! 11/1111/ (IAlIHloll, lCHiR" I:l,
162 CHAPTER TWO ENCOMIA 163

to year 25,36 and it is clear that he disappeared shortly thereafterY It is him they serve through fear (4) of him! There is no land
One can, therefore, accept the present text as a genuine "publica- he has not trod to extend the boundaries of Egypt44 in might
tion" of year 23, reproduced a quarter century later at Ellesiyeh. and power! Myriads and millions are of no concern to him!45
He is an active king, who makes great slaughter in battle,
among the nomads all (5) who makes the chiefs of Retenu all
III. THE BUTO STELA INSCRIPTION
38 together bear their labor taxes, taxed with a labor quota,46 due
annually, like serfs of his palace; he's more effective [than] a
"( 1) Live Horus-mighty-bull: appearing in Wese; the Two Ladies numerous army of millions behind him, a unique (6) Fighter, a
(favorite), with an established kingship like Re in heaven;39 Horus- brave for whom no other equal has come along in any land
over-the-Ombite: with lofty crowns and mighty power;40 King of among his troops, the foreign rulers or the southerners and the
Upper and Lower Egypt, Menkheperre, son of Re, Thutmose-of- northerners.
beautiful emanations,41 beloved of Amun-re, lord of Karnak, and He is a king whose power deserves to be lauded, commen-
Edjo, mistress of Pe and Dep-may he live for ever! surate with his strength;
Egypt has been made powerful since he came (to the throne)-
(2) The perfect god, son of Amun, offspring of Horakhty,42 whom no country is a (7) concern to her,
he created to restore the Two Lands, to govern what the sun- She47 never has to attend on the southerners or seek out the
disc encircles, on the throne of his father Re; the southerners northerners, knowing48 that her protector49 exists like Min with
are in his grasp, the northerners are under his authority, the uplifted arm, the King of Upper and Lower Egypt, Menkheperre,
Two Banks of Horus (3) are in awe of him, all lands and all the bowman of Montu
foreign lands lie together under his sandals, they come to him Who sets his frontier at the horns of the earth, on the high-
with heads bowed, grovelling to his power; the foreign chiefs or land of Miu;
each and every land43 say: 'he's our master!' (8) Kush is with him as his serf, directing to him her labor
taxes, of numerous and endless gold, ivory and ebony.

36 l Vercoutter, Kush 4 (1956), 74~5; W. Heick, Historische-biographische Texten der 2.

Zwischenzeit Aegyptens (Wiesbaden, 1975), 136. II l4; R. Krauss, Das Ende der Amamazeit (Hildesheim, 1978), 208ff; Redford, in
37 M. Dewachter, "Le viceroi Nei:J.y et l'an 52 de Thoutmosis III," RdE 28 (1976), I,:. Oren (ed), the Hyksos. New Historical and Archaeological Perspectives (Phildelphia,
151-3. 1,)97), 19. The present passage underscores its universal reference: cf. l Vercoutter,
38 S. Bedier, "Ein Stiftungsdekret Thutmosis III," Bulletin qf the Genter qf Papyrologiml II1FAO 48 (1949), 133; KRJ II, 192:4.
Studies 10 (1994), 1-23; cf. AJ. Spalinger, "The Festival Structure of Thutmose Ill's 11 For the expression, see above, p. 00.
Buto Stela," JARGE 33 (1996), 69-76; idem, the Private Feast Lists qf Ancient Egylil II Read rib!, a variant of such expressions as ~3-ib, rdi ib m-s3 etc.

(forthcoming). 11> On (ltr mpt indicating a projected annual requisition, see Wh. III, 391 :20; EJ.

39 On the addition of mi Rc m pt, see Gauthier, Livre des rois II, 255ff. IIit'iberg, 17ze Official Gifl in Ancient Egypt (Norman, 1996), Ill; D.A. Warburton, State
40 The order of the components varies: Gauthier, loco cit.; on dsr !Jcw see lK mti Economy in Ancient Egypt (Fribourg, 1997), 249.
Hoffmeier, Sacred in the Vocabulary qf Ancient Egypt (Gottingen, 1985), 199. 17 For feminine personification of toponyms, countries and gentilics, see W.
41 Nfr-bprw, a constant inclusion in the second cartouche. Its presence helps 10 (:llglielmi, "Personifikation," uLA IV (1982), 982-83; common in West Semitic:
identify a new text of Thutmose's 32nd year at Dahshur: l Allen, GM 140 (1991,. I C.L. Gibson, Language and Imagery in the Old Testament (London, 1998), 16-18.
7-8. The text in line 2 is to be restored [D~w!y]ms nfr-bprw. The preserwd CUI, I" Rh.li: cr: Urk. lV, 363:6.
ing stroke on the right partly destroyed in a lacuna, bclon~s to ms, not rc. For tl1l 1'1 Wb. III, 241:19; often of the king (D. Meeks, Annee lexicographique II (1981),

former (Moller, 408) with rounded left Ie~ see P. Gllrob 978.5, 2; R.A. CamiJ\os. 1'1 75); a.lso of a god protecting the king: Urk. N, 238: I0, 1307:2; H. de Meulenaere,
Literary Fragments ill the flieratic Seril}t (Oxford, 1959), pI. 2, 2:\; 2A:3; ]F.JI ,Hi (I9bO 1111' 10 !i<) (1<)71), !i3 (Isis); GOYOl1, Conj,m/(/tioll de pOllvoir royal all nouvel an (Cairo,
pI. II no. 13, recto 5; pI. 12 JlO. 17, recto 6. 107'2,. CIA 11. I 17 (1l'OI1 i111' gociell'ssl's 11('1(' til<' prot('ctiV(' role is linked to a func-
11 Frcqlll'llll, appeariJlg tol-(elh,', with )\11111Jl a 11(1 RI': lIb II, I 'i1:IO; Ill, lOA 1'\ 11,,11 of 1\1111 (f II C;,luthic'! }L' Iftt.' till d,,11 Ifm C,tilo, ICJ31), 71. Ilhyphallic gods
C:. Zivil', (;':(1 rill rI/'/I\lrlllr 1II,IIi'lWII' C.Utel, 1l)7fi" 1111 liC; ,\1111 7~I, 1I1l. Ii & r. lllll1'hll\\ 'l'II.,Helnl ," ,11111111" (11'111'( 11111: If 11,1 Rose, ()(.'f), A76; (r. ·the
'i1'( \) II R(·tllllld ' I hI II\k'O' III 11i',llll\' .. lid I",t!ilioll ()nl///tIlw 'Il) r1l)7()i, 1"11",/,,, 'I I Wlllol1, 1'111\ )}, IlItI. 411'
 164 CHAPTER TWO

There is no king that has done what he has done, among

any of the kings who ever were!
(9) My Majesty commanded that the seasonal feasts of my CHAPTER THREE
mother Edjo be performed and that they should lay on offerings
of bread, beer, beef and fowl and all good things, in excess of BIOGRAPHICAL STATEMENTS AND EPITHETS
what used to be."

l
1. THE ROYAL BARBER SI-BAST
Commentary
Excluding the titulary, the paeon comprises an imbalanced sequence "Regnal year 27 under the majesty of the King of Upper and Lower
of 13 tristich lines which shade into 9 distich lines. These serve as Egypt Menkheperre, given life and stability, the Son of Re, Thutmose,
introduction to Thutmose's routine statement authorizing the con- True Ruler, 2 like Re for ever.
tinued performance on an enhanced scale of the seasonal offerings Petition made by the royal barber, Si-Bast, in the presence of the
in the old calendar of Butic feasts. Needless to say, this festival cal- 'Children of the Nursery' of the king's house,3 to wit:
endar did not originate with Thutmose III (inspite of the inclusion 'My servant, assigned to me myself, whose name is Iwy-Amun, I
of his accession anniversary), but certainly dates back to the late Old got him by personal capture while I was following the Ruler. Listen
Kingdom. [... 3 cols....] of Bast, mistress of Bubastis, in place of my father,
The date of the piece is probably rather late in the reign. The the barber Neb-sa-heh.
hymnists reveals an awareness of the finality of the king's victories, He is not to be beaten, [he is] not to be de[nied access] to any
both in south and north, which points to a date later than year 42, door of the king's house. I have given him the daughter of my sis-
and possibly in the final decade of the reign. If the final claim to a ter Nebt-to to wife, Takament [is her name]-and she shall [inh]erit
southern boundary at Miu dates to the later part of the 5th decade, qually with [my] wife and my sister-If he makes [...] or if he
we might place the Buto stela around year 49-50. brings criminal action(?t against my sister, no action against him
Of some interest are the specifications for the redistribution of the shall ever be taken by anyone.'
offerings carved on the left side of the stela, which approximate sim- This document was written up [by ... who tabled] it before the
ilar instructions in the Karnak Ptah temple: 50 "Now after this goddess' guardsman Amenemheb, the king's scribe Ahmose, the king's-scribe
is sated with her offerings,51 then the meat is to be cooked, the wine and agent Baky, the king's scribe Amenmose, the superintendent of
decanted and the temple staff seated to celebrate a holiday before the Porte Amunpa[...J"
the statue of My Majesty. When they have collected these offerings,
the offerings are to be brought in, corresponding to (the requisitions
for) these seasonal feasts which My Majesty has authorized for my
mother Edjo, and put back in front of My Majesty's statue;52 the I Urk. IV, 1369; to be corrected from the photograph in Linage, BIFAO 38 (1939),

exception being its (the statue's) rations of the [daily offering menu!,,'l 217; B. Cumming, Egyptian Historical Records of the Later Eighteenth Dynasty (Warminster,
1984), 87 88,
which are given to the priest (hm-ntr) of this temple: (viz.) Various 'I f/k3 m3ct: bound form qualifier.
loaves of the divine endowment, 20; beer, 2 jugs; meat, 4 ribs; se/- 1 See E, Feucht, Das Kind im Alten Aegypten (Frankfurt, 1995), 266-304. Although

bread, 1; bit-bread, 1; vegetables, 5 bunches; dove(?), 1 bird." lIol ('ertain, il is probable lhal peopJr designated by this title had been brought up
llOLlncl th(' ('f()wn pri n('(',
I Ihli ,lli31, lit. "/\ I('CkOllillf.\' of plIllishrnl'lll." For !IJlil used of legal proceedure,
',11lJrA. IV, 7GH G9. n CT 11, ')lih, Ill, 'i 11,1; O. Ko('fC)('d-P('ICISl'I1, 1.(.1 Stftel egy/iliennes (Glyptotheque
'>I J>1('SIIIl1,dlly Ill(" Om'lill~~ ill qut'slion art' thosl' !lI('s('llll'd on the ,lIllli\'( 1,.11\ '\y C:atlshnll; I <:1l1)('lIha~I'lI, IlJ IH" C); /I·h. III. Iirl~I!,\le/lm ,u IG7: 17; G,A. Gaballa,
of till' ,Il I ('~1I11l IX 1 ~i\(11 ill Illll' ·.n of thl' ~Il'I,\ If 1ff/"/'/lIlr IlImh r/Itl/"'/'I!M,,,, \\,\1I1111181t:1 IlJ77 pi ')1) If 1/'/111'1 is l'('ad inslead
I, III/ Ihe ,I $1'llIhll'd pI I l l ' 10 1011 ,Ulll! 1l1 .. /1I1 (i1S ClIll1l1ll1ll1.l, IIII' Il'l.wlullllll \\Illlld lolkl: oil .1 I 1\ Ii IOIlIlIlI,IIIIlIl
, !'.lIllv 1'1118"d tllid 1:118rlv II'MolCci "1\1111111'11
166 CHAPTER THREE BIOGRAPHICAL STATEMENTS AND EPITHETS 167

Clearly the POW Iwy-Amun (not his birthname, of course) had been not assign them to the sphere of the Superintendent of Cattle. As
captured on one of the first "four" campaigns; but failing any other for any who shall come to dispute (it), do not let them have a hear-
indicator, it is not clear which one. Of interest, however, is the pro- ing in any office of the king, nor let one violate (this arrangement)
fession of the litigant, barber, as it stresses the part-time, militia-like in order to do anything (different).'"
nature of the expeditionary forces which went abroad early in the
18th Dyn. 5 The fact that Si-Bast was allowed to keep a personal Neferperet brings back to Egypt, apparently under his own guardian-
capture is again in keeping with the times, in contrast to later prac- ship, 7 cattle and a milk-jug which he captured on campaign in
tice wherein the state would take responsibility for captives and dis- Syria. They were destined for the mortuary temple of the king, and
tribute them back in Egypt. nothing in the text suggests that they did not become the property
of this establishment. But Neferperet petitioned to be given charge
over the animals, and the king issued an official determination.
II. THE BUTLER NEFERPERET6 Although it is not stated, it is fairly obvious that this arrangement
was going to redound to the mutual advantage of both Neferperet
"What the king's butler Neferperet brought off, while he was in His and the temple: perhaps, while most of the milk went to the temple,
Majesty's suite in the land of Retenu: Neferperet would be allowed to keep a portion for himself.

Cattle of Djahy 4 cows

Egyptian cows 2 III. THE "SOLDIER" AND LIEUTENANT-GENERAL, AMUN-EM-HEB I2

Bull(s) 1
Total 7 "The sold[ier Amunemhe]b, justified, he says:
I was most trusted of the sovereign L.P.H., devoted to the King
Bronze, milk-jug ... in order to give them to the Temple of Millions of Upper Egypt, steadfast for the King of Lower Egypt. I followed
of Years, Henket-onkh. 7 His brother, Amun-em-mekh-ib, acts as their my lord in his footsteps in the northern and southern lands-he
cowherd and his son Djeserkare8 shall carry milk.-'Let them be loved (it) when I was at his heels,13 when he was on the battlefield
under my charge throughout my lifetime!' of his victories, when his strength inspired confidence!
The superintendent of the Porte Neb-seny went in concerning it,ll
and the king's scribe Amunmose came (out) concerning it. What was 1\.. I made a capture in the land of Negeb and brought off 3 c3mw
said in the Majesty of the Palace L.P.H.:'IO 'They shall be under as prisoners-of-war; when His Majesty arrived in Naharin I brought
your charge throughout your lifetime; and after you yourself grow the three men as captures therefrom, that I might set them before
old, they shall pass from son to son, and from heir to heir. II Do His(sic) Majesty as prisoners-of-war. 14

5 Cf. J. Wilson, The Culture qf Ancient Egypt (Chicago, 1965), 167. 12 Text from tomb, IT 85 (at 17): Urk. IV, 890-97.; R. Stadelmann, "Deutsches

6 Cairo 42121: Urk. IV, 1020:7-1021:10. oIrehaeologischen Instituut: Aufnahme und Publikation thebanischer Beamtengraeber,"
7 G. Raeny, in B.E. Shafer, Temples qf Ancient Egypt (Ithaca, 1997), 89 96; fOI in J. Assmann (cd), Thebanischen Beamtennekropolen. Neuen Perspektiven archaeolog. Forschung
"temples of millions of years" see D. Arnold, Lexikon der aegyptiscJum BauJamst (Dusseldol f Ileidelberg, 1995), I! n. 17; P.-M. Chevereau, Prosopographie des cadres militaires egyp-
2000), 164. Itmj du Nouvel F:mpire (Paris, 1994), 35; B. Bryan, "The Egyptian Perspective on
8 R. Ranke, Die aegyptischen Personennamen I (Gluckstadt, 1935), 409: 1I. A COI1l tvlittani," in R. Cohen, R. Westbrook (cds), Amama Diplomacy (Baltimore, 2000), 74.
mon New Kingdom name, undoubtedly indicatin~ an Oli~n for the family in Thebl , 11 I do nOl think "page" is an appropriate rendereing here: Galan, Victory and

West, where the cult of Amenophis I was of great importancl'. Ilordn-, 89 (H).
<. I.e. presented Neferperet's Ci\.~l' before Ph,ll'lOh. 11 Cf. T. Rillt·" J)IU lhlmll)'l/rl/l lin },onll~/irhfll lIIul privotell lllldzriflen (Wiesbackn,
III St't' abml' (pl. I), p. 1fl. IlJ')!»), 7!l 7'1 "hI' pl'tilopl' 'l' IllS to 11l1' to 1)(' ,t unit: till' 'l nH'n are the same in
II C:ullou~ly thi~ PIl'SIIPIH1SI'S iI hUlI1,ll1 Ilfl .p.11I 11~~s lh.ln Ih>lt of (,ltt!I,1 Hilt lilt' 1.lrll r,t'I, ,Im\ d/.l IS 'I\IIIUlIIII\I', I',uhl I than pllll'\ il,d
I'XIIII .1011 ,. III I 1111l.lllly fllllllUl.l\I
168 CHAPTER THREE BIOGRAPHICAL STATEMENTS AND EPITHETS Ibq

B. Again I made a capture 'on' this expedition in the country 'the (as) they call it. 22 I was the one that mounted the fort [ification I,
]uniper-Ridge'15 west of Aleppo. I brought off Asiatics (c3mw) as the [sp]eediest of the [entire] army.
prisoners of war, 13 men (along with) 70 live donkeys and bronze: G. Again I witnessed his victories in the land of vile Takhsy23 in
13 axes, and bronze worked with gold [....] the town of Mariu(?). I made a capture in it in the presence of
C. Again I made a capture 'on' this expedition in the land of the king, and I brought off 3 c3mw as prisoners of war. Then
Carchemish, and I brought off [....] as prisoners of war. I my lord gave me the Gold-of-Favor. Tally thereof: gold, 2 col-
crossed the water of Naharin l6 with them in my custody [... and] lars, 4 rings, 2 'flies,' one lion(amulet); one female and one male
I [set] them before my lord. Thereupon he conferred on me a servant.
great reward, the tally whereof [....]. H. Again [I witnessed] another fine deed which my lord accom-
D. Now I witnessed the victories of the King of Upper and Lower plished in Niya, when he hunted 120 elephants for their ivory.24
Egypt Menkheperre, given life! In the country of Sn-n-d.3r I7 [among] Then the largest elephant among them began to attack His
whom he made a [great] slau[ghter. I made a captive in the Majesty. I it was that cut off his trunk while he was still alive,
presence of the king, and I brought off a hand there. 18 He gave in the presence of His Majesty, while I was standing in the water
me the gold-of-favor: tally thereof [....], silver: 2 rings. 19 between two stones. Thereupon my lord rewarded me with gold
E. Now again I witnessed his prowess while I was in his train: [he] [....] and 5 articles of clothing.
plundered [the town(?) of]20 Kadesh, and I did not stray from 1. Then the chief of Kadesh released a mare and [it galloped] upon
the place where he was. I brought off two maryannu [as pris- its legs and entered into the midst of the army; and I ran after
oners of war that I might set them] before the king, the lord of her on foot with my sword(??5 And ripped open her belly. I
the Two Lands, Thutmose ruler-of-Wese, living for ever! He gave (thereupon) cut off her tail and presented it before His Majesty.26
me 'Gold-for-Bravery' in a public appearance [.. .J. Tally thereof: Thanks was showered on me for it: he gave forth with rejoic-
Gold of (leonine) valor, 2 collars; 2 'flies,' 4 rings. ing, and it filled my soul! A thrill shot through my limbs!
F. Now I saw my lord upon [the land of ...] in all his transfor- J. Authorization by His Majesty that every elite trooper27 of his
mations/I in the land, the northern part of [....]-~3-[... ] army should proceed to breach the new rampart (Sbry)28 which

15 T3 15t wen: A Lucas, JR. Harris, Ancient Egyptian Materials and Industries (London,

1989), 437; N. Baum, Arbres et arbustes de l'ancien Egypte (Leuven, 1988), 251-52. It 22 It is not clear whether we should read 1;3st phwy n T[ . .J or I;3st p~wy nl [...].
is tempting to posit an Akkadian toponym from dupranu (CAD III [1959], 189-90) In the former case the name of the land will have begun with s.
cf. The Ugaritic toponym *gt dpmm: M.C. Astour, "Ancient North Syrian Toponyms 23 The northern Beka'a, south of Kadesh: P. Der Manuelian, Studies in the Reign
derived from Plant Names," in G. Rendsberg (ed), The Biblical World (New York, of Amenophis II (Hildesheim, 1987), 51-53; A. Alt, ZDPV 70 (1953), 39-40; S.
1980), 3 no. 14. Mittmann, U. Muller, Archaeologischen Survey in der nordlichen Biq'a, Herbst 1972,
16 In the context this can only be the Euphrates. Wiesbaden, 1976.; R. Gundlach, "Tachsi," in W' VI (1986), 143-44; P. der
17 Kala'at Sejar on the Orontes between Niya and Tunip: Gardiner, Ancienl Manuelian, Studies in the Reign of Amenophis II (Hildesheim, 1987), 51-58; on the writ-
Egyptian Onomastica I, 157*; apparently an independent state in the Bronze Age (d. ing see M. Gbrg, "Von 'Tahsi' nach 'Batti,'" BN 45 (1988), 22-25.
The "king of Sinzar" EA 53:42), though later within the sphere of Apamea ('Niya : 24 AM. Gnirs, "Die aegyptische Autobiographie," in A Loprieno, Ancient Egyptian
Strabo xvi. 2.10 (Larissa). Lileralure. History and Forms (Leiden, 1996), 214, n. 116.
18 I.e. he killed an enemy. 25 A hapax: mscw.
19 AR. Schulman, Ceremonial Execution and Public Rewards (Freibourg, 1988), I 16 '17; 20 On the motif of the mare sent out among the stallion-drawn chariots, cf. Cant.
S. Aufrere, L'Univers mineral dans la pensee egyptienne (Cairo, 1991), n, 366 67. I, 9; M.H. Pope, "A Mare in Pharaoh's Chariotry," BASOR 200 (1970), 56-61.
20 This could as easily be restored r IJ3 w], "the district of" 27 O!ZI2: trl'ated by Chevcrl'au as an honorific title (Proso/Jographie, 197-98). The
21 The word has rather heavy overtones of forms of being and stages of growth presl'nt passa~l' might slI/tgt'SI il morl' formal catl'gory.
cf. J. asing, Die Nomil7albildung dej Aegyptijchen (Maim~, 1976), 550 52;.J. ASSll1illlll A Thl' ~lallcl,\I(1 ICI111 fill 0111 I'IH Imun' \\ilil on a monumelltal scale which COI11-
Zeit und 8w(l(keit (Ill'iddbeq~, 1(75), 22; idon, ,J.lJifl..lf drr 1/lrllllr?ylllllrhm Rtli~/(I" pit"Il'ly sUII()uf1(l~ ~()IIll"lilil1" II IlIph dl} ('II'.): P B,u~lIl't. 1,(' Trmlile d'Amon re n
Wi('sb,lc!l'l1. 197,),. 3D. AmUlH'll1lwl, PlObilbl} l111'illlS Illoll hI \V,I. '.0 dO:.l' to till IlIlnlflh 1',11 i I <)h? IIII' lilli' .!l; C, II 1I1111'l hl'l', l 'Ill' Su'II' 1'OIlIIllt'll1Cl1illll 1<1 rOll
kil1l( Ih.1\ Ill' ',1\\ 111111 ,II ,til liIm, ,\1111 ill .tll .H"II\ illl I. Inllllllll III 1'1'1111' lillI' eI'lIl1 11'lIIpll' ell' .\111111011 III/tilt/I.. i 11)7', IIH II),.J p
 170 CHAPTER THREE BIOGRAPHICAL STATEMENTS AND EPITHETS 171

Kadesh had made. I was the one that breached it as the leader The important facts to note about the section following the remi-
of all the elite-no one was ahead of mel-and I came out and niscences of the 8th campaign, that is to say D to H (above) are (a)
brought maryannu, 2 individuals, as prisoners of war. Again did the formula involving "capture" is replaced by one employing "to
my lord reward me for it with every fine thing of the heart's see" (m33), and (b) Amunemheb is rewarded no less than three times!
satisfaction!" In this section Amunemheb is concerned with subordinating his
exploits to the mere fact of his presence on the campaign, and his
witnessing the mighty deeds of his sovereign. If the number of dec-
Commentary orations is a valid indication, we would be dealing with three cam-
The contents of this text for the history of Thutmose's military activ- paigns; but, on the evidence of the changed format, there is no prior
ity in Asia cannot be denied. Scholarship has generally and con- necessity to assume they follow in chronological order. Of the places
vincingly, assigned episodes A, Band C to a single campaign.29 While listed Senjar (D) occurs in no known campaign, although nos. 11
the inclusion of the Negeb incident may be questioned,30 the battles and 12 are a blank in our knowledge, and the Nukhashshe towns
at Juniper Ridge and Carchemish are clearly linked to what goes taken on the 9th and 13th campaigns are unnamed. The partly pre-
before by the use of the expression m wflyt tn, "on this expedition."31 served [...] ha [...] in F sounds like a distant land, to judge by the
Moreover, one would have difficulty separating the incident of cross- presence of the locution ar.tw rj33 and the reference to the #w. One
ing the "water of Naharin" from the battle at Carchemish, since the is reminded that in the 10th campaign the battle took place at Aryan,
captives he took were taken across the water to be set before the far to the north, where the king of Mittani had assembled an army
king. All in all, it does least damage to the evidence to assign these from p~w n tJ. Takhsy (G) is mentioned nowhere in the annals, but
incidents to the 8th campaign in year 33. 32 Minmose declares he was an eyewitness to Thutmose's capture of
The recurrent formula in this section is "I made a capture" (aft/ if3), 30 towns therein;34 and in the earliest of Amenophis II's campaigns
three times. Only once is he decorated and that at the end of the Takhsy with its seven chiefs was the main target. 35 One wonders,
section. If soldiers were decorated only once per campaign, this rnigh t therefore, whether the Takhsy campaign is not to be placed at the
be a reliable rule of thumb in trying to ascertain the number of' end of Thutmose's reign, after year 42. 36
expeditions the old soldier is recalling. In the account of the Niya elephant hunt (H) the formula changes
again, although Sethe's restoration conceals the fact. In contrast to
the two earlier occurrences of the formula iw w~m.n.i m33, we now
Corteggiani, "Une stele heliopolitaine d'epoque Saite," Hommages Sauneron (Cairo, have w~m [...] fry sp with only two groups missing and scarcely
1979), 148 n. 4. For its use in the Megiddo description, see above, p. 00. enough room for n.i m33. The probability is that we have here
29 Cf. Classically Gardiner, Onomastica, I, 156-8*; the tendency has perhaps becll
overdone: cf. E. Meyer, Geschichte des Altertums II, I (Stuttgart, 1928), 131 n. 1 (pos- another phrase, like w~m [.i dd] or Oess likely?) VVlzm.[n ~mj irt].
tulating chronological consistency); E. Drioton, J. Vandier, L'Egypte (Paris, 1962" Moreover the two incidents which follow concern themselves with
403-4,444-45; M.S. Drower, "Syria c. 1550-1400 B.C.," CAH II, I (Cambridge. animal exploits, and it is only on this basis that they are grouped
1973), 456; Klengel, Geschichte Syrians II, 32; Heick, Beziehungen, 141-43.
30 If, as is virtually certain, the "Negeb" here is the same as the Biblical "d" together. Contrary to Gardiner's thesis, they cannot be placed in
country" (Hoch, Semitic Wordl-, 196 no. 263), i.e. the terrain south of Hebron, it i, series on the basis of an assumed chronological progression.
difficult to see what this has to do with a campaign which went by sea and begall
essentially in Byblos. Did Arnunemheb trundle his prisoners all the way to north
Syria? And what was he doing detached from the main force? While these ques
33 Cf. The way Mitanni is first mentioned in Egyptian sources: L. Borchardt,
tions might (with difficulty) find answers, it may be safer to sec a the17latic link: 'I
prisoners in each case. Illaegyptische Zeilmessung (Berlin, 1920), Tafel 18.
'11 Scc bclow, p. 00. Lo('alin~ Amuncmhcb's Takhsy incident to the 8th cam-
31 Urk. IV, 891:2,8. There is no evidence that the adversaries here were thl
"troops from Millani": Klengel, Syria 3000 lo'JOO B.G., 92. paign leads to ('onrusion and l'lror in llt(· geography or Takhsy: Gardiner, Onomastica,
12 Gardiner (O/1017IfLIlica I, 157*) would add D, E and C to this Ii,t ,IS ll'Il\l'll1 I, I!iO!i2*.
{('Jl(I'S of this (,;ullpaiKIl, oddly Oltlillllll( I' For Ihh tl\l'lI i' 1111 C'l1IJ1pdlillll Il';lotlll
I' l'rA. IV t 'J.IJ7 I.
beylllld ,I l,d'I' 1IltllltiOll " SrI !lllthl'l twill\\', p. IlO
172 CHAPTER THREE BIOGRAPHICAL STATEMENTS AND EPITHETS 173

Finally comes episode J in which, in the final assault on Kadesh, IV. CONSTRUCTION ENGINEER MINMOSE 38
Amunemheb led the sappers, breached the wall and captured two
maryannu. As HeIck has seen, this is but an expanded duplicate or " . • . . 39 [hereditary prince, count], grandee of the King of Upper

episode E. It is true that, in the description of the rewards, dis- Egypt, magnate of the King of Lower Egypt, count-bishop of the
crepant phraseology is used: nbw n qnn in one case and Jq3w in the prophets of Montu, lord of Thebes, superintendent of construction
other; but the old campaigner may be allowed stylistic variation. 37 in the temples of the gods [of Upper and Lower Egypt], king's-
One does not have to read chronological progression into this scribe, Minmose.
series of events to make sense out of them. Rather, Amunemheb is He says:
grouping his exploits according to another criterion entirely, viz. by 'I followed the perfect god, the King of Upper and Lower Egypt
theme. First come his most cherished (and earliest?) memories, when Menkheperre, given life! Through every land he trod. I saw how
he distinguished himself in the 8th campaign; next those incidenls His Majesty's [arm] waxed strong in [every land unto] the end of
in which he was an eye-witness to the king's triumphs; finally two the earth! And how [His Majesty] crossed [that water of Naharin ....]40
animal incidents, the second of which leads into a more detailed I saw him overthrow the land of Nubia, retracing his steps41 in
description of the assault on Kadesh. [ ] those who came to [....] while I was in His Majesty's train
The chronological distribution of the campaigns of Amunemheb in [ ]
may, therefore, be set forth as follows: [I trod] Upper [Retenu] behind my lord. I set the tax quota42 for
[Upper] Retenu [in silver, gold], lapis, various gem-stones, chariots
Episodes A, B, C, H: clearly the 8th campaign. and horses without number, and cattle and wild game multitudinous
Episode D: conceivably the 8th, but the 13th is a distinct possibility. as they were. I instructed the chiefs of Retenu about [their] yearly
Episode F: possibly the 10th. labor-taxes.
Episode G: unnumbered-between years 42 and 49. I set the tax quota for the chiefs of the land of Nubia in elec-
Episodes E, I and J. trum in ore-form,43 in gold, ivory and ebony, and numerous ships
of dome-palm wood, as a tax-quota of each year, like dependents
This (single) episode poses a problem in identification. In the extanl of his palace.
day-book excerpts Kadesh is mentioned (apart from the first cam- May His Majesty offer himself as my witness! Indeed! These lands
paign) in the 6th and the last. In the former the fields around lhe [ have spoken (of), my lord got them with his might, his bow, his
town are laid waste, in the latter three towns in its territory an' arrow and his axe. 44 I know it! I inventoried them, and they were
attacked. Since, however, in the last account half the column is miss placed under the authority of the treasury!
ing at a crucial point, a reference to the sacking of Kadesh rna}
once have stood in the lacuna. The observation (in J) that lhe
fortifications of the city had just been strengthened, lends creckl1(,(,
to a later rather than an earlier date: the act of re-fortifYing sug
311 Urk. IV, 1441-42; H. Kees, Das Priestertum im aegyptischen Staat vom Neuen Reich
gests precaution born of familiarity with the pressure of conslant bis zur Spaetzeit (Leiden, 1953), 33-34; Heick, ,(ur VenvaLtung des mittleren und neuen
Egyptian attacks. The campaign in question may even dale cifier year Reiches (Leiden, 1958), 271-72; ef. Der Manuelian, Studies in the Reign if Amenophis
42, and be identical with G. If, 164 66; B. Bryan, The Reign if Thutmose IV (Baltimore, 1991),46-48.
39 Iftp di IlSW formula.
10 Or perhaps restore par wr lIl-s3 jJ(tw sw?
II Uif IImt, or "opposing the ill\ursion(?)."
I~ fllr.
17 Note Iw\\ the ('XplTssjoll 1m- lib occurs ill both 1'l'lll'Ollt'S; "('\('1)0111''' ill E IrA II .J. R /I.u lis, IJ.\/((}J/TIJ/ilIICIII SII/I/I,\ "' IlIrlml 1'4.'l·pllall Mineral.s (Berti n, 1961), 48.
I\', Ill}')' 12, ,mel lilt lib 11/' "('\( I) /o4o()(1 IhIlW" 1I1.J II!) I 1I (;al.1I1 r Ifltl/)' nil" /lmtll'T Illl J I.
174 CHAPTER THREE BIOGRAPHICAL STATEMENTS AND EPITHETS 175

I saw how the arm of His Majesty waxed strong when (he took happened to] be in the place where I was. Happy was [....] I went
to) fighting, plundering 30 towns within the region of Takhsy,45 forth to this my [... who ride(?)] upon the storm. I entered into
(whence) their chiefs, chattels and cattle were brought off. I led the Lebanon [.... Hathor, mistress of Byblos, and I authorized] that an
king's renowned army, in my capacity as king's agent who does what offering of a myriad of things be presented to her on behalf [of the
(he) is told." life, prosperity and health of the Sovereign....] therein, (viz.) Byblos,
who had given herself to her Lord voluntarily, gave him [her timber],
the choicest thereof. I got (trunks) 60 cubits in [their] length [....]
Commentary
They were sharper than an ear of grain, and their top(s) were
Minmose singles out at the beginning two representative campaigns. thick[er than....] I [had] them [dragged down] from the uplands
The first, to judge from the "crossing" of water, must be the 8th of "God's-Country", and (they) arrived at the shore(sic)51 of Lebanon,
campaign. This would be consonant with Minmose's claim on his [and were loaded on to ships. I sailed across the s] ea with fair wind,
Tura inscription to have erected a stela in the land of Naharin. 46 making landfall [....]'"
The second is the overthrow (sbrt) of the land of .N1},sy, which must
refer to whatever Thutmose was doing in the south in year 49-50.41
Commentary
He then describes his function as assessor of taxes in Asia and Nubia,
and invokes the king as witness to the veracity of his statements. Apart from shrine 13 at Silsilah,52 all Sen-nufer's monuments are
Then follows a further exploit, this time one in which he distin- firmly dated to the reign of Thutmose IIp3 He is still present in
guished himself as commander of the elite force, in Takhsy. The office four months into the 32nd year. 54 It is tempting to link Sen-
inference one might make is that this event took place in the same nufer's exploit of cutting and transporting the flag-staves with the
reign, viz. that of Thutmose III; after all, there has been no change celebrated adornments on and around the 7th pylon which, as we
of cartouche! Yet it remains barely possible , in the light of Amenophis have argued above,55 are to be dated to years 33-34. If the refer-
II's early activity in Takhsy, that it might be his campaign that ence to "storm-cloud" is to be taken seriously,56 Sen-nufer's voyage
Minmose refers to. 48 will have coincided, in part, with the winter season (as did Wenamun's).
It is likely that his trip is to be dated rifler the crushing victory of
year 33, perhaps in the winter of that year.
V. THE KEEPER OF THE SEAL AND SUPERINTENDENT OF THE
GOLD LANDs OF AMUN, SEN-NUFER49

"Now it is the hereditary prince, count, royal sealer [sole friend ....50
Sennufer that speaks: 'I crossed the se]a, [I ... . lengtfry lacuna . .. which 51 Read spt in all probability; less likely r-r-c, "vicinity" or the like. To supply a
~rst person suffix at this point would be out of place.
52 R.A. Caminos, T.G.H. James, Gebel es-Silsilah (London, 1963), 37-39. Heick
plausibly suggests that Sen-nufer usurped an unfinished grotto begun under Hatshep-
<5 Above, p. 169 n. 23. ~lIl and superimposed his sovereign's, Thutmose Ill's, name: "Die Datierung des
<6 Cf. G. Daressy, "Inscriptions des carrieres de Tourah et Masarah," ASAE II SchalZmeisters Senncfer," GM 43 (1981), 39-41.
(1911), 258. 5~j S. Ratie, La Reine Hatchepsout. Sources et problemes (Leiden, 1979), 286-87.
<7 See above, pp. 161-162. 51 M. Meg-ally, l~ Papyrus hihatique comptable E. 3226 du Louvre (Cairo, 1971), pI.
<8 Cf. Heick, Geschichte des Allen Aegypten (Leiden, 1968), 162; der Manuclian, op. cil., (i5 (A Rccto xi.34).
53-54. Klengel (Syria 3000 to 300 B.C., 94) assigns thc erecting of thc stcla to 55 Above, p. 125.
Thutmose's reign, but includes the Takhsi battles in the 8lh campaig-n (following .1" There may well b\' deeper, myt holog'jeal overtones to Scn-nufcr's choice of
Gardiner). I xpn'ssion. CL The well-kn()\\ n epithel of Ha'al, "Rider of the Clouds": P.E. Dion,
"" Urk. IV, 534 35; ANE'l' (3rd cd), 2'1 :3; I~. I~ichler, "Dje Rei~('n des Scnn('[,\ "Y!I\VII ,IS SIOI tll/inll ,LIlli Suu-god. Till' DOll!>lt, Leg'at y of Ep;ypl and Canaan as
('1"1' 99)," ,'\./'1,'26 (199H), 215 2!l; S.S. l~irlilt'I, f)1r Vml~II/1II1Jl dn 'I!nlMI dr\ 111111/11 Rdlt'lll'd ill I's,dlll jOI." "JII 1(J:1 !l)1l1 'il :i'J and IWII'S 'j2 'jl; NY. Lemehe,
III dn fR. /)'l'I/lII/1I' f Id,llh,ll!!: 'l()()() , 'j 17 1l0l0 I }',rllllir III /1"'1'1" /'1111 (I'I'lIl1ndy. :\Ial 1!Jill!, 17'2 WI: ,J lullll, (,(///(/(1111/('1 1\!001ll'lll,
., I hl'll 1Il,Iy ill' 1111111 tllk ,It till I JllIllIl 1!JllIl:. 11 rl.
176 CHAPTER THREE BIOGRAPHICAL STATEMENTS AND EPITHETS 17

VI. THE GREAT WlfMW OF THE KING ANrEF 57 Who reckons the courtiers and ushers in the dignitaries, and induC'ls
the king's nobles into their positions;
"Hereditary prince, count, uniquely beloved courtier, mayor of Thinis Manager of managers, organizing a million men, chief of the most
in the Abydos township, chief of the Oasis in its entirety,58 great prominent officers of the departments, one of the first rank, able in
w~mw of the king59 Antef repeating life and possessed of veneration ... the presence,
who is in the heart of the Perfect God, able scribe of the accounts, One who transmits the words of the plebs and reports on the
great w~mw of the king ... chief w~mw of the Porte, he says: Condition of the Two Banks, who speaks to the point(?) in camera;63
o ye living upon earth, all ye people, priest, scribe and lector One who goes in with acclamation(?)64 and comes out with praise,
who may enter into this tomb of the necropolis, who love life (sic) who sets every man in the place of his father, One who gives sat-
as surely as ye hate death! Your town gods shall favor you, ye shall isfaction and is praised by the praised;
not experience the fear of a foreign(lry) land,60 ye shall be buried in One at whose speech the magistrates station themselves, who effects
your tombs and hand on your offices to your children, whether ye the arrangements of the audience hall,65
be those that read your (sic) words on this stela in writing, or (sim- Who produces directives in the king's-house LPH and lets every-
ply) listen to them 6! just as ye say: an offering that the king gives one know his duties,
to Amun, Lord of the Thrones of the Two Lands, that he might Who makes splendid [....], awe of him in the midst of the throne-
give 8,000 bread, beer, beef, fowl and cloth to the ku of the hered- room;66
itary prince and count, seal bearer, sole friend, Who silences the disputant and preserves decorum,67 with careful
Trusted by the king with the command of his troops, who makes steps when discretion is called for;
the staff-officers of the elite corps step lively;62 Plummet of the balance of the Perfect God which guides all the
people to what they should do;
Who says: 'Let it be done!' and [immediately] it is, just as though
57 P-M I (2), 263-65 (TT 155). it were an enunciation from the god's mouth!
58 For the prominence of Thinis in the 18th Dynasty, see R.W. Smith, D.1l
Redford, The Akhenaten Temple Project. 1. Initial Discoveries (Warminster, 1977), 119 and Who brings the Sun-folk's attention to reckoning their labor-taxes68
the sources there given; G.P.F. van den Boom, The Duties rif the Vizier (London, for the king;
Stern69 towards every foreign land, who does business with their
1988), 214. On the 8th township of Upper Egypt and its connexions with the oas(·,.
see W. HeIck, Die altaegyptische Gaue (Wiesbaden, 1974), 130; F. Gomaa, Die Besiedlllll,~
Aegyptens wiihrend des Mittleren Reiches II. (Wiesbaden, 1987), 389-93; G. Wagner, ! J'I chiefs, One with large balances when he does the accounts;
Oasis d'Egypte Ii l'epoque grecque, romaine et byzantine (Cairo, 1987), 143. Alert [....], who knows what is in the heart of the Sovereign
59 Sources for discussion in S. and D. Redford, The Akhenaten Temple Project Vol
4. The Tomb rif Re'a (IT 201) (Toronto, 1994), 29-35. The office differs markedh LPH;
from the office of whmw in the 2nd Intermediate Period. (With) a tongue (free to) talk to him that is in the palace;
60 Cf. Wb. V, 215':144, lit. "Another land." The passage is probably to be tak('11
literally, i.e. as "foreign parts" (ef. Sir A.H. Gardiner, J. Cerny, Hieratic Ol/ll/m
[Oxford, 1956], pI. VIIIA, no. 3, 9), rather than as a reference to the Underwodd
61 One of the few locutions that betray formal "readings" of texts for the b('n('lJl
of the illiterate or "slow" readers: D.B. Redford, "Scribe and Speaker." in E. 1l('11 63 Lit. "Who speaks about business in the secret place": cf. Wb. II, 179: 16.
vi and others (eds), Writings and Speech in Israelite and Ancient Near Enstem PrOp/l/'ll 6< But possibly read nfrwt, "good things": Wb. II, 259:9.
(Atlanta, 2000), 161. 65 Read cryt.
62 On the mnj3t/mrifjt, always in the context of infantry, s('(' A.R. SChllllll.11l 66 St wrt: A.H. Gardiner, "The Founding of a New Delta Town in the Twentieth
Military Rank, Title and Organization in Ihe New Kingdom (B('r1in, 1964), 13f; C. Vand('rsln.1I1 Dynasty," JEA 34 (1948), 21 n. 4; K.P. Kuhlmann, Der TIlron im altenAegypten (1979),
Les guerres d'Amosis (Brllx('J1es, 1968), 177 90; P.-M. Ch('V('r('all, Pro.lol)(~~aplt;r drl (mlr 28, 98fT; P. Spencer, TIle R.lfYplian Temple. A Lexicographical Study (London, 1088),
milila;res ~IfYPtienJ dll nOllvel empire (Paris, 1991), <12 II; bill cf. AJ Spalill~l'r, ,hlJrtll 108 14.
lif Ihe Mililary f)ommen/l qf lite ,'mienl !\J,'1'plial/.l (N('w Ilawll, 1982), l)(, 11. () I, HUI Ill< h7 Sljpr rill7/!: JI<.. Ilof1illl'il'1', Sacred ;/1 lite 1'()('(IIJ!lla~')I of Alleielll Hgypi (Golling('n,
mllfj'l ('olllci also l'Il~<'g(' ill ('OIlSllllllioll Wlli k' I' '\11,1'1 I I I ') ))O('S Ihl' .lppl II 1l)8!)), 1771".
.11'('(' of.J '11t 01 Iltl' II//Iftl 1111 IJ( oil I' 01 'til t or 1(1'lltll'llIoIlllY" ,1.1111\ II II Iltl' II Itlli. 'oil f1'/~7/'1; ItII "lilt IlIlpmlS ~/'I' Iwlow, pp. ') I :If!
IllIp'I,' ('f I (; II J,IIItt'~, (,lIIflllI 01 IIlfI"dl/J!//( "/11/1/'11111/\ In Iltr /I"'flUI'/I .\/llIrlill/ r ,," .\illl/Itl I~"'. 1\, I'I'.!·~!II, 'l'ltt' ('~pll·A.,illll ,ITIlIS 10 It,II/' 01 11HII/' '('11'1/' (Ollllll
,( lxl<lId, l'Ii'II, III', '1'1', Ipl II 1.1111111 11t.1I1 11m I. II til \\ill IIlIm\
178 CHAPTER THREE BIOGRAPHICAL STATEMENTS AND EPITHETS 179

Eyes of the king, heart of the palace-lord-an instruction for the Discoursing in speech according to what he thinks-there is noth-
entire land!- ing he does not know!
Who curbs the rebel and expels the defiant [....J from the con- Who pays attention to him that speaks truth, ignoring him that
tentious, speaks falsehood,
Who seizes upon(?Yo thieves, who deals tough with those who deal [....J, not mild towards him that runs on at the mouth;
tough, hard-liner 7l against hard-liners, One who went out of his way to do good, well-disposed one who
Who forces down the arm of the smart-ass and frustrates the VIO- brings calm,
lent in his moment (of glory), Who does not distinguish the one he does not know from the one
Who makes the lawless man follow the instructions of the letter he does know, busy 76 with the concerns of associates,
of the law, even though it is against his disposition; Patient in hearing petitioners, who judges [two men to thJeir
Very dreadful towards criminals, inspiring fear among the natu- (mutual) [satisfaction,
rally defiant, One who showed no partiality to the liar, free from bias,
Banisher of the rebel, punisher of the violent; Who acquits him who is in the right, and punishes the criminal
Prospering the palace and establishing its laws, pacifying multi- for his crime;
tudes [or its lord- Supporter77 of the wretched, father of the poor,
The chief VVlzmw of the Porte, mayor of Thinis in the Abydos Guide of the orphan, mother of the fearful,
township, chief of the Oasis in its entirety, able scribe skilled in thc Refuge of him who has been attacked, proteetor78 of the sick,
script,72 Antef ... Champion of the one deprived 79 of his property by him that is
Unique and wise, equipped with knowledge and truly prosperous; more powerful than he;
One who can tell the fool from the one who knows, who can dis- Husband of the widow, refuge of the orphan [....J ...
tinguish the (true) craftsman and ignores the ignoramus; One over whom his acquaintances80 exult, praised for his character,
Wise(?y 3 Very clever and patient in audience.... One to whom men of good will and gods sing hymns, inasmuch
Free from wrong-doing, useful to his masters, as he is good,
Straightforward74 with no evil in him, Whom health and life is prayed for by all men;
Skilled in every means, respectful of the pleasant, The g[reatJ w~mw of the audience hall, chief steward, overseer of
Hearkening to his plea, mild to the calm-tempered, granaries, manager of all the construction work of the king's house
Acting as spokesman for him that acts according to his policy.... LPH, to whom every office reports, who reckons the labor taxes of
Who knows the devisings 75 of the mind before they have passed managers, mayors and reeves of Upper and Lower Egypt, the able
the lips, scribe Antef, justified. He says:

76 Phr, with overtones of service: cf. Devaud, op. cit., 27: 199, 29:235; J.W.B. Barns,

Five Ramesseum Papyri (Oxford, 1956), pI. 1, A: I 7 (" ... when his conversation turned
70 Wb. III, 80:5; is this writing a simplex of Wb. II, 296:11, or is Antef manu- to what had happened ..."); cf. Urk. IV, 1383:7.
facturing an "archaism"? 77 Mrw used collectively; the idea of "support" is a primary connotation of the
71Sam-ib. word: cf. Merikare 22, 57, 100.
n IV!lr rbf, lit. "Who can interpret the signs": Wb. V, 477: 16; KRJ II, 387: 1.1; 7ij Mkly: the noun mkt, "protection," whence comes the derived noun, bears thera-
for th(' literacy with which learncd men of the reign prided thcmselves, s('(' D.B. peutic overtones: cf. J.F. Borghouts, Ancient Egyptian Magical Texts (Leiden, 1978),
R('dford, PI/(//{/onir hill,/; hILl, Annals alld Day books (Mississauga, 1986), I G6f'. I 18; F. A-M Ghallas, Das Blich Mk.t-hcw, "Schutz des Leibes", Gbttingen, 1968.
7'1 '13 iii: /I 'b. V, :H~:t); ulllikl'ly to have anything to do \\ith the idiom "to 1)(' ,'. Read as passive paniciple from rwi, "to remove, expel," with the prothetic,
dl'plt'sst'd, disllllU aw'd'" E. \)('\;<llId, !II ,111/\11//1'1 de P(a/i/i"lt/1 Friholllg, It) I(i" Il);(d \'uphoni( au~nH'llt, anticipalin~ thl' prothctic alif of Late Egyptian. On the sense
\\"11,11111111 'J Ill) ShllU ,llId the (;I'IIl'I,li (:h,li'. I , 'I: x,tll S('( P V('II\IIS, lumlns (:ailO. I 1}7h), ~ I n. r.
(,,,1 Iii J Pass\\l' 1
10111 1< IP'" \\Ith ('lIphonil .1IIg11H'llt; (L thc "cl11phatic" i.,fdm.f in which
RI·.. d lIu'·r- is le'lIdl'lnl 11\ /II' (,A 1\ tlll.h
 180 CHAPTER THREE BIOGRAPHICAL STATEMENTS AND EPITHETS 181

'That's my character and witness of me! And there is by no means army; and (by the time) my lord came safely to me I had provi-
exaggeration therein! sioned it. I supplied it with all good and desirable things (available)
That's my nature in truth, and there is no misstatement in it; abroad (br b3st), better than an Egyptian palace, purified, cleansed,
Nor indeed are there euphemismss1 of boasting of me falsely- with privacy and security for their apartments, and the pantry staffed
what I have done s2 is in fact my personality- by its attendants. So I caused the king's heart to be satisfied with
It's my function in the king's-house LPH, its my service in the what [IJ did [....J me. I assessed the benevolences of the chiefs
palace LPH, its my duties in the audience hall- who are in every foreign land in silver, gold, oil, incense and wine.'"
It was my heart that made me do it through his guidance for me,
and he is a good witness [for meJ;
Commentary
I never discounted what he said, I was afraid to overstep his direc-
tion- This text provides the best description of the duties of the chief royal
I prospered very much on account of it and I benefited on account whmw, at least in the middle of the 18th Dynasty. The office appears
of what he made me do! to encompass and combine the tasks of a chief-of-staff and spokesman
Virtue came to me through his direction, Indeed! [....J by peo- for the king with those of a judicial prosecutor. While the function
ple. He is the divine utterance which is in every body, hovers on the fringe of a paramilitary role, Antef is aware that he
And its a lucky man whom he has lead on the good road of belongs to a civil, rather than military, cadre of official. As the officer
action. See! I'm an example of that! responsible for preparing the way for the expedition, his role will
Now I followed the king of the Two Lands and stuck close to his have dovetailed with that of the "superintendent of fortresses in the
footsteps in [the northern and the southern lands; northern foreign lands," Si-amun, who, it is argued below,85 was in
I attained the exJtreme south of the earth, I arrived at its north- charge of the coastal depots and their supplies.
ern extremity at the feet of His Majesty LPH. The final passage of the biography calls to mind the generic state-
I was as much a soldiers3 as the master swordsman, and deported ment at the conclusion to the entry in the Daybook excerpts for
myself like his braves. year 40 86 where the restored text states that the benevolences were
Every palace S4 situated (br-s3) in a foreign land was assessed for received wherever the king established a camp. Here, the inclusion
[supplies] and I travelled before the elite corps at the head of the of Antef's role in assessing the benevolences, juxtaposed with the
description of the rest-houses, suggests we are dealing with the same
thing, viz. a field for the reception of inw. That ihw is used in one
81 fiVb. IV, 335: 13.
82 Wnt ir.i: again, as in the case of the prothetic augments noted above, we havc passage and cb in the other, should give rise to no problem: the
here a reflexion of the vernacular, viz. the preterital convertor wn which, unlike king's choice of venue could fall equally on municipal or rural set-
other convertors in the Late Egyptian system, retained the ability to inflect lor both ting, depending upon the occasion.
gender and relativity,
83 OJIn.i, modal nominalisation. The effect is to stress the fact (which can bc
elicited clearly from the rest of the text) that Antef was not a soldier by profession,
Here and in the following line there is a rhetorical play on qni, "to be courageous,"
and qnw, "brave, commando/ranger": fiVb. V, 44: 17; A.R. Schulman, lvIilitary Rank,
Title and Organization in the New Kingdom (Berlin, 1964), 67; P.-M. Chcvcrcau, Prosopographie
des cadres militaires egyptiens du Nouvel Empire (Paris, 1994), 197 200.
84 C(Z nb: the king's rest-houses when on progress in Egypt are called C(I: P. Lacau,
H. Chevrier, Vne CltapeLle d'Hatslzepsout a Kamak (Cairo, 1977), I, 98; Joe, GOyOll,
COl1fil7llalioll dll pOllvoir au nouvel all (Cairo, 1972), 83 11, 3; ('f. The title {Jlp ((I, D.
.Jolles, .111 bzde\ qj'.II1(irnl ";gypliall Tillel, 1I/Jilhrtl alld Plmllfl oj'llte Old "'ill~dllm (Oxfold,
2000, 110 2.'i7l), 111 11H' pn's('lll ("ast' '\11\('1' is lalkillR of qll,lllt'ls ('OIll111,ll1d('('I('d ill
lht' 1()\\I1S Ill' \"01 lIlt' pI ,II 11(( IS 1l1a1('c1 In lilt' 101111111,1 1111 110ll-lllR th(' halllols: 0\ P '217 II,I:"
Rnlli"c1. }jry'/ll "",/ ((/1/1/111/ '" III, \'" 111111''/''1/1 :lk('II,!Ic'\,1 l'l'llll, :17 !lO III, /\1)11\1', II "r
 CHAPTER ONE

THE EARLY 18TH DYNASTY

(BEFORE YEAR 22 OF THUTMOSE III)

The extent of Egyptian involvement in the early 18th Dynasty was

modest and in many respects "traditional." In terms of hostile incur-
sions of a military nature, the Pharaohs of the time rarely indulged
themselves. lOne can point to the reduction of Sharuhen and excursions
into the Byblos region by Ahmose, 2 a possible clash somewhere in Asia(?)
Under Amenophis 1,3 a more formal invasion of the Orontes and north
Syria by Thutmose 1,4 and punitive action against transhumants,

[ For the evidence see D.B. Redford, "A Gate Inscription from Karnak and
Egyptian Involvement in Western Asia during the Early 18th Dynasty," JAOS 99
(1979), 270-87. The Position of Heick (Geschichte des Alten Aegypten, Leiden, 1968),
viz. that Ahmose automatically stepped into the Hyksos ruler's role as overlord of
Asia, is rightly rejected by H. Goedicke, "The End of the Hyksos in Egypt," in
L.H. Lesko (ed), Egyptological Studies in Honor if Richard H. Parker (Providence, 1986),
46-7. I must add, however, that I never espoused this view, pointing only to Egyptian
traditional perception.
2 C. Vandersleyan, Les Guerres d'Amosis, Bruxelles, 1971.
3 Cf. The large and beautiful limestone shrine of Amenophis I in the Sheikh
Labib storeroom at Karnak (personal observation) with a large scene-king's figure
c. 2.5 m. tall-showing the king slaughtering grovelling prisoners. Unfortunately the
identity of the latter cannot be determined.
4 Redford, op. cit., 274-76. The gate inscription, which I tentatively assigned to
i\menophis I, may in fact belong to Thutmose I: cf. L. Bradbury, "Nefer's Inscription:
on the Death Date of Queen Ahmose-Nefertary and the Deed found Pleasing to
the King," JARGE 22 (1985), 78-9. Since I wrote the gate has been published by
F. Le Saout, "Un magasin it onguents de Karnak et Ie probleme du nom de Tyr:
Mise au point," Gahiers de Karnak VIII (1987), 325-38, who assigns a 12th Dyn.
Date to the piece. I believe that this date can be demonstrated to be in error for
the following reasons. I. The range of toponyms conforms to the political configuration
of the Late Bronze, not the EB/MB Period. The interest in Qedem (= the hinter-
land of Byblos: W.F. Albright, Archaeology and the Religion if Israel [Baltimore, 1956],
i2; llelck, Be<.iehungen, 168 n. 43; not Nukhashshe, as F.:J. Schmitz, Amenophis I
[lliideshcim, 19781, 185) betrays the political interests of the 18th, not the early
12Lh, Dyn<lSLy wh(;n Byblos was noL a polity. Tunip, though known from a very
1'.1I1y prriod (J I. Ki('ngl'i, Cmhic!lle Syriens II IBerlin, 1969], 79-80; M.C. Astour,
"lli'lOI)' 01 Ebb," 11'b!lIi/ira 3 [19921, 9 n. 32), the city docs not figure as an adver-
.1I)' unlil lht' N('\~ Kin/olelo'l1. Si "llla (' Ililt. Zi (rv)a na, "mountain": C.F. del
t\lunt< • .J ri,t'hlt'l Nr/ln/om groRmplllIJllf r/fl '/f\/fl {llI/hjort/It.1. VI. Oir ()rll 1171d
1If/"(///lm df/ 1t1/1"/lId"" 'It\/,. 1\\ I\' h,llll'n. 1<) 7H I. 'll ~l bJings 1I~ into .t 1)('1 ioel
 CHAPTER ONE THE EARLY l8TH DYNASTY (BEFORE YEAR 22 OF THUTMOSE III) 187
186

perhaps in Lebanon. 5 An argument that there was once significantly rating the expulsion of the Hyksos from the Megiddo campaign those
more evidence, now lost, is based solely on an argument from silence, few texts bearing on Western Asia show a traditional interest in the
and founders on the complete absence of the expected circumstan- Levant, the chief component of which centers upon access to cedar,7
tial evidence ~arge numbers of POWs, booty, governors assigned, and Asiatic copper. s This meant simply maintaining the age-old con-
traces in the onomasticon, etc.).6 During the 7 or 8 decades sepa- nexion with Byblos and its environs9 and did not necessitate or entail
grandiose schemes of conquest. Allusions to dominion over Asia are
few, banal and conventional. 10
of Hittite dominance, certainly much later than the 12th Dyn. (Needless to say
equating Si-'u-na with Tyre is impossible on phonetic grounds). While occurring ear-
liest in Sinuhe, "Upper Retenu" is the common term for inland Syria during the
New Kingdom (HeIck, Beziehungen, 266-68. 2. The phrase m nat m wsr m m3c-arw
corresponds to New Kingdom usage, derived from a shorter Middle Kingdom phrase Picture," in J.H. Hayes, J.M. Miller, Israelite and Judaean History [Philadelphia, 1977],
(Redford, JAOS 99, 280 n. 8). 3. The orthography betrays an origin for two words 89; idem, "The Chronology of Syria-Palestine in the Second Millennium B.C.E. A
within a New Kingdom system, rather than a Middle Kingdom one. Tw-n-pi sug- Review of Current Issues," BASOR 288 (1992), 13-17). Even the debate over the
gests a Hittite form (del Monte-TiscWer, op. cit., 441) which would have been impos- agent of the destruction is, for me, a red herring, as I think pinning the blame on
sible in a text of 12th Dyn. date. The group-writing in D3-'u-ny approximates Late the Hurrian (N. Na'aman, "The Hurrians and the End of the Middle Bronze Age
Egyptian syllabic orthography, not the earlier system represented by the E(xecra- in Palestine," Levant 26 [1994], 175-87) is evoking a deus ex machina Now Dever has
tion) T(exts): d3 for sl zi is common in the New Kingdom, not found in the ET; set forth clearly and succinctly his position which now he maintains "even more
iw for iu is regular in the New Kingdom, virtually non-existent in ET: J. Hoch, strongly in the light of steadily accumulating evidence": "the Egyptian Pharaohs of
Semitic Words in Egyptian Texts qf the New Kingdom and Third Intermediate Period [Princeton, the early 18th Dynasty, after the expulsion of the 'Hyksos' from the Delta at the
1994], 487-512. 4. The iconographic details point to the early 18th Dyn. to the End of the 17th Dynasty, pursued the Asiatics back to their original homeland in
exclusion of the 12th. While the two-handled jars-the exact size cannot be pre- Palestine. There, in successive campaigns ... reasonably well attested in Egyptian
cisely estimated "in life"-shown on the trays of the offering bringers have a long texts, 18th Dynasty Pharaohs from Amenophis I to Thutmosis III ... systematically
life in the ceramic repertoire of the Levant, extending from late MB I to LB II destroyed the heavily-defended Middle Bronze II-III Palestinian City-states"
(P. Gerstenblith, The Levant at the Beginning qf the Middle Bronze Age [Winona Lake, 1983], (Studies . .. Ward, 91-2). Almost every aspect of this statement may be queried. What
p. 167, fig. 14 no. 16; I. Finkelstein and others reds], Megiddo III The 1992 to 1996 "steadily accumulating evidence" is the author referring to? Has there been a1ry in
Seasons [Tel Aviv, 2000], p. 229, fig. 10.4 no. 13; p. 241, fig. 10.13 no. 10), the the last decade or so? (Archaeological results cannot be counted, as it is their
jars in the Karnak scene most closely approximate forms in vogue at the end of significance that is at issue). The roster of evidence from Ahmose to Thutmose III
the Middle Bronze and the beginning of the Late Bronze (J. Bourriau, "Relations year 22 is the same as listed above, and provides no support for Dever's contention.
between Egypt and Kerma during the Middle and New Kingdoms," in V. Davies The acquisition of various commodities (on which see below) provides poor sup-
[ed] , Egypt and Africa. Nubia from Prehistory to Islam [London, 1993], fig. 6:14; P.E. port for anything beyond trade, and in no way necessitates the postulate of city-
McGovern, G. Harbottle, '''Hyksos' Trade Connections between Tell el-Daba (Avaris) destruction! And in the records of which kings is there any mention of systematic
and the Levant," in E. Oren (ed), The Hyksos: New Historical and Archaeological Perspectives destruction? Even in the Karnak door-jambs Qedem, Tunip, Zi'ana and the rest
[Philadelphia, 1997], 142-43). Finally: the queen's figure determinative most closely are not symbolically depicted as "destroyed," although it was in the repertoire of
resembles that of Tety-shery in Ahmose's Abydos stela (Cairo 34.002; C. Aldred, the Egyptian artist to depict them so: they are alive and robust as they profer their
New Kingdom Art in Ancient Egypt [London, 1951], pI. 4): the modius (not circlet, as gifts. And what evidence suggests the MB III towns of Palestine were "heavily
in H.E. Winlock, The Treasure qf El lAhun [New York, 1934], pI. II-IV) appears defended"? If they had been, the POWs and booty of all sorts would have been
first in the 13th Dyn: M.F. Laming MacAdam, "A Royal Family of the 13th visible in the records. But where are they? Down to the morrow of Thutmose Ill's
Dynasty," JEA 37 (1951), 20-28; L. Sabbahi, The Development qf the Titulary and campaigns they are conspiucuous by their absence.
Iconography qf the Ancient Egyptian Q¥een from Dynasty One to Ear!J Dynasty Eighteen 7 Mainly for the manufacture of cultic paraphernalia for Amun (Urk. IV, 23: 10-12

(University of Toronto PhD Dissertation, 1982), 330ff. [the river barque], 56:3-4 [flag-staves], 423:2 [doors]), Osiris (Urk. IV, 98:13-14
5 On this localization of the Shasu, see above p. 92.
[barque]) and stores in general (Urk. IV, 55:6, 373:3-5, 455:16); the source of the
6 At the risk of having a label pinned on me and my work branded as "obso- cedar, "all lands of Fenkhu . .. are at Amun's feet": P. Lacau, H. Chevrier, Une
lete," I should like to reject the characterization of my position as "minimalist" chapelle d'Hatshepsout a Kamak (Cairo, 1977), 307.
(see W.G. Dever, "Hurrian Incursions and the End of thc Middlc Bronzc Age in 8 Urk. IV, 56:9. That Takhsy has any relationship to the word for Bronze, must

Syria-Palestine: a Rejoinder to Nadav Na'aman," in L.R. Lesko (cd), Ancient Egyptian remain moot: M. Gorg, "Das Lexem tafJas----Herkunft und Bedeutung," BN 109
and Mediterranean Studies in Honor qf William A. Ward [Providencc, 1998],91), which (2001), 9.
serves only to obfuscatc. No onc, least of all myself, doubts for a moment thc rcal- q Sec above, n. 7; cr. N. Na'aman, "The Hurrians and the End of the Middle

ity of thc numcrous destruction levels in thc MB/LH interl1l('(', and the subsequent Bronze A~(' in P<lI(~stil1(,," [.nlalll 26 (1994), 182.
"I/;ap" in the rultUl,t1 hi\tOlY ,mel c1I'mogtaphy of 1111' \Owh('ln I,('vanl. I am also 10 lIrA. IV, I R:f; kil1~'5 W,lI whoop is in thc lands of the Fenkhu), 55:8-9 (~ryw-.fc

willing to be !ll'I'SU,IC\toei ,IS to till' 11llU' Ir,lltH' Illvolvnl .1 1',IHOW "pan 01 .1 splt'ad brill!!" Alii" 2lfl:fi 7, 27~) fi 1 It1Il"iKIl dlic{s an' rowed), 372:8 (Montiu are in the
!l\1'1 'l'vI'r,tI }t,lI' 1)1"\1'1,' lite SITond t-,1i111I\l\l1l1l1 I\,C.I-.,: Illl \ttil,ll"olnlLiral gr,l"p
188 CHAPTER ONE THE EARLY 18TH DYNASTY (BEFORE YEAR 22 OF THUTMOSE III) 189

The exception to the minimal interest in Asia characteristic of sive attacks from Hattusilis I, Mursilis I and Hantilis II.'7 Reflections
these pre-conquest years is provided by the brief reign of Thutmose of the engagement with Mittanian forces appear in some of the ear-
1. II The novelty of this reign which in several ways departs from liest scenes depicting northern captives,'8 and Oess convincingly per-
Middle Kingdom precedent,'2 can be seen in both civil and military haps) in the southern orientation of LBIA Syrian pottery.19 It may
spheres. In the latter it was to provide the model for what was to well be that the dompting of Mittani by Egypt at this time opened
follow under his grandson in terms of the size of expeditionary forces, a new chapter in friendly relations with Kassite Babylonia, who stood
the articulation of the threat, the insistence on expanding frontiers '3 to gain by the weakening of a northern rival.20
the technique of subversion by oath '4 and the extension of the tax The premature death of Thutmose F' suspended temporarily the
system to the conquered territory.15 Thutmose's campaign into Asia new, flamboyant approach to dealings with Asiatics, and while the
constitutes a resuscitation (if not an outright innovation) of a con- epithets regarding oath-taking indicate an extension of the "oath-of-
cept of military confrontation which involves something more than office" long employed in Egypt to ensure loyalty, with the king's
a mere razzia or punitive attack. An expeditionary force, of some passing the legal niceties inherent in the process evaporated in the
size we may presume, set forth with prospects of a set-piece battle mind of the Canaanites. There was no "empire" in Syria. 22 In
as well as a routine expedition chevauche. 16 The objective lay in that arc Palestine the relationship remains the be defined. It would appear
stretching from Alalakh through Aleppo and Carchemish to Ashtata, that the extreme youth of Thutmose II at the moment of his acces-
a region which had, within the last three decades, received succes- sion and his short reign23 precluded his pursuing his father's ener-
getic activity in the north.

II Redford, Egypt, Canaan and Israel in Ancient Times (Princeton, 1992), 153-54.

Additional evidence for Thutmose I in Asia may be elicited from AEIN 713 in the 17 O.R. Gurney, "Anatolia c. 1750-1600 B.C., CAH II (1973),240-50; Klengel,

Ny Carlsber Glyptotek (M. Jorgensen, Catalogue Ny Carlsberg. Egypt II [1998], no. 4). Geschichte Syriens I, 36-7.
This limestone fragment of a long, columnar inscription mentions bulls and cows; 18 N. de G. Davies, Private Tombs at Thebes IV (London, 1963), pI. 22; cr. Also
and in a pardy preserved column it is tempting to restore St[t] , "Asia" and per- Seni-mose, Thutmose 1's guardsman and his wife ("the Hazorite") and daughter
haps "Niya." Another possible source for this king's activity in Asia might be the ("The lioness"), Heick, Beziehungen, 380 nos. 27-36, all of whom may have arrived
curious inscription of the barracks master and king'scribe Sapair, with its reference in Egypt as paws. Full bibliography and discussion in AJ. Spalinger, "The Will
to chariotry and universal dominion: J. Malek, "An Early 18th Dynasty Monument of Senimose," in Studien zu Sprache und Religion Aegyptens (FS Westendorf: Gottingen,
of Sipair from Saqqara," JEA 75 (1989), 61-76 (although a date under Thutmose 1984), 631-50.
III cannot be excluded). 19 R.H. Dornemann, "The Late Bronze Age Pottery Tradition at Telll Hadidi,

12 A similar ethos may be found in the royal ideology of the 12th Dynasty Syria,"BASOR 241 (1981),46.
(E. Blumenthal, Untersuchungen zum aegyptischen Kiinigtum des mittleren Reiches 1. Die Phraseo- 20 Cf. The seal of "Kurigalzu, chief (wr) of Sangar," done in hieroglyphic from
Logie [Berlin, 1970]), but it is not strongly marked and differs in numerous details. Armenia: J. Leclant, "Fouilles et travaux en Egypte et au Soudan ...," Orientalia 58
If a model must be found [or the Asiatic campaign, it is more likely to be the [ar- (1989),424-25; 61 (1992),318; 64 (1995), 350. Relevant to Kurigalzu may be the
flung expeditions of a Hattusilis or a Mursilis: T. Bryce, The Kingdom if the HiuiteJ reminiscences of Egypto-Babylonian friendship in EA 6:8-12 and 9: 19-27.
(Oxford, 1999), 75-84, 102-5. 21 Cf. J. von Beckerath, Chronologie des pharaonischen Aegypten (Mainz, 1997), 120-21
13 Urk. IV, 85: 14. For the specificity and importance of the "border" in Egyptian (assigning 10 to 15 years).
ideology, see J.M. Galan, Victory and Border. Terminology Related to Egyptian Imperialism 22 It is injudicious to construe a ring from Hamath (P-M VII, 392) and an
in the XVIIIth Dynasty, Hi1desheim, 1995; S.T. Smith, "To the Supports of Heaven: Egyptian bowl from Alalakh (L. Woolley, A Forgotten Kingdom [Baltimore, 1953], pI.
Political and Ideological Conceptions of Frontiers in Ancient Egypt," in BJ. Parker, 8a) as evidence [or an Egyptian governorate! Cf. A. Poh1, "Alalakh," Orientalia 23
L. Rodseth (eds), Frontiers through Space and Time, Salt Lake City, Utah (forthcoming). (1954), 243 4; Klengel, Geschichte Syriens II, 243-44. To postulate control of trade
14 Urk. IV, 86: 1. routes, "enfeoffing" states as far north as Aleppo, and extension of cultural influence
15 Urk. IV, 55:8-9, 70 (yearly); 272:6 7. is ingenious, bUl smacks of cisagesis: W. Heick, Politische Gegensdtze im alten Aegypten
16 A chariot contingent may have been involved: d: "llis M(~esty's (Thutmose (Ililelesheim, 1986), ~849.
I's) charioteer Karay" endowed with 150 amra of land: Berlin I~<)94 (Acgy/Jtilc!l 2'1 SCI' L. C<lboldc, "La rhlClJ1ologie e1u rCg'l1c cle Thoutll1osis II, ses consequences
hlldl1?f1.en IJ, I 15); cr. Also the depictions of chal;otry in ~Iyptk allc! relic·f all fiOI11 Sllr 101 d<ltalinll des Illnl11il's my,ul's l't lellis r('pnrllliol1s sur I'histoire du cI('velnppc-
lhis perioc!: C. COJlSt.\11/1· Ileill/., f)/f Frldtlll(dnnlrllllTlgrl/ rlfl "rurl/ Rf/r!lrl ViC'III1,I, 1l1l'lll dl' 1.1 \,1111'1' dl" Ruil," \. J11 I I Il)H7" hi 7 cl ; bllt cr. also.J. \'Oll Ikrkl'r<llh,
noo I" ') 'II '\w hm,II' 1111 1{1},;itllllllt Itlllllllml' II" \,111 17 1l)(IlJ h l 11
190 CHAPTER ONE THE EARLY 18TH DYNASTY (BEFORE YEAR 22 OF THUTMOSE III) 191

The capture of Sharuhen by Ahmose and the disintegration of its recording the first campaign of Thutmose III, immediately follow-
polity has been correctly seen as a significant opening shot in the ing the demise of Hatshepsut,32 imply the complete hegemony exer-
weakening of Canaan. 24 Its reduction meant that the early 18th cised by Kadesh over territory as far south as Megiddo, the headman
Dynasty had nothing immediately to fear across the Sinai. The insou- of which, himself, is a virtual cipher in the account! The extent of
ciance born of the knowledge that once again hither Asia had been the personal property of the king of Kadesh in the north Jordan
reduced as of old to Egypt's "sphere of influence" is well reflected valley33 (if the items listed are not merely offerings to the local shrine)
in the confidence Hatshepsut's generic formulae exude. All lands indicates that, in the events leading up to the campaign Kadesh had
have been bequeathed to her by Amun,25 her power courses through aggrandized its territorial possessions and increased its power to the
(foreign) valleys,26 fear of her pervades the foreign landsY Most refer- point of being, however briefly, the major player in Levantine pol-
ences of this sort can as easily be assigned a southern as a northern itics. But this prominence was of recent date: references to the city
frame of reference;28 and those which do enjoy an Asiatic context in the sources, both cuneiform and Egyptian, begin only in the 15th
are few and formulaic. 29 One passage appears to acknowledge that Cent. B.C.34 This absence of earlier evidence firmly places the new
the peaceable conditions alleged to exist in Asia stem from the Pax regime at Kadesh within an LB I context. 35 The interface between
Aegyptiaca imposed by her father's exploits.30 The current "years of the period of the three great Levantine kingdoms of the Middle
peace" foster a climate in which "all foreign lands labor in unison" Bronze Age, viz. Yamkhad, Qatanum and Hazor,36 and the world
for Egypt. 31 of Thutmose Ill's conquests, consists precisely in the arrival and
rapid expansion in Coele and southern Syria37 of an Indo-Europaean
Whether the rosy cast Hatshepsut gives to her view of the world element, the Mittanian elite and their "Hurri-warriors." This must
corresponds to the reality of the times is open to question. The texts be placed in the second half of the 16th Cent. B.C. and understood
as being pursuant to the establishment of the state of Mittani. 38 It
resulted in the forcable replacement 39 of older regimes with new ones,

24 N. Na'aman, "The Hurrians ...," Levant 26 (1994-), 181. Geopolitically the

Negeb, Shephelah and the southern hill-country, when viewed over time, can only
sustain a large and powerful state when Egypt is either weak or occupied by a con- 32 J.Tyldesley, Hatchepsut, the Female Pharaoh (London, 1998), 210-11.
genial regime. With Sharuhen gone, there was no other metropolitan state or 33 Urk. IV, 664-: 17-665:4-; H. K1engel, Geschichte Syriens im 2. ]ahrtausend v. Chr.
significance south of Hazor. (Berlin, 1965-70), II, part B, 157.
25 Lacau-Chevrier, Une chapelle d'Hatshepsout, 61, 68, 133, 219, 224-, 383. 34 Klengel, op. cit., 14-2-4-3.
26 Ibid., 14-4-. 35 The establishment of the new regime finds some consonance in the archaeo-
27 Ibid., 238. logical record in the destruction of Phase G at Tel Nebi Mend, and the inaugu-
28 For the undoubted historical involvement of the queen in military activity in ration of Phase F after a brief abandonment, both within the 16th Cent. B.C.: SJ.
Nubia, see L. Habachi, "Two Graffiti at Sehel from the Reign of Queen Hatshepsut," Bourke, "The Transition from the Middle to the Late Bronze Age in Syria: the
]NES 16 (1957), 100 fig. 6; W. Helck, Historisch-biographische Texte der 2. :(wischenzeil Evidence from Tell Nebi Mend," Levant 25 (1993), 162.
und neue Texte der 18. Dynastie (Wiesbaden, 1975), 121 no. 133; cf. E. Naville, T7ze 36 Klengel, Syria 3000-300 B.G. (Berlin, 1992), 4-4--83.
Temple of Deir el-Bahari VI (London, 1908), pI. 165. The activity probably occupied 37 In northern Syria and south-eastern Anatolia a Hurrian presence is detected
the middle of the second decade of the reign, to judge from the frequency of dated somewhat earlier: sources in Na'aman, "The Hurrians," Levant 26 (1994-), 179; Bryce,
texts in a Nubian context: cf. Urk. IV, 1375 (year 12, Tombos); P-M VII, 157; The Kingdom of the Hittites, 57-59.
F. Hintze, Kush 13 (1965), 14- n. II (year 15, Tangur); Helck, Historisclz-biographischen 38 For the consensus which has emerged, see among others M.C. Astour, "Les
Texte, no. 14-1 (year 16, Abka West); L. Habachi, Kemi 18 (1968), 55 fig. 5 (year hourrites en Syrie du nord: rapport sommaire," RHA 36 (1978),9-12; idem, "Ugarit
17, Aswan); Helck, Historisch-biographischen Texte, no. 14-2 (year 18, Shclfak). and the Great Powers," in G.D. Young (ed), Ugarit in Retrospect (Winona Lake, 1981),
29 Urk. IV, 372:8; Lacau-Chevrier, Une ChaJ)elle d'Hatshepsout, I 15 (Montiu or Asia); 7 10; O. Gurney, "The Hittite Empire," in M.T. Larsen (ed), Power and Propaganda.
Urk. IV, 24-8:6 7; 370: 16 17 (chid,; or Retenu). 'I Symposium on Ancient Empires (Copenhagen, 1979), 155; G. Wilhelm, 77ze Humans
'10 Urk. IV, 248:6 7. (Warmil1~ler, I 'la'l), 18; KI('n~cl, Syria 3000 to 300 B.G., 84fT; Redrord, Egypt, Canaan
'11 LaeHlI-Chevrier, UlIe Chapd/e d'f/(Jllhcp.IOlll, 31 I; rr. 230 ,I; lM.. IV, 272:6 7; 'IIld Ism,l ill ,1//(11'111 'I7mrl, I'i 1 'l8. AI~o the n01('S which roll ow.
373:3 5; 523:5. I" cr A!l(1\w, II ~12 11 St'C 1I1~ j{!,l1l1ilOI!~, howc'vc'!, to ill1dl{ine the Ilul rians enlering-
192 CHAPTER ONE THE EARLY 18TH DYNASTY (BEFORE YEAR 22 OF THUTMOSE III) 193

cat's-paws in fact of the new empire beyond the Euphrates, featuring northern in location focuses on the Sinai turquoise minesY A small
personal names of Aryan derivation,40 and producing an astounding number of individuals who are known to have begun their careers
degree of cultural syncretism between Hurrians and Canaanites. 41 under the joint reign allude to activity in the north, but the time
While Hurrian linguistic influence seems to be confined to the region reference is often equivocal. Anebny, whose British Museum statue
north of Sumur and Qatna,42 further south in Transjordan the archae- was a bequest of Hatshepsut, refers to himself as "attendant of his
ological record reveals an urban culture with strong northern con- lord at his heels in southern and northern foreign parts."48 It may
tacts from c. 1550 B.C. on. 43 Whether at any point this Drang nach be that the occupant of T.T. 73 (Amenophis?)49 Who worked on
Suden transformed itself into a conscious attempt to invade Egypt Hatshepsut's obelisks, employed the same epithets.50 Yamu-nedjeh,
must remain moot, but the possibility is very tempting indeed. 44 who participated in Thutmose's later conquests, began his career in
One of the thorniest questions one might pose in the present con- year 15;51 but whether his time in the army dates that early is open
text has to do with the degree of Egyptian military action in Asia to doubt.
undertaken by Thutmose III before the Megiddo campaign. 45 Most To sum up: the situation on the eve of Hatshepsut's death would
of the evidence consists, as pointed out above, in the persuasion for- have entailed a Kadesh-lead, Mittanian-backed coallition assembling
mulae of the celebration of ideology. While such shibboleths inspire in the plain of Megiddo, and intent on moving on Egypt, with the
little confidence in most historians, some might argue that no for- support of every headman from Yursa north. Numerous texts place
mula would have been chosen for use unless it fitted a perceived the initiative squarely with the Canaanites: they were not sitting pas-
reality. Be that as it may, if Thutmose III had conducted military sively in expectation of attack, but were on the move against Egypt. 52
operations in the north while Hatshepsut yet lived, some corrobo- The only permanent Egyptian presence in the region was a small(?)
ration ought to be forthcoming from booty and prisoner records. standing force located at Sharuhen which clearly had never been
Names of persons of foreign (northern) derivation do, indeed, turn relinquished since its capture by Ahmose. Similarly the Gaza region
up occasionally during this period; but we can never be sure that which, as argued above was "the ruler's (personal) expropriation,"53
they do not belong to the captivity of Thutmose I brought back a
quarter century before. 46 What little activity can be identified as

Reiches (Freiburg, 1992), 195; "the Hazorite" and "the Lionness": Spalinger, loco cit.;
Benya son of Artenna: T. Save-soderbergh, "The Stela of the Overseer of Works,"
Palestine with fire and sword (cf. Na'aman, "The Hurrians ...," Levant 26, 181-84): Orientalia Suecana 9 (1960-61), 54-61; S. Ratie, La reine Hatchepsout. Sources et pro-
see above, pp. 2-3 n. 6. Memes (Leiden, 1979), 285 n. 105; Schneider, op. cit., N 61, N 170; Anabni(?): Urk.
40 A. Kammenhuber, "Die Arier im vorderen Orient und die historischen Wohnsitze IV, 464-65; cf. M. Birot, "Textes economiques de Ma.ri IV," RA 50 (1956), vi.23(n),
der Hurriter," Orientalia 46 (1977), 129-44. A-na-ba-lu; Bint-Shamash: W.C. Hayes, "A Selection of Tuthmosid Ostraca from Deir
41 Extending even to the pantheon! Cf. E. Laroche, "Notes sur Ie pantheon r1-Bahri," JEA 46 (1960), pI. IX.4, vS. 2; Yasha: ibid., pI. XI.13 recto 20, Jesse(?);
Hourrite de Ras Shamra," in W.H. Hallo (ed), Essays in Memory if EA. Speiser (New Mar-ba'al(!): ibid., pI. XI.l3, vs.l: cf. H. Huffinon, Amorite Personal Names in the Mari
Haven, 1968), 150. r-exts (Baltimore, 1965), 174 and 233; P3-c3mw, "the Asiatic," ibid., pI. XI.l4, vS. 4.
42 A. Gianto, "Amarna Akkadian as a Contact Language," in K. van Lerberghe, ·'7 J. Cerny, A.H. Gardiner, The Inscriptions if Sinai (London, 1952-55), pI. 56-57,
G. Voet (eds), Languages and Cultures in Corifiict (Leuven, 1999) 125. p. 150f (year 5); pI. 68: 179 (year 11); pI. 61: 180 (year 13); pI. 14:44 (year 16); pI.
43 P.E. McGovern, "Central Transjordan in the Late Bronze and Early IrOIl 7: 181 (year 20); cf. Heick, Urk. IV, 1377-78; idem, Historisch-biographische Texte, 116ff,
Ages," in A. Hadidi (cd), Studies in the History and Archaeology if Jordan 1Il (London, 110. l30.
1987), 268. III Urk. IV, 465:2.

44 Heick, Beziehungen, 120; idem, Politische Gegensatze im alten Aegy/Jten, 5 I . Iq P-M r (2nd cd), 143 44.

45 See the present writer in History and Chronology if !he Egyplioll 18!h Dynasty. SI'I}{'/l .1 "rk. IV, 460: 13.
Studies (Toronlo, (967), 60rr, wherein r was perhaps a lillk 100 S'lIl.'\'lIille. ·rf.... IV, C) 10 II.
Ih Cf. Sail/Walia: w.e. Ilayes, "Varia rrom lhe Tin1l" or 11'IISIH'pSIlI," ,\!nllh' 15 \1 B,trkal, 2 3, 7 C) (ahcl\(', p. nO); 1'. Bar.'\'lIt"l, I.e Temple d'AnlOnre a Kamak (Paris,

(1<).17), ri.'\'. I:(), pI. I()::~ (year 7), anc! see I).J. WiSCI1l,lll, 'JII, l/,I!(/!Jl 'l"hI,!1 (Londoll, 1%2, Hil; lif.... IV, 7 cJfl·7;12li·l).
I!l:>:.L, 1at) I I, T () S( hneidl'! .11I(/llIlh, 1',11t1llfll1Wl/lfI/ III rlrl'l'/llIlr!1I1l UlI,lIm rll'I /lfIIl'/I S('(, ,lIm\ r Jl. 1:1
194 CHAPTER ONE

was definitely in Egyptian hands, 54 and comprised a possession which

might well date back to Ahmose himself. 55
Those who assume that, prior to the first campaign, some sort of CHAPTER TWO
subservient status of legal force had been already imposed by Egypt
on the Canaanite headmen, have adopted the mind-set which ancient THE NATURE AND SIZE OF THE
Egyptian public relations assumes is universally valid: viz. that all EXPEDITIONARY FORCE
peoples on earth are bound by ties of loyalty to the Son of the sun
and the Heir of Geb. Apart from this claim, arising solely out of
Pharaonic ideology, there is no evidence for a legal status of sub- While the campaign to the Euphrates of Thutmose I served in a
servience before Thutmose's Megiddo campaign. general sense as a model for his grandson, the specifics of that enter-
prise were not immediately available to Thutmose III. The latter
was not yet born when it took place, and it is doubtful whether in
his 22nd year many who had accompanied Thutmose I 40 years
before were still alive. Moreover the fact that his short reign pre-
vented the realization of further innovations in military action and
administration renders his grandson's accomplishment an innovative
exercise in itself. Borrowing from a strategy of Senwosret I and III, I
Thutmose III hammered the Asiatics relentlessly in a series of almost
yearly campaigns, not only to crush dissent, but also to ensure the
"milking" of produce and resources. Again patterning himself on
Egypt's Nubian experience, the king determined to establish a per-
mant presence in the form of depots and garrison posts to transfer
the old-fashioned "sphere of influence" into something resembling
an empIre.
Egyptian troop sizes of the Late Bronze Age must have varied
considerably, depending on the purpose of the expedition. Set-piece
battles required large forces and recruitment dealt a serious blow to
Egypt's plantation economy as well as construction projects. Sources
for the early 18th Dynasty suggest the core of the recruited force,
i.e. those immediately surrounding the king, were drawn from house-
54 Scarabs and other minor texts of Thutmose III abound at Tell el-Ajjul and
hold,2 administration 3 or "the nursery."4 The result was a sort of
in the e1-Moghraka area north ofWady Gaza: W.M.F. Petrie, Ancient Gaza I (London.
1931), pI. 7:65; II (London, 1932), pI. 55:1093, pI. 7:23-4, 52-3, 56:1055, 1062;
59:1510; III (London, 1933), pI. 50:375; cf. Also the communication of the Council
for British Research in the Levant, May 31, 200 I. Scarabs of Thutmose IIl, of I Sec most recently R. Morkot, Ike Black Pharaohs. Egypt's Nubian Rulers (London,
course, need not be contemporary: specimens from Palestine show a remarkable 2000), 55 57.
extension in time from the 18th Dynasty through the Late Period: A. Rowe, .1 2 Butlers (above, p. 166), barbers (above, p. 165), a tutor (Urk. IV, 1455:14).
Catalogue if Egyptian Scarabs . .. in the Palestine Archaeological Museum (Cairo, 1936), pp 3 I leralds, priests, stewards, engineers, scribes of alimentation, and treasurers:
111-23. But fragments of a store jar from Tel el-Ajjul with the cartouches of W. I leick, <,lIT Verwaltung des mittleren und neuen Reiclzs (Leiden, 1958), 468f; N. de
Hatshepsllt and Thutmose TIf (Petrie, (;aza II, pI. 55) cannot 1)(' miseonstrued: Iht'\ '. Davies, Siudies pmmled 10 F Li Davies (Oxford, 1931), pI. 40.
must elate from the joi nt reig-n. f Cr. Nt'lMl1lun, "till' l'v\('mphitt'," who supervised (militarily) "the numerous mg3-

", c:r. scarab(s) of AnH'nophis 1 al ")'1'1 ('1·Aijul· P('Olt', (;I/{II I, pI. 11:12CJ, pos" ol1ths ,1I1d till' childrrn of Ih(' 11\II"S('r)' on an ('qual footing- (r mill-iry)": M.-P. Foissy-
1>1\ (;1/'1/ II, pi Yl I ():.!"l \uh 1 W 1''1)/11, " J~tlll/I' M,l\, (.'1//1"', I'.",III/(m (n.d.), 12 and fig. 12 (Inv.A.I); D.
196 CHAPTER TWO THE NATURE AND SIZE OF THE EXPEDITIONARY FORCE 197

household troop, "the company of Menkheperre" or "... of Pharaoh."5 Thutmose Ill's army, in terms of recruitment, stood at a transi-
Full-time, professional cadres are rare before the 14th Century B.C.6 tional point in the development of the Egyptian military. On the
Raising the required additional force by drafting 10% of the tem- one hand, it continued to rely upon a locally recruited militia, "cit-
ple communities is attested for the Ramesside period, but the pas- izens of the army,"14 sometimes recruited from a particular part of
sage from which this information comes suggests it was an unpopular the country,15 or from palace personnel. I6 On the other hand we
practice. 7 The divisions so raised marched under the banner of the can trace throughout the reign the expansion of a professional sol-
appropriate god, as in the famous case at Kadesh. 8 Under Thutmose diery (WCW)17 in the proliferation of titles of full-time servicemen. 18
III a sizeable contingent probably came from the Delta. 9 The peri- In the case of Thutmose Ill's activity set-piece batdes were pre-
cope in Anastasi I has often been taken to mean that a military unit dicted and materialized on the first, eighth and tenth campaigns.
of division size approximated 4,500 to 5,000 men;IO and it is a curious For the second through fourth and the eleventh and twelfth we have
fact that attested army sizes from the Bronze Age are often c. 5000 no information; all the rest were in the nature of "expeditions
men or multiples of that figure. ll Forces in excess of 30,000 are rare chevauchees." (see above). Only for the first do we have any chance
and the passages which mention them highly suspect. 12 Smaller units of estimating numbers. We have argued above that the Egyptian
are referred to, 2000 being a number also considered sufficient for forces started debouching from the pass into the plain shortly after
expeditions. 13 first light, and had all cleared the valley by noon. Since they had
had to adopt an order of march which was virtually single file, with
horses interspersed, an exit which took six hours to complete would
have involved 10,800 men if, on average, one man emerged every
Patch, Rd/ections if Greatness. Ancient Egypt at the Camegie Museum if Natural HistoD' two seconds. This figure is surprisingly close to the "10,000" we have
(Pittsburgh, 1990), no. 47. While both groups are similar enough to be subjected
to the same recruitment procedure, there is no telling what mg3 means. One might encountered above as a common size for armies of the period.
compare Canaanite *maqqila, "rod" (J. Hoch, Semitic Wordf in Egyptian Texts if thl' The size of the Canaanite forces is more difficult to calculate; but
New Kingdom and 'Third Intermediate Period [Princeton, 1994], 166-67 [217]), or Semitic results might be forthcoming from the quantity of livestock the coal-
mgr, "overthrow, annihilate" (A. Murtonen, Hebrew in its West Semitic Setting I, A (Bb)
[Leiden, 1989], 253); or it might have a connection with mg3, "crocodile demon": lition had assembled. 19 The Egyptians captured, apparently outside
P. Vernus, Athribis (Cairo, 1976), 415 n. 2. the city, 387 [bulls], 1,929 cows, 2,000 goats and 20,500 sheep. On
5 S. Sauneron, Kimi 18 (1968), pI. 8; Cairo 34093.
6 Cf. P.-M. Chevereux, Prosopographie des cadres militaires du Nouvel Empire (Paris.
the basis of the co-efficients between cattle and goat/sheep,2° the
1994), passim.
7 Harris 57.8-9; P. Grandet, Le Papyrus Harris I (Cairo, 1994), II, 187~88, n. 779.
B See further KRI I, 345: I; HieroglYphic Texts . .. in the British Museum IX (London, smaller than this would be mainly garrison size: EA 197:34 (200), EA 93: 11 (300),
1970), pI. 47 (146); P.-M. Chevereau, Prosopographie des cadres militaires egyptiennes d/l ARM I, no. 23 (400, 500), V no. 18 (500).
nouvel empire (Paris, 1994), passim. 14 Urk. IV, 730:5.
9 Cf. The military prominence given to "the mayor of the Great River" (aboV(', 15 Cf. The "army of the western river": Urk. IV, 981: 11.
n. 57), and also to the "army of the Western River": Urk. IV, 981:1!. 16 See above, pt. 3, I~III.
10 Anastasi I, 17.5-6; cf. E.g. S. Curto, 'The Military Art if the Ancient Egyptia/l' 17 From a root "to kill, slaughter": M.G. Hasel, Domination and Resistence. Egyptian
(Turin, 1971), 16; A.M. Gnirs, "Military. An Overview," in D.B. Redford (ccL, Military Activiry in the Southem Levant 1300~1l85 E.G. (Leiden, 1998), 28-29; the
O;iford Encyclopaedia if Ancient Egypt (New York, 2001), II, 404. gcneric word for "(common) soldier": cr. Wpt n wcw, "military service," KRI II,
II W. Helck, "Die Bedeutung der Felsinschriften]. Lopez, Inscripciones rupestres Nl 59:8; oncn used of marines: T. Save-soderbergh, 'The Navy if the Egyptian Eighteenth
27 und 28," sAX 1 (1974),215-26 (20,000);]. Oates, Babylon (Ncw York, 1986), (j:, J)yllasry (Uppsala, 1946), 71-72; C. Vandersleyan, Les Guerres d'Amosis (Bruxelles,
(10,000); O.R. Gurney, 'The Hittites (Harmondsworth, J 966), 109 (9,000); T. Bryc(', 1968), 26 30. On its use by Abdi-Khepa of Jerusalem to identify himself as part
'The Kingdom if the Hittites (Oxford, 1999), 136 (10,000), 388 (20,000), 352 (28,800" or the military, scc W.L. Moran, "The Syrian Scribe of the Jerusalem Amarna
EA 287:54 (5,000). For the Iron Age we havc similar figures: cf. ANET 279 (20,000 Li'llcrs, in J I. Gocdirkc (ed), Uniry alld Diversiry. Essays in the History, Literature and
from Damascus, 10,000 from Hamath, 10,000 from Israel, 10000 from rrkiln'll,l '. Nrl(l(iol/ qJ Iltr AI/rimt Nrar Easl (Baltimore, 1975), 156.
I~ E.g. F.:A 170:22; M. Dielrich, O. Lon'v., "I)er Anllltl1<\·BI iefe VAB 2, 170: IH P.-r-1. C:1H'vel('all, Prolo/iogra/ihi~ drJ tadr~s militaires egyptiens dll nouvel empire, Paris,
in R. Sliehl, I I.E. Stichl (ecls), Brilrtlgr <;/11' A Ill'll Grltltirltlr /I/lrl rlrrm NI/thlrhrn I 131'1 !Ill I.
1c)(i9" II 23; W.L. r-1(lt,lIl, '111r III/I/tl/ll hllm B,t1tilnoll', 1!)IlT" '2,17; \V,f, MIIIII,IIU I" l'rA. IV, hh I II II. I II" 11\1 II 111((lIn"I"(I', ~(l lhat (he tolal is Ihl' minimulll.
Illr Rllfld III l\IIdnll <:hll,'I.\O, l'l'l() P III 11. Illi IH),OOIl ~llIdy I~ ,Ill "11m 101 Il,()llll 'Ii Ro',I'1I 'Sull',i.II'IUI J.IOIIClIlI\ 11\ Slt,IIIl111 II" ill I Fillkl'l~tl'il1 ('cI), I hr'
\R\1 \ 110 ')'\ RS III 10) \1 ( I\~ltllll 171!J'l 11%'/1. 'J:,] COIIIIIIIU'II1 .\iuII/II, ,1" l~u/l' I" I, S"t /ltll/ J(lUh JlI/ 'lUI' f,,,1'i (Cl"lol d, l'lllh I Iii WI
 198 CHAPTER TWO THE NATURE AND SIZE OF THE EXPEDITIONARY FORCE 199

total sheep/goat units would be 32,151. Since a soldier's diet con- the action sometimes involved little more than devastating the sur-
sisted of 10 loaves of bread,21 it is a fair estimate that this compo- rounding countryside. Disorder in the rural districts, although not
nent would have accounted for c. 1500 cal. of the c. 2400 required necessarily directed against Egypt, was deemed intolerable by Pharaoh,
by an individual. 22 Since one sheep/goat unit provides 300 calories and would evoke severe policing action,26 and even deportation. 27 At
per day,23 it would take approximately 3 to provide the necessary the best of times the "targeted march" was simply a tour of inspec-
supplement for a single soldier's caloric intake, thus yielding a figure tion; at the worst a species of razzia comparable to the mediaeval
of 10,717 for the entire Canaanite force. "expedition chevauchee."28 As time passed the "targeted march"
Set-piece battles were comparatively rare. Costly to prepare for, developed into a routine summer tour by an officer with a small
this kind of engagement involved such large forces that disaster could force, to collect imposts and other requisitioned items. 29
easily befall even though no defeat had been suffered. A resource- It is important to note that, certainly in the eyes of the natives,
ful opponent could adopt a scorched-earth policy, coupled with the razing of crops and the destruction of orchards did not in and
guerilla tactics; and, in view of the woeful state of "intelligence," of themselves entail their submission. The Canaanite chief and his
ambushes could easily be laid. Advancing with no enemy to engage, subjects "rode out the storm" behind their walls, in the certain knowl-
an expeditionary force would waste time and resources; and the edge that the Egyptians had neither the time nor the means to reduce
longer it remained in the field the greater the adverse impact on their city. Once the invaders had retired and the dust settled, the
the economy of the plantations whence the thousands of able-bodied status quo ante would have remained intact: the embattled town in
men had been recruited. question would still have stood beyond Egyptian control, formal or
Easier to manage, and more remunerative, and therefore more informal. Many, such as Alalakh, Tunip, Kadesh and Qatna, con-
common, was the "targeted" march, designed either for punitive pur- tinued to be bound by treaty to Mitanni, no matter how Egyptian
poses, or to "milk" the foreign land of its resources. Since no united scribes and artists might include them among the conquered. 30
and substantial opposition was to be expected, the size of the force The true sign of hegemony was the chief's public submission: prosky-
could be reduced. Pharaoh would plant his standard and the local nesis, request for "breath,"31 renunciatory oath, and the delivery of
chiefs would present their benevolences "brought through the power children. Benevolences would follow on a yearly basis. The northern
of His Majesty" to "every place His Majesty came where camp was
pitched." Pharaoh in turn would construe these gifts as tribute and
signs of loyalty,24 and therefore "give things to them that are upon
26 W. Heick, "Die Bedrohung Palaestinas durch einwandernde Gruppen am Ende
his water."25 Towns which failed to give a benevolence or actively
der 18. Und am Anfang der 19. Dynastie," Vetus Testamentum 18 (1968), 472-80.
opposed Pharaoh's will, would ipso facto be in a state of bin, "dis- 27 D.O. Edzard, Kamid el-Lo~Kumidi (Bonn, 1970), 55-56.
obedience," or bSt, "rebellion." These could be attacked, although 28 D. Seward, The Hundred Years War. The English in France 1337-1453 (New York,
1978), 38.
29 Cf. M. Liverani, "A Seasonal Pattern for the Arnarna Letters," in T. Abusch
and others (eds), Lingering over Words. Studies in Ancient Near Eastern Literature in Honor
21 A,M. Gnirs, "Military: an Overview," in D.B. Redford, The O>ford Encyclopedia if William L. Moran (Atlanta, 1990), 345. It is tempting to construe the phrase u
if Ancient Egypt (New York, 2001), II, 404; see also below. zakam uffimi in the "General's Letter" (RS 20.33 rev. 12: J. Nougayrol, in Ugaritica
22 M.C. Latham, Human Nutrition in the Developing World, Rome, 1997; M.R. V [Paris, 1968], no. 20) as a reference to Pharaoh's appearance on chevauchee: if
Woodward, "Considering Household Food Security and Diet in tJ1e Classic Pcriod zakam means "unaccompanied" (S. Izre'el, "When was the 'General's Letter' from
Village of Ceren, El Salvador (A.D. 600)," Mayab 13 (2000), 22 33. garit Written?" in M. Hcltzcr, E. Lipinski [eds] , Society and Economy in the Eastern
23 A. Sasson, "The Pastoral Component in tJ1e Economy or Hill Country Sitl's A1editmanean p~cuvcn, 1988], 164-65), it will mean the absence of a sizeable expe-
during the Intermediate Bronze and Iron Ages, Archaeo-EtJ1nographic Case Studies," ditionary forcc.
TA 25 (1998), 1 51. 30 On thc lack of permanCllce in Egyptian control north of Hums, inspite of
2'1 M. Liverani, "Memorandum on the Approach to I li~tol-i0!Vaphir Texls," Orl ill1pr'cssivl~ victorics, M'C KlcllAt'l, ~)'ria, 3000 to 300 B.C., 94 5; T.R. Brycc, The
talla '12 (1973), 192, hilll(dom 0/ tllr flll/llr,l, 12CJ.
2\ c:r. UrI... IV, 1216:(i 8; l'iO I: 1(i. 10'01 till' Il1I"lIli"R of' till' (,(JlI C" ,ion, ~C'C' T. lIollll 11 S. I'I,wli, ",.'1111 1/ 1110 ('llIt,illl of IiII'" III till' l\hcli'Wl II,IIH! War Tcxts," ill
R,I~nl\lN''', "TIll' Otil{iIJ.t1 t\lc',lniIW of IIr 11111'" (:JI! 1/8 11)1)'1 l'l h~l I ShIT 1111, C;, IITH,ldl (nl lrtlll.l/ml SIJl'(~ '\ 11/ F'O/lltlIIl, 0' \Vir-b,ldt'll I <l<lH" '}71 HI.
200 CHAPTER TWO THE NATURE AND SIZE OF THE EXPEDITIONARY FORCE 201

border of the territonum of the northernmost chief's bailiwick would force which set out from Sile late in year 22. A 10-day supply of
then be construed as Egypt's "expanding" frontier. bread (80 small loaves) could be carried in a soldier's ruck-sack; the
Born of an immediate need to pre-empt attack, Thutmose Ill's required beer (contents equivalent to 200,000 jars for 10,000 men
move into Asia enjoyed no long-range "financing," if that indeed is for 10 days) could have been carried on 1,000 donkeys.38 More likely,
an appropriate term. An arsenal already existed, and Hatshepsut had however, as in riverine traffic, travelling breweries accompanied the
renovated the military.32 As the mustering of many thousands of men troops.39 Presumably beyond Gaza the army could have drawn on
could not have been accomplished in the two months which elapsed stores provided by the garrison at Sharuhen, or on requisitions from
between Hatshepsut's death and the marching out, Thutmose III local towns. Nevertheless the rations were scarcely sufficient to hold
must have begun to assemble the troops some time before. 33 Rations body and soul together, an inference supported by the unbridled
would have been issued to carry the troops across the desert (approx- gusto of the ravenous troops in falling on the provisions and sup-
imately one week), and into a terrain where they could live off the plies of the enemy camp, and the wonderment which underlies the
land, or to a point where they could engage the enemy (approxi- record of the vast foodstocks of the Esdraelon and Arka plain.
mately three weeks). The famous passage in Anastasi I regarding the
rations for a division of 5,000 men is no help in calculating the
amount of food required and the consequent size of the baggage
train, as the satirist intentionally underestimates the quantity in order
to point up the incompetence of the addressee. 34 More reliable as
comparanda would be the rations given to laborers at quarry- or
construction-sites. From Wady Hammamat and Gebel Silsileh come
figures for daily rations of 20 loaves, a bunch of vegetables and a
cut of meat. 35 In these cases, however, the authorities, by revealing
these figures, obviously wished their generosity to be put on record,
and thus exaggeration was invited; and a lower figure, say, the 8- J 0
loaves per day of the Reisner and Sinai texts, would seem morc
realistic. 36 If we add two jars of beer as a daily ration,37 we proba-
bly arrive very close to the "starvation" rations of the expeditionar}

32 D.B. Redford, Egypt, Canaan and Israel in Ancient Times (Princeton, 1992), I ~'2.
33 From year 20 forces may already have been on hand from the Sinai campaigll
(Sir A.H. Gardiner, J. Cerny, 17te Inscriptions qf Sinai [London, 1952], pI. 57 II HII
Urk. IV, 1377f) and the Nubian campaign (Urk. IV, 1375f; P-M VII, 175),
34 Anastasi I, 17.5-6; H.- W. Fischer-Eifert, Die satirische Streitscllrifl des Pal!YIIII
Anastasi I (Wiesbaden, 1986), 149-52.
35 J. Couyat, P. Montet, Les inscriptions hihogiyphiques et hihatiqlles dll GuMi Iiall/II/alllnl
(Cairo, 1912), no. 114:13; KRl I, 60:13-14.
'lb W.K. Simpson, Papyrus Reisner I (Boston, 1961), 35 46; idelll, "Two Lexil,1! \ij Donkeys manage 20 km, per day, just right for a 10-day crossing of the Sinai:
Notes on the Reisner Papyri," JEA 59 (1973), 220; D. Mueller, "Some Relndlh F, Ilassan, "Town and Village in Ancient Egypt: Ecology, Society and Urbanism,"
on Wage Rall's in the Middi<' Kingdom," .JNE~' :~ I (1975), 21<) 63; B.J. K('IIII' in T. SI1a\\ (ed), 'Illr ,hr!laro!ogy q/ AJriw, Food, MrlaLf alld Towns (London, 1993),
"Lalge Middk KillgdoJl1 (;I.lII'Uy Building'S (and the Archaeology of' Adnlilli~lldli(111 (iG, OIH' thousand donkeys could transport 7~,OOO kg: R.S, Bagnall, Agypt in Lale
~ is I I'i IlJHb, I TJ P,illll'IOIl, IQ<)'i., 'i<)
11I111/tIl/)'
Ibid 'h) d,.JJ .1,111' ,('II, t/I/II11/Ild/l) l'I1"''/",1II11Ir f(nll/rJlld l'rrw,I\LI'lllt-n, 1'11'11, K Llo/k,l lilt, \luhi-plupo'l \llxull\ Bm\1 In till' I~I\I' 'lrd ~lillelllliul1l POller\
:l 1111'''',' ,1J.iI"ltIlm 'lfllIl"r l~oJr(1 \,'. I" JlUlt· 'I()OI
 RATES OF SPEED ON THE MARCH AND THE TRANSIT CORRIDORS 203

of the march, north of joppa, the troops would have had to march
through a forest. 8
CHAPTER THREE It has been claimed that the very route covered by the Egyptians
from Gaza to the pass is reflected in the toponym lise beginning
RATES OF SPEED ON THE MARCH AND THE with no. 57. 10 These are, in sequence, 57. N-g-b, 58. I-fw-f-b-n, 59.
TRANSIT CORRIDORS INTO ASIA R-n-m, 60. Y-r-d.3 (= Yur~a), 61. M-i-bJ-s3 (= Mubazzi of EA 298:25,
contiguous with the territorium of Gezer), 62. Y-p-w (= joppa), 63.
K-n-t-w (a gt-plantation), 64. RW-/,n (= Lud?), 65. Iw-in-iw (= Ono),
The distance between Tel Hebwa (Sile) and Gaza via the ancient 66. I-pw-q-n (= Aphek), 67. S3-w-k3 (= SOCOh),11 68. Y-~-m. If no
North Sinai route is c. 220 lan. A 9 day crossing would mean that 57 is taken as Gaza, we have exactly eleven names up to and includ-
approximately 24 lan. was covered each day. I While comparable to ing Yehem to correspond to the eleven days of the march.
the estimated rate of march of Mayan armies 2 or Napoleon's Grandi' But a moment's scrutiny of this hypothesis demonstrates that it is
Armee,3 this is considerably slower than the rate of 45 50 lan. pCI' untenable. By no stretch of the imagination could the Gaza stop be
day for the Sinai route achieved in Greco-Roman times;4 but we referred to as "the Negeb": the city is coastal, while the Negeb refers
may put that down to two factors. First, the army was laden, not to the Judaean hill-country from Hebron to Kadesh. From the stand-
only with equipment and weapons, but also with foods for the jour- point of the Egyptians Gaza is "east" or "north"! In fact nos. 57 to
ney. Second, the route was as yet undeveloped by the siting of block- 62 represent a route originating somewhere in the Negeb and pro-
houses and hydreia, and the clearing of the route. 5 There was a ceeding via Tel el-Hesy to the coast at joppa; while 63 to 71 delin-
limited number of natural stopping points along the route; and the eate a route from Joppa through Sharon to Carmel. Admittedly this
9 to 12 known from various lists must correspond to what Thutmose reconstruction of the list might encounter difficulty if one accepts
Ill's army faced. 6 the very tempting identification of no. 58 with Sas7;imi of EA 203:4
From Gaza on the pace slackened. 7 The army negotiated the dis- and locates it in the Bashan. 12 The only reason, however, Sas7;imi is
tance to Yehem, c. 115 lan. away, in 11 days, or 10.5 km. per day. located in that area is the similarity in clay and ductus of the script
The reason for this may be unfamiliarity with the terrain, caution linking EA 201-206, one of which (201) comes from Siri-Bashan. Of
in hostile territory or the difficulty of transit. And on the final kg the others one (202) lacks a town reference and two (204-205) lack
the personal names of the town headmen! All six are formulaic state-
ments of readiness to participate in an expedition. The solution to
I R.O. Faulkner, "The Battle of Megiddo," lEA 28 (1942), 2 n. 5 (Faulkner i,
wide of the mark in both distance and estimates)
2 A.F. Chase, D.Z. Chase, Late Classic Maya Politit:al Structures, Polity Si~e and Walfilll 8 Josephus Bellum xiv. 13.3; Strabo xvi.2.27. The slackening of speed has nothing
Arenas (Madrid, 1998), 17-18. LO do with the need to reduce rebellious towns (as for example is maintained by
3 M. Glover, The Napoleanic Wars (New York, 1979), lO8. Y. Aharoni and others in MacMillan Bible Atlas [3rd ed; New York, 1993], map 27
4 L. Casson, Travel in the Ancient World (Baltimore, 1994), 190 93; ef. Strabo and text), for which there is no evidence at all. It is preposterous to think of fortified
xvi.2.31-33. towns such as Joppa and Gezer being reduced within days or hours, when Megiddo
5 Occasional traces of what appear to be 15th Cent. B.C. finds do not invali lOok months! Moreover the Canaanite coallition remained as yet unengaged! Was
date the overwhelming impression that the establishment of a formal chain or way Thutmose going to jeopardize the entire campaign by distributing his forces in col-
stations lay still in the future: E. Oren, "The Ways of Horus in North Sinai," ill lateral sieges, thus exposing himself to overwhelming attack and defeat in detail?
A.F. Rainey (ed), Egypt, Israel, Sinai (Tel Aviv, 1987), 78 84; idelll, "Sinai (NOIth 9 M. Noth, "Del' Aulbau der Palaestinaliste Thutmosis' III," ZDPV 61 (1938),
Sinai)," in E. Stern (ed), The New Encyclopaedia rif Archaeological bwestigatiOlls in the IIII/) neff; Heick, Be;;ielzungen, 122 23.
lAnd (New York, 1993), 1389; G. Cavillier, "The Ancient MilitalY Road betWtTII 10 E. Edel, "Die Stelen Amenophis' ([ aus Karnak und Memphis mit dem Bericht

Egypt and Palestine: a Reassessment," GM 185 (200 I), 23 31. lIber die asiatisrht'n !'t'lclzlIgc cks Kbnigs," ZDPV 69 (1953), 154.
l> P. Fi~lt'ras, From (;a;;'11 10 Peb/.lium. Alatmals .fiiT Ille llil/llnmi (;/"II).:m/ill)' 11/ "'>/lflll 11 Tel cr-Ras, I kill. NOllh or Tlllk<lll11: S. Ahitllv, Canaanite TO!Jollyms in Ancient
SIII(II 1I1It! SIIIIIII lI'fllml 1'lIlel/llle (kns!tn<l, ~W()()" .~ I () I I I'm'pllOlI /)01/111//11/1 .J"llI,.t1I·11I IlJH I" 171! 71).
.J K Ilolllllt'i"I, "RtlllllSldt'lllll( [lOpI', 1',111 111 lilt: ("lllll1l,lliol1 of till: t\llddil 11 ~l ~lllll'l II/m /ll/rI l.nlrJ/"'./Ifuh 1IIII/I·I.,'1'/1/l11l1m n/llAml/rin 1'('iiJIig, 18(3), 3<JG;
1I101l/C' \t'l 111 l',dl'~l1Ill 11'11111 21 : 11111'1:. 1WI \111111\ /"/""')'/11, 71 •
204 CHAPTER THREE RATES OF SPEED ON THE MARCH AND THE TRANSIT CORRIDORS 205

this apparent conundrum is to postulate a single scribe as writer of designated large vessels for transport. No surviving texts give, or even
these tablets, one who was not familiar with the towns in question. hint at, the size and number of this fleet; but it is clear that cargo
He was writing simple "acceptances" from oral commitments com- vessels varied between 35 and 70 metres in length,22 and thus com-
municated to him by a riibi~u, and was probably based in a head- pared favorably with the grain ships that plied between Rome and
quarters. There is, then, no need to locate Sasaimi close to Siri-bashan. 13 Egypt in classical times. 23 The numbers that could be accomodated
Beginning at the outset of the fourth decade of his reign, Thutmose by ships of this size certainly exceeded the 50 hoplites per penta-
III initiated the practice of transporting his troops by sea. Presumably, conter estimated for the 6th Cent. B.C.24 Even the 120 of the
as in land crossings, the departure would have been from Memphis, 14 Shipwrecked Sailor's ocean-going barge accounted for the crew alone,
via the easternmost, or Pelusiac, branch. I5 The subsequent course and we could easily double that figure to accomodate soldiers and
across open water had long since been charted by mariners bound marines. Forty vessels, therefore, of this size would be required to
for, or coming from, Byblos.I 6 Travel time must have varied con- transport 10,000 troops. But the latter, as maintained above, is a
siderably depending on wind and current: a week's voyage must have judicious estimate for the Egyptian army at the Battle of Megiddo,
been considered remarkably fast for the size of ships involvedY The arguably the largest engagement ever fought by Thutmose III. The
latter must have belonged wholly to the transport class: no warships campaigns amounting to little more than chevauchee-like tours would
would have been required. I8 "Crossing (the sea)" was conveyed by have required a considerably smaller fleet, perhaps comparable to
the verb nmi,I9 and nmiw "(troop) transports" is the earliest technical the one Necho II used to carry his troops on a Nubian campaign.25
term used for the vessel in question. 20 The three words used of the The transport of horses by sea for the chariotry was perfectly feasi-
crafts involved in the "Byblos-run" under Thutmose IIFl likewise ble in the reduced numbers that an expedition chevauchtie would require
(i.e. considerably less than the 2,000 or so implied for the Megiddo
campaign).26 The mediaeval taride could carry about 40 animals, and
13 Cf. W.L. Moran, The Amama Letters (Baltimore, 1987), 277-79 (with note to a mere 5 could provide enough teams for 100 chariotsY
no. 204); J.-G. Heintz, Index documentaire d'El-Amama (Wiesbaden, 1982), 308-9.
14 Cf. The Armant stela, line 11 (= Urk. IV, 1246:14; cf. 1305:4, 1308:16. It has
been pointed out (T. Save-soderbergh, The Naoy if the Egyptian 18th Dynasty [Uppsala,
1946], 34) that in the writing of wdyt a "boat"-determinative is used for the first
time in the record of the 6th campaign of year 30. Too much, however, should
not be made of this, as the determinatives vary: "legs" in the passages referring to
campaigns 5, 10, and 13, some of which certainly went by sea, "boat" in the generic 22 G. Goyon, "Schiff, Last- (Les navires de charge)," LdA V (1984), 610~13.
reference to all campaigns: Urk. IV, 662: 1. 23 Lucian Navigium 5 (K. Kilburn, Lucian vol. 6 [Cambridge, 1959], 430-86):
15 P3 mw n p3 Rc: Gardiner, Ancient Egyptian Onomastica (Oxford, 1947), II, no. c. 60-65 metres long and capable of carrying enough grain to feed Athens for one
408. The discharge of this branch was strong in the Bronze Age, providing ease year. Only a ship of a capacity beyond 70 metric tons would be capable of sea
of navigation: F. Gomaa, Die Besiedlung Aegyptens wi:ihrend des ivlittleren Reiches II voyages: R.S. Bagnall, Egypt in Late Antiquity (Princeton, 1993), 35; cf. P. Garnsey,
(Wiesbaden, 1987), 221; W. Heick, Die Lehre des Dw3-Hijj (Wisebaden, 1979), 12-1": Famine and Food Supply in the Graeco-Roman World (Cambridge, 1989), 233-34.
RA Caminos, Literary Fragments in the Hieratic Script (Oxford, 1956), 1'1. 6; Sinull(' 24 H.T. Wallinga, "Polycrates and Egypt: the Testimony of the Semaina," in
244-47. Cf. M. Bietak, Tell el-Dab'a II (Wien, 1975), 77-87. Achaemenid History VI (Leiden, 1991), 187.
16 J.M. Weinstein, "Byblos," in D.B. Redford (ed), The O>ifOrd Encyclopaedia if Ancienl 25 Cf. F. Junge, Elephantine XI. Funde und Bauteile (Mainz am Rhein 1987), 66-67,
Egypt (New York, 2001), 219~21; Egypt's debt to Byblos in the realm of ship-build- Tar. 40c; K. Jansen-Winckeln, "Zur Schiffliste aus Elephantine," GM 109 (1989),
ing technology dates from the Third Millennium B.C.: CT I, 262b; B. AltenmLiller, 31. The translation of the fragment must be as follows: "[the troops, the ho]rses
Synkretismus in den Sargtexten (Wiesbaden, 1975), 133. and the chrariots of the army(?) ... and the ships] and cargo vessels which went
17 In classical times the crossing from Rome or the Hellespont to Egypt undel south carrying them upon the water: [... -boat], I; 'Necho-b3i'-boat, 1; large trans-
optimum conditions occupied no less than 9 or 10 days: L. Casson, Travel in 11/1 ports, 5; small transports, 5; the 'Red'-barque, I; great vessels, 5; small vessels,
Ancient World (Baltimore, 1994), 152. Alexandria to Cyprus was expeC"lcd to take r51 ..." The words which follow on the len are not further designations of ships,
6 '/, days: idem, Ships and Seamanship ill the Ancien! lVorld (Baltimore, 199.1), 289. but part of the continuing narrative. The fleet, then, numbered 2 command ships
III Cr. R.S. Merril!ees, 77u ()priote Bronze .(lge J'o!tt7yjinmd ill 1\;(I1)! (Lund, 1<)G8, I CJ7. and 21 transport VI'SS('iS.
1'1 Irb. 11,265:6; PT 12GO: CT IV, 2h2,1. 1" {'rl.. I V, (i(i:j·ll.
111 {,I. I, 10 I , .J II Prv()J "Tt;Ul'IHlIIOlltOIl of IInt.1 by Sl'a lhlling the' Eta or the' C:rusacil's:
\bo\(', P 110 II I :111 ('igluh II 1I1111\' 10 I:J1l1l \ I) ,'/ Ite 1/1 .\ .1/;'11.1 hll Illl!) II 'ill IO'j 'h
 THE BATTLE OF MEGIDDO: THE GROWTH OF THE TRADITION 207

C. The Seventh Pylon Reveals (above, pt. II, 1. II), about year
34-37(?)
CHAPTER FOUR 5. The siege of Megiddo and the counter circumvallation.
6. The emergence of the chiefs' children and the wives, subse-
THE BATTLE OF MEGIDDO: quently given to Amun.
THE GROWTH OF THE TRADITION 6a. The confiscation of the three towns for Amun.
D. The Sixth Pylon (above, pt. II, 1. IV), year 42.
6. The confiscation of the three towns for Amun.
To judge by the amount of space devoted to it, the First Campaign 8. The construction of a fortress in the Lebanons.
was in Thutmose Ill's estimation the most significant military exer- 9. The construction and transport of Amun's barque.
cise in his life.' Viewed in the light of subsequent history it most E. Karnak, Room III (above, pt. II, 1. VI), between years 42 and 45.
certainly was the single event that for 4 centuries placed Cis- and 4. The rout of the enemy: the Fenkhu are specifically mentioned.
Transjordan firmly within Egypt's sphere of direct control. The bat- 5. The circumvallation of the city, described as a "fort of their
tle established a lively, historical tradition that survives well beyond own building."
the 15th Cent., and is still echoed in Manetho. 2 The annals were 7. The supplication of the defeated and the oath of fealty.
composed with the benefit of 20 years of hindsight as well as an F. The Barque Shrine (above, pt. II, 1. V), between years 45 and 50.
ideological template which in this case corresponded to reality. The 9. The construction and transport of Amun's barque on the First
king's obiter dicta, however, as recorded in the seances and encomia, Campaign.
also reflect the beginnings of the Megiddo tradition. Their content G. The Barkal Stela (above, pt. II, 1. I), year 47.
may be summarized as follows. lao The location of the march as through the Qjna Valley.
4. The rout of the enemy.
A. Buhen Text (above, pt. II, 2. II), year 23. 3 5. The siege of Megiddo ...
1. The king's leading the way. 11. . .. which lasted 7 months.
2. The capture of ornate chariots. 6. The emergence of the chiefs' children with gifts, including
4. Slaying the vagabonds (fm3w). splendid chariots.
B. Festival Hall Decree (above, pt. II, 1. III), between years 25 and 30. 7. The supplication of the defeated and the oath of fealty.
3. The Council of War. 9. The construction of Amun's barque.
4. The Battle and rout. 10. The size and quality of the enemy forces.
4a. Location of the engagement in the Amountains of Djahy." 12. The re-instatement of the chiefs within their own bailiwicks.
5. The siege of Megiddo and the counter circumvallation of the 13. The confiscation of the chiefs' horses.
town. H. The Armant Stela (above, pt. II, 2. I), year 49.
7. The supplication of the defeated and the oath of fealty. 1. The departure from Memphis, the king leading the way.
6. The supplication of the defeated and the proferring of tribute.
14. The progress through the narrow pass, the enemy at its mouth.
I G.!. Davies, Megiddo (Grand Rapids, 1986); A.B. Knapp, "Independence and 15. The flight of the chiefs to their towns.
Imperialism: Politico-economic Structures in the Bronze A~e Levant," Alc!lafO!ol,'l'.
Annates and Ethnohistory (Cambridge, 1992), 92.
2 D.B. Redford, "Textual Sources for the Ilyksos Pel iod," in I~. Oren (cd). '11t The initial reports on the First Campaign (A), within months of the
Hyksos: New /listoneal and AlcltafoloKicn! Pm/Jective.1 (Phil.lcklphia. 19<)7). :n ')5 ewnt, sing/(' Ollt three facts with which contemporaries were meant
, A s(cla l'raKl11cnt frol11 (..2.!i1lb.1I1 d,ll('d to y",11 ') I III.IY OIl( c' h.l\c· mnt,llnnl
anolhl'l palH'lo(ylic on thl' l\hWdeio l,lI"p,lIlot" S J)Oll,leloll) "',.IIIIIllC·lllo ell 1111.1
to be impll'ss('d: I. the initi.lti\!' or the king in leading his troops,
, pi~'1 'Ipllt IlIIhi,IIl.1 di I'hnllllll'>< III 111 1/,/"tlS'(\ \I,V,t", I (,.1110. 11111, '21 II ," II. the S('il\lIl~ of' I it'h hnoly III till fill III of" (h,llio(s. Exceptionally,
208 CHAPTER FOUR THE BATTLE OF MEGIDDO: THE GROWTH OF THE TRADITION 209

the enemy is referred to by the slightly archaic fm3yw, and 7. The sub- able that anything beyond a few weeks would have been required
mission of the chiefs couched in conventional phrases. By the close to reduce this medium-sized settlement, now packed with fugitives.'
of the decade (year 30) five of the basic components in the official The problem of the barque of Amun and the extent of control in
account have made their appearance: 3. The council of war, 4. The southern Lebanon on the first campaign might occasion some reser-
battle and rout of the enemy, 5. The siege and counter circumval- vations: does the late date of the first notices suggest historical "tele-
lation, 6. Supplication of the defeated and 7. The oath of fealty. (B). scoping?" In fact, Hatshepsut had already made a new Wsr-~3t-Imn
Exceptionally again, the events are located in (4a) "the mountains just a few years before: 6 was a new one needed so soon? Or does
of Djahy." By the second half of the fourth decade (C), while no..5 the replacement of the queen's barque reflect the incipient antipa-
continues to be recounted much as before, no. 6 takes on embellish- thy the king felt towards his aunt's memory? The fortress in the
ment: the wives and children of the chiefs are given to the work- Lebanons, which only makes its appearance in the records two
house, and the three towns are confiscated for Amun. The fifth decades later, and is there closely associated with the construction
decade of the reign witnesses the most extensive embellishment and of the barque, cannot be discussed without launching into a discus-
midrashic "use" of the event: 8. The fortress in the Lebanons appears sion of action taken "post-Megiddo."
(D), and 9. The construction of Amun's barque is noted (D, F). Nos.
4, 5 and 7 are highlighted in E, which also identifies the enemy
as Fenkhu. Over 25 years after the event the narrative reaches its
most embellished state. G. plays upon 10., the size and quality oj
the enemy forces, 11. the siege now specified as 7 months duration,
the oath (7) and 12. The re-instatement of the chiefs and 13. TIl<
confiscation of their horses. H., though more succinct, shows si?;ll\
of further coloring: the king the king leads the way (1), through thl
narrow pass with the enemy now waiting at its mouth (14); they flee
to their towns (15), and ultimately take the oath of fealty (6-7).
When measured against the published daybook account, only ,I
little of this smacks of artifice or wholesale creation. Is the confiscatiol\
of horses merely a gloss upon the tally of the booty? Is the pre,
ence of the enemy, ready at the mouth of the pass, included III
heighten the measure of the king's personal success in routing thelll
Especially taxing to credulity are the statements regarding tIll
duration of the siege and the construction of Amun's barque. Sl'\l II
months reflects a time-honored cliche: 4 in the event it is incol1n'l\

4 "Seven," the monad producing a doubling pair, becamc a "neutral", 111) till.. ; Goedicke, The Battle if Megiddo, 90-91; cf. A. Alt, "Zu Thutmosis' III Kampf
ideal. It could be applied to inimical events such as seven years of faminc (Cilg.lI1\1" " urn Mcgiddo," P]B 32 (1936), 16-17.
vi. 104; AQHT-i.43 [ANET, 153],]. Vandier, fA Famine dans L'Egy/Jle ancienllf 1< illOl 6 WJ. Murnanc, "Thc Bark of Amun on the Third Pylon at Karnak," lARGE
1936], 132-39; Gen. 41:26) periods of Oppression (Jud. 6:1; AQIIT ( 1\.1 16 (1979), 11 27, esp. 18 21. Both treasurer Djehuty (Urk. IV, 421:2-4) and Hapu-
[ANET, 155], spans of rule (Jud. 12:9; I Kings 2:11; A.K. Craysol1, A\~)'II(//I seneb (Urk. rv, 474:5 8) c1aill1ed lhal they supervised construction on the queen's
Babylonian Chronicles [Winona Lake, 2000], chI'. 22 iv. 7, p. 176; Idril1li 28 IS 'illlil" I1I'W barque; al1d the vl'ssd ilsdf is depicled in lhe Red Chapel: P. Lacau, H. Chevrier,
77,e Sialut qf Idn'mi [Lol1dol1, 19~91, 16; T. Bryct', 'Ih, AII/grimn 1i/lllr /1111111'1 ICl .fllld l Tn' (,IW/II'II, d'I/IIII//lIIIO/lI, pi C)'2') I al1d I n I . This mi~hl poinl to a date of con-
1<)1)<)1, 2H6; ANET, III, l1lililary l'Ol1qU('SI 1kl11. 'J'II t .1m. 117'" '('r\llutlt' (, II slnlttlllll \\t'li \\Illrlll thl' '(,(lIliti tin ,Id,' of llrl' l('igl1. It·ss 111,\11 1n years Ilefore
"C);'}()!" gl'\tolllClil I"R't B iii '2') I \r\I;'1' lilil I'I1IIlllitN (l.uTl1l·tI III h.\\{' ',II"'d IllS 111'\\ Im,1I 1
 THE PROBLEM OF THE 2ND THROUGH 4TH CAMPAIGNS 211

A second (fragmentary) pericope which has been thought to be a

reminiscence of the 2nd campaign is to be found in the king's speech
CHAPTER FIVE on the reveals of the 7th pylon.' As divided by Sethe,8 this section
begins with a statement about the decoration of the barque of Amun
THE PROBLEM OF THE 2ND THROUGH by "this crew." Now the construction of Amun's barque, according
4TH CAMPAIGNS (YEARS 24-29) to the unanimous assertion of the sources,9 was carried out pursuant
to the victory on the First campaign, so that the reference in col.
10 of the inscription must fall within the account of the First cam-
No surviving text refers specifically and by ordinal numeral to the paign. But in the 8 groups missing at the beginning of col. 11 there
2nd, 3rd and 4th campaigns. Yet by year 42, when the decision was is ample space to restore an introductory phrase differentiating what
taken to complete the record to, what was by then called, the l6th(?) follows from the First campaign. In that case the content of cols. 11
Campaign, the numbering system was in place, and some escapades to 14 will have referred to a campaign subsequent to the barque-
were being labelled 2nd, 3rd and 4th. What were they, and in which building. The provision of milch-kine and milk-jugs is also mentioned
years are they to be dated? Were they in fact numbered post eventum? in the Festival Hall decree lO and on the Sixth Pylon (south).l! While
The prima facie case for a "second" campaign can be made on this act is not specifically tied in to the First campaign, it is juxta-
the basis of col. 107 of the first part of the Daybook records. Here posed with events known to have occurred in year 23: the sentence
the text reads "year 24: tally of the benevolences brought to the immediately preceding (12) refers to the establishment of new festi-
might of His Majesty in the country of Retenu."! Now the phrase vals which elsewhere are consistently linked to activity undertaken
~r b3st followed by toponym, which oceurs widely in the daybook on the return from the First campaign. The nature of the campaign
excerpts, always refers to the receipt of goods on expedition, not in described, however, does not fit what we know of the First: a con-
Egypt;2 and there is no reason to make an exception in the present frontation, a rout, the plundering of towns, a march(?) to [moun-
instance. 3 Additional allusions, however, to this campaign are difficult tains] of the east. 12
to confinn. Sethe believed the second campaign was originally recorded The textual analysis of the Festival Hall decree l3 has revealed
on the east face of the west wall (now gone) of the ambulatory, north another record which one is tempted to connect to a Second cam-
section, abutting col. 110. 4 This would, however, present us with all paign, in this case dated to the fifth month of the year. The frag-
anomalous arrangement in which the record of the receipt of benev- mentary sequence of events bears comparison with that of the pericope
olences preceded the action of the campaign itself. Sethe thought that of the 7th pylon text: confrontation, rout, plunder. Significantly, per-
a block in the Cairo museum conformed to the dimensions of the haps, cattle appear among the plunder, and children of the chiefs
columns of the "annals," and might onee have formed part of the and their congeners are confiscated for Amun.
said east faee of the west walLS The case will be made below that It might be argued that the dating of the ground-breaking cere-
the block in question comes from the record of the 8th campaign." monies for the Festival Hall introduces a difficulty to the recon-
struction of events here envisaged. l4 If, during the fifth month of his

1 Above, p. 64.
2 Cf. Urk. IV, 685:4, 689:4, 696: 16, 703: 17, 709: 16, 721: 10; N. Beaux, I~' Cabmd 7 Above, pp. 122f.
de curiosites de Thoutmosis III (Louvain, 1990), 38, pI. I a; cf. Grapow Studim, Hfl U Urk. IV, 186.
"from" is indicated by m: Urk. IV, 871: 10. q Above, pp. 115, 124, 143 '4.
3 Pace Heick, Beziehungen, 139, who simply follows the oleler literaturc: !\1('y"I, 10 Above, p. 133 (56 57).
Geschichte II,I, 126, n. I; Gardiner JEA 38 (1952), CJ; L)lioLOn-VancliCI, !!(i;gJ1itl, 101 " Above, p. 137.
ctc 12 For III(' ('volUlion or H'filw, scc P. WilsOJl, A Ptolemaic l..exicoll (LcLlvcn, 1997),
1 lirA. TV, (j7'i, anel plan b2:1 ;.,11 rlj. :i02 '3.
, lfA J\ b7h 77 11 \1l0\T, pp, U·I :b.
I, ~c" hc·lcm p :2:Z'l; \l'"m, 'I}" .1,,1111, • \IIO\c' p. 1:1', lmel n. 1'1'
212 CHAPTER FIVE THE PROBLEM OF THE 2ND THROUGH 4TH CAMPAIGNS 213

24th year, Thutmose III was to be found in Asia, dompting the local the Mittanian army,17 or in the Amarna Age with the collapse and
recalcitrants, does it not tax credulity to find him ostensibly back in disintegration of Mittani,18 this clearly was possible.
Karnak on the last day of the 6th month? Moreover a campaign The historical implications of the present passage, however, are
which encompasses the 5th month would have had to begin in the not as undermining of its credibility as the foregoing would suggest.
dead of winter, an anomaly when compared with the king's normal Saustatar's expansion to the east and the subsequent subversion of
practice. Again: if the siege of Megiddo ended after seven months, Assyria, certainly are to be dated after Thutmose Ill's recorded cam-
i.e. in December, would the king have set out again within a matter paigning period, and perhaps even after his death. In his 23rd year
of weeks? there is no reason to believe Assyria, probably under Ashur-nirari I,
None of these caveats, it might be argued, is really compelling. was not an active participant in the West Asian political scene. 19
For one thing, as has been demonstrated above,15 the figure "7 For the presence of Thutmose III in Asia in year 25 support is
months" for the siege is highly suspect. Again: the black granite stela afforded by the text in the "Botanical Garden" at Karnak, with a
from Karnak room Vp6 is a late document, possibly as late as year date in that year. 20 The text, after date and cartouches, continues
50. A hiatus of 25 years opens the door to dimming memory and "plants (sm) which His Majesty found in Retenu." A longer text
tendencies towards embellishment. Moreover, the date is applied to (north wall) amplifies this laconic entry: "various strange plants and
a miraculous event, which does not exactly inspire confidence in the various fine blooms which are in 'God's-land,' br[ought to] His
historian. But even if the date were accepted as historical, there is Majesty when His Majesty journeyed to Upper Retenu to overthrow
still no dilemma. As reconstructed, the text would only claim that the [rebellious] foreign lands ..." It is a curious fact that the con-
on an unspecified day in the fifth month the king was in Asia. Since, tents of the final columns of part 1 of the Daybook excerpts cols.
by inference from the stela, he was in Karnak on the last day of' 109-10) fasten upon wood, plants and wood products to the virtual
the 6th month, a maximum of 8 weeks would have intervened, ample exclusion of all else.
time for a homeward journey. As for the unseasonal date for the A "fourth" campaign is recorded on no surviving inscription.
campaign, it must be kept in mind that we are at the outset of the Whatever its nature, its date must fall within the 36-month period
wars of expansion: that, in retrospect, Megiddo was a landmark yjc- between years 26 and 28. Inscriptions from this time span seem to
tory, we today can appreciate. At the time, however, it may have attest the king's presence(?) near Meidum late in year 26,21 a flurry
seemed far from certain that yjctory was complete, and the slight- of actiyjty in Nubia in year 27,22 an expedition to Sinai, also in year
est uproar in Canaan would have brought Thutmose III back imme-
diately. The "rhythm" of campaigning periods awaited the certainty
of yjctory, and still lay in the future.
The curious entry for year 24 is the benevolence of Assyria. Had 17 See below, pp. nOff.
18 R. Cohen, "On Diplomacy in the Ancient Near East: the Amarna Letters,"
the impact of the Battle of Megiddo reached so far afield, especially in Diplomary and Statecrafl 7 (1996), 253.
in light of Mitanni's continued geographical integrity and military 19 G. Wilhelm, The Humans (Warminster, 1989), 26-27; A. Harrak, As~ria and

power? What kind of weak Assyrian state could have established con- Hanigalbat (Hildesheim, 1987), 52-53; T. Bryce, The Kingdom of the Hittites (Oxford,
1999), 149.
tact with Egypt? Would they not have been obliged to cross terri- 20 L. Manniche, An Ancient Egyptian Herbal (Austin, 1989), 13; M. Beaux Ie Cabinet
tory controlled by Mitanni? In year 40, after two signal defeats or de curiositis de Thoutmosis III (Leuven, 1990), p. 41 (a-b); A. Wilkinson, The Garden
in Ancient Egypt (London, 1998), 137-40. Whether the text was carved in that year
is another matter. The Oooring of this part of the complex shows re-used blocks of
Hatshepsut: A. Varille, "Quelques Notes sur Ie sanctuaire axial du grand temple
d'Amon [I Karnak," ASJIE 50 (1950), I 32ff.
II Cf. The j.\-rafTiLO of the s(Tibe of measuring: "V.M.F. Petrie, Meiduln, pI. 34:8,
", Above, p. 208. p. II. The elate is viii, 21, i,e. jllst bdillT a campaigning season might have begun.
I" 1'-1\1 1[, plan xi. n <:1 .J, \,('l«(JIIIII'I, klil/l \ I I<J.IIl , pI. Ib,] year 27, vi, Il).
 214 CHAPTER FIVE THE PROBLEM OF THE 2ND THROUGH 4TH CAMPAIGNS 215

27,23 and the induction(?) of the vizier's major domo Amenemhet in of Egypt's sway at any given moment in the early 18th Dynasty
year 28. 24 Whether the first and third are in any way connected is that there is no evidence that Byblos was anything but friendly
with activity which might later be construed as a "fourth" campaign, towards Egypt, and had been so from the Middle Kingdom. 31 In
must remain moot. 25 fact, prior to the campaigns of the fourth decade of the reign,
In sum: for the dark period of years 26 to 28 we may postulate the geopolitical configuration saw a sphere of Egyptian influence
the following on the basis of the fragmentary evidence: in Palestine and along the south Lebanese coast to Byblos, paired
off against a sphere of influence of Kadesh and Tunip inland,
I. The completion of something that could qualify as a "fortress" under Mittanian suzerainty, east of the Lebanons and as far south
(mnnw) in the Lebanons. 26 With the power of Kadesh and Tunip as Galilee.
intact and stretching as far as the coast, such a fort could scarcely 2. The sack of cities. A skirmish with "Fenkhu," as we have seen,
have been sited anywhere but in southern Lebanon. Inspite of may be attested for year 24, along with the "plundering" of their
the fact that the relevant text27 refers to building and naming a towns. 32 Since it is unlikely that the Palestinian city destructions
"fort," there is a good likelihood that all the king means is that took place on the march during the First campaign, it is proba-
he expanded an existing structure. One thinks of Tyre, called ble that the call to dismantle fortifications went out pursuant to
significantly in the Amarna Letters a "royal" city,28 a status of the capitulation of the coalition, and occupied year 24. It is inter-
long standing. 29 Again: it is not inconceivable that the pericope esting to note that the nature of the campaign of year 25, inso-
hangs on some minor addition to the fortifications of Byblos which, far as it enjoys a record at all, is said to have encompassed the
by the usual Egyptian conceit, Thutmose renamed. 30 A point of overthrow of foreigners (i.e. a set-piece battle?). Yet, the concen-
some importance to bear in mind in assessing the territorial extent tration on plants from the open fields, meadows and uplands
removes us entirely from the milieu of urban assault into the
countryside.
23 J. Cerny, A.H. Gardiner, The Inscriptions if Sinai (London, 1952), pI. 64: 198. It
3. The Processional barque. As pointed out above, the references to
is to be noted that this inscription contains the earliest known occurrence of Thutmose acquiring timber for Userhatamun on the first campaign occur
Ill's second titulary: H. Gauthier, Le Livre des rois d'Egypte II, 257 (XlII). only in the later accounts, between years 42 and 50. 33 The shrine
24 N. de G. Davies, A.H. Gardiner, The Tomb if Amenemhet (London, 1915), pI.
24ff; Urk. IV, 1043. The date stands at the head of the mortuary stela, and is fol- inscription, in fact, alludes to the king's being involved in the
lowed by the invocation and an encomium of the vizier User. tree-cutting. Two passages associate the preparation of the wood
25 It should be remembered in this regard that Si-Bast's legal text (year 27) pre-
with the fortress. In light of the extreme "business" of the First
supposes a recent military campaign: see above, p. 00.
26 Discussion in Morris, The Architecture if Imperialism, 150-53. campaign, it seems to me extremely unlikely that all of this could
27 Above, p. 137. be accomplished with summer past and winter approaching. More
28 Cf. EA 146:10, 150:7, 151:6, 155; cf. The epithet amti sarri in 149:10,63 and
passim.
29 EA 150:35~37. Note that the traditional, natural sphere of influence of Tyre
extended from the Litani River to Carmel, very close to where the Egyptian forces
were now located: E. Lipinski, "The Territory of Tyre and the Tribe of Asher," 31 For the Second Intermediate Period see K.A. Kitchen, "Byblos, Egypt and
in E. Lipinski (ed), Phoenicia and the Bible (Louvain, 1991), 153-66. But Tyre's intcr- Mari in the Early 2nd Millenniuim B.C.," Orientalia 36 (1967), 39-54; Weinstein,
ests may already have ranged farafield, presaging its Iron Age commercial interests op. cit., 220. When to the evidence from the site is added a scattering of scarabs
as far as the Gulf of Alexandretta (P.E. Dion, Les Arameens a l'age dufer: Histoire poli- (G.T. Martin, Administrative and Private Name Seals [Oxford, 1971], nos. 810, 1689;
tique et structures sociales [Paris, 1997], 70-72), making it an ideal possession: nOlC W. Ward, "Some Personal Names of Hyksos Period Rulers and Notes on the
how Pharaoh uses it as a listening post for the entire Levant: EA 151 :4·9ff Epig-raphy of lheir Scarabs," UF 8 [1976], 353-69), a generation count of 10 to
30 P-M VII, 389; P. Montet, Byblos et l'Egypte (Paris, 1928), r, pI. 152 (94·7), 249; 12 g-rnrralions may bc sel up from c. 1770 B.C., reaching almost into Thutmose
S. Wimmer, "Egyptian Temples in Canaan and Sinai," in S. Israelil-Groll (eel), Ill's reiiPl.
Studies in Egyptology Presented to Miriam tichtheim 11 (Jerusalem, 1990), 1080 83, 1097; 'll Pel haps ()crasionin~ the scarab in I I.E. Winlock, nze Treasure if nzree Egyptian
.J. Wrinslrin, "Byblos," ill Redford, Oxford Ellrvclopatdia of Al/llfIlt l?gppt I Nl'w York, Pril/mltl (N('w YOI k, I 91H" pi XIX F ,Inc! p. 35.
"DOl I, 219 21 1\ A!lo\(' JIJI 20H lJ.
 216 CHAPTER FIVE

likely thc decision to "build" a "fort" and to cut timber for a

barque was taken, and work begun, before Thutmose III returned
to Egypt; but was continued into year 24 by a contingent of CHAPTER SIX
troops left behind to supervise. 34
THE STRATEGY OF YEARS 29 TO 31

Whether a reaction to Thutmose Ill's victories or an occupation of

long-standing, the "presence" of Tunip in the Eleutheros Valley and
along the Phoenician coast represents one of two geopolitical thrusts
coaeval with the initial Drang nach Norden of the Egyptians. The first,
that of Kadesh, which sought to establish its hegemony through an
inland sphere of influence extending from the upper Orontes to the
Esdraelon, entailed a move on Egypt as its ultimate goal. This had
been wholly thwarted by Thutmose Ill's prompt action. The sec-
ond, that of Tunip, was designed to establish a coastal sphere of con-
trol extending from the middle Orontes through the Eleuthereos to
the middle Phoenician coast (the later Amurru). Insofar as we can
speak of an Egyptian "foreign policy" (better: geopolitical stance) we
should have to classifY Egypt's concern for access to timber as among
her chief priorities. Byblos had acted as Egypt's gateway to the cedar
reserves, always friendly and always open. But now a hostile force
from Tunip lay within 50 km. of Byblos, having strengthened itself,
if our suggested emendation is correct, I by co-opting the Apiru of
the region. It was this aggressive action that precipitated the Egyptian
response.
Thutmose's developing strategy corresponds to the three years of
campaigning. In the first he secured the port and captured the Tunip
garrison before moving inland to destroy the environs of Ardata. All
important was his demonstration that he now controlled the food
stocks of the area, and could ship plunder back to Egypt by sea.
(Whether the Egyptians themselves had come by sea is a moot point;
but it is tempting to reconstruct a maritime crossing with landfall at
Byblos).2 The next stage was designed (a) to teach Kadesh that she
was not beyond his reach, and (b) to secure the Eleutheros Valley
and the Akkar plain politically. To this end-the sequence of events

II One wonders whclher lilt' "crew" lhal is menlioncd on llll' 7lh p}lol1 reveals
as "olking on lhe hanJlI(' ,dlO\'t" p. 122 h,ls iUl}lhil1g tn dn ,dlh llll' "g'Ulg" \\hil'h I AIlll\( p, II I.
'ollli('d plund('1 In L"'rpl In lhc' 1),1}llOnk L\( (·'pl. PI I ,01 lj', ,Ihl)\(' P 00 1 Cf '\ C n I illl,d, ,I 1//\
 218 CHAPTER SIX THE STRATEGY OF YEARS 29 TO 31 219

follows the above order-Thutmose III and his army must have the "harbors"lo of the region into depots where local food stuffs could
marched by land through the Esdraelon up the Jordan valley to be deposited. II Presumably the arrangements for garnering the har-
debouche in the Beka'a. 3 Kadesh suffered to wasting of its territory, vest depended upon the same type of share-cropping on khatto-Iand
before the Egyptian forces exited by way of the mountains to descend which had worked in the Esdraelon. 12 The harvest was of such great
upon Sumur and Ardata whose environs were similarly ravaged. In importance to the survival of Canaanite cities, that special legisla-
the aftermath 36 principalities came over to Thutmose III who inau- tion was in place to protect this vital resource during the crucial
gurated the practice of hostage-taking to ensure loyalty. The social winter months. 13 By confiscating it Thutmose III had rendered the
structure of the palatine 4 coastal cities abetted the Egyptian take- region destitute, a strategy imitated by Ashurnasirpal some 5 cen-
over: a king, with small maryannu elite, supported by semi-free peas- turies later. 14
antry.5 Compromise the king, remove the maryannu, and the resistence By his actions on these three campaigns, Thutmose III for the
of the community collapses. A coastal section of Western Asia had first time had exceeded, not only the accomplishments, but also the
thus been added to the Egyptian "dominion" of Palestine. vision of his predecessors. He had not only defeated an "absentee"
The third stage involved securing the newly-subverted chiefdoms enemy and brought back much plunder: he had also secured the region
of the middle Phoenician coast by establishing a permanent pres- and most importantly its food stores, and denied the enemy future
ence. 6 To that end the town of Ullaza was ransacked, its Tunip gar- access. That was not a fortuitous result: clearly Thutmose was look-
rison captured and the settlement taken over as an Egyptian garrison ing beyond the Levant.
town. It is interesting to note that, if our restoration of the traces is
correct,7 the Egyptians had encountered a band of Apiru at Ullaza.
This will have been, then, one of the earliest references to these peo-
ple in Egyptian sources. 8 Significantly they are to be found in the
same region they later occupy in force during the Amarna Age. 9 In
order to make the Egyptian military and (presumably) civilian pres-
ence self-sustaining from this point on, Thutmose III transformed

3 The year date preserved in the Armant stela (above, p. 156) suggests a depar-
ture by land.
4 This apt term for the metropolitan territoria of Canaan, based as they were

on a palace economy, was coined by Lemche, The Canaanites and their Land. The
Tradition qf the Canaanites (Sheffield, 1991), 45 n. 76.
5 M. Heltzer, The Internal Organization qf the Kingdom qf Ugarit (Wiesbaden, 1982);
J.M. Halligan, "The Role of the Peasant in the Amarna Period," in D.N. Freedman,
D. Graf (eds), Palestine in Transition (Sheffield, 1983), 15-20; M. Liverani, Antico oriente.
Storia, societa, economia (Rome, 1988), 546-52; N.P. Lemche, The Canaanites and their 10 From the location of named towns it is clear that mryt can refer as much to
Land. The Tradition qf the Canaanites (Sheffield, 1991), 45 and n. 76. The felicitous settlements near the coast as those actually on the shore.
"patrimonial" state is used by Liverani: "The Great Powers' Club," in R. Cohen, II N. Na'aman, "Praises to Pharaoh in Response to his Plans for a Campaign
R. Westbrook (eds), Amama Diplomacy (Baltimore, 2000), 18. to Canaan," in T. Abusch and others (eds), Lingering over Wordf. Studies in Ancient
6 Although not stated, it is very likely that the army crossed by sea. Near Eastern Literature in Honor qf William L. Moran (Atlanta, 1990), 397-98; D.B.
7 Above, p. 72 n. 92. Redford, Egypt and Canaan in the New Kingdom (Beersheva, 1990), 56-60.
8 For their presence in T.T. 39 and 155 see sources in O. Loretz, Ijabirullebraer 12 Sec above, p. 43.
(Berlin, 1984), 36; for the occurrences in folklore attached to 'rhutmose Ill's name, 13 P. VarKYas, "Marchands hittites it Ougarit," OLP 16 (1985), 71-9; idem,
ibid., 38 9. "Tmmi~l,llion inlCl UF\arit," in K. van Lerberghe (ed), Immigralion and Emigration within
" M. Liverani, "Far~i babil u," Vicino l/i, ,II/ornl Arllr I'.llll (LolJwin, 1995), 10 I.
thl' Apinl ()I BernnH' OIH'?" in 1).1\1. II Ii Cifill.l, "A~llllln,l~II'J),\J II', (lth Call1paip;n: Seizinp; the Grain Bowl of the
'1111/ FJ,.I);/,'ulII Stlll"ri I ~f\rIltrrl to 'J 111111/11\ PllIll'llItI,lIl Cilll .," If() II II ttlll? Ilil I'\() 'IB
 THE EIGHTH CAMPAIGN (YEAR 33) 221

Event A B C D E F G H I J K L M

CHAPTER SEVEN 1. Journey to

Byblos - II - - - - - - - - - - -
2. Making - 11- - - - - - - - - - - -
THE EIGHTH CAMPAIGN (YEAR 33)
boats 12
3. Battles in [col. 58l
Aleppo 19] - - 583 - - - - - - - - -
In all likelihood the 7th campaign witnessed the king's return, after
4. Setting up [col. 13 8(3) - - - - - X - X - -
the harvest had been deposited in the harbors, in akhet ii (early
stela 19]-
September) or thereabouts, of his 31 st year. If, as would be expected, 20
the 8th campaign got under weigh in the second spring thereafter l
5. Crossing [col. 11- 8(2) - - 4(a) 7- - X X X ? ?
the hiatus in campaigning would have amounted to 16 to 18 months. nver 19?] 12 8
Why Thutmose should have desisted from campaigning for this span - - - - - - - - - -
6. Flight of - 9
of time is not immediately apparent. One distinct possibility is that enemy chief
the requirements of the sed-festivaF in the 32nd year demanded the -
7. River col. - - - 4(b) - - - - - -
king's presence at home. Moreover, the complete success of Egyptian battle 20-1
arms along the Phoenician coast, the result, not of ephemeral razz- - -
8. Hacking up col. 9- 8(1) - - - X - - - -
ias, but campaigns of territorial acquisition, had temporarily awed towns 20 11
the opposition. With their garrisons captured and farm-land ravaged, - - - -
9. Captures col. - - - - - - - -
the Syrian enemy, Kadish and Tunip, seemed to have remained qui- [in Naharin] 21-2
escent, bracing themselves for a fourth campaign in four years which - - - - -
10. [sack of ...] col. - - - - - - -
failed to materialize. 22
A greater number and variety of sources exist for the 8th cam- - - -
11. Niya col. 16- 7 588 - - - - - -
paign than for any other of Thutmose Ill's military exploits. None, 23 17
however, constitutes a complete record, to be relied on to the exclu-
12. Qatna - - - - 15- - - - - - - - -
sion of others. The order and nature of events must be reconstructed 21
on the basis of all the texts. When this is done it will be recognized - - - -
13. Benevolences col. - - - - - - - -
that, of all the sources passed in review in the table, the Daybook 23-5
Excerpts clearly reflect the correct sequence of incidents selected. - -
14. Stocking of col. - - - - - - - - - -
The authors of the seance texts and the encomia add significant harbors 26
facts, but their over-all agenda was different. The biographical texts
15. Return col. 14- - - - - - - - - - - -
stress individual exploits and recall the one outstanding event, viz. 28-9 15
the crossing of the river.

I I.e. ill thl' lat(· "inter or early sprin~ of lhe 3211<1 }I'al; Oil lhl' problem of lhl'
cai<'n<lal <I.III'S, SI'I' bl'lo" , p. Vfi.
I Ihl' S('I lllld' {)Il lltl' plllhlc'l1l 11l1ll1u'<I UpOIl hl'II', M'l hlillw, p. 227.
 222 CHAPTER SEVEN THE EIGHTH CAMPAIGN (YEAR 33) 223

Problems remain however. 3 Most reconstructions of the sequence Thutmose's retirement south to Niya. Should we, therefore, under-
of events have labored under the burden of the mistaken order stand the sdm.nj form at the beginning of col. 20 of the Excerpts
assigned to them by Gardiner. As demonstrated above,4 the latter as pluperfect, thus "Indeed, after His Majesty had gone down-
misunderstood the criteria of selection of episodes in Amenemheb's stream ..."? This would indeed bring the order of events into line
autobiography, and thereby created a curious pastiche of incidents with the sequence in Barkal, Armant and the Philadelphia fragment,9
far removed from reality.5 While episodes 1 to 3 are obviously to and would also conform to logical expectations: one sets up a triumph-
be placed at the head, and 11, 13 to 15 at the conclusion, there is stela only when the enemy has been defeated. On the other hand,
some doubt about the rest. The geographic location of Qatna and as was argued above, the Daybook Excerpts would be expected to
the insouciance of the archery contest (no. 12), it could be argued, preserve the chronological order, whereas seance and encomia are
suggest that this stop was on the return: 6 only with the battle already organized along different lines.
won could such self-indulgence be contemplated. 7 The main difficulty The lie of the land in the vicinity of Carchemish would dictate
lies in the order and nature of episodes 4 through 9. When were that any stela, whether quarried on a rock or quarried and free-
the stela(e) set up: before or after the final battle? And what was the standing, be placed north of the city where the contours rise. to
latter: one of the confrontations sub no. 3, or the river battle (no. Thutmose Ill's ravaging of the countryside would have involved the
7)? And when did the king of Mittani flee: before or after the river- river valley either north or south of the city: both stretches show
crossing? extensive occupation in antiquity. I I The sequel, however, involving
The setting up of the stela8 occupies a pivotal position in the a hastily-assembled force to block the Egyptian route, might best be
sequence. In Barkal (13) the stela is erected following the flight or explained by the Egyptians' attempt to head towards the more pop-
the enemy king. In Armant (8) it follows the crossing of the river ulous(?) North (see map 2).12
and the hacking up of the towns. The stela is again mentioned in One additional text, of uncertain provenience and therefore omit-
the Daybook Excerpts (II) where its erection immediately precedes ted from consideration heretofore, may now be considered as a poten-
tial source of information. This is the block in the Cairo museum
which Sethe believed to contain part of the record of the 2nd cam-
3 For the table above note the following: A = the Daybook Excerpts; B = Gebel paign.13 While this attribution may be dismissed as a mere guess,
Barkal stela; C = the Armant Stela; D = Amenemheb; E = the 7th Pylon reveals;
F = the Constantinople obelisk; G = the Poetical Stela; H = Menkheperrason!J; traces of royal titulary on the reverse may arguably be assigned to
I = Yamu-nedjeh;] = Iwy-montu; K = Min-mose; L = Sen-nufe; M = Nebenkeme. Thutmose III,14 and allusions to archery may indicate the 8th cam-
4 See pp. I 7Off.
paign. An examination of the content suggests a retrograde read-
5 Cf. Drioton-Vandier, L'Egypte (4th ed; Paris, 1962), 403-4: here Thutmose [II
hops about from north to south in a ludicrous distortion of the obvious. K1eng-el ing: 15 A(9) [... My Majesty commanded] to bring it outside for me.
too has fallen victim to Gardiner's version (~ria: 3000 to 300 B.G. [Berlin, 1992J, Then [....] (8) [.... in order to] tread the roads of [this] country
91-93), as also, to a lesser extent, Drower (CAH II, I [Cambridge, 1973J, 4.5G"
and Grimal (A History qf Ancient Egypt [Oxford, 1992J, 215-16); cf. A. Tulhofl
17zutmosis III (Munich, 1984), 139ft; G. Wilhelm, 17ze Humans, 26.
6 Qatna is also a likely stopping point en route, for both outward-bound and 9 Note how the return follows immediately on the erection of the stela.
homeward-bound journeys, as the ford of the Orontes is in the vicinity: Urk. IV, 10 W. Heick, "Karkemisch," LdA III (1980), 340; J.D. Hawkins, "Carchemish,"
1302:7; der Manuelian, Studies . .. Amenophis II, 60. North of Qatna the Egyptian' in E.M. Meyers (ed), 17ze O>ifOrd Encyclopaedia qf Archaeology in the Near East I (New
v,,jll have followed the high east bank of the Orontes, to avoid the swampy condl York, 1997), 423~24.
tions of the valley: P.E. Dion, "L'incursion d'Assurnasirpal TI au Luhutu," Orim/II/III II G. Runnens, Essays on ~ria in the Iron Age (Louvain, 2000), p. 386 (fig. I).
69 (2000), 137. 12 On the equivocal nature of the text-bdi is not a certain restoration-see
7 As pointed out above (p. 77), the restoration of "Q?llna" in Urk. IV, 6%: 17 is above, p. 82 n. 351.
wholly gratuitous and without foundation. 11 Urk. IV, 675 78.
o Older discussions in which two stela(" one on eillwr hnnk, W('Il' (oll,idl'led II f " lIrk. IV, 677.
Cardiner, Anrim/ [\{:l'/J/ian Onolllaltim I, 175* ,uld n. I; Smilh, trill/ill, III IT" ,III 1\ COll1nMIH!S 10 mare-Ii '7 t); pillap,il1/o\" an oasis (6); razing towns (5); indulging
111m o!JsOII'll', in'pill' of 1l'll'l1t ,lll('II'ph 10 Il'SU,('il,\l(' Ihl' 1111111111 \ J)mhlll1, ,1/1II/m,}1 ill .utlle-I) I Inlkllion of J ,llId ofl('IiI1!r' to lhe: gods (3); construction(?) of a
II/II" \tI, IAlIHllIn, l'l'l,l H7; d C;.d,ill. 1'''1111}' m,,1 /I",d". )'1I11() hlMt ) lill" " W,Ill'! .loIn Ill")'
224 CHAPTER SEVEN THE EIGHTH CAMPAIGN (YEAR 33) 225
[ ] (7) [.... His Majesty] l.p.h. His Majesty commanded to have through the kingdom of Aleppo to Carchemish, further north in fact
[ ] organized l6 [....] (6) [... Then His Majesty despatched(?) the than ever before. Even then they did not stop, but brought forward
army(?) and char]iotry to plunder this settlement. Then [...] brought their prefabricated boats and crossed into the Mittanian heartland.
[ ] (5) [... then] these towns [were set] on fire, and after[wards ] For this the king of Mittani was not prepared. A defence force of
(4) [ and so] His Majesty took some recreation in l7 archery [ ] a size capable of withstanding the Egyptian expeditionary force would
(3) [ a hecatomb ...] consisting of all fine things for Amun-re, have taken months to muster. This explains why the Mittanian king
lord of Karnak, and for Re-[Harakhty, ...] (2) [... a craft(?)18 on(?)] quit the field,21 and his nobility sought refuge in caves: 22 the over-
the ship-[canallbasin(?)]19 which has no outlet, while its crew was in whelming numbers of the Egyptians made both battlefield and domi-
[....]" If this fragment bears upon the 8th campaign it presumably cile unsafe. Thus, at least initially Thutmose found himself with no
describes the homeward journey after the army has come from the opponents. It was now that sufficient time was found for the prepa-
Euphrates, The term w~3t indicates rural settlements in contrast to ration for the stelae and the methodical destruction of towns and
urban, fortified centers,20 and thus would be appropriate for the hamlets. A Mittanian militia scratched together from three(?) towns
steppe across which the army would have to proceed to Niya. The attempted to bar thc way, but were easily repulsed. The stelae com-
archery display (at Qatna) follows, with the collection of benevo- pleted, the Egyptians returned to Niya via the Nukhashshe steppe,
lences(?), an offering to the gods, and finally a reference to a ship plundering and firing some villages en route. Mter the elephant hunt,
constructed(?) in a land-locked water-basin. It is tempting to con- they made their way to Qatna, where Thutmose examined the local
strue this as a reference to the harbors and a homeward journey bow-manufacturing industry, and put on a show of marksmanship.
undertaken by timber-bearing ships. The collection of benevolences followed. Mter the commissioning of
In assessing the context of the 8th campaign, one consideration ship-building at some inland harbor on the Phoenician coast, Thutmose
seems to override all others: the 8th campaign involved the surprise and the troops returned to Egypt by land. 23
occasioned by strategic planning and secret equipment, and was not It was participation in the 8th campaign which conferred on con-
a set-piece battle announced and intelligenced in advance. As the temporary notables epithets and phrases referring to following the
Egyptians moved into the Orontes basin it must have looked to the king on water and land (although the appelatives were not new).
king of Mittani, so used heretofore to employing others as cat's-paws, The earliest occurrences make the association explicit: "who did not
as though Thutmose was engaged yet again in an expedition chevauchie, desert the Lord of the Two Lands on the battlefield in any north-
designed to elicit the oath and benevolences. But the Egyptians con- ern country, who crossed the Euphrates after His Majesty in order
tinued north, devastating several territories and moving relentlessly to fix the boundary of Egypt";24 "I followed the king of Upper and
Lower Egypt [Menkheper]re to [eve]ry [foreign country] in my
youth, , . he trod the mountains and crossed the river Euphrates";25
16 Wb. II, 220:5-14. "I followed the Perfect God, the king of Upper and Lower Egypt
17 Sri3i ~r. same expression used of Thutrnose Ill's recreation in Armant (Urk.
IV, 1245:12). Menkheperre ... in every foreign land he marched through; I saw
18 The resumptive demands a masculine noun for some sort of boat. His Majesty flex his arm against [the vile doomed one] who had
19 The suffix .s requires a feminine noun for the body of water. One thinks of
attacked the land, when [he] crossed [the Euphrates] ..."26 Thereafter
/.tnt (Wb. III, 105:1-8; H. Gauthier, Dictionnaire geographique IV, 32; CT II, 64b),
"(swampy) lake, canal"; idyl, "(excavated) pool" ( Gardiner, Onomastica I, p. 8*; R.O.
Faulkner, Concise Dictionary if Middle Egyptian [Oxford, 1962], 274); or mryt, "harbor"
(Wb. II, 109-10). The present passage suggests a body of water which, for what- 21 For the usc of the trope of "flight to another land" in Egyptian sources, and
evcr reason, had no direct outlet to tlle sea: for such land-locked features in Egypt, its hiSlorieal accuracy, sec below.
see C.A.R. Andrews, "Pathyl'ite Waterways in Documents of Ptolemaic Date," in 22 Urk. IV, 931:1 3.
B. J\lrllu (rei), l-es Problhlles ill.llilutiollds de l'eau fIl IWf!lf allt/emlt ft danj l'iJnliquillr 1:1 This !>('('ms to follow Ii 0111 til(' wording- of Barkal: above, Urk. TV, 1232-33.
medll/'rmnrmllf (Cairn, 1991), 30 31. 21 (!rA. IV, 1370: I() I I Yillllll-ll('c1j(·h).
II /lb, I, 'il(j'l;1 II; R,t\. Camillos, ,I '11I1r IIIII"r (h(iud. )1)77" IO!. 3:1; " {,I.. IV, Ilrlh h7 Iwy..l\tulllll !J1I11I"
I) \1 "1 kJ , A'mfe lnimJ(1II1i1"'1/1r II P,ll is, IlJH I 10' (r,1.. 1\, 1111 ~IiJlIlIm! !'IlVIlI!!'l
226 CHAPTER SEVEN THE EIGHTH CAMPAIGN (YEAR 33) 227

the phrase is reduced to an almost generic level: "who followed the Thus (and these estimates err on the conservative side), Thutmose
king on water and land in the southern and northern countries."27 Ill's 8th campaign cannot have occupied a span of time much less
than 5 months. If the army had set out at the same time of year
While no direct statement is made in any source about the length as they had on the first and sixth campaigns, i.e. the end of month
of the 8th campaign, a judicious estimate, on the basis of quantifiable viii, they would have returned no earlier than the end of the first
activities and itineraries, yields the following: month of akhet. But a text from Bersheh 34 dated to the 12th day of
the 12th month (iv. Shomu) of the 33rd year might be taken to imply
1. Sea journey to Byblos from the Delta c. 5-7 days the king's presence in Egypt on that day. The text reads, after the
2. The cutting of timber and making date, "the inauguration of a myriad of very frequent sed-festivals
assault craft c. 15-20 d ays 28 which Thoth himself has c[opiJed out in his writing on the precious
3. The march to the Euphrates No less than 30 d ays 29 ifd-tree. Appearance(?) by the King of Upper and Lower Egypt
4. Crossing the river 1 day Menkheperre, son of Re, Thutmose-of-perfect-being, upon the Horus-
5. River battle 1 day throne of the living like Re for ever!" The choice of the phrase h3t
6. Hacking up the towns and villages 15 days(?) Mw-sd cf3 wrt would seem to point to the second jubilee;35 but whether
7. Carving the stela 5 to 7 days (??O it is a commemoration of a jubilee in progress, or the announce-
8. The march to Niya 31 & the plundering ment of one to come in about a year's time is unclear. 36 In either
of villages en route 15-21 days(?) case, if the king maintained his normal campaigning schedule, he
9. The elephant hunt 2 days could not have been in Egypt on xii.12!37
10. The march to Qatna32 7 days An escape from the dilemma, in the case of the 8th campaign,
11. Sporting contest and inspection 2 days might be found in assuming that, for some reason Thutmose III had
12. Collection of benevolences c. 5 days(?) left Egypt much earlier than usual. To be present for an "appear-
13. Return march to Egypt 33 c. 37 days ance" on xii.12, after a five-month campaign, he would have had
to set sail around vii. 1 (approximately Feb. 20). The early time of
departure would certainly not have been expected by the enemy,
and that, in part, could account for the tactical surprise one senses
27 Berlin 10756: O. Kaiser, Aegyptisches Museen Berlin (Berlin, 1967), no. 584 Thutmose achieved.
(Nebenkeme, child of the harim); H.M. Stewart, Stelae, Reliifs and Paintings }Tom the
Petrie Collection I. New Kingdom (Warminster, 1976), pi. 15 (Duwa-erneheh, steward);
Urk. IV, 1020:5-8 (Neferperet, butler, child of the harim); Urk. IV, 1024: 17 (Amunmose,
steward); Urk. IV, 1062:2, 1641 (Amunemhet, king's-scribe, food supply); Urk. IV, 34 P-M IV, 185; Urk. IV, 597(D); E. Hornung, E. Staehelin, Studien :::.um Sedfist
1462: 19 (Pekh-sukher, lieutenant general); CCG 34092 (Duwa, captain); Hieroglyphic (Geneva, 1974), 32.
Texts ... British Museum VIII (1939), pi. 9 (Amunhotpe, high-priest of Anhur). 35 Inspite of the absence of the phrase "repetition of the sed-festival," the tech-
28 It remains a possibility that the king had ordered some of this work to he nically correct designation of the second: E.F. Wente, C. van Siclen III, "A Chronology
done before he and the troops arrived. Yet the statement in Barkal claims that he of the New Kingdom," in Studies in Honor of George R. Hughes (Chicago, 1976), 227;
was on the spot during the work. W J. Murnane, "The Sed-Festival: a Problem in Historical Method," MDAIK 37
29 The distance is approximately 450 km., and I have reckoned the rate of speed (1981), 373.
at c. 15 km. per day. This might have to be lengthened in view of the skirmishes 36 I.e. at the end of the 33rd and the beginning of the 34th year, when a sec-
the army engaged in on the way. nd jubilee was normally celebrated: H. Gauthier, Ie Livre des rois d'Egypte III (Cairo,
30 With a prepared text of modest length, perhaps such as Thutmose I carved 1914),92 93;J. Von Beckerath, "Gedanken zu den Daten des Sed-Feste," MDAIK
at Kurgus in the Sudan as a boundary stela: P-M VTI, 233; AJ. Arkell, A Ihltol1' 47 (1991), 32 33.
of the Sudan to 1821 (London, 1961), 83 fig. 10; P.L. Shinnie, Anril!11l .M/bin (Londol1, 37 If he had left around viii.25, as he did on his first campaign, i.e. mid-April,
1996), 80 fig. 2 I . a 5-motlth campail{tl woule! have terminated in mid-September, 6 weeks after the
11 Approximately 200 km. Betslwll gl,llTlW's datt' (' Aujl,. I). On the uncertainty surrounding Thutmose Ill's
'12 Approximatcly 100 kill. jllbi"'e~. M'(' \) Il Rl·dfiml. J!lulTIwnir Iilnlllilll, IImail alld Day books (Mississauga,
11 I'IpplO"im.ltl'ly 'i'iO kill j<JHh,. llil WI; I',. Illllntlfll! "Sl·dfi·,l \11HI (;(,thitll\l'." Mnl/Il 17 (19')1).171.
228 CHAPTER SEVEN

One major difficulty with the above reconstruction is the danger

inherent in voyaging on the Mediterranean during the winter. No
one risked the entire enterprise, whether military or commercial, by CHAPTER EIGHT
embarking before May; and he who set sail while the Pleiades were
setting might well sink with them. 38 It is no use protesting that, above, THE POLITICAL CONFIGURATION OF SYRIA AND
we have postulated a date in the 5th month for the 2nd campaign:!'! MITTANI'S RIPOSTE
that expedition travelled by land.
The solution may well lie in the attenuated and (perhaps) apoc-
opated nature of Thutmose Ill's sed-festival celebrations. 40 Sen-nufer's The euphoria one senses in the later accounts of the 8th campaign
Bersheh text need not be a commemoration of a festival in progres.l, centers upon the tactical details of the encounter. The river is crossed,
as much as an anticipatory assertion that one will follow at the end the enemy king flees, his noblemen become refugees, the Egyptians
of the regnal year. The writing of the king's name on a leaf of the cut a swath of destruction, the local population is overwhelmed with
ifd-tree is generally associated with the crowning of Pharaoh,41 and awe. But the seances and the encomia celebrate the moment: the
the re-affirmation of his kingship,42 although its primary link seems reality of the aftermath did not invite celebration.
to be to the solar cultY Why the date xii.12 heads the text is not If the Egyptians could pride themselves, as we know they did, on
clear, although it was certainly an auspicious (if artificial) choin' having won an early round in the contest with Mittani, in reality it
removed from the time when a jubilee ought to have been pel amounted to little more than spoiling tactics. Within two years Mittani
formed. Perhaps the choice has something to do with the mytho retaliated with effect. The statement that the "chief of Naharin had
logical date of the final defeat of Seth, and his expulsion to lilt fled to another land" need not be taken at face value, but is per-
East. 44 haps to be understood as the Egyptian construction placed on his
withdrawal to the east. Whoever had "fled" in year 33, someone
had returned as leader in year 35 with an army mustered from all
38 Vegetius advocated sailing between May 27 and Sept. 14, with outside limll
Mittani's dependencies. That the Mittanians could within two years
no earlier than March 10: L. Casson, Ships and Seamanship in the Ancient II III muster a large army and engage the Egyptians in a set piece battle
(Baltimore, 1995), 270; Cf. Alexander of Alexandria, "Epitaph for Cleonicus," II in the environs of Aleppo argues the ability of the yet unbroken
The Greek Anthology (Harmondsworth, 1981), 68 (84); L. Casson, Travel in Ihe AI/n
World (Baltimore, 1994), 150-51; imprecations against rulers of Levantinc, eOil,t enemy to call upon an impressive array of vassals. The result, inspite
cities aptly included evil winds, torn rigging and destroyed masts: Luckenbill, .. II/II f what Thutmose III considered a novel tactic, was a stalemate.
Records if As~ria and Babylonia II (Chicago, 1927), sec. 587.
39 See above, p. 212.
The paltry tally of POWs and plunder suggests that the engagement
40 Above, n. 37. was more in the nature of a draw and that in fact the Egyptians
41 I am indebted to my student, Ms. Kate Liszka, for an array of evidence' ml were fought to a standstill.
leeted for her thesis "Coronation Scenes in Ancient Egypt."
42 A.H. Gardiner, "Davies' Copy of the Great Speos Artemidos Inscriplion."
Who was the "chief of Naharin" and what treaty relationships
32 (1946), 50, n. g, Edfu I, 112; W. Hekk, "Ramessidische Inschriften aus Kalll.I uld he rely upon? The Mittanian king-list cannot, at the present
ZAS 82 (1958), 98-110; J. Leclant, Recherches sur les monuments thebailLl de la \ \' time, be established fully and beyond all doubt. I While the four gen-
qynastie dite ethiopienne (Cairo, 1965), 275ff; P. Koemoth, Osiris et les arbm. (,'01/11/
a l'etude des arbres sacres de l'Egypte ancienne (Liege, J 994), J 05 6; 0.8. Redfol'd, 1'1 ('rations from Artatama I to Shattiwaza are known and fixed as to
Concept of Kingship during the 18th Dynasty," in D. O'Connor, D. Sil\I'11II relalive chronology,2 the family tree prior to Artatama is full of gaps
(eds), Ancient Egyptian Kingship (Leiden, 1996), 172.
43 K. Mysliwiec, "Die Rolle des Alum in dcl' iJd Baum Szellc," "WAllL:Hi 1'1
349 56; H. Nelson, 77le Great llypostyle lledl al Kamal.. 1 (Chica!\(), I 9U I '. pi 1
for ilS ('annexion to Osiris in the LaiC Period. see II. .Junk('I, /)11\ (:orllml,J.
dOl ,·Ibalol/ (Wi('n. I C) 13). Pa.l lim; KCl('1ll01h, lor. rli.
11 c:r 1\. 1·:1 M B.\kir. 'II/( Cimo (.id",rlnr .;\0. !lflfi'i7 C:.dlfl. l!)(ih pI. ~~XVIII
\8. \ 111:1 h I hI '-1ill.1I11,1I\\ h.ld Mlllllfir';l1t1ly. hl'l'll 1""Ill'lkd III llll' PlUI!
 230 CHAPTER EIGHT THE POLITICAL CONFIGURATION OF SYRIA 231

and uncertain relationships. Saushtatar's floruit, with its expanS)OII With the contemporaneity of Barratarna and Thutmose III deter-
eastward into Assyria 3 and its reassertion of hegemony in Nor! iJ mined, it is possible to sketch the power base of the enemy Thutmose
Syria,4 must have followed the final decade of Thutmose Ill's reigll III faced.'2 In the first place there was an awareness at the time that
and possibly even Amenophis II's campaigns;' and there is no cel the imperial phenomenon we call "Mittani" was a composite. Egyptian
tainty that he was the immediate predecessor of Artatama. Witness(', scribes frequently speak of the "lands" of Mittani,13 (although Akkadian
in Nuzi texts contemporary with Saushtatar are found in a doclI scribes usually write only KUR or URU before the name),14 a ref-
ment mentioning the death of Barratarna. 6 We can, therefore, plac( erence that probably encompasses not only the conglomerate heart-
Barratarna at least one generation before Saushtatar, presumably a, land of the empire east of the Euphrates, but probably also the
predecessor to Saushtatar's father Parsatatar. Niqmepa of AlalakiJ subverted states of North Syria. Among the latter Alalakh is a promi-
who was a contemporary of Saushtatar,7 must have been preceedcd nent member, bound by treaty!' and obliged to pay tribute. 16 If
in the kingship of Mukishe by his short-lived brother Adad-niral i Barratarna had had a hand in the insurrection which overthrew Ilim-
His father, Idrimi, enjoyed a floruit of 37 + years,S from the tim( ilimma of Aleppo,17 he probably controlled that state as well, although
of his flight from Aleppo, and thus would have been Thutmose II I' whether a treaty had been signed is difficult to say. On the other
contemporary during the latter's campaigning years. 9 Since Barratarnol hand, the repeated attacks on Aleppo and its territory administered
was a contemporary of Idrimi, it is safe to assume that it was III first by Hattusilis II and Mursilis I in the outgoing 16th Cent., and
that opposed Thutmose III in the latter's 33rd year. IO How mall} a century later by Tudkhaliyas, must have so weakened the city and
generations, if any, separated Barratarna from Shutarna I son of fractured its former territorium, that it had probably become a no-
Kirta, the founder of the house,11 is anyone's guess at present: is if man's land between the incipient power structures of Mittani and
too daring to make Shutarna I Thutmose I's opponent? Khatte. 18 Idrimi's bellicose activity along the coast north of the
Orontes l9 compromised Kizzuwadna 20 which, through treaty with
Alalakh, was brought within the Mittanian sphere of influence. 21
3 T. Bryce, Ike Kingdom of the Hittites (Oxford, 1999), 149.
4 Cf. DJ. Wiseman, Ike Atalakh Tablets (London, 1953), nos. 13:2, 14: I (ad)1I
Niya, lately in thrall to Alalakh and Aleppo, probably had little
dicating in cases involving Alalakh, Tunip and Kizzuwadna); A.H. Podany, Ike 1.111/ chance of self-determination. If the Niqmepa-Ir-Addu treaty reflects
of Hana (Bethesda, 2002), 6. a relationship of long-standing,22 as must surely be the case, then
5 One wonders whether it was Saushtatar that concluded the treaty with Aml'l1
ophis II: P. der Manuelian, Studies in the Reign of Amenophis II (Hildesheim, 19H7
77; B. Bryan, "The Egyptian Perspective on Mittani," in R. Cohen, R. WesLbroo~
(eds), Amama Diplomacy (Baltimore, 2000), 76-77; according to Heick, however, till
peace with Egypt had followed the death of Saushtatar: Geschichte der alten Aeg),/JI.
(Leiden, 1968), 163.
6 HSS XIII, 165: I, 18.
7 See above, p. 213.

8 Inspite of the ideological template the numbers "30" and "7" seem La betl'l\
there is in the present case no reason to doubt their historicity, as Lhey arc both
periods of time voluntarily determined by Idrimi himself.
9 S. Smith, Ike Statue of Idrimi, London, 1949; M. Dietrich, O. LorCLz, "I)"
Inschrift der Statue des Konigs Idrimi von Alalakh," UF 13 (1981), 199 269; !firm.
"Die 'Autobiographie' des Konigs Idrimi von Alalakh (Idrimi-SLele)," Tex/e alii ti,
Umwelt des Alten Tes/ament I, 5 (1985), 501-4. He may have begun his career "('fOil
Thutmose Ill's main campaigns: Helck, Beziehungen, 97ff; K1engel, Gmltirlt/r Syrt
I, 227, 245 n. 53.
10 It remains but a tempting surmise LhaL the night of tl1{' unl1al1wd <hi, f III

Naharin in Lhe Barkal text. is La be understood <1S I h(' inl<'rfan' 1>('1\'\0\'('11 B,III.II,1I 0 ,
and the reil{l1 of Pa rnat atnr.
II (; WiIJwlm, "TI1{' Kil\RdllOl I){ l\lill,lIli III St'mllli Millt 1111111111 I Pill I l\lt,lIC,'
[lllt.lllll'l," ill,) ~l S"~'f111 ,·tl,. ()l'/!I'fI//II1I1 tlllllr I//"fIIl '.,,,, 11I/IJ (:-In\' Ylll~ 1!lfl~I),
I') 11
1,111,'1,.,
232 CHAPTER EIGHT

Tunip and the mid-Orontes too must have been constrained b) ,I

treaty relationship with Barratarna.
South and west of Niya and Tunip Mittanian control lcsscl1('(l. CHAlYI'I';R NINI';
although it must still have exercised some influence. Qatna \\,1
already within the Egyptian camp by the 8th campaign,23 ancl lhi THE STRATEGY OF YEARS 36 TO 42:
subservience of long standing is duly noted a century later. 24 Kacll'·1!1 RETRENCHMENT AN)) J)JPLOMACY
may once have been egged on by Mittani, and its continued resiSll'l1C
to to Egypt may have derived from adherence to a formal pacl \\1111
Barratarna. 25 While Takhsy, between Kadesh and Damascus, remail1nJ While there is nothing to indicate that the Egyplian rorces did not
a somewhat lawless and intractable district,26 Damascus and thc (Ii remain intact, it is hard to construc lhe baltle or Ar'anu as anything
trict of Upe were firmly within the Egyptian sphere, presumabl but a stalemate. It was proving increasingly difficult ror Thutmose
from the time of the first or second campaignY Along the COil to defeat, let along annihilate, an enemy with a base as remote and
south of the mouth of the Orontes Mittanian influence did not pl'lI resources as widespread as Mittani. Failing the ability to mount suc-
etrate. In fact there is reason to believe that Egyptian hegemony \\ cessful siege operations, the Egyptians fell back on diplomatic manoev-
shortly to be imposed on the littoral from Ugarit south lo th ering and punitive action.
Eleutheros Valley.28 The situation of Nukhashshe provides a case in point for the for-
mer. As noted above, I this region hosted a semi-sedentary and agro-
pastoralist economy, poised in the steppe midway between the Qatna
and Ashtata. Here was no palatine, metropolitan polity with which
an inter-state pact might be concluded. Sometime during the period
"Der Vertrag zwischen Ir-Addu von Tunip und Niqmepa von Mikis," ill (. I
Young and others (eds), Crossing Boundaries and Linking Horizons (Bethesda, 1997 between the final years of Thutmose III and the accession of
23 Above, p. 221. Amenophis III the peoples of Nukhashshe and Ashtata, who shared
24 EA 52:5-7, 55:7-9; D.B. Redford, Egypt, Canaan and Israel in Ancient IIWI
somewhat a community of interest, tried to press, first Mittani and
It seems briefly to have offered resistence under Amenophis II (Heick, "C),111
LdA V [1984],47; P. der ManueJian, Studies in the Reign if Amenophis 11,61; d \ later Khatte, for possession of Aleppo's erstwhile eastern district, bor-
Assaf, "Mishrifeh," in E.M. Meyers (ed), The O:ifOrd Encyclopaedia if Archaeo!o),TI'n dering the Euphrates. 2 If this represents a sort of Amanifest destiny"
Near East 4 [New York, i997], 35), a fact which Akizzi glosses over. TI\(' pI'
tations in the Amarna Letters of long-standing loyalty to Pharaoh have, of C 1111
in the perception of the peoples of the steppe, viz. to occupy the
to be measured against the urgency of immediate aid from Pharaoh, not 111'1111 right bank of the Euphrates south of Carchemish, Thutmose Ill's
accuracy. The terms used are far from "insolent," as has been suggestcd: A ,J great interest in Nukhashshe becomes understandable. Unable to
"Egypt and her Vassals: the Geopolitical Dimension," in Cohen, Westlll O()~
Amama Diplomacy (Baltimore, 2000), li8. "crack" and thereby reduce the strongly-fortified cities of northern
25 Note the presence of Mittanian troops in the territory of Kadesh ill }C'II Syria,3 Pharaoh attempts to outflank these Mittanian dependencies
below, p. 240. by driving a wedge through the desert edge to the Euphrates. Razzias
26 See below, p. 242.
27 W.T. Pitard, Ancient Damascus (Winona Lake, i987), 56. Cf. Also N. N.l ," were mounted in years 34, 37(?j4 and 38, and twice it is noted that
"Biryawaza of Damascus and the Date of the Kamid el-Loz Apiru Lellc'!", ,
(1988), 187; A.F. Taraqji, "Temoignages egyptiens de la region cll' [)al11.r "
144 (1999), 27-43.
23 On the controversy surrounding the toponym I k3 ti in Amcllophi~ It\ ~kl1l 1 Abovc, p. 81.
and Karnak stelac, see M.C. Astour, "Ugarit and the Crcal POWI'IS," III (, il. \'n Klrngcl, GeJchichte Syn:ens I, 177, 184 85; idem, "Ein neues Fragment zur his-
(cd), Ugarit in RetrosjJect (Winona Lake, 1981), 13 14; R. GiVC'ClI1, "SOil\(' 1';lOpllll 1<1Ji~chel1 Einieilling des Ta.ll1li~arruma-Vertl'ages," MJOF 10 (1964), 213ff, 2i7;
Considerations concerning Ugal;t," ibid.• 55 58; cler M ,Ill II C'1i ,I Il , Stllt"r.1 //I III-I kl11al1, 1/IIIIIe f),/doll/al,f Tnll, \) I; Brycl'. 77u Kingdom if the Itillites, 153.
if i]mrnllphi.1 II, 6:i; Redford, F-If)'pt, (,'anaoll and Illael. IliO I & 11. 1'1'1 I~\ ·11I:1 11 th" lor.III/.lliol1 of till' Blon,." AI.\I· palatil1l' statl'S with respect to watrr
Idll'C Is a IC'IlKth} I ('1.1t ionship l)('t\\('I'11 1~!OPt .lIltl LK'lIit IIt"t till' mil Sill I I " ,clllt (I'S, '1c' \\ ,J \,111 l.il'II', (,.II1JI.II·, ,llId Cil,ldl'ls of Hrnnlc' AIil,I' Syria in tlwi,
p.dtill'. ,II t· ,lb',I'nl Ii Olll Ihllll1tfl·,c· J" " lopollylll li'l IS of 1111 fI \III Ill' ul : IIII' Ii 11cl,1I101l,llIp 10 I I1Ullll\11 \\'1111'1" "I/IIOIt5 (//dl,,,/II'~I'llIfI rt, Sl'rir 1'\ IIHj'l, 107 ')'}
hillel II1UI'111111 lIot ,I plliplu' SCC' i1hll\l~. pp, 4;l/l, SIT .dlll\<'. P 117
234 CHAPTER NINE THE STRATEGY OF YEARS 36 TO 42 235

the local opposition surrendered abjectly.5 It must have been on one obelisks at Heliopolis 8 and the pylon,9 both of which must have
of these occasions that Thutmose decided to create a polity within involved manpower and organization which would not have been
the steppe and secure it for Egypt, by appointing as king one Takuwa." consonant with large-scale foreign expeditions. Dated texts from the
His descendent Addu-nirari implies that Pharaoh had adopted the same period add little to the picture. There seems to have been a
local Near Eastern practice of a charismatic ritual, and offered his flurry of activity in the Sudan in year 35,10 and a celebration (of the
own guarantee for his protege, rather than extracting a promissory jubilee?) in year 37 at Karnak. II Scribes were reconnoitering the
oath, children and tribute. 7 While this must be judged in the light ruined complex of Djoser at Saqqara sometime in year 39,12 and
of Addu-nirari's desperate need for aid-how better to convince the the pyramid of Pepy II early in year 40. 13
contemporary king of Egypt than by stressing his ancestor's commil- It is not clear whether the activity during year 40 was construed
ment?-the broad essentials must be correct. By this move Thutmose by the composing scribe as a formal wdyt, that is to say whether the
had established himself as the quasi-founder of a new polity in king was actually in Asia when the gifts of the chiefs were received. 14
Nukhashshe, which he could now use as his own cat's-paw against The dating by the phrase m mpt 40 militates in favor of the digest-
Mittani. format,15 in which several receptions of gifts are combined within a
The record for years 36 and 37 is largely missing. We have opined single year, and not listed by campaign. Understood in this light,
above that year 37 may have seen the army again in Nukhashslw year 40 may not have witnessed a formal campaign at all.
In any event, these campaigns may have been mounted on a mod Apart from the Assyrian benevolence, the provenience of the gifts
est scale, for it would have been during these years that the th i rc I remains uncertain. The varied complement of manufactures, live-
jubilee was celebrated. Marking this event was the erection of lilt' stock, incense, wine, minerals and costly wood points to a region
boasting meadows for cattle-rearing, vineyards, timber, or access (at
least) to other areas which produce them. Mittani itself might fit the
5 See above, p. 00. description, but the historical profile of the age does not conform:
6 EA 51 :4. The Manaapia of this passage and the Manabpiriya of EA 59:8 1,111
only be Thutmose III, not Thutmose IV. While all the evidence need not h.
Mittani and Egypt remained on a hostile footing until late in
reviewed again (for a convenient summary of the history of the discussion, S('I' II Amenophis II's reign.16 The incense and honeyed wine and perhaps
Bryan, The Reign if Thutmose IV [Baltimore, 1991], 341), several points arc L11l,1 other commodities in col. 106 sound like produce destined for the
sailable: I. While the prosody curiously varies over the centuries, in the pr("11I
case mn is clearly under stress, while apr is in a bound construction with re, ,1I1l harbors, although the "harbor-stocking" formula is not used in this
thus, lacking stress, has suffered the reduction of its first syllable. A plural woul,
not have produced this vocalization, as the pattern CI\CI\Cl\w would have r('qulll'
a reduction of the penultimate syllable, CI\CCl\w and, with the assimilatioll of It.
unvoiced labial and the operation of vowel harmony, would have produced ('x,Htl
the form we see in *-aurru-. 8 Urk. IV, 590: 15; L. Habaehi, The Obelisks if Egypt (New York, 1977), 164ff.
2. The Coptic lliJlHpe offers no parallel, and constitutes something of a "red lit I 9 Urk. IV, 940:12.
ring." The word derives from aprt, a feminine singular participial form: W. Wesll'llll", 10 Hieroglyphic Texts . .. British Musem V (London, 1914), pI. 36 (368); J. Vercoutter,

Koptisches Handwoerterbuch (Heidelberg, 1977), 322. 3. Misaphres is not a reliabll' filII Kush IV (1956), 68; cf. Also H. Smith, The Fortress if Buhen. The Inscriptions (London,
to base anything on. The intrusive a is certainly euphonic. The majority of II 1976), index D, s.v. "Tuthmosis IlL"
forms of Thutrnose Ill's name, as they appear in Greek, viz. M"<PPT]~, M(lpPll II Cf. Fragment of Aswan granite stela dated in year 37 of a king whose name

MT]<ppaY110ueO)(Jt~, Mt(J(ppaY110ueO)(Jt~ (Waddell, Manetho [Camblidge, 191°1, 10 is lost. The style appears to be 18th Dynasty (private hand-copy).
114, 240) show stress on mn and a reduction of the vowel bctween band /' (111'\'1 12 C. Firth, J.E. Quibell, The Step Iyramid I (Cairo, 1935), 80(E).

metathesized). 13 G. j<':quier, u monument juneraire de Pepy II III (Cairo, 1940), 43-4, fig. 33. The

7 E. Kutsch, Salbung als Rechtakt im Alten Testament und im Allen Onml (Ill \ \\' unnamed king of this text could conceivably be Ramesses II.
Berlin, 1963), 34-35; D. Pardce, "A New Ugaritic I..('tter," Bibliollu((l Oml/!, I I If it was not accorded the status of a wdyt, then the total number of expedi-

(1977), 14· 18; A. Malamat, "The Cultural Impact of the W('stSyri,1 Pall' ,Utll tions was IG.
Mesopotamia in the Old Babylonian Pniod," ,I/lorimltlllllhe FondlllllRI'I/ :.11 (I ~ II AlloV(', Pl'. ")3 'j I.

314 alld n. 19. The rite was al.,o kllown ill EKYPI: S. I'hOll1p'IlU. "'1hl' '\lIl1iuUIl Il> II 111)<111, u'IItl 1.';)')1,i"l1 JIll 'Ill'( tiV(' on Mittani," in R. Cohen, R. Westbrook

of Offi(i,lls in \uril'lll EIO'PI,u .7\I'.:~' '):i I Ijlll I, U :1'1 ('<lSI, Il1/11n/ll /)"./, J " lit Iltgin '\ Ii! Inlmltll/IIIUlI Reltltion! (Baltimore, 2000), 76 77.
236 CHAPTER NINE THE STRATEGY OF YEARS 36 TO 42 237

part of the day-book excerpts. The wood listed points to the Lowcl it is inconceivable that an "Amarna-style" diplomatic marriage should
Orontes and North Syria. 17 have even been possible.
The appearance of a chief's daughter (col. 104) as part of thl' But there is serious doubt as to whether the notice of year 40
benevolence of an unnamed land naturally has attracted speculatioll. does in fact record a marriage. The daughter is subsumed under the
Even though Assyria is loosely subsumed under "Retenu,"18 in till' benevolences of her father, and there is no indication that a mar-
present passage the chief of Assyria is separated from the Retcnll riage is in the offing. This is in marked contrast with the sources
list. The entry, following immediately on the rubric, is clearly the for the Egypto-Mittanian marriages under Thutmose IV, Amenophis
signal component of the gift in this year. The resumptive j and till III, Akhenaten and Ramesses II, where the language is specific. 24
phrase "this foreign land" suggest that the scribe is thinking of" .1 Moreover, it is arguable that those items which follow the reference
specific country and regime. But where and what is it? And do all to the girl's jewelry and attendants belong to the benevolence, and
the items listed in cols. 104-106 constitute a single entry, i.e. the are not meant to be understood as a dowry.25 The excerpting scribe
benevolence of this mysterious region? If this be the case, it is tcmpl declines to mention the chief's identity, an indication perhaps of
ing to construe the list as the dowry or marriage gifts which aCCOlll lesser status: if a "great power" were in question, the girl's nation-
panied the bride-to-be. 19 But there are difficulties in understandin ality surely would have been mentioned.
the present text as the record of a "diplomatic" marriage, comp" There is no compelling reason, therefore, to interpret this "princess"
rable to those unions known from the "high Amarna Age."2(1 The as the prospective bride of Pharaoh. 26 She is simply an outstanding
latter were negotiated between equals, according to the internatioll.a1 member of the growing body of "children of the ehiefs,"27 sent as
rules known as parsu;2J and the dowry and tertJatu which change'd part of the benevolence of a loyal (coastal?) chief.
hands in the transaction dwarfed the amounts recorded by Thutl11os{
Ill's scribe. 22 Moreover, this "marriage game" reaches the pcak C)
its development only when the balance of power between thc impl
rial polities has been achieved, pursuant to the Egypto-MittHni,lll
alliance. 23 While war between these two power blocs was in proglc

I) Goats were requisitioned in years 29, 31, 33, 38, 39 and 40, the latl<'l Iwin

the largest lot, with years 29 and 31 following closely. Docs this point to a (0:111
provenience?
18 Urk. IV, 671 :6-8, The reference to lapis is not crucial, as it can be "( I,lillll'd
by several countries.
,q C. Zaccagnini, "On Late Bronze Age Marriages," in S.F. Bondi and lIc1u"
(cds), Studi in onore di Edda Bresciani (Pisa, 1985), 593-605.
10 P. Artzi, "The Influence of Political Marriages on the lnternatinnal Rc !.11l
of the Amarna Age," in La Femme dans La Proche Orient alllique (Paris, I!lB7" '11
S.S. Meier, "Diplomacy and International Marriages," in Ama17la 1),II/olI/an'. Ih'l
11 P. Artzi, A. Malamat, "The Great King: a Pre-eminent Royal Title ill (:lIIwif.
Sources and the Bible," in 'nle TabLet alld the Scroll, Near F;a.i/em Siurlie. III II,
WII, lIallo (Bethesda, 1993), 33. 11 There is no mention, significantly, 0[' any status of "brotherhood" which would
'J) (:f. D, Panke, "A new Ugal-itic Letter," Bib/io/hera Onl'/lla/II :11 (llJ II ,lilt from the malTiage: R. Cohen, "All in the Family: Ancient Near Eastern
R, COIrC'II, "Oil Diplomacy in the Ancient Nt'ar East: the Amallla 1,(·lIe·l~." I Diplomacy," JllttTllatimw/ Negolialion.! I (1996), II 28, The "chief" is simply a local
III/rl SII/Irrwjl 7 1<)%, 150 51; ~Ieil'l. /Oc. (/1,; Z. Co('ha\'i Railln, RII)'''/ (,' ,,'s,tI f(lIfliling his obligations.
1.lllr 1I1J111:;' '/ir, "'Jlltll'l'/Ilh III 'I1mll'l'/Ilh Ci'nllmrl HC I, • IkITSh,'\,1 '1 !j!jlj. ;r. TIll' \'llIdlll~ "Ill,tlc' .1Ild fl'1l1ale servants of hi.• btlll'1lolenre": UrI... lV, 669:4.
" I'. Pl1l1ll1l /I 1I/fIII/lllmllil IIII",/rlll/l/lro 1Ir1 I,WIII On",I, dlmwle I Sr(fl/l \s, fill, "uuple /\ R Scl11111l1,III "I )iplOlIl'lIil ~Iilil iag('s in Ille E~ptian Ne"
J(1I1111'. I !jIll, Rl'eIlillel, li"'/JI, (mltl'W "lid "/tIrt, 1hb hll. 1.ltt ,Igllilli, "'1111 1'1I11(dorll 7\I'SI!I I!l/'l, 111:1 \t;llIl'llll'~('i11 'll" III '\('ill 10"
\111/1111 P IIlIeI SlIhl'lj.\:llioll ill till' ;-';1':11 1~"1 01' lilt' l.lllt lin III/(' /\J.:l"" 111 I 1 11'111 III, "J\IlICI(~1 frcrtl<!cr VOI~I~llll /\"/oI>llIl'li I," III A, E~.1',dll('( III, B 'it hlllli
rell, I Iml/nl, ,,,1 mondo nnllCu;[umlil. ,tlro/OiUJ, {tm(.UJnr ' RlIllI", 1'1'111 • '\II, cl~). Fr.lllrI,ri/l 7",Jlf'I 1'011 11tfJ",ath (11"01"111"1111, 1'1 11(1). '1'1
 THE UPRISING OF YEAR 42 239

which marked the northernmost extent of the expedition. 5 The booty

from the latter settlement was given over to the rank and file of the
CHAPTER TEN army, which may be a sign that, in the king's estimation, the troops
had performed well. Three times in the surviving text of year 42
THE UPRISING OF YEAR 42 the composing scribe uses the verb sksk to describe the Egyptian
treatment of the cities assaulted: the ferocity of the Egyptians' attack
betrays, not only the perceived gravity of the uprising, but also the
Most historians view the campaign of year 42 as a response to a growing skill of Egyptian forces in siege technique.
set-back.' Thutmose's chevauchee of the 41st year had presumably The case of Tunip raises a problem of historical interpretation.
extending into his familiar stomping-ground of Niya,2 but after the As pointed out above,6 when Tunip re-appears in the period after
army's withdrawal Mittani was on the move. Trouble broke out Thutmose Ill's death it continues to enjoy its old power and influence
(fomented by Tunip?) in the Akkar plain, and garrison troops were under the aegis of Mittani. 7 Thutmose Ill's capture of the city, then,
despatched to Kadesh. could not have entailed the wholesale destruction one might have
For the first time since the first campaign the composing scribe inferred. The reference in EA 59: 7-1 0 is of some significance in this
mentions a road, a piece of information clearly of importance to him. regard, since it provides another, independent, source linking Thutmose
If, as seems likely, the "coast road" refers to what we today call t!w IIIB with Tunip, and no matter how the root YSB is translated in
via maris, there would be scarcely any reason to mention it if the context,9 it implies Egyptian hegemony,lO This was first imposed,
army had arrived on the Phoenician coast by ship. Rather, this notic\' obviously, in year 42. 11 Since, however, in the time of Saushtatar,
must be employed as a signal to the reader that this campaign i.e. following Thutmose Ill's reign, we find Tunip bound to Mittani
involved a land march up the coast, around Carmel, and through once again, Egyptian occupation must have been short-lived. Tunip
southern Phoenicia. 3 In year 42 this entire route as far north as lhl could conceivably have reverted to Egypt again once the entente
region of Byblos lay in friendly territory, and therefore some degn'l cordiale between Egypt and Mittani was in place-in fact the pres-
of surprise may have been achieved. ence of a son of Akit-teshup at Pharaoh's court suggests the formal
The identity of the place-names in the preserved part of the texl acceptance of obligations of loyalty-but we should remember that
there is room for at least two more in the lacunae-indicate lill under Akhenaten Tunip was desperate, and exaggeration of former
seriousness of the continued opposition to Egypt. Two towns (at least) relationships perfectly understandable.
in the Arka plain, not mentioned before in the record,4 aUnt( II d
Thutmose's attention, before the army proceeded by way of till
Eleutheros valley into the Orontes plain, bound for Tunip. Altl I 5 lit m ~tp (Urk. IV, 730:8) indicates the beginning of the return.
Tunip the army moved on to another town now lost in a la(,ull,1 6 Above, p. 199.
7 Note how Amenophis II avoids the city on his Syrian campaign.
S On the identification sce above, p. 234 n. 6.
9 It may simply mean "to rule," rather than "to dwell" (M. O'Connor, "The
Rhetoric of the Kilamuwa Inscription," BASOR 226 [1977], 22 [5 21]), although
,tdmitteclly the same verb is used two lines later of the gods, who certainly "dwell"
I E. Meyer, Ceschichle des Allerturns Il, I (Stuttgart, 1928), 130; I kick, 11/'/li/l. 111 Tunip.
153; M.S. Drower, CAiI II, I (1973),459; C. Wilhelm, 711f iiumanl (Walllllll!l '" EA 59:9 10 asserts the presence in Tunip at the time of writing of Egyptian
1989),27; N.-C. GrimaJ, II ilislory q! ilgy/it (Oxford, 19(2), 21h; KI l'I1l1;t'1 , S)'II nllmina and something of wood. I would like to suggest that in the word gis. Mu-
10 300 /J.c., 9,1 95; T.R. Bryce, 'n" Aillgr/01ll qf Illf lIillilf\ (Oxford, I l)I)f)" II' 1,/ a.I.11I W(' have the transcribr(\ E/O'lltian mdw, "standard," often used of gods'
2 CC Iht' 1H tusks of ivmy ill lh(' ht'l1('vt>1t'ner: allOV(', p t}'i III,iRnia ant! thl' po\('s on which they WITI' display('d (Wh. II, 178:3, 6-9), voeaJ-
I Till' lOutt' is dt',t'1 illl't! ill dl'litil hy St) aho: x\i ~ '1') '11, TIlt' ollly t!lllicoh lIt'd as *1/11/1 1/1 plUI,tI,. (r \1.:1.:. (" /11) 11/1/ (( Ill: G. Ft'cht, "Zu den Namen aegyp-
tlll 101 ,lIl ,lIll1y 10 11,1\('1'.1' wOlild hi' thl' CamHI l\llI!!('; hllt ('\('1I IWI( tIll" 1151 ht'[ I'llstt 11 IllId "it"e1tt III cit 11 \1I11,tlt'lI (\('S AS'lilhanipal lind del' Chronik des
pl.11l1 i. l ~1l1 \\Iell 1)(' IIIlP~,1l1' ilt Ifl"!l/nntll '" (:annan (~hdlll:lcI, lml~ll. IIh.lddoll,· \lIl/IJ, III (1~'"lm. I IIi II. I
lid. k. Ikzltltw III II JJc:kl.:, '(lIl11p. I,d)i V( tl~lfll)l. HWI
240 CHAPTER TEN

On the return, via Kadesh, the Egyptians were obliged to engage

the Mittanian garrisons in the three towns in the territory of that
city. The Mittanians sustained 29 casualties before the cessation of CHAPTER ELEVEN
hostilities and their capitulation. But the resistence of these auxil-
iaries, no matter how brief, may have deterred Thutmose III from MILITARY ACTIVITY IN ASIA BETWEEN
attempting a direct assault on Kadesh. The text leaves no room for YEARS 42 AND 53
any such restoration: Kadesh was not captured in year 42.

The question arises: why do the excerpted day-book entries stop in

year 42? Was it a whimsical decision on the part of the king?! Was
available wall space filled up? Or did the conquests of year 42 mark
a real hiatus, at least in the perception of Thutmose III, and thus
was it his decision that campaigning should cease?2 Certainly, if the
reduction of Coele- and North Syria had been his intent, Thutmose's
work remained unfinished. Under Saushtatar Mittani was about to
return in greater strength than ever: and Amenophis II was to find
everything north of Qatna hostile territory.3
The dated evidence for royal activity in the last decade of the
reign suggests major construction operations dominated the agenda.
Work was undertaken at Karnak, Deir el-Bahari, Medinet Habu,4
Elkab and Heliopolis,5 and in Nubia;6 and the latter was inspected7

I 'Whether "whimsy" is an appropriate characterization of the king's attitude, it

may be curiously significant that the campaigning period in question is 20 years.

A 20-year time-span has some currency both in history and society as an "appro-
priate" period for certain kinds of human activity. Suppuliuliumas was occupied for
20 years in campaigning in Anatolia (KUB X1X:9; W J. Murnane, TIe Road to
Kadesh [Chicago, 1985], 223), the Tunipians petitioned Pharaoh for 20 years (EA
59:13, 44: W.L. Moran, TIe Amama Letters [Baltimore, 1987], 131 n. 5); the ark
was detained 20 years (I Sam. 7, 2), a hiatus in correspondence for 20 years (EA
59: 13); a "recruitment period" sets in at age 20 in the Egyptian army and work-
force (Heick, Die LehreJUr Konig Merikare [Wiesbaden, 1977],34), the time to marry
is at age 20 (P. 1nsinger 17,21-18,4), the health of a dignitary may be honored
after 20 years of rule (R. Anthes, Die Felseninschri.ften von Hatnub [Leipzig, 1928]. Gr. 10)
2 It is a curious fact that all the retrospectives in the seances inscribed after year
42, continue to cite only those incidents dated within the 20 years of campaigning:
the first campaign, possibly the second (above, p. 131), certainly the sixth (Armant:
above, p. 156) and the 8th (BarkaJ, Armant). The miracle of the "star" (BarkaJ:
above, p. I 12) is undated, but presumably falls during the same period.
3 Urk. IV, 13024.
1M. COl.i, "Les I nlcrvenlions de la XVIII Dynastie sur Ie 'Petit Temple' de
Mcdincl !Labolt," GJIJ 163 (1988), 3546.
, Ab(l~l', p. 2:~'i.
h PI., S!lI1111i" Illrim/ J\ilhifl Il,imt!oll, I f)%). 83 B9.
Jl,~l \ ',hi, / rko IV, 111,1; 'I "i.I\' .mlt rhnl(h. Irl,'ljlltn lind Nt/him (Lund, 1910).
I!H;.J 1H l.lJIl, On",/tllin II I (I 'l'n), 21111.
 242 CHAPTER ELEVEN
MILITARY ACTIVITY IN ASIA BETWEEN YEARS 42 AND 53 243

and perhaps raided 8 in years 49-50. Year 46 attests an interest in (around Sept. 17) of either the 52nd or 51 st year of his father; 16 but
inventorying, 9 and in the following year comes the most detailed of while the inception of his sole reign shows that he was counting his
the many retrospectives. 1O None of this evidence, however, precludes years from his appointment, no double-dated texts exist for the joint
some military activity in the north.
reignY The Amada (and presumably Elephantine) texts record the
The principal argument for further campaigning in Syria after authorization of the stelae and the ground-breaking ceremony for
year 42 must be based on the inscription of Minmose from Medamud. II the two temples as occurring on xi.15 of year 3,18 "after H.M. came
While this worthy survived into Amenophis II's 4th year at least, back from Upper Retenu.... having slain with his own mace the 7
the Medamud text mentions only Thutmose III. Here is recorded chiefs who were in the district of Takhsy.... Then he hanged six of
the attack on Takhsy, with its reference to chiefs, chattels and cattle, these doomed ones on the outer face of the wall of Thebes ... and had
an incident missing from the (surviving) day-book excerpts. In fact the other doomed one taken south to Nubia and hung on the wall
the region of Takhsy, between Kadesh and Upe, did not figure at of Napata."19 The sequence of events and the length of time required
all in what we can reconstruct of Thutmose's geopolitical strategy proves that "after" (m-fJt) is employed in the loosest way. The trip
from years 22 to 42. It does, however, appear an area of interest from Takhsy to Napata would have taken two months at the very
early in his son's reign.12 The tempting inference that Takhsy attracted least, not including the time spent in Thebes celebrating the victory
the attention of the Egyptians for a circumscribed period of time and enjoying the lynching. Moreover the date xi.15 would have fallen
overlapping the reigns of Thutmose III and Amenophis II, draws us at the end of April or the beginning of May, and two or three
a fOrtiori towards assigning Amenemheb's anecdote to the same time months prior to this would take us back to the middle of winter, a
span,13 or even to the same campaign.
most unlikely time of year to mount a campaign. 20 It is much more
Is it possible, in fact, to go one step further and equate Amenophis likely, therefore, that the Takhsy campaign of Amenophis II took
II's "first campaign" (Amada and Elephantine stelae)14 with the same place in the spring and summer of his 2nd year, and that the cap-
incident? A coregency of the two kings is now assured of at least tive chiefs were "held over" for execution in the following year. On
one year, four months, and probably no more than 2 years, four either the short or long computation of the coregency, Thutmose III
15
months. This would mean that the coregent was appointed on iv. I would still have been alive in the 2nd year of his son.
There are difficulties, admittedly, in equating the Takhsy cam-
paign of the Amada-Elephantine stelae with that of Min-mose's
8 Minmose, who participated in the 8th campaign and lived on under Amenophis
inscription. Neither notice implies the presence of a senior (or junior)
II, states clearly "I saw (how) he overthrew the land of Nubia" (Urk. IV, 1441: 18),
surely a reference to a campaign, later than those (dubious) escapades of the joinl coregent, yet both state specifically that His Majesty was present.
reign. The details seem at variance: chiefs (plural) in contrast to 7 specified,
9 Cf. The fragmentary stela south of the Karnak shrine, recording benefacLions
"30 towns,"21 chattels and cattle, as opposed to no specific statement;
for Amun and Mut "year I to year 46 and down to millions of y[ears ...J" (per-
sonal copy). Cf. C.C. van Siden III, "The Date of the Granite Bark Shrine 01
Tuthmosis III," GM 79 (1984), 53.
10 Barkal stela; above, pp. 103ff.
II Above, p. 171.
C. van Siden III, "Amenhotpe II," in D.B. Redford (ed), O>jiJrd Encyclopaedia if
Ancient Egypt I (New York, 200 I), 71.
12 Der Manuelian, Studies in Ihe Reign if Amenophis il, index s.v. TakJzsy; R. Gundlach,
16 I.e. when he was 18 years old: Redford,]EA 51, 117f; der ManueJian, Studies,
"Tachsi," LdA VI (1986), 143.
13 Above, p. 169, episode G.
43. He would then have been born around year 33, of the third royal wife Hatshepsut
II UrA. IV, 1296:15 16.
II: W. Seipel, "Halschepsut II," LdA II (1980), 1052.
17 Cf. Gaulhier, f..e Livres des rois d'Egyple II, 260 (XXVI), year 51, x.14; 260
1\ D.B. Redford, "The CoregT!H'y of TlIlhmosis llf and AIl1l'nophis Il," ]1'.1 'J!
fl. I; P-M vn, 91 (year 52); Gaulhier, op. cit., 260 (XXVIIC), year 53, vii.30.
(1%5), 107 22; idrm, "The Gilt onolog) of Ih" Eighll'('l1lh Dynasty," .7./1,88 25 J %h
IH UrI.. IV 1289:1; cC 121}1:13 12I}S:14. The slelae cannOl pre-date year 4:1299:2.
Ill) 20, \\',] I\lurnalH', 11/(/1'111 F.gr!IIUlTI (.'or(/:I'II(/(I Chir.l"o, 1C}7T 11 ">7 dl'l 1'1 {11k. IV, l?% 97.
\1.1I1l11'h.1Il \'[IIt1'I'\ '1'1 10; K.A Kitdwn, Jl1(' 1l,lSlcs of LlOpll.11l ChlllllOl11/o\) ill
JlI Sc'(' aho\-(', p. 2?1l.
Rl'1.11I1111 III lilt' II III II '" A/(,'." ill Jl \'11(1111 c·d "11~k II/lldl, c "/ hili (;lllhcllhllll(.
II (h hrllC'1 till' IIlcldlllil<' plllnd "~c·\t:llti h'm" III ",\ MOIl' 01 Illllrl'" ill our
I'IH71, ,II.,). '"11 IkeJ,,'·mlh. C!trrmolO£l'dfJ /'/wTaonHdlnl ,1'l'I'lJ/m (~l.eiIlZ. IlJ'l7), 11'1
p.lrI.lIlC (
244 CHAPTER ELEVEN

the assertion, in one notice, that the chevauchee constituted the first
campaign, contrasted with the absence of any numbering in the
CHAPTER TWELVE
other.
The differences, however, are not compelling. We have seen above
THE EXACTIONS OF THE CONQUERED
that "campaigns" (wdJt) were loosely applied to expeditions, and pres-
ence or absence of the term means little. 22 Discrepancies also are
only apparent: Min-mose and Amenemheb use formulae appropri-
Those foreign chiefs who had taken the oath and were now bound
ate to their reminiscences, while Amenophis II is interested on the
to Pharaoh as "those who were on his water," were expected to pay
stelae only in the chiefs. One might hit upon the absence of the co-
on Egyptian demand. Several terms are used for these imposts I many
regent partner as more serious. But by the time the Amada-Elephantine
of which overlap in meaning, and often confound those who have
text was being composed, Thutmose III was dead; in a reflex all too
postulated precision in Egyptian usage. 2 The problem is compounded
common in Ancient Egypt, the new king (it could be argued) thrust
when the corresponding Akkadian vocabulary is introduced.
himself to the fore as sole protagonist in an event in which in real-
Perhaps the most common Egyptian word used of what the con-
ity he had only shared. 23
quered give to Pharaoh is inw. This term has of late come under the
Earlier the discussion touched briefly on the problems of linking
scrutiny of exhaustive research, from a variety of vantage points, both
the references to Kadesh in Amenemheb's biography with the events
linguistic and socio-economic. 3 Translations cover a wide range: "deliv-
of the last campaign recorded in the day-book excerpts. 24 Nowhere,
eries,"4 "trade,"5 "contributions (to the king's privy purse),"6 "tribute,"7
one is reminded, is the sacking of Kadesh set forth anywhere in the
excerpts,25 while such a sacking is clearly the burden of Amenemheb's
episodes E, I and J. Now Takhsy and Kadesh are frequently men-
tioned together,26 a collocation which bespeaks, perhaps, a political I Redford, Egypt and Canaan in the New Kingdom (Beersheva, 1990), 40-41.
as well as a geographical proximity.27 It would be easy to imagine 2 lj3qt (D. Warburton, State and Economy in Ancient Egypt [Fribourg, 1997], 141-42)
Kadesh fomenting trouble in Takhsy, and it is therefore tempting to should be eliminated from the discussion. This was battlefield plunder, usually
claimed by the state, but on occasion given the rank and file who were allowed to
link the Takhsy campaign with the final assault on Kadesh. keep what they had captured (cf. Years 31, 35,42; Urk. IV, 1020-1021; 1821:5-9).
This may have been for good service, but it could also have been a practical mea-
sure: transport of plunder to Egypt traditionally involved difficulties: d. A.H. Gardiner,
Late Egyptian Miscellanies (Bruxelles, 1933), 108:15-109:1; S. Sauneron, Kbni 18 (1968),
pI. 2 and p. 21: When the victory is won His Majesty I.p.h. distributes the plun-
der for the return march to Egypt, (but) the Asiatic woman is exhausted by the
march, and is put upon the soldier's shoulders."
3 See in particular [or bibliography and recent discussions AJ. Spalinger, "Foods
in P. Bulaq 18," SA/( 13 (1986), 209 n. 6; idem, "From Local to Global: the Extension
of an Egyptian Bureaucratic Term to the Empire," SAK 23 (1996), 353-76; G.P.F.
van den Boom, The Duties rif the Vizier. Civil Administration in the Early New Kingdom
(London, 1988), 284 n. I; M. Romer, Gottes- und Priester- Herrschajt in Aegypten am
22 Above, p. 58.
23 Del' Manuelian, Studies, 37IT.
Ende des Neuen Reiches (Wiesbaden, 1989), 382-94; JJ. Janssen, "B3kw: [rom Work
to Product," SAK 20 (1993), 91-94 EJ. Bleiberg, The O.fficial Gift in Ancient Egypt
21 Above, p. 168, episodes E, J and J.
z, But sec abovc, p. 172 for the critical lacuna. (Norman, 1996); D. Warburton, State and Economy . .., 221-36.
I Van den Boorn, op. cit., 284.
z!> II has even been claimed thaI in Anast. I. 22.3 I Kacksh is located ill Takhs)
, C. Aldred, "The Forrip;n Gifts Offerrd to Pharaoh," JEA 56 (1970), Ill.
I I.-\\'. Fischer-Eifert, Oit mlhilc!le SlreilJrlllifi drs Papl1nl! ,llIal/ali I (Wiesbackn, I<)H(i
b EJ Bil'il)('r~, "The Kinp;'s PriVy Purse during the New Kingdom: an Examination
1!)2
Sir A.II (;aldilll't, 111(/1'111 1':1:1111/(1/I ()lIomllllltrl 1 (hlllld, II) 17" I')() 5'}: \ \It ol/\JI(,].IRC,..:.11 l'lUl \:illi7.
R, 1\1 II 1Ilot \\ ,t1I"1Il1,lll Ilt-uill kIllW,I'1I 1\1 dt'u sO!(,'n,1I1,1[('11 Tributel1," GAl 66
.....1)/'1 70, \llf, L. Ld,·I, 1)/, (hll//(ll/Il'IIlillm 1//11 drm IlIlmlflll/1r1 Imrnllpll/l /II HOllll
1%(, 11 \1 C.OI~' In 11 l'lI\O), 1,1 17; ',dd ,llItI, 71 S, \hitll\. (,1/11(11/1111,
limn 11\ 'l'l: c I \\ 110m It' '\\I'll"" Ik\lI"I~\It1L!"1I III <"'II \O~('IJ,\Itllll'n Tribulen,"
loboul'IIlJ UI ,Innml I'FINlnll lJ.Jntmmls (!.l"jd"11 l'llli 1117. (,.1/71 (I 'Ill I hi h:-.
 246 CHAPTER TWELVE THE EXACTIONS OF THE CONQUERED 247

"revenues,"8 "personal gifts."9 But the very fact, which at this stage Finally: the word itself smacks of Egyptian formulation and ide-
of the discussion must have become obvious, that no single term or ology onlY, and arises from an ideological perception which is thor-
modern category adequately accounts for all occurrences,IO leads oughly Egyptian. 20 When used, the concept of inw is for home
inevitably to the conclusion that we are not dealing, even in the consumption. Foreign heads of state might have been confused and
Egyptian perception, with a precise technical term. II One can only non-plussed were they to have had the word translated for them.
try to delineate the parameters of the realm of use, without being The chiefs of Retenu undoubtedly believed they were paying a rig-
disheartened by the fact which will soon become apparent, namely orously enforced tax; while the king of Khatte or Asshur would have
that inw shares semantic space with other terms. considered his articles to be nothing more than voluntary fulmiinu. 21
First: inw is a noun derived from an extended use of a passive "Ideology circumscription" exercises its expected limitation: what
participle, it is something "brought." The recipient (king, god or Pharaoh would undoubtedly have considered rewards "to those who
someone else) is not directly involved in effecting the means of trans- are on his water," at Ugarit are termed fulmiinu!22 Even the Egyptians,
port. For this reason the word will focus interest on the agent l2 of if faced with the need to translate, would have realized the loose
the bringing, and the source. 13 Both Egyptian and non-Egyptian agents application of their own word. For in the case of Thutmose Ill's
are responsible for inw. 14 records, inw is used in two ways: for fulmiinu in the case of kings of
Second: the recipient expects inw, even though the context sug- more or less equal status with Pharaoh, and for the expected deliv-
gests spontaneity on the part of the giver. This expectation leads to eries of chiefs within the Egyptian pale.
the insistence on regularity of delivery and specific labeling. Certain
commodities, such as wine, srmt and fowl, are categorized as "of thc The fact that, in the case of the conquered chiefs, the obligation to
inw."15 and storehouses and containers are set aside for inw. 16 In deliver is on them, and is expected to be fulfilled without demur,
administrative texts inw is sometimes called on to make up a short- introduces the element of coercion, The Arnarna letter of Akizzi is
fall outside the budgetary estimate. 17 In this sense they may be termed illustrative in this regard. 23 He knows that submission to Pharaoh
"special deliveries" from a sort of slush fund;18 but this need not involves inw, and while to him it may be qiftu, "a gift," it is the
mean that the latter was irregularly replenished. 19 Egyptian riibu who will assess the quantity!24 Inasmuch as it was the
donor's expected obligation, and assessed as to amount and content,
while masquerading as a free-will offering, inw approximates most
U M.A. Leahy, Excavations at Malqata and Birket Habu. The Inscriptions (Warminster, closely the late mediaeval English benevolence. 25
1978), 6.
9 N. Na'aman, "The Egyptian-Canaanite Correspondence," in R. Cohen,
R. Westbrook (eds), Amama Diplomacy (Baltimore, 2000), 131. 5.1); ef. The "day of computing b3k:wt": Cairo 20536; Redford, Egypt and Canaan in
10 Cf. A.I. Pershits, "Tribute Relations," in S.I. Seaton, HJ.M. Claessen (eels), Ihe New Kingdom, 103 n. 298; W. Boochs, "Zur Bedeutung der b3kw(t) Leistungen,"
Political Anlhropology. The State of Ihe Art (den Haag, 1979), 149. Varia Aegyptiaca 3 (1987), 207-9.
II Warburton, State and EconoTf!)! ..., 236. 20 A.H. Gordon, review of Bleiberg, The Official Gift . .., in JARCE 35 (1998), 203.
12 cr P. Kah. xliv.!; W.C. Hayes, "Inscriptions from the Palace of Amenhotep 21 M. Liverani, Prestige and Interest, 263,
1II," JoNES 10 (1951), no. 207, 209, 286 etc. 22 F. Malbran-Labat, "Les textes akkacliens decouverts it Ougarit en 1994," in
1'1 Sec in particular the aiel Kingdom usage: Bleiberg, 77te Official Cijl . .., 29 5:1; K. van Lerberghe (ed), lil.nguages and Cultures in Conflict (Leuven, 1999), 237-44 (esp.
.J.C. Mareno Carcia, /lwt el le milieu nlral egyptien du ill' millbwire (Paris, 1999), 157 239).
n. 17, 158 n. 24; cf. 104 n. 136; Leahy, op. cil., flossim. 2:\ EA 53:50 52.
11 c:r. iliA. IV, 1115: 12 (elsewhere desig-natcd ipw in the same lOmb: 1119: I fl" 21 Mirrored exactly in one of the jobs of Minmose: Urk. IV, 1442:4-7. Perhaps
N,d(' C, l),lVil'S, '!lit Rod 'lomb.1 q! elAmol7la (London, 1905), II, pI. 29; III, pI. 1:1 significantly, Minmose uses the terms {Itr and b3k:w, demonstrating the interchangability
I' li,lyl's, ]N/~:~' 10, p. 171 (R, S ,mel U); l,{':chy, op. riL, xlviii, lviii, xxi; pal ,II f the terms.
1('llllll'tlllltiom II'plan' 1/ 111111 with Cjllalifl(,lliol1' of dellmalilJII (II I'.'! lib ,1Ilei Ilw i1kc 2\ Redford, F4iY/J1 (1//{I (:(1/l(lf1/l ill Ihe Nl'w hill/(dom, 40 "41. For the incidence of inw
11. IINI \ i, fl7 'I I' P M.lllc'lt \'.:.1 '/I,t/:f 1/ IIlw); P. Kah xx\i I :.1 Iflh", ill Thutmosc' HI's daybook ('XII'qltS, SCI' EJ Blcihcrg, "Commodity Exchange in
17 Sp,III11L(1 I, S,' A I:l. 'lOll 10 'J..:.17 :lll. tlH' \1I11i1ls or 1 hUtllm,1 Ill" 7SSF I I I 11)8 I" I 07 I 10; idem, "The King's Privy
'I S, Qpil kl', 'f/,t .I//II',,,,/lfll' 01/ of l;n'/ll 1'111.( .. ] IIU /'; 11 1")7 ")11: ,,1,111. II" 0ll,rllli (-1/1, I):) 100; \, Cordon, Thr G'I/II'\I
SIIIIl'Y; I q~I(I), :l! 1/",1 •~f'all/'Yl '!fIlII" "elml I~/'I" II ",,/ 111\\ 1111111 Ihr 1'rll/lldl'lIIl1l/( I'mlld III lit, 1-:1/(1 "/
J(('III1III1I1)' i, il1ll'li... II,y filllit "XllII'IMIIIII III "11\l' d.1\' lIf'llIillL!illll mill" 11' ""lIc'l IIIf .\IU' l,irwlOlll, 1\00 AI hCII, 1"WI
248 CHAPTER TWELVE THE EXACTIONS OF THE CONQUERED 249

While the items constituting the inw have been dealt with else- the scribe simply to state the presence of an item in the list, with-
where,26 yet a few remarks would seem to be in order. On the basis out specifying amount. Consistently "vessels, wood, minerals and
of Min-mose's statement,27 the Egyptian authorities must have set gems appear without tally. This could be explained in either of two
the list of exactions along with the amounts. This responsibility could ways: either the redacting scribe, in the process of editing and epit-
in no way be ceded to the conquered peoples themselves. If this is omizing the original day-book, omitted the numbers; or the day-
the case, then the requisitions represent what the Egyptians thought book itself merely noted the substance at the moment of reception,
to be a practical need at that moment in time; but for us today the in the expectation that some other organization (the treasury?) back
specific rationale is often lost. in Egypt would eventually specify quantity in its records.
Horses, for example, are requisitioned in relatively small num-
bers. 28 The 1,485 + [x] from eight campaigns between the years 29
and 40 is barely 2/3 of the number captured at Megiddo! Moreover,
while the horses must have been destined for military use generally
speaking, their numbers and incidence in the lists do not parallel
the chariots. 29 One wonders whether their primary use would have
been as stud. Here, perhaps, we have the origins of the later ihw,
that combination barracks-stable, so common in Ramesside times.
Significant is the fact that sizeable deliveries are demanded only on
those campaigns which reached the lower Orontes and North Syria;
for here lay the breeding grounds for horses. 3o
Foodstuffs vary in amount. Livestock entries show a preference for
cattle and goats, not sheep.31 Wine, honey and oil are found in size-
able quantities. 32 The fluctuations in amount may be keyed into the
spacing and requirements of the jubilees,33 and some may have been
consumed by the army on the march. 34 Firewood too may have been
used by the troops on the expedition, but only two entries survive
(years 37 and 40).
Most of the non-edible items will have been transported back lo
Egypt; but here we face a further anomaly. While unworked gold
and silver and sometimes copper and lead, are specified by weighl
or number of ingots, there is a disquieting tendency on the part of

26 W. Heick, Materialien :cur Wirtsclwftsgeschicllte des Neuen Reiches (Wiesbaden, 19(i:1

vol. TIl; D.B. Redford, Egypt and Canaan in the New Kingdom (Beersheva, 1990).
27 Urk. IV, 1442:4 7.
28 Heick, Alaterialien, Ill, 314 16.
2g Cr. The discrepancies in years 38, 40 and 42.
\0 Cr. I). Pardee, 1.1'5 ttrte\ hippiatriqutl. Rm Shol71ra Ougont II (Paris, IUBS), and
pp. (il b5 (torilll1cbl?j of AI('ppo).
11 With till' ('x(cptioll of tl1<' rir~t (,lI11p,Ii~I1' H('ltk, Ml7lrnll!lm lIT, 2B2, :llJ I
lit Id., dill!. ill/l Rn!frll d, I~/JI (///1/ CIIIl(/(1I/ in II" ".rtf' Mflgtlll/I/, (iO hi
III/I hi.
IIJ11/" 'i2,
 DIPLOMATIC GIFTS FROM FOREIGN POWERS 251

along the Phoenician coast (years 29-31) excited little attention in

distant regimes: Egypt was simply re-asserting its claim to a tradi-
CHAPTER THIRTEEN tional sphere of influence. But with the dramatic break-out in year
33 and the discomfiture of Mittani, Thutmose III had ipso facto entered
DIPLOMATIC GIFTS FROM FOREIGN POWERS a much broader sphere. Four states, more in fact than in any other
year, sent congratulatory gifts to Pharaoh; and, as far as one can
judge, the identity of the four corresponds to regions hostile to
Thutmose Ill's relentless campaigning in Western Asia brought Egypt Mittani. A year later Ashuwa followed suit, probably prompted by
to the attention of the other great powers of the day.l Their response the events of the same year. A similar flurry of gift-giving was set
is reflected in the diplomatic gifts which began to arrive on the mor- off by the Egyptian victories in year 42, which may have seemed to
row of the 8th campaign, and continued arriving beyond year 42. presage a resumption of attacks on North Syria and the Mesopotamian
These gifts may be itemized as follows: heartland. On this occasion the impression created by Egypt pene-
trated to its furthest extent (Tanaya).2
Date Source Commodities Urk. Reference Of the corresponding states Great Khatte is most frequently men-
1. Year 24 Asshur lapis [....J 671:8-9 tioned (4 times). On each occasion its gifts followed significant Egyptian
2. Year 33 [....J birds 700:11-14 penetration of either north Syria or Mittani itself.3 One wonders
3. Year 33 Babylon lapis 701:1-3 whether the earliest Egypto-Hittite treaty, involving the people of
4. Year 33 [Asshur?] lapis, vessels 701:6-9 Kurushtama, could date back to this period. 4 Although nothing of
5. Year 33 Great Khatte silver, gems, wood 701:11-14 even a circumstantial nature in Thutmose Ill's record would sug-
6. Year 34 Ashuwa copper, lead, lapis, gest such a pact, the Hittite presents reflect the sort of amicable cli-
ivory, wood 708:1-7 mate within which such an alliance could have taken shape.
7. Year 35 [Khatte] silver, gold, wood 713:13-16 Curiously, the second most frequent entry (3 times) is Ashuwa. 5
8. [Year 37] [....] minerals, game, Its gifts in years 34, 38 and 39 fall within the period of intensive
firewood 715:4-8 campaigning in North Syria. A general term for the coalition on the
9. Year 38 Ashuwa ore, horses 719: 13-15 Ionian coast, Ashuwa would have been sensitive to trade relation-
10. Year 38 Alalakh slaves, ore, wood, ships; and the appearance of a new power to be reckoned with in
plants 720:1-4 the environs of Alalakh, the great east-west hub of trade, would have
11. Year 39 Ashuwa ivory, ore, lead 724:10 13 encouraged moves towards friendship. Ashuwa was later to fall vic-
12. Year 40 Asshur lapis, vessels [...] 668:6 15 tim to Tudkhaliyas 1,6 but in the time of Thutmose III the region
13. Year 41 Great Khatte silver [....] 727:13 14 appears to have been strong and independent.
14. [Year 42] [Niya?] [....] [.... J Keftiu is the glaring omission from the list. 7 In light of the rela-
15. Year 42 [Great Khatte] silver vessels, lapis, tive frequency with which Cretan gift-carriers are depicted in Theban
wood, ore 732 33
16. Year 42 Tanaya silver vessels, iron 733:4· 8
2 See above, pp. 96-98.
The dates of the gift-giving and the identity of' the givers make PCI 3 T.R. Bryce, The Kingdom rif the Hittites (Oxford, 1999), 128-29.
4 D. Sucrcnhagcn, Partitaetische Staatsvertriige aus Hethitisehen Sieht (Pavia, 1985),
fect sense in context. The activity in Palestinc (ye(1rs 25 28) .1Ilt! 22 38; sources and discussion in B. Bryan, The Reign rif Tuthmosis IV (Baltimore,
1991), 360, 1111. 32 33; Brycr, op. cit., 129.
\ AI)(lV(', p. H2.
h IIryt t', tI/l. ri/., 1:1:; :17,
II', 11ll' MOlI!'ft Ilf t.i\I,t;lIli'ft ""/II-Ill'll"; ~I, !.I\I·IUlll, !l" Ollhl' ,,"I lIihlillllIOlphy 011 1,,1 It ill l)lll' sholiid nil\(' in 11.11 ti('lIl"r the exhaustivr
 252 CHAPTER THIRTEEN DIPLOMATIC GIFTS FROM FOREIGN POWERS 253

tombs of the reign, one might have expected several entries. 8 If the Amunemheb and Antef could with special pleading be dated late in
securing of Levantine ports in years 29 to 31 really hampered Aegean the reign, Useramun is definitely earlyl4 as is Senenmut. 15
trade,9 one might have expected diplomatic links to have been in It might be noted in passing that in the five tombs in question,
evidence shortly after years 31 or 32. One might seek an escape in all of Thutmose Ill's floruit, a certain sloppiness in identification infects
supposing that the Keftiuans are lumped in with "Ashuwa (Ionia) the representation of foreigners. The artist is familiar with standard
and Tanaya (Mycenae),"IO but that seems rather unlikely. These are Canaanite costume (short kilt or sari with filet or headcloth); the cos-
separate toponyms, of comparatively rare occurrence. Even the gen- tume of North Syria and Mittani (tight-fitting "city"-galabiya with
eral "islands in the midst of the Great Green" are kept distinct from skull cap or shorn head); and the exotic coiffure of Anatolia and the
Keftiu. II Could the reason lie in how Crete was classified by the Aegean. 16 These, however, are not always shown on the right indi-
Egyptians? Like Byblos, Keftiu was an Egyptian friend of long-stand- vidual, as identified by caption. 17
ing with frequent contacts; 12 and this close relationship may have Several solutions to this conundrum might be proposed. 1. The
caused it to be treated differently from Asiatics. This, however, is daybook excerpts themselves are selective to a degree we had not
hard to believe. Asiatics and Aegeans are shown in the same tomb realized, and so at this distance of time cannot control. 2. The day-
scenes, bearing mutatis mutandis the same types of gifts, seeking the book, being "of the king's house," records only inw brought to the
same "breath of life."13 It is likewise difficult to solve the puzzle by palace;18 the goods from Keftiu were received and recorded at another
resorting to time sequence, in fact by postulating that the scenes in place. 3. What the Keftiuans are shown bringing constitutes trad
Theban tombs show emissaries who arrived after year 42. While the items, and so were not classified as inw. 4. Contact with the Aegean
decoration in question in the tombs of Menkheperrasonb, Rekhmire dates back over a century before Thutmose III, and Egyptian artists
are copying Vorlagen, rather than commemorating contempora t
embassies. 19 5. The scenes in question are to be construed in III
context of attendance at sed-festivals. 2o None of these inspires IHlltlt
collection of the evidence in l Vercoutter, L'Egypte et Ie monde egeen prehellinique (Cairo, confidence: we shall have to live with ambiguity.
1956), 33-122; also l Strange, Caphtorl Kefliu. A New Investigation (Leiden, 1980);
lasing, Aspects de la culture pharaonique. Qy.titres lefons au College de France (Paris, 1992), The one entry which appears curiously out of place is til{' Ill'llt
25-36. olence of Asshur in year 24. Apart from the difficulties in t Itt: tlnt,
8 On Cretans in Theban tombs, see E. and Y. Sakellarakis, "The Keftiu and
the Minoan thalassocracy," in R. Hagg, N. l\!Iarinatos (eds), The Minoan Thalassocracy:
on this part of the wall,21 gifts are otherwise not rcconkel hefun
Myth and Reali!) (Athens, 1984), 197-203; S. Wachsmann, Aegeans in the Theban Tombs year 33. That such a far-off place as Assyria should h,I\1 1t'fICt1:([
Leuven, 1987; idem, Sea-going Ships and Seamanship in the Bronze Age Levant (London,
1998), 84-6.
9 So l Vercoutter, Essai sur les relations entre Egyptiens et Pre-Hellenes (Paris, 1954),
163. But he exaggerates the case. In any case there is now ample evidence for a 14 P-M I, 246 (no. 131); cf. Urk. IV, 1384 (year 5).
direct sea-link between Crete and the Delta coast (L.V. Watrous, Kommos III. The 15 P.F. Dorman, The Monuments if Senenmut (London, 1988), (i(l/l
Late Bronze Age Pottery [Princeton, 1992J, 172-78), rendering unnecessary the cir- [6 lB. Pritchard, "Syrians as Pictured in the Paintings of lilt I k ~"'u,'
cuitous coastal route around the Levantine littoral: cf. K Cline, Sailing the Wine-dark BASOR 122 (1951), 38-40; N. de G. Davies, "Foreigners in the '1 olllh "I Amrncmtk:1J."
Sea. International Trade and the Late Bronze Age Aegean, Oxford, 1994. The great mar- JEA 20 (1933), pI. 25; D.B. Redford, The Akhmaten 7 emplt I~(/Irll. II .
itime trading hub was Ugarit: A. Bernard Knapp, "An Nashiyan Merchanl at the Inscriptions (Toronto, 1988), eh. 2).
Ugarit," TA 10 (1983), 38-45. 17 A.-L. Osthoek, "Hittite ou pas Hittite? Trois representation' ;, '~II
10 KH. Cline, "Crete," in D.B. Redford (ed), Oxford Encyclopaedia if Ancient Egypt in C. Obsomer (ed), Amosiades (Leuven, 1992), 33546.
(New York, 2001), 315. 18 Cf. D.B. Redford, Pharaonic King-lists, Annals olld l)a)"/ilml.l l~ fiulU:lll~
[[ Cf. Urk. IV, 616:2, 7, 13. 121-26.
12 BJ. Kemp, R.S. Merrillees, Minoan PotllflY in Second Millennium Egypl, Mainz, [9 M. Bielak, Avans, the Capital if the HykJoJ: Rumt 1'.\(/1
1980. Cf. Heick, Die Beziehungen Aegyptens lind Vorderasien Zllr Aegi:iis bi:, ino 7. ]ahrh. (London, 1996), 67 83; P. Rehak, "Aegean Br('eehdolh~, Kill
Vor Chr. (Darmstadt, 1979), 26 '14. frescoes," A.7A 100 (19l)(i" '35 .1 I.
['1 D. Warburton, [<;gypl ond Ihf Nmr HOlt. Po/itlo /1/ thf HIOIl:f l,lIf (1'.ui" 200 I" 211 R.B. KcwhJ "1\linCl,1l1 Rhytl\ in El\Tpt," ill A. K,lIc'IMlIl (I U/'
1 1.1. 11m, onl' i, In <li,( ril11in'1tt· "h('11 lilt' 1:I01JII,11l'i 1,lil 10 IH'JIl1Il lI' lrJ do '0, (AlI1l'Il,. 'l()Oll lit t()()
e:\ralll'\ 1llC' 'I SeT ,.h", <', I'
 254 CHAPTER THIRTEEN

immediately to a victory in a part of the world remote from her

own bailiwick, would be anomalous to say the least. One possible
solution might be to see in 1-sw-r a Hif1jehler for 1-s-r, the region in CHAPTER FOURTEEN
Galilee. 22 The scribe, at the moment of compiling the text (year 40),
confused a record of submission of a minor Galilean chief with the THE BEGINNINGS OF THE ADMINISTRATION OF THE
king of Assyria. The neighboring entry of Asshur's benevolence in NORTHERN LANDS
year 40 was then used mistakenly to flesh out the passage.

Sometimes the provincial administration and the diplomacy evident

during the Amarna Age has been made to serve as a sort of time-
less paradigm, and retrojected into the period of the empire's cre-
ation;! but a moment's reflection will demonstrate that such a modular
perception cannot be supported by the evidence. Between the first
victory of Thutrnose III, at Megiddo, and the commencement of the
Amarna Age nearly a century had elapsed. In the interim several
significant events had changed the political landscape of Western
Asia. For one thing, the only serious opponent to Egypt in the north,
Mittani, had been neutralized by treaty and diplomatic marriage. 2
For another, pillage and deportation had reduced the threat of
resistence by the indigenous population in those parts of the Levant
closest to the Egyptian border. 3 The scale of involvement manifest
in Thutrnose's time was no longer necessary. The practice of chevauchee,
therefore, and full-scale campaigns undertaken regularly and fre-
quently, fell into abeyance; and Egypt had to devise other means to
collect taxes and produce from the north. The upshot in Amarna
times was the military captain, sent out on circuit to a number of
Canaanite towns,4 usually in the spring,5 with letters and assessments.
Only in Ramesside Times did a full-fledged provincial system, with
"governors," commercial agents and military personnel become the
norm. 6

I Cf. R. Cohen, R. Westbrook (eds), Amama Diplomcu:y, Baltimore, 2000. Admittedly

by no means all of the contributors to this excellent volume fall into this trap.
2 B. Bryan, in Cohen-Westbrook, loco cit., 79-83.
3 P. der Manuelian, Studies in the Reign rif Amenophis II (Hildesheim, 1987), 76-77.
4 Redford, Egypt and Canaan in the New Kingdom, 29~36.
M. Livcrani, "A Seasonal Pattern for the Amarna Letters," in T. Abusch and
others (cds), Jillgrrillg over Words. Studies in Ancient Near Eastern Literature in Honor rif
William I '\/011111 (ALIanla, 1990), 337 48.
22 Y. Aharoni, '}lie Land qf Ilu Biblt. A /lil/nnml GtII/:wplIY LOlldol), 1lJ7~)" III I ; h 1{"dfl1ld '.":'/11 1/1111 CUllaall in Ihe New Kingdom, 19 26; idem, Egypt, Canaan and
;.W. AhlstlClll1, 11710 wm llir ii/at/lin? WiIlOI),1 J.tk,·, l'IHli, ri:l 1 S. AhilltV (':(/11' 1/1it, !1m" III I~rit1lJ 'linus I!'tltll' tllll, I<)<)2), 192 213; C. Tlig-gl'nbotham, "Elite Emulation
') a/lmlYIIII III 1/1(/1'1// F.l,.'Y/JI/(1II f)Ol/llllm/1 II A tdrll, l'IH I), 7'1 d,·t'illll'. til 1111111' II ,wei I ~YI',il\1l Oovcrnftlllc III R,ltll,'ssid,' C'lllol,lIl," '{" 2~ (19%, 151 (i<); W.J.
,\111111,1111', '''O\'C'''IC't'l' oflhr NllIthl'l1l J'orrll(ll (:lllilltli,,\' Refl,·, tioll\ Oil th" UplH'1
256 CHAPTER FOURTEEN THE BEGINNINGS OF THE ADMINISTRATION 257

The initial structure of Egyptian administration in the north arose tary in the extreme. The Egyptian army marched forth at such
out of the nature and purpose of Thutmose Ill's conquests: regular intervals, that "resident governors" were unnecessary, and
specific tasks in the north were assigned on an ad hoc basis to
1. Demolition. The obsession of Thutmose with the possibility of a civil administrators. I I Only later in the reign (year 47) is mention
recurrence of the Hyksos invasion of Egypt lead to his denying made of permanent troops in the Akkar plain (Ullaza)12 and they
Palestine as a base for an indigenous power. This he accom- have been stationed there for three purposes: to guard the stores
plished by bringing about the demolition of fortified centers which in the "harbors," to supervise the cutting and transport of tim-
had (or could have) shown hostility to Egypt, and by promoting ber and to keep the Eluetheros Valley under surveillance. At the
the practice of deportation. In the process the socio-political struc- southern extremity of the coast, recent discoveries l3 make it likely
ture of the southern Levant was wholly destabilized to Egypt's that Gaza experienced a permanent Egyptian presence by the
advantage, and the few surviving centers of population trans- close of the reign. Elsewhere there is little evidence of garrisons.
formed into nodal entrepots. 7 The depot at Joppa J4 appears in our sources only after the reign
2. Confiscation. The wheat-producing plains of the Esdraelon and of Thutmose III. 15 The Egyptian occupation of Beth Shean as a
the tripolis in the north Jordan valley were taken over by the garrison point likewise postdates the time of Thutmose III,16 and
crown and the estate of Amun, respectively; but elsewhere little we have no evidence as to how the Egyptians secured the regions
alienation of property seems to have occurred. The so-called "har- of Damascus and Kumidi. Controllers had been assigned to the
bors" in Phoenicia8 were probably simply provided with store- Esdraelon plain to supervise the farm-land there;17 but they may
houses and perhaps a shrine: the inhabitants of the neighboring well have functioned on a seasonal basis, at planting and harvest.
Akkar plain presented their food-stuffs, but did not relinquish
ownership of their fields.
3. Political Adjustment. Thutmose III followed common practice (in II Redford, Egypt and Canaan in the New Kingdom, 2-7. Cf. The "King's-scribe, stable-

Egypt as well as Western Asia) in administering the oath to sub- master, treasurer and child of the nursery" who was somehow involved in "the gov-
ernance of the countries, whether by water or by land" Sapair (date uncertain, but
jugated headmen; but he also supplemented what was essentially early 18th Dynasty): J. Malek, "An Early 18th Dynasty Monument of Sipair from
a cult ritual with a practical mechanism to control the local fam- Saqqara," JEA 75 (1989), 61-76.
12 Urk. IV, 1237:15. One wonders whether the "harbors" were the special pur-
ilies who wielded power. The latter were forcibly tied to Pharaoh view of the "superintendent of fortresses in the northern foreign lands" Si-Amun:
through their children. 9 Seldom did Thutmose III intervene to L. Speleers, Receuils des inscriptions egyptiennes des musees royaux du Cinquantenaire Ii Bruxelles
sponsor a new polity. It may be significant that, when he did, as (Bruxelles, 1923), no. 117. Si-amun was "trusted by the king in matters pertaining
to Asia, familiar with conditions of the lands (sic) of the Fenkhu, who receives the
in the case of Taku in Nukhashshe, it was in a region whet ( benevolences of the 'scruffies' who come through the power of His Majesty ..." It
kingship was weak or entirely absent in the face of traditioll,t1 sounds as though Si-Amun was an Egyptian "resident" in charge of the receipt of
"rule by the elders."lo foodstores for deposit in the coastal depots.
13 Above, pp. 13-16.
4. Permanent presence. While Thutmose lived, the administratioll 01 14 Redford, Egypt and Canaan in the New Ktngdom, 35.

the Levant (if we can even use this formal term) was rudinH'11 15 The celebrated story of its capture by a ruse perpetrated by Djehuty (Gardiner,
lille Egyptian Stories [Bruxelles, 1932],82-85) is pure folklore (CJ. Eyre, "Is Egyptian
Historical Literature 'Historical' or 'Literary'?" in A. Loprieno (ed), Ancient Egyptian
Literature. History and Forms [Leiden, 1996], 415-33; W. Guglielmi, "Der Gebrauch
Administration of Egypt's Empire in Western Asia," in J. van Dijk (cd), RIIII}' , rhetorischer Stilmittel in der aegyptischen Literatur," ibid., 480, 494) and one should
Ancient Egypt in Honor qf Herman Ie Velde (Groningen, 1997), 251 58. be extremely cautious in trying to detect an historical "kernel" of truth (S. Ahituv,
7 A. Bernard Knapp, "Complexity and Collapse in the North J()rcl~111 V,tll, Canaanite Toponyms in Ancient Egyptian Documents [Leiden, 1984], 121; M.S. Drower,
Archeomelry and Sociely in the MidcUe-Lale Bronze Ages," iF;] 39 (I ()!JC)), I :.!~l III. GAIIIl, I (1973),44'64·7). Needless to say the archaeological record yields no evi-
B .J.M. Calan, "The lIeritage of Thutl110sis Ill's Campaigns ill til(' AI1I'l1ll,1 \1:, ," c1en('(' O!1" way or th" other: C.R. Higginbotham, Egyptianization and Elite Emulation
in H.M. Bryan, D. Lonon (('cis), EllqYJ ill J.;g.,1)to/()~ In lIollar q( 11/1111 (;/I,d/'M (Sit II in Rammu/r Pa/fltw (I A'idl'!1, 2000), 106 7.
Antonio, I Ill) I), CJ7 n 31 II, ~I C; lll\wl, n ", 11/1111/ /Inti RrILI/t/lCf. Egyptian Afi/itary Actillity in the Southem Levant
'I SI'l ,llll\\I', Jl 70 /'WO 1/ H:; JJ.(~', (I )'i.trll, I !llJlI I'il
'ill ,lllllH p, m. ()Il ,,,,du'. 11('(' nbo\'c, p. ,12 11
 EPILOGUE 259

purloined by other great figures of the past. I I His contribution to

the "Sesostris" Legend, though extensive, did not leave a trace of
EPILOGUE his name.

Although during the four centuries following Thutmose Ill's deat It

the territory he had conquered in Palestine and along the Phoeniciall
coast rarely if ever were lost to Egyptian control, his bequest to
future generations lay mainly in the tradition of conquest and chevaur!l
and in the image of the war Pharaoh. The king's accomplishmcllt
translated his figure in the memory of posterity into the great ann'!!
tral monarch, Osiris himself,! "the father of the fathers,"2 "the gn'al
god,"3 the quintessential "son of Amun,"4 the natural model Cor all
Alexander. 5 In eultic contexts his presence remained on stelae, [e111
pIe walls,6 and offering processionals;7 and for centuries his n<llllt
was a talisman to be conjured with on scarabs8 or in personal nam<
Native folklore made of him the key figure about whom cluster< cI
several plot motifs distantly related to his activities,1O and even ill
foreign parts his great feats lived on into classical times, sOn1etil11l

I O. Koefoed-Petersen, Publications de la G!Jptotheque Ny Carlsberg no. 4. Call1l,

des sarchphages et cercueils egyptiens (Copenhagen, 1951), pI. XLVIII.

2 Urk. IV, 2135.
3 T. Save-Sbderbergh, Kush 8 (1960), pI. 15; KRJ III, 120 (temp. RamcsM'sll)i
cf. A. Rowe, A Catalogue if Egyptian Scarabs ... in the Palestine Archaeological Ml/I
(Cairo, 1936), no. 473.
4 L. Speleers, Recueils des inscriptions egyptiennes des Musees royaux du Cil1qualllflull
Bruxelles (Bruxelles, 1923), 37 no. 133.
5 Cf. The re.carving of the Karnak sanctuary east of Akh-mcnu: II. (;<\lIlll1" I
Livres des rois d'Egypte II, 265 (XLII).
6 P-M VIII, 1048 (Ramesses IV); VI, 90 (Dendcra); VI, 115; £Slla III, :U
(Esna); P-M VI, 200 (Kom Ombo); H. Kees, RT 36 (19\4), 5\ IT (AkhmiJ11I; (:.M
Coche-Zivie, Giza au premier millennaire (Boston, \991), 222 (Karnak).
7 D.B. Redford, Pharaonic King-lists, Annals alld Day books (Mississauga, 1986" II
o B. Jaeger, Essai de classification et de datation des scarabees AJellkhcpcrre (Ftiillllll
1982).
9 H. Ranke, Die allaegyptisrhe Pmollelmamm [ (GllIeekst,ldt, 1936), \ 'lll 1\
Gauthier, [jUTe des rois III, 263 9 (21st Dyn, "i~h.Jlril'st); Ibul" 121, 101 'J; IV,
(XXXIlJ, associatcd with PS'lIT1Inl,tichus Il, 90 (XVI, ,lsSOttatl'd with Nnilll 111; II The Battle or Megiddo (cr. Jud. 5, and above, p. 36); the siegc of Mcgiclclo
.J. Lcdal1l, Rrrherrhfl lilT It,1 mOlll/lllml1 IMhm1l1 de In .\ \ I" /?~I/(/1/1f dile rlhill/limlle Clli. (Waddell, MarUI/to ICal11!"idRI', 1<) Illl, flfi HB); ('lossing tl1(' Euphrates (above, p. 106);
IC)(j5" 237 n I (Sh,lllol(,lk;l) sOl1wlin1t' pI ("('1\(1' in NC)1(h SYIl,I (,I bow P :l'll); tilt' misapplopli.llinn 01 lh"
III \ 1l J.Ioyd, 1I,.",dllll/l IIIHIA /I f CIIIII/I/rl/imy I : l<ddl"l\, l!l7Ii), II):.!' <I [),lyllllOk 1':'1( 1 '1111 ,\lId Ill'lwvo!I'n( I' II,,, 1,111111', ,1/ll/tll, jdi7 hH
 INDEX

Abdi-kh.epa 197 n. U n. 250, 57, 59, 60, 63, 70, 83, 101,
Abydos 178, 186 n. 4 103, 108, 110 and n. 32, 112-114,
acacia i j I 117, 119-121, 124, 128, 129f,
accounts 177 132-134, 135, 137-141, 143, I 46f,
Adanirari 230, 234 149f, 159f, 162, 187 n. 7, 190, 207f,
Adana 97 211, 224, 242 n. 9, 258
Adoraim 239 Gold-lands of 174
administrators 25'7 Temple estate of 142, 131, 154,
Aegean 82 n. 152, 97, 98 n. 238, 256
252f. Treasury of 5
agents 255 Amunemheb 167ff, 253
agro-pastoralists 81, 233 Amunemhet 226 n. 27
Ahmose 20, 185, 187 n. 6, 190, 193f Amunhotpe 226 n. 27
Akh-menu 58, 133 n. 141, 134 and Amunmose 226 n. 29
n. 145, 136, 145 n. 202, 147 Amurru 16, 65f, 217
n. 210, 148, 258 n. 5 Anastasi I 46, 196, 200
Akhenaten 237, 239 Anatolia 253
Akit-teshup 239 Anebny 193
Akizzi 232, 247 Anhur 226 n. 27
Akkar plain 70, 20 I, 217, 238, 256f Antef 176ff, 253
alabaster 147 antimony 52 and n. 303
Alalakh 65f, 89, 188, 189 n. 22, 199, Apamea 108 n. 24, 168 n. 17
230f, 250f Aphek 203
Alashiya 78 n. 128, 82 Apiru 72,81, 217f
Aleppo 17, 50, 83, 85, 168, 188, arable land 42f
189 n. 22, 221, 225, 229-231, 233, Ar'anu 83, 85, 171, 233
248 n. 30 archery 157, 222ff
Alexander 106 n. 20, 258 Ardata 50 n. 290, 63, 68, 73, 97
Alexandretta 214 n. 29 n. 235, 217f
All-blacks 86 Argos 98
altars 38, 41, 89 Ariandum 85
Amada 242f "Arid-region" 68f
Amara West 12 ark 241 n. 1
Amarna Age 97, 123 n. 79, 144, Armant I 53ff, 157, 204 n. 14, 207,
213, 218, 236, 255 222f
ambulator 6f, 210 Arrapkha 75 n. 107
Amenemheb 50, 222, 242, 244 arrows 109, 123
Amenemhet 133, 214 Arsenal 200
Amenophis I 49 n. 284, 166 n. 8, Artatama 229f
185 and nn. 3, 4, 187 n. 6, 194 Aruna 15, 18 n. 109, 22f, 26
n. 55 Aryan 192
Amenophis II 60, 70f, 84· n. 160, Ashdod 12
118 n. 57,152,171,174,230,232 Ashkelon 12
n. 24, 235, 24 If, 24·2 and n. 8, 243f Ashtata 188, 233
Aml'l1ophi, III 12, 'Ib, 60, 233, 237 Ashuwa see "Azy"
Al11oril< 1'1 11, 1,1f} Ashur-nimri I 213
'\011111 II 7, 17, :W, :l!l, :!I, ,I' \,i,\ MiJ10l R'
262 INDEX INDEX 263

Asiatics III, 131, 139, 149, 187 n. 6, boxwood 52, 55 chief(s) 34-37, 41, 53, 68, 74, 78, leben, new 132
189, 195, 252 bread 64, 72, 130, 138, 140f, 164, 109, I'll, 129, 131, 137, 160, 162, Deborah 36 n. 213
assault 47-49 201 174, 181, 198f, 207f, 235, 237, deer 88
Assyria 51, 55, 75, 78 n. 128, 133 breath 109, 129, 149, 160, 199, 252 242-244 Deir el-Bahari 117,134,147,241
n. 140, 212f, 235f, 247, 250, 253f brewery 201 chiefs, children of the 37,41, 52, Delta L87 n. 6, 196, 226, 252 n. 9
Athens 205 n. 23 bridle 52 69-71, 109, liOn. 30, I'll, I 31 , demographics 43, 186 n. 6
Atum 124 n. 87, 160 "Bringing in the god" 138 207f, 211, 236f, 256 deportation 255f
audience hall 177, 179f bronze 35, 38, 52, 64, 80, 91, 139, chief of staff 181 desert 108 n. 23
author 6 168, 187 n. 8 children of the nursery 165 destruction levels 47, 186 n. 6
Avaris 49 n. 284 "brotherhood" 237 n. 24 Cilicia 16, 97 DllR 66
axe 62, 168 brothers 69, 71 and n. 86 circumvallation 31-33, 48, 129, 14 J, diet 198
Azy 78 n. 128, 80, 82f, 89, 91, Buhen 159, 206 206-208 digamma 82
250-252 building, chronology of 58 Cis:Jorda!1 92 digest 59f, 235
building inscription 117 citizens (of the army) 95 directional indicators 46
Ba'al 175 n. 56 bullae 137 city destruction 47, 49, 50f, L06, 187 disolder 199
Babylon 51, 75f, 78 n. 128, 250 bulls 155 n. 6, 199, 2 I 5, 225, 239, 256 district 81, 106
Babylonia 189 butler 166, 195 n. 2, 226 n. 27 city-state 76 divisions 196, 200
Badakhshan 133 n. 140 Buto 119 n. 59, 162ff "City Palette" 47 n. 276 Djcfty 15, 17,22 n. 131
Bakhu 122, 211 n. 12 Byblos 80, 93, 106, 144, 170 n. 30, clock 28 Djehuty 209 n. 6, 257 n. 15
Balikh 16 175, 185 and n. 4, 187, 204, 214f, clothing 38, 130 Djeser-akhet 147f
barber 165f, 195 n. 2 217, 221, 226, 238, 252 coffers 145 Djoser 235
Barque shrine 6f, 54f, 123 n. 78, collars 146 DK(K) 106 n. 19
145ff calendrics, calendar 164, 227 aIllI collation 141 dom-palm 11, 173
Barratarna 250 and n. 10, 231f n. 37, 243 columned hall 145 donkeys 79f, 88 and n. 189, 110,
Bashan 38 camp 31, 35, 54, 83, 198 column space 6tf 168, 201 and n. 38
Bast 123, 165 campaigns, date and number of 94·, commander 71 Dothan 97 n. 235
battle reliefs 109 n. 30 156-159 compilation 154 downstream 74 n. 101
battle, river, 221 f, 226 Canaan 36 and n. 215, 190, 212, compression (of text) 57 dowry 236f
battle, set-piece 197f, 215, 224, 229 218 confiscation 256 Duwa 226 n. 27
bed 38 Canaanites 67, 70f, 189, 192-194, Constantinople obelisk 77, 124 Duwaerneheh 226 n. 27
beer 130, 138, 141, 164, 201 197-199, 203 n. 8, 219, 253, 255 Constantius 107 n. 20
Beirut 144 captain 255 construction 101, 103, 120, 124, I34f, East Karnak 136
Beka'a 169 n. 23, 218 Carchemish 50, 82, 85, 151, 168, 148, 179, 195, 241f Ebla 81
benevolences 34, 52f, 55, 59, 64, 68, 170, 225 consuetudinis 30 n. 178 ebony 38,41, III, 163, 173
72, 74f, 78[, 83f, 88, 90, 93-96, Carmel 131 n. 129, 144,203,214 controller 257 editor 101
181, 198f, 210, 212, 221, 224, 226, n. 29, 238 and n. 3 coregency 242f Edjo 162, 164
235-237, 247, 253f, 259 carts 106, 118 council of war 18-21 Edrei 46
Bersha 227f cattle 35, 36 and n. 211, 52, 63, 7~.
cowherd 166 "Eight"'ships III
Beth Shean 257 75, 79, 84, 88, 90, 93, 106, 109, "crack" troops 67 elders 81 n. \46, 97
biographical statement 102, 220 128, 130-133, 138-141, I66f, 17'11 Crete 251, 252 n. 9 electrum 122, 133, 139, 145-147, 173
birds 75, 78 n. 129, 250 197, 211, 235, 242, 248 crew 144, 216 Elephantine 158 n. 28, 242f
bird-pools 132 cauldron 37, 88, 90, 95, 146 crops, razing of, 77 elephants 108, 116, 118, 155, 169,
Biryawaza 38 caves 225 crossing river 220-222, 225f 171, 225f
bitumen 79 cedar 106, I I If, 122 n. 76, 146 1111 crown prince 134, 165 n. 3 Eleutheros Valley 16, 64, 70, 93, 97,
"black copper" 139, 146 187f, 217, 223, 233 crystal 89f 217, 232, 238, 257
"black wood" 79 cella 136 cypress 122 n. 76, 124 elite trooper 169
block-house 202 chairs 38, 41 Cyprus 82 Elkab 117, 241
boasting 143, 155, 180 chariots 30f, 35f, 52, 55, 69, 7'.2, 7'1, Ellesiyeh 161f
boats 63, 80 and n. 138, 106, I I I, 79, 8'1, 88, 90, 129, 160, 173, lIi1l Dahshur 162 n. 41 Emar 74 n. 101, 81 n. 146, 82, 89
173, 175, 204f, 221, 224f n. 16, 205 207, 221, 218 Damascus 38, 196 n. 11, 232, 257 n. 189
Boghaz koi 82 n. 152 halisl1111lir t illl,t1 '.23 I lay-book 58C, 143 and n. 188, 150, emery 63, 96, 139
"Botanical garden" 213 dlrllfllldlr(r) 11l8, ICJ7, !c)CJ, '.20S, 221, 15'111.3,157, 172,208,210,213, enclosure wall 136
Boulaq Papyt us XVIII -I 2:lfl, 111, 2')'\, 2:lfl 220, 222C, 2:lG, 2'11 C, 2'1 I, 249, 253, nclowments 101, 130f, 133 135,
Bows HI, fEI, 10CJ, I'.2:1, 1'.27, 'J.J( ( hll kn" 7'1 II. 1tl7 "-)C) 139 I'll, 143, 145, 16'1
264 INDEX INDEX 265

engineers 195 n. 3 general number 68 hegemony 199, 239 inundation 136 and n. 153
"equerry" 71 n. 90 Gezer 203 Hekalayim 42 n. 250 Irkata 95-97
Esdraelon 201, 218f, 256 gezira, Syrian 81 Heliopolis 117, 132, 140,235,241 iron 93 n. 211, 108, 250
exaggeration see "boasting" gifts 78, 89, 132, 187 n. 10, 235f, Hellespont 204 n. 17 islands 107
Execration Texts 96, 186 n. 4 246, 250ff, 253 helmets 84 and n. 160 Israel 196 n. II
Expeditionary force 188, 198, 199 glass 73 n. 98 HL(L) 67 isd-tree 227f
n. 29, 200 goats 35, 79, 91, 197f, 236 n. 17, Henket-onkh 138, 148, 166 itineraries 45f, 226
eye-paint 87 248 Herakleopolis 102 ivory 38,80,89-91,93, Ill, 163,
"God's Land" 106, III, 114, 115 herald 195 n. 3 169, 173, 250
farmer 120 n. 65 n. 51, 125, 147, 175, 213 Hermopolis 51 Iwy-Amun 165f
farms 140, 220, 257 "God's Shadow" 120, 147 hetman 72 Iwy-Montu 225 n. 25
Fenkhu 94 and n. 217, 131 and gold containers 72, 90 hieroglyphic text 133
n. 129, 135, 149, 159, 187 nn. 7, gold, raw 37,41, 75, 79,90 Hittites 66, 186 n. 4, 251 jasper 132
10; 207f, 215, 257 n. 12 goldsmiths 41 hold 146 Jemmeh 15
festival(s) 120, 122, 128 and n. 114, grain 63f, 73f, 78, 81 n. 145, 84, 89, Holy Mountain 112 Jerusalem 197 n. 17
130f, 134, 135 n. 152, 137f, I42f, 91, 95, 106, 130, 139f, 205 n. 23, homophony 118 Jokneam 17
145, 164, 211 256 Horns 123 n. 79 Joppa 12f, 203, 257
fields 42 and n. 251, 140, 172,256 grain ships 205 honey 64, 72, 89f, 248 Jordan Valley 39,41, 191, 218, 256
field-hands 130 and n. 124, 135, 138 granaries 179 hoplites 205 Joshua 36
financing 200 Grande armee 202 Horakhty 16lf jubilee 58, 68, 134, 138 n. 164, 220,
fire-drills 52, 87 granite 125 n. 90, 135, 146-148 "Horn of the Earth" 105, III, 160 227f, 235, 248, 253
firewood 248, 250 "Great Bender" 107 horses 14, 30f, 34 and n. 203, 36, Juniper Ridge 168, 170
First Occasion 123 "Great Green" 107, 252 64, 69, 72, 74f, 79, 83f, 88, 90, 95,
flag-staves 114 and nn. 47, 51; 125, Great River 196 n. 9 109f, 113, 160, 169, 173,205, 207f, Kadesh 10, 14-17, 30, 36, 40, 41
i49, 175, 187 n. 7 Greek sources 21 248, 250 and n. 248, 50 and n. 290, 66, 68,
flocks 72, 75, 79 Horus 29, 105, 113 n. 44, 116, 159f, 95, 97, I'll, 125, 159, 168f, 172,
food stuffs 142,217,219,248,256 haemetite 87 162 187 n. 6, 191, 193, 196, 199,203,
footstools 38, 41 Haluwe 40 Horus-throne 102, 159, 227 214f, 217f, 220, 224, 232, 238, 240,
folklore 258f Hamath 189 n. 22, 196 n. II hostage 218 242, 244
foreign parts 176 and n. 60 Hantilis 189 hour(s) 27f Kala'at Sejar 168 n. 17
forest 203 Hapuseneb 209 n. 6 household troop 196 Kamose 20
fortress 103, 105, 108, I'll, 137, harbors 54, 72f, 75, 78, 80, 89, Hrkr 40 kanaktu-oil 55
143-145, 149, 181, 207-209, 214, 91, 96, 219, 221, 224f, 235, 256f, hunting 155, 157, 225f Karnak 120, 128, 130f, 135 n. 151,
216 257 n. 12 Hurrian(s) 14, 37, 81, 84, 187 n. 6, 148, 159, 162, 164, 185 n. 3, 212f,
freighters 68 Harenkaru 37, 40, I'll, 139 191 n. 37, 192 235, 242 n. 9
fruit 68, 72[, 138, 140-142 harness 52, 84 Hurri-warriors 10, 191 Keftiu 80, 96[, 251-253
flying column 46 harvest 42f, 68, 73, 84, 87, 89, 91, Huzziya 77 n. 119 khato-land 43 n. 254, 2I 9
96, 219f, 257 hydreia 202 Khatte 75f, 78 n. 129, 94, 96, 231,
Galilee 38, 215, 254 Hathor 175 Hyksos 8, 48, 185 n. I, 187, 256 233, 247, 250f
game 250 Hatnub 147 hymnody 153 Khenty-she 115, 125
garden 140 Hatshepsut 3f, 20, 49 n. 284, 57 Khonsu 22, 26
garrison(s) I I, 63, 68, 80, 95, 98, n. 3,86, 118 n. 57, 127 n. 108, ibexes 130, 138 Khopri 119
112 n. 39, 197 n. 13, 217f, 220, 134, 154 n. 3, 157 n. 22, 175 n. 'I:", ideology 247 king, presence of, 55
238, 240, 257 190-193, 194 n. 54, 200, 209, 21:i idiolect 106 kingship 81 n. 146, 228, 256
gate 128, 145f, 148 n. 20, 243 n. 16 Idrimi 230 king's-scribe 166, 226 n. 27
Gaza 8, II f, 44, 49 n. 286, 193, Hattusilis 77, 188 n. 12, 189, 23 J Ilimilimma 231 Kinza 45 n. 270
194 n. 54, 201-203, 257 Hau-nebu 107 incense 52, 64, 72f, 75, 80, 84, Kizzuwadna 16f, 231
gazelles 130, 138 Hauwar 40 88-91, 94, 128, I 3Of, 138, 140f, knives 37
Geb 119, 160, 194 Hazor 10, 190 n. 25, 191 143, 181, 235 Kom el-Hisn 38
Gebel Barkal I 18 n. 58 head-smiting 46 Indo-Europaeans 10 KoenigsnoveLle 19f
Gebel Barkal stela 65, 103rr; 12.1, "11c~\I;n!\ Ear" 136 Indus 106 n. 20 Korosko 158 n. 18
207, 222f, 225 n. 23,230 n. 10 Ilcbn'w origim C) J infinilivc(s) 28 krkr 38
Gebel (·s·Sil~ii(·h 200 Ilc'btllll 170 11 'HI, ~lO:i
ing-ol 218 Kuclonia 97 n. 235
j(('('\(' 1101 hrc .110mb I 'Ill 1II 1\ I no ill\('l1lory 21' Kllll1idi 257
266 INDEX INDEX 267

Kurgus 158 n. 28, 226 n. 30 Megiddo 10, 14f, 17, 24, 29-32, 35f, Nahr e1-Barid 64 Ono 203
Kurigalzu 189 n. 20 40 n. 245, 41f, 44f, 49, 54, 58, 70, Nahr e1-Kabir 96 oracular shrine 148
Kurushtama 251 97 n. 235, 109, 127, 129 n. 115, Namlot 51 orality 6 n. 17, 7, 115 n. 52, 117,
Kush 11, 139, 163 144, 149f, 156, 161, 187, 191-194, Napata 112 n. 39, 119, 243 147, 153, 157, 204
203 n. 8, 205-208, 212, 248, 255, Naplimma 123 n. 79 orchards 50, 77
labor 73, 75, 84, Ill, 121, 129, 131, 259 n. 11 natron 90 ore 150
139, 149, 163, 173 Meidum 213 NDP 106 n. 18 Orontes 15 n. 92, 36, 66, 78, 81, 83,
lake 131, 142, 147f, 224 n. 19 Memphis 156, 157 n. 22, 204, 207 Nebamun 195 n. 4 90, 93, 185, 217, 222 n. 6, 224,
lapis 51 and n. 299, 63f, 75, 78 Menawa 126 Nebenkeme 226 n. 27 231f, 236, 238, 248
n. 129, 79f, 88, 90, 96, 133, 139, Menkheperrasonb 125, 252 Necho II 205, 258 n. 9 Orthosia 64
173, 236 n. 18, 250 Mesopotamia 48, 251 Nectanebo II 20 oryx 130, 138
Late Bronze Age 123 n. 79, 195 message space 14 n. 80 Neferperet 166f, 226 n. 27 Osiris 187 n. 7, 228 n. 42, 258
LB I 50, 191 messengers 5 n. 14, J5, 114 Negau III oxen 52,64, 72, 106, 125
LB I pottery 46, 186 n. 4, 189 metalware 41 Negeb 12, 108 n. 23, 167, 170 and
laws 142 metropolitan states 90 n. 30, 190 n. 24, 203 palace 118 n. 58, 119, 127, 128
lead 63f, 72, 80, 91, 93, 96, 139, Middle Bronze Age 44, 48, 50, 123 Nehy 161 n. 110,163,166,173, 177f, 180f,
248, 250 n. 79, 186 n. 4, 187 n. 6, 191 Neith 124 n. 87 197, 218, 233
leather 55 milch-kine 122, 127, 133, 211 New Year 130 pantry 181
Leather Role 4f militia 166, 197 NHH 126 Parattarna see "Barratarna"
Lebanon 49, 75, 84, 89, 92, Ill, milk 133, 139, 166, 211 NHS 39 and n. 238 Parsatatar 230 and n. 10
116,125,137,143-145,148,175, Min 14J, 163 and n. 49 Nine Bows 107, Ill, 121, 161 pass 26f, 117, 197, 203, 207f
186, 207-209, 214f Minmose 152, 171, 173f, 225 n. 26, Niqmepa 230 pasture 81
legitimacy 124, 161 242 and n. 8, 243f, 247 n. 24, 248 Niya 74, 78, 81, 108, 155, 168 patrimonial state 218 n. 5
Levant 76, 108 n. 23, 186 n. 6, 219, miraculous event 212 n. 17, 169, 171, 188 n. 11, 221, peasantry 218
252, 255f Mishrife 123 n. 79 223-226, 231f, 238, 250 Pekhsukher 226 n. 27
libation 143 Mittani 10, 16[, 65, 73 n. 98, 74 novella 101f Pelusiac branch 8, 204 and n. 15
Libya 161 n. 104, 83, 85, 98, lOS, 106 n. 16, nri-wood 55 pentaconter 205
linen 138 107, 124, 151, 170 n. 31,171 and NSR 69 Pepy II 235
lions 155 n. 33, 189, 191, 193, 199. 212f, Nubian(s) 54, 139, 155, 173f, 190 "Perfect God" 102, 105
Litani 106 n. 16, 214 n. 29 215, 222, 224f, 228 n. 44, 229, n. 28, 195, 205, 213, 241, 242 n. 8, Philip Arrhidaeus 57 n. 3
literacy 178 231-235, 237-241, 251, 253, 255 243 Phoenicia 70, 115 n. 50, 131 n. 129,
literature 101 n. 4 mkrywt 55 Nugasa 37, 39, 12J, 139 144, 217[, 220, 225, 238, 251, 256,
loaves 200 MNH 126 Nukhashshe 39, 50 n. 290, 66, '/9, 258
logistics 78 mnyt-necklaces 146 and n. 207 81, 83, 87[, 90, 171, 185 n. 4, 225, Pihil 46
logs see "lumber" "Monstrance of His Beauty" 122 233f, 256 plants 72, 75, 89, 91, 96, 106, 114,
Lu'ash 81 Montiu 104, 187 n. 10, 190 n. 29 numbering of campaigns 60f, 2\ 0 117, 127, 213, 215, 250
Lud 12, 203 Montu 22, 26, 29, 105, 108, 116, Nun \35 plantation 195, 198
Jumber 80, Ill, 116, 144, 175,216, 160,163,173 nursery 195, 226 n. 27 Pleiades 228
224, 226, 235, 257 monument 136, 139, 142, 15t Nut 160 plough-lands 140
moringa 55, 80 n. 136 Nuzi 51 n. 302, 230 "Poetical Stela" 82
mail, suits or 35, 84, 89, 93, 96, 109 mry-wood 35, 52, 55, 122 and n. 7:i. NW3 126 policing 178, 199
malachitc 64, 80 127 NWH 126 population 81
Manctho 206 MRR 126 porphyry 87
manircstation 142 mud-brick walls 47r, 136 oasis 176, 178 poultry yard 140
manpower 58 mud fiats 137 oath 17, 34, 110, 188f, 206-208, priests 131, 135, 137, 143, 164, 195
march n)y land) 238, 248 Muhazzi 12, 203 234, 245, 256 n. 3
Mariu 169 Mursilis 77, 188 n. 12, 189,231 obelisk(s) 86, 124f, 141, 145 princesses 125ff
man iallC, diplomatic 23£ir, 2 MUl 2·12 11. 9 obiter dicta 7, 11 7, 206 processional 131, 138, 146
1ll.\I).l1l1l1l II n. 75, 37 n. 217. ,II MyC'cl1:1c 9B, 252 offerings 42, 140, 142, 149, 164 Processional Barque 115 and n. 48,
'Illd II. 21 B, lJ:i II 'lOB, 1liB, 172, 1l1yn h BO offering menu 122, 130, 140, 145 124, 126, 143 and n. 189, 144, 148,
211\ offc ri ng table 141, 146 187 n. 7, 207 209, 211, 215
~1.1}~111 1II11lil'X :.w: Nah.1I111 11. tri. 7,). 7ll, Wit, !J'i, 10111. oil 64, nr, 75, 80, 83r, 88 91, 130r, propaganda 20
II Il':Ulowl 21 fl, 2'1~1
Illi, 1111, Ir,rl, lli71, 170. 17:lf, :.W. 181,21fl protector J 63
~"'dIlWI 11111111 241 ""11, 2:1ll II. 10 Old l,ill~dOlIl lll·~. IIII PS,IIllI1Wtichus 218 n. 9
268 INDEX INDEX 269
Psg-wood 52 sacrifice 67 Silsileh 175 Tehilla(h) 67
Ptah 164 sailing 228 silver 37,41,52, 75, 78 n. 129, 79, Tel Abu Shusha 17
Ptolemies 131 n. 129 sand-dwellers 107 90, 95f, 248, 250 Tel Arqa 96
Pwenet 114 Sangar 75f, 189 n. 20 Sinai 193, 200 n. 33, 202, 213 Tel Ashame 66
pylon 4 58 n. 9, 145 n. 203 Sapair 188 n. J 1, 257 n. II Sinuhe 186 n. 4 Tel el-Abeidiya 38
pylon 6 6, 51, 53, 57f, 60, 125 n. 90, sappers 172 Siri-Bashan 203f Tel el-Ajjul 11f, 194 n. 54
137, 143, 145 n. 203, 148, 150 Sashimi 203f $i-'u-na 185 n. 4 Tel e1-Farah Ilf
pylon 7 115 n. 51, 124f, 147 and Satuwana 192 n. 46 slaves 250 Tel el-Ful 12
n. 215, I 48f, 175,207,211 Saustatar 213, 230, 239, 241 Socoh 12, 15 Tel el-Hesy 13, 203
Pyramid Texts 19 scarabs 194 n. 54, 215 n. 31, 258 soldier 180 Tel en-Na'am 38
scorched earth 198 Soleb 9f Tel er-Ras 203 n. II
Qal'at el-Mudiq 108 n. 24 seribe(s) 46, 195 n. 3 song-stela 154 n. 4, 161 Tel es-Shihab 38
Qatna/Qatanum 10, 42, 66, 74 script 178 songstress 145 n. 207 Tel Hadicli 82
n. 106, 77f, 81, 123 and n. 79, 124, seance 101f, 118, 127, 134f, 137, 143 Southern Opet 138 Tel Haror 11-13
127, 191f, 199, 221f and nn. 6, 1; n. 188, 145, 150, 206, 220, 241 n. 2 speers 89, 93 Tel Hebwa 8, 202
224-226, 232, 241 Second tense 17 n. 106 sri·grain 140f Tel Kazel 70
Qedem 185 n. 4, 187 n. 6 sed-festival see 'Jubilee" ssndm (wood) 38, 79[, 89, 93 Tel Nebi Mend 15, 191 n. 35
Qina 22-24, 27, 29, 109 and n. 26, Se'ir 92 star symbolism 104 n. 14 temple 67
207 Semiramis 106 n. 20 statue 37f, 41, 42 n. 249, 131, 135, tent, royal 18, 24, 30, 35
Qode/Qoclians 14, 16-17,231 n. 21 Senimose 189 n. 18 141, 164 tent-poles 79, 83
quarry 200, 223 Senjar 17 I staves 38, 41, 96, 125 terraces 114, 146
quarter (of town) 136 Senmut 134, 253 stela 74, 107 and n. 22, 150-152, territorium 76, 200, 218, 231
Qubban 206 n. 3 Sen·nufer 125, 174f, 228 155, 158 n. 28, 174 n. 48, 176, tetragrammaton 91
Senwosret I 12'1 n. 107, 108, 195 212, 221f, 225f, 235 n. II, 243[ Tety-sheri 186 n. 4
rabisu 204 Senwosret III 195 steppe 81, 83, 87, 90, 106 n. 16, Thebes 102,118 n. 58,137,143,
rainfall 81 serf 163 224, 234 152, 160, 166 n. 8, 173,243
Ramesses II 12, 235 n. 13, 237 Sesostris 259 stereotype, royal 19-21 thematic sequence 118, 148, 157, 160
Ramesseum 47 n. 276 Seth 160, 228 Stilicho xiii n. 1 n. 30, 172
rampart 169 Sety II 125 stone, white 76, 90 Thinis 176, 178
rank 177 "seven" 208 n. 4 storm 175, 228 Thoth 227
Rapha 12 Shabataka 258 n. 9 stretching-the-cord 135 n. 152 threshing floor 64
rations 200 Share-croppers 43, 219 strong· box 146f and n. 214 Thutmose I 20, 74, 77, 118 n. 57,
Re 31, 107f, 120, 129, 156, 159, 162 Sharon 203 Sudan 235 152, 185, 188f, 192, 195, 226 n. 30,
readership 6 Sharuhen 11-13, 49 n. 284, 185, I ()() Sumer 76 230
Rebellion 34 and n. 22, 193, 201 Sumur 50 n. 290, 68, 70, 73, 192, Thutmose IV 60, 234 n. 6, 237
"receiver for life" 131 Shasu 90-93 218 Tigris 106 n. 20
Red Chapel 209 n. 6 Shattiwaza 229 Suppiliuliumas 241 n. 1 Tjanuny 6, 59 n. 14
redistribution 164 sheep 35, 52, 79, 94, 197f, 24·8 sword 82 n. 152, 93, 169, 180 Tjekker 45 n. 270
regnal year 135 Shephelah 12, 190 n. 22 syllabic orthography 44 tohera(h) 67
Reharakhte 22, 26, 63, 140, 145, 224 Sheshonq I 46 topical reference 118
Rekhmire xiii n. 2, 252 shield 89 Taanach 15, 22, 29, 156 n. 15 toponyms 44 and n. 264
renewal 160 Shinar 76 Tachos 21 trade 189 n. 22, 245, 251, 253
requisitions 248 ship-building IH, 204· n. I G, 225 tactics 85 Trajan 106 n. 20
Resic!cnce, time of the 102 Shipwrecked Sailor 205 Takhsy 169,171,174,187 n. 8, 232, transit corridors 45
restoration 37 n. 216 shouLS 85f 242-244 transport (by sea) 204f, 217, 228, 245
H·tmspertiV(' 158, 2·12 Shurashu 69 Takuwa 234, 256 n. 2, 248
I ('w,ucl I (ifl I 7: Shutarna 23D tally, fudging of 41, 70, 98 Transjordan 39f, 46, 92, 192, 206
I hrlol ir,t1 t'nllwllishll1l't1! 1DI Si-All1uil 181,257 11. II Tanaya 96-98, 250-252 travellers 46, 228
Ihlllll(('IIIS 111 11 I), 1571' SiBoiSl J(j'i, 21·1 11. 2'i target 123, 154 treasurer 115 n. 3
Rhm!t' 87 <IiJd,lI11s l.'i II. 270 targeted march 198f Treasury 4, 36, 39, 73, 173, 249
Ill,lt! 11"1. 1111, ')'\11 'iidllli 11'1 tiLxes 34, 75f, 78, 80, 84, I I I, 121, treaty 251, 255
ROllII' :.Ill I II 17 ')ll) il'Kl '\2, ·17 ,jll, lOll, 2llH, 212. 2'i'l 1:19, liD, 113, 16:1, 173f~ 177, 170, trees 31 f, 50, 63, G8, 7'1, 95, lOG,
I1Ihllll! I '\It Silll'H I~)II
188, 217, 2:;:-) 118, 112, ICl<J
It\\'11 1:..'1; Sill' H, 211 II 'I'l'iWIIU J(ill TI ipolis III (i:l h~1

270 INDEX INDEX 271

Tudkhaliyas I 82 n. 152, 231 walls, undermining of, 132 b3 48 bmst-nsw 10 If, 118
Tudkhaliyas II 77 n. 119, 251 wandering 126 and n. 103 b3w bmj 5 bnt 224 n. 19
Tunip 50 and n. 290, 63, 65f, 71, Waret 62, 64f, 68 b3q 80 n. 136 br a3stj 80 n. 135, 210
83, 95, 97, 168 n. 17, 185 n. 4, water hole 108 b3kwt 118, 247 nn. 19, 24 ljrt-ib 145 n. 202
187 n. 6, 199, 214f, 217f, 220, 232, way station 124, 148, 202 n. 5 bfn 198 bsb-sb3t 165 n. 4
238, 239 and nn. 9, 10; 241 n. I weavers 138 ljtpyw 37 n. 218,81
Tura 133, 174 Wenamun 175 proM 4 btr 247 n. 24
turquoise 133, 139, 193 Wepwawet 22, 26 Pbw 171
tutor 185 n. 2 Western River 196 n. 9, 197 n. 15 pllr 28, 129 n. 118, 179 n. 76 a3y 32
"Twenty Years" 241 n. I White Crown 108 P!J.r wr 107 n. 21 acy-nsw 13, 118
Tyre 49 n. 286, 144, 186 n. 4, 214 whmw 176, 178f psrintiw 25-28, 135 n. 152 ab3 48
willow 55 pg3 23 n. 143 aprt 130 n. 123, 135
Ugarit 76 n. 118, 81, 232, 252 n. 9 wind 204 apfw 93 n. 211
Ullaza 64f, 71, 73, 112, 218, 257 wine 52, 63f, 72f, 80, 84, 88-91, j3yt 131 n. 126
!Jfi 170
Upe 232, 242 130, 138, 140-142, 181, 235, 246, m3.n.i 125 n. 91 am 146 n. 208
User 214 n. 24 248 mwnf 95 n. 221 an 85
Useramun 253 wives 121, I 25f, 207f Mnw 79 n. 134, 90 anw 23 n. 133, 143 n. 187
"wonder" 135 n. 151 anmt 132 n. 132
mrifyt 176 n. 62
vagabonds 137 and n. 161, 206 wood 80,89, 118, 147,213,215, mn-mnw 120, n. 67, 124 anty 74 n. 101
vegetables 130, 164, 200 217, 235f, 239, 249f mnnw 103 n. II ar.tw 171
Vegetius 228 n. 38 work-house 121, 138, 208 Mnh(t) 126 at 40
vessels 37, 55f, 63, 75, 78 n. 129, at tpt 152 n. 6
mryt 219 n. 10, 224 n. 19
79f, 88, 90, 95f, 120, 123 n. 78, Yamkhad 10, 191 Ijt3 76
mrw 24 n. 152, 179 n. 77
146, 149, 186 n. 4, 249f Yamu-nedjeh 10 n. 48, 193, 225, Mr(w)-ta 126 b/mt 147 n. 214
Via Maris 238 n. 24 ady 74 n. 101
mb·n p3 M3 13f
Via Traiana 45 Ya-an-ha-mu 39 !J.nm 155 n. II
m-aifiv 131 n. 130
viceroy 161 Yano'am 37-39, 121, 139 mbw 55 n. 321 !J.nmt 88 n. 184
vineyards 235 Yarkon 12 msw 109 n. 29
voyaging 228 Yaruta 46 mss 35 n. 207 Scrr 92 n. 295
Yarusa/Yursa 12f, 193, 203 mfew 169 n. 25 swh3 23 n. 133
Wady I-Iammamat 200 Yehem 14f, 22 n. 125,44, 202 mtr 147 n. 210 swnt 114 n. 45
Wakhliya 65, 73 mdw 239 n. 10 swfr 69
Wall of the Ruler 8 n. 31 Zi'ana 187 n. 6 sb3112n.42
mg3 195 n. 4
wall space 241 Zidanta II 77 n. 119 sbty 32
Niwt 106 n. 17 spw 128 n. 113
nis 23 n. 132 sp sn-nw 62, 93 n. 210
EGYPTIAN Nft-aprw 162 n. 41 iflJw 130 n. 121
nmiw 204 smi 23 n. 132
eprw 72 n. 92 Ns-r3-n3 64, 71 smn m sf 6 n. 17
enaw n mse 95 n. 219 nsw risj ridj 150 smdt 119 n. 62
e(lt 42 n. 251 nt-e 121 n. 68, 124, 142 n. 185 sr 23 n. 132
nrisw 19, 102 srmt 246
197 srsw 74 n. 103
rwyt 128 n. 112 sart 174
rwriw 42 n. 252 skilskw 30 n. 179, 50
rsi m ena 28f sksk 239
sktiw 63 n. 33
h3w Irywy 9 n. 39 st wrt 177 n. 66
n. WI hbnt 88 and n. 187, 142 stpw 79 n. 133
sri3i hr 224 n. 17
7 n. :l:l, 1111, JJ3w-at 141 s4f3 tryt 110 n. 31
(/3/)'27 sdd 115 n. 52, 157 n. 21
h3q 15 11. 2(i(;, 50, (if) 11. 21, 73,
lIi7 Iltl) 0, 201 II 1-" 21) 11. ' ,~3\w HI
hill'! 1)[
ill'llIlr 1'J() II (ih
272 INDEX

wt 54 Tk:w lO6 ll. 19

S.m3yw 208
Smsw-lfr 26 13 145 ll. 204
Inc 67 13-ib 178 ll. 73
s'1r 87 T3gw 76, 79f, 85, 96
fc{yt 224 ll. 19 1~n 14 ll. 78, 83 ll. 157

qnilqnn 169 ll. 27, 180 ll. 83 didi 87 ll. 181

O!J~w 132 ll. 135 dbn n tp 84 ll. 160
(mw) qd 16 dmiw 106 ll. 17, 151

~ 151, 176 d3t 77

d3dw 127 ll. lO7, 109, 128 ll. llO
Th(w)r 63 dsr-fJcw 162 ll. 40
tp-rd 143 ll. 188 dd~ 32
tMt 141 ll. 178 ddt m ~m n stp-s3 18

AKKADIAN

balii!u 110 ll. 30 matliti 76

dimtu 48 mrmartu 95 ll. 221
mu-ta-as-su 239 ll. 10
MAPS, PLATES AND FIGURES
dupriinu 168 ll. 15
egu 52 ll. 303 parsu 236
iafibu 48 rabu 247
kakkiibu 112 ll. 42 qiftu 247
kanaktu 80 ll. 137 fulmanu 247
kudduru 151 terfJiitu 236
ManafJpiyal ManafJpirya 234 ll. 6 zakiim 199 ll. 29

GREEK

"EA.Aa~ 11 /-!EYUAll 76 ll. 117 Ml1<PPll~ 234 ll. 6

KEveo<t>pocruvll 21 Mll<Ppa'Y/-!Ouewcrt~ 234 ll. 6
M'Yo~ 142 ll. 184 Mtcr<ppa'Y/-!ouewcrt~ 234 ll. 6
 THE EXCERPTS FROM THE DAY-BOOK ENTRIES
A NOTE ON THE HAND-COPIES & ERRATA

The hand-copies of the text which follow show the extent of loss
during the century or so which has elapsed since Sethe made his
hand-copies. Unfortunately I could not include copies of all the photo-
graphs in my possession. Moreover I have not had access to Sethe's
Fragment F (Urk. IV, 682), nor to a new fragment which seems by
all reports to have recently come to light. The bottoms of columns
33 to 37 are presently obscured by a cross-wall and were not avail-
able to me for collation. The columns in fig. 4 originally extended
c. 10 em. below the line given; and in fig. 8 the base line does not
represent the bottom of the columns. For ease of comparison with
the much-used Urkunden publication I have had recourse to quoting
it for ease of reference.

Part 1

Col. 23: for the "book-roll" read the kd-sign.

Col. 31: for the man-with-hand-to-mouth, read the (simple) seated
man.
Col. 38: supply book-roll at the bottom of column.
Col. 83: for t3wy read the mr-sign.
Col. 84: for the throw-stick read Gardiner T 13.
Col. 86: for the wood-sign read d.
01. 87: for b3m read b3.
01. 87: (in lacuna) read ck.
1. 92: see emendation for col. 84 above.
I. 97: for the bound captive, read Gardiner A 12.
I. 100: read I . . . 1 + 27.
104: for "4" read "5".
:01. 109: read mnv 190.
 '1'111': 1'.XCI·:Rt'IS I'ROM 1111, 1),\\ I\(H)I, 1'''i'lllll'.S

f>arl '

Col. 7: to nmw add plural strokes.

Col. 10: read mpt t[n].
Col. 11: read Gardiner N 36 for N 31.
Col. 22: for Gardiner A 12 read Gardiner 1\ 4.
Col. 32: read Gardiner D 49 as determinative for ~frlV.
Col. 37: read Gardiner U 19 for U 2 j .
Col. 87: in the writing of w, "district," add Gardiner N 21.
Col. 90: read anl;yt.
Col. 91: read Gardiner A 2 for A 1.
(Pylon) col. 9 (bottom): read 3b.

//
;'/

','i/04. :; - ,I'll I 'J, <1"1.111 Of'101. '

 Aleppo •

• Ebla

[NJ QJJ IX. [}={) ~ ~[}={) ~[}={) I

~~I
• Niya

:;~~
./ //
./
/~/<;
/.///~/ --~~
~
Tunip (?)

~
.' ~ /
/ / ' / ~~~~~/
/~/ /.
'~//'/
'./ //
</;. /' 0-/ • Qatna

/~
/,/ /'/ // /,

> .' ~~/>; 4 / / / / / ·

" "/ /"
\

u
~~ ~
~
!JI
ANTI-LEBANON MTS.
CJ
Vll( CUJ@

• Damascus

"1~lp. I • Ph,
 ~
Nukhashshe

1\ Llp. ~ l\Jallili i 11

I 'Jali' I • I'tlrt I
Pldte ~ - Pan I. coL. 48-67
=-