Rise of the Hyksos: Egypt and the Levant from the Middle Kingdom to the Early Second Intermediate Period

Abstract

In her admirable new monograph, Anna-Latifa Mourad addresses the issue of Levantine relationships with Egypt, concepts of ethnicity, and the origins and development of the Hyksos. In doing so, she both provides a comprehensive examination of the data available and presents a refreshingly balanced approach to this material that includes the ways that it may (or may not) be used to answer these questions. The result is a thorough and up-to-date discussion of the vexing problems of Hyksos identity and Egyptian-Levantine relationships. It will no doubt serve as a fundamental resource for everyone working on these subjects and related issues of the Middle Bronze Age, Middle Kingdom, and Second Intermediate Period in Egypt and the Levant.The monograph is divided into three main sections. In the first section, “Studying the Hyksos,” Mourad lays out her approach and research agenda. Section 2, “Evidence for Contact,” reviews the available evidence relevant to Egyptian-Levantine relationships in the 12th through 15th Dynasties of Egypt. This section comprises the bulk of the monograph. Finally, in Section 3, “Observations and Findings,” Mourad analyses the material presented, draws conclusions regarding Egyptian-Levantine contacts and relationships, and identifies the ways in which this is linked to Hyksos identity.Mourad's introduction begins with the classic quote from Manetho that describes the Hyksos as “an obscure race” who easily seized power in Egypt “without striking a blow” (p. 3). She claims that to study the Hyksos is to also assess Levantines in Egypt prior to the period of the Hyksos (p. 3). The author then outlines the limitations of previous approaches to understanding the Hyksos, and presents the main objectives of her study: (1) to investigate how the Hyksos were able to establish an independent state in the north of Egypt, (2) to explore the origins of the Fifteenth Dynasty, and (3) to analyze Egyptian relations with the Levant. Mourad then provides a short explanation of her research methodology and datasets available—archaeological, textual, and artistic (p. 4)—and an equally brief discussion of the relevant geographic, chronological, and evidentiary concerns necessary to undertake such a study (pp. 4–6).Following a short overview of the history of Hyksos scholarship (Chapter 2), the final chapter of Section 1 presents a more general discussion of ethnicity and representation as it is applied to studying peoples in the ancient world, particularly as a means of differentiating Egyptian and non-Egyptian elements in the archaeological record (Chapter 3). The idea of “difference” is one that is crucial to examine not only Hyksos development but Egyptian interaction with Levantines in general. Mourad points to the need to examine the relevant Egyptian material for intent, context, and purpose, as each of these affects the ways Levantines and “others” in general may be described, portrayed, and presented. Mourad makes an excellent point in differentiating between the idea of the formal “other” as opposed to the actual “other”—noting the difference between the ideal concept and its application in Egyptian texts, images, and rhetoric (pp. 13–14).Here, however, the monograph could have gone further, and expanded more on this fundamentally important point in examining the presentation of peoples in the ancient world. While Mourad discusses different methods of identification and interaction—acculturation, hybridity, and creolization (p. 16)—and how they might be identified in Egyptian-Levantine relations, these are all very brief. Each of these concepts could bear further scrutiny and elaboration, given that they strongly contribute to the intellectual value of her approach and her examination of the data presented in the next section of the monograph.Section 2, “Evidence for Contact,” contains the primary data for the investigation of Egyptian-Levantine relations. This section contains three chapters divided by geographic region: “Tracing Asiatics in Egypt,” “Between Egypt and the Levant: The Eastern Desert,” and “Contact with the Egyptian in the Levant.” In the first two chapters, Mourad provides the data relevant to Asiatic presence in these regions, including material culture from Levantine regions, representations and/or mention of Asiatics, and other evidence for Asiatic interaction and/or presence at sites in both Egypt and the Eastern Desert. The third chapter addresses Egyptian material found in the Levant and evidence for Egyptian actions and interactions in that region.Mourad presents this wealth of data within the research parameters set out in Section 1, with attention paid to the ways in which the evidence from each site speaks to different types of identification and interaction. She extensively discusses site stratigraphy, critiques previous researchers' work, and thoroughly analyzes material and/or representational evidence found at each site. She also includes the associated texts (each of which is provided in hieroglyphs, transliteration, and translation) and images that illustrate the material. A short conclusion at the end of each chapter summarizes the evidence for Egyptian-Levantine connections and interactions from the 12th through the 15th Dynasties and the trends in those relationships that the material indicates.Section 3 of the monograph interprets these data. Divided into two chapters, “Representing Asiatics and the Levant” and “Rulers of Foreign Lands,” this final section attempts to categorize the different types of Egyptian data regarding questions of representation, “otherness,” and ethnic identification. This allows Mourad to present more general conclusions about Egyptian-Levantine relations, the establishment of the Hyksos within Egyptian society, and their subsequent rise to power.In her penultimate chapter, Mourad shows that treatment of Asiatics in Egyptian sources changed significantly from the early Middle Kingdom through the 15th Dynasty (p. 204), illustrating a growing Egyptian acceptance and familiarity with these foreigners. This leads Mourad to conclude that such gradual acceptance would have been a key element in the eventual Hyksos claim to sovereignty (p. 204).The final chapter of the monograph presents her conclusions regarding Asiatics in Egypt, together with her assessment of who the Hyksos might have been and how they gained control in Egyptian society. Here, the monograph loses some of its flow, as Mourad utilizes the “invasion” theory as a foil (p. 215). This seems a bit disjunctive, as that argument has not been used as a primary explanation for Hyksos development in recent studies. This caveat notwithstanding, the conclusion nicely reiterates the author's thesis that the rise of the Hyksos in Egypt represents a process of gradual infiltration and increasing Asiatic presence in Egypt. That, coupled with an increasing acceptance of, and familiarity with, these foreign individuals, resulted in Hyksos rule in the 15th Dynasty. In a nice touch, Mourad ends her monograph by reinterpreting the same Manetho quote with which she opened the volume: rather than a sweeping invasion of foreign invaders wreaking havoc on land and peoples, the Hyksos were a group of Levantines who interacted with the Egyptians and rose to power—again “without striking a blow”—creating the unique dynasty that fascinates historians of Egypt (p. 218).Mourad has written a timely, informative, and excellent monograph, replete with data, detailed illustrations, and plates, a comprehensive bibliography, two appendices of additional materials, and relevant texts presented in multiple formats. There are, however, some minor points that might be raised. Key approaches, models, and conclusions are repeated, which detracts from the flow and readability of the volume. Some of the discussion of key concepts and approaches seem overly brief. This is seen particularly in the scanty overview of the means to establish synchronizations between Egypt and the Levant, which seems unusual in a volume focused on interactions between the two regions. The author also could have expanded her discussion of Egyptian views of the “other” and the ways in which this ties into general concepts of ethnicity and “otherness.” Finally, the concluding sections of each chapter repeat the overall findings of the chapter but do not provide additional analysis of the significance and importance of these findings in as much depth as one might wish. Given the large quantity of data presented in each chapter, the discussion of this data appears oddly truncated.These are relatively minor drawbacks that do not measurably detract from the quality of scholarship in the volume, the thoroughness of the presentation of the data, or the validity of the general conclusions drawn. Overall, Mourad's volume is an excellent addition to the body of scholarship on Egyptian-Levantine relationships and the Hyksos and a standard reference for future researchers.