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Second Intermediate Period

During the Second Intermediate Period (Middle  Bronze  IIB),  a  small—roughly  2  hectares—unfortified village with strong Near Eastern or Hyksos  characteristics  occupied  the  center  of  what  was  to  become  the  fortified  site.  It  was  essentially  a  self-subsistent  entity,  with  numerous  silos  and,  in  the  earlier  strata,  entombments  within  individual  ownership  plots  (much  as  at  Tell  ed-Dab'a  during  the  earlier  occupational  periods).  Judging  from  plant  remains  pre- served  in  cooking-fire  ashes,  the  village  was  seasonal,  with  no  occupation  during  the  summer  months.  Farming  (wheat  and  barley)  and  animal  husbandry  (cattle,  sheep  and  goats,  pigs,  donkeys, and at least one horse) formed a major part of the local  economy, although they were not, apparently, the major reason for  the site's existence.


Hunted  animals  included  a  small  hartebeest,  ostriches,  and  gazelle,  reflecting  a  semi-arid  savanna  setting;  and  a  variety  of  migratory  waterfowl,  indicating  the  regional  presence  of  small  lakes  or  swamps.  At  least  some  pottery—the  local  pottery  constituted a subset of the Tell ed-Dab'a repertory—was made on  site,  and  there  is  evidence  for  other  industrial  pursuits,  such  as  weaving on the (non-Egyptian)  warp-weighted  loom,  and  secondary  copper-smelting.  Flint blades (mostly segmented sickle blades) apparently arrived at  the site fully formed; they were locally hatted or rehafted.

That the inhabitants were not simple peasant farmers seems most  evident  from  the  burials,  which  were  rich  and  mostly  in  tombs.  These followed Near Eastern patterns, including ass burials outside  of early "warrior" tombs, and were characterized by strong age and  sex  patterns  in  the  distribution  of  grave  goods. Bronze daggers,  a  battle-axe,  knives,  toggle-pins,  and  other  items  characterized  most  adult burials, with. amulets being reserved for juveniles. Gold and silver headbands and armbands, earrings, rings, and scarab mounts  were  not  uncommon.  Amethyst  beads  and  an  amethyst  scaraboid  probably were looted from twelfth dynasty tombs.

It appears that Pithom, and other Near Eastern sites in the Wadi Tumilat, existed as adjuncts—with Tell el-Maskhuta perhaps being  a major reception point—for long-distance overland trade in high- value  commodities  with  southern  Arabia  and  the  Horn  of  Africa.  Presumably the need for such a difficult overland route arose during  a period in which the Nile no longer was accessible to traffic bound  for Avaris/Tell ed-Dab'a (Holladay 1997b).

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