Ancient Civilisations of the East: Jo Shoebridge 11th Feb 2013

What is the evidence for contact between Egypt and Mesopotamia by the third millennium BC?
How might each area have been influenced by the other?

By the third millennium BC, the civilisations of Egypt and the Near East were arguably the most
culturally sophisticated in the world. For both civilisations, these respective periods saw
something of a cultural apex being reached. Given the geographical proximity of the two
powers, it is little surprise that they experienced extended cultural contact with one another.
This would manifest itself in two key ways: trade and art. This essay will begin by examining a
broad overview of the evidence of contact between the two regions, before analysing the
relative influences that each territory exerted upon the other.

Archaeological evidence of trade between Egypt and Mesopotamia extends well back into the
fourth millennium BC, with examples of Mesopotamian seals and decorative clay cones being
found across the Upper Kingdom. As a result of this, and certain similarities appearing in
Egyptian art (as well as their appropriation of niched mud-brick walls1) led scholars to
hypothesise that there was some form of invasion by the Mesopotamian elite in the late fourth
millennium BC, which also helped to speed up the transition to Early Dynastic Egypt and its
more complex, centralised societal form. However, this argument has been refuted by
archaeologists such as Grimal, who point out that evidence for similar communication links
exists with Libya, Nubia and other sub-Saharan regions2. The tomb of U-j in Abydos in Upper
Egypt (c. 3300BC) indicates a surprising level of Levantine products- including obsidian vessels,
ceramic wine bottles, cylinder seals and early hieroglyphic writings. This indicates how the local
Egyptian elites were beginning to appropriate forms of Near Eastern visual communication as
part of their own cultural practices3. During the early third millennium BC, both regions saw
their respective elites rapidly consolidate control over both agricultural practice and the
production of raw materials. In Egypt, this resulted in the rise of the Old Kingdom, who
enforced their cosmological ideology through ceremony and ritual, whilst in Mesopotamia, the
rise of city-states such as Uruk and Ur. Key imports for Egypt during this period were lapis lazuli
stones (for usage in jewelry and ceremonial attire)pottery and textiles, while certain tombs
seem to suggest that Asiatic slaves were also employed within Egyptian society4. For the part of
Mesopotamia, they received imports in the form of ivory and exotic hardwoods.

1
Marc Van De Meiroop, A History of the Near East ca. 3000-323 BC (Oxford 2004), pg36-37
2
Nicolas Grimal, A History of Ancient Egypt, trans. by Ian Shaw (Oxford 1992), pg 29
3
David Wengrow, The Archaeology of Early Egypt: Social Transformations in North-East Africa (Cambridge 2006),
pg 137
4
Ian Shaw, The Oxford History of Ancient Egypt (Oxford 2000), pg 315
 Ancient Civilisations of the East: Jo Shoebridge 11th Feb 2013

The town of Tell el-Farkha became an gateway for Egyptian exports to the Levant. Not only did
it act as a sort of redistribution centre, it was a place from which caravans could be deployed to
the Southern Levant. What is remarkable is that the
archaeological evidence from this site indicates that
Egyptian potters were actively imitating the Palestinian
styles that they came in contact with at this trading post5.
This serves as a testament to the cultural exchange that
would be occurring at sites like these, and how such ideas
would be disseminated into the wider context of Egyptian
society. In return, the local Egyptians would be exporting
grain, beer and meat into the Southern Levant. Even
though this was a single post within a vast trade network, it
is indicative of the way in which the practices of one society
could be absorbed by another. It was not just the Upper
Kingdom that saw this contact: cones, pottery and
Fig 1. Part of the Palermo Stone,
artifacts from Buto reveal established contact with Asiatic
which depicted Egyptian maritime
states6. Nevertheless, one of the most important
trade.
transitions in the nature of Egyptian-Levantine trade was
the shift towards maritime trade. By the middle of the third millennium BC, Egypt had managed
to assert control over the copper and turquoise mines of the Sinai desert, putting an end to the
trade caravans with the Southern Levant. Instead, the port Byblos in Lebanon was effectively
employed as a trading outpost between Egypt and Syria. By employing maritime fleets, the
Egyptians were able to import gold, timber, wine and other exotic goods in what has become
known as the 'Byblos run'. A crucial by-product of this economic exchange was the increased
role of boats within the nature of elite ceremonial practices. Boats would be incorporated in
royal funerals, and the Palermo Stone specifically commemorates a fleet of forty ships carrying
cedar to Egypt7. As such, this represents how a process of cultural contact would come to
dramatically influence the paraphernalia of power and ideology within the original state.

The ways in which Egyptian influences manifested themselves in Mesopotamia were equally
diverse. One particularly important method through which this occurred was in the art and

5
Marcin Czarnowicz, 'Between the Core and Periphery- Early Contacts between Egypt and the Southern Levant in
Light of excavations at Tell e-Farkha', in Jana Mynarova (eds.) Egypt and the Near East- The Crossroad (Prague
2011), pg 126.
6
Toby Wilkinson, 'Cones, nails and pegs: enigmatic clay objects from Buto and their implications for contacts
between Egypt and Western Asia in the fourth millennium BC' in Salima Ikram and Aidan Dodson (eds.) Beyond the
Horizon vol. II (Cairo 2009)
7
David Wengrow, The Archaeology of Early Egypt, pg 149
 Ancient Civilisations of the East: Jo Shoebridge 11th Feb 2013

architecture of the Levant. Cylinder seals in Tepe Gawra show clear influences of Egyptian
artistic styles on them, particularly through their depiction of tomb scenes from the Old
Kingdom8. It is likely that this influence reached Northern Mesopotamia via Syria, which was
engaged in direct contact with the Egyptians and was thus experiencing similar forms of cultural
transmission as were taking place at Byblos and Tell el-Farkha. Nevertheless, it is no small feat
that this influence managed to extend all the way into the heartland of Mesopotamia,
indicating just how strong the Egyptian cultural awareness was. Similar influences can be seen
in the kneeling statues at Khafajah and Al-Ubaid
reinforce this similarity. Interestingly, the most
obvious parallel that Near Eastern architecture
appears to have with Egypt- the stepped
pyramid or Ziggurat- was not in fact a cultural
export. Ziggurats were developing before the
Egyptians started building pyramids (i.e. in the
Uruk period of the fourth millennium BC), and
given the differing nature of these monuments-
ziggurats were used for cult worship rituals,
whereas pyramids were funerary sites- it seems
unlikely that the pyramids 'caused' ziggurats9. Fig 2. The Great Ziggurat, a pinnacle of the Ur
Nevertheless, it can be observed that once the dynasty
Egyptians began constructing even bigger and
more impressive pyramids, it provided the impetus for the Mesopotamians to start making
their monuments even more glorious. Finally, a less grandiose but no less significant influence
can be seen in the written languages of the Near East and Egypt. It can be observed that the
morphology of Sumerian and Egyptian hieroglyphics is essentially similar. Edwards notes that
the Sumerians probably 'imparted a knowledge of the underlying principles' of writing to the
Egyptians. Once the Egyptians developed their now world-famous hieroglyphic system of
writing, they began to import certain grammar rules to the Near East, influencing their own
writing styles10. This, in many ways, was a far more direct and immediate impact that the
Egyptians were having on Mesopotamia, manipulating their very forms of communication.

Some key conclusions can be drawn from all this extensive evidence. Firstly, it is necessary to
treat these sources with care- in the case of artistic influences, these are often extremely minor
and may not be reflective of any grander transformative process. In essence, it is important not
treat a single work of art as representative of a whole. Furthermore, since most of the evidence

8
William A. Ward, 'Relations between Egypt and Mesopotamia from Prehistoric times to the end of the Middle
Kingdom' in Journal of the Social and Economic History of the Orient (1964), pg 124
9
Ward, 'Relations between Egypt and Mesopotamia', pg 128
10
I.E.S Edwards, 'The Early Dynastic Period in Egypt' in Cambridge Ancient History of Egypt (Cambridge 1964) pg 39
 Ancient Civilisations of the East: Jo Shoebridge 11th Feb 2013

of contact between the two powers is indeed represented through art and exotic goods, this is
highly revealing about the nature of the contact that was taking place. Since the function of art
in this context was to reinforce the ideology of the elites, it seems to be the case that it was
only the elites of Egypt and Mesopotamia who were engaged in contact with one another-
since it was only they who had the resources to fund this kind of cultural exchange. As such,
they were acquainting themselves with the art of each other's territory, and appropriating it for
their own ends. The vast majority of the population would most likely have been unaware, or
only vaguely aware of their neighbouring territories- for them, the priority was simply survival.
So whilst it is possible to draw any number of conclusions about the influence of Egypt on
Mesopotamia and vice versa, this influence would have only directly affected a small
proportion of the population.

BIBLOGRAPHY

Marc Van De Meiroop, A History of the Near East ca. 3000-323 BC (Oxford 2004)

Nicolas Grimal, A History of Ancient Egypt, trans. by Ian Shaw (Oxford 1992)

David Wengrow, The Archaeology of Early Egypt: Social Transformations in North-East Africa (Cambridge
2006)

Ian Shaw, The Oxford History of Ancient Egypt (Oxford 2000)

Marcin Czarnowicz, 'Between the Core and Periphery- Early Contacts between Egypt and the Southern
Levant in Light of excavations at Tell e-Farkha', in Jana Mynarova (eds.) Egypt and the Near East- The
Crossroad (Prague 2011)

Toby Wilkinson, 'Cones, nails and pegs: enigmatic clay objects from Buto and their implications for
contacts between Egypt and Western Asia in the fourth millennium BC' in Salima Ikram and Aidan
Dodson (eds.) Beyond the Horizon vol. II (Cairo 2009)

William A. Ward, 'Relations between Egypt and Mesopotamia from Prehistoric times to the end of the
Middle Kingdom' in Journal of the Social and Economic History of the Orient (1964)

I.E.S Edwards, 'The Early Dynastic Period in Egypt' in Cambridge Ancient History of Egypt (Cambridge
1964)

Fig 1: Jon Bodsworth, A fragment of the Palermo Stone [online] available at:
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e1/PelermoStoneFragment-PetrieMuseum.png
[Accessed at 11th February 2013]

Fig 2: Anon, Ancient Ziggurat at Ali Air Base Iraq [online] available at:
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/93/Ancient_ziggurat_at_Ali_Air_Base_Iraq_2005.jp
g [Accessed at 11th February 2013]