Gates of Egypt: Period of Predynastic

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Prehistory Predynastic Period (late 6th-late 4th millennium B.C.)

From early agricultural communities to urban settlements. Distinct differences between Upper (southern) and Lower (northern) Egypt, with the latter, in the earliest phases, showing affinities with North African cultures on the one side and western Asiatic on the other.

From Predynastic Period

Two broad phases of history in Predynastic Egypt are observed, and they are named after the town of Naqada, in Upper Egypt between Abydos and Thebes, where artifacts from both phaseswere found in distinct excavations. Naqada I culture has small-scale village agriculture and not a very complex large-scale social system. This culture had developed well-made stone tools and fine earthenware pottery, but no evidence indicates relations with people outside the Nile valley.

Naqada II culture, on the other hand, shows signs of relations and “cultural boundaries” with the Nubians to the south, and it is during this phase that the Two Lands developed as aggregates of the smaller nomes. There is also much evidence of trade, both between the Two Lands and with the inhabitants of Sinai, Palestine, and even Mesopotamia. It is in late Naqada II culture that we find the invention of the serekh, the first formal way of writing the name of the king. A cemetery at Abydos is believed to contain the tombs of late Naqada II rulers, which may explain the prominence of Abydos in later Egyptian religion.

Map of Ancient Egypt (Predynastic History)

During the predynastic period, the “pit-burial” developed for the common people of Egypt, and it remained in vogue for much of pharaonic history. The deceased was curled up in fetal position and buried in a simple pit dug in the sand in the desert to the west of civilization. Some very simple goods—generally some pots and rudimentary toiletries—were interred along with the person. Some planks of wood were put over the pit when they could be spared (wood was always a valuable commodity in Egypt), the pit was covered with a mound of sand and loose stones, and that was that. This simple mode of burial was elaborated over time for the royalty, as we shall see.

The limestone head of a ceremonial mace (a hammer-like weapon consisting of a heavy weight at the end of a stout handle) was found in 1894 at Nekhen. This object depicts a Naqada II king of Upper Egypt labeled as “Scorpion” (Serk) inaugurating the construction of a canal. This object is the primary inspiration for the very different Hollywood character of “The Scorpion King”.

The Two Lands each had patron deities. Lower Egypt paid homage to Set, originally seen as a fierce storm god, but largely benevolent; he used his might to keep the forces of chaos at bay and to guard the frontiers of Egypt. Upper Egypt’s chief god was Horus, a falcon god, whose domain included the sun and the sky. While there is evidence of rivalry between the two states, they did use a common written language and were culturally very similar.

Collection pics for (Naqada I , II , III), El- Badari , Der Tasa

From Naqada I