26e: Grave of the Unknown Soldiers - The First Intermediate Period (Epilogue)

The History of Egypt Podcast

Dominic Perry

History, Society & Culture

4.8 • 2.1K Ratings

🗓️ 17 April 2014

⏱️ 61 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

A tomb revisited. In 1923 CE, excavations at Luxor revealed the graves of ancient Egyptian soldiers. They bore scars of battle on their bones and flesh; and their story may belong to one of several major conflicts within the Nile Valley, around 2000—1900 BCE. In this episode, we revisit an old topic, and describe the tale anew… Note: This episode has an extended version on Patreon (link below). Dates: 1923—1926 CE (excavation); c. 2000—1900 BCE (ancient burial). Website: www.egyptianhistorypodcast.com. Support the show via Patreon www.patreon.com/egyptpodcast. Make a one-time donation via PayPal payments. Music and interludes by Keith Zizza www.keithzizza.net. Music and interludes by Luke Chaos www.chaosmusick.com. Select Bibliography: H. E. Winlock, The Slain Soldiers of Neb-Hepet-Re Mentu-Hotpe (1945). Available in Open Access via MMA. C. Vogel, ‘Fallen Heroes? Winlock’s “Slain Soldiers” Reconsidered’, The Journal of Egyptian Archaeology 89 (2003), 239—245. Access via Academia.edu and JSTOR.org. P. Chudzik, ‘Middle Kingdom tombs in the North Asasif Necropolis: Field Seasons 2018/2019 and 2020’, Polish Archaeology in the Mediterranean (2020), 177—202. Open Access via Academia.edu. Wikipedia, ‘MMA 507,’ https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=MMA_507&oldid=1151562120. J. Heath, ‘The Slain Soldiers of Tomb 507: An Egyptological Mystery’, Ancient Egypt: The History, People and Culture of the Nile Valley 118 (2020), 28-33. Note: I became aware of this article after publication of this episode, but I include it here as the author reaches similar conclusions to mine. Artefacts from the tomb at the Metropolitan Museum of Art: Archers’ wrist guard. Folded linen with hieratic text of Sobekhotep Son-of-Imeny. Additional pieces at MMA Collections (objects dated .1961 – 1917 BC). Skull fragment with arrow in eye (images restricted). Model weapons of the early Middle Kingdom: shield, spear, quiver. The tomb of Queen Neferu at Deir el-Bahari: Wikipedia, photos at Flickr.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	Before we begin, a couple of quick notes. Firstly, there is an extended version of this episode
0:06.3	on my Patreon. It adds more detail to the modern part of the story, the excavation and
0:12.0	the Egyptology. I removed it for time, but for those who are interested, it is available
0:17.5	on Patreon. Link in the episode description.
0:23.4	Also, I should make a quick disclaimer.
0:25.9	This episode is violent.
0:30.4	We are dealing with a grave and a history concerned with war,
0:33.8	ancient wars that took place 4,000 years ago. But the scars of these battles are extremely visible in the bodies of those who participated.
0:40.9	I'm not going to wallow in the violence, but I don't shy away from it either.
0:45.9	This episode may not be suitable for all audiences.
0:49.4	Please use discretion.
0:51.3	Thank you.
1:06.9	Hello, and welcome back to the History of Egypt podcast. Today, we begin a look back at one of of Egypt's most chaotic errors. Between 2150 and 1950 BCE, the Nile Valley convulsed
1:16.0	in conflicts and battles. Historians refer to this as the first intermediate period,
1:22.9	a time of weak monarchs, powerful warlords, and brutal struggles.
1:29.2	In this episode, we see the cost of such conflicts on the human beings involved.
1:35.5	This episode comes to you on behalf of James Bolby and Arthur Markham, both of whom joined
1:41.2	my Patreon at the Priest level tier. James, Arthur, you are far too kind.
1:47.5	Thank you for your generosity and your support of the show. To everyone listening, thank you for joining me.
1:55.1	Onwards to ancient battlefields. Our story begins in 1926.
2:06.6	An archaeological team was at work in the hills of Dia El Bacheri in Luxor.
2:13.6	This is a valley west of the Nile, but facing towards the river.
	...

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