Early Dynastic Egypt

Abstract

The Early Dynastic period of Egypt was a time of transition during which the complex territorial state that knit together the Nile delta and the Nile valley north of the First Cataract achieved its first stable form. Consisting of the First and Second Dynasties, roughly the thirty-second to twenty-seventh centuries BC, the period is markedly one of change and innovation. During this period many of the central elements of pharaonic kingship were either introduced or codified, including the relationship of the king to the god Horus, extensive use of the hieroglyphic script, urbanism, royal festivals, some administrative practices, and many visual symbols of kingship that would persist for millennia. This chapter provides an overview of the current state of understanding of the Early Dynastic period. It presents a chronological history anchored on royal documents and monuments for the period but also considers thematic elements, such as regional variation, foreign interaction, and the nature of extant sources, that highlight ways in which a traditional historical narrative obscures the complexity of the establishment of the Egyptian state.