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Thesis (PhD)--Stellenbosch University, 2015. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Some academics are of the generalist opinion that ancient Egyptian beer was only consumed by the lower classes because of its low social status. This is based on the generalization that individuals only consume alcoholic beverages matching the status of their social class. Therefore the lower classes consumed beer while the upper classes consumed an alcoholic beverage of higher status, i.e. wine. However, other academics are of the universalist opinion that Egyptian beer was universally consumed by all Egyptian social classes irrespective of the status of beer. This study aims to test the validity of these opposing academic opinions and also strives to understand how statements of status in Egyptian society were devised, and what they were conveying. This was achieved by determining the status of Egyptian beer and wine and then comparing them to the respective status of beer and wine drinkers in the New Kingdom period (c. 1550-1069) according to the factors of production, consumption, health, economic exchange & distribution, and religion. Use is made of an anthropological approach which allows the researcher to limit social bias and understand ancient Egyptian society on its own terms. Results of this study indicate that Egyptian beer had a much lower status than Egyptian wine and all social classes consumed beer while only the upper classes consumed wine. The generalist opinion, therefore, is falsified and the universalist opinion validated. The results also indicate that the upper classes justified their beer consumption by producing, consuming and exchanging an elite beer of higher status in a manner reminiscent of wine so that it compared more favourably with the status of their social classes. This study, therefore, not only settles an old academic dispute but also provides new insight into Egyptian beer. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Sommige akademici huldig die algemene siening dat antieke Egyptiese bier uitsluitlik deur die laer klasse gebruik is, omdat bier ‘n laer status geniet het. Dit is gegrond op die veralgemening dat individue slegs alkoholiese drank gebruik het wat ooreenstem met hul eie sosiale klas. Die laer klasse het dus bier gedrink terwyl die hoër klasse alkoholiese drank van ‘n hoër status, naamlik wyn, gedrink het. Ander akademici is egter van mening dat Egiptiese bier deur alle Egiptiese sosiale klasse gebruik is, ongeag die status van bier. Hierdie studie poog om die geldigheid van hierdie teenstrydige akademiese menings te toets en poog ook om te verstaan hoe stellings oor status in die Egiptiese samelewing bedink is en wat hulle wou oordra. Dit is bereik deur die status van Egiptiese bier en wyn te bepaal en dit dan te vergelyk met die besondere status van bier en wyndrinkers in die Nuwe Koningkryk tydperk (c. 1550-1069) volgens die faktore van produksie, verbruik, gesondheid, ekonomiese uitruiling & verspreiding en godsdiens. ‘n Antropologiese benadering is gevolg omdat dit die navorser in staat stel om sosiale partydigheid te beperk en sodoende die Egiptiese samelewing in eie reg te kan verstaan. Resultate van hierdie studie dui aan dat alhoewel Egiptiese bier ‘n veel laer status as Egiptiese wyn geniet het, het alle sosiale klasse nietemin bier gedrink, terwyl net die hoër klasse wyn gedrink het. Die algemene mening is gefalsifiseer, terwyl die universele mening gestaaf word. Die resultate dui ook aan dat die hoër sosiale klasse hul bierverbruik geregverdig het deur ‘n elite bier van hoër status te produseer, uit te ruil en te gebruik op ‘n wyse soortgelyk aan diè van hul wynverbruik, sodat dit gunstig vergelyk met die status van hul sosiale klasse. Hierdie studie los dus nie net ‘n ou akademiese meningsverskil op nie, maar gee ook ‘n nuwe insig in Egiptiese bier en die gebruik daarvan deur die hoër klasse.

Comment l’Egypte ancienne s’inscrit-elle dans la mémoire collective ? La constitution d’un imaginaire de l’Egypte ancienne est à inclure dans un courant culturel et artistique parfois fait d’emprunts sélectifs au répertoire antique, tout en étant simultanément redevables à d’autres traditions artistiques et notamment à l’égyptomanie. L’égyptomanie acquiert alors dans la bande dessinée une dimension propre, caractérisée par des codes et un vocabulaire tout à fait spécifiques, favorisant l’invention narrative et graphique. Saisir les mystères de l’Egypte ancienne dans la bande dessinée revient à composer une « grammaire de la civilisation » des pharaons. Ainsi, la construction d’un cadre signifiant permet de dresser les lieux de mémoires (signifiants, significatifs, moins évocateurs ou carrément absents), le topos exotique (mytho-géographie, image de l’autre, références bibliques comme marqueur d’une distinction), l’image d’une société hiérarchisée (prédominance de Pharaon et des puissants sur le peuple de la vallée) et le tableau d’une religion et de croyances fascinantes (attraction du polythéisme et de l’univers des mythes égyptiens, illustration des rites funéraires, de la mort et de l’au-delà) comme autant de rouages structurels dans l’agencement d’une mémoire de l’Egypte ancienne. Cependant, il convient de ne pas négliger l’intégration dans la fabrique de l’imaginaire de l’Egypte ancienne des processus dynamiques qui s’opèrent dans la constitution d’un laboratoire d’imageries plus ou moins stéréotypées. Réfléchir sur la généalogie des images et distinguer les sources d’influences sur lesquels s’appuient les auteurs (sources héritées de l’Egypte ancienne et/ou sources puisées dans l’histoire des arts) démontre que les représentations qui nourrissent l’imagination des artistes ne naissent pas ex-nihilo mais sont le fait d’un long cheminement historique. Les auteurs recréent et réinterprètent l’Histoire avec des référents et des attitudes mentales qui leur appartiennent tout en laissant libre cours à des fantasmes parfois difficiles à décrypter. / How does ancient Egypt remain etched on the collective memory ? The construction of an imagination of ancient Egypt is to be included in an artistic and cultural trend which is sometimes made of selective borrowings from the repertoire of antiquity as well as being indebted simultaneously to other artistic traditions, in particular egyptomania. Egyptomania acquires, then, in comics, a dimension of its own which is characterized by codes and very specific vocabulary, favouring narrative and graphic inventiveness. Grasping the mysteries of ancient Egypt in comics comes down to working out a “ grammar of the civilization” of Pharaohs. Thus, the construction of a signifying framework allows us to list places of memories (which are signifying, significant, less evocative or altogether lacking ), exotic topos (mytho-geography, image of otherness, biblical references as marker of distinction), the image of a society organized into a hierarchy ( the predominance of the Pharaohs and the mighty over the people in the valley) and the depiction of a religion as well as fascinating beliefs ( attraction to polytheism and to the universe of Egyptian myths, illustrations of funerary rituals, death and the beyond), all these structuring the construction of a memory of ancient Egypt. However, one must not neglect the integration of dynamic processes in the construction of the imagination of ancient Egypt. Those dynamic processes are at work in the building up of more or less stereotyped imagery. Reflecting on the genealogy of images and distinguishing the sources of influence on which the authors rely (sources inherited from ancient Egypt and / or sources out of the history of the arts) demonstrate that the representations that nurture the artists’ imagination are not born out of nothing but are the result of long historic development. Authors re-create and reinterpret History with reference points and mental attitudes of their own while giving free rein to a fantasy world which is sometimes difficult to decipher.

This study considers the relief decoration of private tombs in Lower Egypt in the period 664-332 BC. The basis for analysis is a chronologically arranged descriptive catalogue, which includes both isolated blocks in museum collections and tombs whose location is known. The present condition of the relief and its content are described in detail there. Texts are considered where they provide infotmation on provenance and dating, and hand-copies are provided. Each piece is illustrated in the plate volume. Enough of the material can be dated by textual evidence to provide a solid framework for stylistic ordering of the remainder. The resulting chronology has important implications, dividing the period into two major phases, covering the seventh and sixth centuries, and the fourth century, separated by a hiatus in production of tomb reliefs. The chronology proposed eliminates the possibility that either Greeks or Persians exercised any significant influence on Egyptian art before the very end of the period. Instead, native tradition emerges as the primary inspiration for Late Period artists. Two sources stand out. The first is the Old-Middle Kingdom tomb repertory (archaism), the second is the New Kingdom tradition carried on in the minor arts, a source largely-ignored hitherto. These were not slavishly copied, but adapted and "modernized" to suit the taste of the time. The independence and creativity of Late Period artists is emphasized. A discussion of stylistic development in light of the dating system is given, and several themes are analyzed in detail as illustrations of the larger issues raised.

O objetivo dessa dissertação é a análise do conceito heka nos textos funerários do Egito Faraônico. Heka é a palavra em egípcio antigo para o que significamos como magia, essa mesma palavra pode aparecer dentro da literatura funerária representando a divindade da magia. Será realizada uma análise dos textos compostos por fórmulas mágicas e narrativas míticas utilizados em contextos funerários egípcios. O objetivo da análise é identificar o significado da palavra egípcia no contexto das fontes, compreendendo a extensão semântica do conceito de heka através do seu relacionamento com os mitos cosmogônicos. Deste modo, reconhecendo-a enquanto conceito que assimila atributos personificados dentro das narrativas. Esse estudo pretende, portanto, alcançar interpretações significativas sobre essas fontes e contribuir com a compreensão dos elementos simbólicos e cognoscíveis das narrativas míticas e dos textos funerários do Antigo Egito. / The objective of this dissertation is the analysis of the heka concept in the funerary texts of Pharaonic Egypt. Heka is the ancient Egyptian word for what we mean as magic, this same word may appear within funerary literature representing the divinity of magic. An analysis of the texts composed by magical formulas and mythical narratives used in Egyptian funerary contexts will be done. The purpose of the analysis is to identify the meaning of the Egyptian word in the context of the sources, understanding the semantic extension of the heka concept through its relationship with the cosmogonic myths. In this way, recognizing the term as a concept that assimilates personified attributes within the narratives. This study therefore intends to reach meaningful interpretations of these sources and contribute to the understanding of the symbolic and knowable elements of the mythical narratives and funerary texts of Ancient Egypt.

Durante o Reino Médio (c. 2040 1650 a.C), os escribas se autorreferenciaram como um grupo que não servia apenas aos interesses administrativos, mas também à demanda por um meio culto e educado da sociedade. Através deles, circulariam a propaganda real e doutrinação peculiares ao programa cultural daquele período para garantir a lealdade aos faraós. Entretanto, esse foi só mais um dos muitos aspectos e usos da literatura naquele contexto. O enaltecimento da realeza foi combinado ao caráter moralizador e à autorreferência do ofício dos escribas que compuseram os textos exortativos. Conhecidos como instruções, os textos literários em questão traziam referências da cultura oral egípcia que afirmava valores considerados positivos para a vida em sociedade e para o bom desenvolvimento do indivíduo. Mas também tratavam das tensões vividas em questões políticas e socioculturais. A escritura dos textos disseminou na memória cultural da sociedade egípcia referenciais identitários dos escribas que foram transmitidos através de gerações. A articulação entre manutenção das tradições da sociedade e a disseminação dos novos ideais régios se deu pela agência dos escribas, contribuindo para a atualização do seu status. / During the Middle Kingdom (ca. 2040 - 1650 B.C.), scribes self-referenced as a group serving not only administrative interests, but also the demand for a cultured and educated group of the society. Through them, they would circulate the royal propaganda and indoctrination peculiar to the periods cultural program in order to ensure loyalty to the pharaohs. However, this was just one of many aspects and uses of literature in that context. The uplifting of royalty was combined with the moral character and self-reference to the craft of the scribes that composed the exhortative texts. Known as instructions, the literary texts in question broght references to the Egyptian oral culture which affirmed values considered positive for life in society and for the individuals good development. But they also dealt with the tensions experienced in political and socio-cultural issues. The writing of the texts disseminated in the cultural memory of Egyptian society the identity references of the scribes that were transmitted through generations. The articulation between maintaining the traditions of society and the dissemination of the new royal ideals were given through the agency of the scribes, contributing to the update of their status.

Les Textes des Pyramides empruntent au répertoire de la vie quotidienne des Anciens Egyptiens bon nombre de vocables, faisant de ces objets a priori profanes des attributs divins ou encore des éléments d’un viatique funéraire accompagnant le défunt lors de son « ascension ». Le cas des artefacts textiles (vêtements et habits) est particulièrement riche.En reprenant l’identification de chaque item, d’un point de vue tant iconographique que lexicographique, et en tenant compte du contexte d’utilisation, il est possible de comprendre ce qui motiva sa présence : traditions institutionnelles héritées des premières dynasties, significations théologiques ou simples préoccupations fonctionnelles. / The Pyramid Texts borrow from the daily life of Ancient Egyptian a lot of words,making those objects a priori profane to divine attributes or components of funeraryequipment accompanying the deceased during his ascension. The case of textile artifacts(clothes and garments) is particularly affluent.By resuming the identification of each item, on a point of view so iconographical aslexicographical, and to take account of used context, it is able to understand what wasthe motivation of its : institutional lore inherited from first dynasty, theological senses orprivate functional preoccupations.

Durante o Reino Médio (c. 2040 1650 a.C), os escribas se autorreferenciaram como um grupo que não servia apenas aos interesses administrativos, mas também à demanda por um meio culto e educado da sociedade. Através deles, circulariam a propaganda real e doutrinação peculiares ao programa cultural daquele período para garantir a lealdade aos faraós. Entretanto, esse foi só mais um dos muitos aspectos e usos da literatura naquele contexto. O enaltecimento da realeza foi combinado ao caráter moralizador e à autorreferência do ofício dos escribas que compuseram os textos exortativos. Conhecidos como instruções, os textos literários em questão traziam referências da cultura oral egípcia que afirmava valores considerados positivos para a vida em sociedade e para o bom desenvolvimento do indivíduo. Mas também tratavam das tensões vividas em questões políticas e socioculturais. A escritura dos textos disseminou na memória cultural da sociedade egípcia referenciais identitários dos escribas que foram transmitidos através de gerações. A articulação entre manutenção das tradições da sociedade e a disseminação dos novos ideais régios se deu pela agência dos escribas, contribuindo para a atualização do seu status. / During the Middle Kingdom (ca. 2040 - 1650 B.C.), scribes self-referenced as a group serving not only administrative interests, but also the demand for a cultured and educated group of the society. Through them, they would circulate the royal propaganda and indoctrination peculiar to the periods cultural program in order to ensure loyalty to the pharaohs. However, this was just one of many aspects and uses of literature in that context. The uplifting of royalty was combined with the moral character and self-reference to the craft of the scribes that composed the exhortative texts. Known as instructions, the literary texts in question broght references to the Egyptian oral culture which affirmed values considered positive for life in society and for the individuals good development. But they also dealt with the tensions experienced in political and socio-cultural issues. The writing of the texts disseminated in the cultural memory of Egyptian society the identity references of the scribes that were transmitted through generations. The articulation between maintaining the traditions of society and the dissemination of the new royal ideals were given through the agency of the scribes, contributing to the update of their status.

abstract: The Egyptian New Kingdom city of Akhetaten (modern: Tell el-Amarna, el-Amarna, or simply Amarna) provides a unique opportunity to study ancient biocultural dynamics. It was a disembedded capital removed from the major power bases of Memphis and Thebes that was built, occupied, and abandoned within approximately 20 years (c. 1352–1336 BCE). This dissertation used the recently excavated Amarna South Tombs cemetery to test competing models for the development of disembedded capitals, such as the geographic origin of its migrants and its demographic structure in comparison to contrastive models for the establishment of settlements. The degree to which biological relatedness organized the South Tombs cemetery was also explored. The results suggest that the Nile Valley into the New Kingdom (1539–1186 BCE) was very diverse in dental cervical phenotype and thus highly mobile in respects to gene flow, failing to reject that the Amarna city was populated by individuals and families throughout the Nile Valley. In comparison, the Amarna South Tombs cemetery contained the least amount of dental phenotypic diversity, supporting a founder effect due to migration from larger, more diverse gene pools to the city or the very fact that the city and sample only reflect a 20-year interval with little time to accumulate phenotypic variation. Parts of the South Tombs cemetery also appear to be organized by biological affinity, showing consistent and significant spatial autocorrelation with biological distances generated from dental cervical measurements in male, female, and subadult (10–19 years of age) burials closest to the South Tombs. This arrangement mimics the same orderliness in the residential areas of the Amarna city itself with officials surrounded by families that supported their administration. Throughout the cemetery, adult female grave shaft distances predict their biological distances, signaling a nuclear family dynamic that included many females including mothers, widows, and unwed aunts, nieces, and daughters. A sophisticated paleodemographic model using simulated annealing optimization projected the living population of the South Tombs cemetery, which overall conformed to a transplanted community similar to 19th century mill villages of the United States and United Kingdom. / Dissertation/Thesis / Doctoral Dissertation Anthropology 2018

<p>This dissertation employs a multiscalar, life course approach to examine health in the ancient Nile Valley (<i>c</i>. 2000- 660 BCE) by analyzing population- and individual-level data of skeletal indicators of stress, health, and pathological conditions. Specifically, this dissertation explores a more detailed reconstruction of health under a life course approach through the inclusion of individuals of all ages, a contextualization of social and biological age categories, the examination of multiple non-specific indicators of general health/stress, and the timing and development of specific conditions. Results of the population-level data are expanded and highlighted through the examination of individual experiences of health, specifically those related to growing old, impairment, and disability. Population-level data examining cribra orbitalia and LEH demonstrated a significant difference between individuals that survived periods of childhood stress (adults) and non-survivors (juveniles) when examining cribra orbitalia. More specifically, there are relatively high frequencies of cribra orbitalia in individuals in the late juvenile social age category (7 – 14 years) and the transition adult social age category (14 - 20 years). A broad examination of old age at Tombos reveals that many individuals were living into their 60s, 70s, and 80s. Individuals at Tombos do not have many indicators of osteoarthritis or entheseal changes, indicating that the inhabitants of Tombos were not subjected to strenuous physical activities throughout their life. Individuals throughout the Tombos cemetery display oral health issues; it is common for members of this community to have significant dental wear, carious lesions, abscesses, and antemortem tooth loss. A case study of an older Tombos adult (U34.B1) investigates the intersection of old age, impairment, and disability through the consideration of the physical changes related to degenerative joint disease and oral health and the impact to U34.B1’s mobility, pain level, and daily life. Acute care related to a severe, non-union femoral neck fracture at the end of life is also considered for U34.B1. Finally, impairment and disability are considered in another individual (U35.Sh2.B10) with Léri-Weill dyschondrosteosis by utilizing the bioarchaeology of care approach. Overall, this dissertation demonstrates that population-level and individual-level analysis can incorporate various types of contextual data gathered using a culturally specific lens to create a rich narrative of health in the past. </p>