Egyptian Dreams

[anneke]

I just noticed this item on Andie Byrnes' newsblog.

This is an article about the Dakhleh Oasis Project and is quite a fascinating read I think.

Before the Mummies: Desert Origins of the Pharaohs

They have found a long archaeological record there.
The earliest named group they dubbed the Masara, who appeared some 9500 years ago.

A later culture they call the Bashendi. It seems that there may be a connection between the Bashendi and the finds near the city of Asyut along the Nile.

Distinctive side-blow tools (so called because the tool is made by striking the side of a stone material instead of the usually more efficient top), labrets (probably for lip decoration), hollow-based arrowheads and jewelry such as marine-shell bracelets and beads of amazonite and carnelian were similar to some dug up at sites like Badari and Mostagedda, near the present Nile-side city of Asyut—the closest point on the Nile to Dakhleh.

The connection between the Bashendi and the Badarians - who were fore-runners of the pharaonic culture - is quite interesting I think.

The article also mentions how attitudes have changed. It used to be believed that the pharaonic culture had migrated into Egypt from the Levant. Now the prevailing thought is that the Egyptian culture is indigenous to the area.

The article is a very interesting read IMHO
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[Daughter_Of_SETI]

[anneke]

Thanks for pointing that out I went back and fixed it in my post.

I wondered if this article was somewhat related to what was discussed here:
http://forum.egyptiandreams.co.uk/viewtopic.php?t=1938

They both seen to indicate climate changes had a major influence.
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[Daughter_Of_SETI]

Very interesting, Anneke, thanks for posting that.

It does seem by reading both articles that the origins of the Ancient Egyptians was massively influenced by climate change, I would never have thought it would have made such a huge difference.

OK, slightly off-topic: From reading the beginning part of the quote that you provided, Anneke, it seems to suggest that the Bashendi artefacts were similar to those discovered in the Nile Valley....

[isisinacrisis]

I've always been a believer in the Egyptian civilisation being Egyptian in origin, not from the East.

I also remember reading somewhere that there was a climatic change of some sort that caused widespread desertification all over the world and that sudden change to arid climate forced mankind to develop agriculture and that's how most of the first civilisations of the world started, and how most of them are in desert areas near remaining sources of water. I think Egypt is probably the most obvious example. (the article also claimed that it made humankind more 'violent' in terms of war over land or sacrificing to their gods. although I'm not sure of the exact details or wording. I think the Egyptians were one of the more peaceful of the ancient civs though)

What are labrets?
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[Daughter_Of_SETI]

[isisinacrisis]

Unless this labrets trend was a predynastic thing which fell out of fashion by the dynastic era?

I know Nefertiti had a double piercing but the AEs didn't really get more adventurous than that, it seems.
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[Daughter_Of_SETI]

That's what I thought, it must've fallen out of fashion, it's just that with labrets having been discovered at the Nile Valley - according to that article - it seemed a bit odd, unless they were, as you said, Isi, from pre-dynastic times.
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[kmt_sesh]

What a happy coincidence. This morning I attended a lecture at the O.I. about predynastic Nubia. Turns out the labret was a common form of body ornament to those ancient people, and the slides the professor showed reminded me of the photo of labrets in Daughter_Of_SETI's Wikipedia link. They weren't as refined, of course, and looked to be made of some soft metal, but the overall designs were quite similar.

So perhaps the ancient Sudanese of Lower Nubia migrating into Upper Egypt in predynastic times, brough the fashion of labrets with them. In any case I think it's clear the practice died out at an early date. To my knowledge no Egyptian mummy has ever been found with a spike or disk in its lower lip.

It was late last night when I first read your discussion about labrets, and at first I mistakenly read it as "labrats." LOL That was quite amusing. I pictured some mad Egyptian scientist with his stonewear beakers and ceramic test tubes and all these little desert rats in wicker cages.
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[Daughter_Of_SETI]

[kmt_sesh]

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