Pharaohs Vs Middle Kingdom
Nick Randall
AH 101
9 February 2023
Short Paper #1
The transition between the Old Kingdom of Egypt (circa. 2700-2200 BCE) to the Middle Kingdom (2050-1800 BCE) was not the smoothest. The Old Kingdom, while prosperous at its peak, began to crack as the authority of the Pharaoh began to erode. The authority of priests and the noble class saw the power of Egypt decentralize rapidly. Civil wars and skirmishes for power became more common, and the once-unified Upper and Lower Egypt was fractured into factional territories with independent rulers.
As this transition was taking place, the perception of rulership changed as well. In the Old Kingdom, the Pharaoh was seen as a deity unto himself and was depicted as such. However, as the Middle Kingdom
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Old Kingdom Pharaohs such as Khafre were deified, as their leadership was seen as a designation of the Gods. The unification of Upper and Lower Egypt only expanded this belief, solidifying the divine power of the Pharaoh as the ruler of men and one with the gods. The rise of the nomarchs during the Middle Kingdom began to pull divine power from the Pharaoh, and therefore the standard of divine youth was replaced with the necessity of wisdom and experience. Thus, the Head of Senurset III has the features of age, and with it the promise of earthly knowledge and trustworthy insight. Both depictions are of individuals with the same title, but the artistic choices change the connotation of the position of Pharaoh based on the perception in different eras.
In the transition between the Old Kingdom and the Middle Kingdom of Egypt, the sequence of events drastically changed the position of the Pharaoh. Khafre Enthroned will always depict the youthful god of the Old Kingdom, whereas The Head of King Senusret III shows the man who sits on the throne, just as bothered and human as any man. These two works of art demonstrate two sides of the same coin and the effect of perception on what traits are deemed powerful between eras.
Works Cited
Bothmer, Bernard (1974). Brief Guide to the Department of Egyptian and Classical Art. Brooklyn, NY: The Brooklyn Museum. p. 39
Kim S. B. Ryholt, The Political Situation in Egypt during the Second Intermediate Period, c.1800-1550 B.C., Museum Tusculanum Press, Carsten Niebuhr Institute Publications 20,
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