Decline & Fall of the Old Kingdom (Part 2)

The History of Egypt Podcast

Dominic Perry

Society & Culture, History

4.8 • 2.1K Ratings

🗓️ 2 July 2024

⏱️ 36 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Why did it all go so wrong? We’ve explored the historical overview of Old Kingdom decline; but what was driving it? There are three major factors that caused this fall. Two originate in the climate, the third comes from the political structure of the kingdom and its society. From the deserts of Sahara to the depths of the Nile, we uncover the causes of decline… Note: An extended version of this episode is available at Patreon.com/egyptpodcast. The History of Egypt Podcast: 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. Logo image: The “Starving Bedouin” from the Pyramid of Unas. Photo by Sarah Murray. Select Bibliography: M. Bárta, Analyzing Collapse: The Rise and Fall of the Old Kingdom (2019). B. Bell, ‘The Oldest Records of the Nile Floods’, The Geographical Journal 136 (1970), 569—573. K. W. Butzer, ‘When the Desert Was in Flood: Environmental History of the Giza Plateau’, AERAgram 5 (2001), 3—5. K. W. Butzer, ‘Landscapes and Environmental History of the Nile Valley: A Critical Review and Prospectus’, in E. Bloxam and I. Shaw (eds), The Oxford Handbook of Egyptology (Oxford, 2020), 99—124. N. Kanawati and J. Swinton, Egypt in the Sixth Dynasty: Challenges and Responses (2018). K. O. Kuraszkiewicz, ‘Architectural Innovations Influenced by Climatic Phenomena (4.2 KA Event) in the Late Old Kingdom (Saqqara, Egypt)’, Studia Quaternaria 33 (2016), 27—34. M. van de Mieroop, A History of Ancient Egypt (2nd edn, 2021). N. Moeller, ‘The First Intermediate Period: A Time of Famine and Climate Change?’, Egypt and the Levant 15 (2005), 153—167. J. C. Moreno García, ‘Climatic Change or Sociopolitical Transformation? Reassessing Late 3rd Millennium BC in Egypt’, in J. C. Moreno García et al. (eds), 2200 BC - A Climatic Breakdown as a Cause for the Collapse of the Old World? 2 vols (2015), 79—94. S. Rzepka et al., ‘Preliminary Report on Engineering Properties and Environmental Resistance of Ancient Mud Bricks from Tell el-Retaba Archaeological Site in the Nile Delta’, Studia Quaternaria 33 (2016), 47—56. J.-D. Stanley et al., ‘Nile Flow Failure at the End of the Old Kingdom, Egypt: Strontium Isotopic and Petrologic Evidence’, Geoarchaeology 18 (2003), 395—402. P. Tallet and M. Lehner, The Red Sea Scrolls: How Ancient Papyri Reveal the Secrets of the Pyramids (2021). Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	Before we begin a quick note there is an extended version of this episode available on
0:05.9	Patreon it goes into a bit more detail about the political changes in the late old
0:11.2	kingdom we also discuss pyramids and trends in their construction,
0:16.0	and what they can tell us about the decline of the royal household.
0:20.0	To be clear, this public version has all of the essential information to understand the fall of the Old Kingdom.
0:26.7	But if you would like some extra discussion around the context, that is available on the Patreon.
0:32.4	Link in the episode description. that is available on the Patreon.
0:32.5	Link in the episode description.
0:34.5	The one buried as a Falcon is devoid of offerings.
0:40.5	That which one buried as a Falcon is devoid of offerings.
0:44.4	That which the pyramid hid is empty.
0:47.6	Behold, the land is deprived of kingship
0:51.0	by a few people who ignore all tradition. The crown of Ra is stolen, he who
0:57.1	pacifies the two lands. Behold, Egypt has fallen to pouring water in a funeral libation.
1:04.4	He who poured water on the ground now seizes the mighty in misery.
1:09.7	Behold, the snake is come forth from its whole. Behold the dead.
1:16.0	These are the words of an ancient Egyptian author written on a papyrus around 1300
1:22.0	b.C. E they belong to a text that is commonly known as
1:26.0	the lamentations of Ipouere, or the admonitions of an Egyptian sage.
1:32.0	This text is a complicated source. We are not
1:35.9	sure exactly when it was first authored or composed, and the subject matter of
1:40.9	its lamentations are still a matter of debate among Egyptologists.
	...

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