THE ARCHAEOLOGY OF ACHAEMENID RULE IN EGYPT by Henry Preater Colburn A dissertation ...

479 Pages·2014·10.02 MB·English

by  Henry Colburn

THE ARCHAEOLOGY OF ACHAEMENID RULE IN EGYPT

by

Henry Preater Colburn

A dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment
of the requirements for the degree of
Doctor of Philosophy
(Classical Art and Archaeology)
in the University of Michigan
2014

Doctoral Committee:

Professor Margaret C. Root, Chair
Associate Professor Elspeth R. M. Dusinberre, University of Colorado
Professor Sharon C. Herbert
Associate Professor Ian S. Moyer
Professor Janet E. Richards
Professor Terry G. Wilfong
© Henry Preater Colburn

All rights reserved
2014
For my family:
Allison and Dick,
Sam and Gabe,
and Abbie
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ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

This dissertation was written under the auspices of the University of Michigan’s
Interdepartmental Program in Classical Art and Archaeology (IPCAA), my academic
home for the past seven years. I could not imagine writing it in any other intellectual
setting. I am especially grateful to the members of my dissertation committee for their
guidance, assistance, and enthusiasm throughout my graduate career. Since I first came to
Michigan Margaret Root has been my mentor, advocate, and friend. Without her I could
not have written this dissertation, or indeed anything worth reading. Beth Dusinberre,
another friend and mentor, believed in my potential as a scholar well before any such
belief was warranted. I am grateful to her for her unwavering support and advice. Ian
Moyer put his broad historical and theoretical knowledge at my disposal, and he has
helped me to understand the real potential of my work. Terry Wilfong answered
innumerable questions about Egyptian religion and language, always with genuine
interest and good humor. Janet Richards introduced me to Egyptian archaeology, both its
study and its practice, and provided me with important opportunities for firsthand
experience in Egypt. Sharon Herbert taught me best practices for archaeology (and
especially for understanding ceramics). While this is not a fieldwork dissertation, these
practices have informed its content in essential ways.
In addition to the members of my committee, many other friends and colleagues
at Michigan (and elsewhere) have fueled my learning and research in critical ways. These
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include Ryan Hughes, Tom Landvatter, Seth Button, Dan Diffendale, Don Jones, Ray
Van Dam, Emily Holt, James Cook and Laura Banducci. The individuals named here
may not necessarily be able to point to their respective contributions to this dissertation,
but they have all informed my thinking about it in vital ways. Additionally, I should like
to thank the following scholars for their intellectual generosity in sharing their (often
unpublished) research, and for discussing aspects of my own research with me: Damien
Agut-Labordère, Carmen Arnold-Biucchi, Fabrice De Backer, Christelle Fischer-Bovet,
Mark Garrison, David Graf, Wouter Henkelman, Fatma Ismail, Deniz Kaptan, David
Klotz, Andy Meadows, Ken Sheedy, Jason Ur, Peter van Alfen, and Agnieszka
Wojciechowska. I also wish to thank Edward Bleiberg and Ann Russmann for their
hospitality during my visits to the Brooklyn Museum to consult the Corpus of Late
Egyptian Sculpture. Margaret Root, Beth Dusinberre, Tom Landvatter, Rémy Boucharlat,
and Sebastián Encina all kindly provided assistance in the procurement of images for this
dissertation, and I gratefully acknowledge their help.
I would like to single out Alex Zwinak, the IPCAA graduate coordinator, for his
tireless efforts on behalf of students in the program. All of us owe Alex a debt of
gratitude for ensuring that we all have what we need to succeed. I am confident that
without him IPCAA would not be the renowned program that it is today. I am proud to
call him my friend.
Lastly I must thank family, to whom I dedicate this dissertation. From my earliest
days they provided encouragement and support for my unusual proclivities and interests,
and put up with the antisocial behavior that accompanied them. More recently this burden
has fallen to Abbie. I do not have words adequate to describing what her understanding
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and love has meant to me in our years together. This dissertation is as much her
achievement as it is mine.

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

Dedication ii

Acknowledgments iii

List of Figures ix

List of Tables xii

List of Text Boxes xiii

Note on Conventions and Abbreviations Used xiv

Abstract xvi

CHAPTER ONE
The Study of Achaemenid Egypt

The Paradox of Achaemenid Egypt 1

Ancient and Modern Prejudices 10

Approaches to Achaemenid Rule in Egypt 19

Beyond Persians and Egyptians: Experiencing Achaemenid Rule 31

The Structure of the Dissertation 41

CHAPTER TWO
Memphis under the Achaemenids

“The Balance of the Two Lands” 47

Memphis in the Longue durée 51

The Palace of Apries 78
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The Cult of Apis 120

Individual Experiences 129

Discrepant Experiences at Achaemenid Memphis 145

CHAPTER THREE
The Kharga Oasis in the Western Desert

Conditions in Upper Egypt 149

Geographic and Historical Setting 152

Irrigation 158

Temples 170

The Development of the Oasis and the Experience of Achaemenid Rule 190

Pioneers of the Western Desert 194

CHAPTER FOUR
Representation and Identity

Egyptian Art and Achaemenid Rule 197

The Artistic Poverty of Achaemenid Egypt 201

Discrepant Experiences: Case Studies 244

Representation and Identity in Achaemenid Egypt 298

CHAPTER FIVE
Ceramics and Society

Ceramics, Cooking and Culture Contact 300

Comparing Ceramic Assemblages 303

Sites 306

Results 315

Discussion and Interpretation 332

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Ceramic Perspectives on Achaemenid Rule 349

CHAPTER SIX
Coinage and the Egyptian Economy

The Satrapal Economy 352

Coins and Money in Fifth Century Egypt 354

Greek Coins and Egyptian Tribute 359

‘Aryandic’ Silver 368

The Athenian Tetradrachm in Egypt 371

Tetradrachms in the Second Persian Period 380

The Impact of Achaemenid Rule on the Egyptian Economy 384

CHAPTER SEVEN
Experiencing Achaemenid Rule in Egypt

The End of Achaemenid Rule in Egypt 388

Structural Continuities and Changes 393

Identity and Experience 396

Experiencing Achaemenid Rule 400

Future Directions 404

References 409
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LIST OF FIGURES

1.1. Map of Egypt, featuring places named in the text 2

2.1. Sketch map of ancient Memphis 55

2.2. Plan of the Palace of Apries, Memphis 56

2.3. Reconstruction drawing of the scenes from the pylon, Palace of Apries 61

2.4. Plan of the houses in the vicinity of the Palace of Merneptah 66

2.5. Map of Saqqara 69

2.6. Map of Abusir 75

2.7. Bronze and iron armor scales from the Palace of Apries 81

2.8. Arrowheads from the Palace of Apries 82

2.9. Wooden tags from the Palace of Apries with Aramaic and Demotic inscriptions 89

2.10. Bullae from the Palace of Apries featuring seal impressions 92

2.11. Drawings of seal impressions from the bullae from the Palace of Apries 93

2.12. Further sealings from the Palace of Apries 94

2.13. Collated line drawing of PFATS 184s 109

2.14. Glazed tile from Susa, 6th-5th century BCE 112

2.15. Seal 100 from Gordion, and a line drawing of its impression 114

2.16. Stela from the Serapeum at Saqqara depicting Cambyses before the Apis Bull 123

2.17. Plan of the Apis House, Memphis 126

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