Siege of Naqada explained

Conflict:Siege of Naqada
Partof:Unification Wars of Upper Egypt
Caption:King Scorpion I in combat with the King Bull in the battle of Naqada)
Date:c. 3320 BC[1]
Place:Naqada, Upper Egypt
Casusbelli:Final major expansion of Thinis in pre-unified Upper Egypt
Result:Thinite victory, Upper Egypt unified
Combatant1:Thinis
Combatant2:Naqada
Commander1:Scorpion I
Strength1:Unknown, in the thousands to 10,000+
Strength2:Unknown, in the thousands
Casualties1:Unknown, but light
Casualties2:
  • King Taurus killed
  • Many killed, and captured

The siege of Naqada was a major land and naval battle between the forces of King Scorpion I and Naqada itself which had been suffering a two joint offensive by Thinis and Nekhen. The conflict occurred on Naqada's northernmost frontier, in the middle of Scorpion I's reign or about c. 3320 BC.

In this battle the Thinite army, personally led by Scorpion I, who were attempting to finally conquer Naqada by land and the River Nile, defeated the army of Naqada.[2] Almost all that is known about the battle comes from a graffito of Scorpion I discovered during the Theban Desert Road Survey.[1] [3]

Background

Most of Upper Egypt became unified under rulers from Abydos during the Naqada II period (3600–3200 BCE), at the expense of rival powerful polities such as Hierakonpolis which had in the past decades declined in power and had retreated from Northern Upper Egypt.[4]

King Scorpion I's conquest over Middle Egypt kept trade and international relations with the importations of plaques from Baset and Buto. This also shows that Scorpion's armies had penetrated the very Southern Nile Delta. It may be that the conquests of Scorpion started the Egyptian hieroglyphic system by starting a need to keep records and vast swathes of nomes under control via secular writing from previous developments in proto-writing.[5]

Scorpion I sought to conquer the Kingdom of Nubt which was now surrounded by a joint offensive from the North, being under Thinite control and from the South under Nekhen's sphere of influence.[4]

The battle

King Scorpion I mobilised his forces along the Nile at first from Thinis.

It is believed King Scorpion I himself joined his main detachment, and marched his main army through the desert highlands, heading south-east towards Naqada suggested by the graffito discovered there.[6] This was to avoid a blockade via the Nile or the interior surrounding the River Nile, for which to distract during the Campaign he had sent smaller forces including naval forces.

King Scorpion I may have outflanked Nubt's army in a matter of days and took Naqada.[7] It is unknown when it occurred, before or after, but King Scorpion I killed King Taurus personally in single combat.[8] [9]

Further confirmation of the existence of this ruler is the interpretation of a rock drawing discovered in 2003 on the Gebel Tjauti in the desert west of Thebes. It apparently represents a successful campaign by King Scorpion I against King Taurus. This battle was possibly part of the concentration of power in late prehistoric Egypt: Scorpion I, operating from Thinis, conquered Taurus' realm in the Naqada area.[9] [10]

The glyph that was drawn was a deliberate recordation of this campaign, reminiscent of later campaigns where King Scorpion's pose is also akin to that of King Narmer's pose on the Narmer Palette 200 years later.

Aftermath

Following the successful campaign, and improved relations between Thinis and Nekhen, Scorpion I unified Upper Egypt following the defeat of Naqada's king. Nekhen's royal house had been incorporated into the House of Thinis with King Scorpion I at its head.[1] [3] The Upper Crown of Egypt would then become the symbol of a united Upper Egypt under one ruler.

Egyptologist Günter Dreyer deduced the existence of King "Taurus" from incisions on a statue of the god Min, which he interpreted as rulings. He suspected that the grave goods, which were intended for King Scorpion I, came from the state domain goods of King "Taurus" and thus the bull symbol originated from the name of the latter.[8] [9]

Notes and References

  1. Secrets of Egypt, Channel 5 TV program 2/8, "Scorpion King," 20 November 2008.
  2. Web site: Ii . Thomas H. Maugh . 2002-04-15 . The Real Scorpion King . 2024-02-26 . Los Angeles Times . en-US.
  3. News: Before the Pharaohs: Ancient Egypt Was Ruled by a Scorpion King, Reveals Ancient Text . Curiosmos . April 3, 2019.
  4. Book: Thompson . Jason . A History of Egypt: From Earliest Times to the Present . 2008 . American Univ in Cairo Press . 978-977-416-091-2 . 18 . en.
  5. Secrets of Egypt, Channel 5 TV program 2/8, "Scorpion King," 20 November 2008.
  6. Secrets of Egypt, Channel 5 TV program 2/8, "Scorpion King," 20 November 2008.
  7. Secrets of Egypt, Channel 5 TV program 2/8, "Scorpion King," 20 November 2008.
  8. Günter Dreyer: Umm el-Qaab I .: the predynastic royal tomb U-j and its early documents (= Umm el-Qaab, 1st volume). von Zabern, Mainz 1998, ., pp. 87 & 176.
  9. Ludwig David Morenz: picture letters and symbolic signs. The development of the writing of the high culture of ancient Egypt (= Orbis Biblicus et Orientalis 205). Friborg 2004, ., pp. 130–134, 172, 190–193.
  10. Gregory Phillip Gilbert: Weapons, warriors and warfare in early Egypt. 2004, (= BAR international series. Volume 1208). Archaeopress, 2004, . pp. 93 & 94.