Cultural Transition and Continuity in Egypt as a response to Political and Religious Change in the 21st to 25th Dynasty (1076-664 BCE)

Abstract

The 21st to 25th Dynasties (1076-664 BCE) have previously been characterised by political and social changes based upon the introduction of Libyan social and cultural influences. Studies so far have focused primarily on the chronology, funerary practices, and ceramics of the period, at the expense of the settlements and their associated material culture, while the term used to define this period of Egyptian history ‘Third Intermediate Period’, suggests preconceived biases relating to negative aspects of culture after the unified period of central rule in the New Kingdom. To analyse transition and continuity within the cultural and societal environment of Egypt during the 21st to 25th Dynasty, this research develops a methodology through the assessment of settlement patterns and their development, the built environment of the settlements, and their associated material culture, in order to redefine the ways in which we view chronological phases of Egyptian history pertaining to the title ‘Intermediate Period’, specifically relating to the early first millennium BCE. Through this research several interconnected themes have been identified within the culture and society of the 21st to 25th Dynasties that relate to the political and economic powers of regions, the nucleation of settlements and people, self-sufficiency at a collective and individual level, defence, both physical and spiritual, regionality in terms of settlement development and material culture, and elite emulation through objects. Ultimately, this study provides a more nuanced view of the 21st to 25th Dynasty in which there were significant changes in the socio-economic conditions of the country in which new powers had to adapt, including the development of new political structures, economic conditions, aspects of culture, elite emulation, and a more multicultural society with both self-sufficiency and isolationism at both the state and local levels.