Khyan

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Seuserenre Khyan was a Hyksos king of the Fifteenth Dynasty of Egypt, ruling over Lower Egypt in the second half of the 17th century BCE.

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Khyan is one of the better attested kings from the Hyksos period, known from many seals and seal impressions. Remarkable are objects with his name found at Knossos and Hattusha indicating diplomatic contacts with Crete and the Hittites. A sphinx with his name was bought on the art market at Baghdad and might demonstrate diplomatic contacts to Babylon, in an example of Egypt-Mesopotamia relations. [7] [8]

Name and titles

The name Khyan is written in variations as Khayan, Khian etc.

His royal name Seuserenre translates as "The one whom Re has caused to be strong." [9] Khyan bears the titles of an Egyptian king, but also the title ruler of the foreign land (heqa-khaset). The later title is the typical designation of the Hyksos rulers.

The name Khyan has been "interpreted as Amorite Hayanu (reading h-ya-a-n) which the Egyptian form represents perfectly, and this is in all likelihood the correct interpretation." [10] The name Hayanu is recorded in the Assyrian king lists—see "Khorsabad List I, 17 and the SDAS List, I, 16"--"for a remote ancestor of Shamshi-Adad I (c.1800 BC)." [10] It should be stressed that Khyan's name was not original and had been in use for centuries before the fifteenth (Hyksos) Dynasty.

Hyksos Kingdom

Khyan's seat of power was located in Avaris, which hosted a strongly fortified palace. [11] Seal impressions of Khyan and a stela of his eldest son, prince Yanassi, [12] [13] were found in two areas of the city during excavations, confirming his presence onsite. [14] The palace, possibly destroyed during the later conquest of the Hyksos' kingdom by the Thebans under Ahmose I, [note 2] comprised a high platform built on massive brick casemates surrounded by columned halls and monumental staircases leading to a still higher platform, on which the royal apartments probably stood. [11] This palace seems to have been abandoned c. 1600 BC, at which point an enormous ritual feast was orchestrated, filling several 5 m (16 ft) wide pits with animal bones and thousands of pottery fragments in consequence. Some of these fragments came from an array of vessels produced by the Kerma culture, a Nubian kingdom and Hyksos' ally during the Second Intermediate Period. [16] The Egyptologist Manfred Bietak proposes that the ritual feast and abandonment of the palace were triggered by the death of its owner, [17] most probably Khyan. [18] [19] On the western edge of Avaris, another fortress was subsequently erected in the later Hyksos period c. 1560-1530 BC, likely under Khyan's successor Apepi. [17]

East of Avaris, the Hyksos controlled the massive 350 m × 400 m (1,150 ft × 1,310 ft) fortress of Tjaru on the road to Sinai and Canaan, where stelae of the Hyksos king Apepi were uncovered. [20]

According to Manfred Bietak, Khyan's rule marks the peak of the Hyksos kingdom power. [21] In this view, Khyan directly ruled over Lower and Middle Egypt up to Cusae and indirectly dominated the Nile Valley as far south as Thebes, [22] forcing native Egyptian kingdoms including those of the 16th and Abydos Dynasty into vassal states. [23] At the time of Khyan, relations between the Hyksos and their Egyptian vassals were likely peaceful, centered on exchange and trade and possibly even including donations to Upper Egyptian sanctuaries, such as one in Gebelein, were blocks inscribed with Khyan's name were uncovered. [24] All of this is contested however. For Alexander Ilin-Tomich, the territory directly ruled by the Hyksos kings of Avaris was likely confined to the eastern Delta and the nature and extent of their control over Middle Egypt remains unclear. [25]

Khyan's position in the Hyksos dynasty

Scarab of Khyan KhyanScarabPetrie.png
Scarab of Khyan
Scarab of "Khyan the Heka Khasut "Hyksos"" ("Hyksos" highlighted) Khyan the Hyksos (Hyksos highlighted).jpg
Scarab of "Khyan the Heka Khasut "Hyksos"" ("Hyksos" highlighted)

Khyan is identified with king Iannas in the works of Josephus whose knowledge of the Hyksos Pharaohs was derived from a history of Egypt written by Manetho. Josephus mentions him after Apophis when discussing the reign lengths of kings who ruled after Salitis. This led 18th century scholars such as Arthur Bedford to place Khyan after Apophis, towards the end of the Hyksos dynasty. However, in Sextus Julius Africanus' version of Manetho's Epitome, Khyan (whose name is transcribed there as Staan) is listed after a king Pachnan, perhaps Yaqub-Har. Nonetheless, the hypothesis of a temporal proximity between kings Khyan and Apepi is now commonly accepted though questionable and contested. [25] [27] [28] Stylistically Khyan's scarabs resemble closely those of Yaqub-Har, who might date rather to the beginning and not to the end of the Hyksos-period. [29] [30] This indicates that Khyan was one of the earlier rulers of the 15th dynasty.

The early position of Khyan within the 15th dynasty may be confirmed by new archaeological finds at Edfu. On this site were found seal impressions of Khyan in close connection with seal impressions of the 13th Dynasty king Sobekhotep IV, indicating that both kings could have reigned at about the same time. [31] The scholars Moeller and Marouard discuss the discovery of an important early 12th dynasty Middle Kingdom administrative building in the eastern Tell Edfu area which was continuously employed into the early Second Intermediate Period before it fell out of use during the 17th dynasty when its remains were sealed by a large silo court. Fieldwork by Egyptologists in 2010 and 2011 into the remains of the former 12th dynasty building which was also used in the 13th dynasty led to the discovery of a large adjoining hall which proved to contain 41 sealings showing the cartouche of the Hyksos ruler Khyan together with 9 sealings naming the 13th dynasty king Sobekhotep IV. As Moeller and Marouard write: "These finds come from a secure and sealed archaeological context and open up new questions about the cultural and chronological evolution of the late Middle Kingdom and early Second Intermediate Period." [32] These conclusions are rejected by Robert Porter who argues that Khyan ruled much later than Sobekhotep IV and that the seals of a pharaoh were used even long after his death. Another option he proposed is that Sobekhotep IV reigned much later than previously thought. [33]

Lion inscribed with the cartouche of Khyan, found in Baghdad, suggesting relations with Babylon. British Museum, EA 987. Khyan.jpg
Lion inscribed with the cartouche of Khyan, found in Baghdad, suggesting relations with Babylon. British Museum, EA 987.
Blue glazed steatite scarab in a gold mount, with the cartouche of Khyan: - "Son of Ra, Khyan, living forever!" Ring scarab - Pharaoh exhibit - Cleveland Museum of Art (cropped).jpg
Blue glazed steatite scarab in a gold mount, with the cartouche of Khyan:
Khyan
Khyan		Khyan
KhyanKhyanKhyanKhyanKhyan
KhyanKhyanKhyan
Khyan
Khyan
 - "Son of Ra, Khyan, living forever!"

Nearly all carbon-14 analyses of materials related to the Second Intermediate Period yield dates on average 120 years earlier than was expected from the prevailing chronological reconstruction of the 15th Dynasty. While the debate is ongoing, Egyptologists have acknowledged the validity of these observations and that they indicate some major issue with the consensus reached hitherto. Khyan's rule is no longer dated with any accuracy. The Egyptologist David Aston has shown that available evidence is compatible with Khyan ruling anywhere between 1700 BC and 1580 BC, with the former his preferred scenario. [4] The possibility that one or more kings reigned between him and Apophis is now the dominant hypothesis.

Edfu

At Edfu (Upper Egypt), seal impressions of Khyan (early 15th Dynasty) have been found in the same context as seal impressions of Sobekhotep IV (late 13th Dynasty), indicating that both rulers may have been contemporaries. [35] Both late 13th Dynasty and early 15th Dynasty are contemporary with the Middle Bronze IIB (MB IIB) in the Levant, while late 15th dynasty equals Middle Bronze IIC (MB IIC; 1600/1590-1550 BCE) in the Southern Levant and Late Bronze IA in the Northern Levant.

The scholars Moeller and Marouard discuss the discovery of an important early 12th dynasty Middle Kingdom administrative building in the eastern Tell Edfu area which was continuously employed into the early Second Intermediate Period before it fell out of use during the 17th dynasty when its remains were sealed by a large silo court. Fieldwork by Egyptologists in 2010 and 2011 into the remains of the former 12th dynasty building which was also used in the 13th dynasty led to the discovery of a large adjoining hall which proved to contain 41 sealings showing the cartouche of the Hyksos ruler Khyan together with 9 sealings naming the 13th dynasty king Sobekhotep IV. As Moeller and Marouard write: "These finds come from a secure and sealed archaeological context and open up new questions about the cultural and chronological evolution of the late Middle Kingdom and early Second Intermediate Period." [36] These conclusions are rejected by Robert Porter who argues that Khyan ruled much later than Sobekhotep IV and that the seals of a pharaoh were used even long after his death. Another option he proposed is that Sobekhotep IV reigned much later than previously thought. [37]

Stela of Khyan

At Tell el-Daba (Avaris), the Stela of Khyan (Cairo TD-8422) contains the nomen and prenomen with a lost dedication to a deity (presumably "Seth, Lord of Avaris"), below which are the title and name "Eldest King's Son, Yanassi". [38] [39] Ryholt (1997:256) notes that the association of Khyan with the Eldest King's Son Yanassi, suggest that the latter's title (s3-nsw smsw) was the designated successor. [39] Ryholt further speculates that Manetho might have mentioned Yanassi in a lost passage, and that Josephus used the name Iannas and mixed him with his father in his chronological list.

Attestations

The main source for the attestations of Khyan follows Ryholt 1997:383 File 15/4.

Ruler of Foreign Lands (hk3-h3swt)

Attestations as "Ruler of Foreign Lands" (ḥḳꜣ-ḫꜣswt; hk3-h3swt), the title consisting of ḥḳꜣ (Heqa; Ruler/Cheiftain) + ḫꜣswt (Khasut; Foreign Lands/Hill Countries). The word ḫꜣswt is the plural form (w) of ḫꜣst (land/hill country).

King

Attestations as king (nsw).

Notes

  1. ↑ Dates proposed for Khyan's reign: c. 1700–1669/1667 BC, [5] 1653–1614 BC, [6] 1610?–1580 BC
  2. ↑ The palace was decorated with painted murals in Cretan styles and motifs. Initially the palace excavator Manfred Bietak, saw this as suggestion of far-reaching cultural and commercial exchanges under the Hyksos. He later reappraised the dating of the murals, proposing instead that they date to the early 18th Dynasty of Egypt under Hatshepsut or Thutmose III. [15]

References

  1. "The name of Khyan on the statue from Bubastis is written over an erasure, that the statue is of the XIIth Dynasty, and that Khyan was a Hyksôs king" in Griffith, F. Ll (1891). Archaeological Report 1890/91 - 1911/12: Comprising the Recent Work of the Egypt Exploration Fund and the Progress of Egyptology During the Year 1890/91-1911/12. Kegan Paul, Trench, Trübner. p. 28.
  2. ↑ "The name of Khyan on the statue from Bubastis is written over an erasure, that the statue is of the XIIth Dynasty, and that Khyan was a Hyksôs king" in Griffith, F. Ll (1891). Archaeological Report 1890/91 - 1911/12: Comprising the Recent Work of the Egypt Exploration Fund and the Progress of Egyptology During the Year 1890/91-1911/12. Kegan Paul, Trench, Trübner. p. 28.
  3. ↑ Aston 2018, p. 15.
  4. 1 2 Aston 2018, pp. 35–47.
  5. ↑ Aston 2018, p. 49.
  6. ↑ Redford 2001, p. 638, Egyptian King List.
  7. 1 2 Weigall, Arthur E. P. Brome (2016). A History of the Pharaohs. Cambridge University Press. p. 188. ISBN   978-1-108-08291-4.
  8. 1 2 "Statue British Museum". The British Museum.
  9. ↑ Khiyan Titulary Archived 2007-09-27 at the Wayback Machine
  10. 1 2 Ryholt, p.128
  11. 1 2 Stadelmann 2001, p. 14.
  12. ↑ Bietak 2007, p. 753.
  13. ↑ Bietak 1981, pp. 63–71.
  14. ↑ M. Bietak: A Hyksos Palace at Avaris, In: Egyptian Archaeology 38 Spring 2011, S. 38-41
  15. ↑ Bietak 2000, pp. 185–205.
  16. ↑ Bietak 2007, p. 778–780.
  17. 1 2 Bietak 2007, p. 771.
  18. ↑ Moeller & Forstner-Müller 2018, p. 8.
  19. ↑ Bietak 2007, p. 780.
  20. ↑ Mumford 2001a, p. 289.
  21. ↑ Bietak 2001, p. 140.
  22. ↑ Mumford 2001b, p. 339.
  23. ↑ Tyson Smith 2001, p. 30.
  24. ↑ Moeller & Forstner-Müller 2018, p. 13.
  25. 1 2 Ilin-Tomich 2016, p. 7.
  26. ↑ Flinders Petrie: Scarabs and cylinders with names (1917), available copyright-free here, pl. XXI
  27. ↑ Ilin-Tomich 2014, p. 149–152.
  28. ↑ Ben-Tor 2007, pp. 103–110.
  29. ↑ W. Ward, in; O. Tufnell: Scarabs and their Contribution to History in the Early Second Millennium B.C., Warminster 1984, 68, fig. 29
  30. ↑ A scarab of Khyan at the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
  31. ↑ N. Moeller, G. Marouard, N. Ayers: Discussion of Late Middle Kingdom and Early Second Intermediate Period History and Chronology in Relation to the Khayan Sealings from Tell Edfu, in: Ägypten und Levante XXI (2011), 87-121 online PDF
  32. ↑ N. Moeller, G. Maround, N. Ayers, Ägypten und Levante XXI (2011), p.87
  33. ↑ Robert M. Porter: The Second Intermediate Period according to Edfu, Goettinger Mizsellen 239 (2013), p. 75-80
  34. ↑ Rohl, David (2010). The Lords Of Avaris. Random House. p. 216. ISBN   978-1-4070-1092-2.
  35. ↑ N. Moeller, G. Marouard, N. Ayers: Discussion of Late Middle Kingdom and Early Second Intermediate Period History and Chronology in Relation to the Khayan Sealings from Tell Edfu, in: Ägypten und Levante XXI (2011), 87-121 online PDF
  36. ↑ N. Moeller, G. Maround, N. Ayers, Ägypten und Levante XXI (2011), p.87
  37. ↑ Robert M. Porter: The Second Intermediate Period according to Edfu, Goettinger Mizsellen 239 (2013), p. 75-80
  38. ↑ Manfred Bietak, MDAIK 37, pp.63-71, pl.6
  39. 1 2 Kim SB Ryholt, The Political Situation in Egypt during the Second Intermediate Period, CNI Publications, (Museum Tusculanum Press: 1997), p.256
  40. ↑ Tufnell (1984) no. 3214
  41. ↑ Tufnell (1984) no. 3208
  42. ↑ Tufnell (1984) no. 3209
  43. ↑ Tufnell (1984) no. 3210
  44. ↑ Ankara, Archaelogical Museum 19513
  45. ↑ BM EA 987
  46. ↑ Heraklion Archaeological Museum 263
  47. ↑ Cairo TD-8422
  48. ↑ Cairo JE 28574/CG 389
  49. ↑ Berlin 18653
  50. ↑ Cairo JE 30392

Bibliography

Further reading

  • Irene Forster-Müller, Nadine Moeller (eds.), The Hyksos Ruler Khyan and the Early Second Intermediate Period in Egypt: Problems and Priorities of Current Research. Proceedings of the Workshop of the Austrian Archaeological Institute and the Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago, Vienna, July 4–5, 2014.(online)
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