Dialogue of Ipuwer and the Lord of All

by Roland Enmarch

The poem known as The Dialogue of Ipuwer and the Lord of All is one of the most important works of Middle Egyptian literature (ca. 1950-1650 BC) and is a crucial text for the understanding of Egyptian theology and royal ideology. Yet because the poem's sole surviving manuscript is poorly preserved, the text has had less impact on discussions than it should. This book seeks to remedy this neglect and to provide a basis for further study by publishing the first new, fully collated, edition of the poem for almost a century. The text is presented in hieroglyphic transcription accompanied by notes discussing uncertain or disputed readings. A number of new readings are proposed. The book includes a complete set of photographs of the manuscript, enabling the user to verify readings. The introduction gives a detailed discussion of the manuscript, its provenance, condition, and dating, together with a select bibliography of research on the poem.

96 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2006

Reviews

[Sense of History]

I thought the Mesopotamians had a knack for complaining, but apparently the ancient Egyptians were champions in this genre of lamentation too. The text that is published and translated in this book, is proof of it. The original probably dates from the Late Middle Kingdom, around 1700 bce, although we only have one papyrus copy from much later (The Leiden Papyrus 344). The beginning and the end are missing, and there are quite a few gaps, but the tenor of this complaint is clear.

Verily, thieves [plunder] everywhere, And the servant pilfers whatever he finds. Verily, the Nile overflows, but no one tills the earth on account of it, And all men say, "We don't know what will happen throughout the country." Verily, the women are barren, and none conceive, Khnum does not shape men because of the condition of the land. Verily, paupers have become men of affluence, And he who could not provide / sandals for himself is (now) the possessor of wealth. Blood is everywhere; There is no end of death, Verily, countless corpses are entombed in the river; Verily, the nobles are in lamentation, while paupers are in glee, And every city says, ‘‘Let us drive out the mighty from our midst.’’

As you can see, there is a strong social emphasis in this complaint, suggesting that the text was written in a privileged environment. In typical Egyptian usage, this lament is situated in the First Intermediate Period, approximately between 2200 and 2000 bce, a period that in Ancient Egypt was widely (but incorrectly) seen as a period of chaos and foreign threat.

Normally, the genre of lamentation serves the greater honor and glory of the pharaoh, because he is usually presented as the great savior. The pharaoh certainly has his say in this text, but in this case the complainer, Ipuwer (a man we don’t know) turns out to be rather opposed against the king and he even accuses the pharaoh of having deceived the country. That is no small matter, and it certainly gives this text its unique character. It suggests that kingship comes with responsibilities, a view that was generally accepted, but seldom verbatim expressed. As said, the final fragment of this papyrus is missing, so we can’t be sure, but I would bet on it that in the end a prophecy is made that a new pharaoh will restore order. Quod erat demonstrandum, or how did they say that in Ancient Egypt?

[Eduardo Laborde · Rating 3 out of 5]

Parece que muestra un Egipto en decadencia o el fin de un ciclo. Es, principalmente, ese momento en el que la depravación y lo que enferma a una sociedad aflora por la incapacidad de contar con un líder estable o por procesos de transformación cultural.

No sabía si estaba leyendo el relato de un hombre egipcio o de algún mexicano. 😞

[Drew Canole · Rating 2 out of 5]

This work is available online here: http://www.reshafim.org.il/ad/egypt/t...