By Smartenylopedia

The Naqada culture is an archaeological culture of the Chalcolithic period in Predynastic Egypt, spanning from around 4000 to 3000 BC. It is named after the town of Naqada, located in the Qena Governorate of Upper Egypt. A significant study by Oxford University in 2013 used radiocarbon dating to suggest that the Naqada culture may have begun between 3800 and 3700 BC.

Chronology

William Flinders Petrie

The Naqada culture was first categorized by the British Egyptologist William Matthew Flinders Petrie, who explored the site in 1894. Petrie divided the Naqada period into three sub-periods:

• Naqada I: Amratian (named after the cemetery near El-Amrah, Egypt)
• Naqada II: Gerzean (after the cemetery near Gerzeh)
• Naqada III: Semainean (after the cemetery near Es-Semaina)

Werner Kaiser

Petrie’s chronological framework was later refined by Werner Kaiser in 1957. Kaiser’s revised chronology began around 4000 BC, but modern adjustments have slightly revised these dates:

• Naqada I (c. 3900–3650 BC): Characterized by black-topped and painted pottery, trade with Nubia, the Western Desert oases, and the Eastern Mediterranean, and the use of obsidian from Ethiopia.
• Naqada II (c. 3650–3300 BC): This phase saw the first widespread appearance of marl pottery and early metalworking.
• Naqada III (c. 3300–2900 BC): Marked by more elaborate grave goods, the emergence of the first Pharaohs, cylindrical jars, and early writing.

Monuments and Excavations

The material culture at Naqada sites varies depending on the phase of the culture. Pottery is a defining element, with different types and designs associated with each period. Pottery from Naqada I often featured simple forms, but by Naqada II and III, more elaborate decorations, including wave patterns and floral motifs, emerged. Some of these designs suggest early influences from Mesopotamia, as indicated by the depiction of griffins and serpent-headed panthers on Naqada II pottery.

Copper harpoons found at Naqada III sites like Tel El-Farkha and Tel El-Murra indicate a society engaged in specialized hunting, particularly of Nile fauna such as the hippopotamus. Harpoons were likely tools of both hunting and protection, as well as symbols in religious art.

Small figurines, often made from stone or ivory, are another significant artifact from Naqada sites. These may have served everyday purposes like children’s toys, ritualistic functions such as medicine or magic, or religious roles as fertility idols. Figurines were often placed in graves, suggesting a role in mortuary rituals.

Knives from the Naqada culture, particularly those from the Naqada II period, exhibit advanced craftsmanship. These flint knives often had elaborately carved handles depicting scenes of worship or nature, indicating their use by the elite. Early forms of Egyptian writing also appear during this period, primarily in the form of pictograms used to document trade and administrative transactions, often found on vessels.

The Tel-El Farkha site, 14 km east of El-Simbillawein, provides evidence of early breweries dating back to Naqada II. These breweries, initially surrounded by wooden fences, were later enclosed by mudbrick walls, indicating the development of more permanent structures. The site also contains evidence of large buildings, likely used for storage and possibly defense, highlighting the complexity of Naqada society.

Biological Anthropological Studies

Craniofacial studies have provided insights into the biological affinities of the Naqada people. In 1993, anthropologist C. Loring Brace concluded that the Predynastic populations of Upper Egypt and Late Dynastic populations of Lower Egypt were closely related, with affinities to modern Egyptians and populations in North Africa and the Horn of Africa. However, these populations were distinct from those in Sub-Saharan Africa.

In 2022, the methodology of Brace’s study was criticized by S.O.Y. Keita, who pointed out that the study overlooked some clustering of ancient Egyptians with modern Somali populations, indicating a more complex population history. Other studies, such as those by Hanihara et al. (2003) and various biological anthropologists, have found that Naqada skeletons have affinities with other Northeast African populations.

Notably, Shomarka Keita and A.J. Boyce found that early Nile Valley populations had limb proportions closer to tropical populations, suggesting that the Egyptian Nile Valley was not primarily settled by cold-adapted peoples. Studies by Lovell and Prowse in 1996 suggested that Naqada elites had morphological similarities to Northern Nubians, implying significant regional variation within an African context.

Genetic Data on the Naqada Remains

To date, DNA studies on Naqada skeletons are limited. However, some DNA studies of Christian-era and modern Nubians, along with Afro-Asiatic-speaking populations in the Horn of Africa, show a mix of West Eurasian and East African ancestry. Conflicting results from DNA studies on Egyptian mummies have led to a lack of consensus regarding the genetic makeup of ancient Egyptians.

References

• “Carbon dating shows ancient Egypt’s rapid expansion.”
• Hendrickx, Stan. “The relative chronology of the Naqada culture: Problems and possibilities.” Academia.
• Shaw, Ian. (2002). The Oxford History of Ancient Egypt. Oxford University Press.
• Aston, Barbara G., Harrell, James A., Shaw, Ian. (2000). “Stone,” in Ancient Egyptian Materials and Technology. Cambridge University Press.
• “UCLA Encyclopedia of Egyptology.”
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• Petrie, William Matthew Flinders. (1895). Naqada and Ballas.
• Takamiya, Izumi H. (2004). “Egyptian Pottery Distribution in A-Group Cemeteries, Lower Nubia: Towards an Understanding of Exchange Systems between the Naqada Culture and the A-Group Culture.” The Journal of Egyptian Archaeology.
• Joffe, Aleander J. (2000). “Egypt and Syro-Mesopotamia in the 4th millennium: implications of the new chronology.” Current Anthropology.
• “Mining for ancient copper. Essays in memory of Beno Rothenberg.” WorldCat.
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• Śliwa, Joachim. (2014). “The Nile Delta as a Center of Cultural Interaction Between Upper Egypt and the Southern Levant in the 4th Millennium BC.” Studies in ancient art and civilization.
• Josephson, Jack A.; Dreyer, Gunter. (2015). “Naqada IId: The Birth of an Empire Kingship, Writing, Organized Religion.” Journal of the American Research Center in Egypt.
• Bard, Kathryn A. (2015). An introduction to the archaeology of Ancient Egypt. John Wiley & Sons.
• Ciałowicz, Krzysztof Marek. (2017). “New Discoveries at Tell el-Farkha and the Beginnings of the Egyptian State.” Études et Travaux.
• Adamski, Bartosz; Rosińska-Balik, Karolina. (2014). “Brewing Technology in Early Egypt.” Studies in African Archaeology.
• Shaw, Ian. (2002). The Oxford History of Ancient Egypt. Oxford University Press.
• Aston, Barbara G., Harrell, James A., Shaw, Ian. (2000). “Stone,” in Ancient Egyptian Materials and Technology. Cambridge University Press.
• “Nubia: Corridor to Africa.” Museum of Fine Arts, Boston.
• Brace, C. Loring. (1993). “Clines and Clusters Versus ‘Race’.”
• Keita, S.O.Y. (2022). “Race and Misinterpretation of History in the Nile Valley.”
• Hanihara et al. (2003). “Craniometric Studies.”
• Keita, S.O.Y. (1996). “Early Nile Valley Populations.”
• Boyce, A.J. (1996). “Studies of Crania from Southern Predynastic Egypt.”
• Lovell and Prowse. (1996). “Skeletal Evidence for Social Organization in Prehistoric Egypt.”
• Godde, K. (2018). “Population Relationships in the Nile Valley.”
• Ehret, Christopher. (2023). “The Peopling of Ancient Egypt and the Deciphering of Meroitic Script.”
• Stiebling, William; Helft, Susan N. (2020). “Genetics and the Peopling of Egypt.”

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