Home | Category: Government, Military and Justice / Economics
PUNT
Egyptian Empire around 1500 BC
Punt, a mysterious fabled land south of Egypt, supplied Egypt with myrrh, ebony, ivory, gold, spices, panther skins, live baboons and other exotic animals and frankincense. The exact location of Punt is still unknown. It may have been in modern-day Somalia, Yemen, Eritrea, or Oman. Traders crossed the Eastern desert and sailed from the Red Sea to get there. Much of what is known about Punt is based on reliefs found on the wall of the Deir el Bahri temple, built around 1490 B.C. in western Thebes. The reliefs show trade between rulers of Punt and emissaries of Queen Hatshepsut.
Candida Moss wrote in the Daily Beast: When the ancient Egyptians thought of mysterious and wealthy kingdoms they spoke of “God’s Land” or the Land of Punt. Expeditions to this kingdom — which was rich in gold, ebony, ivory, and frankincense — were memorialized by the Egyptians on the walls of temples and alluded to in ancient folklore. But despite the fact that the Land of Punt was a real place and a major trading partner of Egypt’s, its precise location had been lost. Now new evidence, based on a mummified baboon skull, may help unlock the secrets of this lost civilization. [Source: Candida Moss, Daily Beast, January 4, 2021]
The Red Sea and ancient Egypt were part of a trade network that drove maritime technology for thousands of years. Punt also formed part of this ancient spice route and was well known for exporting luxury goods, in particular high-quality incense and prized sacred monkeys. Ancient sources suggest that travelers could reach Punt by journeying south and east of Egypt, leading some to identify the kingdom with Ethiopia or the horn of Africa, but the exact location of this country is a mystery.
Baboon mummies found in Egypt are believed to have originated in Punt. Kathryn Bard, an archaeologist at Boston University who excavated a site on Egypt’s Red Sea coastline, told Science that ebony and obsidian fragments she discovered at Wadi Gawasis probably came from Punt. During her excavations there she also uncovered Sudanese/Ethiopic style pottery fragments. Some archaeologist say that while the ebony artifacts from Wadi Gawasis are important, the widespread distribution of ebony throughout Africa means that they cannot be definitively identified as originating in Punt.
In any case, the artifacts help demonstrate the influence that ancient Ethiopia and Eritrea had on the cultural and religious thought of Egypt and, through Egypt, on the rest of the ancient Mediterranean. This recognition is important because Ethiopia and Eritrea rarely figure in popular histories of the ancient world. Instead, popular imagination focuses on ancient empires that have been traditionally — and, often, inaccurately — conceived of as white.
Punt — The Land of the Divine
Punt, a mysterious fabled land south of Egypt, supplied Egypt with myrrh, ebony, ivory, gold, spices, panther skins, live baboons and other exotic animals and frankincense. The exact location of Punt is still unknown. It may have been in modern-day Somalia, Yemen or Oman. Traders crossed the Eastern desert and sailed from the Red Sea to get there. Much of what is known about Punt is based on reliefs found on the wall of the Deir el Bahri temple, built around 1490 B.C. in western Thebes. The reliefs show trade between rulers of Punt and emissaries of Queen Hatshepsut.
ship carrying frankincense and other stuff
The ancient Egyptians called Punt the “Divine Land” or the “Land of Gods”. It was considered of old by the Egyptians as the original source of incense and other precious things. Not to much should be attached to the names as they were general terms created by commerce, such as the word Levant of modern times. [Source: Adolph Erman, “Life in Ancient Egypt”, 1894]
The Divine Land signified originally only the East, where God, such as Ra, appeared daily; in common parlance the term was applied probably to the mountainous desert between the Nile and the Red Sea, the peninsula of Sinai, and also doubtless to the northern and central part of Arabia. Punt, on the other hand, evidently signified the more tropical coast lands of the Red Sea, the south of Arabia, and the Somali coast.
There were stories related to Punt about ants or griffins seeking gold in the desert and gigantic birds collecting precious stones in the nests they have built high up in the mighty mountains. It was said that even ivory could not possibly have been obtained from the prosaic elephant, it must be the horn of the noble unicorn. The spices and essences must come from wonderful islands lying far away in the ocean; there the sailors find them at certain times lying on the strand, guarded only by spirits or by snakes. The air is so heavy with the fragrance that they emit, that it is necessary to burn asafoetida (a gum from a variety of giant fennel) and goat's hair to counteract the excess of sweet scents.
Expeditions to Punt?
In the reign of Mentuhotep III (11th dynasty, ca. 2000 BC), an officer named Hannu organized one or more voyages to Punt, but it is uncertain whether he personally traveled on these expeditions.Trading missions of the 12th dynasty pharaohs Senusret I, Amenemhat II and Amenemhat IV had also successfully navigated their way to and from Punt,
The route its seems began at Coptos (Qift), north of Luxor, and went past the quarries of Hammamat, to the Red Sea, where boats were taken to Punt. The route to the Red Sea had been used since the Old Kingdom to reach the mines of Sinai" and to the incense countries. Snefru, a builder of of the earliest pyramids, and “treasurers of the god," and their subordinate officials,'' traveled along this road — in all probability almost the same route used by caravans that operated until fairly recent times.
An inscription attributed to Hannu (Henu), the chief treasurer, the commander in the desert, the chief in the mountains, satisfying the two Egypts, the much feared and zealously loved, "has engraved in Hammamat” the following: “His Majesty commissioned me to fit out ships for Punt, in order to fetch fresh incense from the princes, the chiefs of the red country,' for the fear of him pursues the barbarians. Behold, as I marched out of the town of Coptos on the way that his Majesty had commanded me, I had troops from the south countries with me, who prepared the way before me, and subjected all that were adversely disposed towards the king. Thus I marched out with an army of 3,000 men. There were all manner of artisans also who followed the soldiers.
The route of the journey was through various places unknown to us, and everything was so well arranged that Hannu was able to give to each of his men two jugs of water and twenty cakes of bread daily. Furthermore, he dug two deep wells in the country of 'Edahet, and a third in the country of 'Eaheteb. He relates also: “I reached the sea, and I built this ship, and I equipped it entirely and prepared a great sacrifice for it of calves, oxen, and gazelles. But when I had returned from the sea and had fulfilled everything that his Majesty had commanded me, I brought him all the products that I had found in the districts of the Divine Land. " Hannu, not content with what he had already accomplished on this journey, made his way back by the stone quarries of Hammamat, and “brought blocks of stone for colossi and statues of the temple.”
Journey to Punt
As we see, Hannu did not go himself to Punt. He marched with his men from Coptos to the Red Sea; there he equipped a ship, and assured to her a lucky voyage by the sacrifices which he offered to the gods. Unfortunately we learn nothing about this voyage, though the fact alone that the Egyptians of the 11th dynasty made voyages to Punt is of importance. Were it not for this inscription of Hannu, and another of the chief-treasurer Chentchetuer, who under Amenemhat II "returned happily from Punt — his soldiers were with him, hale and hearty, and his ships landed at Sauu,"
Hatsheput’s Expedition to Punt
Around the second courtyard of Hatshepsut's Temple at Deir el Bahri are famous reliefs showing a trading expedition that Hatshepsut sent to the Land of Punt, believed to be located on the Horn of Africa in of present-day Somalia-Eritrea. Myrrh trees were brought back from the expedition and planted in the temple complex. Their resin was later used in temple rituals. [Source: David Rull Ribó, National Geographic, March 7, 2024]
David Rull Ribó wrote in National Geographic History: The expedition reached Punt by sailing along the shores of the Red Sea. The Egyptians loaded their ships with a cargo of ivory, cinnamon, incense, cosmetics, and animal skins. The relief on the portico highlights the myrrh trees and also depicts Hatshepsut presenting the cargo from Punt to the god Amun as an offering. [Source: David Rull Ribó, National Geographic, March 7, 2024]
Fragments of the relief are in the Cairo Museum. According to the museum; The expedition was sent in order to obtain exotic goods for Hatsheput’s treasury and her pleasure – exotic animals, gold, ebony. One of the relief depicts king Parehu and queen Ati. The king is very slender and wears a kilt with a long sash, two under-tassels and a dagger tucked into the waistband. His long, slender beard distinguishes him as a foreigner. The queen is excessively overweight with extreme curvature of the spine, rolls of fat on arms, body and legs. She wears a sleeveless dress, belted at the waist, a necklace with large disk beads, bracelets and anklets. On the right edge is a partial depiction of two rows of gold rings in baskets and a third of undetermined identification.
The representations of the temple of Der el Bahri belong to that remarkable period when the Egyptians, freed from the yoke of years of foreign rule, began to feel themselves a power in the world. It was as if the veil which concealed the world had fallen from their eyes; the Pharaohs carried their conquering arms as far as the Euphrates and the Blue Nile, and Egypt became the central point of anterior Asia and of East Africa. Then the Egyptians called to mind also the ancient marvellous countries of the Red Sea; and the mighty Queen Hatsheput sent out an expedition to investigate them." [Source: Adolph Erman, “Life in Ancient Egypt”, 1894]
Journey to Punt
Images of the Punt Expedition at Hatshepsut's Temple
Images of Punt at Queen Hatsheput’s temple at Deir el Bahri show little villages hidden amongst great trees and curious gigantic plants consisting of small semiconical huts, built on piles to protect them from the enemy and from wild animals, a ladder being the only means by which it is possible to reach the hole which serves for a door. Amongst the houses lie small short-horned cows, and the donkeys which the people of Punt employ as beasts of burden or for riding.
The people of Punt still wear the same skirt, plait their hair into the same pigtail, and wear the same pointed beard as was worn in the incense countries in the ancient times of King Khufu. More than a thousand years had therefore elapsed without any essential change having taken place in the costume of the people of Punt.
The inhabitants of the village advance as suppliants to meet the Egyptian as they disembark; the latter regard them with little respect, and especially make merry over the wife of the chief. The shape of her legs, of her breasts, and above all of her back, is very different than than those Egyptians. Her clothing consists of a short yellow shirt and a thick collar. This woman is so stout that she is unable to walk, and the artist, who has evidently enjoyed perpetuating her on the temple walls of Der el Bahri, has not failed therefore to represent behind her husband a donkey with a saddle, the “donkey which carries his wife. " [Source: Adolph Erman, “Life in Ancient Egypt”, 1894]
The “treasures of the land of Punt “are obtained from the natives, who heap up incense before the “royal ambassador “and his soldiers, and also lead forward monkeys and panthers — the Egyptians also have put up a table on the beach, which is covered with things to rejoice the heart of a native of Punt, such as daggers and battleaxes, and gay necklets. When the bargains have been concluded to the satisfaction of both sides, the “great men of this land “are conducted into the “tent of the royal ambassador, who presents them with bread, beer, wine, meat, fruits, and all the good things of Egypt, according to the command of the august court. "
On the planks leading to the ships the carriers pass ceaselessly to and fro; and “the ships are laden very high with the treasures of the land of Punt, and all the beautiful plants of the Divine Land; with heaps of incense; with great myrrh trees; with ebony, together with pure ivory; with white gold from the country Amu; with sweet-scented woods; with all manner of incense and eye pigments; with baboons, monkeys, and greyhounds; with skins of the panther of the south; with slaves and their children; never has the like been brought to any king whatsoever since the beginning of time. "
A superintendent causes all these heterogeneous articles to be carefully piled up on the ship, where the heap reaches nearly as high as the lower yard. The monkeys are allowed, nevertheless, to run about freely; during the homeward journey they enjoy clambering about on the strong sail that extends above the ship; one however seems to prefer to squat by the side of the captain, where with comical gravity he repeats his worship's gestures of command, doubtless to the ever-renewed delight of the sailors. When “the soldiers of the lord of the two countries have voyaged home in peace, and traveled to Thebes with joy," their arrival there is the occasion of quite a triumphal pageant. With green boughs in their hands, they enter the town in festive procession and bring their gifts to their lady ruler — Queen Hatsheput.
Incense Countries
myrrh
Incense from frankincense and myrrh were greatly prized in ancient Egypt. Today frankincense and myrrh are found mainly in Oman, Yemen and Somalia and it is believed they probably came from the same places in ancient times. These products had been long familiar to Egyptians. Even during the Old Kingdom incense and myrrh were necessary requisites for all religious services, and we even meet with a native of the incense countries, the African Hert'es'e, amongst the servants of one of the sons of King Khufu, the builder of the Great Pyramid of Giza. Nevertheless even centuries later Punt and the Incense Countries were were considered by the Egyptian people to be mythical lands. [Source: Adolph Erman, “Life in Ancient Egypt”, 1894]
To the Egyptians of the Middle Kingdom the incense countries appeared to be fabulous realms. A few centuries later and this mist of romance cleared away; even the common people could no longer believe the country of Punt to be an island inhabited by snakes, after Queen Hatsheput had caused it to be represented in her great temple, with its inhabitants, its villages, its plants and its animals.
The commerce of Egypt with the incense countries scarcely seems to have left any lasting effect on either side. A a few foreign names for various sorts of incense made their way into the Egyptian language, and the curious figure of the god Besa, who from the time of the New Kingdom was honoured in Egypt as a protecting genius, probably owed his introduction into Egypt to this trade. Yet, the influence which these countries of the Red Sea exercised on Egypt was at all events quite insignificant compared to that due to Palestine and Syria.
See Separate Article: FRANKINCENSE AND MYRRH africame.factsanddetails.com FRANKINCENSE TRAIL: HISTORY, TRADE, ROUTES, CITIES africame.factsanddetails.com
Journey to Punt to Get Incense
In a texts discovered and translated by Vladimir Golenischeff (1856– 1947), there is a description of a journey to obtain incense in Punt. It goes: In one of the harbours of the Red Sea lies the fleet, which the soldiers of her Majesty are to conduct into that distant country; the stately vessels are about 65 feet in length, and they are provided with thirty rowers and with gigantic sails, which stand out like wings beyond both sides of the ships. The great jars, which contain the provisions, are being conveyed on board by a rowing boat; on the shore however, near the trees to which the ships are tied, a sacrifice is being offered to the goddess “Hathor, the lady of Punt," that “she may send the wind. " Then the sails are hoisted up, the sailors climb on the yards to make fast the last ropes, the rowers dip their long oars in the water, and from the wooden partitions in the bows, in which the two captains stand, resounds the command to larboard. The ships begin to move, and thus “the royal soldiers voyage on the sea, they begin their beautiful journey to the Divine Land, and voyage happily to Punt. "
We do not learn how long the voyage lasted; if we judge by the time which the Arabs of today take for their voyages in the Red Sea, we may perhaps conclude that the fleet spent a month at sea before it sighted the shores of the wonder-land they sought gifts, “the like of which had never before been brought to any other king. "
Amongst them, there are indeed “two have panthers, which are to follow her majesty"; and what awakens still greater astonishment, "thirty-one growing incense trees, which have been brought over amongst the treasures of Punt for the majesty of this god, Amun-Ra. No one has ever seen the like since the world was created. "
It seems, moreover, that it was especially this latter achievement of Queen Hatsheput that excited particular admiration and emulation, for Thutmose III also received from the inhabitants of Punt a growing incense tree; and when, three centuries later. King Ramses III. caused his great ships to visit the countries of "the great sea of the r such as South Arabia, these trees were again considered to be a very important part of the spoil that the expedition brought from the Divine Land and from Punt. "
Tale of Being Shipwrecked on an Incense Island
A wild traveler's tale contained in a St. Petersburg papyrus of the Middle Kingdom shows that for a long time the Egyptian people cherished similar ideas about the incense countries. “I was traveling to the mines of the Pharaoh," relates some treasurer, “and I had put to sea in a ship which was 150 cubits long and 40 cubits broad, and was manned by 150 of the choicest Egyptian sailors, who knew both the sky and the earth, and in whom the heart was wiser than that of a lion. [Source: Adolph Erman, “Life in Ancient Egypt”, 1894]
“They had said that the wind would not be bad, that, indeed, it might be quite calm; but when we were on the sea there arose a gale, and scarcely did we near the land when the wind rose, and the waves became 8 cubits high. I alone, I seized a piece of wood; all the others who were in the ship perished without exception. A wave washed me on to an island after I had spent three days alone (in the sea) with my heart together alone. Then I lay down in a thicket, and it became dark before my eyes (?). At last I set out to seek for some food for my mouth. There I found figs and grapes, all manner of plants and fruits," all kinds of melons, fish, and birds. Nothing was wanting. Then I ate until I was satisfied; and what I had taken that was too much for me, I laid down for myself on the ground. Then I made a pit, lighted a fire, and offered a burnt sacrifice to the gods.
“Suddenly I heard a noise of thunder, which I thought to be the roar of a wave; the trees trembled and the earth shook. I raised my face and saw that it was a snake approaching; he was 30 cubits in length, and his beard was more than 2 cubits long. His limbs were inlaid with gold, and his color was like real lapis-lazuli. He rolled forwards and opened his mouth; I threw myself down before him, and he spake: ' Who has brought thee hither? who has brought thee hither, little one? who has brought thee hither? If thou dost not tell me immediately who brought thee hither, then I will show thee who thou art! ' . . .
relief shows incense and myrrh trees obtained by Hatshepsut's expedition to Punt
“Then he took me in his mouth, carried me to his lair, and laid me down without doing me any harm: I remained unhurt, and nothing happened to me. Then he opened his mouth towards me, I threw myself down before him and he spake: ' Who has brought thee hither? who has brought thee hither, Httle one? who has brought thee to this island, which is situate in the sea, and whose shore is surrounded by the waves? ' Then I answered him, bowing myself before him with my arms by my sides: ' I had by command of the Pharaoh embarked for the quarries on a ship 150 cubits long and 40 cubits broad, that was manned by 150 of the best Egyptian sailors, who had knowledge of both heaven and earth, and in whom the heart was wiser than that of a lion. They emulated each other in wisdom of heart, and in strength of arm, and I was indeed their equal. They had said that the wind would not be bad, and that it might be quite calm; but when we were on the sea, there arose a gale, and scarcely had we neared the land, when the wind rose and the waves became 8 cubits high. I alone, I seized a piece of wood; all the others who were in the ship perished without exception during those three days. Here I am now at thy dwelling-place, for a wave has washed me on to this island. '
“Then he said to me, ' Fear thou not, fear thou not, little one, and let not thy face be anxious. For if thou hast reached me, then it is God who has preserved thy life. He has brought thee to this spirit-island, where nothing is wanting, and which is plenteous in all good things. Behold, thou wilt remain here one month after another, until thou hast spent four months on this island. Then a ship will come with sailors out of thy country, and thou wilt be able to return with them into thy country. Thou shalt die in thy native land. Conversation is a joy, it helps us to while away sad times; I will therefore relate to thee what is on this island. I live here with my brothers and my children, surrounded by them; we are seventy-five snakes with the children and the domestics, and another maiden. . . . If thou art strong and hast a patient spirit, then shalt thou press thy children to thy heart and embrace thy wife; thou shalt again see thy home, which is of all things the best, and shalt return to th\country and live with thy friends. '
“Then I bowed myself down and threw myself on the ground before him, and spake; ' I will give thee this answer: I will tell the Pharaoh of thee; I will describe to him how great thou art, and will cause to be brought to thee the sacred oil Ab, and frankincense, and cassia, and incense, such as is set aside for the temple use, and with which all the gods are honoured. Then I will relate to him what I have experienced, and thanks shall be rendered to thee before the whole country. I will slay donkeys as offerings to thee; I will pluck geese for thee, and will cause ships to be brought to thee with all the treasures of Egypt, as one should do for a god, who is favorable to mankind in a foreign land that is unknown to the people. '
“Then he laughed at my speech, because of what he thought of it, and said: ' In truth thou art not rich in niyrrh. for all that is only common incense. I, however, the prince cjf the land of Punt, I possess myrrh. The oil heken alone, which thou shalt cause to be brought to me, is rare on this island. But (trouble not thyself to send it to me, for) as soon as thou shalt have departed from this place, thou shalt never see this island again: it will be changed into water. '
“And behold when the ship came as he had prophesied, I climbed up into a high tree, in order to see who should be therein. Then I went to tell him, but he knew it already. Then he said to me: ' Return home in peace, little one; mayest thou see thy children again, and leave behind thee a good name in thy city; this is my desire for thee. '
“Then I bowed myself before him with my arms by my sides, and he gave me presents of myrrh, of the oil heken, of frankincense and cassia, of the woods teshepes and sha'as, of panther-skins (?), of inerery wood, of much common incense, of elephants' teeth, of greyhounds, of the Gitf monkeys and the Kiu monkeys, and of all manner of precious things. I caused all to be taken on board the ship that had arrived, and I thanked him, whilst I threw myself down before him. Then he said to me: ' Behold, after two months thou shalt arrive in thine own country, and shalt press thy children to thy heart, and shalt (sometime) rest safely in thy tomb. '
“Then I descended to the shore to the ship and called the sailors. And on the shore I thanked the lord of this island and all who lived upon it. When, after spending two months on the return journey, as he had said, we reached the residence of the Pharaoh, we betook ourselves to the palace. I entered in to the Pharaoh, and delivered to him the presents which I had brought home from that island. Then he thanked me before the face of the whole country. "
Baboon Mummies Helps Locate Punt
baboon mummy
Hamadryas baboon was considered sacred. These dog-faced and sometimes aggressive primates were mummified and portrayed in images in temples and monoliths. Sacred ones were kept at temples and enshrined in death at catacombs, where priest prayed and made offerings to them. The Egyptians may have succeeded in domesticating baboons as well as cranes, ibex, gazelles and oryx.
There are old stories that the ancient Egyptians obtained the baboons from the fabled, mysterious land of Punt. Though Punt is mentioned and depicted in ancient Egyptian documents and images, it was never located on a map. In 2020, Nathaniel Dominy, a primatologist at Dartmouth College used molecules from ancient baboon mummy teeth to reveal the baboons' diets in early life; he found that they came from a region encompassing modern-day Somalia, Eritrea and Ethiopia. The baboons in that study dated back to Egypt's New Kingdom, between 1550 B.C. to 1070B.C. It was the first hard evidence for the location of Punt.[Source: Stephanie Pappas, Live Science, November 21, 2023]
Gisela Kopp, the German geneticist, was the leader of a study on the baboon DNA that provided further evidence o where the ancient Egyptian baboons came from and narrowed down the location. In a study published September 28, 2023 in the journal eLife, they managed to extract DNA from a mummified baboon dating to between 800 B.C. and 540 B.C. They then compared that DNA to the genetics of 14 baboons from the 19th and 20th centuries whose origins were known. DNA can give more specific geographic locations than the previous method of discerning diet, Kopp said. Many baboons were captive-bred in Egypt, and diet can't reveal anything about their ancestry. DNA, on the other hand, can.
See Separate Article: BABOONS IN ANCIENT EGYPT: ORIGIN, MUMMIES, ART, RELIGION africame.factsanddetails.com
Image Sources: Wikimedia Commons
Text Sources: UCLA Encyclopedia of Egyptology, escholarship.org ; Internet Ancient History Sourcebook: Egypt sourcebooks.fordham.edu ; Tour Egypt, Minnesota State University, Mankato, ethanholman.com; Mark Millmore, discoveringegypt.com discoveringegypt.com; Metropolitan Museum of Art, National Geographic, Smithsonian magazine, New York Times, Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, Discover magazine, Times of London, Natural History magazine, Archaeology magazine, The New Yorker, BBC, Encyclopædia Britannica, Time, Newsweek, Wikipedia, Reuters, Associated Press, The Guardian, AFP, Lonely Planet Guides, “World Religions” edited by Geoffrey Parrinder (Facts on File Publications, New York); “History of Warfare” by John Keegan (Vintage Books); “History of Art” by H.W. Janson Prentice Hall, Englewood Cliffs, N.J.), Compton’s Encyclopedia and various books and other publications.
Last updated August 2024