On the Backs of Administrators: The Families of High Officials in Dynasty XIII

Abstract

In 1984, Detlef Franke published his Personendaten aus dem mittleren Reich, which compiled dossiers of officials in the Middle Kingdom with titles, attestations, and family relations. This important work paved the way for more complex social and prosopographical studies of the Middle Kingdom. Wolfram Grajetzki's Die Höchsten Beamten der ägyptischen Zentralverwaltung zur Zeit des mittleren Reiches: Prosopographie, Titel und Titelreihen, was one such that furthered the knowledge in this area. Using such works, scholars of ancient Egypt are able to compare and contrast hundreds of officials, and consider aspects of the socio-economic climate of the Middle Kingdom. Much focus has been given to the individual in this period, yet some of the broader trends and wider considerations have gone unexplored to any great length. This thesis aims to contribute to this with an assessment of small groups of officials, in Dynasty XIII specifically. In particular, the context of various officials within their family, and that of their family within the administration will be produced and analysed. Through a collation of attestations for the nine officials chosen, further exploration of social structures of the late Middle Kingdom can be conducted. These men represent various sectors of the administration of the time, and had immediate family members who were also active officials. The family members will be charted, and separated by the sphere of the administration in which they worked. Through a comparison of these, it will be shown that most of these families had members spread across the multiple arms of the state apparatus. The importance of these family groups has been accepted, yet the exact nature of how they operated has not been clear. From these findings it is evident that the administration was dominated by groups of officials, often comprised of related men. These groups were utilised to achieve personal goals, and to increase the influence of the individual families. Though some were connected to the royal family, it was these collectives of colleagues and relatives who ensured the successful continuation of the state administration, both centrally and locally.