The "Intermediate Periods" in the Ancient Egyptian History and Historiography

Abstract

The so-called “Intermediate Periods” were traditionally described as “dark ages,” times of decay, revolution or anarchy, opposite to the historical processes where the State was unified and sustained the control over the Egyptian territory, at least the core which extended from Elephantine to the Delta. Furthermore, their naming through a numerical order (“First,” “Second,” and “Third”) as well as their qualification as “Intermediates” suggests certain similarity and sequential order which are far from the facts proven by the evidence. The aim of this work is differentiating the underlying premises lying beneath the analyses of such periods, the common factors detected and the singularities which define each of these disruptive processes.