The Ancient Kingdom era in the history of Egypt is a time of large-scale penetration of the early centralized state beyond the Nile Valley in order to gain control over the resources of the surrounding areas and routes to them. The territory of ancient Nubia was a traditional source of precious stones, metals, wood, precious stones and other types of exotic raw materials for Egypt. The exploitation of Nubian wealth was a complex organizational and logistical task, which involved creating a well-developed infrastructure and resource base capable of ensuring the effective operation of Egyptian state expeditions in the mines and quarries, as well as commercial enterprises and military campaigns. The purpose of this article is to trace the stages and patterns of development of the Egyptian expedition infrastructure in Nubia in the era of the Ancient Kingdom.

Keywords: Ancient Egypt, Nubia, Ancient kingdom, desert, expeditions, mines, quarries.

AWAY FROM NATIVE BANKS: ANCIENT EGYPTIANS AND THEIR SEARCH FOR THE REACHES OF NUBIA DURING THE OLD KINGDOM

Maxim LEBEDEV

Along with trade and military ventures ancient Egyptian expeditions to mines and quarries beyond the Nile Valley were one of the most important means of interaction with alien geographical regions and ethnical groups for supplying the Egyptian civilization with raw materials and prestige commodities. Nubian lands had always been an important source of primary products consumed by the Egyptian elite: gneiss, copper, semi-precious stones, exotic goods, and gold along with livestock and manpower were exported from Nubia to Egypt since at least the Early Dynastic period. However, there is still much uncertainty on the nature of contacts between the Egyptian and Nubian societies during the Old Kingdom. The obvious lack of both written and archaeological sources complicate the process of understanding the real scale of the Egyptian military, economic, and cultural penetration into the lands to the south of the First Cataract during the third millennium

The article was supported by the Russian Humanitarian Science Foundation (RGNF), project 12-01-00476 "Diachronic trends in the development of ancient civilizations of the Nile Valley".

LEBEDEV Maxim Aleksandrovich-Candidate of Historical Sciences, Researcher at the Institute of Oriental Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow, maximlebedev@mail.ru.

Maxim LEBEDEV - PdD in History, Research Fellow, Department of History. Institute of Oriental Studies, Russian Academy of Sciences. Moscow; e-mail: maximlebedev@mail.ru.

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ВС. The aim of this paper is to consider the ancient Egyptian expedition activities in Nubia during the Old Kingdom and to formulate some questions raised by recent discoveries in the field.

Keywords: Ancient Egypt, Nubia, Old Kingdom, desert, expeditions, mines, quarries, archaeology.

The ancient Egyptians fully appreciated the Nile Valley, its fertility and unique climate. "Two banks" was the name they gave Nora to their country, which stretched along the great African river from the First Cataract in the south to the Mediterranean Sea in the north. Any prolonged activity far from their native "shores", even in the same Nile Valley, but to the south of the I Nile threshold, was considered a risky and complex enterprise. However, the monuments that have come down to us, which were the product of elites, conveyed only some aspects of the interaction of the ancient Egyptians with the surrounding areas and remained a reflection of the official ideology, according to which Egypt was surrounded by alien and poorly adapted territories. In reality, the attitude to the surrounding Nile Valley lands, obviously, was very ambiguous. Foreign territories were not only a source of all sorts of dangers, but also the place of origin of valuable resources necessary for the development of Egyptian civilization and the maintenance of developing prestigious consumption - manpower, livestock, wood, metals, gems, hard rocks, exotic goods. Savannas and deserts surrounding the Nile Valley in the 3rd millennium BC. They provided a variety of opportunities for the enrichment of many categories of Valley residents - officials, warriors, hunters, craftsmen, merchants, as well as foreigners in contact with the Egyptians. As early as the end of the fourth millennium BC, the Egyptians apparently knew most of the most important mineral deposits available to expeditions from the Sinai Valley to the second Nile Cataract. At the same time or a little later, in the second quarter of the 3rd millennium BC, Egyptian expeditions began to reach the legendary country of Punt. How were such distant enterprises organized? Who participated in them? How was the logistics of moving people and cargo provided? The answers to these questions are becoming increasingly clear in the light of recent archaeological discoveries.

THE RICHES OF NUBIA

The ancient area between the I and VI Nile cataracts is traditionally known as Nubia. Bordering Egypt, the Nubian lands have traditionally been a source of important natural resources for the Egyptian economy - gneiss, copper, gold, semiprecious stones, and other exotic materials. Along with manpower and livestock, these resources were the mainstay of Nubian exports to Egypt.

The nature of Egyptian contacts with archaic Nubian societies during the Ancient Kingdom is still poorly understood [Naser, 2013]. The objective lack of both written and archaeological sources, especially those that have come down from the early Ancient Kingdom, does not allow researchers to assess the real scale of military, economic and cultural penetration of the ancient Egyptian civilization in the lands south of the I Nile Threshold during the 3rd millennium BC. However, it is known that already in the Pre-Dynastic and Early Dynastic During periods of Egyptian history, and then into the early Ancient Kingdom, the Egyptians brought several types of strategically important and valuable materials from Nubia.

Copper. Copper was probably of the greatest importance in the Eneolithic period. The fortress of Buchen, founded a few kilometers north of the Second Nile Cataract by King Snefru or one of his closest predecessors, was probably primarily intended to provide control over the trade routes to the south leading to Dongola

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on the territory of modern Sudan. The Egyptian fortification became an important center for processing local copper. The copper ore samples found in the settlement, which are characterized by a significant gold content, may originate from known deposits in the immediate vicinity to the south of the fortress (Gayar and Jones, 1989). This, however, does not mean that the fortress did not receive ore from Nubian deposits in the Eastern Desert. One of these sources could be, for example, Wadi Allaki. In addition to Buhen, copper smelting was recorded on Elephantine, which could be the second most important Egyptian center for processing Nubian raw materials.

Gold. Another important raw material exported from Nubia under the kings of the Ancient Kingdom may have been gold. The gold deposits of Nubia were actively developed by the Egyptians during the New Kingdom era. As for the 3rd millennium BC, the main sources of Egyptian gold, apparently, were located at that time in the Egyptian Eastern Desert [Klemm, Klemm, 2013, p. 602 (FIG. 7.1)]. Historiography has suggested that in the era of the Ancient Kingdom, the gold deposits of Nubia were not yet known to the Egyptians, who allegedly exported mainly valuable stone rocks from the neighboring southern lands [Piotrovskii, 1966, pp. 80-82]. However, modern archaeological evidence suggests that at least some of the Nubian gold mines were known to the Egyptians as early as the time of the Great Pyramids. It is no coincidence that at the end of the Fifth Dynasty, shortly before the Egyptians stopped direct exploitation of the land south of the 1st Nile threshold, Nubia was first called the "land of gold" in the temple of King Jedkar-Isesi (Grimm, 1988). The gold mines at Duweishat, Tinari, Abu Sari, and Abu Siha have been developed since at least the beginning of the 3rd millennium BC. they may have been visited during the Ancient Kingdom [Klemm, Klemm, 2013, p. 604]. The Egyptians were aware of gold deposits in the Nile Valley between Buhen and Kerma, because, as already mentioned, they apparently mined copper in this area (Peden, 2001, p. 12). The Wadi Marahig mines in the Wadi Allaki area may also have been developed during the Ancient Kingdom, as large stone hammers typical of pre-Dynastic, Early Dynastic and Ancient Kingdom gold mining were found on their territory [Klemm, Klemm, 2013, p. 318-319].

Gneiss and semiprecious stones. The Egyptians exported valuable rocks from Nubia, among which gneiss was the most important, which the Egyptians valued for its hardness and beautiful coloring. The only known gneiss deposit accessible to Egyptians from the Nile Valley was located in the Gebel al-Asr area, 65 kilometers northwest of Abu Simbel. In addition to gneiss, amethyst and carnelian were mined here. The quarries of Gebel el-Asra were developed from the end of the pre-dynastic period to the end of the Fifth Dynasty, and then work on them was resumed during the XII Dynasty during the Middle Kingdom.

During the sixth Dynasty, the Egyptians abandoned direct mining of Nubian minerals. The fortress of Buhen, and with it all the infrastructure for mining and processing copper ore in the region, was abandoned by the Egyptians. At the same time, Egyptian expeditions stopped visiting the quarries of Gebel el-Asra. However, the Nubian tribes continued to provide the Egyptians with labor, as well as supply them with timber and other exotic goods. It is possible that the Nubians supported the development of copper, gold and gneiss for trade purposes.

Climate of Nubia in the early Ancient Kingdom. The most important factor influencing the development and character of ancient Egyptian expedition activity in Nubia was the climate, which underwent dramatic changes in the 3rd millennium BC. Archaeological evidence obtained from excavations of quarries and infrastructure facilities of the Ancient Kingdom in Gebel el-Asr suggests that Egyptian workers had enough wood and water in the vicinity to dig out the mud.-

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rock with bonfires and prepare food and beer on site. The depth of the wells found, which usually does not exceed 1 meter, indicates that even in the middle of the 3rd millennium BC, the climate of the Lower Nubian Western Desert was significantly different from the modern one, and the Gebel el-Asra quarry was surrounded by a grass-acacia savanna, now characteristic of much more southern latitudes of central Sudan (Bloxam, 2003 (1), p. 68-75]. Thus, for most of the Ancient Kingdom, working conditions in the quarries of Lower Nubia were much more comfortable than one might think, looking at the modern harsh climate of this region.

The very name of the quarry, which was used during the IV Dynasty , could indicate the importance of the Carcass with its supposedly rich fish and poultry resources for the participants of the ancient Egyptian expedition teams working in Gebel el-Asr.1 The aridization of the climate at the end of the Ancient Kingdom may have been one of the reasons for the drastic reduction in the use of gneiss, the only source of which was the Gebel el-Asra quarries, in the royal sculpture [Shaw et al., 2010, p. 305]. During the Middle Kingdom, when the climate already resembled the modern one, the main object of extraction in Gebel el-Asr was chalcedony, which, unlike large gneiss blocks, could be transported across the desert even after the Wadi Tushki was dried up.

RESOURCE AND INFRASTRUCTURE BASE OF EGYPTIAN EXPEDITIONS TO NUBIA IN THE ANCIENT KINGDOM ERA

The organization of any expedition outside Egypt, whether it was a military enterprise, a commercial enterprise, or a group of workers sent to the mines or quarries, required the creation of appropriate infrastructure and the mobilization of the necessary human resources. The available data show that the Egyptians already had an extensive expedition infrastructure in Nubia during the early Ancient Kingdom.

Fortified centers. Today, it is common in historiography that the decline of the Nubian archaeological culture of Group A at the turn of the Early Dynastic period and the Ancient Kingdom was associated with the active penetration of the Egyptians into Lower Nubia [Trigger, 1965, p.79; Seidlmayer, 1996, p. 112; Bloxam, 2003 (1), p. 98]. Today, most of the archaeological sites of Group A are hidden by the waters of Lake Nasser, so the reasons for the decline of societies that bear this culture remain poorly understood.

It is generally assumed that prior to the First Dynasty, Egyptian relations with the Nubian tribes were peaceful and mutually beneficial. At least, the sources available to date have not preserved evidence of major military conflicts in the region. During the First Dynasty, the Egyptians began to actively penetrate Nubia. This process was explained by the desire of the young centralized state to control the stable import of exotic products and rare resources, the development of which by the Egyptians began in Nubia (Adams, 1977; O'Connor, 1993). The Egyptians ' interest in Nubian imports was probably due to the increased demand for luxury goods. Excavations of an early dynastic fortress on the island of Elephantine (Seidlmayer, 1996, p. 111-113) indicate that the area of the First cataract was considered by the Egyptians as the most important contact zone and natural boundary of their possessions at least from the beginning of the 3rd millennium BC. One can only speculate how life was organized in the fortress and under whose direct control its Egyptian garrison was at the time of the fortress's foundation, but under the III dynasty, this fortified logistics center, judging by the many excavations found during the excavations.-

1 For a name that could mean "place of fishing / bird catching", see [Rowe, 1938, p. 393-395].

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according to the numerical seals, it was controlled directly from the residence in the north [Seidlmayer, 1996, p. 120-121]. At this time, there was a mixed Egyptian-Nubian population in and around Elephantine. It is possible that it was then, at the very beginning of the Ancient Kingdom, in the area of the 1st threshold, that a complex and very peculiar Egyptian-Nubian community of officials, warriors, merchants and workers began to form, closely connected with the state's expeditionary activity.

The only explored Egyptian fortified point of the Ancient Kingdom on the territory of Lower Nubia is the Buhen fortress in the area of the Second Cataract. Performing a military function, it, like the fortress on the island of Elephantine, was at the same time a major production and logistics center. The material obtained during the excavations draws an image of a purely Egyptian settlement. Only 5% of the ceramics found by archaeologists in Buchen belong to local forms, traditional for the Nubian culture of Group B [Emery, 1967, pp. 116-118], while the rest of the ceramic material was produced using Egyptian technologies either in Egypt itself or on site, in Buchen. numerous seal and ostrac prints bearing the names of kings such as Khafra, Menkaura, Userkaf, Sahura, Neferirkara, and Tiuserra found in Buhen attest to the active movement of human resources and goods through the fortress.

Buchen seems to be the most logical base for Egyptian expeditions going further south. It is known that in search of new deposits of useful raw materials, Egyptian specialists of the Ancient Kingdom era penetrated upstream of the Nile up to the town of Dhaka near Dahl [Adams, 1977, p. 174; Eichler, 1993, p. 117 (278-280)]. Buhen may have been the largest center of Egyptian influence in the region, but it may not be the only one. Unfortunately, the flooding of Lower Nubia by the waters of Lake Nasser currently precludes archaeological work within the ancient Nile Valley between Aswan and Wadi Halfa.

In the late fifth and early Sixth dynasties, the Egyptian expeditionary infrastructure in Nubia underwent significant changes. In addition to the aridization of the climate, Egyptians had to adapt to the new ethnic and political situation in the region. The impact of new factors significantly reduced Egyptian opportunities for direct development of Nubian deposits. According to epigraphic and archaeological sources, at the end of the Fifth Dynasty, the Egyptians stopped equipping expeditions to the quarries of Gebel el-Asra. The decline of Egyptian activity in quarries coincided with the abandonment of the fortress in Buhen and the spread of settlements of the new archaeological culture of Group C in Lower Nubia (Torok, 2009, pp. 57-64). Henceforth, the Egyptians dealt with various Nubian territorial-tribal formations formed by representatives of Group C-Vavat, Irchet, Sachu and Yam in the Nile Valley, as well as Medjai presumably in the Eastern Desert (Torok, 2009, p. 59-60).

Changes in the climate, political and ethnic situation have led Egyptian institutions to focus not on direct exploitation of Nubian lands, but on trade expedition activity, supported by sporadic military incursions. It seems that at the end of the Ancient Kingdom, the Egyptians significantly increased the number of expeditions to Nubia. Even if this impression is deceptive and can only be attributed to the growing number of written sources associated with the development of the autobiographical genre, it cannot be denied that the influx of resources to Egypt from Nubia remained significant throughout the sixth Dynasty. The changing nature of Egyptian expeditionary activity in Nubia during the late Old Kingdom era led to the formation of a new infrastructure, the center of which, after the loss of Buchen, was located in Elephantine.

At the end of the fifth Dynasty, Elephantine became the residence of major officials. The growing importance of this ancient contact zone was associated with the end of a long period of time

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Egyptian dominance in the Lower Nubian lands (Torok, 2009, pp. 57-64). Now Elephantine became the seat of new elites, whose power and wealth were closely linked to the state's expeditionary activity. It is interesting that archaeological evidence suggests that the new officials were careless about the monuments of their predecessors. This seems to indicate that the succession of elites in the late fifth and early Sixth dynasties was disrupted in Elephantine and the chiefs of expeditions who replaced the local rulers did not feel connected with the old elites. To use the words of D. Raue, the elites of the late fifth and early Sixth dynasties of Elephantine were "unable to develop a common cultural memory" [Raue, 2008, p. 6]. It can be assumed that new officials were subject to regular rotation.

In the reign of Peni II, however, the situation began to change. The elite of Elephantine was able to create a community interested in maintaining the memory of their leaders, some of whom began to be revered as local divine patrons already at the end of the VI dynasty [Raue, 2008, p.6-7]. It is to this, the second stage of the formation of the local elite's identity, that the most famous tombs of the expedition leaders based in Elephantine Sabni, son of Mehu, Pepinakht Hekaib and Harkhuf belong. It is interesting that similar processes took place in the Dakhla oasis, which, like Elephantine, was an important contact zone and was closely associated with expedition activity. At the end of the Ancient Kingdom, cults of oasis rulers were established, which may have been considered local divine patrons [Soukiassian et al., 2002, p. 37-96; Strudwick, 2005, p. 115, No. 28].

During the late sixth dynasty, local elites began to take new advantages from the growth of provincial self-awareness, which accompanied the accelerated regionalization of the country and the crisis of central power. The rulers of the first Upper Egyptian nome with its capital in Elephantine, however, according to extant autobiographical inscriptions, maintained close ties with the royal court. Like, for example, the Tinite Nome, which was considered a kind of royal domain, the situation in Elephantine remained very peculiar throughout the VI dynasty. In keeping with the general provincial trend of the end of the Ancient Kingdom, the chiefs of expeditions from Elephantine prepared their tombs in the local necropolis of Qubbet el-Hawa. However, as noted by G. D. Fischer, they concentrated their efforts not so much on managing the nome, but on fulfilling the royal orders. Royal inscriptions carved in the area of the 1st threshold indicate the interest of the Egyptian kings in the development of Elephantine as a border logistics center of state expedition activity. Some kings, such as Merenra, may have visited Threshold 1 in person [Urk. I, S. 110-111; Dissouky, 1969, p. 99-100]. During the time of Peni I, and it is also possible that later, the central administration participated in the development of the Satet sanctuary on the island of Elephantine, where a royal cult may have existed [Bussmann, 2007; Bussmann, 2010, p. 20-21, 27].

Residential and industrial infrastructure in the Nubian fields. Archaeological traces of Egyptian activity during the Ancient Kingdom era in Nubian copper and gold mines are still quite difficult to determine. It should be remembered, however, that the vast majority of ancient Nubian mines have not yet been subjected to systematic archaeological research, which in the future may shed additional light on the development of Egyptian infrastructure in the region. As for the Nubian quarries, the only source of Nubian stone that has so far been the subject of systematic archaeological research is the Gebel el-Asra quarries. By 2008, a joint British-Norwegian-Egyptian expedition had identified 41 large quarries and 624 small quarries in the Gebel al-Asra area, as well as 166 ancient infrastructure sites, including settlements, remnants of temporary camps, shelters, wells and loading ramps, spread over an area of approximately

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Ceramic and epigraphic materials indicate that most of the quarries were developed in the period from the late Neolithic to the end of the Fifth Dynasty.

Two settlements have been preserved from the Ancient Kingdom in the area of ancient gneiss developments. The first settlement at the time of the study was formed by small structures made of rough stone with a height of only one layer of masonry. In 2000, archaeologists investigated three of the largest oval-shaped "buildings". The main structure, measuring approximately 6 × 7 m, was used during food production. Inside it, several bread molds were found in situ, along with many animal bones, as well as a pit filled with kitchen waste - fragments of pottery, bones, ash and coals. Other findings also indicate that part of the settlement under study was devoted to food production [Bloxam, 2003 (1), p. 258; Shaw et al., 2010, p. 298-299] and beer production [Bloxam, 2005]. The bread molds identified during the excavations were made of local clay and burned at the time of bread preparation [Bloxam, 2003 (1), p. 259]. The ceramic material found at the settlement dates from the first to the end of the Fifth dynasty.

The second settlement of the Ancient Kingdom is formed by oval structures made of rough stones, preserved to a height of up to three rows, as well as several rectangular structures that make up a single complex. According to Ya. According to E. Bloxam, this settlement may have served as the location of the expedition management team, which coordinated the work of individual small groups of masons (Bloxam, 2003 (1), p. 260, 274; Shaw et al., 2010, p. 299-300). The discovered ceramics give the widest dating of the settlement - the early Dynastic period, the Ancient and Middle Kingdom.

Unfortunately, despite the good archaeological preservation, the actual purpose of most of the structures discovered in Gebel el-Asr, with the exception of the aforementioned food production complex and wells, is difficult to determine. Some of these rooms could have been used as shelters for expedition leaders, for storing supplies, or for processing harvested material. The practical absence of objects that could be identified as living quarters suggests that the Egyptian expeditionary detachments used lighter or collapsible structures - huts or tents-for sleeping [Bloxam, 2003 (1), p. 268-270].

The researchers who dug in Gebel el-Asr believe that the relatively small amount of pottery found in the area of ancient quarries contradicts the traditional idea that large groups of workers were used to develop minerals outside the Nile Valley. On the contrary, the available material suggests that the gneiss quarries of Gebel el-Asra were visited, as a rule, by small groups of well-trained and organized specialists (Bloxam, 2003 (1), pp. 278-279).

Transport infrastructure. Despite the lack of written sources, it is logical to assume that in the early Ancient Kingdom, the Nile was the main transport artery used by the Egyptians to transport materials extracted during the exploitation of the mines and quarries of Nubia. In this regard, the logistics of delivering materials from Nubia to Egypt was probably determined by the need to shorten the land route as much as possible, even if this resulted in an overall lengthening of the route. The main data on the organization and functioning of the Egyptian transport infrastructure of the Ancient Kingdom of Nubia come from the quarries of Gebel el-Asra. The gneiss mining region was connected to the Nile Valley in the Western Carcass region by a simple road-a strip of desert cleared of stones (Simpson, 1963, p. 53). This 80-kilometer route is probably the longest of the Egyptian roads created to support work in the mines and quarries [Shaw,

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2006, p. 257]. The path was marked by numerous pyramids of stones that served as landmarks during the journey through a vast open space, broken ceramics, and at least two Ancient Kingdom stopping points near wells (Bloxam, 2003 (1), p. 263-226; Shaw et al., 2010, p.304-305). Traces of donkey hooves found along the road by D. Murray [Murray, 1939, p. 110], as well as the remains of a donkey found in the quarry area [Shaw et al., 2010, p. 301], indicate that these animals could have been used to transport supplies and equipment to quarries, as well as for other purposes. transportation of small blocks of gneiss from quarries to the Nile Valley. However, traces may have been left in the Middle Kingdom era as well (Bloxam, 2003 (2), p.91).

As for the large stone blocks, they may never have been transported on the long 80-kilometer route. As an alternative, a seasonal waterway could be used, presumably operating in Wadi Tushqa during the Ancient Kingdom. The distance from the Gebel al-Asra quarries to the water in Wadi Tushqa was only about 13 km (Bloxam, 2003 (2), p. 90). Some gneiss may have been transported overland by desert caravan routes. For example, the ancient road known today as Dar el-Arba'in, which leads from the territory of Sudan to Middle Egypt, passes just a few kilometers west of the main quarries of Gebel el-Asra (Shaw et al., 2010, p. 304).

The autobiographical inscription of Harkhuf attests to a change in the political landscape of the Nubian Nile Valley due to the appearance of proto-state formations in Lower Nubia, created by carriers of the archaeological culture of group C. The complication of the political and, probably, the aggravation of the military situation contributed to the development of alternative routes from Egypt to various areas of Nubia. Communication between Egypt and Lower Nubia, bypassing the Nile Valley, could only be carried out through deserts. In this regard, the oasis of Dakhla, which was the main center of the Egyptian presence in the Western Desert since at least the IV Dynasty, began to play an increasingly important role at the end of the Ancient Kingdom. Even during the IV-V dynasties, the eastern, western, and southern borders of the oasis were protected by dozens of sentinel posts, which served as the basis of a complex military infrastructure in the region [Kaper and Willems, 2002; Riemer et al., 2005]. The discovery of a fourth dynasty Egyptian work camp near an alumina deposit 60 km southwest of the Dakhla Oasis and just a few kilometers from the Abu Balas Road indicates that the Egyptians of the early Ancient Kingdom were familiar with the desert paths to the south of the oasis, but apparently did not need to actively use complex technologies. desert routes, since communication with Nubia was then carried out by a much more convenient river route. The resources that came to Egypt through Buhen and Elephantine probably satisfied the existing demand for prestigious goods.

In the late Old Kingdom era, the situation changed markedly. Against the background of the complicated relations of the Egyptians with the new political entities in Lower Nubia, the Abu-Balas route became an important trade and, possibly, military artery, connecting the settlement in Ain Asil (Dakhla oasis) with the Gilf Kebir plateau and then, probably, with Gebel Uvenat, where a hieroglyphic inscription of the XI dynasty was found (probably during the reign of Mentuhotepa II), which mentions the delivery of incense from the Nubian country of Yam (Clayton, De Trafford, Borda, 2008). This 400-kilometer route could have continued further south, reaching the territory of present-day Sudan, Southern Libya, or Chad (Kuper and Forster, 2003, p. 25; Forster et al., 2010, p. 60). About 30 ancient stations were discovered along the Abu Balas route, most of which were organized at relatively regular intervals corresponding to the distance covered by a caravan loaded with donkeys in a three-day period. The main stations, apparently, appeared just at the end of the Ancient Kingdom and during the First transition period. Following this path, caravans using donkeys as pack animals

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Animals were able to cover the distance from Dakhla to Gilf Kebir in about two weeks (Forster, 2007a; Forster, 2007 (2); Forster et al., 2010).

Human resources. It is generally assumed that Egyptian expeditions to mines and quarries outside the Nile Valley in the early Ancient Kingdom were centralized enterprises, the organization of which was in the hands of the main state institutions, which then received the extracted materials at their disposal [Naser, 2013, p. 135]. Epigraphic data of the Ancient Kingdom era from the Nubian mining areas are very brief and are mainly reduced to inscriptions from Gebel el-Asr. Unfortunately, the texts of the Ancient Kingdom from this region did not preserve either the names or titles of the expedition participants. A. Peden believes that some of the Egyptian inscriptions are from the Tumas region, which mention various "heads of interpreters/mercenaries", "militia chiefs", "prospectors", "scribes", various officials associated with the palace or navigating the Nile, they could have belonged to members of the Ancient Kingdom's expeditions to the quarries of Gebel el-Asra (Peden, 2001, p. 12). However, there is a high probability that all the known inscriptions from Tumas date back to the VI dynasty (Eichler, 1993, pp. 104-112 (227-259)), when the quarries of Gebel el-Asra, apparently, were already abandoned.

Epigraphic monuments found in Gebel el-Asr attest to five Ancient Kingdom expeditions made to the area during the reigns of Huu, Rajedef, Sahur, Niuserr and Isesi. Obviously, there were more expeditions, since diorite extracted in Nubia was widely used in sculpture of that time and the production of stone vessels. Thus, diorite monuments from the times of Khafre, Menkaur and Userkaf, despite the lack of additional written evidence, suggest that these kings also sent Egyptian detachments for the valuable Nubian stone. The difficulty of the Gebel el-Asra quarries and the prestige of the material extracted there, which was used mainly for the manufacture of royal monuments or royal gifts (stone vessels), suggests that the organization of expeditions to diorite quarries was planned and coordinated by the central administration. In this case, the same institutions that were responsible for the operation of other mines and quarries outside the Nile Valley were probably involved in organizing the expeditions to Gebel el-Asr. Since diorite extracted from quarries was a hard-to-reach material for prestigious consumption, the required amount of diorite was probably calculated in advance and expeditions were planned in advance for a specific project (Bloxam, 2003 (1), p.288). At this time, similar expeditions were also typical of Sinai and Wadi Hammamat.

Although there is virtually no indisputable written record of the composition of the Ancient Kingdom's Egyptian expeditions to the mines and quarries of Nubia, one can try to extrapolate from Nubian material the available data on the composition of contemporary expeditions to Sinai and the Eastern Desert. Thus, it seems that the chiefs of expeditions that went to Nubia during the Ancient Kingdom era were appointed based on their position at court, personal qualities and understanding of the tasks assigned to them, and not on the basis of their specific position. Most of the famous expedition leaders of the Ancient Kingdom, who were recruited, apparently, mainly from the Memphis region, usually wore or received the title "militia chief"for the duration of the mission. Some of the expedition leaders were royal sons. Expedition management was sometimes entrusted to the king's confidants, such as "scribes of royal documents", or to experienced travelers, such as "captains-overseers", who often visited the Sinai mines.

Recorded in the texts, the leadership of the expeditions of the early Ancient Kingdom consisted mainly of various " scribes "(zs) and "treasurers" (hmw.tj), who were responsible for recording and storing inventory, supplies, consumables, and extracted materials. Unfortunately, the connection of these officials with specific institutions was noted in the texts

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it is extremely rare, but it can be assumed that these were usually employees of the palace, treasury, or temples and estates where the extracted material was intended. Some expeditions were accompanied by other palace officials, such as " the king's confidants "(hr.j-tp niswt), whose responsibilities, however, are rather difficult to outline.

The working composition of the expedition teams recorded in the texts of the early Ancient Kingdom from Wadi Hammamat, Sinai and the Western Desert is not very diverse. "Prospectors" (smn.tjw), various "craftsmen" (hmw.tjw) and recruits (nfr.w) were involved in work outside the Nile Valley, which, apparently, was attracted to unskilled work, to protect the expeditionary force and transport the extracted material to its destination.

There is almost no data on the geography of settlements or farms from which workers were recruited for expeditions both to Nubia and to other regions outside the Egyptian Nile Valley. However, the centralized state was able to attract skilled labor resources from areas very remote from the mining site. For example, craftsmen from Fayum could work in Gebel el-Asr, where in the early Ancient Kingdom there was a large center for the production of stone vessels and other precious stone products [Bloxam, 2003 (1), p. 169, 293-297]. One of the workshops that specialized in processing Nubian stone in Lower Egypt may have been located in a settlement called "Khufu Gneiss" (hnm. t-Hwj. f-wj) (Jacquet-Gordon, 1962, p. 251-252). A memorial domain with this name is mentioned in the tomb of Seshathotep of Giza, which was decorated in the late IV or early V dynasty (G 5150) [Junker, 1934, Abb. 28].

At the end of the Ancient Kingdom, the composition of Egyptian expeditions had to undergo significant changes. First, the actual coordination of the state's expedition activity has shifted from the metropolitan area in the ancient Memphis area to provincial centers. This process, apparently, did not affect only the expeditions to Sinai. Since the peninsula was relatively close to Memphis and was extremely important for the central administration as a major contact area and one of the main sources of strategic raw materials - copper, expeditions to the Sinai mines, even under the VI dynasty, were organized, judging by the Egyptian texts found there, mainly from the residence of the Memphis lords. The Egyptians continued to directly exploit the mines and quarries of the Eastern Desert, Sinai, and Western Desert. However, in Nubia, as already noted, this practice had to be abandoned in favor of multitasking missions that resembled, perhaps on a larger scale, expeditions to the legendary country of Punt.

At this time, the first Upper Egyptian nome with its capital in Elephantine became a source of personnel for numerous state-owned enterprises - trade missions to Byblos and Punt, trade and military expeditions to Nubia and the Western Desert, expeditions to the Eastern Desert [Espinel, 2003, pp. 584-585, p. 31] and rescue expeditions to the Red Sea coast [Dissouky, 1969, p. 166-186]. The members of the expedition who lived in Elephantine-officials, guides, merchants, translators, and others - had to form a small but highly professional community, closely connected by family ties and mentals2. This does not exclude the fact that the local expedition elites were sometimes torn apart by serious contradictions, but in general, the expedition stratum of Elephantine should have maintained a relative unity, determined by its exceptional role both in the very closed Egyptian society and in the state system of redistribution of products of prestigious consumption. The geography of expedition activity of the inhabitants of the first Upper Egyptian nome demonstrates a high level of mobility of the late Ancient Egyptian elite

2 For example, see the example of Chechi, Hui, and Khnumhotep who worked together (Kanawati, 1977, p. 43; Espinel, 2004, p. 17-18; Edel, 2008, p.1528-1529).

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realms. Similarly mobile were the elites from Edfu (Moreno Garcia, 1998) and the Tinite Nome, who, together with officials from Elephantine and some other centers, formed the basis of the new system of tsarist administration of provincial territories. As noted by D. According to Espinel, such mobility of people from the provinces is a distinctive feature of the late Ancient Kingdom [Espinel, 2003, p. 584-585; Espinel, 2004, p. 12].

During the sixth dynasty, the infrastructure and human resources available to Egyptian expeditionary leaders in Nubia were markedly reduced and, obviously, changed their structure compared to an earlier era. Now the Egyptian units had to coordinate their movement paths with local political centers or use local tribal militias to ensure the security of their businesses. Nevertheless, the Egyptian expeditions reorganized in accordance with the new realities continued to meet the demand of Egyptian elites for prestigious goods and resources.

Since the Fifth Dynasty, local tribes have played an increasingly important role in the Egyptian expedition activity [Naser, 2013, p. 136]. With the political situation in Lower Nubia becoming more complex and the Egyptians refusing to directly exploit these lands, Nubians in the Egyptian service were very useful both in establishing relations with local tribal leaders and in protecting expeditions. The so-called interpreters / mercenaries () participated in most of the known expeditions of the late Ancient Kingdom today, not only to Nubia, but, as the latest ceramic material from Mersa Gavasis shows, possibly also to Punt (Manzo, 2012, p.52). The title "chief of interpreters / mercenaries" () has become one of the most traditional titles for expedition leaders, along with the titles "treasurer of god" (htm.tj ntr), who probably pointed to the tsar as the main initiator of all expedition and infrastructure projects in the country, and the "head of the militia" (). Graffiti from the VI Dynasty with fr. Sekhel, from Wadi Allaka, Wadi al-Arab, Tumas, Abu Simbel and other places in Lower Nubia have preserved the names of numerous "interpreter/mercenary chiefs" and "militia chiefs" who left their inscriptions during exploration, military or trade expeditions, but graffiti from the late Ancient Kingdom has never or almost never been found. mention is made of" prospectors " who should have participated in expeditions to the mines or quarries.

* * *

Thus, the methods of obtaining Nubian minerals by the Egyptians underwent significant changes in the era of the Ancient Kingdom. The transition from direct exploitation of the wealth of Lower and possibly northern Upper Nubia in the early Ancient Kingdom to trade and military raids in the late Ancient Kingdom was explained by the influence of a complex of interrelated factors: the aridization of the North African climate, changes in the political and ethnic landscape of Lower Nubia, and the development of the social structures of Egyptian society.

The changing nature of ancient Egyptian expedition activity in Nubia led to changes in the existing expedition infrastructure. During the early Ancient Kingdom, the Egyptians had two major logistics and production centers in the south - in Elephantine, on the border with Nubia, and in Buhen, in the area of the 11th threshold. These centers served direct mining operations in the region, which required complex infrastructure in the quarries and mines, as well as on the routes to them. By the beginning of the sixth Dynasty, the Egyptians had lost the ability to maintain the expeditionary infrastructure that had existed in Nubia for at least two centuries, and had moved on to develop one major center on the border with Nubia, Elephantine, as well as alternative routes to the Nile Valley from Middle Egypt to Nubia through the Western Desert.

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The current state of scientific knowledge about Egyptian expedition activity in Nubia during the Ancient Kingdom era leaves many questions. In recent decades, Egyptology has made significant progress in understanding the socio-economic processes that took place in Egypt at the end of the Ancient Kingdom, and their impact on the main areas of activity of a centralized state, including its expedition activity outside the Nile Valley. Studies of the paleoclimate suggest that ecological changes play a significant role in the transformation of Egyptian activity in Nubia. However, assumptions about the third group of factors related to the impact of the local population, including the tribes of the archaeological culture of Group C, on the development of ancient Egyptian expedition activity south of Threshold I remain speculative.

How and to what extent was the Egyptian infrastructure created in Nubia during the early Ancient Kingdom era replaced at the end of the Ancient Kingdom by the infrastructure created by new political centers? What was the pattern of involvement of the local Nubian population in Egyptian activity at the end of the Ancient Kingdom? How did the new system of relations evolve after the collapse of Egypt's first centralized state? All these questions are still waiting to be answered.

ABBREVIATIONS

ArOr - Archiv Orientalni. Journal of the Czechoslovak Oriental Institute. Prague.

BMSAES - British Museum Studies in Ancient Egypt and Sudan. London.

DE - Discussions in Egyptology. Oxford.

GM - Gottinger Miszellen. Beitrage zur agyptologischen Diskussion. Gottingen.

JEA - The Journal of Egyptian Archaeology. London.

MDAIK - Mitteilungen des Deutschen Archaologischen Instituts, Abteilung Kairo. Wiesbaden, Mainz.

RdE - Revue d'Egyptologie. Paris.

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