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.49).The large felines with entwined serpent necks are depicted in the third register.As previously mentioned, a numberof symbolic interpretations have been attributed to this motif.Unfortunately, it is difficult if not impossible toascertain the validity of these interpretations.It could be that this motif was copied from a cylinder seal like the onebelieved to be from northern Syria (figs.49, 55), and was chosen only because the ability to restrain two mythicalanimals is a visually powerful motif that enhances the power of the king and effectively symbolizes the subjugationof the north.It has been argued that all predynastic motifs from Susa or Mes- Page 120opotamia cease to enter Egypt at the end of the Naqada II period.Therefore, the Mesopotamian motifs we see onlate predynastic artifacts such as the Narmer palette are all Egyptianized versions of earlier Mesopotamian motifs.170 This view is undoubtably correct in regard to some motifs like the long-necked felines on the obverse of theSmaller palette of Hierakonpolis.The only similarities between these two felines with Mesopotamian examples isthe retention of their long necks.In contrast, the felines on the Narmer palette have changed little from thosedepicted on the Syrian cylinder seal.It seems unlikely that a motif would remain static for so long when similarmotifs changed so radically during the same time.The belief that the feline motif on the Narmer palette is Egyptianized is also placed in doubt when we consider theevolution of this motif in Mesopotamia.Originally, this motif was a combination of the intertwined snakes (fig.19)attached to the bodies of two lions.On the earliest Mesopotamian examples the snake heads are retained.Thesnake heads are then replaced by lion heads and eventually the necks are shortened.171 The motif portrayed on theSyrian cylinder seal is one of the latest versions of this motif, and the feline motif on the Narmer palette is thelatest Egyptian example until the Middle Kingdom.For this to be a coincidence is unlikely.Instead, this motifprobably bears such a strong resemblance to the one on the cylinder seal because it was copied from an item thathad recently been imported into Egypt.This motif is important because it suggests that Buto had contact with siteswith strong Mesopotamian ties until its fall at the beginning of the First Dynasty.This would explain why thismotif and others that appear to have been copied from Mesopotamian imports quickly disappear after the time ofthe Narmer palette.The adoption of griffins, long-necked felines, and rosettes may be an indication that a port citylike Buto would have been more accepting of outside influences than a relatively homogenous culture situated inan environment shielded from other cultures, as seen in Upper Egypt.Only aspects of Lower Egyptian culture thatwere firmly ingrained would have survived after Buto fell to the south.In contrast, the succeeding dynastic culturewould have been resistant to outside influences and would have carried on trade for textiles, oils, and rawmaterials.Finally, in the fourth register the ka-like structure could represent Sais or Buto before its fall to Narmer.The sitesof Buto and Sais are continually mentioned throughout this review.Thus, the final Page 121subjugation of the Delta may have been realized by the conquest of these two sites.Or this palette may have beencarved to depict the fall of Buto, the last and most important of the Lower Egyptian sites.The Mesopotamian signs and motifs on the Narmer palette become much more understandable if we accept thepossibility that the Delta was the entrepôt for Mesopotamian goods during the Naqada II and III periods.If thisinterpretation of the Mesopotamian elements on the palette is valid, it then follows that northern Mesopotamiacontinued to have a strong influence on Lower Egypt at least as late as the unification.The relevance of thissustained influence will be clarified in the next chapter. Page 12211Trade RoutesA review of possible trade goods and their distribution clearly shows that northern Mesopotamia was a center fortrade that connected Egypt, Susa, and southern Mesopotamia.It also seems to indicate that more than one traderoute linked Egypt with northern Mesopotamia and that routes and trade centers changed through time.According to the archaeological evidence presented in this study, it appears that northern Mesopotamia wentthrough three phases of trade activity that extend from late in the Ubaid period to at least the early part of theJamdat Nasr period.Small villages like Tepe Gawra appear to have benefited most during the first phase, which opens with theappearance there of stamp seals and numerous trade items, such as gold and lapis lazuli, in level XIII.Gold, lapislazuli, and other trade goods increased in volume, especially in level X.Tepe Gawra's trade ties were extensive.They included Sialk to the east, the Amuq region to the west, Norsuntepe * in Anatolia, southern Mesopotamia tothe south, and possibly even Palestine and Egypt.The precise nature of Tepe Gawra's trade ties, whether direct orindirect, is not clear.The appearance of lapis lazuli beads in Palestine at about the same time that lapis lazuliappears in Egypt and that gold becomes abundant at Tepe Gawra suggests that Egypt and Tepe Gawra may havebeen trading via Palestine.It is also possible that this lapis lazuli was acquired from Egypt, but, even so, thereappears to be little doubt that Palestinian sites were participating in at least indirect trade with Syria.Theappearance of silver at Byblos during the "énéolithique" period, and of triangular-lugged pottery, tubular-spoutedpottery, and multiple-brush painting in Egypt during the Naqada IIa period (and possibly Page 123faience as early as the Naqada I period), all suggest a second route by sea between Egypt and northern Syria.Unfortunately, little is known about prehistoric seafaring from northern Syria, along the Syro-Palestinian coast, toEgypt.According to G.F.Bass, ''long before there were shepherds or farmers in Greece there were sailors." 1 Itappears as if the same can be said for the entire Levant, because we now know that early hunters sailed to Cyprusaround 8500 B.C.2 Fishing and sea trade were probably the basis for the establishment of sites such as Byblos andRas Shamra.Considering that millennia separate these early seafarers from the end of the Ubaid period, a networkof maritime trade routes could easily have developed throughout the Levant.In regard to a land route, the most likely passage connecting Tepe Gawra to Egypt via Palestine would seem to bethrough northern Syria to the Amuq region and then south through Hama to Palestine; archaeological evidencesuggests that a trade route connecting Anatolia and Palestine passed through Hama during the Ubaid period, and, atthe same time, this site also reflects Mesopotamian influences.Mesopotamian influence continues to be felt atHama during the Uruk period, but this appears to be a period of diminishing trade on this route,3 which coincideswith the beginning of a long occupational hiatus at Ras Shamra.No direct evidence exists to indicate what landroute replaced this north-south route through Hama, but one may have extended through the Transjordan Desertand culminated with the foundation of a site at Jawa during the next phase of trade activity.The second phase commences with the appearance of Mesopotamian "colonies" in northern Mesopotamia.Thereare two types of Mesopotamian sites during this phase: "colonies" like Habuba Kabira that had no agricultural baseand survived solely on trade, and northern Mesopotamian sites like Tell Brak that enjoyed an agricultural base, butthat were influenced to some extent by southern Mesopotamia [ Pobierz caÅ‚ość w formacie PDF ]
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.49).The large felines with entwined serpent necks are depicted in the third register.As previously mentioned, a numberof symbolic interpretations have been attributed to this motif.Unfortunately, it is difficult if not impossible toascertain the validity of these interpretations.It could be that this motif was copied from a cylinder seal like the onebelieved to be from northern Syria (figs.49, 55), and was chosen only because the ability to restrain two mythicalanimals is a visually powerful motif that enhances the power of the king and effectively symbolizes the subjugationof the north.It has been argued that all predynastic motifs from Susa or Mes- Page 120opotamia cease to enter Egypt at the end of the Naqada II period.Therefore, the Mesopotamian motifs we see onlate predynastic artifacts such as the Narmer palette are all Egyptianized versions of earlier Mesopotamian motifs.170 This view is undoubtably correct in regard to some motifs like the long-necked felines on the obverse of theSmaller palette of Hierakonpolis.The only similarities between these two felines with Mesopotamian examples isthe retention of their long necks.In contrast, the felines on the Narmer palette have changed little from thosedepicted on the Syrian cylinder seal.It seems unlikely that a motif would remain static for so long when similarmotifs changed so radically during the same time.The belief that the feline motif on the Narmer palette is Egyptianized is also placed in doubt when we consider theevolution of this motif in Mesopotamia.Originally, this motif was a combination of the intertwined snakes (fig.19)attached to the bodies of two lions.On the earliest Mesopotamian examples the snake heads are retained.Thesnake heads are then replaced by lion heads and eventually the necks are shortened.171 The motif portrayed on theSyrian cylinder seal is one of the latest versions of this motif, and the feline motif on the Narmer palette is thelatest Egyptian example until the Middle Kingdom.For this to be a coincidence is unlikely.Instead, this motifprobably bears such a strong resemblance to the one on the cylinder seal because it was copied from an item thathad recently been imported into Egypt.This motif is important because it suggests that Buto had contact with siteswith strong Mesopotamian ties until its fall at the beginning of the First Dynasty.This would explain why thismotif and others that appear to have been copied from Mesopotamian imports quickly disappear after the time ofthe Narmer palette.The adoption of griffins, long-necked felines, and rosettes may be an indication that a port citylike Buto would have been more accepting of outside influences than a relatively homogenous culture situated inan environment shielded from other cultures, as seen in Upper Egypt.Only aspects of Lower Egyptian culture thatwere firmly ingrained would have survived after Buto fell to the south.In contrast, the succeeding dynastic culturewould have been resistant to outside influences and would have carried on trade for textiles, oils, and rawmaterials.Finally, in the fourth register the ka-like structure could represent Sais or Buto before its fall to Narmer.The sitesof Buto and Sais are continually mentioned throughout this review.Thus, the final Page 121subjugation of the Delta may have been realized by the conquest of these two sites.Or this palette may have beencarved to depict the fall of Buto, the last and most important of the Lower Egyptian sites.The Mesopotamian signs and motifs on the Narmer palette become much more understandable if we accept thepossibility that the Delta was the entrepôt for Mesopotamian goods during the Naqada II and III periods.If thisinterpretation of the Mesopotamian elements on the palette is valid, it then follows that northern Mesopotamiacontinued to have a strong influence on Lower Egypt at least as late as the unification.The relevance of thissustained influence will be clarified in the next chapter. Page 12211Trade RoutesA review of possible trade goods and their distribution clearly shows that northern Mesopotamia was a center fortrade that connected Egypt, Susa, and southern Mesopotamia.It also seems to indicate that more than one traderoute linked Egypt with northern Mesopotamia and that routes and trade centers changed through time.According to the archaeological evidence presented in this study, it appears that northern Mesopotamia wentthrough three phases of trade activity that extend from late in the Ubaid period to at least the early part of theJamdat Nasr period.Small villages like Tepe Gawra appear to have benefited most during the first phase, which opens with theappearance there of stamp seals and numerous trade items, such as gold and lapis lazuli, in level XIII.Gold, lapislazuli, and other trade goods increased in volume, especially in level X.Tepe Gawra's trade ties were extensive.They included Sialk to the east, the Amuq region to the west, Norsuntepe * in Anatolia, southern Mesopotamia tothe south, and possibly even Palestine and Egypt.The precise nature of Tepe Gawra's trade ties, whether direct orindirect, is not clear.The appearance of lapis lazuli beads in Palestine at about the same time that lapis lazuliappears in Egypt and that gold becomes abundant at Tepe Gawra suggests that Egypt and Tepe Gawra may havebeen trading via Palestine.It is also possible that this lapis lazuli was acquired from Egypt, but, even so, thereappears to be little doubt that Palestinian sites were participating in at least indirect trade with Syria.Theappearance of silver at Byblos during the "énéolithique" period, and of triangular-lugged pottery, tubular-spoutedpottery, and multiple-brush painting in Egypt during the Naqada IIa period (and possibly Page 123faience as early as the Naqada I period), all suggest a second route by sea between Egypt and northern Syria.Unfortunately, little is known about prehistoric seafaring from northern Syria, along the Syro-Palestinian coast, toEgypt.According to G.F.Bass, ''long before there were shepherds or farmers in Greece there were sailors." 1 Itappears as if the same can be said for the entire Levant, because we now know that early hunters sailed to Cyprusaround 8500 B.C.2 Fishing and sea trade were probably the basis for the establishment of sites such as Byblos andRas Shamra.Considering that millennia separate these early seafarers from the end of the Ubaid period, a networkof maritime trade routes could easily have developed throughout the Levant.In regard to a land route, the most likely passage connecting Tepe Gawra to Egypt via Palestine would seem to bethrough northern Syria to the Amuq region and then south through Hama to Palestine; archaeological evidencesuggests that a trade route connecting Anatolia and Palestine passed through Hama during the Ubaid period, and, atthe same time, this site also reflects Mesopotamian influences.Mesopotamian influence continues to be felt atHama during the Uruk period, but this appears to be a period of diminishing trade on this route,3 which coincideswith the beginning of a long occupational hiatus at Ras Shamra.No direct evidence exists to indicate what landroute replaced this north-south route through Hama, but one may have extended through the Transjordan Desertand culminated with the foundation of a site at Jawa during the next phase of trade activity.The second phase commences with the appearance of Mesopotamian "colonies" in northern Mesopotamia.Thereare two types of Mesopotamian sites during this phase: "colonies" like Habuba Kabira that had no agricultural baseand survived solely on trade, and northern Mesopotamian sites like Tell Brak that enjoyed an agricultural base, butthat were influenced to some extent by southern Mesopotamia [ Pobierz caÅ‚ość w formacie PDF ]