The King's Privy Purse During the New Kingdom: An Examination of INW

Author(s): Edward Bleiberg

Source: Journal of the American Research Center in Egypt , 1984, Vol. 21 (1984), pp.
155-167
Published by: American Research Center in Egypt

Stable URL: https://www.jstor.org/stable/40000962

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 The King's Privy Purse During the New Kingdom:
An Examination of INW

Edward Bleiberg

Introduction theory which does not correspond to the ancient

facts. As the economist Nicholas Georgescu-
The Worterbuch offers four basic renderings
Roegen has pointed out,
of the word inw.1 These are "offering," "trib-
ute," "gift," and "product." Aldred has sug- As soon as we realize that for economic theory
gested that it represents trade.2 Though a word
an economic system is characterized exclusively
can be used in varying senses, it is possible that
by institutional traits, it becomes obvious that
the reason for these different renderings in differ-
neither Marxist nor Standard Theory is valid
ent contexts is that inw does not correspond to
as a whole for the analysis ... of which part
any one modern concept of commodity exchange.
or all of the capitalist institutions are absent.3
If this aspect of ancient Egyptian culture is to
be properly understood, it is necessary to deter-
This statement is particularly important to an
mine whether there are any unifying circum-
understanding of the Egyptian economic situa-
stances which link all the uses of the word inw.
tion. Among the "capitalist institutions" which
This essay will show that the Egyptians con- are absent from Egyptian life are the market,
sidered all exchanges of inw to be the same type
money as a means of exchange, and the profit
of socio-economic action: contributions to the
motive. Goods are exchanged only to acquire
king's privy purse.
specific commodities which are needed for a
The greatest problem for a modern observer of
specific purpose. The idea of buying cheap and
an ancient economic transaction is the assump-
selling dear has no meaning within the ancient
tion that it can be equated with some transaction
Egyptian economy. Wenamun, for example,
familiar from modern life. Whether following
travels to Byblos to acquire cedar for a barque of
classical capitalist or Marxist theory, modern
Amon. There is no indication that extra wood
scholars have tried to superimpose a contempor-
was "bought" which could then be "sold" at a
ary mind-set on the ancients. This has led to a
profit for a general market.
confusing and contradictory impression of how
Most scholars of Ancient Egypt have never
the Egyptians dealt with their neighbors in eco-
considered this difficulty in regard to economics.
nomic matters. The question of inw has been
It is quite true that translation becomes difficult
greatly distorted by this tendency. Rather than
if not impossible if no modern equivalents for
determining what inw meant to the ancients, ancient words can be found. Nevertheless, once
modern scholars have been forced to call the
modern words are understood to be used within
Egyptians liars when the claim is made that
an Egyptian complex of concepts, a clearer under-
"tribute" was collected from a country which the
standing of inw can be achieved.
Egyptians had never conquered or even domi- Therefore, in order to understand inw, an
nated. It is best, then, to abjure any economic
appreciation of the ancient Egyptian economic
system must first be attained. For inw is one of
1 Wb. 1,91:12-18.
2 C. Aldred, "The Foreign Gifts Offered to Pharaoh," 3 Analytical Economics: Issues and Problems (Cambridge,
JEA 56(1970), 111. Mass., 1966), 362.

155

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 156 JARCE XXI (1984)

the temple to
the important economic people on the basis of rank
institutions rather
which
exist in the ancient than
worldneed or ability
but to buy
no goods.
longer is in
under modern capitalism or
All Egyptians weresocialism.
subject to this system ex-
Similar problems in ceptunderstanding
for the king. He was able to exist outside
alternat
systems of economic organization
this system because he had anotherhave
source ofbeen
in-
countered by anthropologists. One
come in a parallel socio-economic attemp
system whose
resolve this main component
problem has been was inw. Inw
madewas a source
by of K
Polanyi and George Dalton. Polanyi has pro- private income for the king. It was not neces-
posed a number of models for economic organ- sarily included in the wider redistributive econ-
ization applicable in non-market economies. His omy. Throughout the New Kingdom there is
redistributive model seems to fit the Egyptian solid evidence that inw was kept separate from
data to a great extent.4 various other commodities because it was for the
The first step in understanding Polanyi's king's personal consumption. He used it for gifts
model is to realize that before the existence of the to the gods, to support his immediate family
market and trade for profit, goods were exchanged and retainers, and as a personal source of income
on the basis of social relationships. Dalton has from which he could acquire the services which
summarized this situation succinctly: he required.
The remainder of this article will consider the
evidence for inw being the king's privy-purse. It
A distinguishing characteristic of ... [pre- will describe how inw was used by the king.
market economic life] is the fusion of social The administrative network which dealt with
and economic institutions. Indeed even "fu-
inw from the time of its collection from foreign
sion" is distorting because it implies the bring-
chiefs to its arrival in the store-house will then
ing together of separate elements. It would be
be discussed. Finally, consideration will be given
better to say that there is no awareness of the
to the implications of inw -collection for the
"economy" as a distinct set of practises apart
organization and relationship of foreign hold-
from social institutions. Transactions of mate-
ings of the crown, and thus the Egyptian idea of
rial goods in marketless economies are expres-
imperialism.
sive of social obligations which have neither
mechanism nor meaning of their own apart
from social ties, social obligations, and social I. Inw as the royal privy-purse
situations [which] they express. In the Western
meaning of the word, there is no "economy" in Three observations support the proposition
traditional society; only socio-economic insti- that inw represents contributions to the king's
tutions, processes, and transactions.5 privy-purse. The first is that inw is considered
an aspect of kingship, aside from the general
idea that the king owns everything in the world.
Inw is an Egyptian transaction which expressesSecondly, the texts stress that inw is delivered
a socio-economic relationship between the kingdirectly to the king or his official representative.
and others, kingship itself being an integral Finally, it will be shown that the redistribution
institution in the socio-economic scheme.
of inw is done by the king for specific royal
The Egyptian system is based on what Polanyipurposes rather than as part of the wider re-
would call a redistributive model. Goods were
distributive system.
collected by the temple for eventual redistribu-
tion to the people. Rations were distributed from
la. Inw is an aspect of kingship
4 S. C. Humphreys, "History, Economics, and Anthro-
The first observation which indicates that inw
pology," History and Theory 8 (1969), 165-212.
5 G. Dalton, Economic Anthropology and Developmentis the king's personal property concerns the ex-
(London/N.Y., 1971), 64. plicit promises made to various kings by the

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 THE KING'S PRIVY PURSE DURING THE NEW KINGDOM 157

in contrast
gods. In these cases, possession of inw is part to ofothera forms of commodity ex-
catalogue of royal attributes. change.6 The following examples illustrate this
1. The gods speak to Hatshepsut on point. her North-
ern journey, sn.t dldl.w nw msc.w 1. itt.n.i
cm.trnpwtwr.w
Qslwt m h~>ty-c n Nhn ms.n.i
nw rtnw hr sct sp nw (i)t(f).t inw.t inw.sm n nb
s .tl.wy:
. . :"I spent many years as
"May you sever the heads of soldiers, nomarch mayof Hierakonpolis,
you I having presented
grasp (read 1mm) the chiefs of Retenu, its inw toposses-
the Lord of the Two Lands" (Early
sing the terror of the time of your Dyn. 18, Urk.your
father, IV, 76:15-16).
2. "The southerners
inw consisting of men, etc." (Hatshepsut, Urk. come downstream, the
IV 248:5-8). Northerners come upstream," hlswt nbwt
2. Among the things promised to Thutmose dmd.w hr inw.sn IV n ntr nfr sp tpy cl-hpr-k~>-
by Reharakhty, inw CB n hist: "The rc cnh
great dt:inw"all the foreign countries being
of the foreign country" (Zivie, Giza gathered
128:15). together bearing their inw for the
3. Speech of Amon, di.i hr.i rsy bily.i Good God n.k of di.i
the first occasion, Aakheperkare,
phr n.k wr.w ks hst hr inw.sn nb.w living
hr forever"
psd.sn (Thutmose I, Urk. IV, 83:9-
di.i hr.i mhty bil.i n.k di.(i) iwt10).n.k hlswt
3. "The
phw Stt hr inw.sn nb.w hr psd.sn: "INine Bows are
turn my gathered under his san-
dals, aiwmiracle
face Southward, that I might perform n.f Mntyw hr inw, the Mentyw-
for you. I cause the princes of wretched Asiatics come Kush
to him (the King) bearing inw1'
to travel to you bearing their inw onII,their
(Thutmose Urk. IV, 138:3-4).
backs. I turn my face Northward that I might
4. Caption from the Punt Reliefs: ssp inw n wr
perform a miracle for you. I causen the Pwnt inforeign
wpwty-nsw: "Receiving the inw of
countries of Asia to come to you the bearing allby the royal messenger"
Prince of Punt
their inw on their backs" (Amenhotpe III, (Hatshepsut, Urk. IV, 326:2-3).
Urk. IV 1656:5-10). 5. After the siege of Megiddo: "Then this enemy
4. Amon speaks to Sety I, di.i iw n.k wrw hlswt and the princes who were with him caused
rsyw di.sn ssp.k inw: "I cause the chiefs of the that their children be brought forth with
southern foreign countries to come to you that them," hr inw cSd m nbw hr hd . . . chc.n
they might cause that you receive inw (KRI I, in.n.sn st m inw n hm.i: "bearing great
26:9ff; see similar in 11.11, 13, and 30:11). amounts of inw consisting of gold and
5. Ramses III requests the following of the gods silver . . . Now they brought it as inw of My
for his son, imi nht hps.f r tlw nbw iw.w n sfyt Majesty" (Thutmose III, Urk. IV, 1235:3-13).
hr inw.sn: "Cause the victory of his sword in 6. iw n.f wr.w Mtn inw.sn hr psdw.sn r dbh
every land that they might come to his majesty htp.w hm.f sb .tw tlw.f ndm n Cnh: "The
bearing their inw (Ramses III, P. Harris princes of Mittani come to him with their
66b:7). inw on their backs in order to request the
In all of these cases, inw is conceived as a result peace of H. M. and that his sweet breath of
of divine intervention for the king. Again the life be sent" (Amenhotpe II, Urk. IV, 1326:
stress is on the fact that these deliveries from 1-5).
7. tlw nbw hlswt nbwt hr inw.sn . . . hrp.sn n
foreign lands will be to the king rather than to an
institution or Egypt. klnhtHr\cmmlH . . . Nb- mlct- rc: "Every
land and foreign land bears its inw. They
conduct (it) to the Strong Bull, Horus who
appears in Truth, etc. . . . Nebmaatre" (Amen-
Ib. Evidence for inw being the privy-purse hotpe III, Urk. IV, 1693:8-14).

The king almost always receives the inw per-

sonally or through a representative who has the 6 See below, and E. Bleiberg, ' 'Commodity Exchange in
authority to act on the king's behalf. This stands
the Annals of Thutmose III," JSSEA XI.2 (1981), 107ff.

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 158 JARCE XXI (1984)

Several formulae are used to describe the deliv- such as the vizier or a royal messenger. The
ery of inw. The outstanding fact is that it is
following is a breakdown of the formulae which
delivered most often to the king in person. Sec-indicated to whom the inw is brought.
ondarily it can be received by his representative

To the King personally:

1. n nb B.wy: "to the Lord of the Urk. IV, 76: 15-16.

Two Lands."
2. n nsw: "to the King" Urk. IV, 77:7-9
3. n King's Name: "to King PN" Urk. IV, 83:9-10; 1693:8-12
4. r bw hr hm.f: "to the place where H.M. is" Urk. IV, 331:8-10; 1097:7-16.
5. n tew hm.f: "to the powers of H.M." Urk. IV, 662:14-16; 671:6,
689:17; 717:8; 726:13-14;
809:8-10; 896:15-16; 951:4-
14; 1098:14-1099:5; 1094:6-14
6. n hm.f or hm.k: "to His (or Your) Majesty" Urk. IV, 688:4; 688:3; 699:4
950:9-10
To a King's Representative:

7. ssp inw n Place

Name in Official: "Receiving the inw of ... by ..." Urk. IV, 326:2-3 (messenger);
523:5-6 (vizier); 512:13 (vizier).
8. mB inw n Place
Name in Official: "Viewing the inw of . . . by . . Urk. IV, 953:13-14; 153:16
(both vizier)

Though the chart shows that the king received does not affect its category,7 it seems likely that
inw under different names, in all cases where these words represent a group of objects intended
the text indicates for whom the inw is intended, for a specific end. Such words as hlk and kfc
that person is the king. additionally indicate that the goods were ob-
Considered alone, this is not a particularly tained by military activity. Inw , however, is paid
surprising conclusion. It is something of an on a yearly basis (see below) by conquered and
Egyptological cliche that the king owns every- non-conquered foreigners as well as Egyptians,
thing. This universal claim, though it justifies directly to the king. This fits well with Dalton's
the king's right in theory to take possession of concept of the social nature of such exchanges. It
goods, does not explain the mechanics of how is noteworthy in this regard that in the Annals
the economy worked in practice. Commodities inw is always paid to the king by a person. This
must have been collected and allocated according stands in direct contrast to blk.t, which is always
to an orderly system to enable a large bureau- paid by a country or a region. Thus inw repre-
cracy to function. That such a system did exist is sents a personal relationship between the king
clear in the Annals of Thutmose III. The scribe and a w r of a particular area.8
of the Annals is always careful to assign any
goods collected in West Asia and Nubia to a 7 Bleiberg, 108.
specific category. The simple formula always 8 Bleiberg, 107ff.; the non-Egyptian view of gift exchanges
starts with r-ht n, "list of," followed by the between kings cannot be determined from the hieroglyphic
sources. The Amarna Letters do shed some light on this
category such as inw, b^k.t, h^k, kfc, etc. That
subject, however. The kings of Babylonia (EA 10:8; URs.
such distinctions were made demonstrates that
19f.; 9:19), Mittani (EA 19:34-42; 60), and Assyria (EA 16:19-
some accounting principle is being put into 21) all claim that Egyptian kings sent gold to their ancestors.
practice. Since the nature of the goods themselves Whether the Egyptians would call this inw is not clear. Never-

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 THE KING'S PRIVY PURSE DURING THE NEW KINGDOM 159

The Egyptian king clearly did concepts not regard this

is most easily explained by gift theory.11
exchange as occurring between equals. Gift giving
Theis texts
well attested world-wide as a
and reliefs depicting these transactions medium of exchange.12
always It has been studied by
show the giver as subservient toanthropologists the king. in Ex- North American, South
changes of inw are always made "with bowed Pacific, African, and ancient Near Eastern cul-
head" or "with bowing" on the part of the tures.13 In general, gift giving is governed by
giver.9 Yet acknowledgment of social inferiority, conventions concerning what goods qualify as
as in the case of the Keftiu inw -bearers, does not gifts and who can participate in the process
indicate necessarily an attempt to propagandise based on social status and/or kinship. Gifts are
concerning Keftiu 's dependence on Egypt. These defined by social obligations rather than eco-
phrases more likely refer to standard court pro- nomic criteria. The giving of a gift strengthens
and cements a social relationship and requires
cedure. It is safe to assume that no one ever
approached the king without the appropriatean affirmation of a participant's place in a social
ritual gestures. Though these rituals are not
hierarchy.
Gift giving, then, cannot be confused with
understood in detail, it is clear that they must
trade. The purpose of gift giving is social,
have been strictly observed by foreign princes
and their ambassadors as well as Egyptians.whereas
But trade does not encompass any social
observance of Egyptian court ritual cannot be Forde and Douglas have aptly distin-
obligation.
taken as evidence for a claim of political sub-the two phenomena. They point out,
guished
jugation. It is only the misunderstanding of inw
that led to such an interpretation in theThe first
crucial difference between gift and sale is
place. Inw then can be defined from the two that the first object of gift exchange is the build-
foregoing observations in the following way. It ing up of a social relationship, whereas in
is first the god-given right of the king to receive buying and selling, any continuous social rela-
inw. It is an exchange where princes give com- tionship between the parties is incidental. . . .
modities to the king regardless of actual political In a primitive economy there may be no com-
domination. In theory, if not always in practise, mercial trade or it may account for a very few
it is conceived as a face to face exchange where of the transactions which take place, but there
goods are offered to the king in exchange for the will certainly be a well developed system of
"breath of life." 10 It occurs on a yearly basis, but exchange through gifts which distribute sup-
the goods received are carefully separated from plies at the same time as they cement social
other collections of goods. Such a complex of relationships.14

The lines between social and political relation-

theless, foreign kings did feel free to request gold from Egypt ships in ancient Egyptian thought are not clearly
(Burnaburiah: EA 6:13-16; 7:61, 64-65; 9:15-18; 10:16-17;
distinguished. The king had the same social
11:19-23; Asshuruballat: EA 16:32-34; Tushratta: EA 19:66-
70; Suppiluliuma: EA 41:16-22; and Cyprus: EA 35:19-21; relationships (i.e., a inw -relationship) with the
37:16-18). Suppiliuma also describes in a letter to Akhenaton
an exchange of gifts (sulmana) which he conducted with 11 For examples of inw translated as "gift" in the
Amenhotpe HI (EA 41:17-20). These exchanges resulted in Middle Kingdom, see E. Blumenthal, Untersuchungen zu
"good relations." Finally Tushratta sent "gifts" to the king Agyptischen Konigtum des Mittleren Reiches I (Berlin, 1970),
on the occasion of his marriage with Tatuhepa (EA 17:36-45; 194. For gift giving as an economic institution among com-
18:Rs. 1-4; 19:80-85; 20:80-84; 21:33-38; 22; 25; 26:64-66 mon people in Egypt see J. J. Janssen, "Gift Giving in
Ancient
[for Ty!]; 27:110-14; 29:182-89). These gifts were called tir- Egypt as an Economic Feature," JEA 68 (1982),
hata (bride-price) in Akkadian (EA 27:14). Under similar253-58.
12 See M. Mauss, The Gift (London, 1954); C. Zaccagnini,
conditions during the reign of Thutmose III, it is interesting
that such bride-price gifts were considered inw byLo scambio dei doni nel vicino oriente durante i secoli
the
xv-xiii (Rome, 1973).
Egyptians (Urk. IV 668:17ff.). Such a bride-price is obviously
a personal gift to the king, and thus inw. 13 See Mauss, passim.
9 See references on p. 158. 14 D. Forde and M. Douglas, "Traditional Production in
10 A. Brack, Das Grab des Tjanni (Mainz, 1977), p.Primitive
40, African Economics," in G. Dalton (ed.), Tribal and
pl. 31. Peasant Economies (Garden City, N.Y., 1967), 25.

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 160 JARCE XXI (1984)

conquered prince ofeign a relations

Westexist Asianonly as the dealings of one
city-state,
independent king of man Babylonia,
with another. The rationale and behind gift the Prin
of Punt and Crete. exchange He was in such a world
in isato inwreinforce this
-relation
with all of these foreign social hierarchy. potentates as well as
inhabitants of the Two Lands. Yet this relation- The key to the social relationship expressed in
ship could not have been conceived as indicative an exchange of inw is found in a unique state-
of political domination.15 An examinationment of in an inscription of a certain Amenhotpe
exchanges of inw in relation to conquest in at Silsilah. In this passage he says, wrw h^swt
Thutmose Ill's Annals is instructive. Megiddo w?*i [. . .] ndt hm.f hr inw.sn. nb: "the princes of
is clearly one of the towns conquered by distant foreign lands [. . .] thereof. The ndt of
Thutmose III. The description of the conquest His Majesty bear all their inw." This partly
in the Annals does not include exchange of inw,broken passage demonstrates that those people
though it is included in the Gebel Barkal ac- who deliver inw are called ndt. The Worterbuch
count (Urk. IV, 1235:3-5). The version given in translates ndt as "Untertanen, Horige" while
the Annals views "plunder" as the result of the Faulkner gives "serfs." Bakir believed that they
capitulation of the princes (Urk. IV, 658; 663). were slaves, and Lorton calls them "subjects."17
The grain tax is also given with their surrender Though Lorton does show by his examples that
{Urk. IV, 667). Likewise, In-r-t (Urk. IV, 690), the ndt position is defined by inferiority to the
Nahrain (Urk. IV, 711), In-iw-ks (Urk. IV, 716), king, he does not recognize the connection with
and Tunip (Urk. IV, 730) are plundered without inw. A further passage also implies this connec-
paying inw to the king. Inw is collected from tion. An inscription of the time of Thutmose III
other conquered areas such as Retenu (Urk. IV, reads, ii.n. hm.f m Iwt-ib h^st tn tm.ti m
668, passim) and Wartjet (Urk. IV, 686) but is ndt.f ...[.. .].w m sp wc hr inw.sn, "His Majesty
paid by non-conquered areas such as Assyria returned joyfully, this foreign country gathering
(Urk. IV, 668; 671; 726 [?]), Genbut (Urk. IV, as his ndt [. . .] at one time, bearing their inw"
695), Sengar (Urk. IV, 700), and Hatti (Urk. IV, (Urk. IV, 1247:7-8). The real meaning of the
701; 726). Inw exchanges did occur after military term ndt when applied to foreigners is those
conquests, but this is more a sign of a return to people who are in a inw -relationship with the
normal relations at the end of a war. Clearly king. A ndt is one who gives the king inw.
then, the degree of hegemony which the king People become ndt as a result of Amon's inter-
had over an area did not dictate whether or not vention. In a speech to Amenhotpe III, the god
that area paid inw. says, di.i n.k rsyt m ndt hm.k mhty m ksw n
The true meaning of inw becomes increasingly blw.k, "I give to you the South as ndt of Your
more elusive to the modern observer as the famil- Majesty, and the North bowing to your powers."
iar concepts of trade and tribute are eliminated It is noteworthy that the description of the
as explanations for it. This is because such be- Northerners as "bowing to your powers" is par-
havior seems irrational to the modern mind. Yet alleled by the usual description of how inw is de-
within the social context of the ancient Near livered.18 Turning foreigners into ndt, therefore,
East, such behavior is not only rational,isbut
tantamount
an to saying that they will henceforth
expected response to a given social situation.
give him inw. Thus Thutmose I says, itt.n.i st m
Foreign relations for ancient Near Eastern
nhtrulers
hft wd.k irw grt m ndt [. . .] srw hlswt nbwt
were based on a social hierarchy and on personal
relationships of one ruler to another within that
hierarchy.16 In a world where the concept of
Rankin, "Diplomacy in Western Asia in the Early Second
an independent nation-state is not present, for-
Millennium, B.C." Iraq 18 (1956), 68-110, esp. 76ff.
17 Wb. II, 369:2-7; R. Faulkner, Concise Dictionary of
Middle Egyptian Oxford, 1962) 143; A. M. Bakir, Slavery in
15 For an initial statement of this argument see Bleiberg, Pharaonic Egypt (Cairo, 1952), 38-41; D. Lorton, The Juridi-
107ff. cal Terminology of International Relations in Egyptian
16 For a Mesopotamian view of diplomatic relations as Texts through Dyn. XVIII (Baltimore, 1974), 115-17.
family relations (and thus hierarchical) see J. M. Munn- 18 See references on p. 158.

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 THE KING'S PRIVY PURSE DURING THE NEW KINGDOM 161

m wlh tp, "I seized them [other lands] It isin victory

perhaps even more significant that blk.t,
according to your command. Moreover, they the other major fund attested as received from
were made ndt [. . .], the magnates of every for- foreigners, does not occur in all the published
eign land bowing the head." This is a specific examples from Malkata. This negative evidence
kind of claim, where the king reveals that he has fits well with the theory that inw and blk.t were
not destroyed an enemy, but rather he has coerced kept separate in the official records such as the
him into the inw -relationship. The conquered Annals in order to keep track of their destination.
have recognized his social superiority and hence- Obviously a great many of the goods stored at
forth they will give him inw. Malkata did not come from any particular fund,
Being a ndt also entailed receiving goods in since they are not labeled as such. These goods,
return. Amenhotpe son of Hapu recounts that we must assume, came from the king's privately
he redistributed booty (hlk) which the king had held estates where the total amount of com-
captured on the battlefield to the ndt.19 Thus the modities were sent to the palace. Thus there was
relationship was reciprocal. The king receives no need to indicate the division of goods between
inw from the ndt. He in turn gives them com- palace and temple.21
modities from the hlk.

lib. Inw is Donated to Temples

II. The Uses of Inw
A second royal responsibility met with inw
was donations to temples. Several statements
Goods that the Egyptians classified as inw were
used by the king for his private expenses. This show that inw was sometimes donated to the
was not his only source of income, but because gods by the king.
of the specific nature of gift giving, gifts 1. canA caption to a relief showing the king offer-
usually only be used for specific purposes. There ing to Amon, mcbc inw n hlswt nbwt inn.w
is evidence that the king used inw for the feedingm . . . : "Offering inw of every foreign land
of the members of his immediate retinue, for which was brought from ..." (Thutmose III,
donations to temples, and for paying the necro- Urk. IV, 867:16).
polis workmen. 2. In a list of offerings including animals and
vessels, inw cd nn dr.f: "Great inw without
Ha. Inw Used at the Palace limit" (Thutmose III, Urk. IV, 1253:3-7).
3. Describing a garden-house for Amon, csl ht
The hieratic dockets recovered from the palace st ssp blkt.t hlswt nbwt ms inw csdw m-blh
of Amenhotpe III at Malkata by Hayes and later it.i: "(It is) numerous of possessions, a place
by O'Connor provide an excellent idea of what which receives the blk.t oi every foreign land,
foodstuffs were stored in a royal residence. Even and great amounts of inw being offered before
more revealing was the information recorded my on father (i.e., Amon)" (Amenhotpe III, Urk.
the dockets concerning the sources of the mater- IV, 1651:16-1652:1).
ials. Inw is certainly the most prominent 4.desig- [mbc] inw in hm.f n it.f Iran hft iw.f hr hist
nation given when there is an indication ofrtnw the hsy: "[Offering] inw by His Majesty to
source of materials. Several commodities enter his father Amon after he returned from the
the palace under the rubric inw . These include foreign country of wretched Retenu" (Sety I,
wine, other drinks, curds, cd-fat, fowl, and oil.20 KRII, 10:11; similar 15:8ff; 19:9ff; 23:3ff).
19 Urk. IV, 1821:5-9. 5. ms inw m Hist mhty ii r tkk [Bsw n) hm.f
20 Wine: W. Hayes, "Inscriptions from the Palace of srriDC.n hm.f . . . r mh snc n it Iran: "Present-
Amenhotep III," JNES 10 (1951), 169, figs. R, S, V; p. 158, Q, ing inw from the Northern foreign country
U; fig. 6, #47; M. A. Leahy, Excavations at Malkata and the which came to violate the [borders of] H. M.,
Birket Habu, 1971-1974, vol. IV. The Inscriptions ^Egypt-
ology Today, No. 2 Vol. IV] (Warminster, 1978), 32, XXI, 21 Dr. C. Keller of the University of California, Berkeley,
XXIII; other drinks: Leahy, p. 37, LXIII; curds: Leahy, p. 36, is presently at work re-publishing these documents. Unfor-
LVIII; fat: Hayes, fig. 10, #126; Leahy, p. 34, XLIV; fowl: tunately, the work has not yet progressed far enough to be of
Leahy, p. 35, XLVIII; Hayes, no. 207; oil: Leahy, p. 36, LV. use here (oral communication).

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 162 JARCE XXI (1984)

which H. M. presented in
ceived for the order
necropolis workers to
is said fulfill
to be t
labor of his father "from the inw of Kush."22
Amon" (Ramses II, KRI
143:1 Iff; similar, 146:10; 147:9; 154:10; 156:8; Taken together with the evidence for the col-
167:7; 207:13). lection of inw, the disbursement methods of inw
6. The king speaks of what he did for Amon, indicate strongly that it was a fund of com-
dhn.i n.f tl mri hr inw.sn: "I signed over modities kept separate from other goods because
Egypt to him bearing its mui" (Ramses III, they were subject to a special royal prerogative.
P. Harris 8:3). The sources show a continued consciousness of
7. Among the king's gifts to Theban Temples, goods being inw and therefore in a special cate-
"Gold, electrum, real lapis lazuli, etc.," i-di gory. These goods are subject to rules which
nsw Wsr-mlct-rc mri Imn c.w.s. pi ntr cl m differed from those applied to goods which were
inw n nb c.w.s. r sdfl pr it.i spsy Imn-rc: the king's in a strictly theoretical sense. This
"which King Wesermaatre-meri-amon, l.p.h., shows again that inw was not part of the general
the great god, gave from the inw of the Lord, redistributive economy in Egypt.
l.p.h., in order to provision the house of my
noble father, Amon-re" (Ramses III, P. Harris III. The Administration of Inw
13a:3; similar 33a:3; 52a:6; 62b:3; 70a:5).
8. The king speaks to Re, "I made a balance The administration of the inw fund can best
for you" . . . fli.kwi im.s r hft-hr.k it.i Rc be analysed by examining the specific operations
hlnn.kwi m nbw hd-nbw mi hfnw mst m or tasks mentioned in the texts and in captions
inw m-blh.k m nly.sn dpw di.w r pr-hd.k accompanying relief scenes in tombs and tem-
spsy m pr Itm: "I weighing in it before you, ples. The following verbs are used with the
Father Re, I inclining with great quantities word inw to indicate a particular operation.
of gold and electrum, offering from the inw They are ms, "to present," ssp, "to receive," ml,
before you from their coffers which are given "to view," hbt, to withdraw," and hrp, "to ad-
to your noble treasury in the House of Atum" minister."
(Ramses III, P. Hams 26:12).
9. The king speaks to Atum, ms.i n.k inw kn m Ilia, ms inw

cntyw: "May I offer to you very much inw

The following attestations of this phrase are
consisting of myrrh" (Ramses III, P. Harris
known to me.
49:6; similar 59:9).
1. ms inw hist rsy m nbw Ibw hbny iry-pct
Clearly inw was at least one source from which
hlty-c sl-nsw imy-rl-pr hist rsy Nhy: "Pre-
the king met his responsibilities to the gods.
senting the inw of the Southern foreign coun-
This is not to say that other sources were not
try, consisting of gold, ivory, and ebony by
utilized as well for this purpose. Yet the principle
that resources must be accounted for and that the hereditary noble, local prince, king's son
and overseer of the Southern land, Nehi"
the Egyptians monitored funds as they were col-
lected and disbursed is demonstrated here once (Cenotaph of Nehi, Urk. IV, 983:16-17).
2. ms inw n Rtnw hrpwt hlswt mhtyw hd-nbw
again. This observation cannot be overemphasis-
hsbd mcfklt clwt nbwt nt [tl )-ntr in wrw nw
ed since modern scholars have a tendency to
h Iswt nb.wt ii.sn r sn[mh ) n ntr nfr r dbh tlw
overlook what must have been a carefully kept
r fnd.sn in ss nswt mBc mrw.f imy-rl msc ss
system of accounts.
nfrw Tlnni: "Presenting the inw of Retenu
and the taxes of the Northern foreign lands -
He. The king pays workers with Inw electrum, lapis lazuli, turquoise, all costly

22 J- J- Janssen, Commodity Prices from the Ramessid

Finally, there is evidence that the king could Period (Leiden, 1975), 456. I would also like to thank
use inw to pay the necropolis workmen. In Dr. A. Roccatti for permission to examine this papyrus. Un-
P. Turin 1903 (unpublished) a list of wages re-fortunately it is not possible to reproduce the text here.

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 THE KING'S PRIVY PURSE DURING THE NEW KINGDOM 163

stones of god's-land- by the chiefs people."25

of Aldred' s main objection to under-
all for-
eign lands when they come in order standingtothese scenes as "victory parades" is
request
the breath of life for their nosesthat native
- by theEgyptians
true are often depicted present-
royal scribe whom He loves, the ing gifts
officeralong with
andthe foreigners. This obser-
scribe of recruits, Tjanni" (Brack, vation Grab
was made by Davies as well.26 Aldred
des
Tjanni, p. 40, pl. 31). further offers textual evidence from P. Turin
3. ms inw nb nfr n B mhy m iw^w 1882 wndw
(recto 1,Ihtyw
2) which describes the giving of
Dpdw rmw ssnw nhtb ht nbt nfrt "gifts of homage"
wcbt . . . into the king after his corona-
ss-nsw imy-r? rivyt Hmw-ndh m?c-hrw\ tion by Egyptians
"Pre- and foreigners.27 However, it
senting all the good inw of Lower should be noted
Egypt that the word for "gift" in this
con-
sisting of long-horned cattle, text is brk (WB. I 446, 10), a Semitic loan word
short-horned
cattle, ^hty w -cattle, fowl, fish,and not buds,
lotus the traditional
and Egyptian word inw which
every good pure thing ... by the is found
royal in scribe
these scenes when there is a caption.
and overseer of the portal, Yamu-njekh, Thus it seemsjusti-unlikely that the evidence of this
fied" (Tomb of Yamu-njekh, Urk. papyrus
IV,can link these scenes to the coronation
953:16-
954:5). gifts described in the papyrus.
4. ist hm.f [. . .] hcw hr ipts (sic) nt ms inw ms Redford has further pointed out that Aldred' s
[in]w rsy mhty is iry-pct Hr-m-hb m?c-hrw other evidence, the use of the verb hci for the
chc r gs i[spt] . . . : "Now His Majesty appeared appearance of the king, cannot be limited to
upon the throne of presenting inw that the inw coronations.28 Moreover, the "tribute" scene in
of the North and South might be presented. the Tomb of Huy can be shown not to have
Now, it was the hereditary noble Horemheb, taken place early in Tutankhamun's reign. The
justified, who was at the side of the th[rone] same can be shown for the scenes in the tombs
..." (Memphite Tomb of Horemheb, PSBA of Menkheperre-sonb and Rekhmire in the reign
11 [1889], 424). of Thutmose III. Redford persuasively argues
5. "Remember" hrw mst pz> inw, "the day of that these scenes cannot be interpreted as part of
presenting the inw" (Gardiner, LEM, 120). the coronation but rather depict either a victory
From the foregoing examples, the phrase ms parade when shown in association with battle
inw seems to refer to a formal ceremony. The scenes or representations of the collection of
king is usually present while a high official annual imposts in which the tomb owner played
presents the inw to him in the form of a parade. a role.29
Most of these examples come from tomb scenes In this connection, it is important to note the
which have been the subject of discussion by details of presenting the inw found in P. Roller .
Aldred and Redford. Though neither Aldred nor In line 4:7, the writer strongly implies that inw-
Redford were specifically concerned with the collection is an annual event. Moreover, by say-
meaning of inw in their discussions, their obser- ing, "increase your contribution each year," he
vations on these scenes must be considered here. implies an element of voluntarism. One particu-
Aldred points out23 that others have viewed lar day seems to be set aside for this event which
these tomb scenes as victory parades after bat- is called the "day of presenting inw" (1.5:1).
Furthermore, P. Roller informs us that on this
tles.24 He, however, prefers to interpret the scenes
as "a public ceremony, following closely on day, the the nobles as well as chiefs and envoys of
coronation rites in which the widespread sover- foreign countries are present before the king
eignty of the new ruler was recognized by his
reception of gifts and homage from foreign 25 Aldred, JEA 43(1957), 114.
nations as well as the representatives of his own 26 For text see A. Gardiner, "A Pharonic Encomium," JEA
41 (1955), pl. vii.
27 D. B. Redford, History and Chronology (Toronto, 1967),
23 C. Aldred, "Year Twelve at el-Amarna," JEA (1957), 114. 120-28.
24 J. Breasted, ARE #1027; R. Faulkner, "The Wars of 28 Redford, 128.
Sethos I," /£/! 33 (1947), 34. 29 Redford, 128.

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 164 JARCE XXI (1984)

(5:2-3). This explains

baboon,why the event
and monkey is wor
before [Thutmosis
of being recorded inHere a hetomb.
bears the The
title oftomb own
Chief Royal H
showing that he was among
Elsewhere theowner
the tomb nobles who
bears the title
rlyt,
the honor of being in which
the seems to haveof
presence bearing
Hison thi
Ma
during this ceremony. This evidence
tion. However, the connectionis also a
between
to an understanding Herald
of andthe
the presentation
phrase of Nubianml
gifts inw w
is discussed below. remains obscure.
In the tomb of Nebamun, the scene is described

Illb. ml(l)inw by Sethe as "N. and his wife receive gifts from
servants," and alternately by Porter and Moss as
1. ml inw nw tl mhw. "Viewing the inw of the"Deceased and Wife receiving produce of Delta
and vintage."31 The title used by Nebamun in
Delta" (Tomb of Nebamun [Th.T. #24], Urk.
IV, 153:16). this scene is Captain of Royal Ships, imy-rl
2. ml inw nw tl mhw m hi nb nn dr c.sn in dpwt n nsw, but he bears a large number of
[whm-nsw-tp Ilmw-ndh] mlc-hrw: "Viewing other titles in his tomb, chief of which seems to
the inw of the Delta consisting of inw withoutbe "Steward of the royal wife Nebtu." Though a
limit by the chief royal herald Yamu-njekh, ship captain might be expected to check person-
justified" (Tomb of Yamu-njekh, Urk. IV, ally on an important cargo as it is loaded or
953:13-14). unloaded, neither description in my possession
3. m^D inw n pr-hd in imy-rl kit hrd n kip Pl- mentions the presence of ships in the scene.
hkl-mn mlc-hrw: "Viewing the inw of the Moreover, it seems unlikely that Nebamun 's wife
treasury by the overseer of works and child of would accompany him on what would have been
the harim, Paheka-men, justified" (Tomb of a routine trip to the Delta to pick up inw .
Benya, H. Guksch, Grab des Benja etc., pl. 9). Finally, the scene in the tomb of Benya-
4. ntf ml inw n tl: "You are the one who views Paheka-men shows the deceased before three
the inw of the land ..." (Tomb of Rekhmire, registers of men weighing and recording gold
Urk. IV, 1115:4). rings and various other treasure. Here the titles
5. shl n.k pi hrw n mst pi inw iw.k msn m-blh used are "Overseer of Works" and "Child of the
[nsw) hr pi ssd sr m itry m-blh hm.f c.w.s. Harim." The scene is said to be taking place in
wrw msyt nw hist nb iw chc grg hr mil pi the pr-hd. From his other associations, this ap-
inw: "Remember the day of presenting the pears to be a royal rather than a temple institu-
inw when you pass into the Presence beneath tion.32 Paheka-men's other titles are "Overseer
the Window, the nobles in two rows in the of the Craftsmen of the Lord of the Two Lands"
presence of H. M., l.p.h., the chiefs and envoys
and "Overseer of the Seal of L. E." Again the
of every foreign land standing silent at view- unnamed titles in this scene appear more rele-
ing the inw91 (P. Roller 5:1-3 in Gardiner, vant to the action than the titles which are men-
LEM, 120). tioned there, but there could be a connection
The instances of ml inw cited here pose sever- between an "Overseer of Works" and the pre-
al problems. The act described by this expression cious metals used to decorate pieces of architec-
does not seem to form any one specific action. ture. The inclusion of the title, "Child of the
Furthermore, the titles which accompany a tomb Harim," implies status rather than function and
owner's name when performing this function do again is only obscurely related to the action of
not always connect clearly with the act itself. the scene.
This is quite odd if the scenes show an episode
from the career or working life of the tomb
owner. 30 PM II (Oxford, 1974), 168. No other published account

Of the three tomb scenes citedofhere,

this tomb is presently available.
the king
31 Urk. IV, 153 and PM II, 42.
is only present in that of Yamu-njekh.
32 H. Guksch, DasPorter
Grab des Benja, gen. Paheqamen
and Moss describe it as follows: "[Deceased]
(Cairo, 1979), 45; W.and
Helck, Zur Verwaltung des Mittleren
Nubians with tribute including giraffes, cheetah,
und Neuen Reichs (Leiden, 1958), 72.

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 THE KING'S PRIVY PURSE DURING THE NEW KINGDOM 165

4. ssp inw [n] nht [hm.f]:

The scene from the tomb of Yamu-njekh seems"Receiving the inw
to relate well to the description[ofof the
] victory Day
of [H. of of Menkheperre-
M.]" (Tomb
Presenting the inw described insonb, P. Urk,
Roller.
IV, 930:11).The
presence of the king and a high ranking
5. "Counting official
the bak, ssp inw innw nblw hm.f
of his court standing before Nubian gift-bearers
m htr nt (?) rnpt m c wrw Rtnw shnty m dpt r
fits almost exactly with this Ramesside
tl mri [in] imy-rldocu- cw n hist mhtt ss-nsw
ment. Clearly in this scene we have a depiction
Dhwty mlc-hrw: "Receiving the inw which
of the events described in P. Roller. There is still,
was brought to the powers of H. M. consisting
however, a problem in relating of
the other
annual htr byscene
the Chiefs of Retenu and
from Benya to this description. This scene
caused to go up stream is
by boat to Egypt by
part of a different genre, since it the
does not of
Overseer include
the Door of the Northern
the parade. In spite of the above Foreign noted Country
problems and Royal Scribe, Djhouty,
with his titles here, it would seem justified" he
that is per-
(Statue of Djhouty, J. Yoyotte, BSFE
forming a task of daily life. In the tomb of (1981), 33-51).
Yamu-njekh and Nebamun, however, the absence
of titles which can be associated with inw admin-
6a. ssp inw n hist rsyt mcbl inw n Pwnt inw n
Rtnw inw n Rftyw mcbl hlkt n hlswt nbwt
istration in a scene which depicts inw being
innw (n) blw hm.f nsw-bity Mn-Hpr-Rc in
brought argues for this scene being a commem-
iry-pct hlty-c wr wrw sch smrw imy-rl ilwt
oration of an important event in the tomb
hnnt mh-ib mnh n Ity ir hsti imy ch di sw m
owner's life. If the scene were meant to portray
tp n smrw hry-tp n tl r dr.f si n.f sw m irw
one of the deceased's regular duties in life, it
chwt mnt n.f clw.f m hr.f imy-rl [Rh-mi-rc\.
would be reasonable to expect the correct title
"Receiving the inw of the Southern Foreign
for that duty to accompany the scene. Since this
Country. Offering the inw of Punt, inw of
clearly is not the case in these tombs, it would
Retenu, inw of Keftiu and offering the plun-
seem more likely that these particular scenes
der of all foreign countries which was brought
depict an important event in the life of the tomb
to the power of H. M., the King of Upper and
owner, namely his presence on the "day of pre-
Lower Egypt, Menkheperre, living forever, by
senting inw" where he was permitted to view
. . . [titles] . . . Rekhmire" (Tomb of Rekhmire,
the gifts being delivered to the king. The title
Urk, IV, 1094:6-1095:3).
which is included in the scene would therefore
6b. "Coming in peace of the Chiefs of Punt
reveal to the ancient observer that this man held
a rank high enough to be considered one of the with bowing and inclined head bearing their
srw and thus he was permitted to attend the inw ... in iry-pct hlty-c mh-ib n nsw hnty
ceremony. [tl.wy imy-rl niwt tlty Rh-mi-rc ssp inw nb
n hlswt nbwt innw n [blw] hm.f m nht[.f]: "It
was the hereditary prince and noble, the one
IIIc. ssp inw who fills the King's heart, foremost [of the
Two Lands, Mayor of the City, and vizier
1. ssp inw n wr n Pwnt in wpwty-nsw: Rekhmire] who received all the inw of all
"Receiving the inw of the Chief of Punt by foreign countries which was brought to the
the Royal Messenger" (Mortuary Temple of [powers] of H. M. in [his] strength" (Tomb of
Hatshepsut, Urk. IV, 326:2-3). Rekhmire, Urk. IV, 1097:7-16; see also 1099:4-
2. ssp inw n Rs: "Receiving the inw of Kush" 5; 1100:6-7; 1102:5-6).
(Tomb of Senmut, Urk. IV, 512:5-6). 7. Over a scribe who is writing, ssp inw hist
3. ssp inw n Hnw Stt n Wlwt-Hr hnc inw n rsy mcbl inw nw tl mhtt m-blh imy-rl niwt
hist rsy mhtt: "Receiving the inw of Henou, tlty Rh-mi-rc: "Receiving the inw of the
Asia, of the Ways of Horus, together with the Southern foreign country and offering of inw
inw of the Southern and Northern foreign of the Delta before the Mayor of the City and
countries" (Tomb of Puyemre, Urk. IV, 523: Vizier, Rekhmire" (Davies, Tomb of Rekh-
5-6). mire, p. 31).

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 166 JARCE XXI (1984)

8. iw wd.n nb.i tsw served

blk record,
im it is r
clear smr
that there was
tp a well
n ch dh
defined processing
sw r imy-TD kjiv hm-ntr tp procedure
n wrt for the
hklinw from
whm.n
rdit.f r imy-rl niwtthewpt-mlct
donor to the royal treasury.
diw m-hr.f r ss
inw hist rsyt mhtt r pr-hd n nsw: "My Lo
commanded that his servant be raised to first
Hid. hb inw
friend of the palace, he having appointed him
as overseer of cattle, first prophet of Hike. 1.He ntf ir hbt inw n gsw-prw: "He (the vizier) is
continued [by] his appointing [him] as Mayorthe one who withdraws inw from the storage"
of the City and ...(?)... giving him (Tomb of Rekhmire, Urk. IV, 1 1 14:3).
responsibility for receiving the inw of The the word hb has the basic meaning of "reduce,
Northern and Southern foreign countries subtract"
for (Wb. Ill, 251). The root is also known
the royal treasury" (Tomb of Paser, KRI in III,
Demotic and Coptic with a similar semantic
9:5ff.). range. The Worterbuch III, 252, however, lists
The term ssp inw was used to refer to at least the expression hb inw separately with the mean-
three different administrative acts. It is used at ing "Gaben sammeln; Abgaben einziehen." The
the initial reception of the inw from the donor, Worterbuch notes that in the Greek Period texts
the assuming of responsibility for the inw after inw is often followed by the genitive and the
the official presentation to the king, and the donor or an "m" with the name of a country,
storing of the inw until it is needed for other meaning "from."
purposes. On the basis of P. Harageh 3114, Smithers has
Examples 1 and 5 clearly demonstrate that a that the word hb retains its basic meaning
argued
royal representative officially accepted the"reduce" inw in this expression and construes it as
from a local chief on behalf of the king. In a
"extraction of dues."33 He cites one Ptolemaic
case where the inw was occasional in nature, as example from Edfu I, 188 which he reads itk
in Punt, this task was handled by a wpwty-nswkmt hkl.k Dsrt, hb.k inw Iwntyw: "May you
as leader of the expedition. In West Asia, whereseize the Black Land, Rule the Red Land, and
inw was collected annually during the reign of extract the dues of the Nubians." Similar ex-
Thutmose III, it appears that at least some goodsamples occur in Edfu II, 40, 50, and at Dendera.34
were collected in Byblos for forwarding by ship If the word hb is to retain its basic meaning of
to Egypt. This task was carried out by the Over-reduce or subtract in the expression hb inw, it is
seer of the Door of the Northern Foreign Coun-difficult to follow Smithers' logic. Extraction of
try. dues is not really related to the basic meaning.
On arrival in Egypt, the inw was formally Though this meaning appears to make sense in
presented to the king (see section Ilia). After this his Ptolemaic example, it does not clarify the
ceremony the inw became the responsibility of one New Kingdom example.
the vizier (exx. 2, 3, 4, 6). Rekhmire, for example, The gs-pr was a place where inw was stored.
claims that a report of all inw was made directly This is clear from the Biography of Duah-er-
to him (Urk. IV, 1115:12). The vizier's office must nekhekh where he describes his duties as overseer
then have divided up the commodities according of the gs-pr.35 Here we are told that he controlled
to type and had them sent to the proper storage "great amounts of inw." The meaning of hbt
area. Example 8 shows that this area was the inw n gs-pr would then more likely mean to
royal treasury. Here once again the term is used reduce the amount of inw which was stored
for the scribe who works in the treasury. The list there. This should be thought of as "withdraw-
which the scribe is preparing of the inw might ing inw" for use. This situation would explain
well be thought of as a "receipt." a subtraction or diminishing of the inw .
In conclusion, the term ssp inw seems to imply If this theory is accepted, however, it does
an assumption of responsibility for the goods as not clarify the Ptolemaic example quoted by
part of a chain of bureaucracy which guides the
33 P. Smithers, "A Tax Assessor's Journal of the Middle
inw from the hands of the donor/chief to Egypt, Kingdom," JEA 27 (1941), 75.
and from the official presentation ceremony to 34 Quoted in Smithers, JEA 27 (1941), 75.
storage. Though details are lacking in the pre- 35 Urk. IV, 1397:15-1380:3.

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 THE KING'S PRIVY PURSE DURING THE NEW KINGDOM 167

Smithers. This can be explained by the (ex.

the rwyt confusion
2). Finally, ex. 3 shows that scribes
which Cerny36 notes in the Latewere Period between
employed to keep track of the commodities
the roots hb and hbl. The later word means "to once they were inside the storage area. Ip might
hack up"37 which would be more parallel to the refer to inventory taking. It is notable, however,
other phrases used in the Edfu inscription. Thethat even with the store-house, the inw seems to
sequence then would be, "May you seize thebe organized according to its origin rather than
Black Land, Rule the Red Land, and hack up
the kind of commodity.
the inw of the Nubians." Since the word used
for Nubians is Iwntyw, we might expect the Conclusion
inclusion of the word inw as a word play with
Iwntyw, combined with a larger word play on Enough evidence has been adduced to argue
the expression hb inw. for the following conclusions.
The example from Harageh also makes sense The institution of inw was neither trade nor
with the translation "withdrawing" the inw.tribute
It but rather represents a system of gift-
reads, wrshrw ssn.f hb inw m hi ~>ht rdt mhtt.38
giving to the king by a variety of people both
This I would translate, "Spending the day writ-
Egyptian and foreign. The foreigners were treated
ing out for him the withdrawal of inw from in the same manner in this system with no regard
the office of the field of the Northern District."
to their degree of dependence on Egypt or on
Though I cannot explain why inw was stored Egyptian hegemony being established in their
in this particular office during the Middle native country. The inw -relationship merely dem-
Kingdom, it makes sense that any official remov- onstrates the Egyptian king's superiority to other
ing inw from a storage place for use or storage men in the social hierarchy. The system was
elsewhere would write out a complete list of the sanctioned by the gods and allowed the king to
amount he had reduced the stores. operate economically outside of the usual system
of redistribution. A large bureaucracy was main-
tained to account for the inw from the time it
Hie. Storage Facilities and Tasks left foreign soil, to the formal presentation cere-
Completed There mony, during periods of storage, and finally its
use to reward men for royal service, to pay an
1. iw hrp.n.i iwl wn-dw ht-cl sd nn drw.f inw obligation to the gods, or its use as raw material
csd m-tp hr [sic] tp\ "I controlled the iwl- in royal buildling projects.
cattle, the wn-dw -cattle, the /^-cB-geese, and If these conclusions are accepted, it becomes
id-geese without limit (as well as) great clear that inw bears only an indirect relationship
amounts of the best inw" (Tomb of Duah-er- to the question of imperialism. Giving inw to
nekhekh, Urk. IV, 1380:1-3). the Egyptian king is an expression of his place
2. ... inw.sn hr psd.sn r mh rwyt: ". . . their inw in the social hierarchy of Near Eastern poten-
on their backs in order to fill the gate" (Tomb tates. The giving of inw by more and more
of Yamu-njekhekh, RT 1 (1886), 32). distant foreigners was clearly an indirect result
3. [ip] inw n Wlwt-Hr ip inw n hlswt: "[Count- of the king's wider influence and hegemony. He
ing] the inw of the Ways of Horus, counting increased his social status by his conquests. This
the inw of the foreign lands" (Tomb of enhanced status and prestige was recognized by
Puyemre, Urk. IV, 523:15-524:2). the giving of inw, but this exchange was not an
Example 1 demonstrates that the general ad- acknowledgment of hegemony over a particular
ministration of the inw, once it reached storage, area. When a king recounts that foreign princes
was under the overseer of the gs-pr. However, sent inw to him, he is pointing out that his
inw could also be stored in a place referred to as increased status is recognised throughout the
world. He is not, however, claiming that he rules
36 J. Cerny, Coptic Etymological Dictionary (Cambridge, an area just because he says that he receives inw
1976), 237. from its prince.
37 FT6. Ill, 253.
38 Smithers, JEA 27 (1941), pl. IXa. Baltimore, Md.

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