Trouble in the West. Egypt and the Persian Empire 525-332 BCE

Abstract

Smolarikova reviews Trouble in the West. Egypt and the Persian Empire 525-332 BCE by Stephen Ruzicka.

Ruzicka, Stephen. Trouble in the West. Egypt and the Persian Empire 525-332 BCE. Oxford University Press, 2012. xxv+331 pp., 5 figs., 5 maps. ISBN 978-0-19-976662-8. Review by Kv?ta Smoláriková.

The book under review is an extremely welcome contribution to a better understanding of the development of the rather complicated relations between ancient Egypt and its conqueror - the powerful Persian Empire. Well written and comprehensively documented, Ruzicka's work begins with a short preface on the theme of the Persian-Egyptian conflict from the 6th century to the 4th century BCE. The book consists of twenty chapters, with the first providing the broader historical context; here, unfortunately, we are not offered sufficient information about the tribal roots of the Persian nation, particularly in relation to their new nobility, who were themselves instrumental in the realization of Persian imperial ambitions. However, this problem has been seriously discussed by many scholars in recent years, for example those contributing the British Museum exhibition: Forgotten Empire. The world of Ancient Persia.1 The next chapter covers the conquest and the first years (525- 518 BCE) of the Persian occupation of Egypt. Generally, this nearly decade-long period of Persian presence in Egypt belongs to the most interesting era because it was necessary for the Persian kings to take a series of steps, both religious and secular, to establish and maintain control over the notoriously rebellious Egyptian satrapy. In Chapters 3 and 4, the author outlines the way in which the Persians managed Egypt and then how, eventually, they lost control (518-415 BCE) by engaging in conflicts on too many battlefields around their western borders. The following chapters and the bulk of the book under review are deeply anchored in the turbulent political events in the wider territory of the eastern Mediterranean area, more precisely in the endless number of military confrontations between Egypt and Persia (mainland Greece/ Asia Minor also played a crucial role), shifting alliances, as well as local rivalries, so typical for the whole of the 4th century BCE. In these, often fratricidal, encounters with the Greeks, Egypt's strategy and policy remained the same - to search for help and support against the omnipresent enemy, the Persian Empire. Here, Ruzicka is at his best because he offers a well-organized chain of events, based on an extraordinary abundance of references. In Chapter 18 the author deals with the second - only a one decade long period, but a time of extreme cruelty- Persian occupation of Egypt by Artaxerxes III in the broader context of his massive re-conquest of the lost countries in the coastal Mediterranean area. The end of both the Persian occupation and of the Persian Empire itself is connected with the rise of the Macedonian liberator, Alexander the Great, and constitutes the focus of the closing two chapters.

Despite the many speculations throughout the book, it is written in a flowing style and, as a whole, provides enjoyable reading. As a skillful historian, Ruzicka is certainly aware of the difference between pure hypothesis and foolish imagination. His discussions are amplified by appropriate references to citations from ancient authors but, on the other hand, the archaeological data are neglected to some extent (the reviewer is an archaeologist). This is well illustrated by the author's ignorance of the recent results emanating from the numerous archaeological excavations being carried out in the wider Memphide area or in the Nile Delta. We can mention, for example, the Czech archaeological excavations on the site of a rather small Saite-Persian cemetery at Abusir (since 1980!), where, in addition, the famous Udjahorresnet, so far known only by reference to his fine naophorous statue preserved at the Vatican (Ruzicka's fig. 1, p. 111), was buried, together with other high- ranking Egyptians from the beginning of the First Persian occupation of Egypt. From numerous finds, mainly demotic inscriptions and a large amount of pottery, it is indisputable that some Saite dignitaries would have been buried here even during the reign of the Persian king, Darius I. Thus, there is too little focus on archaeology and too much focus on the history of the 5th century BCE, thus creating a narrative which is lacking in balance. In this respect, we can draw the author's attention to a series of papers written by D. Kahn,3 a reference that is surprisingly missing from his impressive bibliography (pp. 285-306). For an effective and speedy orientation, the text is augmented by the welcome inclusion of maps, appendixes, a bibliography and an index (pp. 219-311). Without hesitation, this book can be considered one of the works that constitute a milestone in the process of understanding and correctly interpreting the level of Greek anti-Persian propaganda that has until now prevailed in studies of Egypt focusing on the time of Persian rule. As such, it can be counted among the publications written by Pierre Briant and the circle of scholars around his Chaire d'Histoire et civilisation du monde achémenide et l'empire d'Alexandre, Collège de France. And this is the reason why no one working in this field of study, i.e., the history of the Egyptian-Persian era and the broader context of the history of the eastern Mediterranean area during the second half of the first millennium BCE, can afford to overlook this work.

To sum up, we hope that this, in every respect excellent, publication will whet the appetite of others and lead to further studies in the field of the troublesome relationship between Persia and Egypt in the near future. For quite a long time, a significant part of our knowledge of the conquest of Egypt by the Persian kings, and indeed about much else, came from classical Greek authors such as Herodotus and Diodorus of Sicily; and it is a well-known fact that in their accounts the activities of the Persian kings were the subject of extremely negative comments: it is suggested that Cambyses burned the temples of Egypt and the Persians removed artisans from Egypt in order to construct their famous palaces in Persepolis and Susa. But the situation was unlike this in reality, as Stephen Ruzicka's publication evidently confirms. The strategy of the Persian kings - at least the first two, Cambyses and Darius I - was characterized by the imposition of tolerant rule, intensive efforts to make close alliances with the powerful and influential local elites, and respect for their gods, sanctuaries and cults. Only later was the situation to change dramatically and the Persians became real occupiers of the land. Thus, both an increasing study of the surviving ancient Persian records and the relevant archaeological data obtained from archaeological excavations will significantly help in the process of rewriting the history of the Persian Empire and its relationships with subjected peoples.

Footnote

Notes

1 J. Curtis and N. Tallis (eds.), Forgotten Empire. The world of Ancient Persia. London: British Museum Press, 2005.

2 L. Bares, The shaft tomb of Udjahorresnet, Abusir IV. Prague 1999; recently also L. Bares and K. Smoláriková, The shaft tomb of Menekhibnekau. Vol. I: Archaeology, Abusir XXV. Prague 2011.

3 For example, D. Kahn and O. Tammuz, "Egypt is difficult to enter: Invading Egypt - A Game Plan (seventh-fourth centuries BCE)," JSSEA 35 (2008), 37-66.