The Minoan wall paintings at

Tell el-Dab'a Tell el-Dab'a is the modern name for the ancient city of Avaris, an archaeological site in the Nile Delta region of Egypt where the capital city of the Hyksos, once stood. Avaris was occupied by Asiatics from the end of the 12th through the 1 ...

are of particular interest to

Egyptologist Egyptology (from ''Egypt'' and Greek , ''-logia''; ) is the scientific study of ancient Egypt. The topics studied include ancient Egyptian history, language, literature, religion, architecture and art from the 5th millennium BC until the end ...

s and

archaeologist Archaeology or archeology is the study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of Artifact (archaeology), artifacts, architecture, biofact (archaeology), biofacts or ecofacts, ...

s. They are of

Minoan The Minoan civilization was a Bronze Age culture which was centered on the island of Crete. Known for its monumental architecture and Minoan art, energetic art, it is often regarded as the first civilization in Europe. The ruins of the Minoan pa ...

style, content, and technology, but there is uncertainty over the ethnic identity of the artists. The paintings depict images of

bull-leaping Bull-leaping (, ) is a term for various types of non-violent bull fighting. Some are based on an ancient ritual from the Minoan civilization involving an acrobat leaping over the back of a charging bull (or cow). As a sport it survives in Spai ...

, bull-grappling,

griffin The griffin, griffon, or gryphon (; Classical Latin: ''gryps'' or ''grypus''; Late and Medieval Latin: ''gryphes'', ''grypho'' etc.; Old French: ''griffon'') is a -4; we might wonder whether there's a point at which it's appropriate to talk ...

s, and hunts. They were discovered by a team of archaeologists led by

Manfred Bietak Manfred Bietak (born in Vienna, 6 October 1940) is an Austrian archaeologist. He is professor emeritus of Egyptology at the University of Vienna, working as the principal investigator for an ERC Advanced Grant Project "The Hyksos Enigma" and edit ...

, in the palace district of the Thutmosid period at Tell el-Dab'a. The

fresco Fresco ( or frescoes) is a technique of mural painting executed upon freshly laid ("wet") lime plaster. Water is used as the vehicle for the dry-powder pigment to merge with the plaster, and with the setting of the plaster, the painting become ...

es date to the

Eighteenth dynasty of Egypt The Eighteenth Dynasty of Egypt (notated Dynasty XVIII, alternatively 18th Dynasty or Dynasty 18) is classified as the first dynasty of the New Kingdom of Egypt, the era in which ancient Egypt achieved the peak of its power. The Eighteenth Dynasty ...

, most likely during the reigns of either the

pharaoh Pharaoh (, ; Egyptian language, Egyptian: ''wikt:pr ꜥꜣ, pr ꜥꜣ''; Meroitic language, Meroitic: 𐦲𐦤𐦧, ; Biblical Hebrew: ''Parʿō'') was the title of the monarch of ancient Egypt from the First Dynasty of Egypt, First Dynasty ( ...

Hatshepsut Hatshepsut ( ; BC) was the sixth pharaoh of the Eighteenth Dynasty of Ancient Egypt, Egypt, ruling first as regent, then as queen regnant from until (Low Chronology) and the Great Royal Wife of Pharaoh Thutmose II. She was Egypt's second c ...

(reigned c. 1479 – 1458 BCE) or

Thutmose III Thutmose III (variously also spelt Tuthmosis or Thothmes), sometimes called Thutmose the Great, (1479–1425 BC) was the fifth pharaoh of the 18th Dynasty of Egypt. He is regarded as one of the greatest warriors, military commanders, and milita ...

(reigned 1479 – 1425 BCE), after being previously considered to belong to the late

Second Intermediate Period The Second Intermediate Period dates from 1700 to 1550 BC. It marks a period when ancient Egypt was divided into smaller dynasties for a second time, between the end of the Middle Kingdom and the start of the New Kingdom. The concept of a Secon ...

. The paintings indicate an involvement of

Egypt Egypt ( , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a country spanning the Northeast Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to northe ...

in international relations and cultural exchanges with the

Eastern Mediterranean The Eastern Mediterranean is a loosely delimited region comprising the easternmost portion of the Mediterranean Sea, and well as the adjoining land—often defined as the countries around the Levantine Sea. It includes the southern half of Turkey ...

either through marriage or exchange of gifts.

Palace District of the Thutmosid Period

The palace district of the Thutmosid period covers a part of the same ground that the palace district of the

Hyksos period The Second Intermediate Period dates from 1700 to 1550 BC. It marks a period when ancient Egypt was divided into smaller dynasties for a second time, between the end of the Middle Kingdom and the start of the New Kingdom. The concept of a Second ...

, however Thutmosid palace has a different orientation.Bietak, Manfred. "The Palatial Precinct at the Nile Branch." Auaris, Avaris, Tell El-Daba. 2008. http://www.auaris.at/html/ez_helmi_en.html#8 The most prominent elements are two palatial structures, (F) which is smaller and (G) which is bigger. There was much pottery discovered in structure F that has been dated to the

. This has greatly aided archaeologists in dating the palace districts and the paintings. Also, two-thirds of the painting fragments have been found around palatial structure F, while a number of fragments were found at the base of a ramp of palatial structure G.

Paintings

The frescoes were found in the precinct of the Thutmosid palace at Tell el-Dab'a in thousands of fragments on

lime plaster Lime plaster is a type of plaster composed of sand, water, and lime, usually non-hydraulic hydrated lime (also known as slaked lime, high calcium lime or air lime). Ancient lime plaster often contained horse hair for reinforcement and pozzolan ...

. The paintings have been partially reconstructed to reveal bull-leaping and bull-grappling scenes, some against a maze pattern, and felines chasing ungulates. There are also hunting scenes, life sized figures, men with staffs, and a white female wearing a skirt, as well as griffins.Bietak, Manfred, “Minoan Artists at the Court of Avaris” in, Beyond Babylon: art, trade, and diplomacy in the second millennium B.C. / edited by Joan Aruz, Kim Benzel, and Jean M. Evans. New York: Metropolitan Museum of Art; New Haven: Yale University Press, c2008. The paintings can date to the early phase of the palaces. One group of paintings was found fallen off the wall of a doorway, and the other group of fragments was found in dumps deposited by the north-east palace.Manfred Bietak, “Rich beyond the Dreams of Avaris: Tell el-Dabʿa and the Aegean World: A Guide for the Perplexed': A Response to Eric H. Cline. The Annual of the British School at Athens, vol. 95, (2000), pp. 185-205 Published by: British School at Athens They seem to have been applied to the walls during the early part of Thutmose III's reign, and removed during the later Thutmosid period. There is a long frieze of bull-leaping and bull-grappling against a maze pattern. Especially important are the emblems of the

Minoan palace Minoan palaces were massive building complexes built on Crete during the Bronze Age. They are often considered emblematic of the Minoan civilization and are modern tourist destinations. Archaeologists generally recognize five structures as palac ...

such as the half rosette frieze and the presence of big griffins which are the same size as the ones in the

throne room A throne room or throne hall is the room, often rather a hall, in the official residence of the crown, either a palace or a fortified castle, where the throne of a senior figure (usually a monarch) is set up with elaborate pomp—usually raised, ...

Knossos Knossos (; , ; Linear B: ''Ko-no-so'') is a Bronze Age archaeological site in Crete. The site was a major centre of the Minoan civilization and is known for its association with the Greek myth of Theseus and the minotaur. It is located on th ...

Crete Crete ( ; , Modern Greek, Modern: , Ancient Greek, Ancient: ) is the largest and most populous of the Greek islands, the List of islands by area, 88th largest island in the world and the List of islands in the Mediterranean#By area, fifth la ...

, and the technique of the paintings are typically Aegean. The paintings are made with a basic coating of two or three layers of lime plaster, the surface is polished with a stone float, and then the paintings are made with a combination of

and

stucco Stucco or render is a construction material made of aggregates, a binder, and water. Stucco is applied wet and hardens to a very dense solid. It is used as a decorative coating for walls and ceilings, exterior walls, and as a sculptural and ...

. The style of painting is very high quality, and compares with some of the best paintings from Crete.

Dating

It was primarily believed that the paintings belonged to the late Hyksos period of rule over

Avaris Avaris (Egyptian: ḥw.t wꜥr.t, sometimes ''hut-waret''; ; ; ) was the Hyksos capital of Egypt located at the modern site of Tell el-Dab'a in the northeastern region of the Nile Delta. As the main course of the Nile migrated eastward, its po ...

, or to the early period of the 18th dynasty. Manfred Bietak originally dated the paintings to the Hyksos period in his book ''Avaris: The Capital of the Hyksos''. However, with the continuation of excavations, evidence has pointed to the paintings originating in the early reign of Thutmose III during the time of the 18th dynasty. With the excavation of one of the 18th-century palaces, there appeared many scarabs with the names of early 18th dynasty pharaohs. However, as some of the fragments of the paintings were discovered in areas older than the palace, Bietak explains that it was only logical to assume that the paintings were of older origin as well, from before the 18th dynasty. However, a problem arose since the palatial structure cut into the Hyksos enclosure wall. Due to this evidence, the finding of more frescoes at a section of the excavation that belonged to the 18th dynasty, and the evaluation of pottery which was dated to the 18th dynasty, Bietak changed his mind and he dated the compound to the Thutmosid period.

Debate on its Minoan identity

There is debate on the ethnicity of the artists. Some, including Bietak, claim that the paintings were painted by Minoan artists, while others, like Cline, argue that this cannot be proven and that it may be that the artists just had a deep knowledge of Aegean art. Cline doubts the change in dating by Bietak, and Bietak's argument that the artists were Minoan. Cline says that the “Daba frescoes may simply be an indication that Hyksos artists also adopted aspects of other cultures,” and therefore believes that the artists were not Minoan.Eric H. Cline, “Rich beyond the Dreams of Avaris: Tell El-DabʿA and the Aegean World: A Guide for the Perplexed” in, The Annual of the British School at Athens, vol. 93, (1998), pp. 199-219 However, according to Bietak, the techniques used and the style and motifs employed leave no doubt that the artists were Minoan. The technique of using lime plaster in two layers with a highly polished surface, fresco in combination with stucco, all are techniques that are not Egyptian but are first seen in Minoan paintings. Also, the colors used by the artists are clearly Minoan. For example, using blue instead of grey is Minoan, with that color convention being seen in Egypt later, and due to Aegean influences. Together with this evidence, Egyptian hieroglyphs and emblems are not present among any of the fragments discovered. The composition of the paintings, which included mountainous scenery, and motifs, also fit in perfectly with those of the Aegean world. Thus the overwhelming evidence seems to point in the direction of Minoan artists having been at work in Avaris.

Importance

Much has been said about the importance of the paintings and their origin. The question of why these paintings appear in the Thutmosid palaces is a perplexing question for archaeologists and Egyptologists. According to Bietak, the use of specific Minoan royal motifs in a palace in Tell el-Dab'a indicates "an encounter on the highest level must have taken place between the courts of Knossos and Egypt." Manfred Bietak offers us one hypothesis. He points to the presence of Minoan royal emblems, the full scale griffins, and the large representation of the female in the skirt might suggest a political marriage between Thutmose III and a Minoan princess. The paintings are unique. They are one of a kind, and they compare with artwork from Knossos. Nanno Marinatos has made the case that the rosette motif, which is a prominent feature of the Taureador paintings, reproduces the Knossian rosettes and that it is a distinct Minoan symbol. In regards to Egypt, the paintings reveal an international era of cultural interaction between Egypt and the eastern Mediterranean. They also point to Tell el-Dab'a as a place where these cultural exchanges took place, meaning the city was incredibly important to Egypt. Nanno Marinatos, "Lions from Tell el Dab'a", Egypt and the Levant 20, 2010, pp. 325-356; eadem, Minoan Kingship and the Solar Goddess. University of Illinois Press 2010 Marinatos has additionally argued that the Tell el Dab'a paintings are evidence of a koine, a visual language of common symbols, which testifies to interactions among the rulers of neighboring powers. The marriage of a Minoan princess to an Egyptian pharaoh may be one possible scenario but there are other ones. Minoan Knossian authority was involved in Egyptian affairs possibly because Crete had a strong naval force to offer the pharaoh.

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Minoan Frescoes From Tell El-Daba 15th-century BC works 15th century BC in Egypt Archaeological discoveries in Egypt Minoan frescos Bull-leaping Buildings and structures of the Eighteenth Dynasty of Egypt Avaris Hatshepsut Thutmose III