“Shagi / Steps” the Journal of the SASH

SHAGI/STEPS 7(4)

Keywords: “democratization”, funeral cult, Pyramid Texts, Coffin Texts, First Intermediate Period, Osiris, Egyptology, Ancient Egypt, religion, historiography

Abstract: This article, based on the works of foreign and domestic Egyptologists, examines the theory of “democratization” of the funeral cult in Ancient Egypt in the First Intermediate Period (late III — early II millennium BC). The main purpose of this study is to trace the evolution of this theory. First of all, its emergence at the beginning of the 20th century is of interest, since there is no consensus, who of the scholars first proposed it. Then, over the course of almost a century, the theory gained followers, acquired new additions and concepts, which, as we can see, were accepted by Egyptologists all over the world; however, contemporary scholars have criticized it. One can conclude that, despite more than a century of its existence, there is no consensus among researchers on this issue. One questions even the basic points of the theory, such as the initial difference between the concepts of afterlife for the king and for ordinary people, the transformation of the Pyramid Texts into the Coffin Texts, the identification of the deceased with Osiris — the deity of the afterlife. The controversial nature of the theory of “democratization” of the funeral cult in the First Transitional Period makes it relevant for further research.

To cite this article: Zhukova, A. A. (2021). The so-called “democratization” of the ancient Egyptian funeral cult in the First intermediate period as seen in Russian and world Egyptology. Shagi/Steps, 7(4), 13–31. (In Russian). https://doi.org/10.22394/2412-9410-2021-7-4-