The Ramesside Period: Egypt Strengthens Its Hold over Canaan

The time of the early Nineteenth Dynasty saw increasing attempts by Hittites to take over parts of Syria that were under Egyptian control, as well as ongoing skirmishes among the local Canaanite rulers. To regain control of their northern territories, the Nineteenth Dynasty kings Seti I, Ramesses II, and Merneptah conducted military campaigns in Canaan, which are recorded on victory stelae and reliefs in Canaan and Egypt. These developments necessitated the reinforcement of the ... Read More »

Stela of Seti I
("First Stela")

Beth Shean, 1295 BCE, basalt
Israel Antiquities Authority

This stela commemorates a successful military campaign of Seti I against a small group of rebellious Canaanite towns near Beth Shean. The upper part shows the king offering incense and libation to the falcon-headed sun god Re-Horakhty. The lower part features an inscription that opens with the date (Year 1 of the king's reign), continues with the king's official names and praises of his valor, and ends with an account of the campaign.
From the Catalogue »

Stela of Seti I >br>("Second Stela")

Beth Shean, 1295–1290 BCE, basalt
Israel Antiquities Authority

The upper part of this stela is lost and at several points the surviving text is partly or entirely illegible. The inscription refers the king's suppression of an attack by the Apiru, a group of outsiders, renegades, and mercenaries who frequently caused trouble in Canaan for both the locals and the Egyptian forces stationed there.

Reconstructed gateway facade of a fortress of Ramesses II

Jaffa, 1279–1212 BCE, kurkar sandstone
Israel Antiquities Authority

Only a few fragments have survived of the monumental gateway facade tentatively reconstructed here. The facade originally had inscriptions on both sides that bore the official names of Ramesses II, and it adorned the entrance to a gate in a fortress at Jaffa. The fragments were recovered in a secondary context, some of them reused as construction blocks along the sides and in the foundations of a later gateway.

Jar fragment bearing the throne name and birth name of Seti II

Tell el-Farah (South), 1201–1195 BCE, pottery
Israel Antiquities Authority

Model pen case

1182-1151 BCE Meggido, Ivory

Statue of Ramesses III

Beth Shean, 1185–1153 BCE, basalt
Israel Antiquities Authority

This life-size statue depicts the seated figure of Ramesses III, who ruled Egypt for 32 years and who is often considered the last great pharaoh of ancient Egypt. It was probably dedicated to a Canaanite temple in Beth Shean, but was found broken and mutilated in a secondary context. The statue may have been installed as a form of Egyptian propaganda – an attempt to exercise power when Egypt's actual hold over Canaan was in decline.
From the Catalogue »

Papyrus-shaped capitals

Beth Shean, 1300–1130 BCE, chalk
Israel Antiquities Authority

These capitals are among the most impressive architectural elements from the time of the Egyptian Empire in Canaan. They apparently originated in the Governor's Residence at Beth Shean. The capitals surmounted columns of (cedar?) wood and are designed in the shape of splaying papyrus flowers. Similar capitals, many of which were brightly painted, were very common in Egypt. In Canaan remains of such capitals have also been found in Megiddo and Lachish.
From the Catalogue »

Reconstructed gate to the residence of the Egyptian governor

Beth Shean, 1185–1153, limestone
Israel Antiquities Authority

This reconstruction includes a partially preserved lintel, doorjamb, and cornices. The lintel depicts a kneeling worshiper facing columns of hieroglyphs that present the names of Ramesses III, words of adoration of the king, and the name and titles of the worshiper – Ramesses-user-khepesh, the Egyptian governor at Beth Shean. Words of praise for the king appear also on the doorjamb. Scenes of adoration of and words of praise for the Egyptian king are well attested in Egyptian private architecture, suggesting that these architectural elements belonged to the residence of the Egyptian governor at Beth Shean.

Base of a statue of Ramesses VI

Megiddo, 1141–1133 BCE, bronze
Israel Antiquities Authority

This base bears the names and royal epithets of Ramesses VI, the last pharaoh of the Egyptian Empire in Canaan, and originally supported his statue. It was deliberately separated from the statue and buried, probably just before the destruction of Megiddo, where it was found. Presumably, the statue was erected during the king's reign, indicating that Egypt still maintained some control over the region at that time.