The objectives of “The Hyksos Enigma” Research Programme

  • Determination of the geographic origins and ethnicity of the western Asiatic people living in the Delta during the Middle Kingdom (MK) and the Second Intermediate Period (SIP) and to ascertain whether they were a homogenous group or arrived in waves and from different geographical areas.
  • The timing, the factors and ways of immigration of that population.
  • Definition of the culture of the western Asiatic population in the eastern Delta during the MK and SIP in all its aspects, including their spiritual life and roots in the Levant and Egypt, furthermore to assess the interference of the Middle Bronze Age (MB) in the Levant with the Egyptian culture.
  • The identification of the mechanisms through which the Hyksos came to power, to reconstruct the mechanisms of their rule, the spatial structure of their kingdom and the nature of its internal and external relations.
  • To distinguish the reasons why the Hyksos failed, by studying the foundations and fluctuations of economy and trade in respect to prosperity and crisis. Furthermore to compare the economy and subsistence regime with the health records over the course of their time in Egypt.
  • Collecting evidence as to whether the Hyksos and the Western Asiatic population in the eastern Delta disappeared ‘without a trace’ or whether they had an impact on the culture and spiritual world such as religion, literature and language of the New Kingdom.

This project has received funding from the European Research Council (ERC) under the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme (grant agreement No 668640).

© The Hyksos Enigma Project