A team from the German Institute of Archaeology in Cairo (DAIK) led by Günter Dreyer had been excavating for some years in what is known as the U-cemetery at Umm el-Qa‘ab in Abydos. Evidence from the tombs found in this cemetery indicate usage throughout the Naqada Period (from c.4000 BC), specifically by the rulers of the Thinite region. In 1988, one of the most important tombs in the area, Tomb U-j, was discovered. The tomb is thought to date to Naqada III, just prior to the beginning of Dynastic Egypt (c.3100 BC), and its discovery is a milestone in Egyptian archaeology for a number of reasons.
First, it indicates that kingship had become established in the Predynastic Period. One of the objects found in the burial chamber was an ivory heqa sceptre (shaped like a shepherd’s crook) – a key symbol of kingship throughout Egyptian history. Further evidence that U-j is a king’s tomb lies in its large size (it contains 12 chambers) compared to others in the cemetery. Also, there are ink- inscriptions on a number of pots and jars depicting a scorpion. This suggests the name of an important local ruler, possibly the same king who is portrayed by a rock inscription at Gebel Tjauti (west of the Qena bend), recorded by John Darnell. The rock image depicts a falcon above a scorpion, thus suggesting a Horus name. Some of the scorpion images in U-j were resting on what could be a serekh. Tomb U-j could therefore have been the resting place of a ruler we might call Scorpion I (who ruled earlier than the more famous Scorpion II depicted on the ceremonial mace in the Ashmolean Museum – see AE 151).
The second reason why Tomb U-j is so important is the presence of a large number of ceramic jars thought to have been imported from the Near East, the design of which suggests they came from present-day Lebanon. There were traces of wine within some of the jars, as well as grape pips and grapes. The evidence therefore suggests that there was a vibrant trade between this area of Egypt and the Levant at this time.
The view from Vienna