Walls of the Ruler

The Walls of the Ruler[1][2] was a fortification, or possibly a whole string of them, built by Amenemhat I in the 14th nome of Lower Egypt to protect the eastern approaches to Egypt.[1] It succeeded the Old Kingdom Walls of Sneferu.[3]

The Walls of the Ruler are mentioned in the Tale of Sinuhe[2] and in the Prophecy of Neferti.[4] No remains have been found.[1] New Kingdom depictions show forts which had a secured supply of water and were surrounded by crocodile-infested ditches or canals which were spanned by bridges.[3]

Cultural impact

Alfred J. Hoerth speculates that in the biblical tradition of the Exodus, Moses led the Israelites south to Pithom and Etham; would he had led the people northwards toward the Promised Land, they would have most likely encountered the Walls of the Ruler. It would not have been possible for a large group of people to go undetected pass these fortifications.[5]

A fictionalized version of the Walls of the Ruler are present in the first DLC (The Hidden Ones) of the 2017 video game Assassin's Creed Origins. Unlike real-life accounts of it, it is located on the Sinai Peninsula, rather than mainland Egypt.

References
  1. Ian Shaw, The Oxford History of Ancient Egypt, Oxford University Press 2000, p. 159
  2. Miriam Lichtheim, Ancient Egyptian Literature, volume 1, University of California Press 1973, p. 224
  3. Robert Morkot, The Egyptians: An Introduction, Routledge 2005, p. 42
  4. Aidan Dodson, Monarchs of the Nile, American University in Cairo Press 2000, p. 57
  5. Hoerth, Alfred J. (1998). Archaeology and the Old Testament. Michigan: BakerAcademic. pp. 166–167. ISBN 978-0-8010-3625-5.


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