BIBLE HISTORY DAILY

Drought Brought End to Egypt’s Old Kingdom

Bible and archaeology news

Researchers at St. Andrews University in Scotland have found evidence that a massive drought, similar to the one currently gripping parts of Africa, could have brought about the demise of the Egyptian Old Kingdom. Analysis and carbon dating of ancient sediments from Lake Tana in Ethiopia—the source of the Blue Nile—found that around 4,200 years ago, lake levels dropped considerably, indicating massive water shortages and drought may have ultimately brought an end to Egypt’s first major dynastic civilization. “If we look at the Horn of Africa today, there are still conflicts being driven by drought,” said lead researcher Richard Bates. “We know the same thing has happened in the past.”

Researchers at St. Andrews University in Scotland have found evidence that a massive drought, similar to the one currently gripping parts of Africa, could have brought about the demise of the Egyptian Old Kingdom.

2012 Update: Researchers investigating pollen and charcoal in the Nile Delta revealed a connection between the buried assemblages and a drought in ancient Egypt that precipitated the collapse of the Old Kingdom almost 4,200 years ago. Read more in Bible History Daily’s “Tracing Drought in Ancient Egypt through Pollen Analysis”

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