Hotepsekhemwy’s reign was also especially peaceful and a time of great prosperity for Egypt, two factors that I tried to incorporate into the story line by making him savvy about issues of trade. Breaking a precedent, no subsidiary burials have been found at Hotepsekhemwy’s tomb site, another factor that I felt spoke to his character.
Egypt was called Kem or Kemet (or a variation of that name) by Egyptians of the early Dynasties. We do not know how the Ancient Egyptians actually spoke, but from their writing it would seem that they had a formal method of communicating, at least amongst the literate population. I have tried to keep that formality.
In the novel I refer to Pwenet, which at the time of Qa’a was most probably called Ta-Netjer (Land of the Gods) and later Punt. Many Egyptologists believe that ancient Punt is today’s Eritrea or the surrounding areas of coastal Sudan, Djibouti, or northern Somalia. The term “God’s Land” or “Land of the Gods” could refer to the fact that the land was located east of the Nile and was thus nearer to Ra’s rising. Alternately, some Egyptologists propose that ancient Egyptians themselves may have believed that they originated from that area. This is all conjecture at this point.
While there is no official record of trade with Pwenet during the First or Second Dynasties, it is likely that some precursor trade originated then. When Egypt did establish solid trade with Pwenet they sought spices, ivory, gold, wild animals and other items. First Dynasty items have been uncovered that may have originated in Pwenet, but we are unsure how they arrived in Egypt. Some think that they filtered into Egypt through successive trades, either overland or via the Red Sea, but direct trade might have already been established. In any case, I assumed in the book that such a trade route was tentatively established.
There is no record of an attempt to build a canal linking the Nile and the Red Sea during the earliest Dynasties. However, there were such attempts in later Dynasties. Based on that, I believe that there must have been those who wondered if it could be done even in earliest times, so I created this grand plot element for the story. Even if there were such attempts during Qa’a’s reign, the sands of time would have completely erased the efforts. So, who knows? Perhaps Nomti’s canal project is not so fanciful.
Qa'a (The First Dynasty Book 3) Page 43
