H.—ANTHROPOLOGY. 188 
situated in the north-east corner of the Delta, where, in pre-dynastic 
times, had resided an Ibis clan. The tradition that named Thoth as 
the god and inventor of writing would, therefore, point Delta-wards. 
This tradition is significant also in another way. Although we cannot 
doubt that the Egyptian system of writing was evolved in the Delta, 
the germs of writing may have come into Egypt from Western Asia 
via this north-east corner of the country. In this connection it may 
be pointed out that the hieroglyphic signs for ‘ right’ and ‘left ’ were 
the same as those for ‘ west’ and ‘ east’; the Egyptians who evolved 
the hieroglyphic system of writing orientated themselves facing south. 
It is remarkable that so little is known about the early history of the 
‘Delta. But few excavations have been carried out there, and nothing of 
pre-dynastic or early dynastic times has, so far, been brought to light 
from the country north of Cairo. We do know, however, that before 
the arrival of the Falcon-kings from Hierakonpolis in the south, Middle 
and Lower Egypt had been, probably for many centuries, united under 
one sceptre, and that before these two parts of the country were united 
there had been a Delta Kingdom which had had its capital at Sais. The 
names of some of these early kings are preserved on the Palermo frag- 
ment of the famous Annals Tablet, and the list there given would alone 
be enough to prove how ancient the Delta civilisation must have been. 
There was certainly nothing comparable with it-in Upper Egypt in those 
far-off days. 
What were the physical conditions prevailing in the Delta and in 
the regions to the east and west of it immediately preceding Menes’ 
arrival in Lower Egypt? For the eastern side the evidence is exceed- 
ingly scanty, but there is one fact which is significant. The chief god 
of the eastern nomes of the Delta in the Pyramid Age was Anzety, a 
pastoral deity who was the prototype of Osiris. He is represented as a 
man holding in one hand the shepherd’s crook, and in the other the 
goatherd’s ladanisterion. There can be little doubt, therefore, that in 
the Eastern Delta there lived a pastoral people who possessed flocks of 
sheep and goats, and this is evidence of a certain amount of grass-land. 
In the Central Delta at the same period there lived a series of clans, 
among which a Bull Clan was predominant. In historic times in 
Egypt the ox is often figured roaming in papyrus and reed marshes, and 
it may be that the Central Delta marshes supported herds of domesti- 
cated cattle. Much more is known about the western side of the Delta 
at the time of Menes. It formed, I believe, part of what was called 
Tehenu-land; at all events this name was given to the region imme- 
diately to the west of the Canopic branch of the Nile. There can be no 
doubt that this part of the country was a very fertile and prosperous 
region in the period immediately preceding the First Dynasty. Its 
name signifies ‘Olive-land,’ and we actually see these trees figured, 
with the name of the country beside them, on a pre-dynastic Slate 
Palette; on this Palette, above the trees, are shown oxen, asses, and 
sheep of the type later known as ser-sheep. It was Menes,*! the Falcon- 
king of Upper Egypt, who conquered the people of Tehenu-land. This 
conquest is recorded on a small ivory cylinder that was found at 
Hierakonpolis. Another record of the Southerner’s triumph over these 
