New Chronology (Rohl)
The neutrality of this article is disputed.
David Rohl is an archeologist and historian specialising in ancient Egypt, who has put forth several controverial theories concerning the chronology of ancient Egypt and Palestine.
Biography
Rohl traces his fascination with ancient Egypt to a visit of that country at the age of ten, which featured a journey on the Nile on King Farouk's paddle-steamer.
He first worked as a rock musician, forming a band in 1968, which eventually became Mandalaband, which released two albums, "Mandalaband" and "The Eye of Wendor" in the early 1970s. About 1974, he started work as a music engineer, which career he pursued until he returned to his interest in ancient Egypt.
He has been the editor of the Journal of the Ancient Chronology Forum since 1986. In 1988 he was accepted by University College, London and awarded the prestigious W.F. Masom History Research Scholarship by the University of London as well as being awarded his degree in Ancient History and Egyptology. He started work towards his doctorate in 1990, but it is unclear if he has been granted this advanced degree. He is a past President of the Sussex Egyptology Society (SES) and also edits the Eastern Desert Survey Report. He excavated Kadesh-on-the-Orontes in Syria for the London Institute of Archaeology during the 1990s, and is currently Co-Field Director of the Eastern Desert Survey in Egypt. he has also been associated with the the Institute for the Study of Interdisciplinary Studies (ISIS).
His publication of his book, A Test of Time led to his role in a three-part television documentary, "Pharaohs and Kings: A Biblical Quest", which appeared late summer 1995 on Channel Four in the UK, and spring 1996 on The Learning Channel/Discovery in the USA.
His hobbies include photography.
Theories
His published works A Test of Time and Legend set forth his theories for dating Egyptian kings of the 19th through 25th Dynasties, which would require a major revision of the conventional chronology of ancient Egypt, and less radical revisions of the chronologies of Israel and Mesopotamia. Rohl aserts that these would allow scholars to identify many of the main characters in the Old Testament with people whose names appear in archeological finds.
Rohl's redating is based on criticism of three of the four arguments which he considers are the foundations of the conventional Egyptian chronology:
- The identification of "Shishak, King of Egypt" (1 Kings 14:25f; 2 Chronicles 12:2-9), first proposed by Jean-François Champollion, is solely based on incorrect conclusions. Rohl argues instead that Shishak should be identified with Ramesses II, which would move the date of Ramesses' reign forward some 300 years.
- The record in the Ebers Papyrus of the rising of Sirius in the ninth regnal year of Amenhotep I, which fixes the year to either 1542 BC or 1517 BC, is clearly misread, and more likely indicates a reform in the Egyptian Calendar.
- Papyrus Leiden I.350, which dates to the 52nd year of Ramesses II, records lunar observations that place that year of Ramesses' reign in 1278, 1253, 1228 or 1203 BC. By impeaching the value of the Ebers Papyrus, Rohl then claims that the evidence of this document is moot. He however observes that these lunar observations are accurate every twenty-five years, so it unclear why they are not relevant if Ramesses II is shown to have reigned 300 years later.
Rohl bases his Revised Chronology on his interpretation of a number of archeological finds and genealogical records of several individuals:
- Rohl notes a gap in the stelae associated with the Apis vaults at Sakkara for the 21st and 22nd dynasties of Egypt, which combined with the placement of coffins at the Royal Cache (TT 320) of coffins, shows these two dynasties were contemporary. He also offers an interpretation of the relationship of the tombs of Osorkon I and Psusennes I at Tanis that supports his theory.
- Rohl offers inscriptions that list three non-royal geneaologies, which -- when one equates one generation to an average of 20 years -- proves Ramesses II flourished at the later time Rohl believes.
The Revised Chronology is also the prime concern of the Institute for the Study of Interdisciplinary Studies (ISIS). Building upon the ideas of Immanuel Velikovsky, the Revised Chronology puts the dates on the Traditional Chronologies Based upon Egypt out by up to 300 years at points prior to the universally accepted fixed date of 664 BC for the sacking of Thebes by Ashurbanipal.
One opponent to the Revised Chronology has been Professor Kenneth Kitchen, formerly of Liverpool University. One of Kitchen's major objections to Rohls' arguments concerns his omission of evidence that conflicts with Rohls theories. Kitchen has pointed out that the genealogies Rohl references to date Ramesses II omit one of more names known from other inscriptions; Rohl's response to this criticism is not known. It is unclear just how many scholars support Kitchen's interpretation over Rohl's, although some version of Kitchen's chronology appears in the majority of textbooks about ancient Egypt, and a survey of a sample of scholarly journals like the American Journal of Archeology and the Journal of Near Eastern Studies fail to show a review of Rohl's books, or even in the "Books Received" section; even the venerable Antiquity, which acknowledges popular works like the historical detective novels of Steven Saylor, which are set in late Republican Rome, also offers no notice of his work.