Ancient Punt: A Trade-Based African Kingdom (c. 2400 B.C.) Visited by Pharaoh Hatshepsut

Following up on Palermo Stone: One of Seven Fragments of the Royal Annals of the Old Kingdom of Ancient Egypt, this week we’ll discuss ancient Punt… an African land frequented by Egyptian pharaohs bringing back gold, ebony, and incense.

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The Land of Punt was an ancient kingdom from around 2400-1069 B.C. known from Ancient Egyptian trade records. Recent evidence locates it in present-day Eritrea, Somalia, or Sudan. Some biblical scholars have identified it with the biblical land of Put or Havilah.

It is likely that settlement took place over thousands of years perhaps moving north from the Rift Valley of Eastern Africa, where it is widely believed that human life began.

Also known as God's Land, Punt was rich in incense, ebony, and gold with which the Egyptians traded for over a thousand years. It seems to have been a commercial center for goods not only from within its own borders, but from elsewhere in Africa.

Gold from Punt is recorded as having been in Egypt as early as the time of Pharaoh Khufu of the Fourth Dynasty. The earliest recorded ancient Egyptian expedition to Punt was organized by Pharaoh Sahure of the Fifth Dynasty.

The first clear mention of Punt comes from the Old Kingdom. According to the Palermo Stone, during the reign of King Sahure, an expedition to Punt returned with 80,000 measures of myrrh.

What the Palermo Stone doesn't tell us is where Punt is located or how to get there.

Hatshepsut, a queen who established herself as pharaoh, launched many building projects, including the restoration of temples damaged by the Hyksos, and sent trading expeditions to Punt and the Sinai.

Her expedition in 1493 B.C. in the 18th Dynasty of Egypt brought to Egypt gold, ebony, wild animals, animal skins, elephant tusks, ivory, spices, precious woods, cosmetics, incense and frankincense and myrrh trees.

Inscriptions on the walls of Hatsheptsut's mortuary temple at Deir al-Bahri detail the Egyptian relationship with Punt and make clear that it was a mutually beneficial. Reliefs on the walls of the temple show the chief of the Puntites and his wife receiving the envoys from Egypt with all honors

A stela that was discovered at Mersa/Wadi Gawasis, erected by Khentkhetwer, contains an engraving that explicitly identifies Saww as the port where ships arrived after their expeditions to Punt.

Exactly why Punt was elevated from reality into mythology is not known. Evidence of trade and diplomatic relations also continued to appear during the reigns of Pepi II Neferkare, in the tomb inscription of the military commander Heqaib, Amenhotep, Rameses II and Rameses III.

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About the Author: Lawrence Jean-Louis is the founder of eBrand Me, a digital marketing agency offering marketing & consultative services to CPAs and tax professionals. She aspires to start a money management firm by 2030.