Page 167 - Four Thousand Years Ago by Geoffrey Bibby

138 The Chariots [1720-1650 B.C.]

as to whether the Hyksos, in the period covered by this chapter,
controlled southern Egypt. There is no evidence that they did,
and some that they did not.
The role of the Biblical patriarchs in the events of the pe­
riod is, in my version, hypothetical. The story of Joseph is gener­
ally accepted to have some relation to the Hyksos. Some authori­
ties would date him somewhat later and assume that the pharaoh
he served was a Hyksos king. Some would even equate the com­
ing of Jacob and Joseph's brethren to Egypt with the Hyksos
invasion, though the Bible account in no way suggests that this
movement was other than peaceful. I have taken it rather as evi­
dence of a peaceful penetration of lower Egypt by Semitic ele­
ments prior to the actual Hyksos conquest.
Contemporary events in Asia Minor are attested by docu­
ments of only slightly later date. The destruction of the Cretan
palaces is known from excavation, and the concentration of
power in Knossos is assumed from the fact that only that palace
was rebuilt.
Suggested further reading: Albright's The Archaeology of
Palestine; Gardiner's Egypt of the Pharaohs; Aldred's The Egyp­
tians.