The Use of Pomposity Inscriptions in Ancient Egypt and Their Place in the Understanding of Administration

Öz

Ancient Egyptian kings, who managed to maintain a lifestyle based on agricultural production in the fertile areas provided by the Nile River with a strict monarchical structure for centuries, developed new methods to keep the people they ruled under their command. In Ancient Egypt, where the distinction between ruler and ruled was sharply established, the ruling class used writing effectively to maintain the royal ideology. In Ancient Egypt, inscriptions were used to announce to the public the achievements of the king, who was a divine figure, a military hero and a political leader, and thus to ensure the obedience of the people. These very large inscriptions, in which the plot is embodied with pictures and decorated with a literary text, are called "Ostentation Inscriptions". Even though all of the ostentatious inscriptions were royal texts, distinctions were made according to their content, which included military, religious and social issues. The ostentatious inscriptions, which were engraved on temple and palace walls, obelisks and stone slabs and made visible to the public, aimed primarily to make the ruled proud of their kings and thus to make them obey more strongly. In this study, we tried to explain how the ostentatious inscriptions, which emerged during the Old Kingdom period of Egypt and gained a widespread and unique style in later periods, were used as a management tool.

Anahtar Kelimeler

• Ancient Egypt
• Inscription
• Stone Monuments
• Narmer
• Literacy.

Eski Mısır’da Gösteriş Yazıtlarının Kullanımı ve Yönetim Anlayışındaki Yeri

Öz

Nil Nehri’nin sağladığı verimli alanlarda gerçekleştirilen tarımsal üretime dayalı yaşam biçimini katı bir monarşik yapı ile yüzyıllar boyu sürdürmeyi başaran Eski Mısır kralları, yönettikleri halkı emri altında tutabilmek için yeni yöntemler geliştirmiştir. Yöneten ile yönetilen ayrımının keskin bir biçimde oluşturulduğu Eski Mısır’da yönetici sınıf, kraliyet ideolojisini sürdürmek için yazıyı etkili biçimde kullanmıştır. Eski Mısır’da tanrısal bir figür, askeri bir kahraman ve siyasi bir önder olan kralın başarılarının halka duyurulması ve böylece ahalinin itaatinin sağlanması için yazıtlar kullanılmıştır. Çok büyük boyutta, olay örgüsünün resimlerle somutlaştırıldığı ve edebi bir metinle süslenmiş olan bu yazıtlara “Gösteriş Yazıtları” ismi verilmiştir. Gösteriş yazıtlarının hepsi kraliyet metni niteliğinde olsa dahi askeri, dini ve sosyal konuları kapsayan içeriğine göre ayrımlar yapılmıştır. Tapınak ve saray duvarlarına, dikili taşlara ve taş levhalara kazınarak halkın görmesi sağlanan gösteriş yazıtları, yönetilenlerin kralları ile gurur duymasını ve böylece daha güçlü şekilde itaat etmesini sağlamayı öncelikli amaç edinmiştir. Bu çalışmada Mısır’ın Eski Krallık döneminde ortaya çıkan ve sonraki dönemlerde yaygınlık ve özgün bir üslup kazanan gösteriş yazıtlarının yönetim aracı olarak nasıl kullanılmış olduğu açıklanmaya çalışılmıştır.

Anahtar Kelimeler

• Eski Mısır
• Yazıt
• Taş Anıtlar
• Narmer
• Okuryazarlık.

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