much rich meadow-land suitable for the growth of _doora_ and other sorts
of grain. Fish of many kinds, and excellent turtle, abounded in the
Atbara and the other streams; while the geographical position was
favourable for commerce with the tribes of the interior, who were able
to furnish an almost inexhaustible supply of ivory, skins, and ostrich
feathers.

The first monarch of Napata, whose name has come down to us, is a
certain Piankhi, who called himself Mi-Ammon, or Meri-Ammon--that is to
say, "beloved of Ammon." He is thought to have been a descendant of
Herhor, and to have begun to reign about B.C. 755. At this time Egypt
had reached the state of extreme disintegration described in the last
section. A prince named Tafnekht, probably of Libyan origin, ruled in
the western Delta, and held Saïs and Memphis; an Osorkon was king of the
eastern Delta, and held his court at Bubastis; Petesis was king of
Athribis, near the apex of the Delta; and a prince named Aupot, or
Shupot, ruled in some portion of the same region. In Middle Egypt, the
tract immediately above Memphis formed the kingdom of Pefaabast, who had
his residence in Sutensenen, or Heracleopolis Magna, and held the Fayoum
under his authority; while further south the Nile valley was in the
possession of a certain Namrut, whose capital was Sesennu, or
Hermopolis. Bek-en-nefi, and a Sheshonk, had also principalities, though
in what exact position is uncertain; and various towns, including
Mendes, were under the government of chiefs of mercenaries, of whom it
is reckoned that there were more than a dozen. Thebes and Southern Egypt
from about the latitude of Hermopolis had already been absorbed into the
kingdom of Napata, and were ruled directly by Piankhi.

Such being the state of affairs when he came to the throne, Piankhi
contrived between his first and his twenty-first year (about B.C.