Allam, Foundations in Pharaonic Egypt the Oldest-Known Private Endowments in History

Foundations in Pharaonic Egypt: The Oldest-Known Private Endowments in HistoryAuthor(s): Schafik AllamSource: Die Welt des Orients, Bd. 37 (2007), pp. 8-30Published by: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht (GmbH & Co. KG)Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/25684085 .Accessed: 16/04/2014 09:48

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Foundations in Pharaonic Egypt*)

The Oldest-Known Private Endowments in History

By Schq/ik Allam, Tubingen

About modern foundations

Over the past half century many foundations / endowments have been created in different countries, so many that we can hardly have an over view thereof. According to some statistics the number of recently raised foundations has doubled or even tripled in some countries. In Great Brit ain alone there exist today more than 250,000 foundations / endowments. This is a world record indeed, which can be explained historically. It be gan at the outset of the 17th century, when in year 1601 Queen Elisabeth Ist issued her decree concerning charities "Elisabethan Statute of Charitable

Uses", so that at the middle of the 19th century British foundations / en dowments reached some 30,000 in number.

As far as the USA is concerned, the landscape was visibly influenced by the charities tradition which came over with British immigrants. Already towards the end of the 17th century American charity foundations and charitable corporations came into existence. However, due to the rapid evolution in the USA where State and Church grew side by side indepen dently, new forms of foundations were generated which were not reli

giously motivated. Such secular foundations took over many responsibil ities in society, fulfilling a public task or solving one of the pressing pro blems where the government could not help instantly. In Boston, for exam

ple, a non-profit trust was founded in 1790 to encourage the education of

young married handworkers. In the following times - and under the chan

ging circumstances in the New World - modern patterns of foundations

were introduced, so-called philanthropic foundations1). In 1867 "Peabody Education Fund" was raised in New York to promote the public education

*) The present essay originated from a lecture given at the Columbia University of

New York on 23rd October 1999 - within the symposium "Ancient Egypt / Modern

Egypt - Continuity and Change" (organized by the Egyptian American Professional So

ciety, the Egyptian American Business Association, and the Middle East Institute of the

Columbia University). ]) The word philanthropic (referring to the love of humanity) denotes here personal

involvement for the public benefit.

Die Welt des Orients 37/2007 S.8-30, ISSN 0043-2547 ? Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht GmbH & Co. KG, Gottingen 2008


Foundations in Pharaonic Egypt 9

system; it was the first independent grant-making capital foundation2). Twenty years later (in 1887) Leland Stanford created a whole university and made an endowment to support it financially. Besides education, foundations can have many other objectives. One is, for example, to com bat racial prejudices: mention can be made of the "Salter Fund for Ne

groes" and the "Baron Hirsh Fund for Jews". The general tendency in that evolution is readily discernible: foundations erected by private persons can foster particular interests for the public benefit and welfare.

In the last decades a dynamic spread of foundations is attested in the USA. Today the number of non-profit foundations is around 40,000 with an immensely growing capital. Most likely it will increase more and ra

pidly, since in the next 50 years it is estimated that some 10,000 billion dol lars will change hands through inheritance, and a good part of this opu lence may well be channelled into newly created foundations with possibly new objectives, which we cannot foresee today3).

This said, it is not my intent, however, to give a survey of American foundations in particular. I wanted only to demonstrate in the first place how the underlying idea was transmitted to one society, where it could de

velop independently - in the sense that it can be adapted to the changing

circumstances in society, so that new types came into being. Like in many other societies, foundations began in the USA to serve charitable goals (with religious background). Later however, modern philanthropic foun dations followed, with new (worldly) objectives. The conception started, as elsewhere, by helping the poor and the needy, the sick and the aged. In the course of time fresh thoughts arose, as rich individuals came up with innovative intentions regarding the aims of their foundations. The public

welfare began thus to be of overriding importance. One of the objectives of modern foundations is, for instance, to invest in people

- young, healthy,

and particularly intelligent - that is the elite who later during their profes

sional career, by creating and introducing innovations in their fields, would shape in a way or another the future society.

2) whereby a capital is given by a private person to establish a non-profit civil society, which has to act permanently for public benefits by way of giving grants to individuals or

institutions.

3) In my presentation I have essentially drawn upon two articles. First, K. Neuhoff

"Stiftungswesen in den USA", Forschung & Lehre -

Mitteilungen des Deutschen Hochschulverbandes (Bonn/Germany) no. 6 (1996): 297-301. Second, K.-J. Maass "Stif

tungen gestalten die Zukunft", Alexander von Humboldt Stiftung - Mitteilungen

= AvH

Magazin (Bonn/Germany) no. 71 (August 1998): 25-32. I am grateful to Dr. Klaus Neuhoff/Witten-Herdecke for his most instructive letter (dated 16th November 1999) communicating some pertinent details on the early history of foundations in the USA.


10 Schafik Allam

Islamic Foundations (waqf) in Egypt

Now, I have to switch to the Old World and concentrate on foundations in Egypt. A related topic, which first comes to mind, is of course the Isla

mic organization called waqf (plural: awqaf). This word which literally means "hindrance/prohibition" became the technical term for religious and charitable foundations. In the practice it is a property which is held and preserved exclusively for charity and the like, on the understanding of

preventing any other use thereof outside the beneficial purpose. The term reveals thus the perpetual aspect of waqf, so that the property in question is tied up for ever (therefore qualified as "dead hand"). Hence the defini tion applies to non-perishable property, out of which benefits can be ex tracted without consuming the property itself. Therefore waqf is widely coupled with landed property, although there occurred also waqf of mova bles (cattle, books, slaves, etc.)4).

Early Muslim jurists (fuqaha') argued that the waqf was first introduced

by the Prophet; the practice of the idea was then upheld by his companion and second successor Omar (634-644). But all what is narrated in this re

spect cannot be taken for granted, as it can hardly be verified; and it is un wise to build up too much on it. In fact, all what is told cannot be dissimi lar from acts of benevolence, without legal implications. The Qur^an on the other hand does not mention the idea of the waqf and any definition thereof is wanting. Moreover, it appears unlikely that the waqf in any legal form had ever been known in the pre-islamic Arab society5). Furthermore, early jurists (e.g. Al-ShafTi: 767-820) disagreed with each other in their theories about the waqf

- to the extent that contradictions arose with refer ence to significant features. Under these conditions it is safe to postulate that the origin of the waqf conception must be sought somewhere else.

As a matter of fact, religious and charitable endowments (so-called piae causae for churches, monasteries, hospitals, old age homes, orphanages, and so forth) were present throughout the Byzantine World (Coptic Egypt inclusive) long before the rise of Islam, so that the possibility can by no

means be excluded that the Islamic waqf, with legal implications, was the natural outgrowth of a previously established institution. As the new reli

gion extremely favoured any charities, it would rather appear that with the

expansion of Islam the old charitable institution revived in the countries

4) Cf. The Oxford Encyclopedia of the Modern Islamic World vol. 4 (1995), 5. v. Waqf; E. Sachau, Muhammedanisches Recht, p. 605-19.

5) For a review relative to the origin of Islamic waqf, A. Sekaly "Le Probleme des

wakfs en Egypte", Revue des etudes islamiques (Paris) 3 (1929): 101-126. A recent discus

sion, S. Allam "Islamic Foundations (waqf) in Egypt (back into Pharaonic Times)", Isla

mic Law and Society (Leiden, forthcoming).



which the Arabs conquered. No doubt the newly transformed society de manded the very instrument in order to satisfy the increasing needs which were particularly induced by the new religion. Returning now to Egypt, the fact remains that the Islamic waqf became widespread after good parts of the population had converted to the new faith.

Our authority for historical information on the topic is the Egyptian Al

Maqrizi (1364-1442). This historian reports of arable lands being put aside as waqf for the Holy Places (Mecca and Medineh) already in the 10th cen

tury. He says further that when the Fatimids took over Egypt, they were

opposed to the whole system. We are told namely that Khalif Al-Mufizz decreed in 974 that all waqf properties be put under governmental author

ity. Soon under Al-Hakem, however, the waqf went almost wreck and

ruin, so that many mosques could hardly live on their allowances - a state

which in year 1014 necessitated the intervention of the government in or der to maintain the mosques.

For the following period - under the Mamluks (1250-1517)

- Al-Maqrizi

reports that waqf was classified in different categories. The first (called aHbas) comprised in 1339 large estates (130,000 feddan) for the upkeep of

mosques. The second (called awqaf hukumiyah) was for the Holy Places and other charitable purposes. The third category included waqf ahli (pi. awqaf ahliyah) which were raised by private people; this category is most

significant for our analysis, since we are particularly interested - as far as

Pharaonic Egypt is concerned - in foundations erected by individuals. We

are informed further that some of the income from private foundations had to go to the Holy Places, and to all kinds of charities as well. More over, there existed posterity / family waqf {waqf zurri) by which many founders wanted their children and descendants be first granted certain revenues, so that only the surplus, if any, should be allotted to the poor6).

The immutable nature of the waqf maintained its stability over the cen turies. Yet, in the long run there came about some deficiencies concerning its management and the control of its work and financing. This became ob vious with the decline of the country; misadministration and corruption crept in everywhere and became also a chronic disease of waqf properties. In the end, common dissatisfaction called for rigid governmental interfer ence, which in modern times started as early as Muhammed Ali (1805 1849). By the way, a survey of cultivated land in Egypt (from 1812-1813) shows that the waqf represented some 600,000 feddan (252,050 ha) out of a total of 2.5 million feddan (1.050,208 million ha); in 1927 it was still one

eighth of the total arable land7). At the basis of this disproportion of the to

6) This sort of foundations existed in many European societies as well.

7) Such disproportion was prevalent in other countries too, e. g. in North Africa, Tur

key and in Europe. In Austria, for instance, three eighths of the total landed property were held by the Church (monasteries inclusive); H. Liermann, Handbuch des Stiftungs


12 Schafik Allam

tal cultivated area was no doubt the perpetual nature of waqf. Certainly this state of affairs ensued from the accumulation of land properties which remained waqf for ever8).

In Islamic history, philanthropic waqf {khayri) played an important role as well. As a matter of fact, education in general has been the second lar gest recipient of waqf revenues; this helped create a learned class not de rived from the rich and ruling classes. The University of Al-Azhar in Cairo is an instructive example; it was founded in 972 and was financed by waqf revenues, until the government of Muhammed Ali took control over its

waqf properties in 18129). At the start of this brief survey I dared to argue that an Arabic origin of

waqf finds no support whatsoever in reliable historical documents. And it is a hard fact that religious trusts and charitable endowments were familiar to the rich throughout the Byzantine World long before the Arabs ap peared on the scene. In Coptic Egypt too there survived foundations of dif ferent kinds as elsewhere (to support financially churches, monasteries, hospitals, etc.)10) so that the Islamic waqf would appear as the normal con tinuation of an age-long institution11). Besides, for still earlier times

- pre

cisely during the Greek and Roman periods - the relevant documentation

plainly discloses that, as in many societies of the Greco-Roman World, wealthy Egyptians too used to raise endowments for pious and religious purposes12). Definitely then, the conception underlying the Islamic waqf did not represent any novelty for the Egyptian at the outset of Islamic

rechts vol. 1 (Geschichte des Stiftungsrechts), p. 172. In France, the property qualified as main morte was estimated roughly at two thirds of the total surface (in the 17th century); Sekaly, loc.cit. p. 103.

8) Cf. N. J. Coulson, A History of Islamic Law, p. 199.

9) Very probably Muhammed Ali put into effect his reform having been stimulated by European countries which started on the secularisation of charitable foundations existing on their territories. About that time - before and after the French Revolution - many States began to take into own hands the responsibilities for the welfare of the population, in place of foundations who were developing much activities in that particular sector. Cf.

Liermann, op.cit., p. 172-229; R. Schulze "Zu Stand und Aufgaben der Stiftungs-Re chtsgeschichte" in Stiftungsrecht in Europa, ed. K. Hopt and D. Reuter, p. 63-4.

10) In many respects, Coptic religious foundations anticipated or paralleled similar

developments in the contemporary Byzantine Empire; H.-R. Hagemann, Die Stellung der Piae Causae nach justinianischem Rechte, p. 28-32 + p. 53; J. Ph. Thomas, Private Re

ligious Foundations in the Byzantine Empire, p. 97.

n) Cf. Thomas, op.cit. p. 59-110 "Private Religious Foundations in Egypt from the

Evidence of the Papyri (of the fifth through the eighth centuries)"; Enzyklopadie des Is

lam vol. 4, s. v. Waqf. 12) R. Taubenschlag, The Law of Graeco-Roman Egypt in the Light of the Papyri (332

BC - 640 AD), p. 64-5. CI. Preaux "Sur les foundations dans l'Egypte greco-romaine", RIDA 3 (1956): 145-72. For a survey of the attested foundations throughout the Greco

Roman World, B. Laum, Stiftungen in der griechischen und romischen Antike - ein Beitrag

zur antiken Kulturgeschichte (2 vols. Darstellung + Urkunden).



times. In this connection, however, we cannot understate the influence of Islam. It certainly insured a considerable increase in the number of waqf settlements - undoubtedly stimulated by the new belief, which urges the believer to engage in the promotion of his society's welfare.

Private Foundations in Pharaonic Egypt

We have now to go deeper in history and call our attention to the Phar aonic period. Innumerable texts report specifically that many kings be stowed lavish donations upon temples and furnished them with profuse bounties. In addition, there were prestigious services for many pharaohs, constituted for their needs in the hereafter, and for which abundant re sources were eventually dedicated. Such deeds and benefactions were

most likely arranged in settlements and were supervised by some State in stitutions. But, our present interest goes for settlements set up by private persons. Many records attest indeed to the fact that foundations / endow ments were established as early as the middle of the 3rd millennium BC.

Owing to the limited space allowed for the present paper, however, I shall confine my demonstration to only a few of our explicit testimonies, which illustrate the significant criteria of private foundations in Pharaonic Egypt.

Before doing this, it seems opportune to touch slightly upon the spiritual background, from which the emergence of foundations apparently derived

impulse. Fundamentally, any historical investigation puts beyond any doubt the fact that foundations in the Ancient World sprang up out of reli

gious concerns.

If we visit, for instance, the tombs at Gizah or Saqqarah we immediately get the impression that a prominent motif in the decorations is the bringing of offerings for the deceased. It goes without saying that Egyptians were

always concerned about their sustenance in the other world, since they as

pired to have upon death a life much like the earthly existence - this to the

effect that the dead could occasionally be thought of to be alive in some transcendental way. In this respect Egyptians resorted to magic and ritual, in hopes of securing sustenance for themselves in the after-world. Never theless, they also depended upon, and stuck to, the actual delivery of food and drink at their tombs and in front of their statues.

It was of course the duty of the family to provide offerings for the de

parted. The Egyptian had a strong sense of this commitment and trusted in the pious loyalty of his descendants. There must have occurred cases, how ever, where this piety considerably diminished

- and eventually the in tended services ceased. Not surprisingly, then, such painful experience gave rise to doubts in the individual whether he would be properly looked after in the next world. Gradually it became common to make arrange ments already during one's own lifetime for providing sustenance after


14 Schaflk Allam

death, enlisting the service of individual relatives, family retainers, and even outsiders. Other than the desire for sustenance, there must have been further motivations: immortalizing one's name, reputation, prestige, etc. Over and above such perspectives, the sensitivity of the individual to pro cure blessings of his gods must have played a fundamental role.

Briefly, in order to ensure that relatives, retainers or outsiders shall meet his needs, the individual bequeathed to these people fields or durable re sources, obligating them to present him mortuary offerings, celebrate cer tain services, and maintain his tomb. Should these persons for some reason fail to fulfil their obligations, others were to replace them, for the sake of

discharging the same duties and receiving in return the enrichments in

question. With these services thus kept from generation to generation, the individual endower was secure for good. Naturally, not everyone could af ford such an expensive undertaking; it was mostly a luxury confined to the

high society. In this way the foundation, as a juridical mechanism, was brought into

being. As the religious and ethical injunctions to care for the dead began to lose their impetus, a legal obligation was designed in their place. I mean here "foundation" in the broadest sense, in which an organization created

by human intent has, as its appointed objective, the fulfilment of a certain

goal. Three are the main characteristics of such an organization: first of all, lucrative assets as financial support, which the endower cedes from his

property; secondly, the definition of a particular objective which should be attained with regularity and in permanence; thirdly, a lasting

- that is to say renewable

- association of persons who shall be responsible for car

rying out the founder's aims. It should be borne in mind that upon their emergence foundations, leg

ally speaking, were generally not to become any independent (autono mous, self-governing) entities. The available documentation does not at test, for instance, to a chapel erected by a generous benefactor who also

supported the institution financially with an endowment to enable it in

carrying on its intended function so that in the future it could rely not only on its own revenues, but also administer its own affairs without tutelage from outside. What a potential founder could do in those remote times was

highly limited: he would have recourse to an existing corporation / institu tion (a temple, for example) that would receive the endowment assets on condition of executing regularly and permanently the wishes of the foun

der13). From the historical viewpoint14), such settlements might be defined

13) Later, in Byzantine times, there came up independent corporations (e.g. monas

teries) which could freely settle their own affairs, without tutelage from outside. For a

fundamental overview, A. Steinwenter "Die Rechtsstellung der Kirchen und Kloster

nach den Papyri", ZSS-KA 19 (1930): 1-50; Idem "Aus dem kirchlichen Vermogens rechte der Papyri", ZSS-KA 44 (1958): 1-34; cf. J.Ph. Thomas, Private Religious Foun



as trusts or as fiduciary / dependent foundations15). Yet, we equally dis cern an innovation that came about in the constitution of rich foundations

especially. These, though still relying on the priesthood in performing the services required for the deceased, could become independent, in that the foundation became somehow a legal entity: in such an institution an ap pointed agent had the responsibility to exercise an overall control, admin

istering all the affairs, spiritual and financial, of the foundation in ques tion. A good example thereof is set up by the organization which was cre ated by the nomarch Djefa-Hapi in his town Assiut {vide infra).

We get a good idea of the expenditure which was devoted to such con cerns from the tomb of a vizier called Mereruka. It is one of the largest and

grandest tombs at Saqqarah, dating roughly from the end of the 24th cen

tury BC. It comprises no less than 32 rooms artistically decorated. There are mentioned, amongst other things, some 47 employees (of Mereruka's estate) with various ranks, all identified by their names; many of them must have been in some way connected with the tomb services to be per formed for their master. But, in this tomb no text has come down to us

hinting at its respective foundation. In order to obtain ample information, our resort is to turn first to a se

pulchre (comprising, as it did, two rock-cut structures) less grandly con

structed, yet well furnished with several statues in addition to many en

graved records. It is situated at Tehneh - some 25 km at the north of the

present town El-Minia; it can be dated back to the end of the fifth dynasty (towards the end of the 25th century BC). Its owner

- one Ni-ankh-ka -

was the high priest of the local goddess Hathor. This man left on the walls of his sepulchre a wealth of inscriptions

- eternalizing the deeds by which

he raised a religious foundation16).

dations in the Byzantine Empire, p. 59-110 "Private Religious Foundations in Egypt from the Evidence of the Papyri (of the fifth through the eighth centuries)".

14) Cf. R. Feenstra "Le Concept de fondation du droit romain classique jusqu'a nos

jours - theorie et pratique", RID A 3 (1956): 245.

15) Cf. S. Allam "Vom Stiftungswesen der Alten Agypter", Das Altertum (Berlin) 20, (1974): 140ff. In that article, however, I was influenced by the current opinion regarding two definitions: hm-k! and dt. As to dt (and consequently pr-dt), it cannot be taken any

longer for "Stiftung / foundation" as given in Wb V, p. 510; J.J. Perepelkin, Privateigen tum in der Vorstellung der Agypter des Alten Reichs (herausgegeben und ubersetzt von R.

Muller-Wollermann). Nor can hm-kl signify " Totenpriester / funerary priest" as sug

gested in Wb III, p.90. It is an agent / employee in the (worldly) estate / household of a

noble patron; upon his patron's death he may be engaged in the mortuary services; S. Al lam "Le hm-kl etait-il exclusivement pretre funeraire?", RdE 36 (1985): 1-15.

16) For the hieroglyphic texts, K. Sethe, Urkunden des Alten Reichs, p. 24-32 +

p. 161-3; E. Edel, Hieroglyphische Inschriften des Alten Reiches, p. 38-66. For translations and commentaries (with further references), J. Pirenne and M. Stracmas "Le Testament a l'epoque de l'Ancien Empire Egyptien", RIDA 1 (1954): 63-8; T. Mrsich, Untersu

chungen zur Hausurkunde des Alten Reiches - Ein Beitrag zum altagyptischen Stiftungs


16 Schafik Allam

We learn that Ni-ankh-ka set up an association of 13 persons (with no

menclature, comprising wife, children and two other persons). All, being on the one hand provided for, have on the other hand to serve regularly the cult of the goddess, everyone supplying in general an annual service

during one month -

this, however, in connection with specified services for all the dead of the family to which Ni-ankh-ka belonged17). Moreover, Ni-ankh-ka put all the members of his family association (as well as all the

personnel / employees - called hm.w-kl - of his estate / household) under

the guardianship of his eldest son, who ultimately shall be responsible for the execution of his father's will; in other words, this son shall represent the authority over the whole arrangement18).

Apart from that, Ni-ankh-ka provided primarily two fields: precisely two aruras (1 arura = 2756,5 m2) which had been previously donated by King Mycerinos for the temple

- as a donation / foundation - and later ac crued to Ni-ankh-ka in some way. In this context Ni-ankh-ka stipulated that each member of the association shall have an equal part of the usu fruct (= the right to enjoy the use and advantages of the property, i.e. the revenues of the fields) on condition that no harm or waste be done to the

property in question, which should be kept up intact at all times. As to the durability of the association, Ni-ankh-ka settled it in a remark

able way. Every member of the association can be succeeded by only one from among his descendants; in respecting this provision, no fragmenta tion of the patrimony should occur in the future. Be noted too that all the deeds concerning the foundation were uttered by Ni-ankh-ka in person "from his mouth, when he was still alive and on his feet", as the text un

mistakenly reveals. The text stresses further that the whole organization shall come into effect only after Ni-ankh-ka "had gone to the beautiful west" (i.e. had passed away)19).

By these provisions, an individual set aside landed property of his, for the fulfilment of a certain objective upon his death

- just as he personally

recht, p. 70-85; H. Goedicke, Die privaten Rechtsinschriften aus dem Alten Reich, p. 131

48; cf. J. Pirenne "La Fondation en droit egyptien sous l'Ancien Empire", RID A 2

(1955): 25-6.

17) The fact that comprehensive services (pr.t-hrw) were required for all the members

of the family deserves special attention. In following periods there were particular ser

vices, to be performed by foundations, destined only for individual persons. It would ap

pear, then, that such an evolution was due to the emergence of individualism in place of

family solidarity. 18) It might be of some interest to note that many characteristics of the foundation un

der discussion find - two millennia later - parallels in Greek foundations (which ap

peared not earlier than the fourth century BC); cf. W. Kamps "Les Origines de la fonda

tion cultuelle dans la Grece Ancienne", Archives d'Histoire du Droit oriental (Bruxelles) 1 (1937): 150-79.

19) We are dealing, then, with Ni-ankh-ka's last will.



desired. We notice also that his foundation was attached to, and depen dent on, the local temple. This ensured the foundation, at least theoreti

cally, a kind of perpetual existence without suffering decay. The second document to come under examination is preserved in a

grand rock-cut tomb (44 m long, and possessing seven rooms) in the vici

nity of the middle Egyptian town Assiut. The tomb belonged to one chief

priest and nomarch (governor of the province) -

Djefa-hapi by name -

who lived approximately in the second half of the 20th century BC. On the walls of the tomb we have, amongst other things, a unique inscription (of 65 lines)20): not a strict record, but abridged copies of 10 agreements which Djefa-hapi concluded, when he was alive, with various parties

-

apart from an arrangement with an agent appointed as administrator for the whole organization21).

Two agreements (nos. 9 + 10) were arranged with the inspectors of the desert / cemetery, where the tomb is situated. Two others were drawn up with the priesthood of the god Anubis (no. 7 with the chief priest, no. 8 with the priesthood). Still five others were negotiated with the clergy of the

god Wepwawet (nos. 1+2 + 4 with the priests, no. 6 with the chief priest, no. 5 with the wardrobe-keeper probably of the same temple). The last agreement (no. 3) was agreed upon by 10 persons (including Djefa-hapi himself) acting in their capacity as the governing board (qnbt) of the tem

ple of Wepwawet. On the whole, we are viewing an inscription with a

20) F. LI. Griffith, The Inscriptions of Siut and Der-Rifeh, pi. 6-8; P. Montet "Les tom

beaux de Siout et de Deir-Rifeh", Kemi 3 (1930-35): 54-73. The hieroglyphic texts are

partly reproduced in K. Sethe, Agyptische Lesestiicke, p. 92-6. For the study of the texts, G. Reisner "The Tomb of Hepzefa, Nomarch of Siut", JEA 5 (1918): 79-98; A. Theodor

ides, RIDA 18 (1971): 109-251; D. Devauchelle, "Les contrats de Djefaihapy", Mediter ranees - Revue de Tassociation Mediterranees (Paris) no. 6/7 (1996): 159-75; S. Allam "La Fondation de Djefa-Hapi" in B. Anagnostou-Canas (editor) L'organisation materi elle des cultes dans Tantiquite

- Actes de la table ronde tenue a Paris 14-15 mars 2003

(forthcoming); Idem "Persona ficta im Stiftungswesen pharaonischer Zeit" in H. Barta et alii (editors) Rechtsgeschichte und Interkulturalitdt

- Zum Verhaltnis des ostlichen Mit telmeerRaumes und "Europa"im Altertum (forthcoming). For an analysis bearing on eco nomic aspects regarding redistribution, A. Spalinger "A Redistributive Pattern at Assi

ut", Journal of the American Oriental Society (New Haven) 105 (1985): 7-20. In his study D. Devauchelle finds out that the inscription represents some anomalies as regards its

composition - from the legal viewpoint strictly speaking

- in comparison to the bulk of different contracts which have come down to us in the original form. This outlook makes the inscription difficult for him to use as a tool for reconstructing historical facts; there

fore, he is taking the whole as literary fictions. In the following discussion I will explain some points which can easily lead to misunderstandings.

21) Regardless of the way the word htm.t is to be understood {vide infra n.30), the 10

agreements are formulated as bilaterally concluded - each between two parties: Djefa

hapi is soliciting services and promising remunerations, and the other party is expressing satisfaction on account of it. Cf. I. Harari, in: Discussions in Egyptology (Oxford) 5

(1986): 68-9.


18 Schafik Allam

memorial value, yet full of unusual insights, describing the services to be

performed and the remunerations to be given in return -

delineating furthermore the obligations and the advantages of an appointed agent in

position of responsibility, as we shall see later on. Thus, the inscription presents a profusion of information; it sheds special light on the operations of a private foundation set up by an affluent nobleman of the 20th century BC.

It is interesting to mention the services to be obtained by way of these

agreements and the compensations to be given in return. Both services and

compensations are of wide variety. There were daily offerings (of bread and beer) to be presented to the statue of the deceased; probably they were

symbolic and of scant importance. Regarding the other services, as defined

by the agreements, in their chronological order, some of them were to take

place on days of "appearance" in the temple of Wepwawet; others on cer tain days throughout the year, especially on days of religious importance and whenever a specified festival is celebrated or a procession of the god goes from the temple to the cemetery, and so forth. It is noticeable likewise that the important services were to be performed at great festivals and by the most eminent body of priests in province.

On those occasions, some ceremonies were to be performed in the tem

ple, certain offerings were to be presented upon the altar, besides others

(of bread and cakes, meat and beer, etc.) to be granted for the deceased in carnated in his statue. During the glorification his statue was to be carried in processions to the temples and to the cemetery as often as required by the stipulated services. In addition, certain illuminations (by means of wicks and torches) were foreseen for the glorification of the departed. In short, there was a yearly cycle of mortuary ceremonies to be celebrated for the deceased and his statue. It is clear that Djefa-hapi provided, by virtue of his arrangements, for a complete annual round of ceremonies and offer

ings, which upon his death were due to the prestige of a governor of his

standing22). The various remunerations which Djefa-hapi offered, in order to obtain

the advantages he specified, open up a number of intriguing questions. To

begin with, we have to note that the first party in each agreement was Dje fa-hapi himself, while the other party was in no case an individually named person, but always the incumbent of an office. This implies that the official in function shall be binding the future successor in the office to the

perpetual services, giving him in return the right to the corresponding rev

enues23). This goes with exceptional clearness from the arrangement no. 6

22) For a reconstruction of the yearly cycle of mortuary ceremonies, G. Reisner "The Tomb of Hepzefa", JEA 5 (1918): 88-90; cf. Allam "La Fondation de Djefa-Hapi", vide

supra n. 20.

23) The intention of Djefa-hapi is unambiguously expressed in some arrangements



made by Djefa-hapi (as a private person) apparently with himself as the incumbent chief priest; to all outward appearances it was witnessed

- in

point of fact approved of -

by the governing body (qnbt) of the concerned

temple24). Obviously, this was a satisfactory solution to the problem rela tive to the succession within the personnel, who everlastingly had to per form the services and ceremonies as required by the founder25).

Looking at the material compensations which Djefa-hapi offered to the

priests and to the other personnel engaged by virtue of the agreements, we

glean that he ceded to them - not private landed property26) outright

- at least all kinds of rights bearing on some emoluments coming from his es

tate, i.e. various in-kind revenues (barley, bread, beer, coal, etc.). Mention may be made also of some peculiarities of the resources set

aside in support of the foundation. One is the conveyance of disburse ments in barley from the first-fruits of the harvest of Djefa-hapi's estate; they were to go to two different temples in certain proportions. In the pre sent case (nos. 2 + 8) Djefa-hapi tells that he was the first to cause his pea sants to give it; this means that he himself arranged the matter with the

peasants beforehand27).

(nos. 5 + 9+10) addressing his partner(s) the following formula: "See, these temple days / fields ... shall pass to every future (official) because he is the one who shall offer for me

24) For this particular arrangement, A. Theodorides "A propos du sixieme contrat du

gouverneur Hapidjefa", Annuaire de I'Institut de PhUologie et d'Histoire Orientates et

Slaves (Bruxelles) 20 (1973): 439-66; S. Allam "PersonaJlcta im Stiftungswesen pharao nischer Zeit" in H. Barta et alii (editors) Rechtsgeschichte und Interkulturalitat

- Zum Ver haltnis des ostlichen MittelmeerRaumes und "Europa

" im Altertum (forthcoming).

25) This state of affairs is substantiated by a Greek inscription from year 95 BC (W.

Dittenberger, Orientis graeci Inscriptiones selectae vol. 1, 1903, no. 179); CI. Preaux, RIDA 3 (1956): 165. A high official of province stipulates, for himself and his subordi

nates, to pay yearly a quantity of corn to a temple; he enjoins that his successors in office shall be obligated to do the same. For a similar text dating from the end of the Ptolemaic

period, W. Schubart "Stiftung fiir einen Tempel aus der Zeit des Augustus", ZAS 47

(1910): 157-60.

26) The size of land in question is rather unintelligible to us today, but must have been

perfectly clear to the parties concluding the agreements. Possibly the statement was ex

plicit in the original contracts; we have got only an abridged version thereof in the pre sent inscription.

27) G. Reisner (JEA 5, 1918: 94-7) thought that some of Djefa-hapi's dealings are sus

pect as to their legality, since they hint at a flagrant misuse of his position "amounting al most to a megalomania" of the greatest man in province. Reisner argued further that the consciousness of the illegality on the part of Djefa-hapi could be enhanced by his own re

marks or exhortations addressed to future nomarchs, saying, "See, you know that as for

anything which a nobleman or (even) a commoner gives to a temple out of the first-fruits of his harvest, the revocation of it is not pleasant to him, nor does any nomarch in his time diminish / reverse the agreement of another nomarch (made) with the priests of their time" (no. 2; cf. no. 8). But we have to bear in mind that tomb inscriptions are, by


20 Schafik Allam

We are told moreover (in nos. 3 + 5 + 6) that Djefa-hapi conveyed, amongst other things, some rewards (termed temple-days) equivalent to the revenues of 27 days yearly accruing to the temple of the god Wepwa wet28). In so doing, he repeatedly affirms that these rewards are to come from his own estate, formerly his father's

- thus leaving no room for mis

understanding the source thereof. It is interesting to further note how such rewards have to be estimated in the future: the revenues of the temple are to be calculated for the whole year; they are to be pooled, then divided into 360 parts which correspond to the number of the days in one year (with exclusion of the five intercalary days). Seemingly this pooling was to the general advantage of all persons concerned; it made easy the exchange of the revenues of any number of temple-days, without taking into account the variable character of the amounts entering the temple from one day to another. Such minute concerns help us assess how a careful and conscien tious founder was meticulously bothered about the operative effectiveness of his foundation.

Against the background which has been developed in the foregoing re

view, our third inscription becomes quite transparent. It is engraved on a stela (a large rectangular block of limestone) whose provenance seems to be the distant Upper Egyptian town Hermonthis (near Thebes)29); in all

probability, its date goes as far back as the 11th dynasty (possibly to the

reign of Nebhepetre: second half of the 21st century BC). Its owner is one Intef who mentions among his honours several titles similar to those held by Djefa-hapi; like him he was also a chief priest (probably of the local

their very nature, quite laconic; they do not expose every point, which scholars desire to

obtain today, with the unfortunate consequence that many details in them elude our in

telligence at present. However might have been Djefa-hapi's dealings, the conclusion we can safely reach is that this man did not shrink from any efforts in consolidating the fi

nancial base of his foundation.

28) In later periods it was still customary to handle temple-days (with corresponding revenues) in favour of someone carrying out the services in question. W. Spiegelberg,

"Verpachtung von Liturgie-Tagen", ZAS 49 (1911): 37-9. G. Botti, V Archivio demotico da Deir-el-Medineh (Catalogo delMuseo Egizio di Torino) Testo, passim. E. A. Reymond,

Catalogue of Demotic Papyri in the Ashmolean Museum vol. 1 (Embalmers' Archives from Hawara) p. 123 n. 11. Greek examples (for hemerai leiturgikai) are in Papiri greci e latini

(Societd Italiana per la ricerca dei Papiri greci e latini in Egitto) 9 (1929): 25 ff; CI. Preaux, L'Economie royale des Lagides, p.489-90.

29) H.O. Lange "Eine neue Inschrift aus Hermonthis" in: Sitzungsberichte der Konig lichen Preussischen Akademie der Wissenschaften (Berlin) no. 38 (1914) p. 991-1004; E.

Peet "A Mortuary Contract of the XIth Egyptian Dynasty", Annals of Archaeology and

Anthropology (Liverpool) 7 (1914-16): 81-8 + pi. 15; J.J. Clere and J. Vandier, Textes de

la premiere periode intermediate et de la XFme dynasie, p. 47; cf. U. Luft "Illahun-Studien

III", Oikumene - Studia ad historiam antiquam classicam et orientalem spectantia (Buda

pest) 5 (1986): 124-5; S. Allam "Persona ficta im Stiftungswesen pharaonischer Zeit" in

H. Barta et alii (editors) Rechtsgeschichte und Interkulturalitat - Zum Verhaltnis des ostli

chen MittelmeerRaumes und "Europa"im Altertum (forthcoming).



temple). In that countryside, then, we can reasonably figure out an afflu ent personality like Djefa-hapi of Assiut.

The inscription consists of three parts. The first recounts the titles, vir tues and wealth of Intef, while the second part contains in an exhaustive form the conventional prayer htp di nsw.t bearing on offerings to the de

parted. As to the third portion, which is of major relevance to our subject, it briefly records two agreements30): each arranged by Intef with a sepa rate person

- for the performance of offerings and ceremonies in his favour after death.

Albeit minor lacunae in the inscription and other difficulties of lexico

graphy, it is certain that the two persons, with whom Intef contracted, are individualized by their proper names and functions: the first is one agent titled hm-kl (accordingly, a trustworthy employee in Intef s household /

estate), the other is a lector-priest (hri-hb) - both are in no way related to

Intef s family, as it goes from their parentage. By the first agreement, Intef

arranged with his agent the daily service of pouring out water and other li bations as well as offering bread and cakes to his statue; on account of the second, the lector-priest was engaged for the service to be performed at In tef s tomb as well as for the appropriate liturgy to be read at monthly and

half-monthly festivals. These services have to be held so that Intef s "name

(rri) may be graceful and endure for ever", his "memory (sht) may per vade", and in order that his "chapel may be dignified" likewise. By way of remuneration (donatio sub modo), Intef conveyed 20 packages (?) of cloth to his agent and 10 others to the lector-priest, in addition to a man servant and a maid servant (bfk / blk.t \ slave) to each; he ceded to them moreover certain advantages and privileges connected with irrigation and cultivable

land31). Through the two settlements

- which do not go into details, having been

largely curtailed on the stela, thus avoiding all the complexity of Djefa hapi's inscription

- we readily perceive that the stipulated services are

mainly the presentation of daily offerings as well as the performance of ceremonies and recitations at specific festivals; it is apparent too that these services were negotiated with view to maintaining them in perpetuity. Yet, it is conspicuous that the mortuary ceremonies were thought of, not only for providing food and drink to the departed embodied in his statue, but

explicitly also to commemorate him and ennoble his name for posterity. The point to posit now in our investigation is that of the longevity of

foundations. For any private foundation, safeguarding its permanence was

30) Though the word htm recurs twice in the inscription (11. 7 + 9), I do not put any

weight on its possible meaning (given in Wb III, p. 352) as "contract", but on the circum stances which without any doubt indicate bilateral agreements; vide supra n.21.

31) We cannot tell whether or not by cutting a channel through Intef s field in order to secure water for the irrigation (Peet, loc.cit. p. 87).


22 Schafik Allam

certainly a vital issue. At first sight, one might plausibly presume that trusts / endowments created by individuals would have little chance of

persisting upon the founder's death for any considerable period. Of course the Egyptian was aware of this apparent weakness and he sought to protect his undertaking against a possible neglect of his intent. He did so, as we have seen, in a practical fashion: simply by enlisting the priesthood of his

god and by attaching the trust / foundation in some way to a given temple. The temple being a permanent institution

- insofar as it shall never fall

completely into decay, with a clergy being renewed as need be -

any foun dation affiliated to it should be everlasting as well, at least in theory.

Thus, the mortuary and memorial services were secured once and for all -

through incorporation into the priestly regular service, whose constancy was guaranteed as a matter of course. Indeed, the first of the three inscrip tions above-discussed - that of Ni-ankh-ka - testify that the founder

thoughtfully entrusted the services to the temple through the priesthood; as regards the foundation of Djefa-hapi, this man appealed in the main to the priests of two local temples. Yet, many founders must have been con scious too of inherent shortcomings, as far as the control of the foundation in general is concerned. In order to provide a remedy, the founder set his foundation under the control of someone, in whom he absolutely put trust. It remains to determine now how he solved the problem of such control.

In the foundation first-outlined - that of Ni-ankh-ka - the whole, having been arranged, was delegated to the eldest son as the guardian of the un

dertaking. Yet, in the third foundation - that of Intef - we find no kins

man, but two men in no way related to Intef s nuclear family; each is sepa rately engaged on account of an individual settlement with the founder. As to the foundation of Djefa-hapi

- closely examined in the second place

-

we detect none of his family members either. In fact, this man preferred one agent / employee {hm-kf), most probably from his estate / household, whom he appointed as trustee. It is he who shall supervise the manage ment of the foundation and the performance of the mortuary ceremonies. In exercising such a tight control, this agent shall be assuring the continu ance of the whole organization; and in consideration of his work, he shall

enjoy the right of certain material privileges32). The position of this administrator and supervisor cannot be better por

trayed than by the discourse which Djefa-hapi addressed to him (lines 269-272):

"See, all these matters, which I have settled (htm) with these priests, are under your

supervision. See, it is the &a-servant (hm-kt =

"employee" in the instance as trustee) of

a man who causes his affairs and his offerings to endure. See, I have let you know these

32) It is noteworthy that the supervision of Islamic family waqf was in principle settled in a similar manner. Usually the founder himself instituted the first supervisor

(nazer) whom he entrusted with the administration.



things which I have (settled to be) given to these priests in return for those things which

they (have to) give for me. Guard lest any matter of them be revoked. All matters con

cerning these things of mine, which I have (allowed to be) given to them, you may cause

your son and heir to hear / follow them, he who will act for me as &

24 Schafik Allam

would rather appear that it was impermissible to bring before arbitrators

(functioning as law-courts) any litigation connected with endowments35). Even the conception that the departed might act

- as a forceful spirit -

against potential transgressors was in the practice non-existent, as the rele vant inscriptions do not unfold any threat-formulae (curses) strictly pro nounced by the founder.

In the course of time, the Egyptian must have become aware of such im

perfection. We see him namely seeking a remedy, by introducing one prag matic innovation. We learn through texts, which occur with sufficient fre

quency from the New Kingdom (1550-1070 BC) onwards36), that in many cases the king was above all invoked as beneficiary / intermediary in a gi ven foundation. This evolution is particularly illuminated by way of an in formative inscription which, in perfect condition, covers all the sides of a statue. It belongs to a high dignitary, one Amenhotep who was royal scribe and chief steward; the statue was presumably placed in a sanctuary which

King Amenophis IIIrd (1388-1350 BC) newly set up for the god Ptah at

Memphis37). Thereby we are informed that His Majesty instituted a regu lar priesthood in the sanctuary and endowed it with fields and cattle as

well as a numerous labour force, and the whole institution was subject to the control by royal stewards.

Apart from this royal foundation, our dignitary Amenhotep announces the creation of a private endowment of his own. In his earlier career this

man had been promoted by Pharaoh to be chief steward; he then "became

wealthy in serfs38), cattle and possessions of all kinds without a limit". Ap parently, out of the possessions thus acquired he set aside "by written deed" a considerable area of fields (430 aruras = 118.52 ha) together with its serfs and stock on behalf of a statue of Pharaoh erected in the said sanc

tuary. Yet, this endowment, it seems, was not solely inspired by motives of

gratitude and reverence towards Pharaoh. We learn namely that Pharaoh for his part instructed that the chief steward

- the founder Amenhotep -

35) In one fragmentary inscription (from the middle of the third millennium BC) re

ferring to a private endowment, the founder seems to have prohibited that litigations

arising inside his institution be brought outside. K. Sethe, Urkunden des Alten Reichs,

p. 11-15; H. Goedicke, Private Rechtsinschriften, p. 44-67; M. Stracmans, "Textes des

actes de fondation de l'Ancien Empire", RIDA 2 (1955): 31-35.

36) Cf. B.J. Haring, Divine Households - Administrative and Economic Aspects of the

New Kingdom Royal Memorial Temples in Western Thebes, p. 142-55.

37) A. Gardiner "The Inscription of Amenhotep". In F. Petrie et alii, Tarkhan I and

Memphis V, p. 33-6 + pi. 79-80; W. Helck, Urkunden der 18. Dynastie, p. 1793-801;

Idem, Urkunden der 18. Dynastie (Ubersetzung) p. 259-63; M. Ullmann, Konig fur die

Ewigkeit: Die Hauser der Millionen von Jahren, p. 125-40.

38) For a recent study of this social stratum, S. Allam "Une classe ouvriere: les merit", in B. Menu (editor) La Dependance rurale dans VAntiquite egyptienne et proche-orientale, p. 123-55.



be granted the benefit of certain daily offerings (coming directly from those offerings to be laid first before the royal statue, after these same of

ferings have been set still earlier before the image of the god Ptah in the sanctuary). We have in this instance a quite intricate plot. In earlier years Pharaoh

had rewarded the chief steward Amenhotep with fields and accessories. Later, this man raised a pious foundation with the ultimate aim of institut

ing oblations for the statues of Ptah and Pharaoh. Thereupon, Pharaoh de creed that out from the offerings to be presented to the divine statues a dai ly service should be performed for Amenhotep likewise. In point of fact such arrangements were positively conceivable; they might well have been based on the reality that statues cannot actually consume any offerings. Whence it reasonably follows that the very offerings may serve for the per formance of several consecutive ceremonial sacrifices. On the spiritual side, offerings that had served the god and Pharaoh were undoubtedly thought to be highly sanctified, so that the founder gratefully wished to have part in them.

The piety and loyalty of the chief steward Amenhotep towards his king may have truly played a decisive part in connecting his endowment with services for the god and his royal master. The historian, however, may dimly realize that the endower was far-sighted; we recognize namely in the incorporation of Pharaoh an additional means of security for the survi val of the endowment of an individual39). Having placed the endowment under the charge, as it were, of Pharaoh and the priesthood, the endower was thus assured that both State and Temple, so to speak, would guarantee the persistence of his undertaking for a long time to come. It seems then that the chief steward was at first feeling somewhat insecure about his pri

mary arrangements -

they might be overturned in the long run; he felt therefore the necessity to obtain greater security by appealing to his king40). To all appearances he might have had little confidence that the ar

39) For a similar endowment (that of Senenmut) from the 18. dynasty, W. Helck, ZAS 85 (1960): 23-34; cf. B.J. Haring, Divine Households, p. 143-5. Noteworthy in this con nection is a Greek papyrus from Oxyrhynchus (P. Oxy. 705 dating from 202 AD); cf. CI.

Preaux, RIDA 3 (1956): 171. One endower begs the Roman Emperors Septimius Severus and Caracalla to issue an order that the revenue, he had put aside, be in no case diverted to any other goal than the one already fixed by him. To my mind, the creation of the en dowment in question did not depend so much on the approval of the emperors. In im

ploring the emperors, the endower was tacitly aspiring at obtaining more protection for his endowment; such protection could best be conferred by an instruction issued by the

emperors. Evidently, if the emperors were to confirm a private endowment, they would do so only in response to the endower's petition.

40) Similarly in Rome the cult of the emperor was introduced into many foundations erected by private individuals

- presumably for safeguarding the cult of the founder

(upon his death); his cult was then to be connected with the cult of the living emperor.


26 Schafik Allam

rangements he had set could be maintained permanently. For he pro nounces, at the end of his discourse, a familiar formula of blessing whom soever observes his wishes and fulminating against whomsoever would

transgress them; at the same time he is pleading that upon his departure his virtues in life merited proper recognition.

Retrospection

In the foregoing demonstration I hope to have made clear enough how foundations - in the technical sense - came into being in Ancient Egypt. Absolutely, the evidence for the determination of the nature and extent of

private foundations during Pharaonic times can by no means be dis

trusted, although the documentation does not suggest the existence of an institution sui generis

- legally defined, and expressed by a specific

term41). And it would be a moot point whether Egyptians have developed their institution empirically or have made a conscious effort to advance

keenly its legal framework, arguing that jurisprudence at such early period cannot have been that developed. It should be stressed, however, that law in the abstract was in Antiquity not necessarily at the base of daily life un

dertakings. In many cases it is evident that the emergence of purely legal forms derived its impetus from the reality of actual practice; strictly legal forms often came up following realities recurring every day, whenever an

urgent need called for deciding the standing of certain matters. In my discussion I have equally laid emphasis on the historical fact that

foundations arose in many other societies too, where they can be found

flourishing even today. In retrospect, however, we have to take into con sideration the Ancient Near East with all its contemporaneous civiliza tions. There, outside Egypt, we observe likewise that foundations were also known, but only those erected by rulers and kings. Evidently, then, the foundation as an institution created by a private person within a legal framework seems to have evolved in Pharaonic Egypt alone

- and this, to the best of my knowledge, for the first time in history. Here, in Egypt, came forth its mechanism which attained in the course of time a significant development.

In reflecting upon the history of foundations, it has repeatedly been ob served that concepts which evolved in one society can have impact on an other society. Considering ancient Greek and Roman societies, for exam

ple, it has been noticed that Greek foundations emerged with the rise of

Cf. E. Bruck, "Foundations for Deceased in Roman Law, Religion and Political

Thought", Scritti in onore di Contardo Ferrini vol. 4 (Milano 1949) p. 41-2.

41) For the interpretation of dt / pr-dt which erroneously used to be taken for techni

cal terms denoting "foundation", vide supra n. 15.



the Hellenistic World - presumably through cultural transfer in Egypt -

and that Roman ones appeared some 400 years still later. The belated ap pearance of Roman foundations arouses, then, some suspicion about their

originality. All the more so, since jurisprudence in Rome did not busy it self with that institution in particular; nor can Roman legislation have

prompted its emanation; there is no technical term in Latin denoting "foundation" either. On these grounds it has judiciously been suggested by E. Bruck that Greek foundations might have provided a model for the Roman ones; the underlying concept was probably introduced into the Roman society, without law and jurisprudence taking heed of such a "vul

gar" institution42). Similarly, in a comparative study the same author has discerned that the

institution called Seelteil (quota from a heritage in favour of the Church for the well-being of a donor's soul) became widespread in many parts of

Europe since the end of the 12th into the 14th century. This quota, however, had been earlier enacted throughout the Byzantine World (including Cop tic Egypt) for many centuries. Owing to intrinsic pieces of evidence, E. Bruck has come accordingly to the conclusion that the very institution ori ginally sprang up in the Orient and was exported later to the Occident43). Furthermore, upon studying the foundations attested in the Occident (of the fourth through the fifth centuries) it has been noticed that the underly ing legal concept for charitable institutions (e.g. nosocomium: hospital)

-

long ago elaborated in the Orient and reflected in the constitutions of Justi nian - was not yet operative in the Occident. It was only by the last years of the sixth century that the very concept began to appear, having been borrowed from the Orient, as reveal many indications 44).

It emerges finally from the foregoing survey that the institution underly ing the terms "foundation / endowment / trust" has a very long history; individuals created and still create it for all kind of purposes. During the centuries this institution carried on while growing and flourishing, devel oping various facets and different objectives; it also spread out from one

society to another until it became a universal institution in the modern world. Its history, however, traces its origin back inevitably to Pharaonic Egypt where we can, with confidence, find its deepest roots. In Egypt, although its religious purposes remained more or less the same throughout the Pharaonic period, its legal framework continued to receive further ela

42) E. Bruck "Les Facteurs moteurs de l'origine et du developpement des fondations

grecques et romaines", RIDA 2 (1955): 159-66.

43) E. Bruck, Kirchenvdter und soziales Erbrecht - Wanderungen religidser Ideen durch

die Rechte der ostlichen und westlichen Welt, 1956. For a relevant Coptic testament, ibid. 121 n. 5; W. Till, Erbrechtliche Untersuchungen auf Grund der koptischen Urkunden, 169 77.

**) J. Gaudemet, "Les Fondations en Occident au Bas-Empire", RIDA 2 (1955): 275-86.


28 Schafik Allam

boration, so that it became somehow a juridical (artificial) person capable to manage its own administration

- like many later highly developed foun dations.

Abbreviations

JEA = The Journal of Egyptian Archaeology (London). Kemi = Kemi. Revue de Philologie et d'Archeologie Egyptiennes et Copies (Paris). RdE = Revue d'Egyptologie (Paris). RIDA = Revue Internationale des Droits de TAntiquite

- 3e serie (Brussels). Wb = Worterbuch der Agyptischen Sprache, ed. Erman, Adolf and Grapow, Hermann

(Leipzig 1926-31). ZAS = Zeitschrift fiir Agyptische Sprache und Altertumskunde (Berlin/Leipzig). ZSS-KA = Zeitschrift der Savigny-Stiftungfiir Rechtsgeschichte

- Kanonistische Abteilung (Weimar).

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Issue Table of ContentsDie Welt des Orients, Bd. 37 (2007), pp. 1-270Front MatterVorwort [pp. 7-7]Foundations in Pharaonic Egypt: The Oldest-Known Private Endowments in History [pp. 8-30]Schankwirtinnen in Babylon: Zu 108 des Codex Hammurapi [pp. 31-35]Poebels Vokale im Kontext der sumerischen Sprache [pp. 36-55]Le buisson m(m) et l'arbre m([unrepresentable symbol]): du mythe gyptien aux Materia medica [pp. 56-68]Thot selbdritt: Mgliche gyptische Ursprnge der arabisch-lateinischen Tradition dreier Hermesgestalten [pp. 69-77]Die Beschwrung gegen die Glaukom-Dmonin: Eine Neubearbeitung der aramischen Zauberschale aus dem Smithonian Institute, Washington, D.C. (MSF B25) [pp. 78-89]Kritische Bemerkungen zur Bearbeitung von gyptischen Hymnen nach dem Neuen Reich [pp. 90-111]Der Patient wird sterben! Tod in den medizinisch-therapeutischen Texten des Alten Orients [pp. 112-134]Theodor Nldeke (18361930): Begrnder der modernen Orientalistik [pp. 135-144]Die groe Inschrift Tukult-Ninurtas I. Philologische und historische Studien [pp. 145-165]BuchbesprechungenReview: untitled [pp. 166-167]Review: untitled [pp. 168-171]Review: untitled [pp. 171-176]Review: untitled [pp. 176-179]Review: untitled [pp. 179-180]Review: untitled [pp. 180-183]Review: untitled [pp. 183-184]Review: untitled [pp. 185-188]Review: untitled [pp. 189-192]Review: untitled [pp. 192-195]Review: untitled [pp. 195-196]Review: untitled [pp. 197-199]Review: untitled [pp. 199-202]Review: untitled [pp. 202-208]Review: untitled [pp. 208-210]Review: untitled [pp. 210-213]Review: untitled [pp. 213-214]Review: untitled [pp. 214-220]Review: untitled [pp. 220-222]Review: untitled [pp. 222-224]Review: untitled [pp. 224-225]Review: untitled [pp. 225-229]Review: untitled [pp. 229-234]Review: untitled [pp. 234-236]Review: untitled [pp. 236-237]Review: untitled [pp. 237-240]Review: untitled [pp. 240-242]Review: untitled [pp. 243-247]Review: untitled [pp. 247-250]Review: untitled [pp. 250-252]Review: untitled [pp. 252-255]Review: untitled [pp. 255-257]Review: untitled [pp. 257-259]Review: untitled [pp. 259-261]Review: untitled [pp. 261-261]Review: untitled [pp. 262-265]Review: untitled [pp. 265-267]Review: untitled [pp. 267-269]

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Allam, Foundations in Pharaonic Egypt the Oldest-Known Private Endowments in History

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