The Tale of Sinuhe

The Death of the King

In the thirtieth year of his reign, Pharaoh Amenemhat I, founder of the Twelfth Dynasty, was murdered in his own palace. The assassination was carried out at night, while the king's son and co-regent Senusret was leading a military campaign against the Libyans in the western desert. Sinuhe, a trusted courtier and attendant to the royal family, was with the army when a secret messenger arrived bearing the terrible news. He overheard the dispatches and was seized with a terror that he himself could not fully explain. Perhaps he feared being implicated in the conspiracy. Perhaps the sudden dissolution of the world he knew shattered his composure beyond repair.

The Flight

Sinuhe fled. He did not decide to leave so much as he was carried away by his own fear, stumbling through the night like a man possessed. He crossed the Nile at the point where it is not meant to be crossed. He slipped past the fortress of the Walls of the Ruler, the great border fortification that separated Egypt from the eastern deserts. He wandered through the wastes, nearly dying of thirst beneath the merciless sun. When he could go no further, he collapsed, and it was the sound of lowing cattle that saved him: Bedouin herders found him and gave him water. Step by step, he moved further from Egypt, further from everything he had been.

Life in Retjenu

Sinuhe came at last to the land of Upper Retjenu, in the region of modern-day Syria-Palestine. The local chief, Ammunenshi, recognized Sinuhe's quality and took him in. He gave Sinuhe his eldest daughter in marriage, granted him the choicest of his lands, and made him commander of his armies. Sinuhe prospered beyond all expectation. His herds grew vast, his table overflowed, his children were strong and healthy. He defeated every challenger who came against him and won great renown among the peoples of the east. By every outward measure, he had built a magnificent life. And yet, he was miserable.

The Challenge

A mighty warrior of Retjenu, jealous of the foreigner's success, challenged Sinuhe to single combat. The night before the fight, Sinuhe could not sleep. He checked his bow, sorted his arrows, and polished his dagger. When dawn came, the whole tribe assembled to watch. The warrior attacked with shield, battle-axe, and javelins. Sinuhe dodged the javelins, turned aside the axe, and when the moment came, put an arrow through the challenger's neck. He seized the man's goods and cattle as the crowd roared. But the victory tasted of dust. This was not the land where his victories mattered. Every triumph in Retjenu only deepened the ache for the land he had left behind.

"What is more important than that my body be buried in the land where I was born? This is the matter of need. May god have pity on me."

The Pharaoh's Summons

Word of Sinuhe's exile reached the new pharaoh, Senusret I, who had long since secured the throne. The king sent a royal decree to Sinuhe, bidding him return to Egypt. The letter was generous and warm. The pharaoh asked why Sinuhe had fled, assured him that no punishment awaited, and reminded him of what he stood to lose: not merely comfort, but the one thing that no foreign land could provide. In Egypt, he would receive proper funerary rites. His body would be anointed with oils and wrapped in linen. He would have a coffin of gold and a tomb with an endowment. In Retjenu, he would be wrapped in a sheepskin and buried in a hole. Sinuhe read the letter and fell upon his face, scooping the dust of the foreign earth and pressing it to his forehead.

Return and Burial

Sinuhe distributed his possessions among his children, appointed his eldest son as chief in his place, and set out for Egypt. At the border, the garrison commander received him with honor and escorted him to the palace. He entered the throne room and prostrated himself before Senusret. The royal children cried out in surprise, for they did not recognize the weathered old man who had once been part of their household. The pharaoh laughed and ordered him bathed, shaved, dressed in fine linen, and anointed with the best oils. Sinuhe was given a stone house with a garden, meals from the palace kitchen, and a pyramid tomb in the royal necropolis. The years of exile melted away. Sinuhe spent his remaining days in the warmth of the Two Lands, knowing that when death came, it would come properly, in the manner of a true Egyptian, with all the rites that would see him safely through the west.