A Synchronized Early Middle Bronze Age Chronology for Egypt, the Levant, and Mesopotamia

The independent dating framework aligns best with the High-Middle Chronology (hMC) or Low-Middle Chronology (lMC).

“This aligns best with the High-Middle Chronology (hMC) or Low-Middle Chronology (lMC) (see Roaf 2012;de Jong 2012de Jong -2013de Jong , 2016de Jong -2017;;Höflmayer & Manning 2022)”

Revision of the Tell el-Dabʿa chronology raises the end of the Middle Bronze Age in the Eastern Mediterranean to c. 1600 BC.

“Meanwhile, revision of the Tell el-Dabʿa chronology, reconciling its radiocarbon dates and archaeo-historical chronology with new radiocarbon dates from sites in the Central and Southern Levant, raises the end of the Middle Bronze Age in the Eastern Mediterranean to c. 1600 BC (Höflmayer et al. 2016a(Höflmayer et al. , 2016b;;Höflmayer 2019;Höflmayer & Manning 2022;pace Bietak 2021).”

Following the Eastern Mediterranean low chronology, this would be c.1710-1650 BC, while modelling of radiocarbon dates at Tell el-Dabʿa indicates ages a century earlier, between 1872-1752 and 1813-1710 BC, at 95.4% probability.

“Following the Eastern Mediterranean low chronology advocated by Hazor's excavator, this would be c.1710-1650 BC, while modelling of radiocarbon dates at Tell el-Dabʿa indicates ages a century earlier, between 1872-1752 (G/1-3 to F Boundary) and 1813-1710 BC (E/3 to E/2 Boundary), at 95.4 per cent probability (following revision of Kutschera et al. 2012by Höflmayer & Manning 2022).”

These strata had been dated to c. 1530-1470 BC in the historical chronology, whereas modelled radiocarbon dates place them at 1679-1595 and 1635-1546 BC at 95.4% probability.

“These strata had been dated to c. 1530-1470 BC (early Eighteenth Dynasty) in the historical chronology (Kutschera et al. 2012: fig.3), whereas modelled radiocarbon dates place them at 1679-1595 (Strata D/2 to D/1 Boundary) and 1635-1546 BC (start Stratum C/2 Boundary) at 95.4 per cent probability (following revision of Kutschera et al. 2012by Höflmayer & Manning 2022).”

The Old Kingdom and Middle Kingdom periods provide the key pillar for placing and linking the chronology of the Early and Middle Bronze Ages in the ancient Near East and Eastern Mediterranean.

“Specifically, the Old Kingdom (OK, c. mid-late 3rd millennium BCE, the ‘Pyramid Age’) and Middle Kingdom (MK, c. late 3rd/early 2nd millennium BCE) periods provide the key pillar for placing and linking the chronology of the Early and Middle Bronze Ages in the ancient Near East and Eastern Mediterranean [4–8].”

Dee et al. found an offset with a 14C depletion of 19 ± 5 y in Egypt due to a shift in the regional growing season (winter/spring) compared to that of the trees of higher latitudes used for assembling the calibration curve (spring/summer); it was later reduced to 12.5 y when comparing AMS measurements with segments in the calibration curve that were also measured by AMS.

“Dee et al. (18) found an offset with a 14C depletion of 19 ± 5 y in Egypt due to a shift in the regional growing season (winter/spring) compared to that of the trees of higher latitudes used for assembling the calibration curve (spring/summer). It was later reduced to 12.5 y when comparing AMS measurements with segments in the calibration curve that were also measured by AMS (64, 65).”