This shows the relative placement of the proto-historical patriarchs set against the context of various external sources, thus allowing an estimate of chronology. The horizontal black lines show 200 year intervals starting at 3000 BCE. Reasons for placing the external sources at these dates are given elsewhere.
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Explanatory notes
Proto-historical Patriarchs
Ebla
Ebla is a city in Northern Syria. Approximately 17000 tablets have been unearthed since their initial discovery in 1964, though unfortunately full details have never been released. At its height, a flourishing kingdom was based on the city. In conventional terms the peak was around 2300 BCE, and in the New Chronology interpretation about one or two centuries later. The city was destroyed by a Mesopotamian ruler called Naram-Sin around 2250 BCE using conventional dating, and around 2000 BCE in New Chronology terms. The tablet archive therefore dates from the closing century of the 3rd millennium in NC terms. The tablets found at Ebla describe influential nearby cities and record law codes and judicial decisions made at the city. The structure of laws and customs provides a good parallel for the Genesis accounts. Personal names matching those in Genesis are also found.
Mesopotamia
Kish
A city in the northern part of Mesopotamia. The land under its influence was ruled not as a controlled empire but a loose confederation of individual cities, each with its own ruler but acknowledging Kish as overlord. According to the Sumerian kinglist, Kish was the first city to which kingship was restored after the flood. The reigns given for this period are extremely long and are often presumed to name important representatives rather than all individuals.
Uruk
A city in the southern part of Mesopotamia, also known as Erech and traditionally founded or greatly extended by Nimrod (Enmerkar). The land under its influence was ruled not as a controlled empire but a loose confederation of individual cities, each with its own ruler but acknowledging Uruk as overlord. The reign lengths given during the early Uruk I period are extremely long, and are often assumed to give representative names rather than listing all individuals.
Ur
A city in the southern part of Mesopotamia. The land under its influence was ruled not as a controlled empire but a loose confederation of individual cities, each with its own ruler but acknowledging Ur as overlord. Several different cities with similar names have been identified.
Lagash
A city in the southern area of Mesopotamia. The period of dominance was marked by continual border conflicts with Uruk and other cities, and ended in conquest by Lugalzagezi of Uruk III.
Akkad (Agade)
The city was claimed to have been founded by Nimrod along with Erech (Uruk) and Babylon. The exact location is unknown, but it is often thought to have been on one of the older courses of the Euphrates, near to Babylon. It's most significant time was during the reign of Sargon I, when power was exerted over all of Sumeria across to Syria and Anatolia. Sargon's dynasty was warlike and regularly used military force to subdue cities. This policy led to frequent rebellions, and the final collapse of the empire was rapid as pressure became too intense.
Egypt
Predynastic period
In this period, centres of power and culture developed in several places along the Nile Valley, especially Naqada. Many of the rock-art images found in the wadis linking the Nile with the Red Sea date from this era. Over time the individual emerging spheres of influence were absorbed to become a single nation. The transition to the dynastic period comes at the point of unification. Dates for this period are very fluid.
Early dynastic period
During this dynasty and the next, Egyptian culture developed many of its distinctive traits. However, details are quite sketchy compared to some later periods. Recent work suggests that the leaders may have originated from Mesopotamia and traveled to Egypt via the Persian Gulf and Ethiopia. Early Mesopotamian influences in art, writing and architecture adpated rapidly to a new setting. New Chronology dates are moved approximately 150-200 years later than in the conventional chronology of Egypt.
Old KingdomThe first great period of flourishing for Egypt, it lasted about 500 years through the second half of the 3rd millennium BCE. The final (6th) dynasty was dominated by the incredibly long reign of Pepi II and overall was a time of decline. New Chronology dates are moved approximately 150-200 years later than in the conventional chronology of Egypt.
First Intermediate PeriodNearly 200 years of weak and ineffective rulers caused this time of uncertainty. Often different parts of Egypt were ruled by competing dynasties, until the middle of the 11th dynasty when stronger rulers enforced unity again. Trade with other countries declined and the flow of resources from mines in the Sinai Peninsula disappeared. New Chronology dates are moved approximately 100-200 years later than in the conventional chronology of Egypt.