Polygamy in the Middle Kingdom: evidence from tombs of the elite

This paper examines potential instances of polygamy amongst the high officials during the Middle Kingdom Period, by examining evidence from their tombs. Iconographic and inscriptional material offers the ability to document several men who had more than one wife at the same time. Due to the introduction of the term mAat xrw, “justified,” we can more easily distinguish between deceased and living wives and determine those men who were married to more than one wife at the same time. Originally, polygamy was only practised by ruling kings but in the late Old Kingdom, a small number of high officials seem to have practised polygamy. The early Middle Kingdom provincial governors built and decorated large tombs in the provinces, some of them leaving evidence of concurrent wives. Some of the possible reasons some of the highest officials were polygamists during the Middle Kingdom are also discussed.