Apotheosis in the Middle Kingdom

This chapter looks at three individuals who underwent apotheosis during the Middle Kingdom: Heqaib, Isi, and Wahka. Heqaib, Isi, and Wahka were venerated because they were remembered for the deeds they performed during life—such as Heqaib's reputation as a great warrior, or Isi's and Wahka's roles as local dignitaries and leaders. Thus, Middle Kingdom apotheosis can be generalized, on the basis of current evidence, as occurring uniquely in the provinces and typically (but not exclusively) numerous generations after the death of the deified dead in question. This delay, followed by a fully materialized display of divine status, was likely a reflex of the fact that the local temples became the primary locus of political display in the First Intermediate Period and Middle Kingdom. The deified dead of the Old Kingdom participated in Old Kingdom systems of power. Deified dead of the Middle Kingdom participated in Middle Kingdom hierarchies of power, which were situated in the local temples. Their articulation as gods, then, was much more explicit.