This book is about epithets on Egyptian monumental inscriptions, and about the conclusions one may draw from them. Epithets in the first place characterize the owner of the text and encourage others to maintain his memorial cult.
Though formulaic and not describing actual historical events, this thorough study points out that these epithets are in fact valuable indicators of religious, social and political attitudes. In the case of this volume, the author analyses the epithets of non-royal officials from the Middle Kingdom (c. 2040-1640 BCE).
Drawing on evidence from several hundred inscriptions, it assesses the relationship of elite, scribal-class officials to their gods, the king, each other, and their dependants, and discusses the Egyptian world view, beliefs about the afterlife, and the changing role of elite provincial administrators relative to the central administration. It also studies the effect of an inscription's context and its owner's official titles on the subject matter of the epithets.