Editing Bronze Age (section)

==== Middle Bronze dynasties ====
The [[Middle Kingdom of Egypt]] spanned between 2055 and 1650&nbsp;BCE. During this period, the Osiris funerary cult rose to dominate popular [[Ancient Egyptian religion]]. The period comprises two phases: the Eleventh Dynasty, which ruled from Thebes, and the [[Twelfth Dynasty of Egypt|Twelfth]]<ref>Othmar Keel and Christoph Uehlinger. ''Gods, goddesses, and images of God in ancient Israel'', 1998. p.&nbsp;17. "The first phase (Middle Bronze Age IIA) runs roughly parallel to the Egyptian Twelfth Dynasty".</ref> and [[Thirteenth Dynasty of Egypt|Thirteenth]] dynasties, centred on [[el-Lisht]]. The unified kingdom was previously considered to comprise the Eleventh and Twelfth Dynasties, but historians now consider part of the Thirteenth Dynasty to have belonged to the Middle Kingdom.

During the [[Second Intermediate Period]],<ref>Bruce G. Trigger. ''Ancient Egypt: A Social History''. 1983. p.&nbsp;137. "...&nbsp;for the Middle Kingdom and Second Intermediate Period it is the Middle Bronze Age".</ref> Ancient Egypt fell into disarray a second time between the end of the Middle Kingdom and the start of the New Kingdom, best known for the [[Hyksos]], whose reign comprised the [[Fifteenth Dynasty of Egypt|Fifteenth]] and [[Sixteenth Dynasty of Egypt|Sixteenth]] dynasties. The Hyksos first appeared in Egypt during the Eleventh Dynasty, began their climb to power in the Thirteenth Dynasty, and emerged from the Second Intermediate Period in control of [[Avaris]] and the [[Nile Delta]]. By the Fifteenth Dynasty, they ruled lower Egypt. They were expelled at the end of the [[Seventeenth Dynasty]].