The Medjay — Egypt's Real Elite Warriors, Not a Movie Myth — Teacher Resources

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The Medjay

Egypt's Real Elite Warriors, Not a Movie Myth — Teacher Resources

Long before there were royal guards, there were Nubian warriors Egypt could not survive without.

Note to Educators: This page contains the answer key for the "The Medjay" lesson plan available at hotepcreations.com. Please do not share this document directly with students. For questions or additional resources visit hotepcreations.com.

Quiz — The Medjay

PART A — MULTIPLE CHOICE

1. What does Ta-Seti, the ancient Egyptian name for Nubia, mean?

B) The Land of the Bow.

Students should recall that Ta-Seti, the ancient Egyptian name for Nubia, meant "the Land of the Bow" — a direct reference to the region's renowned archery tradition, which the Medjay were part of. [1]"Medjay." Wikipedia, citing the Autobiography of Weni and subsequent Egyptological scholarship.[2]"Ta-Seti." Wikipedia, on the meaning and geography of ancient Nubia's Egyptian name. Students who answer A, C, or D are selecting invented or misattributed meanings.

2. What was the Medjay's role for Kemet before King Kamose's war against the Hyksos?

B) They served as hired mercenaries, border guards, and scouts.

Students should recall that before Kamose's war, the Medjay served Kemet only as hired mercenaries — border guards and scouts paid to do dangerous frontier work, not as Kemet's own soldiers. [1]"Medjay." Wikipedia, citing the Autobiography of Weni and subsequent Egyptological scholarship. Students who answer A, C, or D misrepresent the Medjay's role at this point in the timeline.

3. Which king first turned the Medjay from hired border guards into his own soldiers?

B) Kamose.

Students should identify Kamose, the last king of Egypt's 17th Dynasty, as the ruler who turned the Medjay from hired border guards into his own soldiers during the war against the Hyksos. [3]"Kamose." Wikipedia, citing the Carnarvon Tablet and the Kamose stelae at Karnak Temple.[8]World History Edu. "Kamose: Ruler of the Theban Seventeenth Dynasty." worldhistoryedu.com. Students who answer A, C, or D are naming other historical figures not associated with this specific decision.

4. Who completed the expulsion of the Hyksos after Kamose died?

A) Ahmose I.

Students should recall that Kamose died before finishing his campaign, and his successor Ahmose I completed the expulsion of the Hyksos, traditionally marking the start of Egypt's New Kingdom. [4]American Research Center in Egypt (ARCE). "The Hyksos." arce.org. Students who answer B, C, or D are naming figures not credited with completing this specific campaign.

5. What did the Medjay become responsible for guarding by the New Kingdom?

B) The royal tombs in the Valley of the Kings and the village of Deir el-Medina.

Students should recall that by the New Kingdom, the Medjay had become an elite police force responsible for guarding the royal tombs in the Valley of the Kings and policing Deir el-Medina, the village of the artisans who built those tombs. [5]Langley, Michelle C. et al. "First Identification of Bone Whistle-Use in Dynastic Egypt." International Journal of Osteoarchaeology (2025); as reported in Live Science.[6]"Deir el-Medina strikes." Wikipedia, on the Medjay police force stationed at Deir el-Medina. Students who answer A, C, or D are naming responsibilities not documented for the Medjay in the lesson.

6. According to 7th-century Arab chroniclers, what nickname was given to Nubian archers for their accuracy?

B) "Archers of the Eyes".

Students should identify "Archers of the Eyes" as the nickname given to Nubian archers by Arab chroniclers of the 7th-century Muslim conquest of Nubia, reflecting a reputation for lethal accuracy that traced back to the same archery tradition the Medjay were part of. [7]Al-Baladhuri. Account of the Muslim conquest of Nubia, 7th century CE. Translated excerpt via medievalnubia.info. See Note on This Lesson regarding the precise historical timing of this nickname. Students who answer A, C, or D are naming names not documented in the historical record.

7. What happened to the word "Medjay" by the time of Hollywood's mummy-adventure movies?

B) It was turned into a fictional secret society, disconnected from the real history.

Students should recognize that a modern Hollywood mummy-adventure movie franchise borrowed the word "Medjay" and turned it into a fictional secret society, disconnected from the historical warriors described in this lesson. Students who answer A, C, or D misrepresent how the term has been used in popular film.

PART B — SHORT ANSWER KEY POINTS

Question 8. Explain how the Medjay's relationship with Kemet changed from the time they were hired mercenaries to the time King Kamose made them his own soldiers. Use at least two specific details from the lesson.

A strong answer should include:

  • The specific claim: the Medjay initially served only as hired mercenaries — border guards and scouts paid to do dangerous frontier work; when the Hyksos split Kemet in two, Kamose called on the Medjay and made them his own soldiers, and a detachment of Medjay troops helped storm the Hyksos-loyal garrison at Nefrusy [1]"Medjay." Wikipedia, citing the Autobiography of Weni and subsequent Egyptological scholarship.[3]"Kamose." Wikipedia, citing the Carnarvon Tablet and the Kamose stelae at Karnak Temple.
  • What the shift reveals: Kemet's growing dependence on the Medjay's military skill during an existential crisis, moving them from paid outsiders to trusted combatants
  • Strong answers will note: Medjay-crewed ships were part of Kamose's own fleet, not a separate mercenary contingent kept at arm's length
  • Strong answers will connect: this shift to the broader pattern in the lesson of Kemet placing increasing trust in Medjay hands over time, culminating in guardianship of the pharaohs' own tombs

Question 9. Describe what the Medjay were trusted to protect by the New Kingdom, and explain why guarding that specific thing mattered so much to Kemet.

A strong answer should include:

  • The specific claim: by the New Kingdom, the Medjay guarded the royal tombs in the Valley of the Kings and policed Deir el-Medina, the village of the artisans who built those tombs [5]Langley, Michelle C. et al. "First Identification of Bone Whistle-Use in Dynastic Egypt." International Journal of Osteoarchaeology (2025); as reported in Live Science.[6]"Deir el-Medina strikes." Wikipedia, on the Medjay police force stationed at Deir el-Medina.
  • Why it mattered: royal tombs held the pharaohs' bodies and grave goods central to Kemet's religious beliefs about the afterlife, making their protection a matter of both security and sacred duty
  • Strong answers will note: a 2025 study of a bone whistle found near a royal cemetery offers physical, archaeological evidence of exactly this kind of tomb security in practice
  • Strong answers will connect: this responsibility to the lesson's broader point that Kemet trusted the Medjay with its most sacred and valuable sites, not just its outer borders

Question 10. The lesson notes that Kemetic records simply stop mentioning the Medjay after a certain point, and that a modern movie franchise later used their name for a fictional story. Using details from the lesson, explain why it matters that most people who've heard the name "Medjay" don't know the real history behind it.

A strong answer should include:

  • The specific claim: Kemetic records stop mentioning the Medjay by name sometime after the end of the 20th Dynasty, around 1070 BCE, and historians still don't fully know why; centuries later, a Hollywood mummy-adventure franchise turned the word into a fictional secret society [9]ChronoDigest. "The Medjay: Egypt's Ancient Police." chronodigest.com.
  • Why the gap matters: when the historical record falls silent and popular culture fills the gap with fiction, the fictional version can become the only version most people ever encounter
  • Strong answers will note: the real Medjay were Black Nubian warriors whose service — as scouts, soldiers, and tomb guardians — was part of why Kemet's treasures survived as long as they did
  • Strong answers will connect: this erasure to the lesson's broader argument that real historical contributions can be overwritten by fiction when the underlying history isn't taught

Sources & Footnotes

  1. [1] "Medjay." Wikipedia, citing the Autobiography of Weni and subsequent Egyptological scholarship.
  2. [2] "Ta-Seti." Wikipedia, on the meaning and geography of ancient Nubia's Egyptian name.
  3. [3] "Kamose." Wikipedia, citing the Carnarvon Tablet and the Kamose stelae at Karnak Temple.
  4. [4] American Research Center in Egypt (ARCE). "The Hyksos." arce.org.
  5. [5] Langley, Michelle C. et al. "First Identification of Bone Whistle-Use in Dynastic Egypt." International Journal of Osteoarchaeology (2025); as reported in Live Science, "3,300-year-old ancient Egyptian whistle was likely used by police officer tasked with guarding the 'sacred location' of the royal tomb."
  6. [6] "Deir el-Medina strikes." Wikipedia, on the Medjay police force stationed at Deir el-Medina.
  7. [7] Al-Baladhuri. Account of the Muslim conquest of Nubia, 7th century CE. Translated excerpt via medievalnubia.info.
  8. [8] World History Edu. "Kamose: Ruler of the Theban Seventeenth Dynasty." worldhistoryedu.com.
  9. [9] ChronoDigest. "The Medjay: Egypt's Ancient Police." chronodigest.com.

Note on This Lesson: The narration's reference to "archers of the eyes" is historically accurate as a nickname for Nubian archers, but the earliest documented use of that specific epithet comes from Arab chroniclers of the 7th-century Muslim conquest of Nubia — several centuries after the New Kingdom Medjay had already stopped serving Kemet directly. Both groups descend from the same long Ta-Seti archery tradition, so the connection is real, but the nickname itself is not documented as something the Medjay were called during their own service to Kemet. This lesson presents it as part of that broader continuous reputation, not as a title the Medjay held for themselves.

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