The Story of Sinuhe is written in verse and opens with a wording similarly stylized like other autobiographical coffin texts that are common in Middle Kingdom Egyptian Tombs. Theoretically, the Story of Sinuhe would have been inscribed on his supposed tomb.[3] The opening stanzas list Sinuhe’s accomplishments, titles, and ways he was of service to the royal family. Sinuhe claims to be, “...the True Acquaintance of the King, whom he loves, the follower, Sinuhe says, I was a follower who followed his lord, a servant of the royal chambers". Then it breaks away from this styling and transitions to Sinuhe receiving the news of the sudden death of the old king while he is on an expedition in Libyia with the king’s oldest son. Upon hearing the news, Sinuhe is highly upset and enters a panicked state, “my heart staggered, my arms spread out; trembling fell on every limb. I removed myself, leaping, to look for a hiding place”. Sinuhe flees away from Egypt, sneaks past guards, crosses the Lake Maaty and sets out for foreign lands. He travels beyond Egypt and eventually collapses due to dehydration, having a close brush with death. In the next scene he is rescued by a Syrian leader who recognized Sinuhe, “a leader of theirs, who had once been in Egypt, recognized me. Then he gave me water, he boiled milk for me”. Sinuhe is nursed back to health and eventually, after more travelling, meets Amunenshi, the ruler of upper Retjenu. He begins his new life and attempts to establish an identity amongst a culture he is unfamiliar with. Amunenshi entrusts him to command his armies, and it is through this command that Sinuhe becomes engaged in conflict with a challenger. Although Sinuhe is victorious in this conflict, it onsets a desperation for his homeland. At one point Sinuhe exclaims, “whatever god fated the flight—be gracious, and bring me home! Surely you will let me see the place where my heart still stays! What matters more than my being buried in the land where I was born?”. Luckily the new king, Senusret I, sends for Sinuhe to return to Egypt. Sinuhe is delighted and thus begins a lengthy correspondence between the King and Sinuhe. Sinuhe eventually writes to Senusret I, “Whether I am at home, whether I am in this place—it is you who veils this horizon of mine”. Eventually the King offers to allow Sinuhe to be buried in Egypt. Sinuhe returns to Egypt and also the royal court. There he is cleansed and restored in his Egyptian identity. The story closes with Sinuhe addressing the visitors of his tomb, and the tale returns to its original funerary text stylization.[4] A transliteration of the whole text can be found here.
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