Abstract
Patronage has become a much discussed topic, especially in the case of the Middle Kingdom society (see e.g. Campagno 2014, 1-33; Eyre 2011, 701-11; Franke 2006, 159-85; Gnirs 2000, 125-55, Moreno García 2014, 39-74; Idem 2013a, 88-101; idem 2013b, 1030-65; Seidelmayer 2007, 351-68; Warden 2013).
However, when we study patronage, several difficult areas arise that deserve closer discussion: the definition of the subject itself, sources and the research method, patronage language, participant parties in the relation, etc. The list of problems is a long one and we can only focus on some of them while necessarily neglecting others.
We will focus only on some of the most palpable problems related to the first two items on the list - definition and sources, which we consider essential for the further research of patronage. In our study, we have chosen a sample of six officials - both from central and provincial administration.
We sought to make a selection so that it represents the best the kind of sources we have at our disposal and their typical state of preservation. All of them might have been, based on the traditional sources, considered patrons.
One of them - Djehutinakht of el-Bersha could be at the same time a client. We analysed preserved autobiographies, tombs and other evidence left by these individuals, in order to demonstrate the problem of the relevance of the traditionally studied Egyptological sources for research of patronage relationship as defined by modern sociological concept.