Narmer, the best-attested Egyptian king from the period of state formation, reigned at a time of great social and political change, a time when the modes of self-expression and the mechanisms of rule employed by the governing elite were undergoing rapid and radical reformulation. In other words, Narmer presided over a crucial transition in the concept of the ruler. His reign displays certain features characteristic of Egypt's prehistoric past, but also some early examples of the new forms that were to distinguish pharaonic civilisation. A recognition of this dichotomy brings new insights into the meaning of Narmer's name, the artistic significance of his famous palette, and the identification of the early royal tombs at Abydos.