Historian: The early Egyptian pharaohs spent as much wealth on largely ceremonial and hugely impressive architecture as they did on roads and irrigation systems
This was not mere frivolousness, however, for if people under a pharaoh' s rule could be made to realize the extent of their ruler' s mastery of the physical world, their loyalty could be maintained without military coercion
It is a premise given in support of the claim that the loyalty of people under a pharaoh's rule was maintained over time without reliance on military force.