text: Armenian

text: Arsacid Armenia

text: Tiridates I of Armenia

text: Christianity

text: state religion

text: Khosrov II of Armenia

text: Parthia

text: Ardashir I

text: Khosrovidukht

text: Tiridates II of Armenia

text: Anak

text: Gregory the Illuminator

text: Cappadocia

text: Rome

text: Roman law

text: Movses Khorenatsi

text: Roman emperor

text: Aurelian

text: Sassanids

text: Armenian

text: Vagharshapat

text: Diocletian

text: protectorate

text: Alani Princess

text: Ashkhen

text: Khosrov III

text: Salome

text: St. Husik I

text: Catholicoi

text: Armenian Apostolic Church

text: Agathangelos

text: Gregory the Illuminator

text: polytheism

text: Anahit

text: Khor Virap

text: Gayane

text: Rhipsime

text: Catholicos

text: Armenian Apostolic Church

text: Arsacids of Armenia

text: Sassanids

text: Movses Khorenatsi

text: nakharar

text: Armenian Apostolic Church

text: Oriental Orthodox Churches

text: Pentecost

text: feast day

text: Armenian Apostolic Church

text: Arsacid dynasty of Armenia

categories: 330 deaths,Roman client kings of Armenia,4th-century Christians,Converts to Christianity from pagan religions,3rd-century Christians,Armenian saints,286 births,Armenian Apostolic Christians,4th-century Armenian people,3rd-century monarchs in the Middle East,3rd-century Armenian people,4th-century Christian saints,4th-century monarchs in the Middle East

paragraph: Tiridates III of Armenia

paragraph: Tiridates III (spelled Trdat; Armenian: ; 250–330 AD) was the king of Arsacid Armenia (287–330), and is also known as Tiridates the Great ; some scholars incorrectly refer to him as Tiridates IV as a result of the fact that Tiridates I of Armenia reigned twice. In 301, Tiridates proclaimed Christianity as the state religion of Armenia, making the Armenian kingdom the first state to embrace Christianity officially.

paragraph: Section::::Early Childhood.

paragraph: Tiridates III was the son of Khosrov II of Armenia by an unnamed mother, the latter being assassinated in 252 by a Parthian agent named Anak under orders from Ardashir I. Tiridates had one known sibling, a sister called Khosrovidukht and was the namesake of his paternal grandfather, Tiridates II of Armenia. Anak was captured and executed along with most of his family, while his son, Gregory the Illuminator, was sheltered in Caesaria, in Cappadocia. Being the only surviving heir to the throne, Tiridates was quickly taken away to Rome soon after his father's assassination while still an infant. He was educated in Rome and was skilled in languages and military tactics; in addition he firmly understood and appreciated Roman law. The Armenian historian Movses Khorenatsi described him as a brave and strong warrior who participated in the battles against enemies. He personally led his army to victories in many battles.

paragraph: Section::::Kingship.

paragraph: In 270 the Roman emperor Aurelian engaged the Sassanids, who had now replaced the Parthians, on the eastern front and he was able to drive them back. Tiridates, as the true heir to the now Persian-occupied Armenian throne, came to Armenia and quickly raised an army and drove the enemy out in 287. When Tiridates returned to Armenia, he made the city of Vagharshapat his capital, as it had been the capital of his late father. For a while, fortune appeared to favour Tiridates. He not only expelled his enemies, but he carried his arms into Assyria. At the time the Persian Empire was in a distracted state. The throne was disputed by the ambition of two contending brothers, Hormuz and Narses. The civil war was, however, soon terminated and Narses was universally acknowledged as King of Persia. Narses then directed his whole force against the foreign enemy. The contest then became too unequal. Tiridates once more took refuge with the Romans. The Roman-Armenian alliance grew stronger, especially while Diocletian ruled the empire. This can be attributed to the upbringing of Tiridates, the consistent Persian aggressions and the murder of his father by Anak. With Diocletian's help, Tiridates pushed the Persians out of Armenia. In 299, Diocletian left the Armenian state in a quasi-independent and protectorate status possibly to use it as a buffer in case of a Persian attack. Tiridates married an Alani Princess called Ashkhen in 297 by whom he had three children: a son called Khosrov III, a daughter called Salome and an unnamed daughter who married St. Husik I, one of the earlier Catholicoi of the Armenian Apostolic Church.

paragraph: Section::::Conversion.

paragraph: The traditional story of the conversion of the king and the nation is primarily based on the fifth-century work of Agathangelos titled "The History of the Armenians." It tells of Gregory the Illuminator, the son of Anak, who was brought up as a Christian and, feeling guilt for his own father's sin, joined the Armenian army and worked as a secretary to the king. Christianity in Armenia had a strong footing by the end of the 3rd century, but the nation by and large still followed pagan polytheism. Tiridates was no exception as he too worshiped various ancient gods. During a pagan religious ceremony Tiridates ordered Gregory to place a flower wreath at the foot of the statue of the goddess Anahit in Eriza. Gregory refused, proclaiming his Christian faith. This act infuriated the king. His fury was only exacerbated when several individuals declared that Gregory was in fact, the son of Anak, the traitor who had killed Tiridates's father. Gregory was tortured and finally thrown in Khor Virap, a deep underground dungeon.

paragraph: During the years of Gregory's imprisonment, a group of virgin nuns, led by Gayane, came to Armenia as they fled the Roman persecution of their Christian faith. Tiridates heard about the group and the legendary beauty of one of its members, Rhipsime. He brought them to the palace and demanded to marry the beautiful virgin; she refused. The king had the whole group tortured and killed. After this event, he fell ill and according to legend, adopted the behavior of a wild boar, aimlessly wandering around in the forest. Khosrovidukht had a dream wherein Gregory was still alive in the dungeon, and he was the only one able to cure the king. At this point it had been 13 years since his imprisonment, and the odds of him being alive were slim. They retrieved him, and, despite being incredibly malnourished, he was still alive. He was kept alive by a kind-hearted woman who threw a loaf of bread down in Khor Virap every day for him.

paragraph: Tiridates was brought to Gregory and was miraculously cured of his illness in 301. Persuaded by the power of the cure, the king immediately proclaimed Christianity the official state religion. Thus, Armenia became a nominally Christian kingdom and the first state to officially adopt Christianity. Tiridates appointed Gregory as Catholicos of the Armenian Apostolic Church.

paragraph: While as a matter of fact the conversion to Christianity proved to be decisive and pivotal in Armenian history, it seems that the Christianisation of Armenia by the Arsacids of Armenia (Arshakuni) was partly in defiance of the Sassanids.

paragraph: Section::::Rest of reign.

paragraph: The switch from the traditional pagan Armenian religion to Christianity was not an easy one. Tiridates often used force to impose this new faith upon the people and many armed conflicts ensued, because polytheism was deeply rooted in the Armenian people. An actual battle took place between the king's forces and the pagan camp, resulting in the weakening of polytheistic military strength. Tiridates thus spent the rest of his life trying to eliminate all ancient beliefs and in doing so destroyed countless statues, temples and written documents. As a result, little is known from local sources about ancient Armenian history and culture. The king worked feverishly to spread the faith and died in 330. Movses Khorenatsi states that several members of the nakharar families conspired against Tiridates and eventually poisoned him.

paragraph: Tiridates III, Ashkhen and Khosrovidukht are Saints in the Armenian Apostolic Church, and by extension all of the Oriental Orthodox Churches, and their feast day is on the Saturday after the fifth Sunday after Pentecost. On this feast day "To the Kings" is sung. Their feast day is usually around June 30.

paragraph: Section::::See also.

paragraph: BULLET::::- Armenian Apostolic Church

paragraph: BULLET::::- Arsacid dynasty of Armenia

paragraph: BULLET::::- Saint Gregory the Illuminator Cathedral, Yerevan

paragraph: Section::::Further reading.

paragraph: BULLET::::- Translated from the Armenian: Mihran Kurdoghlian, Badmoutioun Hayots, A. hador [Armenian History, volume I], Athens, Greece, 1994, pg. 96-105.

paragraph: BULLET::::- The Library of Congress - Armenia - A Country Study

paragraph: BULLET::::- Yuri Babayan - Tiridates the Great

description: King of Armenia

wikidata_label: Drtad III of Armenia

wikipedia_title: Tiridates III of Armenia


text: Horus name

text: pharaoh

text: Early Dynastic Period

text: First Dynasty of Egypt

text: archaeologically

text: double crown

text: tomb

text: Umm El Qa'ab

text: Abydos

text: granite

text: Manetho

text: Royal Canon of Turin

text: Egyptologist

text: inscriptions

text: Palermo Stone

text: serekh name

text: schist

text: diorite

text: marble

text: Saqqara

text: Abu Rawash

text: Medical Papyrus of Berlin

text: Ramesside era

text: Papyrus of Ani

text: birth name

text: Toby Wilkinson

text: Francesco Tiradritti

text: Lower

text: Upper Egypt

text: Merneith

text: Anedjib

text: Semerkhet

text: Royal Household

text: mastaba

text: necropolis

text: Ramesside

text: Abydos King List

text: Turin King List

text: hieroglyph

text: Saqqara Tablet

text: Neithhotep

text: Sobekneferu

text: Hatshepsut

text: tomb

text: hieroglyph

text: rnpt

text: panicle

text: tax

text: Sinai Peninsula

text: Palermo Stone

text: typography

text: epidemic

text: shaman

text: nemes

text: braid

text: nomad

text: jwntj.w

text: Semerkhet

text: Mafdet

text: Ptah

text: Seshat

text: hippopotamus

text: Heracleopolis Magna

text: Heryshaf

text: portcullis

text: Flinders Petrie

text: Émile Amélineau

text: seal impressions

text: human sacrifice

text: ushabti

categories: Pharaohs of the First Dynasty of Egypt,Den (pharaoh),30th-century BC Pharaohs,30th century BC in Egypt,30th-century BC rulers

paragraph: Den (pharaoh)

paragraph: Den, also known as Hor-Den, Dewen and Udimu, is the Horus name of a pharaoh of the Early Dynastic Period who ruled during the First Dynasty of Egypt. He is the best archaeologically-attested ruler of this period. Den is said to have brought prosperity to his realm and numerous innovations are attributed to his reign. He was the first to use the title "King of Lower and Upper Egypt", and the first depicted as wearing the double crown (red and white). The floor of his tomb at Umm El Qa'ab near Abydos is made of red and black granite, the first time in Egypt this hard stone was used as a building material. During his long reign he established many of the patterns of court ritual and royalty used by later rulers and he was held in high regard by his immediate successors.

paragraph: Section::::Length of reign.

paragraph: The Ancient Egyptian historian Manetho called him “Oúsaphaîdos” and credited him with a reign of 20 years, whilst the Royal Canon of Turin is damaged and therefore unable to provide information about the duration of Den's reign. Egyptologists and historians generally believe that Den had a reign of 42 years, based on inscriptions on the Palermo Stone.

paragraph: Section::::Name sources.

paragraph: Den's serekh name is well attested on earthen seal impressions, on ivory labels and in inscriptions on vessels made of schist, diorite and marble. The artifacts were found at Abydos, Saqqara and Abu Rawash. Den's name is also attested in later documents. For example, the "Medical Papyrus of Berlin" (the Ramesside era) discusses several methods of treatment and therapies for a number of different diseases. Some of these methods are said to originate from the reign of Den, but this statement may merely be trying to make the medical advice sound traditional and authoritative. Similarly, Den is mentioned in the "Papyrus of Ani" (also dated to Ramesside times) in chapter 64.

paragraph: Section::::Identity.

paragraph: Den's serekh name was "Den" or "Dewen", most likely meaning "he who brings the water". This is consistent with his birth name, which was “Khasty”, meaning “he of the two deserts”. Egyptologists such as Toby Wilkinson and Francesco Tiradritti think that the birth name refers to the eastern and the western desert – both surrounding Egypt like protective shields - or to Lower and Upper Egypt. This is in accord with the introduction of the "Nisut-Bity"-title by Den. This royal title was designed to legitimise the ruler´s power over the whole of Egypt.

paragraph: Den's family has been the subject of significant research. His mother was queen Merneith; this conclusion is supported by contemporary seal impressions and by the inscription on the Palermo Stone. Den's wives were the queens "Semat", "Nakht-Neith" and, possibly, "Qaineit". He also had numerous sons and daughters; his possible successors could have been king Anedjib and king Semerkhet.

paragraph: Den's Royal Household is also well researched. Subsidiary tombs and palatial mastabas at Sakkara belonged to high officials such as "Ipka, Ankh-ka, Hemaka, Nebitka, Amka, Iny-ka" and "Ka-Za". In a subsidiary tomb at Den's necropolis, the rare stela of a dwarf named "Ser-Inpu" was found.

paragraph: The birth name of Den was misread in Ramesside times. The Abydos King List has “Sepatju” written with two symbols for “district”. This derives from the two desert symbols Den originally had used. The Turin King List refers to “Qenentj”, which is quite difficult to translate. The origin of the hieroglyphs used the Royal Canon of Turin remains unknown. The Saqqara Tablet mysteriously omits Den completely.

paragraph: Section::::Reign.

paragraph: Section::::Reign.:Beginning.

paragraph: According to archaeological records, at the very beginning of his reign, Den had to share the throne with his mother Meritneith for several years. It seems that he was too young to rule himself. Therefore, Meritneith reigned as a regent or "de facto" pharaoh for some time. Such a course of action was not unusual in ancient Egyptian history. Queen Neithhotep may have taken on a similar role before Meritneith, while queens such as Sobekneferu and Hatshepsut were later female Egyptian rulers. Den's mother was rewarded with her own tomb of royal dimensions and with her own mortuary cult.

paragraph: Section::::Reign.:Events.

paragraph: An important innovation during Den's reign was the introduction of numbering using hieroglyphs. Prior to this, important year events were merely depicted in signs and miniatures, sometimes guided by the hieroglyphic sign rnpt "bald palm panicle", meaning “year”. From Den's reign onwards, the Egyptians used numbering hieroglyphs for a range of purposes including calculating tax collections and for annotating their year events.

paragraph: Den is the first Egyptian king attested with rock reliefs in the Sinai Peninsula. Two or perhaps even three reliefs are showing the standing king and some of his officials.

paragraph: Most religious and political happenings from Den's reign are recorded in the numerous ivory tags and from the Palermo Stone inscription. The tags show important developments in typography and arts. The surface is artistically parted into sections, each of them showing individual events. For example, one of these tags reports on an epidemic then affecting Egypt. The inscription shows the figure of a shaman with an undefined vessel or urn at his feet. A nearby inscription begins with “Henu...” but it is unclear, if that means “provision” or if it is the first syllable of the name “Henu-Ka” (a high official).

paragraph: Another tag, known as the “MacGregor Label”, shows the first complete depiction of an Egyptian king with the so-called nemes headdress. The picture shows Den in a gesture known as "smiting the enemy". In one hand Den holds a mace, in the other hand he grabs a foe by his hair. Thanks to the braids and the conic beard the foe has been identified as of Asian origin. The hieroglyphs at the right side say "first smiting of the east". At the left side the name of the high official "Iny-Ka" is inscribed. It seems that Den sent troops to the Sinai Peninsula and the eastern desert a number of times. Plundering nomads, known by the early Egyptians as "jwntj.w" "people with hunting bows”, were regular foes of Egypt, often causing trouble. They are again mentioned in a rock inscription in the Sinai Peninsula under Semerkhet, one of Den's successors.

paragraph: More events are reported on the Palermo Stone fragments. The Oxford fragment records the following events:

paragraph: BULLET::::- 4th year: First time for counting gold.

paragraph: BULLET::::- 5th year: Escort of Horus; 2nd census of cattle count.

paragraph: BULLET::::- 6th year: ...(section damaged)... of the "Rehyt".

paragraph: BULLET::::- 7th year: Escort of Horus; 3rd census of cattle count.

paragraph: The Cairo-Stone fragment "C5" reports:

paragraph: BULLET::::- 18th year: The making of a statue for "Wer-Wadjet".

paragraph: BULLET::::- 19th year: Smiting of the "Setjet" people.

paragraph: BULLET::::- 20th year: Creation of the Mafdet-fetish; raising of the "Sentj"-pillars.

paragraph: BULLET::::- 21st year: Smiting of the "Tjesem" people.

paragraph: BULLET::::- 22nd year: Visit to the royal domain of "Semer-Netjeru"; first celebration of the "Hebsed".

paragraph: The Palermo Stone main fragment reports:

paragraph: BULLET::::- 28th year: Visit to the temple of Ptah... (rest is missing).

paragraph: BULLET::::- 29th year: Smiting of the "Iuntju" people.

paragraph: BULLET::::- 30th year: Appearance of the king of Lower- and Upper Egypt; 2nd celebration of the "Hebsed".

paragraph: BULLET::::- 31st year: Planning for the construction of the eastern and western canals through the districts of the "Rehyts".

paragraph: BULLET::::- 32nd year: 2nd celebration of the "Djet"-festival.

paragraph: BULLET::::- 33rd year: Stretching the cords (a foundation ceremony) for the divine fortress "Isut-Netjeru" (“thrones of the gods”).

paragraph: BULLET::::- 34th year: Stretching the cords for the royal palace of the divine fortress "Isut-Netjeru" by the high priest of Seshat.

paragraph: BULLET::::- 35th year: Inauguration of the sacred lakes at the divine fortress "Isut-Netjeru"; royal hippopotamus hunt.

paragraph: BULLET::::- 36th year: Residing at "Nenj-nesw" (Heracleopolis Magna) and at the lake of the god Heryshaf.

paragraph: BULLET::::- 37th year: Sailing trip to "Sah-Setni"; foundation/destruction of the city "Wer-Ka".

paragraph: BULLET::::- 38th year: Creation of a statue for the god "Sed".

paragraph: BULLET::::- 39th year: Appearance of the king of Lower- and Upper Egypt; 1st race of the Apis-Bull.

paragraph: BULLET::::- 40th year: Creation of a statue for the goddesses Seshat and Mafdet.

paragraph: BULLET::::- 41st year: Appearance of the king of Lower- and... (rest is missing)

paragraph: The second celebration of the "Hebsed" (a throne jubilee) is affirmed by several stone vessel inscriptions from Den´s necropolis.

paragraph: Section::::Tomb.

paragraph: Den was interred within a tomb ("Tomb T") in the Umm El Qa'ab area of Abydos, which is associated with other First Dynasty kings. Tomb T is among the largest and most finely-built of the tombs in this area, and is the first to feature a staircase and a floor made of granite.

paragraph: His was the first tomb to have a flight of stairs leading to it, those of earlier kings being filled directly above from their roofs. It is possible the tomb was used as a storehouse for surplus produce during the king's lifetime, while also making it easier to add grave goods for later use in the afterlife by Den.

paragraph: Tomb T is also the first tomb to include architectural elements made of stone rather than mud-brick. In the original layout for the tomb, a wooden door was located about halfway up the staircase, and a portcullis placed in front of the burial chamber, designed to keep out tomb robbers. The floor of the tomb was paved in red and black granite from Aswan, the first architectural use of such hard stone on a large scale.

paragraph: Twenty labels made of ivory and ebony were found in his tomb, 18 by Flinders Petrie in the spoil heaps left by the less thorough Émile Amélineau Among these labels are the earliest known depictions of a pharaoh wearing the double-crown of Egypt (see above), as well as running between ritual stele as part of the Sed festival. Also found are seal impressions that provide the earliest confirmed king list.

paragraph: Tomb T is surrounded by the burial sites of 136 men and women who were buried at the same time as the king. Thought to be the king's retainers, an examination of some of the skeletons suggests they were strangled, making this an example of human sacrifice which is considered to be common with the pharaohs of the First Dynasty. This practice seems to have ceased by the end of the dynasty, with ushabtis taking the place of the bodies of actual people to aid the pharaohs with the work expected of them in the afterlife.

paragraph: Section::::External links.

paragraph: BULLET::::- Francesco Raffaele: Horus Den - Khasty (or Zemty)

description: Horus name of an early Egyptian king

wikidata_label: Den

wikipedia_title: Den (pharaoh)


text: Motown

text: Four Tops

text: tenor

text: Ronnie McNeir

text: Detroit, Michigan

text: Ethiopian

text: Bangladesh

text: Pershing High School

text: Levi Stubbs

text: Lucky Millinder

text: Lawrence Payton

text: Renaldo "Obie" Benson

text: it girl

text: Chess Records

text: Ames Brothers

text: Maurice King

text: Four Tops

text: Palmer Park

text: Mary Wilson

text: Supremes

text: Abdul 'Duke' Fakir Facebook page

categories: Four Tops members,1935 births,American male singers,American tenors,American people of Bangladeshi descent,American rhythm and blues singers,American Muslims,American soul singers,American people of Ethiopian descent,Living people

paragraph: Abdul "Duke" Fakir

paragraph: Abdul "Duke" Fakir (born December 26, 1935) is an American singer. He is a founding member of the Motown act the Four Tops, from 1953 to the present day. A first tenor, Fakir is the group's lone surviving original member, performing today with Ronnie McNeir, Lawrence "Roquel" Payton Jr. (son of original member Lawrence Payton), and Harold Bonhart.

paragraph: Section::::Biography.

paragraph: Fakir was born in 1935 in Detroit, Michigan. He is of Ethiopian and Bangladeshi ancestry.

paragraph: Fakir attended the Motor City's Pershing High School, where he played basketball, football, and ran track.

paragraph: He first met fellow member Levi Stubbs through neighborhood football games, even though he was not aware Stubbs was a singer. Later, attending a variety show featuring the Lucky Millinder band, the band announced a talented young singer who Fakir recognized as the boy he played football with. They became closer friends and Stubbs even traveled with Fakir to his sporting events, where they enjoyed singing and engaging teammates in sing-a-longs.

paragraph: With their shared love of singing, they tried a few other singers then decided to ask Lawrence Payton and Renaldo "Obie" Benson. They invited Payton and Benson to join them at a party hosted by the Shahrazads, a local "it girl" club. When invited by the girls to sing, they decided Stubbs would take the lead and they would back him up. The group and party-goers enjoyed their sound so much, that they decided to begin rehearsing together.

paragraph: They originally gave themselves the name "The Four Aims", to describe their goals of achieving something great. But at their first recording session with Chess Records in Chicago, they were reminded that the singing quartet, the Ames Brothers, was a very popular group, and it was suggested that they change their name. After some discussion, their musical director Maurice King suggested the name the Four Tops, to go along with their original goal of shooting for the stars and reaching the top. They became a popular local performing group but recording success eluded them until they signed with the newly established Tamla Motown Records in 1963. They soon became one of the biggest recording groups of the sixties, with 14 charted hits through till the early eighties. They are listed in Billboard Magazines "Top 100 Artists Of All Time".

paragraph: Fakir was a guest on the "Not My Job" segment of the NPR radio show "Wait Wait…Don’t Tell Me" taped at the Fox Theater in Detroit, Michigan on Thursday, January 19, 2012 and broadcast on January 21, 2012.

paragraph: Section::::Awards and achievements.

paragraph: As a member of the Four Tops Fakir was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1990, received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1997, was inducted into the Vocal Group Hall of Fame 1999, the Grammy Hall of Fame in 1998, received the Grammy Life Achievement Award in 2009, and was included in the Billboard Magazine Top 100 Recording Artists of All Time.

paragraph: Section::::Personal life.

paragraph: Fakir lives in the Palmer Park section of Detroit with his wife of 42 years. He has four children, seven grandchildren, and one great-grandchild.

paragraph: Fakir attributes his upbringing in Detroit as a strong influence in his choice to pursue his music career. Detroit is "full of churches. It's one of those cities in which gospel music has always been prevalent, jazz music had always been prevalent. Back in the day this was a jazz town... And when I was born we went to church, just like a couple of the other guys, so we sang all our lives pretty much... my mother worked at church and my cousins and I, we all went to choir, we grew up there."

paragraph: Both Benson and Fakir received scholarships to attend the same college and were preparing to enter. However, the group received their first professional singing engagement during that summer in 1954 at Eddie's Lounge in Flint, MI, took a gamble, and decided to pursue their music career instead.

paragraph: Fakir has been close friends with fellow Motown artist Mary Wilson of the Supremes for over 50 years. The two were romantically linked and temporarily engaged in 1964; however, their music careers were still developing and they decided it would be best to call it off. They appeared on Chicago's You and Me This Morning in 2013 to promote the Mary Wilson Holiday Spectacular With Special Guests The Four Tops At the show they performed "Baby, It's Cold Outside" together.

paragraph: Section::::External links.

paragraph: BULLET::::- Abdul 'Duke' Fakir interview by Pete Lewis, 'Blues & Soul' February 2010

paragraph: BULLET::::- Abdul 'Duke' Fakir Facebook page

description: American singer

wikidata_label: Abdul "Duke" Fakir

wikipedia_title: Abdul "Duke" Fakir


text:
ancient Egypt
pharaoh
3rd dynasty
Old Kingdom
tradition
birth name
Hellenized
Manetho
Djoser
step pyramid
Saqqara
Wadi Maghareh
Sinai Peninsula
Turin Canon
Palermo Stone
5th dynasty
Toby Wilkinson
register
Wadi Maghareh
Sinai peninsula
Hedjet
Deshret
copper
turquoise
3rd Dynasty
Djoser
Sanakht
Wadi Maghareh
Elephantine
Djeseretnebti
Saqqara King List
Zakaria Goneim
step pyramid
ft
cubits
cubits
limestone
mastaba
sarcophagus
alabaster
mortar
gold
in
Cairo Museum
Jean-Philippe Lauer
serdab
List of Egyptian pyramids
List of megalithic sites

paragraph: Sekhemkhet

paragraph: Sekhemkhet (also read as Sechemchet) was an ancient Egyptian king (pharaoh) of the 3rd dynasty during the Old Kingdom. His reign is thought to have been from about 2648 BC until 2640 BC. He is also known under his later traditioned birth name Djoser-tety and under his Hellenized name Tyreis (by Manetho; derived from "Teti" in the Abydos king list). He was probably the brother or eldest son of king Djoser. Little is known about this king, since he ruled for only a few years. However, he erected a step pyramid at Saqqara and left behind a well known rock inscription at Wadi Maghareh (Sinai Peninsula).

paragraph: Section::::Reign.

paragraph: The duration of Sekhemkhet's reign is believed to have been 6 to 7 years. The royal Turin Canon attributes 6 years of reign to Sekhemkhet, a figure also proposed by Myriam Wissa based on the unfinished state of Sekhemkhet's pyramid. Using his reconstruction of the Palermo Stone (5th dynasty), Toby Wilkinson assigns 7 years to this king. This figure is based on the number of year registers preserved in "Cairo Fragment I", register V. Wilkinson states that ""this figure is fairly certain, since the [king's] titulary begins immediately after the dividing line marking the change of reign".". Similarly, the Greek historian Manetho lists Sekhemkhet under the name of Tyreis and indicates that he reigned for 7 years. Nabil Swelim, by contrast, proposed a reign of 19 years, because he believed that Sekhemkhet might be the "Tosertasis" mentioned by Manetho. However, such a long reign is at odds with the unfinished state of the buried pyramid and this view is generally rejected by Egyptologists.

paragraph: Little is known about activities conducted during Sekhemkhet's reign. The only preserved documents showing Sekhemkhet are two rock inscriptions at Wadi Maghareh in the Sinai peninsula. The first one shows Sekhemkhet twice: once wearing the Hedjet crown, another wearing the Deshret crown. The second inscription depicts a scene known as "smiting the enemy": Sekhemkhet has grabbed a foe by its hair and raises his arm in an attempt to club the enemy to death with a ceremonial sceptre. The presence of these reliefs at Wadi Maghareh suggests that local mines of copper and turquoise were exploited during Sekhemkhet's reign. These mines were apparently active throughout the early 3rd Dynasty since reliefs of Djoser and Sanakht were also discovered in the Wadi Maghareh.

paragraph: Several clay seals presenting an unusual nebty name together with Sekhemkhet's Horus name were found at the eastern excavation site on the island of Elephantine. The Egyptologist Jean Pierre Pätznik reads the nebty name as "Ren nebty" meaning "The two ladies are pleased with his name". It is not entirely clear whether this is indeed Sekhemkhet's nebty name or that of a yet unknown queen.

paragraph: Section::::Family.

paragraph: Sekhemkhet's wife may have been Djeseretnebti, but this name appears without any queen's title, and Egyptologists dispute the true meaning and reading of this name. The name has alternatively been read as "Djeser-Ti" and identified with the cartouche-name "Djeser-Teti" presented in the Saqqara King List as the direct successor of Djoser. Sekhemkhet surely had sons and daughters, but up to this date no personal name was found.

paragraph: Section::::Tomb.

paragraph: Sekhemkhet's pyramid is sometimes referred to as the "Buried pyramid" and was first excavated in 1952 by Egyptian archaeologist Zakaria Goneim. A sealed sarcophagus was discovered beneath the pyramid, but when opened was found to be empty.

paragraph: Section::::Tomb.:The pyramid.

paragraph: Sekhemkhet's pyramid was planned as a step pyramid from the first. Its base was a square measuring 378 ft x 378 ft (220 x 220 cubits). If the pyramid had been completed, it would have had six or seven steps and a final height of 240.5 ft (140 cubits). These proportions would have given the pyramid an angle of elevation of 51˚50', identical to the pyramid at Meidum and the Great Pyramid at Giza. Like Djoser's pyramid, Sekhemkhet's was built of limestone blocks. The monument was not finished, possibly because of the pharaoh's sudden death. Only the first step of the pyramid was completed, leaving a monument in the shape of a large square mastaba.

paragraph: Section::::Tomb.:Subterranean structure.

paragraph: The entrance to Sekhemkhet's burial lies on the northern side of the pyramid. An open passage leads down for 200 ft. Halfway down the track a vertical shaft meets the passage from above. It opens on the surface and its entrance would lie at the second step of the pyramid, if the monument had been completed.

paragraph: At the meeting spot of the passage and shaft another passageway leads down to a subterranean, u-shaped gallery containing at least 120 magazines. The whole gallery complex has the appearance of a giant comb. Shortly before the burial chamber is reached the main passage splits into two further magazine galleries, surrounding the burial chamber like a "u" (similar to the big northern gallery), but they were never finished.

paragraph: The burial chamber has a base measurement of 29 ft x 17 ft and a height of 15 ft. It was also left unfinished, but surprisingly a nearly completely arranged burial was found. The sarcophagus in the midst of the chamber is made of polished alabaster and shows an unusual feature: its opening lies on the front side and is sealed by a sliding door, which was still plastered with mortar when the sarcophagus was found. The sarcophagus was empty, however and it remains unclear whether the site was ransacked after burial or whether King Sekhemkhet was buried elsewhere.

paragraph: A shell shaped container made of gold was found by an Egyptian Antiquities Service excavation team in 1950. The object has a length of 1.4 in and is currently on display in "Room 4" of the Cairo Museum.

paragraph: Section::::Tomb.:Necropolis complex.

paragraph: Because the necropolis of Sekhemkhet was never finished, it is hard to say which planned cultic building had already existed. The pyramid courtyard was surrounded by a niched enclosure wall facing north-west. It was 1.850 ft long, 607 ft wide and 33 ft high. The only archaeologically preserved cultic building is the Southern Tomb, its base measurement is estimated to be 105 ft x 52 ft. The subterranean structure included a tight corridor, beginning on the western side of the tomb and ending in a double chamber. In this chamber in 1963 Jean-Philippe Lauer excavated the burial of a two-year-old toddler. The identity of this child remains a mystery. The only fact known for certain about it is that it cannot be king Sekhemkhet himself, since the king was always depicted as a young man.

paragraph: No further cultic buildings were detected, but Egyptologists and archaeologists are convinced that once upon a time a mortuary temple and a serdab existed but were destroyed due to the looting of stone from his cult buildings in antiquity.

paragraph: Section::::See also.

paragraph: BULLET::::- List of Egyptian pyramids

paragraph: BULLET::::- List of megalithic sites

paragraph: Section::::Bibliography.

paragraph: BULLET::::- Hawass, Zahi. "Excavating the Old Kingdom". in "Egyptian Art in the Age of the Pyramids", The Metropolitan Museum of Art. 1999.

paragraph: BULLET::::- Leclant, Jean. "A Brief History of the Old Kingdom". in "Egyptian Art in the Age of the Pyramids", The Metropolitan Museum of Art. 1999.

paragraph: BULLET::::- Wilkinson, Toby. Royal Annals of Ancient Egypt: The Palermo Stone and Its Associated Fragments, Kegan Paul International, 2000.

description: Egyptian pharaoh

wikidata_label: Sekhemkhet

wikipedia_title: Sekhemkhet


text:
pharaoh
Fourth Dynasty of Egypt
Old Kingdom
Pyramid of Menkaure
mastaba
Saqqara
Mastabat al-Fir’aun
George Andrew Reisner
Khamerernebty II
Rekhetre
Khentkaus I
Bunefer
Userkaf
pharaoh
Fourth Dynasty of Egypt
Thamphthis
Khafra
mastaba
Giza
Sahure
Userkaf
Bunefer
Djedefra
Sahure
false door
Manetho
Palermo stone
Menkaure
determinative
mastaba
Saqqara
Mastabat al-Fir’aun
Richard Lepsius
Auguste Mariette
Gustave Jéquier
5th dynasty
Unas
Middle Kingdom
pyramid
Giza
Sneferu
Bent Pyramid
Red Pyramid
father
Userkaf
Palermo stone
List of Egyptian pyramids
List of megalithic sites
Shepseskaf
Urkunden des Alten Reichs
Kurt Heinrich Sethe

categories: 3rd-millennium BC births,26th-century BC Pharaohs,26th-century BC deaths,Pharaohs of the Fourth Dynasty of Egypt

paragraph: Shepseskaf

paragraph: Shepseskaf was the sixth and last pharaoh of the Fourth Dynasty of Egypt during the Old Kingdom. He reigned 6 to 8 years starting circa 2510 BC. The only activities firmly datable to his reign are the completion of the temple complex of the Pyramid of Menkaure and the construction of its own mastaba tomb at South Saqqara, the Mastabat al-Fir’aun, "stone bench of the pharaoh".

paragraph: Section::::Family.

paragraph: Shepseskaf's family is uncertain. Egyptologist George Andrew Reisner proposed that Shepseskaf was Menkaure's son based on a decree mentioning that Shepseskaf completed Menkaure's mortuary temple. This however cannot be considered a solid proof of filiation since the decree does not describe the relationship between these two kings. Furthermore, the completion of the tomb of a deceased pharaoh by his successor does not necessarily depend on a direct father/son relation between the two.

paragraph: The mother, wives and children of Shepseskaf are unknown. If Menkaure was indeed his father, his mother could have been one of Menkaure's royal wives Khamerernebty II or Rekhetre. It's possible that Shepseskaf's wife was Khentkaus I, but this is far from certain. Queen Bunefer has been suggested as a possible wife of Shepseskaf based on the titles as a priestess of Shepseskhaf. She may however have been a daughter who served as a priestess in the cult for her father. Finally, Khamaat, the wife of a nobleman named Ptahshepses and daughter of a king, may be a daughter of Shepseskaf or Userkaf.

paragraph: Section::::Reign.

paragraph: He was likely the last pharaoh of the Fourth Dynasty of Egypt if he was not succeeded by a certain unknown ruler named Thamphthis as recorded in some Egyptian literature and, indirectly, by the Turin Canon. No ruler named Thamphthis is recorded in contemporary documents such as royal monuments or private tombs in the Old Kingdom cemeteries of Giza and Saqqara which date to this period. The long-lived palace courtier Netry-nesut-pu explicitly lists this sequence of Old Kingdom kings he served under in his tomb: Radjedef → Khafre → Menkaure → Shepseskaf, and the first three 5th dynasty kings namely Userkaf, Sahure and Neferirkare. Finally, "No names of estates of the period [which are] compounded with royal names make mention of any other kings than these, nor do the names of...royal grandchildren, who often bore the name of a royal ancestor as a component of their own [name]."

paragraph: Section::::Reign.:Attestation.

paragraph: Shepseskaf's reign is attested through the funerary inscriptions made by the officials who served him. These are mostly found in Gizah and Saqqara. The fact that many of these inscriptions only mention Shepseskaf without further details hints at the short duration of his reign. The court officials who mentioned Shepseskaf are:

paragraph: BULLET::::- "Sekhemkare", a son of Khafra, priest of the royal funerary cults. His mastaba, located in Giza (G8154) yielded a list of the kings under whom he served, from Khafra down to Sahure through Shepseskaf. This list also gives Userkaf as the immediate successor to Shepseskaf.

paragraph: BULLET::::- "Bunefer", royal princess and priestess of Shepseskaf funerary cult, buried in Gizah (G8408). She is believed to be either one of Shepseskaf's wife, daughter or one of his sisters and to have participated in his burial ceremonies.

paragraph: BULLET::::- "Nisutpunetjer", who was a priest of the royal funerary cults. His mastaba in Giza (G8740) yielded a list of pharaohs under whom he served, from Djedefra down to Sahure and mentions Shepseskaf followed by Userkaf.

paragraph: BULLET::::- "Ptahshepses I", great priest of Ptah. An inscription on his false door stele details his biography. He relates that he was educated at court with Shepseskaf who later promoted him to the office of first priest of Ptah and gave him his daughter "Khamaat" for wedding.

paragraph: BULLET::::- "Kaunisut", a palace official, cites Shepseskaf in his mastaba at Gizah (G8960).

paragraph: Other than these scanty references to Shepseskaf's reign, the only stele known today that is firmly datable to that period was uncovered in Menkaure's pyramid complex. It mentions a royal decree by Shepseskaf where he makes donations in favor of his father's mortuary cult.

paragraph: Section::::Reign.:Reign length.

paragraph: The Turin Canon ascribes Shepseskaf a rule of four years and his anonymous 4th dynasty successor—presumably a reference to Djedefptah—a reign of two years. In contrast, Manetho's King List explicitly gives Shepseskaf a reign of seven years which may be a combination of the 4 + 2 (= 6) full year figures noted in the Turin Kinglist for the last two kings of the Fourth Dynasty plus a significant monthly fraction. Manetho's King List does, however, also note the existence of the unknown and possibly fictitious ruler Djedefptah—called Thampthis in his records—who is ascribed a reign of nine years.

paragraph: The Palermo stone describes the first year of Shepseskaf's reign. Shepseskaf is confirmed as the immediate successor of Menkaure and was apparently crowned on the eleventh day of the fourth month. Analyses of the space available between the beginning of his reign and that of his successor indicate that Shepseskaf did not reign more than seven years. Finally, the Palermo stone indicates that the emplacement and name of Shepseskaf's tomb were chosen during his first year on the throne. The name of the tomb is written with the determinative of a pyramid.

paragraph: Section::::Burial.

paragraph: Shepseskaf's tomb is a great mastaba at Saqqara, which was originally called "Shepseskaf is purified" and is now known as Mastabat al-Fir’aun. This mastaba was first recognized as such by Richard Lepsius in the mid 19th century and was first excavated in 1858 by Auguste Mariette. However it was not before the years 1924-1925 that the mastaba was thoroughly explored by Gustave Jéquier. The mastaba was initially thought to be the tomb of the 5th dynasty king Unas, but Jéquier discovered evidence that it belonged to Shepseskaf. In particular, he uncovered a Middle Kingdom stele indicating that Shepseskaf mortuary cult was still active onsite during this time period.

paragraph: In building himself a mastaba, Shepseskaf broke with the Fourth Dynasty tradition of constructing large pyramids. Indeed, his predecessors built 2 pyramids of Giza and one in Abu-Rawash; while Sneferu, the founder of the fourth dynasty, alone constructed three pyramids in his reign most notably, the Bent Pyramid and the Red Pyramid. It is not clear why Shepseskaf did not start a pyramid for himself and several theories have been put forth to explain this choice:

paragraph: BULLET::::- Shepseskaf may have designed a smaller tomb for himself because he was faced with the arduous task of completing his father's pyramid at Giza while simultaneously building his own tomb, at a time where Egypt was less prosperous than during the early 4th dynasty.

paragraph: BULLET::::- Shepseskaf may have chosen to build a mastaba at Saqqara, rather than a pyramid at Gizah, to undermine the growing influence of the priesthood of Re. This hypothesis could also explain the absence of any reference to Re in his name as well as that of his probable immediate successor Userkaf.

paragraph: BULLET::::- Shepseskaf chose to build a mastaba following the archaic tradition of the first, second and early third dynasties.

paragraph: BULLET::::- Shepseskaf initially planned to build himself a pyramid, as hinted by the Palermo stone, but died shortly after work had started. Consequently, his successor or his queen may have finished the tomb as a mastaba rather than pyramid.

paragraph: Section::::See also.

paragraph: BULLET::::- List of Egyptian pyramids

paragraph: BULLET::::- List of megalithic sites

paragraph: Section::::External links.

paragraph: BULLET::::- Shepseskaf

paragraph: BULLET::::- Urkunden des Alten Reichs by Kurt Heinrich Sethe

description: Egyptian pharaoh

wikidata_label: Shepseskaf

wikipedia_title: Shepseskaf


text: Ansbach

text: Anna of Saxony

text: Johann Cicero

text: Friedrich

text: Brandenburg

text: Ansbach

text: Bayreuth

text: Frederick I of Ansbach

categories: 1495 deaths,1468 births,Margraves of Bayreuth

paragraph: Siegmund, Margrave of Bayreuth

paragraph: Siegmund of Brandenburg-Bayreuth (27 September 1468, in Ansbach – 26 February 1495, in Ansbach) was the sixth, but third surviving, son of Albrecht III, Margrave of Brandenburg, Ansbach and Bayreuth. His mother was his father's second wife, Anna of Saxony. On the death of his father on 11 March 1486, his elder brothers Johann Cicero and Friedrich succeeded to Brandenburg and Ansbach respectively, and Siegmund succeeded to Bayreuth. He never married, and at his death Bayreuth passed to his elder brother Frederick I of Ansbach.

description: Margrave of Brandenburg-Bayreuth

wikidata_label: Siegmund, Margrave of Bayreuth

wikipedia_title: Siegmund, Margrave of Bayreuth


text:
Ancient Greek
Egyptian
pharaoh
Fifth Dynasty
25th century BC
Fourth Dynasty
Khentkaus I
Neferhetepes
Sahure
sun temple
Nekhenre
Abusir
Abu Gurab
pyramid
that of Djoser
Montu
El-Tod
Canaan
Eastern Desert
Aegean
Miroslav Verner
Menkaure
Fourth Dynasty
Shepseskaf
Nicolas Grimal
Djedefre
Hetepheres II
Papyrus Westcar
Aidan Dodson
Sahure
Mark Lehner
Khentkaus I
Selim Hassan
mastaba
Old Kingdom royal annals
cattle count
biennial
Turin Royal Canon
Ramesses II
3rd century BC
Ptolemy II
Manetho
Sextus Julius Africanus
Eusebius
George Syncellus
Hellenized
Abydos king list
Saqqara Tablet
Seti I
Greek rulers
Ptolemaic Egypt
Khufu
Seventeenth
Twelfth Dynasty
Egyptian pantheon
state-god
Flinders Petrie
Egyptian hieroglyphs
Elephantine
Upper Egypt
Montu at Tod
Middle Kingdom
New Kingdom
Heliopolis
Buto
Hathor
Nekhbet
Wadjet
Min
mastaba
buried at Tihna al-Jabal
vizier
Seshathotep Heti
Giza necropolis
Aegean
Kythira
Anatolia
Menkauhor Kaiu
Djedkare Isesi
Nubia
Eastern Desert
Canaan
Hartwig Altenmüller
Egyptian Museum
greywacke
Old Kingdom
Deshret
Lower Egypt
Hedjet
Cleveland Museum of Art
Saqqarah
Cecil Mallaby Firth
nemes
Great Sphinx of Giza
temple to the sun god Ra
Abusir
Shepseskare
Nekhen
Karl Richard Lepsius
list of pyramids
Ludwig Borchardt
Werner Kaiser
Peter Kaplony
Wolfgang Helck
Herbert Ricke
Abusir Papyri
Saqqara
Djoser
pyramid complex
Memphis
that of
Unas
Sixth
Rainer Stadelmann
Herbert Ricke
Richard H. Wilkinson
Cecil Mallaby Firth
Jean-Philippe Lauer
Tura limestone
pyramid
Amenemhat I
Ramesside period
Ramesses II
Khaemwaset
Nobel Prize for Literature
Naguib Mahfouz
Raymond Stock
Sesame Street
Don't Eat the Pictures
Big Bird
Snuffy
Metropolitan Museum of Art

paragraph: Userkaf

paragraph: Userkaf (known in Ancient Greek as Usercherês, Ούσερχέρης) was an Egyptian pharaoh, founder of the Fifth Dynasty, who reigned for seven to eight years in the early 25th century BC. He belonged, in all probability, to a branch of the Fourth Dynasty royal family, although his parentage remains uncertain and the identity of his queen is in doubt. Userkaf may have been the son of Khentkaus I marrying Neferhetepes. He had at least one daughter and very probably a son who succeeded him as pharaoh Sahure.

paragraph: His reign heralded the ascendancy of the cult of Ra, who effectively became Egypt's state-god during the Fifth Dynasty. Userkaf may have been a high-priest of Ra prior to ascending the throne, and built a sun temple, known as the "Nekhenre", between Abusir and Abu Gurab. In doing so he instituted a tradition followed by his successors over a period of 80 years. The "Nekhenre" essentially functioned as a mortuary temple for the setting sun. Rites performed in the temple were primarily concerned with both Ra's creator function and as his role as father of the king. Taken with the reduction in the size of the royal mortuary complex, this suggests a more concrete separation between the sun god and the king than in the preceding dynasties. After Userkaf's death, his temple was the subject of four building phases, during which it acquired a large obelisk.

paragraph: Userkaf built a pyramid in Saqqara close to that of Djoser, a location that forced architects to put the associated mortuary temple in an unusual position, to the south of the pyramid. The latter was much smaller than those built during the Fourth Dynasty but the mortuary complex was lavishly and extensively decorated with fine painted reliefs. In addition to his own pyramid and temple, Userkaf built a smaller pyramid close to his for one of his queens, likely Neferhetepes. Although Userkaf was the object of a funerary cult after his death like the other Fifth Dynasty kings, his was relatively unimportant, and was abandoned after the end of the dynasty. Little of his activities are known beyond the construction of his pyramid and sun temple. The Old Kingdom royal annals record offerings of beer, bread and lands to various gods, some of which may correspond to building projects on Userkaf's behalf, including the temple of Montu in El-Tod where he is the earliest attested pharaoh. Beyond the borders of Egypt, a military expedition to Canaan or the Eastern Desert may have taken place, and trade contacts with the Aegean seem to have existed at the time.

paragraph: Section::::Family.

paragraph: Section::::Family.:Parents and consort.

paragraph: The identity of Userkaf's parents is not known for certain, but he undoubtedly had family connections with the rulers of the preceding Fourth Dynasty. The Egyptologist Miroslav Verner proposes that he was a son of Menkaure by one of his secondary queens and was possibly a full brother to his predecessor and last king of the Fourth Dynasty, Shepseskaf.

paragraph: Alternatively, Nicolas Grimal, Peter Clayton and Michael Rice propose that Userkaf was the son of a Neferhetepes, whom Grimal, Magi and Rice see as a daughter of Djedefre and Hetepheres II. The identity of Neferhetepes's husband in this hypothesis is unknown, with Grimal conjecturing that he may have been the "priest of Ra, lord of Sakhebu", mentioned in Papyrus Westcar. Aidan Dodson and Dyan Hilton propose that Neferhetepes was buried in the pyramid next to that of Userkaf, which is believed to have belonged to a woman of the same name.

paragraph: The location of the pyramid attributed to Neferhetepes, however, strongly suggests that she may instead have been Userkaf's wife. If so she should be identified with the Neferhetepes who is the mother of Userkaf's successor and likely son, Sahure. A relief from Sahure's causeway depicts this king and his queen together with the king's mother, identified as a Neferhetepes, which very likely makes her Userkaf's wife. Like Grimal, Jaromír Malek sees her as a daughter of Djedefre and Hetepheres II. Following this hypothesis, Mark Lehner also suggests that Userkaf's mother may have been Khentkaus I.

paragraph: Dodson and Hilton argue that Neferhetepes is not given the title of king's wife in later documents pertaining to her mortuary cult, although they note that this absence is not conclusive. They propose that Userkaf's queen may have been Khentkaus I, a hypothesis shared by Selim Hassan. Clayton and Rosalie and Anthony David concur, further positing that Khentkaus I was Menkaure's daughter. Bernhard Grdseloff argues that, as a descendant of Djedefre marrying a woman from the main royal line, Userkaf could have unified rival factions within the royal family and ended possible dynastic struggles. Alternatively, Userkaf could have been the high priest of Ra before ascending the throne, giving him sufficient influence to marry Shepseskaf's widow in the person of Khentkaus I.

paragraph: Section::::Family.:Children.

paragraph: Many Egyptologists, including Verner, Zemina, David and Baker, believe that Sahure was Userkaf's son rather than his brother as suggested by the Westcar papyrus. The main evidence is a relief showing Sahure and his mother Neferhetepes, this being also the name of the queen who owned the pyramid next Userkaf's.

paragraph: An additional argument supporting the filiation of Sahure is the location of his pyramid in close proximity to Userkaf's sun temple. No other child of Userkaf has been identified except a daughter named Khamaat, mentioned in inscriptions uncovered in the mastaba of Ptahshepses.

paragraph: Section::::Reign.

paragraph: Section::::Reign.:Duration.

paragraph: The exact duration of Userkaf's reign is not known. Given the historical and archeological evidence, the consensus among Egyptologists is that he ruled for seven to eight years at the start of the Egypt's Fifth Dynasty.

paragraph: First, an analysis of the nearly contemporaneous Old Kingdom royal annals shows that Userkaf's reign was recorded on eight compartments corresponding to at least seven full years but not much more. The latest legible year recorded on the annals for Userkaf is that of his third cattle count. The cattle count was an important occurrence that evaluated the amount of taxes to be levied on the population. This event is believed to have been biennial during the Old Kingdom period, meaning that the third cattle count represents his sixth year of reign. The same count is also attested in a mason's inscription found on a stone of Userkaf's sun temple. Second, Userkaf is given a reign of seven years on the third column, row 17 of the Turin Royal Canon, a document copied during the reign of Ramesses II from earlier sources.

paragraph: The only historical source favouring a longer reign is the "Aegyptiaca" (Αἰγυπτιακά), a history of Egypt written in the 3rd century BC, during the reign of Ptolemy II (283–246 BC) by Manetho. No copies of the Aegyptiaca have survived and it is now known only through later writings by Sextus Julius Africanus and Eusebius. According to the Byzantine scholar George Syncellus, Africanus wrote that the "Aegyptiaca" mentioned the succession "Usercherês → Sephrês → Nefercherês" at the start of the Fifth Dynasty. Usercherês, Sephrês, and Nefercherês are believed to be the Hellenized forms for Userkaf, Sahure and Neferirkare, respectively. In particular, Manetho's reconstruction of the early Fifth Dynasty is in agreement with those given on the Abydos king list and the Saqqara Tablet, two lists of kings written during the reigns of Seti I and Ramesses II, respectively. In contrast with the Turin canon, Africanus's report of the "Aegyptiaca" estimates that Userkaf reigned for 28 years, much longer than the modern consensus.

paragraph: Section::::Reign.:Founder of the Fifth Dynasty.

paragraph: The division of ancient Egyptian kings into dynasties is an invention of Manetho's "Aegyptiaca", intended to adhere more closely to the expectations of Manetho's patrons, the Greek rulers of Ptolemaic Egypt.

paragraph: A distinction between the Fourth and Fifth dynasties may nonetheless have been recognised by the Ancient Egyptians, as recorded by a much older tradition found in the tale of the papyrus Westcar. In this story, king Khufu of the Fourth Dynasty is foretold the demise of his line and the rise of a new dynasty through the accession of three brothers, sons of Ra, to the throne of Egypt. This tale dates to the Seventeenth or possibly the Twelfth Dynasty.

paragraph: Beyond such historical evidence, the division between the Fourth and Fifth Dynasties seems to reflect actual changes taking place at the time, in particular in Egyptian religion, and in the king's role. Ra's primacy over the rest of the Egyptian pantheon and the increased royal devotion given to him made Ra a sort of state-god, a novelty in comparison with the Fourth Dynasty, when more emphasis was put on royal burials.

paragraph: Userkaf's position before ascending to the throne is unknown. Grimal states that he could have been a high-priest of Ra in Heliopolis or Sakhebu, a cult-center of Ra mentioned in the papyrus Westcar. The hypothesis of a connection between the origins of the Fifth Dynasty and Sakhebu was first proposed by the Egyptologist Flinders Petrie, who noted that in Egyptian hieroglyphs the name of Sakhebu resembles that of Elephantine, the city that Manetho gives as the cradle of the Fifth Dynasty. According to Petrie, positing that the Papyrus Westcar records a tradition that remembered the origins of the Fifth Dynasty could explain Manetho's records especially given that there is otherwise no particular connection between Elephantine and Fifth Dynasty pharaohs.

paragraph: Section::::Reign.:Activities in Egypt.

paragraph: Beyond the constructions of his mortuary complex and sun temple, little is known of Userkaf. Malek says his short reign may indicate that he was elderly upon becoming pharaoh. Verner sees Userkaf's reign as significant in that it marks the apex of the sun cult, the pharaonic title of "Son of Ra" becoming systematic from his reign onwards.

paragraph: In Upper Egypt, Userkaf either commissioned or enlarged the temple of Montu at Tod, where he is the earliest attested pharaoh. Due to structural alterations, in particular during the early Middle Kingdom, New Kingdom and Ptolemaic periods, little of Userkaf's original temple has survived. It was a small mud-brick chapel including a granite pillar, inscribed with the name of the king.

paragraph: Further domestic activities may be inferred from the annals of the Old Kingdom, written during Neferirkare's or Nyuserre's reign. They record that Userkaf gave endowments for the gods of Heliopolis in the second and sixth years of his reign as well as to the gods of Buto in his sixth year, both of which may have been destined for building projects on Userkaf's behalf. In the same vein, the annals record a donation of land to Horus during Userkaf's sixth year on the throne, this time explicitly mentioning "building [Horus'] temple".

paragraph: Other gods honoured by Userkaf include Ra and Hathor, both of whom received land donations recorded in the annals, as well as Nekhbet, Wadjet, the "gods of the divine palace of Upper Egypt" and the "gods of the estate Djebaty" who received bread, beer and land. Finally, a fragmentary piece on text in the annals suggests that Min might also have benefitted from Userkaf's donations. Further evidence for religious activities taking place at the time is given by a royal decree found in the mastaba of the administration official Nykaankh buried at Tihna al-Jabal in Middle Egypt. By this decree, Userkaf donates and reforms several royal domains for the maintenance of the cult of Hathor and installs Nykaankh as priest of this cult.

paragraph: While Userkaf chose Saqqara to build his pyramid complex, officials at the time, including the vizier Seshathotep Heti, continued to build their tombs in the Giza necropolis.

paragraph: Section::::Reign.:Trade and military activities.

paragraph: Userkaf's reign might have witnessed a revival of trade between Egypt and its Aegean neighbors as shown by a series of reliefs from his mortuary temple representing ships engaged in what may be a naval expedition. Further evidence for such contacts is a stone vessel bearing the name of his sun temple that was uncovered on the Greek island of Kythira. This vase is the earliest evidence of commercial contacts between Egypt and the Aegean world. Finds in Anatolia, dating to the reigns of Menkauhor Kaiu and Djedkare Isesi, demonstrate that these contacts continued throughout the Fifth Dynasty.

paragraph: South of Egypt, Userkaf launched a military expedition into Nubia, while the Old Kingdom annals record that he received tribute from a region that is either the Eastern Desert or Canaan in the form of a workforce of one chieftain and 70 foreigners (likely women), as well as 303 "pacified rebels" destined to work on Userkaf's pyramid. These might have been prisoners from another military expedition to the east of Egypt or rebels exiled from Egypt prior to Userkaf's second year on the throne and now willing to reintegrate into Egyptian society. According to the Egyptologist Hartwig Altenmüller these people might have been punished following dynastic struggles connected with the end of the Fourth Dynasty.

paragraph: Section::::Reign.:Statuary.

paragraph: Several fragmentary statues of Userkaf have been uncovered, including a bust found in his sun temple at Abusir, now in the Egyptian Museum. The head of Userkaf is high and carved from greywacke stone. It is considered particularly important as it is among the very few sculptures in the round from the Old Kingdom that show the monarch wearing the Deshret of Lower Egypt. The head was uncovered in 1957 during the joint excavation expedition of the German and Swiss Institutes of Cairo. Another head which might belong to Userkaf, wearing the Hedjet of Upper Egypt and made of painted limestone, is in the Cleveland Museum of Art.

paragraph: The head of a colossal larger-than-life statue of Userkaf, now in the Egyptian Museum, was found in the temple courtyard of his mortuary complex at Saqqarah by Cecil Mallaby Firth in 1928. This colossal head of pink Aswan granite shows the king wearing the nemes headdress with a cobra on his forehead. It is the largest surviving head dating to the Old Kingdom other than that of the Great Sphinx of Giza and the only colossal royal statue from this period. Many more fragments of statues of the king made of diorite and granite have been found at the same site.

paragraph: Section::::Sun temple.

paragraph: Section::::Sun temple.:Significance.

paragraph: Userkaf is the first pharaoh to build a dedicated temple to the sun god Ra in the Memphite necropolis north of Abusir, on a promontory on the desert edge just south of the modern locality of Abu Gurab. The only possible predecessor for Userkaf's sun temple was the temple associated with the Great Sphinx of Giza, which may have been dedicated to Ra and may thus have served similar purposes. In any case, Userkaf's successors for the next 80 years followed his course of action: sun temples were built by all subsequent Fifth Dynasty pharaohs until Menkauhor Kaiu, with the possible exception of Shepseskare, whose reign might have been too short to build one. Userkaf's choice of Abusir as the site of his sun temple has not been satisfactorily explained, the site being of no particular significance up to that point. Userkaf's choice may have influenced subsequent kings of the Fifth Dynasty who made Abusir the royal necropolis until the reign of Menkauhor Kaiu.

paragraph: For the Egyptologist Hans Goedicke, Userkaf's decision to build a temple for the setting sun separated from his own mortuary complex is a manifestation of and response to social-political tensions, if not turmoil, at the end of the Fourth Dynasty. The construction of the sun temple permitted a distinction between the king's personal afterlife and religious issues pertaining to the setting sun, which had been so closely intertwined in the pyramid complexes of Giza and in the pharaohs of the Fourth Dynasty. Thus, Userkaf's pyramid would be isolated in Saqqara, not even surrounded by a wider cemetery for his contemporaries, while the sun temple would serve the social need for a solar cult, which, while represented by the king, would not be exclusively embodied by him anymore. Malek similarly sees the construction of sun temples as marking a shift from the royal cult, which was so preponderant during the early Fourth Dynasty, to the cult of the sun god Ra. A result of these changes is that the king was now primarily revered as the son of Ra.

paragraph: Section::::Sun temple.:Name.

paragraph: Userkaf's sun temple was called Nekhenre by the Ancient Egyptians, "Nḫn Rˁ.w", which has been variously translated as "The fortress of Ra", "The stronghold of Ra", "The residence of Ra", "Ra's storerooms" and "The birthplace of Ra".

paragraph: According to Coppens, Janák, Lehner, Verner, Vymazalová, Wilkinson and Zemina, "Nḫn" here might actually refer to the town of Nekhen, also known as Hierakonpolis, rather than just mean "fortress". Hierakonpolis was a stronghold and seat of power for the late predynastic kings who unified Egypt. They propose that Userkaf may have chosen this name to emphasise the victorious and unifying nature of the cult of Ra or, at least, to represent some symbolic meaning in relation to kingship. Nekhen was also the name of an institution responsible for providing resources to the living king as well as to his funerary cult after his death. In consequence, the true meaning of "Nekhenre" might be closer to "Ra's Nekhen" or "The Hierakonpolis of Ra".

paragraph: Section::::Sun temple.:Function.

paragraph: The sun temple of Userkaf first appears as pyramid XVII in Karl Richard Lepsius' pioneering list of pyramids in the mid-19th century. Its true nature was recognised by Ludwig Borchardt in the early 20th century but it was only thoroughly excavated from 1954 until 1957 by a team including Hanns Stock, Werner Kaiser, Peter Kaplony, Wolfgang Helck, and Herbert Ricke. According to the royal annals, the construction of the temple started in Userkaf's fifth year on the throne and, on that occasion, he donated 24 royal domains for the maintenance of the temple.

paragraph: Userkaf's sun temple covered an area of and was oriented to the west. It served primarily as a place of worship for the mortuary cult of Ra and was supposed to relate it to the royal funerary cult. Both complexes were structurally very similar, as they included a valley temple close to the Nile and a causeway leading up to the high temple on the desert plateau. In other ways their architectures differed. For example, the valley temple of the sun temple complex is not oriented to any cardinal point, rather pointing vaguely to Heliopolis, and the causeway is not aligned with the axis of the high temple. The Abusir Papyri, a collection of administrative documents from later in the Fifth Dynasty, indicates that the cultic activities taking place in the sun and mortuary temples were related; for instance, offerings for both cults were dispatched from the sun temple. In fact, sun temples built during this period were meant to play for Ra the same role that the pyramid played for the king. They were funerary temples for the sun god, where his renewal and rejuvenation, necessary to maintain the order of the world, could take place. Rites performed in the temple were thus primarily concerned with Ra's creator function as well as his role as father of the king. During his lifetime, the king would appoint his closest officials to the running of the temple, allowing them to benefit from the temple's income and thus ensuring their loyalty. After the pharaoh's death, the sun temple's income would be associated with the pyramid complex, supporting the royal funerary cult.

paragraph: Construction works on the Nekhenre did not stop with Userkaf's death but continued in at least four building phases, the first of which may have taken place under Sahure, and then under his successors Neferirkare Kakai and Nyuserre Ini. By the end of Userkaf's rule, the sun temple did not yet house the large granite obelisk on a pedestal that it would subsequently acquire. Instead its main temple seems to have comprised a rectangular enclosure wall with a high mast set on a mound in its center, possibly as a perch for the sun god's falcon. To the east of this mound was a mudbrick altar with statue shrines on both sides of it. According to the royal annals, from his sixth year on the throne, Userkaf commanded that two oxen and two geese were to be sacrificed daily in the Nekhenre. These animals seem to have been butchered in or around the high temple, the causeway being wide enough to lead live oxen up it.

paragraph: Section::::Pyramid complex.

paragraph: Section::::Pyramid complex.:Pyramid of Userkaf.:Location.

paragraph: Unlike all pharaohs of the Fourth Dynasty, Userkaf built a modest pyramid at North Saqqara, at the north-eastern edge of the wall surrounding Djoser's pyramid complex. This decision, probably political, may be connected to the return to the city of Memphis as center of government, of which Saqqara to the west is the necropolis, as well as a desire to rule according to principles and methods closer to Djoser's. In particular, like Djoser's and unlike the pyramid complexes of Giza, Userkaf's mortuary complex is not surrounded by a necropolis for his followers. For Goedicke, the wider religious role played by Fourth Dynasty pyramids was now to be played by the sun temple, while the king's mortuary complex was to serve only the king's personal funerary needs. Hence, Userkaf's choice of Saqqara is a manifestation of a return to a "harmonious and altruistic" notion of kingship which Djoser seemed to have symbolized, against that of a Khufu who had almost personally embodied the sun-god.

paragraph: Section::::Pyramid complex.:Pyramid of Userkaf.:Pyramid architecture.

paragraph: Userkaf's pyramid complex was called "Wab-Isut Userkaf", meaning "Pure are the places of Userkaf".

paragraph: The pyramid originally reached a height of for a base-side of . By volume, this made it the second smallest king's pyramid finished during the Fifth Dynasty after that of the final ruler, Unas. The pyramid was built following techniques established during the Fourth Dynasty, with a core made of stones rather than employing rubble as in subsequent pyramids of the Fifth and Sixth Dynasties. The core was so poorly laid out, however, that once the pyramid's outer casing of fine limestone had been robbed, it crumbled into a heap of rubble. The burial chamber was lined with large limestone blocks, its roof made of pented limestone beams.

paragraph: Section::::Pyramid complex.:Mortuary temple.

paragraph: The pyramid's funerary complex is peculiar in that Userkaf's mortuary temple is located on the southern side rather than the usual eastern one. This was almost certainly due to the presence of a large moat surrounding Djoser's pyramid and running to the east as proposed by Verner, or to the general topography of Saqqara and the presence of older tombs in the vicinity as expounded by Edwards and Lauer.

paragraph: In any case, this means that Userkaf chose to be buried in close proximity to Djoser even though this implied that he could not use the normal layout for his temple. Rainer Stadelmann believes that the reason for the choices of location and layout were practical and due the presence of the necropolis's administrative center on the north-east corner of Djoser's complex. Verner rather sees a desire on Userkaf's behalf to benefit from the religious significance of Djoser's complex. Alternatively, Userkaf's choice for the temple location on the pyramid southern side may be motivated by entirely religious reasons, with the Egyptologists Herbert Ricke and Richard H. Wilkinson proposing that it could have ensured the temple's year-round exposition to the sun, while Altenmüller suggests it was aligned with an obelisk that could have been located nearby.

paragraph: The mortuary temple walls were extensively adorned in numerous raised reliefs of exceptional quality. Scant remains of pigments on some reliefs show that these reliefs were originally painted. Userkaf's pyramid temple represents an important innovation in this respect; he was the first pharaoh to introduce nature scenes in his funerary temple, including scenes of hunting in the marshes that would become common in subsequent times. The artistic work is highly detailed, with a single relief showing no less than seven different species of birds and a butterfly. Hunting scenes symbolised the victory of king over the forces of chaos and might thus have illustrated Userkaf's role as "Iry-Maat", that is "the one who establishes Maat", which was one of Userkaf's names.

paragraph: Section::::Pyramid complex of Neferhetepes.:Pyramid.

paragraph: Some to the south of Userkaf's funerary enclosure, there stands a separate pyramid complex built in all likelihood for one of his queens. The pyramid, built on an east–west axis, is ruined and only a small mound of rubble can be seen today. Although no name has been identified in the pyramid proper, its owner is believed by Egyptologists including Cecil Mallaby Firth, Bernard Grdseloff, Audran Labrousse (), Jean-Philippe Lauer and Tarek El-Awady to have been Neferhetepes, mother of Sahure and in all probability Userkaf's consort.

paragraph: The pyramid was originally some high with a slope of 52°, similar to that of Userkaf's, and a base long. The core of the pyramid was built with the same technique as the main pyramid and the cult pyramid, consisting of three horizontal layers of roughly hewn local limestone blocks and gypsum mortar. The core was covered with an outer casing of fine Tura limestone, now gone. The pyramid was so extensively used as a stone quarry that even its internal chambers are exposed. These chambers are a scaled-down version of those in Userkaf's main pyramid, but without magazine rooms.

paragraph: Section::::Pyramid complex of Neferhetepes.:Mortuary temple.

paragraph: The queen's pyramid complex had its own separate mortuary temple, located on the pyramid eastern side. The temple entrance led to an open pillared courtyard, stretching from east to west, where the ritual cleaning and preparation of the offerings took place. A sacrificial chapel adjoined the pyramid side and there were three statue niches and a few magazine chambers to store offerings. The temple halls were adorned with reliefs of animal processions and carriers of offerings moving towards the shrine of the queen.

paragraph: Section::::Legacy.

paragraph: Section::::Legacy.:Funerary cult.

paragraph: Like other Fourth and Fifth Dynasty pharaohs, Userkaf benefited from a funerary cult after his death. His cult was state-sponsored and relied on goods for offerings produced in dedicated agricultural estates established during his lifetime, as well such resources as fabrics brought from the "house of silver" (the treasury).

paragraph: The cult flourished in the early to mid-Fifth Dynasty, as evidenced by the tombs and seals of participating priests and officials such as Nykaure, who served in the cults of Userkaf and Neferefre; Nykaankh and Khnumhotep, who served in Userkaf's pyramid complex; Ptahhotep, a priest of the Nekhenre and of Userkaf's mortuary temple; Tepemankh, Nenkheftka and Senuankh, who served in the cults of Userkaf and Sahure; Pehenukai, a vizier under Sahure and Neferirkare Kakai; and Nykuhor, a judge, inspector of scribes, privy councillor, and priest of funerary cults of Userkaf and Neferefre.

paragraph: The long-term importance of Userkaf's official cult may be judged by its abandonment at the end of the Fifth Dynasty. In comparison, the official funerary cult of some of Userkaf's successors, such as Nyuserre Ini, lasted until the Middle Kingdom period. The mortuary temple of Userkaf must have been in ruins or dismantled by the time of the Twelfth Dynasty, as some of the remenants of its decorated blocks depicting the king undertaking a ritual were re-used for the pyramid of Amenemhat I. Userkaf was not the only king whose mortuary temple met this fate: Nyuserre's temple was targeted even though its last priests were serving in it around this time. These facts hint at a lapse of royal interest in the state-sponsored funerary cults of Old Kingdom rulers.

paragraph: Examples of personal devotions on behalf of pious individuals endured much longer. For example, Userkaf is depicted on a relief from the Saqqara tomb of the priest Mehu, who lived during the much later Ramesside period. Early in this period, during the reign of Ramesses II, Ramesses's fourth son, Khaemwaset (fl. c. 1280–1225 BCE), ordered restoration work on Userkaf's pyramid, as shown in inscriptions on stone cladding from the pyramid field showing Khaemweset with offering bearers.

paragraph: Section::::Legacy.:In contemporary culture.

paragraph: Egyptian Nobel Prize for Literature-winner Naguib Mahfouz published a short story in 1945 about Userkaf entitled "Afw al-malik Usirkaf: uqsusa misriya". This short story was translated by Raymond Stock as "King Userkaf's Forgiveness" in the collection of short stories "Sawt min al-ʻalam al-akhar", whose title translates to "Voices from the other world: Ancient Egyptian tales".

paragraph: In the 1983 "Sesame Street" special "Don't Eat the Pictures", Big Bird and Snuffy encounter an Egyptian prince at the Metropolitan Museum of Art who introduces himself as Prince Sahure, son of the god Userkaf.

description: Ancient Egyptian Pharaoh

wikidata_label: Userkaf

wikipedia_title: Userkaf