ather underwhelming, to say the least. Are there lost Khufu artefacts waiting to be discovered? One thing for certain is that the evidence, like our understanding, needs re-examining.
Other, non-image bearing objects have been attributed to Khufu, such as an artefact known as the “Ring of Cheops”, which was thought to have belonged to the king, as it bears his cartouche, but is now believed to have been the possession of a priest from a 25th Dynasty (760 BC to 656 BC) cult that worshipped Khufu at Giza. This raises the question: was this cult venerating the pharaoh who built the Great Pyramid, or the god of the River Nile, the bringer of the life-giving inundation, who was also the protector of children? Disappointingly, even objects that contain the King’s cartouche do not bring us closer to understanding his true identity. So where does that leave us?
If the 3-inch ivory statue from Abydos is the most famous image of Khufu in existence, then the most famous cartouche – and the king’s strongest link with the Great Pyramid – is scribed in red masons’ marks in the relieving chambers of the Great Pyramid. The ‘quarry marks’, as they are known, were discovered by Major-General Sir Richard William Howard Vyse in 1837, after deploying gun powder to gain entrance to the previously sealed chamber. To this day, Vyse’s discovery represents the only hieroglyphics discovered inside the Great Pyramid. Not surprisingly, Vyse found references not only to Khufu, but to Khnem-Khufu, as well.
Vyse’s discovery has undergone much scrutiny, and many have accused him of forging the cartouches in order to lay claim to the proof that Khufu built the Great Pyramid; after all, masons’ marks were painted, not etched, and could be easily recreated. However, while the quarry marks match others at Giza and appear to be authentic, the silver bullet that exonerates Vyse is the fact that Khufu’s cartouche actually spans the side of a wedged pyramid block, and thus could not have been added after the pyramid’s construction. So, why was a cartouche of Khufu painted in such an invisible place? Clearly, the only plausible explanation is that the marks were painted before the stone was mobilized. The matter remains a mystery, but of more relevance to our discussion is the presence of Khufu’s cartouche next to that of Khnem-Khufu inside the Great Pyramid.
The two names appear together over and over again – as far away as the Sinai – and the dilemma perplexed even the likes of Petrie, whose comments on the situation reflect his own uneasiness about the implications:
‘The only great royal inscription (of Khufu) is on the rocks of Sinai. There are two tablets: one with the name and titles of Khufu, the other with the king smiting an enemy, and the name Khnum-khufu. The name is found in five places. The two names being placed in succession in one inscription cannot be mere chance variants of the same. Either they must be two distinct and independent names of one king, or else two separate kings. If they were separate kings, Khnum-khufu must have been the most important.’
Petrie’s conclusion that Khnum-Khufu was the more important of the two is interesting, for the name does not appear on any Kings Lists. So, what are we to conclude? If Khufu was a ‘nick-name’ or blessing given to Sneferu’s child in exchange for the protection of the god, Khnum, why then is the god’s name presented in a cartouche? Surely, if it was the name of a co-regent, and not a god, then it would appear on a Kings List somewhere.
Radjedef and the Solar Boat at Giza
Radjedef (also known as Djedefre) was the son and successor of Khufu and the first king to assume the title “Son of Ra”, as reflected in his name, meaning, “Enduring like Re” (Ra and Re being the same god). The conventional belief is that Radjedef’s adoption of ‘Re’ was due to the ever-increasing influence of the cult of the solar god, Re. And sure enough, Radjedef was succeeded on the throne by Khafre and Menkaure; kings and builders of the 2nd and 3rd pyramids at Giza, each of which reflected the god Re in their name. Unlike Kha