Neferhotep III

Last updated

Sekhemre Sankhtawy Neferhotep III Iykhernofret was the third or fourth ruler of the Theban 16th Dynasty, reigning after Sobekhotep VIII according to Egyptologists Kim Ryholt and Darrell Baker. [1] [2] He is assigned a reign of 1 year in the Turin Canon and is known primarily by a single stela from Thebes. [1] In an older study, Jürgen von Beckerath dated Neferhotep III to the end of the 13th Dynasty. [3]

Contents

Extent of rule

In the heavily damaged stela (Cairo JE 59635 [CG 20799]), [4] [5] Neferhotep III repeatedly calls Thebes "my city" and praises himself as "the guide of victorious Thebes". [6] This emphasis on Thebes is understood by Ryholt as showing that Neferhotep III reigned exclusively over the Theban region. Additionally, Baker points out the total lack of contemporary attestations for kings of the 16th Dynasty (except Bebiankh and Nebiryraw I) outside of a 200 km long stretch of the Nile valley comprising Thebes, from Hu in the north to Edfu in the south. [2] That Neferhotep III ruled over little more than the Theban region is further strengthened by a stela of Neferhotep's successor Seankhenre Mentuhotepi where Mentuhotepi states "I am the king within Thebes, this is my city".

Reign

In his Theban stela, Neferhotep III emphasizes his role as provider of food for his people stating that "he who nourishes his city, saving it from famine". [7] This, together with his royal name Sekhemre Sanhktawy, The might of Ra, who nourishes the Two Lands is a strong sign that Upper Egypt suffered from famines during the late 16th Dynasty. Another king of the period, Senusret IV, adopted a similar royal name.

Neferhotep III got certainly embroiled in a defensive war against the Hyksos 15th Dynasty, which would ultimately overrun the 16th Dynasty state. Neferhotep praises himself on his stela as " He who raises his city, having been sunk through strife with foreigners". [1] The stela is thought to contain the earliest known mention of the Khepresh crown. Neferhotep is said to be "Adorned with the Khepresh, the living image of Re, lord of terror". [8] For reasons which remain difficult to understand, on the stela Neferhotep III is also referred to by the epithet Iykhernofret written inside a cartouche: [4] [9]

Neferhotep III
Neferhotep IIINeferhotep III
Neferhotep III
Neferhotep IIINeferhotep III
Neferhotep III
Neferhotep III


After his short reign, he was succeeded by a similarly short lived king Seankhenre Mentuhotepi.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Second Intermediate Period of Egypt</span> Period of Ancient Egyptian history (1700–1550 BC)

The Second Intermediate Period dates from 1700 to 1550 BC. It marks a period when ancient Egypt was divided into smaller dynasties for a second time, between the end of the Middle Kingdom and the start of the New Kingdom. The concept of a Second Intermediate Period generally includes the 13th through to the 17th dynasties, however there is no universal agreement in Egyptology about how to define the period.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Khendjer</span> Egyptian pharaoh

Userkare Khendjer was a minor king of the early Thirteenth Dynasty of Egypt during the Middle Kingdom. Khendjer possibly reigned for four to five years, archaeological attestations show that he was on the throne for at least three or four years three months and five days. Khendjer had a small pyramid built for himself in Saqqara and it is therefore likely that his capital was in Memphis.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dedumose I</span> Egyptian pharaoh

Djedhotepre Dedumose I was an Egyptian pharaoh of the Second Intermediate Period. According to egyptologists Kim Ryholt, Darrell Baker, Aidan Dodson and Dyan Hilton, he was a king of the 16th Dynasty. Alternatively, Jürgen von Beckerath, Thomas Schneider and Detlef Franke see him as a king of the 13th Dynasty.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sixteenth Dynasty of Egypt</span> Ancient Egyptian dynasty

The Sixteenth Dynasty of ancient Egypt was a dynasty of pharaohs that ruled the Theban region in Upper Egypt for 70 years.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sobekhotep IV</span> Egyptian king

Khaneferre Sobekhotep IV was one of the more powerful Egyptian kings of the 13th Dynasty, who reigned at least eight years. His brothers, Neferhotep I and Sihathor, were his predecessors on the throne, the latter having only ruled as coregent for a few months.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sekhemre Wahkhau Rahotep</span> Egyptian pharaoh

Sekhemre Wahkhau Rahotep was an Egyptian pharaoh who reigned during the Second Intermediate Period, when Egypt was ruled by multiple kings. The Egyptologists Kim Ryholt and Darrell Baker believe that Rahotep was the first king of the 17th Dynasty.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sekhemre-Heruhirmaat Intef</span> Egyptian king

Sekhemre-Heruhirmaat Intef was an ancient Egyptian king of the Seventeenth Dynasty of Egypt, who ruled during the Second Intermediate Period, when Egypt was divided between the Theban-based 17th Dynasty in Upper Egypt and the Hyksos 15th Dynasty who controlled Lower and part of Middle Egypt.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nebmaatre</span> Egyptian pharaoh

Nebmaatre is the prenomen of a poorly attested ruler of the late Second Intermediate Period of Ancient Egypt. Nebmaatre may have been a member of the early 17th Dynasty and as such would have reigned over the Theban region. Alternatively, Jürgen von Beckerath believes that Nebmaatre was a ruler of the late 16th Dynasty.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sheshi</span> Egyptian pharaoh

Maaibre Sheshi was a ruler of areas of Egypt during the Second Intermediate Period. The dynasty, chronological position, duration and extent of his reign are uncertain and subject to ongoing debate. The difficulty of identification is mirrored by problems in determining events from the end of the Middle Kingdom to the arrival of the Hyksos in Egypt. Nonetheless, Sheshi is, in terms of the number of artifacts attributed to him, the best-attested king of the period spanning the end of the Middle Kingdom and the Second Intermediate period; roughly from c. 1800 BC until 1550 BC. Hundreds of scaraboid seals bearing his name have been found throughout the Levant, Egypt, Nubia, and as far away as Carthage, where some were still in use 1,500 years after his death.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Merhotepre Ini</span> Egyptian pharaoh of Dynasty XIII

Merhotepre Ini was the successor of Merneferre Ay, possibly his son, and the thirty-third king of the Thirteenth Dynasty of Egypt. He is assigned a brief reign of 2 Years, 3 or 4 Months and 9 days in the Turin Canon and lived during the early 17th century BC.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sewadjare Mentuhotep</span> Egyptian pharaoh

Sewadjare Mentuhotep is a poorly attested Egyptian pharaoh of the late 13th Dynasty, who reigned for a short time c. 1655 BC during the Second Intermediate Period. The Egyptologists Kim Ryholt and Darrell Baker respectively believe that he was the fiftieth and forty-ninth king of the dynasty, thereby making him Mentuhotep V. Thus, Sewadjare Mentuhotep most likely reigned shortly before the arrival of Hyksos over the Memphite region and concurrently with the last rulers of the 14th Dynasty.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sobekhotep VIII</span>

Sekhemre Seusertawy Sobekhotep VIII was possibly the third king of the 16th Dynasty of Egypt reigning over the Theban region in Upper Egypt during the Second Intermediate Period. Alternatively, he may be a ruler of the 13th or 17th Dynasty. If he was a king of the 16th Dynasty, Sobekhotep VIII would be credited 16 years of reign by the Turin canon, starting c. 1650 BC, at the time of the Hyksos invasion of Egypt.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dedumose II</span> Ancient Egyptian pharaoh

Djedneferre Dedumose II was a native ancient Egyptian pharaoh during the Second Intermediate Period. According to egyptologists Kim Ryholt and Darrell Baker, he was a ruler of the Theban 16th Dynasty. Alternatively, Jürgen von Beckerath, Thomas Schneider and Detlef Franke see him as a king of the 13th Dynasty.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sekhemre Sementawy Djehuty</span> Egyptian Pharaoh

Sekhemre Sementawy Djehuty was a minor king reigning over parts of Upper Egypt during the Second Intermediate Period.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Seankhenre Mentuhotepi</span> Egyptian pharaoh

Seankhenre Mentuhotepi was an ancient Egyptian pharaoh during the fragmented Second Intermediate Period. According to egyptologists Kim Ryholt and Darrell Baker, he was the fifth king of the 16th Dynasty reigning over the Theban region in Upper Egypt. Alternatively, Jürgen von Beckerath sees him as the fifth king of the 17th Dynasty.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Abydos Dynasty</span> Hypothetical Ancient Egyptian dynasty

The Abydos Dynasty is hypothesized to have been a short-lived local dynasty ruling over parts of Middle and Upper Egypt during the Second Intermediate Period in Ancient Egypt. The Abydos Dynasty would have been contemporaneous with the Fifteenth and Sixteenth Dynasties, from approximately 1650 to 1600 BC. It would have been based in or around Abydos and its royal necropolis might have been located at the foot of the Mountain of Anubis, a hill resembling a pyramid in the Abydene desert, close to a rock-cut tomb built for pharaoh Senusret III.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Snaaib</span> Egyptian pharaoh

Menkhaure Snaaib was an Egyptian pharaoh during the Second Intermediate Period between the Middle Kingdom and New Kingdom at the end of the Middle Bronze Age.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pantjeny</span> Egyptian pharaoh during the Second Intermediate Period

Sekhemrekhutawy Pantjeny was an Egyptian pharaoh during the Second Intermediate Period. According to the Egyptologists Kim Ryholt and Darrell Baker, he was a king of the Abydos Dynasty, although they leave his position within this dynasty undetermined. Alternatively, Pantjeny could be a king of the late 16th Dynasty. According to Jürgen von Beckerath, Pantjeny is to be identified with Sekhemrekhutawy Khabaw, whom he sees as the third king of the 13th Dynasty.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wazad</span> Egyptian pharaoh

Wazad was an Egyptian pharaoh during the Second Intermediate Period. According to the Egyptologists Kim Ryholt and Darrell Baker, Wazad was a member of the 14th Dynasty of Egypt reigning c. 1700 BC. As a king of the 14th Dynasty, he would have reigned from Avaris over the eastern Nile Delta and possibly over the western Delta as well. The Memphis-based 13th Dynasty reigned over Middle and Upper Egypt at the same time. Alternatively, according to Jürgen von Beckerath and Wolfgang Helck, Wazad was a ruler of the 16th Dynasty and a vassal of the Hyksos 15th Dynasty. This view is debated in Egyptology, in particular because Ryholt and others have argued that the 16th Dynasty was an independent Theban kingdom rather than a vassal dynasty of the Hyksos.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sewahenre Senebmiu</span> Egyptian pharaoh

Sewahenre Senebmiu is a poorly attested Egyptian pharaoh during the Second Intermediate Period, thought to belong to the late 13th Dynasty.

References

  1. 1 2 3 Kim Ryholt, The Political Situation in Egypt during the Second Intermediate Period c.1800-1550 B.C, Museum Tusculanum Press, (1997), p.202
  2. 1 2 Darrell D. Baker: The Encyclopedia of the Pharaohs: Volume I - Predynastic to the Twentieth Dynasty 3300–1069 BC, Stacey International, ISBN   978-1-905299-37-9, 2008, pp. 256-257
  3. Jürgen von Beckerath: Untersuchungen zur politischen Geschichte der zweiten Zwischenzeit in Ägypten, Glückstadt 1964, S. 67-68, 259 (XIII J.)
  4. 1 2 Pascal Vernus (1982): "La stèle du roi Sekhemsankhtaouyrê Neferhotep Iykhernofret et la domination Hyksôs (stèle Caire JE 59635)", ASAE 68, pp.129-135.
  5. W. V. Davies, The Origin of the Blue Crown, The Journal of Egyptian Archaeology, Vol. 68, (1982), pp. 69-76
  6. Ryholt, p.160
  7. Ryholt, p.306
  8. Ebba Kerrn Lillesø, Two Wooden Uræi, The Journal of Egyptian Archaeology, Vol. 61, (1975), pp. 137-146
  9. Ryholt, p.155
Preceded by Pharaoh of Egypt
Sixteenth Dynasty of Egypt
Succeeded by