| Ranefer in hieroglyphs | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
Rˀ-nfr Ra-nefer Ra is beautiful | ||||
Ranefer (or Ranofer) was a prince of ancient Egypt during the 4th Dynasty (Old Kingdom of Egypt). [1]
His name, Ranefer, comes from the Egyptian god Ra and the Ancient Egyptian word nefer (nfr), meaning "beauty."
Ranefer, who had the title King’s Son, [2] was a son of Pharaoh Sneferu, who was the first ruler of the Fourth Dynasty. [3] Ranefer’s mother was Sneferu’s wife or concubine; her name is unknown. Ranefer’s elder brothers were Nefermaat I and Rahotep. [4] [5] [6]
Ranefer worked as an overseer for his father [7] (title: “Overseer of Djed-Sneferu”) and was buried inside a mastaba tomb at Meidum. [8] In the tomb were found remains of viscera wrapped in linen. [9] Ranefer’s body is the best representation of what mummification techniques entailed during the Old Kingdom. [10] His body was facing east, was molded as well as painted. The mummy’s hair was painted black, the eyebrows and eyes were painted green [11] whilst the mouth was painted red. The genitals were also carefully molded, the brain remained in the skull and its innards were found in a canopic chest in the tomb. [12]