Djau was a vizier

Vizier (Ancient Egypt)

The vizier was the highest official in Ancient Egypt to serve the king, or pharaoh during the Old, Middle, and New Kingdoms. Vizier is the generally accepted rendering of ancient Egyptian tjati, tjaty etc, among Egyptologists...

 of Upper Egypt

Upper Egypt

Upper Egypt is the strip of land, on both sides of the Nile valley, that extends from the cataract boundaries of modern-day Aswan north to the area between El-Ayait and Zawyet Dahshur . The northern section of Upper Egypt, between El-Ayait and Sohag is sometimes known as Middle Egypt...

 during the 6th dynasty

Sixth dynasty of Egypt

The sixth dynasty of ancient Egypt is often combined with Dynasties III, IV and V under the group title the Old Kingdom.-Pharaohs:...

. He was a member of an influential family from Abydos

Abydos, Egypt

Abydos is one of the most ancient cities of Upper Egypt, and also of the eight Upper Nome, of which it was the capital city. It is located about 11 kilometres west of the Nile at latitude 26° 10' N, near the modern Egyptian towns of el-'Araba el Madfuna and al-Balyana...

; his mother was the vizier Nebet

Nebet

Nebet was created vizier during the late Old Kingdom of Egypt by Pharaoh Pepi I of the Sixth dynasty, her son-in-law. She is the first recorded female vizier in Ancient Egyptian history, the next one was in the 26th Dynasty....

, his father was called Khui. His two sisters Ankhesenpepi I

Ankhesenpepi I

Ankhenespepi I or Ankhenesmeryre I was a queen consort during the sixth dynasty of Egypt.- Biography :Ankhesenpepi was a daughter of Nebet the female vizier and her husband Khui...

 and Ankhesenpepi II

Ankhesenpepi II

Ankhesenpepi II or Ankhesenmeryre II was a queen consort during the sixth dynasty of Egypt. She was the wife of Kings Pepi I and Merenre Nemtyemsaf I, and the mother of Pepi II. She was buried in Saqqara.- Biography :...

 married Pharaoh Pepi I. Djau was already in office when his nephew Pepi II became pharaoh. He is mentioned in two royal decrees, one from Abydos, the other from Coptos; one of them is dated to Year 11. It is unknown when he died, but when the tomb of Pepi II was decorated, he was no longer vizier. He was buried in Abydos, but the exact place of his tomb is not known.

Sources

• Aidan Dodson & Dyan Hilton: The Complete Royal Families of Ancient Egypt. Thames & Hudson, 2004, ISBN 0-500-05128-3, p. 71-72
• Hans Goedicke: Königliche Dokumente aus dem Alten Reich. Harrassowitz, Wiesbaden 1967 (zu Djaw: S. 84-86)
• Kurt Sethe (Hrsg.): Urkunden des alten Reiches. (Urkunden des ägyptischen Altertums, Band 1) J. C. Hinrichs, Leipzig 1933