Khentkaus I
Encyclopedia
Khentkaus I was a Queen of Ancient Egypt
during the 4th dynasty
. She may have been a daughter of Pharaoh Menkaure, wife of Shepseskaf
and mother of Userkaf
, but this is by no means certain. Her Mastaba at Giza - tomb LG100 - is located very close to Menkaure's pyramid complex. This close connection may point to a family relationship, but it is not quite clear exactly what that relationship is.
and may have been the mother of Sahure
and Neferirkare Kakai
. Verner has stated that it is more likely however that Sahure was a son of Userkaf and his wife Neferhetepes
. It has also been suggested Khentkaus was the mother and regent for her son Thampthis and the mother of Neferirkare Kakai
instead.
Khentkaus appears to have served as a regent and may have even taken on kingly titles. Some of her titles are ambiguous and are apparently open to interpretation.
n proposed that Khentkaus was a daughter of Menkaure, and married first to Shepseskaf
and later to Userkaf
. Ventikiev was the first to suggest that the title mwt nswt bity nswt bity should be read as "The Mother of two Kings of Upper and Lower Egypt".
Junker
believed that the existence of the pyramid town suggested that Khentkaus was a very important person and that the title should be read as "the King of Upper and Lower Egypt and the Mother of the King of Upper and Lower Egypt". He suggested that she was the daughter of Menkaure and the sister of Shepseskaf.
Borchardt
suggested that Shepseskaf was a commoner who married the king’s daughter Khentkaus. He further thought that Sahure
and Neferirkare Kakai
were sons of Shepseskaf and Khentkaus. Borchardt conjectured that Userkaf was an outsider who was able to take the throne because Sahure and Neferirkare were too young to ascend the throne when Shepseskaf died.
Grdseloff proposed that Shepseskaf and Khentkaus were the son and daughter of Menkaure, and that Userkaf was a prince form a collateral branch of the royal family who came to the throne when he married the royal widow and mother of the heirs to the throne Khentkaus.
Altenmüller
suggested that Khentkaus was none other than the lady Redjedjet mentioned in the Westcar Papyrus
. He suggested that Khentkaus was the mother of Userkaf, Sahure and Neferirkare Kakai.
Kozloff theorized that Shepseskaf was the son of Menkaure with a minor wife who came to the throne after the death of the King’s Son Khuenre. Shepseskaf married Menkaure’s daughter Khentkaus. Upon the premature death of Shepseskaf, Khentkaus married the High Priest of Re
to secure the throne for her two sons.
Callender took the fact that Khentkaus’ name never appeared in a cartouche
to mean that she never ruled Egypt. Instead she preferred to read the mwt nswt bity nswt bity title as the mother of two Kings of Upper and Lower Egypt. She thought Khentkaus had to be a daughter of Menkaure and the wife of either Shepseskaf or Thampthis. She pointed to Userkaf and Neferirkare as the two sons referred to as the sons of Khentkaus in her title.
which is part of the Giza Necropolis. The pyramid complex of Queen Khentkaus includes her pyramid, a boat pit, a Valley Temple and a pyramid town.
The pyramid
complex consists of the pyramid, a chapel, a solar boat, the pyramid city, a water tank and granaries.
The pyramid was originally described in the 19th century as an unfinished pyramid and it had been conjectured that it belonged to King Shepseskaf. The pyramid was excavated by Selim Hassan
starting in 1932. The tomb was given the number LG 100 by Lepsius.
The chapel consisted of a main hall and an inner chapel. A passage cut in the floor of the inner chapel leads to the burial chamber. The floor of the chapel was covered in Tura limestone. The walls were covered in relief, but the scenes are very badly damaged. Relief fragments were found in the debris when the tomb was excavated by Selim Hassan. The passage to the burial chamber and the chamber itself were lined with red granite. The passage way is 5.6 m long and descends below the main structure of the pyramid. The burial chamber is large and most closely resembles the burial chamber of King Shepseskaf
in Saqqara
.
The solar boat is located to the south-west of the pyramid. A pit measuring some 30.25 m long and 4.25 m deep was cut into the rock. The prow and stern of the boat were upraised and the boat appears to have had a roof. It may represent the nigh-boat of the sun-god Ra
. If so there may be an accompanying day-boat.
Immediately to the east of the pyramid lies a pyramid city. The city is laid out along several streets which divide the city into groups of houses. These houses had their own magazines and granaries. The city was constructed from unbaked mud-brick, and surfaces were covered in a yellow plaster. The city was likely the home of the priests and servants of the pyramid complex. The pyramid city was constructed towards the end of the 4th
or beginning of the 5th dynasty
and seems to have been functioning well into the 6th dynasty
.
The valley temple of Khentkaus and Menkaure were both partially constructed of mud-brick and finished with white limestone and alabaster. The main entrance is located on the northern side which is a departure form the more common situation where the main entrance is located to the east. Near the doorway a statue of King Khafra
(father of Menkaure) once stood. Remains of a statue of a king (possibly Khafra) and the body of a sphinx statue were found in the vestibule of the temple. The vestibule opens up to a court which in turn led to the magazines.
Ancient Egypt
Ancient Egypt was an ancient civilization of Northeastern Africa, concentrated along the lower reaches of the Nile River in what is now the modern country of Egypt. Egyptian civilization coalesced around 3150 BC with the political unification of Upper and Lower Egypt under the first pharaoh...
during the 4th dynasty
Fourth dynasty of Egypt
The fourth dynasty of ancient Egypt is characterized as a "golden age" of the Old Kingdom. Dynasty IV lasted from ca. 2613 to 2494 BC...
. She may have been a daughter of Pharaoh Menkaure, wife of Shepseskaf
Shepseskaf
Shepseskaf was a son of Menkaure who succeeded his father on the throne. Shepseskaf's name means "His Soul is Noble."- Family :Shepseskaf was a son of Menkaure and grandson of Khafra, but his mother's name is not known. His mother can be either Khamerernebty II or Rekhetre...
and mother of Userkaf
Userkaf
Userkaf was the founder of the Fifth dynasty of Egypt and the first pharaoh to start the tradition of building sun temples at Abusir. His name means "his Ka is powerful". He ruled from 2494-2487 BC and constructed the Pyramid of Userkaf complex at Saqqara.- Family :Userkaf's wife was Queen...
, but this is by no means certain. Her Mastaba at Giza - tomb LG100 - is located very close to Menkaure's pyramid complex. This close connection may point to a family relationship, but it is not quite clear exactly what that relationship is.
Life
The proximity of Khentkaus' pyramid complex to that of King Menkaure has led to the conjecture that she may have been his daughter. She may have been married to King UserkafUserkaf
Userkaf was the founder of the Fifth dynasty of Egypt and the first pharaoh to start the tradition of building sun temples at Abusir. His name means "his Ka is powerful". He ruled from 2494-2487 BC and constructed the Pyramid of Userkaf complex at Saqqara.- Family :Userkaf's wife was Queen...
and may have been the mother of Sahure
Sahure
- Etymology :Sahure's birth name means "He who is Close to Re". His Horus name was Nebkhau.- Biography :Sahure was a son of queen Neferhetepes, as shown in scenes from the causeway of Sahure's pyramid complex in Abusir. His father was Userkaf. Sahure's consort was queen Neferetnebty. Reliefs show...
and Neferirkare Kakai
Neferirkare Kakai
Neferirkare Kakai was the third Pharaoh of Egypt during the Fifth dynasty. His praenomen, Neferirkare, means "Beautiful is the Soul of Ra". His Horus name was Userkhau, his Golden Horus name Sekhemunebu and his Nebti name Khaiemnebty.- Family :...
. Verner has stated that it is more likely however that Sahure was a son of Userkaf and his wife Neferhetepes
Neferhetepes
Neferhetepes was an ancient Egyptian princess of the 4th dynasty; a daughter of Pharaoh Djedefre who ruled between his father Khufu and his brother Khafra. Her mother was Hetepheres II.- Biography :...
. It has also been suggested Khentkaus was the mother and regent for her son Thampthis and the mother of Neferirkare Kakai
Neferirkare Kakai
Neferirkare Kakai was the third Pharaoh of Egypt during the Fifth dynasty. His praenomen, Neferirkare, means "Beautiful is the Soul of Ra". His Horus name was Userkhau, his Golden Horus name Sekhemunebu and his Nebti name Khaiemnebty.- Family :...
instead.
Khentkaus appears to have served as a regent and may have even taken on kingly titles. Some of her titles are ambiguous and are apparently open to interpretation.
Titles
- King’s Mother (mwt-niswt)
- Mother of Two Dual Kings (mwt-nswy-bitwy) or Dual King and Mother of a Dual King (nsw-bity mwt-nsw-bity)
Theories regarding Khentkaus I
The "Khentkaus Problem" has a long history. In the 1930s HassaSelim Hassan
Selim Hassan was an Egyptian Egyptologist. He wrote the 16-volume Encyclopedia of Ancient Egypt in Arabic and supervised the excavation of many ancient Egyptian tombs under the auspices of Cairo University.-Giza:...
n proposed that Khentkaus was a daughter of Menkaure, and married first to Shepseskaf
Shepseskaf
Shepseskaf was a son of Menkaure who succeeded his father on the throne. Shepseskaf's name means "His Soul is Noble."- Family :Shepseskaf was a son of Menkaure and grandson of Khafra, but his mother's name is not known. His mother can be either Khamerernebty II or Rekhetre...
and later to Userkaf
Userkaf
Userkaf was the founder of the Fifth dynasty of Egypt and the first pharaoh to start the tradition of building sun temples at Abusir. His name means "his Ka is powerful". He ruled from 2494-2487 BC and constructed the Pyramid of Userkaf complex at Saqqara.- Family :Userkaf's wife was Queen...
. Ventikiev was the first to suggest that the title mwt nswt bity nswt bity should be read as "The Mother of two Kings of Upper and Lower Egypt".
Junker
Hermann Junker
Hermann Junker was a German archaeologist best known for his discovery of the Merimde site in the West Delta in Lower Egypt in 1928.-Selected Publications:* Die Grabung auf dem Mastabafeld von Gizeh. Vienna: Akademie der Wissenschaft, 1912....
believed that the existence of the pyramid town suggested that Khentkaus was a very important person and that the title should be read as "the King of Upper and Lower Egypt and the Mother of the King of Upper and Lower Egypt". He suggested that she was the daughter of Menkaure and the sister of Shepseskaf.
Borchardt
Ludwig Borchardt
Ludwig Borchardt was a German Egyptologist who was born in Berlin.-Life:Borchardt initially studied Architecture and later Egyptology under Adolf Erman. In 1895 he journeyed to Cairo and produced, with Gaston Maspero, the Catalogue of the Egyptian Museum...
suggested that Shepseskaf was a commoner who married the king’s daughter Khentkaus. He further thought that Sahure
Sahure
- Etymology :Sahure's birth name means "He who is Close to Re". His Horus name was Nebkhau.- Biography :Sahure was a son of queen Neferhetepes, as shown in scenes from the causeway of Sahure's pyramid complex in Abusir. His father was Userkaf. Sahure's consort was queen Neferetnebty. Reliefs show...
and Neferirkare Kakai
Neferirkare Kakai
Neferirkare Kakai was the third Pharaoh of Egypt during the Fifth dynasty. His praenomen, Neferirkare, means "Beautiful is the Soul of Ra". His Horus name was Userkhau, his Golden Horus name Sekhemunebu and his Nebti name Khaiemnebty.- Family :...
were sons of Shepseskaf and Khentkaus. Borchardt conjectured that Userkaf was an outsider who was able to take the throne because Sahure and Neferirkare were too young to ascend the throne when Shepseskaf died.
Grdseloff proposed that Shepseskaf and Khentkaus were the son and daughter of Menkaure, and that Userkaf was a prince form a collateral branch of the royal family who came to the throne when he married the royal widow and mother of the heirs to the throne Khentkaus.
Altenmüller
Hartwig Altenmüller
Hartwig Altenmüller is a German Egyptologist. He became professor at the Archaeological Institute of the University of Hamburg in 1971...
suggested that Khentkaus was none other than the lady Redjedjet mentioned in the Westcar Papyrus
Westcar Papyrus
The Westcar Papyrus is an ancient Egyptian text containing five stories about miracles performed by priests and magicians. Each of these tales are being told at the royal court of the King Cheops by his sons...
. He suggested that Khentkaus was the mother of Userkaf, Sahure and Neferirkare Kakai.
Kozloff theorized that Shepseskaf was the son of Menkaure with a minor wife who came to the throne after the death of the King’s Son Khuenre. Shepseskaf married Menkaure’s daughter Khentkaus. Upon the premature death of Shepseskaf, Khentkaus married the High Priest of Re
High Priest of Re
The High Priest of Re, or the High Priest of Ra, was known in Egyptian as the wr-m3w which translates as Greatest of Seers. The main cult of Re, or Ra, was in ancient Heliopolis, northeast of present day Cairo. The high priests of Ra are not as well documented as the high priests of other deities...
to secure the throne for her two sons.
Callender took the fact that Khentkaus’ name never appeared in a cartouche
Cartouche
In Egyptian hieroglyphs, a cartouche is an ellipse with a horizontal line at one end, indicating that the text enclosed is a royal name, coming into use during the beginning of the Fourth Dynasty under Pharaoh Sneferu, replacing the earlier serekh...
to mean that she never ruled Egypt. Instead she preferred to read the mwt nswt bity nswt bity title as the mother of two Kings of Upper and Lower Egypt. She thought Khentkaus had to be a daughter of Menkaure and the wife of either Shepseskaf or Thampthis. She pointed to Userkaf and Neferirkare as the two sons referred to as the sons of Khentkaus in her title.
Tomb
Khentkaus was buried in Giza. Her tomb is known as LG 100 and G 8400 and is located in the Central Field, GizaCentral Field, Giza
The Central Field is located to the east of Khafre's causeway and extends to the pyramid town of Queen Khentkaus I. One of the main excavators of the central field is Selim Hassan. The central field is located at the site of some large stone quarries that provided the stones for the construction of...
which is part of the Giza Necropolis. The pyramid complex of Queen Khentkaus includes her pyramid, a boat pit, a Valley Temple and a pyramid town.
The pyramid complex of Khentkaus I
Pyramid
A pyramid is a structure whose outer surfaces are triangular and converge at a single point. The base of a pyramid can be trilateral, quadrilateral, or any polygon shape, meaning that a pyramid has at least three triangular surfaces...
complex consists of the pyramid, a chapel, a solar boat, the pyramid city, a water tank and granaries.
The pyramid was originally described in the 19th century as an unfinished pyramid and it had been conjectured that it belonged to King Shepseskaf. The pyramid was excavated by Selim Hassan
Selim Hassan
Selim Hassan was an Egyptian Egyptologist. He wrote the 16-volume Encyclopedia of Ancient Egypt in Arabic and supervised the excavation of many ancient Egyptian tombs under the auspices of Cairo University.-Giza:...
starting in 1932. The tomb was given the number LG 100 by Lepsius.
The chapel consisted of a main hall and an inner chapel. A passage cut in the floor of the inner chapel leads to the burial chamber. The floor of the chapel was covered in Tura limestone. The walls were covered in relief, but the scenes are very badly damaged. Relief fragments were found in the debris when the tomb was excavated by Selim Hassan. The passage to the burial chamber and the chamber itself were lined with red granite. The passage way is 5.6 m long and descends below the main structure of the pyramid. The burial chamber is large and most closely resembles the burial chamber of King Shepseskaf
Shepseskaf
Shepseskaf was a son of Menkaure who succeeded his father on the throne. Shepseskaf's name means "His Soul is Noble."- Family :Shepseskaf was a son of Menkaure and grandson of Khafra, but his mother's name is not known. His mother can be either Khamerernebty II or Rekhetre...
in Saqqara
Saqqara
Saqqara is a vast, ancient burial ground in Egypt, serving as the necropolis for the Ancient Egyptian capital, Memphis. Saqqara features numerous pyramids, including the world famous Step pyramid of Djoser, sometimes referred to as the Step Tomb due to its rectangular base, as well as a number of...
.
The solar boat is located to the south-west of the pyramid. A pit measuring some 30.25 m long and 4.25 m deep was cut into the rock. The prow and stern of the boat were upraised and the boat appears to have had a roof. It may represent the nigh-boat of the sun-god Ra
Ra
Ra is the ancient Egyptian sun god. By the Fifth Dynasty he had become a major deity in ancient Egyptian religion, identified primarily with the mid-day sun...
. If so there may be an accompanying day-boat.
Immediately to the east of the pyramid lies a pyramid city. The city is laid out along several streets which divide the city into groups of houses. These houses had their own magazines and granaries. The city was constructed from unbaked mud-brick, and surfaces were covered in a yellow plaster. The city was likely the home of the priests and servants of the pyramid complex. The pyramid city was constructed towards the end of the 4th
Fourth dynasty of Egypt
The fourth dynasty of ancient Egypt is characterized as a "golden age" of the Old Kingdom. Dynasty IV lasted from ca. 2613 to 2494 BC...
or beginning of the 5th dynasty
Fifth dynasty of Egypt
The fifth dynasty of ancient Egypt is often combined with Dynasties III, IV and VI under the group title the Old Kingdom. Dynasty V dates approximately from 2494 to 2345 BC.-Rulers:...
and seems to have been functioning well into 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:...
.
The valley temple of Khentkaus I
A causeway connects the pyramid chapel to the valley temple of Khentkaus. The temple lies close to the valley temple of Menkaure which suggests a close relationship between Khentkaus and Menkaure. In front of the temple a small structure referred to as the "washing tent of Queen Khentkaus" was discovered. This structure was the location where the body of the deceased queen would have been taken to be purified before being embalmed.The valley temple of Khentkaus and Menkaure were both partially constructed of mud-brick and finished with white limestone and alabaster. The main entrance is located on the northern side which is a departure form the more common situation where the main entrance is located to the east. Near the doorway a statue of King Khafra
Khafra
Khafra — also Khafre — was an Egyptian pharaoh of the Fourth dynasty, who had his capital at Memphis. According to some authors he was the son and successor of Khufu, but it is more commonly accepted that Djedefre was Khufu's successor and Khafra was Djedefre's...
(father of Menkaure) once stood. Remains of a statue of a king (possibly Khafra) and the body of a sphinx statue were found in the vestibule of the temple. The vestibule opens up to a court which in turn led to the magazines.