Merneferre Ai
Encyclopedia
Merneferre Ay was an Ancient Egypt
ian ruler of the Thirteenth dynasty of Egypt
. He assumed the throne around 1700 BC. His reign length—as preserved in the damaged Turin King List
—was disputed in the past with Jürgen von Beckerath
reading the damaged figure on the papyrus fragment as only 13 years in his 1964 work Untersuchungen zur politischen Geschichte der zweiten Zwischenzeit in Ägypten, while both Alan Gardiner
—in The Royal Canon of Turin (1959)--and Kenneth Kitchen
in his 1987 paper 'The Basics of Egyptian Chronology in Relation to the Bronze Age at the "High, Middle or Low" University of Göteborg convention maintained that it was 23 Years.http://links.jstor.org/sici?sici=0002-9114(199004)94%3A2%3C345%3AHMOLAO%3E2.0.CO%3B2-4 The latest examination of the damaged figure by Kim Ryholt
confirms that it must be read as 23 Years. Ryholt stresses in his 1997 book on the Second Intermediate Period that "the tick that distinguishes 20 and 30 from 10 is preserved and beyond dispute. Accordingly, 23 years or, less likely, 33 years must be read." Therefore, Ay's reign length was 23 Years, 8 Months and 18 days This makes him the longest ruling Pharaoh of the 13th Dynasty—at a time when numerous short-lived kings ruled Egypt.
of his tomb—which is inscribed with his name—was discovered at Avaris
which suggests that the Hyksos kings looted his pyramid tomb of its treasures. This can be assumed because the pyramidion was inscribed with dedications to the god Ptah
whose cult was based at Memphis, not Avaris. He is the last significant Egyptian king of the 13th Dynasty known from objects found in Lower and Upper Egypt which indicates that Egypt was still united during his reign.
He was possibly married to Ineni
.
He is sometimes confused with Ay
, a ruler at the end of the 18th Dynasty
. However, both kings ruled in completely different dynasties and have nothing in common other than a similar name.
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...
ian ruler of the Thirteenth dynasty of Egypt
Thirteenth dynasty of Egypt
The thirteenth dynasty of ancient Egypt is often combined with Dynasties XI, XII and XIV under the group title Middle Kingdom. Other writers separate it from these dynasties and join it to Dynasties XIV through XVII as part of the Second Intermediate Period...
. He assumed the throne around 1700 BC. His reign length—as preserved in the damaged Turin King List
Turin King List
The Turin King List, also known as the Turin Royal Canon, is a hieratic papyrus thought to date from the reign of Ramesses II, now in the Museo Egizio at Turin...
—was disputed in the past with Jürgen von Beckerath
Jürgen von Beckerath
Jürgen von Beckerath is a prominent German Egyptologist. He is a prolific writer who has published countless articles in journals such as Orientalia, Göttinger Miszellen , Journal of the American Research Center in Egypt , Archiv für Orientforschung and Studien zur Altägyptischen Kultur among...
reading the damaged figure on the papyrus fragment as only 13 years in his 1964 work Untersuchungen zur politischen Geschichte der zweiten Zwischenzeit in Ägypten, while both Alan Gardiner
Alan Gardiner
Sir Alan Henderson Gardiner was one of the premier British Egyptologists of the early and mid-20th century...
—in The Royal Canon of Turin (1959)--and Kenneth Kitchen
Kenneth Kitchen
Kenneth Anderson Kitchen is Personal and Brunner Professor Emeritus of Egyptology and Honorary Research Fellow at the School of Archaeology, Classics and Egyptology, University of Liverpool, England...
in his 1987 paper 'The Basics of Egyptian Chronology in Relation to the Bronze Age at the "High, Middle or Low" University of Göteborg convention maintained that it was 23 Years.http://links.jstor.org/sici?sici=0002-9114(199004)94%3A2%3C345%3AHMOLAO%3E2.0.CO%3B2-4 The latest examination of the damaged figure by Kim Ryholt
Kim Ryholt
Kim S B Ryholt is a Danish Egyptologist, who works at the Carsten Niebuhr Institute of Near Eastern Studies at the University of Copenhagen....
confirms that it must be read as 23 Years. Ryholt stresses in his 1997 book on the Second Intermediate Period that "the tick that distinguishes 20 and 30 from 10 is preserved and beyond dispute. Accordingly, 23 years or, less likely, 33 years must be read." Therefore, Ay's reign length was 23 Years, 8 Months and 18 days This makes him the longest ruling Pharaoh of the 13th Dynasty—at a time when numerous short-lived kings ruled Egypt.
Reign
Merneferre Ay is mainly known from his many scarab seals. However, the pyramidionPyramidion
A pyramidion is the uppermost piece or capstone of an Egyptian pyramid in archaeological parlance. They were called benbenet in the Ancient Egyptian language, which associated the pyramid as a whole with the sacred benben stone...
of his tomb—which is inscribed with his name—was discovered at Avaris
Avaris
Avaris , capital of Egypt under the Hyksos , was located near modern Tell el-Dab'a in the northeastern region of the Nile Delta, at the juncture of the 8th, 14th, 19th and 20th Nomes...
which suggests that the Hyksos kings looted his pyramid tomb of its treasures. This can be assumed because the pyramidion was inscribed with dedications to the god Ptah
Ptah
In Ancient Egyptian Religion, Ptah was the deification of the primordial mound in the Ennead cosmogony, which was more literally referred to as Ta-tenen , meaning risen land, or as Tanen, meaning submerged land, though Tatenen was a god in his...
whose cult was based at Memphis, not Avaris. He is the last significant Egyptian king of the 13th Dynasty known from objects found in Lower and Upper Egypt which indicates that Egypt was still united during his reign.
He was possibly married to Ineni
Ineni (queen)
Ineni was an Ancient Egyptian queen who lived during the Thirteenth Dynasty . She is so far only known from 21 scarabs and a seal impression from Kerma. She had the titles Great Royal Wife and she, who is united with the white crown. She is one of the first ancient Egyptian queens whose name was...
.
He is sometimes confused with Ay
Ay
Ay was the penultimate Pharaoh of Ancient Egypt's 18th dynasty. He held the throne of Egypt for a brief four-year period , although he was a close advisor to two and perhaps three of the pharaohs who ruled before him and was the power behind the throne during Tutankhamun's reign...
, a ruler at the end of the 18th Dynasty
Eighteenth dynasty of Egypt
The eighteenth dynasty of ancient Egypt is perhaps the best known of all the dynasties of ancient Egypt...
. However, both kings ruled in completely different dynasties and have nothing in common other than a similar name.