Twelfth dynasty of Egypt
Encyclopedia
The twelfth dynasty of ancient Egypt
(notated Dynasty XII) is often combined with Dynasties XI, XIII and XIV under the group title Middle Kingdom
.
The chronology of the 12th dynasty is the most stable of any period before the New Kingdom
. The Ramses Papyrus canon (1290 BC) in Turin gives 213 years (1991-1778 BC. Manetho
stated that it was based in Thebes
, but from contemporary records it is clear that the first king moved its capital to a new city named "Amenemhat-itj-tawy" ("Amenemhat the Seizer of the Two Lands"), more simply called Itjtawy
. The location of Itjtaway has not been found, but is thought to be near the Fayyum, probably near the royal graveyards at el-Lisht
. Egyptologists consider this dynasty to be the apex of the Middle Kingdom
.
The order of its rulers is well known from several sources — two lists recorded at temples in Abydos
and one at Saqqara
, as well as Manetho
's work. A recorded date during the reign of Senusret III
can be correlated to the Sothic cycle
, consequently many events during this dynasty are frequently assigned to a year BC
or BCE
.
, who may have been vizier
to the last pharaoh
of Dynasty XI, Mentuhotep IV
. His armies campaigned south as far as the Second Cataract of the Nile and into the Near East, and he reestablished diplomatic relations with Byblos
and the rulers in the Aegean Sea
. His son Senusret I
followed his father's triumphs with an expedition south to the Third Cataract, but the next rulers were content to live in peace and enjoy the trade and tribute brought to them until the reign of Senusret III.
had grown restive under the previous rulers, Senusret sent punitive expeditions into that land; he also sent an expedition into the Levant
. These military campaigns gave birth to a legend of a mighty warrior named Sesostris
, a story retold by Manetho, Herodotus
, and Diodorus Siculus
. This conqueror not only subdued the lands as had Senusret III, but also conquered Asia and had crossed over into Europe to annex Thrace
.
reaffirmed his predecessor's foreign policy. However, after Amenemhat, the energies of this dynasty were largely spent, and the growing troubles of government were left to the dynasty's last ruler, Queen Sobekneferu
, to resolve. Amenemhat was remembered for the mortuary temple at Hawara
that he built, known to Herodotus, Diodorus, and Strabo
as the "Labyrinth
". Also under his reign the marshy Fayyum was first exploited.
was refined. Perhaps the best known work from this period is The Story of Sinuhe, of which several hundred papyrus
copies have been recovered. Also written during this dynasty were a number of Didactic works, such as the Instructions of Amenemhat
and The Tale of the Eloquent Peasant
.
Pharaohs of Dynasties XII through XVIII
are also credited with preserving for us some of the most remarkable Egyptian
papyri
:
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...
(notated Dynasty XII) is often combined with Dynasties XI, XIII and XIV under the group title Middle Kingdom
Middle Kingdom of Egypt
The Middle Kingdom of Egypt is the period in the history of ancient Egypt stretching from the establishment of the Eleventh Dynasty to the end of the Fourteenth Dynasty, between 2055 BC and 1650 BC, although some writers include the Thirteenth and Fourteenth dynasties in the Second Intermediate...
.
Rulers
Known rulers of the twelfth dynasty are as follows :| name of King | |Horus (Throne) Name | |date | |Pyramid | |Queen(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Amenemhat I Amenemhat I Amenemhat I, also Amenemhet I, was the first ruler of the Twelfth Dynasty . He ruled from 1991 BC to 1962 BC... |
Sehetepibre | 1991 BC - 1962 BC | Pyramid at El-Lisht | Queen Neferitatjenen |
| Senusret I Senusret I Senusret I was the second pharaoh of the Twelfth Dynasty of Egypt. He ruled from 1971 BC to 1926 BC, and was one of the most powerful kings of this Dynasty. He was the son of Amenemhat I and his wife Nefertitanen. His wife and sister was Neferu. She was also the mother of the successor Amenemhat II... (Sesostris I) |
Kheperkare | 1971 BC - 1926 BC | Pyramid at El-Lisht | Queen Neferu III Neferu III Neferu was an ancient Egyptian queen of the 12th dynasty. She was a daughter of Amenemhat I, wife of Senusret I and the mother of Amenemhat II.... |
| Amenemhat II Amenemhat II Nubkhaure Amenemhat II was the third pharaoh of the Twelfth Dynasty of Ancient Egypt. Not much is known about his reign. He ruled Egypt for 35 years from 1929 BC to 1895 BC and was the son of Senusret I through the latter's chief wife, Queen Nefru. His queen is not known; although recently a... |
Nubkhaure | 1929 BC - 1895 BC | White Pyramid White Pyramid Located in the pyramid field at Dahshur, the White Pyramid of Amenemhat II is now nothing more than a pile of rubble, having been heavily quarried for stone. The remaining limestone rubble has given rise to its modern name.... |
Queen Kaneferu Queen Keminub Keminub Keminub was an Ancient Egyptian woman with the title king's wife. She is only known from her burial next to the pyramid of Amenemhet II at Dahshur. For that reason it has been suggested she was his wife.... ? |
| Senusret II Senusret II Khakeperre Senusret II was the fourth pharaoh of the Twelfth Dynasty of Egypt. He ruled from 1897 BC to 1878 BC. His pyramid was constructed at El-Lahun... (Sesostris II) |
Khakheperre | 1897 BC - 1878 BC | Pyramid at El-Lahun El-Lahun Located in the Faiyum, Egypt, el-Lahun or Kahun is the workers' village associated with the pyramid of Senusret II . It is located near the modern village of el-Lahun , and is often known by that name... |
Queen Khenemetneferhedjet I Khenemetneferhedjet I Khenemetneferhedjet I Weret was an ancient Egyptian queen of the 12th dynasty, a wife of Senusret II and the mother of Senusret III.She is likely to be same person who is mentioned as the daughter of Amenemhat I on a seal . This would mean she was the sister of her husband... Queen Neferet II Queen Itaweret? Queen Khnemet |
| Senusret III Senusret III Khakhaure Senusret III was a pharaoh of Egypt. He ruled from 1878 BC to 1839 BC, and was the fifth monarch of the Twelfth Dynasty of the Middle Kingdom. Among his achievements was the building of the Sisostris Canal... (Sesostris III) |
Khakaure | 1878 BC - 1839 BC | Pyramid at Dahshur Dahshur Dahshur , is a royal necropolis located in the desert on the west bank of the Nile approximately 40 kilometres south of Cairo... |
Queen Meretseger Meretseger (queen) Meretseger was an Ancient Egyptian queen consort.-Biography:Meretseger appears in sources of the New Kingdom as the wife of Senusret III. According to that she would be the first Egyptian queen consort to bear the title Great Royal Wife, which became the standard title for chief wives of pharaohs... Queen Neferthenut Neferthenut Neferthenut was an Ancient Egyptian queen of the Twelfth Dynasty. She was most likely the wife of Senusret III.Neferthenut was king’s wife, member of the elite and she who sees Horus and Seth. She is so far only known from her sarcophagus and from fragments from the chapel found next to her... Queen Khnemetneferhedjet II Queen Sithathoriunet |
| Amenemhat III Amenemhat III Amenemhat III, also spelled Amenemhet III was a pharaoh of the Twelfth Dynasty of Egypt. He ruled from c.1860 BC to c.1814 BC, the latest known date being found in a papyrus dated to Regnal Year 46, I Akhet 22 of his rule. He is regarded as the greatest monarch of the Middle Kingdom... |
Nimaatre | 1860 BC - 1814 BC | Pyramid at Dahshur Dahshur Dahshur , is a royal necropolis located in the desert on the west bank of the Nile approximately 40 kilometres south of Cairo... |
Queen Aat Aat (queen) Aat was a queen of the ancient Egyptian 12th dynasty. She was the only wife of Amenemhat III whose name is known with certainty.- Tomb :... Queen Hetepi Queen Khenemetneferhedjet III Khenemetneferhedjet III Khenemetneferhedjet III was an Egyptian queen. She was the wife of the Twelfth Dynasty ruler Amenemhet III and was buried in his pyramid at Dahshur. Her name is so far only known from one object, an alabaster vessel found in her burial. She had the titles king's wife, member of the elite and... |
| Amenemhat IV Amenemhat IV Amenemhat IV, or Amenemhet IV was Pharaoh of Egypt, likely ruling between ca. 1815 BC and ca. 1806 BC. He served first as the junior coregent of Amenemhat III and completed the latter's temple at Medinet Maadi, which is "the only intact temple still existing from the Middle Kingdom" according to... |
Maakherure | 1815 BC - 1806 BC | ||
| Queen Sobekneferu Sobekneferu Sobekneferu was an Egyptian pharaoh of the twelfth dynasty. Her name meant "the beauty of Sobek." She was the daughter of Pharaoh Amenemhat III. Manetho states she also was the sister of Amenemhat IV, but this claim is unproven. Sobekneferu had an older sister named Nefruptah who may have been... |
Sobekkare | 1806 BC - 1802 BC |
The chronology of the 12th dynasty is the most stable of any period before the New Kingdom
New Kingdom
The New Kingdom of Egypt, also referred to as the Egyptian Empire is the period in ancient Egyptian history between the 16th century BC and the 11th century BC, covering the Eighteenth, Nineteenth, and Twentieth Dynasties of Egypt....
. The Ramses Papyrus canon (1290 BC) in Turin gives 213 years (1991-1778 BC. Manetho
Manetho
Manetho was an Egyptian historian and priest from Sebennytos who lived during the Ptolemaic era, approximately during the 3rd century BC. Manetho wrote the Aegyptiaca...
stated that it was based in Thebes
Thebes, Egypt
Thebes is the Greek name for a city in Ancient Egypt located about 800 km south of the Mediterranean, on the east bank of the river Nile within the modern city of Luxor. The Theban Necropolis is situated nearby on the west bank of the Nile.-History:...
, but from contemporary records it is clear that the first king moved its capital to a new city named "Amenemhat-itj-tawy" ("Amenemhat the Seizer of the Two Lands"), more simply called Itjtawy
Itjtawy
Itjtawy , is the as-yet unidentified location of the royal city founded by Twelfth Dynasty Egyptian King Amenemhat I during year 20 of his reign. It is located in the Faiyum region, and its cemeteries were located at Lisht, el-Lahun and Dahshur...
. The location of Itjtaway has not been found, but is thought to be near the Fayyum, probably near the royal graveyards at el-Lisht
El-Lisht
Lisht or el-Lisht is an Egyptian village located south of Cairo. It is the site of Middle Kingdom royal and elite burials, including two pyramids built by Amenemhat I and Senusret I. The two main pyramids were surrounded by smaller pyramids of members of the royal family, and many mastaba tombs of...
. Egyptologists consider this dynasty to be the apex of the Middle Kingdom
Middle Kingdom of Egypt
The Middle Kingdom of Egypt is the period in the history of ancient Egypt stretching from the establishment of the Eleventh Dynasty to the end of the Fourteenth Dynasty, between 2055 BC and 1650 BC, although some writers include the Thirteenth and Fourteenth dynasties in the Second Intermediate...
.
The order of its rulers is well known from several sources — two lists recorded at temples in 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...
and one at 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...
, as well as Manetho
Manetho
Manetho was an Egyptian historian and priest from Sebennytos who lived during the Ptolemaic era, approximately during the 3rd century BC. Manetho wrote the Aegyptiaca...
's work. A recorded date during the reign of Senusret III
Senusret III
Khakhaure Senusret III was a pharaoh of Egypt. He ruled from 1878 BC to 1839 BC, and was the fifth monarch of the Twelfth Dynasty of the Middle Kingdom. Among his achievements was the building of the Sisostris Canal...
can be correlated to the Sothic cycle
Sothic cycle
The Sothic cycle or Canicular period is a period of 1,461 ancient Egyptian years or 1,460 Julian years...
, consequently many events during this dynasty are frequently assigned to a year BC
Anno Domini
and Before Christ are designations used to label or number years used with the Julian and Gregorian calendars....
or BCE
Common Era
Common Era ,abbreviated as CE, is an alternative designation for the calendar era originally introduced by Dionysius Exiguus in the 6th century, traditionally identified with Anno Domini .Dates before the year 1 CE are indicated by the usage of BCE, short for Before the Common Era Common Era...
.
Amenemhat I and Senusret I
This dynasty was founded by Amenemhat IAmenemhat I
Amenemhat I, also Amenemhet I, was the first ruler of the Twelfth Dynasty . He ruled from 1991 BC to 1962 BC...
, who may have been 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...
to the last pharaoh
Pharaoh
Pharaoh is a title used in many modern discussions of the ancient Egyptian rulers of all periods. The title originates in the term "pr-aa" which means "great house" and describes the royal palace...
of Dynasty XI, Mentuhotep IV
Mentuhotep IV
Nebtawyre Mentuhotep IV was the last king of the 11th Dynasty. He seems to fit into a 7 year period in the Turin Canon for which there is no recorded king, and is known from a few inscriptions in Wadi Hammamat that record expeditions to the Red Sea coast and to quarry stone for the royal monuments...
. His armies campaigned south as far as the Second Cataract of the Nile and into the Near East, and he reestablished diplomatic relations with Byblos
Byblos
Byblos is the Greek name of the Phoenician city Gebal . It is a Mediterranean city in the Mount Lebanon Governorate of present-day Lebanon under the current Arabic name of Jubayl and was also referred to as Gibelet during the Crusades...
and the rulers in the Aegean Sea
Aegean Sea
The Aegean Sea[p] is an elongated embayment of the Mediterranean Sea located between the southern Balkan and Anatolian peninsulas, i.e., between the mainlands of Greece and Turkey. In the north, it is connected to the Marmara Sea and Black Sea by the Dardanelles and Bosporus...
. His son Senusret I
Senusret I
Senusret I was the second pharaoh of the Twelfth Dynasty of Egypt. He ruled from 1971 BC to 1926 BC, and was one of the most powerful kings of this Dynasty. He was the son of Amenemhat I and his wife Nefertitanen. His wife and sister was Neferu. She was also the mother of the successor Amenemhat II...
followed his father's triumphs with an expedition south to the Third Cataract, but the next rulers were content to live in peace and enjoy the trade and tribute brought to them until the reign of Senusret III.
Senusret II
Finding NubiaNubia
Nubia is a region along the Nile river, which is located in northern Sudan and southern Egypt.There were a number of small Nubian kingdoms throughout the Middle Ages, the last of which collapsed in 1504, when Nubia became divided between Egypt and the Sennar sultanate resulting in the Arabization...
had grown restive under the previous rulers, Senusret sent punitive expeditions into that land; he also sent an expedition into the Levant
Levant
The Levant or ) is the geographic region and culture zone of the "eastern Mediterranean littoral between Anatolia and Egypt" . The Levant includes most of modern Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, Israel, the Palestinian territories, and sometimes parts of Turkey and Iraq, and corresponds roughly to the...
. These military campaigns gave birth to a legend of a mighty warrior named Sesostris
Sesostris
Sesostris was the name of a legendary king of ancient Egypt who led a military expedition into parts of Europe, as related by Herodotus.-Account of Herodotus:...
, a story retold by Manetho, Herodotus
Herodotus
Herodotus was an ancient Greek historian who was born in Halicarnassus, Caria and lived in the 5th century BC . He has been called the "Father of History", and was the first historian known to collect his materials systematically, test their accuracy to a certain extent and arrange them in a...
, and Diodorus Siculus
Diodorus Siculus
Diodorus Siculus was a Greek historian who flourished between 60 and 30 BC. According to Diodorus' own work, he was born at Agyrium in Sicily . With one exception, antiquity affords no further information about Diodorus' life and doings beyond what is to be found in his own work, Bibliotheca...
. This conqueror not only subdued the lands as had Senusret III, but also conquered Asia and had crossed over into Europe to annex Thrace
Thrace
Thrace is a historical and geographic area in southeast Europe. As a geographical concept, Thrace designates a region bounded by the Balkan Mountains on the north, Rhodope Mountains and the Aegean Sea on the south, and by the Black Sea and the Sea of Marmara on the east...
.
Amenemhat III
Senusret's successor Amenemhat IIIAmenemhat III
Amenemhat III, also spelled Amenemhet III was a pharaoh of the Twelfth Dynasty of Egypt. He ruled from c.1860 BC to c.1814 BC, the latest known date being found in a papyrus dated to Regnal Year 46, I Akhet 22 of his rule. He is regarded as the greatest monarch of the Middle Kingdom...
reaffirmed his predecessor's foreign policy. However, after Amenemhat, the energies of this dynasty were largely spent, and the growing troubles of government were left to the dynasty's last ruler, Queen Sobekneferu
Sobekneferu
Sobekneferu was an Egyptian pharaoh of the twelfth dynasty. Her name meant "the beauty of Sobek." She was the daughter of Pharaoh Amenemhat III. Manetho states she also was the sister of Amenemhat IV, but this claim is unproven. Sobekneferu had an older sister named Nefruptah who may have been...
, to resolve. Amenemhat was remembered for the mortuary temple at Hawara
Hawara
Hawara is an archaeological site of Ancient Egypt, south of the site of Crocodilopolis at the entrance to the depression of the Fayyum oasis. The first excavations at the site were made by Karl Lepsius, in 1843...
that he built, known to Herodotus, Diodorus, and Strabo
Strabo
Strabo, also written Strabon was a Greek historian, geographer and philosopher.-Life:Strabo was born to an affluent family from Amaseia in Pontus , a city which he said was situated the approximate equivalent of 75 km from the Black Sea...
as the "Labyrinth
Labyrinth
In Greek mythology, the Labyrinth was an elaborate structure designed and built by the legendary artificer Daedalus for King Minos of Crete at Knossos...
". Also under his reign the marshy Fayyum was first exploited.
Ancient Egyptian literature
It was during the twelfth dynasty that Ancient Egyptian literatureAncient Egyptian literature
Ancient Egyptian literature was written in the Egyptian language from Ancient Egypt's pharaonic period until the end of Roman domination. It represents the oldest corpus of Egyptian literature...
was refined. Perhaps the best known work from this period is The Story of Sinuhe, of which several hundred papyrus
Papyrus
Papyrus is a thick paper-like material produced from the pith of the papyrus plant, Cyperus papyrus, a wetland sedge that was once abundant in the Nile Delta of Egypt....
copies have been recovered. Also written during this dynasty were a number of Didactic works, such as the Instructions of Amenemhat
Instructions of Amenemhat
Instructions of Amenemhat is a short ancient Egyptian poem of the sebayt genre written during the early Middle Kingdom. The poem takes the form of an intensely dramatic monologue delivered by the ghost of the murdered 12th Dynasty pharaoh Amenemhat I to his son Senusret I...
and The Tale of the Eloquent Peasant
The Eloquent Peasant
The Eloquent Peasant is an Ancient Egyptian story about a peasant, Khun-Anup, who stumbles upon the property of the noble Rensi son of Meru, guarded by its harsh overseer, Nemtynakht. It is set in the Ninth/Tenth dynasty around Herakleopolis.-Story Summary:...
.
Pharaohs of Dynasties XII through XVIII
Eighteenth dynasty of Egypt
The eighteenth dynasty of ancient Egypt is perhaps the best known of all the dynasties of ancient Egypt...
are also credited with preserving for us some of the most remarkable Egyptian
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...
papyri
Papyrus
Papyrus is a thick paper-like material produced from the pith of the papyrus plant, Cyperus papyrus, a wetland sedge that was once abundant in the Nile Delta of Egypt....
:
- 1900 BC – Prisse PapyrusPrisse PapyrusThe Prisse Papyrus, dating from the twelfth dynasty Egyptian Middle Kingdom was obtained by the French orientalist Émile Prisse d'Avennes at Thebes in 1856 and is now in the Bibliothèque nationale de France in Paris....
- 1800 BC – Berlin PapyrusTimeline of mathematicsA timeline of pure and applied mathematics history.-Before 1000 BC:* ca. 70,000 BC — South Africa, ochre rocks adorned with scratched geometric patterns.* ca. 35,000 BC to 20,000 BC — Africa and France, earliest known prehistoric attempts to quantify time....
- 1800 BC – Moscow Mathematical PapyrusMoscow Mathematical PapyrusThe Moscow Mathematical Papyrus is an ancient Egyptian mathematical papyrus, also called the Golenishchev Mathematical Papyrus, after its first owner, Egyptologist Vladimir Golenishchev. Golenishchev bought the papyrus in 1892 or 1893 in Thebes...
- 1650 BC – Rhind Mathematical PapyrusRhind Mathematical PapyrusThe Rhind Mathematical Papyrus , is named after Alexander Henry Rhind, a Scottish antiquarian, who purchased the papyrus in 1858 in Luxor, Egypt; it was apparently found during illegal excavations in or near the Ramesseum. It dates to around 1650 BC...
- 1600 BC – Edwin Smith papyrusEdwin Smith papyrusThe Edwin Smith Papyrus is an Ancient Egyptian medical text and the oldest known surgical treatise on trauma. It dates to Dynasties 16-17 of the Second Intermediate Period in Ancient Egypt, ca. 1500 BCE. The Edwin Smith papyrus is unique among the four principal medical papyri in existencethat...
- 1550 BC – Ebers papyrusEbers papyrusThe Ebers Papyrus, also known as Papyrus Ebers, is an Egyptian medical papyrus dating to circa 1550 BC. Among the oldest and most important medical papyri of ancient Egypt, it was purchased at Luxor, in the winter of 1873–74 by Georg Ebers...
See also
- History of Ancient EgyptHistory of Ancient EgyptThe History of Ancient Egypt spans the period from the early predynastic settlements of the northern Nile Valley to the Roman conquest in 30 BC...
- Twelfth dynasty of Egypt Family TreeTwelfth dynasty of Egypt Family TreeAs with most Middle Kingdom, the Twelfth dynasty of Egypt family tree is complex and unclear, with many relationships unclear and obscure.-References:* Grajetzki, Wolfram Ancient Egyptian Queens – a hieroglyphic dictionary...
- Execration TextsExecration TextsExecration texts, also referred to as Proscription Lists, are ancient Egyptian hieratic texts, listing enemies of the Pharaoh, most often enemies of the Egyptian state or troublesome foreign neighbors. The texts were most often written upon statuettes of bound foreigners, bowls, or blocks of clay...