A Story about a Pharaoh and his Architect

   

Stepped Pyramid courtesy of Su
of Egyptian Monuments

     What comes to your mind when you think of Ancient Egypt?  Is it the lavish tombs of the New Kingdom found in the Valley of the Kings? Or is it the jewelry and opulent coffins in which the kings were buried? All of these things should conjure up images in your mind of the beauty and majesty of Egypt that once dominated the Ancient Near East. Of course the pyramids should be atop that list! Well, in the following paragraphs, there are two that set such an elaborate project in the motion. This is the story of a pharaoh and his architect.

Seated Djoser. Notice the positions of his arms
Courtesy of OdyssseyAdventures

     Djoser, or to use his Horus name Netjerikhet, was the first pharaoh of the 3rd dynasty and according to the Turin Canon reigned 19 years. There is some debate, but not much, considering a pharaoh with the name of Nebka about whom we know seldom. According to Egyptologist, Jacques Kinnear, in order to corroborate that Netjerikhet was initially the first pharaoh of the 3rd dynasty and disprove Nebka as the first, we must look to the women of this dynasty. There are three women who associate themselves with not only Netjerikhet's father but himself. The first woman is Queen Nimaathapu and her title was Mother of the King." She was the wife of Khasekhemwy whom the readers may recall was the last pharaoh of the 2nd dynasty and reunified Egypt during its first possible civil war. The second woman is called Hetephernebti whose title was "The One who May Behold Horus." This of course gives the claim that Hetephernebti was the Great Royal Wife of the king and finally there is a the third woman called Inetkawes with her title "Daughter of the King, (Kinnear, 2015)." Now all of these titles are rather easy to discern however these titles do provide Netjerikhet with the evidence to claim the throne. The fly in the ointment though is his successor, Sekhemet. Although their relationship is unknown, his wife even adds more obscurity by never mentioning Netjerikhet in her tombs or wall paintings but there seems to be more evidence for rather than against. His reign seems to be dominated by foreign policy and military excursions for he sent several expeditions in the Sinai to keep a military presence thereby establishing a buffer zone between Egypt and Asia. His ambitious building project however is what Netjerikhet is most remembered. It was he who orchestrated the stone monument known as the Step Pyramid however a man by the name of Imhotep was the tomb's master architect.

Imhotep with Scroll
Courtesy of TimeTrips

   
     If you thought that we knew very little about Netjerikhet, we know even less about Imhotep except that he was in the employ of three or four pharaohs, one of them was the above-mentioned Sekhemet, Netjerikhet's successor. Guenter Risse offers the most information about Imhotep in a particular article entitled, Imhotep and Medicine. According to Risse of the Western Journal of Medicine, Imhotep was the first physician to stand out in antiquity. His humility is what struck Risse stating that Imhotep never bore the name of swnw or physician (Risse 1986). It is also Imhotep who not only was venerated in later centuries but also but Greek mercenaries who equated him to their god Asclepius who was in turn god of medicine. What of his pyramid though? Well, it was customary and imperative for pharaohs to construct tombs in order to secure their place in the afterlife thereby perpetuating the existence of the universe. This was no different with Netjerikhet who undertook the largest stone edifice the world had seen. It was to be the crowning achievement of his kingship. Instead of constructing mastabas like the pyramids of before Imhotep and Netjerikhet conceived a new idea of tomb. The tomb itself is a six layered pyramid with a height of 62 metres or 204 feet. It had courtyards and temples and chapels that covered an area of 40 acres. It was indeed a splendid construct of ingenuity and sheer genius by both Netjerikhet and Imhotep.

     In conclusion, Netjerikhet's 19 year reign is marked by not only military expeditions into the Sinai but the great Step Pyramid itself  truly defined both careers whilst deifying Imhotep in later centuries especially in the Saite Period and Ptolemaic Period when the Greek mercenaries worshipped him as a god of medicine due to his occupation of physician. Netjerikhet and Imhotep were two peas in a pod having thus conceived of an edifice that turned Egypt upside down and launched a campaign of one-up-manship for the next three dynasties thereby ushering in the Age of the Pyramids.

Djoser's Pyramid Complex courtesy of TimeTrips

References

Risse, Guenter. 1986. Medicine in Perspective: Imhotep and Medicine A Re-Evaluation. Western             Journal of Medicine. 

Kinnear, Jacques. 2015. Biography of Horus Netjerikhet. http://www.ancient-egypt.org/history/early-dynastic-period/3rd-dynasty/horus-netjerikhet/biography-of-horus-netjerik.html#previous-photo
   

The Two Powers Appear

   

Khasekhemwy in Limestone courtesy of looklex
encyclopaedia

     Thus far in our journey in Ancient Egypt, we have seen the unification of Upper and Lower Egypt at the hand of Narmer. We have also witnessed the construction of a capital called Memphis strategically situated between Upper and Lower Egypt by Hor-Aha and finally, to which we last eluded, Den who is credited with the reorganization of the Twin Kingdoms into nomes. After a couple more of these phemeral kings, we have now arrived at the end of the First Dynasty. The next few kings are rather obscure, particularly in the Second Dynasty. One built a monument here and another there but in the grand scheme of things, these few kings are simply unknown only with their names found on the Palermo Stone or the Turin King's List. In this endeavour though, it is the goal here to fast-forward a bit to the end of the Second Dynasty with the pharaoh called Khasekhem whose name means, "The Power appears" and focus on the struggle between him and Peribsen.

     Before we can delve into our history of both Khasekhem and Peribsen, it must be noted that in an

Granite Stela of Peribsen courtesy of
the British Museum

earlier blog, the kings of Egypt had their names written in what is called a serekh. You may remember that a serekh is a crest that contains the pharaoh's name with a falcon (Horus) on the top. What is interesting is that with each passing pharaoh, there was always a falcon surmounted on the serekh however with the arrival of Peribsen, whose name means "House of our Heart, his serekh is not surmounted by a falcon but rather a dog which of course is emblematic of Seth. Why would Peribsen replace the falcon with a dog though?
   
     But who was this Peribsen and why was his serekh surmounted with a dog? In order to find these answers, it behooves us to delve into obscurity so to speak. According to Toby Wilkinson of the Rise and Fall of Ancient Egypt, Peribsen  was either the 4th or the 6th king to rule in Egypt's Second Dynasty. This decision depends however on one's view of the two pharaohs between our main characters though. It is believed that these two pharaohs are ephemeral that is to say they did not exist for two reasons. One is that we have never found their tombs and secondly there names have not be found anywhere else that is to say on broken pottery shards or vessels. Continuing our narrative though, Wilkinson puts forth the suggestion that the written records point to some sort of turmoil during the Second Dynasty

Mudbrick Fort courtesy of looklex

between the followers of Horus and the followers of Seth. Of course, whilst all of Peribsen's predecessors having chosen Horus atop their serekhs, it is shocking and offensive  to find that Peribsen chose Seth atop his serekh. One can imagine the chaos and violence that must have ensued!

     With this turmoil as Wilkinson suggests, came the rise of Khasekhem who, like Peribsen, is from Upper Egypt. He particularly loved the city of Nekhen because he lavished the city with statues and shrines throughout the city. It is in Nekhen, interestingly, where stands the oldest still-standing fort made of mud brick. It must be noted here that Nekhen was also the centre of the worship of Horus as well. Khasekhem became a rather important figure at this juncture of Ancient Egyptian history because without him, the monarchy would have dissolved thereby eliminating one of history's greatest civilisations. Archaeologists have unearthed two life-sized statues whose bases are inscribed with not his titles but also scenes of the dead which hint at an offensive in Lower Egypt. Stone vessels found near the statues also corroborate his victory over Lower Egypt as well. An inscription reads, "The year of fighting the northern enemy." One can also see the vulture goddess Nekhbet standing on a ring with the word, 'rebel.' It shouldn't surprise the reader what this means.

Serekh of Khasekhemwy with both Horus and Seth atop
courtesy of Wkimedia.

     After his reunification of Upper and Lower Egypt, Khasekhem changed his name to Khasemkhemwy which means, "The Two Powers Appear." He joined both the Horus falcon and the Seth dog atop his serekh thereby ushering in unity and peace throughout the country. Trade began to flourish with the Near East and finally the wealth of Egypt increased once more.

     In conclusion, the struggle between the followers of Horus and Seth seemed to strengthen Egypt after the reunification, it did usher in wealth and power once more for the monarchy. With the combination or consolidation of power and the joining of Horus and Seth in the serekh, Khasekhemwy gained unprecedented power and renown from both the followers of Horus and Seth. He reunified Upper and Lower Egypt, reestablished trade with the Near East and strengthened Egypt. He ended the Second dynasty and left Egypt with wealth and power which left the next king and dynasty in a most advantageous position. Enter Djoser!

References

Wilkinson, Toby. 2012. Rise and Fall of Ancient Egypt.

Perry, Dominic. 2015. Ancient Egyptian Podcast. Horus Takes Flight II The War between Horus and      Seth.