Beni Hasan

This article deals with the central Egyptian necropolis of Beni Hasan, for the group of Arab tribes see Bani Hassan (Jordan) and Bani Hassan (Mauritania) .

Entrance area of ​​a rock tomb in Beni Hasan
(picture by David Roberts , 1838)

Coordinates: 27 ° 56 ′  N , 30 ° 53 ′  E Beni Hasan ( Arabic بني حسن Banī Ḥasan  'tribe of Ḥasan') is the name of two localities in Middle Egypt , which are about 20 kilometers south of al-Minya on the east bank of the Nile : the inhabited place Beni Hasan asch-shuruq ("the eastern one") and the one uninhabited today Place Beni Hasan al-qadim ("the old one"). In the area of ​​Beni Hasan al-qadim there are necropolis from almost all ancient Egyptian epochs .

Buildings

The 39 rock graves of Beni Hasan from the First Intermediate Period and the Middle Kingdom , in which the princes of the " Gazellengau " were buried, are particularly well known . In the graves there are paintings with scenes from craftsmen and wrestlers. About five kilometers south of the rock tombs is the Speos Artemidos temple , which Hatshepsut had built here for the lion goddess Pachet . There is also a cat cemetery and a late necropolis near the temple.

Grave owner

The grave owners are known of 12 of the 39 upper rock graves. In chronological order these are:

• BH 13 - Khnumhotep, Royal Clerk of the 10th Dynasty (closed).
• BH 29 - Baket I , Nomarch of the 11th Dynasty (closed)
• BH 33 - Baket II. , Nomarch of the 11th Dynasty (closed).
• BH 27 - Ramuschenti , nomarch of the 11th dynasty (closed).
• BH 15 - Baket III. (accessible).
• BH 17 - Chety, nomarch of the 11th dynasty, son of Baket (accessible).
• BH 14 -  Chnumhotep I , Nomarch under Amenemhet I (closed).
• BH 21 - Nakht, Nomarch of the 12th Dynasty (closed).
• BH 2 -  Amenemhet (Gaufürst) , Nomarch under Sesostris I (accessible).
• BH 3 -  Chnumhotep II. , (Accessible).
• BH 23 - Netjernacht , head of the east desert of the 12th Dynasty (closed).
• BH 4 - Chnumhotep IV, nomarch of the late 12th Dynasty (closed).

literature

• Adelheid Burkhardt: Beni Hasan. In: Joachim Herrmann (Ed.): Lexicon of early cultures . Volume 1: A - L. Bibliographisches Institut, Leipzig 1984, p. 124.
• Percy E. Newberry , Francis Ll. Griffith , Howard Carter : Beni Hasan. 4 volumes. Egypt Exploration Fund, London 1893-1900.
• Abdel Ghaffar Shedid: The rock graves of Beni Hassan in Middle Egypt (= Zabern's illustrated books on archeology . Vol. 16). von Zabern, Mainz 1994, ISBN 3-8053-1532-5 .
• Rosanna Pirelli: Beni Hassan. In: Kathryn A. Bard (Ed.): Encyclopedia of the Archeology of Ancient Egypt. Routledge, London 1999, ISBN 0-415-18589-0 , pp. 169-170.

Web links

Commons : Beni Hassan  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Wikivoyage: Benī Ḥasan  - travel guide

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Speos Artemidos / Beni Hassan (2009)
2. ↑ Hatshepsut's Inscription on the Hyksos ( Memento of the original from February 8, 2017 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.