Chasechemui

Name of Chasechemui
Limestone seated statue of Chasechemui in the Ashmolean Museum in Oxford (detail)
Horus name	Chai- sixem Ḫˁj-sḫm crowned as power Chai-Sechemui Ḫˁj-sḫm.wj When the two powers are crowned .
Horus Seth name (see  Horus name )	(Hor Seth) Chaisechemui hetep netscherui (netjerui) imef (Ḥr -Stẖ) ḫˁj sḫm.wj ḫtp nṯrwj jm = f The two powers appear in which the ancestors rest in him (= the king)
Sideline	Nebti-chai-sixemui-nebu-chet-sen Nb.tj-ḫˁj-sḫm.wj-nbw-ḫt-sn Coronation of the powers of the two mistresses, their body is of gold
Royal Papyrus Turin (No. III./3)	Bebeti Bbtj (with the name ideogram for a king who represents the Horus falcon)
List of Kings of Abydos (Seti I) (No.14)	Djadjai Ḏ3ḏ3y
List of Kings of Saqqara (No.11)	Bebi Bby
Greek Manetho variants:	Africanus : Cheneres Eusebius : missing Eusebius, AV : missing

Chasechemui (actually in full: Hor-cha-Sechemui ) was the Horus name of the last ancient Egyptian king ( Pharaoh ) of the 2nd Dynasty ( early Dynasty ), who lived until around 2740 BC. Ruled.

The unification of Upper and Lower Egypt under Chasechemui, after a period of political unrest that showed similarities to Narmer and Scorpio II , laid the foundation for a stable period of the Old Kingdom that lasted over 500 years . The reign of Chasechemui is therefore of particular interest to Egyptology .

supporting documents

Chasechem or later Chasechemui is well attested. Many well-known objects come from Hierakonpolis . Below is a granite door that was found in the city's temple area. There were three stone vessels with an identical victory inscription and two statues with additional victory inscriptions on the base. There is also a fragment of a stele .

The ruler owned a monumental grave in Abydos , where the ruler's enclosure was also found. A second enclosure of the ruler still stands in Hierakonpolis and can be assigned to the ruler on the basis of inscribed, stone door fragments. Next to it his name appears on a fragment of a vessel from Byblos , a block with his name comes from Elkab . Further inscriptions of the ruler's name were found in a private grave in Saqqara and in the Djoser pyramid. Several years of reign of the ruler are preserved on the Palermostein .

Name and identity

Cartouche No. 14 of the list of kings of Abydos with the name "Djadjai"

A striking number of name variants are known of “Hor-cha-sixemui”, most of which were written in a serech : the symbolic palace facade on which the Horus falcon is enthroned. There are two main versions of the name: "Cha-sixem" and "Cha-sixemui". It is believed that before his victory over Lower Egypt he still bore the name "Cha-Sechem", which he expanded to "Hor-cha-Sechemui" after the submission. In fact, it is only attested as “Hor-cha-sixem” in Upper Egypt, in Hierakonpolis. The background to the addition of the Horus name is documented , for example, in the entry of the 14th year after the subjugation of Lower Egypt, which reflected the old idea of ​​the kings that in the Old Kingdom they still had two separate royal titles for the regions of Upper and Lower Egypt and symbolically through the Unification festival until the death of the king received the legitimation for supremacy over the entire country.

Most unusual, however, is the so-called “peace name” (Horus-Seth-Name) of Chasechemui: Chasechemui-Netjeruhetepimef (“ Appearance of the two powers, in which the ancestors rest in him ”). This name was added to the actual Horus name as a programmatic epithet in Serech. However, the peace name is not introduced by a single Horus falcon, as usual, but the gods Horus and Seth are enthroned together on the palace facade in the extended version of the name and seem to "kiss" each other. This type of name presentation was intended to celebrate Chasechemui as a great unifier of the empire and to connect him with those ancestral rulers who had once ruled over a united empire.

Another name that is the subject of intensive research appears in the Turin Royal Papyrus and in the King's List of Saqqara . What is meant is the cartridge name Bebeti . Leading Egyptologists are certain that this name is a misinterpretation of Ramessid scribes who tried to determine the original name of the Chasechemui. Something similar is likely to have happened with the cartouche name Djadjai from the list of kings of Abydos .

According to the Egyptologist Wolfgang Helck , Chasechemui's personal name could have been Besch , as this name appears on several breccia vessels , where it appears in a Schen ring , the forerunner to the later royal cartouche. Other Egyptologists such as B. Walter Bryan Emery contradict this decidedly, since the word "Besch" actually means " rebel " or " rebel " and probably refers more to the defeated principalities.

Origin and family

One can only speculate about the paternity of the Chasechemui. A relationship to his predecessors Peribsen and Sechemib is very likely according to Wolfgang Helck, since Peribsen and Chasechemui turned to the royal cemetery of Abydos when choosing their burial site and apparently also did not have a second grave in Saqqara . Therefore, a common origin of the two rulers Peribsen and Chasechemui from the Abydenian principality of Kom Ombo can be assumed.

An outdated thesis says that Chasechemui was identical to Peribsen. Against this, however, speaks that both rulers dug their own graves in Abydos. They also both built their own forts and temples.

Chasechemui was married to Queen Nimaat-Hapi , who may have come from Lower Egypt. Her name is called Apis (Hapi), who is revered in Memphis. She was the mother of the heir to the throne Djoser . It is likely that Chasechemui had other sons, but Egyptologists disagree about their identities.

Reign

El-Kab (Clipped) Hierakonpolis Saqqara Umm el-Qaab

Sites of evidence of the Chasechemui

Stone vase with the throne name of Chasechemui

The peace name of Chasechemui led many Egyptologists to assume that Chasechemui fought and defeated his predecessor Peribsen because of his turn to Seth. This thesis was apparently supported by inscriptions on the two stone statues that tell of great unrest and wars. Today, this thesis is no longer upheld: On the one hand, the fact that both rulers were buried by Chasechemui's predecessor, King Sechemib , before Chasechemui himself came to power, speaks against a fight between Peribsen and Chasechemui could come.

The already mentioned inscriptions on statues and vessels also report that at the time of Chasechemuis' seizure of power there were violent civil wars in the Lower Egyptian Nile Delta , and only there. The Egyptologists Nicolas Grimal and Jochem Kahl suspect that the lower Egyptian princes refused to accept and support Chasechemui's plans for reunification, since they did not want to give up the independence they had gained with the division of the empire under Ninetjer without further ado. But Chasechemui must have insisted on his political plans. To achieve his goals, Chasechemui took military action against the lower Egyptian princes and triumphed.

After Chasechemuis subjugation of Lower Egypt, he donated several victory monuments in the then capital Hierakonpolis for the "sky and crown goddess" of Nechen , Nechbet . With these foundations he referred to the tradition of the earlier kings Scorpio II and Narmer. According to the inscriptions of Chaechemui, the "unification of the empire" is said to have been accomplished by the goddess Nechbet, which is why Chasechemui took up the old traditions and celebrated the festival of unification .

In a note, Chasechemui gave the year of submission the name "Year of the fight and the defeat of Lower Egypt". In addition, he named "47,209 slain rebels" whom he had killed during his campaigns. On the Palermostein , at least column 4, the last seven years of the ruler are preserved. Assuming that the cattle counts took place every two years and the Sokar festival in connection with the tribute receipts every six years, the government chronicle could be reconstructed.

Memphis therefore had to pay tribute until at least the 18th year since the subjugation of Lower Egypt. The - presumably forced - marriage to the Lower Egyptian princess Nimaathapi sealed Chasechemui's triumph. Several relief fragments come from Hierakonpolis, where the seated statues were also found , which show Chasechemui when celebrating the Sedfest .

Since Sedfests are also known in connection with the Unification Festival, a thirty-year reign cannot automatically be derived from the Sedfest representations. An important source for his reign is the Palermostein (the fragment of an annal stone). It has been preserved there for seven years. The entries are:

year	Events
13th year (x + 1)	Escort of horus ; 6th time count
14th year (x + 2)	Appearance of the King of Upper Egypt, Appearance of the King of Lower Egypt; Erected in stone by Men-netjeret ("The Goddess Endures ")
15th year (x + 3)	Escort of horus; 7th time of the count
16th year (x + 4)	Creating a statue high is Chasechemui made of copper (?)
17th year (x + 5)	Escort of horus; 8th time of the count, gold and fields
18th year (x + 6)	4th time of bringing the walls of Dua-Djefa (tribute); shipbuilding
19th year (x + 7)	Day of death: 23rd or 25th of Achet II

Despite the information on the stone, it is uncertain how long Chasechemui actually ruled. His reign as King Hor-Chasechem of Upper Egypt is only recorded for the year before the subjugation of Lower Egypt. Adding the cattle counts results in a total reign of at least 20 years; the Turin royal papyrus certifies him 27 years, 2 months and 1 day. He is also said to have been a little over 40 years old.

Grave complex

The necropolis of Umm el-Qaab with the tomb of Chasechemui (V)

The tomb of Chasechemui in its current state

The Chasechemui (Schunet el-Zebib) valley district in Abydos

At Abydos , the grave of the ruler place in Umm el-Qa'ab . Its valley district is closer to the edge of the fruit and is now called Schunet-el-Zebib by the locals . The main wall of the valley district, 5.35 m thick, measures 123 m × 64 m on the outside and is surrounded by a second, thin outer wall. The main wall is divided on three sides by simple niches, only towards the Nile is a multi-level niche accompanied by a group of three simple niches. The wall fronts are broken through by door openings. There was a small 18.3 x 15.5 m building near the eastern corner. This complex is possibly the forerunner of a burial temple complex, as it (his son?) Djoser built with the Djoser pyramid complex in the 3rd dynasty . Inside, the building consists of small chambers with angled entrances.

The grave itself is located in a pit measuring 69 m × 12.2 m with 54 storage rooms. The burial chamber in the center is 1.98 m deep; The walls and floor are clad with limestone blocks. In addition, Günter Dreyer refers to the seal impressions of the Sechemib from the grave of Chasechemui, which were found north of the burial chamber in Umm el-Qaab in rooms 31 to 33. On the seals the name Sechem [..] - Perien - [....] is preserved in fragments, which can easily be added to Sechemib-perien-maat.

Rainer Stadelmann suspects a lower Egyptian second grave of Chasechemui, which was usurped by his successor , in the western massifs of the Djoser complex in Saqqara . This view is not generally accepted, as grave suurpations are not known in the Old Kingdom . The stone enclosure of Gisr el-Mudir in Saqqara is also attributed to Chasechemui by some researchers, because on the one hand the dating to the end of the 2nd dynasty is consistent and on the other hand there is evidence of a stone structure Chasechemuis called Men-Netjeret on the Palermo stone. An archaeological confirmation of this assignment is still pending.

The south-eastern walls of chambers V 56/58 were completely dismantled during the Middle Kingdom after they were exposed. However, the entrance area was rebuilt with bricks during the Middle Kingdom, as the still existing cult activity was apparently limited to the northernmost chambers of the grave. Excavation reports also revealed that the corridor between chambers V 55/57 and V 56/58 must have been roofed over. In the meantime, the complex was the target of grave robbers who probably entered through the east wall of chamber V 56.

The corridor was initially easy to the south, then rose more sharply between the entrance cheeks of V 57/58 and finally turned into an approximately 28 m long ramp that led to the edge of the grave pit. In addition, a false door was discovered as an exit to the underworld, which was already present in graves of the 1st Dynasty . In the exit area of ​​the ramp there were numerous offering bowls on the desert floor. Based on this finding, the exit of the grave must also have been visible in the late period . The conspicuous expansion of the tomb to the south suggests that the tomb should initially be extended further south. When the king died, the complex could no longer be expanded as intended due to lack of time, which is why only the four narrow chambers V 52-56 in the south were added.

Special finds

Statues

Two seated statues made of diorite and polished sandstone come from Hierakonpolis . The rebellion in the Nile Delta is depicted on their pedestals. The find of two steles made of polished sandstone also comes from Hierakonpolis. On them you can see the Pharaoh's Serech, who, however, presents the names of Seth and Horus together. On the serech, Horus and Seth are shown in a kissing pose. Chasechemui wanted to show the equality of the gods Horus and Seth and achieve a final unification of Upper and Lower Egypt.

Vessels

In the grave of Chasechemui there were still relatively many grave goods, including vessels made of breccia and sandstone , the edges of which were coated with gold. The use of gold as a decoration for grave goods is archaeologically verifiable for the first time under Chasechemui. Particularly noteworthy, however, are some bronze vessels from Chasechemui's tomb, which have been surprisingly well preserved despite their age. They are evidence of the early beginning of the Egyptian bronze era, which lasted until around 1360 BC. Lasted.

What is unusual is the high number of beer pots compared to just a dozen wine pots, which were thousands of liters with the predecessors and represented a comparatively small amount here. In addition, there were bread forms as well as strip bowls, red sacrificial bowls, bent-rim bowls, sacrificial stands, miniature vessels and so-called Nemset vessels, which were used in cult to pour water.

In addition, vessel inscriptions were discovered which show the names of the high officials Maapermin and Inichnum and which, due to the black ink inscription, are dated to the time of the predecessor king Sechemib to King Djoser ( 3rd dynasty ).

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  Breccia vessel

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  Sandstone vessel

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  Bronze vessels from Chasechemuis' burial precinct

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  Limestone seated statue of Chasechemui in the Ashmolean Museum in Oxford

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  Statue of Chasechemui; Egyptian Museum , Cairo

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  Fragment of a stone vase with victory inscription

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  Granite block with the name of Chasechemui, Hierakonpolis

Later reception

Chasechemui is probably followed by Pharaoh Djoser on the Palermostein, although the latter's name has not survived. In later lists of kings Nebka is named as the successor, so that for a long time he was regarded as the successor to Chasechemui. In the grave of Chasechemui in Abydos, however, there were unrolled seals of Djoser, which prove that Djoser prepared the burial and was thus the successor. The later king lists are obviously wrong in the case of Nebka. Another fragment of the Palermo stone is in the Petrie Museum in London and has meanwhile been assigned to the Chasechemui register.

In the Middle or New Kingdom , a cult statue of Chasechemui could possibly have been placed in the temple of Karnak . According to Georges Legrain , a statue was found there in 1899 that may have been dedicated to the memory of this king. However, a publication of the find is still missing today.

It is uncertain whether the ancient chronicler Manetho Chasechemui really considered in his lists. Although the pretenders Sesochris and Cheneres appearing at Manetho are generally equated with Chasechemui, it is unclear where Manetho got his name from. Phonemic matches have so far not produced any matches.

literature

• Jürgen von Beckerath : Chronology of the pharaonic Egypt. The timing of Egyptian history from prehistoric times to 332 BC BC (= Munich Egyptological Studies. Vol. 46). von Zabern, Mainz 1997, ISBN 3-8053-2310-7 .
• Jürgen von Beckerath: Handbook of the Egyptian king names (= Munich Egyptological studies. Vol. 20). Deutscher Kunstverlag, Munich a. a. 1984, ISBN 3-422-00832-2 .
• Peter A. Clayton: The Pharaohs. Bechtermünz, Augsburg 1998, ISBN 3-8289-0661-3 .
• Walter B. Emery : Egypt, History and Culture of the Early Period, 3200–2800 BC Chr. Fourier, Wiesbaden 1980, ISBN 3-921695-39-2 .
• Martin von Falck, Susanne Martinssen-von Falck: The great pharaohs. From the early days to the Middle Kingdom. Marix, Wiesbaden 2015, ISBN 978-3737409766 , pp. 62-67.
• RA El-Farag: A Stela of Khasekhemui from Abydos. In: Communications from the German Archaeological Institute, Cairo Department (MDAIK). 36, 1986, ISSN  0342-1279 , pp. 77-80.
• Alan Gardiner : History of Ancient Egypt. Weltbild, Augsburg 1994, ISBN 3-89350-723-X .
• Nicolas Grimal : A History of Ancient Egypt. Blackwell Publishing, Oxford et al. a. 1992, ISBN 0-631-19396-0 .
• Wolfgang Helck : Investigations on the thinite period (= Egyptological treatises. Vol. 45). Harrassowitz, Wiesbaden 1987, ISBN 3-447-02677-4 .
• Jochem Kahl : Inscriptional Evidence for the Relative Chronology of Dyns. 0-2. In: Erik Hornung , Rolf Krauss , David A. Warburton (eds.): Ancient Egyptian Chronology (= Handbook of Oriental Studies. Section 1: The Near and Middle East. Vol. 83). Brill, Leiden u. a. 2006, ISBN 90-04-11385-1 , pp. 94-115 ( online ).
• Peter Kaplony : Inscriptions of the early Egyptian period (= Egyptological treatises. Vol. 8). Volume 3. Harrassowitz, Wiesbaden 1963, ISBN 3-447-00052-X .
• Peter Kaplony: Chasechemui. In: Wolfgang Helck, Eberhard Otto (Hrsg.): Lexikon der Ägyptologie. Volume 1: A - Harvest. Harrassowitz, Wiesbaden 1975, ISBN 3-447-01670-1 , Sp. 910-912.
• Flinders Petrie : Tombs of the Courtiers and Oxyrhynkos (= British School of Archeology in Egypt and Egyptian Research Account. 1922, 28, ZDB -ID 423806-0 = Publications of the British School of Archeology in Egypt. Vol. 37). British School of Archeology in Egypt a. a., London 1925, p. 18.
• JE Quibell : Hierakonpolis. Volume 1: Plates of discoveries in 1898 (= Egyptian Research Account. 4, ZDB -ID 423805-9 ). Volume 1. Quaritch, London 1900, plate 38, ( online (PDF; 4.7 MB) ).
• Silke Roth: The royal mothers of ancient Egypt. From the early period to the end of the 12th Dynasty (= Egypt and Old Testament. 46). Harrassowitz, Wiesbaden 2001, ISBN 3-447-04368-7 (also: Mainz, Univ., Diss., 1997).
• Hermann A. Schlögl : Ancient Egypt. History and culture from the early days to Cleopatra. Beck, Munich 2006, ISBN 3-406-54988-8 .
• Thomas Schneider : Lexicon of the Pharaohs. Albatros, Düsseldorf 2002, ISBN 3-491-96053-3 .
• Rainer Stadelmann : The Egyptian pyramids. From brick construction to the wonder of the world (= cultural history of the ancient world . Vol. 30). 3rd updated and expanded edition. von Zabern, Mainz 1997, ISBN 3-8053-1142-7 .
• Dietrich Wildung : The role of Egyptian kings in the consciousness of their posterity. Volume 1: Posthumous sources on the kings of the first four dynasties (= Munich Egyptological Studies. Vol. 17, ZDB -ID 500317-9 ). Hessling, Berlin 1969 (at the same time: Munich, Univ., Diss.).
• Toby AH Wilkinson: Early Dynastic Egypt. Routledge, London a. a. 1999, ISBN 0-415-18633-1 .

Web links

Commons : Chasechemui  - collection of images, videos and audio files

• Chasechemui on Digital Egypt
• The Ancient Egypt Site

Remarks

1. ↑ Term of office 30 years.

Individual evidence

1. ↑ ^{a b c d e f} Siegfried Schott: Ancient Egyptian festival dates . Verlag der Akademie der Wissenschaften und der Literatur, Mainz / Wiesbaden 1950, p. 51.
2. ↑ ^{a b c} Transcription after Jürgen von Beckerath: Handbook of Egyptian King Names (= Münchner Ägyptologische Studien. Vol. 49). von Zabern, Mainz 1999, ISBN 3-8053-2591-6 .
3. ↑ ^{a b} Wolfgang Helck: Investigations on the thinite age . P. 118.
4. ^ Alan H. Gardiner: The royal canon of Turin . Plate 2.
5. ↑ ^{a b} Transliteration after Jürgen von Beckerath: Handbuch der Ägyptischen Könignames (= Munich Egyptological Studies. Vol. 49). von Zabern, Mainz 1999, ISBN 3-8053-2591-6 .
6. ^ Thomas Schneider: Lexicon of the Pharaohs . P. 314.
7. ↑ ^{a b c d} Siegfried Schott: Ancient Egyptian festival dates. Publishing house of the Academy of Sciences and Literature, Mainz / Wiesbaden 1950, p. 59.
8. ↑ Quibell: Hierakonpolis. Plate II
9. ↑ Quibell: Hierakonpolis. Plate XXXVI-VIII
10. ↑ Quibell: Hierakonpolis. Plate XXXIX-XL
11. ↑ Emery: Egypt. P. 111, fig. 64
12. ↑ Walter Bryan Emery: Egypt - History and Culture of the Early Period . P. 110.
13. ^ Francesco Raffaele: The second dynasty
14. ↑ Silke Roth: The royal mothers of ancient Egypt from the early days to the end of the 12th dynasty . Pp. 59-67.
15. ↑ Francesco Raffaele: Khasekhemwy
16. ↑ James-Edward Quibell: Hierakonpolis, Part 1: Plates of discoveries in 1898 . LTR-Verlag, Starnberg 1988 (Reprint edition 1900), plates 39 and 41.
17. ^ Nicolas Grimal: A History of Ancient Egypt . P. 57.
18. ^ Heinrich Schäfer : A fragment of ancient Egyptian annals (= treatises of the Royal Prussian Academy of Sciences. Appendix: treatises not belonging to the academy scholars. Philosophical and historical treatises. 1902, 1, ZDB -ID 221471-4 ). Publishing house of the Royal Academy of Sciences, Berlin 1902, pp. 26-27, online .
19. ^ Siegfried Schott: Ancient Egyptian festival dates. Verlag der Akademie der Wissenschaften und der Literatur, Mainz / Wiesbaden 1950, p. 54.
20. ↑ Jacques Kinnaer (Instituut Voor Orientalistiek, Leuven): Turin Kinglist ( Memento of the original of June 13, 2010 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link has been inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. 
21. ↑ Günter Dreyer: Sechemib (= communications from the German Archaeological Institute, Cairo Department, Vol. 59) German Archaeological Institute, Orient Department (ed.), De Gruyter, Berlin 2003, p. 115.
22. ^ Rainer Stadelmann: The Egyptian pyramids. From brick construction to the wonder of the world. von Zabern, Mainz 1997, p. 37 ff
23. ↑ Francesco Raffaele: Saqqara - Early Dynastic monuments (Dynasties 1-3)
24. ↑ Journal of Egyptian Archeology No. 83, 1997, pp. 36, 38ff., 53
25. ^ Wilkinson: Early Dynastic Egypt . Pp. 91-95; Wildung: role of Egyptian kings . Pp. 52-53
26. ↑ AJ Spencer. Early Dynastic Objects. Catalog of Egyptian Antiquities in the British Museum . London 1980, p. 88
27. ^ Ilona Regulski: Second dynasty ink inscriptions from Saqqara paralleled in the Abydos material from the Royal Museums of Art and History in Brussels. In: Stan Hendrickx, RF Friedman, Barbara Adams, KM Cialowicz: Egypt at its origins. Studies in memory of Barbara Adams. Proceedings of the international conference "Origin of the State, Predynastic and Early Dynastic Egypt", Kraków, August 28th - September 1st, 2002 (= Orientalia Lovaniensia analecta. Vol. 138). Peeters Publishers, Leuven (NL) 2004, ISBN 90-429-1469-6 , p. 953 ( PDF file; 196 kB ).
28. ↑ Georges Legrain: Notes prises à Karnak. In: Recueil de travaux relatifs à la philologie et à l'archéologie égyptiennes et assyriennes. Volume 26, 1904, p. 221 ( online ).
29. ↑ Dietrich Wildung: The role of Egyptian kings in the consciousness of their posterity. Part I. Posthumous sources on the kings of the first four dynasties. Berlin 1969, p. 53.

predecessor	Office	successor
Hudjefa I. ? Sechemib ?	King of Egypt 2nd Dynasty (end)	Nebka ? Djoser ?