Herakleopolis Magna

Heracleopolis Magna

Herakleopolis Magna, a site south of Meidum at the entrance to the Faiyum, now Ihnasiyah el-Medineh, originally called Nen-nesut, Nenen-nesut, or Ninsu by the Egyptians, Herakleopolis was the capital of the twentieth nome of Upper Egypt and the cult center for Harsaphes (Her-shef). 

Herakleopolis dominion has been named that figure in telling to the Greek idol hero "Herakles" who Greeks paired with the main region idol "Hershef" or "Hersphes" which represents the head of a drive. Most of the region is located on the island between the Nile and Bahr Youssef, and bounded on the north by  Arsinoite dominion, and Oxyrhynchites from the south and  it  match  Herakleopolis  region  with  current  Beni  Suef province, and even beyond. This region has a great grandness since  prehistoric  times;  through  private  historic  ages  when  it became  the  capital  Herakleopolis  Magna  "Ehnasya"  is  the political capital of the country in the "Ehnasya age" during the epoch of the two families ninth and tenth, and continued until the Graeco-Romans time.

Ruined columns at
Herakleopolis Magna

The  place  was  occupied  as  early  as  the  1st Dynasty (2920–2770 B.C.E.) but rose to prominence in the First  Intermediate  Period  (2134–2040  B.C.E.).  The  name Herakleopolis Magna was added upon the site by the swayer of the Ptolemaic Period (304–30 B.C.E.). In the First Intermediate  Period,  Herakleopolis  was  the  home  of  the Khety (Aktoy)  clan.  During  the  Khety  period  of  rule (2134–2040  B.C.E.),  a  canal  linked  Herakleopolis  Magna to  Memphis.  Montuhotep  II  rounded  the  site  in  2040 B.C.E. when he started his campaign to reunify Egypt.

Harsaphes's temple,  a  ram-headed  deity,  was restored  at  Herakleopolis  Magna  by  Ramses II (1290–1224 B.C.E.). A granite triad of Ramses II, Ptah, and Harsaphes was also erected in Herakleopolis Magna. An  Old  Kingdom  (2575–2134  B.C.E.)  enshrine  and  a necropolis, Gebel El-Sidmant, are on the site.

Hawara

Pyramid of Amenemhat III at Hawara

Hawara  was  a  royal  necropolis  in  the  south area  of  the  Faiyum used  by  the Dynasty 12.  The pyramidal  complex  of  Amenemhet III (1844–1797 B.C.E.), a monument named the Labyrinth that served as the mortuary temple of the pyramid, was raised on the site.  The  temple  reportedly  contained  3000  chambers related by ranging passages, shafts, and corridors on subterranean  levels.  The  burial  chamber  was  designed out of a single part of quartzite, estimated by Herodotus in Egypt c. 450 B.C.E., as weighing different tons.

The  Labyrinth  had  twelve  covered  courts,  facing  south and north. Herodotus toured the upper and lower levels and named the complex. All of the walls were decorated with reliefs, and white marble columns were used throughout. No causeway or valley temple was erected. Sobekneferu (1787–1783  B.C.E.),  a  manageable  daughter  of Amenemhet  III,  completed  the  pyramid  for  her  father. Little rests of the structure. A nearby necropolis contained wax portraits and tombs dating to the later Greco-Roman Periods.

Hawara is the place of the massive pyramid of Amenemhat III, a twelve Dynasty (Middle Kingdom, 1204–1604 B.C.E.) pharaoh. The complex  was  knew in ancient times for its great labyrinth, a temple complex peripheral the pyramid, described by ancient travelers as a vast, obscure maze of streets and buildings.  According to legend, it inspired Dedalus  to create the labyrinth of Crete.  Among other things, the Hawara labyrinth was the location of a temple to Sobek, the feared  local crocodile deity.  

Hawara was also a necropolis – nowadays famous for its strikingly realistic funerary portraits.  Funerals were apparently a major business in Hawara, and most of the people involved in the takes in this case were connected to this industry.  Calling themselves “god’s sealants and embalmers,” they owned parts in the necropolis  of Hawara and nearby burial grounds, these parts were, in fact, transferable, just like real property.

El-Lahun (Kahun)

cartouche of Senusret II,
beside the pyramid of
Senusret II

A community structure at El-Lahun, started by Senwosret II (1897–1878  B.C.E.)  of  the Dynasty 12 (1991–1783 B.C.E.), Kahun was the abode of the workers  and  artisans  involved  in  royal  mortuary  monuments.  The  site  was  involved  by  a  gated  mud-brick wall and widespread into three residential areas. A temple of Anubis was also found on the site, and a cache of varied papyri was  discovered  in  the  temple. Named  Hotep-Senwosret, “Senwosret Is Satisfied,” and placed at the opening of the Faiyum, the site is known for a cache of jewelry discovered  in  the  tombs  of  Princess  (or  perhaps  queen) Sithathor Yunet and  other  family  members  sunk  in  the complex.

The place was divided into 3 sections, including a necropolis area for nobles and officials and a residential area on the eastern and on the west. Vast garners served the entire region. The treasury of papyri at Kahun disciplined hundreds of texts concerning legal matters, literature,  mathematics,  medicine,  temple  affairs,  and  vet  information.  The  site  was  abandoned  abruptly in a afterwards historical period, perhaps as a result of an quake or some other natural disaster.

El-Lisht

Pyramid of Amenemhet I at El-Lisht

Lisht or El-Lisht is an Egyptian village placed 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 extremities of the royal family, and many mastaba graves of high officials and their family members. They were constructed throughout the Twelfth and Thirteenth Dynasties. The site is likewise known for the tomb of Senebtisi, found carefree and from which a set of jewelry has been recovered. The pyramid complex of Senusret I is the best preserved from this period. The coffins in the grave of Sesenebnef present the earliest versions of the Book of the Dead.

The ancient Egyptian site of el-Lisht can be base on the west bank of the Nile River, around 65 km south of the city of Cairo. It is a Twelfth Dynasty necropolis, close to the metropolis of Itj-Tawy.

The Eleventh Dynasty’s capital was located at the city of Thebes. The first king of the Twelfth Dynasty, Amenemhet I, went the capital from Thebes to a city close el-Lisht called Itj-tawy, because it was close to the mouth of the Fayyum, and well placed to control the 'Two Lands' of Upper and Lower Egypt.Another motive advised is land renewal and desire to increase the agricultural output for the area. The ruins of Itj-Tawy have never been conclusively placed, and the only locational prove discovered consists of pieces of clayware in the area it is thought to be in. However, Twelfth Dynasty rulers established pyramids at el-Lisht which are knew to researchers.

El-Lisht is the necropolis of the first two rulers of Dynasty Twelve, Amenemhet I and his son and successor Senusret I. These pyramids would have been open to those traveling to Itj-Tawy from the south. The more known of the two monumental complexes, that of Amenemhat I, featured an offer hall with a granite altar, carved with pictures of examples of the nomes (provinces) bringing offers to the pharaoh. However, the pyramid itself is in a sunk state, rising approximately 20 meter above ground level.

Tombs of El-Lisht:

Pyramid of Senusret I
Tomb of Senewosret-Ankh
Tomb of a certain Senusret, shaft of Hapy, found untouched
Tomb of Intef (?)
French tomb
Tomb of Imhotep
Tomb of Mentuhotep
Tomb, South-Khor A
Tomb, South-Khor B
Tomb A in South area
Tomb of Djehuty
Tomb of Ipi
Tomb D in South area
Tomb E in South area
Tomb of Sehetepibreankh
Pyramid of Amenemhat I
Tomb 384 of Rehuerdjersen
Tomb 400 of Intefiqer
Tomb 470 of Senimeru
Tomb 493 of Nakht
Tomb 758 of Senusret, shaft with undisturbed tomb of Senebtisi
Tomb 954
Tomb 956

Crocodilopolis

Crocodilopolis is an ancient  Egyptian  site,  originally named Shedet, then Arsinoe, and now Medinet el-Faiyum. A custom states that AHA (King Menes; 2920 B.C.E.) established Crocodilopolis.  The  city  attended  as  the  capital  of  the Faiyum and was the cultic center for the crocodile deity Sobek. An agricultural central watered by the Bahr Yusef (the  Joseph  River,  rewarding  a  local  hero  of  Islam),  the city also had a shrine honoring the goddess Renenet. A temple discovered on this site sees to the reign of Amenemhet III (1844–1797  B.C.E.),  but  it  was  probably  complete  by  him,  having  been  started  by  King Senwosret I (1971–1926 B.C.E.). There is some speculation that the red granite  Obelisk at  Abgig was  once  part  of  this  temple. Ramses II (1290–1224 B.C.E.) restored the temple of Sobek. During the Ptolemaic Period (304–30 B.C.E.), the city  was  named  for  Queen  Arsinoe and  served  as  an important cultic center for Sobek. Visitors to the city fed crocodiles  raised  there.  There  were  several  mines  in the field of Crocodilopolis, exploited throughout Egypt’s history. The site also had a sacred lake and baths.

Faiyum (El-Faiyum)

Faiyum, the  region  of Egypt once named Ta-she, the Land of the Lakes, and used in  some  eras  as  an  agricultural  center,  the  Faiyum  was also called Pa-yuum and Pa-yom and was settled in Paleolithic  times  when  hunters  and  gatherers  came  down from  the  arid  plateaus  of  the  area,  drawn  by the abundant game and grasses.

A natural  low  extending  along  the  western  side of the Nile River, the Faiyum had different Predynastic  cultures,  including  Faiyum  A  and  B.  These  cultures date  to  c.  4500  B.C.E. The  Bahr Yusef, an  Arabic  name significant "Joseph's River" (not a biblical reference but one honoring an Islamic hero), left the Nile at Assiut, becoming a alternative stream. The Bahr Yusef was allowed by natural forces to figure the Faiyum but was not left with a natural route of exit, thus inundating the area and transforming  it  into  lush  fields,  gardens,  and  marshes. The site of Crocodilopolis was the capital for the district, also called Shedet, and attended as a cult center for the god Sobek. Located on Lake Qarun, called Me-Wer by the Egyptians,  Crocodilopolis  was  as well  a  haven  for  aquatic life-forms.  Crocodiles  were long,  and  in  some  eras tourists were allowed to feed them.

The rulers of the Twelfth Dynasty (1991–1783 B.C.E.) began  reconstruction  of  this  area.  Seeing  the  need  for increased  agricultural  output,  these  pharaohs  started  a series  of  hydraulic  systems  to  reclaim  acres  of  land. Amenemhet I (1991–1962  B.C.E.) expanded  and  deepened the channels, getting water to various parts of the Faiyum  and  establishing  a  true  reservoir.  During  the annual inundations of the Nile, regulators installed at el-Lahun controlled the Faiyum water levels. Every January the sluices at el-Lahun were closed to enable repairs to be made on  bridges  and  walkways.  Amenemhet III (1844–1797 B.C.E.) erected dikes and keeping walls, with sluices down and canals that regulated the flow of water. In the process  he  provided  Egypt  with  vast  tracts  of  arable lands, all of which strengthened the economic base of the nation. The Faiyum, modified with such regulators, thus attended  as  an  pinch  reservoir  in  periods  of  great floods.

One  of  the  most  beautiful  regions  in  the  Nile  Valley, the  Faiyum  was  reclaimed  again  and  again  as  an agricultural site. In the Ptolemaic Time (304–30 B.C.E.) the rulers developed the region and made it a leading agricultural  and  population  center.  Olive  production  was encouraged as the Greek Ptolemaics deemed the Faiyum olive  the  tastiest  of  all.  At  various  times  the  territory great over 4,000 square mils. Ptolemy II Philadelphus (285–246  B.C.E.)  renamed  the  nome  containing the Faiyum Arsinoe, after his relation, Arsinoe.


Monuments in El-Faiyum:

Crocodilopolis

el-Lahun

el-Lisht

Hawara

Herakleopolis Magna

Meidum

Sidment el-Gebel

Seila

Tarkhan

Pharaohs of the 1st Dynasty

Little real history is known of the pharaohs of the early dynasties of Ancient Egypt. Their monuments, however, are some of the most examined artifacts in the world. Most of the tombs and artifacts have been discovered in Abydos.

List of the Pharaohs of the  first dynasty:

Menes (Horus Aha)

Djer (Itit)

Mernieth

Djet (Wadj)

Den (Udimu)

Anendjib

Semerkhet

Qa'a

Sneferka

Unknown king

Iry-Hor

Iry-Hor

A piece of vessel from the tomb of Iry-Hor

Iry-Hor the last pharaoh in the 1st Dynasty of Ancient Egypt.

His burial place in Abydos. It contains two-chambered tomb, possibly one of he oldest disocvered at Abydos. Few funereary rests were found, icnlduing parts of ceramic with the pharaohs name.

Unknown Pharaoh

This unknown pharaoh between (king Sneferka) and pharaoh Iry-Hor. His tomb may be in Abydos.

Sneferka (2859—2857)

Sneferka, this ephemeral pharaoh belongs to the very end of the 1st dynasty, a period that apparently was a time of some imbalance in society. His name is only good twice - both from finds in Sakkara.

One is a fragmentise of schist found by British archaeologist Walter Emery in the dust at the escarpment north of King Djoser's funeral complex, when he was digging mastabas from the first dynasty. (Emery: Great Tombs III, pl. 38.1). The serek (to the right) contains the three hieroglyphs making the king's name, but in a slimly different order than in the other remain from his universe - a stone vessel found under the pyramid of king Djoser and published by Egyptologist Kaplony in MDAIK in 1988. His name is not showed in any of the kings' lists made during the further 2.500 years the Egyptian state should exist. This can mean that he was a probably unknown to later generations due to the fact that his reign was a very short and empty one and the remains were very few. That's the understanding why his position (unneurotic with king Bird above) cannot be showed with certainty

Qa'a (2889—2859)

Cartouche, and Restored tomb stele of King Qa'a

Most scholars believe that Qa'a was the last king of the 1st dynasty.  We may also see his name as Kaa, or different other variations. Though Egyptologists often disagree on dating, our current best guess is that he lived from about 3100 to 2890 BC. While this information on Qa'a is highly limited, until Dreyer and Kaiser analysis their data and provide us with more information, low else is knew of this early Egyptian Pharaoh..  He was probably buried in Tomb Q at Abydos, where two regular royal funerary stelae bearing his name were found on the east side of the tomb.  This tomb has been excavated on a number of several occations, first by Emile Amelineau in the 1890s, then Flinders Petrie and in 1991, by Gunther Dreyer and Werner Kaiser. The work done by this later German team revealed many little artifacts and architectural details that had been overlooked by earlier digs. These include thirty inscribed labels that describe the delivery of oil, probably made from berries or tree resins, and probably from the Syria-Palestine area.

Seal impressions and artifacts have also been discovered in Tomb Q with the name of Hetepsekhemwy, the first pharaoh of the second dynasty.  This suggests that Hetepsekhemwy completed Tomb Q, and that there was no real break between the first and 2nd dynasties of Egypt. The change in dynasties from the 1st to the second was originally reported by Manetho without explanation. We also know of four tombs in Sakkara that date to this kings reign.  The smaller part of two wooden statues were base in one of these tombs in a set of rooms on the north side.  Some scholars believe this may have been an offering chapel, and that the mortuary temple in pyramid complexes may have got from this structure. Egyptologists have also discovered the stelae of two of Qa'a's officials, Merka and Sabef.  These stelae have more complex inscriptions then earlier hieroglyphics, and may have signaled in increasing edification in the use of this writing.

Burial position of King Qa'a:

His tomb in abydos (tomb q) where two funerary stele mark his tomb, which also has notes from Hetepsekhemwy, his successor. The width of the funerary chamber about (10 x 5 m).

Semerkhet (2897—2889)

Semerkhet was the sixth pharaoh of the first Dynasty. He was the son of pharaoh Adjib and Queen Betrest, and for obscure reasons, only ruled for eight years. Egyptologists discovered very little, save for a black stela with Semerkhet's name carved on it. King Semerkhet was the fifth regent in the first dynasty, and he had he shortest time on the throne - eight and a half years. We know this for a fact because his full reign is documented on the Cairo Stone in the the Egyptian Museum. Regrettably the submissions from each year are only about ceremonies of different kinds and do not record any historical events.

Theories about his authenticity to kingship suggesting that he was an usurper has been put modern by scholars because he had the habit of recycling his predecessor's goods. At the graveyard at Abydos objects from Anedjib's time (and tomb?) was base in Semerkhet's where he had erased the original name and replaced it with his own. In a seal from his successor his name is wrote in the line with the other kings, telling that he was established as a king at least by his follower, who was his son (according to Manetho). A year label from Semerkhet reign was found in his follower's tomb at the re-excavation in the mid 1990s made by the German Institute of Archaeology in Cairo (DAIK). His tomb in Abydos points a new feature: retainers' tombs attached directly to the thick walls of his own, and a door entry rather then a staircase leading to the grave chamber. This means that the whole construction was covered by the same superstructure, indicating that the retainers were buried at the same time, and thus probably sacrificed to the honor of their master.

King Semerkhet's Burial place:

Pharaoh Semerkhet's tomb in abydos. It was almost 29 x 31 meters, brick-lined burial chamber. Its Walls 1.5-1.8 m thick. Single chambered tomb, with 68 alternative burials.