Den (Pharaoh)

Den, also known as Hor-Den, Dewen, and Udimu, was the Horus name of a pharaoh of the Early Dynastic Period who ruled during the First Dynasty of Egypt. He is the best archaeologically-attested ruler of this period, credited with bringing prosperity to his realm.

Den was attributed the title "King of Upper and Lower Egypt" and wore the double crown (red and white). Notably, the floor of his tomb at Umm El Qa'ab, near Abydos, was constructed using red and black granite, making it the earliest known use of this hard stone as a building material in Egypt with a flight of stairs leading to it. During his long reign, he established many of the customs of court ritual and royalty drawn on by later rulers and was held in high regard by his immediate successors.

Length of reign

The Ancient Egyptian historian Manetho called him “Oúsaphaîdos” and credited him with a reign of 20 years, William Gillan Waddell: ''Manetho (The Loeb Classical Library, Volume 350)''. Harvard University Press, Cambridge (Mass.) 2004 (Reprint), , page 33–37. whilst the Royal Canon of Turin is damaged and therefore unable to provide information about the duration of Den's reign. Alan H. Gardiner: ''The Royal Canon of Turin''. Griffith Institute of Oxford, Oxford (UK) 1997, ; page 15 & Table I. Egyptologists and historians generally believe that Den had a reign of 42 years, based on inscriptions on the Palermo Stone.Wolfgang Helck: ''Untersuchungen zur Thinitenzeit''. (Ägyptologische Abhandlungen, Volume 45), Harrassowitz, Wiesbaden 1987, , page 124, 160 - 162 & 212 - 214.

Recent radiocarbon data from the tombs at Abu Rawash, datable to the reign of Den, provide likely estimate for the Den's accession to 3011–2921 BC (1σ).

Name sources

Den's serekh name is well attested on earthen seal impressions, on ivory labels and in inscriptions on vessels made of schist, diorite and marble. The artifacts were found at Abydos, Saqqara and Abu Rawash. Den's name is also attested in later documents. For example, the Medical Papyrus of Berlin (the Ramesside era) discusses several methods of treatment and therapies for a number of different diseases. Some of these methods are said to originate from the reign of Den, but this statement may merely be trying to make the medical advice sound traditional and authoritative. Similarly, Den is mentioned in the Papyrus of Ani (also dated to Ramesside times) in chapter 64.

Identity

Den's serekh name was "Den" or "Dewen", most likely meaning "he who brings the water". This is consistent with his birth name, which was “Khasty”, meaning “he of the two deserts”. Egyptologists such as Toby Wilkinson and Francesco Tiradritti think that the birth name refers to the eastern and the western desert – both surrounding Egypt like protective shields – or to Lower and Upper Egypt. This is in accord with the introduction of the ''Nisut-Bity''-title by Den. This royal title was designed to legitimise the ruler's power over the whole of Egypt.

Den's family has been the subject of significant research. His mother was queen Merneith; this conclusion is supported by contemporary seal impressions and by the inscription on the Palermo Stone. Den's wives were the queens ''Semat'', ''Seshemet-ka'', ''Serethor'', and, possibly, ''Qaineit''. He also had numerous sons and daughters; his possible successors could have been king Anedjib and king Semerkhet.

Den's Royal Household is also well researched. Subsidiary tombs and palatial mastabas at Sakkara belonged to high officials such as ''Ipka, Ankh-ka, Hemaka, Nebitka, Amka, Iny-ka'' and ''Ka-Za''. In a subsidiary tomb at Den's necropolis, the rare stela of a dwarf named ''Ser-Inpu'' was found.

The birth name of Den was misread in Ramesside times. The Abydos King List has “Sepatju” written with two symbols for “district”. This derives from the two desert symbols Den originally had used. The Turin King List refers to “Qenentj”, which is quite difficult to translate. The origin of the hieroglyphs used the Royal Canon of Turin remains unknown. The Saqqara Tablet mysteriously omits Den completely.

Reign

Beginning

According to archaeological records, at the very beginning of his reign, Den had to share the throne with his mother Meritneith for several years. It seems that he was too young to rule himself. Therefore, Meritneith reigned as a regent or ''de facto'' pharaoh for some time. Such a course of action was not unusual in ancient Egyptian history. Queen Neithhotep may have taken on a similar role before Meritneith, while queens such as Sobekneferu and Hatshepsut were later female Egyptian rulers. Den's mother was rewarded with her own tomb of royal dimensions and with her own mortuary cult.Toby Wilkinson: ''Early Dynastic Egypt''. Routledge, London/New York 1999, . page 74-75.Silke Roth: ''Die Königsmütter des Alten Ägypten''. Wiesbaden 2001, , page 18–23.

Events

An important innovation during Den's reign was the introduction of numbering using hieroglyphs. Prior to this, important year events were merely depicted in signs and miniatures, sometimes guided by the hieroglyphic sign rnpt "bald palm panicle", meaning “year”. From Den's reign onwards, the Egyptians used numbering hieroglyphs for a range of purposes including calculating tax collections and for annotating their year events.

Den is the first Egyptian king attested with rock reliefs in the Sinai Peninsula. Two or perhaps even three reliefs are showing the standing king and some of his officials.

Most religious and political happenings from Den's reign are recorded in the numerous ivory tags and the Palermo Stone inscription. The tags show important developments in typography and arts. The surface is artistically parted into sections, each of them showing individual events. For example, one of these tags reports on an epidemic then affecting Egypt. The inscription shows the figure of a shaman with an undefined vessel or urn at his feet. A nearby inscription begins with “Henu...” but it is unclear, if that means “provision” or if it is the first syllable of the name “Henu-Ka” (a high official).

Another tag, known as the “ MacGregor Label”, shows the first complete depiction of an Egyptian king with the so-called nemes headdress. The picture shows Den in a gesture known as "smiting the enemy". In one hand Den holds a mace, in the other hand he grabs a foe by his hair. Thanks to the braids and the conic beard the foe has been identified as of Asian origin. The hieroglyphs at the right side say "first smiting of the east". At the left side the name of the high official ''Iny-Ka'' is inscribed. It seems that Den sent troops to the Sinai Peninsula and the eastern desert a number of times. Plundering nomads, known by the early Egyptians as '' jwntj.w'' "people with hunting bows”, were regular foes of Egypt, often causing trouble. They are again mentioned in a rock inscription in the Sinai Peninsula under Semerkhet, one of Den's successors.

More events are reported on the Palermo Stone fragments. The Oxford fragment records the following events:
* 4th year: First time for counting gold.
* 5th year: Escort of Horus; 2nd census of cattle count.
* 6th year: ...(section damaged)... of the ''Rehyt''.
* 7th year: Escort of Horus; 3rd census of cattle count.

The Cairo-Stone fragment ''C5'' reports:
* 18th year: The making of a statue for ''Wer-Wadjet''.
* 19th year: Smiting of the ''Setjet'' people.
* 20th year: Creation of the Mafdet-fetish; raising of the ''Sentj''-pillars.
* 21st year: Smiting of the ''Tjesem'' people.
* 22nd year: Visit to the royal domain of ''Semer-Netjeru''; first celebration of the ''Hebsed''.

The Palermo Stone main fragment reports:
* 28th year: Visit to the temple of Ptah... (rest is missing).
* 29th year: Smiting of the ''Iuntju'' people.
* 30th year: Appearance of the king of Upper and Lower Egypt; 2nd celebration of the '' Hebsed''.
* 31st year: Planning for the construction of the eastern and western canals through the districts of the ''Rehyts''.
* 32nd year: 2nd celebration of the ''Djet''-festival.
* 33rd year: Stretching the cords (a foundation ceremony) for the divine fortress ''Isut-Netjeru'' (“thrones of the gods”).
* 34th year: Stretching the cords for the royal palace of the divine fortress ''Isut-Netjeru'' by the high priest of Seshat.
* 35th year: Inauguration of the sacred lakes at the divine fortress ''Isut-Netjeru''; royal hippopotamus hunt.
* 36th year: Residing at ''Nenj-nesw'' (Heracleopolis Magna) and at the lake of the god Heryshaf.
* 37th year: Sailing trip to ''Sah-Setni''; foundation/destruction of the city ''Wer-Ka''.
* 38th year: Creation of a statue for the god ''Sed''.
* 39th year: Appearance of the king of Upper and Lower Egypt; 1st race of the Apis-Bull.
* 40th year: Creation of a statue for the goddesses Seshat and Mafdet.
* 41st year: Appearance of the king of Lower- and... (rest is missing)Siegfried Schott: ''Altägyptische Festdaten''. Verlag der Akademie der Wissenschaften und der Literatur, Mainz 1950, (Akademie der Wissenschaften und der Literatur Mainz - Abhandlungen der Geistes- und Sozialwissenschaftlichen Klasse 1950, Vol. 10, ISSN 0002-2977

The second celebration of the ''Hebsed'' (a throne jubilee) is affirmed by several stone vessel inscriptions from Den's necropolis.

Tomb

Den was interred within a tomb ("Tomb T") in the Umm El Qa'ab area of Abydos, which is associated with other First Dynasty kings.Clayton, Peter A. Chronicle of the Pharaohs: The Reign-by-Reign Record of the Rulers and Dynasties of Ancient Egypt. p. 24. Thames & Hudson. 2006. Tomb T is among the largest and most finely-built of the tombs in this area, and is the first to feature a staircase and a floor made of granite.Adams, Barbara and Ciałowicz, Krzysztof M. Protodynastic Egypt. p. 65. Shire Egyptology. 1988.

His was the first tomb to have a flight of stairs leading to it, those of earlier kings being filled directly above from their roofs. It is possible the tomb was used as a storehouse for surplus produce during the king's lifetime, while also making it easier to add grave goods for later use in the afterlife by Den.Shaw, Ian and Nicholson, Paul. The Dictionary of Ancient Egypt. p. 84. Harry N. Abrams, Inc. 1995.

Tomb T is also the first tomb to include architectural elements made of stone rather than mud-brick. In the original layout for the tomb, a wooden door was located about halfway up the staircase, and a portcullis placed in front of the burial chamber, designed to keep out tomb robbers.Shaw, Ian. The Oxford History of Ancient Egypt. p. 68. Oxford University Press. 2000. The floor of the tomb was paved in red and black granite from Aswan, the first architectural use of such hard stone on a large scale.

Twenty labels made of ivory and ebony were found in his tomb, 18 by Flinders Petrie in the spoil heaps left by the less thorough Émile Amélineau. Among these labels are the earliest known depictions of a pharaoh wearing the double-crown of Egypt (see above), as well as running between ritual stele as part of the Sed festival. Also found are seal impressions that provide the earliest confirmed king list.

Tomb T is surrounded by the burial sites of 136 men and women who were buried at the same time as the king. Thought to be the king's retainers, an examination of some of the skeletons suggests they were strangled, making this an example of human sacrifice which is considered to be common with the pharaohs of the First Dynasty. This practice seems to have ceased by the end of the dynasty, with ushabtis taking the place of the bodies of actual people to aid the pharaohs with the work expected of them in the afterlife.

See also

* List of pharaohs
* Den seal impressions

References

External links

Francesco Raffaele: Horus Den - Khasty (or Zemty)

{{Authority control

30th-century BC pharaohs
Pharaohs of the First Dynasty of Egypt
Ancient child monarchs
Ancient Egyptian child monarchs