Rehuerdjersen was an

ancient Egypt Ancient Egypt () was a cradle of civilization concentrated along the lower reaches of the Nile River in Northeast Africa. It emerged from prehistoric Egypt around 3150BC (according to conventional Egyptian chronology), when Upper and Lower E ...

ian

treasurer A treasurer is a person responsible for the financial operations of a government, business, or other organization. Government The treasury of a country is the department responsible for the country's economy, finance and revenue. The treasure ...

who held this office under the

12th Dynasty The Twelfth Dynasty of ancient Egypt (Dynasty XII) is a series of rulers reigning from 1991–1802 BC (190 years), at what is often considered to be the apex of the Middle Kingdom (Dynasties XI–XIV). The dynasty periodically expanded its terr ...

pharaoh

Amenemhat I :''See Amenemhat (disambiguation), Amenemhat, for other individuals with this name.'' Amenemhat I (Egyptian language, Ancient Egyptian: ''Ỉmn-m-ḥꜣt'' meaning 'Amun is at the forefront'), also known as Amenemhet I, was a pharaoh of ancient ...

. Rehuerdjersen is mainly known from his tomb at

el-Lisht Lisht or el-Lisht () is an Egyptian village located 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 ...

(tomb no. 384), close to the pyramid of Amenemhat I. His

mastaba A mastaba ( , or ), also mastabah or mastabat) is a type of ancient Egyptian tomb in the form of a flat-roofed, rectangular structure with inward sloping sides, constructed out of mudbricks or limestone. These edifices marked the burial sites ...

was heavily damaged, but reliefs with his name and several titles were found. From the position of the mastaba it has been argued that Rehuerdjersen and Amenemhat I were contemporaries. In his tomb a number of important titles are preserved: ''royal sealer, sole friend, spokesman of every Pe-ite, controller of every kilt'' and ''overseer of the double gold house''Arnold: ''Middle Kingdom Tomb Architecture at Lisht'', 64 On a stela he also has the title '' member of the elite, foremost of action'' (

Haty-a Ḥaty-a was an ancient Egyptian rank and title given to local princes, mayors, or governors. There is no standard translation for Ḥaty-a, and it is frequently left transliterated in scholarly literature. In strings of ranking titles ''Ḥa ...

) and ''

Overseer of the treasuries The overseer of the treasuries (alternative translation: overseer of the two treasuries; ) was a title and important role in the ancient Egyptian court of the Old Kingdom of Egypt, Old and New Kingdom of Egypt, New Kingdom. The title is also atte ...

''.

The mastaba lies on the west side of the king's pyramid, that is behind the pyramid. It was already excavated in 1894–95 by a French expedition under

Joseph Étienne Gautier Joseph Étienne Gautier (6 September 1861, Oullins – 10 February 1924, Paris) was a French archaeologist. He received his education in his hometown of Oullins and at the ''École pratique des hautes études'' (EPHE) in Paris. From 1884 to 188 ...

and then again in 1920–21 by an American expedition. It consisted of a mastaba proper and a wall around it. The enclosure wall is 27.70 m long to the north-south and 19 m to the east-west. The mastaba proper is solid building was an inner cult chamber. Some parts of the decoration are still preserved in the cult chamber. One block shows a row of offering bearers. Other blocks of the decoration were found nearby. They show Rehuerdjersen sitting on a chair with an inscription in front of him, providing his titles. Another block shows boats in the marshes. Rehuerdjersen is also known from an Abydos stela. However, based on stylistically reasons the stela was dated to the rule of

Amenemhat II Nubkaure Amenemhat II, also known as Amenemhet II, was the third pharaoh of the 12th Dynasty of ancient Egypt. Although he ruled for at least 35 years, his reign is rather obscure, as well as his family relationships. Family Archaeological fin ...

.R. Freed: ''Stela Workshops of Early Dynasty 12'', in: ''Studies in Honor of

William Kelly Simpson William Kelly Simpson (January 3, 1928 – March 24, 2017) was an American professor of Egyptology, Archaeology, Ancient Egyptian literature, and Afro-Asiatic languages at Yale University.The Cambridge University Catalogue. (2009)The Great Pyramid ...

'', Boston 1996, p. 327-334 The two different datings created some confusion over the dating of Rehuerdjersen. It seems possible that the tomb was built much later than when Amenemhat I was king, but the style of the reliefs in the mastaba seem to confirm an early date. Therefore it had been argued that either there were two treasurers with the same name or that the stela was set up after his death.

References

Literature

*Dieter Arnold: ''Middle Kingdom Tomb Architecture at Lisht'', New York 2008, pp. 63–69, plates 115–128, {{ISBN, 978-1-58839-194-0 Ancient Egyptian treasurers Officials of the Twelfth Dynasty of Egypt