Sesostris III

Khakaure Senusret III (also written as Senwosret III or the hellenised form, Sesostris III) was a pharaoh of Egypt. He ruled from 1878 BC to 1839 BC during a time of great power and prosperity, and was the fifth king of the Twelfth Dynasty of the Middle Kingdom. He was a great pharaoh of the Twelfth Dynasty and is considered to rule at the height of the Middle Kingdom. Consequently, he is regarded as one of the sources for the legend about Sesostris. His military campaigns gave rise to an era of peace and economic prosperity that reduced the power of regional rulers and led to a revival in craftwork, trade, and urban development."''The Pyramids: Their Archeology and History''", Miroslav Verner, Translated by Steven Rendall, p386–387 & p416–421, Atlantic, Senusret III was among the few Egyptian kings who were deified and honored with a cult during their own lifetime.

Family

Senusret III was the son of Senusret II and Khenemetneferhedjet I, also called Khenemetneferhedjet I Weret (''the elder''). Three wives of Senusret III are known for certain. These are Itakayt, Khenemetneferhedjet II and Neferthenut, all three mainly known from their burials next to the pyramid of the king at Dahshur. Several daughters are known, although they also are attested only by the burials around the king's pyramid and their exact relation to the king is disputable. These include Sithathor, Menet, Senetsenebtysy, and Meret. Amenemhat III was most likely a son of the king. Other sons are not known.

The tomb of Mereret was found partly robbed but a pectoral of Senusret III, her father, was missed by the tomb robbers.

Initiatives

Senusret III cleared a navigable canal through the first cataract of the Nile River, (this was different from the Canal of the Pharaohs, which apparently, Senusret III also tried to build). He also relentlessly pushed his kingdom's expansion into Nubia (from 1866 to 1863 BC) where he erected massive river forts including Buhen, Semna, Shalfak and Toshka at Uronarti.

He carried out at least four major campaigns into Nubia in his Years 8, 10, 16, and 19. His Year 8 stela at Semna documents his victories against the Nubians, through which he is thought to have made safe the southern frontier, preventing further incursions into Egypt. Another great stela from Semna dated to the third month of Year 16 of his reign mentions his military activities against both Nubia and Canaan. In it, he admonished his future successors to maintain the new border that he had created:

The Sebek-khu Stele, dated to the reign of Senusret III (reign: 1878 – 1839 BC), records the earliest known Egyptian military campaign in the Levant. The text reads "His Majesty proceeded northward to overthrow the Asiatics. His Majesty reached a foreign country of which the name was Sekmem (...) Then Sekmem fell, together with the wretched Retenu", where Sekmem (s-k-m-m) is thought to be Shechem and "Retenu" or "Retjenu" are associated with ancient Syria.

His final campaign, which was in his Year 19, was less successful because the king's forces were caught due to the Nile being lower than normal. They had to retreat and abandon their campaign in order to avoid being trapped in the hostile Nubian territory.

Such was his forceful nature and immense influence that Senusret III was worshipped as a deity in Semna by later generations. Jacques Morgan, in 1894, found rock inscriptions near Sehel Island documenting his digging of a canal. Senusret III erected a temple and town in Abydos, and another temple in Medamud.

His court included the viziers Nebit, and Khnumhotep. Ikhernofret worked as treasurer for the king at Abydos. Sobekemhat was treasurer too and buried at Dahshur. Senankh cleared the canal at Sehel for the king. Horkherty was king's acquaintance.

Reign

A double-dated papyrus in the Berlin Museum shows Year 20 of his reign next to Year 1 of his son, Amenemhat III; generally, this is presumed to be a proof for a coregency with his son, which should have been started in this year. According to Josef W. Wegner, a Year 39 hieratic control note was recovered on a white limestone block from:

Wegner stresses that it is unlikely that Amenemhat III, Senusret's son and successor, would still be working on his father's temple nearly two decades into his own reign. He notes that the only possible explanation for the block's existence at the project is that Senusret III had a 39-year reign, with the final 20 years in coregency with his son Amenemhat III. Since the project was associated with a project of Senusret III, his Regnal Year was presumably used to date the block, rather than Year 20 of Amenemhat III. Wegner interprets this as an implication that Senusret was still alive in the first two decades of his son's reign.

Wegner's hypothesis is rejected by some scholars, such as Pierre Tallet and Harco Willems; according to them, it is more likely that such a coregency never occurred, and that the Year 39 control note still refers to Amenemhat III, who may have ordered some additions to Senusret's monuments.

Semna Boundary Stela

The region known as Semna was located in Nubia. It was established as a fortified area in the reign of Senusret I. One of the three forts of Semna, known as Semna-West was where pharaoh Senusret III formed the stela known as the ''Semna Boundary Stela of Senusret III''.

One of Senusret I's major achievements was the conquest of Lower Nubia, which was later consolidated by Senusret III. In general in ancient Egypt, boundary stela served the purpose of demarcating territorial lines, acting as a notice that the demarcation was to be enforced. When Senusret III built various fortresses along the Second Nile Cataract as a militant frontier guard against the Kerma kingdom, he also constructed two monumental stela at the forts of Semna and Uronarti. The stela reiterated Egyptian dominance over Nubia and called for future authorities to preserve the boundary.

The stela was discovered in 1845 by German Egyptologist Karl Richard Lepsius.

English Translation

An English translation of the central text of the Semna Boundary Stela of Senusret III is below:

His Majesty established the southern border at Heh.

I established my border further south than my forefathers.

I added to what was bequeathed to me. I am a king who speaks and acts.

I make happen what I conceive, eager to seize, hasty to succeed, in whose heart a matter doesn’t slumber, anticipating inferiors, suppressing mercy, merciless to the enemy who attacks him, who attacks one who would attack, who is silent when one is silent, who replies to a matter as befits it.
For to be idle after an attack is to strengthen the heart of the enemy.

Aggression is valour and retreat is cowardice.

Who is driven from his border is truly a coward.

For the Nubian listens to the word of mouth. Answering him is making him retreat.

If one acts aggressively towards him, he turns his back.

Retreat, and he will take occasion to act aggressively.

For they are not respectable people. They are wretches with broken spirits.

My Majesty has seen them; it is no lie. I captured their women, I carried off their underlings, went to their wells, drove off their bulls, tore out their barley, set fire to it. As my father lives for me, I speak truthfully, there is no boast that comes from my mouth.

As for any son of mine who shall maintain this border that My Majesty established, he is my son, born to My Majesty. It befits a son that he be the champion of his father, and maintains the border of his begetter. As to him who shall lose it, who shall not fight for it, he is not my son, he was not born to me.

Now, My Majesty had a statue of My Majesty made at this border that My Majesty established, so that you may be persistent at it and that you may fight for it.

The text clearly reinforces Senusret III's expansionist policies.

The stela was replaced during the 18th Dynasty to be incorporated into shrines for mortuary cult worship.

Worship

The "Cycle of Songs in Honor of Senwosret III" is a series of 6 songs as part of the archive of papyri from Illahun. It is suggested by Adolf Erman that they were written and composed for the king in a town south of Memphis. The songs outline the responsibilities of the king and embody kingship ideology in the Middle Kingdom. This ideology includes protecting the unity of the two kingdoms, extending the borders of Egypt, striking fear in Egyptian enemies, and ensuring the success of his subjects. Though there is not a strong difference of hymns to living kings or dead kings, there is indication that these hymns were to be sung by the king's subjects while he was alive. A hymn reads "may he live for ever and eternity." He was often compared to Sekhmet in the hymns because of his iron fist and conquering of enemies. The hymn excerpts of the "Cycle of Songs in Honor of Senwosret III" that associate Senusret III with Sekhmet are:

He who fires an arrow as Sekhmet does,

he fells thousands of those unaware of his power

The tongue of his Person is the restraint on the Bow-land

and his commands are what set the nomads to flight

...

How great is the lord for his city! indeed he is Sekhmet against the enemies who tread on his border

Clearly, the identities of the Sekhmet and Senusret III are repeatedly juxtaposed. The cult of the king after his passing lasted for roughly 3 centuries at South Abydos.

Burial

Senusret's pyramid complex was built north-east of the Red Pyramid of Dashur. It far surpassed those from the early twelfth dynasty in size, grandeur, and underlying religious conceptions.

The complex of pyramids was constructed in 2 phases. Originally, it was designed to follow Old Kingdom pyramids which included the structure itself, an eastern pyramid temple, and a stone wall encircling the complex. The second phase included an outer brick wall which was surrounded by 6 smaller pyramids for the royal queens. There is also an underground gallery with further burials for royal women. Here were found the treasures of Sithathor and queen Mereret. The final, seventh, pyramid served as the king's ''ka'' pyramid with a statue of himself inside for worship. There was also a southern temple, however this has since been destroyed.

Senusret's pyramid is 105 meters square and 78 meters high. The total volume was approximately 288,000 cubic meters. The pyramid was built of a core of mud bricks. They were not made a consistent size implying that standardized moulds were not used. The burial chamber was lined with granite. Above the vaulted burial chamber was a second relieving chamber that was roofed with five pairs of limestone beams each weighing 30 tons. Above this was a third mudbrick vault.

Tomb at Abydos

There has been speculation that Senusret was not necessarily buried at his pyramid, but rather in his sophisticated funerary complex in Abydos. Under this interpretation, his pyramid would be a cenotaph.

The Mortuary Temple at Abydos is 30m below the surface and extends below for 180m. It is located on the base of high desert cliffs and is focused on a subterranean royal tomb. Near the site, there is a town that houses administrators and priests dedicated to the cult of the late king. The mountain where the tomb is located was known as "The Mountain of Anubis" and was used as a conceptual link of Senusret and the gods. The design of the tomb is likely symbolically representing the descent of the sun into the realm of Osiris.

Senusret's tomb did not house any funerary goods and was robbed in ancient times, given that tomb robbers dug a tunnel to bypass the blocking system and ripped out the walls of the tomb to find the hidden sarcophagus. It would later develop into a center for funerary complexes and would include 11 kings whose rules date from the thirteenth century and the Second Intermediate Period.

The construction dates and inscriptions further suggest a coregency between Senusret III and Amenemhat III, according to Wegner and Dieter Arnold. It shows that the construction of the temple was likely finished during the reign of Amenemhet III rather than he ordered the construction.

Royal statuary

Senusret III is well known for his distinctive statues, which are almost immediately recognizable as his. On them, the king is depicted at different ages and, in particular, on the aged ones he sports a strikingly somber expression: the eyes are protruding from hollow eye sockets with pouches and lines under them, the mouth and lips have a grimace of bitterness, and the ears are enormous and protruding forward. In sharp contrast with the even-exaggerated realism of the head and, regardless of his age, the rest of the body is idealized as forever young and muscular, in the more classical pharaonic fashion.

Scholars could only make assumptions about the reasons why Senusret III chose to have himself portrayed in such a unique way, and polarized on two diverging opinions. Some argue that Senusret wanted to be represented as a lonely and disenchanted ruler, human before divine, consumed by worries and by his responsibilities. At the opposite, other scholars suggested that the statues originally would convey the idea of a dreadful tyrant able to see and hear everything under his strict control.

More recently, it has been suggested that the purpose of such peculiar portraiture was not to represent realism, but rather, to reveal the perceived nature of royal power at the time of Senusret's reign.

Gallery

File:Senwosret III in Hieroglyphics.jpeg, Senwosret III's name in hieroglyphs
File:Head of Senusret III with youthful features. 12th Dynasty, c. 1870 BC. State Museum of Egyptian Art, Munich.jpg, Head of Senusret III with youthful features. 12th Dynasty, c. 1870 BC. State Museum of Egyptian Art, Munich
File:Head of King Senusret III in Gulbenkian Museum.JPG, Head of King Senusret III in the Calouste Gulbenkian Museum, being one of the few statue heads with its nose intact
File:Face of a king, probably Senusret III, wearing the nemes royal headdress. Quartzite. 12th Dynasty. From Egypt. Presented by Guy Brunton. The Petrie Museum of Egyptian Archaeology, London.jpg, Face of a king, probably Senusret III, wearing the nemes royal headdress, Quartzite, Twelfth Dynasty, From Egypt, Presented by Guy Brunton, The Petrie Museum of Egyptian Archaeology, London
File:Egyptian Museum Cairo 2022 12.jpg, Egyptian Museum
File:Senusret III.jpg, British Museum
File:Sesostris III Sphinxkopf.jpg, Munich, Staatliche Sammlung für Ägyptische Kunst
File:ThreeStatuesOfSesotrisIII-FaceOn-BritishMuseum-August19-08.jpg, British Museum
File:Sebekhotep IV-A 17-img 2963.jpg, Louvre
File:Egyptian antiquities in the Louvre, room 636 (032007 30).jpg, Louvre
File:RedGraniteHeadOfSesostrisIII-BritishMuseum-August19-08.jpg, British Museum
File:Head of Pharaoh Senusret III wearing the white crown of Upper Egypt, from Thebes, Middle Kingdom, 1875-1840 BCE. Neues Museum.jpg, Berlin Museum
File:GD-EG-Louxor-116.JPG, Luxor Museum
File:Louvre 042007 11.jpg, Louvre
File:Egyptian - Sesostris III - Walters 22115.jpg, Walters Art Museum, One of the few intact statues of Senusret III
File:Sebek-khu Stele, Manchester Museum.jpg, Sebek-khu Stele, describing the campaign to Canaan
File:Senwosret III Statue at BM.jpg, British Museum
File:Senwosret III Statue's Belt at BM.jpg, British Museum Senwosret's name on belt from the three statues (far right).
File:Senusret III, MET Museum NYC.jpg, Senusret III, MET Museum NYC

Trivia

Senusret is a major character in Christian Jacq's historical fiction series ''The Mysteries of Osiris''.

Some biblical scholars consider Senusret the pharaoh mentioned in Genesis 39-47, who elevated Joseph to a high administrative post, answerable directly to him.Andrew E. Hill and John H. Walton, ''A Survey of the Old Testament'' (3rd edition), Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2009, p. 187.

See also

*List of pharaohs

References

Bibliography

* W. Grajetzki, ''The Middle Kingdom of Ancient Egypt: History,Archaeology and Society'', Duckworth, London 2006 , 51-58.
* Josef Wegner, The Nature and Chronology of the Senwosret III–Amenemhat III Regnal Succession: Some Considerations based on new evidence from the Mortuary Temple of Senwosret III at Abydos, JNES 55, Vol.4, (1996), p. 249–279.

External links

Stela of Senusret III from Deir el-Bahri (hieroglyphic text in russian web-site)
Colchis

{{DEFAULTSORT:Senusret Iii

19th-century BC deaths
19th-century BC pharaohs
Pharaohs of the Twelfth Dynasty of Egypt
Year of birth unknown