FOURTH DYNASTY OF EGYPT

The Third, 'Fourth', Fifth and Sixth 'Dynasties' of ancient Egypt are often combined under the group title, Old Kingdom. The capital at that time was Memphis.

Contents

Rulers

Sneferu

Khufu, Djedefra, Khafra and Menkaura

Shepseskaf

Fourth Dynasty timeline

See also

Rulers

The pharaohs of the 'Fourth Dynasty' include kings who were best known for constructing pyramids, perhaps the hallmark of Egypt. All of the kings of this dynasty commissioned at least one pyramid to serve as a tomb or cenotaph.

Sneferu

Sneferu, the dynasty's founder, was believed to have commissioned three pyramids, and some believe he was responsible for a fourth. Although Khufu, his successor and son by Hetepheres I, erected the Great Pyramid of Giza, Sneferu had more stone and brick moved than any other pharaoh. The earliest known records of Egypt's contact with her neighbors are recorded on the Palermo stone, which notes the arrival of 40 ships laden with timber from an unnamed foreign land during the reign of Sneferu.

Khufu, Djedefra, Khafra and Menkaura

The names of Khufu and Djedefra were inscribed in gneiss quarries in the Western Desert 65 km. to the northwest of Abu Simbel; objects dated to the reigns of Khufu, Khafra, and Menkaura have been uncovered at Byblos and to the reign of Khafra even further away at Ebla, evidence of diplomatic gifts or trade.
Khufu (Greek ''Cheops''), his son Khafra (Greek ''Chephren''), and his grandson Menkaura (Greek ''Mycerinus''), all achieved lasting fame in the construction of their pyramids. To organize and feed the manpower needed to create these pyramids required a centralized government with extensive powers, and Egyptologists believe the Old Kingdom at this time demonstrated this level of sophistication. In fact, recent excavations outside the Wall of the Crow by Dr. Mark Lehner have uncovered a large city which seems to have housed, fed and supplied the pyramid workers. Although it was once believed that slaves built these monuments, a bias based on the biblical Exodus story, study of the tombs of the workmen, who oversaw construction on the pyramids, has shown they were built by a corvée of peasants drawn from across Egypt. They apparently worked while the annual Nile flood covered their fields, as well as a very large crew of specialists, including stone cutters, painters, mathematicians and priests. The pyramids suggest that Egypt enjoyed unparalleled prosperity during the Fourth Dynasty. The later bias of Herodotus (''Histories'', 2.124-133) has helped instill the idea the pyramids survived as a reminder to the inhabitants of the forced labor that created them. However, even though there was a tradition of the negative memory of Khufu, as presented in "Papyrus Westcar," these kings were not tyrannized. In fact, the very same Papyrus Westcar presents Snefru in a very benevolent light even though he moved more stone to construct his pyramids than Khufu. This demonstrates these pharaohs may have been remembered for their own individual reigns and personalities, rather than the sheer size of the monuments they built - monuments which were probably built by a "willing" public.

Shepseskaf

It is unclear how this dynasty came to an end. Our only clue is that a number of Fourth Dynasty administrators are attested as remaining in office in the Fifth Dynasty under Userkaf. Perhaps most intriguing is the status of Khentykawes I, whose tomb was built along the Menkaure causeway. Khentykawes I was the wife of Menkaure and may have been the mother of Shepseskaf, first king of the Fifth Dynasty. Her tomb is a large mastaba tomb, with another off-center mastaba placed on top. It could not be centered because of the free space in the rooms underneath in the primary mastaba. On a granite doorway leading into her tomb, Khentykawes is given titles which can be read either as "mother of two kings of upper and lower Egypt" or "mother of the king of upper and lower Egypt and king of upper and lower Egypt." Her depiction on this doorway is also unique in that she is given trappings of royalty, including the false beard. This has led some Egyptologists to suggest that she reigned as an independent ruler at the end of the Fourth Dynasty. Her tomb was finished by Shepseskaf in the characteristic niche architecture for which he is known. However, the niches were later filled in by a smooth casing of limestone.

Fourth Dynasty timeline

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from: -2613 till: -2589 color:PA text:"Sneferu"
from: -2589 till: -2566 color:PA text:"Khufu (Cheops)"
from: -2566 till: -2558 color:PA text:"Djedefra (Radjedef)"
from: -2558 till: -2532 color:PA text:"Khafra (Chephren)"
from: -2532 till: -2503 color:PA text:"Menkaura (Mycerinus, Mykerinos)"
from: -2503 till: -2498 color:PA text:"Shepseskaf"
from: -2498 till: -2494 color:PA text:"Djedefptah"
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See also

★ Egyptian Fourth Dynasty Family Tree