Khentakawess III
| Khentakawess III | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wife of the king, Mother of the king | |||||
| Reign | circa 2450 BC[1] | ||||
| Spouse | Neferefre? | ||||
| Issue | Menkauhor Kaiu?[2] | ||||
| Egyptian name |
| ||||
| Dynasty | Fifth Dynasty | ||||
| Burial | Abusir, mastaba AC 30 | ||||
| Religion | Ancient Egyptian religion | ||||
Khentakawess III, or Khentkaus III,[1] was an ancient Egyptian queen who lived during the Fifth Dynasty (approximately from 2494 to 2345 BC). Her title would have been "Wife of the King". It is possible that she was the wife of pharaoh Neferefre and the mother of pharaoh Menkauhor Kaiu.[2][3] Her title would have changed to "Mother of the King" when her son became the pharaoh.
On January 4, 2015, the discovery of her tomb by Czech archaeologists was announced by Egyptian authorities.[2] According to Egyptian Antiquities Minister Mamdouh Eldamaty, there had been no knowledge of the existence of Khentakawess III prior to this discovery. Two earlier Egyptian queens with the same name have been identified previously, however.[2][4]
Tomb
The tomb of Khentakawess III – marked as AC 30[1] – was excavated in Abusir, where there are several pyramids dedicated to pharaohs of the Fifth Dynasty, including Neferefre.[4] The tomb was found near Neferefre's funerary complex by a Czech archaeological team led by Miroslav Bárta of Charles University, Prague, with Egyptian collaboration.
The name and rank of Khentakawess was inscribed on the inner walls of the tomb, probably by the builders.[4] Her burial place is a mastaba with an underground burial chamber that is reached via a shaft.[5] The reliefs in the tomb identified her both as "the wife of the king" and "the mother of the king", implying her son ascended the throne.[3] Statuettes and twenty-four travertine utensils, along with four copper utensils (which were part of the funerary objects), also have been found in the tomb.[3] The tomb is dated to the middle of the Fifth Dynasty.[4]
The archaeologists who uncovered the tomb believed it to be that of Neferefre's wife, because it was close to his complex, in a small cemetery southeast of the complex.[6][5] Eldamaty stated: "This discovery will help us shed light on certain unknown aspects of the Fifth Dynasty, which along with the Fourth Dynasty, witnessed the construction of the first pyramids."[7]
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 "Czech expedition discovers the tomb of an ancient Egyptian unknown queen". Charles University. January 2015.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 "Tomb of previously unknown pharaonic queen found in Egypt". The Express Tribune. 4 January 2015. Retrieved 4 January 2015.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 "Tomb find reveals existence of new Egyptian queen". Fox News Channel. 4 January 2015. Retrieved 4 January 2015.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 "Tomb of Fifth Dynasty queen found in Egypt". ABC Online. 4 January 2015. Retrieved 4 January 2015.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 "4500 years old tomb of unknown Ancient Egyptian Queen discovered". Luxor Times. 9 January 2015.
- ↑ "Tomb of ancient Egyptian queen uncovered by archaeologists". The Independent. 5 January 2015.
- ↑ "Queen Khentakawess III's tomb found in Egypt". BBC News. Retrieved 5 January 2015.