Den seal impressions

In 1985, the German Archaeological Institute discovered seal impressions on a cylinder seal in the tomb of First Dynasty king Den. They were published by Günter Dreyer the following year. The impressions are the earliest confirmed king list for ancient Egypt.

The names are listed in following order:

• Narmer
• Hor-Aha
• Djer
• Djet
• Den
• Merneith (Den's mother and regent)

The list bolsters the argument that Narmer was the founder of the First Dynasty as opposed to being the last of the pre-unification kings of Thinis. Also of importance is the absence of Menes as scholarly consensus believe Menes was a later variation of Narmer's name.

References

• Hawass, Zahi et al. (2003). Egyptology at the Dawn of the Twenty-first Century. Cairo: American University in Cairo Press.