Henutsen
| Henutsen | |
|---|---|
|
Henutsen's pyramid at Giza | |
| Title | Queen of Egypt |
| Religion | Ancient Egyptian religion |
| Spouse(s) | King Khufu |
| Children |
Prince Minkhaf I Pharaoh Khafra Prince Khufukhaf I |
| Parent(s) | Sneferu and unknown queen |
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| Henutsen in hieroglyphs |
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Henutsen was an ancient Egyptian queen of the 4th dynasty.
Life
Henutsen was a daughter of Pharaoh Sneferu by his third wife. Henutsen married her elder half-brother Khufu. Her name is known from a 26th dynasty stela, found next to a temple to Isis that was built during the 20th dynasty, near Pyramid G1-c. The stela calls her "King's Daughter".[1]
Children
The children of Henutsen and Khufu are buried in Giza. Stadelman proposed that one of Henutsen's sons, Khufukhaf I, actually later became Pharaoh Khafra. If so, Khafre may have added pyramid G1c to the pyramid complex of his father to have his mother interred there.[2] Henutsen is further attested in the tomb of Minkhaf I (G 7430 - 7440).[3] She is depicted in Khufukhaf's tomb.
Tomb
Pyramid G 1c was originally not a part of Khufu's pyramid complex, as its southern side is aligned not with the side of the Great Pyramid, but with Khufukhaf's mastaba tomb nearby.[2] Pyramid G 1c was at some point thought to possibly be a satellite pyramid, because it did not come with a boat pit like pyramids G 1a and G 1b. It was later determined to be an unfinished pyramid however which was constructed in a hurry. Henutsen is thought to have been buried in the tomb.[4] Dr. Rainer Stadelmann believes Khufukhaf is the same person as Khafra and the pyramid was built by him for his mother,[2] but this identification is doubtful.[5]
In fiction
Henutsen is identified with the daughter of Khufu in Herodotus's Histories whom the pharaoh sold into prostitution to finance the building of his pyramid. The story is completely groundless.[2]
Sources
- ↑ Aidan Dodson & Dyan Hilton, The Complete Royal Families of Ancient Egypt, Thames & Hudson (2004) ISBN 0-500-05128-3, p.57
- 1 2 3 4 Verner, Miroslav. The Pyramids: The Mystery, Culture, and Science of Egypt's Great Monuments. Grove Press. 2001 (1997). ISBN 0-8021-3935-3
- ↑ Porter, Bertha and Moss, Rosalind, Topographical Bibliography of Ancient Egyptian Hieroglyphic Texts, Statues, Reliefs and Paintings Volume III: Memphis, Part I Abu Rawash to Abusir. 2nd edition (revised and augmented by Dr Jaromir Malek, 1974. Retrieved from gizapyramids.org
- ↑ Hawass, Zahi. "The Discovery of the Satellite Pyramid of Khufu (GI-d)." In Peter Der Manuelian, ed. Studies in Honor of William Kelly Simpson 1. Boston: Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, 1996, pp. 379-398.
- ↑ Dodson & Hilton, p.60
External links
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