Eighth Dynasty of Egypt - Wikipedia Eighth Dynasty of Egypt From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Jump to navigation Jump to search Egypt ca. 2181 BC–ca. 2160 BC Capital Memphis Common languages Egyptian language Religion ancient Egyptian religion Government Absolute monarchy Historical era Bronze Age • Established ca. 2181 BC • Disestablished ca. 2160 BC Preceded by Succeeded by Sixth Dynasty of Egypt Seventh Dynasty of Egypt Ninth Dynasty of Egypt Tenth Dynasty of Egypt Periods and Dynasties of Ancient Egypt All years are BC Early Pre-dynastic period First Dynasty I c. 3150–2890 Second Dynasty II 2890–2686 Old Kingdom Third Dynasty III 2686–2613 Fourth Dynasty IV 2613–2498 Fifth Dynasty V 2498–2345 Sixth Dynasty VI 2345–2181 First Intermediate Seventh Dynasty VII spurious Eighth Dynasty VIII 2181–2160 Ninth Dynasty IX 2160–2130 Tenth Dynasty X 2130–2040 Early Eleventh Dynasty XI 2134–2061 Middle Kingdom Late Eleventh Dynasty XI 2061–1991 Twelfth Dynasty XII 1991–1803 Thirteenth Dynasty XIII 1803–1649 Fourteenth Dynasty XIV 1705–1690 Second Intermediate Fifteenth Dynasty XV 1674–1535 Sixteenth Dynasty XVI 1660–1600 Abydos Dynasty 1650–1600 Seventeenth Dynasty XVII 1580–1549 New Kingdom Eighteenth Dynasty XVIII 1549–1292 Nineteenth Dynasty XIX 1292–1189 Twentieth Dynasty XX 1189–1077 Third Intermediate Twenty-first Dynasty XXI 1069–945 Twenty-second Dynasty XXII 945–720 Twenty-third Dynasty XXIII 837–728 Twenty-fourth Dynasty XXIV 732–720 Twenty-fifth Dynasty XXV 732–653 Late Period Twenty-sixth Dynasty XXVI 672–525 Twenty-seventh Dynasty (1st Persian Period) XXVII 525–404 Twenty-eighth Dynasty XXVIII 404–398 Twenty-ninth Dynasty XXIX 398–380 Thirtieth Dynasty XXX 380–343 Thirty-first Dynasty (2nd Persian Period) XXXI 343–332 Ptolemaic (Hellenistic) Argead Dynasty 332–305 Ptolemaic Kingdom 305–30 See also: List of Pharaohs by Period and Dynasty Periodization of Ancient Egypt v t e The Eighth Dynasty of ancient Egypt (Dynasty VIII) is a poorly known and short-lived line of pharaohs reigning in rapid succession in the early 22nd century BC, likely with their seat of power in Memphis. The Eighth Dynasty held sway at a time referred to as the very end of the Old Kingdom or the beginning of the First Intermediate Period. The power of the pharaohs was waning while that of the provincial governors, known as nomarchs, was increasingly important, the Egyptian state having by then effectively turned into a feudal system. In spite of close relations between the Memphite kings and powerful nomarchs, notably in Coptos, the Eighth Dynasty was eventually overthrown by the nomarchs of Heracleopolis Magna, who founded the Ninth Dynasty. The Eighth Dynasty is sometimes combined with the preceding Seventh Dynasty, owing to the lack of archeological evidence for the latter which may be fictitious. Egyptologists estimate that the Eighth Dynasty ruled Egypt for approximately 20–45 years and various dates have been proposed: 2190–2165 BC,[1] 2181–2160 BC,[2][3] 2191–2145 BC,[4] 2150–2118 BC.[5] Contents 1 Sources 1.1 Historical 1.1.1 New Kingdom sources 1.1.2 Ptolemaic source 1.2 Contemporary evidence 2 End of the Old Kingdom and decline into chaos 3 Rulers 4 References Sources[edit] Kings of the 8th Dynasty on the Abydos king list, from Netjerkare Siptah to Neferkamin. Kings of the 8th Dynasty on the Abydos king list, from Nikare until Neferirkare. Historical[edit] New Kingdom sources[edit] Two historical sources dating to the New Kingdom list kings belonging to the Eighth Dynasty. The earliest of the two and main historical source on the Eighth Dynasty is the Abydos king list, written during the reign of Seti I. The kings listed on the entries 40 to 56 of the Abydos king list are placed between the end of the Sixth Dynasty of the Old Kingdom period and the beginning of the Eleventh Dynasty of the Middle Kingdom. Furthermore, the names of these kings are different from those known from the Ninth and Tenth Dynasties, none of which are on the Abydos list. As a consequence, entries 40 to 56 of the list are assigned to the Seventh and Eighth Dynasties. The other New Kingdom source on the Eighth Dynasty is the Turin canon, written during the reign of Ramses II. The Turin papyrus was copied from an earlier source which, as the Egyptologist Kim Ryholt has shown, was itself riddled with lacunae and must have been in a poor state. In addition, the Turin papyrus is itself heavily damaged and cannot be read without much difficulty. In total three names are present on papyrus fragments which might be allocated to Eighth Dynasty kings. These are Netjerkare Siptah, another hard to read name and finally, that of Qakare Ibi, the fifty-third king on the Abydos king list. There seems to be room for two[6] or three[7][8] more kings before the end of the dynasty as recorded on the list. This would indicate that the missing parts of the Turin canon probably contained the kings in the fifty-first to fifty-fifth registers of the Abydos King List. Because the Turin papyrus omits the first nine kings on the Abydos list, W.C. Hayes thinks it reasonable that the Egyptians may have divided Dynasties VII and VIII at this point.[6] Ptolemaic source[edit] The Egyptian priest Manetho wrote a history of Egypt during the 3rd century BC known as the Aegyptiaca. Manetho's work has not survived to this day and is only known to us via three later writers who quoted from it. Unfortunately, these three sources are exceedingly difficult to work with. For example, they often contradict each other, as is the case for the two ancient historians – Sextus Julius Africanus and Eusebius of Caesarea – who quote from the section of the Aegyptiaca regarding the Seventh and Eighth Dynasties. Africanus claims that the 7th Dynasty consisted of 70 kings that ruled during a period of seventy days in Memphis, and the 8th Dynasty consisted of 27 kings who reigned for 146 years. However, Eusebius records that during the 7th Dynasty five kings ruled over seventy five days, and the 8th Dynasty includes five kings who ruled for 100 years. Seventy kings in seventy days is usually considered the correct version of Manetho concerning the Seventh Dynasty, but likely not a factual account of history. Rather, this is interpreted to mean that the pharaohs of this period were extremely ephemeral, and the use of seventy may be a pun on the fact that this was Manetho's Seventh Dynasty.[9] Because Manetho does not provide actual historical data on this period and no archeological evidence for the Seventh Dynasty has emerged, many Egyptologists have argued that this dynasty is fictitious.[10] Concerning the Eighth Dynasty, it is now widely agreed that Manetho's estimate for its duration is a very substantial overestimation of the reality.[8] Contemporary evidence[edit] The main archaeological evidence for kings of the Eighth Dynasty are royal decrees discovered in Coptos, which name some of the last pharaohs of the dynasty. Further tentative evidence for the early kings of the dynasty comes from tombs in Saqqara, in particular the pyramid of Qakare Ibi in Saqqara. Beyond that, there are royal inscriptions found in the Wadi Hammamat and in Upper Egypt, as well as non-royal ones from Upper Egypt as well.[8][11][12] End of the Old Kingdom and decline into chaos[edit] Fragments of two Coptos Decrees dating to the reign of Neferkauhor, end of the Eighth Dynasty. The Eighth Dynasty has traditionally been classified as the first dynasty of the First Intermediate Period owing to the ephemeral nature of its kings' reigns as well as the sparsity of contemporary evidence, hinting at a decline of the state into chaos. Recent re-appraisal of the archaeological evidence has shown a strong continuity between the Sixth and Eighth Dynasties, so that Egyptologist Hratch Papazian has proposed that the Eighth Dynasty rather than the Sixth should be seen as the last of the Old Kingdom period.[8] Given that five Eighth Dynasty kings bore Pepi II's throne name Neferkare as part of their own names, they may have been descendants of 6th Dynasty, who were trying to hold on to some sort of power.[13] Some of the acts of the final four Dynasty VIII kings are recorded in their decrees to Shemay, a vizier during this period, although only Qakare Ibi can be connected to any monumental construction. His pyramid has been found at Saqqara near that of Pepi II and, like its predecessors, had the Pyramid Texts written on the walls.[13] However many kings there actually were, it is clear that during this time period a breakdown of the central authority of Egypt was underway. The rulers of these dynasties were based in Memphis and seem to have relied on the power of the nomarchs of Coptos, on whom they bestowed titles and honours. This must have been to no avail as the Eighth Dynasty was eventually overthrown by a rival group based in Herakleopolis Magna. Rulers[edit] Given the lack of evidence for the Seventh Dynasty, all kings mentioned on the Abydos king list in the entries after that of Merenre Nemtyemsaf II and before that of Montuhotep II[4] are usually attributed to the Eighth Dynasty. Following Jürgen von Beckerath, they are : Dynasty VIII as per von Beckerath[4] Name Comments Netjerkare Siptah Sometimes classified as the last king of the 6th Dynasty. Possibly identical with Nitocris. Menkare Possibly attested by a relief from the tomb of queen Neit. Neferkare II Neferkare Neby Planned or started a pyramid "Neferkare Neby is Enduring of Life", possibly at Saqqara. Djedkare Shemai Neferkare Khendu Merenhor Neferkamin Nikare Possibly attested by a cylinder seal.[14] Neferkare Tereru Neferkahor Attested by a cylinder seal. Neferkare Pepiseneb Turin Canon gives at least one year.[15] Neferkamin Anu Qakare Ibi Turin Canon gives rule of two years, one month, one day.[16] Attested by his pyramid at Saqqara. Neferkaure Turin Canon gives rule of 4 years and 2 months,[16] attested by a decree concerning the temple of Min.[17] Khwiwihepu Neferkauhor Turin Canon gives rule of 2 years, 1 month and 1 day,[16] attested by eight decrees concerning the temple of Min,[18][19][20] and an inscription in the tomb of vizier Shemay.[21] Neferirkare Turin Canon gives a reign of 1 and a half years.[16] Maybe identical to either or both of Horus Demedjibtawy and Wadjkare. If so, he is attested by a decree concerning the temple of Min. The Egyptologist Hracht Papazian believes that such a reconstruction gives too much weight to Manetho's account, according to which the Seventh Dynasty is essentially fictitious and a metaphor of chaos. Instead Papazian proposes that the earliest of the above kings are immediate successors of Pepi II and should be attributed to the Sixth Dynasty, while those just after them belong to a short-lived Seventh Dynasty. Then the Eighth Dynasty would only start with the well-attested Qakare-Ibi: Dynasty VIII as per Papazian[8] Name Qakare Ibi Neferkaure Khwiwihepu Neferkauhor Name lost Neferirkare In addition, the identity and chronological position and extent of rule of the following rulers is highly uncertain: Wadjkare, Khuiqer, Khui and Iytjenu. References[edit] ^ Redford, Donald B., ed. (2001). "Egyptian King List". The Oxford Encyclopedia of Ancient Egypt, Volume 2. Oxford University Press. pp. 626–628. ISBN 978-0-19-510234-5.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link) ^ Shaw, Ian, ed. (2000). The Oxford History of Ancient Egypt. Oxford University Press. p. 480. ISBN 0-19-815034-2. ^ Peter Clayton: Chronicle of the Pharaohs, Thames & Hudson Ltd, second printing edition 1994, ISBN 978-0500050743, available online, see p. 70 ^ a b c Jürgen von Beckerath: Handbuch der ägyptischen Königsnamen, Münchner ägyptologische Studien, Heft 49, Mainz : Philip von Zabern, 1999, ISBN 3-8053-2591-6, see pp.66–71, and p. 284 for the datation of the 8th Dynasty. ^ Thomas Schneider in Erik Hornung, Rolf Krauss and David A. Warburton (editors): Ancient Egyptian Chronology, Handbook of Oriental Studies, Brill 2012, ISBN 978-90-04-11385-5, available online copyright-free, see p. 491 ^ a b Smith, W. Stevenson. The Old Kingdom in Egypt and the Beginning of the First Intermediate Period, in The Cambridge Ancient History, vol. I, part 2, ed. Edwards, I.E.S, et al. p.197. Cambridge University Press, New York, 1971 ^ Ryholt, Kim (2000). "The Late Old Kingdom in the Turin King-list and the Identity of Nitocris". Zeitschrift für Ägyptische Sprache und Altertumskunde. see p. 88, fig. 1 and p. 91. 127 (1): 87–119. ISSN 2196-713X.CS1 maint: location (link) ^ a b c d e Hratch Papazian (2015). "The State of Egypt in the Eighth Dynasty". In Peter Der Manuelian; Thomas Schneider (eds.). Towards a New History for the Egyptian Old Kingdom: Perspectives on the Pyramid Age. Harvard Egyptological Studies. BRILL. ^ Grimal, Nicolas. A History of Ancient Egypt. p.138. Librairie Arthéme Fayard, 1988. ^ Jürgen von Beckerath, Handbuch der ägyptischen Königsnamen. Münchner ägyptologische Studien (in German). 49. Mainz: Philip von Zabern. ISBN 978-3-8053-2591-2. ^ Couyat, J.; Montet, Pierre. Les inscriptions hiéroglyphiques et hiératiques du Ouâdi Hammâmât. Mémoires publiés par les membres de l'Institut français d'archéologie orientale du Caire. 34. Cairo: Institut français d'archéologie orientale du Caire. pp. 168–169, 188, 206–209 (see inscriptions). OCLC 920523964. ^ Kamal, Ahmed Bey (1912). "Fouilles à Dara et à Qoçéîr el-Amarna". Annales du Service des Antiquités de l'Égypte. p. 132.CS1 maint: location (link) ^ a b Grimal, Nicolas. A History of Ancient Egypt. p.140. Librairie Arthéme Fayard, 1988. ^ Peter Kaplony: Die Rollsiegel des Alten Reichs, vol. 2: Katalog der Rollsiegel, (= Monumenta Aegyptiaca. Vol. 3), La Fondation Égyptologique Reine Élisabeth, Brüssel 1981, issue 144. ^ Kim Ryholt: "The Late Old Kingdom in the Turin King-list and the Identity of Nitocris", Zeitschrift für ägyptische, 127 (2000), p. 91 ^ a b c d Jürgen von Beckerath: "The Date of the End of the Old Kingdom of Egypt", Journal of Near Eastern Studies 21 (1962), p. 143 ^ The decree on the catalog of the MET ^ Darrell D. Baker: The Encyclopedia of the Pharaohs: Volume I - Predynastic to the Twentieth Dynasty 3300–1069 BC, Stacey International, ISBN 978-1-905299-37-9, 2008, p. 271-272 ^ William C. Hayes: The Scepter of Egypt: A Background for the Study of the Egyptian Antiquities in The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Vol. 1, From the Earliest Times to the End of the Middle Kingdom , MetPublications, 1978, pp.136-138, available online ^ The fragments of the decrees on the catalog of the MET: fragment 1, 2 and 3. ^ Nigel C. Strudwick, Ronald J. Leprohon ed.: Texts from the Pyramid Age, see pp.345-347, available online Preceded by Sixth Dynasty (Seventh) Dynasty of Egypt c. 2181 – 2160 BC Succeeded by Ninth Dynasty Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Eighth_Dynasty_of_Egypt&oldid=971338227" Categories: Eighth Dynasty of Egypt States and territories established in the 3rd millennium BC States and territories disestablished in the 3rd millennium BC Dynasties of ancient Egypt 22nd century BC in Egypt 3rd-millennium BC establishments in Egypt 3rd-millennium BC disestablishments in Egypt 3rd millennium BC in Egypt Hidden categories: CS1 maint: ref=harv CS1 maint: location Navigation menu Personal tools Not logged in Talk Contributions Create account Log in Namespaces Article Talk Variants Views Read Edit View history More Search Navigation Main page Contents Current events Random article About Wikipedia Contact us Donate Contribute Help Learn to edit Community portal Recent changes Upload file Tools What links here Related changes Upload file Special pages Permanent link Page information Cite this page Wikidata item Print/export Download as PDF Printable version In other projects Wikimedia Commons Languages Afrikaans العربية Azərbaycanca Brezhoneg Català Čeština Deutsch Español Euskara Français Galego Bahasa Indonesia Íslenska Italiano Magyar Македонски Nederlands 日本語 Português Русский Slovenščina Српски / srpski தமிழ் Українська 吴语 中文 Edit links This page was last edited on 5 August 2020, at 14:09 (UTC). 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