Nepherites I

Nepherites I
Nepherites I
Nefaarud I, Nayfaurud I
	Statue claimed to be the Sphinx of pharaoh Nepherites I, found in 1513 and purchased in 1808 in Italy. Louvre museum , A 26
Pharaoh
Reign	399–393 BC
Predecessor	Amyrtaeus
Successor	Hakor
Horus name
Horus name
	Aa-ib ; Of Great Mind
Golden Horus
	Setep-netjeru ; Chosen by the gods
Prenomen (Praenomen)
	Ba-en-re Mery-netjeru ; Soul of Re, Beloved of the Gods
Nomen
	Nef-aa-rud ; The Great Ones prosper
	;
Children	Hakor
Died	393 BC
Burial	Mendes ?
Dynasty	29th Dynasty

Nefaarud I or Nayfaurud I , better known with his hellenised name Nepherites I , was an ancient Egyptian pharaoh , the founder of the 29th Dynasty in 399 BC.

Reign [ edit ]

Accession [ edit ]

It is believed that Nepherites was a general from the deltaic city of Mendes who, in the autumn of 399 BC, rose against pharaoh Amyrtaeus , defeated him in open battle, ^[3] and then executed him at Memphis . ^[4] Nepherites then crowned himself pharaoh at Memphis and possibly also at Sais , before shifting the capital from Sais to his hometown Mendes. ^[5] The fact that Nepherites I chose the same Horus name of Psamtik I and the Golden Horus name of Amasis II ? both relevant rulers of the earlier 26th Dynasty - is thought to demonstrate that he wanted to associate his rule with an earlier 'golden age' of Egyptian history. ^[6]

Activities [ edit ]

According to Manetho , Nepherites I ruled for six years, although his highest archaeologically attested date is his regnal year 4. ^[5]

Evidence of Nepherites' building work has been found in a number of locations across the country. In Lower Egypt , he is attested at Thmuis , Buto (where a statue of him has been found ^[7]), Memphis, Saqqara (where an Apis burial took place in his regnal year 2) and his capital and hometown Mendes . In Middle and Upper Egypt , he ordered a chapel at Akoris while at Akhmim , near Sohag , there is evidence of the worship of a statue of him which was placed inside a naos . He also added some buildings at Karnak such as a storeroom and a shrine meant to house a sacred bark. ^[6]^[5] A basalt sphinx with his name is now located in the Louvre , but it was known to have been brought to Europe as early as the 16th century, having adorned a fountain at the Villa Borghese gardens , Rome . ^[8]

In foreign affairs, he resumed the policy of Egyptian intervention in the Middle East. As reported by Diodorus Siculus , in 396 BC he supported the Spartan king Agesilaus in his war against the Persians ; the Spartans had conquered Cyprus and Rhodes and were attempting to extend their influence further east. Nepherites supplied the Spartans with 500,000 measures of grain and material for 100 triremes . However, the cargo reached Rhodes just after the Persians managed to retake the island, so it was entirely seized by the philo-Persian admiral Conon of Athens . ^[9]^[10]

Death and succession [ edit ]

Nepherites I died during the winter of 394/393 BC after a six-year reign. ^[5] The Demotic Chronicle simply states that "his son" was allowed to succeed him, without providing any name. Nowadays it is generally believed that Nepherites' son was Hakor , who ruled after him for only a year before being overthrown by an apparently unrelated claimant, Psammuthes ; Hakor, however, was able to retake the throne the following year. ^[11]

Possible tomb [ edit ]

A tomb believed to be that of Nepherites was discovered by a joint team from the University of Toronto and the University of Washington in 1992?93. ^[12] Possible ownership of the tomb was identified by the presence of a shabti bearing the name of Nepherites I; however, definitive proof has not been found. ^[13] Although still containing funerary objects and a large limestone sarcophagus , the tomb was believed to have been destroyed by the Persians in 343 BC. ^[12] Ceramic vessels containing fish specimens and fish-covered stelae have been found on the site of Nepherites's funerary complex. The presence of the fish, often interpreted as votive offerings , could be an indication that the site was previously occupied by a temple of the fish-goddess Hatmehyt . ^[14]

References [ edit ]

^ Sphinx of Nepherites I - A 26
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Clayton, Peter A. Chronicle of the Pharaohs: The Reign-by-Reign Record of the Rulers and Dynasties of Ancient Egypt . p.203 Thames & Hudson. 2006. ISBN 0-500-28628-0
^ ^a ^b Redford, Donald B. (2004). Excavations at Mendes: The Royal Necropolis . Vol. 1. Leiden, Germany: Brill. p. 33. ISBN 978-90-04-13674-8 .
^ Dodson, Aidan (2000) [2000]. Monarchs of the Nile (2 ed.). Cairo, Egypt: The American University in Cairo Press. pp. 196 . ISBN 978-0-9652457-8-4 .
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Grimal, Nicolas (1992). A History of Ancient Egypt . Oxford: Blackwell Books. pp. 372?3. ISBN 978-0-631-17472-1 .
^ ^a ^b Shaw, Ian (2000). The Oxford History of Ancient Egypt . Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press. pp. 378 . ISBN 978-0-19-280458-7 .
^ Gabra, G. (1981). "A lifesize statue of Nepherites I from Buto", SAK 9 , pp. 119-23
^ Royal Sphinx with the name of the Pharaoh Achoris . The Louvre. n.d . Retrieved 4 July 2014 .
^ Sweeney, Emmet John (2008). The Ramessides, Medes, and Persians . Ages in Alignment. Vol. 4. USA: Algora. p. 147. ISBN 978-0-87586-544-7 .
^ Gardiner, Alan (1961). Egypt of the Pharaohs: an introduction . Oxford: University Press. p. 374.
^ Ray, John D. (1986). "Psammuthis and Hakoris", The Journal of Egyptian Archaeology , 72: 149-158.
^ ^a ^b Arnold, Dieter (1999). Temples of the last Pharaohs . Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press. pp. 102 . ISBN 978-0-19-512633-4 .
^ Dodson, Aidan (2009) [1994]. "6". The Canopic Equipment of the Kings of Egypt . Studies in Egyptology. Oxford, UK: Routledge. ISBN 978-0-7103-0460-5 .
^ Riggs, Christina, ed. (2012). The Oxford Handbook of Roman Egypt . Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press. p. 34. ISBN 978-0-19-957145-1 . Retrieved 4 July 2014 .

External links [ edit ]

Livius.org: Nepherites I

Nepherites I 29th Dynasty Born: ? Died: 393 BC
Preceded by Amyrtaeus	Pharaoh of Egypt 399–393 BC	Succeeded by Hakor

[1] Sphinx of Nepherites I - A 26

[clayton-2] Clayton, Peter A. Chronicle of the Pharaohs: The Reign-by-Reign Record of the Rulers and Dynasties of Ancient Egypt . p.203 Thames & Hudson. 2006. ISBN 0-500-28628-0

[Redford-3] Redford, Donald B. (2004). Excavations at Mendes: The Royal Necropolis . Vol. 1. Leiden, Germany: Brill. p. 33. ISBN 978-90-04-13674-8 .

[DodsonMonarchs-4] Dodson, Aidan (2000) [2000]. Monarchs of the Nile (2 ed.). Cairo, Egypt: The American University in Cairo Press. pp. 196 . ISBN 978-0-9652457-8-4 .

[grimal-5] Grimal, Nicolas (1992). A History of Ancient Egypt . Oxford: Blackwell Books. pp. 372?3. ISBN 978-0-631-17472-1 .

[Shaw-6] Shaw, Ian (2000). The Oxford History of Ancient Egypt . Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press. pp. 378 . ISBN 978-0-19-280458-7 .

[7] Gabra, G. (1981). "A lifesize statue of Nepherites I from Buto", SAK 9 , pp. 119-23

[Louvre-8] Royal Sphinx with the name of the Pharaoh Achoris . The Louvre. n.d . Retrieved 4 July 2014 .

[Sweeney-9] Sweeney, Emmet John (2008). The Ramessides, Medes, and Persians . Ages in Alignment. Vol. 4. USA: Algora. p. 147. ISBN 978-0-87586-544-7 .

[10] Gardiner, Alan (1961). Egypt of the Pharaohs: an introduction . Oxford: University Press. p. 374.

[11] Ray, John D. (1986). "Psammuthis and Hakoris", The Journal of Egyptian Archaeology , 72: 149-158.

[Arnold-12] Arnold, Dieter (1999). Temples of the last Pharaohs . Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press. pp. 102 . ISBN 978-0-19-512633-4 .

[DodsonCanopic-13] Dodson, Aidan (2009) [1994]. "6". The Canopic Equipment of the Kings of Egypt . Studies in Egyptology. Oxford, UK: Routledge. ISBN 978-0-7103-0460-5 .

[Riggs-14] Riggs, Christina, ed. (2012). The Oxford Handbook of Roman Egypt . Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press. p. 34. ISBN 978-0-19-957145-1 . Retrieved 4 July 2014 .

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