The Historians' History of the World 01

4200 Semen-Ptah (Semsu).—Seventh king. Manetho says: “In his reign a terrible pestilence afflicted Egypt.”

IInd DYNASTY, 4133-3900 B.C.

4133 Neter-b’au.—First king. Manetho says: “During his reign a chasm opened near Bubastis and many persons perished.”

Monument.—Tomb discovered by Amélineau in 1897 at Abydos.

4100 Ka-ka-u.—Second (?) king; establishes or expands the worship of Apis; also of Mnevis and the Mendesian goat.

4066 Ba-en-neter.—Third (?) king; establishes the right of female succession.

IIIrd DYNASTY, 3900-3766 B.C.

3900 Neb-ka.—First or third king. According to Manetho a revolt of the Libyans in which they submitted “on account of an unexpected increase in the moon,” took place in this reign.

3866 Zeser (T´er-sa).—Second or fourth king. Builder of the Step Pyramid of Saqqarah. Dr. Budge says of this: “It is certainly the oldest of all the large buildings which have successfully resisted the action of wind and weather, and destruction by the hand of man.”

Monuments.—The Step Pyramid; the Great Sphinx of Gizeh.

Rapid development of civilisation during the first three dynasties.

IVth DYNASTY, 3766-3566 B.C.

3766 Sneferu.—First king. He wars against the robber-like tribes of the desert. He is said, on a monument of the XIIth Dynasty, to have founded Egyptian dominion in the peninsula of Sinai, which he conquered for its mineral wealth.

Monuments.—A number of carved stones, a bas-relief at Wady Magharah showing him smiting an enemy.

3733 Khufu or Cheops.—Builder of the Great Pyramid, Khut—“The Horizon.”

3666 Khaf-Ra.—Builder of the pyramid Ur,—“The Great.”

3633 Men-kau-Ra.—Builder of the pyramid Her,—“The Supreme.” He enlarges it after it is built. He afterward builds another pyramid at Abu Roash, and was probably buried there.

A peaceful dynasty. Brilliant age of art and literature.

Vth DYNASTY, 3566-3300 B.C.

3566 A new house from Elephantine “of priestly character” founded by Us-kaf.

3533 Sahu-Ra.—One of the most renowned rulers of the Old Memphis Kingdom. Wars in Sinai.

Monument.—Pyramid Khaba, at Abusir.

3433 Usen-en-Ra.—First Pharaoh to adopt a second cartouche with his private name, An. He holds the rule over the peninsula of Sinai.

Monuments.—The pyramid Menasu; a victory tablet at Wady Magharah; two statues, etc.

3366 Tat-ka-Ra (Assa).—He continues to wage war with even greater activity in the peninsula of Sinai.

Monuments.—The oldest papyri of authentic date belong to this reign. They are: “The Papyrus of Accounts” found at Saqqarah and the “Proverbs of Ptah-hotep.”

Ptah-hotep was probably the uncle and tutor of the king, under whose patronage the work was given to the world.

3333 Close of dynasty and first period of Egyptian history with King Unas.

Monument.—Pyramid Nefer-asu, at Saqqarah.

No great monuments in this dynasty. An age of decline. The art of building shows a great falling off from that of the IVth Dynasty. Methods are careless; decoration becomes formal, coarse, and flat.

Monument of Vth Dynasty.—The Palermo stele, containing, among others, names of some of the pre-dynastic kings of Lower Egypt.

VIth DYNASTY, 3300-3000 B.C.

3300 A new line of vigorous Memphite kings founded by Teta.

Monument.—Pyramid Tat-asu at Saqqarah, one of the first and worst despoiled by plunderers.

3233 Pepi Ist.—Most important ruler of this dynasty. He has left more monuments than any other ruler before the XIIth Dynasty. Great and successful wars against the Aamu and Herusha, inhabiting the desert east of the Delta. War against the people of Terebah, a country of doubtful location, probably in western Asia.

Monuments.—The long inscription on the tomb of Una, Pepi’s general, is our source of the history of this reign. Pyramid Men-nefer, at Saqqarah; the red granite sphinx of Tanis; statuettes, etc.

3066 Queen Men-ka-Ra.—The Nitocris of Herodotus. The early part of this dynasty is characterised by foreign conquest and exploration, but toward the end internal troubles have brought the kingdom to a state of disorganisation. Architecture rapidly declines.

VIIth, VIIIth, IXth, AND Xth DYNASTIES, 3000-2700 B.C.