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The Kings of the 5th Dynasty according to the following documents:
Manetho


Userkheres.......28yrs
Sefres..............13
Neferkheres.....20
Siseres...............7
Kheres.............20
Rhathures........441)
Menkheres.........91)
Tankheres........441)
Onnos..............33
Monuments


Userkaf
Sahura
Neferkara (Kakaa)
Shepseskara (Suhtes)
Neferfra (Akauhor)
Raenuser/Neuserre (An)
...............
Djedkare/Dedkara (Isesi/Assa) 3)
Unas 4)
Sakkarah and Abydos King Lists

Userkaf5)
Sahura6)
Neferakara
Shepseskara
Neferfra
Raenuser/Neuserre
Menkauhor
Dadkara
Unas

Courville's Identification of Names in Sothis List

Chamois..........12 yrs
Miamus...........14
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Amesesis........65
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Uses................50
Traditional image of Userkaf The name of Unis, the last pharaoh of the 5th Dynasty, was connected with a vizier `Meref-nebef' or `Fefi' or `Unis-ankh'. [`Discovering Archaeology', Jul/Aug 1999, p. 60ff]
01) The Turin Papyrus is readable at this point and gives reigns of 8, 28 and 30 years respectively.
02) For an artfully carved wooden head from Saqqara (judged to be from the 5th Dynasty) see A. Rosalie David, `The Making of the Past - The Egyptian Kingdoms', 1975, p. 71.
03) The Seattle Art Museum has a 48.6 cm tall limestone relief thought to show bulls being taken to be sacrificed (#55.175) judged to be of 5th Dynasty times. A part of the hieroglyphics seem to show this group: SAM bulls relief
04) For an image of the `Pyramid Text' of King Unas with his cartouche and a color painting of a deceased on his journey through afterlife (Book of the Dead) see Christine Hobson, `The World of the Pharaohs', Singapore, 1997, p. 168, 171. For an aerial image of the Pyramid of Unis at Sakkara see D. Sharp, `Funerary Enclosures - Early Dynastic Forts Reexamined' in KMT, Vol. 12, Spring 2001, p. 70; Image also features the site of `Gisr el Mudir' and a small site map of Early Dynastic Enclosures and Grave Rectangles at Abydos. Unis erected for himself a pyramid at Saqara inside of which the earliest religious hieroglyphic inscriptions were found. [G. Steindorff & K. Seele, `When Egypt Ruled the East', Chicago, 1958, p. 18.] The name of his wife was `Nebet' whose large (22-25 meters), very richly sculptured mastaba made of large, best quality blocks of stone from the Tura quarries south of Cairo, is located to the north of the Pyramid of Unas.
05) "Not long ago, at Dorak, near the Sea of Marmara, archaeologists came upon a rich Bronze Age burial that appears to be related stylistically to Troy II, although the finds have not yet been adequately published. The graves were of a local ruler and his wife, buried in the same tomb ... . there was a scepter of pink veined marble with a gold-encased wooden handle. ... four ceremonial axe-heads made of amber, lapis lazuli, obsidian, and nephrite, and the shaft holes were bound with gold and silver. ... One tomb even contained fragments of a richly colored carpet, the most ancient ever found. One of the sword blades was of iron, and there was a dagger with a silver blade engraved with little pictures of sailing ships, about the earliest known representations of ships outside Egypt. ... But perhaps the most remarkable ... was part of what had been a gold-encased throne. On the fragments of gold leaf was the unmistakable cartouche of the Old Kingdom pharaoh Sahure. The throne could have been a gift, but is more likely to have been acquired through trade." [`Lost Worlds', NY 1962, p. 304]
06) For the slate carved image of the head of Userkaf see KMT, Vol. 14, Spring 2003, p. 48.
07) For images of the 5th dynasty pyramid of Djedkare see KMT, Spring 2003, Vol. 14, p. 21.
08) For the mastaba chapel wall and limestone seated statue of Akhmeretnesut (conventionally dated to the mid-5th to early-6th dynasties, Giza Tomb G2148), see KMT, Vol. 14, Winter 2003-04, p. 27.
09) Not too long ago archaeologists discovered the tomb of Ny Ankh Nefertum, high priest of the time of pharaoh Unas and Teti near Saqqara. The mummy was found among a pile of mummy and wood artifacts, bones of the Ptolemaic/Greek/Roman period. On what evidence the priest was dated to the 5th/6th dynasty period is not clear. Among the finds were also coffin remains with the name of Iahmes, the supposed son of Psamtek, written on it.
10) For a B&W image of a wooden statue of the somewhat overweight looking 5th dynasty high official Kaaper see N.Reeves, `Ancient Egypt the Great Discoveries', p. 53.
11) The 5th Dynasty chapel of Kaipura was excavated at Sakkara in 1903 and of it is shown the chapel's false door with readable hieroglyphics and a butchering scene of what appears to be a hornless animal. KMT, Vol. 15, Fall 2004, p. 39.
12) A photo of the very lovely made art work in the mastaba of Ptah-hotep and his son Akhet-hotep can be seen in Alberto Carlo Carpiceci's, `Art and History of Egypt', Florence, Italy, 1997, p. 78-83. The making of papyrus rope and construction of a papyrus boat as depicted in the tomb of Ptahhotep, a 5th Dynasty official, from Sakkara can be seen in BA, Vol. 51, p. 134. The hieroglyphic text of the `Proverbs of Ptahhotep' can be seen in F.L. Griffith, `Notes on Egyptian Texts' in PSBA, Jun/Nov 1890/91, p. 65-76. `The governor of Ptahhotep says: "O king! My lord! when old age begins, when senility falls (upon one), when feebleness approaches, and weakness comes a second time, he sinks and weakens every day, the eyes are contracted, the ears dull, the strength diminishes with sluggishness of the heart; the mouth ceases and does not speak. The heart is choked(?) and remembers not yesterday: the bones ache throughout, and good becomes evil, taste of every thing (lit. every taste) has gone; the old age of a man fares badly in every way; the nostrils are stopped and smell not: standing or sitting alike are wearisome? It is commanded to thy servant here to act as tutor(?) Lo! let him tell that which was said by those who obeyed the rules of former time, even those which the gods obeyed; Lo! if thou didst likewise misery would be expelled from amongst the living, the two lands would labour for thee." Spake the majesty of this god, "instruct it (the two lands(?)) according to the words of former times, lo! it will do marvels to the children of the nobles, when they enter and hear (any) of it, every heart will be rectified and say (?) "it begets not satiety."
13) Evidence exists that Egypt or parts thereof was already divided up into nomes in 5th dynasty times and probably already in 4th dynasty times. "... so finden wir bereits bei Sneferu den 13. und 14. o. ä. Gau geteilt, indem das gleiche Zeichen den Zusatz `vorderer bzw. `hinterer' Gau erhält. Auch eine Teilung des grossen Ostgaues ist bereits in der 4. Dynastie belegt, in einen `vorderen' und einen `hinteren' Teil." [Wolfgang Helck, `Zur Verwaltung des Mittleren und Neuen Reiches' (HVMNR), Leiden/Köln, 1958, p. 198.]
14) A bead-net dress attributed to the 5th dynasty and part of the collection of Sir Fl. Petrie can be seen in Archaeology, Sep/Oct 2005, p. 48.
15) The scant remains of what some thought were those of the otherwise lost pyramid of Shepseskhare are located about halfway between the Pyramid of Sahure and the Sun Temple of Niuseere, KMT, Spring 2003, p. 53.
16) The 5th dynasty mud-brick tomb of Kahai, scribe of the `divine records house', and his wife Seperiankh, was unearthed at the NW corner of the pyramid of Teti. The team found several wooden statues of the owner and his wife including one double seated statue (photos included). Also found was a wooden carved panel with some termite damage but still showing the excellent workmanship. [Ancient Egypt, Jun 2007, p. 45-46]
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