Sobekneferu Nebmaatsutekh
Methuselah
Overview
Sobekneferu or Neferusobek was a pharaoh of ancient Egypt and the last ruler of the Twelfth Dynasty of the Middle Kingdom. She ascended to the throne following the death of Amenemhat IV, possibly her brother and husband, though their relationship is unproven. Instead, she asserted legitimacy through her father Amenemhat III, according to the Turin King List.
She adopted the full royal titulary, distinguishing herself from prior female rulers. She was also the first ruler to have a name associated with the crocodile god Sobek. Contemporary evidence for her reign is scant: there are a few partial statues – one with her face – and inscriptions that have been uncovered. It is assumed that the Northern Mazghuna pyramid was intended for her, though this assignment is speculative with no firm evidence to confirm it. The monument was abandoned with only the substructure ever completed. A papyrus discovered in Harageh mentions a place called Sekhem Sobekneferu, that may refer to the pyramid. Her rule is attested on several king lists.
[h3Female Kingship] Sobekneferu was one of the few women that ruled in Egypt, and the first to adopt the full royal titulary, distinguishing herself from any prior female rulers. Kara Cooney cites this progression of female power in ancient Egypt as evidence of the unique features of Egyptian monarchy, which progressively allowed women to take on formal – and absolute – power. Cooney posits that the formalization of Egyptian female kingship resulted from a combination of ancient Egypt's isolation, absolute monarchy, and women's ability to guide the civilization through crisis. She was also the first ruler associated with the crocodile god Sobek by name, whose identity appears in both her birth and throne names.
Family
Sobekneferu was the daughter of Pharaoh Amenemhat III, but her mother's identity is unknown. Amenemhat III had two known wives, Aat and an unknown queen, both buried in his pyramid at Dahshur. He had at least one other daughter, Neferuptah, who had a burial at his second pyramid at Hawara that was eventually moved to her own pyramid. Neferuptah appears to have been groomed as Amenemhat III's heir as she had her name enclosed in a cartouche. Evidence of burials of three other princesses – Hathorhotep, Nubhotepet, and Sithathor – were found at the Dahshur complex, but it is not clear whether these princesses were his daughters as the complex was used for royal burials throughout the Thirteenth Dynasty.Amenemhat III's eventual heir, Amenemhat IV, is attested to be the son of Hetepti, though her titulary lacks reference to her being a 'King's Wife'. The relationship between Amenemhat IV and Sobekneferu remains unclear. According to the ancient historian Manetho in Aegyptiaca they were brother and sister. According to Gae Callender they were also probably married. Although, neither the title of 'King's Wife' nor 'King's Sister' are attested for Sobekneferu. Sobekneferu's accession may have been motivated by the lack of a male heir for Amenemhat IV. However, two kings of the Thirteenth Dynasty, Sobekhotep I and Sonbef, have been identified as possible sons of his based on their shared nomen 'Amenemhat'. As such, Sobekneferu may have usurped the throne after Amenemhat IV's death, viewing his heirs as illegitimate.
Reign
The Middle Kingdom was in decline by the time of Sobekneferu's accession. The peak of the Middle Kingdom is attributed to Senusret III and Amenemhat III. Senusret III formed the basis for the legendary character Sesostris described by Manetho and Herodotus. He led military expeditions into Nubia and into Syria-Palestine and built a 60 m (200 ft) tall mudbrick pyramid as his monument. He reigned for 39 years, as evidenced by an inscription in Abydos, where he was buried. Amenemhat III, in contrast, presided over a peaceful Egypt that consisted of monumental constructions, the development of Faiyum, and numerous mining expeditions. His reign lasted at least 45 years, probably longer. He built two pyramids, at Dahshur and at Hawara. Nicolas Grimal notes that such long reigns contributed to the end of the Twelfth Dynasty, but without the collapse that ended the Old Kingdom. Amenemhat IV ruled for 9 or 10 years. There is little information regarding his reign.It is to this backdrop that Sobekneferu acquired the throne. She reigned for around 4 years, but as with her predecessor, there are few surviving records. Her death brought a close to the Twelfth Dynasty and began the Second Intermediate Period spanning the following two centuries.
This period is poorly understood owing to the paucity of references to the rulers of the time. She was succeeded by either Sobekhotep I or Wegaf, who inaugurated the Thirteenth Dynasty. Stephen Quirke proposed, based on the numerosity of kingships and brevity of their rule, that a rotating succession of kings from Egypt's most powerful families took the throne. They retained Itj-tawy as their capital through the Thirteenth Dynasty. Their role, however, was relegated to a much lesser status than earlier and power rested within the administration. It is generally accepted that Egypt remained unified until late into the dynasty. Kim Ryholt contends that the Fourteenth Dynasty instead arose in the Nile Delta at the end of Sobekneferu's reign as a rival to the Thirteenth. Thomas Schneider argues that the evidence for this hypothesis is weak.
In ancient Egyptian historiography, there is some evidence for other female rulers. As early as the First Dynasty, Meritneith is proposed to have ruled as regent for her son. In the Fifth Dynasty, Setibhor may have been a female king regnant based on the manner her monuments were targets for destruction. Another candidate, Nitocris, is generally considered to have ruled in the Sixth Dynasty, though there is little proof of her historicity and she is not mentioned before the Eighteenth Dynasty. The kingship of Nitocris may instead be a Greek legend and that the name originated with an incorrect translation of Neitiqerty Siptah.
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