Sebeknefru , the first female pharaoh of Ancient Egypt

Sebeknefru, also spelled Sobekneferu, was the queen who ruled as king of ancient Egypt (c. 1760–c. 1756 BC); she was the last ruler of the 12th dynasty (1938–c. 1756 BC).

 

The end of the long reign of Sebeknefru’s father, Amenemhet III, brought her half brother to the throne late in life. When her brother died, the absence of a male heir made Sebeknefru the closest in line of succession; she thus took the royal titles and ruled as king. Hers was not a precedent-setting reign, however, for a similar succession had apparently occurred at the end of the 6th dynasty (c. 2325–c. 2150 BC).

 

Sebeknefru reigned as a full pharaoh; her statues show her with full royal (king’s) regalia and in traditional royal poses. Nonetheless, she made no attempt to depict herself as a man, as did Queen Hatshepsut of the 18th dynasty (1539–1292 BC). Sebeknefru’s highest regnal year date—three—is indicated at the Second Nile Cataract, one of the sites at which the annual inundation level was recorded.

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. She was also the first ruler associated with the crocodile god Sobek by name, whose identity appears in both her birth and throne names. There are earlier women proposed to have ruled. As early as the First Dynasty, Meritneith 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.

 

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  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. 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.