Eleventh Egyptian Dynasty 2134 - 1991 BCE

Manetho's statement that Dynasty XI consisted of 16 kings, who reigned for 43 years is contradicted by contemporary inscriptions and the evidence of the Turin King List, whose combined testimony establishes that this kingdom consisted of seven kings who ruled for a total of 143 years. However, his testimony that this dynasty was based at Thebes is verified by the contemporary evidence.

Inyotef II/Intef II

 It was during this dynasty that all of ancient Egypt was united under the Middle Kingdom.

This dynasty traces its origins to a nomarch of Thebes, "Intef the Great, son of Iku", who is mentioned in a number of contemporary inscriptions. However, his immediate successor Mentuhotep I is considered the first king of this dynasty. An inscription carved during the reign of Wahankh Intef II shows that he was the first of this dynasty to claim to rule over the whole of Egypt, a claim which brought the Thebeans into conflict with the rulers of Herakleopolis Magna, Dynasty X. Intef undertook several campaigns northwards, and captured the important nome of Abydos.

Warfare continued intermittently between the Thebean and Heracleapolitan dynasts until the fourteenth regnal year of Nebhetepra Mentuhotep II, when the Herakleopolitans were defeated, and this dynasty could begin to consolidate their rule. The rulers of Dynasty XI reasserted Egypt's influence over her neighbors in Africa and the Near East. Mentuhotep II sent renewed expeditions to Phoenicia to obtain cedar. Sankhkara Mentuhotep III sent an expedition from Coptos south to the land of Punt.

XI Egyptian Dynasty 2134 - 1991
Mentuhotep I 2134  - 2144? BCE
Inyotef I/Intef I/Sehertawy 2144 - 2118?  BCE
Inyotef II/Intef II/Wahankh 2118 - 2069 BCE
Inyotef III/Intef III/Nakhtnbtepnefer 2069 - 2061 BCE
Mentuhotep II/Nebhetepre 2061 - 2010 BCE
Mentuhotep III/Sankhkare 2010 - 1998 BCE
Mentuhotep IV/Nebtawyre 1998 - 1991 BCE

Mentuhotep I was the first pharaoh of Eleventh dynasty. He is also known as Montuhotep and his name honors the god Menthu. He was at first a local Egyptian prince at Thebes during the First Intermediate Period. He became the first openly acknowledged ruler of the Eleventh dynasty by assuming the title of first "supreme chief of Upper Egypt" and, later, declaring himself king over all Egypt. He is named as a nomarch in Thutmose III's royal list of the 'Hall of Ancestors' monument at Karnak. Mentuhotep's wife was Neferu I. He was the father of Intef I, his successor, and Intef II.

Inyotef III/Intef III

 He was also a grandfather of Intef III. Mentuhotep I was a local Egyptian ruler at Thebes during the First Intermediate Period. He founded the Eleventh dynasty which eventually reunited Egypt under the Middle Kingdom. He is associated with Mentuhotep II. It is commonly thought that the two rulers were one and the same.

Pharaoh Inyotef I: Inyotef I was on of the founder of the 11th Dynasty. He took Thebes as the Capitol of Egypt and ruled it from there. He was the son of Montuhotep I, the "elder". The king took over a divided Egypt and tried to reunite the north and the south under his power. Herakleopolitans ruled Northern Egypt during the period of the 9th and 10th Dynasties' kings. Inyotef was buried in Thebes in the mortuary complex that he built. His royal successors honored his mortuary complex and did not modify it.

Intef II was a Pharaoh of the Eleventh dynasty during the First Intermediate Period. His capital was located at Thebes. At this time, Egypt was split between several local dynasties. After the death of the nomarch Ankhtifi, Intef was able to unite all the southern nomes down to the First Cataract. After this he clashed with his main rivals, the nomarchs of Herakleopolis Magna for the possession of Abydos. The city changed hands several times, but Intef II was eventually victorious, extending his rule north to the thirteenth nome. After these wars, more friendly relations were established and the rest of Intef's reign was peaceful. The discovery of a statue of Intef II, wrapped in a sed festival robe, in the sanctuary of Heqaib at Elephantine suggests that this king's authority extended to the region of the First Cataract and, perhaps, over part of Lower Nubia by his 30th year.

This impression would appear to be confirmed by an expedition led by Djemi from Gebelein to the land of Wawat (i.e.: Nubia) during his reign. Consequently when Intef II died, he left behind a strong government in Thebes which controlled the whole of Upper Egypt and maintained a border just south of Asyut. The earliest attested dating of the god Amun at Karnak occurs during his reign. The surviving sections of the Turin Canon for the Middle Kingdom with Intef II; it assigns this king a reign of 49 years.

Pharaoh Inyotef III: Intef III's father and predecessor reigned for 49 years and Intef III may thus have accessed the throne a middle-aged or even elderly man. Although Intef III's name is lost in a lacuna of the Turin canon, a king list compiled in the early Ramesside period, its reign length is still readable on column 5, row 15, and given as 8 years. The relative chronological position of Intef III as the successor of Intef II and predecessor of Mentuhotep II is secured by his established parentage to these two kings as well as the Turin canon and two blocks from the temple of Montu at Tod.

Mentuhotep II/Nebhetepre

 These blocks show the succession of kings from Intef I to Mentuhotep II and while Intef III's horus name is damaged, its position is certain. The absolute dating of Intef III's reign is less certain and several dates have been proposed:

Pharaoh Mentuhotep II: Mentuhotep II is considered to be the first ruler of the Middle Kingdom of Egypt. The Turin Canon credits him with a reign of 51 years. Many Egyptologists have long considered two rock reliefs, showing Mentuhotep II towering over smaller figures labeled king "Intef", to be conclusive evidence that his predecessor Intef III was his own father; this is, however, not entirely certain, as these reliefs may have had other propagandistic purposes, and there are other difficulties surrounding Mentuhotep's true origin, his three name-changes, and his frequent attempts to claim descent from various gods.

Painted sandstone seated statue of Nebhepetre Mentuhotep II, Egyptian Museum, Cairo. When he ascended the Theban throne, Mentuhotep II inherited the vast land conquered by his predecessors from the first cataract in the south to Abydos and Tjebu in the north. Mentuhotep II's first fourteen years of reign seem to have been peaceful in the Theban region as there are no surviving traces of conflict firmly datable to that period. In fact the general scarcity of testimonies from the early part of Mentuhotep's reign might indicate that he was young when he ascended the throne, an hypothesis consistent with his 51 years long reign.

In the 14th year of his reign, an uprising occurred in the north.

 This uprising is most probably connected with the ongoing conflict between Mentuhotep II based in Thebes and the rival 10th dynasty based at Herakleopolis who threatened to invade Upper Egypt. The 14th year of Mentuhotep's reign is indeed named Year of the crime of Thinis.

This certainly refers to the conquest of the Thinite region by the Herakleopolitan kings who apparently desecrated the sacred ancient royal necropolis of Abydos in the process. Mentuhotep II subsequently dispatched his armies to the north. The famous tomb of the warriors at Deir el-Bahari discovered in the 1920s, contained the linen-wrapped, unmummified bodies of 60 soldiers all killed in battle, their shroud bearing Mentuhotep II's cartouche. Due to its proximity to the Theban royal tombs, the tomb of the warriors is believed to be that of heroes who died during the conflict between Mentuhotep II and his foes to the north. Merykara, the ruler of Lower-Egypt at the time may have died during the conflict, which further weakened his kingdom and gave Mentuhotep the opportunity to reunite Egypt.

The exact date when reunification was achieved is not known, but it is assumed to have happened shortly before year 39 of his reign. Indeed, evidence shows that the process took time, maybe due to the general insecurity of the country at the time:

Mentuhotep III/Sankhkare

 commoners where buried with weapons, the funerary stelae of officials show them holding weapons instead of the usual regalia, and when Mentuhotep II's successor sent an expedition to Punt some 20 years after the reunification, they still had to clear the Wadi Hammamat of rebels.

Mentuhotep III was the son and successor of Mentuhotep II. One of the wives of Mentuhotep II, Tem, was given the title Mother of the Dual King and based on that title she is almost certainly the mother of Mentuhotep III. Pharaoh Mentuhotep III's family is a mystery and it is not known if his successor Mentuhotep IV was a son of his or not.Mentuhotep IV's mother is known to have been Queen Imi. If he was the son of Mentuhotep III, Imi must have been the wife of Mentuhotep III.

Sankhkare Mentuhotep had a mud-brick temple erected at Thoth Hill in Western Thebes. The temple was built on the site of an older archaic temple. It was dedicated to the god Horus. This temple may have been destroyed by an earthquake towards the end of the 11th dynasty. Sankhkare Mentuhotep was responsible for several building projects in the 12 years of his reign. His own mortuary temple was begun in Deir el-Bahari, but never completed. The temple was located a short distance from his father's mortuary temple. A causeway would have led up to a temple platform. Inscriptions show that the king was buried in a chamber cut into the rock-face.

Mentuhotep IV was the last king of the 11th Dynasty. He was the son of a woman named Imi, who was a secondary wife of either Mentuhotep II or Mentuhotep III.

Atra Haziz Tablet & Etana

Atra Haziz Tablet

A man... A man... The son to his father... They sat and... He was carrying... He saw... Ellil... They took hold of... Made new picks and spades, Made big canals, To feed people and sustain the gods. 600 years, less than 600, passed, And the country was as noisy as a bellowing bull.

 The god grew restless at their racket, Ellil had to listen to their noise. He addressed the great gods, The noise of mankind has become too much, I am losing sleep over their racket. Top left Sumerian God Enki/Enlil and next to it Atrahasis tablets.

Give the order that suruppu-disease shall break out, Now there was one Atrahasis Whose ear was open to his god Enki. He would speak with his god And his god would speak with him. Atrahasis made his voice heard And spoke to his lord, How long will the gods make us suffer? Will they make us suffer illness forever? Enki made his voice heard And spoke to his servant: Call the elders, the senior men! Start an uprising in your own house, Let the heralds proclaim... Let them make a loud noise in the land:

Do not revere your gods, Do not pray to your goddesses, But search out the door of Namtara. Bring as baked loaf into his presence.

Sky God

 May the flour offerings reach him. May he be shamed by the presents And wipe away his hand. Left Sumerian Sky God. Atrahasis took the order, Gathered the elders to his door. Atrahasis made his voice heard And spoke to the elders:

I have called the elders, the senior men! Start an uprising in your own house, Let the heralds proclaim... Let them make a loud noise in the land:

Do not revere your gods, Do not pray to your goddesses, But search out the door of Namtara. Bring as baked loaf into his presence. May the flour offerings reach him. May he be shamed by the presents And wipe away his hand. The elders listened to his speech; They built a temple for Namtara in the city. Heralds proclaimed... They made a loud noise in the land. They did not revere their god, they did not pray to their goddess,

But searched out the door of Namtara, Brought a baked loaf into his presence The flour offerings reached him. And he was shamed by the presents. And wiped away his hand.

Etana

 The suruppu-disease left them. The gods went back to their regular offerings.

Etana

The Igigi, the gods of creation, created a city and laid its foundation, and called it Kish. But the people were without a king, so the gates were barred against the world. Then Ishtar searched the land for a king, and Inninna searched the land for a king, and Ellil searched the land for a king, and they found Etana, a shepherd, and led him into the city.

They built his dais, and gave him his scepter, and made him king over all the land.  But Etana feared for his kingdom, for he had no son and heir. His wife Muanna, called Sherbi’anni, had an illness and could not carry a child to term. One day Muanna was visited with a powerful dream, and she spoke to Etana, saying unto him that only with the shammu sha aladi, the plant of birth that grows in the heavens, would she be able to bear him a son and heir. For many months Etana scoured the land from one end to the other in search of the plant of birth, but he found it not. Then Etana returned to Kish and offered up many sacrifices to Shamash, and beseeched his aid, saying,

“Mighty Shamash, god of the sun, god of justice, you have dined on the flesh of my fattest sheep and drunk the blood of my lambs, and inhaled the scent of my last fragment of incense. Deliver unto me the plant of birth, that my wife might bear a child!” Shamash took pity on Etana, and said unto him, “Follow the road into the mountain region, and on the slopes there is a pit. Search therein, and you will find that which you require.” Etana followed the long road until he reached the mountain region. Searching the slopes of the mountains he found a pit, and within the pit he found an eagle.

The eagle called out to Etana, saying, “My prayers to Shamash have been answered! Free me from this pit, and we will be friends forever.”

Etana

 Etana descended into the pit, and found the eagle’s wings were cut off, and its feathers all plucked forth, and it was dying of hunger and thirst.

Etana brought water unto the eagle until its thirst was slaked, and he brought food unto the eagle until its hunger was sated. Then Etana saw that the eagle was recovered enough to cling to him, and Etana ascended the pit with the eagle on his back. For seven months, Etana brought food and water to the eagle as it healed, and its wings grew, and it learned again how to fly. In the eighth month the eagle was fully healed, and it spoke to Etana, and asked of him, “How can I repay your kindness?”

Etana said unto the eagle, “I need the plant of birth that grows in the heavens, that my wife might give birth to our child.” The eagle replied, “I have never flown so high, but lie on my back and grip my wings, and I will carry you there.”

Etana laid his body on the eagle’s back, and stretched his arms along its wings, and grasped its feathers. Then the eagle flew up into the sky. And when it had flown one league up into the sky the eagle spoke to Etana, saying, “Look down at the land below! How small it has become.” And Etana looked, and saw that all the land now looked no larger than a hill, and the broad rivers were narrow streams. When the eagle had flown a second league up into the sky, it spoke to Etana, saying, “Look, look my friend! How small the land is now.” And Etana looked, and saw that all the land now looked no larger than a garden, and the broad rivers were tiny trickles. When the eagle had flown a third league up into the sky, and they were at the very gates of heaven, it spoke once more to Etana, saying,

“Now look, my dearest friend! See how tiny the land has become.” And Etana looked, and saw that the land was smaller than an anthill, and the broad rivers could not be seen. And he trembled in his fear, and his hands grew cold and lost their grip, and he fell. One league Etana fell, and the eagle flew down and caught him, and stopped his fall, but a fierce wind struck them and forced them apart.

A second league Etana fell, and the eagle caught him, and stopped his fall, but the swirling gusts blew them apart. The final league Etana fell, and the eagle caught him, and stopped his fall only a few cubits above the ground.  

3rd on the right Shamash

Together they landed heavily into a thicket of poplar, and fell into darkness. While they slept, terrible visions appeared to Etana, and he saw the people in pain and misery, and he saw the land stricken by drought and famine, and he was made to know that these things would come to pass because he had not sired an heir.

And while they slept, a vision appeared to the eagle, of a woman of surpassing beauty seated upon a throne, and on both sides of her rested lions, and in her hand was the plant of birth. When they awoke, Etana and the eagle shared their visions with one another, and they knew that the woman could only be Ishtar who lived in the heavens. So together they agreed that they must once more attempt to reach the heavens, and with profound resolution they set forth. Once more the eagle flew one league into the air, and Etana looked down and saw that the land and rivers were greatly diminished.

Enki/Ea

 The eagle flew a second league into the air, and Etana looked down and saw that the land was very small and the rivers were tiny trickles.

The eagle flew a third league into the air, and  Etana looked down and could not see the land at all.  He was sorely afraid, but still he clung tightly to the eagle until at last they arrived in the heavens. Together they passed through the gates of Anu, Ellil, and Ea, and they made obeisance.

Together they passed through the gates of Sin,  Shamash, Adad, and Ishtar, and they made obeisance. They came to the throne of Ishtar, and she smiled upon them, and gave the plant of birth to Etana, and made known to him its use.

Etana and the eagle flew down from the heavens and returned to Kish, where  Etana cultivated the plant in his garden. For nine months he gave the juice of the plant to Muanna, his wife, until she bore him a son who was named Balih.

Tablet of Ishtar, Inanna, Tammuz, Dumuzi

Ishtar was the goddess of love, war, fertility, and sexuality. Ishtar was the daughter of Anu.

Ereshkigal 

 She was particularly worshipped in northern Mesopotamia, at the Assyrian cities of Nineveh, Ashur and Arbela (Erbil). Besides the lions on her gate, her symbol is an eight-pointed star. Ishtar holding her symbol, Louvre Museum One type of depiction of Ishtar/Inanna The lion was her symbol (detail of the Ishtar Gate) In the Babylonian pantheon, she "was the divine personification of the planet Venus".

Ishtar had many lovers; however, as Gilgamesh noted, "Woe to him whom Ishtar had honoured! The fickle goddess treated her passing lovers cruelly, and the unhappy wretches usually paid dearly for the favours heaped on them." Animals, enslaved by love, lost their native vigour: they fell into traps laid by men or were domesticated by them.

"Thou has loved the lion, mighty in strength," says the hero Gilgamesh to Ishtar, "and thou hast dug for him seven and seven pits! Thou hast loved the steed, proud in battle, and destined him for the halter, the goad and the whip." Even for the gods Ishtar's love was fatal. In her youth the goddess had loved Tammuz, god of the harvest, and—if one is to believe Gilgamesh — this love caused the death of Tammuz.

Her cult may have involved sacred prostitution, though this is debatable. One of the most famous myths about Ishtar describes her descent to the underworld. In this myth, Ishtar approaches the gates of the underworld and demands that the gatekeeper open them:

Ishtar

 If thou openest not the gate to let me enter, I will break the door, I will wrench the lock, I will smash the door-posts, I will force the doors. I will bring up the dead to eat the living. And the dead will outnumber the living.

The gatekeeper hurried to tell Ereshkigal, the Queen of the Underworld. Ereshkigal told the gatekeeper to let Ishtar enter, but "according to the ancient decree". The gatekeeper let Ishtar into the underworld, opening one gate at a time. At each gate, Ishtar had to shed one article of clothing. When she finally passed the seventh gate, she was naked.

In rage, Ishtar threw herself at Ereshkigal, but Ereshkigal ordered her servant Namtar to imprison Ishtar and unleash sixty diseases against her. After Ishtar descended to the underworld, all sexual activity ceased on earth. The god Papsukal reported the situation to Ea, the king of the gods.

Ea created an intersex being called Asu-shu-namir and sent it to Ereshkigal, telling it to invoke "the name of the great gods" against her and to ask for the bag containing the waters of life. Ereshkigal was enraged when she heard Asu-shu-namir's demand, but she had to give it the water of life. Asu-shu-namir sprinkled Ishtar with this water, reviving her.

Then, Ishtar passed back through the seven gates, getting one article of clothing back at each gate, and was fully clothed as she exited the last gate.

Inanna

 Here there is a break in the text of the myth, which resumes with the following lines: If she (Ishtar) will not grant thee her release, To Tammuz, the lover of her youth, Pour out pure waters, pour out fine oil; With a festival garment deck him that he may play on the flute of lapis lazuli, That the votaries may cheer his liver.

[his spirit] Belili [sister of Tammuz] had gathered the treasure, With precious stones filled her bosom. When Belili heard the lament of her brother, she dropped her treasure, She scattered the precious stones before her, "Oh, my only brother, do not let me perish! On the day when Tammuz plays for me on the flute of lapis lazuli, playing it for me with the porphyry ring. Together with him, play ye for me, ye weepers and lamenting women! That the dead may rise up and inhale the incense."

Formerly, scholars believed that the myth of Ishtar's descent took place after the death of Ishtar's lover, Tammuz: they thought Ishtar had gone to the underworld to rescue Tammuz. However, the discovery of a corresponding about Inanna, the Sumerian counterpart of Ishtar, has thrown some light on the myth of Ishtar's descent, including its somewhat enigmatic ending lines.

According to the Inanna myth, Inanna can only return from the underworld if she sends someone back in her place. Demons go with her to make sure she sends someone back.

Dumuzi/Tammuz and Inanna. 

 However, each time Inanna runs into someone, she finds him to be a friend and lets him go free.

When she finally reaches her home, she finds her husband Dumuzi  (Babylonian Tammuz) seated on his throne, not mourning her at all. In anger, Inanna has the demons take Dumuzi back to the underworld as her replacement. Dumuzi's sister Geshtinanna is grief-stricken and volunteers to spend half the year in the underworld, during which time Dumuzi can go free.

The Ishtar myth presumably had a comparable ending, Belili being the Babylonian equivalent of Geshtinanna.

Seventh & Eight Egyptian Dynasty 2181 to 2160 BCE

The Seventh and Eighth Dynasties of ancient Egypt (notated Dynasties VII and VIII) are often combined with Dynasties IX, X and XI (Thebes only) under the group title First Intermediate Period. The Dynasties VII and VIII date approximately from 2181 to 2160 BC.
NetjerKare
Nitokris
Neferkare
Neby
Shemay
Khendu
Merenhor
Nikare
Tereru
Neferkahor
Pepysonbe
Neferkamin
Ibi
Wadjkare
Khuihapy
Neferirkare

The First Intermediate Period is the name conventionally given by Egyptologists to that period in Ancient Egyptian history between the end of the Old Kingdom and the advent of the Middle Kingdom. As such, depending on when individual historians place the 'downfall' of the Old Kingdom - with the end of either the Sixth or the Eighth Dynasties - the First Intermediate Period (sometimes abbreviated as "FIP") can be considered to embrace the Seventh, Eighth, Ninth, Tenth, and most of the Eleventh Dynasties.

The Old Kingdom was weakened by famine and weak leadership. One theory holds that a sudden, unanticipated, catastrophic reduction in the Nile floods over two or three decades, caused by a global climatic cooling, reduced the amount of rainfall in Egypt, Ethiopia, and East Africa, contributing to the great famine and subsequent downfall of the Old Kingdom. The last pharaoh of the Sixth Dynasty was Pepi II (or possibly Nitocris). He was 6 when he ascended the throne and believed to have been 100 years old when he died, for a reign of 94 years, longer than any monarch in history.

Menkare may have been a king of the First Intermediate Period of Ancient Egypt. He is entirely unattested outside of the Abydos King List. Neferkare II may have been a seventh dynasty king of ancient Egypt during the First Intermediate Period. His name is only attested on the Abydos King List, however J. von Beckerath believes he may have been the king with the praenomen Wadjkare[citation needed], which is attested in a graffito contemporary with First Intermediate Period.

Neferkare Neby may have been a king of the Seventh Dynasty of ancient Egypt during the First Intermediate Period. His name is clearly attested on the Abydos King List, and unlike other kings of this period, is attested in two other sources. His mother was apparently Queen Ankhesenpepi II, which would presumably make his father Pepi II Neferkare. Neferkare Neby appears on the false door at Ankhensenpepi II's tomb, and is also inscribed on her sarcophagous. Neferkare Neby also appears to have begun planning the construction of a pyramid at Saqqara, but never significantly entered the building stage.

Djedkare Shemai may have been a seventh dynasty king of ancient Egypt during the First Intermediate Period. His name is only attested on the Abydos King List. Neferkare Khendu may have been a seventh dynasty king of Ancient Egypt during the First Intermediate Period. His name is only attested on the Abydos King List. Merenhor may have been a Seventh dynasty king of ancient Egypt during the First Intermediate Period. His name is only attested on the Abydos King List.

Neferkamin may have been a seventh dynasty king of ancient Egypt during the First Intermediate Period. His throne name Sneferka is attested on the Abydos King List, however he also appears on a tablet in the British Museum with the name "Neferkamin". Neferkamin may have been a seventh dynasty king of ancient Egypt during the First Intermediate Period. His throne name Sneferka is attested on the Abydos King List, however he also appears on a tablet in the British Museum with the name "Neferkamin".

Nikare may have been a seventh dynasty king of ancient Egypt during the First Intermediate Period. His name is only attested on the Abydos King List. Neferkare Tereru may have been a seventh dynasty king of ancient Egypt during the First Intermediate Period. His name is only attested on the Abydos King List. Neferkare Tereru may have been a seventh dynasty king of ancient Egypt during the First Intermediate Period. His name is only attested on the Abydos King List. Neferkahor may have been a seventh dynasty king of ancient Egypt during the First Intermediate Period. His name is only attested on the Abydos King List and on a cylinder seal.