 Today, we lament the lack of information on some of Egypt's
earliest dynastic kings, but in reality, we are perhaps lucky
to have as much information as we do on these kings who's
lives were lived, and than past almost 5,000 years ago. As
excavations continue in Egypt, always providing us with more
and more evidence of these kings, though sometimes raising
more questions than answers, we will probably learn even more
about these kings.
 We believe Anedjib
(Andjyeb, Enezib), who seems to have
been from the area around Abydos known as This, and is
recorded as a Thinite king on the Saqqara King List from the
tomb of Thunery, was the 5th ruler of Egypt's 1st
Dynasty.
Anedjib was this king's Horus name, which means "Safe is
His Heart". If he is to be identified with Manetho's
Miebidos (Miebis, Merpubia), then he may have ruled Egypt for
about 26 years. However, most Egyptologists seem to give him a
somewhat shorter reign, though he may have served as a
co-regent with his father, who was probably Den, for some
time. In his A History of Ancient Egypt, Nicolas Grimal
tells us that Anedjib did in fact celebrate a Sed-festival,
though it seemingly took place only shortly after the death of
Den, suggesting that he came to the throne as sole ruler of
Egypt only late in life. Vases discovered at Abydos in the
area of Umm el-Qa'ab record this jubilee, along with the
addition to his name, "protection surrounds Horus".
 Anedjib was probably the first king to have a nebty (Two
Ladies) title and the news-bit (He of the sedge and bee) name
in his royal titulary, although the
nesw-bit title (without a
name) had already been introduced in the reign of Den. This
title reunited the two divine antagonists of the north and
south in the person of the king.
There were apparently problems during Anedjib's rule, as
well as that of the next king, Semerkhet. It is very possible
that the long reign of Den was responsible for the succession
difficulties related to these two kings. It would seem that he
experienced considerable problems with Northern, or Lower
Egypt and apparently had to put down several revolts in that
region. His successor, Semerkhet, was probably responsible for
erasing Anedjib's name from a number of inscriptions on stone
vases and other objects. However, Semerkhet's name was
omitted from the Saqqara King List, so it is sometimes thought
that Semerkhet may have usurped the throne of Egypt after
Anedjib.
 Anedjib built a tomb
(Tomb
X) at Abydos, but it is one of
the worst built and smallest of the Abydos royal tombs,
measuring a mere 16.4 x 9 meters (53 3.4 x 29 1/2 feet).
Interestingly, the burial chamber was constructed entirely of
wood, and there were 64 graves of retainers within the area,
also of low grade construction.
Another tomb which was apparently built during the reign of
Anedjib is that of an official named Nebitka (tomb 3038 at
Saqqara). This tomb is interesting in that it contained a
mudbrick stepped structure inside the Mastaba like structure,
that some Egyptologists see as a forerunner of Djoser's
Step Pyramid.
Other than his tomb at Abydos, Anedjib is also attested to
by seal impressions in tomb 3038 (the tomb of Nebetka) at
Saqqara, in a tomb at Helwan, and also in a tomb at Abu Rawash.
References:
| Title |
Author |
Date |
Publisher |
Reference Number |
|
Chronicle of the Pharaohs (The Reign-By-Reign Record of the Rulers and Dynasties of Ancient Egypt) |
Clayton, Peter A. |
1994 |
Thames and Hudson Ltd |
ISBN 0-500-05074-0 |
|
History of Ancient Egypt, A |
Grimal, Nicolas |
1988 |
Blackwell |
None Stated |
|
History of Egyptian Architecture, A (The Empire (the New Kingdom) From the Eighteenth Dynasty to the End of the Twentieth Dynasty 1580-1085 B.C. |
Badawy, Alexander |
1968 |
University of California Press |
LCCC A5-4746 |
|
Monarchs of the Nile |
Dodson, Aidan |
1995 |
Rubicon Press |
ISBN 0-948695-20-x |
|
Oxford History of Ancient Egypt, The |
Shaw, Ian |
2000 |
Oxford University Press |
ISBN 0-19-815034-2 |
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