BIA

FÉVRIER 2015
A second Khent-kawes is also known. A
block of limestone inscribed with words “the
king’s wife Khent-kawes” has been found, and
this, associated with the Fifth Dynasty pyramid
of Neferirkare at Abûsîr, indicates that she may
have been Neferirkare’s queen.
In the 1970s, a Czech expedition under
Miroslav VERNER found a small pyramid that
belonged to her. Strangely, this Khent-kawes
had the same titles as the Gîza one. Scholars
postulate that the Abûsîr Khent-kawes was the
mother of the pharaohs Raneferef and Niuserre.
VERNER believed that the Khent-kawes of Abûsîr
was different from the one attested to at Gîza
and that she also ruled.
functioned as ritual centres. We know that the
king who came immediately after Raneferef was
the son of Queen Khent-kawes II.
From all this we can conclude that the
name Khent-kawes was very popular among the
royal family in the Fourth and Fifth Dynasties.
The discoveries also emphasise the power of
queens in ancient Egypt, because the evidence
proves that Khent-kawes I actually ruled the
country.
The other major discovery made at Abûsîr
was the Abûsîr papyri written in hieratic script
and found inside the temple of Neferirkare. The
papyri relate the functions of the temple and
the role of the personnel within it.
The limestone discovered
Regarding the third Khent-kawes, whose
tomb was recently found at Abûsîr, the
expedition found some two dozen symbolic
vessels made of limestone and four of copper.
The most interesting find was in the burial
chamber, where an inscription indicating that
Queen Khent-kawes III was the wife of a king
and also the mother of a king was found.
Scholars theorise that this queen was the
wife of King Raneferef, who was buried in an
unfinished pyramid at Abûsîr, and VERNER was
able to recover evidence attributing the
pyramid to this king.
Egyptologist Mark LEHNER believes that even
though this pyramid is unfinished, it may be
the only one in Egypt that can provide us with
information regarding how Fifth Dynasty
pyramids were constructed and how they
The Arabic name Abûsîr is derived from the
hieroglyphic word “pr-Wsir,” meaning the land
or place of Osiris. The Greeks called the site
Busiris. There are some 14 places named
Abûsîr in Egypt. According to Egyptian
mythology, each of these locations was thought
to contain a piece of the body of the god
Osiris, strewn all over Egypt by his murderer,
the evil god Seth.
The site still contains many secrets that can
reveal much information about the history of
the Fifth Dynasty. But the question arises of
why the discovery was announced to the media
twice. The first announcement was made by the
Ministry of Antiquities, while the second was
made by the American University in Cairo.
Someone should explain. (Zâhî Hawwâs, “The
tomb of Queen Khent-kawes III”, Al-Ahram
Weekly, February 26, 2015).
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BIA LI — Janvier/Juin 2015 52