| Senedj | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Sened, Sendj, Sethenes | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 Cartouche name of Senedj in the Abydos King List (cartouche no. 13) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Pharaoh | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Reign | 2773–2753 BC or later | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Predecessor | Wadjenes orWeneg | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Successor | uncertain;Sekhemib,Peribsen,Neferkara I | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Father | Wadjenes ? | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Dynasty | 2nd Dynasty | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Senedj (also known asSened andSethenes) was anearly Egyptian king (pharaoh), who may have ruled during the2nd Dynasty. His historical standing remains uncertain. His name is included in the kinglists of theRamesside era, although it is written in different ways: While theAbydos King List imitates the archaic form, theRoyal Canon of Turin and theSaqqara King List form the name with thehieroglyphic sign of a pluckedgoose.
It is unknown how long Senedj ruled over Egypt. The Royal Canon of Turin credits him with a lifespan of 54 years,[1] the ancient Egyptian historianManetho states thatSéthenes (as he calls Senedj) ruled for 41 years.[2]
The possibly only known contemporary inscription from Senedj's reign was found in 1909 by Egyptologist Uvo Hölscher, who assisted the excavations at theKhephren- andMenkaura temple atGiza. Hölscher found a small, thin-walled and polisheddiorite shard, which once belonged to a flat bowl. At the left breakline an incised inscription gives the reading: "The king of Upper- and Lower Egypt, Senedj". The inscription goes from the right to the left and exceeds the breakline, but the king's name remains reconstructable. The precious artifact was published in 1912.[3] It was also examined byGeorge Andrew Reisner, who mentioned it shortly in his bookMycerinus, the Temples of the Third Pyramid at Giza.[4][5]
The next source referring to king Senedj dates back to the beginning or middle of the 4th Dynasty. The name, written in acartouche, appears in the inscription on afalse door belonging to themastabatomb of the highpriestShery atSaqqara. Shery held the title “overseer of all wab-priests of kingPeribsen in thenecropolis of king Senedj”, “overseer of the ka-priests of king Senedj” and “god's servant of Senedj”. Senedj's name is written inarchaic form and set in a cartouche, which is ananachronism, since the cartouche itself was not used until the end of3rd Dynasty under kingHuni.[6][7] EgyptologistDietrich Wildung points to two further priests and possible relatives of Shery, who both also participated the funerary cult of Senedj,Inkef andSiy.[8]
Senedj is also mentioned inPapyrus Berlin 3038, which contains medical prescriptions and therapies for numerous diseases. One of these gives instructions for treating footcramps, and closes with the claim that the recipe for the ointment originates from a "book of vessels". This book is claimed to originate from the time of king Usáphais (identical with king HorusDen ofDynasty I). King Senedj allegedly received the book as an inheritance gift.[9]
The latest mention of Senedj's name appears on a smallbronze statuette in the shape of a kneeling king wearing the White Crown ofUpper Egypt and holding incense burners in its hands. Additionally, the figurine wears a belt which has Senedj's name carved at the back.[10][11]
EgyptologistPeter Munro has written a report about the existence of a mud seal inscription showing the cartouche nameNefer-senedj-Ra, which he thinks to be a version of “Senedj”.[12] But since the finding was never photographed nor drawn and the alleged object meanwhile got lost, Munro's claim is highly questioned by many scholars.[11]
Thehorus name of Senedj remains unknown. The false door inscription of Shery might indicate that Senedj is identical with king Seth-Peribsen and that the name "Senedj" was brought into the kinglists, because a seth-name was not allowed to be mentioned.[13][14] It may have been done by taking the name "Peribsen" (He who comes forth by their will), removing the syllables for "per" and "ib", and adding the "edj" syllable in the end to get "Senedj" (The frightful one).
Other Egyptologists, such as Wolfgang Helck and Dietrich Wildung, are not so sure and believe that Senedj and Peribsen were different rulers. They point out that the false door inscription has the names of both strictly separated from each other. Additionally, Wildung thinks that Senedjdonated an offeringchapel to Peribsen in his necropolis.[15][16] This theory in turn is questioned by Helck and Hermann A. Schlögl, who point to the clay seals of kingSekhemib found in the entrance area of Peribsen's tomb, which might prove that Sekhemib buried Peribsen, not Senedj.[17]
Egyptologists such as Wolfgang Helck,Nicolas Grimal, Hermann Alexander Schlögl andFrancesco Tiradritti believe that kingNynetjer, the third ruler of 2nd dynasty, left a realm that was suffering from an overly complex state administration and that Nynetjer decided to split Egypt to leave it to his two sons (or, at least, two chosen successors) who would rule two separate kingdoms, in the hope that the two rulers could better administer the states.[18][19] In contrast, Egyptologists such asBarbara Bell believe that an economic catastrophe such as afamine or a long lasting drought affected Egypt. Therefore, to better address the problem of feeding the Egyptian population, Nynetjer split the realm into two and his successors founded two independent realms until the famine came to an end. Bell points to the inscriptions of thePalermo stone, where, in her opinion, the records of theannual Nile floods show constantly low levels during this period.[20]
Bell's theory is refuted today by Egyptologists such asStephan Seidlmayer, who corrected Bell's calculations. Seidlmayer has shown that the annual Nile floods were at usual levels at Nynetjer's time up to the period of theOld Kingdom. Bell had overlooked that the heights of the Nile floods in the Palermo stone inscription only takes into account the measurements of thenilometers aroundMemphis, but not elsewhere along the river. Any long-lasting drought can therefore be excluded.[21]
It is also unclear if Senedj already shared his throne with another ruler, or if the Egyptian state was split at the time of his death. All known kinglists such as theSakkara list, theTurin King List and theAbydos table list a kingWadjenes as predecessor of Senedj. After Senedj, the kinglists differ from each other in respect of the successors. While the Sakkara list and the Turin canon mention the kingsNeferka(ra),Neferkasokar andHudjefa I as immediate successors, the Abydos list skips them and lists a kingDjadjay (identical with kingKhasekhemwy). If Egypt was already divided when Senedj gained the throne, kings like Sekhemib and Peribsen would have ruled Upper Egypt, whilst Senedj and his successors, Neferka(ra) and Hudjefa I, would have ruled Lower Egypt. The division of Egypt was brought to an end by king Khasekhemwy.[22]
It is unknown where Senedj was buried. If he was actually the same person as Peribsen, he was buried intomb P at Abydos.
Other Egyptologists, such asToby Wilkinson assumed that Senedj might have been buried at Saqqara. To support this view, Wilkinson makes the observation that mortuary priests in earlier times were never buried too far away from the king for whom they had practised the mortuary cult. Wilkinson thinks that one of the Great Southern Galleries within theNecropolis of KingDjoser (3rd Dynasty) was originally Senedj's tomb.[23]
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