Sonbef
Senebef, Senbef, Amenemhat Senbef, Sonbef
Cylinder seal bearing the royal titulary of Sonbef, drawing byFlinders Petrie.[1][2]
Pharaoh
Reign	4 years (highest att.) 1800–1796BC[3] 1799–1795BC[1]
Predecessor	Sekhemre Khutawy Sobekhotep
Successor	Nerikare (Ryholt) orPantjeny (von Beckerath)
Royal titulary Horus name Mehibtawy Mḥ-jb-t3.wj Favorite of the two lands He whom the two lands trust Nebty name Itisekhemef Jṯj-sḫm=f He who seizes his power Prenomen Sekhemkare Sḫm-k3-Rˁ Mighty is theKa ofRa Turin canon: Sekhemkare A[menemhat Sonbe]f Sḫm-k3-Rˁ J[mn-m-ḥ3.t snb].f Mighty is the Ka of Ra, A[menemhat's son Sonbe]f [4] Nomen Amenemhat [Sa] Sonbef Jmn-m-ḥ3.t [s3]snb.f Amenemhat['s son] Sonbef[5]
Dynasty	13th Dynasty Middle Kingdom Period

Sekhemkare Amenemhat Senebef (also Sonbef, Amenemhat Senbef; Senebef) was an Egyptianpharaoh of the early13th Dynasty, often considered as the final part of the lateMiddle Kingdom or earlySecond Intermediate Period.

As a king of the early 13th Dynasty, Sonbef may have reigned fromItjtawy in theFaiyum. However, the only contemporary attestations of him are from south ofThebes.^[5]These include a scarab seal of unknown provenance, a cylinder seal from the Amherst collection and now in theMetropolitan Museum of Art.^[1]

AtEl-Tod, two inscribed blocks has the prenomen "Sekhemkare".^[6]

InNubia, twoNile Level Records with the prenomen Sekhemkare are also attributable to him, one fromAskut and dated to hisYear 3,^[7] and the other fromSemna dated to hisYear 4.^[3] Less certain is a much damaged record from Semna dated to a year 5 that may belong to Sekhemkare.^[5]

The ownership of these Nile records is still in doubt however, as they only bear the prenomen Sekhemkare, whichAmenemhat V also bore. The Egyptologist and archaeologistStuart Tyson Smith, who studied the records initially attributed them to Sonbef,^[8] but later changed his opinion and attributed them to Amenemhat V.^[9]

BM EA 75196 | A statue belonging to vizierKhenmes, including the royal name of king Sekhemkare.^[10][11]

TheTurin King List 7:06 mentions "The Dual King Sekhemkara ... years ... lacuna years, 6 years".^[12] Ryholt has read it as "Sekhemkare [Amenemhat Sonbe]f".^[3] The reign length is lost and followed by a lacuna of years. He is preceded in this list byKhutawyra (7:05) and succeeded by Amenemhat(ra) (7:07).

According to EgyptologistsKim Ryholt,Jürgen von Beckerath and Darrell Baker, he was the second king of the dynasty, reigning from 1800 BC until 1796 BC.^{[3][5][13][14]}

Egyptologists debate whether Sekhemkare Sonbef is the same king asSekhemkare Amenemhat V. Indeed, Sonbef called himself "Amenemhat Sonbef"; this can be a simple double name or a filiation meaningSon of Amenemhat, Sonbef.

Both Ryholt and Baker consider Sonbef a son ofAmenemhat IV and a brother ofSekhemre Khutawy Sobekhotep.^[3][5] Thus, they see Sonbef and Amenemhat V as two different rulers, an opinion also shared by Jürgen von Beckerath.^{[3][5][13][14]} Ryholt and Baker further posit that Sonbef's and Amenemhat's rules were separated by the ephemeral reign ofNerikare, while von Beckerath believes it was Sekhemre KhutawyPantjeny who reigned between the two.^[13][14]At the oppositeDetlef Franke andStephen Quirke believe that Amenemhat V and Sonbef are one and the same person.^[15][16] Franke and others regard "Amenemhat Sonbef" as a double name. Indeed, double naming was common in Egypt and especially in the late 12th and 13th Dynasty.^[17]

• 18th-century BC pharaohs
• Pharaohs of the Thirteenth Dynasty of Egypt

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