| Qa'a | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Biénechês, Óubiênthis, Víbenthis | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 Restored tomb stele of Qa'a at thePenn Museum, Philadelphia | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Pharaoh | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Reign | c. 33 years, ca. 2910 BC | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Predecessor | Semerkhet | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Successor | Hotepsekhemwy (most likely) orSneferka,Horus Bird | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Father | Semerkhet (most likely) orAnedjib | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Burial | Tomb Q,Umm el-Qa'ab | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Dynasty | 1st Dynasty | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Qa'a (alsoQáa orKa'a) (literal meaning: "his arm is raised"[2]) was the last king of theFirst Dynasty of Egypt. He reigned for about 33 years at the end of the30th century BC.
Manetho calls Qa'aBiénechês and gives him a reign of 26 years according to the version preserved bySextus Julius Africanus.[3] Other versions of copies of Manetho's epitomes give other hellenized names such asÓubiênthis for versions byEusebius andVíbenthis by Armenian versions ofEusebius.[4][5][3]
The parents of Qa'a are unknown, but it is thought that either his predecessorAnedjib orSemerkhet was his father, since it was tradition to leave the throne to the eldest son. If Manetho suggested correctly (remembering the tradition), Semerkhet was the father.[5]
There is not much known about Qa'a's reign, but it seems that he reigned for a long time (around 33 years). Severalstone vessel inscriptions mention a secondSed festival for Qa'a, which points to at least 33 years of reign. The first festival was usually not celebrated before 30 years of reign, and subsequent festivals could be repeated every third year. ThePalermo Stone only mentions theyear of coronation and some usual cultic events that were celebrated under every king. The numerousivory tags dating to his reign also mention only typical arrangements, such as depicting and counting burial offerings and personal possessions of the king. Severalmastaba tombs of high officials date into Qa'a's reign:Merka (S3505),Henuka (burial unknown),Neferef (burial also unknown) andSabef (buried in the royal necropolis of Qa'a).[6][7]
Despite Qa'a's long and prosperous reign, evidence shows that after his death, a dynastic war between different royal houses began over the newly empty throne. In the tomb of the high officialMerka, a stone vessel with the name of a kingSneferka was found. It is unclear whether "Sneferka" was an alternate name of Qa'a or if he was a separate, ephemeral ruler. Egyptologists such as Wolfgang Helck andToby Wilkinson point to a further mysterious ruler named "Horus Bird", whose name was found on vessel fragments dating to the end of the first dynasty. It is postulated that Sneferka and Horus Bird fought for power and thatHotepsekhemwy ended the fight and finally ascended the throne of Egypt, thus starting theSecond Dynasty. Strong clues to that theory are traces of grave robberies and arsons found in the royal tombs of Abydos. Clay seals of Hotepsekhemwy found in Qa'a's tomb suggest that he restored the tomb or buried Qa'a, maybe in an attempt to legitimize his rule.[5][7]
InAbydos, the Tomb of Qa'a (Tomb Q) was a fairly large tomb, which measures 98.5 X 75.5 feet or 30 X 23 meters.[10] A long reign is supported by the large size of this ruler's burial site at Abydos. This tomb was excavated by German archaeologists in 1993 and proved to contain 26 satellite (i.e. sacrificial) burials. The beautiful tomb stela of Qa'a is now on display at theUniversity of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology.
A number of year labels have also been discovered dating to his reign at the First Dynasty burial site ofUmm el-Qa'ab in Abydos. Qa'a is believed to have ruled Egypt around 2916 BCE.
The tomb of one of Qa'a's state officials at Saqqara—a certain nobleman named Merka—contained astele with many titles. There is a second Sed festival attested. This fact plus the high quality of a number of royal steles depicting the king implies that Qa'a's reign was a fairly stable and prosperous period of time.
A seal impression bearingHotepsekhemwy's name was found near the entrance of the tomb of Qa'a (Tomb Q) by theGerman Archaeological Institute in the mid-1990s.[11] The discovery of the seal impression has been interpreted as evidence that Qa'a was buried, and therefore succeeded, byHotepsekhemwy, the founder of the second dynasty of Egypt, as Manetho states.
A dish inscribed with the name and titles of Qa'a was discovered in the tomb of second dynasty pharaohSeth-Peribsen (Tomb P of Petrie).[12]
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