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Ramesses XI

B. C.E.) Last ruler of the Twentieth Dynasty and the New Kingdom

He reigned from 1100 b. c.e. until his death. Ramesses XI was the son of ramesses x and Queen tiye, and married Queen tanutamun. They had two daughters, henuttawy and another Tanutamun. He also had a second consort, possibly Baketwerel.

The state of Egypt was perilous at the time, as the Tale of WENAMUN, a literary work of the reign, indicates. Thebes was in a state of constant revolt, and Ramesses XI was a recluse. Local Thebans used medinet habu, Ramesses Ill’s temple, as a fortress because of the riots and unrest. Hundreds died in the Theban revolt. The viceroy of Nubia, PANHESI, took control of the city but was ousted by heri-HOR, who became the high priest of Amun and commander of Upper Egypt. He died before Ramesses XI, who built a tomb in the valley of the kings at Thebes but did not use it. This tomb was unfinished, but elaborate, with pillared halls, a shaft, and a burial chamber. The mummy of Ramesses XI has never been found.

Ramessesnakht (fl. 12th century b. c.e.) Priestly official of the Twentieth Dynasty

He served ramesses iv (r. 1163-1156 b. c.e.) as the high priest of amun in thebes. He may have held this office in earlier reigns as well. Ramessesnakht led an expeditionary force of 8,000 Egyptians to the quarries of wadi HAMMAMAT. He brought back stone materials for Ramesses IV’s building programs. He also assumed many high ranks and put his sons, Nesamon and Amenhotep, in high offices. He was related to the mayor of Thebes. Ramessesnakht’s usurpation of power aided the decline of the New Kingdom.

Ramesses-Nebweben (fl. 13th century b. c.e.) Prince of the Nineteenth Dynasty

He was a son of ramesses ii (r. 1290-1224 b. c.e.). Ramesses-Nebweben was buried in the faiyum, near the retirement center of the harem at mi-wer. He was a hunchback and spent most of his life at the harem retreat, dying at a young age.

Ramesseum This was the temple built by ramesses ii (r. 1290-1224 b. c.e.) at thebes. Called “the Temple of the Million Years,” the structure was part of Ramesses Il’s mortuary cult. The temple was dedicated to the deified Ramesses II and to the god amun, called “the United With Eternity.” The site was named the Memnomium, or the Tomb of Ozymandias, by the Greeks.

The structure was surrounded by a brick wall and superimposed on a temple constructed originally by seti

I. Pylons depicted Ramesses Il’s Battle of kadesh and his Syrian victories. The Ramesseum had a hypostyle hall, courts, and a throne room. A colossal statue of Ramesses

II, more than 55 feet tall, was discovered in the first court. An astronomical chamber was also found on the site, composing a second hypostyle hall.

Ramesseum columns, part of the elaborate hypostyle hall in the funerary monument of Ramesses II. (Courtesy Thierry Ailleret.)

In the southeast, a temple dedicated to Seti I and Queen tuya, the royal parents of Ramesses II, was erected, and an avenue of sphinxes surrounded various buildings. There were also chambers that served as sanctuaries for the assorted solar barks. A royal residence was part of the design. The Twenty-second (945-712 b. c.e.) and Twenty-third (828-712 b. c.e.) Dynasties used the storage areas of the Ramesseum as a burial site. A papyrus discovered on the site contained a version of “the Tale of the eloquent peasant,” and medical texts concerning the treatment of stiffening limbs were also found.

In the reign of Ramesses IX (1131-1112 b. c.e.), priests serving the Ramesseum were caught removing golden objects from this shrine. An accomplice, a gardener named Kar, confessed how quantities of golden decorations were taken. He also named his confederates, many of whom were in the priesthood. They were severely punished, as their crimes included not only theft but sacrilege in desecrating a religious site.

Ramesseum Papyri A series of documents discovered in the great temple built by ramesses ii (r. 1290-1224

B. c.e.) at Thebes, the first was discovered during an expedition to the site during 1895-1896 and is now in the Berlin Museum. “The Tale of the eloquent peasant” was contained in this papyrus. The Ramesseum Papyrus IV dates to 1900 b. c.e. and contained magico-medical material. The text called papyrus V is purely medical, concerned with “stiffening of the limbs,” the condition of arthritis. Another text describes various illnesses being treated in Kahun.

Ram of Mendes He was a divine being in Egypt, ba’eb DJET, called “the Ram of Tjet” or “the Soul Lord of Tjet.” This cult was founded in the second Dynasty (2770-2649 b. c.e.) and prospered in bubastis. The word BA was translated in this cult as “soul” or “ram.” In time the Ram of Mendes was believed to embody the souls of the deities RE, SHU, GEB, and OSIRIS. The Ram’s consort was hat-MEHIT, a dolphin goddess. ptolemy ii philadelphus (r. 285-246 b. c.e.) aided the cult of the Ram of Mendes.

Ramose (1) (fl. 14th century b. c.e.) Vizier of the Eighteenth Dynasty

He served in this high office for amenhotep iii (r. 1391-1353 b. c.e.) and akhenaten (r. 1353-1335 b. c.e.). A trusted courtier, Ramose’s career spanned the traditional and the ’amarna Periods, although he died before ’Amarna became Egypt’s capital in Akhenaten’s reign. Ramose was a relative of the famed amenhotep, son of HAPU. Ramose accepted the cult of aten.

His tomb in sheikh abd’el-qurna, on the western shore of Thebes, contains traditional and ’Amarna style reliefs. They depict Aten rituals, as well as the usual scenes, and include a portrait of Amenhotep, son of Hapu, always recognized by his long flowing hair. The tomb was unfinished and not used, and Ramose’s remains have never been discovered.

Ramose (2) (fl. 13th century b. c.e.) Official of the Nineteenth Dynasty

He served as a scribe and administrator for ramesses ii (r. 1290-1224 b. c.e.). Ramose was a temple official, belonging to a family that held high positions since the reign of TUTHMOSIS IV of the Eighteenth Dynasty. He served as a scribe in the temple treasury, as accountant for the cattle of Amun, and as a chief administrator for the House of the Seal Bearer. His tomb in ’amarna was cruciform in shape with a transverse galley and a burial shaft. It was unfinished but contained statue remnants and painted scenes.

Ramose (3) (fl. 15th century b. c.e.) Official of the Eighteenth Dynasty

He served hatshepsut (r. 1473-1458 b. c.e.). His wife was Hatnofer, and he was buried with her at Thebes. Ramose was the father of senenmut, the tutor of neferu-re.

340 Ra'neferef Ra’neferef See neferefre.

Ranofer (fl. c. 24th century b. c.e.) Priestly official of the Fifth Dynasty

He served several pharaohs as a prophet of the gods ptah and sokar. His famous statues are in the Egyptian Museum in Cairo. Life-sized and fashioned out of painted limestone, the statues were found in his saqqara tomb and vividly display the artistic skills of the era.

Raphia This is a site in southwestern Palestine, near modern Gaza, where ptolemy iv philopator (r. 221-205 b. c.e.) defeated antiochus iii of Syria. Both sides used elephant cavalries in this battle. The Egyptians proved triumphant by using the heavier African elephant in the engagement, which was decisive for Egypt’s survival.

Rastau (1) This was a term used in early Egyptian historical periods to designate part of the necropolis of SAQQARA near Memphis.

Rastau (2) This was the name given to small passages built into pyramids and tombs, extending some distance in the Great pyramid at giza, erected by khufu (Cheops; r. 2551-2528 b. c.e.). They were once believed to be vents for air circulation, but recent explorations of these passages by small robots indicate that they do not appear to reach the outer walls. The passages may have had a spiritual purpose, serving as an entrance to the realms beyond the grave.

Rawer (fl. 25th century b. c.e.) Priestly official of the Fifth Dynasty

He served kakai (Neferirkare) (r. 2446-2426 b. c.e.) as a priest of min and as a ritual master. Rawer was termed an indicator of the secret words of the gods, believed to have great magical powers. His tomb, southwest of the Great SPHINX in SAQQARA, contained a stela that records that this priest was accidentally struck by Kakai during a religious ceremony but sustained no injuries. This site is a vast complex of 20 alcoves and 25 wall corridors. A portrait of Rawer was included in the decorations, depicting him in a loincloth, with a pyramidal apron and a badge across his chest and shoulders.

Re He was the major solar deity of the ancient Egyptians, whose cult at Heliopolis, or hermopolis magna, developed in the Early Dynastic Period. Re was the most popular solar deity of Egypt, and his cult incorporated many of the attributes and mythology of various other temples. Re appeared on the ancient pyramidal stone in the phoenix Hall at Heliopolis, as a symbol of rebirth and regeneration. Re’s cult concerned itself with material benefits: health, children, virility, and the destiny of the nation. Representing the sun, the cult was rooted in the nurturing aspects of nature and light.

The sun was called Khepri at dawn, Re at noon, and ATUM at night. As Atum the god was depicted as a human with a double crown upon his head. As Khepri he took the form of the sacred beetle. As Re the god was depicted as a man with the head of a falcon (or hawk), surmounted by the cobra and the uraeus. He was also identified with HORUS, then called Re-Horakhty, Re-Horus. In this form he was the horizon dweller. At dawn Re came across the sky in his solar boat, called the “Boat of Millions of Years,” accompanied by lesser divinities of his train.

The god Re appeared in the form of Atum in the creation myths taught at Heliopolis. ptah is supposed to have shaped the egg out of which Re arose. In the other cosmogonic or creation tales of Egypt, Re was depicted as rising as a lotus flower from the waters of the abyss. In turn he begat geb, the earth, and nut, the sky. Of these were born OSIRIS, set, isis, and nephthys. The waxing and waning of the moon was the monthly restoration of the EYE OF re by the god Thoth. This eye, alongside the eye OF HORUS, became one of the holiest symbols of ancient

Egypt.

Re was the Living King, as OSIRIS was the Dead King. During the Old Kingdom the concept of the kings assuming the powers of Re took root. The kings became the physical sons of the deity, a concept that would remain constant throughout Egyptian history. Even ALEXANDER III THE GREAT after he conquered Egypt with his Greek armies journeyed to the oasis of SIWA in the Libyan desert to be adopted as a son of the god Re and be given the powers of the true kings of the Nile. During the New Kingdom the god amun was united to Re to become the most powerful deity in Egypt.

Re, Eye of A pendant considered powerful and used as a sign of divine protection, the goddess ISIS was associated with the Eye of Re in one cultic tradition, and the deities buto and hathor assumed that mystical form. The Eye of Re was considered a spiritual entity that perfected the will of the god Re.

Rebels of Egypt They were a select group of native Egyptians who tried to unite their fellow countrymen in revolts against foreign occupiers of the Nile Valley In all of these rebellions the Egyptians failed to support these self-proclaimed leaders. Most of the rebels were from THEBES, the traditional area for the rise of warrior princes over the centuries. narmer, montuhotep ii, and ’ahmose had risen in their turns to march northward and to cleanse the land of alien stain. There were no such warriors in Egypt in the later eras, and no clans were able to amass armies in Upper Egypt to repel foreign intruders. Still, certain individuals began rebellions that were shortlived but reflected the ancient spirit of the Nile Valley

AMYRTAIOS, who ruled a small area of the Delta in the reign of artaxerxes i (465-424 b. c.e.), survived the Persian assault on inaros, a prince of Heliopolis. Inaros killed a royal prince of Persia in a battle and was hunted down and captured by General megabyzus. He was then crucified at the command of the slain prince’s royal mother. Amyrtaios was not pursued during the Inaros episode and remained in control of his small domain.

The third rebel against the Persians was khababash, reportedly the successor to nectanebo ii (r. 360-343 B. C.E.). He was not successful, but his leadership and his desire for a free Egypt was repeatedly commemorated over the years by the Egyptians and by ptolemy i soter (r. 304-284 b. c.e.) on the satrap stela.

Four rebels raised a call to arms during the Ptolemaic Dynasty, the line of Greeks who claimed Egypt following the death of Alexander [iii] the great in 323 b. c.e. CHARONNOPHIS and HOR-WEN-NEFER, Thebans, each started rebellions in the reign of ptolemy iv philopater (221-205 B. C.E.) but were easily defeated.

In the reign of ptolemy v epiphanes (205-180 B. C.E.), two other rebels tried to gain the support of the Egyptians. Probably their fellow countrymen recognized the fact that the Greeks would not allow the Ptolemaic line to fall, and an independent Egypt faced enemies, including the seleucids and the growing power called Rome. ANKHWENNOFRE led a small group for a time but failed. haronophis faced the Greeks and also met defeat.

Recensions An evolving form of mortuary and religious LITERATURE in Egypt that demonstrates the advances made in the burial rites and semimagical rituals concerning the dead, these works are variations of the BOOK OF THE DEAD. Written in hieroglyphs, the recensions demonstrated the ongoing changes made in such literature concerning death and the realms beyond the grave. They are divided into three historical categories.

On (Heliopolis) Recensions—the Heliopolitan form that developed c. 3300 b. c.e., probably variations of even earlier texts. This form was discovered in Old Kingdom (2575-2134 b. c.e.) tombs, copied on coffins and sarcophagi.

Theban Recensions—the variations started in the first half of the Eighteenth Dynasty (1550-1307 b. c.e.), written in hieroglyphs on papyri and divided into titled chapters. vignettes were also added to personalize the texts. Illustrations were then included, making it necessary to abbreviate or omit some chapters. The original Theban Recensions contained 180 chapters, although no extant papyrus has all of them. These reproduced the historical traditions of the priests at Heliopolis, herak-LEOPOLIS, ABYDOS, and THEBES. Internal references link the Theban version to the First Dynasty reign of “Semti,” probably semerkhet. Other references date to the reign of

MENKAURE (2490-2472 B. C.E.) in the Fourth Dynasty. A later form of the Theban Recensions was started in the Twentieth Dynasty (1196-1070 b. c.e.)

Saite—a series of recensions started during the Twenty-fourth Dynasty (724-712 b. c.e.) or perhaps later and popular only in the area of SAIS in the Delta.

Records of Restorations of Royal Mummies This is a document dating to the Twenty-first Dynasty (1040-945 B. C.E.), when herihor and other high priests of AMUN began the process of salvaging the royal remains of the pharaohs being ravaged by grave robbers. The first two mummies were moved to a safe location at deir el-BAHRI. Some of the most famous pharaohs of the New Kingdom and royalties of later periods were found there. A second cache was in the tomb of amenhotep ii in the

VALLEY OF THE KINGS.

See also paradise.

Re’emkuy (fl. 24th century b. c.e.) Royal prince of the Fifth Dynasty

He was the eldest son of IZEZI (r. 2388-2356 b. c.e.) and the designated heir. Prince Re’emkuy served as a chief lector priest, a scribe of the Sacred Writings, and as a “Servant of the Throne.” He was also listed as a “Sole Companion of the King.” Dying at a young age, Prince Re’emkuy was buried in the SAQQARA tomb of a judge, Neferiryetnes. The reliefs and decorations of the mastaba were changed to provide the prince with a suitable resting place.

Rehu-er-djersenb (fl. 20th century b. c.e.) Official of the Twelfth Dynasty, famous for his tomb reliefs He served amenemhet i (r. 1991-1962 b. c.e.) as chancellor. He was buried in a large mastaba in el-LiSHT, near Amenemhet I’s pyramidal complex. The walls of Rehu-er-djersenb’s tomb contain elaborate reliefs, including one depicting him hunting in the Nile marshes. An abydos STELA lists Rehu-er-djesenb’s prominent family, 23 in number. This stela was discovered in 1912.

Rekhet A hieroglyph in the form of a lapwing bird, sometimes listed as rekhyt, the hieroglyph symbolized an entire caste of Egyptians in the era of unification (c. 3000 b. c.e.). This caste was depicted on the scorpion mace-head and on other objects from the unification. The rekhet caste revolted in the Delta during the reign of DJOSER (2630-2611 b. c.e.) and had to be routed. Djoser is depicted in the step pyramid as crushing them as enemies of a true Egypt. Rekhet birds were winged and crested and used in temple rituals. With other symbols they represented the power of the pharaohs. The bird is depicted as a crested plover (Vanellus vanellus).

Rekhmire (fl. 15th century b. c.e.) Vizier of the Eighteenth Dynasty

He served tuthmosis iii (r. 1479-1425 b. c.e.). Rekhmire was the son of Neferuhen, a priest of Amun; the grandson of a’ametju, the vizier for hatshepsut (r. 1473-1458 b. c.e.); and the nephew of Useramun, or Woser, who was Tuthmosis Ill’s vizier in the early years of his reign. Tuthmosis III reportedly said of Rekhmire: “There was nothing he did not know” After Tuthmosis Ill’s death, Rekhmire was also vizier for amenhotep ii (r. 1427-1401 b. c.e.) but fell out of favor.

Rekhmire’s tomb, in the cliff areas of the western shore of thebes, was never used. The burial chamber was incomplete and one wall was empty of reliefs. The figures of Rekhmire in other parts of the tomb were damaged. The tomb, however, was decorated with illustrations of the daily activities and offices of the vizier and recorded the personal views of Tuthmosis III concerning the ideals and aspirations that are appropriate to the office of vizier. The depiction of the ceremonies for the installation of a vizier is complete, and there are other scenes portraying tributes, trade, and daily life, as well as funerary rites. Rekhmire’s wife, Meryt, is also depicted.

Rekh-nesu This was the term for the companion of the pharaoh, also recorded as Rekh-neset. The Rekh-nesu was “One Whom the King Knows,” originally a title given to counselors who conducted the affairs of state. in time it was bestowed as an honor on an outstanding official. The title gave such an individual rank, status, and supposed free access to the pharaohs.

Religion It was the cultic and spiritual system incorporated into Egyptian life over the centuries. The ancient Egyptians had no word or single hieroglyph to denote religion as it is viewed in the modern age. Their spiritual ideals permeated every aspect of their lives to the point that such traditions and practices were considered a natural element of existence. The Greeks and other visitors described the Egyptians as the most religious people on earth, but the concept of organized worship as it is known today falls short of the devotion and ardor displayed on the Nile, in the midst of a vast pantheon of competing deities and priestly factions.

Predynastic cultural sequences give evidence of one of the earliest inclinations of Egyptian religion—the belief in an afterlife. Animals were carefully buried alongside humans in the prehistoric eras, and the color green, representing resurrection and regeneration, figured prominently in grave rites. Fertility goddesses from the Nagada i and ii cultural sequences attest to the rudiments of cultic practices. A young male fertility god was also evident, as were indications of the emerging rites of various deities—neith, min, horus, among others. AMULETS, slate palettes, block figures with religious associations, and the Horus and set symbols were also found.

With the unification of Egypt in the Early Dynastic period, the various local deities assumed regional importance. Horus became the patron of the kings, alongside Set, in the eastern Delta. ptah became the principal deity of MEMPHIS, the first capital, and the cult of re flourished at HELIOPOLIS. SOKAR was evident in royal ceremonies, according to the Palermo stone and other documents from that era. nekhebet and wadjet had already been designated as the patrons of Upper and Lower Egypt. WEPWAWET, THOTH, ANUBIS, and the APIS bull were accepted as part of the Egyptian pantheon.

The royal cult was a special aspect of religion from the early period, associated with Horus and OSIRIS. The concept of the king as intermediary between the divine and the human was firmly in place by the time of the old Kingdom (2575-2134 b. c.e.). From the Fifth Dynasty pharaohs were addressed “the son of ‘re.’” Dead rulers were identified with osiris.

FESTIVALS and rituals played a significant part in the early cultic practices in Egypt. Every festival celebrated a sacred or mythical time of cosmogonic importance (honoring the souls of pe and souls of nekhen, for example) and upheld religious teachings and time-honored beliefs. Such festivals renewed the awareness of the divine and symbolized the powers of renewal and the sense of the “other” in human affairs.

From the Early Dynastic period a tendency to henotheism is evident in Egypt, especially in hymns and didactic literature. creation was explained in complex cosmogonic texts, and the presence of several, conflicting explanations of how the world began did not present a problem for Egyptians.

Egyptians did not demand a system of logical development of their religion. All that was necessary were the observances of the cultic rites and the festivals so that the people could mirror the divine order as interpreted by the priests. While the cults and celebrations represented regional or national preoccupation with particular deities, the individual Egyptians were quite free to worship a god according to their own inclinations. The people exercised free will in this regard, which led to an awareness of social and religious obligations, especially in the observance of the spirit of ma’at.

Surrounded by a variety of gods, Egyptians still maintained belief in one supreme deity who was self-existent, immortal, invisible, omniscient, the maker of heaven and earth and the Underworld, TUAT. The various gods assumed the supreme rank as the sole deity when addressed by their particular worshiper.

Re was credited with having announced that all men were the equal recipients of sunlight, air, water, and harvests. Re also instructed all men to live as brothers and to think on the West. amenti, the symbol of the grave and the afterlife. Amun was believed capable of nurturing and protecting each Egyptian as an individual while he also sustained the creatures of the field and the river and led the nation’s military and cultural advances.

Religious beliefs were not codified in doctrines, tenets, or theologies. Most Egyptians did not long to explore the mystical or esoteric aspects of theology. The celebrations were sufficient, because they provided a profound sense of the spiritual and aroused an emotional response on the part of adorers. Hymns to the gods, processions, and cultic celebrations provided a continuing infusion of spiritual idealism into the daily life of the people.

In the First Intermediate Period (2134-2040 b. c.e.) following the fall of the Old Kingdom, the local or regional gods reassumed importance because of the lack of a centralized government. The god of the capital region usually assumed leadership over the other gods and assimilated their cults. Although Re, Horus, Osiris, and Isis held universal sway, and Ptah remained popular, other deities began to assume rank. montu of hermon-THIS, Amun of Thebes, sobek in the faiyum, and other local deities drew worshipers. The coffin texts emerged at this time, making available to nonroyal personages the mortuary rites once exclusive to the kings.

When MONTUHOTEP II put an end to the Herak-leopolitan royal line in 2040 b. c.e., ushering in the Middle Kingdom, the religious life of Egypt was altered. Montuhotep and his successors strengthened the solar cult, which had implications for the royal cults as well, the king being the model of the creator god on earth. Also during the Middle Kingdom abydos became the focal point of Osiris Mysteries, and pilgrims flocked to the city. Osiris was identified with the dead pharaoh, the ruler of the realm of the dead. Those judged as righteous by Osiris and his underworld companions were entitled to paradise.

The Second Intermediate Period (1640-1550 b. c.e.) did not have a tremendous impact on the religious life of the nation because the hyksos, who dominated the Delta regions, and the Thebans, who controlled Upper Egypt, stayed constant in their observances. To enhance their legitimacy the Hyksos and their Asiatic allies were quick to assume the cultic observances of the previous kings. When ’ahmose ousted the Hyksos, ushering in the New Kingdom (1550-1070 b. c.e.), the royal cult again predominated, but alongside it Amun, the god of Thebes, assumed importance. The brief ’amarna period, in which AKHENATEN tried to erase the Amunite cult and replace it with that of the god aten, was too short-lived to have had lasting impact. Akhenaten, Aten, and the temporary capital at el-’Amarna were obliterated by later kings. HOREMHAB (r. 1319-1307 b. c.e.) went so far as to date his reign, which followed the ’Amarna episode, from the close of AMENHOTEP Ill’s reign, so as to eradicate all traces of Akhenaten and his three successors.

The Ramessid kings upheld the royal cult and the established pantheon. per-ramesses, the new capital in the eastern Delta, was a great conglomeration of temples and stages for cultic festivals. Until the New Kingdom collapsed in 1070 b. c.e., the spiritual traditions were maintained, and later eras saw again the same religious patterns along the Nile. During the Third Intermediate Period and the Late Period, religious fervor in the Nile Valley remained constant but was dependent upon nome enthusiasm rather than state-operated cultic observances. The Ptolemaic Period stressed Greek heritage but allowed the native Egyptians to maintain their traditional forms of worship and even tried to unite the Greek and Egyptian factions by forming new deities that were a combination of the traditions of both nations.

One last aspect of Egyptian religion that needs to be understood is the use of animal figures or animal heads in the portrayals of the divine beings of Egypt. The various depictions of such creatures in the ruins of the temples and shrines have given rise to exotic interpretations and to esoteric explanations of those images. The current understanding of the use of such animals is that these creatures were viewed as theophanies, images that were devised to represent the gods in different manifestations or forms. The Egyptians lived close to nature, surrounded by animals, birds, insects, serpents, and fish. some of these were used as representations of the local nome gods before the unification of Upper and Lower Egypt in 3000 B. C.E. Serving as the local fetish or totem, they disappeared or were absorbed into the cults of the various gods in time. The Egyptians did not worship animals or serpents but relied upon their familiar forms to demonstrate what they believed to be spiritual truths.

Ren The ancient Egyptian word for name, it was considered vital to an individual’s identity on earth and in the afterlife. A nameless being could not enter into the realms of the gods—in fact, could not exist at all. The duty of each family member, therefore, was to perpetuate the names of their ancestors in cultic ceremonies. The names of the deceased were recited aloud each day, long after they had been buried.

Those who could afford to do so hired mortuary priests to recite the daily liturgies in honor of the dead, so as to insure eternal bliss. The dead were also believed to benefit from the recitation of the royal or divine names, which made the kings and the gods happy to intercede on their behalf.

Re’neb (Kakau, Nubnefer) (d. 2649 b. c.e.) Second ruler of the Second Dynasty

He was the successor of hotepsekhemwy, the founder of the line, who ruled from 2700 b. c.e. until his death. He is called Kakau or Nubnefer in some king lists and is denoted as Kaichan by manetho. His name meant “Re Is the Lord,” and he may have been a usurper. His seals were in saqqara and on a trade route near erment. Re’neb is given credit for aiding the apis bull cult in MEMPHIS and the mnevis cult at Heliopolis. He is also credited with introducing the sacred ram cult of MENDES. His SEREKH was discovered on a granite stela in ABYDOS. His tomb is believed to have been situated under the causeway of UNis’s funerary complex in SAQQARA.

Renenet (Renenutet) An Egyptian goddess of good fortune, she was considered an incarnation of ISIS as the patroness of harvests. she was also worshiped as the celestial cobra that nursed the pharaohs. A temple dedicated to Renenet was erected in the faiyum during the Middle Kingdom (2040-1640 b. c.e.). She was also associated with the cults of hathor and other goddesses concerning harvests, fate, happiness, and childbirth.

Renni (fl. 16th century b. c.e.) Mayoral official of the Eighteenth Dynasty

He served amenhotep i (r. 1525-1504 b. c.e.) as the mayor of elkab and as overseer of priests. His tomb in THEBES is famous for its reliefs, depicting agricultural scenes, festivals, banquets, and funerary rituals.

Renpet (1) A goddess of the Egyptian year, and the Egyptian word for year, Renpet was very popular in the late periods of Egypt. She was depicted as a woman wearing various symbols of crops and harvests. In some eras she was associated with the solar cult of sopdu, called Sirius, the Dogstar, by the Greeks. Sopdu signaled the coming inundation of the Nile each year.

Renpet (2) The Egyptian hieroglyphic sign denoting the regnal year of a pharaoh, the renpet sign appears to have been introduced in the reign of djet, the third ruler of the First Dynasty (2920-2770 b. c.e.). Such a sign allowed significant annual events to be recorded accurately for each reign. The PALERMO stone contains the renpet hieroglyph as a separation symbol to compartmentalize information about the reigns of the pharaohs.

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Ramesses XI