Sobekneferu — The Woman Who Was King
Sobekneferu was the first woman in Egyptian history we know, without any doubt, ruled alone as the king. Her reign, though brief, marked the last hurrah of the Middle Kingdom before the start of what will be known as the second intermediate period and the beginning of Egypt’s division into two countries.
Sobekneferu, whose name is a tribute to the crocodile god Sobek and roughly translates as “the beauty of Sobek,” was the daughter of Amenemhat III, a ruler known for his architectural projects and the prosperity of his reign.
Today, we will meet a woman who witnessed Egypt both at its strongest and its weakest and learn about her depiction in the YA fantasy novel, Treasures of Egypt: the Spear & the Scythe.
Reign and Achievements
Before we begin, I must make it clear that Sobekneferu’s time marked the beginning of the Middle Kingdom’s downfall and for that, there are a lot of missing details and context to what was happening. So please, keep in mind that Egyptologists are always learning new things about Sobekneferu’s life that help us contextualize her reign.
As far as we know, the path to Sobekneferu's ascension was unexpected. After her brother (maybe), Amenemhat IV, died without leaving an heir, the throne of Egypt stood empty. In a rare turn of events, Sobekneferu rose to the challenge and claimed the throne, declaring herself King of Egypt and Lord of the Two Lands.
During her reign, Sobekneferu actively continued the legacy of her father as she oversaw the construction and restoration of temples.
But in the end, Sobekneferu inherited a kingdom in decline, and given her short reign and the lack of records from her time it becomes clear that this chapter of Egyptian history was coming to an end. Sobekneferu’s death marked the end of the 12th dynasty and the Middle Kingdom and the beginning of the second intermediate period during which the country was split into two autonomous kingdoms: North Egypt under the rule of the Hyksos in Avaris and South Egypt under native rule in Thebes.
Sobekneferu in Treasures of Egypt
Sobekneferu’s depiction in the YA fantasy novel, Treasures of Egypt: the Spear & the Scythe, is faithful to her historical counterpart.
Conclusion
Sobekneferu’s reign might’ve ended with the collapse of the state after her death but it also marked the beginning of a new age. In my opinion, there is a lot of symbolism in the fact that the last monarch before the beginning of a new chapter in Egyptian history was herself a unique and revolutionary individual, and even if she hadn’t lived long enough to try and save her kingdom, Sobekneferu guaranteed herself a place in Egypt’s long history simply by being who she was. She was a woman who didn’t shy away from responsibility when Egypt needed her and it is quite poetic to think that the second intermediate period began after the reign of Sobekneferu and ended thanks to the efforts of Queen Ahhotep.
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