Meresankh II

Meresankh II ("She Loves Life") was a Queen of Egypt who lived during 4th Dynasty.

For other royal ladies named Meresankh, see Meresankh (given name).
Meresankh II
Queen of Egypt
Meresankh II's sarcophagus
Burial
mastaba G 7410-7420, Giza
Spouse(s)Prince Horbaef
Pharaoh Djedefre or Khafre
IssuePrincess Nefertkau III
Princess Nebty-tepites
Prince Djaty
FatherPharaoh Khufu
MotherQueen Meritites I
ReligionAncient Egyptian religion

Family

Meresankh II's parents are assumed to be King Khufu and Queen Meritites I given that they are mentioned in Meresankh's mastaba. She is never explicitly called their daughter however.[1] Assuming Meresankh's filiation as stated, this would make Meresankh II a full sister of Prince Kawab and Queen Hetepheres II. She was also a sister of Princess Meritites II who was later married to the Palace Director Akhethotep (Akhtihotep). Meresankh II shares her name with her great-grandmother Meresankh I, mother of Sneferu. Meresankh III was a niece of Meresankh II.

It is assumed that Meresankh II married her half-brother Horbaef and they had children named Djaty, Nefertkau III and Nebty-tepites.[2][3]

  • Prince Djaty
    His titles: King's son of his body, Overseer of the expedition. His tomb is mastaba G 7810. The tomb may date to the end of the 4th dynasty or even the beginning of the 5th dynasty.[4]
  • Princess Nefertkau III
    Buried in mastaba G 7820 with her husband Iynefer II.
     The mastaba dates to the end of the 4th dynasty or even the beginning of the 5th dynasty.[4]
  • Princess Nebty-tepites
    A daughter mentioned in Meresankh's tomb.[1]

Meresankh II has the titles of a queen and it is usually assumed that her husband Horbaf died and that Meresankh remarried one of the subsequent kings. It is possible that she married her half-brother Djedefre, but it is also possible she married Khafre.

Titles

The titles of Meresankh II include:

  • Great one of the hetes-sceptre (wrt-ḥts)
  • She who sees Horus and Seth (m33t-ḥrw-stẖ)
  • King's Wife (ḥmt-nsw)
  • Attendant of Horus (ḫt-ḥrw)
  • King's Daughter of his body (z3t-nswt-nt-ẖt.f)[5]

Tomb and burial

Meresankh II was buried in a double mastaba G 7410–7420 with her first husband Horbaef. The tomb was excavated by George Andrew Reisner. Meresankh was buried in a shaft (G 7410B) with two rooms. Horbaef was buried in shaft G 7420A.[4]

Meresankh's sarcophagus was found and removed during the 1927 excavations and is now in the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. The sarcophagus is made of red granite and is inscribed on all four sides. The photograph provided by the BMFA shows a rectangular sarcophagus. The side shown is decorated with a facade of a palace. In the center the doors to the palace are shown. To the left of the palace facade is the inscription "King's Daughter of his body, Meresankh" (zȝt nsw n ẖt=f mr.s ˤnḫ) on the right there is an inscription identifying the lady as [...] "Horus, King's Wife Meresankh". The sarcophagus of Meresankh is decorated with an Anubis-jackal on the lid and offering-lists on ends.[4]

See also

References
  1. Giza pyramids Archived 2008-10-11 at the Wayback Machine a website maintained by the Boston Museum of Fine Arts; G 7410-7420
  2. Aidan Dodson & Dyan Hilton, The Complete Royal Families of Ancient Egypt, Thames & Hudson (2004)
  3. http://gizapyramids.org Archived 2008-10-11 at the Wayback Machine Tomb 7410 page
  4. Porter, Bertha and Moss, Rosalind, Topographical Bibliography of Ancient Egyptian Hieroglyphic Texts, Statues, Reliefs and Paintings Volume III: Memphis, Part I Abu Rawash to Abusir. 2nd edition (revised and augmented by Dr Jaromir Malek), 1974. Retrieved from gizapyramids.org Archived 2008-10-11 at the Wayback Machine
  5. Grajetzki, Ancient Egyptian Queens – a hieroglyphic dictionary, London, 2005
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