The Fourth Dynasty is best known for its monumental pyramid building, including the Great Pyramids of Giza. It was a period of stability, prosperity and cultural achievement, often referred to as the 'Golden Age' of the Old Kingdom.
It sounds unbelievable, but the pharaohs of this dynasty only ruled for a little more than a century, and yet they managed to have the three pyramids of Giza built in that time. It was under the pharaoh Sneferu that the construction of the first pyramids began - in fact, he built three of them. This was continued and improved upon by his son, Khufu, also known as Cheops.
The line of succession of the first six pharaohs of the Fourth Dynasty is well documented from contemporary and archeological records, but there are some discrepancies between the various New Kingdom king lists.
- Djedefhor was a son of Khufu and it is very unlikely that he ever ruled as pharaoh.
- Baefra was allegedly another son of Khufu.
- Djedefptah, another son of Khufu, whose name may have been Hellenised to Thamphthis, was, according to Africanus, the last ruler of the dynasty.
These three princes may have been mistakenly glorified as pharaohs by the time of the New Kingdom, which would explain their inclusion on the royal lists, although there is no archaeological evidence for them. There is the possibilty that rivals for the throne had all traces of their rule eradicated, but there are no proof either way.
The chronological order
It is important to note that the chronological order of the pharaohs is an evolving subject and should therefore be treated with a certain degree of caution. As new research is conducted, the order may be subject to change, which is a fundamental principle that applies to all Egyptian dynasties.
| № | Pharaoh | Also known as |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sneferu | Snefru, Snofru |
| 2 | Khufu | Cheops, Kheops |
| 3 | Radjedef | Djedefra, Djedefre |
| 4 | Khafra | Khafre, Chephren, Khefren |
| 5 | Baufra | Baefra, Baufre, Baka, Bicheris, Bikka |
| 6 | Menkaura | Menkaure, Mykerinos, Mycerinus |
| 7 | Shepseskaf | – |
| 8 | Thamphthis | Djedefptah, Ptahdjedef |
| 9 | Hordjedef | Djedefhor |
The Fourth Dynasty according to Manetho
As can be seen from the differences between the more intact or complete text of Africanus and the missing information of Eusebius, the quality of their epitomes of Aegyptiaka must have been quite different.
Fourth dynasty of eight kings of Memphis, from another line
- Soris29 years
-
Souphis63 years
He erected the Great Pyramid, which Herodotos says was built under Cheops. He also became disdainful of the gods, and composed the Sacred Book. This I acquired when I was in Egypt, because it was a great treasure. - Souphis66 years
- Mencheres63 years
- Rhatoises25 years
- Bicheris22 years
- Sebercheres7 years
- Thamphthis9 years
- Total274 years
Syncellus:
Total for the 4 dynasties after the flood, according to Africanus1046 years
Fourth dynasty of 17 kings of Memphis, from another royal line
- The third of them was Souphis, who erected the Great Pyramid, which Herodotos states was built under Cheops. He also became disdainful of the gods. And when he repented, he composed the Sacred Book, which the Egyptians esteem as a great treasure. Of the rest, nothing worthy of mention has been recorded.
- They reigned for448 years
Syncellus:
Total for the four dynasties after the flood, according to Eusebios1195 years
Fourth dynasty of 17 kings of Memphis, from another line
- Supʻis was the third monarch. He built the largest pyramid, the one Herodotus claims were built by Kʻeop who at one time had been hostile toward the gods, but he repented and wrote a sacred book which the Egyptians hold in great esteem.
- Nothing noteworthy has been recorded about any of the other kings.
- In total, reigned for 448 years
New Kingdom king lists
The Third Dynasty in the Turin King List contains eight kings, the Abydos Canon six, and the Saqqara Canon only four. This discrepancy is a clear indication that the New Kingdom records were corrupted or incomplete.
| № | Abydos Canon | Saqqara Canon | Turin King List |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | |||
| 2 | lacuna 23 years | ||
| 3 | lacuna 8 years | ||
| 4 | |||
| 5 | – | – | lacuna |
| 6 | – | lacuna 28 years | |
| 7 | – | lacuna 4 years | |
| 8 | – | – | lacuna 2 years |
Herodotus, Histories (abridged)
(2.124) Till the time of Rhampsinitus, Egypt (so the priests told me) was in all ways well governed and greatly prospered, but Cheops, who was the next king, brought the people to utter misery. For first he shut up all the temples, so that none could sacrifice there; and next, he compelled all the Egyptians to work for him, appointing some to drag stones from the quarries in the Arabian mountains to the Nile.
(2.127) Cheops reigned (so the Egyptians said) for fifty years; at his death he was succeeded by his brother Chephren, who bore himself in all respects like Cheops. Chephren also built a pyramid, of a less size than his brother's. Chephren, he said, reigned for fifty‑six years.
(2.129) The next king of Egypt, they said, was Cheops' son Mycerinus. He, being displeased with his father's doings, opened the temples and suffered the people, now ground down to the depth of misery, to go to their business and their sacrifices; and he was the justest judge among all the Greeks. It is on this account that he is praised beyond all the rulers of Egypt; for not only were his judgments just, but if any were not contented with the sentence Mycerinus would give such an one a present out of his own estate to satisfy him for his loss.
1
The reference from Herodotus, lacking in Syncellus MS B, might be a later addition. See Herodotus section below.2
This report about the purchase of the Sacred Book is probably a comment by Africanus.3
The sum of the individual items is 284 years.4
The sum of the years of the first four dynasties comes to 1043; the discrepancy between the totals can be reconciled by emending the 274 years of the Fourth Dynasty to 277 following MS B.
Original text from:
https://pharaoh.se/ancient-egypt/dynasty/4/