Early Dynastic Period
Peribsen (Seth-Peribsen)
2nd Dynasty · 2890-2686 BCE
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Peribsen was a Dynasty 2 king distinguished by placing the Seth animal, rather than the usual Horus falcon, above his serekh. His Tomb P and funerary enclosure at Abydos, a granodiorite stela now in the British Museum, and a sealing from Elephantine provide contemporary evidence. He may be identical with a ruler called Sekhemib, but this remains debated. The religious and political meaning of his Seth iconography is unclear; it should not automatically be treated as evidence of a civil war or permanent division of Egypt. Research: UCL Digital Egypt.
Chronology: Shaw, Oxford History of Ancient Egypt (2000)
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A radical religious shift
Peribsen was a radical figure who briefly broke with ancient Egyptian religious tradition, predating Akhenaten's famous religious rebellion by over 13 centuries. Since the predynastic period, kings used a *serekh* (a royal crest) topped with a falcon representing the god Horus. Peribsen shocked tradition by dropping the Horus falcon entirely, replacing it with the "Seth animal"—the symbol of the god Set (Seth).
Reunification and burial
It is unknown whether he was a usurper or a royal from Upper Egypt who mobilized the followers of Seth. Regardless, by the end of his reign, he successfully reunited Upper and Lower Egypt. He also returned to the ancient burial traditions of the First Dynasty by placing his tomb in the royal cemetery of Abydos. His tomb was relatively small (16 by 13 meters) and utilized a mud-brick burial chamber, unlike the wood-lined tombs of the previous dynasty.