Second Intermediate Period
Rahotep
17th Dynasty (Theban) · c.1580-1550 BCE
Open full-size illustration →Source: Shaw, Oxford History of Ancient Egypt (2000)
Background
Rahotep is generally identified as the founding king of the Seventeenth Dynasty at Thebes, ruling in the aftermath of a period that had left several Upper Egyptian temples damaged. His authority extended at least as far north as Abydos, and two surviving restoration stelae give a rare, concrete glimpse of an early Seventeenth Dynasty king actively governing rather than merely surviving. Research: UCL Digital Egypt; Metropolitan Museum.
Dates from: Shaw, Oxford History of Ancient Egypt (2000)
Full profile
The first king of the 17th Dynasty
Rahotep is generally considered the founder of the 17th Dynasty in Thebes. His exact rise to power remains unclear; he may have married into the preceding 16th Dynasty or been installed as a vassal by the Hyksos following a raid. Regardless of his origins, his authority was strictly limited to the immediate Theban region. He held very little real power and was forced to share political control with other influential local families.
Restoring ruined temples at Koptos and Abydos
A stela from Koptos records Rahotep's restoration of the local temple of the god Min, describing its gates and doors as having "fallen into ruins" before his intervention, while at Abydos he is credited with renewing the enclosure walls of the temple of Osiris, and a workshop there is known to have produced further stelae under his name. Together these texts suggest a king engaged in genuine reconstruction after a period of neglect or damage, quite possibly connected to the same instability that had battered the preceding Sixteenth Dynasty, rather than a ruler with no real administrative reach.
Sources for this profile
- Baker, D. D. (2008). The Encyclopedia of the Pharaohs: Volume 1. Stacey International.
- Shaw, I. (Ed.). (2000). The Oxford History of Ancient Egypt. Oxford University Press.
- Ryholt, K. (2004). The Turin King-list. Ägypten und Levante, 14, 135–155.
- Dodson, A., & Hilton, D. (2004). The Complete Royal Families of Ancient Egypt. Thames & Hudson.
- University College London. Digital Egypt for Universities.
The complete, APA-formatted reference list is on the Academic Sources & Bibliography page.