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Merikare (also Merykare and Merykara) was a pharaoh of the Tenth Dynasty of Egypt, at the end of the First Intermediate Period. His name is not mentioned in the Turin King List; also his dates are uncertain.
According to many scholars, he ruled at the end of the 10th Dynasty,[1][2][3][4][5] succeeding his father's long reign in his middle-age. The identity of his predecessor (the so-called "Khety III" who was the purported author of the Teaching for King Merikare) is still a question of debate among egyptologists. Some scholars tends to identify Merikare's predecessor with Wahkare Khety.[6][3][5] These sebayt ("teachings", in ancient Egyptian) - possibly composed under the reign of Merikare himself and fictitiously attributed to his father - are a collection of precepts for good governance. The text also mentions the eastern borders, recently secured but still in need of the king's attention.[7]
Once coronated, around 2075 BCE,[8] Merikare wisely resigned himself to the existence of two separate kingdoms (the Herakleopolite and the Theban ones) and tried to maintain the policy of peaceful coexistence achieved by his father.[6] It seems that the period of peace brought a certain amount of prosperity to Merikare's realm.[5] Some time later, the pharaoh himself was forced to sail up the Nile with his court on a great fleet. Once he reached Asyut, the king installed the loyalist nomarch Khety II, who succeeded his deceased father Tefibi.[6] After this installation, Merikare advanced farther upstream to the town of Shashotep, likely to quell a revolt, and at the same time as a show of force to the turbulent southern border areas.[9]
Merikare died in c. 2040 BCE, few months before the fall of Herakleopolis. Thus, the final defeat by the hand of the Thebans, led by Mentuhotep II of the 11th Dynasty, was likely inflicted upon an ephemeral, unnamed successor.[10]
Many sources suggest that Merikare was buried in a yet-undiscovered pyramid in Saqqara, called Flourishing are the Abodes of Merikare, that had to be near to the pyramid of Teti of the 6th Dynasty.[10] The titles of the officials involved in its construction are documented, as his funerary cult endured into the 12th Dynasty; in fact, Merikare's cartouche appears on the stelae of at least four priests who were responsible for the funerary cult of Teti and Merikare during the Middle Kingdom.[11]
Merikare is possibly the most attested of the Herakleopolite rulers. His name appears on:
"The Pharaonic institution is the perfect way to govern."
"He who rules over the Two Lands is a wise man. As Master of the nobility, Pharaoh cannot be an ignorant man. He was already wise at his mother's breast, Since God has chosen him from millions of men."
"The companions of Pharaoh are the Gods."
"Pharaoh is he who increases wealth and knows how to give. Pharaoh is the lord of joy. He who rebels against him would pull down Heaven."[12]
Amun, Ancient Egyptian religion, Apep, God, Heliopolis (ancient)
Ancient Egypt, First dynasty of Egypt, Ra, Djoser, Egyptian hieroglyphs
Ninth Dynasty of Egypt, Tenth Dynasty of Egypt, Ra, Ancient Egypt, Narmer
Ninth dynasty of Egypt, Ra, Tenth Dynasty of Egypt, Copper, Narmer
Ancient Egypt, Egyptian pyramids, Saqqara, Tenth Dynasty of Egypt, Headless Pyramid
Ancient Egypt, Narmer, Egyptian hieroglyphs, Tutankhamun, Ay
Ninth dynasty of Egypt, Ancient Egypt, Narmer, Pharaoh, Nebkaure Khety