Pharaoh Djoser
| Djoser | |
|---|---|
| Netjerikhet, Tosorthros, Sesorthos | |
Limestone statue of Djoser from his serdab
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| Pharaoh | |
| Reign | 19 or 28 years ca. 2670 BC (3rd Dynasty) |
| Predecessor | Khasekhemwy (most likely) or Nebka |
| Successor | Sekhemkhet (most likely) or Sanakhte |
| Consort | Hetephernebti |
| Children | Inetkawes, maybe Sekhemkhet ? |
| Father | Khasekhemwy |
| Mother | Nimaethap |
| Burial | Step pyramid at Saqqara |
| Monuments | Step pyramid |
Djoser (also read as Djeser and Zoser) was an ancient Egyptian pharaoh of the 3rd dynasty during the Old Kingdom and the founder of this epoch. He is well known under his Hellenized names Tosorthros (from Manetho) and Sesorthos (from Eusebius). He was the son of king Khasekhemwy and queen Nimaathap, but if he also was the direct throne successor is still unclear. Most Ramesside Kinglists name a king Nebka before him, but since there are still difficulties in connecting that name with contemporary horus names, some Egyptologists question the received throne sequence.
The painted limestone statue of Djoser, now in the Egyptian Museum in Cairo, is the oldest known life-sized Egyptian statue. Today at the site in Saqqara where it was found, a plaster copy of the statue stands in place of the original. The statue was found during the Antiquities Service Excavations of 1924–1925.
In contemporary inscriptions, he is called Netjerikhet, meaning "divine of body." Later sources, which include a New Kingdom reference to his construction, help confirm that Netjerikhet and Djoser are the same person.
While Manetho names Necherophes and the Turin King List names Nebka as the first ruler of the Third dynasty, many Egyptologists now believe Djoser was first king of this dynasty, pointing out that the order in which some predecessors of Khufu are mentioned in the Papyrus Westcar suggests Nebka should be placed between Djoser and Huni, not before Djoser. More significantly, the English Egyptologist Toby Wilkinson has demonstrated that burial seals found at the entrance to Khasekhemwy's tomb in Abydos name only Djoser, rather than Nebka. This supports the view that it was Djoser who buried and, hence, directly succeeded Khasekhemwy, rather than Nebka.
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Wikipedia