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Khakaure Senusret III (also written as Senwosret III or the
hellenised Hellenization (other British spelling Hellenisation) or Hellenism is the adoption of Greek culture, religion, language and identity by non-Greeks. In the ancient period, colonization often led to the Hellenization of indigenous peoples; in the ...
form, Sesostris III) was a
pharaoh Pharaoh (, ; Egyptian: '' pr ꜥꜣ''; cop, , Pǝrro; Biblical Hebrew: ''Parʿō'') is the vernacular term often used by modern authors for the kings of ancient Egypt who ruled as monarchs from the First Dynasty (c. 3150 BC) until the ...
of
Egypt Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning the North Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via a land bridg ...
. He ruled from 1878 BC to 1839 BC during a time of great power and prosperity, and was the fifth king of the
Twelfth Dynasty The Twelfth Dynasty of ancient Egypt (Dynasty XII) is considered to be the apex of the Middle Kingdom by Egyptologists. It often is combined with the Eleventh, Thirteenth, and Fourteenth dynasties under the group title, Middle Kingdom. Some ...
of the Middle Kingdom. He was a great pharaoh of the Twelfth Dynasty and is considered to be, perhaps, the most powerful Egyptian ruler of the dynasty. Consequently, he is regarded as one of the sources for the legend about
Sesostris Sesostris ( grc-gre, Σέσωστρις), also transliterated as Sesoösis, or Sesonchosis, is the name of a legendary king of ancient Egypt who, according to Herodotus, led a military expedition into parts of Europe. Tales of Sesostris are pr ...
. His military campaigns gave rise to an era of peace and economic prosperity that reduced the power of regional rulers and led to a revival in craftwork, trade, and urban development."''The Pyramids: Their Archeology and History''",
Miroslav Verner Miroslav Verner (born October 31, 1941 in Brno) is a Czech egyptologist, who specializes in the history and archaeology of Ancient Egypt of the Old Kingdom and especially of the Fifth Dynasty of Egypt. Biography Verner was the director of the ...
, Translated by Steven Rendall,p386-387 & p416-421, Atlantic,
Senusret III was among the few Egyptian kings who were deified and honored with a cult during their own lifetime.


Family

Senusret III was the son of
Senusret II Khakheperre Senusret II was the fourth pharaoh of the Twelfth Dynasty of Egypt. He ruled from 1897 BC to 1878 BC. His pyramid was constructed at El-Lahun. Senusret II took a great deal of interest in the Faiyum oasis region and began work on an ...
and
Khenemetneferhedjet I Khenemetneferhedjet I Weret was an ancient Egyptian queen of the 12th Dynasty, a wife of Senusret II and the mother of Senusret III., p.96 Biography She is likely to be same person who is mentioned as the daughter of Amenemhat II on a seal (no ...
, also called Khenemetneferhedjet I Weret (''the elder''). Three wives of Senusret III are known for certain. These are Itakayt,
Khenemetneferhedjet II Khenemetneferhedjet II ''(Weret)'' was an ancient Egyptian queen of the 12th Dynasty, a wife of Senusret III., p.96 She was one of four known wives of Senusret III, the other three were Meretseger, Neferhenut and (possibly) Sithathoriunet., pp.9 ...
and
Neferthenut Neferthenut was an ancient Egyptian queen of the Twelfth Dynasty of Egypt. She was most likely the wife of Senusret III. Neferthenut was ''king’s wife'', ''member of the elite'' (iryt-pat) and ''she who sees Horus and Seth''. She is so far only ...
, all three mainly known from their burials next to the pyramid of the king at Dahshur. Several daughters are known, although they also are attested only by the burials around the king's pyramid and their exact relation to the king is disputable. These include
Sithathor Sithathor (''daughter of Hathor'') was an ancient Egyptian princess with the title ''king's daughter''. She is only known from her burial at Dahshur. Next to the pyramid of king Senusret III Khakaure Senusret III (also written as Senwosret II ...
, Menet,
Senetsenebtysy Senetsenebtysy was an ancient Egyptian ''king's daughter'' of the Twelfth Dynasty, around 1800 BC. She was most likely a daughter of king Senusret III. Pyramid of Senusret III Senetsenebtysy is only known from her burial next to the Pyramid of ...
, and
Meret In Egyptian mythology, Meret (also spelled Mert) was a goddess who was strongly associated with rejoicing, such as singing and dancing. In myth Meret was a token wife occasionally given to Hapy, the god of the Nile. Her name being a reference ...
.
Amenemhat III :''See Amenemhat, for other individuals with this name.'' Amenemhat III ( Ancient Egyptian: ''Ỉmn-m-hꜣt'' meaning 'Amun is at the forefront'), also known as Amenemhet III, was a pharaoh of ancient Egypt and the sixth king of the Twelfth Dy ...
was most likely a son of the king. Other sons are not known.


Initiatives

Senusret III cleared a navigable canal through the first cataract of the Nile River, (this was different from the
Canal of the Pharaohs The Canal of the Pharaohs, also called the Ancient Suez Canal or Necho's Canal, is the forerunner of the Suez Canal, constructed in ancient times and kept in use, with intermissions, until being closed for good in 767 AD for strategic reasons du ...
, which apparently, Senusret III also tried to build). He also relentlessly pushed his kingdom's expansion into
Nubia Nubia () (Nobiin: Nobīn, ) is a region along the Nile river encompassing the area between the first cataract of the Nile (just south of Aswan in southern Egypt) and the confluence of the Blue and White Niles (in Khartoum in central Sudan), o ...
(from 1866 to 1863 BC) where he erected massive river forts including
Buhen Buhen ( grc, Βοὥν ''Bohón'') was an ancient Egyptian settlement situated on the West bank of the Nile below (to the North of) the Second Cataract in what is now Northern State, Sudan. It is now submerged in Lake Nasser, Sudan; as a resu ...
,
Semna The region of Semna is 15 miles south of Wadi Halfa and is situated where rocks cross the Nile narrowing its flow—the Semna Cataract. Semna was a fortified area established in the reign of Senusret I (1965–1920 BC) on the west bank of the N ...
,
Shalfak Shalfak (originally ''Waf-Chastiu'', "subduing the foreign lands") is an ancient Egyptian fortress once built up on the western shore of the Second Cataract of the Nile River and now an island in the Lake Nubia in the north of Sudan. Set up in t ...
and
Toshka {{coord, 22.494795, N, 28.579559, E, display=title The New Valley Project or Toshka Project consists of building a system of canals to carry water from Lake Nasser to irrigate part of the sandy wastes of the Western Desert of Egypt, which ...
at
Uronarti Uronarti, a Nubian word meaning "Island of the King", is an island in the Nile just south of the Second Cataract in the north of Sudan. The primary importance of the island lies in the massive ancient fortress that still stands on its northern en ...
. He carried out at least four major campaigns into Nubia in his Years 8, 10, 16, and 19. His Year 8 stela at Semna documents his victories against the Nubians, through which he is thought to have made safe the southern frontier, preventing further incursions into Egypt. Another great
stela A stele ( ),Anglicized plural steles ( ); Greek plural stelai ( ), from Greek , ''stēlē''. The Greek plural is written , ''stēlai'', but this is only rarely encountered in English. or occasionally stela (plural ''stelas'' or ''stelæ''), whe ...
from Semna dated to the third month of Year 16 of his reign mentions his
military A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. It is typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with its members identifiable by their distin ...
activities against both
Nubia Nubia () (Nobiin: Nobīn, ) is a region along the Nile river encompassing the area between the first cataract of the Nile (just south of Aswan in southern Egypt) and the confluence of the Blue and White Niles (in Khartoum in central Sudan), o ...
and
Canaan Canaan (; Phoenician: 𐤊𐤍𐤏𐤍 – ; he, כְּנַעַן – , in pausa – ; grc-bib, Χανααν – ;The current scholarly edition of the Greek Old Testament spells the word without any accents, cf. Septuaginta : id est Vetus Te ...
. In it, he admonished his future successors to maintain the new border that he had created: The
Sebek-khu Stele The Sebek-khu Stele, also known as the Stele of Khu-sobek, is an inscription in honour of a man named Sebek-khu (Khu-sobek), who lived during the reign of Senusret III (reign: 1878 – 1839 BC) discovered by John Garstang in 1901 outside Khu-sobek ...
, dated to the reign of Senusret III (reign: 1878 – 1839 BC), records the earliest known Egyptian military campaign in the Levant. The text reads "His Majesty proceeded northward to overthrow the Asiatics. His Majesty reached a foreign country of which the name was Sekmem (...) Then Sekmem fell, together with the wretched
Retenu Retjenu ('' rṯnw; Reṯenu, Retenu''), was an ancient Egyptian name for Canaan and Syria. It covered the region from the Negev Desert north to the Orontes River. The borders of Retjenu shifted with time, but it generally consisted of three reg ...
", where Sekmem (s-k-m-m) is thought to be
Shechem Shechem ( ), also spelled Sichem ( ; he, שְׁכֶם, ''Šəḵem''; ; grc, Συχέμ, Sykhém; Samaritan Hebrew: , ), was a Canaanite and Israelite city mentioned in the Amarna Letters, later appearing in the Hebrew Bible as the first cap ...
and "Retenu" or "
Retjenu Retjenu ('' rṯnw; Reṯenu, Retenu''), was an ancient Egyptian name for Canaan and Syria. It covered the region from the Negev Desert north to the Orontes River. The borders of Retjenu shifted with time, but it generally consisted of three reg ...
" are associated with ancient
Syria Syria ( ar, سُورِيَا or سُورِيَة, translit=Sūriyā), officially the Syrian Arab Republic ( ar, الجمهورية العربية السورية, al-Jumhūrīyah al-ʻArabīyah as-Sūrīyah), is a Western Asian country loc ...
. His final campaign, which was in his Year 19, was less successful because the king's forces were caught with the Nile being lower than normal and they had to retreat and abandon their campaign in order to avoid being trapped in the hostile Nubian territory. Such was his forceful nature and immense influence that Senusret III was worshipped as a deity in
Semna The region of Semna is 15 miles south of Wadi Halfa and is situated where rocks cross the Nile narrowing its flow—the Semna Cataract. Semna was a fortified area established in the reign of Senusret I (1965–1920 BC) on the west bank of the N ...
by later generations. Jacques Morgan, in 1894, found rock inscriptions near Sehel Island documenting his digging of a canal. Senusret III erected a temple and town in Abydos, and another temple in
Medamud Medamud (, from ) was a settlement in ancient Egypt. Its present-day territory is located about 8 km east-north from Luxor. The Temple of Montu was located here. It was excavated by Fernand Bisson de la Roque in 1925, who identified sev ...
. His court included the viziers
Nebit Nebit was an ancient Egyptian official during the reign of king Senusret III. He held the position of vizier. Thus, he was the most important official at the royal court. Nebit is only known from his large mastaba, which was excavated next to the p ...
, and Khnumhotep. Ikhernofret worked as treasurer for the king at Abydos.
Sobekemhat Sobekemhat was an ancient Egyptian treasurer under the king Senusret III in the Twelfth Dynasty. Sobekemhat is only known from his mastaba excavated in 1894 next to the pyramid of Senusret III at Dahshur DahshurAlso transliterated ''Dahshour'' ...
was treasurer too and buried at Dahshur. Senankh cleared the canal at Sehel for the king. Horkherty was king's acquaintance.


Length of reign

A double-dated
papyrus Papyrus ( ) is a material similar to thick paper that was used in ancient times as a writing surface. It was made from the pith of the papyrus plant, ''Cyperus papyrus'', a wetland sedge. ''Papyrus'' (plural: ''papyri'') can also refer to a d ...
in the Berlin Museum shows Year 20 of his reign next to Year 1 of his son,
Amenemhat III :''See Amenemhat, for other individuals with this name.'' Amenemhat III ( Ancient Egyptian: ''Ỉmn-m-hꜣt'' meaning 'Amun is at the forefront'), also known as Amenemhet III, was a pharaoh of ancient Egypt and the sixth king of the Twelfth Dy ...
; generally, this is presumed to be a proof for a
coregency A coregency is the situation where a monarchical position (such as prince, princess, king, queen, emperor or empress), normally held by only a single person, is held by two or more. It is to be distinguished from diarchies or duumvirates such ...
with his son, which should have been started in this year. According to
Josef W. Wegner Josef William Wegner (born October 1967) is an American Egyptologist, archaeologist and Professor in Egyptology at the department of Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations of the University of Pennsylvania, where he obtained his Ph.D. degree in ...
, a Year 39 hieratic control note was recovered on a white limestone block from: Wegner stresses that it is unlikely that Amenemhat III, Senusret's son and successor, would still be working on his father's temple nearly four decades into his own reign. He notes that the only possible explanation for the block's existence at the project is that Senusret III had a 39-year reign, with the final 20 years in coregency with his son
Amenemhat III :''See Amenemhat, for other individuals with this name.'' Amenemhat III ( Ancient Egyptian: ''Ỉmn-m-hꜣt'' meaning 'Amun is at the forefront'), also known as Amenemhet III, was a pharaoh of ancient Egypt and the sixth king of the Twelfth Dy ...
. Since the project was associated with a project of Senusret III, his Regnal Year was presumably used to date the block, rather than Year 20 of Amenemhat III. Wegner interprets this as an implication that Senusret was still alive in the first two decades of his son's reign. Wegner's hypothesis is rejected by some scholars, such as Pierre Tallet and Harco Willems; according to them, it is more likely that such a coregency never occurred, and that the Year 39 control note still refers to Amenemhat III, who may have ordered some additions to Senusret's monuments.


Pyramid and complex

Senusret's pyramid complex was built north-east of the
Red Pyramid The Red Pyramid, also called the North Pyramid, is the largest of the pyramids located at the Dahshur necropolis in Cairo, Egypt. Named for the rusty reddish hue of its red limestone stones, it is also the third largest Egyptian pyramid, after ...
of Dashur. It far surpassed those from the early twelfth dynasty in size, grandeur, and underlying religious conceptions. There has been speculation that Senusret was not necessarily buried there, but rather, in his sophisticated funerary complex in Abydos and his pyramid more likely being a
cenotaph A cenotaph is an empty tomb or a monument erected in honour of a person or group of people whose remains are elsewhere. It can also be the initial tomb for a person who has since been reinterred elsewhere. Although the vast majority of cenot ...
. Senusret's pyramid is 105 meters square and 78 meters high. The total volume was approximately 288,000 cubic meters. The pyramid was built of a core of
mud brick A mudbrick or mud-brick is an air-dried brick, made of a mixture of loam, mud, sand and water mixed with a binding material such as rice husks or straw. Mudbricks are known from 9000 BCE, though since 4000 BCE, bricks have also been fi ...
s. They were not made a consistent size implying that standardized moulds were not used. The burial chamber was lined with granite. Above the vaulted burial chamber was a second relieving chamber that was roofed with five pairs of limestone beams each weighing 30 tons. Above this was a third mudbrick vault. The pyramid complex included a small mortuary temple and seven smaller pyramids for his queens. There is also an underground gallery with further burials for royal women. Here were found the treasures of
Sithathor Sithathor (''daughter of Hathor'') was an ancient Egyptian princess with the title ''king's daughter''. She is only known from her burial at Dahshur. Next to the pyramid of king Senusret III Khakaure Senusret III (also written as Senwosret II ...
and queen Mereret. There was also a southern temple, however this has since been destroyed.


Royal statuary

Senusret III is well known for his distinctive statues, which are almost immediately recognizable as his. On them, the king is depicted at different ages and, in particular, on the aged ones he sports a strikingly somber expression: the eyes are protruding from hollow eye sockets with pouches and lines under them, the mouth and lips have a grimace of bitterness, and the ears are enormous and protruding forward. In sharp contrast with the even-exaggerated realism of the head and, regardless of his age, the rest of the body is idealized as forever young and muscular, in the more classical pharaonic fashion. Scholars could only make assumptions about the reasons why Senusret III chose to have himself portrayed in such a unique way, and polarized on two diverging opinions. Some argue that Senusret wanted to be represented as a lonely and disenchanted ruler, human before divine, consumed by worries and by his responsibilities. At the opposite, other scholars suggested that the statues originally would convey the idea of a dreadful tyrant able to see and hear everything under his strict control. More recently, it has been suggested that the purpose of such peculiar portraiture was not to represent realism, but rather, to reveal the perceived nature of royal power at the time of Senusret's reign.


Gallery

File:Senwosret III in Hieroglyphics.jpeg, Senwosret III's name in hieroglyphs File:Head of Senusret III with youthful features. 12th Dynasty, c. 1870 BC. State Museum of Egyptian Art, Munich.jpg, Head of Senusret III with youthful features. 12th Dynasty, c. 1870 BC. State Museum of Egyptian Art, Munich File:Face of a king, probably Senusret III, wearing the nemes royal headdress. Quartzite. 12th Dynasty. From Egypt. Presented by Guy Brunton. The Petrie Museum of Egyptian Archaeology, London.jpg, Face of a king, probably Senusret III, wearing the nemes royal headdress, Quartzite, Twelfth Dynasty, From Egypt, Presented by Guy Brunton, The Petrie Museum of Egyptian Archaeology, London File:Senusret III.jpg,
British Museum The British Museum is a public museum dedicated to human history, art and culture located in the Bloomsbury area of London. Its permanent collection of eight million works is among the largest and most comprehensive in existence. It documen ...
File:Sesostris III Sphinxkopf.jpg, Munich,
Staatliche Sammlung für Ägyptische Kunst The Staatliches Museum Ägyptischer Kunst (, ''State Museum of Egyptian Art'') is an archaeological museum in Munich. It contains the Bavarian state collection of ancient Egyptian art and displays exhibits from both the predynastic and dynastic ...
File:ThreeStatuesOfSesotrisIII-FaceOn-BritishMuseum-August19-08.jpg,
British Museum The British Museum is a public museum dedicated to human history, art and culture located in the Bloomsbury area of London. Its permanent collection of eight million works is among the largest and most comprehensive in existence. It documen ...
File:Sebekhotep IV-A 17-img 2963.jpg,
Louvre The Louvre ( ), or the Louvre Museum ( ), is the world's most-visited museum, and an historic landmark in Paris, France. It is the home of some of the best-known works of art, including the ''Mona Lisa'' and the ''Venus de Milo''. A central ...
File:Louvre 032007 30.jpg,
Louvre The Louvre ( ), or the Louvre Museum ( ), is the world's most-visited museum, and an historic landmark in Paris, France. It is the home of some of the best-known works of art, including the ''Mona Lisa'' and the ''Venus de Milo''. A central ...
File:RedGraniteHeadOfSesostrisIII-BritishMuseum-August19-08.jpg,
British Museum The British Museum is a public museum dedicated to human history, art and culture located in the Bloomsbury area of London. Its permanent collection of eight million works is among the largest and most comprehensive in existence. It documen ...
File:Head of Pharaoh Senusret III wearing the white crown of Upper Egypt, from Thebes, Middle Kingdom, 1875-1840 BCE. Neues Museum.jpg, Berlin Museum File:GD-EG-Louxor-116.JPG,
Luxor Museum Luxor Museum is an archaeological museum in Luxor (ancient Thebes), Egypt. It stands on the corniche, overlooking the east bank of the River Nile. Establishment The Luxor Museum was inaugurated in 1975. It is a two-story building. The range of ...
File:Louvre 042007 11.jpg,
Louvre The Louvre ( ), or the Louvre Museum ( ), is the world's most-visited museum, and an historic landmark in Paris, France. It is the home of some of the best-known works of art, including the ''Mona Lisa'' and the ''Venus de Milo''. A central ...
File:Egyptian - Sesostris III - Walters 22115.jpg,
Walters Art Museum The Walters Art Museum, located in Mount Vernon-Belvedere, Baltimore, Maryland, United States, is a public art museum founded and opened in 1934. It holds collections established during the mid-19th century. The museum's collection was amassed ...
File:Sebek-khu Stele, Manchester Museum.jpg,
Sebek-khu Stele The Sebek-khu Stele, also known as the Stele of Khu-sobek, is an inscription in honour of a man named Sebek-khu (Khu-sobek), who lived during the reign of Senusret III (reign: 1878 – 1839 BC) discovered by John Garstang in 1901 outside Khu-sobek ...
, describing the campaign to Canaan File:Senwosret III Statue at BM.jpg,
British Museum The British Museum is a public museum dedicated to human history, art and culture located in the Bloomsbury area of London. Its permanent collection of eight million works is among the largest and most comprehensive in existence. It documen ...
File:Senwosret III Statue's Belt at BM.jpg,
British Museum The British Museum is a public museum dedicated to human history, art and culture located in the Bloomsbury area of London. Its permanent collection of eight million works is among the largest and most comprehensive in existence. It documen ...
Senwosret's name on belt from the three statues (far right). File:Senusret III, MET Museum NYC.jpg, Senusret III, MET Museum NYC


Trivia

Senusret is a major character in
Christian Jacq Christian Jacq (; born 28 April 1947) is a French author and Egyptologist. He has written several novels about ancient Egypt, notably a five book series about pharaoh Ramses II, a character whom Jacq admires greatly. Biography Born in Paris, Ja ...
's historical fiction series ''The Mysteries of Osiris''. Many conservative biblical scholars consider Senusret the pharaoh mentioned in Genesis 39-47, who elevated
Joseph Joseph is a common male given name, derived from the Hebrew Yosef (יוֹסֵף). "Joseph" is used, along with "Josef", mostly in English, French and partially German languages. This spelling is also found as a variant in the languages of the mo ...
to a high administrative post, answerable directly to him.Andrew E. Hill and John H. Walton, ''A Survey of the Old Testament'' (3rd edition), Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2009, p. 187.


See also

*
List of pharaohs The title "Pharaoh" is used for those rulers of Ancient Egypt who ruled after the unification of Upper and Lower Egypt by Narmer during the Early Dynastic Period, approximately 3100 BC. However, the specific title "Pharaoh" was not used to ad ...


References


Bibliography

* W. Grajetzki, ''The Middle Kingdom of Ancient Egypt: History,Archaeology and Society'', Duckworth, London 2006 , 51-58 * Josef Wegner, The Nature and Chronology of the Senwosret III–Amenemhat III Regnal Succession: Some Considerations based on new evidence from the Mortuary Temple of Senwosret III at Abydos, JNES 55, Vol.4, (1996), pp. 249–279 *


External links


Stela of Senusret III from Deir el-Bahri (hieroglyphic text in russian web-site)
Colchis In Greco-Roman geography, Colchis (; ) was an exonym for the Georgian polity of Egrisi ( ka, ეგრისი) located on the coast of the Black Sea, centered in present-day western Georgia. Its population, the Colchians are generally thoug ...
{{DEFAULTSORT:Senusret Iii 19th-century BC deaths 19th-century BC Pharaohs Pharaohs of the Twelfth Dynasty of Egypt Year of birth unknown