Amenemhat II

Amenemhat II, also known as Amenemhet II (died c. 1895 BC) was the third king of the 12th Dynasty during the Middle Kingdom of Egypt. Amenemhat II was known by his prenomen Nubkaure,^[3][1]. Amenemhat II ruled for about 35 years, but his reign and family relationships remain relatively obscure.

Archaeological findings have provided the name of Amenemhat's mother, the "king's mother" Neferu III, but not the name of his father. Nevertheless, it is commonly assumed that he was a son of his predecessor Senusret I.

The identity of Amenemhat's queen consort is unknown. Many royal women were buried within his pyramid complex, but their relationships with the king are unclear: a queen Keminub must be dated to the later 13th Dynasty, and three "king's daughters" named Ita, Itaweret, and Khenmet may have been Amenemhat's daughters, although conclusive proof is still lacking. A woman queen and king's mother called Senet is known from three statues. Her royal husband and sons are not known. Amenemhat II might have been her husband.

• Nofret
• Khenemetneferhedjet: likely the same person as Khenemetneferhedjet I^[4]

• Senusret II (died c. 1878 BC): His successor, who was likely his son. However, this is never explicitly stated anywhere.^[5]
• Amenemhatankh: Was either his son or brother
• Ita
• Itaweret
• Khenmet

An early attestation of Amenemhat may have come from the tomb of the namesake nomarch Amenemhat, buried at Beni Hasan. This nomarch, who lived under Senusret I, escorted the "King's son Ameny" in an expedition to Nubia, and it is believed that this prince Ameny was none other than Amenemhat II in his youth.^[3]

The double-dated stela of an official named Wepwawet-aa (Leiden, V4), dated to regnal Year 44 of Senusret I and regnal Year 2 of Amenemhat II, has been interpreted as evidence of a coregency.^[6] If so he would have been appointed junior coregent on I Akhet Day 1 (New Year) in Year 43 of Senusret I, starting immediately on his Year 1. Others regard a coregency as unlikely and interpret the double date on the stela as a time range during which Wepwawet-aa held office, from Senusret I’s Year 44 to Amenemhat II’s Year 2.^[7][8]

At Memphis, fragments of the so-called Annals of Amenemhat II is the most important record of his early reign (later reused during the 19th Dynasty). It provides records of donations to temples and, sometimes, of political events. There is mention of a military expedition into Asia, the destruction of two cities – Iuai and Iasy – whose location is still unknown, and the coming of tribute-bearers from Asia and Kush.^[10]

Under Amenemhat II several mining expeditions are known: at least three in the Sinai, one in the Wadi Gasus (year 28) and one in search for amethysts in the Wadi el-Hudi.

He is known to have ordered building works at Heliopolis, Herakleopolis, Memphis, in the Eastern Delta, and rebuilt a ruined temple at Hermopolis. There are some mentions of the building of a "First temple" but it is still unclear what it could have been.^[11] A well-known finding associated with Amenemhat II is the Great Sphinx of Tanis (Louvre A23), later usurped by many other kings. He is also named on the boxes of a treasure of silver objects found under the temple of Montu at Tod: notably, many of these objects are not of Egyptian workmanship but rather Aegean, evidencing contacts between Egypt and foreign civilizations in the Middle Kingdom. Many private stelae bears Amenemhat's cartouches – and sometimes even his regnal years – but are of little help in providing useful information about the events of his reign.^[12]

Viziers. Senusret served as vizier during the late reign of Senusret I and early reign of Amenemhat II, attested in Year 8 of Amenemhat II on a stela from Abydos. Another vizier was Ameny who is known from the Annals of Amenemhat II at Memphis.

Treasurers. Known treasurers were Rehuerdjersen and Merykau.

Other Officials. The "overseer of the gateway", Khentykhetywer, was buried near the king's pyramid. Other known officials were the "overseers of the chamber", Snofru and Senitef, and the royal scribe and iry-pat Samont.^[11] As great overseer of troops, a certain Ameny dates most likely under the king.

Siese had a remarkable career and also was a treasurer and a high steward before his vizierate. He has been assumed to be associated with Amenemhat II due to the proximity of his tomb, but may also date to a later date.

• Khnumhotep II (ẖnmw-ḥtp, "Khnum is pleased") was an ancient Egyptian Great Chief of the Oryx nome (the 16th nome of Upper Egypt) during the reign of pharaohs Amenemhat II (Year 19) and Senusret II (Year 6). He is well known for his tomb at Beni Hasan and its decorations.

Amenemhat II and his successor Senusret II shared a brief coregency. At Konosso, the stela of Hapu explicitly states that the two kings ruled together for a period^[8] and equates regnal Year 3 of Senusret II with regnal Year 35 of Amenemhat II. Unlike most of the double-dated monuments, this is the only unquestionable example from the Middle Kingdom.

Amenemhat’s regnal Year 35, attested on the stela of Hapu, is the highest known date for his reign.^[13]

At Dahshur, the Pyramid of Amenemhat II was originally named Amenu-sekhem (Egyptian: jmnw-sḫm), meaning "Amenu is Powerful/Mighty", with Amenu being an abbreviated form of Amenemhat, but now commonly known as the White Pyramid. Unlike his two predecessors, who built their pyramids at Lisht, Amenemhat II chose this location not used as a royal cemetery since the reign of Sneferu, builder of the Red Pyramid in the 4th Dynasty. Today, the pyramid is poorly preserved and only partially excavated.

The mortuary temple adjacent the pyramid was called Djefa-Amenemhat (Egyptian: ḏfꜣ-ỉmn-m-ḥꜣt),^[14] meaning "Amenemhat is enduring/lasting".

Many people were buried within the pyramid complex, whose tombs were rediscovered by Jacques Morgan in 1894 or 1895: the three aforementioned princesses Ita, Itaweret, and Khenmet were found untouched, still containing their beautiful jewels, and also the tombs of the lady Sathathormeryt, the treasurer Amenhotep, and the queen Keminub; unlike the others, the latter two were looted in antiquity and are dated to the subsequent 13th Dynasty.^[10][15]