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Ancient Egyptians - Unas |
Profile of Pharaoh Unas Profile of Unas History Time Period: Old Kingdom Dynasty: 5th DynastyPredecessor: Djedkare Isesi Dates of his Reign: 23562323 BCPrincipal Wife: Queen Khenut Successor: Teti I, founder of the 6th dynastyKing Unas Ancient Egyptian King - Unas Fact Sheet Fact 1 on Unas: Name: This pharaoh of ancient Egypt was also known as Unis, Ounas or Wenis. Fact 2 on Unas: History: Unas ruled as the king of Egypt during the period in ancient Egyptian history known as the Old Kingdom and was a pharaoh of the fifth dynasty of kings by right of inheritance. He succeeded Pharaoh Djedkare Isesi to the throne of Egypt. Fact 3 on Unas: Family: He was possibly a son of Djedkare Isesi and inherited the throne of Egypt when the original heir, Crown Prince Remkuy, died. Fact 4 on Unas: Family: Unas married Khenut, whose status and title was the "Kings Wife, his beloved", "Great of Praises" and "Companion of Horus". Khenut was the owner of a mastaba next to the pyramid of Unas. Fact 5 on Unas: The name of his 'lesser wife' was Queen Nebet. Fact 6 on Unas: Unas failed to produce a surviving male heir but his daughter, Iput, married Teti who founded the 6th Dynasty following the death of the king. Fact 7 on Unas: The king started his reign well and continued to expand trade in the southern lands of Africa beyond Nubia. An inscription at the Elephantine Island shows a giraffe brought from Africa with other exotic animals. The giraffe was an extremely rare site in Egypt at this time and was no doubt displayed to reflect the successful trade agreements with other lands. Fact 8 on Unas: Unas also initiated trading expeditions to Byblos a city located in ancient Phoenicia (modern Lebanon) to obtain cedar wood that used for building ships, temple doors and expensive coffins. Fact 9 on Unas: He conducted a military campaign and fought a battle with the Bedouin nomad tribes in the Sinai Peninsula. This was the only conflict recorded during his long reign which was therefore, on the whole, a peaceful time in ancient Egypt. Fact 10 on Unas: Unfortunately the peace was apparently shattered by a devastating famine. We say 'apparently' because the only reference to the famine is shown on a relief carved on the causeway in his pyramid complex. The relief depicts starving people dying of hunger. However, it is not clear whether these people were Egyptians or, more likely, whether they were people to whom the pharaoh had supplied aid. Ancient Egyptian King - Unas Fact Sheet Pharaoh Unas The Pyramid Complex of King Unas Ancient Egyptian King - Unas Fact Sheet Fact 11 on Unas: King Unas is famous due to his pyramid complex that forms part of the Saqqara necropolis and contains the first of the Pyramid texts. Fact 12 on Unas: The pyramid complex of Unas consisted of: The Pyramid Fact 13 on Unas: The complex was accessed by boat on the River Nile and would land at a harbor outside the Valley Temple where visitors would disembark - see the picture below. Fact 14 on Unas: The Valley Temple contained different chambers, some of which were dedicated to deities and others that were used in the embalming rituals and and the wrapping of the mummy. Fact 15 on Unas: The Valley Temple provided direct access to the causeway (raised roadway) a processional road that led to the main pyramid complex. The Unas causeway ran for 220 meters (730 feet). Fact 16 on Unas: The long causeway was excavated by Selim Bay Hassan in 1937. The inner walls of the causeway were richly decorated with scenes depicting events during the reign of the king. The scenes included trading ships, craftsmen working on various building projects, farmers, hunting scenes and the famous 'famine scene'. Fact 17 on Unas: The causeway led to the entrance courtyard of the pyramid complex of Unas which which enclosed in a high wall and provided entry to the pyramid and Mortuary Temple. Fact 18 on Unas: The Mortuary Temple was the place where the sun priests of Ra performed daily funerary rites and presented offerings to the dead kings Ka. The structure consisted of an entrance hall, an open, columned courtyard, alcoves for his statues, storage chambers and an inner temple, or sanctuary. Fact 19 on Unas: The pyramid is oriented east-west and was built with a local limestone core and fine white limestone casing from the Tura Quarry. Fact 20 on Unas: Inside the pyramid is a substructure consisting of a descending entrance corridor, with a barrier, leading to the dead king's mortuary apartment which was located directly under the vertical apex of the pyramid. The corridor leads to an antechamber then the burial chamber. Fact 21 on Unas: The pyramid of Unas was first investigated by John Shae Perring in 1838 and Lepsius in 1844. But it was Gaston Maspero (1846 1916) who first gained entry to the burial chambers in 1881, where he discovered the religious inscriptions that would become known as the Pyramid texts. Fact 22 on Unas: The vertical lines of hieroglyphs, filled with blue pigment contain 228 magic spells, that were intended to help the king in the Afterlife. Fact 23 on Unas: Unas was the last king of the 5th dynasty leaving no male heir. His daughter, Iput, married Teti who founded the 6th Dynasty following the death of the king. Ancient Egyptian King - Unas Fact Sheet A Valley Temple 5th Dynasty Name - Dates of Reign King Userkaf - 24672458 BC King Sahure - 24582446 BCKing Neferirkare Kakai - 24462426 BC King Shepseskare Ini - 24262419 BCKing Neferefre (aka Raneferef) - 24192416 BC King Niuserre - 24162392 BCKing Menkauhor - 23962388 BC King Djedkare Isesi (aka Izezi) - 23882356 BCKing Unas (aka Unis & Weni) - 23562323 BC Succession of the KingsUnas Unas |