For the 16th-century poet and playwright, see William Shakespeare.
Shepseskare
Sisires
Drawing by the Egyptologist Georges Émile Jules Daressy of a bronze cylinder seal of Shepseskare bearing his Horus name "Sekhemkhaw".[1]
Pharaoh
Reign
Duration uncertain: likely for less than a year[2][3][4][5] or seven years[6][7][8][9] in the mid 25th century BC.[a]
Predecessor
uncertain, Neferefre (most likely) or Neferirkare Kakai
Successor
uncertain, Nyuserre Ini (most likely) or Neferefre
Royal titulary
Horus name
Sekhemkhaw Sḫm-ḫˁ.w He whose apparitions are powerful
Turin canon: Niswt Shepseskare Maat Kheru Niswt Špss-k3-Rˁ M3ˁ-ḫrw King Shepseskare the justified
Prenomen (Praenomen)
Shepseskare Špss-k3-Rˁ The Ka of Ra is noble
Nomen
Netjeruser Nṯr-wsr He whose strength is divine
Father
highly uncertain and conjectural: Sahure, Neferirkare Kakai or Neferefre
Mother
uncertain, possibly Meretnebty
Monuments
Unfinished trench in North Abusir representing the earliest stages of a pyramid.
Dynasty
Fifth Dynasty
Shepseskare or Shepseskara (Egyptian for "Noble is the Soul of Ra")[15] was an Ancient Egyptian pharaoh, the fourth or fifth ruler of the Fifth Dynasty (2494–2345 BC) during the Old Kingdom period. Shepseskare lived in the mid-25th century BC and was probably the owner of an unfinished pyramid in Abusir, which was abandoned after a few weeks of work in the earliest stages of its construction.[16]
Following historical sources, Shepseskare was traditionally believed to have reigned for seven years, succeeding Neferirkare Kakai and preceding Neferefre on the throne,[17][18] making him the fourth ruler of the dynasty. He is the most obscure ruler of this dynasty and the Egyptologist Miroslav Verner has strongly argued that Shepseskare's reign lasted only a few months at the most, after that of Neferefre. This conclusion is based upon the state and location of Shepseskare's unfinished pyramid in Abusir as well as the very small number of artefacts attributable to this king. Verner's arguments have now convinced several Egyptologists such as Darrell Baker and Erik Hornung.
Shepseskare's relations to his predecessor and successor are not known for certain. Verner has proposed that he was a son of Sahure and a brother to Neferirkare Kakai, who briefly seized the throne following the premature death of his predecessor and probable nephew, Neferefre. Shepseskare may himself have died unexpectedly or he may have lost the throne to another of his nephews, the future pharaoh Nyuserre Ini. The possibility that Shepseskare was a short-lived usurper from outside the royal family cannot be totally excluded.
^Daressy 1915, p. 94.
^Verner 2001, p. 400.
^Baker 2008, pp. 427–428.
^ abHornung 2012, p. 491.
^Grimal 1988, p. 92.
^ abShaw 2000, p. 480.
^ abRice 1999, p. 190.
^ abvon Beckerath 1999, p. 283.
^Hayes 1978, p. 58.
^Hawass & Senussi 2008, p. 10.
^Clayton 1994, p. 60.
^Strudwick 2005, p. xxx.
^Lloyd 2010, p. xxxiv.
^Arnold 1999.
^Clayton 1994, p. 61.
^Abdallatif, Tareq Fahmy; Abd‐All, Esmat Mohamed; Suh, Mancheol; Mostafa Mohamad, Reem; El‐Hemaly, Ibrahim Aly (2005-04-05). "Magnetic tracing at Abu Sir (land of forgotten pyramids), northern Egypt". Geoarchaeology. 20 (5): 483–503. doi:10.1002/gea.20058. ISSN 0883-6353.
^Callender, V. G. (January 2011). "Curious Names of Some Old Kingdom Royal Women*". The Journal of Egyptian Archaeology. 97 (1): 127–142. doi:10.1177/030751331109700109. ISSN 0307-5133.
^Chauvet, Violaine (September 2002). "Abusir Realm of Osiris. Miroslav Verner". Near Eastern Archaeology. 65 (3): 214–215. doi:10.2307/3210886. ISSN 1094-2076.
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Shepseskare or Shepseskara (Egyptian for "Noble is the Soul of Ra") was an Ancient Egyptian pharaoh, the fourth or fifth ruler of the Fifth Dynasty (2494–2345...
been proposed: Verner sees Shepseskare as a son of Sahure and hence Neferefre's uncle, while Jaromír Krejčí believes Shepseskare was Neferefre's son. Finally...
Sahure, Neferirkare, Raneferef and Niuserre, he completely omits Shepseskare. Shepseskare or Sisires likely did not rule Egypt for the seven years assigned...
directly, as indicated by much later historical sources. Alternatively, Shepseskare may have reigned between the two as advocated by Miroslav Verner, albeit...
construction began in the Fifth Dynasty. It is speculatively assigned to Shepseskare, an ephemeral pharaoh whose brief rule is the least well documented of...
kings, his son Neferefre (2455–2453 BC) and Shepseskare, the latter of uncertain parentage. Shepseskare may have been deposed by Neferefre's brother...
sources and archaeological evidence regarding the reign of the shadowy Shepseskare. Known rulers in the Fifth Dynasty are listed below. Manetho assigns...
name Ranefer 2477–2467 BC Neferefre Izi Son of Neferirkare 2460–2458 BC Shepseskare Netjeruser Reigned most likely after Neferefre and for only a few months...
4th dynasty. Shepseskare Isi Pharaoh 5th dynasty fl. c. 25th century BC Reigned c. 2467 BC – c. 2460 BC. Sometime referred to as Shepseskare, Sisiris. Shepsesneb...
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