Full Description
Cleopatra. Nefertiti. Hatshepsut. All of them are ancient Egyptian female rulers who rose above their predominantly patriarchal societies to become controllers of a great empire. Missing from this list, however, is Sobekneferu, ancient Egypt's first female ruler. Why was the reign of this powerful woman all but forgotten?
Piecing together the lost history of the first female pharaoh, Andrew Collins presents the first comprehensive biography of Sobekneferu. Using every text and monument that concerns Sobekneferu and her time in power, he examines her achievements as ruler, the political and religious issues of her age, the temples and ruins associated with her, and her continuing impact on ancient Egypt after her reign. He explores her relationship with her brother Amenemhet IV, her sister Neferuptah, and their father Amenemhet III, regarded as one of the most beloved pharaohs of the Middle Kingdom. He examines Sobekneferu's untimely end, the fate of her body, and the cult that developed in her name.
Discussing Sobekneferu's magical beliefs and practices, Collins shows how they centred on the crocodile god Sobek, the hippo goddess Neith, and the circumpolar stars of the night sky in which they were personified. He also reveals how the setting of the Crocodile Star (Eltanin), the brightest star in the constellation of Draco, aligns with Sobekneferu's suspected pyramid. Examining the modern-day resurrection of Sobekneferu among the occultists and mystics of Victorian London, Collins shows how she is the true inspiration behind every ancient Egyptian female queen who comes back to life after her tomb is found--as featured first in Bram Stoker's shocking 1903 novel The Jewel of the Seven Stars and later in several modern blockbuster movies.
Revealing how Sobekneferu has left a lasting impact on culture and occulture through the ages despite being nearly erased from history, Collins shows how her continuing legacy is perhaps, ultimately, her true resurrection.
Contents
Foreword: History Is Made of Discoveries
By Jan Summers Duffy
Acknowledgments
Preface: The Knowing of Sobekneferu
PART 1
Discovering Sobekneferu
1 Female Pharaohs
2 Ruler of the Two Lands
3 Sobekneferu—The Story As We Know It
4 The Woman behind the Pharaoh
5 The Cult of Sobekneferu
6 Sobekneferu and the Heb Sed Mystery
PART 2
Road to Destiny
7 Sobekneferu in Canaan
8 The Vengeful Goddess
9 Divine Right to Rule
PART 3
Seeds of Destruction
10 The Sister of Sobekneferu
11 The King's Daughters
12 Fate of the Dynasty
13 Sibling Rivalry
14 Flawed Visions
15 The Fall of Egypt
PART 4
Regicide
16 The Mystery of Queen Nitocris
17 Sobekneferu as Nitocris
18 Mother of Crocodiles
19 The Vengeance of Nitocris
20 The Death of Sobekneferu
21 Enemies of Sobekneferu
PART 5
Faith
22 Joseph in Egypt
23 The Heliopolitan Connection
24 When Sobekneferu Met Joseph
25 Sobekneferu—The Asiatic Connection
PART 6
Two Lands
26 Sobekneferu the Builder
27 The Magnificent Labyrinth
28 At the Center of It All
29 Navel of the World
PART 7
Ancestors
30 The Mystery of Mazghuna North
31 Temple of the Crocodile
32 Place of the Ancestors
33 The Seven Snake Gods
34 Sobekneferu's Final Resting Place
PART 8
Resurrection
35 Goddess of the Seven Stars
36 Servants of Sobek
37 Path of the Headless One
38 Typhonian Gnosis
Appendix: Sobekneferu on Film and Television
Notes
Bibliography
Index
