The Reconstructed Chronology of the Egyptian Kings M. Christine Tetley Volume One The Ebers Calendar is probably the most valuable chronological tool from Egypt that we are ever likely to possess. M. Christine Tetley ISBN 978-0-473-29338-3 www.egyptchronology.comm The Reconstructed Chronology of the Egyptian Kings – Volume One Author: M. Christine Tetley Publisher: Barry W. Tetley Address: 14 Workman Way, Onerahi, Whangarei, New Zealand 0110 Publication Date: July 2014 ISBN: 978-0-473-29338-3 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED © B.W. Tetley, 2014 [email protected] Contents i Contents Author’s Preface iii Editor’s Note v Tables vii Figures xvii General Abbreviations xix Bibliographic Abbreviations xxi Synopsis xxv Ch. 1. Introduction to Problems with the Historical Chronology of Ancient Egypt 1 Ch. 2. Fixing the Chronology for Israel, Judah, and Egypt 19 Ch. 3. Investigating Ancient Egyptian Calendars 39 Ch. 4. Reviewing Gardiner's and Parker's Calendars 55 Ch. 5. Dating by Lunar Months and Phases 75 Ch. 6. Pondering Egyptian Calendar Depictions 85 Ch. 7. Revisiting Gardiner and Parker 103 Ch. 8. Recovering a Calendar with Wep Renpet as the First Month 119 Ch. 9. Exploring the Ebers Calendar 135 Ch. 10. Resolving the Eponymous Month Conflict 153 Ch. 11. Studying Sesostris III and Illahun - Sesostris III's Seventh Year 171 Ch. 12. Studying Sesostris III and Illahun - Feast Dates 179 Ch. 13. Studying Sesostris III and Illahun - the W3gy Feast 191 Ch. 14. Securing Neferefre's W3gy Feast Date 199 Volume Two Ch. 15. Working with Egyptian King Lists 205 Ch. 16. Recasting the 5th and 6th Dynasties 227 Ch. 17. Clarifying the 8th Dynasty 247 Ch. 18. Regarding the Royal Annals 255 Ch. 19. Reconstructing the Royal Annals - Menes to Neferkare 267 Ch. 20. Reconstructing the Royal Annals - Neferkasokar to Menkaure 283 Ch. 21. Reconstructing the Royal Annals - Menkaure to Shepseskare 309 Ch. 22. Surveying the 9th-11th Dynasties 327 Ch. 23. Establishing the 12th Dynasty 335 Ch. 24. Reading Hekanakhte's Letters 347 Ch. 25. Reporting on the 13th-17th Dynasties 353 Ch. 26. Reinstating the 18th Dynasty – Introduction 359 Ch. 27. Reinstating the 18th Dynasty - Ahmose to Hatshepsut 367 Ch. 28. Reinstating the 18th Dynasty - Thutmose III to Amenhotep II 383 Ch. 29. Reinstating the 18th Dynasty - Thutmose IV to Tutankhamun 395 Ch. 30. Reinstating the 18th Dynasty - Tutankhamun to Horemheb 413 Ch. 31. Redating the 19th Dynasty 421 Ch. 32. Correlating Egypt and Israel, Manetho and Moses 439 Ch. 33. Positioning the 20th Dynasty 451 The Reconstructed Chronology of the Egyptian Kings, M. Christine Tetley ii Ch. 34. Revising the 21st Dynasty Once More 465 Ch. 35. Looking at Other Reconstructions of the 22nd to 25th Dynasties 483 Ch. 36. Framing the 22nd Dynasty 511 Ch. 37. Finishing the 22nd Dynasty 545 Ch. 38. Restoring the 23rd Dynasty 563 Ch. 39. Finalizing the 24th and 25th Dynasties 583 Author’s Preface iii Author’s Preface A military confrontation in the Middle East occurred about 3000 years ago in the 5th year of Judah’s King Rehoboam and the 20th year of Egypt’s King Shoshenq I. Though the campaign was recorded in the annals of both nations, agreement on the actual year—which could anchor the chronologies of each—has not been established, despite much effort over the last century. Edwin Thiele, a Seventh Day Adventist teacher, authored The Mysterious Numbers of the Hebrew Kings, which—in the absence of a credible alternative—for the last 50 years has been a standard reference for dating reigns in the 1st and 2nd Books of Kings in the Old Testament. But Thiele based his theories only on the Hebrew Masoretic Text which only goes back to about 1000 CE. He dismissed the variant numbers recorded in the Septuagint, the Greek translation of the Hebrew Text, as it stood about 1200 years earlier, around 200 BCE. The Septuagint was widely accepted at the time of Jesus Christ, was quoted in the New Testament, and was used to spread Christianity through the early centuries of the Common Era (CE). Thiele explained the “mysterious” numbers by invoking separate calendars for Judah and Israel, and many co-regencies; which find no mention in the records. He supported his theory by a continuous list of Assyrian Kings which remains unproven. My Reconstructed Chronology of the Divided Kingdom published in 2005 considered all the biblical texts, and established that Rehoboam’s 5th year was 977 BCE, 52 years earlier than Thiele’s proposed date. But the date for Judah was only half of the equation in the Rehoboam and Shoshenq I engagement. How did it fit with Egyptian chronology? During the last century the tempo and temperature in meetings and writings between Egyptologists, scientists, and archaeologists has risen dramatically—all intent on establishing the dates for Egyptian events. They have dealt with Ramesses II, the Eruption of Thera on Santorini, which produced pumice used in some Egyptian monuments, and many other themes. Inscriptions and evidence continues to emerge from the sands of Egypt. The Reconstructed Chronology of the Divided Kingdom established the Egyptian chronology in part, confirming that Shoshenq I’s 20th year was 977 BCE. Now I present the full chronology for the Egyptian Dynasties 1-25 anchored by the heliacal risings of Sirius (Sothis) and lunar phases, which modern reconstructions can identify precisely. A new understanding of Egyptian calendars is a critical feature of the reconstruction. With the completion of this reconstructed chronology of the Egyptian kings, the date of Rehoboam’s encounter with Shoshenq I is established by independent chronologies of Israel/Judah (in The Reconstructed Chronology of the Divided Kingdom), and of Egypt (herein). The date of 977 BCE in the total dynastic framework of Egyptian chronology finally makes sense of all the evidence from inscriptions, archaeological effort, and scientific research. I wish to acknowledge the invaluable contribution of Dr. Lee W. Casperson in accomplishing this project. In two JNES articles in the 1980s he employed astronomical data to evaluate proposed dates for Thutmose III and Ramesses II—“The Lunar Dates of The Reconstructed Chronology of the Egyptian Kings, M. Christine Tetley iv Thutmose III,” (J Near E Stud, Vol. 45, No. 2: 139-150) and “The Lunar Date of Ramesses II,” (J Near E Stud, Vol. 47, No. 3: 181-184). The use of this data offered a means for testing the feasibility of dates proposed from inscriptions and other sources. Over the many years of this research, Dr Casperson has provided me (upon request) with numerous sets of tables for specified periods. For this collaboration, and the corroboration that his data has supplied, I am truly grateful. M. Christine Tetley, Th.D, Whangarei, New Zealand, 3 July 2013. Editor’s Note v Editor’s Note Dr Christine Tetley died on 19 July 2013. She was the first female graduate of New Zealand’s Laidlaw College to be awarded a Doctorate in Theology. It was awarded by the Australian College of Theology, again the first awarded to a woman by thesis (others had been honoris causa). Her thesis was published in 2005 by Eisenbrauns entitled The Reconstructed Chronology of the Divided Kingdom. She completed this present work two weeks before her death. Her husband, Rev. Barry Tetley (M.Div. Hons.) has been in Christian ministry for 45 years, including 12 years as a lecturer at NZ's Laidlaw College. He was responsible for the final editing of the text. The central chronological thesis of this presentation is established by the concordance of inscriptional and astronomical evidence available to Dr Tetley at the time of compilation. It radically differs from most chronological estimates in current Egyptological publications. It establishes the early use of a civil Calendar in Upper Egypt with Wep Renpet as the first month, with a changing four-year link to with the annual heliacal rising of Sothis, referred to in inscriptions. A great number of events reported in historical materials link to new or full moon events, that are pin-pointed by secure astronomical evidence. This evidence establishes the date of Neferefre's reign as the earliest secure date in Egyptian history. From this date, together with analysis of the Turin Canon, the reconstructed Royal Annals, and other ancient king-lists, Dr Tetley establishes new dates for the first five dynasties. Later dynastic records contain numerous sothic or lunar references, which enable the reconstruction of a chronology that conforms to astronomical evidence. Such evidence is not susceptible to the vagaries of guess-work and estimation from a flawed starting date, as is currently relied upon in much of the present information available to the public. Dr Tetley's methodology must be examined on its merits. The study of Ancient Egypt is ongoing, and Dr Tetley hoped that her contribution to its chronology would provide answers with a confidence that has so far eluded the Egyptology community. New information can fill “knowledge gaps” and further refine her endeavour. The editor invites readers who recognize such gaps, or errors in the compiled material, to communicate directly with him. Any material of chronological significance that could improve and refine the Reconstructed Chronology of the Egyptian Kings would be exactly within the intentions of Dr Tetley, and would be considered for inclusion and recognition within the existing narrative. Finally, I wish to thank Ruth Blaikie for her superb skills in copy editing this project for publication. Barry Tetley - [email protected] The Reconstructed Chronology of the Egyptian Kings, M. Christine Tetley vi Tables vii Tables (Note: the explanation of Casperson’s new moon tables is on page xv.) The first number of the Table indicates the chapter it appears in.