Sneferu

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Template:Hiero/1cartouche Image:Snofru Eg Mus Kairo 2002.png Image:Egypt.Dashur.RedPyramid.01.jpg Sneferu, also spelt as Snefru or Snofru (in Greek known as Soris), was the founder of the Fourth dynasty of Egypt, reigning from around 2613 BC to 2589 BC. His name, Snefer, means "To make beautiful" in Egyptian.

He was married to Hetepheres who is thought to have been the daughter of his predecessor Huni. His father-in-law may also have been his father according to some theorists. According to this theory, Huni fathered Hetepheres from a Great Royal Wife and Sneferu from a concubine. Thus the marriage was what allowed Sneferu to inherite the throne.

Sneferu and Hetepheres were the parents of Egypt's most famous pyramid builder, Khufu. Sneferu was actually more prolific than his heir, being responsible first for completing the pyramid of Huni at Meidum, transforming it from a step pyramid to a true pyramid, the first of its kind. He then went on to build his own step pyramid there. These were followed by the famous Bent Pyramid at Dahshur, and finally, the Red Pyramid. A small pyramid at Seila, near Meidum, is also believed to have been built at his command. While the pyramids built under Sneferu are individually smaller than the Great Pyramid of Khufu, the total volume of stone used in Sneferu's monuments is the largest of all pharaohs.

Despite the construction of such monuments, relatively little is known about his reign. From an inscription on the Palermo stone, it is evident that the Egyptians had already begun to import high-quality woods from abroad, as the inscription states that King Sneferu sent forty ships to acquire cedar from Lebanon. It is also known that he built boats used to transport goods and for military purposes to such places as the Sinai, Nubia, and Libya. Some of the court life from that time is evoked in the Westcar Papyrus, written sometime during the Middle Kingdom of Egypt. Tradition ascribes that Sneferu was a wise and just ruler.

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References

Anderson, Julie. 1999. "Furniture of the Old Kingdom". in Egyptian Art in the Age of the Pyramids, The Metropolitan Museum of Art
Leclant, Jean. 1999. "A Brief History of the Old Kingdom". in Egyptian Art in the Age of the Pyramids, The Metropolitan Museum of Art

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