Ankhesenpepi II facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Ankhenespepi in hieroglyphs |
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Ankhenespepi Ꜥḫ n=s ppj Pepi lives for her 
Statuette of Queen Ankhnes-meryre II and her Son, Pepi II, ca. 2288-2224 or 2194 B.C.E. Egyptian alabaster, Brooklyn Museum
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Ankhesenpepi II (also known as Ankhesenmeryre II) was an important queen in Ancient Egypt. She lived during the time of the Sixth Dynasty of Egypt. She was married to two kings, Pepi I and Merenre Nemtyemsaf I. She was also the mother of Pepi II. It is believed she helped rule Egypt as a regent when her son was too young to be king. She was buried in a pyramid in Saqqara.
Her Life and Family
Ankhesenpepi II was the daughter of a man named Khui and a powerful woman named Nebet. Her mother, Nebet, was a vizier, which was a very high-ranking official in the government. Ankhesenpepi II had a sister, Ankhesenpepi I, who also married King Pepi I. Their brother, Djau, also became a vizier.
Both Ankhesenpepi II and her sister Ankhesenpepi I married Pharaoh Pepi I. His special name as king was Meryre. The queens took the name "Ankhesenpepi" when they married. This name means "Her life belongs to Pepi/Meryre".
Both queens had sons who became kings. Ankhesenpepi I's son was Merenre Nemtyemsaf I. He ruled for only a few years. Ankhesenpepi II's son was Pepi II. He became king after Merenre's death. Pepi II was very young when he became pharaoh. It seems that Ankhesenpepi II acted as a regent for her son. This means she ruled the country for him until he was old enough.
There is a statue in the Brooklyn Museum that shows Ankhesenpepi II with her son on her lap. The queen is shown much larger than her son. Some people think this statue shows them like the goddess Isis and her son Horus.
Ankhesenpepi II is mentioned in several places. She appears on her brother's stone monument in Abydos. She is also mentioned in her own pyramid and in the pyramid of her daughter-in-law, Neith. She is also shown in the Sinai desert, where she appears to be the same size as her son.
Royal Titles
Ankhesenpepi II held many important titles as a queen. Some of her titles were:
- Great one of the hetes-sceptre
- She who sees Horus and Seth
- Great of Praises
- King’s Wife of Mennefer-Meryre
- King’s Wife, his beloved
- God’s Daughter
- Attendant of the Great One
- Companion of Horus
We now know that she also became the main queen of Merenre after Pepi I died. During excavations at her temple in Saqqara, special stone blocks were found. These blocks showed new titles for her:
- "King's Wife of the Pyramid of Pepy I"
- "King's Wife of the Pyramid of Merenre"
- "King's Mother of the Pyramid of Pepy II"
This shows that Merenre married Queen Ankhesenpepi II after Pepi I passed away. Merenre was actually Ankhesenpepi II's nephew. These findings suggest that Merenre and Ankhesenpepi II might have been the parents of Pepi II. This is because a document called the South Saqqara Stone shows that Merenre ruled for about ten years on his own.
After her son Pepi II became king, Ankhesenpepi II received even more important titles. These included:
- Mother of the Dual King Men-ankh-Neferkare
- King’s Mother
Death and Burial
Ankhesenpepi II's pyramid was found and explored in Saqqara in 1998. Inside her pyramid, archaeologists found the first known examples of Pyramid Texts in a queen's pyramid. These texts are ancient religious writings. The texts call her a "queen mother." This means her pyramid was built during the time her son, Pepi II, was ruling.
In 1963, her burial chamber was discovered. Some remains that might belong to the queen were found there. The burial had been disturbed, and the mummy found was not complete. The bones found were from a middle-aged woman. Near her pyramid, parts of a large stone pillar called an obelisk were also found. It is one of the biggest from the Old Kingdom period.
Images for kids
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Ankhesenpepi (II) as depicted at Wadi Maghara (Sinai)
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Profile of Ankhnespepy II from her funerary temple.
See also
In Spanish: Anjesenpepi II para niños
