Merikare c. 2075–2040 BC
Merikare is the best attested of the Herakleopolitan kings who fought the Theban 11th Dynasty. He is known above all from the Teaching for Merikare, in which his father, probably a king named Khety, advises him how to rule, though whether it was written in his time or later is debated. A scribe's palette with his cartouche is in the Louvre, and his pyramid at Saqqara has not been found. His dates are uncertain.
Throne name: Merikare
mry-kꜣ-rꜥ: “Beloved of the ka of Ra”
Sign by sign
- Sun N5rꜥ The sun, the sun god Ra. Day.
- Hoe U7mr To love (as in 'beloved of Amun').
- Raised arms D28kꜣ The ka, a person's life force.
Where to see Merikare's name today
Read more about Merikare
- The Teaching for Merikare: a king's advice to his son Teaching for Merikare: an Egyptian king tells his son how to rule. Its famous lines in translation, one read in hieroglyphs sign by sign.
Names of gods (Ra, Amun, Ptah) are written first out of respect, even when they are read later. Dates are approximate; we follow Ian Shaw (ed.), The Oxford History of Ancient Egypt (2000).