Peribsen c. 2720–2710 BC
Peribsen broke with every king before him: he put the Seth animal on top of his serekh instead of the Horus falcon. Why is unknown. It may point to a split between north and south late in the 2nd Dynasty. He was buried at Abydos, and a stone stela from his tomb is in the British Museum.
Seth name: Peribsen
Kings this early wrote their main name in a serekh: a frame drawn as the front of a palace, with a god standing on it, usually the falcon of Horus. The cartouche took over in the 4th Dynasty.
pr-ib-sn
A house (pr), a heart (ib) and sn. Often read "he who comes forth by their will" or "hope of their hearts". Who "they" are is unclear.
Sign by sign
- House O1pr House.
- Heart F34ib Heart, mind.
- Folded cloth S29s The sound s.
- Ripple of water N35n The sound n. Also means 'of, to'.
Read more about Peribsen
- What is a serekh? The royal frame before the cartouche What is a serekh? The palace-front frame topped by the Horus falcon that held the first kings' names, read sign by sign from Narmer to Khufu.
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).