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Pharaohs of Ancient Egypt > Qa'a

Qa'a

Relief of pharaoh Qa'a with Horus. Qa'a (also Qáa) was the last king of the First Dynasty of Egypt. He had a fairly large tomb in Abydos which measures 98.5 X 75.5 feet or 30 X 23 meters. Stele of Qa'a at the University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology. Manetho gives him a reign of 26 years in his Epitome which is supported by the large size of this ruler's burial site at Abydos.

Qa'a is usually considered the last king of the First Dynasty of Egypt, although dates are rather wildly different when it comes to this king. There isn't much information about king Qa'a (getting annoyed at that statement yet? It's years before there is "much information" about any of the kings). Again, most information comes from his tomb in Abydos and burials in nearby Saqqara from the same time period. A seal impressions listing al the kings of Dynasty I (minus Merneith) was found in the 1990s which helped solidify the succession of the dynasty.

King Qa'a tomb was originally excavated by Emile Amelineau and then again by Flinders Petrie in 1902. Recent excavations by german teams in the 1990s found many other artifacts in the tomb that had been ignored or overlooked in the earlier excavations. The tomb has two funerary stelae with the name of the king on them. Inside they have the name of Hetepsekhemwy, the next king and founder of the Second Dynasty, were found. most likely, he completed the tomb after Qa'a's death. We have no explanation why we moved from Dynasty I to Dynasty II. The unified Egypt created by Menes had begun to break down with the rule of Anedjib and the division continued into the reign of Qa'a, perhaps that is what made Manetho separate them.

Four large tombs in Saqqara date from his reign, and there may have been an offering chapel associated with them, the precursor of the mortuary temple complex that is seen in pyramids later on. Two stelae were discovered for officials in his government, Merka and Sabef, with complex inscriptions.

A number of artifacts were found in the tomb during its many excavations. Amelineau made off with pretty much everything he could find, but documented almost none of it; Petrie found ivory gaming sticks and other artifacts, and the latest german team have uncovered evidence that the tomb was altered several times, although it still retains some of the wooden floor and colorful decorations.

Qa'a is the last king to be buried with subsidiary burials of attendants and servants.

Qa'a, The Last King of the First Dynasty?

Most scholars believe that Qa'a was the last king of the 1st Dynasty. We may also see his name as Kaa, or several other variations. Though Egyptologists often disagree on dating, our current best guess is that he lived from about 3100 to 2890 BC.

While this information on Qa'a is highly limited, until Dreyer and Kaiser analysis their data and provide us with more information, little else is known of this early Egyptian Pharaoh. He was probably buried in Tomb Q at Abydos, where two typical royal funerary stelae bearing his name were found on the east side of the tomb. This has been excavated on a number of different occations, first by Emile Amelineau in the 1890s, then Flinders Petrie and in 1991, by Gunther Dreyer and Werner Kaiser. The work done by this later German team revealed many small artifacts and architectural details that had been overlooked by earlier excavations. These include thirty inscribed labels that describe the delivery of oil, probably made from berries or tree resins, and probably from the Syria-Palestine area.

Seal impressions and artifacts have also been discovered in Tomb Q with the name of Hetepsekhemwy, the first pharaoh of the second dynasty. This suggests that Hetepsekhemwy completed Tomb Q, and that there was no real break between the first and second dynasties of Egypt. The change in dynasties from the first to the second was originally reported by Manetho without explanation.

We also know of four tombs in Saqqara that date to this kings reign. The lower part of two wooden statues were found in one of these tombs in a set of rooms on the north side. Some scholars believe this may have been an offering chapel, and that the mortuary temple in pyramid complexes may have evolved from this structure.

Egyptologists have also discovered the stelae of two of Qa'a's officials, Merka and Sabef. These stelae have more complex inscriptions then earlier hieroglyphics, and may have signaled in increasing sophistication in the use of this writing.