Turin King List

The Turin King List, also called the Turin Royal Canon, is a list of the kings of Egypt. It was written in Egyptian hieratic script on papyrus. It is thought to date from the rule of Pharaoh Ramesses II. The list is now in the Egyptian Museum in Turin. The papyrus is the most complete list of kings written by the Egyptians. It is the basis working out the dates of kings before the rule of Ramesses II.

Drawing of the Turin King list

Creation and use

The papyrus is believed to have been written in the time of Ramesses II, during the middle of the New Kingdom, or the 19th Dynasty. The beginning and ending of the list are lost. There is no introduction, and the list stops after the 19th Dynasty. It may have been written at any later time, from Ramesses II to as late as the 20th Dynasty.

The papyrus lists the names of rulers, the lengths of their rule in years, with months and days for some kings. In some cases they are grouped together by family. This grouping is almost the same as the dynasties of Manetho’s book. The list includes the names of kings who only ruled for a very short time, or those ruling small areas that may not be in listed in other sources.

The list also is believed to contain kings from the 15th Dynasty, the Hyksos who ruled Lower Egypt and the River Nile delta. The Hyksos rulers do not have cartouches (borders around the name of a king). They do have a hieroglyphic sign to show that they were foreigners.

The papyrus was a tax roll, but on its back is written a list of rulers of Egypt. It includes the mythical kings such as gods, demi-gods, and spirits, as well as human kings. As the papyrus was reused for the tax roll, it shows the list was not of great formal importance to the writer. The list is thought to have been used as an administrative aid. As such, the papyrus is not supposed to be biased against certain rulers and is believed to include all the kings of Egypt up through at least the 19th Dynasty.

Discovery and reconstruction

The papyrus was found by the Italian traveler Bernardino Drovetti in 1820 at Luxor (Thebes). In 1824 was put in the Egyptian Museum in Turin, Italy, and known as Papyrus Number 1874. When the box in which it had been taken to Italy was unpacked, the list had broken up into small pieces. Jean-Francois Champollion could read only some of the larger pieces which had royal names.

The Saxon researcher Gustav Seyffarth (1796–1885) looked carefully at some of the pieces, some only one square centimeter in size. He made a more complete reconstruction of the papyrus based only on the papyrus fibers, as he could not read the hieratic characters. Later work by the Munich Egyptologist Jens Peter Lauth, largely agreed with Seyffarth's work.

In 1997 Egyptologist Kim Ryholt published a new version of the list in his book, "The Political Situation in Egypt during the Second Intermediate Period c.1800-1550 B.C." Egyptologist Donald Redford has also studied the papyrus and has noted that many of the list’s names match historic monuments and other documents. However there are some differences and not all of the names match. The list may not be completely accurate for pre-Ramesses II chronology.

About 50% of the papyrus is missing. It is 1.7 m long and 0.41 m wide, broken into over 160 pieces. In 2009 new pieces were discovered in the storage room of the Egyptian Museum of Turin, in good condition. A new edition of the papyrus is expected.

The name Hudjefa, is listed twice in the papyrus. The name is now known to have been used by the royal scribes of Ramesses II when the name of a king was unreadable or missing.

Contents of the papyrus

The papyrus is divided into eleven columns. The names and positions of several kings are still uncertain as the list is so badly damaged.

• Column 1 — Gods of Ancient Egypt
• Column 2 — Rows 1-10 Spirits and mythical kings
• Column 2 — Rows 11-25 (Dynasties 1-2)
• Column 3 — Rows 1-25 (Dynasties 2-5)
• Column 4 — Rows 1-26 (Dynasties 6-8/9/10)
• Column 5 — Rows 12-25 (Dynasties 11-12)
• Column 6 — Rows 1-2 (Dynasties 12-13)
• Column 7 — Rows 1-23 (Dynasty 13)
• Column 8 — Rows 1-27 (Dynasty 13-14)
• Column 9 — Rows 1-30 (Dynasty 14)
• Column 10 — Rows 1-30 (Dynasties 14-15)
• Column 11 — Rows 1-17 (Dynasties 16-17)

Turin King List with latest corrections of positions for some fragments - table representation of rows from the original papyrus, translated into hieroglyphs

This is the list of kings

Second column

Second Column
Row	Common name
11	Menes
12	Hor-Aha
13	Djer
15	Djet
16	Den
17	Anedjib
18	Semerkhet
19	Qa'a
20	Hotepsekhemwy
21	Nebre
22	Nynetjer
23	Wadjnes
24	Senedj
25	Neferkara I

Third column

Third Column
Row	Common name
2	Neferkasokar
3	Khasekhemwy
4	Sanakhte
5	Djoser
6	Sekhemkhet
7	Hudjefa II
8	Huni
9	Sneferu
10	Khufu
11	Djedefre
12	Khafre
13	Lost
14	Menkaure
15	Shepseskaf
16	Unknown
17	Userkaf
18	Sahure
19	Neferirkare Kakai
20	Shepseskare
21	Neferefre
22	Nyuserre
23	Menkauhor
24	Djedkare
25	Unas

Fourth Column

Fourth Column
Row	Common name
1	Teti
2	Userkare
3	Pepi
4	Merenre Nemtyemsaf I
5	Pepi II
6	Merenre Nemtyemsaf II
7	Neitiqerty Siptah
8	Lacuna
9	Menkare
10	Neferkare II
11	Ibi
12	Lost
13	Lost
18	Lost
19	Lost
20	Neferkare III
21	Nebkaure Khety
22	Senenh..
23	Lost
24	Mer..
25	Shed..
26	H..

Fifth Column

Fifth Column
Row	Common name
1	Lost
2	Lost
3	Lost
4	Lost
5	Lost
6	Lost
7	Lost
8	Lost
9	Lost '
12	Mentuhotep I
13	Intef I
14	Intef II
15	Intef III
16	Mentuhotep II
17	Mentuhotep III
20	Amenemhat I
21	Sesostris I
22	Amenemhat II
23	Sesostris II
24	Sesostris III
25	Amenemhat III

Sixth Column

Sixth Column
Row	Common name
1	Amenemhet IV
2	Sobekneferu
5	Wegaf or Sobekhotep I
6	Sekhemkare Sonbef
7	Sekhemkare Amenemhat V
8	Hotepibre
9	Iufni
10	Amenemhet VI
11	Semenkare Nebnuni
12	Sehetepibre
13	Sewadjkare
14	Nedjemibre
15	Khaankhre Sobekhotep
16	Renseneb
17	Awybre Hor I
18	Amenemhat VII
19	Sekhemre Khutawy Sobekhotep
20	Khendjer
21	Imyremeshaw
22	Intef IV
23	Seth Meribre
24	Sobekhotep III
25	Neferhotep I
26	Sihathor
27	Sobekhotep IV

Seventh Column

Seventh Column
Row	Common name
1	Sobekhotep V
2	Wahibre Ibiau
3	Merneferre Ay
4	Merhotepre Ini
5	Sankhenre Sewadjtu
6	Mersekhemre Ined|
7	Hori
8	Merkawre Sobekhotep
9	Lost
10	Lost
11	Lost
12	Lost
13	Djedneferre Dedumose
14	Ibi
15	Hor
16	Se..kare
17	Seheqenre Sankhptahi
18	Lost
19	Lost
20	Sekhaenre
21	Lost
22	Merkheperre
23	Merkare

Eighth Colunm

Eighth Column
Row	Common name
1	Nehesy
2	Khatyre
3	Nebfautre
4	Sehebre
5	Merdjefare
6	Sewadjkare III
7	Nebdjefare
8	Webenre
9	Lost
10	..re
11	..webenre
12	Autibre
13	Heribre
14	Renebsen
15	Lost
16	Sekheperenre
17	Djedkherure
18	Seankhibre
19	Kanefertemre
20	Sekhem..re
21	Kakemure
22	Neferibre
23	I..re
24	Kha..re
25	Aakare
26	Semen..re
27	Djed..re

Ninth Column

Ninth Column
Row	Common name
1	Lost
2	Lost
3	Lost
4	Lost
5	Lost
6	Lost
7	Senefer..re
8	Men..re
9	Djed..
10	Lost
11	Lost
12	Lost
13	Lost
14	Inenek
15	Ineb
16	'Apepi
17	Hab
18	Sa
19	Hepu
20	Shemsu
21	Meni
22	Werqa..
23	Lost
24	Lost
25	..ka
26	..ka
27	Lost
28	..ren..hepu
29	Anati
30	Bebnum
31	Lost

Tenth Column

Tenth Column
Row	Common name
1	I..
2	Seth II
3	Sunu..
4	Hor..
5	Lost
6	Lost
7	Nib..
8	Mer..en..
9	Penensetensepet
10	Kherethebshepesu
11	Khut..hemet
12	Lost
15	Semqen?
16	Aperanat?
17	Sakir-Har
18	Khyan
19	Apepi
20	Khamudi
23	Lost
24	Lost
25	Zeket..
26	Ar..
27	Lost
28	Lost
29	..nia..

Eleventh Column

Eleventh Column
Row	Common name
1	Sekhemre Sementawy Djehuti
2	Sekhemre Susertawi Sobekhotep VIII
3	Sekhemre Sankhtawy Neferhotep III
4	Sewadjenre Nebiryraw I
5	Nebiriaure
6	Nebiretaure
7	Semenre
8	Seuserenre Bebiankh
9	Sekhemre Shedwaset
10	Lost
11	Lost
12	Lost
13	Lost
14	Lost
16	User..re
17	User..

Related pages

• List of pharaohs
• Abydos King List
• Karnak king list
• Palermo Stone (An older fragmented king list)

Bibliography

• Alan Gardiner, editor. Royal Canon of Turin. Griffith Institute, 1959. (Reprint 1988. ISBN 0-900416-48-3)
• Beckerath, Jürgen von. “Some remarks on Helck's 'Anmerkungen zum Turiner Konigspapyrus‘.“ Journal of Egyptian Archaeology 81, (1995): 225-227.
• Beckerath, Jürgen von. “The Date of the End of the Old Kingdom of Egypt.” Journal of Near Eastern Studies 21, no. 2 (April 1962): 140-147.
• Bennett, Chris. “A Genealogical Chronology of the Seventeenth Dynasty.” Journal of the American Research Center in Egypt 39, (2002): 123-155.
• George Adam Smith, "Chaldean Account of Genesis" (Whittingham & Wilkins, London, 1872) (Reprint 2005. Adamant Media Corporation, ISBN 1-4021-8590-1) p290 Contains a different translation of the Turin Papyrus in a chart about "dynasty of gods".
• Kenneth A. Kitchen "King Lists" The Oxford Encyclopedia of Ancient Egypt. Ed. Donald B. Redford. Copyright © 2001, 2005 by Oxford University Press, Inc.. The Oxford Encyclopedia of Ancient Egypt. Oxford University Press.
• K. Ryholt, The Political Situation in Egypt during the Second Intermediate Period. Carsten Niebuhr Institute Publications, vol. 20. Copenhagen: Museum Tusculanum Press, 1997. ISBN 87-7289-421-0.
• K. Ryholt, ‘The Turin King-List’, Ägypten und Levante 14, 2004, pp. 135–155. This is a detailed description of the king-list, the information it provides, and its sources.
• Málek, Jaromír. “The Original Version of the Royal Canon of Turin.” Journal of Egyptian Archaeology 68, (1982): 93-106.
• Spalinger, Anthony. “Review of: ‘The Political Situation in Egypt during the Second Intermediate Period, c. 1800-1550 B. C.’ by K.S.B. Ryholt.” Journal of Near Eastern Studies 60, no. 4 (October 2001): 296-300.

Other websites

• Description and Translation of the king list.
• Hieroglyphs with translation Archived 2020-06-01 at the Wayback Machine including Ryholt's new positions of the pieces.