Smendes I

Smendes I founded the Twenty-first Dynasty, inaugurating the Third Intermediate Period. He reigned about 1077 to 1051 BC, with dates uncertain by about five years. Following the collapse of the New Kingdom and the death of Ramesses XI, centralised authority dissolved. Smendes established his capital at Tanis in the north-eastern Nile Delta, while Upper Egypt remained largely under the control of the High Priests of Amun based at Thebes. His queen was Tentamun, who may have provided a link to the older royal line.

His authority was recognised across Egypt, even as regional leaders governed locally. His building activities are attested at Tanis, and a stela found in the limestone quarries at Dibabiya records his quarrying works to repair temples at Luxor. His exact tomb has not been identified, and no mummy survives. Scholars know Smendes through quarry inscriptions, later king lists, and contemporary textual sources.

Monuments

• Tanis royal tombs area
• Dibabiya quarry stela

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Try the name on the Cartouche Desk, or see where the reign falls on the timeline.