Menkare | ||||||||||||||||||
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![]() The cartouche of Menkare on the Abydos King List. | ||||||||||||||||||
Pharaoh | ||||||||||||||||||
Reign | Probably short, c. 2181 BC | |||||||||||||||||
Predecessor | Netjerkare Siptah | |||||||||||||||||
Successor | Neferkare II | |||||||||||||||||
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Dynasty | Eighth Dynasty |
Menkare was an ancient Egyptian pharaoh, the first or second[1] ruler of the Eighth Dynasty. Menkare probably reigned a short time at the transition between the Old Kingdom period and the First Intermediate Period, in the early 22nd century BC.[2] The rapid succession of brief reigns at the time suggests times of hardship, possibly related to a widespread aridification of the Middle East, known as the 4.2 kiloyear event. As a pharaoh of the Eighth Dynasty, according to Manetho, Menkare's seat of power would have been Memphis.