Pharaoh Menkaure – Egyptian Ruler Who Tried To Outsmart Fate

A. Sutherland  – AncientPages.com – Giza pyramids belong to Khufu, Khafre, and Menkaure, and vandals and thieves looted them a long time ago. The southernmost is associated with Menkaure (Mykerinos, in Greek), the fifth king of the 4th Dynasty.

Who Was Pharaoh Menkaure?

Not much is known about this ruler, and the only source mentioning Menkaure (though not always reliable) is that of Herodotus and some legends.

Menkaure was the eldest son of Pharaoh Khafre, the grandson of Khufu (Cheops), and ruled in the middle of the third millennium BC, from about 2490 to -2473, though the length of Menkaure’s reign is uncertain. His wives were Queens Khamerernebty II and Rekhetre, while Shepseskaf was the successor to Menkaure and probably his son.

He also had a daughter who had a very uncomfortable relationship with her father. Herodotus mentions that he possessed his daughter against her will, and when she couldn’t bear the shame of it anymore, she hanged herself. The Pharaoh never overcame his grief and guilt.

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