Ruler
Amenemhat I
Founder of the Twelfth Dynasty
c. 1985 – 1956 BCE
Approximate regnal dates after Shaw (2000); other authorities differ by a few decades.
Biography
He founded the Twelfth Dynasty and moved the capital from Thebes to a new northern city, Itjtawy, whose site has still not been found. He built his pyramid at Lisht.
Key facts
Certainty: Probable
He is probably the vizier Amenemhat who served the last Eleventh Dynasty king, Mentuhotep IV.
Scholarly note: The identification rests on the shared name and timing; no text states it outright.
- Ian Shaw (ed.) (2000) “The Oxford History of Ancient Egypt” Oxford University Press