Sekhemre Khutawy Sobekhotep

Sekhemre Khutaway Sobekhotep, otherwise known as Sobekhotep I was an Egyptian pharaoh of the early 13th Dynasty in the late Middle Kingdom.

His chronological position is much debated. In literature, Sobekhotep I is known as Sekhemre Khutawy Sobekhotep and Amenemhat Sobekhotep. Kim Ryholt (1997) makes a strong case for Sobekhotep I as the founder of the dynasty, a hypothesis that is now dominant in Egyptology. If so, he may be the first ruler with this name, making him Sobekhotep I. His double name may also be a filiation, Sobekhotep, son of Amenemhat.

Reign We know almost nothing about his reign except what can be interpreted by archaeological finds. He ruled at a time of political turmoil during the early Thirteenth Dynasty, where the order of succession is unclear. At Lahun, a papyrus indicate that he ruled not long after Amenemhat III. The Nile Level Records were also inscribed for a limited number of rulers of the late 12th and early 13th dynasties. However, the Turin King List column 7 placed him in the middle of the list if read as a sequence of successors. Consequently, some scholars believe the scribe made a mistake where he should be put at the top of that list. His double name Sobekhotep Amenemhat may be a filiation meaning "Sobekhotep, son of Amenemhat" indicating he was a son of Amenemhat III or Amenemhat IV. Amenemhat III is only known to have had daughters. An antiyant husband (regent) or grandchild (by the first rank daughter) may have laid claim on the throne.

Attestations Possible portrait of Sobekhotep I, although other attributions have been proposed. Sobekhotep I is attested by contemporary sources dating to the early 13th Dynasty.

In Year 1, he is attested on a papyrus at Lahun in the middle part of Egypt. Later, he is mainly attested by architectural elements in the 4th Nome of Thebes. His highest attested date is Year 4 according to Nile Level Records in Nubia.

Documents Kahun Papyrus IV, Petrie Museum UC 32166 He is mentioned on the Kahun Papyrus IV. Written in hieratic text, it contains "a census of the household of a lector-priest that is dated to the first regnal year" of the king. The household includes a son of the lector-priest, and the papyrus records the birth of this son during a 40th regnal year of an unnamed king, "which can only refer to Amenemhat III."

At Semna, a nile level record was made in Year 2 and Year 3. At Kumma, a nile level record was made in Year 4. At Deir el-Bahri, Sekhemre Khutawy Sobekhotep added a relief to the Mortuarty Temple of Mentuhotep II.

Small finds Drawing of a seal reading "The son of Ra, Sobekhotep Amenemhat, beloved of Sobek-Ra, Lord of Iu-miteru". Smaller artifacts mentioning Sobekhotep I comprise a cylinder seal from Gebelein, an adze-blade, a statuette from Kerma and a faience bead, now in the Petrie Museum (UC 13202).

Non-Contemporary Attestations The Turin King List 7:19 contains the entry: "The Dual King Sobekhotep I reigned x years ...". In the list he is predeceded by 7:18 Sedjefakare and succeeded by 7:20 by Khendjer. Some scholars believe the scribe made an error being interchanged with 7:01 Khutawyre Wegaf.

Burial The tomb of Sobekhotep I has not been found.

Alleged tomb

His tomb was believed to have been discovered in Abydos in 2013, but its attribution is now questioned. During a 2013 excavation in Abydos, a team of archaeologists led by Josef W. Wegner of the University of Pennsylvania discovered the tomb of a king with the name Sobekhotep. While Sobekhotep I was named as owner of the tomb on several press reports since January 2014, further investigations made it more likely that the tomb belongs to king Sobekhotep IV instead. Other Egyptologists read Amenemhat Sobekhotep as a double name, these being common in the Twelfth and Thirteenth Dynasty.