Nitocris(Greek:Νίτωκρις) possibly was the lastqueenof theSixth DynastyofAncient Egypt.Her name is found in writings long considered as relatively accurate resources: a major chronological documentation of the reigns of the kings of ancient Egypt that was composed in the third-century BC byManetho,an Ancient Egyptian priest and by the ancient Greek historian,Herodotus,in hisHistories(430 BC). She is thought to be the daughter ofPepi IIandNeithand to be the sister ofMerenre Nemtyemsaf II.[2]
Her historicity has been questioned by some with speculation that, if she was a historical ruler, she may have been aregent.Another view, by the EgyptologistKim Ryholt,argues that Nitocris is legendary and derives from the historical kingNeitiqerty Siptahwho succeeded Nitocris's brother, Merenre Nemtyemsaf II, at the transition between theOld KingdomandFirst Intermediate Period.
Manetho claimed she built the "third pyramid" atGiza.Modern historians and archaeologists attribute that pyramid to a king of the Fourth Dynasty,Menkaure.
According to Herodotus (Historiesii-100), Nitocris invited the murderers of her brother, the "king of Egypt", to a banquet, then killed them by flooding the sealed room with the waters of theNile.
... [Nitocris] succeeded her brother. He had been the king of Egypt, and he had been put to death by his subjects, who then placed her upon the throne. Determined to avenge his death, she devised a cunning scheme by which she destroyed a vast number of Egyptians. She constructed a spacious underground chamber and, on pretense of inaugurating it, threw a banquet, inviting all those whom she knew to have been responsible for the murder of her brother. Suddenly as they were feasting, she let the river in upon them by means of a large, secret duct. (Herodotus)[2]
Herodotus also indicated that, to avoid the other conspirators, she committedsuicide(possibly by running into a burning room).
The name, Nitocris, is not mentioned in any known nativeEgyptianinscriptions in stone and it was long thought that this king appears under her Egyptian name ofNitiqreti(nt-ỉqrtỉ) on a fragment of theTurin King List,dated to theNineteenth Dynasty.The fragment where this name appears was thought to belong to the Sixth Dynasty portion of a king list, thus appearing to confirm the records of both Manetho and Herodotus. Microscopic analysis of the Turin King List suggests the fragment might have been misplaced in reassembling the fragmentary text, and that the nameNitiqretiis a faultytranscriptionof theprenomenof king NetjerkareSiptah I,[2][3][4]who is named on the Nineteenth DynastyAbydos King Listas the successor of the Sixth Dynasty kingNemtyemsaf II.On the Abydos King List, Netjerkare Siptah is placed in the equivalent spot that Neitiqerty Siptah holds on the Turin King List.
Several kings listed by Manetho, Herodotus, and the Turin list now are proven to have existed, but they were omitted from the Abydos list and their removal is suspected to be suppression of historical details not favored by the rulers when the Abydos list was created.
Two letters in the name are transposed inBolesław Prus' 1895historical novelPharaoh,where "Nikotris" appears as the mother of the protagonist, Pharaoh "Ramses XIII" (there were onlyeleven pharaohsof that name).
The Queen's Enemies,a play byLord Dunsany,is based upon the account by Herodotus of the murderous activities of Nitocris.
Le Basalte Bleu,a book byJohn Knittel,has a sort of time-travel plot in which the main character falls in love with the ancient ruler. Knittel speculates that the origin of theCinderellafairy talelies in the marriage of Nitocris, who lost her golden sandal only to have it later found by the pharaoh.
"The Mirror of Nitocris", a short story byBrian Lumley,features a mirror that once belonged to Nitocris that unleashes evil forces upon its owners.
Nitocris is royal wife of Merenra II in the novelRhodopis of Nubiaby Nobel laureateNaguib Mahfouz,which tells the fateful love story of Pharaoh Merenra II (successor to Pepi II, Six Dynasty) and the courtesan Rhodopis.
"By Scarab and Scorpion", a short story featuring theGreen HornetbyMark Ellis,features a plot involving anEgyptianmuseum exhibition featuring Nitocris.[5]
Nitocris appears inThe Mummy and Miss NitocrisbyGeorge Griffith,where she is the namesake of an Egyptologist's daughter in whose person she is reincarnated.
Nitocris appears inFate/Grand Orderas a Caster-class, an Assassin-class and later an Avenger-class Servant with ties toHorus,Medjed,andAnubis.As Servants are influenced by fictional interpretations of their legends, Nitocris' powers are mostly based on Lovecraft and Lumley's stories about her, and she wields the titular mirror from the latter as her weapon.[6]
A character named Nitocris appears in theAssassin's Creed Originstie in novel,Desert Oath.[7]She is the God's Wife of Amun in Karnak temple and mother of Isidora. Her death between the novel and the events of theCurse of the PharaohsDLC give Isidora motivation to use an Apple of Eden to bring about the wrath of the undead on Thebes.
Newberry, Percy Edward. 1943. "Queen Nitocris of the Sixth Dynasty".Journal of Egyptian Archæology29:51–54.
Zivie-Coche, Christiane M. 1972. "Nitocris, Rhodopis et la troisième pyramide de Giza".Bulletin de l’Institut français d’archéologie orientale72:115–138.PDF
