374 ShuwardataShuwardata(fl. 14th century B.C.E.)Prince of Hebron in
the Amarna Period
He wrote to AKHENATEN(r. 1353–1335 B.C.E.) as a vassal
ruler. Shuwardata complained to the Egyptians that ABDU
HEBA, the prince of Jerusalem, was raiding Hebron lands.
His correspondence was part of the ’AMARNA LETTERS.
sia This was the word for wisdom in Egypt, associated
with MAGICand with hu,the word for creativity. Siawas
part of the creation of the world, embodied in heka,pure
magic.
See also COSMOGONY; PTA H.
Siamun (1) (Netjerkheperre’setepenamun) (d. 959
B.C.E.)Sixth ruler of the Twenty-first Dynasty
He reigned in TANISfrom 978 B.C.E. until his death. Sia-
mun was the successor of OSORKOR(Osorkon the Elder)
and the son of PSUSENNES Iand Queen MUTNODJMET(2).
He erected monuments in Tanis, including additions to
the temple of HORUSand the temple of AMUN. A block
inscribed with his name announced that Siamun added to
the monuments of PER-RAMESSESand to the temple at
MEMPHIS. A small bronze SPHINX, bearing his features and
inlaid with gold, was discovered at Memphis.
Siamun campaigned against the Philistines and
reportedly sent his daughter to the harem of Solomon. In
Egypt he transferred vulnerable mummies to secure tomb
sites. He also welcomed Prince Hadad of Edom, who was
fleeing attacks in his city. Hadad married a daughter of
Siamun and had a son, Genubath. Siamun may have been
a member of the Theban branch of this royal line.
Siamun (2)(fl. 16th century B.C.E.) Prince of the Eigh-
teenth Dynasty
He was probably the son of ’AHMOSE (r. 1550–1525
B.C.E.). The remains of this prince were discovered in the
DEIR EL-BAHRIcache in 1881. His mummy was severely
damaged, and his bones were found in an oblong bundle
in a cedar coffin. The inscriptions on the coffin of Siamun
identify the remains of the prince.
Sihathor(fl. 19th century B.C.E.) Mining official of the
Twelfth Dynasty
He served AMENEMHET II(r. 1929–1892 B.C.E.) as supervi-
sor of the mines of Egypt in the SINAIand in the region
below the cataracts of the Nile. Sihathor was considered
an expert on turquoise, the stone prized by the Egyptians
and favored by the goddess HATHOR. He took part in the
construction of the pyramid of Amenemhet II at DASHUR
and supervised the building of 10 statues for the mortu-
ary complex of the pharaoh. Sihathor’s mortuary STELA,
which gives an account of his career and his era, is in the
British Museum in London.
See also EGYPTIAN NATURAL RESOURCES.
Si-Iset(fl. 13th century B.C.E.) Scribal official of the
Nineteenth Dynasty
He served RAMESSES II(r. 1290–1224 B.C.E.) as a royal
scribe and overseer of the granaries. Si-Iset was buried in
DEIR EL-DURUNKA, south of ASSIUT. Statues found in his
tomb depict the wolf deity WEPWAWETand other gods
popular in that territory.Silsileh See GEBEL EL-SILSILEH.Simonthu(fl. 20th century B.C.E.) Harem and court offi-
cial of the Twelfth Dynasty
He served AMENEMHET II(r. 1929–1892 B.C.E.) as “the
chief of works” for the court and a royal scribe. Simonthu
appears to have held administrative duties in the king’s
own HAREM. His mortuary stela, now in the British
Museum in London, gives an account of his life.Sinai This is the peninsula on Egypt’s eastern border,
called Shibh Jazirat Sina in Arabic and the triangular link
between Africa and Asia. The Sinai comprises 23,500
square miles, bounded by the Gulf of Suez, the Gulf of
Aqaba, and the Negev Desert. The Mediterranean and
Red Seas also serve as boundaries.
The Sinai was always part of the life of ancient Egypt,
serving as a resource for minerals and stones and as a bar-
rier against nomadic tribes and foreign armies in most
historical periods. The Sinai attracted the Egyptians in
the earliest eras, possessing copper, malachite, turquoise,
and several other types of precious and semiprecious
stones used in decorative arts. The Predynastic Period
(before 3000 B.C.E.) graves found in Egypt contained
turquoise articles, indicating that the early inhabitants of
the Nile Valley mined the stones or traded with the Sinai
BEDOUINSfor the items.
The mines and quarries founded by the Egyptians in
the Sinai date to the Early Dynastic Period (2920–2575
B.C.E.), and Old Kingdom (2575–2134 B.C.E.) rulers also
exploited the area. Expeditions and military campaigns
were conducted to insure that the Egyptian use of the
area could continue without hindrance. The Bedouins in
the Sinai revolted against the continued presence of the
Egyptians in the reign of SNEFRU(2575–2551 B.C.E.), and
these nomadic people were confronted and defeated by
Egyptian military units in a series of Sinai campaigns.
PEPI I(r. 2289–2255 B.C.E.) mandated his military
commander, General WENI, to conduct major campaigns
in the Sinai, and as a result, the Egyptians chased one
Bedouin tribe all the way to Mount Carmel to punish
them for hindering Egyptian activities in their original
homeland. When the Old Kingdom collapsed, however,
the Asiatics, the name for the dwellers in the Sinai and in
the eastern territories, entered the Nile Valley and caused
severe social and political problems.