Narmer - the First Pharaoh

Pharaoh Narmer, also referred to as Menes, is often called the first pharaoh of the first dynasty of a unified Egypt. There is debate as to whether or not Narmer actually existed, or if he was simply the pharaoh archetype designed to represent the ideal king.


Real or not, Narmer is credited with unifying Upper and Lower Egypt somewhere around 3100BC. His feats are displayed on the palette below.



(Palette of Narmer - public domain - click for larger image)

The reverse side (left) shows Narmer about to apply severe trauma to the head of one of those opposed to him. Narmer is shown wearing the crown of Upper Egypt in that scene.

On the right, the obverse side of the palette shows Narmer parading while wearing the crown of newly conquered Lower Egypt. Then at the bottom, we see the intertwined beast's heads, probably symbolic of Narmer's unification of the two kingdoms.

For a really big, higher quality image of Narmer's Palette, check out this link at Wikipedia Commons.