Naunakhte

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Naunakhte

Flourished Circa 1190-1075 b.c.e.

Lady of the house in deir el medina

Two Marriages . The Lady of the House, Naunakhte, was typical of many women in Deir el Medina. In the course of her life she married twice. Her first husband was the scribe Qen-her-khepesh-ef, a man who was probably older than she was. There is no record that they had children together. At his death, she inherited one-third of his property. This inheritance, made when she was still of childbearing age, made Naunakhte an eligible woman. Her second husband was a workman named Kha-em-nun. Perhaps her second marriage was a love match since Kha-em-nun’s status was certainly lower than her first husband’s had been as a scribe. With her inheritance she was able to act as she pleased. Together Kha-em-nun and Naunakhte had eight children, four boys and four girls, who grew up in the village at Deir el Medina.

Widowhood . After Kha-em-nun died, four of Naunakhte’s children participated in supporting her. The other children did not live up to her expectations and were disinherited in a declaration made to the Deir el Medina court of magistrates, which is preserved in a papyrus now located in the Ashmolean Museum in Oxford, England. This declaration is fascinating because it clearly demonstrates the usual expectations a widow had concerning inheritance. Naunakhte knew she could expect one-third of each husband’s property, which she then would control. The other two-thirds went to the children or to her deceased husband’s relatives. In her declaration Naunakhte acknowledged that she could not stop her neglectful children from inheriting their share from their father.

A Contradiction. One difficulty in understanding Naunakhte’s declaration is the position of her daughter Menet-nakhte, who is listed both among the children who will inherit from Naunakhte and among those disinherited. Though occasionally in an Egyptian family two children have the same name, this situation cannot be the case in Naunakhte’s family. At the beginning of the declaration, Naunakhte states that she has eight children. In the list of those who will inherit, Naunakhte names five children. In the list of those who will not inherit, she names four children, repeating the name of Menet-nakhte. There is also an additional paragraph that puts limitations on Menet-nakhte’s inheritance compared to the four children who supplied an extra stipend to Naunakhte during her widowhood. Naunakhte distinguished also between the one-third she received from her first husband, her share from her father, and the one-third she received from her second husband. Menet-nakhte perhaps is included in the list that will share in one estate but not in the list that shared in the second estate. The reasons for this distinction are unknown and hard to explain.