Userkaf was a pharaoh of ancient Egypt and the founder of the Fifth Dynasty. Before ascending the throne, he may have been a high priest of Ra. He reigned for seven to eight years in the early 25th century BC, during the Old Kingdom period. He built a sun temple, known as the Nekhenre, that mainly functioned as a mortuary temple associated with the setting sun. Rites performed in the temple were primarily concerned with Ra's creator function and his role as father of the king. Userkaf built a pyramid in Saqqara, close to that of Djoser, with a mortuary temple that was much smaller than those built during the Fourth Dynasty. Its mortuary complex was lavishly decorated with fine painted reliefs. Little is known of Userkaf's activities beyond the construction of his pyramid and sun temple. There may have been a military expedition to Canaan or the Eastern Desert, and there probably were trade contacts with the Aegean civilizations.

Read more: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Userkaf

_______________________________ Today's selected anniversaries:

1809:

War of the Fifth Coalition: Commanded by Napoleon, Franco- German forces defeated a reinforced Austrian corps at the Battle of Abensberg. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Abensberg

1939:

Billie Holiday recorded the song "Strange Fruit", which later became an emblem of the civil rights movement. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Strange_Fruit

1968:

Pierre Trudeau was sworn in as prime minister of Canada, succeeding Lester B. Pearson. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pierre_Trudeau

2010:

An explosion on Deepwater Horizon, an offshore rig in the Gulf of Mexico, resulted in the largest marine oil spill in history. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deepwater_Horizon_oil_spill

_____________________________ Wiktionary's word of the day:

nauplius: (zoology) A crustacean larva that has three pairs of locomotive organs (corresponding to antennules, antennae, and mandibles), a median eye, and little or no segmentation of the body. https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/nauplius

___________________________ Wikiquote quote of the day:

There never was night that had no morn.   --Dinah Craik https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Dinah_Craik