This ruler became known through a tragic legend handed down by the historian Manetho, who reported that a calamity of some sort occurred during Semerkhet's reign.

[4][5] Semerkhet's serekh name is commonly translated as "companion of the divine community" or "thoughtful friend".

The latter translation is questioned by many scholars, since the hieroglyph khet (Gardiner-sign F32) normally was the symbol for "body" or "divine community".

Any artefact showing his birth name curiously lacks any artistic detail of the used hieroglyphic sign: a walking man with waving cloak or skirt, a nemes head dress, and a long, plain stick in his hands.

The reading and meaning of this special sign is disputed, since it doesn't appear in this form before association with king Semerkhet.

[4][5] Egyptologists such as Toby Wilkinson, Bernhard Grdseloff, and Jochem Kahl read Iry-Netjer, meaning "divine guardian".

Some contemporary ivory tags show the Nebty name written with the single eye symbol only.

Due to this uncertainty, it seems that the compiler of the Abydos king list simply tried to imitate the original figure, whilst the author of the Royal Canon of Turin seems to have been convinced about reading it as the Gardiner-sign A19 and he wrote Semsem with uniliteral signs.

[9] An old theory, supported by Egyptologists and historians such as Jean-Philippe Lauer, Walter Bryan Emery, Wolfgang Helck, and Michael Rice once held that Semerkhet was a usurper and not the rightful heir to the throne.

Egyptologists such as Toby Wilkinson, I. E. S. Edwards, and Winifred Needler deny the 'usurping theory', because Semerkhet's name is mentioned on stone vessel inscriptions along with those of Den, Adjib, and Qa'a.

Semerkhet not only confiscated Adjib's vessels, in his tomb several artefacts from the necropolis of queen Meritneith and king Den also were found.

Two ivory tags show the yearly 'Escort of Horus', a feast connected to the regular tax collections.

The following chart follows the reconstructions by Toby A. H. Wilkinson, John D. Degreef, and Hermann Alexander Schlögl: Cairo Stone, main fragment: [7][13][14] Egyptologists and historians pay special attention to the entry "Destruction of Egypt" in the second window of Semerkhet's year records.

[2][7][13] Semerkhet's burial site was excavated in 1899 by archaeologist and Egyptologist Sir William Matthew Flinders Petrie at Abydos and is known as "Tomb U".

For archaeologists and Egyptologists, the complete arrangement of the burial site suggests that the builders were pressed for time.

The findings inside the main chamber included precious objects such as inlays and fragments of furniture (especially pedestals), copper-made armatures, and jewelry made of ebony, amethyst, and turquoise.

Wilkinson goes further and thinks that Semerkhet, as the godlike king, tried to demonstrate his power over the death and life of his servants and family members even in their afterlife.