Pharaoh Akhenaten
Akhenaten (often alt: Akhnaten, or rarely Ikhnaton) meaning 'Effective spirit of Aten', first known as Amenhotep IV (sometimes read as Amenophis IV and meaning 'Amun is Satisfied') before his first year (died 1336 BC or 1334 BC), was a Pharaoh of the Eighteenth dynasty of Egypt. He is especially noted for attempting to compel the Egyptian population in the monotheistic worship of Aten, although there are doubts as to how successful he was at this.
He was born to Amenhotep III and his Chief Queen Tiye and was their younger son. Akhenaten was not originally designated as the successor to the throne until the untimely death of his older brother, Thutmose. Amenhotep IV succeeded his father after Amenhotep III's death at the end of his 38-year reign, possibly after a short coregency lasting between either 1 to 2 years. Suggested dates for Akhenaten's reign (subject to the debates surrounding Egyptian chronology) are from 1353 BC-1336 BC or 1351 BC1334 BC.
Akhenaten's chief wife was Nefertiti, made world-famous by the discovery of her exquisitely moulded and painted bust, now displayed in the Altes Museum of Berlin, and among the most recognised works of art surviving from the ancient world.
Pharaoh Akhenaten was known as the Heretic King. He was the tenth King of the 18th Dynasty. Egyptologists are still tying to figure out what actually happened during his lifetime as much of the truth was buried after he died.
Akhenaten lived at the peak of Egypt's imperial glory. Egypt had never been richer, more powerful, or more secure. Up and down the Nile, workers built hundreds of temples to pay homage to the Gods. They believed that if the Gods were pleased, Egypt would prosper. And so it did.
Akhenaten and his family lived in the great religious center of Thebes, city of the God Amun. There were thousands of priests who served the Gods. Religion was the 'business' of the time, many earning their living connected to the worship of the gods.
All indications are that as a child Akhenaten was a family outcast. Scientists are studying the fact that Akhenaten suffered from a disease called Marfan Syndrome, a genetic defect that damages the body's connective tissue. Symptoms include, short torso, long head, neck, arms, hand and feet, pronounced collarbones, pot belly, heavy thighs, and poor muscle tone. Those who inherit it are often unusually tall and are likely to have weakened aortas that can rupture. They can die at an early age. If Akhnaton had the disease each of his daughters had a 50-50 change of inheriting it. That is why his daughters are shown with similar symptoms.
Akhenaten was the son of Amenhotep III and Queen Tiy, a descendent of a Hebrew tribe. The largest statue in the Cairo Museum shows Amenhotep III and his family. He and Queen Tiy (pronounced 'Tee') had four daughters and two sons. Akhenaten's brother, Tutmoses was later named high priest of Memphis. The other son, Amenhotep IV (Later to take the name Akhenaten) seemed to be ignored by the rest of the family. He never appeared in any portraits and was never taken to public events. He received no honors. It was as if the God Amun had excluded him. He was rejected by the world for some unknown reason. He was never shown with his family nor mentioned on monuments. Yet his mother favored him.
Akhenaten and Queen Tiy
In 1352 BC. Akhenaten ascended the throne, succeeding his father Amenhotep III who had died. Akhenaten was just a teenager at the time, but it was the desire of Queen Tiy that he rule. In some version of the story, it is written that father and son shared the throne briefly.
Akhenaten's reign lasted 16 years. This was a difficult time in Egyptian history. Many scholars maintain that Akhenaten was responsible for this decline, but evidence suggests that it had already started.
Akhenaten is principally famous for his religious reforms, where the polytheism of Egypt was to be supplanted by monotheism centered around Aten, the god of the solar disc. This was possibly a move to lessen the political power of the Priests. Now the Pharaoh, not the priesthood, was the sole link between the people and Aten which effectively ended the power of the various temples.
Akhenaten built a temple to his god Aten immediately outside the east gate of the temple of Amun at Karnak, but clearly the coexistence of the two cults could not last. He therefore proscribed the cult of Amun, closed the god's temples, took over the revenues. He then sent his officials around to destroy Amun's statues and to desecrate the worship sites. These actions were so contrary to the traditional that opposition arose against him. The estates of the great temples of Thebes, Memphis and Heliopolis reverted to the throne. Corruption grew out of the mismanagement of such large levies.
Queen Nefertiti is often referred to in history as "The Most Beautiful Woman in the World." The Berlin bust, seen from two different angles, is indeed, the most famous depiction of Queen Nefertiti. Found in the workshop of the famed sculptor Thutmose, the bust is believed to be a sculptor's model. The technique which begins with a carved piece of limestone, requires the stone core to be first plastered and then richly painted. Flesh tones on the face give the bust life.
Her full lips are enhanced by a bold red. Although the crystal inlay is missing from her left eye, both eyelids and brows are outlined in black. Her graceful elongated neck balances the tall, flat-top crown which adorns her sleek head. The vibrant colors of the her necklace and crown contrast the yellow-brown of her smooth skin. While everything is sculpted to perfection, the one flaw of the piece is a broken left ear. Because this remarkable sculpture is still in existence, it is no wonder why Nefertiti remains "The Most Beautiful Woman in the World."
Nefertiti's origins are confusing. It has been suggested to me that Tiy was also her mother. Another suggestion is that Nefertiti was Akhenaten's cousin. Her wet nurse was the wife of the vizier Ay, who could have been Tiy's brother. Ay sometimes called himself "the God's father," suggesting that he might have been Akhenaten's father-in-law. However Ay never specifically refers to himself as the father of Nefertiti, although there are references that Nefertiti's sister, Mutnojme, is featured prominently in the decorations of the tomb of Ay. We will never know the truth of this bloodline. Perhaps they didn't know either.
This shrine stela also from the early part of the Amarna period depicts Akhenaten, Nefertiti, and Princesses Meretaten, Mekeaten, and Ankhesenpaaten worshiping the Aten as a family. Dorothea Arnold in her article "Aspects of the Royal Female Image during the Amarna Period" discusses the plethora of reliefs depicting intimate family moments. While Akhenaten leans forward to give Meretaten a kiss, Mekeaten plays on her mother's lap and gazes up lovingly.
At the same time Ankhesenpaaten, the smallest, sits on Nefertiti's shoulder and fiddles with her earring. Arnold claims that the shrine stela "relates to the Aten religion's concept of creation" in which the King and Queen are viewed as "a primeval 'first pair." At the top of the composition, the sun-god, Aten, represented by a raised circle, extends his life-giving rays to the Royal Family. The relief uses the concept of the "window of appearances" or a snapshot of life. The figures are framed by a fictive structure which suggests the form of a square window. Aldred in his book Egyptian Art calls this "a brief moment in the lives of five beings as they are caught in an act of mutual affection". In actuality, the royal palace at Akhetaten had a window from which the royal couple could observe the city and address their subjects.
It is accepted that Akhenaten and Nefertiti had six daughters. No son was ever shown in reliefs.
The names of the daughters were; Meritaten (1349 BC) - Meketaten and Ankhenspaaten (1346 BC) - Neferneferuaten (1339 BC) - Neferneferure and Setepenre (1338).
In 1337 BC the official family, with all six of Nefertiti's daughters was shown for the last time.
In 1336 BC Meketaten died in childbirth.
In 1335 Nefertiti seemed to vanish, assumed dead.
This limestone relief found in the Royal Tomb at Amarna depicts Akhenaten, Nefertiti, and two of their daughters making an offering to the sun-disk Aten. Akhenaten and Nefertiti carry flowers to be laid on the table beneath the "life-giving" rays of the Aten. The figures are carved in the grotesque style, a characteristic of the early half of the Amarna period. Nefertiti, sporting the double plume headdress mentioned in the stela dedication, is the petite figure placed behind her larger scale husband. The compostion mirrors early artistic representations of the royal couple. To emphasize the strength and power of the pharaoh, Egyptian iconographical tradition required the female figure to be smaller in scale than the male.
Akhenaten's minor wives includeD Merytaten, Kiya, Mekytaten, and Ankhesenpaaten.
It was said that one day Akhenaten had a vision wherein he saw a sun disc between two mountains. He felt that God was guiding him to make change. He was shown the God, Aten, as the Sun Disk - the Light. He felt guided by Aten to build a city between the two mountains.
In the sixth year of his reign Akhenaten rejected the Gods of Thebes. They were never part of his childhood anyway since he had been shunned as a child. Akhenaten had declared for the first time in recorded history that there was only one God - the concept of monotheism. Overnight he turned 2,000 years of Egyptian religious upside down...
To make a complete break, the king and his queen, left Thebes behind and moved to a new capital in Middle Egypt, 180 miles north of Thebes half way between Memphis and Thebes.
It was a virgin site, not previously dedicated to any other god or goddess, and he named it Akhetaten - The Horizon of the Aten.
Today the site is known as El-Amarna.
In essence he was an cult leader taking his following into the mountains and desert to build a new paradise.
Akhenaten established his new religion by building an entire city dedicated to Aten complete with a necropolis and royal tomb.
In 1346 BC work began on this new city built in middle Egypt, on a site thought to have been chosen as it was not tainted by the worship of the other gods.
In 1344 BC the central section of Akhetaten was completed.
Nefertiti's prominent role in Egyptian royal rule and religious worship reflects her influence in the public sphere. During the early years of her royal reign, Nefertiti as part of her religious conversion changed her name. Nefertiti which means "The-beautiful-one -is come" became Neferneferuaten-Nefertiti or "The-Aten-is -radiant-of-radiance [because] the-beautiful-one-is come". A different interpretation of the name change, translated Neferneferuaten to mean--"Perfect One of the Aten's Perfection".
Following his wife's lead, Amenhotep IV changed his name in the fifth year of his reign to Akhenaten.
In 1342 BC the seat of government was transferred to Akhetaten.
Art
Akhenaten changed thousands of years of art in Egypt.
Gone were the images of Amun and the other gods of Egypt, now replaced by Aten, the solar disc.
When Akhenaten built his monuments with images of the Pharaoh, he moved away from the traditions of a strong, handsome muscular Pharaoh. Images of Pharaohs with idealized bodies were gone.
The Pharaoh was shown as misshapen as was his wife Nefertiti. It became fashionable to show images of the entire royal family with elongated heads, faces, fingers, toes, wide hips, This gave the artists of Amarna new freedom to show scenes of the real life of the Pharaoh, something that had never been done before.
The temple was covered with scenes of the Aten, the sun disc with its rays shining down, ending in hands holding ankhs, the hieroglyph for life.
The people wondered why the images of the other Gods where not represented.
made of himself and his family, as they actually looked.
Akhenaten as the Sphinx worshipping Aten
The priests worried about the God Amun and the fact that the 'Rebel Pharaoh' had declared their god extinct and deserted the religious capitol of Egypt. Gone were the royal offerings. The resources of Egypt were flowing out of the established cities of Egypt and into the desert. People who earned their livings based on the old religions - wood carvers, scarab makers, and others were out of business. The people worried about their afterlife and what would happen now that they were not worshipping the traditional Gods. All of the old belief systems into the next world were discarded. The vision of the afterlife changed.
In its finished state Armana offered a theatrical setting for celebrating Akhenaten's kingship. The city sprawled for miles over the plain. There were elegant palaces, statues of the Pharaoh, good housing throughout the city, a royal road that ran through the center of town, probably the widest street in the ancient world. It was designed for chariot processions, with Akhenaten leading the way.
Spanning the road, a bridge connected the palace with the temple area. Akhnaton and Nefertiti appeared before the people on the balcony known as the "window of appearances", tossing downgold ornaments and other gifts.
At its height the city grew to more than 10,000 people - bureaucrats, artisans, boatmen, priests, traders and their families. Though most were happy, many were not, especially those who did not like to stand in the open sun. Akhenaten worshipers spent lots of time in the sun.
Akhenaten wanted everyone to be happy. He created a beautiful, idealistic religion and Utopia for his people but many just didn't understand it. Akhenaten was not living in the reality of his worshippers. Though he had found himself and his God but the people were used to Gods they could see, carved in stone with beautiful bodies, many with heads of animals. Akhenaten's God was too much of an abstraction. Aten was the basic principle of the universe, Light! They also wondered why the sun God only shed its rays on the royal family and not everyone.
According to present evidence, however, it appears that it was only the upper echelons of society which embraced the new religion with any fervor. Excavations at Amarna have indicated that even here the old way of religion continued among the ordinary people. On a wider scale, throughout Egypt, the new cult does not seem to have had much effect at a common level except, of course, in dismantling the priesthood and closing the temples; but then the ordinary populace had had little to do with the religious establishment anyway, except on the high days and holidays when the god's statue would be carried in procession from the sanctuary outside the great temple walls.
Akhenaten lived in his dream in Amarna for ten years as conditions grew worse in Egypt. He remained isolated from the true problems of the people. Akhenaten apparently neglected foreign policy, allowing Egypt's captured territories to be taken back, though it seems likely that this image can be partially explained by the iconography of the time, which downplayed his role as warrior.
Nefertiti is depicted in her advanced years. She wears a long, white linen dress that allows the contours of her body to be seen. It has been speculated that this small statuette was the model for a life size representation that was never executed. Arnold points out that, although she is past her prime, she is not old. While this may be true, the sagging features of the statuette do indicate that she is no longer the vivacious Queen.
In 1335 BC Nefertiti, Akhenaten's wife and companion, is said to have disappeared and most likely died. His mother Tiy had also died as did his minor wife, Kia. That combined with the loss of his daughter made Akhenaten feel alone and depressed.
Nefertiti's disappearance coincided with the sudden appearance of a young man named Smenkhkare. Smenkhkare, who was given the same title (Neferneferuaten) as the now vanished Nefertiti, was crowned co-regent to Akhenaten when he (Smenkhkare) was about sixteen. He was married to Akhenaten's eldest daughter, Merytaten.
There is uncertainty about the relationship between Akhenaten and his successors, Smenkhkare and Tutankhamun. The biggest mystery associated with Smenkhkare was where he came from. It is possible that both he and Tutankhamun were Akhenaten's sons by another wife, possibly Kiya who was 'much loved' of the Pharaoh. As there was inbreeding to keep the line pure we may never know the relationships within their family.
It is also a matter of great controversy as to whether or not Smenkhkare continued to reign after Akhenaten died. According to Dr. Donald Redford, a professor of Egyptology and the director of the Akhenaten Temple Project, Smenkhkare may have succeeded Akhenaten by a short while, during which he made half-hearted attempts at going back to the old religion (something which probably wouldn't have happened while Akhenaten was alive). Another thing that suggests that he outlived Akhenaten are references to him made in certain tombs. He was also buried in the old capital.
But here one has to consider the way Akhenaten behaved concerning those people who were known to be his children. Every one of his six daughters, whenever referred to in writings from the period, was repeatedly called 'the king's daughter, of his loins, (daughter's name)'.
In Egypt, as with any other kingdom of the ancient or not so ancient world, male heirs were much desired. If Akhenaten had a son, he almost certainly would have repeatedly said so.
Cyril Aldred, a prominent Egyptologist who has written several books about Akhenaten, uses the argument that Smenkhkare must have been born three years before Akhenaten's reign began, thereby reducing the likelihood of his being Akhenaten's child.
Yet another possibility is that one of Akhenaten's many sisters was the mother of Smenkhkare. Because Smenkhkare appeared at the same time that Nefertiti seemingly vanished from view, and because he shared the title "Beloved of Akhenaten" with Nefertiti, some scholars believe that Nefertiti and Smenkhkare were one and the same. Nefertiti did have more power than many of the other queens in Egypt, and is often depicted wearing certain crowns that were normally reserved for kings. Thus, it is perhaps not too out of line to think that she might have disguised herself as a man and shared kingship with Akhenaten. However, Redford notes that, for one thing, it would be odd even for the Amarna family to have Nefertiti posing as a man and marrying her own daughter. Not only that, but to deny the existence of Smenkhkare, one would have to ignore one major finding: the body in Tomb 55.
Tutankhaten came to the throne when he was about eight years old and became known as "The boy king" by modern people. He became quite famous when his tomb was discovered by Howard Carter in the 1920s. Tutankhaten succeeded Akhenaten and Smenkhkare and was married to Akhenaten's daughter Ankhesenpaaten. Th couple soon changed their names to Tutankhamen and Ankhesenamun, moved away from Akhetaten, and reestablished the old religion. Tutankhaten reigned until he was about eighteen when he died.
Tutankhaten's origins are just as hazy as Smenkhkare's. Some would claim that he was Kiya's son by Akhenaten. However, if Tutankhaten and Smenkhkare were really brothers, as the bodies of the two suggest, then this would again bring up the question of the likelihood of Smenkhkare being Akhenaten's son.
One theory is that Tutankhaten was Akhenaten's brother. That would lead to the conclusion that both Smenkhkare and Tutankhaten were sons of queen Tiye.They both bear a strong resemblance to certain portraits of Tiye, but Tiye may have been too old to have children by the time Tutankhaten was born. Another problem is that Amenhotep III was, in all probability, well dead by this time, although there is much speculation about a co-regency between Akhenaten and his father.
One intriguing discovery is an inscription which calls Tutankhaten "The king's son, of his loins". This could be interpreted in a number of ways. One is that Tutankhaten really was Akhenaten's child. However, this possibility has already been mostly ruled out. Another possibility is that Amenhotep III remained virile and active even in his last years and was able to father Tutankhaten just before he died (assuming that there was a co-regency).
Yet a third possibility is that Tutankhaten was Smenkhkare's son. If Smenkhkare fathered Tutankhaten the same year that he married Merytaten, and then went on to outlive Akhenaten by about three years, then that would make Tutankhaten just barely seven when he came to the throne of Egypt (Tutankhaten was thought to have come to the throne when he was eight or nine).
In 1332 BC Akhenaten died, the circumstances never explained. His memory and all that he had created soon to erased from history not to be found for centuries later.
In 1344 BC the building of the Royal Tomb at Akhetaten began. It was completed while Akhenaten was pharaoh.
The Royal Tomb of Akhenaten was very similar to a 'standard' tomb found in the Valley of the Kings - a straight forward design of corridors and rooms along a single axis, but this tomb was to change with the addition of two more separate suites of rooms:
Research at the Royal Tomb has given evidence that Akhenaten was buried in a pink granite sarcophagus - although both this and the remains of another sarcophagus found at the tomb, were smashed to pieces and then scattered over some distance.
Akhenaten's Sarcophagus
However enough of Akhenaten's sarcophagus has been recovered to reconstruct it, the corners had figures of Queen Nefertiti extending protective arms like the guardian of the four quarters.
Royal Tomb at Amarna: Akhenaten and Nefertiti grieve over daughter
Drawing of Relief (N. Davies, The Rock Tombs of el-Amrna, 1903-08)
Of all the royal mummies ever discovered none has ever caused more controversy then the one found in tomb 55 of the Valley of the Kings.
At the beginning of the 20th Century, Theodore Davis, a wealthy American excavating in Egypt, discovered a tomb in which a burial from the Armana period had been reinterred. This tomb was clearly unfinished, and the burial a hasty one. Gilded wooden inlay panels on the floor and against the wall. They bore the damaged image of Akhenaten worshiping the sun disc and the name of Queen Tiy.
In a niche were four beautiful alabaster jars that held the internal organs of the mummies. Lying on the floor was a badly damaged but beautiful coffin made with thousands of paste in-lays and semi-precious stones in the shape of protective wings. The cartouches containing the occupants name had been hacked out.
When they opened the coffin they found a mummy wrapped in gold-leaf. But as they touched the mummy it crumbled to dust leaving the excavators with a pile of disarticulated bones at the bottom of the coffin. But beneath the skeleton, the last sheet of gold, seemed to have the damaged named of Akhenaten written on it. The pelvis was wide like a female's. The head was elongated.
What really became of Akhenaten's mummy still remains a mystery. Fragments of sculpture and carving from the royal tomb at Akhetaten shows that his body was originally put there, but no sign of the mummy remains. It is possible that followers of the Aten feared for it's destruction, which would deny him eternal life, and moved the body to a place of safety.
Akhenaten is perhaps unfairly not credited with being a particularly successful Pharaoh. Records seem to indicate that he allowed Egyptian influence wane but this may not be true. These ideas are based on the famous Amarna Tabletsfound in Akhetaten in many of which Egyptian vassal cities plead for assistance, but no replies are preserved.
As there is no surviving record of Egyptian territory being lost at this time it is possible that Akhenaten was merely skillfully playing one city against the other to achieve through diplomacy what would otherwise require military force.
The el-Amarna letters, a collection of correspondence between various states and Egypt, were found in the remains of the ancient city of Akhetaten, built by Akhenaten around 1370 BCE. Some of the documents belong to the time of Amenhotep III, while others are from the time of Akhenaten. They provide invaluable insight into the foreign affairs of several countries in the Late Bronze Age.
The first Amarna tablets were found by local inhabitants in 1887. They form the majority of the corpus. Subsequent excavations at the site have yielded less than 50 out of the 382 itemized tablets and fragments which form the Amarna corpus known to date.
The majority of the Amarna tablets are letters. These letters were sent to the Egyptian Pharaohs Amenophis III and his son Akhenaten around the middle of the 14th century B.C. The correspondents were kings of Babylonia, Assyria, Hatti and Mitanni, minor kings and rulers of the Near East at that time, and vassals of the Egyptian Empire.
Almost immediately following their discovery, the Amarna tablets were deciphered, studied and published. Their importance as a major source for the knowledge of the history and politics of the Ancient Near East during the 14th Century B.C. was recognized. The tablets presented several difficulties to scholars.
The Amarna tablets are written in Akkadian cuneiform script and present many features which are peculiar and unknown from any other Akkadian dialect. This was most evident in the letters sent from Canaan, which were written in a mixed language (Canaanite-Akkadian).
The Amarna letters from Canaan have proved to be the most important source for the study of the Canaanite dialects in the pre-Israelite period.
Soon after his death the followers at Amana, unable to understand what their Pharaoh had been preaching, abandoned the city, and returned to Thebes and the familiar Gods. The priests branded the name Akhenaten, as a heretic. It was erased from the monuments of Egypt.
It was his son, a young Pharaoh named Tutankhamen who the world would get to know. King Tut moved the capital back to Thebes and returned to the old religion.
Akhenaten's successors, the generals Ay and Horemheb reestablished the temples of Amun they selected their priests from the military, enabling the Pharaoh to keep tighter controls over the religious orders.
Later Pharaohs attempted to erase all memories of Akhenaten and his religion. Much of the distinctive art of the period was destroyed and the buildings dismantled to be reused. Many of the Talitat blocks from the Aten temples in Thebes were reused as rubble infill for later pylons where they were rediscovered during restoration work and reassembled.
Three thousand years ago, the rebel Pharaoh Akhenaten preached monotheism and enraged the Nile Valley. Less than 100 years after Akhenaten's death, Moses would be preaching monotheism on the bank of the Nile River, to the Israelis. The idea of a single God once the radical belief of an isolated heretic is now embraced by Moslems, Christians, and Jews throughout the world. The vision of Akhenaten lives on!
Amarna was lost in antiquity until the end of the 19th Century. It was uncovered by the founder of modern Egyptology, Sir Flinders Petrie. They discovered a vast lost city in the dessert with temples, palaces and wide streets.
The cult of the Aten is considered by some to be a predecessor of modern monotheism.
The idea of Akhenaten as the pioneer of a monotheistic religion that later became Judaism was promoted by Sigmund Freud in his book Moses and Monotheism and thereby entered popular consciousness. Freud argued that Moses had been an Atenist priest forced to leave Egypt with his followers after Akhenaten's death.
Akhenaten in the News ...
Egyptian Pharaoh Akhenaten Had "Androgynous" Build National Geographic - May 2, 2008
Smenkhkare (Ankhkheperure) 1336-1334 BC
Smenkhkare was the eleventh pharaoh of Egypt's famous 18th Dynasty. In point of fact, he may never have ruled on his own, though in the later years of Akhenaten reign, he was probably a co-regent.
His birth name was Smenkh-ka-re (or Djeser-kheperu, meaning "Vigorous is the Soul of Re, Holy of Manifestations"). His name can also be found as Smenkhkara. His Throne name was Ankh-khepery-re, meaning "Living are the Manifestations of Re".
Smenkhkare is a study in the difficulties of Egyptology, and why the list of kings of Egypt vary from scholar to scholar. While there are many times we are able to determine the factual history of Egypt in some great detail, at other times, even in otherwise well documented eras, darkness suddenly surrounds events due to an absolute lack of good evidence. Sometimes this evidence has simply not been discovered, but at other times, the evidence would exist, had it not been hacked away by the ancient Egyptians themselves. Such is the case with Smenkhkare.
We know very little of Smenkhkare's life, or even where he was buried, though he is entwined with the mysteries of tomb KV 55 on the West Bank at Luxor (ancient Thebes). If the mummy found in that tomb was indeed Smenkhkare, then he probably died at around the age of 20 to 25. However, because of the heresy of the Amarna kings, the cartouches and much other evidence within KV 55 were mostly destroyed. One of the factors that has led scholars to believe that the mummy is in fact Smenkhkare is a process of elimination.
At first the mummy was thought to be that of Queen Tiy, but subsequent examination of the remains indicate that instead, it is the mummy of a young man.
It was also speculated that the mummy could have been Akhenaten, who we think was Smenkhkare's father, but Akhenaten ruled Egypt for 17 years and it seems difficult to believe he could therefore have died at such an early age. Hence, the plausibility that the mummy is that of Smenkhkare.
Further analysis has also revealed that the mummy's blood type and that of Tutankhamun are the same, and that the skull dimensions are very similar, leading scholars to believe that not only is this Smenkhkare, but that he was indeed Tutankhamun's older brother.
He was probably either a younger brother or older son of Akhenaten, but if a son, he would not have probably been also a son of Nefertiti. We believe she had only daughters. He would have therefore probably been the son of some minor wife, perhaps even Kiya, who we also believe to be the mother of Tutankhaman. Most Egyptologists believe that if he ruled at all after the death of Akhenaten, it would probably only have been for a few months, but there is also a strong possibility that he did not survive Akhenaten's reign.
He was succeeded by the famous Tutankhamun.
He was married to Merytaten who was probably his eldest sister, the senior heiress of the royal blood line, but she seems to have died early, leaving her sister, Ankhesenpaten in this position. It was Ankhesenpaten who married a somewhat younger Tutankhamun. Smenkhkare and Merytaten are pictured in the tomb of Meryre ii at Amarna, and were once shown on a relief at Memphis.
Yet there has, over time, been a great deal of controversy on all these facts. It would seem that Smenkhkare became co-regent shortly after the death of Ankhenaten's principle wife, Nefertiti. Speculation at times have run rampant, including one theory that Nefertiti herself had actually disguised herself as a male in the custom of Hatahepsut, becoming co-regent.
Lending some credence to this is the "Co-regency Stela, a fragment of which was found in Amarna. Originally, the stele depicted three figures, identified as Akhenaten, Nefertiti, and princess Merytaten. In later years, however, the name of Nefertiti had been excised and replaced with the name of King Ankhkheperure Neferneferuaten, and the name of the princess had been replaced with that of Akhenaten and Nefertiti's third daughter, Ankhesenpaaten. It is curious that Nefertiti's figure, clearly that of a female, would be relabled with the name of a king. Second, the erasure of Merytaten's name and the usurpation by Ankhesenpaaten suggests that Merytaten died before the end of Akhenaten's reign.
There is even controversy surrounding Smenkhkare's wife, Merytaten. It has been suggested that rather then dying early, she outlived her husband and served as a nominal co-regent under the name of Ankhetkheperure, a feminization of her late husband's throne name.
However, the dominant theory today seems to place Smenkhkare as an older son of Ankhenaten, though there is almost an equal likelihood that he was Ankhenten's brother, and that he was likely made co-regent at about the age of 16. For his coronation, a huge brick hall was added to the Great Palace at Amarna, with no fewer than 544 square columns in its main room.
He most probably had differences with Ankhenaten's religious philosophies early on. The funerary equipment that he had made for a possible unfinished tomb at Amarna had almost no sign of the sun cult of Akhenaten.
Yet he seems to have wavered, perhaps out of respect to his father or brother.
Inscriptions on elements of his funerary equipment also show that he altered his name to Neferneferuaten, the -aten indicating an acquiescence to Akhenaten's religious beliefs.
However, this is another area of confusion about Smenkhkare among scholar. We are also told by authoritative sources that Neferneferuaten was perhaps one of Nefertiti names, and thus the continued controversy surrounding the possibility that Smenkhkare was non other than Nefertiti herself.
However, the name of Smenkhkare and Neferneferuaten are actually never used together, suggesting that they were two different people.
Later still, we read of the existence of a "priest and scribe of divine offerings of Amun in the "House of Ankh-khepery-re" at Thebes", suggesting that he intended to not be buried at Amarna, but rather in the Valley of the Kings at Thebes.
This information comes from a stele dating from Smenkhkare's third year of rule, and partly states that:
Regnal year 3, third month of Inundation, day 10. The King of Upper and Lower Egypt, Lord of the Two Lands Ankhkheperure Beloved of Aten, the Son of Re Neferneferuaten Beloved of Waenre. Giving worship to Amun, kissing the ground to Wenennefer by the lay priest, scribe of the divine offerings of Amun in the Mansion of Ankhkheperure in Thebes, Pawah, born to Yotefseneb. He says:
"My wish is to see you, O lord of persea trees! May your throat take the north wind, that you may give satiety without eating and drunkenness without drinking. My wish is to look at you, that my heart might rejoice, O Amun, protector of the poor man: you are the father of the one who has no mother and the husband of the widow. Pleasant is the utterance of your name: it islike the taste of life . . . [etc.]
"Come back to us, O lord of continuity. You were here before anything had come into being, and you will be here when they are gone. As you caused me to see the darkness that is yours to give, make light for me so that I can see you . . .
"O Amun, O great lord who can be found by seeking him, may you drive off fear! Set rejoicing in people's heart(s). Joyful is the one who sees you, O Amun: he is in festival every day!"
For the Ka of the lay priest and scribe of the temple of Amun in the Mansion of Ankhkheperure, Pawah, born to Yotefseneb: "For your Ka! Spend a nice day amongst your townsmen." His brother, the outline draftsman Batchay of the Mansion of Ankhkheperure. (Murnane, 1995).
It is likely that Smenkhkare tired of the religious heresy of Akhenaten's reign, and late in his life, possibly moved to Memphis, the old secular capital of Egypt. Perhaps over time his role in Egypt's history will become clearer to us, but for now, his existence is one of the great mysteries of Egypt's past.
King Tutankhamen
Tutankhamun, named Tutankhaten early in his life, was the 12th Pharaoh of the Eighteenth dynasty of Egypt. He ruled from 1334-1323 BC and lived ca. 1341 BC - 1323 BC, during the period known as the New Kingdom.
His original name, Tutankhaten, meant "Living Image of Aten", while Tutankhamun meant "Living Image of Amun". He is possibly also the Nibhurrereya of the Amarna letters.
In historical terms, Tutankhamun is of only moderate significance, primarily as a figure managing the beginning of the transition from the heretical Atenism of his predecessor Akhenaten back to the familiar Egyptian religion.
As Tutankhamun began his reign at age 9, a considerable responsibility for his reign must also be assigned to his vizier and eventual successor, Ay. Nonetheless, Tutankhamun is in modern times the most famous of the Pharaohs, and the only one to have a nickname in popular culture ("King Tut").
The 1922 discovery by Howard Carter of his (nearly) intact tomb received worldwide press coverage and sparked a renewed public interest in Ancient Egypt, of which Tutankhamun remains the popular face.
Family
Tutankamun's parentage is uncertain. An inscription calls him a king's son, but it is debated which king was meant. Most scholars think that he was probably a son either of Amenhotep III (though probably not by his Great Royal Wife Tiye), or of Amenhotep III's son Amenhotep IV (better known as Akhenaten), perhaps with his enigmatic second queen, Kiya. It should be noted that when Tutankhaten succeeded Akhenaten to the throne, Amenhotep III had been dead for some time; the duration is thought by some Egyptologists to have been seventeen years, although on this, as on so many questions about the Amarna period, there is no scholarly consensus.
Tutankhamun ruled Egypt for eight to ten years; examinations of his mummy show that he was a young adult when he died. Recent CT scans place Tut at age 19. This conclusion was reached after images of Tut's teeth were examined, and were found to be consistent with the teeth of a 19 year old. That would place his birth around 1342 BC-1340 BC, and would make it less likely that Amenhotep III was his father.
Tutankhamun from the back of his gold throne.
Ankhesenpaaten, Tutankhamun's wife -
Image from the back of his gold throne.
Tutankhamun was married to Ankhesenpaaten, a daughter of Akhenaten. Ankhesenpaaten also changed her name from the 'aten' endings to the 'amun' ending, becoming Ankhesenamun. They had two known children, both stillborn their mummies were discovered in his tomb.
Reign
During Tutankhamun's reign, Akhenaten's Amarna revolution (Atenism) began to be reversed. Akhenaten had attempted to supplant the existing priesthood and gods with a god who was until then considered minor, Aten.
In year 3 of Tutankhamun's reign (1331 BC), when he was still a boy of about 11 and probably under the influence of two older advisors (notably Akhenaten's vizier Ay), the ban on the old pantheon of gods and their temples was lifted, the traditional privileges restored to their priesthoods, and the capital moved back to Thebes.
The young pharaoh also adopted the name Tutankhamun, changing it from his birth name Tutankhaten. Because of his age at the time these decisions were made, it is generally thought that most if not all the responsibility for them falls on his vizier Ay and perhaps other advisors.
Tutankhamun died at the age of 19 by a head injury. Many suspect that he was murdered. He was buried in the Valley of the Kings. Two mummified fetuses were found in coffins that had been sealed by his name. These are believed to have been his children that were born prematurely.
Events after his death
A now-famous letter to the Hittite king Suppiluliumas I from a widowed queen of Egypt, explaining her problems and asking for one of his sons as a husband, has been attributed to Ankhesenamun (among others). Suspicious of this good fortune, Suppiluliumas I first sent a messenger to make inquiries on the truth of the young queen's story. After reporting her plight back to Suppilulumas I, he sent his son, Zannanza, accepting her offer.
However, he got no further than the border before he died, perhaps murdered. If Ankhesenamun were the queen in question, and his death a murder, it was probably at the orders of Horemheb or Ay, who both had the opportunity and the motive.
In any event, after Tutankhamun's death Ankhesenamun married Ay (a signet ring, with both Ay and Ankehesenamun's name was found), possibly under coercion, and shortly afterwards disappeared from recorded history.
Tutankhamun was briefly succeeded by the elder of his two advisors, Ay, and then by the other, Horemheb, who obliterated most of the evidence of the reigns of Akhenaten, Tutankhamun, and Ay.
Although all the other tombs in the Valley of the Kings at Thebes were later plundered, the tomb in which Tutankhamen was ultimately buried was hidden by rock chips dumped from cutting the tomb of a later king. Tutankhamen's tomb was discovered in 1922 by Howard Carter It was filled with extraordinary treasure, including a solid gold coffin, a gold mask, jewelry, and many artifacts.
Enter King Tutankhamun's Tomb
Cause of death
For a long time the cause of Tutankhamun's death was unknown, and was the root of much speculation. How old was the king when he died? Did he suffer from any physical abnormalities? Had he been murdered? Many of these questions were finally answered in early 2005 when the results of a set of CT scans on the mummy were released.The body was originally inspected by Howard Carter's team in the early 1920s, though they were primarily interested in recovering the jewelry and amulets from the body.
To remove the objects from the body, which in many cases were stuck fast by the hardened embalming resins used, Carter's team cut up the mummy into various pieces: the arms and legs were detached, the torso cut in half and the head was severed. Hot knives were used to remove it from the golden mask to which it was cemented by resin. Since the body was placed back in its sarcophagus in 1926, the mummy has subsequently been X-rayed three times: first in 1968 by a group from the University of Liverpool, then in 1978 by a group from the University of Michigan and finally in 2005 a team of Egyptian scientists led by Dr. Zahi Hawass, Secretary General of the Egyptian Supreme Council of Antiquities, conducted a CT scan on the mummy.
Early (pre-2005) X-rays of his mummy had revealed a dense spot at the lower back of the skull. This had been interpreted as a chronic subdural hematoma, which would have been caused by a blow. Such an injury could have been the result of an accident, but it had also been suggested that the young pharaoh was murdered. If this is the case, there are a number of theories as to who was responsible: one popular candidate was his immediate successor Ay. Interestingly, there are seemingly signs of calcification within the supposed injury, which if true meant Tutankhamun lived for a fairly extensive period of time (on the order of several months) after the injury was inflicted.
Much confusion had been caused by a small loose sliver of bone within the upper cranial cavity, which was discovered from the same X-ray analysis. Some people have mistaken this visible bone fragment for the supposed head injury. In fact, since Tutankhamun's brain was removed post mortem in the mummification process, and considerable quantities of now-hardened resin introduced into the skull on at least two separate occasions after that, had the fragment resulted from a pre-mortem injury, it almost certainly would not still be loose in the cranial cavity. It therefore almost certainly represented post-mummification damage.
2005 research
On March 8, 2005, Egyptian archaeologist Zahi Hawass revealed the results of a CT scan performed on the pharaoh's mummy. The scan uncovered no evidence for a blow to the back of the head as well as no evidence suggesting foul play. There was a hole in the head, but it appeared to have been drilled, presumably by embalmers. A fracture to Tutankhamun's left thighbone was interpreted as evidence that suggests the pharaoh badly broke his leg before he died, and his leg became infected; however, members of the Egyptian-led research team recognized as a less likely possibility that the fracture was caused by the embalmers. 1,700 images were produced of Tutankhamun's mummy during the 15-minute CT scan.
Much was learned about the young king's life. His age at death was estimated at 19 years, based on physical developments that set upper and lower limits to his age. The king had been in general good health, and there were no signs of any major infectious disease or malnutrition during childhood. He was slight of build, and was roughly 170 cm (5‡ ft) tall. He had large front incisor teeth and the overbite characteristic of the rest of the Thutmosid line of kings to which he belonged.
He also had a pronounced dolichocephalic (elongated) skull, though it was within normal bounds and highly unlikely to have been pathologic in cause. Given the fact that many of the royal depictions of Akhenaten (possibly his father, certainly a relation), often featured an elongated head, it is likely an exaggeration of a family trait, rather than a distinct abnormality more typical of a condition like Marfan's syndrome, as had been suggested.
A slight bend to his spine was also found, but the scientists agreed that that there was no associated evidence to suggest that it was pathological in nature, and that it was much more likely to have been caused during the embalming process. This ended speculation based on the previous X-rays that Tutanhkamun had suffered from scoliosis.
The 2005 conclusion by a team of Egyptian scientists, based on the CT scan findings, confirmed that Tutankhamun died of a swift attack of gangrene after breaking his leg. After consultations with Italian and Swiss experts, the Egyptian scientists found that the fracture in Tutankhamun's left leg most likely occurred only days before his death, which had then become gangrenous and led directly to his death.
The fracture was not sustained during the mummification process or as a result of some damage to the mummy as claimed by Howard Carter. The Egyptian scientists have also found no evidence that he had been struck in the head and no other indication he was killed, as had been previously speculated.Despite the relatively poor condition of the mummy, the Egyptian team found evidence that great care had been given to the body of Tutankhamun during the embalming process. They found five distinct embalming materials, which were applied to the body at various stages of the mummification process. This counters previous assertions that the king s body had been prepared carelessly and in a hurry.
Tutankhamun in popular culture
Tutankhamun is the world's best known pharaoh, partly because his tomb is among the best preserved, and his image and associated artifacts the most-exhibited. He has also entered popular culture - he has, for example, been commemorated in the whimsical song "King Tut" by comedian Steve Martin, and in a series of historical novels by Lynda Robinson. As Jon Manchip White writes, in his forward to the 1977 edition of Carter's The Discovery of the Tomb of Tutankhamun, "The pharaoh who in life was one of the least esteemed of Egypt's kings has become in death the most renowned."
Facial Reconstruction - 2005
In 2005, three teams of scientists (Egyptian, French and American), in partnership with the National Geographic Society, developed a new facial likeness of Tutankhamun. The Egyptian team worked from 1,700 three-dimensional CT scans of the pharaoh's skull. The French and American teams worked plastic molds created from these -- but the Americans were never told whom they were reconstructing. All three teams created silicon molds bearing what decades of archaeological and forensic research show to be the most accurate replications of Tutankhamun's features since his royal artisans prepared the splendors of his tomb.
Face of Tutankhamun reconstructed BBC May 10, 2005 
Tut's life and death unmasked BBC - October 2002
~ 
A high-tech facial reconstruction has shed new light on the looks of King Tutankhamun, the teenage king of ancient Egypt immortalized for nearly a century by his golden death mask. Scientists and special effects artists used digital techniques applied in crime investigations to fashion a fiberglass model they say provides the closest possible likeliness of the pharaoh's looks. The model shows a wide-faced young man with high cheekbones, smaller eyes and a heavy brow.
References:
Howard Carter, Arthur C. Mace, The Discovery of the Tomb of Tutankhamen. 1977
C. Nicholas Reeves, The Complete Tutankhamun: The King, the Tomb, the Royal Treasure. 1990
Bob Brier, The Murder of Tutankhamen: A True Story 1998
In the News ...
Tut's gem hints at space impact BBC - July 20, 2006
Research: Meteorite Crash Helped Form King Tut Necklace - Discovery News - June 30, 2006
Yellow-green glass carved into a beetle-shaped ornament and found on a necklace worn by the ancient King Tutankhamen was created by a meteorite fireball, according to new research. The carving is known as a scarab, which are ancient Egyptian fertility symbols shaped like dung beetles. In 1999, Italian geologists performed a chemical composition test on Tut's scarab, which is the centerpiece of a colorful necklace that archaeologist Howard Carter found in King Tut's Valley of the Kings' tomb in Luxor.
The geologists determined the scarab was made out of natural desert glass for the king, who reigned from 1333 to 1323 B.C. Such glass is only found in the Great Sand Sea of the eastern Sahara desert. With a silica content of 98 percent, it is the purest known glass in the world. The desert region, located 500 miles southwest of Cairo, yields this glass in a remote 49.7 by 15.5 rectangular area. "I think an Egyptian craftsman obtained the glass and worked it into a point or scraper tool," said Mark Boslough, who led a recent study on how the glass formed.
Boslough, an impact physics expert at Sandia National Laboratories in New Mexico, added, "Glass fractures in ways that create sharp, useful shapes, so pieces commonly were used for tools. The glass is also often quite beautiful with interesting colors, so a jewelry maker might have taken an old tool and reworked it into the scarab. "Since most scientists believe heat from a meteorite strike produced Great Sand Sea glass, otherwise known as Libyan Desert glass, Boslough created computer simulations of how that could have happened.
He determined a 390-foot-wide asteroid traveling at 12.4 miles per second likely broke up in Earth's atmosphere around 30 million years ago, when the glass formed. "The velocity of the impacting object would have produced more energy than a nuclear explosion," he told Discovery News. "It not only would have had nuclear explosive scale, but its energy would all have been concentrated downwards. After the meteorite broke up in Earth¹s atmosphere, the temperature of the resulting fireball would have been as hot as the sun's surface. Like a blowtorch melting wax, the heat would have melted sand and sandstone into thin layers, which, when cooled, resulted in glass that later was blown into piles across the desert."
Boslough said additional evidence supports the fireball theory. "Shock minerals," for example, have been found in the same desert. These are minerals, such as quartz, which reveal sheer plane structures under magnification. Scientists believe such structures resulted from the sudden deformation caused by asteroid and fireball impacts.
Farouk El-Baz, a research professor and director of the Center for Remote Sensing at Boston University, at first was critical of Boslough¹s theory. He said, "If this glass is of meteoric origin, there should be a crater of that age." In March, however, El-Baz himself found remnants of the largest crater in the Saharan desert. It is a double-ringed crater the size of Cairo's urban region. El-Baz now suggests an extraterrestrial impact that resulted in the crater may have been responsible for the desert glass. This theory differs from Boslough's in that it means the asteroid collided with Earth in a sudden hit and did not break into a fireball beforehand. Boslough countered, "The newly discovered crater is 100 kilometers (around 62 miles) away from where the desert glass is located. Also, why don't we see this glass elsewhere?" Boslough and his team studying desert glass to determine what trace gases it might contain. The information could help to further explain what happened millions of years ago when the glass formed.
In the News ...
Photo Gallery: Who Was King Tut's Father? National Geographic - July 10, 2007
Ay (Kheperkheperure) 1325 - 1321
Ay was probably an old man (at least 70) when he inherited the thrown from Tutankhamun, apparently by marrying Tutankhamun's widow, Ankhesenamun. There seems to have been considerable intrigue to this marriage, likely against her wishes, as Ay was probably her grandfather.
Further, is would seem that she was not even regarded as a dominant wife, as paintings in his tomb usually showed Ay accompanied by Tiy, an older wife. In fact, we learn from Hittite archives that Ankhesenamun wrote to Suppiliumas, the Hittite king, requesting one of this sons for her to marry and make pharaoh. After some investigation by Suppiliumas, this request was granted, but his son, Zannanza was killed enroute while traveling through Syria.
Evidence of Ankhesenamun's marriage to Ay was noted by Professor Percy Newberry, who recorded a ring he found in Cairo in the 1920s with he cartouches of Ay and Ankhesenamun inscribed side by side, a typical way of indicating marriage. This wedding must have happened rapidly, for Ay officiated at Tutankhamun's funeral as a king wearing the Blue Crown, thus enhancing his claim to the thrown.
His reign was brief, believed to only have been four years. It is likely that Ankhensenamun died very shortly afterwards, for there is no mention of her beyond the Cairo ring. In fact, her image has been hacked out on several monuments, and it has been suggested that her dealings with the Hittites may have disgraced her, resulting in her death.
Ay (it-netjer) means "Father of God. His Throne name was Kheperkheperu-re, meaning "Everlasting are the Manifestations of Re".
He is first documented as a Master of Horses at the court of Akhenaten, though he was probably originally from Akhmin, where was responsible for the rock chapel to the local god, Min.
His career is fairly well documented during the reign of Akhenaten, when he rose to the position of Vizier and royal chancellor. He probably never held any priestly office prior to becoming king, however, but was instead a military man like most of the men of power during this period. He may have been related to Yuya, the father of Queen Tiye, making him the brother-in-law of Amenophis III
Is is believed Ay reigned in Egypt between 1325 and 1321 BC, and was burred in Tomb KV 23 in the Valley of the Kings, though his mummy has never been positively identified. It has been suggested that the mummy from the 1881 cache originally identified as Amenhotep III might rather be that of Ay, but this is probably doubtful. This tomb was probably originally meant for Tutankhamun.
Ay's sarcophagus was very similar to Tutankhamun's with winged goddesses at each corner. Also present, as in Tutankhamun's tomb, were decorative designs featuring the representation of the twelve monkeys, symbolizing the night hours on one of the burial chamber walls.
Totally unique to any royal tomb are beautiful bird hunting scenes. The tomb was discovered by Belzoni in 1816.
It was probably Horenheb who succeeded Ay and who wrecked havoc in Ay's tomb in the Valley of the Kings. When Belzoni found the tomb, the sarcophagus was in fragments and his figure was hacked out and his name excised in the wall paintings and text. Likewise, little of Ay's building projects can be identified probably because Horenheb probably usurped these as well.
In Ay's mortuary temple near Medinet Habu, he had his name inscribed on two quartzite colossi of Tutankhamun, but these too were modified by Horenheb when he took over Ay's temple complex. Ay had nominally carried on the heretic religious practices of Akhenaten, and it would be Horemheb who would put an end to this.
It should also be noted that early on, Ay began construction of one of the largest tombs at El-Amarna, containing the longer of the two surviving versions of the Hymn to the Aten. The last decoration in Ay's el-Amarna tomb was probably created in the ninth year of Akenaten's reign. However, this tomb was later abandoned in favor of the tomb in the Valley of the Kings.
Horemheb (Djeserkheperure) 1323 - 1295
The fourteenth king of the 18th Dynasty was chief of the army during Tutankhamun's reign.
When Tutankhamun died, Ay succeeded the throne. Ay favored Horemheb and kept him on as a military leader.
When Ay died without an heir, Horemheb was made king.
Restoring order was his main objective. Once accomplished, Horemheb moved to Memphis and began work on internal affairs.
He returned properties of the temples to the rightful priests and lands to the rightful owners.
He had restoration projects and building additions in Karnak.
He erected shrines and a temple to Ptah.
He built tombs at Thebes, in the Valley of the Kings, and Memphis.
He was noted for admonishing high ranking officials against cheating the poor and misappropriating the use of slaves and properties.
He promised the death penalty for such offenses.
Horemheb had no heir so he appointed a military leader to succeed him. That leader was Ramesses I.
19th DYNASTY
Ramesses I (Menpehtyre) 1295 - 1294
The first king of the 19th Dynasty was the son of a military commander named Seti.
Ramesses I entered the military service and worked his way up to commander of troops, superintendent of the cavalry and eventually general.
A short time later he became vizier to King Horemheb. He was also Primate of Egypt, which was the high priest of Amon, and was in charge of all the temples in Egypt.
Horemheb died with no heir so Ramesses I assumed the throne.
His queen, Sitre, was the mother of Seti I, who was already a veteran military commander. Ramesses was originally buried in the Valley of the Kings.
His tomb was later vandalized so the priests removed the body to Deir el Bahri.
The tomb of Ramesses I, founder of the great lineage of Ramessid rulers, is one of the smallest in the Valley of the Kings.
Ramesses I was a soldier chosen by Horemheb, who also began his career as a soldier, to be his successor.
Ramesses I is regarded as the first ruler of Egypt's 19th Dynasty, but only ruled for less then two years.
The tomb (KV 16) was discovered on or before October 11, 1817 by Giovanni Battista Belzoni just before his discovery of the much more significant tomb of Seti I. It is located in a small lateral valley perpendicular to the main Valley of the Kings Wadi. While small, the tomb has wall paintings of excellent workmanship.
Having proceeded through a passage thirty-two feet long, and eight feed wide, I descended a staircase of twenty-eight feet, and reached a tolerably large and well-painted room - seventeen feet long, and twenty-one wide.
The ceiling was in good preservation, but not in the best style. There is a sarcophagus of granite, with two mummies in it, and in a corner a statue standing erect, six feet six inches high, and beautifully cut out of sycamore-wood: it is nearly perfect except the nose.
There are a number of little images of wood, well carved, representing symbolical figures. Some had a lion's head, others a fox's, others a monkey's.
One had a land-tortoise instead of a head.
There is a calf with the head of a hippopotamus.
At each side of this chamber is a smaller one, eight feet wide, and seven feet long; and at the end of it another chamber, ten feet long by seven wide.
The sarcophagus was covered with hieroglyphics merely painted, or outlined: it faced south-east by east.
The tomb is rectilinear in structure with only a single corridor, unlike most the rest of the royal tombs in the Valley of the Kings. The corridor is located between two descending sets of stairways, and is the shortest of any royal tomb in the valley. The second set of stars opens directly into the burial chamber.
A large, granite sarcophagus dominates the burial chamber. The paintings on the sarcophagus are not finished, and were hurriedly done. The decorations of the tomb, like those of Horemheb, are related to the Book of Gates and all have blue backgrounds.
While the decorations are well done, their are no reliefs. In the burial chamber, Ramesses, presenting offerings to Atum-Re-Khepri, is led into the presence of Osiris by Horus, Atum and Neith. There is also an unusual depiction of the Pharaoh in a ceremony of jubilation between a hawk and jackal-headed figure representing the spirits of the cities of Nekhen and Pe.
The burial chamber and left annex are the only rooms in the tomb that are decorated, and it is very likely that the same craftsman who worked on Horemheb's tomb also worked on this one.
The Mummy Returns Ananova News - October 2003
3,000-year-old mummy - Pharaoh Ramesses I - ruled Egypt from 1292-1290 BC returning to Egypt from the US - 150 years after it was looted from its home.
Seti I - Sethos I - Menmaatre 1394 - 1279
Seti I was the father of perhaps Egypt's greatest rulers, Ramesses II, and was in his own right also a great leader. His birth name is Seti Mery-en-ptah, meaning "He of the god Seth, beloved of Ptah.
To the Greeks, he was Sethos I, and his throne name was Men-maat-re, meaning "Eternal is the Justice of Re".
He ruled Egypt for 13 years (though some Egyptologists differ on this matter, giving him a reign of between 15 and 20 years) from 1291 through 1278 BC. In order to rectify the instability under the Amarna kings, he early on set a policy of major building at home and a committed foreign policy.
Seti was the son of Ramesses I and his queen, Sitre. He probably ruled as co-regent, evidenced by an inscription on a statue from Medamud. Seti married into his own military caste. His first wife was Tuya, who was the daughter of a lieutenant of charioteers. His first son died young, but his second son was Ramesses II. There was also a daughter, Tia, and a second daughter named Henutmire, who would become a minor queen of Ramesses II.
This was truly a great period in Egypt, and perhaps the greatest in regards to art and culture. In the building projects that Seti I undertook, the quality of the reliefs and other designs were probably never surpassed by later rulers.
He is responsible for beginning the great Hypostyle Hall in the Temple of Amun at Karnak, which his son Ramesses II later finished. Seti's reliefs are on the north side and their fine style is evident when compared to later additions.
However, at Abydos, he built perhaps the most remarkable temple ever constructed in Egypt. It has seven sanctuaries, dedicated to himself, Ptah, Re-Harakhte, Amun-Re, Osiris, Isis and Horus. Interestingly, in this temple a part called the Hall of Records or sometimes the 'Gallery of Lists', Seti is shown with his son before a long official list of the pharaohs beginning with the earliest times. However, the names of the Amarna pharaohs are omitted, as if they never existed, and the list jumps from Amenhotep III directly to Horemheb.
Behind the temple at Abydos Seti build another remarkable structure known as the Osireion.
Completely underground,originally a long tunnel decorated with painted scenes from the 'Book of Gates' led to a huge hall. This whole structure with a central mound surrounded by canal water was symbolic of the origins of life from the primeval waters. It was here that Seti rested after his death and before being taken to his tomb in the Valley of the Kings.
Other building projects included a small temple at Abydos dedicated to Seti's father, Ramesses I, his own mortuary temple at Thebes, and his best building project of all, his tomb in the Valley of the Kings. This tomb, one of the few actually completed, was without doubt the finest in the Valley of the Kings, as well as the longest and deepest.
Militarily, Seti I let an expedition to Syria as early as his first year as king. This was probably understandable, as he had also led campaigns to Palestine during the last months of his father, Ramesses I's rule. This, and other campaign during his first six years of rule are documented on the outer north and east wall of the great temple of Amun at Karnak. There is also a stele from Beth-Shan, for some time a major Egyptian center in Palestine, that records his early campaign. The attack was up the coast of Gaza, where he secured wells along the main trade route, and then taking the town, before pressing on further north. He took the area up to Tyre before returning to the fortress of Tjel in the north east Delta.
There was a latter attack on Syria and Lebanon where he (and the Egyptians) fought the Hittites for the first time. One scene at Karnak shows the capture of Kadesh, which would also be attacked later by Ramesses II.
He also fought campaigns against the Libyans of the western desert. We further learn that in year eight of Seti's reign, he had to crush a rebellion in Nubia in the region of Irem, where he carried off over six hundred prisoners. However, apparently this was a minor problem as the campaign only lasted for seven days.
Seti's mummy is said to be the finest of all surviving royal mummies, though it was not found in his tomb. Rather, it was found in the Deir el-Bahari cache in 1881.
Dockets on the mummy show that it had been restored during the reign of the High Priest of Amun, Heribor (1080-1074 BC) and again in year 15 of Smendes (about 1054 BC).
Pharaoh Seti I's Tomb Bigger Than Thought National Geographic - April 17, 2008
Ramesses II (Usermaatresetepenre) 1279 - 1213 B.C.
Ramesses the Great, the third ruler of Egypt's 19th Dynasty
During 67 year reign, everything was done on a grand scale. No other pharaoh constructed so many temples or erected so many colossal statues and obelisks. No other pharaoh sired so many children. Ramesses' 'victory' over the Hittities at Kadesh was celebrated in one of the most repeated Egyptian texts ever put on record. By the time he died, aged more than 90, he had set his stamp indelibly on the face of Egypt.
It is difficult to tell from most of Ramesses II's statues and depictions on monuments exactly what he looked like physically. This is because the ancient Egyptian artists were not always intend on portraying the king in a totally realistic manner. The king probably never set for specific statues. Rather, they were based upon approved models.
Hence, the official image of Ramesses II promoted by the royal artists is not unlike the ageless portraits we find of the British monarch on stamps or American presidents on currency. His images depict him as a traditional king: tall, dignified, physically perfect and forever young. His many statues and reliefs show his physical characteristics to include a prominent nose set in a rounded face with high cheek bones, wide, arched eyebrows, slightly bulging, almond-shaped eyes, fleshy lips and a small, square chin. He is often portrayed with a regal smile.
We have a better idea of his looks as an old man from his mummy, which has a very prominent, long, thin, hooked nose set in a long, narrow, oval face with a strong jaw. He was large for an ancient Egyptian, standing some five foot seven inches (1.333 meters) tall, and it has been suggested that he shows many Asiatic traits, which might also be recognizable in the mummies of Seti I and Merenptah.
Interestingly, the mummy's gray hair had been died red, and indeed, modern technology has proven that in his youth he was a red head, which was also not a common trait of ancient Egyptians.
The son of Seti I and Queen Tuya was the third king of the 19th Dynasty. Upon the death of Seti I, Nefertari, Ramesses II's chief wife, took on the duties of the queen, while Tuya immediately shed those responsibilities for the influential role of King's Mother. During this period, the function of King's Mother seems to have been accorded a political role, functioning as her son's advisor. In fact, it may have even fallen on her shoulders to protect the king's interest at home while he was away on foreign campaigns.
In fact, our best recordings of Tuya's life were provided from the period after her husband's death. We know that she was important enough politically to have corresponded with the Hittite court. We find her image in important monuments, such as the facade of her Abu Simbel temple where she appears on the same scale as the other royal women and sons., standing beside the second and fourth colossi. She was also featured in the Ramesseumwhere she sat in colossal form beside her much larger son in the first courtyard, and along with Nefertari, she shakes her sistrum on the walls of thehypostyle hall.
Her promotion by Ramesses II probably went beyond love, however. A king could gain status from that of his mother, and in fact he set out to rewrite the story of his own miraculous birth so as to provide himself with a divine father. Ramesses had actually been born to his common mother prior to his father ascending the throne. However, Ramesses, always a self promoter, which was not an unusual trait in Egyptian pharaohs, had inscribed a new tale of his birth where he was not only the son of Seti I, but of Amun, the high god himself. To many of those who study ancient Egyptian history, this is of course nothing new, but indeed, he was only the third New Kingdom pharaoh to make such a claim
However, though mothers often outlived their sons in ancient Egypt, because of Ramesses II's extremely long life, Tuya did not. She appears to have died soon after his 22nd year as ruler of Egypt, and was interred in an impressive tomb in the Valley of the Queens (QV80).
Called Ramesses the Great, he lived to be 96 years old, had 200 wives and concubines, 96 sons and 60 daughters.
Nefertari at the large temple at Abu Simbel
The wife of an Egyptian pharaoh is often referred to by Egyptologists as a consort. This is probably due to the fact that in some people's minds, the Egyptian queen was not a wife because of the lack of a specific religious celebration of marriage. There appears to have been marriage contracts, but little in the way of our modern concept of a marriage ceremony. The 'Chief King's Wife' was the closest counterpart of our modern concept of a wife.
Ramesses II's first principle wife (Chief King's Wife), was Nefertari. She had to have probably been of royal blood (though almost certainly not of the immediate royal family). It has been suggested that she may have been a daughter or at least related to King Ay (granddaughter, niece or great-niece), one of the last rulers of the 18th Dynasty. Ramesses II was the first ruler of the 19th Dynasty who, at the time he chose his principle queen, was already destined to rule Egypt. Several of his queens, such as Merit-Amun, were also his daughters.
These queens would have been the top tier in his harem, and some would have remained by his side much of the time (though during different periods of his rule). While the king would have maintained harems all along the Nile Valley in regional locations, with many women who he hardly knew, or knew not at all, these queens would have probably resided near their husband in the main palace harem.
Undoubtedly, Nefertari held some power over Ramesses II. It was probably love, but we cannot say for certain.
There could be only one Chief King's Wife at any one time, and Nefertari held that designation from the beginning. What we do know is that Ramesses II lavished upon her at least several important monuments, including the small temple at Abu Simbel and her wonderful tomb in the Valley of the Queens.
Yet the many monuments that Ramesses II lavished upon Nefertari cannot simply be attributed to love. There is no question that a revered, respected and occasionally worshipped wife brought nothing but glory to her husband and so these monuments were also meant to honor their builder as well. In fact, within Nefertari's temple at Abu Simbel, it is not she, but rather the image of Ramesses II himself that adorns the inner walls of the sanctuary.
From the very beginning of her husband's reign, Nefertari appears as a dutiful wife, supporting Ramesses on all appropriate ceremonial occasions. She received the two titles, Mistress of the South and North, and Lady of the Two Lands, which parallel Ramesses II's titles.
Regrettably, while we may find any number of monuments, statues and decorations depicting Nefertari, we know precious little about her actual life. We do know that she was not the only one of his queens to be honored in an age when Egyptian kings did not always give outward recognition to their women.
We really do not know for certain who became the Chief King's Wife after Nefertari, but it may well have been one of his daughters. The dynamics these incestuous relationships are largely unknown. In some situations, the father, in this case Ramesses II, married a daughter it would seem as a replacement after the death of her mother. However, at other times the mother and daughter were married to the king at the same time.
Her tomb is the most beautiful and famous of all queens' tombs and the summit of art in Egypt.
Ramesses was named co-ruler with his father, Seti I, early in his life.
He accompanied his father on numerous campaigns in Libya and Nubia. At the age of 22 Ramesses went on a campaign in Nubia with two of his own sons. Seti I and Ramesses built a palace in Avaris where Ramesses I had started a new capital.
When Seti I died in 1290 B.C., Ramesses assumed the throne and began a series of wars against the Syrians. The famous Battle of Kadesh is inscribed on the walls of Ramesses temple.
Ramesses' building accomplishments are two temples at Abu Simbel, the hypostyle hall at Karnak, a mortuary complex at Abydos, the Colossus of Ramesses at Memphis, a vast tomb at Thebes, additions at the Luxor Temple, and the famous Ramesseum. Among Ramesses' wives were Nefertari, Queen Istnofret, his two daughters, Binthanath and Merytamon, and the Hittite princess, Maathornefrure.
Ramesses was originally buried in his tomb in the Valley of the Kings. Because of the widespread looting of tombs during the 21st Dynasty the priests removed Ramesses body and took it to a holding area where the valuable materials such, as gold-leaf and semi-precious inlays, were removed. The body was then rewrapped and taken to the tomb of an 18th Dynasty queen, Inhapi.
The bodies of Ramesses I and Seti I were done in like fashion and all ended up at the same place. Amenhotep I's body had been placed there as well at an earlier time. Seventy-two hours later, all of the bodies were again moved, this time to the Royal Cache that was inside the tomb of High Priest Pinudjem II. The priests documented all of this on the linen that covered the bodies. This ³systematic² looting by the priests was done in the guise of protecting the bodies from the "common" thieves.
Ramesses was followed to the throne by his thirteenth son, with his queen Istnofret, Merenptah.
Due to a fortunate combination of circumstances, including optimal Nile floods resulting in good harvests, international stability, a large family and of course, the extraordinary longevity which caused Ramesses to outlive not only his contemporaries, but many of his children and grandchildren, Egypt enjoyed a continuity of government that was the envy of the ancient world. Whether by luck, or good kingship, Egypt flourished under Ramesses II and her people were grateful.
Within his lifetime, Ramesses II was venerated as a god, particularly in Nubia. This cult following continued to flourish, even after the end of Egypt's pharaonic period. Unlike many Egyptian kings, who always sought to have their name remembered and repeated so that their soul could live on, the Egyptians continued to make pilgrimages to Abydos, Memphis, Tanis and Abu Simbel in order to make offerings to Ramesses the deity for centuries after his death. During the Graeco-Roman period, in order to elevate the status of a god named Khons, the priests literally rewrote their mythology to allow Ramesses II a starring role alongside the deity.
Ramesses II's reputation resulted in an amazing following, and even a period of Egyptian history we often refer to as the Ramesside period. During the 20th Dynasty, though not descendents, all but one of the kings took the name Ramesses in their efforts to emulate him. Unfortunately, only one of the kings, Ramesses III, would come anywhere close to Ramesses II's achievements, and in the end, this much weakened era would spell the end of the New Kingdom. Later still, the weak dynasty of Tanite kings who only had a tenuous grip on Upper Egypt also attempted to recapture some of the lost brilliance of Egypt's golden age by choosing to use Ramesses II's throne name, Usermaatre, as their own.
Hence, Ramesses II's name lived on. In 1822, when we first began to decipher the ancient Egyptian language, many new pharaohs became known to us, and later, as new tombs were discovered, along with other documents, we began to piece together a long line of rulers. Only then did we know the names of Egyptian kings and queens such as Hatshepsut, Akhenaten and Tutankhamun. However, Ramesses II was never in need of rediscovery, for his name, perhaps corrupted somewhat, was not forgotten.
Even in our modern world, he has also been remembered, though often not very realistically. He was the handsome, courageous and good hearted king of Christian Jacq's Egyptian novels, and a more lonely, complicated man in Anne Rice's "The Mummy". On the silver screen, he was introduced in the 1909 film, "Mummy of the King Ramses, and in 1923, became the great pharaoh of Cecil B DeMille's silent screen epic, "The Ten Commandments".
Afterwards, Yul Brynner would become Ramesses in DeMille's more famous 1956 movie by the same name, and just recently, he was not very accurately portrayed in the DreamWorks animated interpretation of the Exodus called the "Prince of Egypt".
The great king was given the birth name of his grandfather, Re-mise, or Ramesses I (meryamun), which means, "Re has Fashioned Him, Beloved of Amun." We often find his birth name spelled as Ramses. We may find many variations of his name throughout classical history. Ramesses fame was not limited to Egypt, for he was known throughout the ancient classical world, due perhaps to a highly efficient royal propaganda machine. From the Christian bible we hear of both Ramesses, as well as his capital city of Pi-Ramesses.
Manetho, a famous ancient Egyptian historian, included Ramesses II in his Egyptian chronology as Ramesses Miamun, or Rapsakes.
The Greek historian, Herodotus, refers to him as King Rhampsinitus.
Writing in 60 BC, Diodorus Siculus, who was especially impressed by the monument we today call the Ramesseum, the mortuary temple of Ramesses II on the West Bank at Thebes, knew him as Ozymandias, which is an obvious corruption of the king's pre-noimen, Usermaatre. Pliny and Tacitus would later write about him, calling him King Rhamsesis or Rhamses, and two thousand years later, in 1817, Percy Bysshe Shelley published Ozymandias, a poem giving his impression of the once mighty Ramesses:
I met a traveller from an antique land
Who said: Two vast and trunkless legs of stone
Stand in the desert. Near them, on the sand,
Half sunk, a shattered visage lies, whose frown,
And Wrinkled lip, and sneer of cold command
Tell that its sculptor well those passions read
Which yet survive, stamped on these lifeless things,
The hand that mocked them, and the heart that fed:
And on the pedestal these words appear: My name is Ozymandias, king of kings: Look on my works, ye mighty, and despair! Nothing besides remains. Round the decay
Of that colossal wreck, boundless and bare
The lone and level sands stretch far away.
Prior to our modern discipline of Egyptology, the Pharaoh Ramesses II became legendary becoming a fabled king not unlike England's (Celtic) King Arthur. Like that king, an ill defined combination of real kings grew about his person, combining perhaps the deeds of the 12th Dynasty Kings Senusret I and III with those of Ramesses II under the general umbrella of Sesothes.
Yet, it was not until after Jean Francois Champollion decoded the Hieroglyphics of the Rosetta Stone that the immensity of Ramesses II's monumental building works could be appreciated by modern observers. Now, the real king became famous all over again, and not only among Egyptologists, though they certainly began to study Ramesses the Great with a new fervor. Because of the number of his monuments, he seems to have constantly been in the news, as discovery after discovery turned up bearing his name.
Modern thought on Ramesses undulates from scholar to scholar, and depending on what role is discussed. However, somewhat of a consensus among Egyptologists seems to be that Ramesses II simply did what Egyptian pharaohs were suppose to do, though he had a longer period of time than average to do so. Essentially, Ramesses II is believed to have been a very traditional king in many respects, who followed in the footsteps of his predecessors.
Ideally, an Egyptian pharaoh was simply a link in a long chain of custodians who's ill defined but well understood role passed from king to king. He was the mortal link with the gods upon who's shoulders rested the responsibility of maintaining Ma'at in Egypt, and to some extent throughout the known world. Ma'at might be defined as "truth", but might be better explained as a continuity of "rightness" which could insure that things would continue to function normally. If Ma'at were in balance, there would be reasonable Nile inundations (floods) which would nourish the soil and produce good harvests, victory in battle and there would not be illness in the land. Ma'at was mostly obtained by pleasing the gods, which involved supporting their cults as well as following a righteous path. And among other requirements such as making offerings, participating in festivals and protecting the sacred land of Egypt, pleasing the gods often involved building temples and supporting their priesthood.
Of course, there would be little need for a king to actually promote himself in order to fulfill these duties.Yet, despite the belief by the ancient Egyptians that the King was at least semi-divine, they were, as we now know, all too human.
Almost every Egyptian pharaoh seems to have felt a need to prove himself to his people (as well as to the gods). In fact, they wanted to prove themselves superior to their predecessors, and yet, at the same time, many of these kings actually suffered considerable self doubt, particularly when they were not born to a long dynasty of kings and also not to a "Great Wife" of the king, as was the case with Ramesses II.
Therefore, they exerted considerable efforts to build monuments and grand statues in order to re-enforce their role as a living god, as well as to defeat the enemies of Egypt in battle and in each case, they ensured that their name and titles were celebrated in connection with these deeds.
Furthermore, they often exaggerated every possible deed, even to the point of fabricating war victories and usurping the monuments and statues of their predecessors.
Ramesses II was not the first, nor the last to follow such practices. He was certainly an avid builder, erecting temples and statues from one end of the Nile Valley to the other. And even when he may have failed in war, he nevertheless made it a victory by inscribing it as such on his monuments.
So in reality, regardless of our modern misgivings about Ramesses II, as a king of Egypt's New Kingdom, Ramesses fulfilled his functions, as he was basically expected to, and in return, Ma'at seems, at least to his ancient Egyptian subjects, to have been fulfilled, for the country experienced a long period of prosperity during his equally long reign.
Merenptah (Baenrehotephirmaat) 1213 - 1203 BC
By the time Ramesses II died, he had apparently outlived twelve of his sons. His 13th son, Merenptah ascended the throne of Egypt. Merenptah was old himself by this time, probably nearly sixty years old, and his reign was rather dull, as well as short lived (perhaps only nine or ten years) in comparison with that of his father's reign. According to the Oxford History of Ancient Egypt, he ruled from 1213 until 1203 BC.
Merenptah (also hetep-her-maat, and commonly also called Merneptah) was the king's birth name, meaning "Beloved of Ptah, Joyous is Truth).
His throne name was Ba-en-re Mery-netjeru, which means "The Soul of Re, Beloved of the Gods".
Merenptah was probably the fourth child of Ramesses II's second principle wife, Istnofret (Isisnofret).
He was married to queens Istnofret (Isisnofret), who must have surely been his sister, and possibly a queen Takhat. His son was Seti-Merenptah, who probably ascended the throne sometime after his father as Seti II.
However, Seti II's reign may have been initially usurped by a Amenmesse who may have been a son of Takhat, though Takhat's marriage to Merenptah is far from certain.
Merenptah is almost completely unknown until the 40th year of Ramesses II's reign. In fact he may have been heir to the throne of Egypt for about twelve years prior to Ramesses II's death, but in Ramesses II's year 40, we known the prince was made General of the Army.
Perhaps it is not surprising that what we know of Merenptah's rule is mostly about his military activities. However, he appears not to have become the heir to the throne until Ramesses II's 55th regnal year, when Ramesses II was celebrating his 80th birthday, and Merenptah his 48th. In fact, in the last decade of Ramesses II's life, Merenptah was probably the real power behind the throne, as Ramesses II was well advanced in age.
In fact, he is mainly attested to by three great inscriptions, including 80 lines on a wall in the Temple of Amun at Karnak, a large stele with 35 readable lines from Athribis in the Delta and the great Victory Stele from his ruined mortuary temple at Thebes, with 28 lines.
All of these text refer to his military campaigns.
The Victory Stele is unique. It was usurped by Merenptah from the mortuary temple of Amenhotep III at Thebes, and is dated to the third day of the third month of the third season so it may have been written around the summer of 1207. In it, Merenptah lists enemy conquests, but the most interesting reference is a very rare mention of Israel. It may be the oldest non biblical reference to that country. Because of this, Merenptah has often been thought to be the pharaoh of the Exodus, though modern opinion leans against such an identification.
Merenptah apparently did face a number of military problems.These included a "flash" revolt in Syria, which was quickly crushed. There were also problems on Egypt's western borders involving the southern Libyans and the Sea People, who apparently had silently infiltrated the Delta, and around year five of Merenptah's rule, attempted an invasion.
However, with rapid mobilization of his forces and a pre-emptive strike, Merenptah was able to vanquish these enemies, apparently slaughtering many of them. Also, the Libyans apparently inspired the Nubians to the south to also revolt, but Merenptah's quick response to the Libyans allowed him to immediately turn south and inflict a crushing blow on those rebels as well.
However, Merenptah did attempt to maintain the peaceful relations of his father. The Hittite King in Syria faced a possible invasion from the north and widespread famine, so under the term of the treaty they had made with Ramesses II, they requested assistance from Merenptah, who provided them with much needed grain.
One interesting facet to Merenptah's reign was that he moved the administrative center for Egypt from Piramesse (Pi-Ramesse), his fathers capital, back to Memphis, where he constructed a royal palace next to the temple of Ptah. This palace was excavated in 1915 by the University of Pennsylvania Museum led by Clarence Fischer, and yielded fine architectural elements.
Merenptah's tomb is number KV 8 located in the Valley of the Kings on the West Bank of Luxor (ancient Thebes). The king probably died around 1202 BC, but his mummy was not found within his tomb. In the 19th century, this apparently added to the speculation about him being the Pharaoh of the Exodus, since that king's body would have probably been washed away in the Red Sea. However, that theory was confounded when, in 1898, his mummy was discovered among 18 others in the mummy cache discovered in the tomb of Amenhotep II (KV 35).
He also built a mortuary temple that lies behind the Colossi of Memnon on the West Bank at Luxor. Much of it was built with stone robbed from the mortuary temple of Amenhotep III. The structure is currently being studied by Horst Jartz with the Swiss Institute in Cairo. Reports indicate that some of the fragments discovered include well preserved reliefs, perhaps some of the finest to be found in any temple at Thebes. T
In addition to his tomb and temple we also know that he added to the Osireion at Abydos and also built at Dendera. Merenptah is further attested to by a "wall stele" at Amada, four almost identical stele from Nubia (at Amada, Amarah West, Wadi Sebua, Aksha), blocks from Elephantine, a decree from West Silsila, an inscription in the small temple of Medinet Habu, stele from Kom el-Ahmar and Hermopolis (along with other inscriptions), a victory column at Heliopolis,and several monument remains at Piramesse.
Amenmesses is generally considered to be the 5th ruler of Egypt's 19th Dynasty, though most Egyptologists believe he was probably not the legitimate heir to the throne. He succeeded Merneptah as pharaoh, but it was probably Merneptah's son, prince Seti-Merneptah who should have ascended the throne on his father's death.
Various theories exist about why he did not. It is very possible that Merenptah may have died suddenly while the crown prince was away, and Amenmesses simply took advantage of the situation. Interesting, but not unpredictable, is that this disorder came only a generation after the strong, but long rule of Ramesses II (Ramesses the Great).
However, it is also very likely that Seti-Merneptah was no other then Seti II, who ruled Egypt just after Amenmesses. It was probably Seti II who scraped the images and inscriptions from that kings monuments, and otherwise usurped Amenmesses' building projects. Therefore, very little is known about this king, who apparently ruled for three or four years. Various Egyptologists give him a reign from between 1202 - 1199 BC and 1203 - 1200 BC.
Amenmesses would have been his birth name, but a Greek version. Manetho called him Ammenemes and assigned five years to his rule, though we may also find his named as Amenmeses. His Egyptian name was probably Heqa-waset, which means "Fashioned by Amun, Ruler of Thebes".
His throne name was Men-mi-re Setep-en-re, meaning "Eternal like Re, Chosen by Re.
It was long believed that Amenmesses was a son of Merneptah by a queen Takhat, though really his origins are unknown, and that he probably married a woman named Baktwerel. However, some Egyptologists have suggested that Takhat and Baktwerel were actually the mother and wife of Ramesses IX.
Originally, his parentage was based on the fact that there were scenes and inscriptions related to these two women in Amenmesses tomb, but recent excavations seem to indicate that the tomb, originally meant for Amenmesses was actually usurped for these women. If so, this would probably negate any argument of them being his mother and wife.
There is enough confusion surrounding Amenmesses that some Egyptologists actually place his rule after that of Seti II. Yet, Seti II's name has been written over the name of Amenmesses in several Theban locations, it is generally believed that Seti II succeeded him. Still others believe that Amenmesses usurped Seti II in the middle of Seti II's reign, sometime between years three and five of his rule, which would seem more probable then him ruling after Seti II. It is also possible that Amenmesses only ruled the southern parts of Egypt during Seti II's reign.
If this is true, he may have been a vizier over Nubia named Messui during the time of Merneptah, but this theory has recently been called into question. There has even been speculation that a queen Ti'a, supposed mother of Saptah, the penultimate ruler of the dynasty, may have been a wife of Amenmeses, thus making him the father of the successor to Sety II as part of a rival dynastic branch.
It should also be noted that Amenmesses usurped a number of preexisting monuments himself, and though we now believe that tomb KV 10 in the Valley of the Kings was originally began by this king, little other building work exists. Inscriptions bearing his name are mostly only found in Upper Egyptian sites, primarily in the Theban region and in Nubia. These include inscriptions at Karnak, a dedication inscription at the small temple at Medinet Habu, an inscriptions at a chapel at Deir el-Medine and a stela found at Buhen.
Perhaps as many as six quartzite statues originally placed along the axis of the hypostyle hall in the Amun Temple at Karnak are thought to be his, though these were also usurped (in the name of Seti II). However, one of these statues thought to belong to Amenmesses has an inscription bearing the title, "the Great Royal Wife". Takhat, lending support to the argument that she actually was his wife. Amenmesses was also, among others, responsible for restoration work on a barque shrine dating from Tuthmosis III that stands before a small temple at Tod.
The Tomb of Amenmesses (KV 10)
Amenmesses' tomb cannot be visited as it is being excavated, and unless some sort of amazing recovery process is discovered, it may never be a popular tourist attraction. The tomb, located in the Valley of the Kings on the West Bank at Luxor (ancient Thebes) is mostly incomplete, and much of its decorations have been destroyed.
The tomb has been known since antiquity, and there are signs that it has been visited from classical times. Pococke noted it on hs map of the area in 1743 and it was examined by Burton and Hays, Champollion, Lepsius and Wilkinson during the early 19th century. The decorations of the tomb were mostly recorded and published by Edgene Lefebure in 1883. In the excavation season of 1907 Edward Ayrton used the tomb's corridor as a dinning or work room.
However, full scale investigation of the tomb is currently underway by Otto Schaden as a project of the University of Arizona and the University of Memphis. There is little doubt that the results will shed light on this dim corner of Egyptian history. It would seem though, at the moment, that we still do not know whether Amenmesses was ever interred here, or the actual relationship he might have had with Takhat and Baketwerel, for whom part of the tomb was redecorated.
The tomb is a fairly simple affair, and as stated, unfinished. Three descending corridors lead down to a room where the ritual shaft was to be dug, but never was. Within these corridors, we find scenes of king Amenmesses (destroyed) before Re-Horakhty, passages (scenes) from the 'Litany of Re' the 'Amduat' and in the well room, a scene of Takhat making offerings before deities.
After the shaft room, where the tomb becomes level, is the first four pillared hall, with several more scenes. They include Baketwerel making offerings before the gods, and scenes from the 'Book of the Dead'.
To the west of the four pillared hall is an unfinished annex. The ceiling of this chamber has been penetrated by the tomb of Ramesses III (KV 11). The original decorative program of the tomb never reached beyond the four pillared hall, though up to that point it was almost identical to that found in the tomb of Merenptah (KV 8). Later, the outer corridors, shaft room and four pillared hall were plastered over and redecorated for Takhat and Baketwere, who we know were royal women. We just do not know their exact position in regards to their son and husband, because the redecoration calls into question their relationship to Amenmesses. Some of this later decoration has fallen off, so that now we find some of the original and some of the later decorations.
After the four pillared hall there is another corridor leading to the burial chamber. However, the burial chamber is in reality another corridor that was adapted as for this purpose.
There were three mummies found within the tomb including those of two women and a man. They have never been identified.
However, fragments of canopic jars and part of a red granite sarcophagus lid, usurped itself from someone named Anketemheb, both inscribed with the name of Takhat, probably indicate that at least she was buried here, so one of the mummies may be hers. Little else has been found (and at least reported at this time). Much of what was found within the tomb was actually intrusive, including fragmentary shabti figures from Seti I, sarcophagus fragments of Ramesses VI and a few other items.
Seti II was probably the fifth or sixth king of Egypt's 19th Dynasty, depending on the treatment we give Amenmessses who may have ruled before, concurrently or even after him (though that is less likely). Seti (mer-en-ptah) was this king's birth name, meaning "He of the god Seti, Beloved of Ptah". He is also sometimes referred to by his Greek name, Sethos II. His throne name was User-kheperu-re Setep-en-re, meaning "Powerful are the Manifestations of Re, Chosen of Re".
It was not unusual in ancient Egypt for the successful, long reign of a king to be followed by succession problems. Of course, few kings had a longer, more successful reign than Ramesses II, and when he died, he left a son who was now old himself as the new King. This was Merneptah, who was almost certainly the father of Seti II. It is believed that an usurper named Amenemesses probably ruled either before him, or concurrently with Seti II during the early part of his rule. It may have been Amenemesses who erased the name of Seti II in his tomb and elsewhere, but it was likewise Seti II who probably did likewise to the names and images of Amenemesses after taking complete control of Egypt. It is believed that Seti may have only reigned for about six years, from about 1199 until 1193 BC.
Seti II took at least three wives, consisting of Takhat II, Tausret and Tiaa. Tausret apparently was the mother of his oldest son and heir named Seti-Merenptah, but that child did not live to inherit the throne. Instead, it was Siptah, a younger son who replaced the king, though probably only as a child under Tausret's regency even though his mother is considered to have been Queen Tiaa. In fact, Tausret appears to have outlived this young king, taking full possession of the throne herself with full royal titles much as Hatshepsut had done some 300 years earlier.
Seti II's reign was apparently relatively peaceful. We have no evidence of foreign policy during his reign, though there was probably activity at the mines around Serabit el-Khadim in the Sinai. He made a number of claims regarding building projects, though there is little indication that his words translate into physical accomplishments. We find surviving trances of his work at Hermopolis, where he apparently finished some decorations in his grandfather's, Ramesses II, temple. He also did some work in Karnak, where he was probably responsible for a new way station of the sacred barks in the First Court of the temple of Amun-Re, and he probably also completed some work in the temple of Mut.
KV15, the Tomb of Seti II
KV15, the tomb of Seti II, has been known since antiquity and must have lied open during most of the classical period, judging from the 59 Greek and Latin graffiti found on its walls.
The tomb was investigated superficially by Pococke, along with others who followed after him.
However, it was Howard Carter who cleared most of the tomb between 1903 and 1904, though apparently the ritual well was never excavated. One may find the entrance to KV15, rather than having steps cut below a retaining wall, directly quarried into the base of an almost vertical cliff face at the head of the wadi running south west from the main Valley of the Kings on the West Bank at Luxor (ancient Thebes).
However, at present the tomb has been temporarily closed to allow the installation of new flooring, hand rails and lighting. It is expected to soon.
The history of the tomb is really unknown at this time. It is very likely that Seti II may have originally been buried with his wife, Tausret, in her tomb and later moved to this tomb which appears to have been hastily and incompletely finished, by Sethnakht (Setakht). In fact, the tomb may have originally been started for Seti II but the work interrupted at some point. This may have had to do with the reign of Amenmeses, if that king ruled concurrently with Seti II rather than before him. It appears that within the tomb, Seti's name was carved, erased, and then carved out once again. The erasure may be attributable to Amenmeses, or possibly to Saptah. It has been suggested that his wife Tausert then had her husband's namerestored.
The tomb, which takes a Northwest to Southeast axis, consists of a short entryway corridor followed by three long corridors in turn followed by a well room. The well room then communicates with a four pillared hall and then a makeshift burial chamber, formed from what would have been another corridor, where the king's sarcophagus was located.
This tomb is literally a straight shot leading 75.38 meters into the cliff face with only a mild descent for the most part leading about 6.53 meters deep, and with no lateral rooms. However, a rectangular niche on the right side of the pillared hall may mark the location where the usual annex would have been cut. Missing also is the high trapezoidal niches often found at the beginning of the third corridor.
Much of the painted decoration is intact and the plaster appears to be relatively stable. None of the well-preserved relief was ever painted. Breaks in the surface of the walls have recently been filled in by Antiquities Inspectorate restorers. Due to the hurried completion of the tomb, decorations in clearly take two forms. While those in the initial part of the tomb are well formed using both sunk and raised reliefs, they give way to less accomplished work executed in paint only deeper within the tomb, with the four pillared hall being the only exception. There, the decorations again revert to sunk reliefs, though paint was not always applied. In some of the deepest corridors, only preliminary sketches were made on the plaster surface. Throughout the tomb, even including the first corridor where we find the raised and sunk reliefs, there are stylistic differences within the craftsmanship of the work that might suggest the use of different artisans.
While the tomb may have been unfinished, unusually, the walls of the entrance were carefully smoothed and covered with a layer of white plaster, as elsewhere within the tomb. However, no decorative theme was applied to the entrance and entrance corridor walls.
However, in the next, longer corridor (Corridor One) on the doorway lintel is depicted the kneeling goddesses Isis and Nephthys, and between them a sun disk with a scarab and a ram headed god. Inscribed on the jambs of the doorway are the names of Seti II with an image of Ma'at, also shown kneeling. Within this corridor, are depictions of Seti II making offerings to Re-Horakhty and offering vases to Nefertem followed by the initial passages of the Litany of Re on the east wall. The scene of Seti II and Nefertem were cut over the original opening vignette of the Litany of Ray which was then reinscribed further down the corridor. On the west wall are scenes of Sokar and Seti II making offerings of incense and libations to Re-Horakhty.
The remainder of the corridor continues with the tests of the Litany of Re. On the ceiling of this corridor we find painted flying vultures, some with the head of a cobra and not completely painted. Between the vultures the king's name is inscribed, and along the edges of the ceiling are texts relating to Osiris and Re-Horakhty. The scenes on the next two corridors are oriented towards the rear of the tomb on the eastern walls, while on the west they run towards the tomb's entrance.
Over the outer lintel of the second corridor is found a winged disk, while on the doorjambs the Litany of Re is continued. On the walls within this corridor, the decorative theme is executed in red, preliminary sketches only. On the east wall we find Seti II making offerings to Re-Horakhty, while on the west wall he makes an offering to Sokar.
The remainder of this corridor continues with sections of the Litany of Re, including the 75 forms of the sun god. Further on, we also find the second and third hours of the Amduat on both the east and west walls. In this corridor, the ceiling once again portrays Isis and Nephthys, this time as kites, on either side of a sun disk containing the ram headed bird representing the ba (soul) of Re. This scene is followed by more text from the Litany of Re. Stars were to have filled the remainder of the ceiling, but were never completely rendered.
The outer lintel of the third corridor is decorated with a winged disk, while on the door jams we find the names and a depiction of Seti II. Within this corridor, the east wall is inscribed with representations from the fourth hour of the Amduat, while the west wall depicts the fifth hour.
Within the well room (ritual shaft) the niches at the entrance are, for the first time, fully cut. Here, an innovation is the depiction of various divine statues, many imitations of actual wooden figures similar to those found in the tomb of Tutankhamun.
Double scene of Seti II making
Normally we would find the depiction of protective deities such as the Four Sons of Horus and the related goddesses, but for unexplained reasons these figures have been omitted.
The walls within the four pillared chamber are rendered with the fourth and fifth divisions of the Book of Gates. On the rear wall is a double scene of Seti II offering an image of Ma'at and two vases to Osiris. Here, the pillars depict Seti II, Horus -Iwn-mutef, Ptah, who is in a shrine, along with other deities. The innovative decorations on the pillars, which have only one figure on each side and two adjacent sides forming a "scene, was a development used consistently from this time forward.
Scenes from within the Well Room
The walls within the four pillared chamber are rendered with the fourth and fifth divisions of the Book of Gates. On the rear wall is a double scene of Seti II offering an image of Ma'at and two vases to Osiris. Here, the pillars depict Seti II, Horus-Iwn-mutef, Ptah, who is in a shrine, along with other deities. The innovative decorations on the pillars, which have only one figure on each side and two adjacent sides forming a "scene, was a development used consistently from this time forward.
Finally, in the makeshift burial chamber are several registers. The upper of these contain images of Anubis the jackal on a shrine and two rows of deities representing the followers of Re and Osiris. On the lower registers are scenes of mummified figures on snake style beds representing the fifth division of the Book of Gates. Along the length of the ceiling is Nut, with down swept wings, and above her head perhaps the remains of depictions of ba of Re.
It seems they bought in the body before the tomb was finished and then went on working - a large figure of a Deity with outspread wings painted on the ceiling of above the sarcophagus - very rough. Some beautifully drawn figures of the king in red lines.
Not much in the way of funerary equipment was discovered within this tomb, and the body of Seti II had been removed during antiquity to the tomb of Amenhotep II (KV35), along with the mummies of other royalty, for safe keeping. Fragments of his red granite sarcophagus lid were present within this tomb, but no trance of the actual box was ever discovered. These fragments remain in the tomb, and have been restored and placed on supports so as to suggest the original appearance of the sarcophagus.
On the top of this sarcophagus is an Osirian depiction of Seti II, while the goddess Nut stretches across the reverse side. Unfortunately, the top of the lid is missing, along with the face of the king. However, the head of the goddess Nut is now in the Egyptian collection at the Louvre in Paris. Because this is the smallest of any New Kingdom sarcophagus ever discovered, it has been suggested by Aidan Dodson that it might in fact have been meant to nest within a larger sarcophagus, similar to that of Ramesses III.
Siptah (Akhenresetepenre) 1194 - 1188 B.C.
Siptah (mer-en-ptah), who's name means "Son of Ptah, Beloved of Ptah. His throne name was Akh-en-re Setep-en-re, meaning Beautiful for Re, Chosen by Re. Apparently he was not very chosen, for he suffered the deformity of a club foot. His reign lasted from about 1193 until 1187 BC.
Like his father we know precious little about Siptah, though perhaps, there is little for us to know. He was probably the seventh ruler of Egypt's 19th Dynasty, though in fact he may have never actually ruled at all. He was questionably the second son of Seti II, by Tiaa, a relatively minor queen, and came to the throne because his older brother, Seti-Merenptah, died prior to the death of Seti II. However, he apparently inherited the throne while still a minor and it was his stepmother, Tausret, along with her Chancellor ("kingmaker" Bay) who actually controlled Egypt during the kings short life. Siptah seems to have died in the 6th year of his reign, after which his stepmother took full royal titles.
Like his father, or perhaps even because of his father, his tomb was entered shortly after his death and his cartouches were erased, though they were subsequently restored, possibly by Chancellor Bay but that is by no means proven.
Siptah's deformed feet
Besides his tomb number KV47 in the Valley of the Kings, Siptah is also attested to by the Bilgar stele, the burial of an Apis bull dated to the king, and an inscription at Buhen.
KV47, the Tomb of Siptah
KV47 was discovered by Edward Ayrton on December 18th, 1905 while working for Theodore Davis. However, he noted that the debris in the entrance had been partially dug out, creating a passage that subsequently filled back up. In addition, he felt, because of the bad condition of the rock, that the likelihood of finding anything of interest would be slim. Therefore, he only excavated partially down to the antechamber. Later, beginning in 1912, Harry Burton excavated the tomb for Davis, mostly working between the four pillared chamber and up to and including the the burial chamber.
Yet the tomb was never really completely cleared until 1994. In addition, Howard Cartercleared the area around the tomb in 1922, discovering a few objects belonging to this tomb.
In the summer of 1994, the local Antiquities Inspectorate cleared what Burton left behind, as well as performing restoration and repair work so that the tomb could be opened for tourists. This work included cleaning and repairing reliefs, filling in gaps with plaster, fixing damaged doorways and the lintels in several chambers, as well as replacing substantially damaged pillars with limestone blocks. They laid down wood floors for walkways, and erected glass panels over painted decorations, and also installed a lighting system.
From these excavations it would appear that Siptah and possibly his mother, Queen Tiaa, a minor wife of Seti II, were both originally buried in the tomb. The evidence suggesting his mother was also buried in this tomb mostly consists of fragmentary calcite canopic equipment, along with a model coffin inscribed with the name of Tiaa and several ostraca found by Carter.
The top of Siptah's Sarcophagus
The tomb is found on the north face of a hill that divides the southeast and southwest branches of the central wadi within the Valley of the Kings on the West Bank at Luxor (ancientThebes). It is oriented north-south running fairly straight for a distance of 114.04 meters intothe hill, reaching a depth of about 13.12 meters.
Though the first part of this tomb structure closely follows that of his father, Seti II, the rear sections are somewhat unusual. The initial opening corridor leading into the tomb is in the open air, and consists of a central ramp with two stairways of cut stone blocks imbedded into the bedrock to either side of the ramp. The first true corridor descends, leading to a second level corridor. Here, we find a pair of beam slots used for lowering the sarcophagus. This corridor gives way to a third corridor that, like the first, descends once more. At the rear of this corridor are a pair of rectangular niches. Afterwards, we find the well room that lacks a shaft, followed by a four pillared chamber The tomb continues through the pillared chamber with a descending passage that leads into the first of two more level corridors before communicating with an antechamber. Normally, we might expect to find a corridor followed by a stairway before the antechamber.
A final wider corridor leads past two abandoned lateral corridors before giving way into the unfinished, transverse burial chamber. Here, a granite sarcophagus is set into an roughly finished rectangular niche in the floor just behind a transverse row of four pillars. The abandoned lateral corridors may have been meant to give into a burial chamber or storage annexes, but this work was stopped after the a corridor broke into the nearby tomb, KV32. The openings were then sealed with limestone slabs.
Do to successive floods, no decorations remain beyond the first four pillared chamber, and little exist beyond the second, level corridor. In addition, this tomb also suffered the fate of KV15, having the cartocuhes of the tomb owner removed, and later re-carved. However, here, we have little idea who originally destroyed the cartouches, or for that matter, who later restored them, though the process probably revolved around the rivalry of Ramesses II's descendents and their quest for the throne after the death of Merenptah
On the lintel above the doorway to the first true corridor we find the usual scene depicting a scarab and ram headed god flanked by Isis and Nephthys. On the outer thickness and reveals of the door jambs are found the name of the deceased king, along with inscribed prayers to the sun god and Osiris. On the inner thickness of the door jambs is a depiction of the goddess Ma'at, winged and kneeling on baskets supported by the heraldic plants of Upper and Lower Egypt.
Inside this corridor on the northeast wall is a fairly well preserved depiction of Siptah addressing Re-Horakhty followed by the opening lines of the Litany of Re. Further text and scenes from these passages, including a scene of Anubis before the bier of Osiris, fill the remainder of this wall, the opposite wall, and then flow into the next corridor. On the ceiling of this first corridor we also find representations of a series of flying vultures.
Siptah before Re-Horakhty from the Litany of Re
Within the next (second), level corridor, along with the text from the Litany of Re, are found the 74 forms of Re giving way to two scenes from spell 151 of the Book of the Dead. On the ceiling of this corridor is found the best preserved depiction of Isis and Nephthys as kites to either side of the soul of Re.
Anubis from the tomb of Siptah
Beyond this, mostly only traces of decorations exist. For example, on the inner thickness of the door jamb into the next descending passage appears the winged figure of Ma'at, but few details are visible. Only fragmentary painted plaster reveal that the forth and fifth hours of the Amduat were once painted upon this corridor's walls.
After the well room on the back wall of the four pillared chamber, we can just barely make out a fragment of plaster that once portrayed the god Osiris in a shrine. This was probably once a double scene of Siptah making offerings to the god of the underworld, as found in other tombs in the Valley. While no other decorations survive in this tomb, there are a few red painted mason's guidelines indicating a doorway that was never cut into the west wall of the pillared chamber. It would have probably led to an annex.
In addition, we may also make out four pairs of vertical red lines that would have marked the location for a second row of pillars within the burial chamber.
Burial Chamber and Sarcophagus
The only material item of funerary equipment found within KV47 was the red granite outer sarcophagus of Siptah. It is shaped like a cartouche, with the image of the king carved into the upper surface of the lid. He is flanked by figures of Isis and Nephthys and surrounded by a crocodile, a snake and a pair of cobras with human heads and arms. The sarcophagus box is decorated with alternating triple khekher-ornaments and recumbent jackals surmounting a register of underworld demons. This was a new composition that subsequently was used by other kings on their sarcophagi through the reign of Ramesses VI. Interestingly, there was no destruction of Siptah's name on his sarcophagus.
Otherwise, only fragmentary funerary equipment was discovered, including a calcite inner mummform sarcophagus decorated with passages from the Book of Gates and the Amduat, along with calcite canopic equipment for Siptah and his mother, calcite shabtis figures for Siiptah, and possibly a sarcophagus for queen Tiaa. All of these calcite fragments are now in the Metropolitan Museum of Art in the New York.
Burton discovered bones within Siptah's sarcophagus, but it is now believed that this was an intrusive burial, probably of the Third Intermediate Period. In fact, Siptah's mummy has been identified as one of those moved to the cache in tomb KV35 belonging to Amenhotep II.
Queen Tausert (Sitremeritamun) - 1185-1187 B. C.
As one of the few queens who ruled Egypt as Pharaoh (between 1187 and 1185 BC), it is regrettable that we have so little information on Tausert, traditionally the last ruler of Egypt's 19th Dynasty. Her name appears even in modern works in many different forms, including Twosre, Twore, Tawosret and Twosret.
Her birth name appears to have been Two-sret (setep-en-mut) which means "Might Lady, Chosen of Mut". Her Throne name was Sit-re Mery-amun which means "Daughter of Re, Beloved of Amun".
Tausert becomes known to us as the wife of Seti II, and apparently a very beloved wife at that, even though she was not his first. That was an honor given to a lady named Takhat II, though she apparently did not supply him with an heir.
Tausert gave birth to his first born sun, Sethos Merneptah, but unfortunately he died young. It was Seti II who initially ordered her tomb to be built in the Valley of the Kings, an honor given to few queens.
Upon Seti II's death, a son by what appears to be a Syrian wife, his third, named Tiaa, ascended to the throne of Egypt. His name was Ramesses-Siptah (Siptah Merenptah), but he was very young, probably in his early teens. He also suffered from a deformed left leg.
It was Tausert who assumed the role of regent as the "Great Royal Wife", though it appears that for the remainder of her life, another powerful non-royal personage would perhaps be the power behind the throne.
In effect, Siptah was under the double supervision of his stepmother and a certain chancellor Bay. Bay was originally the royal scribe of Seti II, and is thought to have also been of Syrian decent. If tradition is to be believed, Bay seduced the pharaoh's widow, who then gave him total control of Egypt's treasury.
Siptah held the throne of Egypt for approximately six years before his death, when Tausert formally ascended the throne of Egypt herself. In fact, in the fifth year of Siptah's rule, Tausert elevated herself considerably, taking full royal titles as Hatshepsut had done several hundred years in the past. However, it is believed that Bay continued to largely rule in the background.
Her reign was short, lasting perhaps two years.
While little is known of this time, we do believe that campaigns were waged in the Sinai and Palestine, and there is evidence of her building work at Heliopolis, where a statue of the queen was found as well as at Thebes.
At Thebes, she constructed a mortuary temple discovered by William Petrie to the south of the Ramesseum, and of course, continued work on her tomb in the Valley of the Kings.
Her name also appears at Abydos, Hermopolis and Memphis.
She was probably originally buried in her tomb in the Valley of the Kings, but this tomb was later taken by Ramesses III for his father, Setnakht.
Her mummy has not been positively identified, though it has been suggested that the remains of an "Unknown Woman D" for KV 35 is that of Tausert.
20TH DYNASTY (1186-1069)
Refusing to acknowledge the previous two pharaohs, the first king of the 20th Dynasty dated the beginning of his reign to that of Seti II. He probably usurped the throne from Tworse, Seti II1s widow, and later queen-pharaoh. He was at an advanced age when he took the throne but managed to accomplish peace and order in a short period of time. His tomb was not completed when he died so he was placed in that Tworse's. His coffin was found in Amenophis II's tomb but his mummy has not been found. Setakht was the father of Ramesses III and the husband of Ramesses' mother, Tiye-merenese.
The tomb of Tausert (Tawosret) and Setnakht (Sethnakhte) (KV 14) is one of the most unusual tombs in the Valley of the Kings, as is the story behind this tomb. It is also one of the largest tombs in the Valley, encompassing two complete burial chambers. The tomb has been open and known since antiquity.
Between 1983 and 1987, it was studied in detail by Hartwig Altenmiller. This tomb was originally built by Tausert, a queen and wife of Sethos II who would later rule Egypt as Pharaoh. It shows four distinct phases of construction, beginning when Tausert was still simply the queen. The construction was thus originally ordered by Seti II. The second phase of construction occurred after the death of Seti II, under the reign of King Siptah, who allowed the construction to go on much as Seti II had instructed.
During this period, a sarcophagus hall was created for the tomb, but was not of course designed as a king's burial chamber. Around 1190 BC, Tausert became the co-regent of Siptah, accepting the royal regalia and and began work on the second burial chamber with the proper dimensions for a king. In fact, the entrance to the tomb and the corridors had to be enlarged to accommodate the size of what was now to be a royal coffin. Around 1187 BC, Queen Tausert actually ascended to the thrown of Egypt as Pharaoh, and she ordered modifications to the tomb to reflect her exclusive royal status.
The Final Scene from the Book of Caverns
However, this is only part of the story. Setnakht, the father of Ramesses III had created his own tomb, KV 11 in the Valley of the Kings, as was the normal custom for kings of this period. While KV 11 was unfinished at the time of the king's death, there appears to have been plenty of time for it to be completed prior to the Kings burial. Yet, and apparently against the final wishes of his father, Ramesses III decided at the last minute to have his father interred in the tomb of Tausert, rather then his own.
In fact, Ramesses III, against the current custom, would likewise not build his own tomb, but take his fathers original tomb ashis own (KV 11). We know nothing about his reasoning on these sharp departures from custom. Almost all the other Pharaohs buried in the Valley of the Kings built their own tombs, which they then occupied upon their deaths. However, KV 14 is not really Setnakht's tomb at all, as it was almost exclusively built for Tausert.
Typically, the first part of the tomb includes an entrance and three corridors that lead to a ritual shaft and then a small hall with no pillars. A fourth corridor leads to a small antechamber and then to the first burial chamber with several annexes. Just past this burial chamber are several more annexes and then two more corridors that lead to the second burial chamber, which also has four annexes and a corridor leading off from its rear. Both the first and the second burial chambers have eight pillars. Interestingly, the axis of the tomb approximates an east-west alignment, but the various extensions constructed at different times shift slightly in their orientation.
In the first corridor, we find images of Tausert before deities, though some of these have been usurped to show a king rather then Tausert herself. These images appear to be about the only decorations which were changed for Setnakht. Most of the remaining decorative plan remained the same, with the exception that most of the places where the queens image or name appears, the area was plastered over and painted with king Setnakht's image and name.
Within the second and third corridors are passages from the Book of the Dead and in the ritual shaft are images of various deities. In the first small hall are again scenes from the Book of the Dead, and in the following antechamber are images of deities. Just prior to the antechamber to the first burial chamber, we find scenes from the Opening of the Mouth ritual.
The first burial chamber has scenes from the Book of Gates and the closing scenes from the Book of Caverns, along with an astronomical ceiling.
After the first burial chamber, the corridors are decorated with scenes from the Amduat, and the second burial chamber has an astronomical ceiling, along with scenes from the Book of Gates on its walls.
Very little in the way of funerary equipment was found in this tomb, other then a smashed sarcophagus.
The second king of the 20th Dynasty was the son of Sethnakhte and was the last great king of the New Kingdom. Ramesses III assumed the throne after his father's short two year reign.
Ramesses III fought the Libyans twice during his reign. He compared himself to Mont, the god of war and was confident in his abilities. He overcame an attack by the Sea Peoples in his eighth year as pharaoh. After defeating the Sea People (of which he took many captives) he attacked the Palestinian tribes and was again victorious. Ramesses received tributes from all conquered peoples.
Egypt, however, was experiencing financial problems. Workers were striking for pay and there was a general unrest of all social classes. Consequently, an unsuccessful harem revolt led to the deaths of many, including officials and women. During his thirty-one year reign, Ramesses III built the vast mortuary complex at Medinet Habu.
Mortuary Temple of Ramesses III at Medinet Habu
The entire Temple of Ramesses III, palace and town is enclosed within a defensive wall. Entry is through the Highgate, or Migdol, which, in appearance resembles an Asiatic fort.
Just inside the Highgate, to the south, are the chapels of Amenirdis I, Shepenwepet II and Nitoket, wives of the god Amun. To the north side is the chapel of Amun. These chapels were a later addition dating to the 18th Dynasties, by Hatsepsut and Tutmose II. Later renovations were done by the Ptolemaic kings of the XXV Dynasty.
To the west is the temple proper, which was styled after the Ramesseum. On the north wall of the temple are reliefs depicting the victory of Ramesses with the Sardinians, Cretans, Philistines and the Danu. This was perhaps the greatest victory in ancient Egypt.
Pharaoh watched as the invaders crossed the plains, destroying everything in their path. The multitude came with oxen-drawn wagons, laden down with all of their possessions, their families and their newly discovered iron weapons. No tribe or settlement was able to survive their passing.
The horde came over the land and the sea heading straight for Egypt. Ramesses gathered together his army and defeated the land invaders. He then proceeded to the shore to meet the ships. Ramesses archers released their arrows against the landing ships.
(The Egyptians's had an advantage over the enemy; the Egyptian's ships had both sails and oars, while the invader's had only the sail.) The Egyptian army then rowed out to sea and overturned the invaders' ship drowning all that survived the archers' attack. These are the only know reliefs of a sea battle in Egypt.
The Egyptians were excellent accountants and counted everything that was taken from the enemy and all that were slain. The reliefs show the bookkeepers counting the spoils. Entering through the massive Pylon (27m high and 65m long) is the First Court where athletic sporting events, such as wrestling, were held. Reliefs on the south wall are of Ramesses' victory over the Libyans and the Window of Appearances is on the west wall, flanked by eight columns. Behind this lies the audience hall with the kings' shower room nearby. The stone tank is still intact. On the east side are seven Osiride pillars.
The Second Court, accessed via ramp up and through the Pylon, is made up of eight Osiride pillars and six columns. Of the scenes in the Second Court are the Feast of Sokar and the lower part of the back wall being dedicated to Ramesses children. Of interest in the entrance at the right end of the hall is a relief of Ramesses kneeling on the symbol of Upper and Lower Egypt and a defaced scene of Ramesses before Seth, with the Pharaoh changed into Horus. The Hypostyle Hall through the west entrance was badly damaged in 27 B.C. by an earthquake. Originally, The Hall would have opened into many rooms but none remain due to the earthquake.
Close to the temple is the remains of a Nilometer. These 'flood warnings' were positioned strategically along the river to determine the position of the river every year. Not only did these register the height of the river, but also determined the amount of silt that was being deposited. With this information, the governors could, in advance, determine which crop would thrive and thus base the tax levy.
Ramesses III's tomb is in the Valley of the Kings. His mummy was found in a cache at Deir el-Bahri and is now in the Cairo Museum. Ramesses III is thought to have been about sixty-five years of age at his death.
Ramesses III built three shrines at Karnak that were dedicated to the gods Amun, Mut and Khonsu, and a palace at Leontopolis, just north of Cairo. Ramesses III's tomb is in the Valley of the Kings.
Ramesses IV was the son of Ramesses III. His reign lasted no more than six years. He did survive the harem conspiracy which was designed to spoil his claims to the throne. He placed a document in the tomb of his father which is now known as the Papyrus Harris I, that gives an elaborate account of the reign of Ramesses III. Ramesses IV is thought to have been in his forties when he became king.
There are two stele that were found at Abydos by Mariette that proclaim his piety and exceptional devotion to the gods. The quarrying of the stone is said to have involved more than 8,000 people. Ramesses IV caused the high-priest Mont, as well as other capable officials and scribes to visit the site.
There were 5,000 soldiers that were most likely sent to haul the huge stones over the rough desert roads. He is also known for the continuation of the Khonsu at Karnak, which was begun by his father, Ramesses III. A temple at Asasif, which is on the western bank of the Nile at Thebes, was erected by Ramesses. Ramesses' tomb was found in the Valley of the Kings and his mummy is now in the Cairo Museum. The remains indicate that Ramesses was a small man who was bald, had a long nose and good teeth.
The tomb of Ramesses IV (KV 2) in the Valley of the Kings is rather different then most other royal tombs built here. Ramesses III, had been assassinated, and when his some, Ramesses IV took the thrown, he did so in a period of economic decline in Egypt. Though large, his tomb is highly simplistic, and unique in many ways. The tomb was known early on, and was in fact used as a sort of hotel by early explorers such as Champollion and Rosellini (1829), Robert Hay, Furst Puckler, Theodore Davis and others. It was also an important Coptic Christian dwelling, and was also frequently visited in antiquity. There was considerable Coptic and Greek graffiti on the tomb walls.
Interestingly, two sketched plans of this tomb are known, the most famous and complete of which is contained within the a papyrus in Turin.
One unusual aspect of the tomb is that there is very little decline as one travels from the first part of the tomb through to its rear. The entrance begins with a split stairways to either side of a ramp, opening into a first, second and third corridors. The final corridor leads to a smallish antechamber, and then to the burial chamber. To the rear of the burial chamber are some small annexes, but otherwise the tomb contains no lateral annexes.The corridors are unusual for their width and height, some measuring three meters (10 feet) wide and four meters (15 feet high).
The facade of the tomb is decorated with scenes of the king's coronation, as well as a scene depicting Isis and Nephthys venerating the sun disk. Within the first two corridors are scenes and text from the Litany of Ra, proceeded by a typical painting of the king worshipping the falcon headed sun god, Ra-Horakhthy.
On the ceilings are vultures, falcons and winged scarabs with spread wings. In the third corridor we find the first and second parts of the Book of Caverns, with simple ceilings decorated with stars, but which later becomes vaulted. From this corridor, a ramp leads through the antechamber into the burial chamber. The antechamber is decorated with scenes from the Book of the Dead, mostly chapter 125 which deals with the judgement of the dead.
The burial chamber, which is not large, is almost filled by the still resident sarcophagus. However, this sarcophagus is unusually large. The burial chamber is decorated with the second, third and fourth hours from the Book of Gates. The ceiling is uniquely decorated with two large figures representing Nut, rather then the usual stellar constellations.
There are also scenes from the Book of Nut, and the Book of the Night. The annexes behind the burial chamber contain text from the first part of the Book of Caverns. Other parts of this annex are painted with burial offerings such as beds, shrines and canopic jars.
L ittle funerary equipment is known to have been found within the tomb itself. The sarcophagus was broken into at one end during antiquity and the lid displaced. The king's mummy was eventually found in KV 35.
Ramesses V is thought to have reigned no more than four years. He was the son of Ramesses IV and Queen Ta-Opet. The mummy was found in the tomb of Amenophis II and is now located in the Cairo Museum. The mummy shows that he died of smallpox at about the age of 35.
His tomb was unfinished and was in the Biban el-Moluk, but was annexed by Ramesses VI. All that is found of his reign is a stela that was discovered at Gebel Silsilh.
he Pharaoh Ramses V (left) died of smallpox in 1157 B.C. The disease reached Europe in 710 A.D. and was transferred to America by Hernando Cortez in 1520 - 3.5 million Aztecs died in the next 2 years. In the cities of 18th century Europe, smallpox reached plague proportions and was a feared scourge - highly infectious. Five reigning European monarchs died from smallpox during the 18th century.
The fifth king of the 20th Dynasty usurped the throne from his nephew, Ramesses V. However, the son of Ramesses III allowed mortuary ceremonies to continue for Ramesses V, who was only on the throne for four years. He usurped cartouches of previous kings and left his name on inscriptions in the Sinai. His built statues in Bubastis, Coptos, Karnak and Nubia. After his tomb was vandalized, the priests had to pin the corpse on a board in order to provide the remains with a decent burial.
The tomb of Ramesses V (KV 9) is one of the most interesting tombs in the Valley of the Kings. Its decorations represent sort of a treatise on theology, in which the fundamental elements are the sun and its daily journey in the world of darkness. In general, the decorations provide the story of the origins of the heavens, earth, the creation of the sun, light and life itself. The decorative plan for this tomb is one of the most sophisticated and complete in the Valley of the Kings.
However, as it turns out, Ramesses VI was not much of a tomb builder, for this tomb was originally build by his predecessor, Ramesses V.
It was only enlarged by Ramesses VI. Why Ramesses VI did not build his own tomb, as was certainly the tradition, is unknown to us. However, the inscriptions for Ramesses V found in the first parts of the tomb were not usurped, and it is clear that the brothers probably shared a common theology.
The tomb has been known of since antiquity, attested to by numerous graffiti. It was known to the Romans as the tomb of Memnon, and to the scholars of the Napoleonic Expedition as La Tombe de la Metempsychose. It was cleared of debris by George Daressy in 1888.
The tomb itself is somewhat simplistic, with no true stairways, but otherwise similar to other 20th Dynasty tombs. There are three corridors that lead to the ritual shaft, and then to a four pillared hall.This is followed by by two more corridors, a vestibule and then the burial chamber with its single annex at the rear. The last corridor (number 5) is unique, as the floor is sloping while the roof is horizontal.This was done to avoid part of tomb KV 12
In this tomb, astronomical ceilings are found in each passage. The walls of the first through third corridors are painted with images from the Book of Gates and the Book of Caverns, a theme which is continued on into the vestibule.
The beginning of the first corridor has a scene of the king making offerings to Ra-Horakhty followed by Osiris, now shown on both sides of the corridor.
But rather then the Litany of Ra, the Book of Gates follows on the south wall and the Book of Caverns on the north. In the fourth and fifth corridors there are also passages from the Book of Amduat, and in the vestibule passages from the Book of the Dead. The walls of the burial chamber, where there is to be found a broken sarcophagus, are painted with illustrations from the Book of the Earth, while the astronomical ceiling have decorations from the Book of the Day and the Book of the Night. While the decorations are well colored with sunk reliefs, stylistically the art is inferior to most of the 19th Dynasty tombs.
The mummy of Ramesses VI was not found in his tomb, but rather that of Amenophis II. This tomb is also included in the subject of the well known Papyrus Mayer B, which records the robbery of the tomb during antiquity, probably before Year 9 of Ramesses IX.
Ramesses VII is probably the son of Ramesses VI and was the sixth king of the Twentieth Dynasty. He built a tomb in the Valley of the Kings, but there are no other monuments that he built. He did have a son that did not live to succeed him.
Ramesses VIII was the seventh king of the Twentieth Dynasty and was probably Ramesses III's son. His mummy has never been found and all that remains of his reign is an inscription at Medinet Habu and some plaques. His tomb was found but was very modest.
Ramesses IX was the eighth king of the Twentieth Dynasty. He is thought to have reigned for about seventeen or more years. During his reign, there was a scandal in which the tombs in the Theban necropolis were being robbed. There were also campaigns by Libyan bandits. He had a son, Montuherkhopshef, who did not live to succeed Ramesses. His tomb was found in the Valley of the Kings.
The tomb of Ramesses IX (KV 6) is the first tomb one encounters within the modern entrance to the Valley of the Kings. It is a rather simplistic tomb in most respects, though the art work is interesting.
Entrance is made to the tomb down a corridor with steps on either side, which then connects to the first true corridor with two annexes on either side. However, one of the annexes was never completed. This is followed by a second and third corridor, prior to reaching a vestibule. Note the absence of a ritual shaft. The vestibule opens into a four pillared hall, and then a very short corridor which leads to the burial chamber with no annexes. It is possible that the burial chamber was originally meant to be another corridor, as it is very small, but was converted because of the kings death. An unusual feature of the burial chamber is a two tiered pit in the floor. No sarcophagus has ever been found.
The decorative theme for this tomb begins with the king's adoration of the sun disk, accompanied by Isis and Nephthys on the lintel over the entrance. Variations of this are also found on the door lintels of the second and third corridors. The art in this tomb is similar to that of Ramesses VI, though here, the first two corridors have passages from the Litanies of Re, rather then the Book of Gates. It appears that only decorative theme of the first corridor was completed during Ramesses IX's lifetime, with the remainder of the artwork completed with much less care and skill after his death.
In the second and third corridors, in addition to the Litanies of Re, there are also passages from the Book of the Dead, the Book of Caverns, and in the last part, the Book of Amduat. Probably due not only to the changing concept of the Afterlife, but also the lack of space, most of the texts are abbreviated, and the Book of Gates does not show up at all. There are figures of two priests to either side of the door to the pillared hall representing the Opening of the Mouth ritual. The burial chamber has a vaulted ceiling with a double representation of Nut and passages from the Book of the Day and the Book of the Night.
There is little in the way of funerary equipment which was discovered in the tomb. No sarcophagus was found.
Ramesses X was the ninth king of the Twentieth Dynasty. During his reign the workers went on strike for wages not paid. There are few monuments of Ramesses that have survived. He left a tomb in the Valley of the Kings.
Tomb KV18 in the Valley of the Kings on the West Bank at Luxor (Thebes) was cut for Ramesses X, the second to last ruler of Egypt's 20th Dynasty. It is located in the southwest wadi. The tomb was unfinished and has only recently been cleared, though apparently some amount of debris remains. It has had a number of visitors over the years, beginning with Richard Pococke in the early 1700s. No real funerary material of the owner has ever been discovered, and even the foundation deposits discovered by Howard Carter were uninscribed.
The tomb consists of little more than an entranceway and two corridors (that we know of). It was probably open during antiquity, before being buried under mud and rubble.
The entrance to the tomb continues with the Ramessid tendency to create ever larger facades, this one being some 10 cm (4 inches) wider than that of the previous king's tomb.
However, it is simple and has little slope. There was a divided stairway, though only a few steps remain. At the end of the entrance there was a step-down into the first corridor. Here, on the reveals and thickness of the doorjamb are the remains of the king's name.
The tomb's first corridor was blocked by the electric lighting installations for the Valley of the Kings which was housed there by Howard Carter in 1904. Here, Carter also had the walls whitewashed, and had a level base built as a foundation for the generating equipment! Furthermore, he constructed retaining walls at the sides and end of the chamber, adding additional roofing. Some of this equipment remains in the tomb today. There has been some ceiling collapse at the rear of this corridor. This corridor was originally fully cut and decorated.
The first corridor leads into a second corridor that was blocked by a modern wall which has recently been stripped away. There is a step down into this second corridor, that was never completely cut. There remains actual rough steps leading up to the abandoned workface. The ceiling here has collapsed, but a couple of large rectangular recess were cut in each wall near the ceiling.
Within the outer areas, little decoration remains. Due to flooding, the beautiful example of the Ramessid entrance motif of the king kneeling on either side of the sun disc on the horizon and ram headed god, along with attendant goddesses Isis and Nephthys) that was drawn by Champollion's artists in 1826 are lost to us.
Most of the plaster and paint have fallen away. Only a portion of the left-hand side of the design is still visible along with modern European graffiti probably dating from between 1623 and 1905 AD. Trances of other badly damaged scenes may be found in the first corridor on the east and west walls. These include a rough head of Re-Horakhty on the left wall of the first passage. On the right wall we can also recognize the king in front of Re-Horakhty and Meretseger, followed by a sun disk.
There are no decoration in the second corridor. The only artifacts we are aware of that have been removed from the tomb (area) are those found in the foundation deposit by Howard Carter. They included blue glazed models of tools, mostly, including according to Carter "adze, hoe and yoke".
We know know that Ramesses X was not put to rest in this tomb, though his mummy has never been found anywhere else, either.
Ramesses XI was the tenth and the last king of the Twentieth Dynasty as well as the New Kingdom. The reign of this king was a period of turmoil. Ramesses was not a very energetic or vital ruler. The viceroy of Nubia, Panehsi, went from Elephantine to Thebes to try to stop the unrest that was arising from contention over the region that was between the high priest of Amon and others. At the same time there was a famine and was called the "Year of the Hyena." Hrihor was left in Thebes by Panehsi to control the affairs there.
He soon assumed the role of the high priest of Amon and eventually became the vizier as well. This was the cause of the eventual downfall of Panehsi.
Panehsi rebelled and stopped Egypt's domination in Nubia. Hrihor administered the affairs of Egypt while Ramesses XI remained in seclusion. Upon the death of Ramesses, Hrihor and Smendes divided Egypt between themselves. Ramesses was technically pharaoh until his death, but Hrihor was the ruler of Upper Egypt for all practical purposes. Ramesses' death marked the end of the Twentieth Dynasty and the New Kingdom.
Tomb KV4, located in the Valley of the Kingson the West Bank at Luxor has been known and open since antiquity (though not open to the public now), and it received many ancient tourists, as evidenced by the Demotic Egyptian, Greek, Latin, Coptic and later, French and English graffiti on its walls, and was noted by the French expedition to Egypt in the late 18th century.
The tomb consists of an initial entrance, a first corridor followed by a relatively sharp descending ramp, with a second, and then a third corridor prior to reaching the undecorated and undug ritual well room. The entrance and first two corridors have a shallow slope, and in the second corridor we find a pair of rectangular niches in the usual positions, near the corridor's entrance, on the north and south walls. The unfinished pillared hall follows, after which a ramp leads into the unfinished burial chamber with a deep burial shaft in its center. Interestingly, within the burial chamber the pillars are rectangular rather then square. The ceiling is vaulted. While there were no barriers in this tomb, pivot holes for door leafs were present in most of the inner corridors and chambers.
The only decorations discovered within the tomb were on the doorway between the entrance and the first corridor, and at the beginning of the first corridor. In the doorway lintel between the entrance and the first corridor, we find Ramesses XI kneeling between two goddess flanked by the sun disk, Atem. We also find the king's name on the door jamb.
Currently, we do not know the location of Ramesses XI's actual burial, but it has been suggested that he may have been laid to rest somewhere in Northern Egypt.
THIRD INTERMEDIATE PERIOD (1070-715 BC)
DYNASTIES 21-24
The period of the 21st Dynasty represents one of the most confused spots in Egyptian history! To call it a dynasty is actually somewhat of a misnomer since they were primarily powerful priests rather than royalty.
One of the results of revised chronology is, that now we have internal political and social conditions in neighboring countries matching each others circumstances. In conventional chronology the 21st Dynasty of priest-princes was in power in the days of the early Israelite monarchy.
In the 21st Dynasty the capital of Egypt moved from Tanis to Libyan, to Nubia, to Thebes, to SAIS, and then back to Nubia and Thebes.
After 1085 BC, Egypt split between a northern 21st dynasty claiming national recognition reigning from Tanis and a line of Theban generals and high priests of Amen who actually controlled the south from Thebes. Relations between the two authorities were peaceful. The Tanites were driven from power by Libyan warriors who established their own Twenty-Second Dynasty.
There was a tradition of representing the high priest as the king's representative: Herihor does not claim royal dignity. With the exception of Piankh, Herihor and his successors Pinedjem, Masaharta, and Menkheperre all used the title of High Priest of Amen as their principal title. The titles gradually diminished in number, reflecting not so much a reduction in power but an emphasis on their role as the highest authority in the Thebais and Upper Egypt. The title of High Priest of Amen gave the bearers control over the domains of Amen and at the same time emphasised the fact that they derived their power from Amen. In the peculiar combinations of royal titles and that of High Priest, it becomes clear that the rulers of Tanis and Thebes only represented an ideal kingship.
The reign of the Pharohas mentioned below is debatable. The establishment of flawless genealogies has thus far proved a baffling task. This is based on the writings of Manetho.
The part played by women in ancient Egypt had always been great, but at this juncture it was greater than ever. The inscriptions are abnormally communicative in the use of such epithets as 'King's Daughter', 'King's Great Wife'.
A perplexing feature of the problem is that the same female name was often born by several individuals. The title 'God's Wife of Amun', of which the first component goes back far into the past, has won an ever increasing political importance, though its exact implications are mysterious. Under Pinudjem I the Ma'kare' who bears this title is depicted as a mere child, though she has often been credited with being his wife.
Very possibly she was the daughter of Psusennes I. She is certainly to be distinguished from a later Ma'kare' who was a daughter of the Tanite king Psusennes II and whose rights as an heiress were set forth on a long inscription in the temple of Karnak. This is but one example of the difficulties which cluster round the names of such princesses as Henutowe, Isimkheb, and others. Here it need only be added that some of these royal ladies enjoyed no inconsiderable wealth through their tenure of priestly offices.
For instance Neskhons, the well-known wife of Pinudjem II, is described on a coffin bearing her name as 'first chief of the concubines of Amen-Re', King of the Gods; Major-domo of the house of Mut the great, lady of Ashru; prophetess of Anhur-Shu the son of Re'; prophetess of Min, Horus, and Isis in Ipu; prophetess of Horus, lord of Djuef; god's mother of Chons the child, first one of Amen-Re', King of the Gods; and chief of noble ladies' - to which an accompanying column of inscription adds four more local priesthoods.
Unhappily the name of Neskhons has been painted over that of Isimkheb to whom, therefore, these titles doubtless properly belong. If the localities mentioned in them are to be taken seriously, it would seem that the Theban influence extended far northwards into Middle Egypt, a fact confirmed at El-Hiba by bricks bearing the names of the high-priests Pinudjem I and Menkheperre. Of El-Hiba we shall hear again in connection with Dyn. XXII. These complications are typical of the difficulties which attended the unraveling of the problems of Dyn. XXI. Further attempts at elucidation must be left to the future. The material is abundant, but mostly ambiguous. Here we must content ourselves with giving some account of two great discoveries by which the views of the historians have been completely transformed.
Almost since the times of their actual burial the mighty kings of Dyns. XVII to XX had been exposed to violation and theft on the part of the rapacious inhabitants of the Theban necropolis, and it was only as a last frantic effort to put an end to such sacrilege that the high-priests of Dyn. XXI intervened.
This they could do with greater confidence since the golden ornaments and other precious possessions had long ago disappeared, so that little more than the coffins and corpses remained to be salvaged.
However, for the modern world thus to recover the remains of many of the greatest Pharaohs was a sensation till then unequaled in the annals of archaeology. To be able to gaze upon the actual features of such famous warriors as Tuthmosis III and Sethos I was a privilege that could be legitimately allowed to the serious historian, though it was for a time denied to the merely curious. Besides the nine kings who were found there were a number of their queens, as well as some princes and lesser personages. Hieratic dockets on certain coffins or mummy wrappings disclosed the dates of the reburials and the authorities responsible for them.
More important from the purely historical point of view were the intact coffins of high-priests of Dyn. XXI and their womenfolk. The hieroglyphic inscriptions furnishing no small portion of the material for the discussions contained in Maspero's fundamental monograph on the find. Among the latest burials were those of Pinudjem II and his already-mentioned spouse Neskhons. After them the cache was sealed up in the tenth year of the Tanite king Siamun, but was reopened once more in the reign of King Shoshenk I in order to enter a priest of Amun named Djedptahef'onkh.
From the end of Dyn. XX onwards the outstanding feature of the Theban administration was its recourse to oracular decisions on all occasions. We have seen how under the high-priest Pay'onkh a temple appointment was effected by this method, the great god Amen-Re' halting his processional bark to nod approval when the right name was presented to him.
Later when the inheritance of the princess Ma'kare' was in dispute, it was Amen-Re', accompanied by the goddess Mut and the child-god Chons, the two other members of his triad, who decided the issue. Again, when Menkheperre' became high-priest his first act was to inquire from the supreme god whether certain persons who had been banished to the oasis could now be pardoned and allowed to return to Thebes.
To judge by the size of a great inscription engraved on a wall at Karnak the trial of an official for dishonesty which Pinudjem II was called upon to initiate must have been one of exceptional importance. In this trial a whole series of questions were addressed to the deity, who seems to have been unwilling to proceed to his yearly ceremonial visit to Luxor until the matter was settled.
The first step consisted in placing before him two tablets, the one affirming and the other denying that there was a case calling for investigation. In short, so far as our limited material goes, there was no subject demanding the high-priest's personal intervention which was not settled by an oracular response.
21ST DYNASTY (1070 - 945 B.C.)
Smedes was an official during the reign of Ramesses XI of the 20th Dynasty. Smedes began his rule in Tanis. There he was the high priest of Amon and the viceroy of Lower Egypt. Hrihor was also a high priest of Amon and the viceroy of Upper Egypt. Together these two kept Ramesses XI in seclusion on his estates. Upon the death of Ramesses, Smedes and Hrihor divided Egypt among them, which started the Twenty-first Dynasty. As a native of Djede, Smedes could have no personal right to the throne. The only record of Smedes' reign is a damaged inscription on a pillar in a quarry at Gebelen.
Amenemnisu was the second ruler of the Twenty-first Dynasty. He is thought to have ruled for four years possibly as the co-regent with Psusennes I.
'The Star which arose in Thebes'
Funeral Mask
Sarcophagus
At Tanis Psusennes I often uses the epithet 'high-priest of Amen-Re'.
Once in a very full titulary describes himself as 'great of monuments in Ipet-eswe' at Karnak.
Psusennes I was the third king of the Twenty-first Dynasty and is probably the best known of all this dynasty's kings. This is because of the discovery of his intact tomb during the excavation of Tanis. His mummy was found in the tomb and was that of an old man. Also is the tomb was a second burial chamber was for his sister and wife, Queen Mutnodjme. At some time later, her mummy and funerary objects were removed. King Amunemope's mummy and funerary objects were placed there after he was moved from another tomb that was not too far away. There were also several other mummies found in this tomb as well. These mummies were thought to have been placed here to be protected from the destruction of the other tombs around.
Amenope was the fourth king of the Twenty-first Dynasty. It is possible that he wrote one of the most famous Egyptian books of wisdom, known as the Instruction of Amenope. In this book, advice is offered to his son on integrity, honesty, self-control and kindness. He teaches that it is reliance on god that this tranquillity and the freedom from overanxiety can be attained.
Siamun is listed as the sixth king of the Twenty-first Dynasty. Very little is known about his reign except that he is the one who sealed up the great Der el-Bahri cache. He is believed to have reigned for seventeen years.
Psusennes II was the seventh and final king of the Twenty-first Dynasty. He is believed to have ruled for 14 years. There are inscriptions on monuments which are the only information showing his reign.
22ND DYNASTY (945-712 B.C.)
The 22nd Dynasty is often referred to as the Libyan Bubastite Dynasty. Manetho lists the kings of this Dynasty as being from Bubastis which is located in the eastern delta. The Libyan element is evident in the founder, Sheshonq I, who inaugurated the sequence of Libyan Chiefs which ruled Egypt for the next 200 years.
The 22d dynasty (945-730 BCE) was founded by Sheshonq I, probably descended from long-settled Libyan mercenaries, the Meshwesh. Shoshenq I ruled for twenty-one years.
His name first appeared in a long inscription found at Abydos while he was the 'great chief of the Meshwesh, prince of princes.' His father was Nemrat, who was the son of the lady Mehetemwaskhe, died and Shoshenq asked the king at that time to allow a funerary cult to be built at Abydos in his honor. The king must have been the last Psusennes of the Twenty-first Dynasty. Shoshenq's son had married Psusennes' daughter, Makare.
Sheshonq I supported Jeroboam against King Solomon's son, Rehoboam and campaigned later in Palestine (ca.930) laying tribute upon the king of Judah. He instituted a decentralized system, with kings based in the north and their sons ruling key centers elsewhere. Rivalries and sporadic civil wars followed, and by the 8th century BCE Egypt had been divided into eleven autonomous states, whose inhabitants depended on congested, walled towns for security. Their increased anxiety found expression in their worship of local rather than national gods.
It is possible that the transition from the Twenty-first to the Twenty-second Dynasty was a peaceful one. Shoshenq's wife, Karoma, was the mother of Osorkon I who was Shoshenq's successor. Shoshenq did considerable building at home in Egypt. He added a new colonnaded forecourt with a triumphal gate that formed an extension of the hypostyle hall in the Amun temple. No work had been done at Karnak since the end of the Nineteenth Dynasty. He also had a successful campaign against the kingdom of Judah and the kingdom of Israel. His tomb is located at Tanis.
Osorkon bringing offerings
Osorkon I is in the second king of the Twenty-second Dynasty. Between the reigns of Osorkon I and Takelot I, a Shoshenq II is often shown as a co-regent for a brief period of time.
Osokon I, who succeeded his father, continued to provide strong patronage for the various leading priesthoods, thereby consolidating his position as well as maintaining a continuous building program, especially at his native city of Bubastis. The chief priesthood of Amun at Karnak was taken from his brother Input and given to one of his sons, Sheshonq(II) whom he took as a co-regent in 890 B.C.E. Sheshonq, however, died a few months earlier than his father, and both were buried at Tanis.
Takelot I was the third king of the Twenty-second Dynasty. He was the successor to Osorkon I, but is shown to have had a co-regent, Sheshonq II, for a brief period before his reign began.
This reign, although 15 years in length, has left no major monuments, but saw the beginning of the fragmentation of Egypt once more into two power bases.
Shoshenq II is thought to have been the co-regent during the period between Osorkon I and Takelot I during the Twenty-second Dynasty. His mummy was found at Tanis in the tomb of Psusennes I.
Osorkon II was the fifth king of the Twenty-second Dynasty. There are inscriptions in the hypostyle hall of the Luxor temple that indicate that there was a very high inundation of the Nile during the third year of his reign. The inscription says, "All the temples of Thebes were like marshes." During his twenty-second year, he celebrated the Sed Festival.
He built a granite gateway at the great temple at Bubastis and decorated the gateway with scenes of this festival. During his reign, there was weakness internally and there were threats from the Assyrians. Egypt's borders did not extend as far as they once had and tried to resist the increasing pressures from the east by joining the states of Palestine and Syria. It is possible that a co-regent ruled with Osorkon II named Harsiese, who was the high priest of Amun at Thebes. It is possible that Harsiese was the son of Osorkon. His tomb has been found at Tanis. It was constructed of large stones with several chambers inside. Several other bodies were found inside such as King Takelot II.
Takelot II was the sixth king of the Twenty-second Dynasty. He was the father to the high priest of Amun, Osorkon. This Osorkon was responsible for the longest inscription on the Bubastite Gate. According to his inscription, during the fifteenth year of Takelot's reign, there was warfare in the North and South and a great convulsion broke out in the land.
Takelot II maintained stability in the South where his half brother Nimlot had consolidated his position by extending North to Herakleopolis and placing his son Ptahwedjankhef in charge there. Nimlot then married his daughter Karomama II to Takelot II, thereby cementing a bond between North and South and becoming the father-in-law of his half brother.
The remains of Takelot II were found in a usurped sarcophagus from the Middle Kingdom in Tanis. His Canopic jars and ushabti-figures were found with him as well.
Shoshenq III was the seventh king of the Twenty-second Dynasty. He is thought to have ruled for fifty-two years. During the twenty-eighth year of his reign, an Apis bull was born. This is recorded on the Serapeum stela by a priest named Pediese. His tomb was found at Tanis and was similar in structure to those of Psusennes I and Osorkon II.
Pami was the eighth king of the Twenty-second Dynasty. He reigned for approximately six years following the fifty-two year reign of Shoshenq III. Pemay is translated to "The Cat".
Shoshenq IV was the ninth king of the Twenty-second Dynasty. The Serapeum stela of Pasenhor is dated as the thirty-seventh year of Shoshenq IV. This shows that he reigned at least this long. In the year 732, toward the end of his reign, an Assyrian, Tiglath-pileser III took Damascus and killed Rezin. He then captured many cities of northern Israel and took the people to Assyria. The Egyptian troops had at one time joined forces with Damascus, Israel and some other states to resist Shalmaneser III at Qarqar. There is no indication that Shoshenq IV made any attempt to help the former allies.
Osorkon IV was the tenth and final ruler of the Twenty-second Dynasty. During his reign, Hoshea, the king of Israel, sent messengers to Osorkon in Egypt. He was requesting help against Shalmaneser V. No help was sent. Samaria was captured and the Israelites were taken away to Assyria. There was also threats from Sargon II, who was the Assyrian king. To try to avoid an attack, Osorkon IV tried a rich gift and it apparently worked. The Assyrian king came no further.
23RD DYNASTY (740- 725 BC)
Pedubaste I - (Usermare-setepenamun)(Petubastis) - 740-?
Pedubaste I was the first king of the Twenty-third Dynasty. He is mentioned several times in the inscriptions at Karnak. Pedubaste is thought to have been the son of the high priest of Amun, Harsiese.
Peftjauwybast 740-725
24TH DYNASTY (725 - 715 BC)
Tefnakht I was the first king of the 24th Dynasty, also known as the Sais Dynasty.
In the Piankhy stela, he is called the "chief of the West," "chief of Me," and "chief of Sais." He also gives himself titles as prophets and royal titles.
He attempted to put a stop to an invasion by organizing other Northern Kings with him against the invaders from the south. This southern force was comprised of Piankhi¹s Nubian forces that wanted to gain control of all of Egypt. The four northern armies under Tefnakht, Osorkon IV of Tanis, Peftjauabastet of Hernopolis, and Nimlot, Input of Leontopolis all enjoyed a relatively easy time in their conquering of the people down to the south, but Piankhi was actually drawing them down. When Tefnakht's forces finally reached Memphis they were massacred and Tefnakht conceded to Piankhi. Tefnakht and the four other leaders were allowed to remain governors of their territories under the new Pharaoh Piankhi.
Bakenranef was the second king of the Twenty-fourth Dynasty. His name was found on a vase that was found in an Etruscan tomb at Tarquinia which is located 100 kilometers northwest of Rome. Papyrus plants on the vase suggest the area of the Delta. He is shown in the company of gods and goddesses, such as goddess Neith of Sais.
LATE KINGDOM
Most references point to Piye as being the first ruler of the 25th Dynasty. Different references refer to him under different names. He supposedly ruled Kush (Nubia) from about 750 to 719 BC.
Piankhi was his birth name. But in various references, we see his birth name referred to as Piankhy, Piye, Piy and Piyi. However, some references point out that his true name was Piye, and that this was wrongly read as Piankhi.
His Throne Name was Men-kheper-re, meaning "The Manifestation of Re Abides". This name too will vary, being also spelled Menkheperra. Of course, this king, as most others, had several other names which are not generally provided. Piye ascended the Nubian (Kushite) thrown (or at least its northern half) as the successor of Kashta, which explains why at least one reference refers to Kashta as the founder of the 25th Dynasty. Kashta apparently had made some earlier advances into Egypt. But it was Piye who, for the first time, consolidated the rulership of Nubia and Egypt.
From the earliest dynastic periods, Nubia was always a matter of conquest for the Egyptian pharaohs, and as such, much of Nubia was often under the control of Egypt. At times, it was very much a part of Egypt, and the customs of Nubia were a reflection of those in at least Upper Egypt. This perhaps explains Piye's seemingly strong emotional ties with Egypt, what he considered to be part of his motherland, even though he was not from Egypt proper.
So at least towards the end of the Third Intermediate Period, when Egypt seems to have surrendered to chaos with four kings claiming rule within Egypt, as well as a number of local chieftains exercising control, particularly in the Delta, Piye decided to step in and fix Egypt's problems. Kashta had a stele erected at the Elephantine Temple of Khnum (current day Aswan), but in the early ears of Piye's reign, he extended his rule toThebes itself.
There, he had his sister, Amenirdis I, named as the successor of Shepenwepet I, who had the title, God's Wife of Amun. Shepenwepet I was the sister of Rudamun of the Theban 23rd Dynasty, and apparently both Rudamun and Piye were recognized at Thebes at the same time. After the death of Rudamun, the Theban royal line seems to have abandoned Thebes in favor of Hierakleopolis , where Peftjauawy-bast, the last king of his dynasty remained an ally of Piye.
Soon, Piye was given a reason to intervene further north.Tefnakhte (a Lybian), the Prince of Western Egypt based in the Delta city of Sais extended his control south by taking the city of Memphis, as well as the old Middle Kingdom of Itj-tawy (Lisht).
At first, Piye merely checked Tefnakhte's movement south with a pair of naval battles in Middle Egypt, though he left the Saite rulers in control of the North. However, after spending New Years in Nubia, Piye returned to Thebes in time for the great Opet Festival, and subsequently set about taking the remainder of Egypt under his control. His troops moved north, capturing three towns, and killing one of Tefnakhte's sons in the process.
Soon, Piye attacked the city of Ashmunein which was ruled by Nimlot, once an ally of Piye. Using wooden siege towers, the city fell after five months.
Further North, Hierakleopolis, ruled by Piye's loyal ally, King Peftjauawybast, had been threatened by Tefnakhte, but the capture of Nimlot relieved the pressure on Hierakleopolis, and soon Piye had control of every major center south of Memphis, as well as capturing another of Tefnakhte's sons.
The only real obstacle left for Piye was Memphis, the ancient capital of Egypt. While the city was heavily fortified and defended, as well as the water of the Nile protecting its walls, Piye was able to use the masts of boats and ships in the Memphite harbor to assault the city and scale the walls. In very short order, Memphis too was bought under his control. It is said that his first act was to protect the temple of Ptah, and then to go there himself to be anointed and to worship.
With the capture of Memphis, most of the Delta rulers soon yielded to the Kushite king. One notable exception was Tefnakhte, who even went so far as to mount another, but unsuccessful campaign against Piye. Finally, he to submitted to Piye's rule of Egypt, taking an oath of loyalty.
After conquering Egypt, Piye simply went home to Nubia, and to our knowledge, never again returned to Egypt. He is portrayed as a ruler who did not glory in the smiting of his adversaries, as did other kings, but rather preferred treaties and alliances. He left the rule of the country largely in the hands of his vassals, but recorded his victories on a stela (called the Victory Stela, now in the Egyptian Museum) at Napata. He left few monuments in Egypt, other than an expansion of theTemple of Amun at Thebes (current day Luxor). Later, Tefnakhte would again claim kingdom and as the founder of the 24th Dynasty, rule at least the western Delta. However, later successors to Piye would consolidate their control over Egypt, at least for a time.
Upon Piye's death, he was buried at El-Kurru, where he erected a small pyramid resembling the tall, narrow structures that had been built above many private tombs of Egypt's New Kingdom.
Shebaka is consdiered by some to be the first king of the Twenty-fifth Dynasty. During his reign, he undertook some building projects. The Fourth Pylon at Karnak has an inscription that tells of Shebaka's restoration of the gate. He also started work on the second pylon in front of the temple of Thutmose III at Medinet Habu. Shebaka's sister, Amunirdis I held a position that was very important politically as well as religiously. She was called "god's wife of Amun" at Thebes. Her funerary temple was at Medinet Habu and was in front of the temple of Ramesses III.
Shebitku was the second king of the Twenty-fifth Dynasty. He was the nephew and successor of Shebaka. During Shebaka's reign, there was a policy of conciliation and cooperation with the Assyrians. This kept the Assyrians from coming further into Egypt. Shebitku had a different policy; resistance. A stela from Kawa tells of Shebitku asking his brothers, including Taharqa, to come to him at Thebes from Nubia. The army went with Taharqa. On another stela that is the story told that when Jerusalem was under attack by the Assyrians, that the king of Ethiopia (Kush) came against Sennacherib (of Assyria). Shebitku joined in the resistance against Sennacherib and an Egyptian army was sent to Palestine, led by Shebitku's brother, Taharqa.
Taharqa was the brother of Shebitku and was the third king of the Twenty-fifth Dynasty. Shebitku died and Taharqa was crowned. Taharqa is responsible for building done both in Nubia as well as Egypt. He built the colonnade in the first court of the temple of Amun at Karnak. There is one column that stands twenty-one meters high and is still standing. During his reign, the Assyrians threatened Egypt once again. The Assyrians were successful in one invasion in which they captured Memphis, wounded Taharqa and stole his family and property. Taharqa survived the attack. It is thought that Taharqa died in 664 BC and was buried in his pyramid at Nuri near Napata.
Tanwetamani (Assyrian Tandamane or Tantamani, Greek Tementhes, also known as Tanutamun) was Egypt's last ruler of the 25th Dynasty as well as the last Nubain (Kushite) Ruler, ruling from about 664 to 657 BC. We are told his throne name was Ba-ka-re, meaning "Glorious is the Soul of Re". He succeeded Taharqa, though he was probably the son of that king's sister, queen Qalhata. His succession to the throne is recorded in a record known as the Dream Stela, not to be confused with that of Tuthmosis IV. It was discovered along with the Victory Stela of Piye at Gebel Barkal in 1862, and now resides in the Nubian Museum in Aswan.
Tanwetamani may have served as a co-regent with Taharqa, but his parentage and family relationships are difficult. From his stela we find depicted two women, one of whom is referred to as "the royal sister, the Mistress of Egypt, Qalhata", while the other is "the royal sister, the Mistress of Ta-Seti, Pi-(ankh)-Arty". An analysis of the text associated with the stela would seem to indicate that Qalhata was Tanwetamani's mother, while the second woman was his wife. The fact that Qalhata was his mother is also supported by her tomb at Nuri in the modern Sudan, where she is given the title of "King's Mother". Foundation deposits also show that the tomb was build during the reign of Tanwetamani.
Most recent histories which discuss the 25th dynasty identify Tanwetamani (Urdamani) as a son of Shabataka, Taharqa's brother, not of his uncle Shabaka as the Rassam cylinder annalist appears to suggest.. The errant orthography can be explained by the fact that the name Shabaka is more properly vocalized as Shebitku. If so then the "t" in the doubled consonant "tk" in the name of Shebitku would easily be lost to a foreign ear. The annalist wrote what he heard and recorded Shabataku instead of Shabitku.
In the narrative of his stela, the king is referred to as "lord of valor like Montu, great of strength like a fierce-eyed lion". It goes on to explain that in the first year of his reign, Tanwetamani had a dream of two serpents, one on his right hand and one on his left. After waking, the king's advisors interpreted the dream, saying that, "the southland is already thin, seize the northland". Hence, he should bring Egypt back under control of the Kushite empire. After this passage, another states that Tanwetamani then "rose on the throne of Horus", a term which may be interpreted as his having ascended the throne. This is the primary evidence we have for his co-regency with Taharqa, but we are also told that Assyrian text provides that he did not do so until after Taharqa's death.
We assume that at the time of his accession, Tanwetamani was most likely inside Egypt proper, for the text on the stela states that "he went from where he was to Napata (Nubia), and there was none who stood up to oppose him". Hence, he went to the Temple of Amun and was acknowledged as god and king.
Other text within the stela confirms that he was at this time in control of southern, or Upper Egypt, but at the very least was not in control of parts of the north. After ascending the throne, he went north from Nubia, first stopping at Elephantine where he participated in a festival procession of the God Khnum. From there he sailed further north to Waset (Thebes) where he once again participated in the festival.
Nekau of Sais may have been killed in this battle, but his son, Psamtek, who was loyal to the Assyrians fled to Asia. After this victory, Tanwetamani honored the God, Ptah-Sokar and his wife Sakhmet in the great temple of Memphis, and afterwards ordered the building of a chapel dedicated to Amun at Napata in Nubia. The temple, we know, was to be built of stone overlaid with gold, sections of cedar wood and the leaves of the door plated with electrum. This temple may be associated with parts of the great temple of Amun at Gebel Barkal.
Tanwetamani apparently spared the lives of the Delta princes, sending them home, but this victory was short lived.
The "door posts of the temple" may refer to the great gate of electrum erected by Tuthmosis IV and renewed by Shabaka. This attack on Thebes was one of the great tragedies of the ancient world, and was remembered by a Jewish prophet fifty years later.
Interestingly, Tanwetamani seems to have continued to be acknowledged as pharaoh in Thebes until his eighth year. There are inscriptions at Luxor that date the installation of priests by his name and the Kushites still maintained a large official presence in the city. Piye's daughter, Shepenwepet II we know as God's Wife of Amun, with Taharqa's daughter, Amenirdis II as her designated successor. Even in year none of Tanwetamani's reign, his cousin remained the High Priest of Amun, and we have other evidence of the Kushite's continued power within the region.
It is possible that Tanwetamani one again tried to assert control over Egypt, though the evidence is slight. In a brief passage in the work of Polyaenus from a 2nd Century (AD) text, we hear of a later battle near the temple of Isis at Memphis that may have involved Tanwetamani. He states that Psamtik, aided by Carian mercenary troops, defeated "Tementhes". A few Egyptologist believe, based on a hellenistic Jewish source, that Tanwetamani may have even retaken Memphis, but much of this is conjecture.
In any case, Tanwetamani probably continued to rule in Nubia for at least a few more years, and was buried in the necropolis at Nuri.
26TH DYNASTY (657 - 525 BC)
Psammetikhos I was the first ruler of the 26th Dynasty, though his reign overlaps that of the 25th Dynasty. We believe he ruled from about 664 through 610 BC. This is often referred to as the Saite period in Egyptian history, named for the power center of the Delta. It was not until Psammetikhos' ninth regnal year that he completely control Egypt. His birth name was Psamtik I, but he was known as Psammetichus I by the Greeks. His thrown name was Wah-ib-re, meaning "Constant is the Heart of Re" (Horus Name: Aib, Nebty Name: Neba, Bik-nub Name: Qenu).
Some Egyptologists place the 26th Dynasty in to Third Intermediate Period of Egypt's history, while others place it in the Late Period. Certainly, when Psammetikhos began his rule of Egypt, things were still chaotic, with various rulers claiming power. But Psammetikhos would consolidate his rule over Egypt, and reign for about a half a century, returning Egypt to stability.
Both Psammetikhos I and his father, Necho I of Sais were originally involved with an intrigue associated with the Kushite ruler, Taharqo against Assyria, but were then captured, held and indoctrinated by the Assyrians. Psammetikhos I was even given the Assyrian name, Nabu-shezibanni, before finally being returned to Egypt where his father assumed power in the Delta.
Upon the death of Necho in 664, Psammetikhos was recognized by his Assyrian overlords as King of Egypt, but this was a title at first without substance. He had rule over Memphis and Sais, but mostly the country was controlled by the old advisories of the Nubian Kings, who had been driven back to their own land. His was tasked with the responsibilities of controlling not only the unruly princes and petty kings of the Delta, but also to reconcile with the power center at Thebes.
Working with Thebes turned out to be easier then one might imagine, because he was able to align himself with the daughter of a great Theaban nobleman named Mentuemhet. At that time, she held the title, "Adoratice of Amun" (God's Wife of Amun). He was able to insert his own daughter, Nitokris, as her successor He was therefor able to effect both secular and religious ties that were to hold his growing presence in Egypt together, while he went after his Delta opponents. In order to do this, he raised a conscript army, as well as employing the services of mercenaries, many of whom were Greek, including Carians. This involvement with foreign mercenaries apparently caused some concern about their control within Egypt, and archaeological evidence suggests that sites such as Naukratis, among others, were established to facilitate this, along with offering Egypt an increased commercial presence within the Mediterranean world.
Psammetikhos also took as his principle wife Mehtemweskhet who was the daughter of Harsiese S, High Priest at Heliopolis, further cementing his rule.
To all appearances, Psammetikhos I had been a loyal subject of his Assyrian overlords, but as that empire's glories waned, Psammetikhos took his opportunity to break their hold, and in so doing became the absolute ruler of Egypt.
During the remaining four decades of Psammetikhos I's rule, he continued to consolidate his power and bring the country under complete unity, something Egypt had really not seen in a number of years. He undertook a number of building projects, including fortresses in the Delta at Naukratis and Daphnae, as well as at Elephantine. He also greatly expanded the Serapeum at Saqqara.
After consolidating Egypt, militarily, Psammetikhos I was mostly concerned with keeping Egypt's sovereignty strong. There were expeditions into northern Nubia probably to discourage any further ambitions of the Kushite kings. In the north east, Babylon had become such an important power that the king actually formed an alliance with his old masters in Assyria in order to combat Babylon's growing menace. This enabled Egypt to obtain control of the Palestinian coast. There were also actions required on the Libyan frontier in order to combat the threat posed by the fugitive Delta princes.
Psammetikhos I, as well as other kings of this dynasty, followed the archaistic tendencies of the previous dynasty in art, as well as in many customs, such as the formulation of their names. The renaissance in art is such that it is sometimes difficult to tell whether an artifact came from this period of time, or from the Old or Middle Kingdoms.
Psammetikhos I was succeeded by his son, Necho (Nekau) II, who continued to build on his father's accomplishments in Egypt.
Nekau (II), who we know better as Necho, was either the 2nd or 3rd king of Egypt's 26th Dynasty, depending on whether we allow the rule of a nominal king Nekau I at the beginning of the Dynasty. Nekau was his Birth name, and Necho is actually his Greek name. His Throne name was Wah-em-ib-re, which means "Carrying out the Wish of Re Forever".
He came to the throne, succeeding his father, Psammetichus I in about 610 BC., and probably ruled Egypt until about 595 BC. He continued the foreign involvement of his father, and Palestine once more became an Egyptian possession. In fact, much of Egypt's involvement in that area is found in the Biblical account of the Book of Kings. Initially things went well for Nekau II and we find the Egyptian forces campaigning east of the Euphrates river against the Chaldaeans, defeating Josiah of Judah in 609 BC. at Harran. This allowed the Egyptians to establish themselves on the Euphrates for a short while, though apparently the Egyptians did not end up controlling that city. He then intervened in the kingdom of Israel and deposed Josiah's son Jehoahaz, replacing him with his brother Eliakim (Jehoiakim (II Kings 23: 29-35). Afterwards, we are told that Jerusalem paid tribute to Egypt. He also ruled Syria at least as for as Carchemish.
But this position was also soon lost, when in 605 BC, the king suffered a catastrophic loss. The son of the Babylonian king, Nabopolassar was sent to deal with Syria. This was Nebuchadrezzar, and he captured Carchemish from the Egyptians, and then pursued the fleeing army as far as Hamath, where he apparently overwhelmed them. Hence, this was followed by a retreat to by the Egyptians to their eastern frontier at Gaza.
Necho is known to have been responsible for monuments honoring the Apris Bull in Memphis. We also find inscriptional evidence of the king in the quarries of the Mokattam Hills.
But in many ways, Necho was a very foresighted individual who's vision included a "Suez Canal" almost 2,500 years prior to the modern construct. He had a navigable canal dug, using some 12,000 workers, through the Wadi Tumilat between the Pelusiac branch of the Nile (where the great frontier fortress of Pelusium was located) and the Red Sea. He caused a great port city, Per-Temu-Tjeku ("the House of Atum of Tjeku", modern Tell el-Mashkuta) west of modern Ismailia to be built on the canal, and like Suez later, its fortunes were inevitably linked with this new waterway. Tradition held that this was the Biblical city of Pithom, but recent excavations have shown this to be incorrect.
At this time, Greece was expanding her trading contacts and Necho took the opportunity to recruit displaced Ionian Greeks to form an Egyptian Navy. This was, militarily, revolutionary, for the Egyptians had an inherent distaste for and fear of the sea. While this new navy was probably not much threat to his rivals, it did lead to other benefits, such as the creation of a new African trade route. He also encouraged some Greek settlement in the Delta.
When Nacho II died in 595 BC., he left behind a son and three daughters. His son, Psammetichus II, only ruled for a brief period - 595-589.
The King commonly referred to as Apries (his Greek name), who's birth name was Wah-ib-re, meaning "Constant is the Heart of Re" and who's Throne name was Haa-ib-re, meaning "Jubilant is the Heart of Re Forever", succeeded his father, Psamtik II in February of 589 BC., of Egypt's 26th Dynasty. We believe he ruled Egypt until his defeat at the hands of Amasis in 570 BC. Some sources provide that Apries was the Biblical Hophra.
Herodutus claimed that the wife of Apries was called Nitetis, but there appears to be no contemporary souses evidencing her name. We are also told that in the fourth year of his reign, he managed to have Ankhnesneferibre, apparently the daughter of Psammetichus II, adopted as the successor of Nitigret for the title, God's Wife of Amun.
He did build, as all Egyptian kings felt was their duty, in locations such as the temples at Athribis (Tell Atrib), in the Bahariya Oasis, at Memphis and Sais.
He continued a foreign policy of his father of intervention in Palestinian affairs, but was plagued with a number of military problems at home and abroad. He addressed himself vigorously to a Chaldaean problem that had plagued his predecessors, initially operating on a large scale basis against them in conjunction with the Phoenician cities and Zedekiah of Judah. However, this ended up being a disaster and possibly caused an invasion of Egypt in the late 580s BC. However, he also conducted some well conceived campaigns against Cyprus and Phonenicia between 574 and 570 BC.
However, during his reign, a strategically important military garrison of native Egyptian troops at Elephantine (modern Aswan) mutinied, though that was contained.
His worse nightmare transpired after he sent his Egyptian native army to help Libya against the Dorian Greek invaders (against the Greek city of Cyrene), they were badly beaten, and upon the survivor's return, civil war broke out. Apris was blamed for this disaster, resulting in a confrontation between the regular Egyptian army (the machimoi) and foreign mercenaries (Greek) under his command.
Actually, the defeat at Cyrene probably only provided an excuse for the revolt. For sometime, the mercenaries under his command had been treated considerably better than the native Egyptian army. When Apris sent his general, Amasis (Ahmose II) to put down the revolt, instead he was implored by the Egyptians instead to be their leader, a plead which he accepted.
The history of what followed this is somewhat difficult. Various sources actually give considerably different accounts. However, it appears that a messenger arrived to tell Apries of Amasis' treason, and was abruptly killed for his bad news. Now according to almost all accounts, the Greek mercenary troops of Apries under his command advanced on the native Egyptian army. They may have met in the northwest Egyptian Delta in around January or February of 570 BC at a location called Momemphis. Afterwards, many sources provide conflictive information, but it appears Apries probably survived this first battle, though his army was defeated and he was forced to retreat. He may have fled the country, but most sources indicate that he returned to his palace at Memphis, where he may have continued to control a part of Egypt. However, for a somewhat different account of these events, see our section on Amasis (Ahmose II).
Regardless, most sources provide that his body was treated with respect by Amasis. The new king allowed the remains of Apries to be transported to Sais, where he was buried with full royal honors.
Only one definite statue of the king survives, though there are several others, including one that might also be attributable to Amasis, that may be of that of Apries.
Amasis who was probably the 5th ruler of Egypt during the 26th Dynasty, has been called the last great Egyptian Pharaoh. This is because the rule of his son, Psammetichus III, was very short lived, and in fact even in the last days of Amasis' life the Persians were already advancing on Egypt. They were the overwhelming power of the region, and would control Egypt up until Alexander the Great's conquest of Egypt, and the ensuing Greek rulers. After his son, never again would an Egyptian rule ancient Egypt.
Amasis was actually the king's Greek name. His birth name was Ahmose II, which means "The Moon is Born, Son of Neith". His throne name was Khnem-ib-re, meaning "He who embraces the Heart of Re". We believe he ruled Egypt between 570 and 526 BC. We believe that Amasis was the son of a Lady Takheredeneset, and married two women by the names of Tentheta and Nakhtsebastetru. He may have had a third wife named Khedebneithireretbeneret, who was actually a daughter of his great nemesis, Apris. He had a number of children by the first two wives, including his successor, Psammetichus III. Another child we specifically know of was General Ahmose, who, along with his mother Nakhtsebastetru, were buried in tomb LG 83 at Giza. A daughter, Nitokris II, may have come to Thebes for adoption as prospective God's Wife. If so, she was probably the daughter of Khedebneithirerebeneret, because the current God's Wife, Ankhesenneferibre, was a sister of Apries.
From Herodutus, we learn that he was a likeable, popular ruler who is said to have had such a strong inclination for drink that he sometimes delayed state matters in order to indulge in a drinking bout.
However, he did not ascend the throne easily, nor was he in line to do so. We first know of Amasis as a general in Nubia under Psammetikhos I. It would seem that his predecessor, Apries, undertook several military campaigns, but his last against the Greek city of Cyrene ended in disaster. Apries was blamed for the failure, and so a revolt broke out.
In reality, the defeat at Cyrene was really only an excuse for this revolt by Egyptian troops. For some time, the Greek mercenaries within the Egyptian army, who were probably treated better then the Egyptians themselves, were apparently the subject of jealously and contempt by the native Egyptian elements.
Actually, Amasis, as a general in the Egyptian army, was sent to put down the revolt of the machimoi (the native Egyptian soldiers), but instead the soldiers proclaimed him as Pharaoh.
When word reached Apries of Amasis' treason, he slaughtered the messenger and proceeded to advance on the forces of Amasis. By this late date in Pharaonic history, Apries' army was mostly made up of of Aegean mercenaries. The two armies met somewhere in the north-west Egyptian Delta in about January or February of 570 BC, and Apries was forced to retreat.
However, this did not give Amasis complete control of Egypt. Apries's apparent retreat was only as far south as Memphis and he continued to control southern Egypt, while Amasis established himself at Sais in Northern Egypt. Yet Apries was not content with this, and aided by his Greek troops, once again marched on Amasis in October of 570 BC, where he was once again defeated by his former general. With this defeat, Apries could only find safety abroad, and he eventually turned up in the court of Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon. Now, Amasis took control of a united Egypt. This was complete when sometime between October 19th and December 9th of 570 BC, Thebes submitted to his reign.
Yet poor Apries was not yet finished. In March of 567, he again marched on Egypt at the head of a Babylonian army, but once again, Amasis defeated him, this time capturing the former king. It seem that Amasis allowed Apries to live for a short time, however.
Apparently, Amasis still held some respect for his former ruler, because he buried Apries with kingly honors in the royal necropolis at Sais. This may very well be explained if indeed Amasis was married to Apries' daughter. However, various sources differ somewhat on these events. For an alternative version, see our section on Apries.
Now as the ruler of all Egypt, Amasis took on the traditional role of builder, and is attested to by quarry inscriptions at Tura and Elephantine, and with building projects at Memphis, including two granite colossi and a temple of Isis, Philae, Elephantine, Edfu, Sohag, Abydos, Koptos, Karnak and any number of Delta sites, including his tomb at Sais. While we have never discovered this tomb, again Herodotus steps in to describe it for us:
(It is) a great cloistered building of stone, decorated with pillars carved in the imitation of palm-trees, and other costly ornaments. Within the cloister is a chamber with double doors, and behind the doors stands the sepulchre."
This was really a very prosperous time for Egypt. We are told that agriculture, always the backbone of Egypt, met a spectacular level of success, and Herodotus again tells us that the number of inhabited cities in Egypt reached as high as 20,000.
After consolidating his power, Amasis was apparently somewhat weary of the Greeks, who had been around since the beginning of the Dynasty, and of course, fought against him on the side of Apries. Psammetikhos I had encouraged the Greek merchants in the city of Naukratis, and Amasis consolidated them in that area only. This made for easier control of these merchants, and created a lucrative income for the crown in the form of taxes.
Prior to Apries' defeat, the Greek mercenaries were established in camps between Babastis and the sea on the Pelusiac branch of the Nile, where Herodotus tells us they had remained for over a century. Apparently, he first moved them to Memphis, where he could keep an eye on things.
But, Amasis was not willing to push the Greeks too far because he needed their alliance against the expanding threat of the Persians, as well as an attempted invasion by the Chaldaeans. Apparently after this unsuccessful invasion, he formed an alliance with the Chaldaeans, Croesus of Lydia and Sparta.
Unfortunately, the Persians destroyed the alliance by first capturing Lydia in 546 and then the Chaldaeans. So instead, he cultivated his relationship with the Aegean world, extending his foreign relationships to include Cyprus. He is said to have even financed the rebuilding of the temple of Apollo at Delphi after its destruction in 548 BC. According to archaeological records, he probably even allowed the Greek soldiers to return their old mercenary camps. Regrettably, for all his efforts, the Persians would eventually prove too ambitious to stop.
By the time of Amasis' death after a long reign of some 44 years, the Persians had long ago conquered Babylon, and were already at the frontiers of Egypt. His son was eventually captured by the Persians, and Herodotus tells us that the Persian ruler Cambyses had Amasis's mummy exhumed, and:
"subjected to every indignity, such as lashing with whips and the plucking of its hairs, until the executioners were weary. At last, as the corpse had been embalmed and would not fall to pieces under the blows, Cambyses ordered it burnt.""
Psammetichus III 526-525 - No information is available.
27TH DYNASTY (525 - 404 BC)
With the conquest of Egypt, the Persian kings became pharaohs, constituting the 27th and 31st dynasties. Cambyses appointed a satrap, Aryandes, who ruled Egypt, Kyrene and Barca from Memphis. Economically the country formed an important part of the empire, being its breadbasket (as it was to be Rome's). It paid the highest tribute of all the Persian satrapies, 700 talents of silver. (Cilicians were taxed 500 talents as were the Lydians, Ionians and Carians 450, Phrygians 350 and Phoenicia, Cyprus and Palestine another 350.) Moreover it was responsible for the upkeep of the occupying army.
Cambyses 525-522 BC
Cambyses was the first ruler of the Twenty-sixth Dynasty. He was the ruler of Persia and treated the last ruler of the Twenty-fifth Dynasty, Psammetichus III (Psamtik III) with some consideration. Psammetichus then tried to revolt and Cambyses caused him to be killed. There is an inscription on a statue that tells of Cambyses going to Sais to worship Neith and restore the revenues and festivals of the temple. But according to Herodotus, Cambyses did many reprehensible things against Egyptian religion and customs and eventually went mad.
In 525 BC the Persian emperor Cambyses II, son of Cyrus the Great, who had already named his son as king of Babylon though Cambyses II resigned that position after only one year, invaded Egypt and successfully overthrew the native Egyptian pharaoh, Psamtek III, last ruler of Egypt's 26th Dynasty to become the first ruler of Egypt's 27th Persian Dynasty. His father had earlier attempted an invasion of Egypt against Psamtek III's predecessor, Amasis, but Cyrus' death in 529 BC put a halt to that expedition.
The empire of Cyrus passed to his son Cambyses (530-522 BC), who was as savage and ugly of temper as Cyrus had been mild and generous. The father had conquered Asia, the son undertook the conquest of Africa. Having skillfully and successfully led his army across the deserts which separate the two continents, Cambyses met and defeated the Egyptians in front of their city at Pelusium in 525 BC just a few weeks after the death of Pharaoh Amasis of the 19th/26th Dynasty when Psammetichus II was king. Cambyses captured Pelusium by using a clever strategy. The Egyptians regarded certain animals, especially cats, as being sacred, and would not injure them on any account. Cambyses had his men carry the `sacred' animals in front of them to the attack. The Egyptians did not dare to shoot their arrows for fear of wounding the animals, and so Pelusium was stormed successfully. After the taking of the city Cambyses seized the opportunity to show his contempt of the Egyptians. He himself carried a cage of cats in front of him upon his horse, and hurled them with insulting taunts and laughter, in to the faces of his foes.
After capturing Egypt, Cambyses took the Throne name Mesut-i-re (Mesuti-Ra), meaning "Offspring of Re". Though the Persians would rule Egypt for the next 193 years until Alexander the Great defeated Darius III and conquered Egypt in 332 BC, Cambyses II's victory would bring to an end (for the most part) Egyptians truly ruling Egyptians until the mid 20th century, when Egypt finally shrugged off colonial rule.
We know very little about Cambyses II through contemporary texts, but his reputation as a mad tyrannical despot has come down to us in the writings of the Greek historian Herodotus (440 BC) and a Jewish document from 407 BC known as 'The Demotic Chronicle' which speaks of the Persian king destroying all the temples of the Egyptian gods. However, it must be repeatedly noted that the Greeks shared no love for the Persians. Herodotus informs us that Cambyses II was a monster of cruelty and impiety.
Herodotus gives us three tales as to why the Persians invaded Egypt. In one, Cambyses II had requested an Egyptian princess for a wife, or actually a concubine, and was angered when he found that he had been sent a lady of second rate standing. In another, it turns out that he was the bastard son of Nitetis, daughter of the Saite (from Sais) king Apries, and therefore half Egyptian anyway, whereas the third story provides that Cambyses II, at the age of ten, made a promise to his mother (who is now Cassandane) that he would "turn Egypt upside down" to avenge a slight paid to her. However, Ctesias of Cnidus states that his mother was Amytis, the daughter of the last king of independent Media so we are really unsure of that side of his parentage. While even Herodotus doubts all of these stories, and given the fact that his father had already planned one invasion of Egypt, the stories do in fact reflect the later Greek bias towards his Persian dynasty.
Regardless of Cambyses II's reason for his invasion of Egypt, Herodotus notes how the Persians easily entered Egypt across the desert. They were advised by the defecting mercenary general, Phanes of Halicarnassus, to employ the Bedouins as guides. However, Phanes had left his two sons in Egypt. We are told that for his treachery, as the armies of the Persians and the mercenary army of the Egyptians met, his sons were bought out in front of the Egyptian army where they could be seen by their father, and there throats were slit over a large bowl. Afterwards, Herodotus tells us that water and wine were added to the contents of the bowl and drunk by every man in the Egyptian force.
This did not stop the ensuing battle at Pelusium, Greek pelos, which was the gateway to Egypt. Its location on Egypt's eastern boundary, meant that it was an important trading post was well and also of immense strategic importance. It was the starting point for Egyptian expeditions to Asia and an entry point for foreign invaders.
Here, the Egyptian forces were routed in the battle and fled back to Memphis. Apparently Psamtek III managed to escape the ensuing besiege of the Egyptian capital, only to be captured a short time afterwards and was carried off to Susa in chains. Herodotus goes on to tell us of all the outrages that Cambyses II then inflicted on the Egyptians, not only including the stabbing of a sacred Apis bull and his subsequent burial at the Serapeum in Saqqara, but also the desecration and deliberate burning of the embalmed body of Amasis (a story that has been partly evidenced by destruction of some of Amasis' inscriptions) and the banishment of other Egyptian opponents.
The story of Cambyses II's fit of jealousy towards the Apis bull, whether true or simply Greek propaganda, was intended to reflect his personal failures as a monarch and military leader. In the three short years of his rule over Egypt he personally led a disastrous campaign up the River Nile into Ethiopia. There, we are told, his ill-prepared mercenary army was so meagerly supplied with food that they were forced to eat the flesh of their own colleagues as their supplies ran out in the Nubian desert. The Persian army returned northwards in abject humiliation having failed even to encounter their enemy in battle.
Then, of course, there is also the mystery of his lost army, some fifty thousand strong, that vanished in the Western Desert on their way to the Siwa Oasis along with all their weapons and other equipment, never to be heard of again. Cambyses II had also planned a military campaign against Carthage, but this too was aborted because, on this occasion, the king's Phoenician sea captains refused to attack their kinfolk who had founded the Carthagian colony towards the end of the 8th century BC. In fact, the conquest of Egypt was Cambyses' only spectacular military success in his seven years of troubled rule over the Persian empire.
However, we are told that when the Persians at home received news of Cambyses' several military disasters, some of the most influential nobles revolted, swearing allegiance to the king's younger brother Bardiya. With their support, the pretender to the great throne of Cyrus seized power in July 522 BC as Cambyses II was returning home.
The story is told that, on hearing of this revolt, and in haste to mount his horse to swiftly finish the journey home, Cambyses II managed to stab himself in the thigh with his own dagger. At that moment, he began to recall an Egyptian prophecy told to him by the priests of Buto in which it was predicted that the king would die in Ecbatana. Cambyses II had thought that the Persian summer capital of Ecbatana had been meant and that he would therefore die in old age. But now he realized that the prophecy had been fulfilled in a very different way here in Syrian Ecbatana.
Still enveloped in his dark and disturbed mood, Cambyses II decided that his fate had been sealed and simply lay down to await his end. The wound soon became gangrenous and the king died in early August of 522 BC. However, it should be noted that other references tell us that Cambyses II had his brother murdered even prior to his expedition to Egypt, but apparently if it was not Bardiya (though there is speculation that Cambyses II's servants perhaps did not kill his brother as ordered), there seems to have definitely been an usurper to the throne, perhaps claiming to be his brother, who we are told was killed secretly.
Cambyses II
Modern Egyptologists believe that many of these accounts are rather biased, and that Cambyses II's rule was perhaps not nearly so traumatic as Herodotus, who wrote his history only about 75 years after Cambyses II's demise, would have us believe. In reality, the Saite dynasty had all but completely collapsed, and it is likely that with Psamtek III's (Psammetichus III) capture by the Persians, Cambyses II simply took charge of the country. The Egyptians were particularly isolated at this time in their history, having seen there Greek allies defect, including not only Phanes, but Polycrates of Samos. In addition, many of Egypt's minorities, such as the Jewish community at Elephantine and even certain elements within the Egyptian aristocracy, seem to have even welcomed Cambyses II's rule.
A depiction of Cambyses II worshipping the Apris Bull
The Egyptian evidence that we do have depicts a ruler anxious to avoid offending Egyptian susceptibilities who at least presented himself as an Egyptian king in all respects. It is even possible that the pillaging of Egyptian towns told to us by Greek sources never occurred at all. In an inscription on the statue of Udjadhorresnet, a Saite priest and doctor, as well as a former naval officer, we learn that Cambyses II was prepared to work with and promote native Egyptians to assist in government, and that he showed at least some respect for Egyptian religion. For example, regardless of the death of the Apris Bull, it should be noted that the animal's burial was held with proper pomp, ceremony and respect. Indeed, Cambyses II continued Egyptian policy regarding sanctuaries and national cults, confirmed by his building work in the Wadi Hammamat and at a few other Egyptian temples.
The statue recording the autobiography of Udjadhorresnet
Udjadhorresnet goes on to say in his autobiography written on a naophorous statue now in the Vatican collection at Rome, that he introduced Cambyses II to Egyptian culture so that he might take on the appearance of a traditional Egyptian Pharaoh.
However, even though Cambyses II had his name written in a kingly Egyptian cartouche, he did remained very Persian, and was buried at Takht-i-Rustam near Persepolis (Iran). It has been suggested that Cambyses II may have originally followed a traditional Persian policy of reconciliation in the footsteps of their conquests. In deed, it may be that Cambyses II's rule began well enough, but with the his defeats and losses, his mood may very well have turned darker with time, along with his actions.
We do know that there was a short lived revolt which broke out in Egypt after Cambyses II died in 522 BC, but the independence was lost almost immediately to his successor, a distant relative and an officer in Cambyses II's army, named Darius. The dynasty of Persian rulers who then ruled Egypt did so as absentee landlords from afar.
The unfinished tomb of Cambyses II in Iran
The Lost Army of Cambyses II
Within recent years all manner of artifacts and monuments have been discovered in Egypt's Western Desert. Here and there, new discoveries of temples and tombs turn up, even in relatively inhabited areas where more modern structures are often difficult to distinguish from ancient ruins. It is a place where the shifting sands can uncover whole new archaeological worlds, and so vast that no more than very small regions are ever investigated systematically by Egyptologists. In fact, most discoveries if not almost all are made by accident, so Egypt antiquity officials must remain ever alert to those who bring them an inscribed stone unearthed beneath a house, or a textile fragment found in the sand.
Lately, there has been considerable petroleum excavation in the Western Desert. Anyone traveling the main route between the near oasis will see this activity, but the exploration for oil stretched much deeper into the Western Desert. It is not surprising that they have come upon a few archaeological finds, and it is not unlikely that they will come across others. Very recently, when a geological team from the Helwan University geologists found themselves walking through dunes littered with fragments of textiles, daggers, arrow-heads, and the bleached bones of the men to whom all these trappings belonged, they reported the discovery to the antiquity service.
Mohammed al-Saghir of the Supreme Council of Antiquities (SCA) now believes that this accidental find may very well be at least remnants of the mysterious Lost Army of Cambyses II, and he is now organizing a mission to investigate the site more thoroughly. If he is successful and the discovery is that of Cambyses II's50,000 strong lost army, than it will not only answer some ancient mysteries, but will probably also provide us with a rich source of information on the Persian military of that time, and maybe even expand our knowledge of Cambyses II himself.
The Persian armed forces consisted of many elements, including companies of foreign mercenaries such as Greeks, Phoenicians, Carians, Cilicians, Medes and Syrians. Hence, if this is not another false lead, we may expect excellent preservation of helmets, leather corselets, cloth garments, spears, bows, swords and daggers a veritable treasure trove of military memorabilia. The rations and support equipment will all be there, ready for detailed analysis.
However, it should be noted that some Egyptologists question the very existence of such an army, rather believing that the whole affair was simply a fable told by a very prejudiced Greek.
Yet if true, Cambyses II probably sent his army to Siwa Oasis in the Western Desert to seek (or seize) legitimization of his rule from the oracle of Amun, much as Alexander the Great would do in the 4th century BC. However, the army was overtaken by a sandstorm and buried. For centuries adventurers and archaeologists have tried to find the lost army, and at times, tantalizing, though usually false glues have been discovered.
Legitimizing his rule does not fully explain the need for taking such a large army to the Siwa Oasis. Accounts and other resources provide that the priests of the oracle were perhaps posing a danger to Cambyses II's rule, probably encouraging revolt among the native Egyptians. Perhaps the priests felt slighted that Cambyses II had not immediately sought their approval as Alexander the Great would do almost upon his arrival in Egypt. Therefore, it is likely that Cambyses II intended to forces their legitimization of his rule. In fact, some sources believe that his intent was to simply destroy the Oasis completely for their treachery, while it is also know that the army was to continue on after Siwa in order to attack the Libyans.
Yet the Siwa Oasis, the western most of Egypt's Oasis, is much deeper into the desert than others, such as Bahariya, and apparently, like many of Cambyses II's military operations, this one too was ill conceived. Why he so easily entered Egypt with the help of the Bedouins, and than sent such a large force into the desert only to be lost is a mystery.
We know that the army was dispatched from the holy city of Thebes, supported by a great train of pack animals. After a seven day march, it reached the Kharga Oasis and moved on to the last of the near Oasis, the Bahariya, before turning towards the 325 kilometers of desert that separated it from the Siwa Oasis. It would have been a 30 day march through burning heat with no additional sources of water or shade.
According to Herodotus (as later reported to him by the inhabitants of Siwa), after many days of struggle through the soft sand, the troops were resting one morning when calamity struck without warning. "As they were at their breakfast, a wind arose from the south, strong and deadly, bringing with it vast columns of whirling sand, which buried the troops and caused them utterly to disappear." Overwhelmed by the powerful sandstorm, men and animals alike were asphyxiated as they huddled together, gradually being enveloped in a sea of drift-sand.
It was after learning of the loss of his army that, having witnessed the reverence with which the Egyptians regarded the sacred Apis bull of Memphis in a ceremony and believing he was being mocked, he fell into a rage, drew his dagger and plunged it into the bull-calf. However, it seems that he must have latter regretted this action, for the Bull was buried with due reverence.
Cambyses left no heirs, and Darius I, one of his generals, fought his way to sovereignty against many rivals.
Darius I 520-486 BC
Darius I - Darius The Great - was the second ruler of the Twenty-seventh Dynasty. He was king of Persia in 522-486 BC, one of the greatest rulers of the Achaemenid dynasty, who was noted for his administrative genius and for his great building projects. Darius attempted several times to conquer Greece; his fleet was destroyed by a storm in 492, and the Athenians defeated his army at Marathon in 490.
Ascension to monarchy
Darius was the son of Hystaspes, the satrap (provincial governor) of Parthia. The principal contemporary sources for his history are his own inscriptions, especially the great trilingual inscription on the Bisitun (Behistun) rock at the village of the same name, in which he tells how he gained the throne. The accounts of his accession given by the Greek historians Herodotus and Ctesias are in many points obviously derived from this official version but are interwoven with legends.
According to Herodotus, Darius, when a youth, was suspected by Cyrus II the Great (who ruled from 559 to 529 BC) of plotting against the throne. Later Darius was in Egypt with Cambyses II, the son of Cyrus and heir to his kingdom, as a member of the royal bodyguard. After the death of Cambyses in the summer of 522 BC, Darius hastened to Media, where, in September, with the help of six Persian nobles, he killed Bardiya (Smerdis), another son of Cyrus, who had usurped the throne the previous March.
In the Bisitun inscription Darius defended this deed and his own assumption of kingship on the grounds that the usurper was actually Gaumata, a Magian, who had impersonated Bardiya after Bardiya had been murdered secretly by Cambyses. Darius therefore claimed that he was restoring the kingship to the rightful Achaemenid house. He himself, however, belonged to a collateral branch of the royal family, and, as his father and grandfather were alive at his accession, it is unlikely that he was next in line to the throne. Some modern scholars consider that he invented the story of Gaumata in order to justify his actions and that the murdered king was indeed the son of Cyrus.
Darius did not at first gain general recognition but had to impose his rule by force. His assassination of Bardiya was followed, particularly in the eastern provinces, by widespread revolts, which threatened to disrupt the empire. In Susiana, Babylonia, Media, Sagartia, and Margiana, independent governments were set up, most of them by men who claimed to belong to the former ruling families. Babylonia rebelled twice and Susiana three times.
In Persia itself a certain Vahyazdata, who pretended to be Bardiya, gained considerable support. These risings, however, were spontaneous and uncoordinated, and, notwithstanding the small size of his army, Darius and his generals were able to suppress them one by one. In the Bisitun inscription he records that in 19 battles he defeated nine rebel leaders, who appear as his captives on the accompanying relief. By 519 BC, when the third rising in Susiana was put down, he had established his authority in the east.
In 518 Darius visited Egypt, which he lists as a rebel country, perhaps because of the insubordination of its satrap, Aryandes, whom he put to death.
Fortification of the empire
Having restored internal order in the empire, Darius undertook a number of campaigns for the purpose of strengthening his frontiers and checking the incursions of nomadic tribes. In 519 BC he attacked the Scythians east of the Caspian Sea and a few years later conquered the Indus Valley.
In 513, after subduing eastern Thrace and the Getae, he crossed the Danube River into European Scythia, but the Scythian nomads devastated the country as they retreated from him, and he was forced, for lack of supplies, to abandon the campaign.
The satraps of Asia Minor completed the subjugation of Thrace, secured the submission of Macedonia, and captured the Aegean islands of Lemnos and Imbros. Thus, the approaches to Greece were in Persian hands, as was control of the Black Sea grain trade through the straits, the latter being of major importance to the Greek economy.
The conquest of Greece was a logical step to protect Persian rule over the Greeks of Asia Minor from interference by their European kinsmen. According to Herodotus, Darius, before the Scythian campaign, had sent ships to explore the Greek coasts, but he took no military action until 499 BC, when Athens and Eretria supported an Ionian revolt against Persian rule.
After the suppression of this rebellion, Mardonius, Darius' son-in-law, was given charge of an expedition against Athens and Eretria, but the loss of his fleet in a storm off Mount Athos (492 BC) forced him to abandon the operation. In 490 BC another force under Datis, a Mede, destroyed Eretria and enslaved its inhabitants but was defeated by the Athenians at Marathon. Preparations for a third expedition were delayed by an insurrection in Egypt, and Darius died in 486 BC before they were completed.
Darius as an administrator
Although Darius consolidated and added to the conquests of his predecessors, it was as an administrator that he made his greatest contribution to Persian history. He completed the organization of the empire into satrapies, initiated by Cyrus the Great, and fixed the annual tribute due from each province. During his reign, ambitious and far-sighted projects were undertaken to promote imperial trade and commerce.
Coinage, weights, and measures were standardized and land and sea routes developed. An expedition led by Scylax of Caryanda sailed down the Indus River and explored the sea route from its mouth to Egypt, and a canal from the Nile River to the Red Sea, probably begun by the chief of the Egyptian delta lords, Necho I (7th century BC), was repaired and completed.
While measures were thus taken to unite the diverse peoples of the empire by a uniform administration, Darius followed the example of Cyrus in respecting native religious institutions. In Egypt he assumed an Egyptian titulary and gave active support to the cult. He built a temple to the god Amon in the Kharga oasis, endowed the temple at Edfu, and carried out restoration work in other sanctuaries.
He empowered the Egyptians to reestablish the medical school of the temple of Sais, and he ordered his satrap to codify the Egyptian laws in consultation with the native priests. In the Egyptian traditions he was considered as one of the great lawgivers and benefactors of the country. In 519 BC he authorized the Jews to rebuild the Temple at Jerusalem, in accordance with the earlier decree of Cyrus. In the opinion of some authorities, the religious beliefs of Darius himself, as reflected in his inscriptions, show the influence of the teachings of Zoroaster, and the introduction of Zoroastrianism as the state religion of Persia is probably to be attributed to him.
Darius was the greatest royal architect of his dynasty, and during his reign Persian architecture assumed a style that remained unchanged until the end of the empire. In 521 BC he made Susa his administrative capital, where he restored the fortifications and built an audience hall (apadana) and a residential palace.
The foundation inscriptions of his palace describe how he brought materials and craftsmen for the work from all quarters of the empire. At Persepolis, in his native country of Fars (Persis), he founded a new royal residence to replace the earlier capital at Pasargadae.
The fortifications, apadana, council hall, treasury, and a residential palace are to be attributed to him, although not completed in his lifetime. He also built at Ecbana and Babylon.
Darius died while preparing a new expedition against the Greeks; his son and successor, Xerxes I, attempted to fulfill his plan.
Tomb of Darius
Xerxes I, detail of a bas-relief of the north courtyard in
the treasury at Persepolis, late 6th -early 5th century BC
Xerxes I - (Xerxes the Great) (zûrk´sz) - was the third ruler of the Twenty-seventh Dynasty. His name in Old Persian is Khshayarsha, in the Bible Ahasuerus.
Xerxes became king of Persia at the death of his father Darius the Great in 485, at a time when his father was preparing a new expedition against Greece and had to face an uprising in Egypt. According to Herodotus, the transition was peaceful this time.
Because he was about to leave for Egypt, Darius, following the law of his country had been requested to name his successor and to choose between the elder of his sons, born from a first wife before he was in power, and the first of his sons born after he became king, from a second wife, Atossa, Cyrus' daughter, who had earlier been successively wed to her brothers Cambyses and Smerdis, and which he had married soon after reaching power in order to confirm his legitimacy. Atossa was said to have much power on Darius and he chosed her son Xerxes for successor. When his father died, in 486 BC, Xerxes was about 35 years old and had already governed Babylonia for a dozen years.
One of his first concerns upon his accession was to pacify Egypt, where a usurper had been governing for two years. But he was forced to use much stronger methods than had Darius. In 484 BC he ravaged the Delta and chastised the Egyptians.
Xerxes then learned of the revolt of Babylon, where two nationalist pretenders had appeared in swift succession. The second, Shamash-eriba, was conquered by Xerxes' son-in-law, and violent repression ensued: Babylon's fortresses were torn down, its temples pillaged, and the statue of Marduk destroyed; this latter act had great political significance.
Xerxes was no longer able to "take the hand of" (receive the patronage of) the Babylonian god. Whereas Darius had treated Egypt and Babylonia as kingdoms personally united to the Persian Empire (though administered as satrapies), Xerxes acted with a new intransigence.
Having rejected the fiction of personal union, he then abandoned the titles of king of Babylonia and king of Egypt, making himself simply "king of the Persians and the Medes.² It was probably the revolt of Babylon, although some authors say it was troubles in Bactria, to which Xerxes alluded in an inscription that proclaimed: "And among these countries (in rebellion) there was one where, previously, daevas had been worshipped. Afterward, through Ahura Mazda's favour, I destroyed this sanctuary of daevas. Let daevas not be worshipped. There, where daevas had been worshipped before, I worshipped Ahura Mazda."
Xerxes thus declared himself the adversary of the daevas, the ancient pre-Zoroastrian gods, and doubtlessly identified the Babylonian gods with these fallen gods of the Aryan religion. The questions arise of whether the destruction of Marduk's statue should be linked with this text proclaiming the destruction of the daeva sanctuaries, of whether Xerxes was a more zealous supporter of Zoroastrianism than was his father, and, indeed, of whether he himself was a Zoroastrian.
It is said that the slaves' lives were much harder during the time of Xerxes. It is not certain whether this is true since Xerxes was much more involved elsewhere and paid little attention to Egypt.
During his reign he put down uprisings in both Egypt and Babylon, but his efforts to invade Europe were thrown back by Greece in 480.
Xerxes was assassinated in 465 BC. Some believe that it was his son who had him assassinated, but there is no proof.
Xerxes' Hall of the 100 Columns is the most impressive
building in the Persepolis Complex. jumble of fallen
columns, column heads, and column bases.
The Gate of Xerxes at Perespolis shows that the Winged Lion was placed at the corner of one entrance. When you stood in front of the gate you saw a lion with four legs and when you were inside the gate you also saw a lion with four legs.
The king of ancient Persia (464-425 BC), of the dynasty of the Achaemenis. Artaxerxes is the Greek form of ³Ardashir the Persian.² He succeeded his father, Xerxes I , in whose assassination he had no part. The later weakness of the Persian Empire is commonly traced to the reign of Artaxerxes, and there were many uprisings in the provinces.
The revolt of Egypt, aided by the Athenians, was put down (c.455 BC) after years of fighting, and Bactria was pacified. The Athenians sent a fleet under Cimon to aid a rebellion of Cyprus against Persian rule.
The fleet won a victory, but the treaty negotiated by Callias was generally favorable to Persia. Important cultural exchanges occurred between Greece and Persia during Artaxerxes' reign. He was remembered warmly in the books of Ezra and Nehemiah because he authorized their revival of Judaism.
Darius II was the fifth king of the Twenty-seventh Dynasty. 404 B.C., king of ancient Persia (423?404 B.C.); son of Artaxerxes I and a concubine, hence sometimes called Darius Nothus [Darius the Bastard].
His rule was not popular or successful, and he spent most of his reign in quelling revolts in Syria, Lydia (413), and Media (410).
He lost Egypt (410), but through the diplomacy of Pharnabazus, Tissaphernes, and Cyrus the Younger he secured much influence in Greece in the Peloponnesian War.
Artaxerxes II succeeded Darius, but the succession was challenged by Cyrus the Younger.
During his reign, he did some work on the temple of Amun is the Kharga oasis.
There were also many foreigners in Egypt during this time, mostly Greeks and Jews.
He died in the spring of 404 BC.
28TH DYNASTY
Amyrtaios was the only ruler of the Twenty-eighth Dynasty. He is thought to have been a Libyan. He ruled Egypt from Sais for six years. He began his reign after the death of Darius II when there was a renewed revolt in Egypt. They achieved independence for a short time again. On the Elephantine Papyri, there is documentation of a loan contract that is written in the year 5 of this king. This is indication that he was recognized in Upper and Lower Egypt. He must have driven the Persians out of the whole country.
29TH DYNASTY (399 - 380 BC)
Nepherites I was the first ruler of the Twenty-ninth Dynasty. Nepherites I sent a gift to the Spartans after an allegiance had been entered into with Sparta against Persia. This gift was lost to the Persians after the ships from Egypt approached Rhodes. The Egyptians did not know that the Rhodians had defected to the Persians.
No information available.
There is some discrepancy as to whether Hakoris was the second of the third king of the Twenty-ninth Dynasty. Psammuthis is the king in which the confusion is associated with because he is shown to have ruled during the same year as Hakoris (393 BC). Hakoris reigned for thirteen years and built many monuments which are found in all parts of Egypt. During his reign there was peace between Persia and Sparta. Persia was free to move against Egypt and there was a three-year war between the two. Egypt was relatively strong during this time and became allies with Cyprus. Egypt was delivered from Persia. The tomb of Hakoris has not been found.
Nepherites II was the fourth and final ruler of the Twenty-ninth Dynasty. He reigned for only four months before he was overthrown by the founder of the Thirtieth Dynasty. He assumed the throne after the death of Hakoris, who was Nepherites' father. The name Nepherites has an etymological meaning of "His great ones are prosperous".
30TH DYNASTY (380-343 BC)
Nectanebo I - Nectanebus - Nakhthorhebe - 380-362 B.C.
Nectanebo I was the first ruler of the Thirtieth Dynasty and was a general from Sebennytus. He is thought to have been related to the family of Nepherites I. He imposed heavy taxes on the people of Egypt in order to conquer Syria from Persia. In the spring of 373 BC, the Persian army moved in to attack Egypt. They got as far as the Mendesian mouth of the Nile. Two of the commanders of the Persian forces could not agree on their strategy. As the time passed, the Nile rose and flooded the Delta area. The Persians abandoned their efforts and left. The Egyptians had successfully turned back the Persians, with a little help from the Nile, and peace was established. Nectanebo restored and built many monuments throughout Egypt.380-362
Teos was the second ruler of the Thirtieth Dynasty and was the son of his predecessor, Nectanebo I. After his father had died, Teos took over the throne and planned an attack on the Persians. He had the help of mercenaries from Greece, but his own generals disagreed with his leadership and the entire event was a fiasco. He was deserted by both the Greeks and the Egyptians. He fled to Persia by way of Arabia and Artaxerxes II, the ruler of Persia, gave him refuge. He lived in Persia until his death.
Nectanebo II was the third and final ruler of the Thirtieth Dynasty. He became king after Teos' campaign into Persia which was a disaster. Teos had fled to Persia and Nectanebo returned to Egypt as Pharaoh. Nectanebo ruled for eighteen years and built many monuments in Egypt.
Much of Nectanebo's reign was peaceful and there was a final flowering of the local Egyptian arts. Statues were erected at Abydos and Bubastis, a granite temple was built at Horbeit in the Delta and bas-reliefs were carved at Karnak with a purity of style comparable to that of the Saite renaissance.
After the disaster with the Persians, Nectanebo II risked no further expeditions against the Syrians or the Palestinians. However, the Persians did attempt to subdue Egypt and this time succeeded. Cyprus and Phoenicia were also fighting against the Persians and were assisted with some troops from Nectanebo II.
Artaxerxes III (Persian) destroyed these troops and moved against Egypt. This time the Nile flooding had already passed and the Persian attack was made much more wisely that the last attack (Nectanebo I). The attack was made at three different points at the same time. Nectanebo II retreated to Memphis where he thought he would make a stand against the Persians. But, as city after city fell, he gathered up as much of his possessions as he could and fled to Ethiopia.
Artaxerxes razed fortifications, desecrated temples and plundered the treasury. He appointed Pherendares as satrap of Egypt and returned to Babylon laden with treasures.
SECOND PERSIAN PERIOD (343-332 B.C.)
31ST DYNASTY (380-343 BC)
The 31st Dynasty in also known as the Second Persian Period and was added after Manetho created his list of kings..
Ochus was the first ruler of the Thirty-first Dynasty. He was the king of Persia for twenty years when the Persians defeated the Egyptians and Ochus became ruler over Egypt. He was the son of Artaxerxes II. He ruled over Egypt for six years. He was murdered in 338 BC by his own commander Bagoas in the summer of 338 BC.
Arses was the second ruler of the Thirty-first Dynasty and was the youngest son of Ochus. After Ochus was murdered, Arses succeeded him and ruled until he was murdered in 336 BC by his commander Bagoas.
Darius III - king of ancient Persia. A cousin of Artaxerxes III, he was raised to the throne by the eunuch Bagoas, who had murdered both Artaxerxes and his son, Arses; Darius in turn murdered Bagoas. His rule was not stable, however. When Alexander the Great invaded Persia, Darius was defeated in the battle of Issus (333 BC) and again in the battle of Gaugamela near Arbela (331 BC). For the first time Persia was confronted by a united Greece, and Darius' greatest error was in underestimating Alexander's strength. Darius used the wrong tactics in battle and was forced to flee to Ecbatana and then eastward to Bactria. It was there that the satrap of Bactria, Bessus, had Darius murdered on Alexander's approach and took command himself in the unsuccessful opposition to the Macedonian conqueror. These events brought the Persian Empire to an end and marked the beginning of the Hellenistic period in the E Mediterranean. Darius III is probably the Darius the Persian mentioned in the Bible (Neh. 12.22).
GRECO-ROMAN PERIOD (332 B.C. - 395 A.D.)
Macedonian Kings - Alexandria
Alexander the Great 332-323
The Egyptians, oppressed under the Persian rule, welcomed Alexander the Great with open arms when he entered the country in 332 B.C. While there he visited the Oracle of Amon, at Siwa, where he was declared "the son of Amon." Exactly how this happened is unclear. One story is that either upon entering or exiting the temple he was greeted by the priest as "my son." Alexander's army and followers were not in a strategic position to see the priest and thought the words came from the god himself. However it happened, from that point on Alexander was instated as a son of god, like the pharaohs of old. Alexander initiated the building of Alexandria, but never lived to see the city. He left Egypt in 331 B.C. and left Cleomenes of Naukratis in charge of the territory. This position was later claimed by Ptolemy. When Alexander died, Ptolemy's generals divided the kingdom.
Philip Arrhidaeus 323-316
Alexander IV 316-304
PTOLEMAIC DYNASTY
Ptolemaic Dynasty - Ptolemy I - XV - Cleopatra
This period is confusing due to all of the co-regencies. Scholars are not always in agreement on the order of reigns and, in some case, the reigns themselves, from Ptolemy VI through Ptolemy XI. In any event, Egypt's authority and wealth was intact until the death of Cleopatra, at which time, Egypt was overpowered by Rome.
Upon the death of Alexander the Great in 323 BC, the throne of Egypt fell to Ptolemy I, the son of Lagus. He was a veteran soldier and trusted commander who had served Alexander. He started the Ptolemaic Dynasty, which lasted about 300 years. He ran Egypt like a business, strictly for profit. One of the few surviving works of Ptolemy I Soter is the temple of Kom Abu Billo, which was dedicated to Hathor "Mistress of Mefket".
Ptolemy II Philadelphus, which means 'Brother/Sister-loving', was the second ruler of the Ptolemaic Dynasty. His construction efforts included that of building the canal that linked the Nile to the Gulf of Suez. He was married to his full sister Arsinoe II. He also began a tradition of a four-yearly celebration to honor his father. It was intended to have a status equal to the Olympic games. According to the "Letter of Aristeas", Ptolemy II requested 70 Jewish scholars come from Jerusalem to translate the Pentateuch into a Greek version to be placed into the Great Library collection. He died on January 29, 246 BC.
Ptolemy III Euergeter I was the third ruler of the Ptolemaic Dynasty. He was the son of Ptolemy II Philadelphus and Arsinoe II and was married to Berenike, his sister. During the Third Syrian War of Ptolemy III, he discovered the main port in the Axumite kingdom, which was very important to the trade of ivory. He died in 222 BC.
Ptolemy IV Philopator was the fourth ruler of the Ptolemaic Dynasty. Philopator means 'Father-loving'. He married his sister Arsinoe and the two received a cult as the Father-loving Gods (Theoi Philopatores). He died in the summer of 204. After his death, two of his most powerful ministers had his wife, Arsinoe III, killed.
Ptolemy V Epiphanes was the fifth ruler of the Ptolemaic Dynasty. He was the son of Ptolemy IV Philopator and Arsinoe III. He became king after his father's death, when he was only five years old. After his father's death, his mother was eager to become the next regent. Ptolemy IV Philopator's two most powerful ministers, Sosibius and Agathocles had Arsinoe murdered. He was passed from the control of one adviser to another. The Rosetta Stone gives the trilingual inscription of the ceremonies attending the coronation of Ptolemy V Epiphanes. He was married to Cleopatra I. He died at the age of twenty-eight while putting down the last of the insurgents in the Delta. There were rumors that he had been poisoned. He left his wife, who was the daughter of Antiochus, as regent for their young son Ptolemy VI Philomentor.
Ptolemy VI Philometor was the sixth ruler of the Ptolemaic Dynasty. He was the son and successor of Ptolemy V Epiphanes, who died when Philometor was a very young boy. His mother died at approximately four years after Philometor took the throne and he was under the control of his guardians, Eulaeus and Lenaeus. His wife-sister was Cleopatra II and his younger brother was Ptolemy VII Euergetes II Physcon. In 164 BC, Philometor left Alexandria and went to Rome where he pretended to be working-class. He waited here until the authorities came to him. Physcon ruled in his absence and it was becoming intolerable. The Alexandrians soon were begging for Philometor to return to Alexandria. In May of 163, the two brothers agreed to split up the rule of Egypt. Physcon would rule the western province of Cyrenaica and Philometor was ruler of Egypt. This lasted until Philometor's death in 145 BC.
Ptolemy VII Neos Philopator was the seventh ruler of the Ptolemaic Dynasty. He was the son of Ptolemy VI Philometor and Cleopatra II. Upon Philometor's death, Cleopatra's son, who was about 16 years old and had been appointed co-ruler by his father earlier that year, became king under his mother's regency. Philopator's uncle Physcon (Ptolemy VIII Euergetes II) wanted to rule and a large number of supporters. He could not get Cleopatra out of the way, so he did the next best thing, he married her. Philopator was killed during the wedding feast.
Ptolemy VIII Euergetes II (Physcon) was the eighth ruler of the Ptolemaic Dynasty. He was the younger brother of Ptolemy VI Philometor and the uncle of Ptolemy VII Neos Philopator. He ruled Egypt when Philometor fled Alexandria for Rome. His rule proved to be intolerable and the Alexandrians were begging for Philometor to return. When he did, the two brothers split up rule; Physcon ruling the western province of Cyrenaica and Philometor ruled Egypt. Upon Philometor's death, his son, Philopator, took over the throne with his mother as co-regent. Physcon married Philopator's mother, Cleopatra II, and had Philopator killed at the wedding feast. He returned to Memphis as Pharaoh and expulsed many of the Alexandrians who had sided against him. He also married Cleopatra II's daughter, Cleopatra III. He died on June 26, 116 BC and left his power to Cleopatra III and whichever of her sons she might prefer.
Cleopatra III & Ptolemy IX Soter II (Lathyros) were co-regents during the Ptolemaic Dynasty. Cleopatra III was the niece of Physcon (Ptolemy VIII Euergetes II) and was married to him while her mother was still his official wife. She bore Physcon two sons - Ptolemy IX Philometor Soter II (Lathyros) and Ptolemy X Alexander I as well as three daughters, Cleopatra IV, Cleopatra Tryphaena, and Cleopatra Selene.
In Physcon's will he left the succession to Cleopatra and to whichever son she preferred. She hated Lathyros, but doted on the younger son Alexander. The Alexandrians wanted Lathyros to be co-regent. He was then governor of Cyprus. Lathyros was brought back to Alexandria to co-rule and Alexander was sent to Cyprus to replace Lathyros.
Lathyros was married to Cleopatra IV, his sister, but his mother repudiated the marriage and replaced her with Cleopatra Selene, who was Cleopatra IV's sister. Cleopatra IV went to Cyprus where she tried to raise an army and to marry Ptolemy Alexander. She failed to marry him and moved on to Syria where she used her army as a dowry and married Antiochus IX Cyzicenus who was son of Antiochus Sidetes and Cleopatra Thea.
Cleopatra III finally succeeded in driving out Lathyros in 107 BC when she accused him of trying to murder her. He left behind his wife and his two sons. His brother returned from Cyprus and assumed the throne. Lathyros was in Cyprus during this time.
After the death of Alexander in a naval battle, Lathyros, who was now in his mid-fifties, was brought back to Alexandria to try to put back together the Ptolemaic empire. He died at the age of 62 and left no legitimate heir to the throne, both of his sons by Cleopatra Selene appear to have died at a young age. His daughter Cleopatra Berenice ruled alone for a while after his death.
Cleopatra III & Alexander I were co-rulers of the Ptolemaic Dynasty after Cleopatra had driven out her older son, Ptolemy IX Soter II (Lathyros), after accusing him of trying to kill her. Alexander had been the governor of Cyprus, but after Lathyros had been ousted, he returned to Alexandria to rule with his mother. Not long after he came to rule, his mother soon grew tired of him as well and forced him to flee from Alexandria. In 101, he returned under the pretense of a reconciliation with his mother. He came back and had her assassinated. Alexander was finally driven out of Egypt after selling off Alexander the Great's gold coffin to raise money. He willed his kingdom to Rome however, they could not claim their inheritance while he was still alive. It did allow him to gain favor with moneylenders in Rome. This did allow him to finance a fleet. He was killed in a naval battle off Cyprus.
Cleopatra Berenice was the daughter of Lathyros (Ptolemy IX Soter II) and was married to Ptolemy X Alexander I. After the death of Alexander, she ruled for about one year alone. She was forced to marry her much younger stepson (or possible son). Nineteen days after the marriage took place, Ptolemy XI murdered his new bride.
Ptolemy XI Alexander II was the son of Ptolemy X Alexander. After the death of his uncle Ptolemy IX Soter II (Lathyros), his step-mother (or possibly mother) Cleopatra Berenice ruled for about one year alone. Ptolemy XI was required to marry his step-mother, who was much older than he. The marriage took place and nineteen days later, Ptolemy XI killed his new bride. He was then lynched by the Alexandrian mob, with whom his wife had been very popular
Ptolemy XII Neos Dionysos was the illegitimate son of Lathyros (Ptolemy IX Soter II). His younger brother became governor of Cyprus and Ptolemy XII came to Alexandria to rule after the death of Ptolemy XI Alexander II. He was often referred to by his subjects as the Bastard or the Flute Player (Auletes). He referred to himself as 'Theos Philopator Philadelphos Neos Dionysos'. It is only in the history books that he is referred to as Ptolemy XII. He was married to his sister-wife, Cleopatra V Tryphaena and was the father of the famous Cleopatra VII, who grew up to be the last of the Ptolemies.
In 59 BC, he raised enough money to bribe Caesar, who was now consul for Rome. However, he was driven out of Alexandria in 58 BC. This occurred partly because of his tameness when Rome absorbed Cyprus. In his absence, he left as co-regents his wife-sister Cleopatra V Tryphaena and their eldest daughter, Berenice IV. Cleopatra Tryphaena died about a year later and Berenice IV ruled as sole regent. She was made to marry Seleucus Kybiosaktes but after a short time, she had him strangled. Auletes returned to the throne in 55 BC and ruled until his death in 51 BC. On his death, he left his regency to his daughter Cleopatra VII.
Berenice IV was the oldest daughter of Auletes (Ptolemy XII Neos Dionysos) and ruled for three years during his exile. At the beginning of his exile, she co-ruled with her mother Cleopatra V Tryphaena until the mother's death about a year later. Berenice ruled as sole regent and was expected to marry. The one selected was Seleucus Kybiosaktes. After a few days, she had her husband strangled. The second man she chose was Archelaus. Her father finally paid out enough money and was brought back to Egypt. Archelaus' army was defeated and Pompey suggested that Auletes be returned to the throne. One of his first acts was to have his daughter, Berenice, executed.
Cleopatra VII
Cleopatra VII was born in 69 BC in Alexandria, Egypt.
She was the last Pharaoh of Egypt.
The Ptolemies were Macedonian in decent, but ruled as Egyptians, as Pharaohs.
What is often not associated with Cleopatra was her brilliance and her devotion to her country.
She was a quick-witted woman who was fluent in nine languages, however, Latin was not one of them.
She was a mathematician and a very good businesswoman.
She had a genuine respect for Caesar, whose intelligence and wit matched her own.
Antony on the other hand almost drove her insane with his lack of intelligence and his excesses.
She dealt with him and made the most of what she had to do.
She fought for her country.
She had a charismatic personality, was a born leader and an ambitious monarch.
In the springtime of 51 BC, Ptolemy Auletes died and left his kingdom in his will to his eighteen year old daughter, Cleopatra, and her younger brother Ptolemy XIII who was twelve at the time.
She had two older sisters, Cleopatra VI and Berenice IV as well as a younger sister, Arsinoe IV.
There were two younger brothers as well, Ptolemy XIII and Ptolemy XIV.
It is thought that Cleopatra VI may have died as a child and Auletes had Berenice beheaded.
At Ptolemy Auletes' death, Pompey, a Roman leader, was left in charge of the children.
During the two centuries that preceded Ptolemy Auletes death, the Ptolemies were allied with the Romans.
The Ptolemies' strength was failing and the Roman Empire was rising.
City after city was falling to the Roman power and the Ptolemies could do nothing but create a pact with them.
During the later rule of the Ptolemies, the Romans gained more and more control over Egypt.
Tributes had to be paid to the Romans to keep them away from Egypt.
When Ptolemy Auletes died, the fall of the Dynasty appeared to be even closer.
According to Egyptian law, Cleopatra was forced to have a consort, who was either a brother or a son, no matter what age, throughout her reign.
Cleopatra VII & Ptolemy XIII 51-47
She was married to her younger brother Ptolemy XIII when he was twelve, however she soon dropped his name from any official documents regardless of the Ptolemaic insistence that the male presence be first among co-rulers.
She also had her own portrait and name on coins of that time, ignoring her brother's.
When Cleopatra became co-regent, her world was crumbling down around her.
Cyprus, Coele-Syria and Cyrenaica were gone.
There was anarchy abroad and famine at home. Cleopatra was a strong-willed Macedonian queen who was brilliant and dreamed of a greater world empire.
She almost achieved it.
Whether her way of getting it done was for her own desires or for the pursuit of power will never be known for certain.
However, like many Hellenistic queens, she was passionate but not promiscuous. As far as we know, she had no other lovers other than Caesar and Antony.
Many believe that she did what she felt was necessary to try to save Alexandria, whatever the price.
By 48 BC, Cleopatra had alarmed the more powerful court officials of Alexandria by some of her actions.
For instance, her mercenaries killed the Roman governor of Syria's sons when they came to ask for her assistance for their father against the Parthians.
A group of men led by Theodotus, the eunuch Pothinus and a half-Greek general, Achillas, overthrew her in favor of her younger brother. They believed him to be much easier to influence and they became his council of regency.
Cleopatra is thought to have fled to Thebaid.
Between 51 and 49 BC, Egypt was suffering from bad harvests and famine because of a drought which stopped the much needed Nile flooding.
Ptolemy XIII signed a decree on October 27, 50 BC which banned any shipments of grain to anywhere but Alexandria.
It is thought that this was to deprive Cleopatra and her supporters who were not in Alexandria.
Regardless, she started an army from the Arab tribes which were east of Pelusium.
During this time, she and her sister Arsinoe moved to Syria.
They returned by way of Ascalon which may have been Cleopatra's temporary base.
In the meantime, Pompey had been defeated at Pharsalus in August of 48 BC.
He headed for Alexandria hoping to find refuge with Ptolemy XIII, of whom Pompey was a senate-appointed guardian.
Pompey did not realize how much his reputation had been destroyed by Pharsalus until it was too late.
He was murdered as he stepped ashore on September 28, 48 BC.
The young Ptolemy XIII stood on the dock and watched the whole scene.
Four days later, Caesar arrived in Alexandria.
He brought with him thirty-two hundred legionaries and eight hundred cavalry.
He also brought twelve other soldiers who bore the insignia of the Roman government who carried a bundle of rods with an ax with a blade that projected out.
This was considered a badge of authority that gave a clear hint of his intentions.
There were riots that followed in Alexandria.
Ptolemy XIII was gone to Pelusium and Caesar placed himself in the royal palace and started giving out orders.
The eunuch, Pothinus, brought Ptolemy back to Alexandria.
Cleopatra had no intentions of being left out of any deals that were going to be made. She had herself smuggled in through enemy lines rolled in a carpet.
She was delivered to Caesar.
Both Cleopatra and Ptolemy were invited to appear before Caesar the next morning.
By this time, she and Caesar were already lovers and Ptolemy realized this right away.
He stormed out screaming that he had been betrayed, trying to arouse the Alexandrian mob.
He was soon captured by Caesar's guards and brought back to the palace.
It is thought that Caesar had planned to make Cleopatra the sole ruler of Alexandria.
He thought she would be a puppet for Rome.
The Alexandrian War was started when Pothinus called for Ptolemy XIII's soldiers in November and surrounded Caesar in Alexandria with twenty thousand men.
During the war, parts of the Alexandrian Library and some of the warehouses were burned.
However, Caesar did manage to capture the Pharos lighthouse, which kept his control of the harbor.
Cleopatra's sister, Arsinoe, escaped from the palace and ran to Achillas.
She was proclaimed the queen by the Macedonian mob and the army. Cleopatra never forgave her sister for this.
During the fighting, Caesar executed Pothinus and Achillas was murdered by Ganymede.
Ptolemy XIII drowned in the Nile while he was trying to flee.
Because of his death, Cleopatra was now the sole ruler of Egypt.
Cleopatra & Ptolemy XIV 47-44
Caesar had restored her position, but she now had to marry her younger brother Ptolemy XIV, who was eleven years old.
This was to please the Alexandrians and the Egyptian priests.
Surely Caesar went through all of this trouble for more than his infatuation with the queen of Egypt.
It must have been out of arrogance and his desire to get his hands on Egypt's vast resources.
However, Cleopatra's intelligence and inheritance did have some influence as well.
In what must have been very calculated on his part, she became pregnant rather quickly.
For him to have a son to carry the throne was very appealing to him.
Caesar and Cleopatra took an extended trip up the Nile for about two months.
They stopped in Dendara where Cleopatra was worshipped as a Pharaoh.
Caesar would never have this honor.
Caesar only left the boat to attend important business in Syria just a few weeks before the birth of their son, Caesarion (Ptolemy Caesar) who was born on June 23, 47 BC.
During July of the year 46 BC, Caesar returned to Rome.
He was given many honors and a ten-year dictatorship.
These celebrations lasted from September to October and he brought Cleopatra over, along with her entourage.
The conservative Republicans were very offended when he established Cleopatra in his home.
Her social manners did not make the situation any better.
She upset many.
Cleopatra had started calling herself the New Isis and was the subject of much gossip.
She lived in luxury and had a statue made of gold placed by Caesar, in the temple of Venus Genetrix .
Caesar also openly claimed Caesarion as his son.
Many were upset that he was planning to marry Cleopatra regardless of the laws against bigamy and marriages to foreigners.
However, on the Ides of March of 44 BC, all of that came to an end.
Caesar was assassinated outside the Senate Building in Rome.
He was killed in a conspiracy by his Senators.
Many of the Senators thought he was a threat to the republic's well-being.
It was thought that Caesar was making plans to have himself declared king.
After Caesar's murder, Cleopatra fled Rome and returned home to Alexandria.
Caesar had not mentioned Cleopatra or Caesarion in his will.
She felt her life, as well as that of her child, was in great danger.
Upon returning to Alexandria, she had her consort, Ptolemy XIV, assassinated and established Caesarion as her co-regent at the age of four.
She found Egypt suffering from plagues and famine.
The Nile canals had been neglected during her absence which caused the harvests to be bad and the inundations low.
The bad harvests continued from 43 until 41 BC.
Trying to help secure recognition for Caesarion with Caesar's former lieutenant Dolabella, Cleopatra sent Dolabella the four legions that Caesar had left in Egypt.
Cassius captured the legions which caused Dolabella to commit suicide at Laodicea during the summer of 43 BC.
She was planning to join Mark Antony and Octavian (who became Augustus) with a large fleet of ships after Dolabella's death, but was stopped by a violent storm.
Cleopatra watched in the time that followed, who would be the next power in Rome.
After Brutus and Cassius had been killed and Antony, Octavian and Lepidus were triumphant, Cleopatra knew which one she would have to deal with.
Octavian went back to Italy very ill, so Antony was the one to watch.
Her son gained his right to become king when Caesar was officially divinized in Rome on January 1, 42 BC.
The main object was the promotion of Octavian, but the triumvirs knew of Cleopatra's aid to Dolabella.
Cleopatra was invited by Mark Antony to Tarsus in 41 BC.
She already knew enough about him to know how to get to him.
She knew about his limited strategic and tactical abilities, his blue blood, the drinking, his womanizing, his vulgarity and his ambition.
Even though Egypt was on the verge of economic collapse, Cleopatra put on a show for Mark Antony that even Ptolemy Philadelphos couldn't have done better.
She sailed with silver oars, purple sails with her Erotes fanning her and the Nereid handmaids steering and she was dressed as Aphrodite, the goddess of love.
This was a very calculated entrance; considered vulgar by many.
It was a vulgar display to attract the attention of a vulgar man.
Mark Antony loved the idea of having a blue-blooded Ptolemy woman.
His former mistress as well as his current wife, Fulvia, were merely middle class.
Cleopatra and Antony spent the winter of 41 to 40 in Alexandria.
According to some sources, Cleopatra could get out of him whatever she wanted, including the assassination of her sister, Arsinoe.
Cleopatra may not have had so much influence over him later on.
He took control of Cyprus from her.
Actually it may have been Cleopatra who was the exploited one.
Antony needed money and Cleopatra could be generous when it benefited her as well.
In the spring of 40 BC, Mark Antony left Cleopatra and returned home.
He did not see her for four years.
Antony's wife, Fulvia had gotten into a serious movement against Octavian over veterans' allotments of land.
She fled to Greece and had a bitter confrontation with Antony.
She became ill and died there.
Antony patched things up with Octavian that same autumn by marrying Octavian's sister, Octavia.
She was a beautiful and intelligent woman who had been recently widowed. She had three children from her first marriage.
In the meantime, Cleopatra had given birth to twins, one boy and one girl, in Alexandria.
Antony's first child by Octavia was a girl.
Had Octavia given him a son, things might have turned out different.
Antony kept the idea of the treasures of the Ptolemies and how much he wanted it.
When he finally did get the treasures, the standard interest rate in Rome fell from 12 percent to 4.
Mark Antony left Italy and went to deal with the Parthians.
Octavia had just had another daughter and went with him just as far as Corcyra.
He gave her the excuse that he did not want to expose her to the dangers of the battles and sent her home.
He told her that she would be more use to him at home in Rome keeping peace with her brother, Octavian.
However, the first thing that he did when he reached Antioch, was to send for Cleopatra.
Their twin children were officially recognized by Antony and were given the names of Alexander Helios and Cleopatra Selene.
Mark Antony gave her much land which was very essential to Egypt.
He gave her Cyprus, the Cilician coast, Phoenicia, Coele-Syria, Judea and Arabia.
This allowed Egypt to be able to build ships from the lumber from Cilician coast.
Egypt then built a large fleet. Antony had planned a campaign against the Parthians.
He obviously needed Cleopatra's support for this and in 36 BC, he was defeated.
He became more indebted to her than ever. They had just had a third child.
On their return to Syria, she met him and what was left of his army, with food, clothing and money.
Early in 35 BC, he returned to Egypt with her.
Antony's wife, Octavia was in Athens with supplies and reinforcements waiting for her husband.
He sent her a letter telling her to not come any further.
Her brother, Octavian, tried to provoke Antony into a fight.
Octavian would release troops as well as ships to try to force Antony into a war, which, by this time was almost inevitable.
Antony might have been able to patch things up with Octavia and her brother had he returned to Rome in 35 BC.
Cleopatra probably did her best to keep him in Alexandria.
Octavia remained completely loyal to Antony through all of this.
In 34 BC, Antony had a campaign into Armenia, which was successful and financially rewarding.
He celebrated his triumph with a parade through Alexandria with Cleopatra presiding over as the New Isis.
Antony presented himself as the New Dionysus as part of his dream of the Graeco-Roman rule.
Within a few days, a more political ceremony took place in which the children were given their royal titles with Antony sitting on the throne as well.
Cleopatra and Caesarion
Ptolemy XV (Caesarion) was made the co-ruler with his mother and was called the King of Kings.
Cleopatra was called the Queen of Kings, which was a higher position than that of Caesarion's.
Alexander Helios, which meant the sun, was named Great King of the Seleucid empire when it was at its highest.
Cleopatra Selene, which meant the moon, was called Queen of Cyrenaica and Crete.
Cleopatra and Antony's son, Ptolemy Philadelphos was named King of Syria and Asia Minor at the age of two.
Cleopatra had dreams of becoming the Empress of the world.
She was very close to achieving these dreams and her favorite oath was, "As surely as I shall yet dispense justice on the Roman Capital."
In 32 to 31 BC, Antony finally divorced Octavia.
This forced the Western part of the world to recognize his relationship with Cleopatra.
He had already put her name and face on a Roman coin, the silver denarii. The denarii was widely circulated throughout the Mediterranean.
By doing this, Antony's relationship with the Roman allegiance was ended and Octavian decided to publish Antony's will.
Octavian then formally declared war against Cleopatra.
Antony's name was nowhere mentioned in the official declaration.
Many false accusations were made against Cleopatra saying that she was a harlot and a drunken Oriental.
These accusations were most likely made out of fear of Cleopatra and Antony.
Many probably thought that the New Isis would prevail and that Antony would start up a new wave of world conquest and rule in a co-partnership from Alexandria.
However, Octavian's navy severely defeated Antony in Actium, which is in Greece, on September 2, 31 BC.
Octavian's admiral, Agrippa, planned and carried out the defeat. In less than a year, Antony half-heartedly defended Alexandria against the advancing army of Octavian.
After the defeat, Antony committed suicide by falling on his own sword in 30 BC.
After Antony's death, Cleopatra was taken to Octavian where her role in Octavian's triumph was carefully explained to her.
He had no interest in any relationship, negotiation or reconciliation with the Queen of Egypt.
She would be displayed as a slave in the cities she had ruled over.
She must have had memories of her sister, Arsinoe, being humiliated in this way.
She would not live this way, so she had an asp, which was an Egyptian cobra, brought to her hidden in a basket of figs.
She died on August 12, 30 BC at the age of 39.
The Egyptian religion declared that death by snakebite would secure immortality.
With this, she achieved her dying wish, to not be forgotten.
The only other ruler to cast a shadow on the fascination with Cleopatra was Alexander who was another Macedonian.
After Cleopatra's death, Caesarion was strangled and the other children of Cleopatra were raised by Antony's wife, Octavia.
Her death was the mark of the end of the Egyptian Monarchs.
The Roman Emperors came into to rule in Egypt.
The Ancient Egyptian obelisk dates from 1600 B.C. and was a gift from Egypt. "Cleopatra's Needles" is the name given to two Egyptian obelisks, formerly at Alexandria, but one of which is now in New York, the other in London. They are made of the rosered granite of Syene, and were originally erected by the Egyptian king Thothmes III in front of the great temple of Heliopolis, where Moses was born. They were taken to Alexandria shortly before the commencement of the Christian era, and after the death of Cleopatra, but possibly in pursuance of a, design originated by her. The New York obelisk was presented to America by the Rhedive of Egypt, and was set up in Central Park in 1881.
In the News ...
Cleopatra No Beauty Queen, Coin Suggests National Geographic - February 15, 2007 
Antony and Cleopatra: coin find changes the faces of history Guardian - February 14, 2007
oh this is really a great collection of historical factors and it is really interesting to know that those dead by snakebite would become immortal. Because in Hinduism also snake is worshiped as god for giving childbirth
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