Amenemopet
Encyclopedia
Pharaoh Amenemope was the son of Psusennes I
. Amenemope/Amenemopet's birth name or nomen translates as "Amun in the Opet Feast." He served as a junior co-regent at the end of his father's final years according to the evidence from a mummy
bandage fragment. All surviving versions of his Manetho
's Epitome state that Amenemopet enjoyed a reign of 9 years. Both Psusennes I and Amenemopet's royal tombs were discovered intact by the French Egyptologist Pierre Montet
in his excavation at Tanis
in 1940 and were filled with significant treasures including gold funerary masks, coffins and numerous other items of precious jewelry. Montet opened Amenemopet's tomb in April 1940, just a month before the German
invasion of France
and the Low Countries
in World War II
. Thereafter, all excavation work abruptly ceased until the end of the war. Montet resumed his excavation work at Tanis
in 1946 and later published his findings in 1958.
The Egyptologist Kenneth Kitchen
states that there are few known monuments of Amenemopet. His tomb at Tanis was barely 20 feet long by 12–15 feet wide, "a mere cell compared with the tomb of Psusennes I" while his only other original projects was to continue with the decoration of the chapel of Isis "Mistress of the Pyramids at Giza" and to make an addition to one of the temples in Memphis. Amenemope was served by two High Priests of Amun at Thebes—Smendes II (briefly) and then by Pinodjem II, Smendes' brother. Kitchen observes that
In the introduction to the third (1996) edition of his book on The Third Intermediate Period in Egypt (TIPE), Kitchen notes that Papyrus Brooklyn 16.205 which mentions "a Year 49 followed by a Year 4 must now be attributed to the time of Psusennes I and Amenemope, [and] not to Sheshonk III and Pami. [ie. Pami] (cf.103, §83 below)" due to the discovery of a new Tanite king named Sheshonk IV who ruled for a minimum of 10 years between Year 39 of Shashank III and Year 1 of Pami
. Consequently, the creation of this papyrus document must be dated to Year 4 of king Amenemope. There is also reason to believe that the 21st Dynasty Pharaoh known as Amenemnisu may be one and the same king as Amenemope.
Four objects from king Amenemopet's royal tomb preserve the name of his illustrious father Psusennes I including a collar and several bracelets. His funerary mask, now located in Egypt's Cairo Museum, renders a youthful depiction of the king. Unlike Psusennes I, Amenemope was buried with much less opulence since "his wooden coffins were covered with gold leaf instead of being of solid silver" while "he wore a gilt mask rather than one of solid gold." He was later reburied in the tomb of his father Psusennes I during the reign of king Siamun
.
Psusennes I
Psusennes I, or Greek Ψουσέννης], Pasibkhanu or Hor-Pasebakhaenniut I Egyptian ḥor-p3-sib3-ḫˁỉ--niwt] was the third king of the Twenty-first dynasty of Egypt who ruled from Tanis between 1047 – 1001 BC...
. Amenemope/Amenemopet's birth name or nomen translates as "Amun in the Opet Feast." He served as a junior co-regent at the end of his father's final years according to the evidence from a mummy
Mummy
A mummy is a body, human or animal, whose skin and organs have been preserved by either intentional or incidental exposure to chemicals, extreme coldness , very low humidity, or lack of air when bodies are submerged in bogs, so that the recovered body will not decay further if kept in cool and dry...
bandage fragment. All surviving versions of his Manetho
Manetho
Manetho was an Egyptian historian and priest from Sebennytos who lived during the Ptolemaic era, approximately during the 3rd century BC. Manetho wrote the Aegyptiaca...
's Epitome state that Amenemopet enjoyed a reign of 9 years. Both Psusennes I and Amenemopet's royal tombs were discovered intact by the French Egyptologist Pierre Montet
Pierre Montet
Pierre Montet was a respected French Egyptologist.-Biography:Montet first began his studies under Victor Loret at the University of Lyon....
in his excavation at Tanis
Tanis, Egypt
Tanis , the Greek name of ancient Djanet , is a city in the north-eastern Nile delta of Egypt. It is located on the Tanitic branch of the Nile which has long since silted up.-History:...
in 1940 and were filled with significant treasures including gold funerary masks, coffins and numerous other items of precious jewelry. Montet opened Amenemopet's tomb in April 1940, just a month before the German
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
invasion of France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
and the Low Countries
Low Countries
The Low Countries are the historical lands around the low-lying delta of the Rhine, Scheldt, and Meuse rivers, including the modern countries of Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg and parts of northern France and western Germany....
in World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. Thereafter, all excavation work abruptly ceased until the end of the war. Montet resumed his excavation work at Tanis
Tanis, Egypt
Tanis , the Greek name of ancient Djanet , is a city in the north-eastern Nile delta of Egypt. It is located on the Tanitic branch of the Nile which has long since silted up.-History:...
in 1946 and later published his findings in 1958.
The Egyptologist Kenneth Kitchen
Kenneth Kitchen
Kenneth Anderson Kitchen is Personal and Brunner Professor Emeritus of Egyptology and Honorary Research Fellow at the School of Archaeology, Classics and Egyptology, University of Liverpool, England...
states that there are few known monuments of Amenemopet. His tomb at Tanis was barely 20 feet long by 12–15 feet wide, "a mere cell compared with the tomb of Psusennes I" while his only other original projects was to continue with the decoration of the chapel of Isis "Mistress of the Pyramids at Giza" and to make an addition to one of the temples in Memphis. Amenemope was served by two High Priests of Amun at Thebes—Smendes II (briefly) and then by Pinodjem II, Smendes' brother. Kitchen observes that
- "in Thebes, his authority as king was undisputed--no less than nine burials of the Theban clergy had braces, pendants or bandages inscribed with the name of Amenemope as pharaoh and of Pinedjem as pontiff. Pen-nest-tawy, captain of the barge of Amun in Thebes, possessed a Book of the DeadBook of the DeadThe Book of the Dead is the modern name of an ancient Egyptian funerary text, used from the beginning of the New Kingdom to around 50 BC. The original Egyptian name for the text, transliterated rw nw prt m hrw is translated as "Book of Coming Forth by Day". Another translation would be "Book of...
dated to Year 5 of this king's reign."
In the introduction to the third (1996) edition of his book on The Third Intermediate Period in Egypt (TIPE), Kitchen notes that Papyrus Brooklyn 16.205 which mentions "a Year 49 followed by a Year 4 must now be attributed to the time of Psusennes I and Amenemope, [and] not to Sheshonk III and Pami. [ie. Pami] (cf.103, §83 below)" due to the discovery of a new Tanite king named Sheshonk IV who ruled for a minimum of 10 years between Year 39 of Shashank III and Year 1 of Pami
Pami
Usermaatre Setepenre Pami was an Egyptian Pharaoh who ruled Egypt for 7 years. He was a member of the Twenty-second dynasty of Egypt of Meshwesh Libyans who had been living in the country since the Twentieth dynasty of Egypt when their ancestors infiltrated into the Egyptian Delta from Libya...
. Consequently, the creation of this papyrus document must be dated to Year 4 of king Amenemope. There is also reason to believe that the 21st Dynasty Pharaoh known as Amenemnisu may be one and the same king as Amenemope.
Burial
Siamun
Neterkheperre or Netjerkheperre-setepenamun Siamun was the sixth pharaoh of Egypt during the Twenty-first dynasty. He built extensively in Lower Egypt for a king of the Third Intermediate Period and is regarded as one of the most powerful rulers of this Dynasty after Psusennes I...
.