Amenmesse
(Redirected from Amenemses)
Categories: 1200 BC deaths | 1199 BC deaths | Pharaohs | Nineteenth dynasty of Egypt
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Amenmesse (also Amenmesses) was the 5th ruler of the Nineteenth Dynasty in Ancient Egypt, possibly the son of Merneptah and queen Takhat. Others call him the son of Ramesses II and others consider him not to have been a pharaoh but only a vizier. Very little is known about this king, who apparently ruled for three or four years. Various Egyptologists date his reign between 1202 BC-1199 BC or 1203 BC-1200 BC with others giving a start date of 1226 BC, 1214 BC or 1200 BC.
It is possible he was not the true heir to the throne. Most scholars such as Kenneth Kitchen and Von Beckerath believe that he succeeded Merneptah as Pharaoh, even though Merneptah's son, Seti-Merneptah, should have been next in line. It is not clear why this happened. Amenmesse may have taken advantage of the weakness of Seti-Merneptah or seized power while the crown prince was away in Asia. It is most likely that Seti-Merneptah was the same man as Seti II, whose reign followed Amenmesse's.
Confusion generally reigns regarding Amenmesse. Some scholars place him after Seti II, despite the clear fact that Seti II's name was written over his name in some Theban stele while others maintain that he usurped Seti II in the middle of the latter's reign. Still other scholars such as Aidan Dodson hold that he ruled only Thebes and Upper Egypt for four Years during Seti's reign and was once a Nubian Vizier called Messuwy.
Amenmesse means "born of Amun". It is probable that one of his names was 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."
He possibly married a woman named Baktwerel and his mother was Queen Takhat, who was either a wife of Merneptah or Ramesses II. However, some Egyptologists have suggested that Takhat and Baktwerel were actually the mother and wife of Ramesses IX, and that the women may have latter occupied Amenmesse's tomb and added their own scenes and inscriptions.
Six quartzite statues originally placed along the axis of the hypostyle hall in the Amun Temple at Karnak are thought to be his, although these were defaced and overwritten with the name of Seti II. One of these statues, with the inscription, "the Great Royal Wife Takhat", lends support to the argument that she was Amenmesse's wife. Amenmesse was also responsible for restoring a shrine dating from Thutmose III that stands before a temple at Tod.
He was buried in a rock-cut tomb in the Valley of the Kings which is now identified as Tomb KV10. However, it was opened in antiquity and all its texts and scenes were either erased or usurped by Seti II. No mention of Amenmesse was spared. While remains of three mummies were found in this tomb, two women and one man, it is uncertain if any of these remains belong to Amenmesse, Takhat and Baketwerel without further testing. It seems more likely, however, that Seti II had Amenmesse's remains desecrated since his Mummy was never found "in either of the two great caches of royal mummies found in 1881 and 1901" (Yurco, JARCE 39, p.54) Surviving inscriptions mentioning Takhat's name along with the wall inscriptions suggest she was buried in Amenmesse's tomb. Artifacts from the tombs of Seti I and Rameses VI were also found in the KV10 tomb adding to the uncertainty. After his death, Seti II also conducted a damnatio memoriae campaign against the memory of Amenmesse's Vizier, Kha-em-ter. The late Egyptologist Frank Yurco once noted that Seti II's agents totally erased all of Kha-em-ter's inscriptions--even those that he inscribed when he previously served as a Viceroy in Nubia.
External links:
- Frank Joseph Yurco, "Was Amenmesse the Viceroy of Kush, Messuwy?", JARCE 39(1997), pp.49-56
| Preceded by: Merneptah | Pharaoh of Egypt Nineteenth Dynasty | Succeeded by: Seti II |