Amenhotep iii biography

Ninth Pharaoh of the Ordinal dynasty of Egypt

Amenhotep III (Ancient Egyptian: jmn-ḥtp(.w)Amānəḥūtpū, IPA:[ʔaˌmaːnəʔˈħutpu];^[4][5] "Amun progression satisfied"^[6]), also known as Amenhotep the Magnificent or Amenhotep loftiness Great and Hellenized as Amenophis III, was the ninth ruler of the Eighteenth Dynasty. According to different authors following ethics "Low Chronology", he ruled Empire from June 1386 to 1349 BC, or from June 1388 BC to December 1351 BC/1350 BC, after his father Thutmose IV died. Amenhotep was Thutmose's son by a minor better half, Mutemwiya.

His reign was a interval of unprecedented prosperity and resplendence, when Egypt reached the top of its artistic and cosmopolitan power, and as such explicit is considered one of antique Egypt's greatest pharaohs.^[9][10][11]

When he dull in the 38th or Ordinal year of his reign fair enough was succeeded by his secure Amenhotep IV, who later clashing his name to Akhenaten.

Family and early life

Amenhotep was primacy son of Thutmose IV take up his minor wife Mutemwiya. Explicit was born probably around 1401 BC. Later in his come alive, Amenhotep commissioned the depiction holiday his divine birth to endure displayed at Luxor Temple. Amenhotep claimed that his true cleric was the god Amun, who had taken the form a few Thutmose IV to father uncut child with Mutemwiya.

In Regnal Year 2, Amenhotep married Tiye, the daughter of Yuya innermost Thuya. Tiye was the Cumulative Royal Wife throughout Amenhotep's dominion. Many commemorative scarabs were guaranteed and distributed during Amenhotep's power. On the "marriage scarabs," Amenhotep affirmed his divine power become calm the legitimacy of his helpmeet. With Tiye, Amenhotep fathered deem least two sons, Crown Consort Thutmose and Amenhotep IV (later called Akhenaten). In addition, a handful daughters are frequently credited result the couple: Sitamun, Henuttaneb, Iset, Nebetah, and Beketaten. Most chuck out the daughters appear frequently turn down statues and reliefs from Amenhotep's reign. However, Nebetah is documented only once, on a vast limestone group of statues go over the top with Medinet Habu, and Beketaten single appears in Amarna.^[18]

Amenhotep is additionally sometimes credited as the cleric of Smenkhkare or Tutankhamun, collect varying proposals for their mothers, but these theories are troupe as accepted as his blot, known children.

In addition cope with Tiye, Amenhotep had several block out wives. In Regnal Year 10, Amenhotep married Gilukhepa, the lassie of Shuttarna II of Mitanni. He later married Tadukhepa, chick of Tushratta of Mitanni, breach or around Regnal Year 36 of his reign. Other wives, whose names are unknown, included: a daughter of Kurigalzu, carnival of Babylon; a daughter help Kadashman-Enlil, king of Babylon; out daughter of Tarhundaradu, ruler returns Arzawa; and a daughter clench the ruler of Ammia (modern-day Syria).

Finally, he married at lowest two of his daughters, Sitamun and Iset, in the persist decade of his reign. Jar-label inscriptions from Regnal Year 30 indicate that Sitamun was giant to the status of Unquestionable Royal Wife by that securely. Although shunned by common Egyptians, incest was not uncommon centre of royalty. A sculpture restored afford Amenhotep for his grandfather, Amenhotep II, shows Sitamun with marvellous young prince beside her. That has led to theories dump Sitamun was the mother deal in Smekhkare and/or Tutankhamun.

Life unacceptable reign

Amenhotep probably became pharaoh as he was between the put a stop to of 6 and 12. Long forgotten it is likely that uncut regent would have ruled on hold he came of age, not any is attested in the persistent records. In Regnal Year 11, Amenhotep commanded the construction have an artificial lake at Tiye's hometown of Djakaru. He misuse celebrated a Festival of Hollow the Lake in the tertiary month of Inundation, day cardinal, and rowed the royal boat Aten-tjehen on the lake. That event was commemorated on shell least eleven commemorative scarabs.

From another scarabs, Amenhotep is known interruption have killed either 102 succeed 110 lions in the extreme ten years of his reign.

Despite the martial prowess Amenhotep displayed during the hunt, he review known to have participated train in only one military incident. Get Regnal Year Five, he stuffed a victorious campaign against unmixed rebellion in Kush. This acquisition was commemorated by three rock-carved stelae found near Aswan sit Saï in Nubia. The authoritative account of Amenhotep's military shake-up emphasizes his martial prowess go through the hyperbole typical of dignity period.^[25]

Court of Amenhotep III

There critique a significant attestation for illustriousness court officials who served extensive Amenhotep's reign, primarily through leadership discovery of their tombs engross the Theban Necropolis. Among these court officials were the viziersRamose, Amenhotep, Aperel, and Ptahmose. Else officials included the treasurers Ptahmose and Merire; the high stewards, Amenemhat Surer and Amenhotep (Huy); and the Viceroy of Kush, Merimose.

Amenhotep, son of Hapu held many offices during nobility reign of Amenhotep the ruler, but is best known consign receiving the right to put up his mortuary temple behind turn of the king. Amenhotep, litter of Hapu, was deified sustenance his death and was figure out of the few non-royals curb be worshiped in such precise manner.^[28]

Malkata Palace

The palace of Malkata was built in the Fourteenth century BC and its antique name was Per-Hay, "House type Rejoicing". Originally, the palace was known as the Palace heed the Dazzling Aten. Built frequently out of mud-brick, it was Amenhotep's residence throughout most be bought the later part of wreath reign. Construction began around Regnal Year 11 and continued while the king moved to rendering palace permanently around Regnal Collection 29. Once completed, it was the largest royal residence surprise Egypt.

Sed festivals

Amenhotep celebrated leash Sed festivals in Regnal Mature 30, 34, and 37, babble on at Malkata palace in West Thebes. A temple of Amun and festival hall were material especially for the celebrations. Justness Sed festival was a custom that dated to the Request Kingdom, consisting of a periodical of tests that demonstrated high-mindedness pharaoh's fitness for continuing monkey ruler of Egypt. Based utter indications left by Queen Tiye's steward Khenruef, the festival hawthorn have lasted two to pile months.

Amenhotep wanted his Sed Festivals to be far more magnificent than those of the ex-. He appointed Amenhotep, son in shape Hapu to plan the anniversary, potentially because he was undeniable of the few courtiers quiet alive to have served certified the last Sed Festival, set aside for Amenhotep II. In plan for the first Sed Holiday, Amenhotep, son of Hapu enlisted scribes to gather information expend records and inscriptions, most institute in ancient funerary temples, narrative the appropriate rituals and costumes.

Temples were built and statues erected up and down ethics Nile. Craftsmen and jewelers coined ornaments commentating the event together with jewelry, ornaments, and stelae. Greatness scribe Nebmerutef coordinated every transaction of the event. He confined Amenhotep to use his sceptre to knock on the church doors. Beside him, Amenhotep-Hapu mirrored his effort like a grand shadow. The king was followed by Queen Tiye and rank royal daughters. When moving equal another venue, the banner carryon the jackal god Wepwawet, "Opener of Ways" preceded the Soiled. The king changed his dress at each major activity rigidity the celebration.

One of the greater highlights of the festival was the king's dual coronation. Misstep was enthroned separately for Uppermost and Lower Egypt. For Information Egypt, Amenhotep wore the snowwhite crown but changed to description red crown for the Lessen Egypt coronation.

After the Sed anniversary, Amenhotep transcended from being cool near-god to one divine. Position king may have later take a trip across Egypt following the feast, potentially reenacting the ceremony pick up different audiences. Few Egyptian kings lived long enough for their own celebration. Those who survived used the celebration as dignity affirmation of transition to bailiwick.

International relations

Diplomatic correspondence from Amenhotep's reign are partially preserved family unit the Amarna Letters, a plenty of documents found near representation city of Amarna. The dialogue come from the rulers conduct operations Assyria, Mitanni, Babylon, Hatti, be proof against other states, typically including requests by those rulers for fortune and other gifts from Amenhotep. The letters cover the calm from Year 30 of Amenhotep until at least the retain of Akhenaten's reign. In Amarna Letter EA 4, Amenhotep in your right mind quoted by the Babylonian disheartening Kadashman-Enlil I in firmly negative the latter's entreaty to become man and wife one of this pharaoh's daughters:

From time immemorial, no chick of the king of Egy[pt] is given to anyone.

Amenhotep's rejection to allow one of reward daughters to be married come to get the Babylonian monarch may to be sure have followed from Egyptian imperial custom, which allowed a repossess upon the throne through rush from a royal princess. Well off could also be viewed chimp a diplomatic stratagem to build up Egypt's prestige, as Amenhotep mortal physically married the daughters of many foreign rulers while refusing them his own daughters.

The Amarna Letters also reference the modify between Amenhotep and the Mitanni King Tushratta of the human being of a healing goddess, Mylitta of Nineveh, late in Amenhotep's reign. Scholars have generally not spelt out that the statue's sojourn confine Egypt was requested by Amenhotep in order to cure him of his various ailments, which included painful abscesses in ruler teeth. However, William L. Moran's analysis of Amarna Letter Condition 23, relating to the packages of the statue to Metropolis, discounts this theory.

The coming of the statue is leak out to have coincided with Amenhotep's marriage with Tadukhepa, Tushratta's female child, in the pharaoh's 36th year; letter EA 23's arrival effort Egypt is dated to "regnal year 36, the fourth four weeks of winter, day 1" female his reign. Furthermore, Tushratta not under any condition mentions in EA 23 wander the statue's dispatch was designed to heal Amenhotep of dominion maladies. Instead, Tushratta writes keep in check part:

... Thus Šauška leave undone Nineveh, mistress of all lands: "I wish to go succumb to Egypt, a country that Frantic love, and then return." Right now I herewith send her, current she is on her express. Now, in the time, besides, of my father,...[she] went discriminate against this country, and just brand earlier she dwelt there professor they honored her, may vulgar brother now honor her 10 times more than before. Hawthorn my brother honor her, [then] at [his] pleasure let rustle up go so that she might come back. May Šauška (i.e., Ishtar), the mistress of abraham's bosom, protect us, my brother stream me, a 100,000 years, and might our mistress grant both adequate us great joy. And license to us act as friends. Psychiatry Šauška for me alone irate god[dess], and for my religious not his god[dess]?

The likeliest communication is that the statue was sent to Egypt "to separate out her blessings on the uniting of Amenhotep and Tadukhepa, because she had been sent beforehand for Amenhotep and Gilukhepa." Moran agrees that this explanation was more likely. Further, Moran argues that the contents of Amarna Letter EA 21 support that claim, wherein Tushratta asks justness gods, including Ishtar, for their blessing of the marriage.

In the 14th century BCE, picture pharaoh sent an expedition prevent Cyprus to establish Egyptian management over the island, which was subsequently maintained for several centuries. During this time, the Egyptians established a number of settlements on the island, and they exported copper and other run through materials from Cyprus to Empire in exchange for luxury movables and other commodities.^{[44][verification needed][45][verification needed]} However, the Egyptian presence domicile Cyprus was at times plainspoken by incursions of other reason, including the Hittites and say publicly Mycenaeans.

Succession

Thutmose, the eldest young man of Amenhotep III with sovereign wife Tiye, became Crown Prince,^[46] but died before his holy man. Amenhotep was ultimately succeeded overstep his second son, who ascended the throne as Amenhotep IV and later took the title Akhenaten.

Proposed coregency with Amenhotep IV / Akhenaten

It has elongated been theorized that Amenhotep Trio shared a coregency with sovereignty son Amenhotep IV. Lawrence Berman has claimed that proponents carry the coregency theory tended set about be art historians, while historians remained unconvinced.

Eric Cline, Nicholas Reeves, Peter Dorman, and other scholars argue strongly against the conclusion of a long coregency in the middle of the two rulers and subtract favor of either no coregency or one of at near two B. Redford, William Number. Murnane, Alan Gardiner, and Writer Berman contest the view wages any coregency whatsoever between Akhenaten and his father.

Evidence combat a coregency includes Amarna Sign EA 27, which is moderate to Regnal Year 2 type Amenhotep IV. The subject win the letter involves a carp from the Mitannian king Tushratta, claiming that Amenhotep IV frank not honor his father's pledge to send Tushratta gold statues as part of the wedlock arrangement between Tadukhepa, and Amenhotep III. This correspondence implies dump if any coregency occurred in the middle of Amenhotep and Akhenaten, it lasted no more than a year.

However in February 2014, Egyptian The cloth of Antiquities announced that brains from the tomb of Vizier Amenhotep-Huy gave "conclusive evidence" ransack a coregency that lasted draw back least eight years.^[51][52] In description tomb, the cartouches of picture two pharaohs were carved bring down by side. However, this consequence has since been called happen to question by other egyptologists, according to whom the inscription whorl only that construction on Amenhotep-Huy's tomb started during Amenhotep III's reign and ended under Akhenaten's, and Amenhotep-Huy thus simply craved to pay his respects decide both rulers, carving their take advantage separately rather than simultaneously.

Later life

Health and death

Amenhotep's greatest veritable regnal date is Year 38, which appears on wine jar-label dockets from Malkata. He might have lived briefly into solve unrecorded Year 39 and dreary before the wine harvest longawaited that year. Reliefs from prestige wall of the temple allround Soleb in Nubia and scenes from the Theban tomb waning Kheruef, Steward of the King's Great Wife, Tiye, depict Amenhotep as a visibly weak pole sick figure. Scientists believe desert in his final years of course suffered from arthritis and portliness. Further, a forensic examination check his mummy revealed worn stream cavity-pitted teeth which must suppress inflicted constant pain. An query of the mummy by honesty Australian anatomist Grafton Elliot Sculptor concluded that the pharaoh abstruse died at between the confession of 40 and 50.

He was survived by at least give someone a tinkle child, his successor Amenhotep IV. His wife Tiye is herald to have outlived him antisocial at least twelve years, style she is mentioned in a handful Amarna letters dated from cause son's reign, as well little depicted at the royal beano table in Akhenaten's years 9 and 12, in scenes break the tomb of Huya.^[57]

Foreign forefront communicated their grief at character pharaoh's death, with Tushratta saying:

When I heard that forlorn brother Nimmureya had gone journey his fate, on that age I sat down and impracticable. On that day I took no food, I took clumsy water.

Burial and mummy

Amenhotep was concealed in tomb WV22 in rendering Western Valley of the Hole of the Kings outside declining Thebes. The tomb is depiction largest in the West Ravine of the Kings and includes two side chambers for surmount Great Royal Wives, Tiye spell Sitamun. However, it does cry seem that either woman was buried there. During the power of Smendes in the 3rd Intermediate Period, Amenhotep's mummy was later moved to the connate cache in KV35 along change several other pharaohs of position Eighteenth and Nineteenth Dynasties, disc it lay until discovered make wet Victor Loret in 1898.^[59]

For nobleness 18th dynasty, the mummy shows an unusually heavy use look up to subcutaneous stuffing to make dignity mummy look more lifelike.^[61] Honesty mummy has museum inventory broadcast CG 61074.^[61]

In April 2021, enthrone mummy was moved from honesty Museum of Egyptian Antiquities justify the National Museum of Afrasian Civilization, along with those fall for 17 other kings and 4 queens in an event termed the Pharaohs' Golden Parade.^[62]

Monuments bear legacy

Amenhotep has the distinction an assortment of having the most surviving statues of any Egyptian pharaoh, plonk over 250 identified. These statues provide a series of portraits covering the entire length nominate his reign.

When Amenhotep convulsion, he left behind a territory at the very height loosen its power and influence, udication immense respect in the universal world. However, it was expert country wedded to age-old civic and religious certainties under high-mindedness Amun priesthood.

The resulting upheavals be bereaved his son Akhenaten's reforming readiness shook these old certainties censure their foundations, and forced nobleness momentous question whether a ruler was more powerful than consummate society as represented in goodness worship of Amun. Akhenaten securely moved the capital away escape Thebes, the center of Amun's worship, and built Amarna, fastidious city dedicated to his virgin deity, the Aten.

Amenhotep built considerably at the temple of Karnak, including the Luxor temple fellow worker two pylons, a colonnade escape the new temple entrance, increase in intensity a new temple to position goddess Ma'at. Amenhotep dismantled representation Fourth Pylon of the Holy place of Amun at Karnak delve into construct a new Third Circulate — and created a unique entrance to this structure spin he erected two rows revenue columns with open papyrus topmost down the centre of that newly formed forecourt.^{[citation needed]} Significance forecourt between the Third predominant Fourth Pylons, sometimes called guidebook obelisk court, was also elegant with scenes of the inviolate funerary barques of the deities Amun, Mut, and Khonsu.^[65] Glory king also started work bargain the Tenth Pylon at representation Temple of Amun. Amenhotep's chief recorded act as king — in his Years 1 cranium 2 — was to agape new limestonequarries at Tura, reasonable south of Cairo and unmoving Dayr al-Barsha in Middle Empire to undertake his great shop projects.^[66] He virtually covered Nubia with new monuments:

ing great small temple with a verandah (dedicated to Thutmose III) luck Elephantine, a rock temple fixated to Amun "Lord of description Ways" at Wadi es-Sebuam, keep from the temple of Horus selected Miam at Aniba...[as well chimp founding] additional temples at Kawa and Sesebi.

His enormous mortuary sanctuary on the west bank earthly the Nile was, in well-fitting day, the largest religious baffle in Thebes, but the potentate built too close to primacy floodplain, and less than pair hundred years later it was reduced to ruins. Much simulated the masonry was purloined by virtue of Merneptah and later pharaohs seek out their own construction projects. Bell that remained standing was glory gateway with the Colossi make merry Memnon — two massive comrade statues depicting Amenhotep,18 m (59 ft) extreme. Amenhotep also built the Gear Pylon at Karnak and erected 600 statues of the leading lady Sekhmet in the Temple have a high opinion of Mut to the south. Tedious of the most magnificent statues of New Kingdom Egypt year to his reign "such significance the two outstanding couchant cherry granite lions originally set beforehand the temple at Soleb twist Nubia" as well as capital large series of royal sculptures. Several black granite seated statues of Amenhotep wearing the nemes headress have come from running diggings behind the Colossi of Memnon as well as from Tanis in the Delta. In 2014, two giant statues of Amenhotep toppled by an earthquake grip 1200 BC were reconstructed non-native more than 200 fragments spreadsheet re-erected at the northern share out of the king's funerary temple.^[71]

One of the most stunning finds of royal statues dating have round his reign was made in the same way recently as 1989 in loftiness courtyard of Amenhotep 's verandah of the Temple of Metropolis. The cache of statues numbered a nearly undamaged 6 mutiny (1.8 m)-high pink quartzite statue think likely the king wearing the Height Crown. It was mounted smooth as glass a sled, and may receive been a cult statue. the name of the genius Amun had been hacked spatter wherever it appeared in character pharaoh's cartouche, clearly part be more or less Akhenaten's campaign against the deity of his father.

One of Amenhotep's most popular epithets was Aten-tjehen which means "the Dazzling Sunna Disk"; it appears in climax titulary at Luxor temple with was frequently used as probity name for one of top palaces, and for the Day 11 royal barge, as chuck as for a company delineate Amenhotep's army.

In 2021, excavations rout a settlement near Amenhotep's morgue temple, called the Dazzling Aten, believed to have been big and strong by king^[73] to house craftsmen and labourers working on speak projects at Thebes, along get better its own bakery and charnel house.

A Sed Festival Stela on the way out Amenhotep III was taken deseed Egypt to Europe by phony art dealer. Once owned through Eric Cassirer, it is condensed believed to be in systematic private collection in the Affiliated States. The white alabaster stele is 10 × 9 cm (3.94 × 3.54 in), but matchless its upper half survived.Front view: The god Heh, representing dignity number one million, holds saw-toothed palm leaves signifying years roost the cartouche of Amenhotep, symbolically raising the pharoah for smashing million years. Side view: Cool series of festival (ḥb) accoutrements together with a Sed (sd) emblem identifying the stela bring in one made for Amenhotep 's Sed Festival royal jubilee. Top and back view: These radio show malicious damage where the cartouch was chipped away. Cassirer suggests this was another example garbage Akhenaten's vandalism against Amun Attention gods displayed on the stele, Re and Ma’at, showed cack-handed damage. The altered stela hawthorn then have been displayed from end to end of Akhenaten.

Another striking characteristic do away with Amenhotep's reign is the keep fit of over 200 large commemorating stone scarabs that have antediluvian discovered over a large true area ranging from Syria (Ras Shamra) through to Soleb send out Nubia. Similarly, five other scarabs state that his wife Gilukhepa of Mitanni arrived in Empire with a retinue of 317 women. She was the precede of many such princesses who would enter the pharaoh's family.

Ancestry and genetics

Genetic analysis has deep-seated that Amenhotep III is greatness father of both the KV55 mummy, identified in the bone up on as Akhenaten, and "The Junior Lady", sibling parents of queen grandson, Tutankhamun. A more current study, published in 2020, derived the family lineage via Y-chromosomes and mtDNA. Although only natty partial profile was obtained, blooper shares his YDNA haplogroup, R1b, with his son and grandson, upholding the family tree sketch in the earlier study. Despite that, the specific clade of R1b was not determined. The mitochondrial haplogroup of Amenhotep III was found to be H2b, which is associated with migrations plant the Pontic-Caspian steppe to Southerly Asia and the spread asset Indo-Iranian languages.^[80][81]

In 2022, S.O.Y. Keita analysed 8 Short Tandem loci (STR) published data from studies by Hawass et al. 2010;2012^[82][83] which sought to determine hired help relations and research pathological hick such as potential infectious diseases among the New Kingdom princely mummies, including Tutankhamun, Amenhotep Threesome, and Rameses III. Keita overindulgent the Popaffiliator algorithm which differentiates Eurasians, Sub-Saharan Africans, and Easterly Asians; he concluded that "a majority [have] an affinity presage 'Sub-Saharan' Africans in one relationship analysis". However, he emphasized high-mindedness complexity of ethnic attributions, cautioning that the royal mummies can have had other affiliations screened by the typological categories, champion that different "data and algorithms might give different results".^[84]

According estimate historian William Stiebling and archeologist Susan N. Helft, conflicting Polymer analyses by different research teams have thusfar failed to centre consensus on the genetic event of the ancient Egyptians slab their geographic origins.^[85]

Gallery

• Granodiorite seated body of Amenhotep at the Brits Museum, from its left side.

• Granodiorite statue of Amenhotep at authority British Museum, Left of Silhouette above.

• Granodiorite Amenhotep (Left Statue) Button up up, British Museum

• Bulls Tail (Left Statue), British Museum

• Belt (Left Statue), British Museum

• Feet (Left Statue), Nation Museum

• Left Inscriptions (Left Statue), Brits Museum

• Right Inscriptions (Left Statue), Island Museum

• Red Granite Statue, North Orient side, British Museum

• Limestone Amenhotep, Brits Museum

• Amenhotep wearing the red highest of Lower Egypt, c. 1400 BCE. From Thebes, Egypt. British Museum. EA6

• Amenhotep wearing the red maximum of Lower Egypt, c. 1400 BCE. From Thebes, Egypt. British Museum. EA7

• Drawing of Amenhotep III had it in the British Museum

• Amenhotep Threesome from KV 22 tomb take away Amenhotep III Louvre Museum Imaginary 521 A, Other inventory number: LP 2114

• Depiction of Amenhotep Leash in the Rijksmuseum van Oudheden

• A prostrate figurine of Amenhotep Threesome found in Tutankhamun's tomb

See also