Bakenkhons I
| Bakenkhons I High Priest of Amun | |
|---|---|
| Predecessor | Paser |
| Successor | Roma called Roy |
| Dynasty | 19th Dynasty |
| Pharaoh | Ramesses II |
| Father | Roma |
| Mother | Roma |
| Wife | Meretseger |
| Burial | TT35 in Thebes |
| ||||||
| Bakenkhons in hieroglyphs |
|---|
Bakenkhons I was High Priest of Amun towards the end of the reign of Ramesses II in ancient Egypt. He had become the 4th, 3rd, 2nd, then 1st Priest, the 'High Priest'; he lived under long-lived Ramses II, and paralleled his pharaonic rule.
Family
Bakenkhonsu was the son of Roma, the High Priest of Amun and his wife who was also called Roma.[1] Bakenkhons' wife was named Meretseger. She held the titles of Chief of the Harem of Amun.[2]
Autobiographical Texts
Bakenkhons has left autobiographical inscriptions on statues from Karnak, one of which is now in a museum in Munich.[3]
Bakenkhons outlines his life as follows:
- I spent 4 years as a promising youngster
- I spent 11 years as a youngster, when I was a trainee Stablemaster of King Menmare
- I was a wab-priest of Amun for 4 years
- I was a God's Father of Amun for 12 years
- I was a Third Prophet of Amun for 15 years
- I was a Second Prophet of Amun for 12 years
- He showed me favor, because he recognized the worth of my character. He appointed me High Priest of Amun for 27 years (already).[4]
On another statue - from Cairo (CGC 42155) - Bakenkhons mentions that he came from Thebes and that his parents also were Thebans. He spent some years at the scribal school in the Temple of the Lady of Heaven, and he was taught to be a wab-priest by his own father in the House of Amun.
Burial
Bakenkhons was buried in TT35 in Thebes. In the hallway there are several depictions of Bakenkhons and his wife Meretseger. A niche contains seated statues of Bakenkhons and his wife. The tomb also had a pyramid associated with it.
The sarcophagus from the tomb is now in the Liverpool museum (M13864). Other finds from the tomb include a wooden scribe's palette in the form of a hes vase which is now in the Louvre (N 3018) and a statue of Bakhenkhons which is now in the Munich Glyptotek.[5]
References
- ↑ Moss, Rosalind; Porter, Bertha (2004). "Part 1: The Theban Necropolis. Private Tombs". In Malek, Jaromir. Topographical Bibliography of Ancient Egyptian Hieroglyphic Texts, Reliefs, and Paintings. I (2nd ed.). Griffith Institute. ISBN 0-900416-81-5.
- ↑ Jansen-Winkeln, K. (1993). "The Career of the Egyptian High Priest Bakenkhons". Journal of Near Eastern Studies. 52: 221–225. doi:10.1086/373624.
- ↑ Frood, Elizabeth (2007). Biographical Texts from Ramessid Egypt. ISBN 978-1-58983-210-7.
- ↑ Kitchen, K. A. (1996). Rammeside Inscriptions, Translated & Annotated, Translations. III. Blackwell Publishers.
- ↑ Moss, Rosalind; Porter, Bertha (2004). "Part 1: The Theban Necropolis. Private Tombs". In Malek, Jaromir. Topographical Bibliography of Ancient Egyptian Hieroglyphic Texts, Reliefs, and Paintings. I (2nd ed.). Griffith Institute. ISBN 0-900416-81-5.