Ahmosides

The Ahmosids were an Egyptian ruling family who took power in the country at the end of the 17th dynasty , drove the Hyksos out and contributed significantly to the establishment of the New Kingdom .

Family tradition

The era of the Ahmosids began in the Second Intermediate Period , at the end of the Hyksos period. It began with King Senachtenre and his wife Tetisheri around 1550 BC. And extended over four generations until the reign of King Amenophis I (1524–1504 BC). It has also been known as the "numerous clan" because it consisted of a large number of members. In the first three generations alone, at least 23 people can be proven. In contemporary and posthumous sources, predominantly female family members are documented.

The family name is derived from Ahmose I , the first king of the 18th dynasty . "Family god" was the moon god Iah , who appeared in many names from this time, e.g. B. in Ahhotep ("Yah is satisfied") and Ahmose ("Yah is born"). The name of the gods Iah (Jah) was written with the "crescent moon" hieroglyph, the orientation and shape of which is an important dating criterion . At the time of the kings Senachtenre, Seqenenre , Kamose and in the first years of King Ahmose I's reign, Jah was written exclusively with the upwardly open sickle shape. Between the 18th and 22nd year of the reign of Ahmose I, it changed back to a form that was open at the bottom.

The scribe and wisdom god Thoth also appears in his special function as moon god in the names Tao (Senachtenre, Seqenenre) and Satdjehuti (“daughter of Thoth”). From the fourth generation the name of the moon god disappeared and was replaced by that of the later main god Amun . Typical names at this time were Amenhotep ("Amun is satisfied"), Meritamun ("Amun's beloved"), Satamun ("daughter of Amun") and Saamun ("son of Amun").

history

Second stele of Kamose ( Luxor Museum )

After the fall of the Middle Kingdom (around 1650 BC), Egypt was divided into several local kingdoms, each of which produced their own dynasties (14th to 17th dynasties after Manetho ). In the Nile Delta , rulers from the Near East who are known as “Shepherd Kings” or “Hyksos” came to power. These provided the kings of the 15th and 16th dynasties and subjugated the remaining local royalty, which from then on served as vassal states. The Hyksos founded their capital Auaris on an eastern branch of the Nile , from where they controlled the entire country. Among the most important rulers were Salitis , Chajan and Apophis I , who wrote their names like pharaohs in cartouches and, above all, worshiped the god Seth .

At this time the 17th dynasty ruled in the Theban area (with seat in Deir el-Ballas ), of which a prince was named Senachtenre. Senachtenre was listed as the first ruler of the 17th dynasty in some royal lists, but his origin is uncertain and there are no other contemporary evidence of him. His wife was Tetisheri, a middle-class woman who later became known as the " ancestral mother " of the Ahmosids. Tetisheri lived until the time of Ahmose I and partly took over the affairs of government. Not much is known of her role in the later liberation struggle against the Hyksos, but after the death of her grandson Ahmose I she was highly venerated (Tetisheri stele, CG 34002 ) and even had her own ( cenotaph ) pyramid .

Seqenenre is considered the successor of Senachtenre and was probably a son of the Tetisheri. He lived at the time of the Hyksos king Apophis. The Thebans, who were largely dependent both politically and economically, had to pay tribute at this time and served as vassals. Other kingdoms on the Nile were also under the rule of the Hyksos. There is a story of Seqenenre in which conflicts with the Hyksos were reported for the first time. In this there was probably the first revolts of the Thebans. The mummy Seqenenres bears clear traces of a struggle, which point to a dispute with the Hyksos vassals from Middle Egypt . Like many other Ahmosids, he was buried in Dra Abu el-Naga after his death .

Ahhotep I , who was presumably a daughter of Tetisheri, was one of the wife . She was the mother of Ahmose I and initially ruled for her minor son. It seemed to have played an important role in the later fight against the Hyksos, as evidenced by a text on the memorial stone of Ahmose . Seqenenre and Ahhotep I had several children, many of whom were named "Ahmose". This also includes Ahmose-Nefertari , who, together with Ahmose I, continued the main line of the third generation. In addition, Seqenenre had a few co-wives, such as B. his (half) sister Satdjehuti, from whom a coffin mask was found.

He was succeeded by Kamose, whose victory report, handed down on two steles, tells of the first attacks on the Hyksos city of Auaris. He was probably half-brother of the Seqenenre and married to Ahhotep II , who may also be descended from Tetisheri. On the Kamose steles it is realistically described how Kamose put together a fleet to take action against the foreign rulers from the north. First, the cities of the vassals loyal to Hyksos were conquered one after the other before the gates of the city of Auaris were reached. The city could not be captured, but the campaign of Kamose heralded the liberation of Egypt, which was continued and ended by his successor. Little is known about the death of Kamose; only a few years of his reign are inscribed.

After the early death of Seqenenre and Kamose, Ahmose I succeeded the throne. He ruled for a total of 25 years and is considered the first ruler of the 18th dynasty. In his time, Auaris was finally conquered and the Hyksos driven from Egypt. He also consolidated the border with Libya and recaptured Lower Nubia . In order to keep the region under permanent control, he had the Buhen fortress expanded and at the same time created the office of Viceroy of Kush , which lasted until the 23rd dynasty . He also made the city of Thebes the new capital of the reunified empire. Thebes was the center of the Amun cult and rose to become the most important metropolis in the country alongside Memphis in the New Kingdom .

With Ahmose-Nefertari, Ahmose I fathered Ahmose -Sapair , who died relatively young. His successor was Amenophis I , the last ruler of the Ahmosid family. This continued the reorganization of the state and oriented itself strongly to the important rulers of the Middle Kingdom. In addition, he commissioned many new buildings in the country and extended the domain further south. However, he did not leave a male heir to the throne. The change of dynasty was initiated by his successor Thutmose I , who was married to a daughter of Amenhotep.

Cult of the dead and deification

Ahmose-Nefertari and Amenophis I sacrifice before Osiris

As the “founding kings” of the New Kingdom, the Ahmosids played a central role in the historical awareness of posterity. Their cult of the dead took place mainly in Thebes and Abydos . Amenophis I established a Hathor shrine in the mortuary temple of Mentuhotep II , in which cult objects with the names of Ahmosid family members were donated as votive offerings . In this mortuary temple, the founders of the Middle Kingdom were venerated with their own cult until the 18th dynasty. The cult of the dead began under Ahmose I, who set up a cenotaph pyramid for his grandmother Tetisheri and a memorial chapel, and also honored her on a separate stele. Other foundations for the dead for Tetisheri and Ahmose-Satkamose were located in Abusir .

Ahmose I also had his own cult, which was established immediately after his death. It took place in the mortuary temple of Ahmose and the Ahmose-Nefertari in Abydos and was performed by special "funeral priests of the king". His wife Ahmose-Nefertari was mentioned and depicted several times in Ramessidic tombs in Thebes. She was considered the "ancestral mother of the 18th dynasty" and even appeared several times on reliefs in the Amun temple in Karnak . In the 19th and 20th dynasties, she was deified together with Amenophis I in shrines from Deir el-Bahari and Deir el-Medina and thus enjoyed a special cultic veneration 300 years after her lifetime.

List of Ahmosids

The following table lists all known Ahmosids with the associated known degrees of relationship. So far, there is no uniform family tree for the Ahmosids, as only very few sources have come down to us and there are many other difficulties, e.g. B. that the name "Ahmose" appears very often and a clear assignment is therefore often impossible.

Surname	title	generation	Remarks
Senachtenre		First	No contemporary evidence available.
Tetisheri	Queen mother	First	Civil descent.
Seqenenre		Second	Descent from Senachtenre and Tetisheri not established. Very likely successor to the Senachtenre.
Ahhotep I.	(Great) king's daughter, king's sister, ruling sister, (great) king's mother	Second	Mother of Ahmose I. Probably married to Seqenenre or Kamose.
Satdjehuti Satibu	King's daughter, king's sister	Second	Daughter of the Tetisheri. Possibly identical to satdjehuti.
Satdjehuti	King's daughter, king's sister, king's wife	Second	Mother of the king's daughter, king's sister Ahmose, next wife of the Seqenenre.
Ahmose Inhapi	King's daughter, king's wife	Second	Mother of the Ahmose-Henuttamehu. Probably the Seqenenre's co-consort.
Ahhotep III.	Great princess	Second	(Second) wife of Seqenenre and probably mother of the eldest king's son Ahmose. Could also be identical to Ahhotep I.
Ahhotep	King's daughter	Second	Probably daughter of Senachtenre and Tetisheri.
Kamose		Second or third	Origin not certain. Successor to the Seqenenre.
Ahhotep II	(Great) king's daughter, royal sister, ruling sister	Second or third	Probably the wife of Kamose. Could also be identical to Ahhotep I.
Ahmose I.	(Bodily) prince	third	Very likely son of Seqenenre and Ahhotep I or Kamose and Ahhotep II.
Ahmose-Nefertari	King's daughter, King's sister, daughter of a Great King's Wife, King's sister, King's mother	third	Wife and probably half-sister of Ahmose I.
Ahmose	Eldest prince	third	Son of the Seqenenre and an Ahhotep.
Ahmose Meritamun I.	King's daughter, king's sister	third	Perhaps daughter of Seqenenre and co-wife of Kamose or Ahmose I.
Ahmose-Henutempet	King's daughter	third	Daughter of an Ahhotep.
Ahmose-Nebetta	King's daughter, king's sister	third	Daughter of an Ahhotep.
Ahmose Tumerisi	King's daughter, king's sister	third	Daughter of an Ahhotep.
Ahmose	(Great) king's daughter	third	Daughter of the seqenenre.
Ahmose-Sheri	King's daughter	third	Daughter of the Seqenenre and an Ahhotep.
Ahmose	King's daughter, king's sister	third	Daughter of the Seqenenre and the Satdjehuti.
Ahmose-Henuttamehu	King's daughter, king's sister	third	Daughter of Ahmose Inhapi.
Ahmose Satkamose	King's daughter, king's sister	third	Daughter of Kamose.
Ahmose	Daughter of the Tetisheri	third	Daughter or granddaughter of the Tetisheri.
Binpu	Prince	third	Only documented posthumously in later king lists. Son of Seqenenre or Kamose. Probably comes from a branch line.
Tjuiu	Prince	third	Son of the Seqenenre or titular prince .
Amenhotep I.	Prince	Fourth	Son of Ahmose I and the Ahmose-Nefertari.
Ahmose Meritamun II.	King's daughter, king's sister	Fourth	Sister or half-sister of Amenophis I. Is sometimes also counted as Ahmose-Meritamun I.
Ahmose-Sapair	Prince	Third or fourth	Only used posthumously. Probably identical with the elder son of the divine body Ahmose who died early .
Ahmose	Eldest son of the body of God	Fourth	Son of Ahmose I and the Ahmose-Nefertari.
Saamun	Prince	Fourth	Probably the son of Ahmose I and Ahmose-Nefertari.
Satamun	King's daughter, king's sister	Fourth	Very likely daughter of Ahmose I and Ahmose-Nefertari.
Ahmose-Satait	Prince	Fourth
Djehuti	Prince	Fourth	Possibly just titular prince.
Teti	Prince	Fourth	Possibly just titular prince.

literature

• Alfred Grimm, Sylvia Schoske: In the sign of the moon. Egypt at the beginning of the New Kingdom (=  writings from the Egyptian collection . Volume 7 ). State Collection of Egyptian Art, Munich 1999, ISBN 3-87490-691-4 .
• Gabriele Höber-Kamel: From the Hyksos to the New Kingdom (= Kemet. Volume 12, Issue 2). Kemet-Verlag, Berlin 2003, ISSN  0943-5972 .
• Daniel Polz : The beginning of the New Kingdom. On the prehistory of a turning point (= German Archaeological Institute, Cairo Department. Special publication 32). de Gruyter, Berlin et al. 2007, ISBN 978-3-11-019347-3 (also: Munich, Univ., Habil.-Schr., 2006).
• Hermann A. Schlögl : Ancient Egypt. History and culture from the early days to Cleopatra. Beck, Munich 2006, ISBN 3-406-54988-8 , pp. 182-194.

Remarks

1. ↑ There was a large Seth temple in Auaris.
2. ↑ z. B. in the list of kings in the grave of Iniherchaui in Deir el-Medineh .
3. ^ Tetisheri stele, CG 34002

Individual evidence

1. ↑ A. Grimm, S. Schoske: In the sign of the moon. Egypt at the beginning of the New Kingdom. Munich 1999, p. 35.
2. ↑ D. Polz: The beginning of the New Kingdom. On the history of a turning point Berlin et al. 2007, p. 57.
3. ↑ A. Grimm, S. Schoske: In the sign of the moon. Egypt at the beginning of the New Kingdom. Munich 1999, p. 60.
4. ↑ A. Grimm, S. Schoske: In the sign of the moon. Egypt at the beginning of the New Kingdom. Munich 1999, pp. 68-69.
5. ↑ A. Grimm, S. Schoske: In the sign of the moon. Egypt at the beginning of the New Kingdom. Munich 1999, pp. 47-48.
6. ↑ A. Grimm, S. Schoske: In the sign of the moon. Egypt at the beginning of the New Kingdom. Munich 1999, p. 36.