Chay (vizier)

Chay was a 19th Dynasty Egyptian vizier . His area of office was Upper Egypt. He probably officiated in the 3rd to the 6th decade under King Ramses II. He was the successor of the vizier Paser . Neferrenpet was his successor.

Origin and family

Chay was the son of the troop commander Haia and the singer of Amun Nubdjeret. He himself was married to Iam. Children are not known.

meaning

Stele with chay (second register on the right) from Gebel Silsila

Chay was one of the most important officials under Ramses II. Before his promotion to vizier he was chief asset manager ( jmj-r pr [wr] ). However, he has only been awarded this title twice when he was already a vizier. As a vizier he bore the typical title of a public official and was head of the city , priest of mate , but also first king-herald of the lord of the two countries and frond bearer on the right of the king .

As herald of the king , he proclaimed the ruler's Sed festival in years 30, 34, 37, 40, 42 and 45 . He announced the fourth (year 40) and fifth (year 42) Sed festival together with Chaemwaset , son of Ramses II and also high priest of Ptah . Copies of letters to him on ostraka have survived , showing that he was the supreme authority for the workers of Deir el-Medina . There is a letter from the necropolis scribe Qenherchep chief to the vizier, which reminds of a delivery of plaster of paris. A letter from Chay is addressed to foreman Nebnefer, asking him to stick to his plan and to inquire about wages at the treasury. There is also a letter from the Treasurer, Sethi, about wages paid to workers in Deir el-Medina in the name of the Chay.

supporting documents

This vizier is known from numerous monuments. Two statues were found in the Karnak Temple in Thebes. Numerous objects come from Deir el-Medina and show the connection between the vizier and the workers there who worked on the royal tomb. But there is also a lintel from Qantir and a stele from Abydos. In Gebel Silsila he had various steles and statue niches carved into the rock in the Speos (rock temple) of the Haremhab.

His grave could not be located with certainty for a long time, although there are some relief fragments from Thebes West , which probably come from this one. In 2013 the pyramid of his tomb in Thebes West was uncovered.

literature

Christine Raedler: The viziers of Ramses'II. Networks of power. In: Rolf Gundlach, Andrea Klug (ed.): The Egyptian kingship in the field of tension between domestic and foreign policy in the 2nd millennium BC Chr. Wiesbaden 2004, ISBN 3-447-05055-1 , pp. 375-386.

Individual evidence

↑ Raedler: The Viziers Ramses'II. P. 386.
↑ Raedler: The Viziers Ramses'II. P. 378.
↑ Nevine El-Aref: Ramsis II vizier's tomb discovered cover. In: ahramonline. February 20, 2013, accessed February 22, 2013 .

personal data
SURNAME	Chay
BRIEF DESCRIPTION	19th Dynasty Egyptian vizier
DATE OF BIRTH	13th century BC Chr.
DATE OF DEATH	13th century BC Chr.

[1] Raedler: The Viziers Ramses'II. P. 386.

[2] Raedler: The Viziers Ramses'II. P. 378.

[3] Nevine El-Aref: Ramsis II vizier's tomb discovered cover. In: ahramonline. February 20, 2013, accessed February 22, 2013 .