Siamun

Name of Siamun
Horus name	Ka-nechet-meri-Maat K3-nḫt-mrj-M3ˁt Strong bull, lover of the mate [ ] Ka-nechet-meri-Maat-sa- (meri) -en-Amun peri-em-chau = ef K3-nḫt-mrj-M3ˁt-s3- [mrj] -n-Jmn prj-m-ḥˁw = f Strong bull , Beloved mate, [beloved] son ​​of Amun, who came out of his body
Throne name	Netjeri-cheper-Re-setep-en-Amun Nṯrj-ḫpr-Rˁ-stp.n-Jmn With divine form, a Re , chosen one of Amun Netjeri-cheper-Re-meri-Amun Nṯrj-ḫpr-Rˁ-mrj-Jmn With divine form, a Re, lover of Amun
Proper name	Saamun / Siamun (Sa Amun / Si Amun) S3 Jmn son of Amun Saamun meriamun (Sa Amun meri Amun) S3 Jmn mrj Jmn son of Amun, lover of Amun [sic] Nesutsaamun (Nesut sa Amun) Nswt s3 Jmn king, son of Amun
Greek for  Manetho	Psinaches

Siamun was the sixth ancient Egyptian king ( Pharaoh ) of the 21st Dynasty ( Third Intermediate Period ) and ruled from 978 to 959 BC. He is the first ruler to bear the title of "Pharaoh" ( Per aa ) as a royal title.

ancestry

Although he is the best attested pharaoh of the 21st Dynasty , his ancestry has remained unclear. Possibly he is the son of his predecessor Osochor .

Domination

Siamun ruled probably 19 years. His highest recorded year is the 17th. At Manetho he is identified with the king Psinaches, who is also listed there as the sixth ruler of the 21st dynasty and cannot be assigned to any other king. For Psinaches, 9 years of reign are given in Manetho, but it is assumed that the number 10 ( iota ) has been omitted from tradition .

In the south, Pinudjem II was high priest of Amun . After his death, the famous was Cachette of Deir el-Bahari created as a hiding place for the royal mummies.

Construction activity

Siamun was particularly distinguished by its construction activity. In Tanis, for example, he expanded the Temple of Amun with a pillar courtyard in front. It was probably Siamun on whose behalf Amenemope was reburied in the Psusennes I tomb. In Memphis , Siamun had the high priest of Ptah , Pipi , and the priest of the god to be worshiped, Anchefenmut , reach a temple dedicated to "Amun, Lord of Lapis Lazuli ".

Further evidence is a bronze sphinx, a block in Khatana, a line of inscriptions on the Thutmose III obelisk . in Heliopolis , a stele (confirmation of a land sale by Ptah priests), a graffito in Abydos and an entry in the priest annals of Karnak (here also dating to Siamun on mummy bandages, the amunoracle on the 10th pylon , the decrees for Henuttaui and Neschons ).

Foreign policy

Relief with the cartouches of Siamun from Memphis

Earlier assumptions that a triumphal relief from Tanis concerned Siamun, which is said to have taken place in relation to a campaign against the Philistines , could now be ruled out. Using comparative Egyptian representations, it was possible to prove that the curved shields used there refer to the Hittites . The Philistines are otherwise depicted with the characteristic round shields. Armed conflicts with the Hittites are not documented during Siamun's reign. Rather, it is the typical symbolic representation of the struck down enemy, from which, however, no historical fighting can be derived.

The Palestine campaign noted in the Old Testament , which was associated with Siamun, could be assigned to Scheschonq I according to recent studies . The place Gezer , which he destroyed, also appeared in his list of place names . The Old Testament text regarding the destruction of Gezer does not contain the name of a pharaoh and is therefore classified as a "post-processed folk tradition". This also includes the mention of “Solomon's Reconstruction of Gezer”, a later editorial addition, and the report that “Siamun's daughter became Solomon's wife”. The only possible historical tradition that remains is the fact that an Egyptian Pharaoh destroyed Gezer and married his daughter to Solomon. A possible connection, however, can only be drawn to Scheschonq I, the 926 BC. After a long period of time as the first pharaoh carried out a Palestine campaign again.

Archaeological studies confirm that Gezer at the beginning of the first millennium BC Was first destroyed and a short time later was rebuilt. The biblical mentions make a military conflict between David and the Philistines appear likely. At that time Gezer belonged to the sphere of influence of the Philistines. Other archaeological findings show that other Philistine locations only disappeared during the Sheschonq I campaign without being repopulated. Since a campaign from Siamun to the Gezer region is neither documented nor probable, Gezer's first destruction probably took place during David's reign.

literature

• Jürgen von Beckerath : Handbook of the Egyptian king names (= Munich Egyptological studies . Volume 49). von Zabern, Mainz 1999, ISBN 3-8053-2591-6 , pp. 180-181.
• Karl Jansen-Winkeln : Relative Chronology of Dyn. 21. In: Erik Hornung, Rolf Krauss, David A. Warburton (Eds.): Ancient Egyptian Chronology (= Handbook of Oriental studies. Section One. The Near and Middle East. Volume 83 ). Brill, Leiden / Boston 2006, ISBN 978-90-04-11385-5 , pp. 218-233 ( online ).
• Bernd Ulrich Schipper : Israel and Egypt in the royal era: The cultural contacts from Solomon to the fall of Jerusalem . Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, Göttingen 1999, ISBN 3-525-53728-X .
• Thomas Schneider : Lexicon of the Pharaohs. Albatros, Düsseldorf 2002, ISBN 3-491-96053-3 , pp. 274-275.

Web links

Commons : Siamun  - collection of pictures, videos and audio files

• Karl Jansen-Winkeln:  Siamun. In: Michaela Bauks, Klaus Koenen, Stefan Alkier (eds.): The scientific biblical lexicon on the Internet (WiBiLex), Stuttgart 2006 ff., Accessed on May 26, 2012.

Individual evidence

1. ^ Thomas Schneider: Lexicon of the Pharaohs. Düsseldorf 2002, p. 23.
2. ^ Karl Jansen-Winkeln:  Siamun. In: Michaela Bauks, Klaus Koenen, Stefan Alkier (Hrsg.): The scientific Bibellexikon on the Internet (WiBiLex), Stuttgart 2006 ff., Accessed on June 8, 2012.
3. ↑ Bernd Ulrich Schipper: Israel and Egypt in the time of the kings. Göttingen 1999, pp. 27-28.
4. ↑ Bernd Ulrich Schipper: Israel and Egypt in the time of the kings. Göttingen 1999, p. 23.
5. ↑ Bernd Ulrich Schipper: Israel and Egypt in the time of the kings. Göttingen 1999, p. 34.

predecessor	Office	successor
Osochor	Pharaoh of Egypt 21st Dynasty	Psusennes II.