ayad-the ttransition from libyan to nubian rule. the role of the god's wife of amun

8/12/2019 Ayad-The Ttransition From Libyan to Nubian Rule. the Role of the God's Wife of Amun

1/25


2/25

CONTENTS

Contents............................................................................................................................................ vIntroduction ....................................................................................................................................vii

David A. Aston,Takeloth II, A King of the Herakleopolitan/Theban Twenty-Third Dynasty Revisited:The Chronology of Dynasties 22 and 23. ......................................................................................... 1

Mariam F. Ayad,The Transition from Libyan to Nubian Rule: the Role of the Gods Wife of Amun ..................... 29

Susanne Bickel,The Inundation Inscription in Luxor Temple ................................................................................. 51

Helmut Brandl,Bemerkungen zur Datierung von libyerzeitlichen Statuen aufgrund stilistischer Kriterien ........... 57

Gerard P.F. Broekman,Takeloth III and the End of the 23rdDynasty ................................................................................. 91

Aidan Dodson,The Transition between the 21stand 22ndDynasties Revisited..................................................... 103

Claus Jurman,From the Libyan Dynasties to the Kushites in Memphis: Historical Problemsand Cultural Issues .......................................................................................................................113

Danel Kahn,The Transition from Libyan to Nubian Rule in Egypt: Revisiting the Reign of Tefnakht........... 139

Olaf E. Kaper,Epigraphic Evidence from the Dakhleh Oasis in the Libyan Period............................................149

Kenneth A. Kitchen,The Third Intermediate Period in Egypt: An Overview of Fact & Fiction................................... 161

Eva Lange,The Sed-Festival Reliefs of Osorkon II at Bubastis: New Investigations .................................... 203

Marc Loth,Thebanische Totenstelen der Dritten Zwischenzeit: Ikonographie und Datierung ...................... 219

Rita Lucarelli,Popular Beliefs in Demons in the Libyan Period: The Evidence of theOracular Amuletic Decrees...........................................................................................................231


3/25

Jos Lull,Beginning and End of the High Priest of Amun Menkheperre ....................................................241

Matthias Mller,The el-Hibeh Archive: Introduction & Preliminary Information.............................................. 251

Brian Muhs,Oracular Property Decrees in their Historical and Chronological Context ..................................265

Andrzej Niwinski,The Tomb Protection in the Theban 21stDynasty: Unknown archaeological factsgathered during the excavation of the Polish-Egyptian Cliff Mission at Deir el-Bahariin the seasons 1999-2006..............................................................................................................277

Frdric Payraudeau,Takeloth III: Considerations on Old and New Documents........................................................... 291

M. Carmen Prez Die,The Third Intermediate Period Necropolis at Herakleopolis Magna............................................302

Robert Ritner,Fragmentation and Re-integration in the Third Intermediate Period............................................ 327

Troy Leiland Sagrillo,The Geographic Origins of the BubastiteDynasty and Possible Locationsfor the Royal Residence and Burial Place of Shoshenq I ............................................................. 341

Cynthia May Skeikholeslami,The End of the Libyan Period and the Resurgence of the Cult of Montu ....................................361

John H. Taylor,Coffins as Evidence for a North-South Divide in the 22nd 25thDynasties............................. 375

Anthony Leahy,Dating Stelae of the Libyan Period from Abydos ........................................................................ 417

Discussions................................................................................................................................... 441Richard A. Fazzini,Addendum to the Discussions on the Chapel of Osiris Heqa-Djet............................................... 446

Index of Place Names...................................................................................................................449

Index of Proper Names............................................................................................................. 451


4/25

THE TRANSITION FROM LIBYAN TO NUBIAN RULE:

THE ROLE OF THE GODS WIFE OF AMUN

Mariam F. Ayad

IntroductionIn attempting to define the role played by the Gods Wife of Amun Shepenupet I and herimmediate successor Amenirdis I in the transition from Libyan to Nubian rule, the scenespreserved on a small chapel in East Karnak dedicated to Osiris, Ruler of Eternity (HqA Dt), areparticularly illuminating. Discussion of a few select scenes preserved in the first room of thatchapel, constructed under the Nubian ruler Shebitku (707-690 BC) will demonstrate thecommemorative nature of this chapel and shed light on the dynamics governing the relationshipbetween Shepenupet and Amenirdis.The chapel of Osiris, Ruler of Eternity lies to the North East of the temple of Amun proper, 132meters north of the eastern gate of the Karnak enclosure wall (Fig 1).1 Abutting the inner(western) face of the great enclosure wall, the chapel is the earliest of a series of small chapelsconstructed by the Gods Wives of Amun of the Twenty-third to the Twenty-sixth dynasties tothe east and north of the temple of Amun at Karnak. The chapels were all dedicated to Osiris inhis various forms or aspects (e.g. Osiris, Lord of Life (nb anx); Osiris-Wennofer-who-is-in- the-midst-of-the-Persea-tree (wnn-nfr-Hry-ib-pA-iSd) among others).2In its current form, the chapel ofOsiris, Ruler of Eternity consists of 3 rooms, a columned forecourt, and a gate. However, asinitially constructed by Osorkon III and Takeloth III, the original Twenty-third dynasty chapelwas a bi-partite structure.In an interim report published in 1973, Redford remarked on the poor quality of the buildingmaterial used in the construction of the 23rd dynasty structure, noting the unevenness of theblocks at the time of their re-use. Weathering marks on the blocks further indicated that they hadbeen lying on the ground for a considerable period of time prior to their use in the construction ofthis chapel. The blocks thus seem to have been scattered on the ground prior to their use in thechapel rather than taken from an older standing building.3 The unevenness of the blocksnecessitated the application of thick layers of plaster, both to fit the blocks together and to even

1Georges Legrain, Le temple et les chapelles dOsiris Karnak I: Le temple dOsiris-Hiq-Djeto,RT22 (1900): 146-49 at 146; D.B. Redford, An Interim Report on the Second Season of Work at the Temple of Osiris, Ruler of Eternity,Karnak, JEA 59 (1973): 16-30, at 16; J. Leclant, Recherches sur les monuments thbains de la XXVe dynastie ditethiopienne.Bibliothque dtude36 (Cairo: Institut Franais dArchologie Orientale, 1965), 47.2PM I.2, pp. 192-95; PM I.2, 202-207; See Georges Legrain, Le temple et les chapelles dOsiris Karnak III: Lachapelle dOsiris, Matre de la Vie, RT24 (1902): 208-14; L.A. Christophe, Karnak-NordIII (Cairo: IFAO, 1951),19-27, for a chapel of Amenirdis; ibid, 29-48 for a chapel dedicated by Nitocris; ibid, 97-112, for a columnedmonument built by Nitocris; and ibid, 113-34, for a comprehensive listing of monuments built by Nitocirs and her highstewards in Thebes. See also P. Barguet and J. Leclant, Karnak-NordIV (Cairo: IFAO, 1954), 109-27 and pls. XCVI-CXIII for blocks retrieved from a monument dedicated by Shepenupet and Amenidis; and Jean Leclant, Monumentsthbains, 23-36, for the chapel of Osiris nb-anx, pA-wSb-iAd; ibid., 41-47, for the chapel of Osiris Hry-ib pA iSd; 91-93,for a reconstructed chapel of Osiris,pA- dd-anx; 93-105, for the chapels in the precinct of the temple of Montu in NorthKarnak.3Redford, Interim Report 19, n. 3.


5/25

MARIAM F.AYAD30

Fig. 1 Plan of Karnak (after R.A. Schwaller de Lubicz, Temples of Karnak, Diagram 1)

Fig. 2 Plan of the Chapel of Osiris, Ruler of Eternity


6/25

THE ROLE OF THE GODS WIFE OF AMUN 31

up the surfaces for sculpture.4 With the loss of this layer of plaster, much of the originaldecoration of the chapel has been permanently lost.

Overview of the Decorative Scheme of the Twenty-third Dynasty chapel

With 15 representations of her own, Shepenupet is the most frequently depicted member of theTwenty-third dynasty. Osorkon III appears a total of 12 times, while Takeloth III is shown 10times.5 The decoration of the chapels innermost room is dominated by representations ofOsorkon III and Takeloth III. Takeloth also appears on the lower register of the northern wall(PM 14), the upper register of which is dominated by representations of Shepenupet. He likewiseappears on the lower register of the northern half of the eastern wall (PM 12), while Osorkonoccupies the upper register of the same wall. Painted cartouches of Rudamun appear on thesouthern and northern walls of the inner room. No representations of Rudamun are preserved inthis chapel (Fig. 2).6Throughout the chapel, Osorkon and Takeloth appear in corresponding, parallel, or symmetricallyopposed scenes.7 The near equal number of representations of both kings implies their equalstatus and further confirms that the two kings were co-regents who ruled side by side. 8On the

door jambs leading into the innermost room (PM 17) Osorkon and Takeloth are representedopposite one another. Adhering to Old Kingdom artistic convention, both figures share an inwardorientation.9There, Osorkon appears on the left jamb, while Takeloth is depicted on the opposite,right door jamb.10This particular placement of the two kings results in a rightward orientation forOsorkon and a leftward orientation for Takeloth, whose depiction on the right jamb mirrors hissenior co-regents on the left jamb. Leftward orientation, however, was often problematic forEgyptian artists, whose unease in rendering leftward oriented figures is seen, for example, inattaching the right arm to the left shoulder,11and similar anomalies, or errors, detected in leftwardoriented figures. This meant that in most cases, rightward orientation was reserved for the mostimportant figure in a scene. Indeed, in two-dimensional art, primacy of orientation to the right establishes lateral dominance in compositions.12 In the original Twenty-third dynasty chapel,whenever Osorkon and Takeloth appear in corresponding scenes, we find that rightwardorientation is exclusively reserved for Osorkon, while Takeloth consistently faces the left-handside.

4Redford, Interim Report 19.5Redford, Interim Report, 20, and note 5.6PM II, 206, (19) and (21); Redford, Interim Report, 23.7E.g. on the inner door jambs (PM 17) or in diametrically opposed scenes as on the eastern wall of the innermost room(PM 22) and the lintel above the doorway leading into Room II (PM 11).8Redford, Interim Report, 20. Suggestion of a co-regency between Osorkon III and Takeloth III also confirmed byMurnane in: William J. Murnane, Ancient Egyptian Coregencies. Studies in Ancient Oriental Civilizations 40(Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1977), 91-94.

9PM II, 206; H.G. Fischer, The Orientation of Hieroglyphs Part 1:Reversals(New York, MMA, 1977), 14.10Legrain, Osiris-Hiq-Djeto, 129-30; and Redford, Interim Report, 20, n. 5.11See, for example, Goyons remarks on the depiction of the left-facing Gods Wife in Parker et al, The Edifice ofTaharqa by the Sacred Lake (Providence: Brown University Press, 1979), 61, where her arms are reversed so thatwhat appears to be the right arm is really the left and what appears to be the left arm is really the right, though shownbefore the body. See also. Edna Russmann, Eternal Egypt: Masterworks of Egyptian Art from the British Museum,(London: the British Museum Press, 2001), 84, for a discussion of a leftward orientated figure of an offering bearer:Because the figure faces left, which is the subordinate direction in Egyptian two-dimensional art, there is acharacteristic reversal in her hanging hand, which looks as if it is shown backward. This indicates that, although sheappears to us to be holding the bird in her proper left hand, she is actually holding it in her right, which is the way thehand has been drawn (cf. cat. No. 20).12 Gay Robins, Some Principles of Compositional Dominance and Gender Hierarchy in Egyptian Art JARCE 31(1994): 33-40, at 33.


7/25

MARIAM F.AYAD32

Representation of Shepenupet in the Chapel

Scenes in Room IIRepresentations of Shepenupet are confined to the outer room and faade of the Twenty-thirddynasty structure. In the outer room, Shepenupet appears on the north, west, and south walls aswell as on the southern part of the east wall. Only one wall in this room is devoid ofrepresentations of Shepenupet: the northern part of the east wall (PM 12). Likewise, she iscompletely absent from the program of decoration of the inner room. On the south wall (PM 16),she shakes two sistra before the Theban triad, Amun, Mut and Khonsu.13And on the southernpart of the east wall (PM13), Shepenupet consecrates offerings of fruit and bread loaves.Appearing on three of the walls four registers, Shepenupet, who is shown in profile, proceedstowards the doorway leading into the inner room as she presents her offerings. Three columns offramed inscriptions detail Shepenupets titles and genealogy.14She is the Mistress of the TwoLands, Khnemetimen, the Mistress of Diadems, Shepenupet, Kings Daughter of the Lord of theTwo Lands, the Lord of Ritual15the Son of Re, the Lord of Diadems, Osorkon (III), son of Isis,

whose mother is the Chief Royal Wife Karoatjet.16

On the opposite, west wall two royal figures,probably her parents look on as a goddess suckles Shepenupet. At the northern end of the wall,Shepenupet stands, her face shown in profile turned to the left, holding an incense burner as sheconsecrates offerings heaped on an offering table before her. Indeed, consecrating offeringsappears to be Shepenupets primary role in this chapel, where on the other three walls of thisroom, she is shown consecrating or presenting offerings to the gods.

Scenes on the Original Twenty-Third Dynasty FaadeIn a scene preserved on the eastern part of the original faade of the chapel (PM 9), Shepenupet isshown in profile, her face turned to the left, standing before Egypts three national deities: Amun,Ra-Horakhty, and Ptah.17Turning to face Shepenupet, the three deities are oriented towards theright.18 Closest to Shepenupet is Amun-Re, who extends the sign of life towards her, its tip

touching her hip. Amun-Re, who is shown in profile, is represented striding to the right. He donshis customary double-feathered crown, a curved false beard, a broad collar, a pectoral, and a shortkilt to which is attached a ceremonial bulls tail at the back. A wAs-scepter held vertically inAmuns left hand separates him from Shepenupet. In his other hand, hanging behind his back, heholds another anx-sign. Behind Amun-Re is falcon-headed Ra-Horakhty, who is represented in anidentical stance to Amuns. The tip of the anx-sign diagonally held in his hand touches Amunsback hand. Like Amun, Ra-Horakhty wears a broad collar, and a short kilt to which is attachedthe bulls tail. A solar disk rests atop his long wig. Behind Ra-Horakhty is

13PM II, 206; Legrain, Osiris-Hiq-Djeto, 129-31; Redford, Interim Report, 21-23.14Legrain, Osiris-Hiq-Djeto, 131.15 On the title nb ir-xt, see C. Routledge, Ancient Egyptian Ritual Practice: Ir-xt and nt-a. Ph.D. dissertation,University of Toronto, 2001.16 See also the genealogical table in K.A. Kitchen, The Third Intermediate Period in Egypt (c. 1100-650 BC)(Warminster: Aris & Phillips, 1995), 476.17Redford, Interim Report, 21 and pl. 20; For the national status of these three deities, see David P. SilvermanDivinity and Deity in Ancient Egypt, in:Religion in Ancient Egypt: Gods, Myth, and Religious Practice. Ed. ByronE. Shafer (Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 1991), 33; and Leonard H. Lesko, Ancient Egyptian Cosmogonies andCosmology in:Religion in Ancient Egypt, 111.18H. Schfer, Principles of Egyptian Art, ed. E. Brunner-Traut, trans. John Baines (Oxford: Griffith Institute, 1986),205.


8/25


Fig. 3 Faade of Libyan chapel: Shepenupet before three national deities (after D.B. Redford,

From Slave to Pharaoh(Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University, 2003), fig. 16)

statuesque Ptah, shown standing on a pedestal, a tight cloak completely enveloping his body.Only his fists, firmly clenching a wAs-scepter, appear through a small aperture in the upper part ofhis cloak.Facing her divine companions, Shepenupet stands, her face shown in profile, turned to the left.She wears a long-sleeved, loose fitting, layered dress. A sash tied just above her natural waistgathers the dresss various layers. The dresss various layers, however, do not hide her voluptuousfigure. Shepenupet also wears a broad collar and an elaborate crown that sits atop her shortcropped wig. In her hands, she holds two naos-sistra, which she shakes for the benefit of threedeities standing before her.

Behind Shepenupet is an elaborate offering table laden with all kinds of fruits, vegetables, andherbs, including lotus flowers. Four gigantic ornate bread loaves act as supports for the table.Shepenupet seems oblivious to the table behind her. Instead, the three gods for whom she shakesthe sistrum garner her full attention. To the extreme right of the scene, on the other side of theoffering table, a royal figure in full regalia consecrates the offerings. Shown in profile, his faceturned to left, he extends a mks-scepter toward the offerings. In his other hand he carries aperiform HD-scepter and a staff.19He wears the White Crown of Upper Egypt and a ceremonialtripartite kilt. The inscriptions identify him as Osorkon (III), Shepenupets father.The offering table seems to divide the scenes in two halves. To the east (=left) of the table, theGods Wife is fully engaged in pleasing the three national deities of Egypt by playing music,while to the west (=right) side, the king consecrates offerings for them. Both acts were performedfor the benefit of the gods, and were intended to nourish and placate them. Shepenupets

depiction nearer the gods than the king is quite exceptional. Her proximity is further heightenedby the distance that separates the king from the three deities, created, in part, by placing the tablebetween her and the king, rather than between her and the gods. This particular arrangement mayindicate that these are two separate episodes that occurred one after the other in rapid successionas part of a ritualistic sequence.20 Alternatively, Shepenupet and her father may be shownperforming simultaneous acts of worship occurring on either of an offering table placed before

19 Geoffery Graham, Insignias in: The Oxford Encyclopedia of Ancient Egypt. Ed. Donald B. Redford (Oxford:Oxford University Press, 2001), 163-67.20 As suggested by Professor A. Niwinski in a personal communication on October 27, 2007; see also Schfer,Principles of Egyptian Art, 227-30.


9/25

MARIAM F.AYAD34

statues of the three gods. The king, who is shown here standing behind the table, would in realitybe on the far side of the table, farther from the viewer. Such an arrangement would be analogousto the depiction of a couple sitting at an offering table, represented one behind the other, when inreality they would be sitting nextto each other.21It should be noted though that in representationsof couples, the wife almost invariably appears behind her husband, and consequently, fartherfrom the table of offerings.22Male precedence was not limited to private couples, but extendedto, and included, royal and divine couples.23This pattern of representation is also noticeable forrepresentations of the 18thdynasty ruler Amenhotep I and his mother Ahmose-Nefertary. Bothdeified, the son still took precedence over his mother. For all Ahmose-Nefertarys importance,she does not take precedence over her son.24Although this particular example dates to the NewKingdom, Robins noted that rules of compositional hierarchy according to ownership and genderwere almost certainly current in all periods of pharaonic Egypt.25Being closer to the gods, andthus having precedence over her father, the king, underscored the status of Shepenupet I as aGods Wife.The offering scene described above occurs on the eastern part of the faade. On the other side ofthe multi-tiered false door that dominates the decoration of the faade, two remarkable scenes

survive. On the upper register, Shepenupet is suckled by Hathor, while on the lower registerAmun seems to place a crown on her head.26With minor variants, the scenes inscribed on thewestern doorjamb mirror those inscribed on the eastern jamb.

Suckling ScenesTwo symmetrically opposed scenes occupy the upper register of the jambs. In both scenes,Shepenupet is shown next to a goddess who stands much taller than Shepenupet. The goddessright hand cups her breast, holding it firmly in place as she offers it to Shepenupet. With her rightindex finger, she touches Shepenupets under-chin in a gesture intended to cause an infant childto open her mouth to receive her mothers milk. The goddess dons an elaborate crown, a broadcollar, and a tight sheath dress that stops just above her ankles. The crowns depicted in bothscenes are quite similar, composed of a disk flanked by two rearing cobras and surmounted by

two tall plumes. In both scenes the goddess places an arm behind Shepenupets head. In her hand,she holds an anx-sign. Because her palm points upward, the goddess seems to be supportingShepenupets tall, elaborate crown.In both scenes, Shepenupet wears a long flowing dress, with enormously wide sleeves thatballoon under her elbow. With its flowing layers, Shepenupets dress is quite similar to the dress she wears when shaking the sistrum before the three deities. Her attire here though seems longer,with the possible addition of an extra layer. A sash tied just below her breast, and above hernatural waist, gathers her gowns flowing layers. The long streamers of the sash hang loosely infront of her dress, adorning the full length of her dress, which stops just above her ankles. On herhead, Shepenupet wears an elaborate crown atop a short Nubian wig surmounted by the vultureheaddress. A solar disk surmounted by two tall plumes and framed by Hathors cow horns rest on

21Schfer, Principles of Egyptian Art, 172-77, especially 172-73.22H. G. Fischer, Women in the Old Kingdom and the Heracleopolitan Period, in: Barbara S. Lesko (ed.) WomensEarliest Records from Ancient Egypt and Western Asia: Proceedings of the Conference on Women in the Ancient NearEast. Brown University, Providence, Rhode Island November 5-7, 1987 (Atlanta: Scholars Press, 1989), 5-24,especially pp. 6-13.23Robins, Principles of Compositional Dominance and Gender Hierarchy, 36.24Ibid.25Robins, Principles of Compositional Dominance and Gender Hierarchy, 38.26Scenes discussed by R. Fazzini, Egypt: Dynasty XXII-XXV(Leiden: E. J. Brill, 1988), 20-21.


10/25


Fig. 4 Faade of the Libyan chapel: eastern door jamb (after R. A. Schwaller de Lubicz, TheTemples of Karnak, pl. 235)


11/25

MARIAM F.AYAD36

a short, flat platform of rearing cobras (a modius). In this scene though, as in many other two-dimensional examples, the modiushas been stylized so that the cobras are no longer visible. 27Inthe space atop the modius, just in front of the solar disk are the heads of two rearing cobras and avulture. One cobra wears the crown of Upper Egypt, the other the crown of Lower Egypt, whilethe vulture appears to be wearing a version of the atef-crown on the left jamb and nothing in thecorresponding scene on the right jamb. A vultures leg is visible on the side of the wig, its clawsgrasping a Sn-sign. In the hand closer to the viewer (right hand in the scene on the left; and lefthand in the scene on the right), Shepenupet holds a flagellum. The flagellum ends in three finialsand is adorned with one rearing cobra on the left and two rearing cobras on the right.Scenes of a goddess suckling a king abound. A limestone ostracon from Deir el-Medina depictsSeti I, wearing the blue crown, being suckled by a goddess.28A similar scene is engraved on thekeyhole-shaped counterpoise of a menat-necklace of King Taharqa. A pendant worn at the back,the counterpoise balanced the considerable weight of the necklace. The scene depicts Taharqa,wearing the White Crown of Upper Egypt, being suckled by a lioness-headed goddess.29While inthis example, the goddess wears a long sheath dress, Taharqa is naked. In fact, while the kingsnakedness was supposed to indicate his infancy, he is typically shown as an adolescent.

Just as the king was often depicted as an adolescent in such scenes, so Shepenupet appears as anadolescent girl in these two scenes. Scenes showing queens, or royal women, in Shepenupetsattitude are so rare in Egyptian art, that when they do occur, such scenes have beenlabeled un-Egyptian.30This rarity may be due to the special significance of receiving the milk of a goddess.In coronation rites, for instance, it was customary to depict the king being suckled by a goddess.31In a funerary context, the dead king assimilated with a newborn through receiving the milk of agoddess. Such assimilation enabled the king to live again. Suckling thus becomes a means ofachieving resurrection.32 Milk is also among the list of life-giving, or vivifying, productsmentioned in the Pyramid Texts (e.g. PT 707 d). So it may be argued that a funerary contextwould justify a woman appearing in such a scene. The context in the chapel of Osiris, Ruler ofEternity, however, is non-funerary. Protection and nutrition are also associated with milk.33In thePyramid Texts, a variety of goddesses appear in passages discussing the suckling of the reigning

king. These goddesses include Isis, Nephthys, Selkit, and the goddess of el-Kab in her manyforms, who was sometimes assimilated with Nut, Sekhat-Hor, or Semat-Weret (whose nameliterally means Great Cow).34In the scenes depicted in the chapel of Osiris, Ruler of Eternity,Hathor suckles Shepenupet on the western (=right) doorjamb, while Semat-Weret appears in thecorresponding scenes depicted on the opposite, eastern doorjamb.

27 See, for example, Anne K. Capel and Glenn E. Markoe (eds.) Mistress of the House, Mistress of the Heaven :Women in Ancient Egypt. (New York : Hudson Hills Press, 1996), 130 for a votive limestone stela with Taweret andMut in which Muts head, represented in profile turned to the left, is adorned with a flat modiuscrown. Sculpture inthe round often provides greater detail and illumines two-dimensional art. See ibid., 125-27 (cat. nos. 57 and 59c), forstatues of Isis (winged with Osiris or nursing Horus, respectively) wearing such a modius.

28The 31.2 cm high and 18 cm wide ostracon is currently at the Cleveland Museum of Art and was included in Capeland Markoe,Mistress of the House, Mistress of the Heaven, 117-18 as cat. no. 50.29MMA 41.160.104 (H. 9.7 cm; W. 4.5 cm; Th. 0.8 cm), included in Dietrich Wildung, Sudan: Ancient Kingdoms ofThe Nile(Flammarion, 1997), 174, 195.30I. Hofmann, Studien zum meroitischen Knigtum(Brussels, 1971), 37-38.31Marie-Ange Bonhme, Pharaon: Les secrets du pouvoir(Paris: Armand Colin, 1988), 85-92, especially 85-86; andJ. Leclant, The Suckling of Pharaoh as a Part of the Coronation Rites in Ancient Egypt. Le rle de lallaitement dansle crmonial pharaonique du couronnement in: Proceedings of the IXth International Congress for the History of

Religion, Tokyo 1958(Published 1960), 135-45.32Jean Leclant, Le rle du lait et de lallaitement daprs les textes des pyramides, JNES10 (1951) : 123-27 at 125.33Leclant, Le rle du lait et de lallaitement, 127.34Leclant, Le rle du lait et de lallaitement,123.


12/25


Crowning ScenesOn the lower register of the doorjambs two symmetrically opposed scenes depict Amun standingnext to Shepenupet (Fig. 4). His face shown in profile, Amun is orientated away from thedoorway, so that on the western door jamb, he is orientated towards the right (= west), while onthe eastern jamb, he is orientated toward the left (= east). Amun wears his customary doubled-feathered crown, a curved false beard, and a short kilt to which is attached a bulls tail at the back.Standing in a striding position, his left foot forward, Amun extends one hand behindShepenupets head and places his other hand just in front of her forehead, so that the tips of hisfingers almost touch the uraeusprotruding from her tiara. On the right door jamb, an arm-bandadorns his upper arm. His forward extended arm (the right in the scene on the right; and the left inthe scene on the left) obscures most of his beard so that only its top part where it adjoins his chinis visible. Giving a strong impression of physical proximity is Amuns forward extended foot,which obscures Shepenupets feet from view. On the right jamb, his leg also partly obscures thehem of her dress, while on the left the hem of her gown overlaps his ankle. As is typical ofEgyptian artistic conventions, the god is shown walking out of this chapel.In both representations, Shepenupet wears a long, loose fitting, layered, dress, its multiple layersgathered by a tied sash. On the right (= western door jamb), the small bow that gathers and tiesthe sash is still visible. The sash appears to be very similar to one depicted in the suckling scene,its long streamer decorating the front of her dress.On both jambs, Amun is identified as the Lord of the Thrones of the Two Lands . . . Karnak (iptswt). WAs-scepters frame each of the four scenes.The propagandistic nature of the peculiar iconographic program of the faade of the Twenty-thirddynasty chapel can only be appreciated if we imagine what it looked like at the time its decorationwas completed. An Egyptian approaching the chapel from a distance would have beenimmediately struck by the prominence given Shepenupet on the faade and the frequency of herrepresentations there. The original faade was dominated by scenes showing Shepenupet shakingthe sistrum before Amun, Re-Horakhty, and Ptah, suckled by Hathor and Semat-Weret, andcrowned by Amun. Such was the decoration of the faade when the Nubians decided to build anextension to the chapel.

The Nubian Addition to the chapelThe chapels enlargement seems to have occurred after the military success of the Nubians. Thatthe addition was constructed, or at least its decoration completed, during the reign of Shebitku(707/706-690 BC) is evident from the inscriptions preserved on the new monumental faade heerected, where his Horus name, Dd xaw survives. Shebitkus paternal uncle and predecessor,Shabako, had secured Nubian control of the Nile Valley up to Memphis. 35Shebitku was thus thesecond Nubian ruler to be in control of Egypt up to Memphis, and possibly beyond.36Perhapssignifying new-found prosperity, the Nubian addition was constructed using newly-hewn squareblocks of stone and its dimensions were wider than the earlier structure.37 When the Nubiansdecided to expand the existing structure, they did not modify any of its original architectural

elements. For instance, the torus-molding that decorated the corners and the external walls of theoriginal faade is still visible. Indeed, the chapels original faade was incorporated into thenewly constructed chamber as its southern wall.

35 Kitchen, Third Intermediate Period, 378-380; T. Eide, T. Hgg, R.H. Pierce, and L. Trk, Fontes HistoriaeNubiorum Volume 1: From the eighth to the mid-fifth century BC (Bergen: University of Bergen, Department ofClassics, 1994), 123-25.36Kitchen, Third Intermediate Period, 383-387; Eide et al., Fontes Historiae Nubiorum, 125-29.37 Redford, Interim Report, 19. Although the rooms dimensions are not specifically mentioned in the text, thechapels plan, which is drawn to scale in ibid, 18, fig. 2, clearly indicates the wider dimensions of the Nubian addition.


13/25

MARIAM F.AYAD38

Fig. 5. Faade of Nubian chapel (photo M. Ayad)

Decoration of the Nubian FaadeA gigantic representation of Shebitku dominates the eastern half of the faade, where he can beseen receiving symbols of the sed-festival from Amun-Re. Next to Shebitkus representation,Amenirdis is shown, on a much smaller scale, before various deities. Her representation is part ofa series of vignettes framing the entrance to the chapel. The small vignettes depict the GodsWives Shepenupet and Amenirdis in symmetrically opposed and complementary scenes.Amenirdis is shown in four vignettes arranged one atop the other on the eastern doorjamb. Thesevignettes correspond to four similarly small scenes on the western jamb, which depict Shepenupetbefore various deities. Whereas the kings heroic size emphasizes his status, the gods representedwith the Gods Wife in the vignettes are depicted at the same scale as the Gods Wife. One of thepeculiarities of Egyptian art is that the gods could be depicted at the same scale as humans, butthe king was often represented on a much grander scale.38 Both women share an inwardorientation towards the door, while the deities before whom they stand have an outward boundorientation and appear to be proceeding out of the chapel. The scenes are not identical in contentthough.On the uppermost surviving vignette of the western jamb, Shepenupet raises her arms in adorationof falcon-headed Montu Lord of Thebes,39 while in the corresponding scene on the eastern

jamb, Amenirdis presents Maat to Amun-Re. Lord of the Thrones of the Two Lands. Bothwomen wear a loose-fitting, long-sleeved gown, whose wide sleeves form a semi-circle under theelbow, while its hem curves upward revealing sandaled feet. The customary tall double-featheredcrown of the Gods Wives adorns their heads.

38Schfer, Principles of Egyptian Art, 233.39The uppermost vignettes on either side of the doorway have been lost.


14/25


Fig. 6. Shepenupet before Montu(photo M. Ayad)

Fig. 7 Amenirdis before Amun(photo M. Ayad)

Her face shown in profile turned to the left, Shepenupet stands raising her arms in adoration tofalcon-headed Montu (Fig. 6). Athletic-looking, with broad shoulders and carefully delineated

muscles, Montu takes a wide stride to the right. On his nemes-covered head rest a double-feathered crown and a solar disk. Montu wears a short kilt. Hanging behind him and parallel tohis body is his anx-grasping right hand. In his left hand, he grasps a wAs-scepter, to which isattached an anx-symbol. Shepenupet is about to receive this life-giving symbol in heroutstretched, open palm. To the viewers left, similarly-attired Amenirdis stands arms bent beforeher opposite Amun-Re (Fig. 7). Amenirdiss bent arms give the impression that she is representedin an identical stance to Shepenupets, whereas in fact she holds out a small statuette of thegoddess Maat in her hands. The statue rests on Amenirdiss left palm, while her right hand,protectively curving upward behind it, seems to support the statues back. Like Montu on thewestern jamb, Amun-Re holds a wAs-scepter. Amuns scepter, however, does not end in an anx-symbol.On the next register two vignettes depict Shepenupet presenting fields to Horus, the Protector ofhis Father on the western jamb, while on the eastern jamb, Amenirdis pours libations over agoddess, who dons a solar disk set within Hathoric horns on her head. The goddesses depictedhere is Isis whose depiction would balance Horus, shown in the corresponding vignette.Deliberately paired, Horus, the protector of his father, and Isis evoked the Osirian myth. Lastly,on the bottom register Shepenupet and Amenirdis are represented before Seshat and Thoth,respectively. Closely associated with temple foundation rite of the Stretching of the Cord, bothSeshat and Thoth were likewise deliberately paired.


15/25

MARIAM F.AYAD40

Fig. 8. Chapel of Osiris, Ruler of Eternity, Room I,East Wall, North Wall, western half, lower register,Amenirdis with Seshat (photo M. Ayad)

Fig. 9. Chapel of Osiris, Ruler of Eternity,Room I, East Wall (after R.A. Schwaller deLubicz, Temples of Karnak, pl. 234)

A band of inscriptions inscribed on the bottom of the eastern jamb reads: the great gate of theGods Wife, the Divine Worshipper, Amenirdis . . . beloved of her father Osiris, Ruler ofEternity.40Indeed, a scene preserved on the inner face of the western part of the faade (PM 7)depicts Amenirdis partnering with a goddess in the ritual ofpD Ssr, or Stretching of the Cord(Fig. 8). Amenirdis, depicted on the left, her face shown in profile turned to the right, standsopposite a goddess who wears the symbol of Seshat on her head: seven petals, rays, or celestialorbits, with an ecliptic or two inverted horns on top.41Although the name of the goddess does notsurvive, her head gear identifies her as the goddess Seshat, the Mistress of Builders.Alternatively, she may be Sefekhet-Abwy (literally, The Lady of Seven Horns), a goddess whohad been associated with Seshat since the time of Thutmose III.42Both Amenirdis and her divinecompanion hold a club in one hand and a smooth, rounded pole in the other. A short loop cordholds the two poles together. The cord is tightly pulled by the two poles such that its two sides

parallel each other.43

Amenirdis wears her regular costume of a tight sheath dress, vultureheaddress and two tall plumes. Typically, the king as the ultimate high priest of Egypt wouldappear next to Seshat in this rite. In partnering with Seshat, the king would act on behalf of Thoth,

40Legrain, Osiris-Hiq-Djeto, 126.41 See G.A. Wainwright, Seshat and the Pharaoh, JEA 26 (1940): 30-40, at 33 for a discussion of the object(s)comprising the goddesss headdress; see also R. Park, Stretching of the Cord in: Proceedings of the Seventh

International Congress of Egyptologists. Cambridge, 3-9 September 1995, ed. C. Eyre (Leuven, 1998), 839-48, at 841for the view that the seven objects shown on the Seshats headdress refer to the orbital paths of the seven easilyobserved planets following the ecliptic.42Wainwright, Seshat and the Pharaoh, 30.43M. Isler, An Ancient Method of Finding and Extending DirectionJARCE26 (1989): 191-206, at 203.


16/25


the god of writing and learning. Depicting the ritual measuring and demarcation of the templeground, the act of stretching the cord symbolized the surveying of the temple area. This ceremonywas an integral part of the ritual sequence associated with the laying of the temple foundation.Iconographically, a representation of the ritual Stretching of the Cord often summed up theentire temple foundation act, symbolically standing for a temples construction or its officialconsecration and dedication to its divine inhabitant.44Amenirdiss representation on the western half of the north wall of room I complements the scenedepicted on the opposite, south wall. There, Takeloth III is shown performing another aspect ofthe temple foundation ritual: the ritual consecration of the monument. Takeloth III, barefoot,proceeds towards the left, wearing the atef-crown, the tri-partite SnDwt-kilt and holding a mks-staff and a periform HD-mace in his left hand, such that the two objects cross over each other. Thetwo objects were traditionally held by the king during the offering ceremonies and are equallyattested in the scenes of consecration of divine edifices entitled Giving the House to its Lord.45Not surprisingly, Amenirdis dominates the decorative program of the Nubian annex, where she isrepresented as the main officiant on all the walls of room I. Remarkably, however, Amenirdis didnot appropriate any of the scenes depicting Shepenupet, nor did she erase any of herpredecessors cartouches. In fact, Shepenupet is featured prominently on one of the walls addedby the Nubians. On the upper register of East wall, Shepenupet appears as the main officiantbefore Amun-Re and Isis. That Shepenupet was still alive when this wall was decorated is clearfrom the epithet anx.ti Dt (alive for ever), which consistently appears after the cartouchecontaining her name.

Room I, East Wall

Upper RegisterStanding at the southern end of the upper register, to the far right of the first scene is Isis DivineMother and Mistress of Heaven. Her face shown in profile, Isis turns to the left (=north) toface Shepenupet to whom she offers a menat-necklace, which still adorns her neck46(Fig. 9). Isiswears a tight sheath dress and a long lappet wig that reaches down to the middle of her back. Herwig is surmounted by a vulture headdress, and a solar disk set within Hathoric horns. Occupyingthe curved space below her wig, created by the small of her back, the menats key-hole-shapedcounterpoise is visible behind Isis back. Isis clutches the menat with her left hand, as she offers itto Shepenupet. With her other hand, she holds Shepenupets left hand, the two hands meeting inthe triangular space created between their two bodies.Facing her divine companion, Shepenupet stands, her face turned toward the right (=south).Shepenupet wears a uraeus-surmounted short curly wig topped by the Gods Wifes customarytall double-plumed crown with its characteristic solar disk. Shepenupets gown is loose-fitting,long-sleeved, and multi-layered, similar to the one she wears throughout her representations inthis room. The bottom edge of a shawl draped over her shoulders is visible just below her rightshoulder. Her gowns flowing layers are gathered loosely at her waist. Shepenupet extends herright hand toward her divine companion to receive the menat-collar from Isis, her finger tipstouching the lower edge of the menat-collar. Identifying Shepenupet and her divine companionare three columns of text inscribed in the space between her crown and Isiss. Below their jointhands is a short column of text, recording Isiss speech. It reads: To you, I have given life Inthe space behind Shepenupet is the short column of text, which reads: (May) all protection, life,stability, and dominion surround her like Re forever.

44A. Badawy,History of Egyptian Architecture(Los Angeles: University of California Press, 1968), 63.45Parker et al, Edifice of Taharqa, 55.46Scene description based on the photographs published in: R.A. Schwaller de Lubicz, Temples of Karnak, pl. 234.


17/25

MARIAM F.AYAD42

Immediately to the north of this scene is a single column of framed inscriptions. The inscriptionsname Shepenupet as the Divine Worshipper, Meryt-Mut (Beloved of Mut), may she live, chosenone of Re, the good herdsman/shepherd of mankind, the daughter of Amun, the one whom Mutbirthed.47 The column of inscriptions, which dissects the upper register, goes with the scenepreserved on the northern half of the upper register of the East wall. There, Shepenupet presents astatuette of Maat to Amun-Re, Lord of the Thrones of the Two Lands. Amun, who isrepresented in profile, his face turned to the left (=north) faces Shepenupet. Amun is represented,right leg forward, striding towards Shepenupet. He wears his customary tall double-featheredcrown, a curved long ceremonial beard, a broad collar, and a short kilt held in place by a narrowbelt, to which is attached a bulls tail at the back. Amun also wears an upper body garment thatextends from his waist to just below his breast. Two tapering knotted straps hold his shirt in place.Amun wears a rectangular amulet, suspended from a string that hangs around his neck. In hisclenched fist, hanging loosely behind his body, Amun holds an anx-sign, while in his right handhe grasps a wAs-scepter. The scepter vertically divides the space between him and Shepenupet.As in the previous scene, Shepenupets face, shown in profile, is turned to the right to face herdivine consort, Amun-Re. Shepenupet dons a tight long sheath dress and a broad collar. Instead ofthe short wig of the previous scene, she wears a long lappet wig surmounted by a vultureheaddress and the tall two-feathered crown of the Gods Wives. Shepenupets two arms are bentbefore her. The small statuette of the goddess Maat rests on her open, horizontally out-stretched,left palm. Behind the statuette, but not touching it, is Shepenupet right hand, which is raised in agesture of adoration to Amun. Her hand is far enough from the statuette that, in this instance, itdoes not seem to support it. In the space between Shepenupets legs and Amuns wAs-scepter is asingle column of text providing a caption to the scene: Presenting Maat to her father Amun-Rethat he may give her life for ever. Behind Shepenupet in the space created by the curvature of thesmall of her back is the inscription: May all Protections, life, stability, and surround her like Refor ever. A final column of framed inscriptions, behind Shepenupet, provides a caption to thescene depicted on the adjacent eastern half of the north wall. The inscriptions reads: Amenirdis,who is alive forever, who appears with the White Crown, chosen one of Re, who has come forthfrom his limbs, who appears on the throne of Tefnut like Re forever.48

Room I, North Wall

Upper RegisterThe scene to which the inscription provides a caption occurs on the upper register of the northwall. It depicts Amenirdis offering wine to Amun-Re (Fig. 10). Represented in profile, his faceturned to the left (= west), Amun-Re stands facing Amenirdis. Amun-Re, who is similarly attiredas in the previous scene, extends his right leg forward in a wide stride towards Amenirdis. Amuncarries an anx-sign in his left hand, and grasps a wAs-scepter in his right hand. Traces of blue paintcan still be seen on Amuns arms, legs, chest, neck, face, and his belt, while traces of yellow arefound on his broad collar (gold) and his kilt. The straps were painted red.Amenirdis, shown in profile, her face turned toward the right (=east) stands facing Amun. Herarms bent before her, she holds two round red-topped blue nw-jars. The jars, which contain wine,

47Legrain, Osiris-Hiq-Djeto, 128; for the sign (A 33)as m(i)niw, see Gardiner, Egyptian Grammar3, 445.48Legrain, Osiris-Hiq-Djeto, 128.


18/25


Fig. 10 Chapel of Osiris, Ruler of Eternity, Room I, North Wall, eastern half, upper register,Amenirdis offers wine to Amun-Re (photo M. Ayad)

are offered to Amun-Re, Lord of the Thrones of the Two Lands.49. On her head, Amenirdisdons a uraeus-surmounted short curly wig. Amenirdis loose-fitting gown, with its long sleeves,voluminous skirt, and tied sash is very similar to Shepenupets. Like Shepenupet, a shawl isdraped around her shoulders, its bottom edge appearing as a back flap underneath her rightshoulder. Traces of blue paint can still be seen on her wig. Seven columns of framed inscriptionsengraved in front of Amuns double-feathered crown and extending to the space aboveAmenirdiss head identify the two figures. Above Amenirdis, the inscriptions read: Wordsspoken (by) the Divine Worshipper, the Only Oneon Earth (wat Hr tA), just like Re is in the sky,the Gods Wife Kha-neferu-Mut, the Divine Worshipper, Amenirdis, may she live for ever likeRe.50 In the space between Amenirdis and Amun-Res wAs-scepter, a single column ofinscriptions provides a caption to the scene: Presentation of wine to her father Amun-Re, it isdone for the one who gives life. Behind Amun-Re, a single column of framed inscription reads:To you, I have given all life and dominion, all stability, all health, and all gladness that you may

49 Hieroglyphic texts given here are based on Legrain, Osiris-Hiq-Djeto, 127 and personal photographs taken in2003.50Legrain, Osiris-Hiq-Djeto, 127:wat m tA mi ra m pt


19/25

MARIAM F.AYAD44

live like Re for ever and ever.51Two separate, but short inscriptions occur in the space behindAmenirdis. Above her shoulders are the sign for a thousand followed by two signs typicallyfound in representations of the sed-festival: Double Sn-signs surmounted by half sky symbols.52The symbols were intended to affirm the kings authority over the extremities of the sky just as

the boundary stela signs represented his dominion over the earthly realm.53

The other short text,inscribed behind Amenirdiss skirt is the formulaic: May all protection and life surround her likeRe forever. A single column of framed inscriptions separates this scene from the next. It reads:Words spoken by the Divine Worshipper, Amenirdis, may she live, may her monument beestablished just as the sky is established, while her name is on it like Re. Amenirdisthus evoked Res uniqueness in her epithets and wished his endurance for her monument.

Room I, East Wall

Lower RegisterOn the bottom register of the East wall, Amenirdis appears next to Amun-Re, and his divineconsort, Mut. The names and titles of Amenirdis are inscribed in three unframed columns aboveher head. They are given as: The Divine Worshipper, Khaneferumut, the Gods Wife, Amenirdis,alive for ever.Decorating and partially framing the scene is the figure of an anx-holding vulture whose wingsspread horizontally above the columns giving Amenirdiss titles. The vultures two wings framethe inscriptions and form a corner at the top left hand side of the scene. The bird is identified asthe titular goddess of Upper Egypt: Nekhbet, the mistress of southern Heliopolis. BehindNekhbets tail a single short column of unframed inscriptions reads: May she give all life anddominion like Re forever.Amenirdis, whose face is shown in profile, turns to the right to face Amun-Re. Wearing a shortcurly wig, and a loose-fitting, long-sleeved dress, Amenirdis holds a naos-sistrum in her lefthand. She does not shake the sistrum though, which rests flatly on her left shoulder. She extendsher right arm towards Amun, who is shown at the exact moment of placing three anx-signs in heropen palm. Behind Amenirdis is a short column of unframed inscriptions. It reads: Mayprotection, life, stability, all dominion, all health, all gladness, surround like Re for ever.Facing Amenirdis is Amun-Re, whose face, shown in profile is turned to the left. Similarly attiredto his representation on the upper register, Amun wears his customary double-feathered crown, ashort kilt, an upper-body garment and pectoral. In his left hand, he holds three bits of string fromwhich hang three anx-signs. The three anx-symbols are being placed in Amenirdiss out-stretchedpalm. In his right hand, Amun holds another anx-symbol, which he extends towards Amenirdissnose, the loop that constitutes the upper part of the anx-sign almost touch her nose. Amuns actionis symbolic of his life-giving powers. It is through this gesture that Amenirdis received life. Threeshort columns of texts in front of Amun-Res crown give his speech: Words spoken by Amun-Re, Lord of the Thrones of Two Lands, who is in Ipet-Swt, to you, I have given

51Legrain, Osiris-Hiq-Djeto, 127: the wish that you may live is expressed using the stative construction (stative:anx.ti).52Whereas this combination of signs was originally identified with door hinges, Spencer demonstrated that the signsactually represent half skies and suggested that the location of the sky-symbol was in the broad courtyard. See A. J.Spencer, Two Hieroglyphs and Their Relation to the Sed-Festival, JEA 64 (1978): 52-55, at 54.53Spencer, Two Hieroglyphs and Their Relation to the Sed-Festival, 54.


20/25


Fig. 11. Chapel of Osiris, Ruler of Eternity, Room I, East Wall; Lower Register (photo M.Ayad)

Fig. 11. Detail of the sed-signs in Muts hand (photo M. Ayad)


21/25

MARIAM F.AYAD46

all life and dominion, happiness, perfection, and all that the gods like, that you may live(therewith) forever.54Behind Amun is his divine consort, Mut, who wears her customary double crown of Upper andLower Egypt, a tight sheath dress and a broad collar. Muts left arm is bent forward, reaching outfor her husband. Mut places her hand, affectionately and protectively, on her husbands shouldersuch her fingers follow the contours of his rounded shoulder. Her other (right) arm, hangs parallelto her body, not behind her, but in the space between her and Amun. In her right hand she carriesan anx-symbol, which is modeled so that its horizontal arms form the top of the hieroglyphic sign

for a festival hall (O 23). This sign is then followed by the sign for the sed-festival

(O 23E). The entire group in Muts hand is followed by aSAw, and can thus be read as Manysed-festivals. A single column of text in front of Muts crown reads: Words spoken by Mut, theGreat, the Mistress of Isharu. Above Mut is the name and title of Amenirdis, probably to betaken here as the vocative: O the Gods Wife, Amenirdis. Muts speech continues in a singlecolumn of framed inscriptions engraved behind her figure and framing the southern edge of thescene. It reads, as Eternity exist, so shall your name exist . . . [among] the living. To you, I havegiven all life and dominion, and all stability that you may appear as a Divine Worshipper and aGods Wife upon the throne of Tefnutlike Re forever.55Framing the scene at its northern end is a single column of framed inscriptions, engraved behindAmenirdiss voluptuous figure. It reads: The Gods Wife, Amenirdis, alive, she erected hermonument for her father, Osiris, Ruler of Eternity. She erected for him a temple .that her Lordmay receive a chapel of eternity by means of the work of knowledgeable craftsmen, aconstruction work of eternity. She acts for the one who has given life.56

ConclusionsThe close association of Amenirdis and Shepenupet in the decorative scheme of Room I in thechapel of Osiris, Ruler of Eternity and their balanced representations on the chapels faade isreminiscent of instances of royal co-regency.57Yet, within the carefully balanced layout of the

vignettes on the faade, we can detect a subtle assertion of Amenirdis more superior position.

Orientation of the Gods Wives on the FaadeOn the Nubian Faade of the chapel, in accordance with Egyptian artistic convention, the deitiesdepicted seem to proceed out of the chapel, their supposed divine dwelling.58 Also in line withEgyptian artistic convention, the officiating individuals, in this case the two Gods Wives, whoface the deities, are shown walking toward the doorway. The particular arrangement of the smallvignettes framing the doorway results in a rightward orientation of Amenirdis, who is depicted on

54Note that Legrain (Osiris-Hiq-Djeto, 127) reads this line as: di.n. n.t anx wsr rSwt nfrt mrr nTrw anx s Dt.However, checking the text at the wall revealed that the pronoun used here is t, the second person singular feminine,not the third person.55Legrain, Osiris-Hiq-Djeto, 127.56Legrain, Osiris-Hiq-Djeto, 127: Hmt nTr Imnirdis anx.ti ir.s mnw.s n it.s Wsir HqA-Dt ir.n.s n.f Hwt nTr Ssp nb.sHa nt Dt m irt n Hmw rx m kAt nt nHH ir.s Di anx.57Cf. Murnane, Egyptian Coregencies, 200, where he suggests that buildings decorated by both rulers are one of themost characteristic traces left by a coregency. . .58Dieter Arnold, Wandrelief und Raumfunktion in aegyptischen Tempeln des N.R ., MS 2. (Berlin: Bruno Hessling,1962), 128; H.G. Fischer, The Orientation of Hieroglyphs Part 1: Reversals (New York: Metropolitan Museum ofArt, 1977), 41; Lanny Bell, The New Kingdom Divine Temple: The Example of Luxor, in: Temples of AncientEgypt, ed. B.E. Shafer (Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 1997), 127-84.


22/25


Fig. 12. Orientation of the GWA on the Nubian Faade; (photo M. Ayad)

the eastern jamb, and a leftward orientation for Shepenupet, who is shown on the western jamb.This arrangement is quite remarkable for, as noted above, primacy of orientation to the right establishes lateral dominance in compositions.59An Egyptian looking at this faade would haveimmediately recognized Amenirdis as the more important of the two Gods Wives, her rightwardorientation having established her dominance over Shepenupet.This representational dynamic is very clear in the layout of complementary and symmetrically

opposed scenes representing Osorkon III and Takeloth III walking into the chapel. Osorkonsconsistent rightward orientation served to assert his superiority over his junior co-regent. Thus,based solely on their orientation, the rightward, more dominant orientation of Osorkon andAmenirdis indicated their higher status, while Takeloths and Shepenupets less dominantleftward orientation indicated their less important status in relation to the father of the former andthe successor of the latter. In the case of Osorkon and Takeloth, this arrangement is hardlysurprising: Osorkon was king long before he made Takeloth his co-regent, having preceded himto the throne of Egypt by at least 23 years.60Osorkons seniority justified his more dominantorientation. However, with regards to the Gods Wives, their particular orientation indicates asubtle, yet very clear, assertion of Amenirdiss more elevated status as a member of the newruling house.

Absence of LineageThat such a hierarchical arrangement was indeed deliberate is further confirmed by Amenirdisfailure to refer to Shepenupet as her mother in the inscriptions found in this chapel. Indeed, inthis chapel, Amenirdis did not include any information regarding her own lineage. Leclant notedthe oddity of this omission, noting that neither the name of her father Kashta nor those of herbiological or adoptive mothers, Pebatma and Shepenupet, respectively, were included in her

59See n. 15 above.60Kitchen. Third Intermediate Period, 201.


23/25

MARIAM F.AYAD48

inscriptions.61Such an omission must have been deliberate. Ritner suggested that suppression oflineage, particularly of tribal lineage, served to establish state authority.62According to Ritner,such suppression was part of a systematic state policy of Egypts new Nubian rulers. In the caseof Amenirdis, the suppression was intentional, not only to obscure her Nubian heritage, but alsoto distance herself from Shepenupet. Acknowledging that Shepenupet was her mother, adoptiveor otherwise, would have forced Amenirdis to cede primacy of representation to her. Doing sowould have outright defeated the propagandistic purposes of the chapels particular iconographicprogram. Instead, Amenirdis asserted her divine pedigree, claiming direct descent from Osiris,whom she gave the epithet ruler of eternity.63Indeed, the name of the chapel derives from threesuch inscriptions. Dedicatory in nature, they all mention Amenirdiss special connection to Osiris.Further asserting her Osirian pedigree is a representation of Amenirdis on the western part of thenorth wall in Room I, where she is depicted stretching the cord and thereby founding thischapel for her father Osiris. Just as Shepenupet II, a dutiful daughter, constructed a funerarychapel for her adoptive mother Amenirdis, so Amenirdis acted in the same capacity toward herdivine father, Osiris, Ruler of Eternity. But perhaps the most striking feature of this chapelsdecorative program is the fact that Amenirdis did not appropriate any of Shepenupets scenes nordid she erase any of Shepenupets cartouches. Indeed, she had her predecessor depicted in thescenes decorating the newly constructed east wall.

Claiming Legitimacy through Thematic ContinuityThe key to understanding the preservation of Shepenupets older scenes and her inclusion in thenew decorative program lies in Amenirdiss need to establish her own legitimacy. There seems tobe a certain thematic continuity governing the selection and layout of the scenes decorating thewall of the Nubian extension.Shepenupets striking iconography, seen especially in scenes of suckling and crowning, suggesther prominent status.64Although noting the prominence accorded Shepenupet in the decorativescheme of the chapel, Redford concluded that the chapel was erected to commemorate membersof the Twenty-third dynasty. While this may have been part of the chapels purpose, it is more

probable that the chapel was built to commemorate Shepenupets appointment as a Gods Wife ofAmun. After a long hiatus, the office was resurrected. The scenes depicted on the chapels faadeserved as a declaration, and as a reminder, of Shepenupets elevated status. Scenes showingAmun and Hathor crowing and suckling her, strategically placed on the jambs of the originaldoorway declared her investiture with the necessary insignia and powers to perform her priestlyand ritualistic duties. These scenes may thus be viewed as recording aspects ofan initiation ritualthat marked Shepenupets assumption of office as Gods Wife.Any informed Egyptian, approaching the Twenty-third dynasty chapel, would have immediatelyseen those scenes and recognized them as conveying the gods blessings and approval of herappointment. Through the milk of the goddess, Shepenupet was imbued with the ability to standbefore the gods and consecrate their offerings.65 Indeed, as suggested by the crowing scenes,Amuns placement of a special crown on Shepenupets head indicated that her appointment was

not enacted by a mere mortal, but by the supreme deity himself, who by so doing invested herwith the authority to become a Gods Wife. In this way, those scenes unequivocally establishedShepenupets legitimacy. Recognizing their value, Amenirdis sought to incorporate the entire

61 Leclant, Monuments thbains, 53: Les liens de parent dAmnirdis I ne sont pas indiqus dans les partiessubsistantes, ni avec son pre Kachta lEthiopien, ni avec sa mre adoptive, Chepenoupet I, la fille dOsorkon III,devant laquelle elle a pleine prsance.62Robert K. Ritner Fragmentation and Re-integration in the Third Intermediate Period, in this volume.63Legrain, Osiris-Hiq-Djeto, 126; Leclant, monuments thbains, 54. PM 205, (4): Left jamb, bottom.64As noted for example, in Redford, Interim Report, 21-22; Fazzini, Egypt: Dynasty XXII-XXV, 20-21.65See n. 32 above.


24/25


Twenty-third dynasty faade, with its legitimating scenes, into the decorative program of thenewly added chamber. By adding on and thematically complementing the very scenes thatlegitimated Shepenupets claim to power, Amenirdis established her own legitimacy as a GodsWife.Amenirdiss use of Shepenupets own legitimacy is most visible on the east wall of room I. There,Amenirdis included representations of Shepenupet on the upper register. In one scene,Shepenupet receives the menat-necklace from Isis. In another, she offers a figurine of the goddess

Maat to Amun. Both rituals declared Shepenupets elevated status and, more importantly,proclaimed her role in performing the cult.Maat, the deified personification of cosmic harmonyand justice, was the food which the gods desired. By receiving the menat-necklace, an objectsacred to the goddess Hathor, Shepenupet was receiving the essential gear needed for herritualistic role in the temple. The noise produced by shaking the menatwas particularly pleasingto the gods. Shaking it was thus an integral role played by temple musician-priestesses. Themenat also served a protective and regenerative function which granted its possessor theblessings of rebirth and eternal life.66But on the lower register of the east wall, it is Amenirdis,not Shepenupet, who receives life from Amun and symbols of the sed-festival from Mut.Amenirdis, thus, not only claimed for herself the same kind of legitimacy that was bestowed onShepenupet, but also reaped the benefits of Shepenupets cultic activity.

The Priestly Value of Receiving symbols of the sedfestivalReceiving symbols of the sed-festival from Mut further confirmed Amenirdiss cultic role. In hisvaluable study on Egyptian festivals, Bleeker suggested that the sed-festival was not a jubileecelebration, but rather a ceremony that conferred on the king his priestly powers. Recurringcelebrations of this festival thus re-affirmed the kings role as the ultimate High Priest of Egypt. 67In a similar manner, Amenirdiss receipt of sedsymbols from Mut asserted and propagated herright, indeed her duty, to serve as a mediator between humankind and the gods. In other words,this scene represents her investiture with (high) priestly authority. This investiture coincided witha gap of 50 years during which the office of High Priest of Amun was left vacant.68

Indeed, the scenes inscribed on the east wall of the Nubian addition are not only part of aritualistic sequence typically found among the rituals legitimating royal authority, but they alsoproclaim a certain ritualistic unity between Amenirdis and Shepenupet. Thus one offers and theother receives.This unity of purpose and its associated complementary representations suggests that theiconography of that first room in the chapel of Osiris, Ruler of Eternity was designed toemphasize the authority of the office of the Gods Wife, rather than the authority of any oneparticular person. This authority imbued the incumbent, Libyan or Nubian, with the ability toserve the gods. It is the harmonious co-existence, and association, of these two women that servedto achieve a smooth transition of power in the Theban region. For it is in their capacity as theultimate religious authority in Thebes that the two women were able to negotiate the dynastictransition from Libyan to Nubian rule. By adding on, and complementing, scenes that legitimated

Shepenupet as a Gods Wife, the Nubians were able to legitimate their own appointee to theoffice, and by extension, their hegemony over the Theban region. In this way, the chapelsdecoration, which had an immediately recognizable propagandistic value, was appropriated by theNubians, not through erasure, but rather by retention.

66Capel and Markoe,Mistress of the House, Mistress of the Heaven, 136.67C.J. Bleeker, Egyptian Festivals: Enactments of Religious Renewal(Leiden: E.J. Brill, 1967), 95, 113-23, esp. 121.68Kitchen, Third Intermediate Period, 201 and 480.


25/25

NEDERLANDS INSTITUUT VOOR HET NABIJE OOSTENTHE NETHERLANDS INSTITUTE FOR THE NEAR EASTINSTITUT NERLANDAIS DU PROCHE-ORIENT

Publications of the NetherlandsInstitute for the Near East may be

d d di tl f th I tit t

Order online:www.nino-leiden.nl/publication.aspx?BK_id=02023

Ordering information

Egyptological PublicationsSeries published by the Netherlands Institute for the Near East, Leiden

Volume 23

THELIBYANPERIODINEGYPTHistorical and Cultural Studies into the 21st-24thDynasties.

Proceedings of a Conference at Leiden University, 25-27 October 2007G.P.F. Broekman, R.J. Demare and O.E. Kaper (eds.)XIII, 457 pp.; ISBN 978-90-6258-223-5. 80, (excl. VAT)

This volume contains the Proceedings ofa conference held in October 2007 at LeidenUniversity on the Libyan Period in Egypt.

The study of the Third IntermediatePeriod, and most notably its chronology, hasbecome stuck in controversies ever sincepublications by David Aston, Anthony

Leahy, John Taylor and others raised doubtsas to the chronology presented in Kitchensseminal study The Third Intermediate Periodin Egypt (1972). There had been only asingle conference held on the Libyandynasties before, organized by Leahy at theSchool of Oriental and African Studies inLondon in 1986 under the title Libya andEgypt. There was clearly a need to discussthe controversial aspects of the chronologyand culture of the period with all the parties

involved.The timely nature of the conference was

confirmed by the enthusiastic response fromthose colleagues who were invited toparticipate. In the end, a total of 24 speakerspresented in front of an audience of some120 scholars and students hailing from

fifteen different countries. It was thoughtthat the chronological issues surroundingDynasties 21-24, the Libyan Period, shouldbe the principal focus of discussion, becauseit is here that the largest uncertainties stillremain. In addition, several scholars wereinvited to present recent archaeological findsfrom their own field work. Only by

considering new material may we hope tosolve the remaining problems, and newinsights into the Libyan Period are likely toemerge from the combined study of a wide

variety of sources.

The topics of controversy lie mainly inthe realm of chronology. Apart from this,several papers deal with the culturaldevelopments of the period. An interestingjoint theme that emerges from these is the

appearance of archaism in the art of thesecond half of the Libyan period. Severalpapers include comments on a newly foundinterest in the proportions and iconographyfrom the classical periods of the past,notably of the Middle Kingdom.