Karimala (sometimes written as Katimala or Kadimalo) was a Nubian queen. She is known from a relief found at the temple in

Semna The region of Semna is 15 miles south of Wadi Halfa and is situated where rocks cross the Nile narrowing its flow—the Semna Cataract. Semna was a fortified area established in the reign of Senusret I (1965–1920 BC) on the west bank of the N ...

Nubia Nubia () (Nobiin: Nobīn, ) is a region along the Nile river encompassing the area between the first cataract of the Nile (just south of Aswan in southern Egypt) and the confluence of the Blue and White Niles (in Khartoum in central Sudan), or ...

. Karimala had the title of

Great Royal Wife Great Royal Wife, or alternatively, Chief King's Wife ( Ancient Egyptian: ''ḥmt nswt wrt'', cop, Ⲟⲩⲏⲣ Ⲟⲩⲣϣ), is the title that was used to refer to the principal wife of the pharaoh of Ancient Egypt, who served many official ...

and princess. In the scene at Semna, the queen is shown with double feather crown, scourge and long robe.

Isis Isis (; ''Ēse''; ; Meroitic: ''Wos'' 'a''or ''Wusa''; Phoenician: 𐤀𐤎, romanized: ʾs) was a major goddess in ancient Egyptian religion whose worship spread throughout the Greco-Roman world. Isis was first mentioned in the Old Kingd ...

is standing in front of the queen, and here is a longer inscription, written in Egyptian hieroglyphics, which are difficult to read. The text seems to allude to a conflict between Makarasha and an unnamed king who was the husband of Karimala. Although the precise dating of the inscription and hence Karimala is not certain, it can be assumed that it dates back to the Twenty-First or Twenty-Second Dynasty. This period (about 1000–750 BC) is considered the dark age of Nubian history, from which almost nothing is known. This inscription proves the continuation of certain power structures. In 1999 Chris Bennett made a case that Karimala was a daughter of

Osorkon the Elder Aakheperre Setepenre Osorkon the Elder was the fifth king of the 21st Dynasty of Ancient Egypt and was the first Pharaoh of Meshwesh ( Ancient Libyan) origin. He is also sometimes known as Osochor, following Manetho's ''Aegyptiaca''. Biograph ...

(reigned 992 – 986 BC).Chris Bennett, "Queen Karimala, Daughter of Osochor?" ''Göttinger Miszellen'' 173 (1999), pp. 7-8 She is called both 'King's Daughter" and "King's Wife" and her name suggests she may have been Libyan. Given the date of the inscription (a year 14), she might have been the queen of either king

Siamun Neterkheperre or Netjerkheperre-Setepenamun Siamun was the sixth pharaoh of Egypt during the Twenty-first Dynasty. He built extensively in Lower Egypt for a king of the Third Intermediate Period and is regarded as one of the most powerful ruler ...

(reigned 986–967 BC) or king

Psusennes II Titkheperure or Tyetkheperre Psusennes II Greek_language.html" "title="/nowiki>Greek language">Greek Ψουσέννης] or Hor-Pasebakhaenniut II gyptian language, Egyptian ''ḥr-p3-sb3-ḫˁỉ--nỉwt'' was the last Pharaoh, king of the ...

(reigned 967 – 943 BC). Bennett prefers a marriage to Siamun, because in that case she could have taken over the position of the

Viceroy of Kush The former Kingdom of Kerma in Nubia, was a province of ancient Egypt from the 16th century BCE to eleventh century BCE. During this period, the polity was ruled by a viceroy who reported directly to the Egyptian Pharaoh. It is believed that the ...

Neskhons Neskhons (“She Belongs to Khons”), once more commonly known as “Nsikhonsou”, was a noble lady of the 21st Dynasty of Egypt. Biography She was the daughter of Smendes II and Takhentdjehuti, and wed her paternal uncle, High Priest Pinedje ...

, as a religious figurehead in

after the death of the latter in year 5 of king Siamun.

References

Further reading