Nitocris II (or Nitokris II, Nitocris B, § 365 n. 951; table 13A

Egyptian Egyptian describes something of, from, or related to Egypt. Egyptian or Egyptians may refer to: Nations and ethnic groups * Egyptians, a national group in North Africa ** Egyptian culture, a complex and stable culture with thousands of years of ...

: ''Nt-jqrt'', Nitiqret) was an ancient Egyptian princess and priestess during the reign of

pharaoh Pharaoh (, ; Egyptian: ''pr ꜥꜣ''; cop, , Pǝrro; Biblical Hebrew: ''Parʿō'') is the vernacular term often used by modern authors for the kings of ancient Egypt who ruled as monarchs from the First Dynasty (c. 3150 BC) until the an ...

Amasis II Amasis II ( grc, Ἄμασις ; phn, 𐤇𐤌𐤎 ''ḤMS'') or Ahmose II was a pharaoh (reigned 570526 BCE) of the Twenty-sixth Dynasty of Egypt, the successor of Apries at Sais. He was the last great ruler of Egypt before the Persian conquest ...

of the 26th Dynasty.

Biography

Daughter of Amasis II, Nitocris II is mainly attested by an inscription on a

bronze Bronze is an alloy consisting primarily of copper, commonly with about 12–12.5% tin and often with the addition of other metals (including aluminium, manganese, nickel, or zinc) and sometimes non-metals, such as phosphorus, or metalloids such ...

sitting statuette of

Amun-Ra Amun (; also ''Amon'', ''Ammon'', ''Amen''; egy, jmn, reconstructed as ( Old Egyptian and early Middle Egyptian) → (later Middle Egyptian) → ( Late Egyptian), cop, Ⲁⲙⲟⲩⲛ, Amoun) romanized: ʾmn) was a major ancient Egypt ...

now in the

University of Chicago Oriental Institute The Oriental Institute (OI), established in 1919, is the University of Chicago's interdisciplinary research center for ancient Near Eastern ("Orient") studies and archaeology museum. It was founded for the university by professor James Henry Bre ...

(registration no. E10584A-B) on which she is called ''

High Priest of Amun The High Priest of Amun or First Prophet of Amun ('' ḥm nṯr tpj n jmn'') was the highest-ranking priest in the priesthood of the ancient Egyptian god Amun. The first high priests of Amun appear in the New Kingdom of Egypt, at the beginning ...

''; the same object also claims that the

God's Wife of Amun God's Wife of Amun (Egyptian: ''ḥm.t nṯr n ỉmn'') was the highest-ranking priestess of the Amun cult, an important religious institution in ancient Egypt. The cult was centered in Thebes in Upper Egypt during the Twenty-fifth and Twenty ...

Ankhnesneferibre Ankhnesneferibre was an ancient Egyptian princess and priestess during the 26th Dynasty, daughter of pharaoh Psamtik II and his queen Takhuit. She held the positions of Divine Adoratrice of Amun and later God's Wife of Amun between 595 and 525 ...

was her "mother". Nitocris' title is notable because she is the last attested holder of the once influential office of High Priest of Amun at Thebes, as well as one of only two known female holders; she may have reached this office around 560 BCE. The fact that Ankhnesneferibre is called her "mother" suggests that Nitocris also held the office of

Divine Adoratrice of Amun The Divine Adoratrice of Amun ( Egyptian: '' dwꜣt nṯr n jmn'') was a second title – after God's Wife of Amun – created for the chief priestess of the ancient Egyptian deity Amun. During the first millennium BCE, when the holder of this ...

which usually led to the charge of

after the adoptive mother's death. However, it seems that Nitocris never managed to reach the latter position because these offices were abolished soon after the Persian invasion of Egypt in 525 BCE.

References

Princesses of the Twenty-sixth Dynasty of Egypt 6th-century BC clergy 6th-century BC Egyptian women Theban High Priests of Amun {{AncientEgypt-bio-stub