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 Ancient Egyptian deities are the gods and goddesses worshipped in ancient Egypt. The beliefs and rituals surrounding these gods formed the core of ancient Egyptian religion, which emerged sometime in prehistory. Deities represented natural fo ...

Amun. The first high priests of Amun appear in the New Kingdom of Egypt, at the beginning of the Eighteenth Dynasty.

History

The priesthood of Amun rose in power during the early Eighteenth dynasty through significant tributes to the god Amun by ruler such as

Hatshepsut Hatshepsut (; also Hatchepsut; Egyptian: '' ḥꜣt- špswt'' "Foremost of Noble Ladies"; or Hatasu c. 1507–1458 BC) was the fifth pharaoh of the Eighteenth Dynasty of Egypt. She was the second historically confirmed female pharaoh, af ...

and more importantly

Thutmose III Thutmose III (variously also spelt Tuthmosis or Thothmes), sometimes called Thutmose the Great, was the sixth pharaoh of the Eighteenth Dynasty. Officially, Thutmose III ruled Egypt for almost 54 years and his reign is usually dated from 2 ...

. The Amun priesthood in Thebes had four high-ranking priests: * The Chief Prophet of Amun at Karnak (''ḥm nṯr tpj n jmn''), also referred to as the Chief Priest of Amun. * The

Second Prophet of Amun The Second Prophet of Amun (''hm netjer sen-nu en Amun''), also called the Second Priest of Amun, was a high ranking priestly official in the cult of the ancient Egyptian god Amun. The Second Prophet of Amun office was created in the New Kingdom, ...

at Karnak (''ḥm nṯr snnw n jmn''), also referred to as the Second Priest of Amun. * The Third Prophet of Amun at Karnak (''ḥm nṯr ḫmtnw n jmn khemet-nu''), also referred to as the Third Priest of Amun. * The Fourth Prophet of Amun at Karnak (''ḥm nṯr jfdw n jmn''), also referred to as the Fourth Priest of Amun. The power of the Amun priesthood was temporarily curtailed during the Amarna period. A high priest named Maya is recorded in year 4 of

Akhenaten Akhenaten (pronounced ), also spelled Echnaton, Akhenaton, ( egy, ꜣḫ-n-jtn ''ʾŪḫə-nə-yātəy'', , meaning "Effective for the Aten"), was an ancient Egyptian pharaoh reigning or 1351–1334 BC, the tenth ruler of the Eighteenth D ...

. Akhenaten has the name of Amun removed from monuments during his reign as well as the names of several other deities. After his death, Amun was restored to his place of prominence among the cults in Egypt. The young pharaoh Tutankhaten changed his name to

Tutankhamun Tutankhamun (, egy, twt-ꜥnḫ-jmn), Egyptological pronunciation Tutankhamen () (), sometimes referred to as King Tut, was an Egyptian pharaoh who was the last of his royal family to rule during the end of the Eighteenth Dynasty (ruled ...

to signal the restoration of Amun to his former place of prominence. The Theban High Priest of Amun was appointed by the King. It was not uncommon for the position to be held by dignitaries who held additional posts in the pharaoh's administration. Several of the high priests from the time of

Ramesses II Ramesses II ( egy, rꜥ-ms-sw ''Rīʿa-məsī-sū'', , meaning "Ra is the one who bore him"; ), commonly known as Ramesses the Great, was the third pharaoh of the Nineteenth Dynasty of Egypt. Along with Thutmose III he is often regarded as ...

also served as Vizier. At the end of the New Kingdom, the

Twentieth Dynasty The Twentieth Dynasty of Egypt (notated Dynasty XX, alternatively 20th Dynasty or Dynasty 20) is the third and last dynasty of the Ancient Egyptian New Kingdom period, lasting from 1189 BC to 1077 BC. The 19th and 20th Dynasties furthermore togeth ...

priesthood of Amun is for a large part dominated by

Ramessesnakht Ramessesnakht was High Priest of Amun during many years in the 20th Dynasty. He was appointed as the High Priest at Thebes under Ramesses IV. He served in office until the reign of Ramesses IX. It was during Ramessesnakht's tenure that the ...

. His son, Amenhotep, eventually succeeded his father and found himself in conflict with the Viceroy of Kush,

Pinehesy Pinehesy, Panehesy or Panehasy, depending on the transliteration, was Viceroy of Kush during the reign of Ramesses XI, the last king of the Egyptian 20th Dynasty. The sources He is named in the following dated sources: #his name appears in the ...

. Pinehesy took his troops north and besieged Thebes. After this period, generals by the name of

Herihor Herihor was an Egyptian army officer and High Priest of Amun at Thebes (1080 BC to 1074 BC) during the reign of Pharaoh Ramesses XI. Chronological and genealogical position Traditionally his career was placed before that of the High Priest of ...

and

Piankh Piankh was a High Priest of Amun during the 21st Dynasty. Chronological and genealogical position While the High Priest of Amun Piankh (or Payankh) has been assumed to be a son-in-law of Herihor and his heir to the Theban office of the High Prie ...

served as High Priest. Herihor

By the time Herihor was proclaimed as the first ruling High Priest of Amun in 1080 BC—in the 19th Year of

Ramesses XI Menmaatre Ramesses XI (also written Ramses and Rameses) reigned from 1107 BC to 1078 BC or 1077 BC and was the tenth and final pharaoh of the Twentieth Dynasty of Egypt and as such, was the last king of the New Kingdom period. He ruled Egypt for ...

—the Amun priesthood exercised an effective stranglehold on Egypt's economy. The Amun priests owned two-thirds of all the temple lands in Egypt and 90 percent of her ships plus many other resources. Consequently, the Amun priests were as powerful as Pharaoh, if not more so. The High Priests of Amun were of such power and influence that they were effectively the rulers of

Upper Egypt Upper Egypt ( ar, صعيد مصر ', shortened to , , locally: ; ) is the southern portion of Egypt and is composed of the lands on both sides of the Nile that extend upriver from Lower Egypt in the north to Nubia in the south. In ancient E ...

from 1080 to c. 943 BC, after which their influence declined. They are however not regarded as a ruling dynasty with pharaonic prerogatives, and after this period the influence of the Amun priesthood declined. One of the sons of the High Priest Pinedjem I would eventually assume the throne and rule Egypt for almost half a century as pharaoh

Psusennes I Psusennes I ( egy, pꜣ-sbꜣ-ḫꜥ-n-njwt; Greek Ψουσέννης) was the third pharaoh of the 21st Dynasty who ruled from Tanis between 1047 and 1001 BC. ''Psusennes'' is the Greek version of his original name Pasibkhanu or Pasebakhaenniu ...

, while the Theban High Priest Psusennes III would take the throne as 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 ...

, the final ruler of the

Twenty-first Dynasty of Egypt The Twenty-first Dynasty of Egypt (notated Dynasty XXI, alternatively 21st Dynasty or Dynasty 21) is usually classified as the first Dynasty of the Ancient Egyptian Third Intermediate Period, lasting from 1077 BC to 943 BC. History After the r ...

List of high priests

New Kingdom (18th, 19th and 20th Dynasties)

Third Intermediate Period

ImageSize = width:800 height:auto barincrement:12 PlotArea = top:10 bottom:30 right:130 left:20 AlignBars = justify DateFormat = yyyy Period = from:-1200 till:-650 TimeAxis = orientation:horizontal ScaleMajor = unit:year increment:100 start:-1200 ScaleMinor = unit:year increment:25 start:-1200 Colors = id:canvas value:rgb(0.97,0.97,0.97) id:PA value:green id:HP value:blue id:GP value:red id:eon value:rgb(1,0.7,1) # light purple Backgroundcolors = canvas:canvas BarData = barset:Rulers bar:eon PlotData= align:center textcolor:black fontsize:8 mark:(line,black) width:25 shift:(0,-5) bar:eon color:eon from: -1080 till: -775 color:HP text:

High Priests of Amun at Thebes 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 beginni ...

width:5 align:left fontsize:S shift:(5,-4) anchor:till barset:Rulers from: -1080 till: -1074 color:HP text:"

" from: -1074 till: -1070 color:HP text:"

" from: -1070 till: -1032 color:HP text:"

Pinedjem I Pinedjem I was the High Priest of Amun at Thebes in Ancient Egypt from 1070 to 1032 BC and the ''de facto'' ruler of the south of the country from 1054 BC. He was the son of the High Priest Piankh. However, many Egyptologists today believe that t ...

" from: -1054 till: -1045 color:HP text:" Masaherta" from: -1045 till: -1045 color:HP text:"

Djedkhonsuefankh Djedkhonsuefankh was a High Priest of Amun in Thebes believed to have been in office from 1046–1045 BC. It is often assumed that he was a son of Pinedjem I who succeeded his brother Masaherta during a time of great turmoil in the city of The ...

" from: -1045 till: -992 color:HP text:"

Menkheperre Menkheperre, son of Pharaoh Pinedjem I by wife Duathathor-Henuttawy (daughter of Ramesses XI by wife Tentamon), was the High Priest of Amun at Thebes in ancient Egypt from 1045 BC to 992 BC and ''de facto'' ruler of the south of the country. ...

" from: -992 till: -990 color:HP text:"

Smendes II Smendes II was a High Priest of Amun at Thebes in Ancient Egypt. He briefly governed from about 992 to 990 BC., p.207 Biography The name ''Smendes'' is a hellenization of the Egyptian name ''Nesbanebdjed'' (''"He of the ram, lord of Mendes"''), ...

" from: -990 till: -969 color:HP text:"

Pinedjem_II Pinedjem II was a High Priest of Amun at Thebes in Ancient Egypt from 990 BC to 969 BC and was the ''de facto'' ruler of the south of the country. He was married to his full sister Isetemkheb D (both children of Menkheperre, the High Priest of ...

" from: -969 till: -945 color:HP text:" Psusennes III" from: -944 till: -924 color:HP text:" Iuput" from: -924 till: -894 color:HP text:"

Shoshenq C Shoshenq C was the eldest son of the 22nd Dynasty pharaoh Osorkon I and queen Maatkare, and served as the High Priest of Amun at Thebes during his father's reign. Consequently, he was the most important official in Upper Egypt after the king him ...

" from: -894 till: -884 color:HP text:" Iuwelot" from: -884 till: -874 color:HP text:"

Smendes III Smendes III was a High Priest of Amun at Thebes during the reign of pharaoh Takelot I of the 22nd Dynasty. Biography The name ''Smendes'' is a hellenization of the Egyptian name ''Nesbanebdjed'' (''"He of the ram, lord of Mendes"''), while the ...

" from: -874 till: -860 color:HP text:" Harsiese B" from: -860 till: -855 color:HP text:"Unknown" from: -855 till: -845 color:HP text:"

Nimlot C Nimlot C was a High Priest of Amun at Thebes during the reign of pharaoh Osorkon II of the 22nd Dynasty. Biography From the stela of Pasenhor it is known that Nimlot C was a son of pharaoh Osorkon II and his queen Djedmutesankh (her name is als ...

" from: -840 till: -835 color:HP text:"Osorkon" from: -835 till: -816 color:HP text:"Harsiese II" from: -800 till: -775 color:HP text:"Takelot" barset:skip

21st Dynasty

Though not officially pharaohs, the High Priests of Amun at Thebes were the ''de facto'' rulers of

during the Twenty-first dynasty, writing their names in cartouches and being buried in royal tombs.

22nd Dynasty

* Iuput, Son of Shoshenq I high priest of Amun for most of his father's reign, and into the reign of his brother

Osorkon I Sekhemkheperre Osorkon I was an ancient Egyptian pharaoh of the 22nd Dynasty. Osorkon's territory included much of the Levant. The Osorkon Bust found at Byblos is one of the five Byblian royal inscriptions. Biography The son of Shoshenq I and ...

. 944–924 BC. *

(possibly identical to

Shoshenq II Heqakheperre Shoshenq II or Shoshenq IIa was a pharaoh of the Twenty-second Dynasty of Egypt. He was the only ruler of this dynasty whose tomb was not plundered by tomb robbers. His final resting place was discovered within an antechamber of Psu ...

), Son of

and

Maatkare B Maatkare B was a wife of pharaoh Osorkon I and the mother of the High Priest of Amun Shoshenq C. Maatkare was the daughter of Psusennes II (also known as Pasebkhanut II).Dodson, Aidan and Hilton, Dyan. The Complete Royal Families of Ancient Egy ...

. Served as high priest of Amun at Karnak for large part of his father's reign. * Iuwlot, Son of

. Probably became high priest of Amun late in the reign of

and served until the early years of

Takelot I Hedjkheperre Setepenre Takelot I was an ancient Libyan ruler who was pharaoh during the Twenty-second Dynasty of Egypt. Reign Takelot I was the son of Osorkon I and Queen Tashedkhons, who ruled Egypt for thirteen years according to Manetho. Tak ...

. * Nesibanebdjedet III (

), Son of Osorkon I. Served as high priest of Amun during the middle of the reign of his brother

. * Harsiese B, Son of Soshenq II. Promoted to high priest of Amun under

Osorkon II Usermaatre Setepenamun Osorkon II was the fifth king of the Twenty-second Dynasty of Ancient Egypt and the son of King Takelot I and Queen Kapes. He ruled Egypt from approximately 872 BC to 837 BC from Tanis, the capital of that dynasty. After ...

. 874–860 BC. *

, Son of Osorkon II. Became high priest of Amun after year 16. The name of his predecessor ..du/aw...was erased. 855–845 BC. * Takelot F (see

Takelot II Hedjkheperre Setepenre Takelot II Si-Ese was a pharaoh of the Twenty-third Dynasty of Ancient Egypt in Middle and Upper Egypt. He has been identified as the High Priest of Amun Takelot F, son of the High Priest of Amun Nimlot C at Thebes an ...

). Son of Nimlot III. Followed his father as high priest of Amun before probably becoming a Theban King as

. 845–840 BC. * Osorkon B (see

Osorkon III Usermaatre Setepenamun Osorkon III Si-Ese was Pharaoh of Egypt in the 8th Century BC. He is the same person as the Crown Prince and High Priest of Amun Osorkon B, son of Takelot II by his Great Royal Wife Karomama II. Prince Osorkon B is best att ...

). Eldest son of Takelot II. Probably became high priest of Amun after his father assumed kingship. 840–785 BC. Later took the throne as

. * Osorkon F, probably son of Rudamun and grandson of Osorkon III? * Harsiese, son of ..du/aw...i.e. Pedubast? 835–800 BC.

25th and 26th Dynasties

Haremakhet Haremakhet (also Horemakhet or, in Greek, Harmakhis) was an ancient Egyptian prince and High Priest of Amun during the 25th Dynasty. Biography A son of pharaoh Shabaka and possibly of his queen Tabaktenamun, he was appointed by his father as t ...

, Son of Shabaka 704?–660 BC. * Harkhebi, Son of Haremakhet, Grandson of Shabaka. Served as HPA until at least year 14 of Psamtik I. 660–644 BC. * 2 unattested HPA or vacant? 644–595 BC. *

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 ...

, The God's Wife of Amun also served as High Priest of Amun. 595–c. 560 BC. *

Nitocris II Nitocris II (or Nitokris II, Nitocris B, § 365 n. 951; table 13A Egyptian: ''Nt-jqrt'', Nitiqret) was an ancient Egyptian princess and priestess during the reign of pharaoh Amasis II of the 26th Dynasty. Biography Daughter of Amasis II, Nitoc ...

, Daughter of Pharaoh Ahmose (II). c. 560–525 BC. PinedjemIIBookOfTheDead-BritishMuseum-August21-08

High Priest of Amun at Tanis

In the northern capital of

Tanis Tanis ( grc, Τάνις or Τανέως ) or San al-Hagar ( ar, صان الحجر, Ṣān al-Ḥaǧar; egy, ḏꜥn.t ; ; cop, ϫⲁⲛⲓ or or ) is the Greek name for ancient Egyptian ''ḏꜥn.t'', an important archaeological site in the ...

, the pharaohs of the

21st Dynasty The Twenty-first Dynasty of Egypt (notated Dynasty XXI, alternatively 21st Dynasty or Dynasty 21) is usually classified as the first Dynasty of the Ancient Egyptian Third Intermediate Period, lasting from 1077 BC to 943 BC. History After the r ...

decided to openly emulate

Karnak The Karnak Temple Complex, commonly known as Karnak (, which was originally derived from ar, خورنق ''Khurnaq'' "fortified village"), comprises a vast mix of decayed temples, pylons, chapels, and other buildings near Luxor, Egypt. Constr ...

by building and expanding their own temple of Amun-Ra, along with shrines dedicated to the other members of the

Theban Triad The Theban Triad is a triad of Egyptian gods most popular in the area of Thebes, Egypt. The triad The group consisted of Amun, his consort Mut and their son Khonsu. They were favored by both the 18th and 25th Dynasty. At the vast Karnak Tem ...

. There are very few individuals known to have borne the mostly honorific title of ''High Priest of Amun at Tanis'': *Pharaoh Psusennes I, who probably had deputy Wendjebauendjed *Pharaoh Amenemope *Prince

Hornakht Prince Hornakht (or Harnakht) was the son of pharaoh Osorkon II of the 22nd Dynasty. He was appointed by Osorkon II to the office of chief priest of Amun at Tanis to strengthen this king's authority in Lower Egypt. However, this was primarily a ...

, son of

*Prince Padebehenbast, son of

Shoshenq III King Usermaatre Setepenre Shoshenq III of the 22nd Dynasty ruled for 39 years according to contemporary historical records. Two Apis Bulls were buried in the fourth and 28th years of his reign and he celebrated his Heb Sed Jubilee in his regnal ...

*Prince Shoshenq, son of

Pami Usermaatre Setepenre Pami was an ancient Egyptian pharaoh of the 22nd Dynasty who ruled for 7 years. "Pami" in Egyptian, means "the Cat" or "He who belongs to the Cat Bastet,

astet Astet () is a commune in the Ardèche department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region of southern France. The inhabitants of the commune are known as ''Asténiens'' or ''Asténiennes''. Geography Astet is located some 30 km west by north- ...

" Identity Pami's precise relationship with his immediate pr ...

, possibly the pharaoh-to-be

Shoshenq V Aakheperre Shoshenq V was an ancient Egyptian pharaoh of the late 22nd Dynasty. Despite having enjoyed one of the longest reigns of the entire dynasty – 38 years – and having left a fair amount of attestations, little is known about Shoshenq ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:High Priests Of Amun Amun * Priests of the Eighteenth Dynasty of Egypt People of the Nineteenth Dynasty of Egypt People of the Twentieth Dynasty of Egypt *02 Ancient Egyptian titles Ancient Egypt-related lists Amun