Irsu
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Irsu ( egy, jr- sw, "he who made himself"; alternatively Su) is the name used in
Papyrus Harris I Papyrus Harris I is also known as the Great Harris Papyrus and (less accurately) simply the Harris Papyrus (though there are a number of other papyri in the Harris collection). Its technical designation is ''Papyrus British Museum EA 9999''. At 41 ...
to designate a Khasu who became overlord of a group of local rulers nominally under Egyptian control, at a time of unrest between the Nineteenth and Twentieth Dynasties. The reading of the name is contested and the man may instead have simply been called Su. The events in which Irsu (or Su) participated likely took place outside of the Nile Valley, in the Asiatic territories of Egypt's empire.


Debate on Irsu's activities


In Egypt

Irsu's rise to power is closely related to the situation in Egypt proper at the end of the Nineteenth Dynasty, which saw a civil war between
Amenmesse Amenmesse (also Amenmesses or Amenmose) was the fifth pharaoh of the Nineteenth dynasty of Egypt, Nineteenth Dynasty in Ancient Egypt, possibly the son of Merneptah and Queen Takhat. Others consider him to be one of the innumerable sons of Rames ...
and
Seti II Seti II (or Sethos II) was the fifth pharaoh of the Nineteenth Dynasty of Egypt and reigned from  1203 BC to 1197 BC. His throne name, Userkheperure Setepenre, means "Powerful are the manifestations of Ra, Re, the chosen one of Re. ...
followed by economic decline. Modern understanding of the events occurring at the time is heavily dependent on the translation of Papyrus Harris I, a task which has proven difficult. In his 1906 translation of the document James Henry Breasted writes :Hear ye that I may inform you of my benefactions which I did while I was king of the people. The land of Egypt was overthrown from without, and every man was (thrown out) of his right; they had no chief mouth for many years formerly until other times. The land of Egypt was in the hands of chiefs and of rulers of towns; one slew his neighbor, great and small. Other times having come after it, with empty years, Yarsu, a certain Syrian was with them as chief. He set the whole land tributary before him together; he united his companions and plundered their possessions. They made the gods like men, and no offerings were presented in the temples. This translation leaves open the possibility that Irsu acted in Egypt proper and consequently
Chancellor Bay Bay, also called Ramesse Khamenteru (died 1192 BC), was an important Asiatic official in ancient Egypt, who rose to prominence and high office under Seti II Userkheperure Setepenre and later became an influential powerbroker in the closing stages ...
was considered a plausible candidate for this Irsu until 2000. However, an IFAO Ostracon no. 1864 found at Deir el-Medina and dated
Siptah Akhenre Setepenre Siptah or Merenptah Siptah was the penultimate ruler of the Nineteenth Dynasty of Egypt. His father's identity is currently unknown. Both Seti II and Amenmesse have been suggested although the fact that Siptah later changed his r ...
's fifth regnal year records that "Pharaoh, life health prosperity, has killed the great enemy, Bay". Because chancellor Bay died years before Irsu, he is no longer considered a plausible candidate for this historical figure.


In Egyptian territories in Canaan

In 1979 the Egyptologist
Hans Goedicke Hans may refer to: __NOTOC__ People * Hans (name), a masculine given name * Hans Raj Hans, Indian singer and politician ** Navraj Hans, Indian singer, actor, entrepreneur, cricket player and performer, son of Hans Raj Hans ** Yuvraj Hans, Punjabi a ...
produced a second translation based on a detailed grammatical analysis of the document: :The land belonging to Egypt was abandoned abroad and every man in his loyalty, he did not have a chief-spokesman .e. a pharaohfor many years first until the times of others when the land belonging to Egypt was among chiefs and city-rulers — one was killed
he pharaoh He or HE may refer to: Language * He (pronoun), an English pronoun * He (kana), the romanization of the Japanese kana へ * He (letter), the fifth letter of many Semitic alphabets * He (Cyrillic), a letter of the Cyrillic script called ''He'' ...
his replacement was a dignitary of wretches second pharaoh Another of the family happened after him in the empty years third pharaoh when Su, a Kharu with them, acted as chief and he made the entire land serviceable to him alone. He joined his dependant in seizing their property, when the gods were treated just like men, as one did not perform offerings inside the temples. Goedicke suggests that Irsu rose to power in Egypt's territories abroad, in Canaan, following years of neglect on behalf of the last three pharaohs of the Nineteenth Dynasty, Seti II,
Siptah Akhenre Setepenre Siptah or Merenptah Siptah was the penultimate ruler of the Nineteenth Dynasty of Egypt. His father's identity is currently unknown. Both Seti II and Amenmesse have been suggested although the fact that Siptah later changed his r ...
and
Twosret Twosret, also spelled ''Tawosret'' or ''Tausret'' (d. 1189 BC conventional chronology) was the last known ruler and the final pharaoh of the Nineteenth Dynasty of Egypt. She is recorded in Manetho's Epitome as a certain ''Thuoris, who in Homer ...
. According to this translation of the document, the earliest of these pharaohs, Seti II, is responsible for not asserting his power and control over the region; the second was held in low regard; while the last, Twosret, is said to have made an alliance with Irsu who had ''de facto'' authority over the territories.


The end of Irsu

What happened to Irsu is made clear on the papyrus, which tells of
Setnakht Userkhaure-setepenre Setnakhte (also called Setnakht or Sethnakht) was the first pharaoh ( 1189 BC– 1186 BC) of the Twentieth Dynasty of the New Kingdom of Egypt and the father of Ramesses III. Accession Setnakhte was not the so ...
's rise and the end of the rebellion: :But when the gods inclined themselves to peace, to set the land (in) its right according to its accustomed manner, they established their son, who came forth from their limbs, to be Ruler, L. P. H., of every land, upon their great throne, (even) Userkhare-Setepnere-Meriamon, L. P. H., Son of Re, Setnakht-Mererre-Meriamon, L. P. H. He was Khepri-Set, when he is enraged; he set in order the entire land which had been rebellious; he slew the rebels who were in the land of Egypt; he cleansed the great throne of Egypt; he was Ruler, L. P. H., of the Two Lands, on the throne of Atum. He gave ready faces, which had been turned away. Every man knew his brother who had been walled in. He established the temples in possession of divine offerings, to offer. Twosret's successor
Setnakhte Userkhaure-setepenre Setnakhte (also called Setnakht or Sethnakht) was the first pharaoh ( 1189 BC– 1186 BC) of the Twentieth Dynasty of the New Kingdom of Egypt and the father of Ramesses III. Accession Setnakhte was not the son ...
's Elephantine stele records how he expelled these Asiatic rebels who, on their flight from Egypt, abandoned much of the gold, silver and copper which they had stolen from Egypt, and with which they had intended to hire reinforcements among the Asiatics. His pacification of Egypt is also referred to in the Great Harris Papyrus.
Setnakht Userkhaure-setepenre Setnakhte (also called Setnakht or Sethnakht) was the first pharaoh ( 1189 BC– 1186 BC) of the Twentieth Dynasty of the New Kingdom of Egypt and the father of Ramesses III. Accession Setnakhte was not the so ...
's Elephantine stele describes it further: ''His Majesty, life, prosperity, health, was like his father Seth who stretched out his arms in order to remove from Egypt those who led it astray, his strength surrounding (him) with protection."''


Memory

Papyrus Harris I Papyrus Harris I is also known as the Great Harris Papyrus and (less accurately) simply the Harris Papyrus (though there are a number of other papyri in the Harris collection). Its technical designation is ''Papyrus British Museum EA 9999''. At 41 ...
portrays his tenure in office as a time when Egypt was in chaos and temple offerings were denied to the gods. After the death of Twosret, Egypt seems to have fallen into anarchy, with many temples being looted by Asiatic followers of Irsu. Twosret's successor
Setnakhte Userkhaure-setepenre Setnakhte (also called Setnakht or Sethnakht) was the first pharaoh ( 1189 BC– 1186 BC) of the Twentieth Dynasty of the New Kingdom of Egypt and the father of Ramesses III. Accession Setnakhte was not the son ...
's Elephantine stele records how he expelled these Asiatic rebels who, on their flight from Egypt, abandoned much of the gold, silver and copper which they had stolen from Egypt, and with which they had intended to hire reinforcements among the Asiatics. It is possible that memories of these events were distortedly reported in the third century BCE by the
Hellenistic In Classical antiquity, the Hellenistic period covers the time in Mediterranean history after Classical Greece, between the death of Alexander the Great in 323 BC and the emergence of the Roman Empire, as signified by the Battle of Actium in ...
Egyptian historian and priest Manetho, who claimed that a certain Egyptian priest from Heliopolis called Osarseph led leprous Asiatics out of Egypt, in an Exodus later reportedly that of Moses. C. Hauret suggests that Irsu's career also has a resemblance to that of the Biblical
Joseph Joseph is a common male given name, derived from the Hebrew Yosef (יוֹסֵף). "Joseph" is used, along with "Josef", mostly in English, French and partially German languages. This spelling is also found as a variant in the languages of the mo ...
.
Thomas Römer Thomas Christian Römer (born 13 December 1955, in Mannheim) is a German-born Swiss biblical scholar, exegete, philologist, professor, and Reformed minister. After teaching at the University of Geneva, he became professor of the Old Testament ...
Romer T. "Tracking Some “Censored” Moses Traditions Inside and Outside the Hebrew Bible" (Hebrew Bible and Ancient Israel, Volume 1, Number 1, March 2012, pp. 64-76(13)) writes that some think that "Osarseph is a polemical name for Akhenaton; others think of a combination of Joseph and Osiris."


References

{{reflist People of the Nineteenth Dynasty of Egypt People of the Twentieth Dynasty of Egypt Year of birth unknown