The high steward (also called chief steward or great overseer of the house; Egyptian: ''imi-r pr wr'') was an important official at the royal court in

Ancient Egypt Ancient Egypt () was a cradle of civilization concentrated along the lower reaches of the Nile River in Northeast Africa. It emerged from prehistoric Egypt around 3150BC (according to conventional Egyptian chronology), when Upper and Lower E ...

in the Middle Kingdom and in the

New Kingdom New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 ** "New" (Paul McCartney song), 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator, 1995 * "New" (Daya song), 2017 * "New" (No Doubt song), 1 ...

. He was the main person in charge of the estates supplying the palace and the royal residence with food. The office appears in the

11th Dynasty The Eleventh Dynasty of ancient Egypt (notated Dynasty XI; ) is a well-attested group of rulers. Its earlier members before Pharaoh Mentuhotep II are grouped with the four preceding dynasties to form the First Intermediate Period, whereas the lat ...

. To the earliest title holders belong Henenu and Meketre. After the

vizier A vizier (; ; ) is a high-ranking political advisor or Minister (government), minister in the Near East. The Abbasids, Abbasid caliphs gave the title ''wazir'' to a minister formerly called ''katib'' (secretary), who was at first merely a help ...

and the

treasurer A treasurer is a person responsible for the financial operations of a government, business, or other organization. Government The treasury of a country is the department responsible for the country's economy, finance and revenue. The treasure ...

this was the most important office at the royal court; important title holders of the

12th Dynasty The Twelfth Dynasty of ancient Egypt (Dynasty XII) is a series of rulers reigning from 1991–1802 BC (190 years), at what is often considered to be the apex of the Middle Kingdom (Dynasties XI–XIV). The dynasty periodically expanded its terr ...

were Siese and

Khnumhotep III Khnumhotep III (sometimes simply vizier Khnumhotep) was an ancient Egyptian high steward and vizier of the 12th Dynasty. Biography The vizier Khnumhotep is known from inscriptions (1) in the tomb of his father, (2) from a stela found at the R ...

, both were later in their career appointed vizier. The title was still very important in the New Kingdom and was in this period often called high steward of the king. An important title holder of the New Kingdom was

Senenmut Senenmut (, sometimes spelled Senmut, Senemut, or Senmout) was an 18th Dynasty ancient Egyptian architect and government official. His name translates literally as "brother of mother". Family Senenmut was of low commoner birth, born to liter ...

under

Hatshepsut Hatshepsut ( ; BC) was the sixth pharaoh of the Eighteenth Dynasty of Ancient Egypt, Egypt, ruling first as regent, then as queen regnant from until (Low Chronology) and the Great Royal Wife of Pharaoh Thutmose II. She was Egypt's second c ...

, other include

Wadjetrenput Wadjetrenput was an ancient Egyptian official with the title of a high steward. He was in office under the ruling queen Hatshepsut (ruled about 1473 to 1458). Wadjetrenput is known from several inscriptions, but none of them are dated, making it ha ...

serving under the same queen.

Chief steward of the God's Wife

During the 25th and 26th dynasties, the role of

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 Twen ...

greatly rose in importance, both religiously and politically. Their offices required several servants and employees, led by a chief steward of the God's Wife (''imy-r pr wr n ḥm.t nṯr'') who was in charge of the estates of the God's Wife. These were highly wealthy officials known from their monumental tombs at Thebes. Title holders include

Harwa The ancient Egyptian official Harwa was the Chief steward of the God's Wife of Amun, Amenirdis I, during the 25th Dynasty. His tomb, TT37, is located in El-Assasif, part of the Theban Necropolis, on the West Bank of the Nile, opposite to Luxor ...

and Akhamunru.

Christopher Hugh Naunton Christopher Hugh Naunton is a British Egyptologist, a writer and a broadcaster, and an expert on the life of Flinders Petrie. He studied Egyptology at the universities of Birmingham and Swansea, and obtained his PhD. He has been director of the Eg ...

: ''Regime Change and The Administration of Thebes During The Twenty-fifth Dynasty'', Swansea University 2011 (Ph.D. dissertation), pp. 66-95

References

* {{Ancient Egyptian royal titulary Ancient Egyptian titles