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57-569: The Theban Tomb TT50 is located in Sheikh Abd el-Qurna , part of the Theban Necropolis , on the west bank of the Nile , opposite to Luxor . It is the burial place of the ancient Egyptian official Neferhotep, who was a Divine father (or God's father) of Amun-re during the reign of Horemheb of the 18th Dynasty . A scene dated to year 3 of Pharaoh Horemheb describes how the king – after making

114-624: A histology which indicated notably dark skin ". The archaeological remains of Thebes offer a striking testimony to Egyptian civilization at its height. The Greek poet Homer extolled the wealth of Thebes in the Iliad , Book 9 ( c.  8th Century BC ): "... in Egyptian Thebes the heaps of precious ingots gleam, the hundred-gated Thebes." More than sixty annual festivals were celebrated in Thebes. The major festivals among these, according to

171-615: A celebration of the Opet Festival . In spite of his welcoming visit, Thebes became a center for dissent. Towards the end of the third century BC, Hugronaphor (Horwennefer), possibly of Nubian origin, led a revolt against the Ptolemies in Upper Egypt. His successor, Ankhmakis , held large parts of Upper Egypt until 185 BC. This revolt was supported by the Theban priesthood. After the suppression of

228-466: A number of the Ptolemaic dynasty members as extremely obese , while sculptures and coins reveal prominent eyes and swollen necks. Familial Graves' disease could explain the swollen necks and eye prominence ( exophthalmos ), although this is unlikely to occur in the presence of morbid obesity. This is all likely due to inbreeding depression . In view of the familial nature of these findings, members of

285-628: A procession from the House of Gold – appeared in his palace and summoned the God's father Neferhotep to come before him. Neferhotep is showered with gifts including silver, gold, ointment, clothing, bread, beer, meat and cakes. The king is accompanied by the overseer of the treasury Maya , two viziers and his chamberlain and royal butler. Neferhotep and his brother Parennefer are congratulated by their father Amenemonet. Several family members are mentioned in TT50. Neferhotep

342-475: Is damaged, but the text mentions Neferhotep's grandfather Ahmose who was a seal-bearer. 25°44′00″N 32°36′00″E  /  25.7333°N 32.6000°E  / 25.7333; 32.6000 Thebes, Egypt The Egyptian name for Thebes was wꜣs.t , "City of the wꜣs ", the sceptre of the pharaohs , a long staff with an animal's head and a forked base. From the end of the New Kingdom , Thebes

399-467: Is notable for the first Proto-Sinatic alphabet inscription, which appeared shortly after Thebes became the capital of Egypt. Nearby towns in the fourth Upper Egyptian nome were Per-Hathor , Madu , Djerty , Iuny , Sumenu and Imiotru . According to George Modelski , Thebes had about 40,000 inhabitants in 2000 BC (compared to 60,000 in Memphis , the largest city in the world at the time). By 1800 BC,

456-529: Is satisfied"), took the Herakleopolitans by force and reunited Egypt once again under one ruler, thereby starting the period now known as the Middle Kingdom . Mentuhotep II ruled for 51 years and built the first mortuary temple at Deir el-Bahri , which most likely served as the inspiration for the later and larger temple built next to it by Hatshepsut in the 18th Dynasty. After these events, the 11th Dynasty

513-543: Is the son of Amenemonet, who was a Divine Father of Amun, and Takhat, who served as Chief of the harem of Amun. Neferhotep appears with his brother Parennefer who was also a God's father and a brother named Khons-hotep who was a wab-priest of Amun . Neferhotep's daughter Rennut is shown holding fruit and flowers. Neferhotep's son Pairy is mentioned in the tomb as well. He served as a scribe of Truth in Southern Heliopolis (i.e. Thebes ). A scene depicting ancestor offerings

570-767: The 16th Dynasty ) stood firmly over their immediate region as the Hyksos advanced from the Delta southwards to Middle Egypt . The Thebans resisted the Hyksos' further advance by making an agreement for a peaceful concurrent rule between them. The Hyksos were able to sail upstream past Thebes to trade with the Nubians and the Thebans brought their herds to the Delta without adversaries. The status quo continued until Hyksos ruler Apophis ( 15th Dynasty ) insulted Seqenenre Tao ( 17th Dynasty ) of Thebes. Soon

627-553: The 18th Dynasty ( New Kingdom ). It also became the center for a newly established professional civil service , where there was a greater demand for scribes and the literate as the royal archives began to fill with accounts and reports. At the city the favored few of Nubia were reeducated with Egyptian culture, to serve as administrators of the colony. With Egypt stabilized again, religion and religious centers flourished and none more so than Thebes. For instance, Amenhotep III poured much of his vast wealth from foreign tribute into

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684-675: The 4th to 6th Dynasties appear on the Karnak king list, perhaps at the least there was a temple in the Theban area that dated to the Old Kingdom. By 2160 BC, a new line of pharaohs (the Ninth and Tenth Dynasties) consolidated control over Lower Egypt and northern parts of Upper Egypt from their capital in Herakleopolis Magna . A rival line (the Eleventh Dynasty ), based at Thebes, ruled

741-479: The Cup of the Ptolemies represent the regnal dates of the Ptolemaic pharaohs. They frequently ruled jointly with their wives, who were often also their sisters, aunts or cousins. Several queens exercised regal authority. Of these, one of the last and most famous was Cleopatra ("Cleopatra VII Philopator", 51–30 BC), with her two brothers and her son serving as successive nominal co-rulers . Several systems exist for numbering

798-547: The Delta . Thebes maintained its revenues and prestige through the reigns of Seti I (1290–1279 BC) and Ramesses II (1279–1213 BC), who still resided for part of every year in Thebes. Ramesses II carried out extensive building projects in the city, such as statues and obelisks, the third enclosure wall of Karnak temple, additions to the Luxor temple , and the Ramesseum , his grand mortuary temple . The constructions were bankrolled by

855-571: The Late Period . By around 750 BC, the Kushites (Nubians) were growing their influence over Thebes and Upper Egypt. In 721 BC, King Shabaka of the Kushites defeated the combined forces of Osorkon IV ( 22nd Dynasty ), Peftjauawybast ( 23rd Dynasty ) Bakenranef ( 24th Dynasty ) and reunified Egypt yet again. His reign saw a significant amount of building work undertaken throughout Egypt, especially at

912-622: The Roman occupation (30 BC–641 AD), the remaining communities clustered around the pylon of the Luxor temple. Thebes became part of the Roman province of Thebais , which later split into Thebais Superior , centered at the city, and Thebais Inferior , centered at Ptolemais Hermiou . A Roman legion was headquartered in Luxor temple at the time of Roman campaigns in Nubia . Building did not come to an abrupt stop, but

969-463: The hellenized form of Demotic Egyptian tꜣ jpt ("the temple"), referring to jpt-swt . Today, the temple is known as Karnak , and is located on the northeast bank of the city. Since Homer refers to the metropolis by this name, and since Demotic script did not appear until a later date, the etymology is doubtful. As early as Homer 's Iliad , the Greeks distinguished the Egyptian Thebes as "Thebes of

1026-531: The Canaanite center of power at Avaris, starting the 15th Dynasty there. The Hyksos kings gained the upper hand over Lower Egypt early into the Second Intermediate Period (1657–1549 BC). When the Hyksos took Memphis during or shortly after Merneferre Ay 's reign ( c.  1700 BC ), the rulers of the 13th Dynasty fled south to Thebes, which was restored as capital. Theban princes (now known as

1083-636: The Edfu Geographical Text, were: the Beautiful Feast of Opet , the Khoiak (Festival), Festival of I Shemu , and Festival of II Shemu. Another popular festivity was the halloween-like Beautiful Festival of the Valley . Thebes was inhabited from around 3200 BC. It was the eponymous capital of Waset, the fourth Upper Egyptian nome . At this time it was still a small trading post, while Memphis served as

1140-578: The Hundred Gates" ( Θῆβαι ἑκατόμπυλοι , Thēbai hekatómpyloi ) or "Hundred-Gated Thebes", as opposed to the " Thebes of the Seven Gates " ( Θῆβαι ἑπτάπυλοι , Thēbai heptápyloi ) in Boeotia , Greece. In the interpretatio graeca , Amun was rendered as Zeus Ammon . The name was therefore translated into Greek as Diospolis, "City of Zeus". To distinguish it from the numerous other cities by this name, it

1197-1690: The Ptolemaic dynasty are likely to have suffered from a multi-organ fibrotic condition such as Erdheim–Chester disease , or a familial multifocal fibrosclerosis where thyroiditis, obesity and ocular proptosis may have all occurred concurrently. ( Shamshi-Adad dynasty 1808–1736 BCE) (Amorites) Shamshi-Adad I Ishme-Dagan I Mut-Ashkur Rimush Asinum Ashur-dugul Ashur-apla-idi Nasir-Sin Sin-namir Ipqi-Ishtar Adad-salulu Adasi (Non-dynastic usurpers 1735–1701 BCE) Puzur-Sin Ashur-dugul Ashur-apla-idi Nasir-Sin Sin-namir Ipqi-Ishtar Adad-salulu Adasi ( Adaside dynasty 1700–722 BCE) Bel-bani Libaya Sharma-Adad I Iptar-Sin Bazaya Lullaya Shu-Ninua Sharma-Adad II Erishum III Shamshi-Adad II Ishme-Dagan II Shamshi-Adad III Ashur-nirari I Puzur-Ashur III Enlil-nasir I Nur-ili Ashur-shaduni Ashur-rabi I Ashur-nadin-ahhe I Enlil-Nasir II Ashur-nirari II Ashur-bel-nisheshu Ashur-rim-nisheshu Ashur-nadin-ahhe II Second Intermediate Period Sixteenth Dynasty Abydos Dynasty Seventeenth Dynasty (1500–1100 BCE) Kidinuid dynasty Igehalkid dynasty Untash-Napirisha Twenty-first Dynasty of Egypt Smendes Amenemnisu Psusennes I Amenemope Osorkon

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1254-457: The Theban economy flourish by renewing trade networks, primarily the Red Sea trade between Thebes' Red Sea port of Al-Qusayr , Elat and the land of Punt . Her successor Thutmose III brought to Thebes a great deal of his war booty that originated from as far away as Mittani . The 18th Dynasty reached its peak during his great-grandson Amenhotep III 's reign (1388–1350 BC). Aside from embellishing

1311-531: The adoption of his own daughter, Nitocris I , as heiress to God's Wife of Amun there. In 525 BC, Persian Cambyses II invaded Egypt and became pharaoh, subordinating the kingdom as a satrapy to the greater Achaemenid Empire . The good relationship of the Thebans with the central power in the North ended when the native Egyptian pharaohs were finally replaced by Greeks, led by Alexander the Great . He visited Thebes during

1368-557: The armies of Thebes marched on the Hyksos-ruled lands. Tao died in battle and his son Kamose took charge of the campaign. After Kamose's death, his brother Ahmose I continued until he captured Avaris , the Hyksos capital. Ahmose I drove the Hyksos out of Egypt and the Levant and reclaimed the lands formerly ruled by them. Ahmose I founded a new age for a unified Egypt with Thebes as its capital. The city remained as capital during most of

1425-631: The capital of the First Dynasty, was located in the same region as Thebes for this reason. Both cities were at a crossroad region in Upper Egypt between the Nile in the north to south direction and Saharan caravan routes connecting to Red Sea maritime routes via Wadi Hammamat in the East West direction. The Wadi el-Hol is also located near Thebes; this valley connected Thebes to an oasis on the Western Desert. It

1482-563: The childless marriage of siblings Ptolemy II and Arsinoe II being an exception. The first child-producing incestuous marriage in the Ptolemaic dynasty was that of Ptolemy IV and Arsinoe III , who were succeeded as co-pharaohs by their son Ptolemy V , born 210 BC. The best-known Ptolemaic pharaoh, Cleopatra VII , was at different times married to and ruled with two of her brothers ( Ptolemy XIII until 47 BC and then Ptolemy XIV until 44 BC), and their parents were also likely to have been siblings or possibly cousins. Contemporaries describe

1539-607: The city continued to decline. In the first century AD, Strabo described Thebes as having been relegated to a mere village. Eastern Thebes: Western Thebes: The two great temples — Luxor Temple and Karnak —and the Valley of the Kings and the Valley of the Queens are among the greatest achievements of ancient Egypt. From 25 October 2018 to 27 January 2019, the Museum of Grenoble organized with

1596-470: The city of Alexandria founded by Alexander the Great would gradually surpass Athens taking its place as the intellectual centre of the Mediterranean world. To emulate the previous dynasties of Egypt, the Ptolemaic dynasty eventually adopted the practice of inbreeding including sibling marriage ; this did not start in earnest until nearly a century into the dynasty's history. All the male rulers of

1653-851: The city of Thebes, which he made the capital of his kingdom. In Karnak he erected a pink granite statue of himself wearing the Pschent (the double crown of Egypt). Taharqa accomplished many notable projects at Thebes (i.e. the Kiosk in Karnak) and Nubia before the Assyrians started to wage war against Egypt. In 667 BC, attacked by the Assyrian king Ashurbanipal 's army, Taharqa abandoned Lower Egypt and fled to Thebes. After his death three years later his nephew (or cousin) Tantamani seized Thebes, invaded Lower Egypt and laid siege to Memphis, but abandoned his attempts to conquer

1710-411: The city was abandoned by the court, and the worship of Amun was proscribed. The capital was moved to the new city of Akhetaten (Amarna in modern Egypt), midway between Thebes and Memphis. After his death, his son Tutankhamun returned the capital to Memphis, but renewed building projects at Thebes produced even more glorious temples and shrines. With the 19th Dynasty the seat of government moved to

1767-473: The country in 663 BC and retreated southwards. The Assyrians pursued him and took Thebes , whose name was added to a long list of cities plundered and destroyed by the Assyrians, as Ashurbanipal wrote: This city, the whole of it, I conquered it with the help of Ashur and Ishtar. Silver, gold, precious stones, all the wealth of the palace, rich cloth, precious linen, great horses, supervising men and women, two obelisks of splendid electrum, weighing 2,500 talents,

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1824-446: The doors of temples I tore from their bases and carried them off to Assyria. With this weighty booty I left Thebes. Against Egypt and Kush I have lifted my spear and shown my power. With full hands I have returned to Nineveh, in good health. Thebes never regained its former political significance, but it remained an important religious centre. Assyrians installed Psamtik I (664–610 BC), who ascended to Thebes in 656 BC and brought about

1881-498: The dynasty took the name Ptolemy , while queens regnant were all called Cleopatra , Arsinoe , or Berenice . The most famous member of the line was the last queen, Cleopatra VII , known for her role in the Roman political battles between Julius Caesar and Pompey , and later between Octavian and Mark Antony . Her apparent suicide after the Roman conquest of Egypt marked the end of Ptolemaic rule in Egypt. Dates in brackets on

1938-541: The eastern Nile Delta. They eventually founded the 14th Dynasty at Avaris in c.  1805 BC or c.  1710 BC . By doing so, the Asiatics established hegemony over the majority of the Delta region, subtracting these territories from the influence of the 13th Dynasty that had meanwhile succeeded the 12th. A second wave of Asiatics called Hyksos (from Heqa-khasut , "rulers of foreign lands" as Egyptians called their leaders) immigrated into Egypt and overran

1995-426: The executions of many conspirators, including Theban officials and women. Under the later Ramessids, Thebes began to decline as the government fell into grave economic difficulties. During the reign of Ramesses IX (1129–1111 BC), about 1114 BC, a series of investigations into the plundering of royal tombs in the necropolis of western Thebes uncovered proof of corruption in high places, following an accusation made by

2052-724: The hands of the High Priests of Amun , so that during the Third Intermediate Period , the High Priest of Amun exerted absolute power over the South, a counterbalance to the 21st and 22nd Dynasty kings who ruled from the Delta. Intermarriage and adoption strengthened the ties between them, daughters of the Tanite kings being installed as God's Wife of Amun at Thebes, where they wielded greater power. Theban political influence receded only in

2109-633: The large granaries (built around the Ramesseum) that concentrated the taxes collected from Upper Egypt; and by the gold from expeditions to Nubia and the Eastern Desert. During Ramesses' long 66-year reign, Egypt and Thebes reached an overwhelming state of prosperity that equaled or even surpassed the earlier peak under Amenhotep III. The city continued to be well kept in the early 20th Dynasty . The Great Harris Papyrus states that Ramesses III (reigned 1187–56) donated 86,486 slaves and vast estates to

2166-403: The later rulers; the one used here is the one most widely employed by modern scholars. Continuing the tradition established by previous Egyptian dynasties , the Ptolemies engaged in inbreeding including sibling marriage , with many of the pharaohs being married to their siblings and often co-ruling with them. Ptolemy I and other early rulers of the dynasty were not married to their relatives,

2223-528: The mayor of the east bank against his colleague on the west. The plundered royal mummies were moved from place to place and at last deposited by the priests of Amun in a tomb-shaft in Deir el-Bahri and in the tomb of Amenhotep II . (The finding of these two hiding places in 1881 and 1898, respectively, was one of the great events of modern archaeological discovery.) Such maladministration in Thebes led to unrest. Control of local affairs tended to come more and more into

2280-452: The mountainous Eastern Desert with its wadis draining into the valley. Significant among these wadis is Wadi Hammamat near Thebes. It was used as an overland trade route going to the Red Sea coast. Wadi Hammamat was the primary trade route linking Egypt to the Red Sea since Pre-Dynastic times. Uruk civilization was transmitted to Egypt along this corridor. It is the likely that Thinis ,

2337-443: The population of Memphis was down to about 30,000, making Thebes the largest city in Egypt at the time. Historian Ian Morris has estimated that by 1500 BC, Thebes may have grown to be the largest city in the world, with a population of about 75,000, a position it held until about 900 BC, when it was surpassed by Nimrud (among others). Shomarka Keita reported that a 2005 study on mummified remains found that "some Theban nobles had

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2394-482: The reign of Senusret I . Thebes was already, in the Middle Kingdom, a town of considerable size. Excavations around the Karnak temple show that the Middle Kingdom town had a layout with a grid pattern . The city was at least one kilometre long and 50 hectares in area. Remains of two palatial buildings were also detected. Starting in the later part of the 12th Dynasty, a group of Canaanite people began settling in

2451-447: The remaining part of Upper Egypt. The Theban rulers were apparently descendants of the prince of Thebes, Intef the Elder . His probable grandson Intef I was the first of the family to claim in life a partial pharaonic titulary , though his power did not extend much further than the general Theban region. Finally by c.  2050 BC , Intef III 's son Mentuhotep II (meaning "Montu

2508-466: The revolt in 185 BC, Ptolemy V , in need of the support of the priesthood, pardoned them. Half a century later the Thebans rose again, elevating a certain Harsiesi to the throne in 132 BC. Harsiesi, having helped himself to the funds of the royal bank at Thebes, fled the following year. In 91 BC, another revolt broke out. In the following years, Thebes was subdued, and the city turned into rubble. During

2565-507: The royal residence of the Old Kingdom pharaohs. Although no buildings survive in Thebes older than portions of the Karnak temple complex that may date from the Middle Kingdom , the lower part of a statue of Pharaoh Nyuserre of the 5th Dynasty has been found in Karnak. Another statue dedicated by the 12th Dynasty king Senusret may have been usurped and re-used, since the statue bears a cartouche of Nyuserre on its belt. Since seven rulers of

2622-488: The story in the modern setting some 3000 years later. In "The Egyptian" by the author Mika Waltari, there are elaborate descriptions on how Thebes looked during the 18th Dynasty of Ancient Egypt. Ptolemaic dynasty The Ptolemaic dynasty ( / ˌ t ɒ l ɪ ˈ m eɪ . ɪ k / ; Ancient Greek : Πτολεμαῖοι , Ptolemaioi ), also known as the Lagid dynasty ( Λαγίδαι , Lagidai ; after Ptolemy I 's father, Lagus ),

2679-592: The support of the Louvre and the British Museum , a three-month exhibition on the city of Thebes and the role of women in the city at that time. In popular culture, Thebes is a setting in the films The Mummy (1999) and The Mummy Returns (2001). It is said to be the "Land of the Living". (In real history, there was no such name given to it.) The films feature scenes taking place in ancient Egypt in its prime, which affect

2736-526: The temples of Amun . The Theban god Amun became a principal state deity and every building project sought to outdo the last in proclaiming the glory of Amun and the pharaohs themselves. Thutmose I (reigned 1506–1493 BC) began the first great expansion of the Karnak temple. After this, colossal enlargements of the temple became the norm throughout the New Kingdom. Queen Hatshepsut (reigned 1479–1458 BC) helped

2793-547: The temples of Amun, Amenhotep increased construction in Thebes to unprecedented levels. On the west bank, he built the enormous mortuary temple and the equally massive Malkata palace-city, which fronted a 364-hectare artificial lake. In the city proper he built the Luxor temple and the Avenue of the Sphinxes leading to Karnak. For a brief period in the reign of Amenhotep III's son Akhenaten (1351–1334 BC), Thebes fell on hard times;

2850-551: The temples of Amun. Ramesses III received tributes from all subject peoples including the Sea Peoples and Meshwesh Libyans. The whole of Egypt was experiencing financial problems, however, exemplified in the events at Thebes' village of Deir el-Medina . In the 25th year of his reign, workers in Deir el-Medina began striking for pay and there arose a general unrest of all social classes. Subsequently, an unsuccessful Harem conspiracy led to

2907-623: Was a Macedonian Greek royal house which ruled the Ptolemaic Kingdom in Ancient Egypt during the Hellenistic period . Reigning for 275 years, the Ptolemaic was the longest and last dynasty of ancient Egypt from 305 BC until its incorporation into the Roman Republic in 30 BC. Ptolemy , a general and one of the somatophylakes (bodyguard companions) of Alexander the Great ,

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2964-442: Was appointed satrap of Egypt after Alexander's death in 323 BC. In 305 BC he declared himself Pharaoh Ptolemy I, later known as Sōter "Saviour". The Egyptians soon accepted the Ptolemies as the successors to the pharaohs of independent Egypt. The new dynasty adopted the Egyptian titles and iconography, showing respect to local traditions, while also preserving their own Greek language and culture. The Ptolemaic period

3021-410: Was built largely on the alluvial plains of the Nile Valley, which follows a great bend of the Nile. As a natural consequence, the city was laid in a northeast–southwest axis parallel to the contemporary river channel. Thebes had an area of 93 km (36 sq mi), which included parts of the Theban Hills in the west that culminates at the sacred 420-meter (1,380-foot) al-Qurn . In the east lies

3078-410: Was known as the "Great Diospolis" ( Διόσπολις Μεγάλη , Diospolis Megálē ; Latin : Diospolis Magna ). The Greek names came into wider use after the conquest of Egypt by Alexander the Great , when the country came to be ruled by the Macedonian Ptolemaic dynasty . Thebes was located along the banks of the Nile River in the middle part of Upper Egypt about 800 km south of the Delta . It

3135-418: Was known in Egyptian as njw.t-jmn , the "City of Amun ", the chief of the Theban Triad of deities whose other members were Mut and Khonsu . This name of Thebes appears in the Tanakh as the "Nōʼ ʼĀmôn" ( נא אמון ) in the Book of Nahum and also as "No" ( נא ) mentioned in the Book of Ezekiel and Jeremiah . "Thebes" is sometimes claimed to be the Latinised form of Ancient Greek : Θῆβαι ,

3192-407: Was marked by the intense interactions and blending of the Greek and Egyptian cultures. Under the Ptolemies, Hellenistic religion was largely shaped by religious syncretism and imperial cult . Elements of Greek education became widespread in urban spaces, culminating in the foundation of the Mouseion (including the Library of Alexandria ) and the Serapeum . During the Hellenistic period,

3249-418: Was short-lived, as less than twenty years had elapsed between the death of Mentuhotep II and that of Mentuhotep IV , in mysterious circumstances. During the 12th Dynasty , Amenemhat I moved the seat of power North to Itjtawy . Thebes continued to thrive as a religious center as the local god Amun was becoming increasingly prominent throughout Egypt. The oldest remains of a temple dedicated to Amun date to

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