Aktisanes
Encyclopedia
Aktisanes is a Nubia
n king who is mentioned by the Greek historian Hecataeus of Abdera
. He is perhaps identical with Menmaatre-Setepenamun Gatisen known from Nubian sources.
Gatisen had a Ramesside-style titulary. His throne name Menmaatre-Setepenamun is the same as the throne name of Ramesses II
. Aktisanes' Horus name Kanakht-nerymaat is the same as the Horus name of Ramesses II
(and Osorkon II
and Shoshenq III
). This is a second reason why he is placed by some scholars around 300 BC.
It had been assumed that in the fourth century BC, there was a Ramesside revival in Nubia. Other researchers have pointed out that the reading of the name Gatisen is uncertain. They place the king before 700 BC and assume that there was no Ramesside revival.
expedition in Nuri
, but only published in 1977. The text was only partly preserved. It once most likely adorned a door at a temple in Napata
. The names of the king are not preserved, most importantly the nomen Gatisen is missing.
The other inscription is to be found on two adjoining blocks, showing the king in front of Amun-Re-Horachte-Atum. The blocks were found at the Jebel Barkal
. In this inscription the throne name and the nomen of the king are preserved, but the nomen Gatisen is difficult to read. The same holds true for a door jamb from the same place providing the full titulary of the king, but with the nomen only partly preserved.
The name Gatisen has been identified with Aktisanes, known from the Greek historian Hecataeus of Abdera
. This identification is not certain, especially because the reading of the name as Gatisen is uncertain. Hecataeus describes Aktisanes as an enemy of the Egyptian king Amasis. This seems unlikely as the earlier Nubian kings are well-known. Therefore and for other reasons it is in general assumed that Hecataeus chose the name of a contemporary Nubian king as he composed his more fictional story.
. He is thought to have been buried in either pyramid 11 or pyramid 14.
Nubia
Nubia is a region along the Nile river, which is located in northern Sudan and southern Egypt.There were a number of small Nubian kingdoms throughout the Middle Ages, the last of which collapsed in 1504, when Nubia became divided between Egypt and the Sennar sultanate resulting in the Arabization...
n king who is mentioned by the Greek historian Hecataeus of Abdera
Hecataeus of Abdera
Hecataeus of Abdera was a Greek historian and sceptic philosopher who flourished in the 4th century BC.-Biography:Diogenes Laertius relates that he was a student of Pyrrho, along with Eurylochus, Timon the Phliasian, Nausiphanes of Teos and others, and includes him among the "Pyrrhoneans"...
. He is perhaps identical with Menmaatre-Setepenamun Gatisen known from Nubian sources.
Titles
- Horus name: Kanakht Merymaat ("Mighty Bull who loves Equity")
- Nebty name: Wer-menu-em-per-itef-Amen-en-nepet ("Whose monuments are great in the house of his father Amun in Napata")
- Golden horus name: Ir-sankhy-rekhyu ("Who vivifies the rekhit people")
- Prenomen: Menmaatre Setepenamun ("Re is one whose equity endures, chosen one of Amun")
- Nomen: Gatisen (Aktisanes)
Gatisen had a Ramesside-style titulary. His throne name Menmaatre-Setepenamun is the same as the throne name of Ramesses II
Ramesses II
Ramesses II , referred to as Ramesses the Great, was the third Egyptian pharaoh of the Nineteenth dynasty. He is often regarded as the greatest, most celebrated, and most powerful pharaoh of the Egyptian Empire...
. Aktisanes' Horus name Kanakht-nerymaat is the same as the Horus name of Ramesses II
Ramesses II
Ramesses II , referred to as Ramesses the Great, was the third Egyptian pharaoh of the Nineteenth dynasty. He is often regarded as the greatest, most celebrated, and most powerful pharaoh of the Egyptian Empire...
(and Osorkon II
Osorkon II
Usermaatre Setepenamun Osorkon II was a pharaoh of the Twenty-second Dynasty of Ancient Egypt and the son of Takelot I and Queen Kapes. He ruled Egypt around 872 BC to 837 BC from Tanis, the capital of this Dynasty. After succeeding his father, he was faced with the competing rule of his cousin,...
and Shoshenq III
Shoshenq III
King Usermaatre Setepenre or Usimare Setepenamun Shoshenq III ruled Egypt's 22nd Dynasty 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 year 30...
). This is a second reason why he is placed by some scholars around 300 BC.
It had been assumed that in the fourth century BC, there was a Ramesside revival in Nubia. Other researchers have pointed out that the reading of the name Gatisen is uncertain. They place the king before 700 BC and assume that there was no Ramesside revival.
Monuments and Inscriptions
His longest text is a now lost building inscription copied by the LepsiusKarl Richard Lepsius
Karl Richard Lepsius was a pioneering Prussian Egyptologist and linguist and pioneer of modern archaeology.-Background:...
expedition in Nuri
Nuri
Nuri is a place in modern Sudan on the south side of the Nile. Close to it, there are pyramids belonging to Nubian kings. Nuri is situated about 15 km north of Sanam, and 10 km from Jebel Barkal. All these remains belonged to the ancient city Napata, the first capital of the Nubian kingdom of...
, but only published in 1977. The text was only partly preserved. It once most likely adorned a door at a temple in Napata
Napata
Napata was a city-state of ancient Nubia on the west bank of the Nile River, at the site of modern Karima, Northern Sudan.During the 8th to 7th centuries BC, Napata was the capital of the Nubian kingdom of Kush, whence the 25th, or Nubian Dynasty conquered Egypt...
. The names of the king are not preserved, most importantly the nomen Gatisen is missing.
The other inscription is to be found on two adjoining blocks, showing the king in front of Amun-Re-Horachte-Atum. The blocks were found at the Jebel Barkal
Jebel Barkal
Jebel Barkal or Gebel Barkal is a very small mountain located some 400 km north of Khartoum, in Karima town in Northern State in Sudan, on a large bend of the Nile River, in the region called Nubia....
. In this inscription the throne name and the nomen of the king are preserved, but the nomen Gatisen is difficult to read. The same holds true for a door jamb from the same place providing the full titulary of the king, but with the nomen only partly preserved.
The name Gatisen has been identified with Aktisanes, known from the Greek historian Hecataeus of Abdera
Hecataeus of Abdera
Hecataeus of Abdera was a Greek historian and sceptic philosopher who flourished in the 4th century BC.-Biography:Diogenes Laertius relates that he was a student of Pyrrho, along with Eurylochus, Timon the Phliasian, Nausiphanes of Teos and others, and includes him among the "Pyrrhoneans"...
. This identification is not certain, especially because the reading of the name as Gatisen is uncertain. Hecataeus describes Aktisanes as an enemy of the Egyptian king Amasis. This seems unlikely as the earlier Nubian kings are well-known. Therefore and for other reasons it is in general assumed that Hecataeus chose the name of a contemporary Nubian king as he composed his more fictional story.
Burial
Aktisanes was buried at Jebel BarkalJebel Barkal
Jebel Barkal or Gebel Barkal is a very small mountain located some 400 km north of Khartoum, in Karima town in Northern State in Sudan, on a large bend of the Nile River, in the region called Nubia....
. He is thought to have been buried in either pyramid 11 or pyramid 14.
Literature
- Laszlo Török, in: Fontes Historiae Nubiorum, Vol. II, Bergen 1996, 511-520, ISBN 8291626014