Kenneth Kitchen
Encyclopedia
Kenneth Anderson Kitchen (born 1932) is Personal and Brunner Professor Emeritus of Egyptology
and Honorary Research Fellow at the School of Archaeology
, Classics and Egyptology, University of Liverpool
, England
. He is one of the leading experts on Biblical History and the Egyptian Third Intermediate Period, having written over 250 books and journal articles on these and other subjects since the mid-1950s. He has been described by The Times
as "the very architect of Egyptian chronology".
with Amenemope
and Osorkon III
with Takelot III
, and established that Shebitku
of the 25th Dynasty
was already king of Egypt by 702 BC, among other revelations.
Some of its points are now slightly dated. It stated that Takelot II
succeeded Osorkon II
at Tanis
, whereas most Egyptologists today accept it was Shoshenq III
. Secondly, the book presented King Shoshenq II
as the High Priest of Amun Shoshenq C
, a son of Osorkon I
who predeceased his father. However, this interpretation is weakened by the fact that no objects from Shoshenq II's intact burial at Tanis bears Osorkon I's name. Finally, contra Kitchen, most Egyptologists today such as Rolf Krauss, Aidan Dodson and Jürgen von Beckerath
accept David Aston's argument that the Crown Prince Osorkon B, Takelot II's son, assumed power as Osorkon III
, a king of the 'Theban Twenty-Third Dynasty
' in Upper Egypt
.
; he published a well-respected book on Ramesses II
in 1982 titled Pharaoh Triumphant: The Life and Times of Ramesses II, King of Egypt. Kitchen is a scholar who advocates a high view of the Old Testament and its inherent historicity. See his most recent 2003 book: On the Reliability of the Old Testament which documents several clear or indirect allusions to King David's status as the founder of Ancient Israel based on passages in the Tel Dan
('House of David') and Mesha
stelas as well as in Shoshenq I's Karnak
list. The book counters the efforts of biblical minimalists who claim that the Bible is unhistorical.
Kitchen has strongly opposed the New Chronology views of David Rohl
who posits that the Biblical Shishak who invaded Israel in 925 BC was actually Ramesses II rather than Shoshenq I
and argues that the 21st
and 22nd Dynasties
of Egypt were contemporary with one another due to the absence of Dynasty 21 Apis Bull
stele
in the Serapeum
. Kitchen observes that the word Shishak is closer philologically to Shoshenq I and that this Pharaoh records in his monuments at Thebes that he campaigned actively against Ancient Israel and Judah. Kitchen also notes that there are various contemporary non-Serapeum sources such as the Karnak Priestly Annals, the Nile Quay Texts, and various stelas which mention these Dynasty 21 and Dynasty 22 kings.
. In his books, such as On the Reliability of the Old Testament (2003), Kitchen argues that the historical evidence supports the reliability of biblical accounts. He is cited by conservative Christians for his work against the Documentary Hypothesis
(which claims that the Pentateuch is a composite work dating from the 1st millennium BC). Kitchen, while holding that the Pentateuch is largely a work of the 3rd and 2nd millennia, does make some allowance for post-Mosaic editing. He also takes a late date of the exodus of Israel from Egypt during the time of Ramesses II in the 13th century BC, whereas most conservative evangelical Bible scholars date this event to the 15th century BC.
Biblical Archaeological Review (BAR) and other articles:
Egyptology
Egyptology is the study of ancient Egyptian history, language, literature, religion, and art from the 5th millennium BC until the end of its native religious practices in the AD 4th century. A practitioner of the discipline is an “Egyptologist”...
and Honorary Research Fellow at the School of Archaeology
Archaeology
Archaeology, or archeology , is the study of human society, primarily through the recovery and analysis of the material culture and environmental data that they have left behind, which includes artifacts, architecture, biofacts and cultural landscapes...
, Classics and Egyptology, University of Liverpool
University of Liverpool
The University of Liverpool is a teaching and research university in the city of Liverpool, England. It is a member of the Russell Group of large research-intensive universities and the N8 Group for research collaboration. Founded in 1881 , it is also one of the six original "red brick" civic...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. He is one of the leading experts on Biblical History and the Egyptian Third Intermediate Period, having written over 250 books and journal articles on these and other subjects since the mid-1950s. He has been described by The Times
The Times
The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
as "the very architect of Egyptian chronology".
Third Intermediate Period
His book, The Third Intermediate Period in Egypt (1100–650 BC), is regarded by historians as the standard and most comprehensive treatment on this era. It noted a hitherto unknown period of coregency between Psusennes IPsusennes I
Psusennes I, or Greek Ψουσέννης], Pasibkhanu or Hor-Pasebakhaenniut I Egyptian ḥor-p3-sib3-ḫˁỉ--niwt] was the third king of the Twenty-first dynasty of Egypt who ruled from Tanis between 1047 – 1001 BC...
with Amenemope
Amenemope
Amenemope the son of Kanakht is the ostensible author of the Instruction of Amenemope, an Egyptian wisdom text written in the Ramesside Period. He is portrayed as a scribe and sage who lived in Egypt during the 20th Dynasty of the New Kingdom and resided in Akhmim , the capital of the ninth nome...
and Osorkon III
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 attested by his Chronicle—which consists of a series of...
with Takelot III
Takelot III
Usimare Setepenamun Takelot III Si-Ese was Osorkon III's eldest son and successor. Takelot III ruled the first five years of his reign in a coregency with his father and served previously as the High Priest of Amun at Thebes. He was previously thought to have ruled Egypt for only 7 years until his...
, and established that Shebitku
Shebitku
Shebitku was the third king of the Twenty-fifth dynasty of Egypt who ruled from 702 BCE to 690 BCE according to Peter Clayton or 707/706 BC-690 BC, according to Dan'el Kahn's most recent academic research. He was the nephew and successor of Shabaka. He was a son of Piye, the founder of this dynasty...
of the 25th Dynasty
Twenty-fifth dynasty of Egypt
The twenty-fifth dynasty of Egypt, known as the Nubian Dynasty or the Kushite Empire, was the last dynasty of the Third Intermediate Period of Ancient Egypt....
was already king of Egypt by 702 BC, among other revelations.
Some of its points are now slightly dated. It stated that Takelot II
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 and, thus, the son of Nimlot C and grandson of king Osorkon...
succeeded 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,...
at Tanis
Tanis, Egypt
Tanis , the Greek name of ancient Djanet , is a city in the north-eastern Nile delta of Egypt. It is located on the Tanitic branch of the Nile which has long since silted up.-History:...
, whereas most Egyptologists today accept it was 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...
. Secondly, the book presented King Shoshenq II
Shoshenq II
Heqakheperre Shoshenq II was an Egyptian king of the 22nd 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 Psusennes I's tomb at Tanis by Pierre Montet in 1939. Montet removed the coffin lid of...
as the High Priest of Amun Shoshenq C
Shoshenq C
Shoshenq C was the eldest son of the 22nd Dynasty pharaoh Osorkon I and queen Maatkare, the daughter of Psusennes II, 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 himself...
, a son of Osorkon I
Osorkon I
The son of Shoshenq I and his chief consort, Karomat A, Osorkon I was the second king of Egypt's 22nd Dynasty and ruled around 922 BC – 887 BC. He succeeded his father Shoshenq I who probably died within a year of his successful 923 BC campaign against the kingdoms of Israel and Judah...
who predeceased his father. However, this interpretation is weakened by the fact that no objects from Shoshenq II's intact burial at Tanis bears Osorkon I's name. Finally, contra Kitchen, most Egyptologists today such as Rolf Krauss, Aidan Dodson and Jürgen von Beckerath
Jürgen von Beckerath
Jürgen von Beckerath is a prominent German Egyptologist. He is a prolific writer who has published countless articles in journals such as Orientalia, Göttinger Miszellen , Journal of the American Research Center in Egypt , Archiv für Orientforschung and Studien zur Altägyptischen Kultur among...
accept David Aston's argument that the Crown Prince Osorkon B, Takelot II's son, assumed power as Osorkon III
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 attested by his Chronicle—which consists of a series of...
, a king of the 'Theban Twenty-Third Dynasty
Twenty-third dynasty of Egypt
The Twenty-third Dynasty of ancient Egypt was a separate regime of Meshwesh Libyan kings, who ruled ancient Egypt. This dynasty is often considered part of the Third Intermediate Period.-Rulers:...
' in Upper Egypt
Upper Egypt
Upper Egypt is the strip of land, on both sides of the Nile valley, that extends from the cataract boundaries of modern-day Aswan north to the area between El-Ayait and Zawyet Dahshur . The northern section of Upper Egypt, between El-Ayait and Sohag is sometimes known as Middle Egypt...
.
Ramesside Period
Kenneth Kitchen is also regarded as one of the foremost scholars on the Ramesside Period of the New KingdomNew Kingdom
The New Kingdom of Egypt, also referred to as the Egyptian Empire is the period in ancient Egyptian history between the 16th century BC and the 11th century BC, covering the Eighteenth, Nineteenth, and Twentieth Dynasties of Egypt....
; he published a well-respected book on 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...
in 1982 titled Pharaoh Triumphant: The Life and Times of Ramesses II, King of Egypt. Kitchen is a scholar who advocates a high view of the Old Testament and its inherent historicity. See his most recent 2003 book: On the Reliability of the Old Testament which documents several clear or indirect allusions to King David's status as the founder of Ancient Israel based on passages in the Tel Dan
Tel Dan Stele
The Tel Dan Stele is a stele discovered in 1993/94 during excavations at Tel Dan in northern Israel. Its author was a king of Damascus, Hazael or one of his sons, and it contains an Aramaic inscription commemorating victories over local ancient peoples including "Israel" and the "House of...
('House of David') and Mesha
Mesha Stele
The Mesha Stele is a black basalt stone bearing an inscription by the 9th century BC ruler Mesha of Moab in Jordan....
stelas as well as in Shoshenq I's Karnak
Karnak
The Karnak Temple Complex—usually called Karnak—comprises a vast mix of decayed temples, chapels, pylons, and other buildings, notably the Great Temple of Amun and a massive structure begun by Pharaoh Ramses II . Sacred Lake is part of the site as well. It is located near Luxor, some...
list. The book counters the efforts of biblical minimalists who claim that the Bible is unhistorical.
Kitchen has strongly opposed the New Chronology views of David Rohl
David Rohl
New Chronology is the term used to describe an alternative Chronology of the ancient Near East developed by English Egyptologist David Rohl and other researchers beginning with A Test of Time: The Bible - from Myth to History in 1995...
who posits that the Biblical Shishak who invaded Israel in 925 BC was actually Ramesses II rather than Shoshenq I
Shoshenq I
Hedjkheperre Setepenre Shoshenq I , , also known as Sheshonk or Sheshonq I , was a Meshwesh Berber king of Egypt—of Libyan ancestry—and the founder of the Twenty-second Dynasty...
and argues that the 21st
Twenty-first dynasty of Egypt
The Twenty-First, Twenty-Second, Twenty-Third, Twenty-Fourth, and Twenty-Fifth Dynasties of ancient Egypt are often combined under the group title, Third Intermediate Period.-Rulers:...
and 22nd Dynasties
Twenty-second dynasty of Egypt
The Twenty-First, Twenty-Second, Twenty-Third, Twenty-Fourth and Twenty-Fifth Dynasties of ancient Egypt are often combined under the group title, Third Intermediate Period.-Rulers:...
of Egypt were contemporary with one another due to the absence of Dynasty 21 Apis Bull
Apis (Egyptian mythology)
In Egyptian mythology, Apis or Hapis , was a bull-deity worshipped in the Memphis region.According to Manetho, his worship was instituted by Kaiechos of the Second Dynasty. Hape is named on very early monuments, but little is known of the divine animal before the New Kingdom...
stele
Stele
A stele , also stela , is a stone or wooden slab, generally taller than it is wide, erected for funerals or commemorative purposes, most usually decorated with the names and titles of the deceased or living — inscribed, carved in relief , or painted onto the slab...
in the Serapeum
Serapeum
A serapeum is a temple or other religious institution dedicated to the syncretic Hellenistic-Egyptian god Serapis, who combined aspects of Osiris and Apis in a humanized form that was accepted by the Ptolemaic Greeks of Alexandria...
. Kitchen observes that the word Shishak is closer philologically to Shoshenq I and that this Pharaoh records in his monuments at Thebes that he campaigned actively against Ancient Israel and Judah. Kitchen also notes that there are various contemporary non-Serapeum sources such as the Karnak Priestly Annals, the Nile Quay Texts, and various stelas which mention these Dynasty 21 and Dynasty 22 kings.
Biblical scholarship
Kitchen is often called an evangelical scholar for his research which provides archaeological support for the Old TestamentOld Testament
The Old Testament, of which Christians hold different views, is a Christian term for the religious writings of ancient Israel held sacred and inspired by Christians which overlaps with the 24-book canon of the Masoretic Text of Judaism...
. In his books, such as On the Reliability of the Old Testament (2003), Kitchen argues that the historical evidence supports the reliability of biblical accounts. He is cited by conservative Christians for his work against the Documentary Hypothesis
Documentary hypothesis
The documentary hypothesis , holds that the Pentateuch was derived from originally independent, parallel and complete narratives, which were subsequently combined into the current form by a series of redactors...
(which claims that the Pentateuch is a composite work dating from the 1st millennium BC). Kitchen, while holding that the Pentateuch is largely a work of the 3rd and 2nd millennia, does make some allowance for post-Mosaic editing. He also takes a late date of the exodus of Israel from Egypt during the time of Ramesses II in the 13th century BC, whereas most conservative evangelical Bible scholars date this event to the 15th century BC.
Significant Works by Kenneth A. Kitchen
- 2003. On the Reliability of the Old TestamentOn the Reliability of the Old TestamentOn the Reliability of the Old Testament is a book by Biblical scholar and Egyptologist Kenneth Kitchen....
. Grand Rapids and Cambridge: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company. ISBN 0-8028-4960-1 - 1999. Poetry of Ancient Egypt. Jonsered: P. Aströms förlag.
- 1996. The Third Intermediate Period in Egypt (1100–650 BC). 3rd ed. Warminster: Aris & Phillips Limited
- 1994. Documentation for Ancient Arabia. Part 1: Chronological Framework and Historical Sources. The World of Ancient Arabia 1. Liverpool: Liverpool University Press
- 1982. Pharaoh Triumphant: The Life and Times of Ramesses II, King of Egypt. Monumenta Hannah Sheen Dedicata 2. Mississauga: Benben Publications.
- 1977. The Bible In Its World http://www.biblicalstudies.org.uk/book_bibleinitsworld.html. Exeter: Paternoster. Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press 1978.
- 1969–1990. Ramesside Inscriptions: Historical and Biographical. 8 Vols. Oxford: B. H. Blackwell Ltd.
- 1966. Ancient Orient and Old Testament http://www.biblicalstudies.org.uk/book_ancientorient.html. London: Tyndale Press. Chicago: InterVarsity Press.
- 1962. Suppiluliuma and the Amarna Pharaohs; a study in relative chronology, Liverpool University Press
Biblical Archaeological Review (BAR) and other articles:
- Kenneth A. Kitchen, Egyptian Near Kingdom Topographical Lists, in "Causing His Name to Live: Studies in Egyptian Epigraphy and History in Memory of William J. Murnane," E. J. Brill Academic Publishers: Leiden, 2009
- Kenneth A. Kitchen, Ancient Egyptian Chronology for Aegeanists, MAA 2, Dec 2002
- Kenneth A. Kitchen, How We Know When Solomon Ruled, BAR 27:05, Sept/Oct. 2001
- Kenneth A. Kitchen, The Desert Tabernacle, BAR 16:06, Dec 2000
- Kenneth A. Kitchen, The Patriarchal Age: Myth or History?, BAR 21:02, Mar/Apr. 1995
- Kenneth A. Kitchen, Genesis 12-50 In The Near Eastern World in "He Swore an Oath: Biblical Themes from Genesis 12-50," (Wheaton, IL: Tyndale, 1993), ed: R. Hess, P. Satterthwaite and G. Wenham
- Kenneth A. Kitchen, The Arrival of the Libyans in Late New Kingdom Egypt in Libya and Egypt c. 1300-750 B.C. ed. Anthony Leahy, London : School of Oriental and African Studies, 1990, pp. 15–27
- Kenneth A. Kitchen, Where Did Solomon’s Gold Go?, BAR 15:03, May/Jun 1989
- Kenneth A. Kitchen, Shishak’s Military Campaign in Israel Confirmed, BAR 15:03, May/June 1989
- Kenneth A. Kitchen, The Aramaic of Daniel in Notes on Some Problems in the Book Of Daniel, London: The Tyndale Press, 1965. paperback, pp. 31–79.
External links
- Review of On the Reliability of the Old Testament by the Professor of Old Testament, Denver Seminary (extensive summary)
- Review of On the Reliability of the Old Testament by the Director of Jewish Studies, Louisiana State University (more critical)
- K. A. Kitchen's home page at University of Liverpool