Merneptah
Encyclopedia
Merneptah was the fourth ruler of the Nineteenth Dynasty
of Ancient Egypt
. He ruled Egypt for almost ten years between late July or early August 1213 and May 2, 1203 BC, according to contemporary historical records. He was the thirteenth son of Ramesses II
and only came to power because all his older brothers, including his full brother Khaemwaset or Khaemwase, had predeceased him, by which time he was almost sixty years old. His throne name was Ba-en-re Mery-netjeru, which means "The Soul of Ra
, Beloved of the Gods".
Merneptah probably was the fourth child of Isetnofret
, the second wife of Ramesses II, and he was married to Queen Isetnofret, his royal wife, who was likely his full sister bearing the name of their mother. It is presumed that Merneptah also was married to Queen Takhat
and one of their sons would become the later nineteenth dynasty pharaoh, Seti II
. They also were the parents of prince Merenptah and possibly the usurper, Amenmesse
, and Queen Twosret
, wife of Seti II and later pharaoh in her own right.
s during his reign, in year 5 he fought against the Libya
ns, who—with the assistance of the Sea Peoples
—were threatening Egypt from the West. Merneptah led a victorious six-hour battle against a combined Libyan and Sea People force at the city of Perire, probably located on the western edge of the Delta
. His account of this campaign
against the Sea Peoples
and Libu
is described in prose on a wall beside the sixth pylon at Karnak
, which states:
"[Beginning of the victory that his majesty achieved in the land of Libya] -i, Ekwesh, Teresh, Lukka, Sherden, Shekelesh, Northerners coming from all lands."
Later in the inscription Merneptah receives news of the attack:
"... the third season, saying: 'The wretched, fallen chief of Libya, Meryre, son of Ded, has fallen upon the country of Tehenu with his bowmen--Sherden, Shekelesh, Ekwesh, Lukka, Teresh, Taking the best of every warrior and every man of war of his country. He has brought his wife and his children--leaders of the camp, and he has reached the western boundary in the fields of Perire.'"
In the Athribis Stele, in the garden of Cairo Museum, it states "His majesty was enraged at their report, like a lion", assembled his court and gave a rousing speech. Later he dreamed he saw Ptah handing him a sword and saying "Take thou (it) and banish thou the fearful heart from thee." When the bowmen went forth, says the inscription, "Amun was with them as a shield." After six hours the surviving Nine Bows
threw down their weapons, abandoned their baggage and dependents, and ran for their lives. Merneptah states that he defeated the invasion, killing 6,000 soldiers and taking 9,000 prisoners. To be sure of the numbers, among other things, he took the penises of all uncircumcised enemy dead and the hands of all the circumcised, from which history learns that the Ekwesh were circumcised, a fact causing some to doubt they were Greek.
There is also an account of the same events in the form of a poem from the Merneptah Stele
, widely known as the Israel Stele, which makes reference to the supposed utter destruction of Israel
in a campaign prior to his 5th year in Canaan
: "Israel has been wiped out...its seed is no more." This is the first recognised ancient Egyptian record of the existence of Israel--"not as a country or city, but as a tribe" or people.
Merneptah was already an elderly man in his late 60s if not early 70s when he assumed the throne. Merneptah moved the administrative center of Egypt from Piramesse (Pi-Ramesses
), his father's capital, back to Memphis
, where he constructed a royal palace next to the temple of Ptah
. This palace was excavated in 1915 by the University of Pennsylvania Museum led by Clarence Fischer.
Naneferkaptah was the royal heir, being the son of Merneptah's royal wife, Queen Isetnofret (Isisnofret), but he, his wife, and their heir died before the death of Merneptah, and their story survives in text. Merneptah's successor, Seti II
, was another son of Queen Isisnofret. However, Seti II's accession to the throne was not unchallenged: a rival king named Amenmesse
, who was either another son of Merneptah by Takhat or, much less likely, of Ramesses II, seized control over Upper Egypt
and Kush
during the middle of Seti II's reign. Seti was able to reassert his authority over Thebes
in his fifth year, only after he overcame Amenmesse. It is possible that before seizing Upper Egypt Amenmesse had been known as Messui and had been viceroy of Kush.
Merneptah suffered from arthritis
and arteriosclerosis
in old age and died after a reign which lasted for nearly a decade. Merneptah was originally buried within tomb KV8
in the Valley of the Kings
, but his mummy
was not found there. In 1898 it was located along with eighteen other mummies in the mummy cache found in the tomb of Amenhotep II
(KV35
) by Victor Loret
. Merneptah's mummy was taken to Cairo and eventually unwrapped by Dr. G. Elliott Smith
on July 8, 1907. Dr Smith notes that:
Nineteenth dynasty of Egypt
The Nineteenth Dynasty of ancient Egypt was one of the periods of the Egyptian New Kingdom. Founded by Vizier Ramesses I, whom Pharaoh Horemheb chose as his successor to the throne, this dynasty is best known for its military conquests in Palestine, Lebanon, and Syria.The warrior kings of the...
of Ancient Egypt
Ancient Egypt
Ancient Egypt was an ancient civilization of Northeastern Africa, concentrated along the lower reaches of the Nile River in what is now the modern country of Egypt. Egyptian civilization coalesced around 3150 BC with the political unification of Upper and Lower Egypt under the first pharaoh...
. He ruled Egypt for almost ten years between late July or early August 1213 and May 2, 1203 BC, according to contemporary historical records. He was the thirteenth son 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 only came to power because all his older brothers, including his full brother Khaemwaset or Khaemwase, had predeceased him, by which time he was almost sixty years old. His throne name was Ba-en-re Mery-netjeru, which means "The Soul of Ra
Ra
Ra is the ancient Egyptian sun god. By the Fifth Dynasty he had become a major deity in ancient Egyptian religion, identified primarily with the mid-day sun...
, Beloved of the Gods".
Merneptah probably was the fourth child of Isetnofret
Isetnofret
Isetnofret was one of the Great Royal Wives of Pharaoh Ramesses II and was the mother of his heir, Merneptah...
, the second wife of Ramesses II, and he was married to Queen Isetnofret, his royal wife, who was likely his full sister bearing the name of their mother. It is presumed that Merneptah also was married to Queen Takhat
Takhat
Takhat was an ancient Egyptian princess and queen of the 19th dynasty, the mother of the usurper pharaoh Amenmesse.There are not many facts known about her other than that she was Amenmesse's mother. She bore the titles King's Daughter and King's Wife. She might have been identical with Takhat, a...
and one of their sons would become the later nineteenth dynasty pharaoh, Seti II
Seti II
Seti II , was the fifth ruler of the Nineteenth dynasty of Egypt and reigned from 1203 BC to 1197 BC. His throne name, Userkheperure Setepenre, meant "Powerful are the Manifestations of Re, Chosen by Re.' He was the son of Merneptah and wife Isisnofret and sat on the throne during a...
. They also were the parents of prince Merenptah and possibly the usurper, Amenmesse
Amenmesse
Amenmesse was the 5th ruler of the Nineteenth Dynasty in Ancient Egypt, possibly the son of Merneptah and Queen Takhat. Others consider him to be one of the innumerable sons of Ramesses II. Very little is known about this king, who ruled Egypt for only three to four years...
, and Queen Twosret
Twosret
Queen Twosret was the last known ruler and the final Pharaoh of the Nineteenth Dynasty.She is recorded in Manetho's Epitome as a certain Thuoris, who in Homer is called Polybus, husband of Alcandara, and in whose time Troy was taken. She was said to have ruled Egypt for seven years, but this...
, wife of Seti II and later pharaoh in her own right.
Campaigns
Merneptah had to carry out several military campaignMilitary campaign
In the military sciences, the term military campaign applies to large scale, long duration, significant military strategy plan incorporating a series of inter-related military operations or battles forming a distinct part of a larger conflict often called a war...
s during his reign, in year 5 he fought against the Libya
Ancient Libya
The Latin name Libya referred to the region west of the Nile Valley, generally corresponding to modern Northwest Africa. Climate changes affected the locations of the settlements....
ns, who—with the assistance of the Sea Peoples
Sea Peoples
The Sea Peoples were a confederacy of seafaring raiders of the second millennium BC who sailed into the eastern Mediterranean, caused political unrest, and attempted to enter or control Egyptian territory during the late 19th dynasty and especially during year 8 of Ramesses III of the 20th Dynasty...
—were threatening Egypt from the West. Merneptah led a victorious six-hour battle against a combined Libyan and Sea People force at the city of Perire, probably located on the western edge of the Delta
Nile Delta
The Nile Delta is the delta formed in Northern Egypt where the Nile River spreads out and drains into the Mediterranean Sea. It is one of the world's largest river deltas—from Alexandria in the west to Port Said in the east, it covers some 240 km of Mediterranean coastline—and is a rich...
. His account of this campaign
Great Karnak Inscription
Located on the wall of the Cachette Court, in the Precinct of Amun-Re of the Karnak temple complex, in modern Luxor, the Great Karnak Inscription of Merneptah is a record of the campaigns of this king against the Sea Peoples....
against the Sea Peoples
Sea Peoples
The Sea Peoples were a confederacy of seafaring raiders of the second millennium BC who sailed into the eastern Mediterranean, caused political unrest, and attempted to enter or control Egyptian territory during the late 19th dynasty and especially during year 8 of Ramesses III of the 20th Dynasty...
and Libu
Libu
The Libu were an ancient Berber tribe, from which the name Libya derives....
is described in prose on a wall beside the sixth pylon at 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...
, which states:
"[Beginning of the victory that his majesty achieved in the land of Libya] -i, Ekwesh, Teresh, Lukka, Sherden, Shekelesh, Northerners coming from all lands."
Later in the inscription Merneptah receives news of the attack:
"... the third season, saying: 'The wretched, fallen chief of Libya, Meryre, son of Ded, has fallen upon the country of Tehenu with his bowmen--Sherden, Shekelesh, Ekwesh, Lukka, Teresh, Taking the best of every warrior and every man of war of his country. He has brought his wife and his children--leaders of the camp, and he has reached the western boundary in the fields of Perire.'"
In the Athribis Stele, in the garden of Cairo Museum, it states "His majesty was enraged at their report, like a lion", assembled his court and gave a rousing speech. Later he dreamed he saw Ptah handing him a sword and saying "Take thou (it) and banish thou the fearful heart from thee." When the bowmen went forth, says the inscription, "Amun was with them as a shield." After six hours the surviving Nine Bows
Nine bows
The nine bows is a term used in Ancient Egypt to represent the traditional enemies of Egypt. The peoples covered by this term changed over time, as enemies changed, and there is no true list of the nine bows...
threw down their weapons, abandoned their baggage and dependents, and ran for their lives. Merneptah states that he defeated the invasion, killing 6,000 soldiers and taking 9,000 prisoners. To be sure of the numbers, among other things, he took the penises of all uncircumcised enemy dead and the hands of all the circumcised, from which history learns that the Ekwesh were circumcised, a fact causing some to doubt they were Greek.
There is also an account of the same events in the form of a poem from the Merneptah Stele
Merneptah Stele
The Merneptah Stele — also known as the Israel Stele or Victory Stele of Merneptah — is an inscription by the Ancient Egyptian king Merneptah , which appears on the reverse side of a granite stele erected by the king Amenhotep III...
, widely known as the Israel Stele, which makes reference to the supposed utter destruction of Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
in a campaign prior to his 5th year in Canaan
Canaan
Canaan is a historical region roughly corresponding to modern-day Israel, Palestine, Lebanon, and the western parts of Jordan...
: "Israel has been wiped out...its seed is no more." This is the first recognised ancient Egyptian record of the existence of Israel--"not as a country or city, but as a tribe" or people.
Succession
Pi-Ramesses
Pi-Ramesses was the new capital built by the Nineteenth Dynasty of Egypt Pharaoh Ramesses II at Qantir near the old site of Avaris. The city had previously served as a summer palace under Seti I and may have been originally founded by Ramesses I Pi-Ramesses (Pi-Ramesses Aa-nakhtu, meaning...
), his father's capital, back to Memphis
Memphis, Egypt
Memphis was the ancient capital of Aneb-Hetch, the first nome of Lower Egypt. Its ruins are located near the town of Helwan, south of Cairo.According to legend related by Manetho, the city was founded by the pharaoh Menes around 3000 BC. Capital of Egypt during the Old Kingdom, it remained an...
, where he constructed a royal palace next to the temple of Ptah
Ptah
In Ancient Egyptian Religion, Ptah was the deification of the primordial mound in the Ennead cosmogony, which was more literally referred to as Ta-tenen , meaning risen land, or as Tanen, meaning submerged land, though Tatenen was a god in his...
. This palace was excavated in 1915 by the University of Pennsylvania Museum led by Clarence Fischer.
Naneferkaptah was the royal heir, being the son of Merneptah's royal wife, Queen Isetnofret (Isisnofret), but he, his wife, and their heir died before the death of Merneptah, and their story survives in text. Merneptah's successor, Seti II
Seti II
Seti II , was the fifth ruler of the Nineteenth dynasty of Egypt and reigned from 1203 BC to 1197 BC. His throne name, Userkheperure Setepenre, meant "Powerful are the Manifestations of Re, Chosen by Re.' He was the son of Merneptah and wife Isisnofret and sat on the throne during a...
, was another son of Queen Isisnofret. However, Seti II's accession to the throne was not unchallenged: a rival king named Amenmesse
Amenmesse
Amenmesse was the 5th ruler of the Nineteenth Dynasty in Ancient Egypt, possibly the son of Merneptah and Queen Takhat. Others consider him to be one of the innumerable sons of Ramesses II. Very little is known about this king, who ruled Egypt for only three to four years...
, who was either another son of Merneptah by Takhat or, much less likely, of Ramesses II, seized control over 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...
and Kush
Kingdom of Kush
The native name of the Kingdom was likely kaš, recorded in Egyptian as .The name Kash is probably connected to Cush in the Hebrew Bible , son of Ham ....
during the middle of Seti II's reign. Seti was able to reassert his authority over Thebes
Thebes, Egypt
Thebes is the Greek name for a city in Ancient Egypt located about 800 km south of the Mediterranean, on the east bank of the river Nile within the modern city of Luxor. The Theban Necropolis is situated nearby on the west bank of the Nile.-History:...
in his fifth year, only after he overcame Amenmesse. It is possible that before seizing Upper Egypt Amenmesse had been known as Messui and had been viceroy of Kush.
Mummy
Arthritis
Arthritis is a form of joint disorder that involves inflammation of one or more joints....
and arteriosclerosis
Arteriosclerosis
Arteriosclerosis refers to a stiffening of arteries.Arteriosclerosis is a general term describing any hardening of medium or large arteries It should not be confused with "arteriolosclerosis" or "atherosclerosis".Also known by the name "myoconditis" which is...
in old age and died after a reign which lasted for nearly a decade. Merneptah was originally buried within tomb KV8
KV8
Tomb KV8, located in the Valley of the Kings, was used for the burial of Pharaoh Merenptah of Ancient Egypt's Nineteenth Dynasty.The burial chamber, located at the end of 160 metres of corridor, originally held a set of four nested sarcophagi...
in the Valley of the Kings
Valley of the Kings
The Valley of the Kings , less often called the Valley of the Gates of the Kings , is a valley in Egypt where, for a period of nearly 500 years from the 16th to 11th century BC, tombs were constructed for the Pharaohs and powerful nobles of the New Kingdom .The valley stands on the west bank of...
, but his mummy
Mummy
A mummy is a body, human or animal, whose skin and organs have been preserved by either intentional or incidental exposure to chemicals, extreme coldness , very low humidity, or lack of air when bodies are submerged in bogs, so that the recovered body will not decay further if kept in cool and dry...
was not found there. In 1898 it was located along with eighteen other mummies in the mummy cache found in the tomb of Amenhotep II
Amenhotep II
Amenhotep II was the seventh Pharaoh of the 18th dynasty of Egypt. Amenhotep inherited a vast kingdom from his father Thutmose III, and held it by means of a few military campaigns in Syria; however, he fought much less than his father, and his reign saw the effective cessation of hostilities...
(KV35
KV35
Tomb KV35 in the Valley of the Kings is the tomb of Amenhotep II.It was discovered by Victor Loret in March 1898.-Layout and history:...
) by Victor Loret
Victor Loret
Victor Clement Georges Philippe Loret was a French Egyptologist.-Biography:Loret studied with Gaston Maspero at the École des Hautes Études. In 1897 he became the head of the Egyptian Antiquities Service. In March 1898, he discovered KV35, the tomb of Amenhotep II in the Valley of the Kings...
. Merneptah's mummy was taken to Cairo and eventually unwrapped by Dr. G. Elliott Smith
Grafton Elliot Smith
Sir Grafton Elliot Smith, FRS FRCP was an Australian anatomist and a proponent of the hyperdiffusionist view of prehistory.-Professional career:Smith was born in Grafton, New South Wales...
on July 8, 1907. Dr Smith notes that:
The body is that of an old man and is 1 meter 714 millimeters in height. Merenptah was almost completely bald, only a narrow fringe of white hair (now cut so close as to be seen only with difficulty) remaining on the temples and occiput. A few short (about 2 mill) black hairs were found on the upper lip and scattered, closely clipped hairs on the cheeks and chin. The general aspect of the face recalls that of Ramesses II, but the form of the cranium and the measurements of the face much more nearly agree with those of his [grand]father, Seti the Great.
Further reading
- Eva March Tappan, ed., The World's Story: A History of the World in Story, Song and Art, (Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1914), Vol. III: Egypt, Africa, and Arabia, trans. W. K. Flinders Petrie, pp. 47–55, scanned by: J. S. Arkenberg, Department of History, California State Fullerton; Professor Arkenberg has modernized the text and it is available via Internet Ancient History Sourcebook