| Amenemope | |
|---|---|
 Gilted funerary mask of pharaoh Amenemope in theCairo Museum | |
| Pharaoh | |
| Reign | 9 years[1] 1001 – 992 BC[2] 993 – 984 BC[3] |
| Predecessor | Psusennes I |
| Successor | Osorkon the Elder |
| Father | Psusennes I (?) |
| Mother | Mutnedjmet(?) |
| Died | 992 or 984 BC |
| Burial | Tanis, originally NRT IV, reburied in NRT III |
| Dynasty | 21st Dynasty |
Usermaatre Amenemope was anancient Egyptianpharaoh of the21st Dynasty who ruled from 1001 to 992 BC or 993 to 984 BC.
Amenemope's burial is notable for being one of three entirely intact royal burials known from ancient Egypt. The others were that ofPsusennes I andShoshenq II, all three found inside Psusennes's tomb which was discovered by the French EgyptologistPierre Montet between 1939 and 1940; however, only the metal objects survived in the wet Nile Delta climate.[6] He succeeded Psusennes I at Tanis on the throne.
A probable son ofPsusennes I and his queenMutnedjmet,[7] Amenemope succeeded his purported father's long reign after a period ofcoregency.[8] This coregency has been deduced thanks to a linen bandage mentioning a "... king Amenemope, Year 49..." which has been reconstructed as "[Year X under] king Amenemope, Year 49 [under king Psusennes I]".[9] It has been suggested, however, that this Year 49 may belong to theHigh Priest of AmunMenkheperre instead of Psusennes I, thus ruling out the coregency;[10] this hypothesis has been rejected byKenneth Kitchen, who still supports a coregency.[11] Kitchen refers to the existence ofPapyrus Brooklyn 16.205, a document mentioning a Year 49 followed by a Year 4, once thought to refer toShoshenq III andPami, but more recently to Psusennes I and Amenemope, and thus issued in regnal Year 4 of the latter.[12]
During his reign as Pharaoh, Amenemope claimed the title of "High Priest of Amun in Tanis" as Psusennes also did before him. Amenemope's authority was fully recognized atThebes – at this time governed by the High Priest of AmunSmendes II and then by his brotherPinedjem II[13] – as his name appears on funerary goods of at least nine Theban burials, among these is theBook of the Dead of the "Captain of the barque ofAmun", Pennestawy, dating to Amenemope's Year 5.[14]
Apart from his Tanite tomb and the aforementioned Theban burials, Amenemope is a poorly attested ruler. He continued with the decoration of the chapel ofIsis "Mistress of thePyramids at Giza" and made an addition to one of the temples inMemphis.[14]
All versions ofManetho's Epitome reports thatAmenophthis (Amenemope'sHellenised name) enjoyed 9 years of reign, a duration more or less confirmed by archaeological sources.[15] Neither children nor wives are known for him, and he was succeeded by the seemingly unrelatedOsorkon the Elder.
According to the analysis of his skeleton performed by Dr. Douglas Derry, Amenemope was a strongly-built man who reached a fairly advanced age.[16] It seems that the king suffered a skull infection which likely developed intomeningitis and led to his death.[17]
Amenemope was originally buried in the only chamber of a small tomb (NRT IV) in the royal necropolis of Tanis; a few years after his death, during the reign ofSiamun, Amenemope was moved and reburied in NRT III, inside the chamber once belonging to his purported mother Mutnedjmet and just next to Psusennes I.[14][19] His undisturbed tomb was rediscovered by French EgyptologistsPierre Montet andGeorges Goyon in April 1940, just a month before theNazi invasion of France. Montet had to stop his excavation until the end ofWorld War II, then resumed it in 1946 and later published his findings in 1958.
When the excavators entered the small burial chamber, they argued that it was originally made for queen Mutnedjmet. The chamber contained an uninscribed granite sarcophagus, some vessels including thecanopic jars and the vessel once containing the water used for washing the mummy, and a heap of around 400ushabtis; a wooden coffin covered with gold leaf was placed within the sarcophagus and contained Amenemope's mummy. On the mummy was found a giltfunerary mask, two pectorals, necklaces, bracelets, rings and acloisonné collar. Four of these items bore the name of Psusennes I.[20][21]The funerary masks depict the king as young, although Goyon stated that at the moment of discovery the masks had an expression of suffering and pleading, later softened after restoration.[20] The mummy and funerary goods are now inCairo Museum.
Amenemope was buried with far less opulence than his neighbour Psusennes I: for comparison, the latter was provided with a solid silver coffin and a solid gold mask, while the former's coffin and mask were merely gilt.[14]
On September 16, 2025, it was reported that a gold bracelet with lapis lazuli beads belonging to Amenemope, was stolen from the restoration laboratory at theEgyptian Museum inTahrir Square,Cairo.[22][23] On September 18, it was reported that the bracelet had been stolen by a restoration worker employed with the museum, who sold the bracelet to a jeweler for 180,000 Egyptian pounds ($3,700 USD), who then sold it to a smelter who worked in a gold workshop in Cairo for 194,000 Egyptian pounds ($4,000 USD). By the time authorities arrived, the bracelet was already melted down. All involved individuals were placed under arrest, and the proceeds from the sale of the bracelet seized.[24][25][26][27]
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