| Preceded by: Mentuhotep IV |
Pharaoh of Egypt 12th Dynasty |
Succeeded by: Senusret I | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Amenemhat I | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Koine Greek: Aμμενεμης (Ammenemes) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 Relief of Amenemhat I from his mortuary complex at el-Lisht.© | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Reign | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1991-1962 BC (29 years) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Legacy | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Father | Senusret | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Mother | Neferet | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Consort(s) | Neferitatjenen | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Issue | Senusret I, Neferu III, Neferusherit, Kayet | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Died | 1962 BC | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Burial | Pyramid of Amenemhat I | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Monuments | Itjtawy, Avaris | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
- For other pages by this name, see Amenemhat.
Sehotepibre Amenemhat I (transliteration: ỉmn-m-ḥt, meaning: "Amun is in Front") was the first Pharaoh of the Twelfth Dynasty during the Middle Kingdom of Egypt. He ruled from 1991 BC to 1962 BC, which is roughly 30 years.
Amenemhat I was not of royal lineage, and hence took measures to assure the authority of his kingship, such as including literary works (the Prophecy of Neferti, Instructions of Amenemhat) and the revertion to the pyramid-style complexes of the 6th Dynasty rulers. Amenemhet was vizier for Mentuhotep IV, and was the best one suited to take his position as pharaoh. Amenemhet I also moved the capital from Thebes to Itjtawy and was buried in el-Lisht.
Amenemhat I was born on the island of Elephantine located in the Nile River. He lived from 1976-1947 BC. His parents were Nofret and Senusret, a priest.
His son Senusret I, followed a similar path as Amenemhat did, by building his pyramid at Lisht, although his son, the next ruler of Egypt, Amenemhat II, did not follow this tradition. Senusret's pyramid is a closer reflection of the 6th dynasty pyramids than that of Amenemhat I. Amenemhat I and Senusret I are thought to have shared a joint reign (coregency) of at least 10 years, with Amenemhat I celebrating his jubilee (Sed Festival) one year after they began their joint reign.
He is thought to have been assassinated. Nobody knows for sure, but it is written in "his own hand" that it was an attack by his bodyguard.
The pyramid ruin of Amenemhet I at Lisht.
Amenemhat I's name is associated with one of only two sebayt or ethical "teachings" attributed to Egyptian monarchs. The document is entitled the Instructions of Amenemhat I. The only other royal sebayt was the Instruction for King Merikara set in the First Intermediate Period, but probably a Middle Kingdom composition. As Merikara was a king during the unstable periods of the Seventh through Ninth Dynasties, however, almost nothing is known of him or of his father who presumably wrote the instructions.
Naguib Mahfouz, the Nobel Prize for Literature – winning Egyptian writer includes Amenemhat I in one of his stories published in 1941 entitled "Awdat Sinuhi". The story appeared in an English translation by Raymond Stock in 2003 as "The Return of Sinuhe" in the collection of Mahfouz's short stories entitled Voices from the Other World. The story is based directly on the "The Story of Sinuhe", although adding details of a lovers' triangle romance involving Amenemhat I and Sinuhe that does not appear in the original.
Succession[]
Amenemhat I was the first king of Egypt who definitivly had a coregency with his son, Senusret I. A double dated stele dates to the thirtieth year of Amenemhat I and to the tenth year of Senusret I, which establishes that Senusret would have been made coregent in Amenemhat's 20th regnal year.[1]
References[]
- ↑ Murnane 1977, p. 2.
Bibliography[]
- Grajetzki, W., 2006: The Middle Kingdom of Ancient Egypt: History, Archaeology and Society. Duckworth, London.
- Mahfouz, N., 2003: The Return of Sinuhe. In: Voices from the Other World (translated by Robert Stock), Random House.
- Murnane, W.J., 1977: Ancient Egyptian Coregencies. Studies in Ancient Oriental Civilization. No. 40. The Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago.
External links[]
- "Amenemhet I: 1st King of the 12th Dynasty". touregypt.net.
| Predecessor: Mentuhotep IV |
Pharaoh of Egypt 12th Dynasty |
Successor: Senusret I |