Amunhotep I and the Splendour of Thebes
The New Kingdom begins.
From 1530 BCE to 1510, Thebes enjoys a resurgence in wealth and power. Tombs become more elaborate, the middle-class of artisans and craftsmen grows, and the King's building program puts the city on the path to great splendour.
But Amunhotep is not the greatest king of all time, and there are many question marks hanging over his reign. Where is his tomb? What kind of power did he really exercise in his own government? And why did he not leave any children behind?
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A statue of Amunhotep I (Brooklyn Museum of Art).
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The mummy mask of Amunhotep I, still kept with his mummy.
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An image of the deified pair: Ahmose-Nefertari (left) and Amunhotep I (right). From the tombs at Deir el-Medina; 19th Dynasty.
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Amunhotep I and Ahmose-Nefertari make an offering to Osiris (left); from the mid-18th Dynasty, reign of Amunhotep III (Brooklyn Museum).
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A sandstone king's head, possibly Amunhotep I. Early 18th Dynasty.
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Major sites in Nubia; Amunhotep's campaign probably reached (2), and perhaps a bit further.
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One of the Teti-ky wall frescoes (Luxor Times magazine).
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One of the Teti-ky wall frescoes (Luxor Times magazine).
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The King Amunhotep I (top right), and possibly Ahmose-Nefertari (bottom right), from a 19th Dynasty tomb in Thebes.
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A limestone chapel at Thebes, commissioned by Amunhotep I (semataui.de)
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Possibly one of the few contemporary portraits of the King (Wikipedia).
Epilogue: Where in the World is the Tomb of Amunhotep?
Find here images of the three candidate tombs.
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Tomb AN-B at Dra Abu al'Naga (Sjef Willockx, "Three Tombs, attributed to Amenhotep I").
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Tomb KV-39 (semataui.de).
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Tomb TT-320 (the Royal Cache, aka DB-320) (Wikipedia).
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Entrance to the royal cache today (Wikipedia).
Bibliography
Books and Articles
Sjef Willockx, "Three Tombs, attributed to Amenhotep I"
Aidan Dodson and Dyan Hilton. The Complete Royal Families of Ancient Egypt, 2010.
Nicolas Grimal. A History of Ancient Egypt, 1994.
Anthony J. Spalinger. War in Ancient Egypt, 2005.
Ian J. Shaw (ed.) - The Oxford History of Ancient Egypt, 2000 (Google Books)
Leonard H. Lesko (ed.) - Pharaoh's Workers: The Villagers of Deir el-Medina, 1994.
Emily Teeter, Religion and Ritual in Ancient Egypt, 2011.
William Peck, The Material World of Ancient Egypt, 2013.
Websites
Reshafim.org – The Autobiography of Ahmose Ibana.
Reshafim.org - The Autobiography of Ahmose Pen-Nekhbet.
semataui.de - Amunhotep I (website)
ucl.ac.uk - Amunhotep I (website)
euler.slu.edu - Amunhotep I (website)