A Forgotten Governor of Elephantine during the Twelfth Dynasty: Ameny*

Abstract

The present article analyses different epigraphic material from Elephantine for the reconstruction of the sequence of governors of the first nome of Upper Egypt during the reigns of Senwosret I and Amenemhat II. Detlef Franke, in a study of the local cult of Heqaib, established a line of succession from the reign of Senwosret I until the first third of the Thirtieth Dynasty. However, in this study he did not discuss a graffito discovered by Labib Habachi in Elephantine four decades earlier. In that graffito, the high official Ameny is mentioned in connection with some important epithets and titles. Although his appointment to office was made by the king, he took care to legitimize his position vis-à-vis the previous ruling lineage, the local community and its gods.