The Official Titles wb3 nswt ‘royal wb3’ and wdpw nswt ‘royal wdpw’ and the Function of their Holders in the New Kingdom : A prosopographical study

Abstract

The representatives of individuals bearing the functional titles ‘royal wb3’ and ‘royal wdpw’ are continuously attested during almost the entirety of the New Kingdom except for the short turbulent period at the end of the 19th dynasty. As for their functional role, ‘royal wb3s’ and ‘royal wdpws’ primarily belonged to the royal household and palace administration as personal attendants of the ruler either in the royal palace or on his journeys within the country or abroad, being responsible for the personal service of the king. From the early 19th dynasty onwards, they no longer merely administered the personal needs of the ruler in the royal palace but their extended range of duties led to their widespread participation in various assignments far from the palace as the personal representatives of the ruler and as influential figures of the royal court. Such special commissions were different matters regarding which the officials are identified as ‘royal wdpws’ instead of ‘royal wb3s’.