Amenhotep, son of Hapu

• Name — Amenhotep • Born — c. 1425 BC • Birthplace — Athribis, Lower Egypt • Died — c. 1356 BC (aged c. 69) • Place of death — Thebes?, Egypt

He is said to have been born at the end of Thutmose III's reign, in the town of Athribis (modern Banha in the north of Cairo). His father was Hapu, and his mother Itu. Though little about Amenhotep's early life is known prior to his entering civil service, it is believed that he learned to read and write at the local library and scriptorium. He was a priest and a Scribe of Recruits (organizing the labour and supplying the manpower for the Pharaoh's projects, both civilian and military). He was also an architect and supervised several building projects, among them Amenhotep III's mortuary temple at western Thebes, of which only two statues remain nowadays, known as the Colossi of Memnon, and the creation of the quarry of El-Gabal el-Ahmar, nearby Heliopolis, from which the blocks used to create the Colossi were probably taken. Other plans, such as the portico of the Temple of Karnak, completed under Ramesses II, and those for the Luxor Temple are also attributed to Amenhotep. He may also have been the architect of the Temple of Soleb in Nubia. Amenhotep is noted to have participated in Amenhotep III's first Sed festival, in the 30th year of the king's rule. After this, he is believed to have retired from civil service and become the steward of Princess Sitamun's properties (similar to an asset manager today), and received honours such as the designation of Fan-bearer on the Right Side of the King, among other things. According to some reliefs in the tomb of Ramose, he may have died in the 31st year of Amenhotep III, which would correspond to either 1360 BC or 1357 BC, depending on the chronology used. His death has also been dated to the 35th year of the king. • Illustration — Amenhotep, son of Hapu, as an elderly man. Egyptian Museum, Cairo.

Amenhotep was allowed to build his mortuary temple adjacent to that of the pharaoh. This honour is quite rare and indicates that Amenhotep was highly respected by the time of his death, despite the fact that he was a commoner and had only entered civil service at an advanced age, in his late forties. Excavated in 1934 or 1935, it measures 45 × 110 metres and is surrounded by three shrines. His first courtyard contained a 25 × 26 m water basin of considerable depth, fed by groundwater from the Nile. Twenty trees were planted in pits around the basin. The temple at the end of the courtyard was adorned with a pillared portico, and the temple was slightly elevated on a terrace. An interesting find in Amenhotep's mortuary temple was a lengthy and detailed curse for anyone who disturbed and robbed the tomb. The curse read: As for [anyone] who will come after me and who will find the foundation of the funerary tomb in destruction… as for anyone who will take the personnel from among my people… as for all others who will turn them astray… I will not allow them to perform their scribal function… I will put them in the furnace of the king… His uraeus will vomit flame upon the top of their heads, demolishing their flesh and devouring their bones. They will become Apophis [a divine serpent who is vanquished] on the morning of the day of the year. They will capsize in the sea which will devour their bodies. They will not receive honors received by virtuous people. They will not be able to swallow offerings of the dead. One will not pour for them water in libation… Their sons will not occupy their places, their women will be violated before their eyes. Their great ones will be so lost in their houses that they will be upon the floor… They will not understand the words of the king at the time when he is in joy. They will be doomed to the knife on the day of massacre… Their bodies will decay because they will starve and will not have sustenance and their bones will perish.