Shepenupet II (alt. Shepenwepet II, prenomen: ''Henutneferumut Irietre'') was an

ancient Egypt Ancient Egypt () was a cradle of civilization concentrated along the lower reaches of the Nile River in Northeast Africa. It emerged from prehistoric Egypt around 3150BC (according to conventional Egyptian chronology), when Upper and Lower E ...

ian princess of the

25th Dynasty The Twenty-fifth Dynasty of Egypt (notated Dynasty XXV, alternatively 25th Dynasty or Dynasty 25), also known as the Nubian Dynasty, the Kushite Empire, the Black Pharaohs, or the Napatans, after their capital Napata, was the last dynasty of t ...

who served as the high priestess, the

Divine Adoratrice of Amun The Divine Adoratrice of Amun (Egyptian: '' dwꜣt nṯr n jmn'') was a second title – after God's Wife of Amun – created for the chief priestess of the ancient Egyptian deity Amun. During the first millennium BCE, when the holder of this ...

, from around 700 BC to 650 BC. She was the daughter of the first Kushite pharaoh

Piye Piye (also interpreted as Pankhy or Piankhi; was an ancient Kushite king and founder of the Twenty-fifth Dynasty of Egypt, who ruled Egypt from 744–714 BC. He ruled from the city of Napata, located deep in Nubia, modern-day Sudan. Name Piye ...

and sister of Piye's successors,

Shabaka Neferkare Shabaka, or Shabako ( Meroitic: 𐦰𐦲𐦡𐦐𐦲 (sha-ba-ka), Egyptian: 𓆷𓃞𓂓 ''šꜣ bꜣ kꜣ'', Assyrian: ''Ša-ba-ku-u'', Šabakû ) was the third Kushite pharaoh of the Twenty-fifth Dynasty of Egypt, who reigned fr ...

and

Taharqa Taharqa, also spelled Taharka or Taharqo, Akkadian: ''Tar-qu-ú'', , Manetho's ''Tarakos'', Strabo's ''Tearco''), was a pharaoh of the Twenty-fifth Dynasty of Egypt and qore (king) of the Kingdom of Kush (present day Sudan) from 690 to 664 BC. ...

Biography

Shepenupet II was adopted by her predecessor in office,

Amenirdis I Amenirdis I (throne name: ''Hatneferumut'') was a God's Wife of Amun during the 25th Dynasty of ancient Egypt., p.238 Originating from the Kingdom of Kush, she was the daughter of Pharaoh Kashta and Queen Pebatjma, and was later adopted by Shepe ...

, a sister of Piye. Shepenupet was

God's Wife of Amun God's Wife of Amun ( Egyptian: ''ḥm.t nṯr n ỉmn'') was the highest-ranking priestess of the Amun cult, an important religious institution in ancient Egypt. The cult was centered in Thebes in Upper Egypt during the Twenty-fifth and Twen ...

from the beginning of Taharqa's reign until Year 9 of Pharaoh

Psamtik I Wahibre Psamtik I (Ancient Egyptian: ) was the first pharaoh of the Twenty-sixth Dynasty of Egypt, the Saite period, ruling from the city of Sais in the Nile delta between 664 and 610 BC. He was installed by Ashurbanipal of the Neo-Assyrian E ...

. While in office she had to come to a power sharing arrangement with the mayor of

Thebes Thebes or Thebae may refer to one of the following places: *Thebes, Egypt, capital of Egypt under the 11th, early 12th, 17th and early 18th Dynasties *Thebes, Greece, a city in Boeotia *Phthiotic Thebes Phthiotic Thebes ( or Φθιώτιδες Θ ...

Mentuemhat Mentuemhat or Montuemhat (c. 700 BCE – c. 650 BCE) was a rich and powerful Theban official from ancient Egypt who lived during the Twenty-fifth Dynasty of Egypt and Twenty-sixth Dynasty of Egypt. He was the Fourth Priest of Amun in Thebes. ...

.Rice, Michael; ''Who's Who in Ancient Egypt'', Routledge (2001), p. 189. Her niece,

Amenirdis Amenirdis (or ''Amonardis;'' masculine ''ỉmn-ỉr-dỉ-sw – Amenirdisu,'' feminine ''ỉmn-ỉr-dỉ-st – Amenirdiset;'' gendered endings were mostly not pronounced by the time the name was popular) is an ancient Egyptian name meaning "he/she ...

, the daughter of Taharqa, was appointed as her heiress. Shepenupet was compelled to adopt

Nitocris Nitocris () possibly was the last queen of the Sixth Dynasty of Ancient Egypt. Her name is found in writings long considered as relatively accurate resources: a major chronological documentation of the reigns of the kings of ancient Egypt that wa ...

, daughter of pharaoh Psamtik I, who reunited Egypt after the Assyrian conquest. This is evidenced by the so-called Adoption Stela of Nitocris. In 656 BC, in Year 9 of the reign of Psamtik I, she received Nitocris at Thebes. Her tomb is located in the grounds of

Medinet Habu Medinet Habu (; ; ; ) is an archaeological locality situated near the foot of the Theban Hills on the West Bank of the River Nile opposite the modern city of Luxor, Egypt. Although other structures are located within the area and important disco ...

.Dobson, p. 240. She was succeeded as Divine Adoratrice by Amenirdis II, who was succeeded by Nitocris I.

Images

File:Bas-relief at the mortuary temple of Ramesses III 1.jpg, Shepenupet II at Medinet Habu File:Bas-relief at the mortuary temple of Ramesses III 2.jpg, Shepenupet II and Amenirdis II at Medinet Habu File:Ch Chep II Med Habou 082005.jpg, Chapel of Shepenupet at Medinet Habu File:Genies of Nile flood E27208 mg 8657.jpg, Shepenupet's cartouche File:Egypte louvre 068 coffret.jpg, Box with name of Shepenupet File:Karnak Chepenoupet II Amenirdis II.jpg, Shepenupet and Amenirdis II

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Shepenupet 02 God's Wives of Amun Princesses of the Twenty-fifth Dynasty of Egypt 8th-century BC Egyptian people 7th-century BC Egyptian people 8th-century BC Egyptian women 7th-century BC Egyptian women 8th-century BC clergy 7th-century BC clergy