Nakhtmin (also Minnakht) held the position of

generalissimo ''Generalissimo'' ( ), also generalissimus, is a military rank of the highest degree, superior to field marshal and other five-star ranks in the states where they are used. Usage The word (), an Italian term, is the absolute superlative ...

during the reign of

pharaoh Pharaoh (, ; Egyptian language, Egyptian: ''wikt:pr ꜥꜣ, pr ꜥꜣ''; Meroitic language, Meroitic: 𐦲𐦤𐦧, ; Biblical Hebrew: ''Parʿō'') was the title of the monarch of ancient Egypt from the First Dynasty of Egypt, First Dynasty ( ...

Tutankhamun Tutankhamun or Tutankhamen, (; ), was an Egyptian pharaoh who ruled during the late Eighteenth Dynasty of Egypt, Eighteenth Dynasty of ancient Egypt. Born Tutankhaten, he instituted the restoration of the traditional polytheistic form of an ...

of the

Eighteenth Dynasty The Eighteenth Dynasty of Egypt (notated Dynasty XVIII, alternatively 18th Dynasty or Dynasty 18) is classified as the first dynasty of the New Kingdom of Egypt, the era in which ancient Egypt achieved the peak of its power. The Eighteenth Dynasty ...

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 ...

. His titles during the reign of Tutankhamun included "the true servant who is beneficial to his lord, the king's

scribe A scribe is a person who serves as a professional copyist, especially one who made copies of manuscripts before the invention of Printing press, automatic printing. The work of scribes can involve copying manuscripts and other texts as well as ...

," "the servant beloved of his lord," "the

Fan-bearer on the Right Side of the King The Fan-bearer on the Right Side of the King – sometimes also translated as ''Fanbearer on the King's Right Hand'' – was an office or title given to ancient Egyptian courtiers. The title implies a very close personal or official rel ...

," and "the servant who causes to live the name of his lord."James Roger Black "The Instruction of Amenemope: A critical edition and commentary, prolegomenon and prologue" University of Wisconsin–Madison 2006 These titles were found on five ushabtis that Nakhtmin offered as funerary presents for pharaoh Tutankhamun. He was the heir to the throne during the reign of the pharaoh Ay though he never became a pharaoh. It is assumed by scholars that he died towards the end of the reign of Ay (when he seemingly vanished from all records) and

Horemheb Horemheb, also spelled Horemhab, Haremheb or Haremhab (, meaning "Horus is in Jubilation"), was the last pharaoh of the Eighteenth Dynasty of Egypt, 18th Dynasty of Egypt (1550–1292 BC). He ruled for at least 14 years between 1319 ...

, the designated heir of Tutankhamun, became pharaoh instead.Wolfgang Helck "Urkunden der 18. Dynastie: Texte der Hefte" Berlin: Akademie-Verlag 1984

Crown Prince

The identity of Nakhtmin's father is not known with certainty. Some scholars suggest that he may have been the son of pharaoh Ay, his mother being known from a statue to be the 'Adoratrix of Min, Songstress of

Isis Isis was a major goddess in ancient Egyptian religion whose worship spread throughout the Greco-Roman world. Isis was first mentioned in the Old Kingdom () as one of the main characters of the Osiris myth, in which she resurrects her sla ...

' Iuy. Nakhtmin appears to have been the chosen successor to Ay, but died before he could succeed. On a beautiful statue of Nakhtmin and his wife in the

Egyptian Museum The Museum of Egyptian Antiquities, commonly known as the Egyptian Museum (, Egyptian Arabic: ) (also called the Cairo Museum), located in Cairo, Egypt, houses the largest collection of Ancient Egypt, Egyptian antiquities in the world. It hou ...

Cairo Cairo ( ; , ) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Egypt and the Cairo Governorate, being home to more than 10 million people. It is also part of the List of urban agglomerations in Africa, largest urban agglomeration in Africa, L ...

, Nakhtmin was identified as the "Crown Prince" ( jrj-pꜥt) and "King's Son". ( zꜣ-nswt) This title could be completed as "King's Son of his own body," which would make him the son of Ay, or it could be completed as the "King's Son of Kush". There is no record of a

Viceroy of Kush The Kingdom of Kerma in Nubia was a province of ancient Egypt from the 16th century BCE to 11th century BCE. During this period, the region was ruled by a viceroy who reported directly to the Egyptian Pharaoh. Initially the position was titled " ...

by the name of Nakhtmin, and it seems that the nobleman Paser I was Viceroy during that time period. This has led to the identification of Nakhtmin as Ay's son, or adopted son. Minnakht 0

The statue with the inscription has suffered extensive damage. Only two pieces remain, the head and shoulders of Nakhtmin and the upper part of the body and head of his wife. Both statues look as though the eyes, nose and mouth have been deliberately damaged. This has been interpreted as some form of persecution even after death. His

stelae A stele ( ) or stela ( )The plural in English is sometimes stelai ( ) based on direct transliteration of the Greek, sometimes stelae or stelæ ( ) based on the inflection of Greek nouns in Latin, and sometimes anglicized to steles ( ) or stela ...

—which had been set up at his (and Ay's) native city of

Akhmim Akhmim (, ; Akhmimic , ; Sahidic/Bohairic ) is a city in the Sohag Governorate of Upper Egypt. Referred to by the ancient Greeks as Khemmis or Chemmis () and Panopolis (), it is located on the east bank of the Nile, to the northeast of Sohag. ...

—were defaced. It is assumed that his tomb, which was never discovered, has been given the same treatment as that of Ay. Another man called Nakhtmin was married to Mutemnub, the sister of Ay's wife Tey. They had a son named Ay, who was High Priest of

Mut Mut (; also transliterated as Maut and Mout) was a mother goddess worshipped in ancient Egypt. Her name means ''mother'' in the ancient Egyptian language. Mut had many different aspects and attributes that changed and evolved greatly over th ...

and Second Prophet of Amun. pp.144–145,154,156

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Nakhtmin Ancient Egyptian scribes Officials of the Eighteenth Dynasty of Egypt Ancient Egyptian heirs apparent who never acceded Ancient Egyptian overseers of the troops