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AmenmesseAmenmesses was the 5th ruler of the 19th Dynasty in Ancient Egypt, possibly the son of Merneptah and queen Takhat. Others call him the son of Ramesses II and others call him no pharaoh but only a vizier. Very little is known about this king, who apparently ruled for three or four years. Various Egyptologists date his reign between 1202 - 1199 BC or 1203 - 1200 BC with others giving a start date of 1226, 1214 or 1200. It is possible he was not the true heir to the throne. Most scholars believe that he succeeded Merneptah as pharaoh, but that Merneptah's son, Seti-Merneptah should have been next in line. It is not clear why this happened. Amenmesses may have taken advantage of the weakness of Seti-Merneptah or seized power while the crown prince was away. It is also possible that Seti-Merneptah was the same as Seti II, whose reign probably followed Amenmesse's. Confusion generally reigns regarding Amenmesse. Some scholars place him after Seti II, despite Seti II's name being written over his name in some Theban stele. Some maintain he usurped Seti II in mid-reign, and others hold he ruled only the southern parts of Egypt for five years during Seti's reign as a vizier over Nubia named Messui. Amenmesse means "born of Amun". It is probable that one of his names was Heqa-waset, which means "Fashioned by Amun, Ruler of Thebes". His throne name was Men-mi-re Setep-en-re, meaning "Eternal like Re, Chosen by Re. He possibly married a woman named Baktwerel. However, some Egyptologists have suggested that Takhat and Baktwerel were actually the mother and wife of Ramesses IX, and that the women may have latter occupied Amenmesse's tomb and added their own scenes and inscriptions. Others beleive that Ti'a, the mother of Siptah was Amenmesse's wife. Six quartzite statues originally placed along the axis of the hypostyle hall in the Amun Temple at Karnak are thought to be his, although these were defaced and overwritten with the name of Seti II. One of these statues with the inscription , "the Great Royal Wife Takhat", lends support to the argument that she was Amenmesse's wife. Amenmesse was also responsible for restoring a shrine dating from Tuthmose III that stands before a temple at Tod. He was buried in a rock-cut tomb in the Valley of the Kings which is now identified as KV10. It was opened in antiquity and artifacts from other tombs deposited. Three mummies were found in the tomb, 2 women and one man. They are perhaps those of Amenmesse, Thaket and Baketwere. Fragments of a sarcophagus lid and canopic jars bearing Thaket's name along with the wall inscriptions suggest she was buried in the tomb. Artifacts from the tombs of Seti I and Rameses VI were also found in the KV10 adding to the uncertainty.
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