#amenmesse

Dynasty 19, reign of Amenmesse (ca. 1203-1200 B.C.) From Thebes, Temple of Karnak Quartzite. The statue to which this head belongs now stands in the great Hypostyle Hall at Karnak. The inscriptions on the lower part show that it was carved from Amenmesse and usurped, after his short reign, by Seti II (ca. 1200-1194 B.C.). The features are reminiscent of the your Remesses II, demonstrating the tendency of rayal art in this period to emulate the style of the greatest king of the dynasty.

Head of Amenmesse 1203?-1200 b.c.e.

Head of Amenmesse, New Kingdom, Dynasty 19, reign of Amenmesse, ca. 1203?-1200 b.c.e. Egyptian Quartzite

H. 17 1/2 in. (44.5 cm) Rogers Fund, 1934 (34.2.2)

Amenmesse succeeded Merneptah as pharaoh but few monuments can be attributed to him. He may have been a grandson of Ramesses II but seems to have usurped the throne from the legitimate successor Seti II. For many years, this fine head of a king wearing the blue crown was thought to be a portrait of Ramesses II. In the late 1970s, however, it was matched to the body of a statue of Amenmesse that still stands in the hypostyle hall of the temple of Karnak at Thebes. Most of his statues, including this one, were reinscribed after his short reign by Seti II.