| Shebitku the Good | |
|---|---|
| |
| Pharaoh of Egypt | |
| Reign | 15 August 714 - 28 May 705 |
| Predecessor | Piye I |
| Successor | Shabaka I |
| Born | December 8, 733 Napata, Kush |
| Died | May 28, 705 (aged 27) |
| Spouse | Arty |
| Issue | Tantamani, Haremakhet, Piankharty, Isetemkheb |
| Full name | |
| Horus Name: Djedkhaw Nebty Name: Aashefitemtawnebu Golden Horus Name: Aakhepesh-hupedjetpesdjet Praenomen: Djedkara Nomen: Shebitku | |
| House | Napata |
| Dynasty | Nubia |
| Father | Piye |
| Mother | Tabiry |
| Religion | Kemetism |
Shebitku (Ancient Egyptian: šꜣ-bꜣ-tꜣ-kꜣ, Neo-Assyrian Akkadian: 𒃻𒉺𒋫𒆪𒀪, romanized: Šapatakuʾ, Ancient Greek: Σεθῶν Sethōn) also known as Shabataka or Shebitqo, and anglicized as Sethos, was the second pharaoh of the Twenty-fifth Dynasty of Egypt who ruled from 15 August 714 - 28 May 705 BC. He was a son of Piye, the founder of this dynasty. Shebitku's prenomen or throne name, Djedkara, means "Enduring is the Soul of Ra." Shebitku's queen was Arty, who was a daughter of king Piye, according to a fragment of statue JE 49157 of the High Priest of Amun Haremakhet, son of Shabaka, found in the temple of the Goddess Mut in Ipetisut.
Reign[]
Foreign policy and the conquest of Egypt[]
The beginning of Shabataka's reign concerning his sovereignty over Egypt was apparently not easy. Indeed, on the one hand, the son of Tefnakht I (the ambitious chief of Sais whom Piye - Shabataka's father - had fought), Bakenranef, proclaimed himself king around 716 BCE, that is to say at the end of Piye's reign, and on the other hand, it is also possible that Ini V proclaimed himself king in Thebes also at the end of Piye's reign.
The reconquest of Lower Egypt and the end of the 24th dynasty date from his reign, which would have taken place around 712 BCE. Indeed, Assyrian sources speak of Piru ("Pharaoh") before this date and speak of king of Melukhkha ("Nubia") after this date. After his passage in Thebes, he took the road to Memphis, where he confronted Bakenranef whom he defeated. He then subdued all the chiefs of the Delta and installed a Kushite at the head of the region, possibly the Ammeris of the Manethonan sources. The chief Patjenfy of Pharbaethos is for example represented with Shebitku on a stele of donation to the local god Horus.
After the reconquest of Egypt, Shebitku faced Assyria and showed caution. Thus, after a revolt in Ashdod, perhaps discreetly supported by the Kushite power, and the installation at the head of the city of a certain Inamani, the Assyrians reconquered the city and Inamani took refuge in Egypt. Shebitku extradited the latter to Assyria while sending an expeditionary force commanded by his brother Taharqa.
Architectural achievements[]
In addition to his tomb, Shebitku is best known for his interventions in Thebes and Memphis. In fact, in Thebes, he was at the origin of an architectural program in the continuity of the achievements of the kings of the Theban branch of the XXII dynasty : a second (after that of Osorkon V) chapel of offerings to Amun to the south of the sacred lake of Ipetisut and the enlargement of the chapel of Osiris Heqadjet by the addition of a room to the two others built by Osorkon V, Takelot IV and Shepenoupet I. 23 In Memphis, his name was found on blocks to the south of the temple of Ptah as well as on statue today headless. His name was also found in the room of an Apis bull. Since a bull was buried at the very end of Bakenranef 's reign, the inscription would therefore date from the burial of the same bull: the conquest of Memphis would therefore have taken place at the same time as the burial of this bull., Shebitku is known in Nubia only from small objects (scarabs, amulets) found at Kawa, Sanam and Meroe.
Identification with Herodotus' Sethos[]
The Greek historian Herodotus in his Histories (book II, chapter 141) writes of a High Priest of Ptah named Sethos (Greek: Σεθῶν Sethon) who became pharaoh and defeated the Assyrians with divine intervention. This name is probably a corruption of Shebitku. Herodotus' account was the inspiration for the 18th-century fantasy novel Life of Sethos, which has been influential among Afrocentrists.
Burial[]
Shebitku is buried, like the previous pharaohs of this dynasty, at Men-Qore, a site close to Napata : his pyramid is referenced "Ku 18" on the plan of the royal necropolis. His tomb is very close in its design to that of Piye. His tomb was accompanied by a burial of horses, referenced "Ku 209", like the tomb of Piye.