- Aktisanes
Aktisanes is a
Nubia n king who is mentioned by the Greek historianHecataeus of Abdera . He is perhaps identical with Menmaatre-Setepenamun Gatisen known from Nubian sources.His longest text is a now lost building inscription copied by the
Lepsius expedition inNuri , but only published in 1977. The text was only partly preserved. It once adorned most likey a door at a temple inNapata . The names of the king are not preserved, most importantly the nomen Gatisen is missing. [K.-H. Priese: "Eine verschollene Bauinschrift des frühmeroitischen Königs Aktisanes(?)", In: E. Endesfelde (edit.): "Ägypten und Kusch", Berlin 1977, p. 343-67] The other inscription is to be found on two adjoining blocks, showing the king in front of Amun-Re-Horachte-Atum. The blocks were found at theJebel Barkal . Here the throne name and the nomen of the king are preserved, but the nomen Gatisen is only hard to read. The same holds true for a door jamb from the same place providing the full titulary of the king, but with the nomen only partly preserved. [Khartoum 5225]The name Gatisen has been identified with Aktisanes, known from the Greek historian Hecataeus of Abdera. This identification is not sure, especially because the reading of the name as Gatisen is not certain. Anyway, Hecataeus of Abdera describes Aktisanes as enemy of the Egyptian king
Amasis . This seems impossible as the earlier Nubian kings are well-known. Therefore and for other reasons it is in general assumed that fourth century writer Hecataeus of Abdera chose the name of a contemporary Nubian king as he composed his more fictional story.Gatisen had a Ramesside-style titulary. His throne name was Menmaatre-Setepenamun, his Horus name Kanakht-nerymaat. This is a second reason why he is place by some scholars around 300 BC. Also the rulers of Egypt, for example
Ptolemy I modeled their names on Ramesside prototyes. It had been assumed that in the fourth century BC, there was a Ramesside revival in Nubia.Other researchers point out, that the reading of the name Gatisen is uncertain. They place the king before 700 BC and assume that there was no Ramesside revival. [Robert G. Morkot: "The Black Pharaohs, Egypt's Nubian Rulers", London 2000, S. 146-147, ISBN 0948695242]
References
Literature
* Laszlo Török, in: "Fontes Historiae Nubiorum, Vol. II", Bergen 1996, 511-520, ISBN 8291626014
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.
