Shoshenq II

Heqakheperre Shoshenq II was an Egyptian king of the 22^nd dynasty. He was the only ruler of this Dynasty whose tomb was not plundered by tomb robbers. His final resting place was discovered intact in Psusennes I's tomb at Tanis by Pierre Montet in March 1939 and was found to contain a large number of jewel-encrusted bracelets and pectorals, along with a beautiful hawk headed silver coffin and a gold facemask. Montet later discovered the intact tombs of two Dynasty 21 kings - Pseusennes I and Amenemopet-in February and April 1940 respectively. This find occured just prior to the suspension of all excavation work at Tanis due to World War Two.

There is a small possibility that Shoshenq II was the son of Shoshenq I. Several bracelets from Shoshenq II's tomb identify Shoshenq I as either King Hedjkheperre Setepenre Shoshenq I or Chief of the Ma which was the Shoshenq I's title before he became king. These items may be evidence of a possible filial link between the two men. Also, a forensic examination of his body by Douglas Derry reveals him to be a man in his 50's when he died. Hence, Shoshenq II was certainly born prior to Osorkon I's 35 year reign under Shoshenq I. It has been commonly argued by Kenneth Kitchen, in his books on the Third Intermediate Period in Egypt, that Heqakheperre Shoshenq II was the High Priest of Amun Shoshenq C, son of Osorkon I and Queen Maatkare, who was appointed as a junior coregent to the throne but predeceased his father. This theory is based upon the discovery of bandages on the Ramesseum Mummy of Nakhtefmut, which contain the dates 'Year 3 [Blank]' and 'Year 33 of Osorkon' respectively. Kitchen's inference here is that Year 33 of Osorkon I is equivalent to Year 3 of Shoshenq II.

Unfortunately, however, these two dates were not written on a single piece of bandage, which would denote a true coregency. Rather, the dates were written on two completely separate and unconnected mummy bandages which were likely woven over a period of several years, rather than all at once. A prime example is the Mummy of Khonsmaakheru in Hamburg which contains separate bandages dating to Years 11, 12 and 23 of Osorkon I--or a minimum interval of 12 years between their creation and final use. A second example is the Mummy of Djedptahiufankh, the Third or Fourth Prophet of Amun, which bears various bandages from Year 5, 10 and 11 of Shoshenq I or a spread of 6 Years in their creation for embalming purposes. Therefore, the case for a coregency between Osorkon I and Shoshenq II is quite illusory because there is no clear proof that the Year 3 and Year 33 bandages on Naktefmut's body were made at the same time. Instead, as the two examples show, the Temple Priests simply reused whatever old or recycled linens which they could gain access to for their embalming rituals. The Year 3 linen would, by inference, belong to the reign of one of Osorkon's successors. Secondly, none of the High Priest Shoshenq C's own three children - a priest Osorkon whose funerary papyri is located in St Petersburg Museum, the priest Harsiese known by a Bes-statue in Durham Museum (who was likely Harsiese A), or the God's Wife Karomama-Merytmut - ever gave their father a royal title on their own funerary objects. This suggests that Heqakheperre Shoshenq II is not Shoshenq C. Finally, Shoshenq II did not preserve a single momento or object from Osorkon I's reign within his own tomb, which would be inexplicable if he was indeed a son of this king. Other Dynasty 21 and 22 kings such as Takelot I and Amenemopet, for instance, employed grave goods that mentioned their parent's names within their own tombs.

Since this king's funerary objects such as his coffin, jewel pectorals and cartonnage give him a unique royal name or prenomen called Heqakheperre, he was most likely a genuine king of the 22^nd dynasty in his own right, and not just a coregent. The exclusive use of silver for the creation of Sheshonq II's coffin is a potent symbol of his power since in Egypt, silver was more precious than gold because it had to be imported from Asia. The German Egyptologist Von Beckerath, in his 1997 book, Chronology of the Egyptian Pharaohs, gives Shoshenq II a brief independent reign of 2 Years based upon these considerations as well as the abscence of dated monuments from his reign. Such an ascription accords well with the evidence from Manetho's Epitome which states that 3 kings intervened between Osorkon I and Takelot I. This is presumably an allusion to Shoshenq II's reign and his status as Osorkon I's immediate successor, rather than Takelot I. The recently discovered early Dynasty 22 ruler--Tutkheperre Shoshenq--could also be another of these kings. Beckerath's figure of 2 Years is an estimate of Shoshenq II's true reign length because dated documents from the early Third Intermediate Period in Egypt are quite sporadic. Takelot I, for instance, ruled Egypt for 13 Full Years but is only first documented in a Year 5 Nile Quay Text.

Derry's medical examination of Shoshenq II's Mummy reveals that the king died as a result of a massive septic infection from a head wound. The final burial place of Shoshenq II is certainly a reburial because he was found interred in the tomb of another king, Psusennes I of the 21st Dynasty. Scientists have found evidence of plant growth on the base of Sheshonq II's coffin which suggests that Shoshenq II's original tomb had become waterlogged; hence, the need to rebury him and his funerary equipment in Psusennes's tomb instead.

Further Reading