page_title: Ptolemy IV Philopator
section_title: Pharaonic ideology and Egyptian religion
hierarchical_section_title: Ptolemy IV Philopator / Regime / Pharaonic ideology and Egyptian religion
caption_attribution_description: Deutsch: Relief Positionskarte von Ägypten English: Physical location map of Egypt. Showing new governorate boundaries since 14 April 2011, after the dissolution of the 6th of October and Helwan Governorates. Also showing the Libyan Desert and its northern Qattara Depression, and the northern Eastern Desert. Français&#160;: Carte physique vierge destinée à la géolocalisation de l'Égypte telle que depuis le 14 avril 2011 suite à la dissolution des gouvernorats du 6 Octobre et de Helwan. Topographic scale: 1:4,932,000 (precision: 1,233 m) Equirectangular projection, WGS84 datum Standard meridian: 030° 45' E Central parallel: 26° 42' N Geographic limits of the map: Top: 32° 06' N Bottom: 21° 18' N Left: 024° 12' E Right: 037° 18' E
context_page_description: Ptolemy IV Philopator, son of Ptolemy III and Berenice II, was the fourth Pharaoh of Ptolemaic Egypt from 221 to 204 BC.
  Ptolemy's succession to the throne was accompanied by a wide-ranging purge of the Ptolemaic royal family, which left control of the realm's government largely in the hands of his courtiers Sosibius and Agathocles. His reign was marked by the Fourth Syrian War with the Seleucid empire, which culminated in a decisive Ptolemaic victory at the Battle of Raphia, one of the largest battles of the whole Hellenistic Age. In the final years of his rule, control over the southern portion of the country was lost to the rebel Pharaoh Hugronaphor. Ptolemy IV died in mysterious circumstances in 204 BC and was succeeded by his young son Ptolemy V Epiphanes under the regency of Sosibius and Agathocles.
  In ancient sources, Ptolemy was criticised for being more interested in luxury and court ceremony than government, politics, and foreign relations. The decline of the Ptolemaic dynasty is usually traced to his reign.
context_section_description: Like his predecessors, Ptolemy IV presented himself as a typical Egyptian Pharaoh and actively supported the Egyptian priestly elite through donations and temple construction. Ptolemy III had introduced an important innovation in 238 BC by holding a synod of all the priests of Egypt at Canopus. Ptolemy IV continued this tradition by holding his own synod at Memphis in 217 BC, after the victory celebrations of the Fourth Syrian War. The result of this synod was the Raphia Decree, issued on 15 November 217 BC and preserved in three copies. Like other Ptolemaic decrees, the decree was inscribed in hieroglyphs, Demotic, and Koine Greek. The decree records the military success of Ptolemy IV and Arsinoe III and their benefactions to the Egyptian priestly elite. Throughout, Ptolemy IV is presented as taking on the role of Horus who avenges his father by defeating the forces of disorder led by the god Set. In return, the priests undertook to erect a statue group in each of their temples, depicting the god of the temple presenting a sword of victory to Ptolemy IV and Arsinoe III. A five-day festival was inaugurated in honour of the Theoi Philopatores and their victory. The decree thus seems to represent a successful marriage of Egyptian Pharaonic ideology and religion with the Hellenistic Greek ideology of the victorious king and his ruler cult.
  Ptolemy IV also maintained a close and friendly relationship with the priestly elite by supporting and funding construction work at sanctuaries throughout Egypt, mostly continuing projects begun earlier in the dynasty. The most notable example of this is the Temple of Horus at Edfu, where construction had begun in 237 BC under Ptolemy III, but carried on through most of Ptolemy IV's reign until Hugronaphor's revolt forced the end of works in 207/06 BC. By that time most of the structure had been built and most of the interior decoration had been carved. These inscriptions present Ptolemy IV as an ideal Pharaoh, emphasising his military victories in Syria and his pious attitude towards the gods. Annual coronation rituals took place in the sanctuary, in which the god Horus symbolically received kingship from Ra and Osiris and the reigning Pharaoh received his kingship from Ra and Horus. Ptolemy never participated in this ritual personally; his role was played by a priest. Support for the sanctuary thus represented the Ptolemaic commitment to a traditional Egyptian theology of kingship.
  Other construction work carried out under Ptolemy IV's auspices included (from north to south):
  A shrine of Harpocrates in the Serapeum at Alexandria;
  Reconstruction of the Naos of the Temple of Mut, Khonsu, and Astarte at Tanis;
  The east gate of the Temple of Ptah at Memphis;
  A new temple for Hathor at Cusae;
  A new temple of Nemty at Tjebu;
  Extensions to the Temple of Min and Isis at Koptos;
  Decorative work on the great gateway of the Precinct of Montu and a chapel of Khonsu-Neferhotep at Karnak, Thebes;
  Shrine for Hathor and Maat at Deir el-Medina, west of Thebes;
  Decorative work on the temple of the Theban triad at the Kharga Oasis;
  Completion of the Temple of Montu at Medamud;
  Decorative work and a sanctuary of Arensnuphis at Philae;
  Completion of the temple of Isis on Sehel Island, Aswan;
  Reconstruction of the temple of Thoth at Dakka.
caption: Sites of construction work under Ptolemy IV
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