Amenhotep I Amenhotep I ( Amenhotep , sometimes read as Amenophis I and meaning " Amun is satisfied " ) ( Egyptian jmn - ḥtp yamānuḥātap ) was the second Pharaoh of the 18th dynasty of Egypt . His reign is generally dated from 1526 to 1506 BC . He was born to Ahmose I and Ahmose - Nefertari , but had at least two elder brothers , Ahmose - ankh and Ahmose Sapair , and was not expected to inherit the throne . However , sometime in the eight years between Ahmose I ' s 17th regnal year and his death , his heir apparent died and Amenhotep became crown prince . He then acceded to the throne and ruled for about 21 years . Although his reign is poorly documented , it is possible to piece together a basic history from available evidence . He inherited the kingdom formed by his father ' s military conquests and maintained dominance over Nubia and the Nile Delta but probably did not attempt to keep power in Syrio - Palestine . He continued to rebuild temples in Upper Egypt and revolutionized mortuary complex design by separating his from his mortuary temple , setting a trend which would persist throughout the New Kingdom . After his death , he was deified into the patron god of Deir el - Medina . Family . Amenhotep I was the son of Ahmose I and Ahmose - Nefertari . His elder brothers , the crown prince Ahmose Sapair and Ahmose - ankh , died before him , thus clearing the way for his ascension to the throne . Amenhotep probably came to power while he was still young himself , and his mother , Ahmose - Nefertari , appears to have been regent for him for at least a short time . This is evidenced because both he and his mother are credited with opening a worker village at the site of Deir el - Medina . Amenhotep took his sister Ahmose - Meritamon as his Great Royal Wife . Another wife ' s name , Sitkamose , is attested on a nineteenth dynasty stele . Beyond this , his relation to all other possible family members has been questioned . Ahhotep II is usually called his wife and sister , despite an alternate theory that she was his grandmother . He is thought to have had one son by Ahhotep II , Amenemhat , who died while still very young . This remains the consensus , although there are arguments against that relationship as well . With no living heirs , Amenhotep was succeeded by Thutmose I , whom he married to his sister , Aahmes , although once again there is no definite proof that the two were related . Since Aahmes is never called " King ' s Daughter " in any inscription , some scholars doubt this relation as well . Dates and length of reign . In the ninth year of Amenhotep I , a heliacal rise of Sothis was observed on the ninth day of the third month of summer . Modern astronomers have calculated that , if the observation was made from Memphis or Heliopolis , such an observation could only have been made on that day in 1537 BC . If the observation was made in Thebes , however , it could only have taken place in 1517 . The latter choice is usually accepted as correct since Thebes was the capital of early 18th dynasty Egypt ; hence , Amenhotep I is given an accession date in 1526 BC , although the possibility of 1546 BC is not entirely dismissed . Manetho ' s Epitome states that Amenhotep I ruled Egypt for twenty years and seven months or twenty - one years , depending on the source . While Amenhotep I ' s highest attested official date is only his Year 10 , Manetho ' s data is confirmed by information from a passage in the tomb autobiography of a magician named Amenemhet . This individual explicitly states that he served under Amenhotep I for 21 Years . Thus , in the high chronology , Amenhotep I is given a reign from around 1546 to 1526 BC and , in the low chronology , from around 1526 to 1506 BC or 1525 to 1504 BC , though individual scholars may vary by a few years . Foreign policy . Amenhotep I ' s Horus and Two Ladies names , " Bull who conquers the lands " and " He who inspires great terror , " are generally interpreted to mean that Amenhotep I intended upon dominating the surrounding nations . Two tomb texts indicate that he led campaigns into Nubia . According to the tomb texts of Ahmose , son of Ebana , Amenhotep later sought to expand Egypt ' s border southward into Nubia and he led an invasion force which defeated the Nubian army . The tomb biography of Ahmose Pen - Nekhebet says he also fought in a campaign in Kush , however it is quite possible that it refers to the same campaign as Ahmose , son of Ebana . Amenhotep built a temple at Saï , showing that he had established Egyptian settlements almost as far as the third cataract . A single reference in the tomb of Ahmose Pen - Nekhebet indicates another campaign in Iamu in the land of Kehek . Unfortunately , the location of Kehek is unknown . It was long believed that Kehek was a reference to the Libyan tribe , Qeheq , and thus it was postulated that invaders from Libya took advantage of the death of Ahmose to move into the western Nile Delta . Unfortunately for this theory , the Qeheq people only appeared in later times , and Kehek ' s identity remains unknown . Nubia is a possibility , since Amenhotep did campaign there , and the western desert and the oases have also been suggested , since these seem to have fallen under Egyptian control once again . Egypt had lost the western desert and the oases during the second intermediate period , and during the revolt against the Hyksos , Kamose thought it necessary to garrison them . It is uncertain when they were fully retaken , but on one stele , the title " Prince - Governor of the oases " was used , which means that Amenhotep ' s reign forms the " terminus ante quem " for the return of Egyptian rule . There are no recorded campaigns in Syro - Palestine during Amenhotep I ' s reign . However , according to the Tombos Stela of his successor , Thutmose I , when Thutmose led a campaign into Asia all the way to the Euphrates , he found no one who fought against him . If Thutmose did not lead a campaign which has not been recorded into Asia before this recorded one , it would mean that the preceding pharaoh would have had to pacify Syria instead , which would indicate a possible Asiatic campaign of Amenhotep I . Two references to the Levant potentially written during his reign might be contemporary witnesses to such a campaign . One of the candidates for Amenhotep ' s tomb contains a reference to Qedmi , which is somewhere in Canaan or the Transjordan , and Amenemhet ' s tomb contains a hostile reference to Mitanni . However , neither of these references necessarily refer to campaigning , nor do they even necessarily date to Amenhotep ' s reign . The location of Amenhotep ' s tomb is not certain , and Amenemhet lived to serve under multiple kings who are known to have attacked Mitanni . Records from Amenhotep ' s reign are simply altogether too scant and too vague to reach a conclusion about any Syrian campaign . Cultural and intellectual developments . Large numbers of statues of Amenhotep have been found , but they are mostly from the Ramessid period , made for his posthumous funerary cult . This makes study of the art of his reign difficult . Based upon his few authentic statues , it appears that Amenhotep continued the practice of copying Middle Kingdom styles . Art in the early 18th dynasty was particularly similar to that of the early Middle Kingdom , and the statues produced by Amenhotep I clearly copied those of Mentuhotep II and Senusret I . The two types are so similar that modern Egyptologists have had trouble telling the two apart . It was probably Amenhotep I who opened the artisan ' s village at Deir el - Medina which was responsible for all the art which filled the tombs in Thebes ' necropolis for the following generations of New Kingdom rulers and nobles . The earliest name found there is that of Thutmose I , however Amenhotep was clearly an important figure to the city ' s workmen since he and his mother were both its patron deities . Two important pieces of literature were developed during this period . First , the Book of What is in the Underworld , an important funerary text used in the New Kingdom , is believed to have come into its final form during Amenhotep ' s reign , since it first appears in the tomb of Thutmose I . The Ebers papyrus , which is the main source for information on ancient Egyptian medicine , seems to date to this time ( the mention of the Heliacal rise of Sothis by which the early New Kingdom chronology is usually calculated was found on the back of this document ) . It appears that during Amenhotep I ' s reign the first water clock was invented . Amenhotep ' s court astronomer Amenemheb took credit for creating this device in his tomb biography , although the oldest surviving mechanism dates to the reign of Amenhotep III . This invention was of great benefit for timekeeping , because the Egyptian hour was not a fixed amount of time , but was measured as 1 / 12 of the night . When the nights were shorter in the summer , these waterclocks could be adjusted to measure the shorter hours accurately . Building projects . Amenhotep ' s building projects have been mostly obliterated by later construction projects , so it is difficult to appraise the scope of his building program . From written sources it is known that he commissioned the architect Ineni to expand the Temple of Karnak . Ineni ' s tomb biography indicates that he created a 20 cubit gate of limestone on the south side of Karnak . He constructed a sacred barque chapel of Amun out of alabaster and a copy of the White Chapel of Senusret III , however they were disassembled by Amenhotep III to fill his third pylon . Karnak also contains structures which were apparently built for his Sed festival , but he died before he could use them . A temple was constructed in Nubia at Saï , and he built structures in Upper Egypt at Elephantine , Kom Ombo , Abydos , and the Temple of Nekhbet , but did not build anything in Lower Egypt , like his father . Mortuary complex . Amenhotep I was the first king of Egypt to separate his mortuary temple from his tomb , probably to keep tomb robbers from finding his tomb as easily . The remains of this temple are most probably to be found at the north end of Deir el - Bahri . Deir el - Bahri appears to have had some sort of funerary significance for Amenhotep , since Theban Tomb 358 , the tomb of his queen Ahmose - Meritamon , was also found nearby . However , Amenhotep ' s temple was located where Hatshepsut intended to build her mortuary temple . Hatshepsut ' s first plan may have spared the temple , however when she added the lower terrace it was torn down , and only a few bricks inscribed with Amenhotep ' s name remain . The royal statues inside of the temple were then moved into the nearby funerary temple of Mentuhotep II . The location of Amenhotep ' s tomb has not been identified yet . The tomb was known to be intact during the reign of Ramses IX , but its location was not disclosed . There are two possible sites for the location of Amenhotep I ' s undiscovered tomb , one high up in the Valley of the Kings , KV39 and the other at Dra ' Abu el - Naga ' , Tomb ANB . Tomb ANB is considered the more likely possibility , because it contains objects bearing his name and the names of some family members . Excavations at KV 39 have indicated that instead it was used as a previous storage area for the Deir el - Bahri Cache and Dra ' Abu el - Naga ' ANB is considered the more probable location . Burial , succession , and legacy . Certain scholars have argued that Amenhotep I may have appointed Thutmose I as coregent before his own death . Thutmose I ' s name appears next to Amenhotep ' s name on a barque which was used as fill for the third pylon at Karnak , and this is often used as evidence that Amenhotep had appointed Thutmose as coregent . This , however , has failed to convince most scholars who note that it may be a simple case of Thutmose associating himself with his royal predecessor . Alternatively , one text has been interpreted to mean that Amenhotep may have appointed his infant son as coregent , who then preceded him in death . However , the scholarly consensus is that there is too little evidence for either coregency . After Amenhotep died , wherever his tomb was located , his body did not remain there . Amenhotep I ' s body was found in the Deir el - Bahri Cache above the Mortuary Temple of Hatshepsut and is now in the Egyptian Museum in Cairo . His mummy had apparently not been looted by the 21st dynasty , and the priests who moved the mummy took care to keep the Cartonnage intact . Because of that exquisite face mask , Amenhotep ' s is the only royal mummy which has not been unwrapped and examined by modern Egyptologists . Funerary cult . Amenhotep was deified upon his death and made the patron deity of the village which he opened at Deir el - Medina . His mother , who lived at least one year longer than he did , was also deified upon her death and became part of his litany . As previously mentioned , the vast majority of Amenhotep ' s statuary comes in the form of a funerary idol from this cult during later periods . When being worshiped , he had three deific manifestations : " Amenhotep of the Town , " " Amenhotep Beloved of Amun , " and " Amenhotep of the Forecourt , " and was known as a god who produced oracles . Some of the questions asked of him have been preserved on ostraca from Deir el - Medina , and appear to have been phrased in such a way that the idol of the king could nod ( or be caused to nod ) the answer . He also had a number of feasts dedicated to him which were held throughout the year . During the first month , a festival was celebrated in honor of the appearance of Amenhotep to the necropolis workmen , which probably means his idol was taken to Deir el - Medina . Another feast was held on the thirtieth of the fourth month , and then two more were held in the seventh month . The first was the " spreading of the funeral couch for king Amenhotep , " which probably commemorated the day of his death . The second , celebrated for four days at the very end of the month , was the " great festival of king Amenhotep lord of the town . " Later in Egyptian history , the seventh month was named after this festival , " Phamenoth . " Another festival was held on the 27th of the ninth month , and the last known festival was held for several days between at least the eleventh and thirteenth days of the eleventh month , which in all probability commemorated the date of Amenhotep ' s accession to the throne . Further light is shed upon Amenhotep ' s funerary cult by multiple documents which appear to detail the rituals dedicated to Amenhotep . Three papyri from the time of Ramesses II record the liturgy used by the priests , and reliefs at Karnak and Medinet Habu illustrate select rites and spells . The bulk of the rituals concern preparing for and conducting the daily offerings of libations for the idol , including a recitation of a ḥtp - dỉ - nsw formula , and purifying and sealing the shrine at the end of the day . The remainder of the rites concern how to conduct various feasts throughout the year . In these cases , Amenhotep ' s idol or a priest representing him is actually officiating the worship of Amun instead of being worshipped himself , which was not a typical cultic practice in ancient Egypt .