Herihor’s Kingship and the High Priest of Amun Piankh

The theory of Jansen-Winkeln, which argues for a reversal of the traditional order of the late 20th Dynasty High Priests of Amun Herihor and Piankh, has provoked considerable controversy. The key to a resolution seems to lie in recognising that Herihor, on his elevation to kingship, was able (like later monarchs of the TIP) to co-opt a colleague/relative as High Priest of Amun. This way Piankh’s pontificate can be placed within the reign of King Herihor, explaining the genealogical and other evidence which might otherwise suggest a reversal of the two but avoiding the pitfalls of Jansen-Winkeln’s case. The evidence suggests a shortening of the high priestly genealogy at this period by one to two generations (from the standard/Kitchen model). A first step is offered here towards a new model involving a short overlap between the 20th and 21st Dynasties, as well as between Herihor and Pinudjem I, as Upper Egyptian kings based at Thebes.