Shepenupet II
Shepenupet II (alt. Shepenwepet II, prenomen: Henutneferumut Irietre) was an ancient Egyptian princess of the 25th Dynasty who served as the high priestess, the Divine Adoratrice of Amun, from around 700 BC to 650 BC.
Born~Died date unknown ~ 658Last edited Oct 15, 2026, 4:35 PM
Details
- Born ~ Died
- date unknown ~ 658
- Tenure
- c. 700–650 BC
- Predecessor
- Amenirdis I
- Successor
- Amenirdis II (as Divine Adoratrice), Nitocris I (as God's Wife)
- Dynasty
- 25th Dynasty
- Burial
- Medinet Habu
- Father
- Piye
Shepenupet II (alt. Shepenwepet II, prenomen: Henutneferumut Irietre) was an ancient Egyptian princess of the 25th Dynasty who served as the high priestess, the Divine Adoratrice of Amun, from around 700 BC to 650 BC. She was the daughter of the first Kushite pharaoh Piye1 and sister of Piye's successors, Shabaka and Taharqa.
Biography
Shepenupet II was adopted by her predecessor in office, Amenirdis I, a sister of Piye. Shepenupet was God's Wife of Amun from the beginning of Taharqa's reign until Year 9 of Pharaoh Psamtik I. While in office she had to come to a power sharing arrangement with the mayor of Thebes, Mentuemhat.2
Her niece, Amenirdis, the daughter of Taharqa, was appointed as her heiress.2 Shepenupet was compelled to adopt Nitocris, daughter of pharaoh Psamtik I, who reunited Egypt after the Assyrian conquest. This is evidenced by the so-called Adoption Stela of Nitocris. In 656 BC, in Year 9 of the reign of Psamtik I, she received Nitocris at Thebes.34
Her tomb is located in the grounds of Medinet Habu5 on the west bank of the Nile at Thebes. She was succeeded as Divine Adoratrice by Amenirdis II, who was succeeded by Nitocris I.
This page is based on “Shepenupet II” from English Wikipedia, (r1365245392) CC BY-SA 4.0 used under the license. The original authors are listed in its page history.
Last edited Oct 15, 2026, 4:35 PM · r126553 · Text is available under CC BY-SA 4.0.