Necho I

Who was Necho I?

Necho I was the prince or governor of the Egyptian city of Sais. He was the first attested local Saite king of the twenty-sixth dynasty of Egypt who reigned for 8 years, according to Manetho's Epitome. Egypt was reunified by his son Psamtik I. Necho I is primarily known from Assyrian documents but is now also attested in one contemporary Egyptian document from his reign. He was officially "installed" at Sais by Assurbanipal around 670 BC, but he already ruled Egypt as a local king prior to this event. According to historical records, Necho was killed by an invading Kushite force in 664 BC under Tantamani for being an ally of Assyria. The Nubian invasion into the Egyptian Delta was subsequently repelled by the Assyrians who proceeded to advance south into Upper Egypt and sack Thebes.

Necho I's Year 2 is now attested on a privately held donation stela that was first published by Olivier Perdu. The stela records a large land donation to the Osirian triad of PerHebyt by the "priest of Isis, Mistress of Hebyt, Great Chief... son of Iuput, Akanosh."