Amenirdis I

Who is Amenirdis I?

Amenirdis I was a God's Wife of Amun in ancient Egypt.

She was a Kushite princess, the daughter of Pharaoh Kashta and Queen Pebatjma. She is likely to have been the sister of pharaohs Shabaka and Piye. Kashta arranged to have Amenirdis I adopted by the Divine Adoratrice of Amun, Shepenupet I, at Thebes as her successor. This shows that Kashta already controlled Upper Egypt prior to the reign of Piye, his successor.

She ruled as high priestess approximately between 714 and 700 BCE, under the reigns of Shabaka and Shabataka, and she adopted Piye's daughter Shepenupet II as her successor. Upon her death, she was buried in a tomb in the grounds of Medinet-Habu.

She is depicted in the Osiris-Hekadjet temple in the Karnak temple complex, and in Wadi Gasus, along with Shepenupet I. She is mentioned on two offering tables, five statues, a stela and several small objects including scarabs.