Taimhotep
Taimhotep (73 BCE – 42 BCE) was an Egyptian woman and the wife of Pasherenptah, the High Priest of Ptah in Memphis during the 1st century BCE.
Biography[edit | edit source]
Taimhotep was born as the eldest daughter of a clerical family in Memphis, her father Apja Khahapi having been a Priest of Ptah, and her brother Pasherienamun I having served as the High Priest at the Great Temple of Ptah.[1] As such, she was highly religious, fascinated by the pomp of temple ritual. She played an important ceremonial role as the High Priest's wife and also served as a counterweight to the pressures of her husband.[2]
Around 48 BCE, Memphis seemed to fall out of favor with the gods, for numerous maladies plagued the city. An unpleasant smell permeated the place, crocodiles came in greater numbers than normal, and they were more eager to attack the citizens and wildlife alike. [2]
The sacred Apis bull himself fell sick, and Taimhotep suffered multiple miscarriages through the year. After another pregnancy had come far enough to show, Taimhotep argued with her husband at the Temple of Ptah; this encounter was witnessed by the Medjay Bayek of Siwa, who had come to Memphis in order to hunt down a member of the Order of the Ancients, the one known as the Lizard.[3]
Taimhotep stormed off, seeking out The Seer; at Pasherenptah's request, Bayek followed her. At the Seer's house, Bayek participated in a ritual in order to save the child Taimhotep carried, while the Seer chanted with Taimhotep's maidservant, Mara.[3]
Afterwards, Taimhotep retreated to a garden, and Bayek followed the sound of her singing and weeping. He attempted to comfort her, but she was inconsolable. Her maidservant, Mara, took Bayek aside and asked if he would help them perform a protective ritual. He agreed, and Mara asked him to fetch some heron feathers and a fertility talisman; after retrieving them, Bayek met Mara and Taimhotep on the road to the pyramids.[4]
They approached the Pyramid of Djoser, and once there, Taimhotep and Mara prepared for the ritual. Bayek stood guard, alone, for Taimhotep wanted to keep the whole thing as much a secret as possible.[4]
Trivia[edit | edit source]
- Taimhotep's name, which is transliterated as t3ỉ-ˁỉỉ-m-ḥtp, means "she who has come in peace".
- Historically Taimhotep had four children, three daughters born early in her marriage and a son born in 46 BCE after praying to Imhotep, the deified architect of Djoser's Pyramid. She was also the step-mother of a daughter from a previous relationship of Pasherenptah.
- Despite being portrayed in-game as similar in age to her husband Pasherenptah, Taimhotep was historically at least 17 years his junior, having only been in her early teens at the time of their marriage, while Pasherenptah was in his early thirties.[1]
- Her son with Pasherenptah, named Imhotep-Pedubast, succeeded his father as the High Priest of Ptah in 39 BCE, but perished only 9 years later without progeny.[1]
Appearances[edit | edit source]
References[edit | edit source]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2
Taimhotep on Wikipedia
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Assassin's Creed: Origins
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Assassin's Creed: Origins – The Lizard's Mask
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Assassin's Creed: Origins – Taimhotep's Song