Petubastis IV in the Dakhla Oasis: New Evidence about an Early Rebellion against Persian Rule and Its Suppression in Political Memory

Abstract

Persian rule in Egypt was marked by a series of rebellions and Egyptian rival kings. We know of four major insurgencies, one of which led to a long period of independence. The new finds in Dakhla shed light on the history of the oasis in the wider historical context of the first major rebellion against Persian occupation. The new evidence from the temple at Amheida shows that Petubastis IV was no "'puppet' or vassal king." The combination of the archaeological data with the record of Herodotus indicates that Petubastis IV had probably established himself in Dakh;a, away from the Nile valley and away from control by the Persian army that occupied the country. He managed to defeat the army of Cambyses in ways that we cannot know, an he was successful in reaching Memphis, where Petubastis was crowned, assuming control of at least part of the country.