not the sole, monarch of Egypt, during the short period which elapsed between the commencement of their second revolt and the victory of Megabyzus, is proved by the authority of several ancient historians; and as the unsettled state of affairs during the whole of his reign, and the preparations required in order to resist the expected attack of the Persians, deprived the Egyptians of that tranquillity necessary for the encouragement of art, the absence of monuments bearing the name of Inarus is readily accounted for. By some writers he is supposed to have been a king of Lybia, by others an individual of Libyan origin; but as Libya was included within the dominions of Egypt, it appears more probable that he was the rightful heir to the throne, and had taken refuge there to avoid the tyranny of the Persians, and await an opportunity, which afterwards offered, of liberating his country from a foreign yoke. And the fact of his being a native of Egypt is still farther confirmed by the name of his father, Psamaticus, which is purely Egyptian.
The 28th and 29th Dynasties, according to Manetho, and the monuments, are as follows:—
28th Dynasty, of 1 Saïte King.
Name from Ancient Authors. |
Name from the Monuments. |
Events. | Ascended the Throne. | |
Amyrteus Amyrtæus |
Ao-ma-hor-te? | --- | b. c. 414 |