Instructions of Amenemhat

Exercise tablet with hieratic excerpt from the Instructions of Amenemhat. 18th Dynasty, reign of Amenhotep I, ca. 1514-1493 BC. Text reads: "Be on your guard against all who are subordinate to you ... Trust no brother, know no friend, make no intimates."

Instructions of Amenemhat (aka "Teaching of King Ammenemes I to His Son Sesostris") is a short ancient Egyptian poem of the sebayt genre written during the early Middle Kingdom. The poem takes the form of an intensely dramatic monologue delivered by the ghost of the murdered 12th Dynasty pharaoh Amenemhat I to his son Senusret I. It describes the conspiracy that killed Amenemhat,[1] and enjoins his son to trust no-one. The poem forms a kind of apologia of the deeds of the old king's reign.[2] It ends with an exhortation to Senusret to ascend the throne and rule wisely in Amenemhat's stead.

  1. ^ J. P. Allen thinks the outcome of the conspiracy is inconclusive (Allen, op.cit., p.259)
  2. ^ Lichtheim, op.cit., p.137