Ammon (also Amôn; Coptic Amûn from Egyptian [A]men or Jmn; Greek 'Αμμων)

AMMONE (better Amôn; Coptic Amûn from the Egyptian [a]men or jmn; Greek Ἀμμων). — Egyptian deity, Thebes (v.). The name was interpreted as “creator of all things,” and later, falsely, as “he who conceals his name” (Plutarch, De Iside, 9). At first an almost unknown local god, with the advent of the Theban XII Dynasty (1996 B.C.) A. was exalted and merged with the ancient solar god of Heliopolis, Râ (Rie). The supremacy of Ammon-Râ (better: Amenrle) spread especially after Thebes was elevated to the capital, under the XVIII Dynasty: A. was by then acclaimed as “king of the gods.” He was depicted as a man with blue flesh (the colour of the firmament), with two tall feathers on his head; in the New Empire he had the goose, and later the ram, as sacred animals. He formed a triad with his wife Mût and his son Hons (moon god). Finally, he was added to the cosmogonic ogdoad of Hermopolis. Lord of the kingdoms, he was regarded as the physical father of the pharaoh.

Continual and extremely rich donations constituted A.’s immense sacred patrimony. Except IV (v.), the pharaohs promoted his cult, whose centre was in the two magnificent temples (at Karnak and Luxor), in whose service there were 81,322 dependants in the time of Ramses III (1198–1167 B.C.). The oracle of A. (by the movement of the statue’s head or similar devices) decided every public and private matter. The power of the priests reached sovereignty: with Herhor (ca. 1090), high priest of A., there

historiographical concepts, but he was a good continuator of humanist historiography and a notable representative of our culture during the period of the Counter-Reformation. His writings too contain clear indications, albeit in a timid and cautious form, of that Catholic reaction to Machiavelli’s ideas which at that time found broader development in theories concerning the Reason of State. His historical works lack clear and precise guiding ideas, and above all the author lacks direct political experience that might provide him with a reliable guide in understanding and arranging the facts. On the other hand, the information is rich, abundant, and at times new, although his use of the sources is not always critical, since they are never cited.