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‘overseer of the treasury of the Pharaoh’ while the other two individuals are identified
as ‘royal wb?’ also shows that the reward was given as a personal favour of the ruler since
Amenhotep was responsible for the treasury of the royal house and not for the state
itself. This title leads to another area besides the royal household where ‘royal wb3s’ were
active, namely the royal administration.
It is supposed that the activity of these officials in some offices in the area of the royal
administration usually derived from their function of being an wb3 nswt ‘royal wb?’,
however, in most of the cases the temporal order of gaining their titles cannot be deter¬
mined, whether a certain position in the royal administration (or in other area) resulted
from the function of the official as a ‘royal wb3’, or on the contrary. However, conclusions
can be drawn based on inscriptions with biographical content, such as by Nebamun or
Montuiui. Nebamun informs us of three stages in his career in the inscription on his
biographical stele in his tomb TT 24:8 he was appointed to jmj-r3 h3 n nswt ‘overseer of
the royal office’ by Thutmose II, then to jmj-r3 pr n hm.t nswt Nbtw m3“t-hrw ‘steward of
the royal wife, Nebtu, justified’ and later to jmj-r3 h°.w nb.w n nswt ‘overseer of all royal
boats’ by Thutmose III. It is supposed that Nebamun started his career in the royal court
in the position of wdpw m stp-s3 ‘nh wa3 snb ‘butler in the palace, life, prosperity, health’
under Thutmose II, and the satisfaction of the king with his function in this position
might have led to his promotion to direct the bureau that managed the personal affairs
of the ruler, or at least this is what the title indicates. During the reign of Thutmose III,
Nebamun still remained in the closest circle of the king, extending his official respon¬
sibility over the personal possessions of one of the king’s wives. The title of the
stewardship already suggests his participation in the royal administration which role is
supported by his function as ‘overseer of all royal boats’. This latter title fell under the
naval administration, its bearer, as Gnirs notices, was responsible for the coordination
and control of war ships as well as royal transportation and cargo vessels.” It would be
reasonable to surmise that he might have been responsible for directing ships carrying
goods and supplies to and from the palace, especially for the personal provision of the
king and his family. Another of his titles, hrj wj3 n nswt ‘chief of the royal barque’, refers
to the boat used for the private transportation of the king and/or his family. The progress
of the advancements of Nebamun tended from being the very private servant of the king
to a wider administrative role but still connected to the person of the king and his house¬
725 For a discussion on the career of Nebamun, see p. 107, for the inscription of his biographical stele,
see [1.1] Theban Tomb 24 on p. 327.
»9 Gnirs, 2013, 652.