are variations for the functions described above. It seems certain that Djehuti (I) acquired
and bore these titles under the reign of Hatshepsut. The Amun domain had become
powerful by the reign of Thutmose I, and during the reign of Hatshepsut it became a
dominant element in the role of the favoured officials. The queen, as God’s Wife of
Amun herself, was closely connected to the precinct of Amun, and as a result, the officials
favoured by her were also connected to the Amun domain either through their position
rewarded by promotions or specific tasks assigned to them. By contrast, under Thut¬
mose III the Amun precinct was not as predominant as it had been under Hatshepsut,
moreover, it appeared that the king intentionally avoided linking his highest officials to
the Amun precinct.**
The focal points of the tomb are on the western wall of the transverse hall, on the
two sides of the entrance to the axial corridor, where Djehuti (I) is depicted standing
before Hatshepsut and Thutmose III on the right and on the left respectively. The
inscription of the adoration scene of Hatshepsut represents Djehuti (I), besides wb3 n
nswt wb “.wj royal wb3 clean of hands’, in his clerical function as wdn n Jn ‘offerer of
Amun and the one /3j ‘hn nb ntr.w ‘who carries the brazier of the lord of the gods’. This
fact also supports the theory outlined above that he must have acquired his titles con¬
nected to the Amun precinct in the earlier phase of his career, during the reign of the
queen. On the other hand, the inscriptions of the canopy scene of Thutmose III add
further information on his official advancement: the text identifies him, besides ‘royal
wb3’ again, as Smsw nswt hr h3s.wt nb.wt ‘follower of the king in every foreign land’.
Considering the military activities of Thutmose III and the fact that in this period the
phrase was primarily connected to participating in campaigns,*” it is fair to assume
that Djehuti (I) acquired it under the reign of the king, and he may have escorted him
on at least one but maybe more of his campaigns, however, there is no information on
this matter. It is also very likely that Djehuti (I) was promoted to whmw nswt ‘royal
herald’ also by Thutmose III. In spite of the fact that the title was regularly associated
with the military it was not rare among the officials who did not belong to this area but
served as civil officials in the administration and in the royal court. They might have
acted and spoken as the personal agents of the king, on behalf of and with his author¬
ity. The holders of the title ‘royal herald’ were in an especially important position in
the administration, as well as in society."