Pebekkamen

Pebekkamen was one of the primary conspirators in the harem conspiracy, a plot to overthrow Ramesses III of the twentieth dynasty of Egypt. Papyrus transcripts indicate that prior to his arrest, Pebekkamen had served as chief of the chamber to Ramesses. Of his crimes, the court records state:

He was brought in because of his collusion with Tiy and the women of the harem. He made common cause with them, and began bringing out their words to their mothers and their brothers who were there, saying: "Stir up the people! Incite enemies to hostility against their lord." He was placed before the great nobles of the court of examination; they examined his crimes; they found that he had committed them. His crimes seized him; the nobles who examined him brought his judgment upon him.

The conspiracy, organised primarily by Pebekkamen, intended to depose or assassinate Ramesses III and place Pentawere, son of Ramesses' second wife Tiye, onto the throne instead of his elder half-brother Ramesses IV. Following his trial, Pebekkamen was executed by burning, a method which carried particular stigma as it was believed to prevent the executed from progressing to the afterlife.

In modern popular culture

• Pebekkamen appears as a Great Spy in the turn-based strategy computer game Civilization IV.

References

• James Henry Breasted, Ancient Records of Egypt, Part Four, §§416-456
• online translation The Judicial Turin Papyrus