Thutmose I

Thutmose I ascended the throne following the death of Amenhotep I, with whom he lacked an obvious direct father-to-son link. He reigned from about 1504 to 1492 BC, though dates remain uncertain by about a decade. His accession opened a period of energetic territorial expansion, securing Egyptian control across Lower Nubia and projecting military power as far north as the Euphrates River.

At Thebes, Thutmose I transformed the Karnak temple complex by constructing the Fourth and Fifth Pylons and erecting massive red granite obelisks. He was also among the earliest pharaohs known to commission a rock-cut tomb in the desolate wadi now called the Valley of the Kings, being associated with tombs KV20 and KV38. His daughter Hatshepsut and son Thutmose II would both succeed him. Scholars trace his military expeditions and administrative reforms through rock inscriptions near Aswan, temple stelae and the surviving architecture of his Theban monuments.

Monuments

• Karnak Pylons IV and V
• Tomb KV20

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Try the name on the Cartouche Desk, or see where the reign falls on the timeline.