Wenamun was a Priest of Amun at Luxor during the reign of Pharaoh Nesbanebdjed I (Smendes I, 1069-1043 BCE). According to his surviving account, he was "Elder of the Portal" at Amun's temple. Around 1070 BCE, Wenamun was sent to Byblos to acquire lumber (probably cedar wood). He stopped at the port of Dor, where he was robbed, and then travelled on to Byblos. He was shocked by the hostile reception he received there. When he finally gained an audience with Zakar-Baal, the local king, the latter refused to give the requested goods gratis, as had been the traditional custom, instead demanding payment. Wenamun had to send to Smendes for money, a humiliating move which demonstrates the waning of Egyptian power over the Eastern Mediterranean. Upon leaving Egypt, Wenamun travelled to Alasiya, where he was almost killed by an angry mob before placing himself under the protection of the local queen, who he called Hatbi.
