In the Old Kingdom the viziers of Egypt were normally kinsmen of the king, members of the royal clan, and thus trusted with the affairs of the court. An exception to this tradition, however, was the best-known vizier of the Old Kingdom, a commoner named Imhotep. He built the Step Pyramid for Djoser of the 3rd Dynasty (2630-2611 B.C.). Gradually the office was divided, with one vizier serving as the director of affairs for Lower Egypt and the other governing the territories of Upper Egypt. The vizier of Upper Egypt ruled from Elephantine to Assiut, and the other governed all the lands above Assiut. Viziers heard all domestic territorial disputes, maintained a cattle and herd census, controlled the reservoirs and the food supply, supervised industries and conservation programs, and were required to repair all dikes. The bi-annual census of the population came under their purview, as did the records of rainfall and the varying levels of the Nile during its inundation. All government documents used in ancient Egypt had to have the seal of the vizier in order to be considered authentic and binding. Tax records, storehouse receipts, crop assessments and other necessary agricultural statistics were kept in the offices of the viziers. Members of the royal family normally served as assistants to the viziers in every era. The office was considered and excellent training ground for the young princes of each royal line, although many queens and princesses received extensive training and undertook a period of service with the vizier and his staff. If the capital was in the south, at Thebes, the vizier of Upper Egypt lived there and served also as mayor of the city. Normally he was assisted by a mayor of the western shore, because the vast necropolis sites and the artisans' villages there demanded supervision. The viziers of Upper and Lower Egypt saw the king on a daily basis or communicated with him frequently. Both served as the chief justices of the Egyptian courts, and listened to appeals or decisions from the nome justices. Other state officials, such as the treasurer, chancellor, keeper of the seal, etc., served under the viziers in a tight-knit and efficient bureaucracy. In the New Kingdom a third governor, for Nubia, was added to the force. The most famous vizier of the New Kingdom was Rekhmire, who served Thutmose III (1479-1425 B.C.). This able official was buried at Thebes, and on his tomb walls he gave an account of Thutmose III's instructions concerning the duties and obligations of a righteous vizier. The commands or instructions are remarkable for their detailed description of the workings of all levels of government. Normally, the viziers of Egypt were remarkable men, astute, well-trained and dedicated to the service of rich and poor alike, in an ideal expression of the sprit of Ma'at, the ethical and moral principle guiding the nation. (information from "A Dictionary of Ancient Egypt", by Margaret Bunson)