Amenophis III, King of Egypt Posters

Amenophis III was enthroned as King of Egypt in 1408 BCE. Some thirty-five years later, he allowed his son - Prince Amenophis - to share the throne, forming a co-regency that lasted four years. Amenophis, who became Amenophis IV, was to abandon the eternal order of things as inherited from his forefathers: he would change his name from Amenophis (also spelled Amenhotep) to Akhenaten, and he would leave Thebes, the official capital, to found a new domain and order. For a period of a mere twelve years, that is from 1366 to 1354 BCE, he would live in the transient capital he was to baptize Akhetaten. Thereupon he would disappear; to this day, no document has been found on which the date and circumstances of his death could be based.

The historical evidence is very scant but, luckily, a comparative interpretation of the documents that survived the post-Amarna Period repression has allowed specialists to solve some of the enigmas: Around 1425 BCE, Thutmose IV, the grandfather of Akhenaten, married a princess from the Mitanni; the latter took the Egyptian name of Mutemwiya upon arrival at the royal court.

At some distance from there, in the provinces - more specifically, near to today's Akhmim, the capital of Upper Egypt's ninth nome, a local squire, Yuya, took his cousin Tuyu as spouse. The couple settled in Thebes a few months after their wedding, where both embarked on a glorious court career: in addition to his titles as Prophet and Superintendent of the Cattle of Min, Yuya became the King's Lieutenant of the Chariotry and Master of the Horse; while Tuyu took on the title of Superintendent of the Harem of Amon.

Best Sellers