My thanks to CJB for the link to this paper. (He posted it in a comment, so I am promoting it so that readers don't miss it.)
It (http://kubaba.univ-paris1.fr/actualites/2010/akhenaton.pdf) is in French. Google translate isn't too awful with French but it mangles it somewhat and I can't persuade it to translate the whole article. When I have time, I will read it in French to try to catch the full sense of what they are suggesting.
One central theme is that Akhenaten was survived by a King (Smenkhkare) and Queen (Meritaten) who had similar throne names and therefore were easily confused so it isn't possible to say which partner outlived his/her spouse to rule alone, although they lean as usual towards the Queen. Smenkhare is seen as the occupant of KV55 and the son of Akhenaten, which is familiar territory. Less usual is their belief, if I am reading it correctly, that Smenkhare was the brother of Tutankhamun. That means the Amarna reliefs fail to show two sons of Pharaoh, but six daughters.
The Younger Lady is identified as Sitamun but they pose the question that the wife of Smenkhare might actually not have been Meritaten the daughter of Akhenaten but the daughter of Smenkhare himself. I need to re-read that section.
There is a lot more, with a lot of discussion of implications of the Amarna letters and foreign relations. The paper cites a lot of references. Since Google translate won't translate the second half for me, and skim reading something in French is a real stretch for me, I can't say too much more. I will try to spend time to read it carefully when I have time to translate it fully.
My thanks again to CJB for what is an interesting and thought-provoking paper.
You may reproduce articles if this notice is included unaltered and there are no adverts on your page. Comments © individual authors may not be reproduced.![]()
![]()
![]()
![]()
![]()
![]()
It (http://kubaba.univ-paris1.fr/actualites/2010/akhenaton.pdf) is in French. Google translate isn't too awful with French but it mangles it somewhat and I can't persuade it to translate the whole article. When I have time, I will read it in French to try to catch the full sense of what they are suggesting.
One central theme is that Akhenaten was survived by a King (Smenkhkare) and Queen (Meritaten) who had similar throne names and therefore were easily confused so it isn't possible to say which partner outlived his/her spouse to rule alone, although they lean as usual towards the Queen. Smenkhare is seen as the occupant of KV55 and the son of Akhenaten, which is familiar territory. Less usual is their belief, if I am reading it correctly, that Smenkhare was the brother of Tutankhamun. That means the Amarna reliefs fail to show two sons of Pharaoh, but six daughters.
The Younger Lady is identified as Sitamun but they pose the question that the wife of Smenkhare might actually not have been Meritaten the daughter of Akhenaten but the daughter of Smenkhare himself. I need to re-read that section.
There is a lot more, with a lot of discussion of implications of the Amarna letters and foreign relations. The paper cites a lot of references. Since Google translate won't translate the second half for me, and skim reading something in French is a real stretch for me, I can't say too much more. I will try to spend time to read it carefully when I have time to translate it fully.
My thanks again to CJB for what is an interesting and thought-provoking paper.
This article from News from the Valley of the Kings © Kate Phizackerley is offered on a Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial Licence 3.0 unless otherwise noted. Please visit the blog to join the discussion.
You may reproduce articles if this notice is included unaltered and there are no adverts on your page. Comments © individual authors may not be reproduced.
