|
Nefertiti Neferneferuaten was possibly the daughter of Ay (who became pharaoh later and whose wife Tey was the nurse of Nefertiti). She married Akhenaten early in his reign or maybe before his reign. She was a very important woman, on statues and reliefs her figure has the same size as the pharaoh's. She also had an iportant role in the cult of Aten. She and Akhenaten moved to the new capital Akhet-Aten in the 5th year. They had 6 daughters, among them Meritaten, the firstborn (wife of Smenkhkare) and Ankhesenamen, wife of Tutankhamen. (The other 4 were Meketaten - who died at a young age and her mourning parents are depicted in her tomb -, Neferneferuaten, Neferneferure and Setepenre). Nefertiti disappeared in the 14th regnal year of Akhenaten, it is possible that either she died at that time, or was disgraced and left the royal palace to live in the so-called Northern Palace, while on monuments her name was eplaced by Meritaten's.
There is also a theory that Nefertiti and Smenkhkare (who became co-ruler with Akenaten after Nefertiti's disappearing) were the same person, but this theory seems not likely to me, the only thing that seems to prove it is that they had the same epithet (Neferneferuaten, "Beauty of the Beauties of Aten" or "Most Beautiful One of Aten"). It is more likely that Smenkhkare was Akhenaten's younger brother.
Nefertiti is mostly known of her beautiful bust which is now in a museum in Berlin, Germany. Her mummy wasn't found although some suspect that the so-called "Young Lady" mumy may be hers.
|
