Where Is The Golden King’s Consort Buried?

By: Ali Abu-Dashish and Norhan Mahmoud

CAIRO, Dec. 25 (SEE)- Unlike most pharaonic monarchs, King Tutankhamen occupies an exceptional global status, when you ask anyone in the world on what he knows about Egypt, he will answer; Tutankhamen, The Pyramids, Sphinx and mummies!

Archaeologist Dr. Zahi Hawass noted that along his team, they started their initial excavations searching for the mummy of Queen Ankhesenamun, the wife of the golden king Tutankhamen. “We think that tomb KV21 in the valley of the kings belongs to her, but unfortunately the mummy is beheaded! That’s why we started to look for her grave.”

“Historically, it is known that she was born in Amarna, and she is the fifth daughter of Queen Nefertiti and her husband King Akhenaton, and we also know that King Tut is also born in Amarna and his name was Ankh-Es-En Aton, and he is the son of King Akhenaton from another wife,” explained Hawass.

Another provocative issue is the ascendance of King Tut to the throne and whether it was after the death of his father Akhenaton or whether his mother-in-law Queen Nefertiti ruled for few months, especially that her name has been erased in the era of Tut. Actually, Tutankhamen married Princess Ankhesenamun at the age of nine to be declared pharaoh of Egypt.

“And that’s why there exists what proves that Queen Nefertiti co-ruled with Akhenaton and changed her name, and after his death she ruled nicknamed Semnkh-Ka-Ra,” added Hawass. “Thus, the era prior to Tutankhamen’s ruling still needs extensive research as it is ambiguous.”

Moreover, Semenkh-Ka-Ra lived in Amarna and after her marriage to Tut they lived inside the royal palace in Manf and used to go to Tiba only during special religious ceremonies. 

“We confirmed that Ankhesenamun was buried in the western valley of the kings next to her second husband king Ay and in that site, I am looking for her tomb. We knew that this queen after the death of the golden king sent a letter to the Hittites King to tell him that she was unhappy and not welcoming this marriage of the man who proposed to her as part of his plan to lawfully ascend to the throne,” recounted Hawass.

The archaeologist manifested that undoubtedly Ankhesenamun was rejecting this marriage as her sent letter states that she asked the Hittites King to send his son to marry her and be announced king of Egypt, yet he did not believe what the letter included as he knew well that pharaonic Kings might marry foreign queens or princess, but it never happened for a pharaonic queen to marry a foreigner. 

Then, the Hittites King sent a messenger to make sure of the news and factually the messenger arrived in Egypt to assure that the Egyptian queen is the one who sent this letter.

Later, the Hittites King’s son instantly travelled to marry the Egyptian queen to be declared king of Egypt, but the patriotic commander Horemheb saved the country and killed that prince before arriving at the borders.

“I think that Queen Ankhesenamun had no other option, thus she had to marry Ay to give him the legitimacy of governance after Tut- as he did not have a male heir to the throne, that’s why I think that the normal place to bury her is the western valley, where I excavate right now,” concluded Hawass.