http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/ancient/egyptians/images/amarna_wetnurse.gif&imgrefurl=http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/ancient/egyptians/amarna_04.shtml&h=190&w=200&sz=7&hl=en&start=30&tbnid=am-szV6dZQH-PM:&tbnh=99&tbnw=104&prev=/images%3Fq%3DAKHENATEN%2BDAUGHTERS%26start%3D20%26gbv%3D2%26ndsp%3D20%26svnum%3D10%26hl%3Den%26sa%3DN The End of the Amarna Period
By Dr Marc Gabolde
TUTANKHAMUN PARENTAGE
A line drawing showing a small child in the arms of a wet-nurse Until recently, it was thought that the six daughters of Akhenaten and Nefertiti were the couple's only offspring. However, in one chamber of the Royal Tomb, just outside the room devoted to the funeral vigil for Akhenaten's second daughter, Meketaten, a small child is depicted in the arms of a wet-nurse.
'So we must be dealing with a seventh child of Nefertiti.'
It has long been believed that Meketaten died in childbirth and that this infant was hers. However, she was only about nine years old at the time of her death and her sarcophagus proves that she was scarcely taller than one metre.
What remains of the inscription referring to the child reads:
'(1) [...] born of (2) [...] Neferneferua[ten] Nefertiti, who lives now and forever more'
((1) and (2) indicate two columns; [...] indicates missing text.)
Given the length of the missing parts of the inscription and the similarity in composition to the titles given to other royal offspring at Amarna it is clear that we are dealing with a child of Nefertiti. And given that by the time of the birth of this child, we know that the six daughters of Akhenaten and Nefertiti were already born and that, moreover, three of them were dead, the baby is necessarily different from any of the known princesses. So we must be dealing with a seventh child of Nefertiti.
The most likely candidate is Tutankhamun, known during this period as Tutankhaten. Indeed, a block, now split in two, from the nearby site of Hermopolis still bears the insignia of the prince Tutankhaten accompanied by that of a princess whose name, unfortunately, is missing.
'...it is probable that Akhenaten and Nefertiti were the parents of Tutankhamun.'
Another block at Hermopolis confirms that Tutankhaten had at least one sister and probably two. On this block, a prince, identifiable by his loincloth, can be seen sitting on an adult's lap, together with traces of the figures of two other children. It was a rule in the official monuments of Amarna, that Nefertiti's children should never be shown alongside those of any other wife of Akhenaten. As Nefertiti is the only one of his wives known to have had more than one child, it is probable that Akhenaten and Nefertiti were the parents of Tutankhamun.
Published: 2002-09-05
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