Posted on 12/22/2015 3:12:43 PM PST by SunkenCiv
The identity of his mother has long been a mystery, although she is not believed to be Akhenaten's Queen Nefertiti. Some theories suggest the boy king's mother was one of his aunts.
"Maia is none other than princess Meritaten, the sister or half-sister of Tutankhamun and the daughter of Akhenaten and Nefertiti," Zivie said.
He said his conclusion was based on the carvings of Tutankhamun and Maia on the walls of Maia's tomb.
"The extraordinary thing is that they are very similar. They have the same chin, the eyes, the family traits," he said.
"The carvings show Maia sitting on the royal throne and he is sitting on her", said Zivie, director of the French Archaeological Mission of Bubasteion.
Similar carvings were in Akhenaten's tomb at the Tel el-Amarna archaeological site in modern-day Minya province where the pharaoh had his capital city, he said.
A DNA analysis in 2010 revealed that Tutankhamun was the son of Akhenaten, who temporarily converted ancient Egypt to monotheism by imposing the cult of sun god Aton.
The tomb of Akhenaten has carvings showing the death of princess Maketaten -- the second daughter of Akhenaten and Nefertiti, Zivie said.
"In these scenes there is a woman who is breast-feeding a baby, and this woman shown as a wet nurse is princess Meritaten, the eldest daughter of Akhenaten," he said.
The mummy of Meritaten has not been found, but antiquities minister Mamduh al-Damati said on Sunday it could be in a secret chamber in Tutankhamun's tomb.
Archaeologists are currently scanning Tutankhamun's tomb in the Valley of Kings after British archaeologist Nicholas Reeves claimed that it has a secret chamber.
Reeves says the chamber could be the burial site of Nefertiti, whose mummy also has not been found.
(Excerpt) Read more at theguardian.com ...
Keep it all in the family.
When do we throw the toast? ;’)
I’m a twelve o’clock feller in a nine o’clock town...
Or, you could read the excerpt.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.