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Smenkhkare |
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King Smenkhkare is thought to have ascended to the throne
either in the latter years, or after the death of Akhenaten.
Very little is known about his reign which appears to have been
quite short. A mummy found in tomb KV55
in the valley of the kings is thought to be his, although the
evidence is by no means conclusive and a lot of lively debate
continues on the subject.
This body was found in a coffin which had the royal cartouche
hacked out making a positive identification impossible.
The coffin appears to have been originally intended for a
woman and may have been hastily adapted to accommodate the short
lived Pharaoh. This is an assumption which the reported discovery
of a piece of gold foil bearing Smenkhkare's cartouche stolen
from the tomb when it was opened would seem to confirm. |
Comparisons made between the body found in KV55
and that of Tutankhamun show that there
is a chance that they are closely related, possibly brothers.
As Tutankhamun's parentage is not certain there are various theories
about this. One is that they were sons of Akhenaten
by another wife named Kiya, perhaps
the original occupant of the coffin. Canopic jar stoppers found
in the tomb are also thought to have been originally intended
for Kiya but were later modified for a royal burial by the addition
of the cobra to the brow.
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