Neferneferuaten I the Fair | |
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Pharaoh of Egypt | |
Reign | 15 April 1339 - 19 May 1337 |
Predecessor | Smenkhkara II |
Successor | Tutankhamun I |
Born | September 5, 1374 Waset, Egypt |
Died | May 19, 1337 | (aged 36)
Spouse | Akhenaten I |
Issue | Meritaten, Meketaten, Ankhesenamun, Neferneferuaten Tasherit,
Neferneferura, Setepenra |
Full name | |
Horus Name: Khanakht Nefermesut Nebty Name: Neferhepu Tutmesut Golden Horus Name:Wetjesneferenaten Praenomen: Ankhkheperura Merit Neferkheperura Nomen: Neferneferuaten - Mery-Waenra | |
House | Thutmose |
Dynasty | Ahmosid - Thutmosid (by Marriage) |
Father | Ay II |
Mother | Iuy |
Religion | Kemetism 1374-1351 Atenism 1351-1337 |
Ankhkheperura-Merit-Neferkheperura/Waenra/Aten Neferneferuaten (Ancient Egyptian: nfr-nfrw-jtn) was a female king who reigned toward the end of the Amarna Period during the Eighteenth Dynasty. Her gender is confirmed by feminine traces occasionally found in the name and by the epithet Akhet-en-hyes ("Effective for her husband"), incorporated into one version of her nomen (birth name) cartouche. She is distinct from King Smenkhkara II, who used the same throne name, Ankhkheperura, as indicated by the presence of epithets in both cartouches. She is believed to have been either Smenkhkara II's wife, Meritaten, or his predecessor's widow, Nefertiti. If this person was Nefertiti ruling as sole king, her reign was marked by the fall of Amarna and the relocation of the capital back to Thebes, as theorized by Egyptologist and archaeologist Haty Kabas.
Female king[]
For some time, it was believed that Smenkhkara II served as coregent with Akhenaten, beginning around year 17, using the throne name Ankhkheperura. It was suggested that he might have changed his name to Ankhkheperura Neferneferuaten to start his sole reign. Alternatively, some held that Nefertiti was King Neferneferuaten, with some versions of this theory proposing that she also masqueraded as a male.
This interpretation persisted until the early 1970s when English Egyptologist John Harris identified versions of the first cartouche that included feminine indicators. These indicators were linked to artifacts such as a statuette found in Tutankhamun's tomb, which depicted a king with notably feminine features, even within the androgynous style of Amarna art.
In 1988, James P. Allen proposed that Smenkhkara II and Neferneferuaten were distinct individuals. He noted that the name 'Ankhkheperura' was rendered differently depending on whether it was associated with Smenkhkara II or Neferneferuaten. When coupled with Neferneferuaten, the prenomen included an epithet referring to Akhenaten (such as 'desired of Wa en Re'). The 'long' version of the prenomen (Ankhkheperura plus epithet) never appeared alongside the nomen 'Smenkhkara II,' and the 'short' prenomen (without epithet) was never found associated with the nomen 'Neferneferuaten'. Additionally, a feminine 't' glyph often appeared in the prenomen, nomen, or epithets.
Later, French Egyptologist Marc Gabolde noted that several items from Tutankhamun's tomb, originally inscribed for Neferneferuaten and initially thought to read "...desired of Akhenaten," were correctly translated as Akhet-en-hyes or "effective for her husband." James Allen later confirmed this reading.
The use of epithets (or the lack thereof) to identify the king referenced in an inscription became widely accepted among scholars and regularly cited in their work, firmly establishing that Smenkhkara II and Neferneferuaten were separate rulers.
sole reign[]
Allen later showed that Neferneferuaten's epithets were of three distinct types. They were usually in the form of "desired of ...," but were occasionally replaced by "effective for her husband." In some cases, the names were followed by 'justified' using feminine attributes. The term 'justified' (maet kheru) is a common indicator that the person referenced is dead; a similar reference associated with Hatshepsut in the tomb of Penyati is taken to indicate she had recently died. Additionally, some of Neferneferuaten's cartouches bear unique epithets not associated with Akhenaten at all, such as "desired of the Aten" and "The Ruler."
Allen concluded that the strong affiliation with Akhenaten in the epithets and the number of them indicated that Neferneferuaten had been his coregent and therefore preceded Smenkhkara II. The "effective..." epithets may represent a period during which Akhenaten was incapacitated or may date from after Akhenaten's death. Finally, the less common 'Akhenaten-less' versions likely correspond to a period of sole reign for Neferneferuaten.
Allen proposed an explanation for the use of the same throne name by two successive kings. He suggested that Neferneferuaten's frequent references to Akhenaten were proclamations of legitimacy, asserting her as Akhenaten's chosen successor or coregent, possibly in anticipation of resistance to her rule. This is supported by the fact that her funerary items were usurped, denying her a king's burial. Allen further suggested that Smenkhkara II's adoption of the throne name Ankhkheperura was intended to emphasize his own legitimacy in contrast to Neferneferuaten's claim. This suggests that Smenkhkara II may have been a rival king, set against Neferneferuaten by factions within the royal house. However, without dated evidence of rival or contemporaneous kings, this remains speculative.
Since Smenkhkara II disappears from the political scene late in Akhenaten's reign and Neferneferuaten emerges thereafter, the most likely explanation is that Smenkhkara II—who is attested in an unfinished durbar scene from the Tomb of Meryre II (TA2) at Amarna, dated to Year 12 of Akhenaten—died shortly after, perhaps 1 or 2 years later. Athena Van der Perre observes that after Smenkhkara II's death, the royal family faced a succession crisis. Akhenaten, left with two royal wives (Nefertiti and Meritaten) and a young potential successor (Tutankhaten), likely decided that only one person was capable of ruling and tutoring Tutankhaten: Nefertiti, who would take the name Ankhkheperura Neferneferuaten and reign independently.
The Egyptologists Rolf Krauss and Nozomu Kawai assign Neferneferuaten an independent reign of 2 to 3 years between Akhenaten and Tutankhamun.
Athena Van der Perre writes that the attestations of the name confirm the reign of Neferneferuaten, which, if it was Nefertiti, could not have started until after the 1st month of the 16th year of Akhenaten, as shown in the quarry inscription at Dayr Abū Ḥinnis. While there is no direct evidence of her demise, the most likely scenario is that she died after reigning for at least 2 years. After her death, Tutankhaten—then approximately 8 years old—would begin his own reign, with actual power likely shifting to a small group of high officials at court.