Ever since mummy KV55 was discovered in 1907, it has generated deep interest, debate, and controversy. The big issues have been identifying the KV55 mummy in ancient Egyptian history and combining its most probable identity with that person’s proposed age of death.
Could mummy KV55 really be the ‘heretic pharaoh’ Akhenaten, as many scholars believe? If so, a team of scientists at the Forensic Anthropology, Paleopathology and Bioarchaeology (FAPAB) Research Center in Sicily, Italy, have finally revealed the image of this famous pharaoh - and it’s nothing like how he was portrayed in the ancient artwork!
Statue of Akhenaton in the Louvre. (FAPAB Research Center)
Facts and Controversy Surrounding Mummy KV55
- The mummy was found with grave goods attributed to different people and a desecrated coffin in the undecorated tomb KV55 in the Valley of the Kings in 1907 by an Egyptologist named Edward R. Ayrton.
- This tomb is just a few meters from Tutankhamun’s tomb.
- Upon excavation, mummy KV55 disintegrated into dust and bones, so today it’s only a skeleton.
- It was first suggested to be Queen Tyje (due to a broad pelvis), but Australian scientist Grafton E. Smith later declared the remains are male.
- Mummy KV55’s genetic results show this is the genetic father of Tutankhamun, however palaeomolecular experts criticized some of the results in 2010.
- Historical and archaeological research, including some artifacts in the tomb, suggest that mummy KV55 is Akhenaton (Akhenaten).
- Akhenaten (r. 1353–36/35 BC) is known as the ‘heretic pharaoh’ because he developed monotheism, worshipping the one ‘true’ god of Aten (the Sun disk). He was the son of Amenhotep III and the father of Tutankhamun.
- Historical evidence, which is fragmented and conflicting, suggests that Akhenaten died when he was about 40 years old. However mummy KV55 belongs to a man who is believed to have died in his early 20s.
- Some scholars argue that mummy KV55’s age of death demonstrate that this is actually an enigmatic Late Amarna period person named Smenkhkare.
An Exclusive Interview with Dr. Michael E. Habicht
FAPAB Director Francesco M. Galassi, a physician and palaeopathologist, and Egyptological studies coordinator Michael E. Habicht oversaw the creation of the new facial reconstruction of the KV55 mummy, which was completed by the well-known Brazilian expert Cicero Moraes, who has been recognized for his skilled facial reconstructions.
- A Pharaoh Thrice Buried? The Mystery of the Tombs of Pharaoh Akhenaten
- Game of Toes in Amarna: Missing Body Parts and Funerary Practices of King and Commoner
Dr. Michael E. Habicht, who is also an Archaeologist, Egyptologist, and Senior Research Fellow at Flinders University, Australia, told us about the new facial reconstruction and the research team’s perspectives on the mysteries surrounding mummy KV55.
Side view of the facial reconstruction of Mummy KV55. (FAPAB Research Center)
Interview
Alicia McDermott: Please describe the process used to create this facial reconstruction.
Dr. Michael E. Habicht: Based on published data and images from various studies, a three-dimensional skull model of KV 55 was created. This was then checked again against the images.
Mummy KV55’s skull with data points used in the facial reconstruction. (FAPAB Research Center)
Facial muscles, eyes, fat pads and skin are now modelled on this digital skull model using the so-called Manchester method. The tissue thickness is determined for numerous anatomical points based on forensic mean values.
The skin, eyes and shape of the ears are approximations based on the fact that this is an Egyptian, which accounts for brown eyes and a skin complexion that is still common in Egypt today.
AM: How does this facial reconstruction balance forensic art with anatomical and anthropological information?
MH: The facial reconstruction was blindfolded: Cicero Moraes, our expert for face reconstruction, only received the skull data and the information that it was a man from Egypt, and not older than 25 years. Therefore, this reconstruction has no Egyptian crowns or royal jewelry to distort the impression. Therefore, we think that our reconstruction is as objective as possible and follows purely scientific methods.
Steps in the facial reconstruction process. (FAPAB Research Center)
AM: There is a lot of controversy surrounding the skin color of ancient Egyptians, could you please tell us how you made the choice of skin color for this reconstruction?
MH: It is indeed a highly debated topic but it should be assessed with an open mind, pushing away the racist connotations that have characterized this debate in the past. We decided to use skin tone IV (in the Fitzpatrick scale of I-VI) which is typically encountered in Egypt and in the Mediterranean, an olive completion. Based on the available evidence it would be unrealistic to opt for a much lighter or much darker skin tone. Eventually, a new genetic analysis of KV55’s remains would add more evidence.
The facial reconstruction of mummy KV55. (FAPAB Research Center)
AM: Why has it been so difficult to pinpoint an age of death for this mummy?
MH: It wasn’t particularly difficult, to be honest, as the comprehensive study by the late anthropologist Eugen Strouhal demonstrated. It required an objective evaluation using all available skeletal districts and a consultation of the recent anthropological literature.
The main problem was the a priori identification with Akhenaton plus the assumed age at death of the heretic pharaoh (about 30 years old or older). This has represented the main problem, but by objectively assessing the skeleton and published literature it appears clear that it belongs to a younger individual between the end of adolescence and early adulthood, 19-22 years).
The heretic pharaoh Akhenaten. (FAPAB Research Center)
AM: With so much controversy surrounding the mummy’s identification, who do you think is the best candidate? Is it Tutankhamun’s father Akhenaten? If so, how does that information fit with the belief that his death occurred when he was around 40 years of age and this mummy being younger? Or could the mummy be the remains of the enigmatic figure called Smenkhkare, as some scholars have proposed?
MH: It is most reasonable to assume that Akhenaton and Nefertiti are the historical parents of Tutankhamun, due to historic inscriptions. If one accepts the genetic study from 2010, KV 55 shall be the father and the younger lady KV 35 is the genetic mother of Tutankhamun.
Historical records testify 17 years of reign by Akhenaton. It is debated if some of the first years might be a co-regency with his father Amenhotep III. We acknowledge that an age of 22 years and 17 years of reign would make Akhenaton very young at the time of accession.
It would hardly be arguable that Akhenaten could be the real father of the eldest daughters (Meritaton, Maketaton and possibly also Anchesenamun). The mummies of these daughters have not yet been identified, so Amenhotep III could also be the father (contrary to inscriptional propaganda). Since Tutankhamun was only born in the 12th year of Akhenaten, it is still possible that Akhenaten was the real father, even if he was very young.
If Smenkhkare is assumed to be the father of Tutankhamun, this is also problematic. There is no certain historical evidence that Smenkhkare was a younger brother of Akhenaten.
Moreover, many experts argue that Smenkhkare is in fact the fictitious figure that Queen Nefertiti assumed at the end of Akhenaten's reign to succeed him as male king (analogous to Hatshepsut, who ruled as King Maat-Ka-Ra).
- The Mystery of Egyptian Tomb KV55 in the Valley of the Kings
- Egyptologists Set to Unravel the Identity of Mystery Pharaoh from Tomb KV55
A relief of a royal couple in the Amarna style; figures have variously been attributed as Akhenaten and Nefertiti, Smenkhkare and Meritaten, or Tutankhamen and Ankhesenamun. (Public Domain)
AM: If this is Akhenaton, why does he look so different from the ancient representations of the ‘heretic pharaoh?’ Could it be due to the style of art that was used by artists in the Amarna period?
MH: Egyptian art is generally not very realistic, but reflects a desired ideal image, especially in the case of the king. In the Amarna period, a grotesque, almost comic-like sense of art was introduced. In the course of time, art became more moderate and elegant again (the famous Berlin bust of Nefertiti is in this later tradition). It is therefore not surprising that the family members of the royal family of Amarna look normal and not like in Amarna art.
Broken colossal statue of Akhenaten in the Amarna art style. (FAPAB Research Center)
The research team is currently finishing work on a full-length anthropological report of their study of mummy KV55 and their facial reconstruction. It will be published in a peer-reviewed international journal.
Top Image: New facial reconstruction of the KV55 mummy. Source: FAPAB Research Center
By Alicia McDermott
Comments
Senowsret, It is very true
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In reply to Charles by Senowsret
Senowsret, It is very true that Nubians, Ethioopians, Egyptians and the people who you refer to as SSA are indeed members of the Black African race regardless if their DNA are not identical, and if some Black Africans has an “Admixture” of some other foreign ethnicity. After all, even Nigerians and their next door neighbors in Ghana and Togo has different DNA, and I know this fact because I have small percentages of different DNA from all three of those African nations. Further more, I also has a small percentage of English and Irish DNA which proves to me that those two European neighbors don’t have the same exact DNA because if they were the same, then I wouldn’t have 7% Irish and 6% English if they were the same, AND YET I ONLY CLAIM BLACK, BECAUSE WHY SHOULD I CLAIM DNA OF A PEOPLE WHO WOULD NOT CLAIM HAVING BLACK DNA, EVEN THOUGH MANY OF THEM HAVE IT, SAME AS WHITE PEOPLE IN THE SOUTHERN STATES OF THE USA WHO HAS BETWEEN 1% AND 28% AFRICAN DNA, PROBABLY BECAUSE OF WHITE MEN RAPING BLACK AMERICAN WOMEN and many mixed children passing for white to get decent jobs in the northern cities after leaving the south. Most Black Americans has at least 12% or more “non Black” DNA and that does not cause them to be any less Black than a 100% Black African. So all of this crap about the 18th Dynasty which include King Tut, Akhenaten, Nefertiri, Queen Ty who were all Royal Black Egyptians might have had some foreign admixture, but they were still ancient Black Race People. I just keep winning everytime you reply to me, and it s so easy for me to do so, because of your ignorance. REMEMBER, the ancient Egyptian book known as “BOOK OF THE DEAD” tells everybody with a brain where the Egyptians came from and so it reads: “WE CAME FROM WHERE THE NILE BEGAN, AND WHERE GOD HAPI DWELL, AT THE FOOTHILLS OF THE MOUNTAIN OF THE MOON” hunefer papyrus
Charles
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In reply to Senowsret, First of all by Charles Bowles
Charles,
Again with your myths, lol!
Stop with the mental gymnastics. Nubians, Ethiopians, and the rest of all SSA’s are not biological Egyptians. You cannot explain the Eurasian DNA among the royal 18th Dynasty. Instead you make excuses after excuses to deny scientific facts.
You hate the White man(ancient Greeks and Romans included) but turn to white men pulling up antiquated quotes. Quotes that are cherry picked while ignoring that vast majority of quotes that don't agree with your narrative or quotes you take out of context or simply don't understand. You have nothing of substance to offer.
Senowsret, First of all
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In reply to Language by Senowsret
Senowsret, First of all ancient Black Egyptians/Nubians/Ethiopians and all the rest of ancient Black Africans were always identified by all of the ancient Greek Historians as a “SINGLE” Black race of people, whether they were jet black or DARK reddish brown skin (the color of milk chocolate or extra dark melanin chocolate). There was a very thin line of land that actually separated these ancient Black melanin race of people, same as it still is today. Both of these ancient Black civilized people (Nubians/Egyptians) often fought against each other for supremacy SAME AS BIG BROTHERS AND SISTERS FIGHT AGAINST SMALLER YOUNGER MEMBERS OF THEIR FAMILIES. Both Black Nubians and Egyptians took turns ruling each other during thousands of years in their ancient adversarial history.. Like I keep telling you, the ancient “BOOK OF THE DEAD” which was written by ancient Black Egyptian Scribes, and APPROVED by all of the ancient Egyptian High Priests states with clarity where the ancient Black Egyptians originated,and it states the following: “WE CAME FROM WHERE THE NILE BEGAN, AND WHERE GOD HAPI DWELL, AT THE FOOTHILS OF THE MOUNTAIN OF THE MOON”.. hunefer papyrus
Language
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In reply to Senowsret, You are very by Charles Bowles
Charles,
I’m not doing your homework for you.
You neither comprehend Egyptian population history nor its culture. You can't explain why ancient Nubians and ancient Egyptians do not belong to the same language phyla, you hit back with this nonsense, assumptions made 3,000 years after Egypt’s founding. You are hiding behind Classical Greek texts because you have no answer. None of the Egyptian creation myths hold an origin in Sub Saharan Africa; that being said,a myth is a myth is a myth and not science.
And what did Nubians have to say? They didn't have a writing system until the Meroitic era. You always run to the White man who you hate. Quack .
Senowsret, You are very
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In reply to Isfet by Senowsret
Senowsret, You are very wrong about no language in Africa is related to the ancient Egyptian language.. It has been proven that the ancient Nubian language and Egyptian language are practically the same in writing, even if it was not spoken the same way. According to the Greek historian Diodorus Siculus who visited ancient Egypt/Nubia, he stated that ancient Hieroglyphic writing actually originated in Nubia and not in Egypt, and that the Egyptians were the ones who gave the writing its name “Hieroglyphics”. He also stated historical sources proved that ancient Egyptians migrated northward from the south from Nubia and closer to the Mediterranean Sea, and all of the ancient scholars support the original migration of Egyptians moving from the South to the North along he Nile River, including ALL ANCIENT EGYPTIAN SCRIBES AND HIGH PRIESTS. The ancient Egyptian book known as the “BOOK OF THE DEAD” states with clarity about where the ancient peoples of Egypt originated: “WE CAME FROM WHERE THE NILE BEGAN, AND WHERE GOD HAPI DWELL, AT THE FOOTHILLS AT THE MOUNTAIN OF THE MOON” …. hunefer papyrus But according to you and other white supremacists, all of the Greek Historians such as Diodorus Siculus, Herodotus, Strabo, etc, as well as the ancient Black Egyptian Scribes and High Priests which you refer to as having mythical and legenary tales have all lied, and it is only people like you who hold all the truhs..