AY Flashcards
(6 cards)
- Who was Ay? What positions had he held under previous pharaohs?
Ay was the successor of Tutankhamun. Several scenes from the temple of Amun showed the elderly ay, who held the title of ‘kings eldest son’, standing in the manner of a son and heir behind the king. He served as a Vizier under Tut, thus his close relation to the royal family gave him the opportunity to rise within the ranks of military and bureaucracy.
How did the Queen Ankhesenamun react to Ay’s accession to the throne?
The queen sent a letter to the Hittite king asking fro one of his sons to be sent to Egypt to share her throne, for she might’ve found that Ay’s accession was wrong claiming it would be “ repugnant for me to take one of my servants to husband” However Redford maintains that this servant would not by Ay, for he had a wife. It is suggested that it could’ve been Horemheb and that her reactions against this new accession could’ve been ‘unprecedented’.
What happened to her? ( Queen Ankhesenamun)
She shared the throne with Ay as co regent. This is evident in a scarab ring with the joint cartouches of Ay and the young queen.
- What were Ay’s achievements as Pharaoh?
The first few months of Ay’s reign was spent organizing Tutankhamun’s burial which soon after he proceeded as a setem priest, performed the Opening of the Mouth at Tutankhamun’s burial. The building projects begun under Karnak under Tutankhamun were continued. Ay also finished his tomb in the western branch of the Valley of the Kings.
- How long did he rule?
A short 4- 5year reign.
- What major changes did he initiate during his reign?
He continued the policy of rehabilitating Amun and abandoning the extreme aspects of the Atenist religion. Cyril Aldred believed that his removal of the royal bodies from Amarna might be evidence of his wish to make a complete break with the Armana Heresy. The bodies were removed to the Theban Necropolis and hurriedly buried with Tutankhamun’s seal in small communal tombs.
