Atlantis and the Ten Plagues of Egypt: The Secret History Hidden in the Valley of the Kings

by Phillips, Graham

  1292–1225: Reign of Ramesses II.

  1275: Egyptian offensive against the Hittites.

  1270: Apiru used as hard labour to erect a pylon at Memphis and to make bricks at Miour in the province of Fayum.

  1250: The burning of Hazor.

  1220: Israel Stela mentions the Israelites having some kind of kingdom in Palestine.

  Royal Canon of Turin list of some 300 Egyptian kings.

  1180: Apiru listed as quarrymen and working on land sacred to the god Atum at Heliopolis.

  Philistines first recorded by Egyptians in eastern Mediterranean.

  1070–332: The Egyptian Late Period.

  1000: The Bible comes into historical context.

  980: King David and the unification of Israel.

  960: Solomon king of Israel and the building of Jerusalem Temple.

  650: Oldest known form of coinage used by the Lydians.

  Camels first used in Egypt.

  The books of the Pentateuch are written.

  565: Solon visits Egypt and hears Atlantis story.

  332: Alexander the Great annexes Egypt.

  The works of Manetho are written.

  30: Egypt's last pharaoh, Ptolemy XV, the son of Cleopatra, is murdered on the orders of Caesar Augustus and Egypt becomes the personal estate of the Roman Emperors.

  AD – EGYPTOLOGY AND ARCHAEOLOGY

  1799: Discovery of the Rosetta Stone.

  1816: Giovanni Belzoni discovers the tomb of Ay.

  1817: Belzoni discovers tomb of Ramesses I.

  1822: The French scholar Jean François Champollion completes the decipherment of hieroglyphics.

  1824: The British explorer John Gardner Wilkinson makes first survey of rock tombs in Amarna.

  1825: The Scottish laird Robert Hay makes drawings of Amarna reliefs.

  1840: A German team led by Egyptologist Richard Lepsius make a number of detailed drawings of the tomb reliefs in Amarna.

  1870: The German archaeologist Heinrich Schliemann uncovers the remains of Troy at Hissarlik in Turkey.

  1880: Akhenaten's tomb discovered by an unknown Egyptian.

  1882: First pieces of jewellery from Akhenaten's tomb sold to the Reverend W. J. Loftie.

  1887: A peasant woman digging for fertilizer among the ancient ruins of Akhetaten unearths a cache of over 300 inscribed clay tablets, now called the Amarna Letters.

  1890s: The first archeological excavation of Amarna is conducted by Sir W. M. Flinders Petrie.

  Francis Llewelyn Griffith uncovers first evidence to suggest the co-regency between Akhenaten and Amonhotep IV – a stela from the chief servitor Pinhasy's mansion showing Amonhotep still alive in Amarna.

  1891: Alexandre Barsanti and a French expedition excavate Akhenaten's tomb.

  1890s: Over a period of six years, Norman de Garis Davies, the surveyor for the British-based Egypt Exploration Fund, painstakingly copies all the decorations that still survive in the cliff tombs in Amarna.

  1898: The mummy thought to be of Queen Tiye is found in the tomb of Amonhotep II.

  Tuthmosis III's tomb discovered by the French Egyptologist Victor Loret.

  1901: Boston archaeologist Harriet Boyd excavates Minoan remains at Gournia on the island of Crete.

  1906: Richard Seager excavates a Minoan port on the island of Mochlos.

  1907: Tomb 55 is discovered by the British archaeologists Edward Ayrton and Arthur Weigall, together with their American financier Theodore Davis.

  1911: The German archaeologist Ludwig Borchardt discovers Nefertiti bust in the studio of the royal sculptor Djhutmose at the Great Palace at Amarna.

  1920: The Greek archaeologist Stephanos Xanthoudidis uncovers the villa of Nirou Khani on the island of Crete.

  1921: Kiya's Maru temple discovered at Amarna by the British archaeologist Leonard Woolley.

  1922: Howard Carter discovers Tutankhamun's tomb.

  1923: The British archaeologist John Pendlebury discovers fragments of a carved tray bearing the name of Amonhotep III at Amarna.

  1925: While digging a drainage ditch at the Temple of Karnak workmen uncover the Akhenaten colossi.

  1939: Hermopolis Talatat discovered.

  1956: Geologists Dragoslav Ninkovich and Bruce Heezen of Columbia University conduct the Vema survey of the Mediterranean seabed.

  1960: Greek archaeologist Professor Nicholas Platon discovers the remains of Crete's easternmost Minoan palace at Kato Zakro.

  1952: The British archaeologist Dame Kathleen Kenyon excavates the Bronze Age fortification at Tell-es-Sultan near the Dead Sea, thought to be the site of ancient Jericho.

  1955: Israeli archaeologist Yigael Yadin excavates the site of ancient Hazar, modern Tell el-Qedah, some fourteen kilometres north of the Sea of Galilee.

  1967: Akrotiri excavations begun at Thera by Spyridon Marinatos.

  1965: Retired US foreign service officer Ray Wingfield Smith initiates the Akhenaten Temple Project.

  1975: Akhenaten Temple Project taken over by Professor Donald Redford of Toronto University.

  1979: Excavation of temple sanctuary on Mount Euptos, Crete.

  1984: Funerary vessel bearing the name of princess Neferneferure is discovered among rubble around the Amarna royal tomb by Egyptian archaeologist Dr Aly el Kouly.

  1989: French archaeologist Alain Zivie discovers the tomb of Aper-El at Saqqara.

  References

  CHAPTER ONE

  Account of tomb opening taken from: Davis, T. M., The Tomb of Queen Tiyi, London, 1910. Ayrton, E. R., The Tomb of Thy, Proceedings of the Society of Biblical Archaeology 29, London, 1907. Weigall, A. E., The Mummy of Akhenaten, Journal of Egyptian Archaeology 8, London, 1922. Andrews, Emma, B., Personal Diary, Metropolitan Museum, New York.

  Overall Perspective: Aldred, C., Akhenaten: King of Egypt, London, 1988. Weigall, A. E., The Life and Times of Akhnaton, London, 1922. Weigall, A. E., The Treasury of Ancient Egypt, London, 1911.

  p. 3 Tomb of Tuthmosis IV: Davis, T. M., The Tomb of Toutmosis IV, London 1906. Romer, J., Valley of the Kings, London, 1981, ch. 18 & pp.183–192

  p. l0 Unwrapping of Mummy: Maspero, G., New Light of Ancient Egypt, London, 1908, ch. 19. Davis, T. M., The Tomb of Queen Tiyi, London, 1910.

  p. 10 Unprofessional aftermath: Romer, J., Valley of the Kings, London, 1981, ch 20. Tyndale, W., Below the Cataracts, London, 1907.

  p. 11 Ayrton finds seal: Andrews, Personal Diary. Weigall, The Treasury of Ancient Egypt. Aldred, Akhenaten: King of Egypt, pp. 196, 207.

  p. 12 Arguments regarding identity of tomb occupant: Davis, The Tomb of Queen Tiyi. Weigall, A. E., The Mummy of Akhenaten, Journal of Egyptian Archaeology 8, London, 1922. Ayrton, E. R., The Tomb of Thy, Proceedings of the Society of Biblical Archaeology 29, London 1907. Andrews, Personal Diary. Aldred, Akhenaten . . ., p. 198–9.

  p. 12 Tutankhamun's seal: Aldred, Akhenaten . . ., p. 197.

  p. 14 Magic Bricks: Romer, J., Valley of the Kings, London, 1981, p.217. Aldred, Akhenaten . . ., p. 199.

  p. 14 Shrine panel: Drawn by Harold Jones in 1907 and reproduced in Romer, Valley . . ., p. 215.

  p. 15 Elliot Smith's examination of mummy: Smith, G. E., The Royal Mummies, Cairo, 1922.

  p. 16 Vulture collar: Weigall, A. E., The Life and Times of Akhenaten, London, 1922, p. 248.

  p. 16 Tomb 55 mummy: Harrison, R. G., An Anatomical Examination of the Pharaonic Remains Purported to be Akhenaten, Journal of Egyptian Archaeology 52, 1966.

  p. 16 Tomb 55 mummy as Smenkhkare: Aldred, Akhenaten . . ., ch. 18, pp. 204, 218. Clayton, P., Chronicle of the Pharaohs, London, 1994, pp. 126–7.

  p. 17 Heads side by side: Cairo Museum J.E. 59294.

  p. 17 Name in cartouche in Meryre's tomb: Davies, N. de G., The Rock Tombs of El Amarna, London, 1908.

  p. 17 Length of Smenkhkare's reign: Aldred, Akhenaten . . ., p. 293.

  p. 18 Discs from Tutankhamun's tomb: Bosse-Griffiths, K., Finds From the Tomb of Queen Tiye, Journal of Egyptian Archaeology 47, 196
1. Aldred, Akhenaten . . ., pp. 209–300.

  p. 19 Smenkhkare items in Tutankhamun's tomb: Reeves, N., The Complete Tutankhamun, London, 1990, pp. 109, 122. Aldred, Akhenaten . . ., pl. 54. Desroches-Noblecourt, C., Tutankhamun, London, 1969, pp. 123, 124, 172.

  p. 19 Jewellery around Tutankhamun's mummy: Reeves, N., The Complete Tutankhamun, London, 1990, p.1l4. Aldred, Akhenaten . . ., p. 300. Desroches-Noblecourt, Tutankhamun, pp. 123, 124, 172.

  p. 19 Tutankhamun's second coffin as Smenkhkare likeness: Aldred, Akhenaten . . ., p. 202.

  p. 21 Shrine panels abandoned: Ibid., pp. 196, 197, 208.

  p. 21 Tools abandoned: Romer, Valley . . ., p. 214.

  p. 22 Female effects: Ibid., p. 218. Aldred, Akhenaten . . ., pp. 202, 203, 205.

  p. 22 Mummy band: Desroches-Noblecourt, Tutankhamun, p. 172.

  p. 23 One arm across chest: Samson, J., Nefertiti and Cleopatra, London, 1990, p. 94.

  p. 23 Rolf Krauss: Aldred, Akhenaten . . ., p. 205.

  CHAPTER TWO

  General history: Clayton, Chronicle . . . David, R., Discovering Ancient Egypt, London, 1933.

  Akhenaten general: Aldred, Akhenaten . . . Redford, D. B., Akhenaten: The Heretic King, Princeton, 1987.

  Dating: Clayton, Chronicle . . ., pp. 12-13.

  p. 45 Akhenaten name removed, etc.: Aldred, Akhenaten . . ., pp. 198–9.

  p. 48 Adapted for Akhenaten: Ibid., p. 205.

  p. 49 Atenist items in Tutankhamun's tomb: Desroches-Noblecourt, Tutankhamun, pp. 68, 69, 132, 195. Clayton, Chronicle . . ., p. 129. Reeves, The Complete Tutankhamun, pp. 113, 184, 185, 202, 203.

  p. 49 Desecrations of inscriptions: Desroches-Noblecourt, Tutankhamun, pp.208–12.

  p. 49 Names omitted from king lists: Clayton, Chronicle . . ., p. 138.

  CHAPTER THREE

  General: Aldred, Akhenaten . . ., ch. 1. Redford, Akhenaten . . ., ch. 8. Samson, J., Amarna: City of Akhenaten and Nefertiti, London, 1972.

  p. 51 Illustrations from tombs: Davies, The Rock Tombs . . . Petrie, W. M. F., Tell el-Amarna, London, 1894.

  p. 55 Shrines: Aldred, Akhenaten . . . , p. 66

  p. 55 Noble's tombs: Davies, The Rock Tombs . . .

  p. 56 Window of Appearance: Ibid., p.262. Redford, Akhenaten . . ., pp. 128–9.

  p. 56 Boundary Stelae: The Amarna Boundary Stelae Project, University of Chicago Oriental Institute Annual Report, 1983. Aldred, Akhenaten . . . , ch. 4.

  p. 60 Rock tombs: Davies, The Rock Tombs . . . Petrie, Tell el-Amarna. Weigall, The Treasury . . . Baikie, J., The Amarna Age, London, 1926. Gardiner, A. H., A Later Allusion to Akhenaten, Journal of Egyptian Archaeology 24, 1938.

  p. 65 Amarna letters: Mercer, S. A. B., The Tell el Amarna Tablets, Toronto, 1939.

  p. 66 Armed camp: Schulman, A. R., Military Background of the Amarna Period, Journal of the American Research Centre in Egypt, Vol. 3, 1964.

  p. 66 Akhenaten physiology: Aldred, C., and Sandison, A. T., The Pharaoh Akhenaten: A Problem in Egyptology and Pathology, Bulletin of the History of Medicine 36, 1962. Aldred, Akhenaten . . . , ch. 20.

  p. 70 Mummies analysis: Harrison. An Anatomical Examination . . .

  p. 71 Hymn to the Aten: Aldred, Akhenaten . . ., pp. 241–3. Samson, Nefertiti and Cleopatra, pp. 29–32

  p. 72 Goddess Mut: Ions, V., Egyptian Mythology, London, 1982, p. 100. Lurker, M., The Gods and Symbols of Ancient Egypt, London 1980, p. 82.

  p. 74 Anti-Atenists: Redford, Akhenaten . . ., ch. 14.

  CHAPTER FOUR

  Amarna queens general: Lesko, The Remarkable Women of Ancient Egypt.

  p. 77 Influence of Nefertiti: Samson, Nefertiti and Cleopatra.

  p. 80 Boundary Stelae: The Amarna Boundary Stelae Project . . . Aldred, Akhenaten . . . , p. 48.

  p. 80 Nefertiti images on sarcophagus: Ibid., p. 42.

  p. 80 Nefertiti hieroglyph: Samson, Nefertiti and Cleopatra, p. 62.

  p. 80 Boundary stelae proclamation regarding Nefertiti: Aldred, Akhenaten . . . , p. 49.

  p. 81 Ay as father of the god: Samson, Nefertiti and Cleopatra, p.57. Aldred, Akhenaten . . ., p. 221.

  p. 81 Ay as Sem priest: Reeves, The Complete Tutankhamun, pp. 72-3.

  p. 81 Aper-El as father of the god: Zivie, A., The Treasury of Aper-El, Egyptian Archaeology, Summer, 1991, pp. 26–9.

  p. 81 Tuya and Tiye titles: Aldred, Akhenaten . . ., p. 222.

  p. 82 Mutemwiya: David, Discovering Ancient Egypt, p. 154. Clayton, Chronicle . . . , p. 115.

  p. 82 Nefertiti bust: Samson, Nefertiti and Cleopatra, pp. 6–9.

  p. 82 Knossos: Farnoux, A., Knossos: Unearthing a Legend, New York, 1996.

  p. 82 Hyksos and Minoans: Clayton, Chronicle . . ., pp. 94–5. Biotic, M., Avaris and Piramesses: Archaeological Exploration in the Eastern Delta, Proceedings of the British Academy, Vol. 65, 1979.

  p. 83 Keftiu and Senenmut's tomb: Clayton, Chronicle . . ., pp. 104–6. Wilson, I., The Exodus Enigma, London, 1985, p. 80.

  p. 83 Malkata palace Minoan designs: Aldred, Akhenaten . . ., pl. 48 and 49. Heyes, W. C. Inscriptions From the Palace of Amenhotep III, Journal of Near Eastern Studies 10, 1953.

  p. 83 Hittites: Dickinson, O., The Aegean Bronze Age, Cambridge, 1994.

  p. 83 Minoan ships used to carry timber: Freeman-Grenville, Chronology of World History, p. 8.

  p. 84 Nefertiti breaks taboos: Samson, Nefertiti and Cleopatra, p. 19.

  p. 85 Mnevis Bull: Lurker, The Gods and Symbols of Ancient Egypt, p.81. Ions, Egyptian Mythology, pp. 121–2.

  p. 85 Bull references on boundary stelae: Aldred, Akhenaten . . ., pp.47, 50.

  p. 85 Bull's tail and Nefertiti head-dress: Ibid., pp 46–7.

  p. 86 Nefertiti's death: Ibid., pp. 285, 288.

  p. 86 Meketaten and Tiye's deaths: Ibid., pp. 283, 284.

  p. 87 Late Amarna art: Ibid., pp. 234–5. Frankfort, H., The Mural Painting of El-Amarna, London, 1929.

  p. 87 Smenkhkare Appointed Co-Regent: Thomas, A. P., Akhenaten's Egypt, London, 1996, p. 30. Aldred, C., The Immediate Successors of Akhenaten, Cambridge Ancient History, Vol. II. Aldred, Akhenaten: King of Egypt, pp. 289, 291.

  p. 87 Princesses' tombs: Ibid., ch. 3. Martin, G. T., The Royal Tomb at Amarna, London, 1974. El-Khouly, A. and Martin, G. T., Excavations in the Royal Necropolis at El Amarna, Cairo, 1985.

  p. 89 Mayati letters: Mercer, The Tell el Amarna Tablets.

  p. 90 Kiya: Aldred, Akhenaten: King of Egypt, pp. 285–288.

  p. 92 Smenkhkare adopts Nefertiti's name: Ibid., p. 192.

  p. 92 Mutnodjme: Ibid., pp. 222–3.

  p. 93 Deaths of Akhenaten and Smenkhkare: Ibid., p. 293.

  p. 94 Kiya's monuments defaced: Ibid., p. 204.

  p. 94 Tomb 55 coffin: Perepelkin, G., The Secret of the Gold Coffin, Moscow, 1978.

  p. 94 Footboard Text: Redford, Akhenaten . . ., pp. 189–90.

  p. 95 Theory: Aldred, Akhenaten . . ., pp. 203–4.

  p. 95 Krauss: Ibid., p. 205.

  p. 96 Band and coffin: Ibid., p. 203.

  p. 97 Smenkhkare drops epithet: Ibid., p. 29l.

  p. 98 Anti-Amun: Ibid., pp. 289–90

  p. 99 Pairi tomb: Ibid., p. 293. Clayton, Chronicle . . .,p. 126.

  CHAPTER FIVE

  General: Martin, The Royal Tomb at Amarna. Petrie, Tell el-Amarna. Aldred, Akhenaten . . ., ch. 3.

  p. 108 Baby-carrying woman: Ibid., p. 32.

  p. 109 Niches: Aldred, Akhenaten . . ., p. 43.

  p. 110 Magic bricks. Martin., The Royal Tomb at Amarna.

  p. 110 Age of bricks. Romer, Valley of the Kings, p.217.

  p. 113 Akhenaten's effects in Tutankhamun's tomb. Reeves., The Complete Tutankhamun, p. 169.

  p. 114 Opening of Tutankhamun's tomb: Carter, H., The Tomb of Tutankhamun, London, 1933.

  p. 115 Coffins and death mask: Reeves, The Complete Tutankhamun, pp. 106–14.

  p. 117 Coffinettes: Ibid., pp. 109, 122. pl. 54. Desroches-Noblecourt, Tutankhamun, pp. 123, 124, 16l.

  p. 118 Tutankhamun in o
bscurity: Howing, T., Tutankhamun: The Untold Story, pp. 266–7.

  p. 119 Body jewellery made for Smenkhkare: Reeves, The Complete Tutankhamun, p. 114. Aldred, Akhenaten . . ., p. 300. Desroches-Noblecourt, Tutankhamun, pp. 123–4.

  p. 119 Smenkhkare effects in Tutankhamun's tomb: Romer, J., Valley of the Kings, pp. 271, 272, 275.

  p. 120 Amun name removed: Aldred, Akhenaten . . ., pp. 289–90.

  CHAPTER SIX

  p. 127 Restoration Stela: Clayton, Chronicle . . ., p. 129.

  p. 129 Throne:. Reeves, The Complete Tutankhamun, p. 184.

  p. 130 Skull cap: Ibid., p. 113.

  p. 130 Ay's tomb: Clayton, Chronicle of the Pharaohs, p. 137.

  p. 130 Canopic Shrine: Carter, The Tomb of Tutankhamun.

  p. 131 Memphis, Pentu, Minnakht and Neb: Aldred, Akhenaten . . ., p. 295.

  p. 132 Kiya's daughter: Ibid., p. 234.

  p. 133 King's son: Ibid., p. 287.

  p. 133 Amonhotep III as Tutankhamun's father: Ibid., p. 108.

  p. 134 Griffith's stelae: Ibid., pp. 66, 174.

  p. 134 Tray: Ibid., p. 101.

  p. 135 Bek Aswan: Ibid., pp. 93–4.

  p. 136 Living for ever: Ibid., p. 174.

  p. 136 Kheruef relief: Ibid., p. 174

  p. 136 Huya relief: Ibid., p. 174.

  p. 136 Amarna letters: Ibid., ch. 17.

  p. 137 Equal number of letters: Ibid., p. 19l.

  p. 137 Wine: Ibid., pp. 173–4.

  p. 138 Amonhotep's death in Year 12: Ibid., pp. 178–80.

  p. 139 Isis and Sitamun: Clayton, Chronicle . . ., p. 115.

  p. 139 Heirlooms in Tutankhamun's tomb: Reeves, The Complete Tutankhamun, pp. 168–9.

  p. 140 Tiye's mummy. Aldred, Akhenaten . . ., p. 105.

  p. 141 Huya, Meryre, etc.: Daves, The Rock Tombs . . .

  p. 142 Bone in skull: Reeves, The Complete Tutankhamun, p. 118.

  p. 142 Ankhesenamun letter: Desroches-Noblecourt, Tutankhamun, pp.202–3. Reeves, The Complete Tutankhamun, p. 23.

  p. 143 Ay marries Ankhesenamun: Clayton. Chronicle . . ., pp. 136–137.

  p. 144 Military activity: Ibid., p. 130. Desroches-Noblecourt, Tutankhamun, pp. 144–147.

  p. 144 Gesso box: Reeves, The Complete Tutankhamun, p. 189.