Pharaoh. Ay was probably the son of Master of the Horse, Yuya, who was also father of Tiye, Amenhotep III's queen. He first appeared in the record as a Master of the Horse in the court of Akhenaten. He also held the position "the favored one of the Good God, fan-bearer on the king's right hand, true king's scribe and god's father, trusted throughout the entire land, commander of chariotry". During the reign of Akhenaten, he rose to the position of vizier and royal chancellor. After Akhenaten's death, Ay continued to serve under his successor, Tutankhamen. In some records he is referred to as regent. Theory has it that it was Ay who had much to do with the eventual return to polytheism during Tutankhamen's short reign. When Tutankhamen died, after circumventing an attempt by the queen, Ankhesenamun, to secure a foreign prince to succeed her husband, Ay took the throne. Scholars speculate that he married Tutankhamen's widow himself who, as a king's daughter, would have carried the right of succession. Ay reigned for a little over four years, between 1325 and 1321 BC, and apparently had no children to succeed him since he named General Horemheb as his successor. Ay was interred in a tomb near Amenhotep III and the mortuary temple at Medinet Habu. When Giovanni Belzoni found the tomb in 1816, Ay's red quartzite sarcophagus had been apparently smashed in antiquity and his name excised from the wall paintings and texts. Ay's mummy has never been found.
Pharaoh. Ay was probably the son of Master of the Horse, Yuya, who was also father of Tiye, Amenhotep III's queen. He first appeared in the record as a Master of the Horse in the court of Akhenaten. He also held the position "the favored one of the Good God, fan-bearer on the king's right hand, true king's scribe and god's father, trusted throughout the entire land, commander of chariotry". During the reign of Akhenaten, he rose to the position of vizier and royal chancellor. After Akhenaten's death, Ay continued to serve under his successor, Tutankhamen. In some records he is referred to as regent. Theory has it that it was Ay who had much to do with the eventual return to polytheism during Tutankhamen's short reign. When Tutankhamen died, after circumventing an attempt by the queen, Ankhesenamun, to secure a foreign prince to succeed her husband, Ay took the throne. Scholars speculate that he married Tutankhamen's widow himself who, as a king's daughter, would have carried the right of succession. Ay reigned for a little over four years, between 1325 and 1321 BC, and apparently had no children to succeed him since he named General Horemheb as his successor. Ay was interred in a tomb near Amenhotep III and the mortuary temple at Medinet Habu. When Giovanni Belzoni found the tomb in 1816, Ay's red quartzite sarcophagus had been apparently smashed in antiquity and his name excised from the wall paintings and texts. Ay's mummy has never been found.
Bio by: Iola
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