17 Facts About Tiye

Tiye's father, Yuya, was a non-royal, wealthy landowner from the Upper Egyptian town of Akhmim, where he served as a priest and superintendent of oxen or commander of the chariotry.

Egyptologists have suggested that Tiye's father, Yuya, was of foreign origin due to the features of his mummy and the many different spellings of his name, which might imply it was a non-Egyptian name in origin.

Tiye had a brother, Anen, who was Second Prophet of Amun.

Tiye was married to Amenhotep III by the second year of his reign.

Tiye had been born of a secondary wife of his father and needed a stronger tie to the royal lineage.

Tiye appears to have been crowned while still a child, perhaps between the ages of six and twelve.

Tiye's husband devoted a number of shrines to her and constructed a temple dedicated to her in Sedeinga in Nubia where she was worshipped as a form of the goddess Hathor-Tefnut.

Tiye had an artificial lake built for her in his Year 12.

Tiye wielded a great deal of power during both her husband's and son's reigns.

Tiye often had to consider claims for Egypt's gold and requests for his royal daughters in marriage from foreign kings such as Tushratta of Mitanni and Kadashman-Enlil I of Babylon.

Tiye continued to play an active role in foreign relations and was the first Egyptian queen to have her name recorded on official acts.

Amenhotep III died in Year 38 or Year 39 of his reign and was buried in the Valley of the Kings in WV22; however, Tiye is known to have outlived him by as many as twelve years.

Tiye continued to be mentioned in the Amarna letters and in inscriptions as queen and beloved of the king.

Tiye is believed to have been originally buried in the Royal Tomb at Amarna alongside her son Akhenaten and granddaughter, Meketaten.

Analysis of the badly damaged decoration on the left wall beyond the plinth indicates that Tiye was buried there.

Tiye's sarcophagus was likely contained within multiple nested shrines, like those of her grandson Tutankhamun.

The mummy of the older woman, who would later be identified as Tiye, was referred to by Egyptologists as the 'Elder Lady' while the other woman was 'The Younger Lady'.