Introduction - Amenhotep III
Amenhotep III was an ancient Egyptian pharaoh who ruled at a time when ancient Egypt was at its peak of power and prosperity. During his reign ancient Egypt built great architectural works and produced great works of art including amazing sculptures. Below is a list of interesting kid-friendly facts about this great pharaoh including how long he ruled Egypt, what accomplishments he is famous for, and where he is buried.Click here for a great selection of Amazon.com books about the ancient Egyptian Pharaohs.
Interesting Amenhotep III Facts
- He was born around 1392 BC.
- He was the ninth pharaoh of the Eighteenth dynasty.
- He became pharaoh somewhere between the ages of 6 and 12. Having taken the throne of the most powerful civilization in the ancient world at such a young age he most likely, at first, had a regent or strong advisors who acted for him.
- His reign was approximately from 1386 BC to 1351 BC.
- Amenhotep III is also referred to as Amenhotep the Magnificent.
- His father was pharaoh Thutmose IV and his mother was Mutemwiya, a minor wife of Thutmose. It was common for ancient Egyptian pharaohs to have several wives; one queen and several minor wives.
- His name, Amenhotep, translates to "Amun is satisfied" (Amun was a powerful god of ancient Egypt).
- His reign was a very peaceful one. Records of only one very minor military expedition exist. This was too Upper Nubia which is a region along the Nile River located in what is today central Sudan.
- Amenhotep III's queen (Great Royal Wife) was Tiye. They had two sons together. There first son would die before Amenhotep III's death leaving the second son, Amenhotep IV, to succeeded Amenhotep III as ruler of Egypt. Amenhotep IV eventually changed his royal name to Akhenaten.
- It is believed that Amenhotep III and his queen Tiye had four daughters together. Their names were Henuttaneb, Sitamun, Nebetah, and Isis (or Iset).
- During his reign some of the most beautiful statues created by ancient Egypt were produced.
- During his reign over Egypt amazing buildings were erected. An examples is the beautiful Luxor Temple, which is actually a temple complex that was built in the ancient Egyptian capital of Thebes on the east bank of the Nile River located near the modern day city of Luxor.
- Amenhotep III built extensively at the important religious complex of Karnak named for the modern day village of El-Karnak.
- More than 250 ancient statues of Amenhotep III have been discovered; this is more than any other Egyptian pharaoh.
- It was determined, by a study of Amenhotep III's mummy that he died between the age of forty and fifty years old somewhere between 1353 BC and 1351 BC.
- It is believed in his final years of life he suffered from arthritis and became obese.
- Amenhotep III was originally buried in the Western Valley of the Valley of the Kings. Later his mummy was moved, during the ancient Egyptian Third Intermediate Period, to a location known as KV35.
- His mortuary temple, built on the banks of the Nile River, was one of the largest temples the world has ever seen. However it was built to close to the Nile River and was destroyed by flooding within two hundred years of its construction. Two gigantic twin statues depicting Amenhotep III, towering 59 feet (18 meters) high, called the Colossi of Memnon are the only portions of the temple still standing.