Why did Akhenaten risk everything, fly in the face of the entire Egyptian priesthood, close the temples, and move everyone hundreds of miles into the desert to worship “the One God”?
According to the Christian Bible, Joseph, the Hebrew Patriarch, was betrayed by his envious brothers at the age of 17 and sold into Egyptian slavery. He interpreted Pharaoh’s dreams, ultimately saving Egypt from famine. In gratitude, he was appointed Vizier, second in command only to the Pharaoh. Over time, he summoned his family to Egypt, where they stayed for about 430 years before Moses led them out, carrying Joseph’s remains. Some scholars suggest this Exodus took place during the reign of either Ramses II or his son, Merenptah.
However, an emerging theory, supported by archaeological findings, historical Egyptian records, the Dead Sea Scrolls, the Koran, the Talmud, and specific portions of the Bible, presents a fresh perspective:
In the Valley of the Kings, there lies the tomb of Yuya and Thuya. The evidence indicates that Yuya was born between 1452 and 1439 BC and died in his 60s between 1393 and 1379 BC, coinciding with the reign of Amenhotep III. Inscriptions in the tomb refer to him as “He whom the King made Great and Wise, whom the King has made his Double,” and “the holy father of the Lord of the Two Lands,” a title also attributed to Joseph in the Bible.
“He whom the King made Great and Wise, whom the King has made his Double”
And “the holy father of the Lord of the Two Lands”—which is a title also claimed by Joseph of the bible.
This Yuya appears to not be of royal blood yet is buried in the Valley of the Kings and many of the possessions buried with him appear to have been given to him by the royal family. The name “Yuya” has not been found before this in Egypt and does not appear to be Egyptian. His ears were not pierced as the Egyptians’ were, and his hands were positioned with the palms facing the neck under the chin, not in the usual Osirian form of crossing the hands over the chest.
Yuya and his wife, Thuya, (who appears to have been Egyptian) had a daughter called Tiye. It appears that the Pharaoh Amenhotep III became Pharaoh at the age of 12 and because the line of succession was through the royal females, he married his sister, Sitamun. But then he broke with tradition and also married Tiye, (who was only 8 years old) and made her his Great Royal Wife and Queen instead of Sitamun. Amenhotep III appears to have loved Tiye very much; he built many shrines for her, and she is the first queen to be portrayed with the king in a statue where she is the same size as the king. This statue is in the museum in Cairo.
If Yuya is Joseph and he was the grand-father of Akhenaten……now we have a reason for Akhenaten and Nefertiti’s seemingly bizarre decision to upset the priesthood , throw Thebes into chaos, and move everyone hundreds of miles away into the desert to worship the “ONE God” under the guise of the ATEN (Sun)
These insights are brilliantly detailed in “Stranger in the Valley of the Kings”, a captivating work authored by Ahmed Osman, an Egyptian author known for his books that explore alternative historical and archaeological theories. His work often combines historical research, religious texts, and his own interpretations to present unconventional ideas about the past.
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