The thirty-eight-year reign of the Egyptian Pharaoh, Amenhotep III was a period of unparalleled stability and wealth in the history of the New Kingdom. During the reign of Amenhotep III, Egypt grew to be the world’s “Super Power,” and had great influence on a large scale. The key features of his reign included: * His use of scarabs * His marriage to Queen Tiye * His relationship with other Kings and the Amarna Letters * His religious ideology * His building projects
One significant reason that made Amenhotep III such a distinguished pharaoh was his use of propaganda to influence and manipulate peoples’ thoughts, such as his use of stone scarabs which have been discovered. Their lengthy inscribed texts praise the accomplishments of the pharaoh, for example one of these scarabs records that he captured ninety-six wild bulls, another shows that he hunted on horseback (this was an unusual skill in this period). Another scarab tells of a total of 102 lions killed during ten years of hunting. Also, in his tenth year as pharaoh he announced on another scarab the inclusion of Gilukhepa, a Mitannian princess, in his harem. In addition, his marriage to Queen Tiye was also noted on a number of beautifully crafted scarabs.
In Amenhotep’s second year as pharaoh, he married the daughter of two commoners named Yuya, who was the overseer of the Kings horses and Thuya, who was attached to the temple of Amen. Her name was Tiye and she was to become the Chief Queen. Tiye was a beautiful and elegant woman who was closely involved in the government of the kingdom. It was obvious that the King treasured her and he celebrated their marriage by issuing a scarab as well as ordering a special boat to be built along with a huge lake for her to go boating in private. Queen Tiye appears frequently on Amenhotep’s monuments, sometimes in the place of a goddess or seated next to him with royal characteristics. To show his love for Queen