Queens of Egypt
Cleopatra
"Cleopatra VII" was not as pretty as her charm and ambition, that made two Roman leaders - Julius Caesar and Mark Anthony - fall into deep love with her. Despite her political foresight, she had notably contributed to the fall of both, and her political career ending in absolute failure. She became queen of Egypt as co-regent with her brothers "Ptolemy XIII" (51 - 47 BC) and "Ptolemy XIV" (47 – 44 BC), then with her son "Ptolemy XV Caesar" (44 - 30 BC) until her suicide, after her defeat by Octavius. Egypt then fell under Roman domination.
Cleopatra was that last sovereign of the Macedonian dynasty, and though with no Egyptian blood, she proclaimed herself as "Daughter of Ra", the "Sun God of Egypt". She dedicated her efforts to enforce her royal status as queen of Egypt, to restore the glories of Ptolemies and recover their dominions in southern Syria and Palestine, as well as to share in the central Roman authority. Shortly after the start of her reign, she was involved into the struggle between Julius Caesar and Pompey. Cleopatra supported the later by a fleet of 50 ships and 500 men, which was not accepted by the Alexandrians. She was thus forced to flee to the eastern border of Egypt, where she was able to form an army of Bedouins to restore the throne from her brother. With Pompey’s defeat, Julius Caesar considered Egypt as a Roman property. He arrived at Alexandria and called Cleopatra and Ptolemy to resolve their conflict according to their father’s will.
To avoid the conspirators, Cleopatra was sneaked into the royal palace to meet Caesar, wrapped into a carpet. At first sight, Caesar fell in love with her, and hence granted her the throne. Ptolemy in rage accused them both of treason, and led the army from the east to siege the palace. Caesar sent for supplies from Rome, and to avoid a military combat, he burnt 110 Egyptian ships at the harbour and dockyards. The fire extended to the Great Library of Alexandria, and a huge amount of treasures and human heritage was lost.
"Ptolemy XIII" was killed in combat, and Caesar announced Cleopatra as queen, in co-regency with her younger brother "Ptolemy XIV" in 47 BC. She remained to be Caesar’s mistress until her returned to Rome, and she bore him a child named "Caesarion".
In pursuit of declaration of her authority, as well as her son’s right to inherit Caesar, Cleopatra went to Rome in 46 BC. Caesar built her a golden statue in the Temple of Venus, and declared his parenthood to her son. Her ambition and secret alliances raised much hostility against her by the senates. Upon Caesar’s assassination in 44 BC, Cleopatra retired to Egypt, awaiting the outcome of the next round in the Roman political struggle. To enforce her son’s rights against the Romans, she made him co-regent in the same year. Her temple at Dendra depicts Caesarion as pharaoh, while she was the goddess Hathor.
Cleopatra remained neutral during the struggle between Caesar’s followers, the three triumvirs (Mark Anthony, Octavius and Lepidus) and the conspirators led by Brutus and Casius. With the latter’s’ defeat, Anthony was assigned to restore order in the eastern Roman provinces, while Octavius returned to Rome.
Anthony sent for Cleopatra to meet him in Asia Minor. She knew that a second chance has come to gain control over the most powerful man in Rome. Initially, Cleopatra ignored Anthony to heighten his expectations, until he sent for her again. She then set out to the meeting in a barge loaded with gifts, and in all signs of luxury and amusements. She refused to embark the ship, and insisted that he was the one to come for her. Captivated by her charm, Anthony cancelled his campaigns and followed Cleopatra to Alexandria, where he treated her not as a sovereign protected by the Roman Empire, but as an independent monarch.
Two years later, in 40 BC, Anthony returned to Rome to face Octavius. A settlement was concluded in which the Roman Empire was split among the three generals. Anthony’s share was the eastern provinces, as far as Albania. Octavius retained the west, while Lepidus controlled North Africa. Anthony was also forced to marry "Octavia" - Octavius’ sister - as a sign of loyalty, and to reign from Athens. This enraged Cleopatra, who in the meanwhile, gave birth to twins, "Alexander Hilius" (The Sun) and "Cleopatra Selene" (The Moon).
Three years later, Anthony became convinced that he could never come to terms with Octavius. He sent his wife Octavia back to Rome, headed to Asia Minor, and sent for Cleopatra to follow him. There, Anthony announced his legal marriage to Cleopatra and his parenthood to his children. This was not only an insult to Octavius and his sister, but also invalid according to the Roman law. Octavius was hence able to unite all Rome against Anthony.
In 35 BC, Anthony was defeated in Parthia, and Octavia came from Rome with supplies for him against the wishes of her brother. One year later, Anthony returned to challenge Rome, when he celebrated his successful conquest of Armenia in Alexandria, in contrast to the Roman traditions. This seemed to signal the transfer of the capital from Rome to Alexandria.
In a further challenge to Octavius, Anthony and Cleopatra sat in a celebration at the Gymnasium with their three children and Caesarion. Anthony proclaimed himself as Caesar’s son, though it was Octavius whom Caesar has previously adopted. Cleopatra was hailed as "Queen of the Queens" and Caesarion as "King of the Kings". "Alexander Helios" was awarded Armenia, Media and Parthia, his brother "Ptolemy Filadelphos" was awarded Syria, Phoenicia and all lands west to the Euphrates, while their sister "Cleopatra Selene" was given Cyrene. He also gave Cleopatra a new library of 200,000 books as a compensation to that burnt in 48 BC.
In Rome, Octavius revealed Anthony’s will to the senate and Roman people. This disclosed Anthony’s bestowing of Roman possessions to a foreign woman, and his intentions to transfer the capital from Roman to Alexandria. The will also included Anthony’s wish to be buried in Alexandria, even if he dies in Rome. With Anthony remaining to challenge Octavius by divorcing Octavia in 32 BC, the senate considered him a traitor, and deprived him his consulate. In turn, Octavius declared war against Cleopatra, not Anthony.
When war was finally declared against Cleopatra, the imprudence of her policy against Herod was revealed. Cleopatra had previously embroiled him with the King of Petra, and hence Anthony lost a potential ally. War started on shores of the Adriatic Sea where Anthony was heading to victory, but Cleopatra convinced him to proceed into a naval battle at Actium. Octavius succeeded to face the their combined forces, and the combat was resolved on 2 September 31.
Though the details of the terrestrial combat were recorded in details, there has been much debate among historians as regards the naval one. It has not been confirmed whether Cleopatra suddenly withdrew her fleet and set course for Egypt in betrayal to Anthony, or it was a predetermined plan between them. Some historians believe that the shift from a terrestrial war to a naval war was only a covering for the withdrawal of Cleopatra’s fleet. With the inevitable defeat, Anthony followed Cleopatra to Egypt. Cleopatra thought of a further confrontation in Spain.
With Octavius’ forefront reaching the suburbs of Alexandria, Anthony succeeded in dispersing them on the first day. He was unable to gather his troops on the following day as his commanders deserted him and joined Octavius. He had no choice but to return to the city, where he heard the rumours of Cleopatra’s death. In despair, Anthony committed suicide by his sword, but before his death words came from his lover that she was still alive. He was transferred to her in her mausoleum, in which she has gathered all her treasures and belongings. Anthony died in her arms as he always wished.
Octavius eventually entered the city without any resistance and ordered the capture of Cleopatra. Cleopatra refused to give up unless Octavius would promise to give the throne to one of her sons. Upon a brief meeting together, she realized his intentions to take her back to Rome as prisoner to adorn his parade of victory, so she decided to commit suicide. In her full royal costume and wearing the pharaohs’ uraeus, she let the divine royal cobra sting her. On opening the doors of the mausoleum by force, Octavius and his men found her lying dead upon her golden bed with all her royal ornaments. They buried her with Anthony, as they both wished. Octavius formally brought Alexandria and Egypt under Roman rule, and in punishment he abolished the Alexandrian Senate and built his own city at the suburb of el-Raml.
With Octavius’ defeating one of the most dreadful enemies of Rome (the other was Hannibal), Octavius was deified. The Roman Republic came to an end, and he was able to achieve the emperorship, which the Romans denied Caesar.
Nefertari
Nefertari, the favorite Queen of Ramses II, is known from myriad of her representations in the temple reliefs and colossi of the great king The dedication to her, jointly with the goddess Hathor, of the small rock temple to the north of the great temple at Abu Simbel, shows how great her influence with Ramses II must have been.
Nefertari was not the only consort of Ramses II. Four other ladies are attested in the inscriptions of his reign to be his queens. She was not an ordinary queen, however and her situation excelled that of former ones. Her name has been rendered as "the Most Beautiful of Them"; a superlative which denotes her most exceptional position, while the designation "Hereditary Princess," listed for her in several instances, appears to be the indication of her high ranking origin in the society. Her participation in the affairs of the state is unparalleled outside the Amarna Period and is reflected in the titles assigned to her as "Great King's Wife". A political role is also reflected by the recurrent designation "Lady of Upper and Lower Egypt" and "Lady of the Two Lands".
Ahmos' grand-daughter & Ramses' wife
Some Egyptologists think she was probably a daughter of King Seti 1, and thus sister or half sister of Ramses II. Other Egyptologists, however, think that her designation as "Hereditary Princess" might be in some way connected with her being representative of the Thebais. The motive that would prompt such a thesis is the weak footing of the Ramssides in Thebes; their home was in the North and they made strenuous attempts to improve their situation in the South. These Egyptologists claim that nothing is known about her parents, but it seems that she was of royal birth. Others say she is Ahmos' grand-daughter...At Gebel El-Silsileh there is a shrine of Ramses 11 where depictions show him and Queen Nefertari performing religious functions before sundry deities. This shrine contains an indication that Queen Nefertari was already married to Ramses II at his accession (1290 BC). But she was not mentioned in connection with the King's First Jubilee in the year 30 of his reign and it seems likely that she died before it. We know that Queen Nefertari was neither the only nor the first bearer of this name. Its first bearer was Queen Ahmes-Nefertari, the mother of the Theban Eighteenth Dynasty who may have been the great-grandmother of our queen. Nefertari's bearing of the designation "god's wife" emphasized apparent emulation of Queen Ahmes-Nefertari, who was also the god's wife...From her name and titles it is apparent that Nefertari played a special role in her time. The fact that Ramses II was eager to show her accompanying him, a feature uncommon otherwise, suggests that she could influence his position in the country. Most wonderful tomb in the Queen valley
Exclusive honors
Titles; "beautiful face" and "pretty with two feathers" could be taken as reference simply to the queen's physical appearance. Another describes her as "appeasing the gods". This expression is associated with kings; and states their adherence to and support of the ritual requirements of the cults. None of the Egyptian queens, so far as we know, had been held in such honor, for none had a temple dedicated to her jointly with a goddess, as was the case with Nefertari at Abu-Simbel..The temple facade has six statues, each 33 feet high, four of them representing the king and two belonging to the queen. The walls ot the temple are adorned with various scenes; some represent the pharaoh defeating his enemies while the queen stands behind him, others represent the king and the queen bearing offerings in the presence of the goddesses and deities, asking their blessings. The most interesting scene represents the coronation of Nefertari by Isis and Hathor. There, the figure of Nefertari stands at the side of the colossus of Ramses II and in the Ramseseum temple. She is represented dancing a ceremonial dance in front of the king during the feast of the god Min.
Her own tomb
Ramses II has a tomb for Nefertari hewn out in the Valley of the Queens called by the ancients "The Place of Beauty", this tomb is the most beautiful in the Valley of the Queens, and is on the whole worthy of her position in history. The decorative motifs on walls and ceilings are mythological and are concerned with life in the netherworld, meetings with gods, deities, genii and monsters, and the entry into the realm of eternity. In these scenes our queen is represented always wearing long, transparent white garments, with two long feathers over the vulture-like headdress of gold. She wears rich jewels, in addition to bracelets and a wide golden collar.
Description of the tomb
Outer doorway from entrance staircase into outer hall: the two lambs were inscribed with the name of Nefertari. The lintel over the doorway is decorated with a sundisk setting in the horizon flanked on both sides by Wadjet-Eye. The scene also included a depiction of Isis and Nephthys in falcon form. Left and right thickness of the door is decorated with the goddesses Nekhbet and Wadjet. The Outer Hall has an almost square format of 5.20m by 5.30m. A rock cut bench, with niches below it, designed to support part of the funerary equipment, projects from the western and northern walls. The long inscription above the bench is a rather garbled version of 17th Chapter of the Book of the Dead. The upper register is filled with various scenes, serving as illustrative register of the southern wall containing different scenes.
On the left, the queen is shown on a throne. In her right hand she holds a kind of wand, with the other she reaches for a game. The scene is placed in a kiosk made of reeds. Here the queen plays with her soul.
The next scene shows a bird with the queen's head, the Egyptian representation of the individual soul. The ba-bird is standing on a scale taking a shape of the tomb. The ba was a psychic force. The word was employed as a synonym of the manifestation of a god. Then the queen herself kneels in front of her soul, with hands uplifted in adoration of two juxtaposed lions, between them the sun's disk.
These scenes of the two lions mean "yesterday and tomorrow" or "the past and the future". Then, the graceful bird "benu" is the representation of the phoenix, the sacred bird of Heliopolis. The phoenix was regarded as the soul (ba) of Ra', but was also a manifestation of Osiris. The bird benu is followed by a multiple scene consisting of a shrine with a bier on which a prepared mummy of the queen is placed. This shrine is flanked on either side by representations of both goddesses Isis and Nephthys. The next scenes consist of two figures, one squatted bearded deity who holds a palm branch, the other standing before him holding his two outstretched arms over two squares. Next is the seated figure of a falcon headed deity before a largescale "Sacred Eye". The decoration continues with the registers. They begin at the left with the scene of a cow resting on a support. The next illustration is a composite scene. Its center is a coffin with a jackal placed inside. It is surrounded on both sides by two mummiform figures. The right part of the upper register contains the four "Sons of Horus" accompanied by a fifth apparently Horus himself. To the right is the Jackal- headed Anubis, the god responsible for embalming. On the north side of the passage Osiris is shown in his shrineIn the recess the thickness of the passage is decorated on both sides with the representation of a goddess Selket (Scorpion). West inner face of the recess, the decoration consists of a Djad pillar, the symbolic representation of Osiris. North face of the recess, the scene shows the goddess Isis leading Queen Nefertari to the right, in the realm of god Khepri. South face of recess is decorated with a depiction of Harsiese (Horus son of Isis) holding Nefertari by her hand and introducing her to Harakhty and the West (Hathor)...The scenes decorating the west wall of the side room show the queen bringing linen offering to Ptah. Behind the shrine of Ptah is a large Djad pillar, the symbol of Osiris. The scene on the north wall shows Nefertari paying her respects to the god Thoth. The left part of the wall is covered with a text of eight columns. It is a copy of Chapter 94 of the Book of the Dead.
The east wall of side room is filled with two scenes separated in the center by an up-right standing fan. In the left scene the god Osiris is shown enthroned in the mummiform body, before him are the four "Sons of Horus". The queen is shown stretching her arm. The parallel right scene depicts the queen's offerings to god Atum. South wall of this side room is divided into three registers, the two upper being filled with seven cows and one bull. The bottom register shows four steering oars. On the following wall Nefertari with her raised arms in adoration is part of the adjoining last scene. The other panel on this west wall represents Ra' and Osiris united in the form of a ram-headed figure between Isis & Mephthys.
From the Outer hall a corridor, descending 18 steps continues the funerary designation of the tomb. The descent to the underworld is beautifully decorated. North thickness of upper part of West and East wall of corridor, the space is decorated with the Djad-pillar with two arms holding a scepters. Southern thickness of upper part of West and East wall is decorated with the goddesses Neith & Selket. Upper part of East wall corridor, the composition in the triangular space is arranged in the same way as on the opposite wall. On the left hand Nefertari offers two bowls of milk to goddess Isis behind whom sits Nephthys with Maat. On the right hand, Nefertari makes a similar offering to Hathor behind whom sits Selket, with Maat as before in the background.
Lower down there is a winged Uraeus, guarding two carts of the queen. The underneath, beginning about the kneeling figure of Maat, is another scene in which the Jackal Anubis stretched out on a tomb welcoming the queen. The bottom part of the east wall is decorated by the figure of Nephthys, while the parallel part of the west wall is decorated with Isis. The doorway lambs of the burial chamber are inscribed with the name and titles of Nefertari, while the sofas are decorated with a winged Maat. This corridor leads to that part of the tomb where the funeral ceremony was terminated and in which occurred the final transition to the burial chamber. The burial chamber is a relatively large rectangular room (10.40x8.50m) with four square pillars supporting the ceiling. Two side rooms and a small inner room are accessible from it. The entry walls to the burial chamber are adorned by four goddesses, while the walls are mostly decorated with scenes from the Book of the Dead. The queen is represented passing through nine gates from the domain of Osiris, which are guarded by dreadful demons. On the northern wall of the chamber she is shown before Osiris, Hathor, and Anubis. The four pillars form a kind of shrine to contain her sarcophagus, now lost. The pillars are decorated with the Djad pillar and various deities. The two side rooms flanking the burial chamber on the west and east are poorly preserved. An interesting scene on the eastern wall of the western side room shows Nefertari in the shape of a mummy. The function of the small inner room and two side rooms is not yet known because of their great obliteration.
Nefertiti
Arguably, to those who are not very involved in the study of ancient Egypt, Queen Nefertiti is perhaps better known than her husband, the heretic king Akhenaten (Amenhotep IV). It is said that even in the ancient world, her beauty was famous, and her famous statue, found in a sculptor's workshop, is not only one of the most recognizable icons of ancient Egypt, but also the topic of some modern controversy. She was more than a pretty face however, for she seems to have taken a hitherto unprecedented level of importance in the Amarna period of Egypt's 18th Dynasty. In artwork, her status is evident and indicates that she had almost as much influence as her husband. For example, she is depicted nearly twice as often in reliefs as her husband, at least during the first five years of his reign. Indeed, she is once even shown in the conventional pose of a pharaoh smiting his (or in this case, her) enemy.
Family Line
Nefertiti may or may not have been of royal blood. She was probably a daughter of the army officer, and later pharaoh, Ay, who may in turn have been a brother of Queen Tiye. Ay sometimes referred to himself as "the God's father", suggesting that he may have been Akhenaten's father-in-law, though there is no specific references for this claim. However, Nefertiti's sister, Mutnojme, is featured prominently in the decorations of Ay's tomb in the Valley of the Kings on the West Bank at Thebes (modern Luxor). However, while we know that Mutnojme was certainly the sister of Nefertiti, her prominence in Ay's tomb clearly does not guarantee her relationship to him. Others have suggested that Nefertiti may have been a daughter of Tiye, or that she was Akhenaten's cousin. Nevertheless, as "heiress", she may have also been a descendant of Ahmose-Nefertari, though she was never described as God's wife of Amun. However, she never lays claim to King's Daughter, so we certainly know that she cannot have been an heiress in the direct line of descent.
If she was indeed the daughter of Ay, it was probably not by his chief wife, Tey, who was not referred to as a "Royal mother of the chief wife of the king", but rather 'nurse' and 'governess' of the king's chief wife. It could be that Nefertiti's actual mother died early on, and it was left to Tey to raise the young girl. However, many other explanations have also been suggested.
Personal Life and the Relationship of King and Queen
Together, we know that Akhenaten and Nefertiti has six daughters, though it was probably with another royal wife called Kiya that the king sired his successors, Smenkhkare and Tutankhamun. Nefertiti also shared her husband with two other royal wives named Mekytaten and Ankhesenpaaten, as well as later with her probable daughter, Merytaten.
Together, we know that Akhenaten and Nefertiti has six daughters, though it was probably with another royal wife called Kiya that the king sired his successors, Smenkhkare and Tutankhamun. Nefertiti also shared her husband with two other royal wives named Mekytaten and Ankhesenpaaten, as well as later with her probable daughter, Merytaten.
Crucially important to Akhenaten was Femininity which was not only basic to his personal life, but also to his thinking and his faith. In fact, it is indeed difficult to find another founder of a religion for whom women played a comparable role. Akhenaten had a number of different women about him, and they are depicted in virtually every representation of a cult-ritual or state ceremony conducted by the king at his new capital honoring the sun god. Nefertiti was not the only queen to be treated well.
Each of the royal women had her own sanctuary, which was frequently called a sunshade temple. They were usually situated in a parkland environment of vegetation and water pools, emphasizing the importance of female royalty in the daily renewal of creation affected by the god Aten.
However, it was the figure of Nefertiti that Akhenaten had carved onto the four corners of his granite sarcophagus and it was she who provided the protection to his mummy, a role traditionally played by the female deities Isis, Nephthys, Selket and Neith.
One influence within the personal lives of Nefertiti and Akhenaten must have been the presence of Akhenaten's mother, Tiye. Tiye would have held a special position as a wise woman in his court, and we can only surmise that this must have had some affect on the younger couple's relationship.
Queen Tiye as the "wise woman" of El Amarna was often depicted with facial features that not only signaled old age, but life experience and wisdom calling for respect and even veneration.
When Nefertiti's face is represented with the first signs of old age, this may well signify that she has assumed the position of "wise woman" following the death of Tiye, at which point her court status would have been even further elevated.
The Religion
Nefertiti and her King lived during a highly unusual period in Egyptian history. It was a time of religious controversy when the traditional gods of Egypt were more or less abandoned at least by the royal family in favor of a single god, the sun disk named Aten. However, it should be noted that the Egyptian religion did not actually become monotheistic, for cults related to the other gods did persist and they were never really erased from the Egyptian theology.
It is believed that Nefertiti was active in the religious and cultural changes initiated by her husband (some even maintain that it was she who initiated the new religion). She also had the position as a priest, and she was a devoted worshipper of the god Aten. In the royal religion, the King and Queen were viewed as "a primeval first pair". It was they who worshipped the sun disk named Aten and it was only through them that this god was accessed. Indeed, the remainder of the population was expected to worship the royal family, as the rays of the sun fell and gave life to, it would seem, only the royal pair.
However, many scholars presume that the Mutnodjme who later married King Haremhab is none other than the younger sister of Nefertiti. In Akhenaten: King of Egypt by Cyril Aldred, the author explains that a fragmentary statue of Mutnodjme discovered at Dendera describes her not only as "Chief Queen", but also "God's Wife [of Amun]", which he explains puts her in the line of those other great consorts who traced their descent from Ahmose-Nefertari. This links both sisters to the cult of Amun, which he tells us could obviously not have been openly proclaimed at Amarna.
Yet we must be very careful with this link between Nefertiti and Amun by way of her sister's later attachment to the cult. Haremhab considered himself to be an adamant restorer of the old religion after the Amarna period, and so just because his Chief Queen took the title of God's Wife does not necessarily mean that Nefertiti held any real interest in that cult.
Doubtless though, Nefertiti may very well, and probably did participate in a similar manner as God's Wife in the cult of Re-Atum. Unlike other chief queens, she is shown taking part in the daily worship, repeating the same gestures and making similar offerings as the king. Where traditionally a relationship existed between God and King, now that relationship is expanded to include the royal pair.
She in fact exhibits the same fashion as God's Wife. From her first appearance at Karnak, she wears the same clinging robe tied with a red sash with the ends hanging in front. She also wears the short rounded hairstyle. In her case, this was exemplified by a Nubian wig, the coiffure of her earlier years, alternating with a queens tripartite wig, both secured by a diadem bearing a double uraei. Sometimes this was replaced by a a crown with double plumes and a disk, like Tiye and her later Kushite counterparts.
She dressed for appeal, and if she fulfilled a similar function as God's wife of Amun in the Amarna religion, part of this responsibility would have been to maintain a state of perpetual arousal. However, since the Aten was intangible and abstract, this appeal must be to his son the king. Ay praises her for "joining with her beauty in propitiating the Aten with her sweet voice and her fair hands holding the sistrums".
In fact, as the wife of the sun god's offspring, she took on the role of Tefnut, who was the daughter and wife of Atum. After the fourth regal year, she began to wear a mortar-shaped cap that was the headgear of Tefnut in her leonine aspect of a sphinx. She was then referred to as "Tefnut herself", at once the daughter and the wife of the sun-god. Therefore, Nefertiti played an equal role with the king who was the image of Re.
Of course, as a god, no mortal could claim to be her mother, which may be the reason why Tey must content herself with the titles of "Wet-nurse" and "Governess" In fact, it may have been that she hid her parentage to conceal the fact that the progenitors of this high and mighty princess were not also equally divine.
Nefertiti's Disappearance
Towards the end of Akhenaten's reign, Nefertiti disappeared from historical Egyptian records. For a number of years, scholars though that she had fallen from grace with the king, but this was actually a case of mistaken identity. It was Kiya's name and images that were removed from monuments, and replaced by those of Meryetaten, one of Akhenaten's daughters. It has been suggested, though there is no hard supporting evidence, that by year twelve of Akhenaten's reign, and after bearing him a son and possibly a further daughter, Kiya became too much of a rival to Nefertiti and that it was she who caused Kiya's disgrace.
It is possible that Nefertiti disappearance a number of years after that of Kiya's simply meant that she died around the age of thirty, though there are controversies on this matter as well. It may not be simple coincidence that, shortly after Nefertiti's disappearance from the archaeological record, Akhenaten took on a co-regent with whom he shared the throne of Egypt. This co-regent has been a matter of considerable speculation and controversy, with a whole range of theories. One such theory puts forward the idea that the co-regent was none other than Nefertiti herself in a new guise as a female king following the lead of women such as Sobkneferu and Hatshepsut. Another theory is that there were actually two co-regents, consisting of a male son named Smenkhkare, and Nefertiti under the name Neferneferuaten, both of whom adopted the prenomen, Ankhkheperure. Undoubtedly, like her husband who was originally named Amenhotep, she too took the new name, Neferneferuaten to honor the Aten (Neferneferuaten can be translated as "The Aten is radiant of radiance [because] the beautiful one is come" or "Perfect One of the Aten's Perfection"). Indeed, she may have even changed her name prior to her husband doing so, but rather this means she also served as co-regent is questionable.
Some scholars are considerably adamant about Nefertiti assuming the role of co-regent, and even serving as king for a short time after the death of Akhenaten. One such individual is Jacobus Van Dijk, responsible for the Amarna section of the Oxford History of Ancient Egypt. He believes that Nefertiti indeed became co-regent with her husband, and that her role as queen consort was taken over by her eldest daughter, Meryetaten (Meritaten). If this is true, then Nefertiti may have even taken up residence in Thebes, as evidenced by a graffito dated to year three in the reign of Neferneferuaten mentioning a "Mansion of Ankhkheperure". If so, there could have been an attempt made at reconciliation with the old cults. He also suggests that Smenkhkare might have also been Nefertiti, ruling after the death of her husband, with her own daughter acting in a ceremonial role of "Great Royal Wife". However, other scholars are equally adamant against Nefertiti ever having been a co-regent or ruling after her husband's death. In his book, Akhenaten: King of Egypt, Cyril Aldred references a funerary objected called a shawabti. On it was inscribed:
"The Heiress, high and mighty in the palace, one trusted [of the King of Upper and Lower Egypt (Neferkheperure, Wa'enre), the son of Re (Akhenaten), Great in] his Lifetime, the Chief Wife of the King (Neferneferuaten-Nefertiti), Living for Ever and Ever."
Aldred claims that this shawabti, according to the above inscription, can only belong to Nefertiti, and not, as some scholars argue, a donation by her to Akhenaten's burial. Presumably, this object was made after the queen's death as it was the custom during this period to make such objects during the embalming process.
Aldred also maintains that is was the custom in orthodox funerary benedictions to follow the name of the deceased with maet kheru (justified). Akhenaten rejected this practice as part of his new religion, but even so, two of his own shawabti were nevertheless inscribed with phrase after his own death. However, even though the phrase returns to favor immediately after Akhenaten's death, it is absent from Nefertiti's shawabti, evidencing her death during his reign.
He also notes that the shawabti represents her as a queen regnant, and not as a co-regent in male attire. Though this single piece of evidence seems somewhat scanty, he believes that Nefertiti died during year 14 of Akhenanten's reign.
If he is indeed correct that Nefertiti died during the reign of her husband, his dating is probably correct. Nefertiti is depicted on a number of reliefs including that of her second daughter's burial, who is believed to have died during the thirteenth year of Akhenanten's reign. However, that is the last that we see of the queen. This is also about the time (year 14) that dockets for delivery of wine from the estate of Nefertiti also cease, so the presumption by Aldred is that Nefertiti must have died sometime very near Akhenaten's 14th year as king.
Recent Controversy
Nefertiti is perhaps best remembered for the painted limestone bust depicting her. Many consider it one of the greatest works of art of the pre-modern world.
Sometimes known as the Berlin bust, it was found in the workshop of the famed sculptor Thutmose. This bust depicts her with full lips enhanced by a bold red. Although the crystal inlay is missing from her left eye, both eyelids and brows are outlined in black. Her graceful elongated neck balances the tall, flat-top crown which adorns her sleek head. The vibrant colors of the her necklace and crown contrast the yellow-brown of her smooth skin. While everything is sculpted to perfection, the one flaw of the piece is a broken left ear. Because this remarkable sculpture is still in existence, it is no wonder why Nefertiti remains 'The Most Beautiful Woman in the World.'
However, the bust plays a part in one recent controversy. For more than eight decades, the serenely beautiful likeness of Queen Nefertiti's head has been the most celebrated exhibit in Berlin's Egyptian Museum, attracting thousands of visitors and resisting all attempts at repatriation.
But a conceptual artwork involving the 3,300-year-old limestone bust and the body of a scantily clad woman has provoked outrage in the queen's homeland and the accusation that Nefertiti is no longer safe in Germany.
The artwork is the brainchild of a Hungarian duo called Little Warsaw, and involved lowering the head of Nefertiti on to the headless bronze statue of a woman wearing a tight-fitting transparent robe.
This angered a number of officials in Egypt for several reasons. First of all, it must be remembered that Egypt is a rather conservative society and the attachment of Nefertiti's head to an almost nude statue was seen as an affront to Egyptian sensibilities. However, it was also pointed out by some Egyptian Egyptologists that such a display might give rise to some damage to the bust.
Irregardless, this controversy is probably short lived. The display apparently only lasted for a few hours and so the controversy has largely been mitigated at this point.
A recent, more enduring controversy surrounding Nefertiti is the possible discovery of her mummy, or at least the new identification of a previously known mummy. Soon after the incident involving Nefertiti's bust, Joanne Fletcher, a noted mummification expert from the University of York in England, announced that she and her team may have identified the actual mummy of the queen.
Back in 1898, the French Egyptologist Victor Loret excavated the tomb of Amenhotep II on the Theban necropolis and came upon a remarkable find. This was the first tomb ever opened in which the Pharaoh was still in his original resting place, and, moreover, eleven other mummies were also discovered in a sealed chamber in the tomb. All but three of these mummies, due to their critical state of preservation, were transferred to the Egyptian Antiquities Museum in Cairo.
One of the three mummies that were left behind became known among Egyptologists as the "Younger Lady" and since then Egyptologists have swayed between believing this corpse to be either Nefertiti or Princess Sitamun, a daughter of Amenhotep III. Fletcher was drawn to the tomb during an expedition in June 2002 after identifying a Nubian style wig worn by royal women during Akhenaten's reign. She also pointed to other clues that suggest that this mummy might indeed be Nefertiti, such as a doubled- pierced ear lobe, which she claims was a rare fashion statement in Ancient Egypt; a shaven head; and the clear impression of the tight-fitting brow-band worn by royalty. "Think of the tight-fitting, tall blue crown worn by Nefertiti, something that would have required a shaven head to fit properly," said Fletcher.
"There is a puzzle," she conceded, and explained that in 1907, when Egyptologist Grafton Elliot Smith first examined the three mummies, he reported that the Younger Lady was lacking a right arm. Nearby, however, he had found a detached right forearm, bent at the elbow and with clenched fingers. She said that the mummy had deteriorated badly; that the skull was pierced with a large hole, and the chest hacked away. Worse still, the face, which would otherwise have been excellently preserved, had been cruelly mutilated, the mouth and cheek no more than a gaping hole. Further examination using cutting- edge Canon digital X-ray machinery, the team spotted jewelry within the smashed chest cavity of the mummy. They also noticed a woman's severed arm beneath the remaining wrappings. The arm was bent at the elbow in Pharaonic style with its fingers still clutching a long-vanished royal scepter.
Following Discovery Channel's coverage of the events, the identification of the Younger Lady's mummy as Nefertiti immediately attracted an eager audience and made headlines around the world. But Egyptologists are not so convinced. In fact, they are divided into two schools of thought. Salima Ikram, author of The Mummy in Ancient Egypt: Equipping the Dead for Eternity, sees the identification as "interesting" and one that will doubtless cause endless speculation.
Others express doubt that the remains are those of the legendary queen of beauty. Egyptologist Susan James, who trained at Cambridge University and who spent a long time studying the three mummies, told Discovery Channel, who financed the expedition, " What we know about mummy 61072 would indicate that it is one of the young females of the late 18th dynasty, very probably a member of the royal family. However, physical evidence known and published prior to this expedition indicates the unlikelihood of this being the mummy of Nefertiti. Without any comparative DNA studies, statements of certainty are wishful thinking."
For his part, Secretary-General of the Supreme Council of Antiquities (SCA) Zahi Hawass totally refutes the idea, and describes it as "pure fiction". He accuses Fletcher of lacking in experience, as "a new PhD recipient", and that Fletcher's theory was not based on facts or solid evidence, "only on facial resemblance between the mummy and Nefertiti's bust, and on artistic representations of the Amarna period in which the queen lived".
Hawass asserted, moreover, that the physical resemblance is not significant, "because all the statues of the Amarna era have the same characteristics. Amarna art was idealistic and not realistic," he said, and pointed out that in the Egyptian Museum, there were five of six mummies with the same characteristics. Mamdouh El-Damati, director of the Egyptian Museum, mentioned that this theory was not new, this being the second time that a claim to have discovered Nefertiti's mummy within this group of mummies had been made.
So controversy swirls around Nefertiti as surely as it always has, and probably always might. At best, perhaps someday we may know more about this intriguing queen, but until then we can only make guesses about her life, as well as her remains.
Hatshepsut
Hatshepsut, was the daughter of Thutmose I (also known as Tuthmosis) and Queen Ahmose Nefertari. Hatshepsut (1473-1458 BC) was married to her half brother Thutmose II perhaps in order to strengthen his claim to the throne, and they had a daughter together called Neferure. Hatshepsut commissioned official portraits of her daughter wearing the false beard and sidelock of youth. Some scholars speculate that this is evidence that Hatshepsut was priming Neferure for a future on the throne. The actual heir to the throne, the future Thutmose III, was in fact the son of one of his father's concubines.
As Thutmose III was the only male child, and his mother wasn't the queen, he was married to his half sister Neferure in order to reinforce his position as the rightful heir. He was still very young when his father (Thutmose II) died, therefore his step-mother Hatshepsut was appointed as his regent.
Hatshepsut then went one step further and had herself crowned as pharaoh, taking the throne name "Maatkare". This allowed her to enjoy a long co-regency with the young Thutmose III and effectively blocked him from full power. She seems to have been supported by the priests of Amun, and some of the reliefs in her mortuary temple at Deir el-Bahri (near the Valley of the Kings) reinforced her claim to the throne by emphasising her divine birth, the result of a union between Amun and her mother Queen Ahmose.
Hatshepsut surrounded herself with strong and loyal advisors, many of whom are still known today: Hapuseneb, the High Priest of Amun, and her closest advisor, the royal steward Senemut. As pharaoh, she initiated building projects that were grander and more numerous than those of any of her Middle Kingdom predecessors. She employed two great architects: Ineni, who had worked for both her husband and father, and the royal steward Senemut. She had twin obelisks erected at the entrance to the the Temple of Karnak - one still stands today, as the tallest surviving obelisk, the other has since broken in two and toppled. She later ordered two more obelisks to be made to celebrate her sixteenth year as pharaoh. However, one of the obelisks broke whilst being quarried, and was left in-situ at its quarrying site in Aswan, where it still is today.
The masterpiece of her building projects was her mortuary temple complex at Deir el-Bahri (above). It was designed and implemented by Senemut on a site on the West Bank of the Nile close to the entrance to the Valley of the Kings. The focal point was the "Djeser-Djeseru" or the sublime of sublimes, a colonnaded structure sitting atop a series of terraces that were once graced with gardens. Built into a cliff face that rises sharply above it, Djeser-Djeseru and the other buildings of the Deir el-Bahri complex are considered to be among the great buildings of the ancient world.
During her reign there was renewed building activity at Thebes and elsewhere, culminating in her mortuary temple as probably the finest of her buildings. In the temple, reliefs tell of the transport of two enormous obelisks from the quarries at Aswan to the temple of Amun-Ra at Karnak, and trading expeditions to the land of Punt ("land of the god", a region of East Africa whose precise location today is unknown) Byblos (ancient coastal town in modern Lebanon, 40km north of Beirut) and the Sinai (peninsula situated between Egypt and the levant). The temple reliefs include detailed depictions of the expedition on its second terrace, including the sea journey and even the reception offered by the chief of Punt. This depictions shows a bearded chief, accompanied by his excessively large queen who has a pronounced curvature of the spinal column.
Punt was the source of many exotic products such as gold, aromatic resins, blackwood, ebony, ivory, slaves and wild animals such as monkeys and baboons. As a distant and foreign land, Punt acquired an air of fantasy, and as such is mentioned in some narrative tales and poems from the Middle and New kingdoms.
Monuments of Hatshepsut frequently portray her in kingly costume and the famous royal "false beard", often referring to her as though she were male (probably in accordance with the accepted decorum of kingship). When Thutmose III reached maturity he eventually became the sole ruler, but it is unclear whether Hatshepsut simply died or had to be forcibly removed from power.
After her death, many of her reliefs sustained damage, where attempts were made to remove her name from them. It was originally thought that Thutmose III had immediately set about removing his step-mother's name from the monuments as retribution for her seize of power, but it is now known that this did not actually happen until considerably later in his reign. Hatshepsut's name was also omitted from subsequent king lists, indicating that her reign was perhaps considered by some to have been inappropriate and contrary to tradition.
Although a tomb had been prepared for her in the Valley of the Kings (discovered by Howard Carter in 1903) there is no evidence that it was ever used for her burial. She may have been buried in an earlier tomb in the cliffs to the south of Deir el-Bahri which had been constructed before her rise to the throne.
