For other Egyptian ladies called Maatkare see Maatkare

Maatkare

Maatkare is a name shared by several royal women from Ancient Egypt:* Maatkare Hatshepsut. Maatkare was the throne name of Queen/Pharaoh Hatshepsut....

Maatkare (Mutemhat) was an ancient Egypt

Ancient Egypt

Ancient Egypt was an ancient civilization of Northeastern Africa, concentrated along the lower reaches of the Nile River in what is now the modern country of Egypt. Egyptian civilization coalesced around 3150 BC with the political unification of Upper and Lower Egypt under the first pharaoh...

ian high priestess, a God's Wife of Amun

God's Wife of Amun

God's Wife of Amun was the highest ranking priestess of the Amun cult, an important Ancient Egyptian religious institution centered in Thebes during the Egyptian 25th and 26th dynasties...

 during the 21st dynasty

Twenty-first dynasty of Egypt

The Twenty-First, Twenty-Second, Twenty-Third, Twenty-Fourth, and Twenty-Fifth Dynasties of ancient Egypt are often combined under the group title, Third Intermediate Period.-Rulers:...

.

History

She was the daughter of High Priest of Amun Pinedjem I

Pinedjem I

Pinedjem I was the High Priest of Amun at Thebes in Ancient Egypt from 1070 BC to 1032 BC and the de facto ruler of the south of the country from 1054 BC. He was the son of the High Priest Piankh. However, many Egyptologists today believe that the succession in the Amun priesthood actually ran from...

, who was the de facto ruler of Southern Egypt from 1070 BCE onwards, then proclaimed himself pharaoh in 1054 BCE. Her mother was Duathathor-Henuttawy

Duathathor-Henuttawy

Duathathor-Henuttawy or Henuttawy was an ancient Egyptian princess and later queen. She is likely to have been the daughter of Ramesses XI, last king of the 20th dynasty by Tentamun. She married Pinedjem I, the Theban High Priest of Amun who was de facto ruler of Upper Egypt and took on pharaonic...

, a daughter of Ramesses XI

Ramesses XI

Ramesses XI reigned from 1107 BC to 1078 BC or 1077 BC and was the tenth and final king of the Twentieth dynasty of Egypt. He ruled Egypt for at least 29 years although some Egyptologists think he could have ruled for as long as 30...

, last ruler of the 20th dynasty

Twentieth dynasty of Egypt

The Eighteenth, Nineteenth, and Twentieth Dynasties of ancient Egypt are often combined under the group title, New Kingdom. This dynasty is considered to be the last one of the New Kingdom of Egypt, and was followed by the Third Intermediate Period....

. Maatkare received the title of God's Wife of Amun during her father's reign; she was the first God's Wife to take on a praenomen which used to be the prerogative of pharaohs. Her siblings held important positions too: a brother of hers became pharaoh, a sister became queen, and three brothers held the title High Priest of Amun in succession. She was followed as God's Wife by her niece Henuttawy

Henuttawy (priestess)

Henuttawy was an ancient Egyptian high priestess, a God's Wife of Amun during the 21st dynasty.Her father was Pinedjem II, High Priest of Amun, her mother was Isetemkheb D, Singer of Amun. Both her parents were children of the high priest Menkheperre who was brother to Maatkare, the God's Wife...

, daughter of her brother, High Priest Menkheperre

Menkheperre

Menkheperre, son of Pharaoh Pinedjem I by wife Henuttawy , was the High Priest of Amun at Thebes in Ancient Egypt from 1045 BC to 992 BC and de facto ruler of the south of the country....

.

Several of her depictions are known: she was depicted as a young girl in the Luxor temple

Luxor Temple

Luxor Temple is a large Ancient Egyptian temple complex located on the east bank of the River Nile in the city today known as Luxor and was founded in 1400 BCE.,...

, along with her sisters Henuttawy

Henuttawy (princess)

.Henuttawy was an ancient Egyptian princess of the 21st dynasty. Her father was Pinedjem I, High Priest of Amun and de facto ruler of Southern Egypt, her mother was Duathathor-Henuttawy, a daughter of Ramesses XI. She is depicted in the Luxor temple with her father and two sisters, Maatkare and...

 and Mutnedjmet

Mutnedjmet (21st dynasty)

Mutnedjmet was an ancient Egyptian queen of the 21st dynasty. She was the Great Royal Wife of her brother, Psusennes I, and was the mother of Pharaoh Amenemope and Prince Ankhefenmut....

, also, as high priestess on the facade of the Temple of Khonsu at Karnak

Karnak

The Karnak Temple Complex—usually called Karnak—comprises a vast mix of decayed temples, chapels, pylons, and other buildings, notably the Great Temple of Amun and a massive structure begun by Pharaoh Ramses II . Sacred Lake is part of the site as well. It is located near Luxor, some...

, and on a statue which is now in Marseille.

Her original burial place is unknown; her mummy was found in the DB320

DB320

Tomb DB320 is located next to Deir el-Bahri, in the Theban Necropolis, opposite modern Luxor contained an extraordinary cache of mummified remains and funeral equipment of more than 50 kings, queens, royals and various nobility.-Usage of tomb:The tomb is thought to have initially been the last...

 cache along with her coffins, shawabtis and other mummies from her immediate family. A small mummy, originally thought to be a child of hers was later revealed to be that of a pet monkey. (God's Wives were supposed to be celibate.)