Nefertari
Encyclopedia
Nefertari also known as Nefertari Merytmut was one of the Great Royal Wives
(or principal wives) of Ramesses the Great
. Nefertari means 'Beautiful Companion' and Meritmut means 'Beloved of [the Goddess] Mut'. She is one of the best known Egyptian queens, next to Cleopatra, Nefertiti
and Hatshepsut
. Her lavishly decorated tomb
, QV66
, is the largest and most spectacular in the Valley of the Queens
. Ramesses also constructed a temple for her at Abu Simbel
next to his colossal monument here.
has led people to speculate she was related to him. The time between the reign of Ay
and Ramesses II
means that Nefertari could not be a daughter of Ay
and if any relation exists at all, she would be a granddaughter. It is possible that Nefertari is the daughter of Mutnodjemet, sister of Nefertiti, and possibly daughter of Ay. There is no conclusive evidence linking Nefertari to the royal family of the 18th dynasty
however.
Nefertari married Ramesses II before he ascended the throne. Nefertari had at least four sons and two daughters. Amun-her-khepeshef
, the eldest was Crown Prince and Commander of the Troops, and Pareherwenemef
would later serve in Ramesses II’s army. Prince Meryatum
was elevated to the position of High Priest of Re
in Heliopolis
. Inscriptions mention he was a son of Nefertari. Prince Meryre is a fourth son mentioned on the façade of the small temple at Abu Simbel
and is thought to be another son of Nefertari. Meritamen
and Henuttawy
are two royal daughters depicted on the façade of the small temple at Abu Simbel and are thought to be daughters of Nefertari.
Princesses named Bak(et)mut, Nefertari, and Nebettawy are sometimes suggested as further daughters of Nefertari based on their presence in Abu Simbel, but there is no concrete evidence for this supposed family relation.
Nefertari first appears as the wife of Ramesses II
in official scenes during the first year of Ramesses II. In the tomb of Nebwenenef
, Nefertari is depicted behind her husband as he elevates Nebwenenef
to the position of High Priests of Amun
during a visit to Abydos
. Nefertari also appears in a scene next to a year 1 stela. She is depicted shaking two sistra
before Taweret, Thoth
and Nut
.
Nefertari is an important presence in the scenes from Luxor
and Karnak
. In a scene from Luxor, Nefertari appears leading the royal children. Another scene shows Nefertari at the Festival of the Mast of Amun
-Min
-Kamephis. The king and the queen are said to worship in the new temple and are shown overseeing the Erection of the Mast before Amen-Re attended by standard bearers. Nefertari’s speech during this ceremony is recorded:
Nefertari appears as Ramesses II’s consort on many statues in both Luxor and Karnak. In Western Thebes, Nefertari is mentioned on a statuary group from Deir el-BAhari, a stela and blocks from Deir el-Medina.
The greatest honor was bestowed on Nefertari however in Abu Simbel
. Nefertari is depicted in statue form at the great temple, but the small temple is dedicated to Nefertari and the goddess Hathor
. The building project was started earlier in the reign of Ramesses II
, and seems to have been inaugurated by ca year 25 of his reign (but not completed until ten years later).
Nefertari’s prominence at court is further supported by cuneiform
tablets from the Hittite
city of Hattusas (today Boghazkoy, Turkey
), containing Nefertari's correspondence with the king Hattusilis and his wife Pudukhepa. She is mentioned in the letters as Naptera. Nefertari is known to have sent gifts to Puduhepa
:
Nefertari is shown at the inaugural festivities at Abu Simbel in year 24. Her daughter Meritamen
is depicted taking part in place of her mother in some of the scenes. Nefertari may well have been in failing health at this point. After her death she was buried in tomb QV66
in the Valley of the Queens
.
that stand before the temple. To the left of the doorway, Nefertari, Queen-Mother Tuya and the king's son Amun-her-khepeshef
(still called Amunhirwenemef here) flank the colossal statue of the king. To the right of the doorway Nefertari, Baketmut and the king's son Ramesses are shown with the Pharaoh
.
Inside the temple Nefertari is depicted on one of the pillars in the great pillared hall worshipping Hathor
of Ibshek.
On the wall of the inner pillared hall Nefertari appears behind Ramesses II
. They stand before the barque of Amun
, and Nefertari is shown playing the sistra. Elsewhere Nefertari and Ramesses II
are shown before a barque dedicated to a deified Ramesses II
. Nefertari is shown twice accompanying her husband in Triumph scenes.
The small temple at Abu Simbel was dedicated to Nefertari and Hathor
of Ibshek. The dedication text on one of the buttresses states:
While on other buttresses it says:
The two colossal standing statues of Nefertari in front of the small temple are equal in size to those of Ramesses II
. Nefertari is shown holding a sistrum. She wears a long sheet dress and she is depicted with a long wig, Hathoric cow horns, the solar disk and tall feathers mounted on a modius.
In the interior of the temple, Nefertari appears in a variety of scenes. She is shown for instance offering to a cow (Hathor) in a papyrus thicket, offering before Khnum, Satis
and Anuket
, the triad of Elephantine
, and offering to Mut
and Hathor
.
The tomb of Nefertari, QV66
is one of the largest in the Valley of the Queens
. The tomb was robbed in antiquity. In 1904 it was rediscovered and excavated by Ernesto Schiaparelli
. Several items from the tomb, including parts of gold bracelets, shabti figures and a small piece of a earring or pendant are now in the Boston Museum of Fine Arts. Additional shabti figures are in the Egyptian Museum in Cairo.
Great Royal Wife
Great Royal Wife or Chief King's Wife is the term used to refer to the chief wife of the pharaoh of Ancient Egypt. While most Ancient Egyptians were monogamous, the pharaoh would have had other, lesser wives and concubines in addition to the Great Royal Wife...
(or principal wives) of Ramesses the Great
Ramesses II
Ramesses II , referred to as Ramesses the Great, was the third Egyptian pharaoh of the Nineteenth dynasty. He is often regarded as the greatest, most celebrated, and most powerful pharaoh of the Egyptian Empire...
. Nefertari means 'Beautiful Companion' and Meritmut means 'Beloved of [the Goddess] Mut'. She is one of the best known Egyptian queens, next to Cleopatra, Nefertiti
Nefertiti
Nefertiti was the Great Royal Wife of the Egyptian Pharaoh Akhenaten. Nefertiti and her husband were known for a religious revolution, in which they started to worship one god only...
and Hatshepsut
Hatshepsut
Hatshepsut also Hatchepsut; meaning Foremost of Noble Ladies;1508–1458 BC) was the fifth pharaoh of the eighteenth dynasty of Ancient Egypt...
. Her lavishly decorated tomb
Tomb
A tomb is a repository for the remains of the dead. It is generally any structurally enclosed interment space or burial chamber, of varying sizes...
, QV66
QV66
QV66 is the tomb of Nefertari, the Great Wife of Ramesses II, in Egypt's Valley of the Queens. It was discovered by Ernesto Schiaparelli in 1904...
, is the largest and most spectacular in the Valley of the Queens
Valley of the Queens
The Valley of the Queens is a place in Egypt where wives of Pharaohs were buried in ancient times. In ancient times, it was known as Ta-Set-Neferu, meaning –‘the place of the Children of the Pharaoh’, because along with the Queens of the 18th, 19th and 20th dynasties many princes and princesses...
. Ramesses also constructed a temple for her at Abu Simbel
Abu Simbel
Abu Simbel temples refers to two massive rock temples in Abu Simbel in Nubia, southern Egypt on the western bank of Lake Nasser about 230 km southwest of Aswan...
next to his colossal monument here.
Titles
Nefertari held many different titles, including: Great of Praises (wrt-hzwt), Sweet of Love (bnrt-mrwt), Lady of Grace (nbt-im3t), Great King’s Wife (hmt-niswt-wrt), Great King’s Wife, his beloved (hmt-niswt-wrt meryt.f), Lady of The Two Lands (nbt-t3wy), Lady of all Lands (hnwt-t3w-nbw), Wife of the Strong Bull (hmt-k3-nxt), God’s Wife (hmt-ntr), Mistress of Upper and Lower Egypt (hnwt-Shm’w-mhw).Family
Although Nefertari’s origins are unknown, the discovery from her tomb of a knob inscribed with the cartouche of Pharaoh AyAy
Ay was the penultimate Pharaoh of Ancient Egypt's 18th dynasty. He held the throne of Egypt for a brief four-year period , although he was a close advisor to two and perhaps three of the pharaohs who ruled before him and was the power behind the throne during Tutankhamun's reign...
has led people to speculate she was related to him. The time between the reign of Ay
Ay
Ay was the penultimate Pharaoh of Ancient Egypt's 18th dynasty. He held the throne of Egypt for a brief four-year period , although he was a close advisor to two and perhaps three of the pharaohs who ruled before him and was the power behind the throne during Tutankhamun's reign...
and Ramesses II
Ramesses II
Ramesses II , referred to as Ramesses the Great, was the third Egyptian pharaoh of the Nineteenth dynasty. He is often regarded as the greatest, most celebrated, and most powerful pharaoh of the Egyptian Empire...
means that Nefertari could not be a daughter of Ay
Ay
Ay was the penultimate Pharaoh of Ancient Egypt's 18th dynasty. He held the throne of Egypt for a brief four-year period , although he was a close advisor to two and perhaps three of the pharaohs who ruled before him and was the power behind the throne during Tutankhamun's reign...
and if any relation exists at all, she would be a granddaughter. It is possible that Nefertari is the daughter of Mutnodjemet, sister of Nefertiti, and possibly daughter of Ay. There is no conclusive evidence linking Nefertari to the royal family of the 18th dynasty
Eighteenth dynasty of Egypt
The eighteenth dynasty of ancient Egypt is perhaps the best known of all the dynasties of ancient Egypt...
however.
Nefertari married Ramesses II before he ascended the throne. Nefertari had at least four sons and two daughters. Amun-her-khepeshef
Amun-her-khepeshef
Amun-her-khepeshef or Amonhirkhopshef or Amun-her-wenemef was the firstborn son of Pharaoh Ramesses II and Queen Nefertari.-Name:...
, the eldest was Crown Prince and Commander of the Troops, and Pareherwenemef
Pareherwenemef
Pareherwenemef was an ancient Egyptian prince of the 19th dynasty, the third son of pharaoh Ramesses II, the second by Queen Nefertari.-Family:...
would later serve in Ramesses II’s army. Prince Meryatum
Meryatum
Meryatum was an Ancient Egyptian prince and High Priest of Re, the son of Pharaoh Ramesses II and Nefertari.He is shown as 16th on the processions of princes, and is likely to have been the last child born to Ramesses and Nefertari...
was elevated to the position of High Priest of Re
High Priest of Re
The High Priest of Re, or the High Priest of Ra, was known in Egyptian as the wr-m3w which translates as Greatest of Seers. The main cult of Re, or Ra, was in ancient Heliopolis, northeast of present day Cairo. The high priests of Ra are not as well documented as the high priests of other deities...
in Heliopolis
Heliopolis (ancient)
Heliopolis was one of the oldest cities of ancient Egypt, the capital of the 13th Lower Egyptian nome that was located five miles east of the Nile to the north of the apex of the Nile Delta...
. Inscriptions mention he was a son of Nefertari. Prince Meryre is a fourth son mentioned on the façade of the small temple at Abu Simbel
Abu Simbel
Abu Simbel temples refers to two massive rock temples in Abu Simbel in Nubia, southern Egypt on the western bank of Lake Nasser about 230 km southwest of Aswan...
and is thought to be another son of Nefertari. Meritamen
Meritamen
Meritamen was a daughter and later Great Royal Wife of Pharaoh Ramesses the Great.- Family :...
and Henuttawy
Henuttawy (19th dynasty)
Henuttawy was an ancient Egyptian princess of the 19th dynasty.- Biography :Henuttawy was a daughter of Pharaoh Ramesses II and the Great Royal Wife Nefertari and half-sister of Merneptah...
are two royal daughters depicted on the façade of the small temple at Abu Simbel and are thought to be daughters of Nefertari.
Princesses named Bak(et)mut, Nefertari, and Nebettawy are sometimes suggested as further daughters of Nefertari based on their presence in Abu Simbel, but there is no concrete evidence for this supposed family relation.
Biography
Ramesses II
Ramesses II , referred to as Ramesses the Great, was the third Egyptian pharaoh of the Nineteenth dynasty. He is often regarded as the greatest, most celebrated, and most powerful pharaoh of the Egyptian Empire...
in official scenes during the first year of Ramesses II. In the tomb of Nebwenenef
Nebwenenef
Nebwenenef was High Priest of Amun at the beginning of the reign of Ramesses II during the 19th Dynasty. Prior to that, Nebwenenef had served as High Priest of Anhur and High Priest of Hathor during the reign of Seti I and maybe even earlier.-Titles:...
, Nefertari is depicted behind her husband as he elevates Nebwenenef
Nebwenenef
Nebwenenef was High Priest of Amun at the beginning of the reign of Ramesses II during the 19th Dynasty. Prior to that, Nebwenenef had served as High Priest of Anhur and High Priest of Hathor during the reign of Seti I and maybe even earlier.-Titles:...
to the position of High Priests of Amun
High Priests of Amun
The High Priest of Amun or First Prophet of Amun was the highest ranking priest in the priesthood of the Ancient Egyptian god Amun...
during a visit to Abydos
Abydos, Egypt
Abydos is one of the most ancient cities of Upper Egypt, and also of the eight Upper Nome, of which it was the capital city. It is located about 11 kilometres west of the Nile at latitude 26° 10' N, near the modern Egyptian towns of el-'Araba el Madfuna and al-Balyana...
. Nefertari also appears in a scene next to a year 1 stela. She is depicted shaking two sistra
Sistrum
A sistrum is a musical instrument of the percussion family, chiefly associated with ancient Iraq and Egypt. It consists of a handle and a U-shaped metal frame, made of brass or bronze and between 76 and 30 cm in width...
before Taweret, Thoth
Thoth
Thoth was considered one of the more important deities of the Egyptian pantheon. In art, he was often depicted as a man with the head of an ibis or a baboon, animals sacred to him. His feminine counterpart was Seshat...
and Nut
Nut (goddess)
In the Ennead of Egyptian mythology, Nut was the goddess of the sky.-Goddess of the sky:...
.
Nefertari is an important presence in the scenes from Luxor
Thebes, Egypt
Thebes is the Greek name for a city in Ancient Egypt located about 800 km south of the Mediterranean, on the east bank of the river Nile within the modern city of Luxor. The Theban Necropolis is situated nearby on the west bank of the Nile.-History:...
and Karnak
Thebes, Egypt
Thebes is the Greek name for a city in Ancient Egypt located about 800 km south of the Mediterranean, on the east bank of the river Nile within the modern city of Luxor. The Theban Necropolis is situated nearby on the west bank of the Nile.-History:...
. In a scene from Luxor, Nefertari appears leading the royal children. Another scene shows Nefertari at the Festival of the Mast of Amun
Amun
Amun, reconstructed Egyptian Yamānu , was a god in Egyptian mythology who in the form of Amun-Ra became the focus of the most complex system of theology in Ancient Egypt...
-Min
Min (god)
Min is an Ancient Egyptian god whose cult originated in predynastic times . He was represented in many different forms, but was often represented in male human form, shown with an erect penis which he holds in his left hand and an upheld right arm holding a flail...
-Kamephis. The king and the queen are said to worship in the new temple and are shown overseeing the Erection of the Mast before Amen-Re attended by standard bearers. Nefertari’s speech during this ceremony is recorded:
-
"Your beloved son, the Lord of Both Lands, Usermaatre Setepenre, has come to see you in your beautiful manifestation. He has erected for you the mast of the (pavilion)-framework. May you grant him eternity as King, and victory over those rebellious (against) His Majesty, L.P.H."’’
Nefertari appears as Ramesses II’s consort on many statues in both Luxor and Karnak. In Western Thebes, Nefertari is mentioned on a statuary group from Deir el-BAhari, a stela and blocks from Deir el-Medina.
The greatest honor was bestowed on Nefertari however in Abu Simbel
Abu Simbel
Abu Simbel temples refers to two massive rock temples in Abu Simbel in Nubia, southern Egypt on the western bank of Lake Nasser about 230 km southwest of Aswan...
. Nefertari is depicted in statue form at the great temple, but the small temple is dedicated to Nefertari and the goddess Hathor
Hathor
Hathor , is an Ancient Egyptian goddess who personified the principles of love, beauty, music, motherhood and joy. She was one of the most important and popular deities throughout the history of Ancient Egypt...
. The building project was started earlier in the reign of Ramesses II
Ramesses II
Ramesses II , referred to as Ramesses the Great, was the third Egyptian pharaoh of the Nineteenth dynasty. He is often regarded as the greatest, most celebrated, and most powerful pharaoh of the Egyptian Empire...
, and seems to have been inaugurated by ca year 25 of his reign (but not completed until ten years later).
Nefertari’s prominence at court is further supported by cuneiform
Cuneiform script
Cuneiform script )) is one of the earliest known forms of written expression. Emerging in Sumer around the 30th century BC, with predecessors reaching into the late 4th millennium , cuneiform writing began as a system of pictographs...
tablets from the Hittite
Hittites
The Hittites were a Bronze Age people of Anatolia.They established a kingdom centered at Hattusa in north-central Anatolia c. the 18th century BC. The Hittite empire reached its height c...
city of Hattusas (today Boghazkoy, Turkey
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
), containing Nefertari's correspondence with the king Hattusilis and his wife Pudukhepa. She is mentioned in the letters as Naptera. Nefertari is known to have sent gifts to Puduhepa
Puduhepa
Puduhepa was a Hittite tawanannas was married to King Hattusili III. She has been referred to as "one of the most influential women known from the Ancient Near East."...
:
-
The great Queen Naptera of the land of Egypt speaks thus: Speak to my sister Puduhepa, the Great Queen of the Hatti land. I, your sister, (also) be well!! May your country be well. Now, I have learned that you, my sister, have written to me asking after my health. ... You have written to me because of the good friendship and brotherly relationship between your brother, the king of Egypt, The Great and the Storm God will bring about peace, and he will make the brotherly relationship between the Egptian king, the Great King, and his brother, the Hatti King, the Great King, last for ever... See, I have sent you a gift, in order to greet you, my sister... for your neck (a necklace) of pure gold, composed of 12 bands and weighing 88 shekels, coloured linen maklalu-material, for one royal dress for the king... A total of 12 linen garments.
Nefertari is shown at the inaugural festivities at Abu Simbel in year 24. Her daughter Meritamen
Meritamen
Meritamen was a daughter and later Great Royal Wife of Pharaoh Ramesses the Great.- Family :...
is depicted taking part in place of her mother in some of the scenes. Nefertari may well have been in failing health at this point. After her death she was buried in tomb QV66
QV66
QV66 is the tomb of Nefertari, the Great Wife of Ramesses II, in Egypt's Valley of the Queens. It was discovered by Ernesto Schiaparelli in 1904...
in the Valley of the Queens
Valley of the Queens
The Valley of the Queens is a place in Egypt where wives of Pharaohs were buried in ancient times. In ancient times, it was known as Ta-Set-Neferu, meaning –‘the place of the Children of the Pharaoh’, because along with the Queens of the 18th, 19th and 20th dynasties many princes and princesses...
.
Abu Simbel, great temple
Nefertari appears twice as one of the royal women represented beside the colossal statues of Ramesses IIRamesses II
Ramesses II , referred to as Ramesses the Great, was the third Egyptian pharaoh of the Nineteenth dynasty. He is often regarded as the greatest, most celebrated, and most powerful pharaoh of the Egyptian Empire...
that stand before the temple. To the left of the doorway, Nefertari, Queen-Mother Tuya and the king's son Amun-her-khepeshef
Amun-her-khepeshef
Amun-her-khepeshef or Amonhirkhopshef or Amun-her-wenemef was the firstborn son of Pharaoh Ramesses II and Queen Nefertari.-Name:...
(still called Amunhirwenemef here) flank the colossal statue of the king. To the right of the doorway Nefertari, Baketmut and the king's son Ramesses are shown with the Pharaoh
Pharaoh
Pharaoh is a title used in many modern discussions of the ancient Egyptian rulers of all periods. The title originates in the term "pr-aa" which means "great house" and describes the royal palace...
.
Inside the temple Nefertari is depicted on one of the pillars in the great pillared hall worshipping Hathor
Hathor
Hathor , is an Ancient Egyptian goddess who personified the principles of love, beauty, music, motherhood and joy. She was one of the most important and popular deities throughout the history of Ancient Egypt...
of Ibshek.
On the wall of the inner pillared hall Nefertari appears behind Ramesses II
Ramesses II
Ramesses II , referred to as Ramesses the Great, was the third Egyptian pharaoh of the Nineteenth dynasty. He is often regarded as the greatest, most celebrated, and most powerful pharaoh of the Egyptian Empire...
. They stand before the barque of Amun
Amun
Amun, reconstructed Egyptian Yamānu , was a god in Egyptian mythology who in the form of Amun-Ra became the focus of the most complex system of theology in Ancient Egypt...
, and Nefertari is shown playing the sistra. Elsewhere Nefertari and Ramesses II
Ramesses II
Ramesses II , referred to as Ramesses the Great, was the third Egyptian pharaoh of the Nineteenth dynasty. He is often regarded as the greatest, most celebrated, and most powerful pharaoh of the Egyptian Empire...
are shown before a barque dedicated to a deified Ramesses II
Ramesses II
Ramesses II , referred to as Ramesses the Great, was the third Egyptian pharaoh of the Nineteenth dynasty. He is often regarded as the greatest, most celebrated, and most powerful pharaoh of the Egyptian Empire...
. Nefertari is shown twice accompanying her husband in Triumph scenes.
Abu Simbel, small temple
Hathor
Hathor , is an Ancient Egyptian goddess who personified the principles of love, beauty, music, motherhood and joy. She was one of the most important and popular deities throughout the history of Ancient Egypt...
of Ibshek. The dedication text on one of the buttresses states:
- ‘’ A temple of great and Mighty monuments, for the Great Royal Wife Nefertari Meryetmut, for whose sake the (very) sun does shine, given life and beloved;’’ (Kitchen)
While on other buttresses it says:
- ‘’ King of South and North Egypt, Usermaatre Setepenre; - he has made a Temple by excavation in the mountain, of eternal work(manship) in Nubia, which the King of South and North Egypt, Usermaatre Setepenre has made for the Great Royal Wife Nefertari Meryetmut, in Nubia, like Re forever and ever.’’ (Kitchen)
The two colossal standing statues of Nefertari in front of the small temple are equal in size to those of Ramesses II
Ramesses II
Ramesses II , referred to as Ramesses the Great, was the third Egyptian pharaoh of the Nineteenth dynasty. He is often regarded as the greatest, most celebrated, and most powerful pharaoh of the Egyptian Empire...
. Nefertari is shown holding a sistrum. She wears a long sheet dress and she is depicted with a long wig, Hathoric cow horns, the solar disk and tall feathers mounted on a modius.
In the interior of the temple, Nefertari appears in a variety of scenes. She is shown for instance offering to a cow (Hathor) in a papyrus thicket, offering before Khnum, Satis
Satis
In Egyptian mythology, Satis was the deification of the floods of the Nile River, and her cult originated in the ancient city of Swenet, now called Aswan on the southern edge of Egypt. Her name means she who shoots forth referring to the annual flooding of the river...
and Anuket
Anuket
In Egyptian mythology, Anuket was originally the personification and goddess of the Nile river, in areas such as Elephantine, at the start of the Nile's journey through Egypt, and in nearby regions of Nubia....
, the triad of Elephantine
Elephantine
Elephantine is an island in the River Nile, located just downstream of the First Cataract at the southern border of Ancient Egypt. This region is referred to as Upper Egypt because the land is higher than that near the Mediterranean coast. The island may have received its name because it was a...
, and offering to Mut
Mut
Mut, which meant mother in the ancient Egyptian language, was an ancient Egyptian mother goddess with multiple aspects that changed over the thousands of years of the culture. Alternative spellings are Maut and Mout. She was considered a primal deity, associated with the waters from which...
and Hathor
Hathor
Hathor , is an Ancient Egyptian goddess who personified the principles of love, beauty, music, motherhood and joy. She was one of the most important and popular deities throughout the history of Ancient Egypt...
.
Tomb 66 in the Valley of the Queens
The tomb of Nefertari, QV66
QV66
QV66 is the tomb of Nefertari, the Great Wife of Ramesses II, in Egypt's Valley of the Queens. It was discovered by Ernesto Schiaparelli in 1904...
is one of the largest in the Valley of the Queens
Valley of the Queens
The Valley of the Queens is a place in Egypt where wives of Pharaohs were buried in ancient times. In ancient times, it was known as Ta-Set-Neferu, meaning –‘the place of the Children of the Pharaoh’, because along with the Queens of the 18th, 19th and 20th dynasties many princes and princesses...
. The tomb was robbed in antiquity. In 1904 it was rediscovered and excavated by Ernesto Schiaparelli
Ernesto Schiaparelli
Ernesto Schiaparelli was an Italian Egyptologist, born in Occhieppo Inferiore , who found Queen Nefertari's tomb in Deir el-Medina in the Valley of the Queens and excavated the TT8 tomb of the royal architect Kha , found intact and displayed in toto in Turin...
. Several items from the tomb, including parts of gold bracelets, shabti figures and a small piece of a earring or pendant are now in the Boston Museum of Fine Arts. Additional shabti figures are in the Egyptian Museum in Cairo.
In popular culture
- She features prominently in the Ramses series of novels by Christian JacqChristian JacqChristian Jacq is a French author and Egyptologist. He has written several novels about ancient Egypt, notably a five book suite about pharaoh Ramses II, a character whom Jacq admires greatly....
. - She is played by Rachel WeiszRachel WeiszRachel Hannah Weisz born 7 March 1970)is an English-American film and theatre actress and former fashion model. She started her acting career at Trinity Hall, Cambridge, where she co-founded the theatrical group Cambridge Talking Tongues...
in The Mummy ReturnsThe Mummy ReturnsThe Mummy Returns is a 2001 American adventure film written and directed by Stephen Sommers, starring Brendan Fraser, Rachel Weisz, John Hannah, Arnold Vosloo, Oded Fehr, Patricia Velásquez and Freddie Boath. The film is a sequel to the 1999 film The Mummy...
from 2001. - Her name is used as the surname of Princess Vivi in One PieceOne Pieceis a Japanese shōnen manga series written and illustrated by Eiichiro Oda. It has been serialized in Weekly Shōnen Jump since August 4, 1997; the individual chapters are being published in tankōbon volumes by Shueisha, with the first released on December 24, 1997, and the 64th volume released as...
.