SPORTS & LEISURE

Swimming was an important part of Egyptian culture and children were taught to swim when very young. Water sports played a significant role in Egyptian entertainment as the Nile River was such a major aspect of their daily lives. The sport of water-jousting, in which two small boats, each with one or two rowers and one jouster, fought each other, seems to have been very popular. The rower (or rowers) in the boat sought to strategically maneuver while the fighter tried to knock his opponent out of the craft.  They also enjoyed games having nothing to do with the river, however, which were similar to modern-day games of catch and handball.

Egyptian Hunting in the Marshes

Gardens and simple home adornments were highly prized by the Egyptians. A home garden was important for sustenance but also provided pleasure in tending to one’s own crop. The labourers in the fields never worked their own crop and so their individual garden was a place of pride in producing something of their own, grown from their own soil. This soil, again, would be their eternal home after they left their bodies and so was greatly valued. A tomb inscription from 1400 BCE reads, “May I walk every day on the banks of the water, may my soul rest on the branches of the trees which I planted, may I refresh myself under the shadow of my sycamore” in referencing the eternal aspect of the daily surroundings of every Egyptian. After death, one would still enjoy one’s own particular sycamore tree, one’s own daily walk by the water, in an eternal land of peace granted to those of Egypt by the gods they gratefully revered.

Anubis – God of Death

Anubis was the god of embalming and a god of the dead. He was the son of Nephthys and either Osiris or Seth but Isis raised him. Anubis’ depictions show him as either a man with a jackal’s head or as a jackal. He presided over funerals and guided the souls of the dead through the Tuat to Osiris’ kingdom. He also oversaw the ceremony where the gods weighed a human heart to make sure there was a fair judgment. Anubis became the god of embalming after he helped embalm and preserve Osiris’ body.

Egyptian women had a wide range of rights and freedoms

While they may have been publicly and socially viewed as inferior to men, Egyptian women enjoyed a great deal of legal and financial independence. They could buy and sell property, serve on juries, make wills and even enter into legal contracts. Egyptian women did not typically work outside the home, but those who did usually received equal pay for doing the same jobs as men. Unlike the women of ancient Greece, who were effectively owned by their husbands, Egyptian women also had the right to divorce and remarry. Egyptian couples were even known to negotiate an ancient prenuptial agreement. These contracts listed all the property and wealth the woman had brought into the marriage and guaranteed that she would be compensated for it in the event of a divorce.

Mummification

The earliest ancient Egyptians buried their dead in small pits in the desert.

The heat and dryness of the sand dehydrated the bodies quickly, creating lifelike and natural ‘mummies’.

Later, the ancient Egyptians began burying their dead in coffins to protect them

from wild animals in the desert. However, they realised that bodies placed in coffins

decayed when they were not exposed to the hot, dry sand of the desert.

Over many centuries, the ancient Egyptians developed a method of preserving

bodies so they would remain lifelike. The process included embalming the bodies and

wrapping them in strips of linen. Today we call this process mummification

An important man has died and his body needs to be prepared for burial.

The process of mummification has two stages. First, the embalming of the body. Then, the wrapping and burial of the body.

One of the embalmer’s men makes a cut in the left side of the body and removes

many of the internal organs. It is important to remove these because they are the first part of the body to decompose.

The liver, lungs, stomach and intestines are washed and packed in natron

which will dry them out. The heart is not taken out of the body because

it is the centre of intelligence and feeling and the man will need it in the afterlife.

A long hook is used to smash the brain and pull it out through the nose.

Why did the ancient Egyptians mummify their dead?

The ancient Egyptians believed that when someone died, their soul left their body. The soul would then return and be reunited with the body after it was buried. However, the soul needed to be able to find and recognise the body in order to live forever.

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15 Fascinating Facts About Ancient Egypt

Facts 1 – 5

1. A Pharaoh never let his hair be seen – he would always wear a crown or a headdress called a nemes (the striped cloth headdress made famous by Tutankhamen’s golden mask (pictured above).

2. In order to deter flies from landing on him, Pepi II of Egypt always kept several naked slaves nearby whose bodies were smeared with honey.

3. Both Egyptian men and women wore makeup – eyepaint was usually green (made from copper) or black (made from lead). The Egyptians believed that the makeup had healing power. Originally the makeup was used as a protection from the sun – rather than for adornment.

4. While the use of antibiotics did not begin in the 20th century, early folk medicine included the use of mouldy foods or soil for infections. In ancient Egypt, for example, infections were treated with mouldy bread.

5. Egyptian children wore no clothing at all until they were in their teens. The temperature in Egypt made it unnecessary. Adult men wore skirts while women wore dresses.

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Facts 6 – 10

6. Rich Egyptians wore wigs while the other classes would wear their hair long or in pig tails. Until 12, Egyptian boys had their heads shaved except for one plaited lock – this was as a protection against lice and fleas.

7. It is not known who destroyed the nose of the Sphinx (pictured above). There are sketches of the Sphinx without a nose in 1737, over 60 years before Napoleon reached Egypt and hundreds of years before the British and German armies of the two World Wars. The only person known to have damaged it was an Islamic cleric, Sa’im al-dahr, who was lynched in 1378 for vandalism.

8. Egyptian’s believed that the earth was flat and round (like a pancake) and that the Nile flowed through the center of it.

9. Egyptian soldiers were used as an internal police force. Additionally, they collected taxes for the Pharaoh.

10. In every temple in ancient Egypt the pharaoh was supposed to carry out the duties of the high priests, but his place was usually taken by the chief priest.

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Facts 11 – 15

Egypt Facts 2016

11. The first pyramid (The Step Pyramid of Djoser built around 2600 BC – seen above) was originally surrounded by a 34 ft tall wall which had 15 doors in it. Only one of the doors opened.

12. The women in ancient Egypt enjoyed legal and economical equality with men. Nevertheless, they never enjoyed social equality with men.

13. Contrary to popular belief, excavated skeletons show that the pyramid builders were actually Egyptians who were most likely in the permanent employ of the pharaoh. Graffiti indicates that at least some of these workers took pride in their work, calling their teams “Friends of Khufu,” “Drunkards of Menkaure,” and so on—names indicating allegiances to pharaohs.

14. When a body was mummified, its brain was removed through one of its nostrils and its intestines were also removed and placed in jars called canopic jars. Each organ was placed in its own jar. The only internal organ that was not removed was the heart, because Egyptians considered it to be the seat of the soul.

15. Ramses the Great had 8 official wives and nearly 100 concubines. He was over 90 years old when he died in 1212 BC.

Sources: National Geographic, James’ Interesting Facts

The Social Structure of Ancient Egypt

The social structure of ancient Egypt can be sorted into a social pyramid. At the top of the social pyramid was the pharaoh with the government officials, nobles and priests below him/her. The third tier consisted of the scribes and soldiers with the middle class in the fourth level. Peasants were the fifth tier of society with slaves making up the lowest social class.

Ancient Egypt Facts

was a civilization of ancient Northeastern Africa, concentrated along the

lower reaches of the Nile River in what is now the modern country of Egypt. It isone of six civilizations globally to arise independently. See the fact file below for more information and facts about Ancient Egypt and its civilization.

The story of ancient Egypt has survived for thousands of years. Ancient Egypt was one of the greatest civilizations of the past. The monuments and tombs of their Pharaohs continue to stand today. They are over 4,000 years old.

A good portion of the Old Testament takes place in or around Egypt. Egypt also plays a major role in the life of many Biblical people from Moses and Joseph to Jesus.

Egypt is situated in the northeast corner of the Africa.

A large river called the River Nile flows through the country into the Mediterranean Sea. It flows for 960 miles (1545 km). This river allowed the Ancient Egyptian civilization to survive and grow. All of Egypt depended on the Nile for water, food and transportation. The Nile also provided the ancient Egyptians with fertile land which helped them to grow their crops and raise their animals. The Ancient Egyptians lived along the banks of the river Nile in Egypt. Farmers first settled in Egypt along the River Nile around 5000 B.C.

Egypt is mainly made up of hot deserts and receives little rainfall. Without the River Nile, the area would be entirely desert. Before modern dams were built the Nile River would flood each year coating the land on either side of the river with thick back mud. This mud was ideal for growing crops, because it made the ground very fertile.

The people in Ancient Egypt divided Egypt into two areas. The ‘red land’ was the deserts protecting Egypt on two sides. These deserts separated ancient Egypt from neighbouring countries and invading armies. The black land was the fertile land (near the Nile River) where the ancient Egyptians grew their crops.

Two separate kingdoms (ruled by different kings) developed along the Nile River. The kingdom in Upper Egypt was known as the white crown and the kingdom in Lower Egypt was called the red crown. In about 3200 B. C. the pharaoh of the north conquered the south and Egypt became united. The pharaoh’s name was King Narmer or Menes. Menes built a new capital city called Memphis. In the Greek language the word Memphis meant “Balance of the Two Lands.”

Anubis was associated with the mummification and protection of the dead

 
       

Anubis was associated with the mummification and protection of the dead for their journey into the afterlife. He was usually portrayed as a half human, half jackal, or in full jackal form wearing a ribbon and holding a flail. The jackal was strongly associated with cemeteries in ancient Egypt, since it was a scavenger which threatened to uncover human bodies and eat their flesh.  

Golden Anubis statue is made from resin, finished in gold paint with black and red details, the staff is made from metal.

Height 15cm Width 3.5cm Depth 5cm

Would look incredible in the hallway of a mansion house or Collectors Room or antique / Curio Shop or in an Egyptian setting.

Each Golden Bast is made from resin

Each Golden Bast is made from resin, finished in gold paint with coloured highlighted details, the Bast is stood on a hieroglyph inscribed base.

 The Goddess Bast is often depicted holding a sistrum, symbolizing her role as a goddess of dance, joy and festivity. A sistrum is a musical instrument, associated with ancient Egypt and was used in religious ceremonies. A percussion instrument, the sistrum created a range of sound from tinkling to a loud jangling.

Height 14cm Width 3cm Depth 5cm

Would look incredible in the hallway of a mansion house or Collectors Room or antique / Curio Shop or in an Egyptian setting.

DOLLS HOUSE SPHINX

DOLLS HOUSE SPHINX Golden Egyptian Sphinx is made from resin, finished in gold paint, with the hieroglyphs inlayed with black paint as well as other highlighted details.  A Sphinx is a zoomorphic mythological figure, which is commonly depicted as a recumbent lion with a woman's head. Sphinxes were generally used as temple guardians, most famous is the Great Sphinx of Giza which guards the Pyramid of Khafre. Height 9cm Length 11cm Depth 3.5cm

Bastet was the proctress of cats

  

Bastet was the proctress of cats. The Ancient Egyptians had a great respect for cats since they protected the grain from mice and rats. Killing a cat was punishable by death. When a cat died, the family mourned it, shaving their eyebrows to mark their sadness. Cats were sometimes mummified, like people, and their mummies have been found.

Each item is made from resin and coloured black with a soft polished finish.

H9.5cm x W2.5cm x D5.5cm.

Would look incredible in the hallway or Collectors Room or antique / Curio Shop or in an Egyptian setting.

Significance of Discovery

The royal bloodline that Tutankhamun's family shared, ended with the death of the young pharaoh, and with that came a question of the legitimacy of the following rulers. King Tut's tomb was the only one discovered that was not very disturbed by grave robbers, which allowed Carter to uncover many artifacts and the untouched mummy. It gave amazing insight into the royal burials, mummification, and tombs of the New Kingdom's 18th Dynasty. Since its discovery and wide-spread popularity, it has led to DNA testing done on it and other mummies from the time period that now give a proven family tree for many of the royalty during the 18th Dynasty. Since his death was unexpected and either poorly recorded or simply the records were lost over the years, with the discovery of his mummy and advances in modern technology, there is now strong and supported evidence as to Tut's death, and with that one of Egypt's most popular mysteries appears to have been solved.

Paul Doherty

Paul Doherty, a British historian who has written many articles and books on the subject of Ancient Egypt, uses physical evidence collected about the mummy to suggest his theory that Tut suffered from Marfan Syndrome. He believed Tut must have genetically inherited the disease, and it eventually led to his death.

Popular speculation

Since the discovery of Tutankhamun's mummy, there has been a lot of speculation and theories[by whom?] on the exact cause of death, which until recent studies had been hard to prove with the evidence and data available. While it was a widely debated topic for many Egyptologists, it had also spread to the general public as popular culture has come up with many conspiracy theories that played out in movies, TV shows, and fictional books. Author James Patterson has even recently written his own take in his new book, The Murder of King Tut. There are many educated and respected Egyptologists as well as trained professionals in other fields who have devoted a lot of time researching Tut and who have varying beliefs to Tut's cause of death. Some have stood by their theories even in light of new evidence. Some of the theories are better known and supported than others.

DNA testing done from 2007-2009

From September 2007 to October 2009, 11 royal mummies of the New Kingdom's 18th Dynasty have undergone extensive genetic and radiological testing. A team of doctors, under the leadership of Dr. Zahi Hawass, took DNA samples from bone tissue of the 11 mummies to determine a family pedigree and to determine if any familial, pathological diseases caused Tutankhamun's death. The study was able to provide a 5-generation pedigree, and the KV55 mummy and KV35YL mummy were identified as Tut's parents. KV55 is believed to have contained the body of Ahkenhaten and in KV35, a young lady mummy was discovered and believed to be either Kiya or Nefertiti. It was discovered that Tutankhamun's family had a large number of irregularities. Four of the mummies, including Tut, were shown to have had Malaria tropica. Based on all the data, the study concluded the most likely cause of death for the young king was the combination of avascular necrosis and Malaria. The fact that a cane and Ancient Egyptian-style medicines were found in the tomb backed up Hawass's claim that Tut suffered from a walking impairment.

CT Scan done in 2005

On January 15, 2005, under the direction of Dr. Madeeha Khattab, the Dean of the School of Medicine at Cairo University, Tutankhamun was removed from the tomb and a CT scan (computerized tomography) was performed on the mummy. The scan allowed for accurate forensic reconstruction of Tut's body and face, as well as further evidence of his cause of death. Testing showed there was no traumatic injury to the head, he had a small cleft palate that went probably unnoticed, and the elongated shape of his skull was within the normal range and appeared to be a family trait after some studies were done on mummies that were believed to have been related to Tut. Based on bone maturity and his wisdom teeth, Tutankhamun was confirmed to be 19 years old at the time of his death. The CT scan proved Tut was in good health and did not show any signs of disease that would have affected his build. Study concluded Tut was not murdered from traumatic head injury, but a non-violent murder could still not be ruled out. There appeared to be no indication of any long-term disease.

X-rays done in 1968

In 1968, R. G. Harrison, a professor of anatomy, used a portable x-ray machine to get a better look at the internal structures of the mummy to better determine age and cause of death of Tutankhamun. One of the most abnormal findings was the sternum (breastbone) and most parts of the frontal ribs were missing. Removing these bones was not part of the normal mummification process, which lead Harrison to believe they might have been removed because they were badly damaged before his death. Harrison quickly discovered that Carter was not as careful as many of his personal notes had claimed. The mummy was not re-wrapped after 1926, which led to more deterioration due to the extremely hot external elements over the forty-two years. Also many of the limbs had been amputated in the body in order to remove some of the jewelry. Both hands were cut off, both legs were removed from the pelvis, and the head was severed from the body in order to get the mask off. Even more remarkable is that the king's right ear and penis were missing, but photographs from Carter show they were both present during his examination. Harrison believed the slight curve in the spine and small bone fragments might have been the result of the embalming process. The lesion on the left jaw showed signs of healing occurred before Tut's death and one of his legs had been broken, but it could not be determined if it happened naturally or as a result of the embalming or Carter's examination. The fact that skull fragments were discovered led many to assume the king was murdered by a blow to the head, but the x-ray could not support or discredit this theory.

Initial examination

On November 11–19, 1925 Dr. Douglas Derry and Dr. Saleh Bey Hamdi along with Carter and other members of the expedition team began to examine the mummy. It was initially very difficult for the team to unwrap the mummy because it appeared the anointing oils that were most likely used during the mummification ceremony had caused the mummy to stick to the tomb. Although the wrappings were in poor condition, it seemed they were of the same material that other kings from the period had been wrapped in. As each layer was removed, the team began to discover many fine objects were wrapped between the layers all over Tut's body. Some of these objects included gold jewelry, jumping castels, and pieces of armor. Once the layers had been removed and they could finally begin to examine the actual corpse, they began to take anatomical notes of the body. He was determined to be approximately 5 feet, 6 inches and have had a slight build. He had a slightly curved spine, small bone fragments were found from the skull, a lesion was discovered on his left side of the jaw, and because the chest cavity was filled with wrappings, no further studying was done on it.

Discovery of the mummy

Under the commission of George Herbert, 5th Earl of Carnarvon, who is commonly called just Lord Carnarvon, Howard Carter and his team set out to Egypt in 1922 to discover the tomb of Tutankhamun, and because of other recent discoveries during that time in a particular area of the Valley of the Kings, Carter believed he had a good idea of where he would find it. Theodore M. Davis, a contemporary archeologist of Carter, discovered pottery with Tut's name a short distance from where Carter would on November 4, 1922 discover KV62.

The location at the Valley of the Kings was significant to the New Kingdom because it is where the pharaohs of the time and some other important people to the king were buried. The idea behind burying them there was that is was supposed to be a hidden location in a remote area since tomb robbing was a constant problem during Ancient Egyptian times. Unfortunately the location was not as secret as it was hoped to be, and most of the tombs were broken into and either stolen from or damaged. King Tut's tomb did suffer from some tomb robbing, but overall much of it was left intact and some areas including the burial chamber appeared to be left unscathed.

Tutankhamun was the last pharoah of Egypt.

Tutankhamun (alternately spelled with Tutenkh-, -amen, -amon) was an Egyptian pharaoh betwen 1341 BC – 1323 BC, of the 18th dynasty (ruled ca. 1332 BC – 1323 BC in the conventional chronology), during the period of Egyptian history known as the New Kingdom. He is popularly referred to as King Tut. His original name, Tutankhaten, means "Living Image of Aten", while Tutankhamun means "Living Image of Amun". 

In hieroglyphs, the name Tutankhamun was typically written Amen-tut-ankh, because of a scribal custom that placed a divine name at the beginning of a phrase to show appropriate reverence. He is possibly also the Nibhurrereya of the Amarna letters, and likely the 18th dynasty king Rathotis who, according to Manetho, an ancient historian, had reigned for nine years — a figure which conforms with Flavius Josephus's version of Manetho's Epitome.

The 1922 discovery by Howard Carter and George Herbert, 5th Earl of Carnarvon of Tutankhamun's nearly intact tomb received worldwide press coverage. It sparked a renewed public interest in ancient Egypt, for which Tutankhamun's burial mask remains the popular symbol. Exhibits of artifacts from his tomb have toured the world. In February 2010, the results of DNA tests confirmed that he was the son of Akhenaten (mummy KV55) and his sister/wife (mummy KV35YL), whose name is unknown but whose remains are positively identified as "The Younger Lady" mummy found in KV35.
 

On February 12, 1924, English Egyptologist Howard Carter and his team removed the lid on the third and last sarcophagus of the burial chamber in tomb KV62 revealing the mummy of Tutankhamun. By February 1923, Carter had already discovered the Burial Chamber of Tutankhamun's tomb hidden in the Valley of the Kings.

Tutankhamun was the 11th pharaoh of Dynasty 18 of the New Kingdom in Ancient Egypt, making his mummy over 3,300 years old. The discovery of the tomb as a whole was one of the most significant and famous archeological discoveries in modern times. There has been great speculation about the alleged Curse of the Pharaohs and also the actual cause of death of King Tutankhamun since very little data about the young king is known.

Although most Egyptologists agree that King Tutankhamun, or King Tut (as he is commonly referred to), was the 11th pharaoh during the 18th Dynasty of the New Kingdom, what is still not exactly clear is to the exact dates of Tut's reign. An educated estimate is that he ruled over Ancient Egypt from about 1346-1355 BCE. After an initial examination of the 3,300 year old mummy, it was estimated that Tut was a teenager of approximately 17–19 years of age when he died. Since it was believed that Tutankhamun became king as child no more than 10 years old, many refer to him as the "Boy-King" or "Child-King." A majority of his reign was devoted to restoring Egyptian culture, including religious and political policies because Tut's predecessor Akhenaten (recently proven to be Tut's father) had altered many Egyptian cultural aspects during his reign, and one of Tut's many restoration policies included changing the political capital from Akhenaten's Amarna back to Memphis.

Following the discovery of Tut's mummy, much debate has arisen as to his exact cause of death. This has led to numerous medical studies and procedures performed on his remains, including as recent as 2009. As medical technology advanced throughout the years, new techniques were utilized on the mummy to discover the true age, genealogy, and cause of death of the young pharaoh (is either a war battle wound or chariot fall) so some of the mysteries surrounding the "Boy-King" could finally be put to rest.

Cleopatra

Cleopatra VII Philopator, famously known as Cleopatra, was the last active Pharaoh of Ancient Egypt shortly succeeded by her son, Pharaoh Caesarion. The name Cleopatra is derived from the Greek name Kleopatra which means “Glory of the father”. Cleopatra originally ruled jointly with her father, Ptolemy XII Auletes, and later, with her brothers, Ptolemy XIII and Ptolemy XIV, whom she replaced and eventually became sole ruler. For taking advantage of Julius Caesar’s anger towards Ptolemy, Cleopatra secretly went to the palace of Caesar. Plutarch, in his “Life of Julius Caesar”, gives a detailed description of how she entered past Caesar’s guards rolled up in a carpet that the Sicilian Apollodorus was carrying. In 41 BC, Mark Antony, while in dispute with Caesar’s adopted son, Octavian, over the succession to the Roman leadership, began both the political and romantic alliance with Cleopatra. They had two sons and a daughter. Cleopatra killed herself by inducing an Egyptian cobra to bite her. According to Strabo, who was alive at the time of the event, there are two stories. One says that she applied a toxic ointment, while the other says that she was bitten by an asp on her breast.

Egypt was full with mystical Pharaohs and Gods having partial body parts of animals. It is said that before the first dynasty of Egypt, the land was ruled by Demigods whose names are long forgotten. It had a humungous long period when the mystic desert beside Nile was ruled by the great Pharaohs. Egypt is ancient for the ancients. As a fact, the most famous female Pharaoh of ancient Egypt, Cleopatra, is closer to us according to chronology than the Pharaohs before her who built the great pyramids.

Nefertiti.

Nefertiti, also written as Neferneferuaten Nefertiti, was the Great Royal Wife or chief consort of the Egyptian Pharaoh Akhenaten. She was the daughter of Ay. Scenes in the tombs of the nobles in Amarna mention the queen’s sister who is named Mutbenret. Nefertiti had many titles including “Hereditary Princess”, “Great of Praises”, ”Lady of Grace”, “Sweet of Love”, “Lady of The Two Lands” and “Mistress of Upper and Lower Egypt”. Nefertiti and her husband were known for a religious revolution, in which they worshiped one god only, Aten or the Sun. Nefertiti ruled Egypt as Neferneferuaten after her husband’s death and before the accession of the Boy King, Tutankhamun. After Nefertiti had given birth to six daughters, her husband began taking other wives for a successor, including his own sister, with whom he fathered King Tutankhamun. Nefertiti disappears from the historical record around the 12th year of Akhenaten’s 17-year reign. She may have died at that time, but it is also claimed that she became her husband’s official co-regent under the name Neferneferuaten. Akhenaten was followed as Pharaoh by the name of Smenkhkare which some historians suggest was another name for Nefertiti.

Hatshepsut

Hatshepsut, also known as Hatchepsut, which means “The Foremost of Noble Ladies” was the fifth pharaoh of the Eighteenth dynasty of Ancient Egypt whose mother gave birth to her in a lion’s den. Hatshepsut was the daughter of Thutmose I and his Royal wife Ahmes. Her husband Thutmose II was the son of Thutmose I. Hatshepsut and Thutmose II had a daughter named Neferure. She was one of the greatest pharaohs from Egypt besides King Tut or Nefertiti. The New York Metropolitan Museum of Art devoted an entire room on her. Hatshepsut was given a reign of about twenty-two years by ancient Krish. Hatshepsut was one of the most prolific builders in ancient Egypt. Fifteen hundred years before the birth of Jesus she ruled her land for twenty-two years. She ruled Egypt wearing men’s clothing including the pharaoh’s false beard. According to Egyptologist James Henry Breasted, she is the first great woman in history of whom we are informed. She constructed the Temple of Karnak and restored the original Precinct of Mut. Nine golden cartouches bearing the names of both Hatshepsut and Thutmose III were found in Karnak.

Sobekneferu

Sobekneferu, often referred as “Neferusobek”, which means “the beauty of Sobek”, was an Egyptian Pharaoh of the twelfth dynasty. She ruled Egypt for almost for 4 years between 1806 and 1802 BC. She was the daughter of Pharaoh Amenemhat III. Ancient Egyptian historian, Manetho, stated, she was also the sister of Amenemhat IV which is not proved by any archeological findings. Sobekneferu also had an elder sister named Nefruptah. Few monuments have been discovered for her, although many of her headless statues have been preserved including the base of a representation of “king’s royal daughter” that was discovered in Gezer, which also bears her name. In one damaged statue of the queen from unknown origin, the costume she wears is unique in its combination of elements from male and female dress. It is discovered that she made additions to the pyramid complex of Amenemhat III at Hawara which also called a labyrinth by Herodotus. She also built structures at Herakleopolis Magna. No evidences were found of Sobekneferu’s death or burial while some historians believe that her burial might be one of the pyramids at Mazghuna.

Khentkaus I.

Khentkaus I also known as Khentkawes, was a Queen of Ancient Egypt during the 4th dynasty. She was believed to be the daughter of Pharaoh Menkaure. It was also discovered that, she was the wife of Shepseskaf and the mother of Userkaf. She is also believed to be married with King Userkaf and the mother of Sahure and Neferirkare Kakai because her title consist “Mother of Two Dual Kings”. She was widely believed to be the oldest attested queen to have used the title King of Upper and Lower Egypt. Her Mastaba is located very close to Menkaure’s pyramid complex. Khentkaus was buried in Giza. Her tomb is known as LG 100 and G 8400, and it is located in the Central Field, Giza, which is part of the Giza Necropolis. The pyramid complex of Queen Khentkaus includes her pyramid, a boat pit, a Valley Temple and a pyramid town.

Neferneferuaten

Neferneferuaten, also known as Ankhkheperure-mery-Neferkheperure, was a Pharaoh in the end of the Amarna Period during the Eighteenth Dynasty. Her gender is confirmed by feminine traces found in the name she was known with, “Epithet Akhet-en-hyes”, which means “Effective for her husband”. It appears she ruled a sole reign for 3 Regnal Year in Pairi’s inscription. The accepted interpretation of the evidence was that Smenkhkare served as coregent with Akhenaten beginning in about year 15, using the throne name of Ankhkheperure. To start his sole reign, he changed his name to Ankhkheperure Neferneferuaten. Many historians claim that Nefertiti was King Neferneferuaten while many others also claim she is also known as a male using the name Smenkhkare. Archeologists discovered a number of items in Tutankhamun’s tomb which were originally intended for Neferneferuaten. These consist of “Carter” which is a stunning gold pectoral depicting the goddess Nut. Other items include the stone sarcophagus, mummy wrappings, royal figurines and canopy items.

Ahhotep I

Ahhotep I or Ahhotpe, which means “The Moon is satisfied”, was a 1560- 1530 BC Ancient Egyptian queen who ruled circa during the end of the Seventeenth dynasty of ancient Egypt. She was the daughter of Queen Tetisheri or “Teti the Small” and Senakhtenre Ahmose, and claimed as the sister and the wife of seventeenth dynasty king, Pharaoh Seqenenre Tao. A stele in Karnak temple records her contribution towards her nation. Her titles include “Great Royal Wife”, “The associate of the White Crown bearer” and “King’s Mother”. It was discovered that her second son, Ahmose, led his army to Nubia to expel the Hyksos and regain lost territories. While he was gone from his nation, a group of Hyksos tried to steal the throne. Ahhotep resisted this attempt and was awarded as the “golden flies of valour” by her son. He also gave her a cache of beautiful jewelry and ornamental weaponry which was later found in a tomb at Dra Abu el-Naga near the Valley of the Kings. Her original tomb has not been discovered yet, but, modern archeologists believe that Ahhotep I’s outer coffin was buried in TT320 in Deir el Bahari.

Merneith.

Merneith or Meryt-Neith meaning “Beloved by Neith” was a consort and the first female Pharaoh who was the earliest queen regnant in recorded history of Ancient Egypt during the first dynasty. She is claimed as Djer’s daughter, and was probably the senior royal wife of Djet. She was the mother of Den, as clay seal found in the tomb of her son was engraved with “King’s Mother Merneith”. Her ruling started in the thirtieth century B.C. Her own stele contains symbols of the deity. Merneith’s tomb is close to Djet and Den’s tomb as her tomb is of the same scale as the tombs of the kings of that period. Two grave steles bearing her name were discovered near her tomb. This tomb in Abydos or Tomb Y is unique among the otherwise exclusively male tombs. Meryt-Neith also had another burial at Sakkara where archeologists found a solar boat which was believed to enable her spirit to travel with the Sun God in the Afterlife, an honor reserved normally for the king.

Twosret

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Queen Twosret or Tausret, who was also known by her royal name, “Sitre Meryamun”, which means “Daughter of Re, beloved of Amun”, was the last known ruler and the final Pharaoh of the Nineteenth Dynasty. In Manetho’s Epitome, she is recorded as a certain Thuoris, who, by Homer, is called Polybus, the husband of Alcandara, and in whose time Troy was taken. Twosret is claimed to start in Regnal year 9 which means that she had two independent years of rule. Theodore Davis discovered the Queen and her husband in a cache of jewelry in tomb KV56 in the Valley of the Kings. This tomb also contained objects bearing the name of Rameses II. Twosret’s KV14 tomb in the Valley of the Kings started in the reign of Seti II. The tomb was then usurped by Setnakht, and extended to become the deepest royal tomb in the valley, while Tawosret’s sarcophagus was reused by Amenherkhepeshef in KV13. Her statues have been found at Heliopolis and Thebes. It is claimed that expeditions were conducted during her reign to the turquoise mines in Sinai and Palestine and. Her name is also found at Abydos, Hermopolis, Memphis, and in Nubia.

Nitocris.

Nitocris, also known as Queen Neterkare or Nitiqrty, means “The Soul of Re is Divine”. She was the daughter of Pepi II and Queen Neith and claimed as the sister of Merenre Nemtyemsaf II, while she was also claimed as the last Pharaoh of the Sixth Dynasty. Without having any archeological record, she is known to us only from the Turin Canon, Manetho and Herodotus. According to Herodotus, she invited the “king of Egypt” who killed her brother, to a banquet. And she killed him by flooding the sealed room with the Nile. Then, to avoid the other conspirators, she committed suicide, possibly by running into a burning room. Ancient Egyptian historian from Ptolemaic era, Manetho, claims she built the third pyramid of Giza, which was later claimed by modern historians and archaeologists to have been built by the Pharaoh Menkaure of the Fourth dynasty. Manetho was most likely confused by the similarity of the names Menkaura “the prenomen” or “throne name” of Nitocris and Menkaure. Some modern historians have suggested that she was, in fact, male, while many also claimed that Nitiqrty or Neterkare never actually existed. It is also possible that Nitiqrty and Neterkare were separate individuals and without more evidence it is very hard to prove

Ptolemaic Headdresses

Ptolemaic King Headdress

Ptolemaic King Headdress

Ptolemaic Headdress

Ptolemaic Queen Headdress

Ptolemaic King Headdress

Ptolemaic Queen Headdress