Dazzling Nebmaatre: Queen Tiye, the Matchless Matriarch—Part II
In March, 1898 within a dark side chamber of Amenhotep II's tomb (KV35) the famed French Egyptologist, Victor Loret gazed upon the face of a severely damaged mummy of an ancient woman, which to him exuded “a noble and majestic seriousness”. This lady had guided her son, Akhenaten – the first monotheist in history – when he became pharaoh; and had gifted that most tender of all mementos – an auburn lock of her hair – to her grandson, Tutankhamun. One of the foremost women of her time who was an able companion to her illustrious husband Amenhotep III, the matchless matriarch Queen Tiye was a formidable leader in her own right.
[Read:Dazzling Nebmaatre: Amenhotep III and the Age of Opulence]
Head of a statuette of Queen Tiye, wearing a double-feathered crown, made of yew wood with silver, gold and glass. Neues Museum, Berlin. (Photo: Heidi Kontkanen)
