Nefertari

Fact 1 on Nefertari:

This famous queen was the adored wife of Ramses the Great.
 

Fact 2 on Nefertari:

She is believed to have been from a noble family, the daughter of Bakenkhonsu a royal court official. Her brother, Amenmose, was the mayor of Thebes.
 

Fact 3 on Nefertari:

She married Ramses before he became pharaoh. He was 15 and she was believed to have been about 12 years of age.
 

Fact 4 on Nefertari:

The royal couple had five children. Two daughters: Princess Meryatum and Princess Hentawi. Three sons: Prince Amenhirwonmef, Prince Prehirwonmef and Prince Meryre.
 

Fact 5 on Nefertari:

The marriage was happy and Pharaoh Ramses the Great honored his wife both in life and death.
 

Fact 6 on Nefertari:

Ramses had a temple dedicated to Nefertari and the goddess Hathor built in close proximity of the great rock temple at Abu Simbel. She was depicted in statues as being equal in size to Ramses, a rare honor, indicating her importance to the pharaoh. Her images can be seen at Karnak, Luxor and Heliopolis.
 

Fact 7 on Nefertari:

As the King's Principal Wife she was accorded special symbols and dress and allowed to wear the Royal Vulture Crown as seen in the above picture.  The Royal Vulture Crown consisted of a falcon feather headdress with its wings spread round her head in the act of protection. This crown associated her with the goddess Nekhbet of Upper Egypt and emphasized the queen's maternal role. On top of the Royal Vulture headdress she wears a Shuti crown (meaning the Two Feathers) as a symbol of divine law, consisting of two, tall ostrich or falcon feathers combined with a sun disk.
 

Fact 6 on Nefertari:

Queen Nefertari adopted the title of "God's Wife of Amun" in addition to the title of "King's Principal Wife". The title directly associated her with the powerful god Amun. The title of "God's Wife of Amun" referred to the myth of the divine birth of the kings of Egypt, in which his mother was impregnated by the god Amun and reflected the powerful concept of 'Divine Queenship'.
 

Fact 7 on Nefertari:

According to the Egyptian tradition Ramses the Great practised Polygamy allowing him to take numerous wives and concubines at the same time.  His children were estimated at one hundred or more. However Nefertari was the "King's Principal Wife" and therefore had the highest status and and within the harem her position was unassailable.
 

Fact 6 on Nefertari:

She played an active role in court affairs, foreign affairs and politics. She participated in both civil and religious ceremonies and accompanied Ramses on important journeys.
 

Fact 7 on Nefertari:

None of her sons succeeded Ramses the Great as pharaoh as he outlived them, but they served in various high status roles in the royal court.
 

Fact 8 on Nefertari:

She died in the 24th year of Ramses reign. The queen was buried in tomb QV66 in the Valley of the Queens. Ernesto Schiaparelli discovered her tomb in 1904. The decorations in her tomb are considered some of the most beautiful of the entire necropolis.
 

Fact 9 on Nefertari:

The cartouche depicts the vulture linking the queen to Nekhbet and Upper Egypt. The goddess Nekhbet was the Egyptian white vulture goddess and protector of the Pharaohs and Upper Egypt. The feather of Ma'at represents the qualities of truth, morality and justice. The lute shaped hieroglyph is the Nefer or 'nfr' was incorporated into many royal female names in Ancient Egypt. The 'nfr' symbolizes beauty and goodness, the exact translation of the word is "Beautiful on the inside and the outside".

Nefertari Cartouche