From the depths of centuries, the beautiful eyes of Queen Nefertiti, captured in the famous sculptural portrait, look at us. What is hidden behind her incomprehensible gaze?
This woman has reached the heights of power. Her husband, Pharaoh Amenhotep IV (Akhenaton), was one of the most mysterious personalities in human history. He was called the heretic pharaoh, the subversive pharaoh. Is it possible to be happy next to such a person? And if so, at what price does this happiness come?
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One can only marvel at the unusual historical fate of Queen Nefertiti. For thirty-three centuries her name was forgotten, and when the brilliant French scientist F. Champollion deciphered ancient Egyptian writings at the beginning of the last century, she was mentioned quite rarely and only in special academic works.
The 20th century, as if demonstrating the quirkiness of human memory, raised Nefertiti to the pinnacle of fame. On the eve of the First World War, the German expedition, having completed excavations in Egypt, as usual, presented its finds for verification to inspectors of the Antiquities Service. (“The Antiquities Service” is an agency founded in 1858 to supervise archaeological expeditions and protect monuments of the past.) Among the objects allocated for German museums was an unremarkable plastered stone block.
When he was brought to Berlin, he turned into the head of Nefertiti. They say that archaeologists, who did not want to part with a wonderful work of art, wrapped the bust in silver paper and then covered it with plaster, correctly calculating that the inconspicuous architectural detail would not attract attention. When this was discovered, a scandal erupted. It was only extinguished by the outbreak of the war, after which German Egyptologists were deprived for some time of the right to conduct excavations in Egypt.
However, the priceless artistic merit of the bust was worth even these sacrifices. Nefertiti's star was rising so rapidly, as if this woman was not an ancient Egyptian queen, but a modern movie star. It was as if her beauty had been waiting for recognition for many centuries, and finally the times came whose aesthetic taste elevated Nefertiti to the pinnacle of success.
If you look at Egypt from a bird's eye view, then almost in the very center of the country, 300 kilometers south of Cairo, you can see a small Arab village called el-Amarna. It is here that the time-eaten rocks, coming close to the river, then begin to retreat, forming an almost regular semicircle. Sands, the remains of the foundations of ancient buildings and the greenery of palm groves - this is what the once luxurious ancient Egyptian city of Akhetaten, where one of the most famous women in the world reigned, looks like now.
Nefertiti, whose name in translation means "The Beauty Who Came", was not the sister of her husband, Pharaoh Amenhotep IV, although for some reason this version became very widespread. The beautiful Egyptian woman came from a family of relatives of Queen Tiu - she was the daughter of a provincial priest. And although at that time Nefertiti received an excellent education in a special school, such a relationship irritated the proud queen and Nefertiti’s mother was called her wet nurse in many official documents.
But the rare beauty of a provincial girl melted the heart of the heir to the throne, and Nefertiti became his wife.
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For one of the “Sun Pharaoh” holidays, Amenhotep III gave his wife a truly royal gift: a summer residence, stunning in its beauty and richness, the Malkatta Palace, next to which there was a huge artificial lake planted with lotuses, with a boat for the queen’s walks.
Naked Nefertiti sat in a chair with lion paws near a round golden mirror. Almond-shaped eyes, straight nose, neck like a lotus stem. There was not a drop of foreign blood in her veins, as evidenced by the darkish tint of her skin and the warm, fresh, even blush, intermediate between golden yellow and brownish bronze. “Beauty, mistress of joy, full of praise... filled with beauties,” this is how poets wrote about her. But the thirty-year-old queen was not happy with her reflection as before. Fatigue and grief broke her, a fold of wrinkles lay from the wings of her beautiful nose to her bold lips, like a seal.
A maid, a dark-skinned Nubian, entered with a large jug of aromatic water for ablution.
Nefertiti stood up, as if awakening from her memories. But trusting in the skillful hands of Tadukippa, she again went into her thoughts.
How happy they were with Amenhotep on their wedding day. He is 16 years old, she is 15. They took power over the most powerful and richest country in the world. The thirty years of the reign of the previous pharaoh were not marred by disasters or wars. Syria and Palestine tremble before Egypt, Mitanni sends flattering letters, mountains of gold and incense are regularly sent from the mines of Kush.
The most important thing is that they love each other. The son of King Amenhotep III and Queen Tiu is not very handsome: thin, narrow-shouldered. But when he looked at her, obsessed with love, and the poems written for her came out of his big lips, she laughed with happiness. The future pharaoh ran after the young princess under the dark arches of the Theban palace, and she laughed and hid behind the columns.
The maid laid out the necessary accessories on the richly decorated dressing table: gold boxes with ointments, spoons for rubbing, eye antimony, lipstick and other cosmetics, manicure tools and nail paint. Deftly grabbing a bronze razor, she began to carefully and respectfully shave the queen's head.
Nefertiti indifferently ran her finger over the golden scarab on a jar of rice powder and recalled how once, even before the wedding, Amenhotep revealed his secret to her at sunset.
He stroked her thin fingers and, looking somewhere into the distance with sparkling eyes, said that the day before in a dream Aten himself, the god of the solar disk, appeared to him and spoke to him as to a brother:
-You see, Nefertiti. I see, I know that everything in the world is not as we are all used to seeing. The world is bright. It was created by Aton for happiness and joy. Why make sacrifices to all these numerous gods? Why worship beetles, hippos, birds, crocodiles, if they themselves, like us, are children of the Sun. Aten is the only true god!
Amenhotep's voice rang. He said how beautiful and wonderful the world created by Aton was, and the prince himself was beautiful at that moment. Nefertiti listened to every word of her beloved and accepted his faith with all her heart.
Having received the title of pharaoh, the first thing Amenhotep IV did was change his name. "Amenhotep" means "Amon is pleased." He began to call himself “Akhnaten”, i.e. “Pleasing to Aten.”
How happy they were! People can't be that happy. Almost immediately, Akhenaten decided to build a new capital - Akhetaten, which means “horizon of Aten.” This was supposed to be the best city on earth. Everything will be different there. New happy life. Not like in gloomy Thebes. And the people there will all be happy, because they will live in truth and beauty.
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The heir's wife spent her youth in Thebes - the brilliant capital of Egypt during the New Kingdom era (XVI-XI centuries BC). Grandiose temples of the gods coexisted here with luxurious palaces, houses of the nobility, gardens of rare trees and artificial lakes. The gilded needles of obelisks, the tops of painted pylon towers and colossal statues of kings pierced the sky. Through the lush greenery of tamarisks, sycamores and date palms, the alleys of sphinxes lined with turquoise-green faience tiles and connecting temples were visible.
Egypt was at the apogee of its heyday. The conquered peoples brought here, to Thebes, countless vessels with wine, leather, lapis lazuli, so beloved by the Egyptians, and all sorts of rare wonders. From the distant regions of Africa came caravans loaded with ivory, ebony, incense and countless gold, for which Egypt was so famous in ancient times. In everyday life there were the finest fabrics made of corrugated linen, lush wigs stunning in their variety, rich jewelry and expensive anointings...
All Egyptian pharaohs had several wives and countless concubines - the East was the East even then. But the “harem” in our understanding never existed in Egypt: the younger queens lived in separate residences next to the palace, and no one was particularly concerned with the comforts of the concubines. Those whom the texts call “The Lady of Upper and Lower Egypt,” “the great royal consort,” “the wife of God,” “the king’s adornment,” were primarily high priestesses who, together with the king, participated in temple services and rituals and supported by their actions Maat - world harmony.
For the ancient Egyptians, every new morning is a repetition of the original moment of the creation of the universe by God. The task of the queen participating in the service is to pacify and appease the deity with the beauty of her voice, the unique charm of her appearance, and the sound of the sistrum - a sacred musical instrument. Inaccessible to most mortal women, the status of the “great royal wife”, who possessed great political power, was based precisely on religious foundations. The birth of children was a secondary matter; the younger queens and concubines handled it well.
Theia was an exception - she was so close to her husband that she shared her bed with him for many years and bore him several children. True, only the eldest son lived to adulthood, but the priests saw the providence of Heaven in this too. They became aware of how misinterpreted this fishery was much later.
Amenhotep IV ascended the throne in 1424 BC. And... he started a religious reform - a change of gods, an unheard of thing in Egypt.
The universally revered god Amon, whose worship increasingly strengthened the power of the priests, was, by the will of the pharaoh, replaced by another god, the sun god - Aten. Aten - “visible solar disk”, was depicted in the form of a solar disk with palm rays that bestow benefits on people. The pharaoh's reforms were successful, at least for the period of his reign. A new capital was founded, many new temples and palaces were erected. Along with the ancient religious foundations, the canonical rules of ancient Egyptian art also disappeared. Having gone through years of exaggerated realism, the art of the time of Akhenaten and Nefertiti gave birth to those masterpieces that were discovered by archaeologists millennia later...
In the winter of 1912, German archaeologist Ludwig Borchardt began excavating the remains of another house in the destroyed settlement. It soon became clear to archaeologists that they had discovered a sculpture workshop. Unfinished statues, plaster masks and accumulations of stones of various types - all this clearly determined the profession of the owner of the vast estate. And among the finds was a life-size bust of a woman made of limestone and painted.
Flesh-colored nape, red ribbons running down the neck, blue headdress. A gentle oval face, a beautifully outlined small mouth, a straight nose, beautiful almond-shaped eyes, slightly covered with wide, heavy eyelids. The right eye retains a rock crystal insert with an ebony pupil. The tall blue wig is entwined with a gold bandage decorated with gems...
The enlightened world gasped - a beauty appeared to the world, having spent three thousand years in the darkness of oblivion. Nefertiti's beauty turned out to be immortal. Millions of women envied her, millions of men dreamed of her. Alas, they did not know that they pay for immortality during their lifetime, and sometimes pay an exorbitant price.
Together with her husband, Nefertiti ruled Egypt for about 20 years. Those same two decades that were marked by a religious revolution unprecedented for the entire ancient Eastern culture, which shook the foundations of the ancient Egyptian sacred tradition and left a very ambiguous mark on the history of the country.
Nefertiti played an important role in the events of her time. She was the living embodiment of the life-giving power of the sun, giving life. In the large temples of the god Aten in Thebes, prayers were offered to her; none of the temple actions could take place without her - the guarantee of fertility and prosperity of the entire country “She sends Aten to rest with a sweet voice and beautiful hands with sisters,- it is said about her in the inscriptions of the tombs of noblemen of her contemporaries - At the sound of her voice, everyone rejoices.”
Having banned the cults of traditional gods and, above all, the universal Amun - the ruler of Thebes, Amenhotep IV, who changed his name to Akhenaten ("Effective Spirit of Aten"), and Nefertiti founded their new capital - Akhetaten. The volume of work was enormous. At the same time, temples, palaces, buildings of official institutions, warehouses, houses of the nobility, homes and workshops were erected. Holes dug in the rocky ground were filled with soil, and then specially brought trees were planted in them - there was no time to wait for them to grow here. As if by magic gardens grew among the rocks and sand, water splashed in ponds and lakes, the walls of the royal palace rose high in obedience to the royal order. Nefertiti lived here.
Both parts of the grandiose palace were surrounded by a brick wall and connected by a monumental covered bridge spanning the road. The residential buildings of the royal family were adjacent to a large garden with a lake and pavilions. The walls were decorated with paintings of bunches of lotuses and papyrus, swamp birds flying out of ponds, scenes of the life of Akhenaten, Nefertiti and their six daughters. The floor painting imitated ponds with swimming fish and birds fluttering around. Gilding and inlay with faience tiles and semiprecious stones were widely used.
Never before in Egyptian art have there appeared works that so vividly demonstrate the feelings of royal spouses. Nefertiti and her husband are sitting with their children, Nefertiti is swinging her legs, climbing on her husband’s lap, and holding her little daughter with her hand. On every stage there is always the presence of Aten - the solar disk with numerous hands holding out symbols of eternal life to the royal couple
Along with intimate scenes in the palace gardens, in the tombs of the nobles of Akhetaten, other episodes of the family life of the king and queen were preserved - unique images of royal lunches and dinners. Akhenaten and Nefertiti sit on chairs with lion paws, next to them is the dowager queen-mother Teye, who arrived on a visit. Near the feasters there are tables with dishes decorated with lotus flowers, vessels with wine. A female choir and musicians entertain the feasters, and servants bustle about. The three eldest daughters - Meritaten, Maketaton and Ankhesenpa-aten - are present at the celebration.
Nefertiti treasured the pictures of those happy years in her heart.
They were building a city. The best craftsmen and artists of Egypt gathered in Akhetaten. The king preached among them his ideas of a new art. From now on, it was supposed to reflect the true beauty of the world, and not copy ancient frozen forms. Portraits should have the features of real people, and the compositions should be lifelike.
One after another, their daughters were born. Akhenaten adored them all. He spent a long time fiddling with the girls in front of happy Nefertiti. He pampered them and extolled them.
And in the evenings they rode a chariot along the palm alleys of the city. He rode the horses, and she hugged him and cheerfully joked about the fact that he had acquired a large belly. Or we rode in a boat along the surface of the Nile, among thickets of reeds and papyrus.
Their family dinners were full of carefree fun, when Akhenaten would portray the angry Sobek, the crocodile god, with a piece of chop in his teeth, and the girls and Nefertiti would roar with laughter.
They held services in the Temple of Aten. The deity was depicted in the sanctuary in the form of a golden disk stretching out thousands of arms to people. The pharaoh was himself the high priest. And Nefertiti is the high priestess. Her voice and divine beauty bowed the people before the shining face of the true God.
While the maid anointed the queen’s body with precious oil, which spread the scent of myrrh, juniper and cinnamon, Nefertiti recalled what a holiday there was in the city when Tiu, Akhenaten’s mother, came to visit her children and granddaughters in Akhetaten. The girls jumped around her and vying with each other to amuse her with their games and dances. She smiled and did not know which of them to listen to.
Akhenaten proudly showed his mother his new capital: palaces for the nobility, houses of artisans, warehouses, workshops and the main pride were built - the Temple of Aten, which in size, pomp and splendor was supposed to surpass everything existing in the world.
- There will be not one altar, but several. And there will be no roof at all, so that the sacred rays of Aten fill it with their grace,” he enthusiastically told his mother. She listened silently to her only son. Tiu's intelligent, penetrating eyes looked sad. How could she explain that his efforts to make everyone happy were of no use to anyone. That he is not loved or respected as a sovereign, and only curses come from everywhere. The beautiful city of the sun emptied the royal treasury within a few years. Yes, the city is beautiful and delightful, but it eats up all the income. But Akhenaten didn’t want to hear about saving.
And in the evenings, Tiu had long conversations with her daughter-in-law, hoping to at least influence her son through her.
Oh, why, why, then she didn’t listen to the words of the wise Tiu!
But the couple's personal happiness did not last long...
Everything began to fall apart the year their eight-year-old daughter, the cheerful and sweet Meketaten, died. She went to Osiris so suddenly that it seemed as if the sun had stopped shining.
Remembering how she and her husband gave orders to the gravediggers and embalmers, the sobs that had been suppressed for a long time burst out in a stream of tears. The maid with a jar of eyebrow dye stopped in confusion. After a minute, the Great Queen controlled herself and, swallowing her sobs, exhaled and straightened up: "Continue."
With the death of Meketaten, happiness ended in their palace. Disasters and grief followed in an endless series, as if the curses of the overthrown gods fell on their heads. Soon, Tiu, the only person at court who supported Akhenaten, followed the little princess into the kingdom of the dead. With her death, there was no one left in Thebes except her enemies. The widow of the powerful Amenhotep III alone restrained with her authority the rage of the offended priests of Amon. With her, they did not dare to openly attack Akhenaten and Nefertiti.
Nefertiti squeezed her temples with her fingers and shook her head. If only she and her husband had been more careful, more political, more cunning then. If then Akhenaten had not expelled the priests from the old temples and had not forbidden people to pray to their gods... If only... But then it would not have been Akhenaten. Compromises are not in his nature. All or nothing. He destroyed everything old obsessively and mercilessly. He was confident that he was right and that he would win. He had no doubt that they would follow him... But no one did. A bunch of philosophers, artists and craftsmen - that’s his whole company.
She tried, repeatedly tried to talk to him, to open her eyes to the real essence of things. He only became angry and withdrawn into himself, spending more and more time with architects and sculptors.
Once again, when she approached him to talk about the fate of the dynasty, he shouted at her: “Rather than meddle in my affairs, it would be better if she gave birth to a son!”
Nefertiti gave birth to six daughters to Akhenaten in twelve years. She was always by his side. His affairs and problems were always her affairs and problems. At all services in the temples of Aten, she always stood next to him wearing a crown, ringing the sacred sistrums. And she did not expect such an insult. She was pierced to the very heart. Nefertiti came out silently and, rustling her pleated skirt, retired to her chambers...
The cat Bast entered the room with silent steps. Around the neck of the graceful animal was a gold necklace. Approaching the owner, Bast jumped onto her knees and began to rub herself against her hands. Nefertiti smiled sadly. Warm, cozy animal. She impulsively pressed her to herself. Bast, with some instinct, always guessed when the mistress was feeling bad and came to console her. Neferiti ran her hand over the soft light gray fur. Amber eyes with vertical pupils looked at the man wisely and condescendingly. “Everything will pass,” she seemed to say.
“You really are a goddess, Bast,” smiled the reassured Nefertiti. And the cat, majestically raising its tail, left the room, showing with its appearance that it had more important things to do.
The death of Maketaten appears to have been a turning point in Nefertiti's life. The one whom contemporaries called "beautiful, beautiful in a diadem with two feathers, mistress of joy, full of praises and filled with beauty", a rival appeared. And not just a temporary whim of the ruler, but a woman who really ousted his wife from his heart - Kiya.
All of Akhenaten's attention was focused on her. While his father was still alive, the Mitanni princess Taduheppa arrived in Egypt as a guarantee of political stability in interstate relations. It was for her, who according to tradition took the Egyptian name, that Akhenaten built the luxurious country palace complex Maru-Aten. But most importantly, she gave birth to two sons to the pharaoh, who later married their older half-sisters.
However, the triumph of Kiya, who bore sons to the king, was short-lived. She disappeared in the 16th year of her husband's reign. Having come to power, Nefertiti's eldest daughter, Meritaten, destroyed not only the images, but also almost all references to her mother's hated rival, replacing them with her own images and names. From the point of view of the ancient Egyptian tradition, such an act was the most terrible curse that could be carried out: not only the name of the deceased was erased from the memory of descendants, but also his soul was deprived of well-being in the afterlife.
Nefertiti was already finishing her vestments. The maid dressed her in a white dress made of the finest transparent white linen, and buttoned up a wide chest decoration studded with gems. She put a fluffy wig curled in small waves on her head. In her favorite blue headdress with red ribbons and a golden uraeus, she had not gone out for a long time.
Aye, an old dignitary and former scribe at the court of Amenhotep III, entered. He was “the bearer of the fan at the right hand of the king, the chief of the king’s friends” and “the father of God,” as he was called in letters. Akhenaten and Nefertiti grew up in the palace before his eyes. He taught Akhenaten to read and write. His wife was at one time the princess's nurse. And Nefertiti was like his own daughter.
At the sight of Nefertiti, Aye’s wrinkled face broke into a gentle smile:
- Hello, my girl! How are you
- Don't ask, Aye. Good is not enough. You heard that Akhenaten gave this upstart Kiya, a concubine from Mitanni, the palace of Maru-Aten. She appears everywhere with her. This creature already dares to wear a crown.
Aye frowned and sighed. The girl from the harem gave birth to two sons for the king. Everyone just whispered about the crown princes Smenkhkare and Tutankhaten, not embarrassed by Nefertiti.
The princes were still small children, but their fate was already decided: they would become the husbands of Akhenaten’s eldest daughters. The royal line must continue. The blood of the pharaohs of the 18th dynasty from the great Ahmes himself flowed in their veins.
-Well, what's new in Thebes? What do they write from the provinces? - The queen courageously prepared to listen to the difficult news.
- Nothing good, queen. Thebes buzzes like a swarm of bees. The priests ensured that the name of Akhenaten was cursed on every corner. There's still this drought here. All to one. King Dushratta of Mitanni demands gold again. They are asking the northern provinces to send troops to protect them from the nomads. And the king ordered everyone to refuse.” Eye shrugged. “It’s a shame to watch.” With such difficulty we achieved influence in these lands, and now we are losing them so easily. There is discontent everywhere. I told Akhenaten about this, but he doesn’t want to hear anything about the war. He is only annoyed that the delivery deadlines for marble and ebony are missed. And also, queen, beware of Horemheb. He very quickly finds a common language with your influential enemies, he knows who to be friends with.
After Ey left, the queen sat alone for a long time. The sun was setting. Nifertiti went out onto the balcony of the palace. The huge cloudless dome of the sky on the horizon glowed with white flames surrounding a fiery disk. Warm rays painted the ocher mountain peaks on the horizon soft orange and reflected in the waters of the Nile. Evening birds sang in the lush greenery of tamarisks, sycamores and date palms that surrounded the palace. The evening coolness and anxiety came from the desert.
It is not known how long Nefertiti lived after this decline. The date of her death has not been revealed by historians and the queen’s grave has not been found. In essence it doesn't matter. Her love and happiness - her whole life - went into oblivion along with her hopes and dreams of the New World.
Prince Smekhkara did not live long at all and died under Akhenaten. After the death of the reformer pharaoh, ten-year-old Tutankhaten assumed power. Under pressure from the priests of Amun, the boy pharaoh left the city of the Sun and changed his name. Tutankhaten (“Living Likeness of Aten”) henceforth began to be called Tutankhamun (“Living Likeness of Amun”), but did not live long. There are no continuers of Akhenaten’s work, his spiritual and cultural revolution. The capital returned to Thebes.
The new king Horemheb did everything to erase even the memory of Akhenaten and Nefertiti. The city of their dreams was completely destroyed. Their names were carefully erased from all records, in tombs, on all columns and walls. And from now on, it was everywhere indicated that after Amenhotep III, power passed to Horemheb. Only here and there were reminders of the “criminal from Akhetaten” left by chance. A hundred years later, everyone forgot about the king and his wife, who 1369 years before the birth of Jesus Christ preached faith in one God.
For three thousand four hundred years, sand rushed over the place where there was once a beautiful city, until one day residents of a neighboring village began to find beautiful shards and fragments. Lovers of antiquity showed them to specialists, and they read on them the names of a king and queen unknown in the history of Egypt. Some time later, a cache of rotten chests filled with clay letters was discovered. The history of the tragedy that befell Akhetaten gradually became clearer. The figures of the pharaoh and his beautiful wife emerged from the darkness. Archaeological expeditions flocked to Amarna (as this place was now called).
On December 6, 1912, in the ruins of the workshop of the ancient sculptor Thutmes, the trembling hands of Professor Ludwig Borchard brought to light an almost intact bust of Nefertiti. He was so beautiful and perfect that it seemed that the queen’s Ka (soul), exhausted by suffering, returned to the world to tell about herself.
For a long, long time the elderly professor, the leader of the German expedition, looked at this beauty, which was so unreal for hundreds and thousands of years, and thought a lot, but the only thing he could write down in his diary: “There is no point in describing, just look!”
MENSBY
4.6
Nefertiti was one of hundreds of princesses brought to give birth to sons and face old age alone... But fate gave her a unique chance...
Plastic surgeons copy the shape of her eyes, the shape of her lips and nose, fashionistas repeat the makeup of the famous queen, and designers create flowing dresses, sandals and ethnic jewelry, just like in her portraits...
The mystery of the royal origin of the “coming beauty”
Figure of Nefertiti, Limestone; Amarna; New Kingdom, 18th dynasty; c. 1345 BC
As it became known, Nefertiti was born in 1370 BC. e., but Egyptologists cannot come to a single answer to the question of where and into what family she was born.
Most are sure that the queen’s very name contains the secret of her origin. Nefertiti is translated from Egyptian as “the beauty who came,” which means that she came to Egypt from another region. A version arose that Nefertiti was the daughter of King Tushratta and Queen Juni from neighboring Mitania, a kingdom in Mesopotamia where the legendary Aryans lived. Her parents named the princess Tadukhipa and raised her in the traditions of the monotheistic Aryan religion, which taught to worship the sun as the only deity.
Probably, 12-year-old Taduchepa was sent by her father to Egypt as a gift for Pharaoh Amenhotep III to the “House of Ornaments” (harem) and became one of hundreds of foreign princesses brought to give birth to sons to the ruler and meet old age alone...
But fate gave her a unique chance...
The secret of Nefertiti's brilliant marriage.
Shortly after Nefertiti's arrival, Amenhotep III departed for the next world, and according to tradition, all of the pharaoh's wives had to be sacrificed and buried with the ruler. But the son of the deceased, young Amenhotep IV, saved Nefertiti from death and made him his wife. It is not difficult to guess that strong love pushed the young man to take such a bold step. He signed every state order with an oath of eternal love for God and Nefertiti.
The husband called the queen “the lady of joy, pacifying heaven and earth with a sweet voice and kindness” and “the delight of the heart.”
The secret of the queen's ideal beauty.
The famous bust of Nefertiti, which German archaeologist Ludwig Borchardt excavated in the desert in 1912, is considered a real miracle of world art. Borchard secretly took the artifact to Germany and gave it to the Berlin Museum. Egyptian authorities demanded the return of the find, threatening Nefertiti with a deadly curse. The Germans rudely refused, and then the fascist leader took the figurine into his bunker and, they say, looked at the silent beauty day and night.
These days, the sculpture is still kept in the Berlin Museum, but the German authorities have begun to gradually give Egypt cultural heritage, and perhaps Nefertiti will return home soon!
So, how did the ancient master portray his queen: charming brown-green eyes, thick black eyebrows, sensual full lips, an elegant nose, strong-willed cheekbones, a swan neck and a miniature figure - Nefertiti looks simply flawless.
But, like any fashionista, the queen knew ways to become even more attractive: she painted her nails with henna or liquid gold, took baths with sea salt, rubbed aromatic oils into her skin, powdered herself with powder from crushed minerals, lined her eyes with antimony, smeared her lips with berry lipstick, wore translucent linen kalaziris dresses and statement jewelry (each lobe has two earrings). The pharaoh's wife loved wigs with pigtails, multi-colored strands and shiny clips, having hundreds of hair in her collection.
The secret of Nefertiti's limitless power.
Queen Nefertiti. Schengili-Roberts.
Nefertiti was a virtuoso in politics and the ability to persuade: she renamed herself Nefer Nefer Aten (“beautiful with the beauty of Aten”), advised her husband to abandon the gods of his ancestors and accept her religion, proclaiming the only God - the solar Aten, after which Amenhotep IV changed his name to Akhenaten ("pleasing to Aten") and built Akhetaten - a new capital in the Sahara. The pharaoh declared his wife a co-ruler and ordered that any of her orders be carried out. Nefertiti decided to destroy the ancient temples and begin persecution of the priests of the old faith.
The people silently accepted the new religion and prayed in the sun's rays with each dawn. The queen often went out onto the palace balcony and showered the Egyptians with gold coins, convincing them that these were gifts from Aten, and on holidays she performed artistically in front of her subjects, literally hypnotizing the crowd with her speeches.
But in her personal life, Nefertiti became a victim of circumstances: the ruling spouses had daughters one after another, and when the sixth baby was born, Akhenaten made the difficult decision to take a new wife. She became the young Kiya, who gave birth to the pharaoh’s “golden boy” Tutankhamun, thereby ensuring the continuation of the 18th dynasty. And Nefertiti had to leave the palace and live outside the city, raising Tutankhamun as the heir to the throne. A year later, the yearning pharaoh returned his first wife to his chambers, but they were destined to live in the palace for only a short time...
The mystery of the early death and immortal glory of the beautiful queen.
Soon the exiled priests united and carried out a religious revolution. 40-year-old Akhenaten was blinded and then executed, 35-year-old Nefertiti managed to rule for some more time as pharaoh under the name Smenkhkare, but in the end the queen was still killed. The rebel priests destroyed the temples of Aten, destroyed the city of Akhetaten and all the bas-reliefs of the royal family that were found. Nefertiti's tomb was plundered, and her body was mercilessly mutilated, consigned to oblivion for millennia.
And suddenly in 2003, British archaeologist Dr. Joann Fletcher announced to the whole world that she had found the mummy of Nefertiti. Scientists conducted a series of digital studies and found that the appearance of the mummified stranger completely coincides with the image of Nefertiti on ancient sculptures!...
And a great reformer. His wife is the most beautiful woman in the kingdom. The reign of this couple occurred during the Amarna period. What became famous for Akhenaten and Nefertiti during the short period of their reign? Among all the great queens of Egypt, only the name of the most beautiful and revered ruler remained in the hearing. It was not often that pharaohs allowed their wives to rule, but Nefertiti was not just a wife - during her lifetime she became a queen, whom they prayed for, whose mental abilities were extolled so highly. “Perfect” - that’s what her contemporaries called her, extolling her merits and beauty.
Amenhotep IV (Akhenaton)
Akhenaten should not have ruled Egypt because he had an older brother. But Tutnos died during his father’s reign, so Amenhotep became the legal heir. In the last years of his life, the pharaoh was seriously ill, and the opinion of historians comes down to the fact that the youngest son was a co-ruler at this time. However, it was not possible to establish how long such joint rule lasted.
After the death of his father, Amenhotep becomes pharaoh and begins to rule the country, which by this time had achieved great power and influence. Queen Teye, famous for her prudence and wisdom, helped her son in the early years. She skillfully directed his thoughts in the right direction and gave wise advice.
New religion
During the reign of the pharaoh, the cult of the Sun reached unprecedented heights. The previously not so popular Aten (sun god) becomes the center of the religion. Using new technologies, a grandiose temple is being built for the supreme deity. Aten himself is depicted as a man with the head of a falcon. God was given the status of a pharaoh, the boundary between Amenhotep and the sun was erased. To top it off, he changes his name to Akhenaten, which means “useful to the Aten.” All family members, as well as the most important dignitaries, were also renamed.
In order to establish a new deity, a new city is built. First of all, a huge palace was built for the pharaoh. He did not wait for the completion of construction and moved along with the entire court from Thebes. The temple for Aten was built immediately after the palace. Residential areas and other buildings for residents were built from inexpensive materials, while the palace and temple were made of white stone.
Pharaoh's wives. Nefertiti
Akhenaten's first wife was Nefertiti. They married before his accession to the throne. On the question of at what age did the pharaohs take girls as wives: they became brides from the age of 12-15. Nefertiti's future husband was several years older than her. The girl was unusually pretty, her name literally translates as “the beauty has come.” This may indicate that the pharaoh's first wife was not Egyptian. It has not yet been possible to find confirmation of its foreign origin. His wife supported Akhenaten in everything; she contributed to the elevation of Aten to the rank of the highest deity. There are many more images of her on the walls of the temple than of the pharaoh himself. His wife could not give him a son: during their marriage she gave birth to six daughters.
Nefertiti raised the son of Akhenaten's sister. He would later become the husband of one of her daughters, Ankhesenpaaten, and rule Egypt under the name Tutankhamun. The girl will change her name to Ankhesenamon. One of the daughters of the royal solar couple will die in childhood, the other will be married to her brother. The fate of the rest of the story is unknown.
Nefertiti and Akhenaten appeared together everywhere. Her greatness and importance can be judged by the fact that she was allowed to accompany her husband during sacrifices. They prayed to her in the temples of Aten, and all actions were carried out exclusively in her presence. During her lifetime, she became a symbol of the prosperity of all of Egypt. There are many frescoes and statues of this beautiful woman. On the walls of the Akhenaten Palace there are many joint images of the pharaoh and his wife. They are captured at the moment of a kiss, with children on their laps; there are separate images of daughters. None of the wives of the pharaohs of Egypt received such honors as this person.
The decline of Queen Nefertiti's popularity
Now no one can say what caused her disappearance from the political arena and the family life of the pharaoh. Probably, after the death of their daughter, the spouses’ relationship to each other changed. Or Akhenaten could not forgive the beauty for the lack of an heir. Evidence of her life after her reign is a statue depicting Nefertiti in old age. Still beautiful, but already broken by years and adversity, the woman was forever frozen in a tight dress and light sandals. Undoubtedly, the rejection of her husband broke her and left its mark on the royal face. Nefertiti's tomb has not yet been discovered, which may confirm the assumption of her disfavor. Perhaps she outlived her husband, but they did not bury her with honors.
Kiya
Queen Nefertiti was replaced by the not so beautiful and majestic Kiya. Presumably, she married the pharaoh in the fifth year of his reign. There is also no reliable information about its origin. One version says that the girl was the wife of Akhenaten’s father and after her death she passed on to the young pharaoh. There are no historical references to her high position at court or any participation in the reign of the pharaoh. It is known that Kiya gave birth to a daughter. This is where the story of the Pharaoh's wife ends. Judging by the fact that her name was removed from the temple walls, the woman was disgraced. The burial of this pharaoh's wife was not discovered. There are also no guesses or facts about the fate of her daughter.
Taduhepa
This pharaoh's wife also became his inheritance. The girl came to Egypt from Mitanni at the request of Amenhotep III. He chose her as his bride, but died shortly after her arrival. Akhenaten made Tadukhepa his wife. Some scientists and researchers believe that Nefertiti or Kiya bore this name before her reign, but no evidence has been found for this theory. A message from her father Tushratta to her future husband has been preserved, in which he negotiates for his daughter’s imminent marriage. But this does not confirm the fact that the princess existed as a separate person. Historians also found no mention of joint children.
Death of the Pharaoh
How Akhenaten died has not yet been established. There are paintings that depict an assassination attempt on the pharaoh through poisoning. However, his mummy is required to establish the cause of death. Only the tomb was discovered in the family crypt. There was no body inside, and she herself was practically destroyed. Scientists are still debating whether the male mummy from tomb KV55 is Akhenaten.
Someone tried to keep this a secret by knocking off the name on the sarcophagus and tearing off the mask. DNA testing established that the body belongs to one of Tutankhamun's close relatives. But this could be Smenkhkare, who was also of the same blood as the pharaohs. It is not yet possible to establish the exact origin of the mummy, but archaeologists do not lose hope of finding new tombs and royal bodies.
The amazing story of the fate of Queen Nefertiti does not leave indifferent many people interested in the history of Ancient Egypt. For more than three thousand years she was not remembered, and her name was lost in history. However, in the last millennium, one of the French scientists F. Champoln managed to decipher the ancient writings of Egypt.
In the 20th century, the world learned about Nefertiti something that could have remained forever forgotten.
An expedition of scientists from Germany in the early 40s of the last century, after excavations in Egypt, handed over the found objects for inspection by inspectors of the Antiquities Service. Among all the objects found, experts discovered an ordinary-looking stone block, in which experts eventually recognized the head of the queen. There is an opinion that several unscrupulous archaeologists tried to hide the ancient masterpiece from society, for which they were deprived of the right to participate in excavations in Egypt.
The name Nefertiti was rapidly gaining popularity, legends were formed about her beauty, and her personality became very famous. For centuries, no one except her contemporaries knew about her, and now, after 33 centuries, her name has been recognized and discussed.
There are not enough accurate facts preserved about Queen Nefertiti herself to speak about her biography with one hundred percent certainty. However, it is believed that Nefertiti was born in Mitania, where the famous Aryans lived, into a family of poor people. The year of her birth according to some sources is 1370 BC. Initially, her name was Taduchela and as a twelve-year-old girl she ended up in the harem of Amenhotep III for a considerable fee to her father. After the death of the pharaoh, according to ancient Egyptian principles, the entire harem was inherited by his successor Amentohep IV. The splendor of the girl did not leave the young ruler indifferent, who became known as Akhenaten, and he took her as his legal wife and she was able to rule Egypt together with her husband.
Queen Nefertiti actively helped her lover in state affairs; her strong character influenced many of her husband’s actions. Nefertiti was also influential in the foreign relations of other states with Egypt.
In her marriage to Akhenaten, the beauty gave birth to six daughters. The couple waited for a long time and in vain for an heir, and in the end the pharaoh decides to enter into a new marriage with a girl from a simple family, whose name was Kiya. The new wife pleased Akhenaten with a son, who is known to us as Pharaoh Tutankhamun. Queen Nefertiti was practically expelled; little Tutankhamun was given to her to raise. Soon, a year later, Akhenaten decides to bring Nefertiti back.
Their relationship, as history knows, was not as warm and reverent as it was before. Soon Nefertiti decides to teach her daughter the secrets of love and introduced her to Akhenaten as his wife, that is, the father married his own daughter. Such traditions undoubtedly seem unusual to modern people, but we are talking about ancient Egyptian traditions that were acceptable in their time. The practice of marriage between siblings in Ancient Egypt was popular; noble individuals did not want incest, but their family, naturally, could not last long.
After the death of the pharaoh, Nefertiti began to rule Egypt independently, her royal name became Smenkhkare. Her reign lasted about 5 years and was tragically cut short by murderous conspirators. There is an assumption that the queen's body was disfigured, Nefertiti's tomb was destroyed and devastated by thieves. Surely, if the circumstances of the death were different, scientists would be able to provide more accurate information about the queen to modern people.
The beauty of Queen Nefertiti
The queen's appearance can be described from existing evidence such as sculptures and drawings. According to them, Nefertiti was small in stature with a well-proportioned figure, her grace remaining unchanged even after the birth of six children. Her face was extraordinary for most Egyptian women; she had neat arched bright black eyebrows, her lips were full, and her eyes were colorfully expressive. The beauty of Queen Nefertiti would make many girls jealous in modern times.
There are also controversial rumors about the beauty's character. Some argue that she had a tough and obstinate character, her disposition was more similar to that of a man. Others, on the contrary, insist on Nefertiti’s grace and humility, on the fact that the queen was unusually prudent and educated for that time, her intelligent speeches helped her husband in governing the state.
There is also an opinion about what attracted the great pharaoh to this amazing woman: her pleasant appearance, her sound mind and wisdom or ability to love. Akhenaten could not forget about the beauty even after the appearance of his young wife and did not part with her almost until his death.
Bust of Queen Nefertiti
The bust of Nefertiti, this famous work of art, has been studied many times by scientists. More recently, researchers discovered that many of the queen's facial features were not true. Researchers from Germany decide to unveil the queen’s new appearance. Using computer technology, scientists examined the hidden features of the girl’s face under the retouching paint that was applied to the legendary bust.
As it turned out, the bust of Queen Nefertiti had a hump on her nose, her lips were not as large as depicted, her cheekbones were not as expressive and she had dimples on her cheeks. The invited specialist corrected the queen’s bust, namely: he made her gaze deeper, the cheekbone area became less protruding. As is obvious, the changes that occurred to the face of the sculpture were more negative than positive.
The actual image of the sculpture lacks an eye. It is assumed that the ancient Egyptians believed that when creating a sculpture, the image of both eyes meant that the soul of the person depicted was moving to another world. There is also an opinion that when depicting the pharaohs, their second eye was missing for the possibility of their rebirth.
Legends about Queen Nefertiti.
1. Scientists in England recently discovered a mummy whose external description is similar to the supposed appearance of Nefertiti. In this case, the theory about the girl’s mutilated body is erroneous.
2. Queen Nefertiti, despite the origin of her name, which means “foreigner,” was the sister of her future husband.
3. The union of Pharaoh and Nefertiti was planned and had nothing to do with love. Their relationship was strictly political. There is an opinion about the unconventional orientation of Pharaoh Akhenaten, who chose Kiya as his new wife only because of her masculine appearance.
4. The queen was not a calm and obedient wife, her influence on the pharaoh was great, she skillfully used her charm and wisdom, taking advantage of Akhenaten’s weak character. Many of the husband's relatives were exterminated at the request of the beauty.
Of course, the above hypotheses may not be facts, because they do not have scientific evidence. One way or another, the personality of the legendary beauty will remain in the memory of the public, undoubtedly, for many centuries. And we hope that researchers will be able to please us with new discoveries and facts about the life of this great queen.
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In ancient Egyptian history, Queen Nefertiti is portrayed as an independent, ambitious woman who strives for power. Her bust, exhibited in the Egyptian collection of the New Museum in Berlin, is one of the most famous works in the world representing the era of ancient civilization. As part of the program for studying the history of Ancient Egypt and the role of women in the management of empires in the Middle East, the Harvard Research Institute (USA) conducted research in this area. Scientists have come to the conclusion that Nefertiti was perceived by the ancient Egyptians not only as the powerful co-ruler of the pharaoh. But also as a kind of living religious cult of beauty.
Nefertiti "is often presented in history as an independent figure with a reputation as a strong queen," explained Professor Williamson, a member of the Harvard University Middle Eastern History Conference. “However, I came across a completely different image of Nefertiti in the drawings of the tombs in Amarna, often hidden from the king. She is depicted on a hill next to her husband. As is known in Ancient Egypt, the pharaoh had unlimited power granted by heaven.” Amenhotep IV inherited the throne at a time when Egypt was rich and the military power of the empire extended far north to Syria and south to Sudan. He worshiped the sun cult of Ra, whose manifestation was known as Aten. When he became pharaoh, he received the name Akhenaten, which translated from ancient Egyptian means “he who comes into power for the Aten.”
He married Nefertiti, the daughter of a noble official, during the early years of his reign. Akhenaten introduced a new religion of worship of the only Aten in Ancient Egypt, banning all other cults. The funeral rites also changed. His policy was aimed at destroying the name and image of the cult of Amon. The Supreme Aten was represented as a man with the head of a hawk and the sun above his crown. Akhenaten added to this image the solar disk with rays emanating from it. The pharaoh built a new city for his family and the worship of the cult of Aten at Tell el-Amarna in the south of the state. Traditionally, the role of the queen was to provide support to her majestic husband. Their status was also associated with the cult of Maat - the progenitor of the entire universe. And Hathor, personifying beauty, fertility and fun, the patroness of lovers and mothers. “Through her magical power of fertility, she filled the king’s life with energy from space, thereby ensuring him eternal life,” the scientist believes. “Religious ceremonies in honor of women were carried out for the rebirth of the Universe, which the ancient Egyptians believed happened every day at dawn.”
Under the reign of Akhenaten, Nefertiti and their daughters took center stage in the rites of religious worship in Ancient Egypt. Nefertiti wore the crown of Hathor, a symbol of eternal beauty, youth and fertility. The image of Nefertiti was placed on the pharaoh's sarcophagus in place of Isis. Traditionally, Isis adorned the tombs of representatives of the royal dynasty, but at that time she was replaced by Nefertiti. Thus, the queen became the embodiment of the magical abilities of the cult of Isis.
According to a group of Egyptologists from Harvard University, the temple at Kom el-Nana, discovered in the 1980s, was dedicated to the cult of Nefertiti. During the research, thousands of sandstone fragments were found engraved with hieroglyphs of Ancient Egypt. Records confirm the fact that the temple next to the house of Aten was built for the queen. The size of the sculptures and drawings of Nefertiti is of great importance. In her temple of el-Nana, her image is significantly inferior to that of Akhenaten, demonstrating his superiority and subordination. Thus, the importance of the figure of the king in the political and religious life of ancient Egyptian society was emphasized.
After the reign of Akhenaten and Nefertiti ended, this city was deserted, the cult of worship of Aten alone was abandoned, and the buildings turned into ruins. The amazing story of the fate of Queen Nefertiti does not leave many people interested in the history of Ancient Egypt indifferent. For more than three thousand years she was not remembered, and her name was lost in history. However, in the last millennium, one of the French scientists F. Champoln managed to decipher the ancient writings of Egypt.
In the 20th century, the world learned about Nefertiti something that could have remained forever forgotten. An expedition of scientists from Germany in the early 40s of the last century, after excavations in Egypt, handed over the found objects for inspection by inspectors of the Antiquities Service. Among all the objects found, experts discovered an ordinary-looking stone block, in which experts eventually recognized the head of the queen. There is an opinion that several unscrupulous archaeologists tried to hide the ancient masterpiece from society, for which they were deprived of the right to participate in excavations in Egypt.
The name Nefertiti was rapidly gaining popularity, legends were formed about her beauty, and her personality became very famous. For centuries, no one except her contemporaries knew about her, and now, after 33 centuries, her name was recognized and discussed. There are not enough accurate facts preserved about Queen Nefertiti herself to speak about her biography with one hundred percent certainty. However, it is believed that Nefertiti was born in Mitania, where the famous Aryans lived, into a family of poor people. The year of her birth according to some sources is 1370 BC. Initially, her name was Taduchela and as a twelve-year-old girl she ended up in the harem of Amenhotep III for a considerable fee to her father. After the death of the pharaoh, according to ancient Egyptian principles, the entire harem was inherited by his successor Amentohep IV. The splendor of the girl did not leave the young ruler indifferent, who became known as Akhenaten, and he took her as his legal wife and she was able to rule Egypt together with her husband.
Queen Nefertiti actively helped her lover in state affairs; her strong character influenced many of her husband’s actions. Nefertiti was also influential in the external relations of other states with Egypt. In her marriage to Akhenaten, the beauty gave birth to six daughters. The couple waited for a long time and in vain for an heir, and in the end the pharaoh decides to enter into a new marriage with a girl from a simple family, whose name was Kiya. The new wife pleased Akhenaten with a son, who is known to us as Pharaoh Tutankhamun. Queen Nefertiti was practically expelled; little Tutankhamun was given to her to raise. Soon, a year later, Akhenaten decides to bring Nefertiti back. Their relationship, as history knows, was not as warm and reverent as it was before. Soon Nefertiti decides to teach her daughter the secrets of love and introduced her to Akhenaten as his wife, that is, the father married his own daughter. Such traditions undoubtedly seem unusual to modern people, but we are talking about ancient Egyptian traditions that were acceptable in their time. The practice of marriage between siblings in Ancient Egypt was popular; noble individuals did not want incest, but their family, naturally, could not last long.
After the death of the pharaoh, Nefertiti began to rule Egypt independently, her royal name became Smenkhkare. Her reign lasted about 5 years and was tragically cut short by murderous conspirators. There is an assumption that the queen's body was disfigured, Nefertiti's tomb was destroyed and devastated by thieves. Surely, if the circumstances of death were different, scientists would be able to provide more accurate information about the queen to modern man. The queen's appearance can be described from existing data, such as sculptures and drawings. According to them, Nefertiti was small in stature with a well-proportioned figure, her grace remaining unchanged even after the birth of six children. Her face was extraordinary for most Egyptian women; she had neat arched bright black eyebrows, her lips were full, and her eyes were colorfully expressive. The beauty of Queen Nefertiti could cause envy among many girls in modern times. There are also controversial rumors about the beauty’s character. Some argue that she had a tough and obstinate character, her disposition was more similar to that of a man. Others, on the contrary, insist on the grace and humility of Nefertiti, on the fact that the queen was unusually prudent and educated for that time, her intelligent speeches helped her husband in governing the state. There is also an opinion that what attracted the great pharaoh to this amazing woman : her pleasant appearance, her sound mind and wisdom or ability to love. Akhenaten could not forget about the beauty even after the appearance of his young wife and did not part with her almost until his death. The bust of Nefertiti, this famous work of art, has been studied many times by scientists. More recently, researchers discovered that many of the queen's facial features were not true. Researchers from Germany decide to unveil the queen’s new appearance. Using computer technology, scientists examined the hidden features of the girl’s face under the retouching paint that was applied to the legendary bust.
As it turned out, the bust of Queen Nefertiti had a hump on her nose, her lips were not as large as depicted, her cheekbones were not as expressive and she had dimples on her cheeks. The invited specialist corrected the queen’s bust, namely: he made her gaze deeper, the cheekbone area became less protruding. As is obvious, the changes that occurred to the face of the sculpture were more negative than positive. The image of the sculpture itself is missing an eye. It is assumed that the ancient Egyptians believed that when creating a sculpture, the image of both eyes meant that the soul of the person depicted was moving to another world. There is also an opinion that when depicting the pharaohs, their second eye was missing for the possibility of their rebirth.
