Lady of the Two Lands, Great Royal Wife, Mistress of Upper & Lower Egypt, Nefertari Meritmut - meaning Beautiful Companion, Beloved of the goddess Mut
The most famous and the most beautiful tomb is Nefertari’s, who was Ramses II’s favourite and principal wife. Nefertari known as the “most beautiful of them” has probably the most beautifully decorated tomb in the whole of Egypt. The whole tomb is covered in exceptionally well preserved paintings on every wall, depicting Nefertari accompanied by the gods. Her tomb is one of the largest and most spectacular in the Valley of the Queens. So when visiting the Valley of the Queens this is a tomb most definitely not to be missed.
Nefertari’s tomb is amongst the most elaborate to be discovered. The plastered walls are covered with paintings and the ceilings have were painted to appear like a starry night.
Nefertari’s Mummy
When the tomb was discovered in 1904 the tomb was found to have been looted in antiquity. Some objects had been left behind, including three leg parts. These have been analysed and found to be those of Nefertari’s.
Nefertari would have been tall for her time, at around 5 feet 5 to 5 feet 7 inches and analysis of the remains showed some signs of arthritis in the knee. The mummified remains of her legs are now in the Egyptian museum in Turin, Italy.
The pink granite sarcophagus that once held her mummified body had unfortunately been smashed to pieces. Other items found within the tomb were a pair of sandals UK size 5 or US size to 7 , 34 wooden figurines, which were for the purpose of providing the deceased queen with servants in the afterlife.
Below you can see in vidid colour of the tomb as it is today. The state of preseration is extremely impressive. No expense was spared on the decoration of this tomb.
Nefertari was well educated and she was able to both read and write hieroglyphs and this was rare for this time. Nefertari had at least four sons and two daughters.
Tomb scene of a vulture in Nefertari’s tomb, signifying motherly protection
Gold in Egypt is plentiful, below you can see that she is wearing silver earrings, a gift from the Greeks; which would have been more precious than gold to the ancient Egyptians.
Below you can see Nefertari being led by Horus
The vulture headress seen being warn by Nefertari. Vultures with their large wing spans were seen as all embracing protectors or mothers who provide shelter and protection for their children.
Vultures were also seen as fierce defenders of their young. When the vulture headdress was worn by a queen it implied that the queen was a divine being and comparable to a goddess.