This article is about the Ancient Egyptian queen, wife of Akhenaten. For the wife of Ramsses, seeNefertari. For other individuals named Neferneferuaten, seeNeferneferuaten (disambiguation).
After her husband's death, some scholars believe that Nefertiti ruled briefly as the femalepharaoh known by the throne nameNeferneferuaten, and before the ascension ofTutankhamun, although this identification isa matter of ongoing debate.[5][6] If Nefertiti did rule as pharaoh, her reign was marked by the fall ofAmarna and the relocation of the capital back to the traditional city ofMemphis after her death.[7]
In the 20th century, Nefertiti was made famous by the discovery and display ofher ancient bust, now in Berlin'sNeues Museum. The bust is one of the most copied works of theart of ancient Egypt. It is attributed to the Egyptian sculptorThutmose, and was excavated from his buried studio complex in the early 20th century.[8]
Main King's Wife, his beloved (hemet-nesut-aat meretef,ḥmt-nswt-ꜥꜣtmrt.f)
Great King's Wife, his beloved (hemet-nesut-weret meretef,ḥmt-nswt-wrtmrt.f)
Lady of All Women (henut-hemut-nebut,ḥnwt-ḥmwt-nbwt)
Mistress of Upper & Lower Egypt (henut-shemau-mehu,ḥnwt-šmꜣw-mḥw).[10]
While modernEgyptological pronunciation renders her name asNefertiti, her name was the sentencenfr.t jj.tj (orNfr.t-jy.tj[11]), meaning "the beautiful one has come", and probably contemporarily pronouncedNaftita from olderNafrat-ita or perhapsNafert-yiti.[12][13]
Almost nothing is known about Nefertiti's life before her marriage toAkhenaten. Scenes from thetombs of the nobles inAmarna mention that Nefertiti had a sister, namedMutbenret.[14][15][16] Further, a woman namedTey carried the title of "Nurse of the Great Royal Wife."[17] In addition, Tey's husbandAy carried the title "God's Father." Some Egyptologists believe that this title was used for a man whose daughter married thepharaoh.[18] Based on these titles, it has been proposed thatAy was in fact Nefertiti's father.[11] However, neither Ay nor Tey are explicitly referred to as Nefertiti's parents in the existing sources. At the same time, no sources exist that directly contradict Ay's fatherhood which is considered likely due to the great influence he wielded during Nefertiti's life and after her death.[11] According to another theory, Nefertiti was the daughter of Ay and a woman besides Tey, but Ay's first wife died before Nefertiti's rise to the position of queen, whereupon Ay married Tey, making her Nefertiti's stepmother. Nevertheless, this entire proposal is based on speculation and conjecture.[19]
It has also been proposed that Nefertiti was Akhenaten's full sister, though this is contradicted by her titles which do not include the title of "King's Daughter" or "King's Sister," usually used to indicate a relative of a pharaoh.[11] Another theory about her parentage that gained some support identified Nefertiti with theMitanni princessTadukhipa,[20] partially based on Nefertiti's name ("The Beautiful Woman has Come") which has been interpreted by some scholars as signifying a foreign origin.[11] However, Tadukhipa was already married to Akhenaten's father and there is no evidence for any reason why this woman would need to alter her name in a proposed marriage to Akhenaten, nor any hard evidence of a foreign non-Egyptian background for Nefertiti.
The exact dates when Nefertiti married Akhenaten and became the king's great royal wife are uncertain. They are known to have had at least six daughters together, includingMeritaten,Meketaten,Ankhesenpaaten (later called Ankhesenamun when she married Tutankhamun),Neferneferuaten Tasherit,Neferneferure, andSetepenre.[16][20] She was once considered as a candidate for the mother of Tutankhamun, however a genetic study conducted on discovered mummies suggests that she was not.[21]
Alabaster sunken relief depicting Akhenaten, Nefertiti, and their daughter Meritaten. Early Aten cartouches on king's arm and chest. From Amarna, Egypt. 18th Dynasty. The Petrie Museum of Egyptian Archaeology, London
Close-up of a limestone relief depicting Nefertiti smiting a female captive on a royal barge. On display at theMuseum of Fine Arts, Boston.
Nefertiti first appears in scenes inThebes. In the damaged tomb (TT188) of the royal butlerParennefer, the new kingAmenhotep IV is accompanied by a royal woman, and this lady is thought to be an early depiction of Nefertiti. The king and queen are shown worshiping theAten. In the tomb of the vizierRamose, Nefertiti is shown standing behindAmenhotep IV in the Window of Appearance during the reward ceremony for the vizier.[20]
A standing/striding figure of Nefertiti made of limestone. Originally from Amarna, part of theÄgyptisches Museum Berlin collection.
During the early years in Thebes, Akhenaten (still known as Amenhotep IV) had several temples erected atKarnak. One of the structures, theMansion of the Benben (hwt-ben-ben), was dedicated to Nefertiti. She is depicted with her daughterMeritaten and in some scenes the princessMeketaten participates as well. In scenes found on thetalatat, Nefertiti appears almost twice as often as her husband. She is shown appearing behind her husband the pharaoh in offering scenes in the role of the queen supporting her husband, but she is also depicted in scenes that would have normally been the prerogative of the king. She is shown smiting the enemy, and captive enemies decorate her throne.[22]
In the fourth year of his reign, Amenhotep IV decided to move the capital toAkhetaten (modern Amarna). In his fifth year, Amenhotep IV officially changed his name to Akhenaten, and Nefertiti was henceforth known as Neferneferuaten-Nefertiti. The name change was a sign of the ever-increasing importance of the cult of theAten. It changed Egypt's religion from apolytheistic religion to a religion which may have been better described as amonolatry (the depiction of a single god as an object for worship) orhenotheism (one god, who is not the only god).[23]
Theboundary stelae of years 4 and 5 mark the boundaries of the new city and suggest that the move to the new city ofAkhetaten occurred around that time. The new city contained several large open-air temples dedicated to theAten. Nefertiti and her family would have resided in the Great Royal Palace in the centre of the city and possibly at theNorthern Palace as well. Nefertiti and the rest of the royal family feature prominently in the scenes at the palaces and in thetombs of the nobles. Nefertiti's steward during this time was an official namedMeryre II. He would have been in charge of running her household.[5][20]
Inscriptions in the tombs ofHuya andMeryre II dated to Year 12, 2nd month of Peret, Day 8 show a large foreign tribute. The people of Kharu (the north) and Kush (the south) are shown bringing gifts of gold and precious items to Akhenaten and Nefertiti. In the tomb of Meryre II, Nefertiti's steward, the royal couple is shown seated in a kiosk with their six daughters in attendance.[5][20] This is one of the last times princessMeketaten is shown alive.
Two representations of Nefertiti that were excavated byFlinders Petrie appear to show Nefertiti in the middle to later part of Akhenaten's reign 'after the exaggerated style of the early years had relaxed somewhat'.[24] One is a small piece on limestone and is a preliminary sketch of Nefertiti wearing her distinctive tall crown with carving begun around the mouth, chin, ear and tab of the crown. Another is a small inlay head (Petrie Museum Number UC103) modeled from reddish-brown quartzite that was clearly intended to fit into a larger composition.
Meketaten may have died in year 13 or 14. Nefertiti, Akhenaten, and three princesses are shown mourning her.[25] The last dated inscription naming Nefertiti and Akhenaten comes from a building inscription in the limestone quarry atDeir Abu Hinnis. It dates to year 16 of the king's reign and is also the last dated inscription naming the king.[26] Akhenaten is known to have died in his 17th year at Amarna.[27][28]
Limestone column fragment showing a cartouche of Nefertiti. Reign of Akhenaten. From Amarna, Egypt. The Petrie Museum of Egyptian Archaeology, London
Many scholars believe Nefertiti had a role elevated from that of great royal wife, and was promoted toco-regent by her husband Pharaoh Akhenaten before his death.[29] She is depicted in manyarchaeological sites as equal in stature to a King, smiting Egypt's enemies, riding achariot, and worshipping theAten in the manner of a pharaoh.[30] When Nefertiti's name disappears from historical records, it is replaced by that of a co-regent namedNeferneferuaten, who became a female Pharaoh.[31] It seems likely that Nefertiti, in a similar fashion to the previous female PharaohHatshepsut, assumed the kingship under the name Pharaoh Neferneferuaten after her husband's death. She was then succeeded by Tutankhamun.[26]
It seems less possible that Nefertiti disguised herself as a male and assumed the malealter ego ofSmenkhkare. According to Van Der Perre, Smenkhkare is thought to be a co-regent of Akhenaten who died before Neferneferuaten assumed the kingship.[26]
If Nefertiti did rule Egypt as a Pharaoh, it has been theorized that she would have attempted damage control and may have re-instated theancient Egyptian religion and theAmun priests. She would have raisedTutankhamun in the worship of the traditional gods.[32]
Archaeologist and Egyptologist Dr.Zahi Hawass theorized that Nefertiti returned toThebes from Amarna to rule as a Pharaoh, based onushabti and other feminine evidence of a female pharaoh found inTutankhamun's tomb, as well as evidence of Nefertiti smiting Egypt's enemies which was a duty reserved to kings.[33]
Nefertiti worshipping the Aten. She is given the title ofMistress of the Two Lands. On display at theAshmolean Museum, Oxford.
Fragment with cartouche of Akhenaten, which is followed by epithet Great in his Lifespan and the title of Nefertiti Great King's Wife. Reign of Akhenaten. From Amarna, Egypt. The Petrie Museum of Egyptian Archaeology, London
Pre-2012 Egyptological theories assumed that Nefertiti vanished from the historical record around Year 12 of Akhenaten's reign, with no word of her existence thereafter. The conjectured causes of her death and disappearance included injury, a plague that was sweeping through the city, and a natural cause. This theory was based on the discovery of severalushabti fragments inscribed for Nefertiti (now located in the Louvre and the Brooklyn Museum).
A previous theory that she fell into disgrace was discredited when deliberate erasures of monuments belonging to a queen of Akhenaten were shown to refer toKiya instead.[16]
During Akhenaten's reign (and perhaps after), Nefertiti enjoyed unprecedented power. By the twelfth year of his reign, there is evidence she may have been elevated to the status of co-regent:[34] equal in status to the pharaoh, as may be depicted on theCoregency Stela.
New theories about Nefertiti's career as a Pharaoh
In 2012, the discovery of an inscription dated to Year 16, month 3 ofAkhet, day 15 of the reign of Akhenaten was announced.[35]: 196–197 It was discovered within Quarry 320 in the largest wadi of the limestone quarry project atDayr Abū Ḥinnis.[36] The five-line inscription, written in red ochre ink, mentions the presence of the "Great Royal Wife, His Beloved, Mistress of the Two Lands, Neferneferuaten Nefertiti".[35]: 197 [37] The final line of the inscription refers to ongoing building work being carried out under the authority of the king's scribePenthu on theSmall Aten Temple in Amarna.[38] The Year 16 ink inscription was translated as:
"Regnal year 16, first month of theinundation season, day 15. May the King of Upper and Lower Egypt live, he who lives of Maat, the Lord of the Two Lands Neferkheperure Waenre, l.p.h. the Son of Re, who lives of Maat, the Lord of the Crowns Akhenaten, l.p.h., whose life span is long, living forever and ever, the King's Great Wife, his beloved, the lady of the two lands Neferneferuaten-Nefertiti, living forever and ever. Beloved of Re, the ruler of the two horizons, who rejoices in the horizon in his name of Re ///, who comes as the Aten. the /// the work of the Mansion of the Aten, under the authority of the king’s scribePenthu, under the authority of overseer of work///."[39]
Van der Perre stresses that:
This inscription offers incontrovertible evidence that both Akhenaten and Nefertiti were still alive in the 16th year of his [Akhenaten's] reign and, more importantly, that they were still holding the same positions as at the start of their reign. This makes it necessary to rethink the final years of the Amarna Period.[40]
This means that Nefertiti was alive in the second to last year of Akhenaten's reign, and demonstrates that Akhenaten still ruled alone, with his wife by his side. Therefore, the rule of the female Amarna pharaoh known asNeferneferuaten must be placed between the death of Akhenaten and the accession of Tutankhamun. Neferneferuaten, the female pharaoh, specifically used the epithet 'Effective for her husband' in one of her cartouches,[31] which means she was either Nefertiti or her daughter Meritaten (who was married to kingSmenkhkare). Moreover, unlike Meritaten, Nefertiti had already used the title "Neferneferuaten" by Year 5 of Akhenaten's reign in her own cartouches.[41]
In his updated 2016 paper,James P. Allen now also identifies the female pharaoh as Neferneferuaten Nefertiti, and not Akhenaten's daughter who was namedNeferneferuaten Tasherit (the younger) as he had previously suggested in a 2009 paper in memory of the lateWilliam J. Murnane. Allen states:
"The evidence indicatesSmenkhkare ruled only about a year at most....Smenkhkare's premature death probably no later than Akhenaten's Regnal Year 14 left only the one-to-four year old heir Tutankhuaten as putative heir....Tutankhamun must have been considered too young to be named coregent in his father's stead....To safeguard Tutankhamun's accession, Akhenaten also appointed a female coregent AnkheperureNeferneferuaten, to oversee the transition and probably to instruct him in the new religion. In 2009, I argued that this coregent was Akhenaten's fourth daughter, Neferneferuaten, both because it seemed a logical progression in his attempts to produce a son within each of his daughters as they reached puberty, and because evidence was lacking that the other Neferneferuaten, Nefertiti, was still alive in Akhenaten's final years. The Year 16 inscription noted [for the existence of Akhenaten's chief queen] at the beginning of this article solves the latter problem, and I (and my students) now think it likeliest that the coregent was in fact, Nefertiti. The arguments for this are more compelling than they are for the daughter.....Since Nefertiti was still chief queen in Regnal Year 16 [of Akhenaten], her Year 3 as pharaoh must have occured two years after Akhenaten's death, and it was within those two years that the first steps towards reconciliation withAmun occurred. While little is known about the daughter other than her existence, Nefertiti had assumed pharaonic roles and prerogatives throughout Akhenaten’s reign, and the occasional epithet in her nomenAkhet-en-hyes “Beneficial for her husband,” both reflects a relationship that had already existed and mirrors Akhenaten's own nomen [Akh-en-Iten or 'The one who is beneficial to the Aten'],[47] which described his relationship not only with his god but also with his predecessor, theTjehen-Aten “dazzling Aten,”Amenhotep III. Moreover, if as now seems probable, the appointment of a female coregent was intended not to ensure her own succession but that of the young Tutankhuaten, then it is far more likely that Akhenaten would have turned to the older more experienced woman who had served as his virtual co-ruler than to a young daughter who had just reachedpuberty barely three to six years older than the heir she was intended to safeguard.”[46]
If, as seems likely that Nefertiti was the female pharaoh ruler named Neferneferuaten, she outlived her husband Akhenaten and held great influence over the royal family. If this is the case, that influence and presumably Nefertiti's own life would have ended by Year 3 of Tutankhaten's reign when she died and the Boy King succeeded her. (1331 BC). In that year, Tutankhaten changed his name to Tutankhamun which is interpreted as evidence of his return to the official worship ofAmun, and abandoned Amarna to return the capital to Memphis and Thebes according toAidan Dodson.[5]
Other Egyptologists such as Athena van der Perre and Nozomu Kawai conclude that Nefertiti had an independent or sole rule and was not Tutankhamun's senior co-regent on the throne. Kawai states below:
"The fact that a number of objects found in Tutankhamun's tomb had been made for the burial of Neferneferuaten [Nefertiti here], adapted and reinscribed for Tutankhamun's use, implies that Tutankhaten and his entourage did not want to recognize the preceding reign. Neferneferaten had assumed sole reign despite the fact that Tutankhaten, the crown prince, was the legitimate successor [to Akhenaten]. Instead of giving up her kingship to a young boy, Neferneferuaten may have wished to continue her sole rule not only because she was already reigning, but also because Tutankhaten was just a boy between five and 10 years old. Although Neferneferuaten began restoring the cults of Amun and other deities she also simultaneously maintained the cult of Aten at Amarna, resulting in a dissatisfied faction of [royal] officials [such asAy andHoremheb] and priests who advocated a quick return to orthodoxy."[48]
Limestone trial piece showing head of Nefertiti.Heads of Akhenaten and Nefertiti 18th Dynasty Egypt
Nefertiti's burial was intended to be made within theRoyal Tomb as laid out in theBoundary Stelae.[49] It is possible that the unfinished annex of the Royal Tomb was intended for her use.[50] However, given that Akhenaten appears to have predeceased her it is highly unlikely she was ever buried there. Oneshabti is known to have been made for her.[51] The unfinished Tomb 29, which would have been of very similar dimensions to the Royal Tomb had it been finished, is the most likely candidate for a tomb begun for Nefertiti's exclusive use.[52] Given that it lacks a burial chamber, she was not interred there either.
An article inKMT magazine in 2001 suggested that the Elder Lady might be Nefertiti.[53] However, it was subsequently shown that the 'Elder Lady' is in factTiye, mother of Akhenaten. A lock of hair found in a coffinette bearing an inscription naming Queen Tiye proved a near perfect match to the hair of the 'Elder Lady'.[54] DNA analysis confirmed that she was the daughter of Tiye's parentsYuya andThuya.[55]
On 9 June 2003 archaeologistJoann Fletcher, a specialist in ancient hair from theUniversity of York in England, announced that Nefertiti's mummy may have been the Younger Lady. This theory was criticised byZahi Hawass and several other Egyptologists.[56] In a subsequent research project led by Hawass, the mummy was put throughCT scan analysis andDNA analysis. Researchers concluded that she was Tutankhamun's biological mother, an unnamed daughter ofAmenhotep III and Tiye, not Nefertiti.[21]
In 2015, English archaeologistNicholas Reeves announced that high resolution scans revealed voids behind the walls ofTutankhamun's tomb which he proposed to be the burial chamber of Nefertiti,[57][58] but subsequent radar scans showed that there are no hidden chambers.[59][60]
One of the two female mummies found inKV21 has been suggested as the body of Nefertiti. DNA analysis did not yield enough data to make a definitive identification but confirmed she was a member of theEighteenth Dynasty royal line.[61] CT-scanning revealed she was about 45 at the time of her death; her left arm had been bent over her chest in the 'queenly' pose. The possible identification is based on her association with the mummy tentatively identified as Ankhesenamun. It is suggested that just as a mother and daughter (Tiye and the Younger Lady) were found lying together in KV35, the same was true of these mummies.[62]
A document was found in the ancient Hittite capital ofHattusa which dates to the Amarna period. The document is part of the so-calledDeeds ofSuppiluliuma I. While laying siege toKarkemish, the Hittite ruler receives a letter from the Egyptian queen. The letter reads:[63]
My husband has died and I have no son. They say about you that you have many sons. You might give me one of your sons to become my husband. I would not wish to take one of my subjects as a husband... I am afraid.
This proposal is considered extraordinary as New Kingdom royal women never married foreign royalty.[64]Suppiluliuma I was understandably surprised and exclaimed to his courtiers:[63]
Nothing like this has happened to me in my entire life!
Understandably, he was wary, and had an envoy investigate the situation, but by so doing, he missed his chance to bring Egypt into his empire.[63] He eventually did send one of his sons,Zannanza, but the prince died, perhaps murdered, en route.[65][66]
The identity of the queen who wrote the letter is uncertain. She is calledDakhamunzu in the Hittite annals, a translation of the Egyptian titleTa hemet nesu (The King's Wife).[67][68][69] The possible candidates are Nefertiti,Meritaten,[70] andAnkhesenamun. Ankhesenamun once seemed the likeliest, since there were no candidates for the throne on the death of her husband, Tutankhamun, whereas Akhenaten had at least two legitimate successors. But this was based on the assumption of a 27-year reign for the last 18th Dynasty pharaoh,Horemheb, who is now accepted to have had a shorter reign of only 14 years. This makes the deceased Egyptian king appear to be Akhenaten instead, rather than Tutankhamun.[citation needed] Furthermore, the phrase regarding marriage to 'one of my subjects' (translated by some as 'servants') is possibly either a reference to the Grand VizierAy or a secondary member of the Egyptian royal family line. Since Nefertiti was depicted as being as powerful as her husband in official monuments smiting Egypt's enemies, she might be theDakhamunzu in the Amarna correspondence, asNicholas Reeves believes.[71]
Headless bust of Akhenaten or Nefertiti. Part of a composite red quartzite statue. Intentional damage. Four pairs of early Aten cartouches. Reign of Akhenaten. FromAmarna, Egypt. ThePetrie Museum of Egyptian Archaeology, London
Limestone statuette of Akhenaten and Nefertiti, or Amenhotep III and Tiye,[72] and a princess. Reign of Akhenaten. From Amarna, Egypt. The Petrie Museum of Egyptian Archaeology, London
Limestone relief fragment. A princess holding sistrum behind Nefertiti, who is partially seen. Reign of Akhenaten. From Amarna, Egypt. The Petrie Museum of Egyptian Archaeology, London
Siliceous limestone fragment relief of Nefertiti. Extreme style of portrait. Reign of Akhenaten, probably early Amarna Period. From Amarna, Egypt. The Petrie Museum of Egyptian Archaeology, London
Granite head statue of Nefertiti. The securing post at head apex allows for different hairstyles to adorn the head.Altes Museum, Berlin.
Nefertiti (presented as the same person asNeferneferuaten) is a key part of the archaeological topics in Jacqueline Benson's 2024 historical fantasy novel,Tomb of the Sun King.
^Breger, Claudia (2006)."The 'Berlin' Nefertiti Bust". In Regina Schulte (ed.).The Body of the Queen: Gender and Rule in the Courtly World, 1500–2000. Berghahn Book. p. 285.ISBN1-84545-159-7.
^Dodson, A. (2020).Nefertiti, Queen and Pharaoh of Egypt: Her Life and Afterlife. The American University in Cairo Press. p. 26.
^Grajetzki, Wolfram (2005).Ancient Egyptian Queens: A Hieroglyphic Dictionary. London: Golden House Publications.ISBN978-0-9547218-9-3.
^Norman De Garis Davies, The rock tombs of el-Amarna, Parts I and II: Part 1 The tomb of Meryra & Part 2 The tombs of Panehesy and Meyra II, Egypt Exploration Society (2004)
^Norman De Garis Davies, The rock tombs of el-Amarna, Parts V and VI: Part 5 Smaller tombs and boundary stelae & Part 6 Tombs of Parennefer, Tutu and Ay, Egypt Exploration Society (2004)
^abcDodson, Aidan; Hilton, Dyan (2004).The Complete Royal Families of Ancient Egypt. Thames & Hudson.ISBN0-500-05128-3.
^abHawas, Zahi; Saleem, Sahar N. (2016).Scanning the Pharaohs: CT Imaging of the New Kingdom Royal Mummies. New York: The American University in Cairo Press. p. 123.ISBN978-977-416-673-0.
^Montserrat, Dominic (2003).Akhenaten: History, Fantasy and Ancient Egypt. Psychology Press.
^Trope, B.; Quirke, S.; Lacovara, P. (2005).Excavating Egypt. Great Discoveries from the Petrie Museum of Egyptian Archaeology. Michael C. Carlos Museum, Emory University.ISBN1-928917-06-2.
^Murnane, William J. (1995).Texts from the Amarna Period in Egypt. Society of Biblical Literature.ISBN1-55540-966-0.
^abBrand, P. (ed.)."Under a Deep Blue Starry Sky"(PDF).Causing His Name to Live: Studies in Egyptian Epigraphy and History in Memory of William J. Murnane. pp. 17–21. Archived from the original on 12 October 2013. Retrieved11 August 2022.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
^abVan der Perre, Athena (2012). Seyfried, Friederike (ed.).In the Light of Amarna: 100 Years of the Nefertiti discovery. Ägyptisches Museum und Papyrussammlung, Staatliche Museen zu Berlin.ISBN978-3-86568-848-4.
^in Guardian of Ancient Egypt Studies in Honor ofZahi Hawass, edited by Janice Kamrin, Miroslav Bárta, Salima Ikram, Mark Lehner & Mohamed Megahed,Prague, Charles University, Faculty of Arts, Volume 1, 2020, pp.357-365
^Nozomu Kawai, "Neferneferuaten from the Tomb of Tutankhamun Revisited" in Wonderful Things Essays in Honor of Nicholas Reeves, Lockwood Press, (2023), p. 121
^abJames P. Allen, “The Amarna Succession Revised,”GM 249 (2016), pp.10-11
^Ronald J. Leprohon, "The Great Name: Ancient Egyptian Royal Titulary", SBL Press. 2013. ISBN 978-1-58983-736-2. pp.104-105
^Murnane, William J. (1995).Texts from the Amarna period in Egypt. United States of America: Scholars Press. p. 78.ISBN1-55540-966-0.
^Dodson, Aidan (2018).Amarna sunset : Nefertiti, Tutankhamun, Ay, Horemheb, and the Egyptian counter-reformation (Revised ed.). Cairo: The American University in Cairo Press. p. 18.ISBN978-977-416-859-8.
^Kemp, Barry (2014).The city of Akhenaten and Nefertiti : Amarna and its people. New York: Thames & Hudson. p. 255.ISBN978-0-500-29120-7.
^James, Susan E. (Summer 2001). "Who is Mummy Elder Lady?".KMT. Vol. 12, no. 2.
^Harris, James E.; Wente, Edward F.; Cox, Charles F.; El Nawaway, Ibrahim; Kowalski, Charles J.; Storey, Arthur T.; Russell, William R.; Ponitz, Paul V.; Walker, Geoffrey F. (1978). "Mummy of the "Elder Lady" in the Tomb of Amenhotep II: Egyptian Museum Catalog Number 61070".Science.200 (4346):1149–51.Bibcode:1978Sci...200.1149H.doi:10.1126/science.349693.JSTOR1746491.PMID349693.
^Hawass, Z.; Gad, Y. Z.; Ismail, S.; Khairat, R.; Fathalla, D.; Hasan, N.; Ahmed, A.; Elleithy, H.; Ball, M.; Gaballah, F.; Wasef, S.; Fateen, M.; Amer, H.; Gostner, P.; Selim, A.; Zink, A.; Pusch, C. M. (2010). "Ancestry and pathology in King Tutankhamun's family".JAMA.303 (7):638–47.doi:10.1001/jama.2010.121.PMID20159872.
^Sambuelli, Luigi; Comina, Cesare; Catanzariti, Gianluca; Barsuglia, Filippo; Morelli, Gianfranco; Porcelli, Francesco (May 2019). "The third KV62 radar scan: Searching for hidden chambers adjacent to Tutankhamun's tomb".Journal of Cultural Heritage.39: 8.doi:10.1016/j.culher.2019.04.001.S2CID164859865.
^Sambuelli, Luigi; Comina, Cesare; Catanzariti, Gianluca; Barsuglia, Filippo; Morelli, Gianfranco; Porcelli, Francesco (May 2019). "The third KV62 radar scan: Searching for hidden chambers adjacent to Tutankhamun's tomb".Journal of Cultural Heritage.39: 9.doi:10.1016/j.culher.2019.04.001.S2CID164859865.
^Hawass, Zahi; Gad, Yehia Z.; Somaia, Ismail; Khairat, Rabab; Fathalla, Dina; Hasan, Naglaa; Ahmed, Amal; Elleithy, Hisham; Ball, Markus; Gaballah, Fawzi; Wasef, Sally; Fateen, Mohamed; Amer, Hany; Gostner, Paul; Selim, Ashraf; Zink, Albert; Pusch, Carsten M. (17 February 2010)."Ancestry and Pathology in King Tutankhamun's Family".Journal of the American Medical Association.303 (7). Chicago, Illinois: American Medical Association:638–647.doi:10.1001/jama.2010.121.ISSN1538-3598.PMID20159872. Retrieved24 May 2020.
^Hawass, Zahi; Saleem, Sahar N. (2016).Scanning the Pharaohs: CT Imaging of the New Kingdom Royal Mummies. New York: American University in Cairo Press. pp. 132–142.ISBN978-977-416-673-0.
^abcGüterbock, Hans Gustav (June 1956). "The Deeds of Suppiluliuma as Told by His Son, Mursili II (Continued)".Journal of Cuneiform Studies.10 (3):75–98.doi:10.2307/1359312.JSTOR1359312.S2CID163670780.
^Güterbock, Hans Gustav (September 1956). "The Deeds of Suppiluliuma as Told by His Son, Mursili II".Journal of Cuneiform Studies.10 (4):107–130.doi:10.2307/1359585.JSTOR1359585.S2CID224824543.
^Amelie Kuhrt (1997).The Ancient Middle East c. 3000 – 330 BC. Vol. 1. London: Routledge. p. 254.
![Limestone statuette of Akhenaten and Nefertiti, or Amenhotep III and Tiye,[72] and a princess. Reign of Akhenaten. From Amarna, Egypt. The Petrie Museum of Egyptian Archaeology, London](/mt/?noimg=&dark=on&url=https%3a%2f%2fen.wikipedia.org%2fwiki%2fFile%3aLimestone_statuette_of_Akhenaten%2c_Nefertiti%2c_and_a_princess._Reign_of_Akhenaten._From_Amarna%2c_Egypt._The_Petrie_Museum_of_Egyptian_Archaeology%2c_London.jpg)
.JPG)
.jpg)
