Page 68 - All About History - Issue 26-15

Ne titi

Written by Alicea Francis

The Queen who killed the gods

Her limestone bust is recognised the world over, and her

chiselled features and perfect proportions have come to

epitomise our ideas of beauty. But who was the woman

behind the masterpiece?

n 6 December 1912, an Egyptian workman lips; a dramatic, sloping nose; almond eyes; and reign, with no mention of her made thereafter.
digging along the banks of the River dark, arching eyebrows. Finally, they uncovered What had they done to instil such hatred in
Nile unearthed one of the most precious a huge cylindrical crown, one that had only been their people? And why did Nefertiti suddenly
treasures in the history of Egyptology. The seen before in the few existing depictions of one disappear? It is only now, more than 3,000 years
O man was one of many working on the ancient Egyptian: Queen Nefertiti. after their deaths, that the answers are beginning
excavation of an ancient sculptor’s workshop, a Since its discovery, the bust has become one to resurface.
dig overseen by German archaeologist Ludwig of the most visited and most iconic artefacts of The truth about Nefertiti’s parentage is
Borchardt. As he felt the knowing jolt of his pick the ancient kingdom. Yet it remains one of the uncertain, but it is likely she was born outside of
against hard stone, he brushed away the earth to most elusive. Following their reign, Nefertiti and the royal family: possibly the daughter of a court
reveal the distinctive colours of ancient paintwork, her husband Pharaoh Akhenaten were virtually vizier, or a Mittani princess sent to unite two
and immediately called for his superior. Borchardt wiped from Egypt’s historical records – their kingdoms. What we do know is that her face was
recalls: “The tools were put aside and the hands faces chiselled away from stone reliefs, their one of timeless beauty – her name means ‘the
were now used,” revealing the slender neck of a names scratched out from inscriptions. To add to beautiful one has come’ – and she would have
limestone bust buried upside down in the dirt. the mystery, all references to Nefertiti vanished been a desirable match for the young Egyptian
Digging deeper, they revealed a pair of full, red completely in about the 12th year of Akhenaten’s prince, then known as Amenhotep. The pair were
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