This is the "Portrait Head of Queen Tiye
with a Crown of Two Feathers."
It is believed to be dated to 1355 BCE
during the Amarna Period, Dynasty 18,
in New Kingdom Egypt.
Today, it is located
in the Egyptian Museum and Papyrus Collection
at the Neues Museum in Berlin.
In ancient Egypt,
gender played a significant role
in the social, religious, and political spheres.
Tasks and responsibilities were divided along gender lines
with elite men responsible for doing
the administrative and bureaucratic work;
while elite women were the head of the household,
cared for children,
and had important roles in temple rituals.
In the royal courts of ancient Egypt,
labor was also gendered,
yet queens had the biggest responsibility of all:
to be the head of the royal household,
to become impregnated by the king,
and to give birth to the royal children.
Once her children were born, the queen was expected to be
the mother of the future king
and raise the royal children to adulthood
when they would take over
as king and queen of Egypt.
Born of non-royal parents, Queen Tiye ascended to become
one of the most influential women in ancient Egypt
through the role of her husband, King Amenhotep III.
Together, they produced six children
and later became the grandparents
of the famous King Tut.
Queen Tiye's role as queen was unique
because her husband allowed her more influence
than most queens were given.
Throughout Egyptian history, most queens
probably did not participate
in administration and diplomatic duties,
yet we have documents supporting the case
that Queen Tiye participated in international diplomacy actions
between Egypt and other countries.
She was respected as a political advisor, foreign diplomat,
and is noted to have been the first Egyptian queen
to have her name reported on official acts.
She was commonly referred to as
"The Great Wife of the King" in scribal work.
After her husband died,
her son Akhenaten inherited his father's throne
at the age of ten.
Queen Tiye's importance continued to
elevate through her son's role.
The statue of Queen Tiye is a remarkable one.
It is made of Yew wood with eyes of ebony and alabaster,
and displays a number of key artistic elements
that provide insight into gender roles of royal women
with an ancient Egyptian culture.
The artistic rules o ancient Egypt were to
represent both men and women at the height of their life
in a youthful and attractive appearance.
But we can see in the statue of Queen Tiye
that she has been depicted as an older queen
with signs of age etched into her forehead
and in the folds along the sides of her mouth.
Some scholars believe that this was intended to show her as a
high-status elder and queen mother in the royal house.
If we look closely at the statue,
we can see that there are two distinct headdresses.
There is a brown outer cap made of linen, wax, and glue
that covers a headdress made of
silver, gold, and semi-precious stones.
Computer scans of the statue reveal that
the headdress underneath was made of
Egyptian acacia wood and covered in silver with gold nails,
and bound tightly around the Queen's forehead and temples.
Because of the damage of the brown covering,
we can see one revealed earring
and the exposed silver above the gold headband,
which has been darkened by corrosion.
We can imagine what it may have looked like in antiquity:
completely covered with silver,
four golden cobras,
two ear ornaments,
and stones of blue, eye-catching lapis lazuli.
The two gold clips on the front headdress
are markers of a missing crown
that would have signaled her status as queen
and wife of the pharaoh.
The brown outer cap
is suspected to have been added
to signal a demotion in status
from the wife of the pharaoh
to the mother of the next pharaoh.
Another notable aspect of this crown
is the gold, double-feather crown, sun disc, and cow horns.
In royal artwork, queens were shown with divine insignia,
such as the vulture headdress and the cobra Uraeus,
which was also worn by the king
and mythical goddesses
to mark their divine rule.
This insignia on Queen Tiye's crown
is symbolic of the goddesses Hathor, Nekhbet, and Wadjet,
who represented protection, fertility, and sexuality.
The sun disc, known as the Aten,
is believed to be a reference to the monotheistic religion
that her son Akhenaten founded,
dedicated to Amun, the god of the sun and the air.
As the king's great royal wife,
the queen had an important role
in the sacred rituals of honoring the gods
and temples and religious ceremonies.
Her role was to uphold the duality of kingship
and mythological rituals, and to take on the role
as the king's divine feminine counterpart.
Today, we could see the force this queen possessed
during the reign of her husband,
and a number of monuments left over
from the ancient city of Thebes.
We will consider one such monument:
the colossal statue of Amenhotep III
and Tiye.
This statue was found in Medinet Habu,
Western Thebes, or modern day Luxor,
and is now located
in the main hall of the Egyptian Museum in Cairo.
Standing at seven meters tall,
this limestone statue
is the tallest dyad ever found.
The statue depicts Amenhotep III and Queen Tiye,
seated side-by-side.
On a significantly smaller scale
are their three daughters standing around them.
The Queen is wearing a tight-fitted, ankle length dress
and a long, heavy, braided wig.
Her headdress is composed of a vulture head
and a double Uraeus
believed to be linked to the double falcon feather
she wears in the bust.
The most prominent feature of the statue
is the comparable scale of the Queen and her husband.
The Queen sits at approximately equal height
to Amenhotep III, a site rarely seen
in ancient monuments,
and a true marker of the Queen's ability
to traverse the traditional bounds
of ancient Egyptian queenship.
This indicator of her status can be compared
to her depiction in the bust,
and that the sculptor avoids portraying her
as a flawless and infinitely youthful queen
with a gentle gaze.
Instead, the Queen stares off at her spectators
with a gaze of authority
and undisputed power.
This representation could be interpreted
as placing the queen on a nearly equal status
to that of the king, who can casually be portrayed
with signatures of age.
Perhaps to emphasize that this queen
possessed a wisdom and dominance
far overshadowing her traditional importance
as simply the bearer to Egypt's next pharaoh.