Latest / Ramses the Great: Egypt's Most Powerful Pharaoh — Fexingo History / Ramses the Great's Royal Wives: Nefertari and the Politics of Love
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- Lucas: So, we've covered a lot of ground on Ramses — his battles, his monuments, his mummy. But we haven't really talked about the women in his life, and that's a huge part of understanding his reign. Luna: You mean Nefertari, right? She's the one everyone knows. Lucas: Exactly. Nefertari is the most famous, and for good reason. But there were other chief wives, like Isetnofret, and then later a Hittite princess. Each marriage was a carefully calculated political move, and the queens wielded real power in their own right. Lucas: Let's start with Nefertari. Her full name was Nefertari Merytmut, which means 'Beautiful Companion, Beloved of Mut.' She was Ramses's first Great Royal Wife, and she appears prominently alongside him at Abu Simbel — you know, the small temple there is actually dedicated to her. Luna: Wait, the small temple at Abu Simbel is for her? Lucas: Yes. It's inscribed to 'Nefertari, for whom the sun shines.' Ramses built that for her while she was still alive, which is pretty extraordinary. But the real treasure is her tomb in the Valley of the Queens, designated QV66. It's one of the most spectacular tombs in all of Egypt. Lucas: The tomb was discovered in 1904 by Ernesto Schiaparelli. The paintings are breathtaking — they cover the walls with scenes from the Book of the Dead, showing Nefertari making her way through the underworld, the Duat, to be judged by Osiris. The colours are still vivid after 3,000 years. Luna: I've seen photos. The blue ceilings with stars — it's like a night sky. Lucas: Exactly. The ceiling is painted deep blue with golden five-pointed stars, representing the heavens. And each wall has a different chapter from the Book of the Dead, spells to help her navigate the afterlife. One famous scene shows her playing a game of senet, a board game, to symbolically overcome obstacles. Lucas: But here's the thing: being a queen wasn't just about looking beautiful in tombs. Nefertari had political and religious duties. She held the title 'God's Wife of Amun,' which gave her a major role in temple rituals, particularly at Thebes. She also owned large estates and had her own revenues. Luna: So she was independently wealthy, not just a royal decoration. Lucas: Absolutely. And she accompanied Ramses on diplomatic missions. We have letters between Nefertari and the Hittite queen Puduhepa, after the peace treaty was signed. They exchanged gifts and polite courtesies — it was diplomacy through queenly channels. Lucas: Nefertari likely died around year 24 or 25 of Ramses's reign. Her tomb was built then, but she may have died earlier. There's some mystery around her death — no clear cause is recorded. Luna: Did Ramses really write love poetry for her? Lucas: That's a great question. There are inscriptions at Abu Simbel that sound romantic — 'The one for whom the sun shines' — but actual love poems attributed to Ramses are later fabrications. The Egyptians did have love poetry, but we can't pin specific verses to Ramses. Still, the monuments he built for her speak volumes. Luna: What about his other wives? Was Isetnofret the second one? Lucas: Yes, Isetnofret — also spelled Isisnofret. She was another Great Royal Wife, likely earlier in his reign. She's less visible in monuments, but she was the mother of several of Ramses's most important sons, including Khaemwaset and Merneptah. Isetnofret seems to have been based more in the north, around Per-Ramesses and Memphis. Lucas: We know she had a tomb, but it hasn't been positively identified. Some scholars think she was actually more influential behind the scenes, especially through her son Khaemwaset, the High Priest of Ptah. Luna: So she was the power behind the throne, not the face. Lucas: Exactly. And then there's the diplomatic marriage to the Hittite princess, Maathorneferure. That happened around year 34 of Ramses's reign, after the peace treaty with Hattusili III. Her name means 'One who sees Horus, the visible splendor of the sun,' or something similar — it's a bit debated. Lucas: She arrived with a huge entourage, and Ramses built her a residence. But she doesn't appear to have had much political influence, and she probably died relatively early. Her tomb hasn't been found. Luna: Was it a happy marriage, or just politics? Lucas: Almost certainly just politics. Ramses already had a large harem, and the Hittite princess was a symbol of the alliance. The Egyptians recorded the event prominently, but there's no evidence of a close relationship. Still, she was accorded full honors as a Great Royal Wife. Lucas: Beyond these three, Ramses had many secondary wives and concubines. He fathered over a hundred children, though exact numbers are uncertain. The harem was also a political institution — many daughters of foreign vassals were sent to Egypt to secure alliances. Luna: So the Great Royal Wife was the top position, but there was a hierarchy. Lucas: Right. And the queen's role in religious festivals was crucial. During the Opet Festival at Thebes, the king and queen would process with the barque of Amun, symbolically renewing the king's divine authority. Nefertari appears in reliefs at Luxor temple taking part in these rituals. Lucas: One more thing: the title 'God's Wife of Amun' that Nefertari held later became extremely powerful in the Third Intermediate Period, when it was held by princesses who effectively ruled Thebes. So the queens of Ramses set a precedent. Luna: That's fascinating. It's like the queens had their own political lineage. Lucas: Exactly. And when we look at Nefertari's tomb, we see her not just as a wife but as a divine figure, identified with the goddess Hathor and the sky goddess Nut. She was meant to accompany Ramses in the afterlife as an equal partner. Lucas: The paintings in QV66 are a lesson in how the queen was supposed to navigate the Duat. For example, in one scene she kneels before a deity, and in another she offers cloth to the goddess Neith. Each vignette is a spell to ensure her rebirth. Luna: So the tomb is like a instruction manual for her soul. Lucas: Exactly. And it's one of the few tombs in the Valley of the Queens that's fully decorated. Most are simpler. Nefertari's tomb is exceptional — it shows her high status and the resources Ramses was willing to spend on her. Lucas: Sadly, the tomb has suffered from salt damage and humidity. It was closed for many years for conservation. But it's now open again, though limited to a small number of visitors per day. Luna: I hope to see it someday. Lucas: It's on my list too. But for now, we have detailed reproductions. The point is, the royal wives of Ramses were not just background figures. They were political partners, religious officials, and symbols of the king's ability to maintain maat — cosmic order — through proper marriage and succession. Lucas: And that's something we often overlook when we think of Ramses the Great: the people around him who made his reign possible. Luna: I'll never look at a queen's title the same way again. Lucas: Good. Next time we might delve into the harem conspiracy that almost toppled Ramses III — that's a whole other story. But for now, I think we've given Nefertari and her fellow wives their due.