New Kingdom

Workers' strike at Deir el-Medina

Workers strike at Deir el-Medina

The first workers strike in recorded history took place in the 12th Century BC in Egypt. Even though they regarded the king as a kind of living god, Egyptian workers were not afraid to protest for better working conditions. The most famous example came in the 12th century BC during the reign of the New...

Mummy of King Thutmose II

Mummy of Thutmose II

The mummy of Thutmose II was presumably violated by tomb robbers. Therefore it was moved to the Deir el-Bahari Cachette (DB320), where it was rewrapped and restored. The king, like the other kings, has his hands crossed over his chest, in an Osirian pose that continued to be followed in mummies of kings for many...

Mummy of Hatshepsut

Mummy of Hatshepsut

The mummy of Hatshepsut, one of Egypt’s most famous female pharaohs, has been the subject of significant archaeological and forensic research. Hatshepsut reigned during the 18th Dynasty (around 1479-1458 BC), and while her tomb and her many monuments were discovered, her mummy was not immediately identifiable. For years, the location of her final resting place...

Bust of Nefertiti

The bust of Queen Nefertiti housed in Berlin’s Neues Museum is one of Ancient Egypt’s most famous works of art. A prime example of ancient artistry, this icon has been called “the most beautiful woman in the world”. Hypnotizing audiences since it went on display in 1923, the statue gives insight into the enigmatic queen...

Relief of Queen Tiye

Relief of Queen Tiye

Relief of Queen Tiye, the Great Royal Wife of King Amenhotep III, wearing the vulture headdress and uraeus. The fragment was part of a stele. From the mortuary temple of Amenhotep III at Western Thebes. Tiye married Amenhotep III at the age of eleven or twelve in the second year of his reign, being approximately...

Ritual Statuette of Thutmose III

Statuette of Thutmose III

Beautifully poised, this small bronze statuette of king Thutmose III offers wine or milk to a god. This figure is the earliest known New Kingdom royal bronze statuette and, with a few Late Middle Kingdom copper and copper-alloy precursors, it initiates the tradition of bronze statuary in Egypt. The fluid, athletic modeling of his body...

House altar of King Akhenaten and his family

House altar of Akhenaten and his family

This intimate limestone relief, thought to once be a part of a domestic altar, offers a rare glimpse into the private devotions of Egypt’s most unconventional royal family. Beneath the radiant sun-disc of the Aten, whose rays end in tiny hands bestowing the breath of life, Akhenaten and Nefertiti cradle their daughters in tender affection....

Head of Queen Tiye

Portrait of Queen Tiye

This small portrait of Queen Tiye (22.5cm with feathered sun disc crown) was probably produced in the last years of her husband Amenhotep III’s reign because the queen is shown at an advanced age. The original nemes (revealed with C.T scanning) was of silver with a gold uraeus but was covered with several layers of...

Plaque of a princess eating a roasted duck

Plaque of a princess eating a roasted duck

In this sculptor’s model plaque, the princess is biting into a duckling held in her right hand, while reaching with her left hand for fresh fruits and vegetables placed on a table in front of her. The artist had begun to carve the lower part of the body and the cushion on which the princess...

Mummy of King Seti I

Mummy of Seti I

Seti I is believed to have died at around 40–50 years old, based on studies of his mummy and historical records. His reign lasted approximately 11–15 years, c. 1290–1279 B.C. Seti I’s achievements spanned military, architectural, and administrative domains, setting the stage for the prosperity of his son and successor, Ramesses II (Ramesses the Great)....