Brugsch, Heinrich: Egypt under the pharaohs: a history derived entirely from the monuments (London, 1891)

362 QUEEN NEFERTAEI

Kings Aahmes and Amen-hotep I., Prince Se-hotep,
Princess Set-Amen, the royal scribe Senu of the house-
hold of Queen Nefertari, the royal wife Set-Kames, the
royal daughter Meshent-themhu, Tehuti-mes II., and
Tehuti-mes III. of the Eighteenth Dynasty;

Seti I. and Eamses II. of the Nineteenth ; and

Eamses III. of the Twentieth.

Among the priestly representatives of the Twenty-
first dynasty are Queen JSTet'emet, Masahertha and
Painet'em 111., high-priests of Amen, Queen Maat-ka-Ea,
and the Princesses Isi-em-kheb and Nesi-Khonsu.

In 1883 it was found necessary to bury certain of
the mummies ; but before doing so M. Maspero decided
to unroll them. Since then the whole collection has been
undone. In 1885 Queen Nefertari's was examined, and
was found to contain the body of a middle-aged woman,
of average height and belonging to the white and not
black race of mankind. It will be remembered that
this queen is often represented on the monuments with
a black complexion, although some of them depict her
as very fair; hence, doubtless, arose those innumerable
discussions as to her nationality. During her lifetime
she was immensely beloved, and after her death her
worship was very popular at Thebes. She is there
deified under one of the many forms of Hathor, the
black goddess of death and the ' divine hidden land.'
This may possibly account for the queen's face being
so often painted black; while the opening of the
mummy settles once and for all the historical question
of her nationality. Later on the bodies of Seqenen-Ea,
Seti I., and Eamses II. and III. were unrolled, and are
now exhibited in the galleries of the Gizeh Palace.1

While these sheets were going through the press;

1 Les Mamies Royales de Dcir-el-Bahari. By G. Maspero and 15. Brugsoh.