Nefertiti

Nefertiti Nefertiti (The Great Wife) The Egyptians always named the pharaoh’s wife the “great wife,” somewhat in the way that Americans refer to the president’s wife as the 1st lady. The great wife legitimized her husband’s exercise of power through religious beliefs. The Egyptians believed that she was divinely born and that Amon took the human form of her husband, impregnated her, oversaw the development of the child in her womb, and ensured a healthy delivery. Thus the child was the offspring of both the god and the pharaoh. The great wife couldn’t legally be pharaoh, for only a male could exercise that power. But she could make a man’s right to power. The Egyptians literally and formally considered hers the throne of power, although her power was passive rather than active. Egyptians artists depicted the great wife with much care as the pharaoh. They stylized her body as that of th4e ideal woman, and her portrait was more idealized than realistic. So stood things until Nefertiti, who was an exceptional great wife. She wife, great, power, egyptians, aton, akhenaten, pharaoh, nefertiti, worship, religious, passive, palace, old, husband’s, husband, god, exercise, cult, considered, child, amarna, zeal, womb, woman, whom, way, wanted, until, unpopular, two, traditional, took, together, thus, through, throne