Hatshepsut: Egypt’s Lost Queen

The mummy of Hatshepsut, Egypt’s greatest female pharaoh, was originally discovered in 1903 by Howard Carter in (KV60),Valley of the Kings. But it was identified only in 2007, after antiquity experts used modern technologies such as CT scans and DNA genetic marking.

The key to Hatshepsut’s identity was discovered in a canopic box originally unearthed in a separate tomb in 1881, from the Deir el-Bahari cachette (DB320) that was inscribed with Hatshepsut’s name and and contains the mummified organs. There was also a tooth inside, a molar with a root; and when examined it was found that it fitted exactly into the mouth of one of the royal women. After analysis of Hatshepsut’s mummy, it was concluded that she had died at about the age of fifty, that she had been obese, and that she had diabetes and cancer. The box that contained the tooth is also on display near the mummy. The identification has been advocated by Egyptologist Zahi Hawass.

Photos by Brando Quilici/Discovery Channel/Agentur Focus