Ahmose-Nefertari c. 1550–1505 BC
Queen, wife of Ahmose I
Ahmose I's Great Royal Wife and the mother of Amenhotep I, the first queen to hold the title God's Wife of Amun, which came with land and priests of its own. After her death the tomb builders of Deir el-Medina worshipped her with her son as patrons of their village, and painted her with black skin, the colour of fertile earth and rebirth.
Name: Ahmose-Nefertari
iꜥḥ-ms-nfrt-iry: “The moon is born, beautiful companion”
Sign by sign
- Crescent moon N12iꜥḥ Moon; month.
- Three fox skins F31ms To be born (as in Ramesses, Thutmose).
- Folded cloth S29s The sound s.
- Heart and windpipe F35nfr Good, beautiful, perfect.
- Bread loaf X1t The sound t; also the feminine ending.
- Flowering reed M17i The sound i.
- Mouth D21r The sound r; also means 'mouth'.
- Two strokes Z4y The sound y; also marks a dual.
Names of gods (Ra, Amun, Ptah) are written first out of respect, even when they are read later. Dates are approximate; we follow Ian Shaw (ed.), The Oxford History of Ancient Egypt (2000).