“Il tesoro perduto della regina Ahhotep. Una donna alla riconquista dell’Egitto antico” is the title of the latest book by Professor Gianluca Miniaci, Egyptologist at the University of Pisa. Considered one of the greatest archaeological discoveries of the 19th century, at least until the discovery of the tomb of Tutankhamun, the treasure and Ahhotep herself had been forgotten, at least until today. The book, published by Carocci, aims to disseminate the results of the Ahhotep Project, an international research project led by Miniaci in collaboration with major institutions such as the Archaeological Museum of Luxor, the Institute of Archaeology of University College London, the Louvre Museum and the Egyptian Museum in Cairo, where a team from the University of Pisa will create a new exhibit space for Ahhotep and her treasure.
“The project – says Miniaci – began in 2019, when I discovered in the Bibliothèque de l’Institut de France the manuscript of the first – and only – list of objects contained in Ahhotep’s sarcophagus dating back to the time of its discovery, objects that were later identified at the museum in Cairo during the COVID-19 pandemic”.
This is how the figure of Ahhotep, a queen who lived around 1550 BC, reappeared. She was the protagonist of a period of radical change in Ancient Egyptian society, at the dawn of the New Kingdom and during the violent confrontations with the Hyksos.
“However, despite her significant role, Ahhotep remains little known today and surrounded by an aura of mystery,” Miniaci points out.
Carocci’s book tells two parallel stories. On the one hand, it delves into the events and intrigues of the nineteenth century, when Egypt was a kind of far-west in terms of archaeology. Figures like Auguste Mariette, credited with discovering the Queen’s golden sarcophagus, rushed to find fame and celebrity: the sarcophagus contained over 70 objects including many weapons and jewellery such as bracelets, necklaces, amulets, pendants, all made of gold, silver, bronze, precious stones, such as lapis lazuli and carnelian, as well as cedar wood from Lebanon.
On the other hand, the book describes the situation in Egypt during Ahhotep’s time, a rather dark period, marked by violent clashes with the Hyksos, leading to the downfall of one pharaoh after the other, various internal rebellions and perhaps even the catastrophic eruption of the Santorini volcano. The Egyptian royal dynasty fought so hard to retain power that members of the same family were prone to marry each other – incestuously – to ensure the ruling family’s political stability. It was the Egyptian queens who had imposed themselves, both nationally and internationally, who handled the violent battles against the Hyksos.
“Queen Ahhotep,” continues Miniaci, “stood up to the Hyksos and may even have been a warrior queen, as we can see from the weapons found in her sarcophagus, which were decorated with winged griffins and rampant lions, and a necklace with three large fly-shaped pendants, an insect symbolizing military valour, at least in ancient Sudan, probably with regard to the destructive power of fly swarms.”