Archaeologists Solve Mystery Of Lost Egyptian Queen
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LONDON — The centuries-old search for the mummy of Hatshepsut, the most famous queen to rule ancient Egypt, could end today in a Cairo museum.
Zahi Hawass, Egypt’s chief archaeologist, will hold a news conference in the Egyptian Museum, Cairo, to announce the discovery of one of the most powerful female monarchs of the ancient world, hailed by some as the most important find since that of King Tutankhamen.
Hatshepsut ruled during Egypt’s golden age, between 1503 and 1482 before the common era. Today, Mr. Hawass, secretary general of Egypt’s Supreme Council of Antiquities, is expected to announce that her mummy, along with long ringlets of hair, lies in a coffin that has been in the museum for decades.
The mummy was one of two females found in a small tomb believed to be that of Hatshepsut’s wet-nurse, Sitre In.
Among the new evidence is a broken tooth. A box that contained the tooth was inscribed with the female pharaoh’s name, and a CT scan found that the tooth matched within a fraction of a millimeter the space of the missing molar in the mummy’s mouth. Further DNA tests will be carried out to confirm her identity.
Mr. Hawass said, “The discovery of the Hatshepsut mummy is one of the most important finds in the history of Egypt.”
