Tuya (also called Tuy or more rarely

Mut Mut (; also transliterated as Maut and Mout) was a mother goddess worshipped in ancient Egypt. Her name means ''mother'' in the ancient Egyptian language. Mut had many different aspects and attributes that changed and evolved greatly over th ...

-Tuya or Muty; in transliteration from hieroglyphic, ''Twy'', ''Twjȝ'', or ''Twyȝ'', as well as ''Mwt-Twjȝ'',; in cuneiform texts from the Hittite correspondence, Tūya, ''^SALTu-u-ia''.) was the wife of

Pharaoh Pharaoh (, ; Egyptian language, Egyptian: ''wikt:pr ꜥꜣ, pr ꜥꜣ''; Meroitic language, Meroitic: 𐦲𐦤𐦧, ; Biblical Hebrew: ''Parʿō'') was the title of the monarch of ancient Egypt from the First Dynasty of Egypt, First Dynasty ( ...

Seti I Menmaatre Seti I (or Sethos I in Greek language, Greek) was the second pharaoh of the Nineteenth Dynasty of Egypt during the New Kingdom of Egypt, New Kingdom period, ruling or 1290 BC to 1279 BC. He was the son of Ramesses I and Sitre, and th ...

of the

Nineteenth Dynasty of Egypt The Nineteenth Dynasty of Egypt (notated Dynasty XIX), also known as the Ramessid dynasty, is classified as the second Dynasty of the Ancient Egyptian New Kingdom of Egypt, New Kingdom period, lasting from 1292 BC to 1189 BC. The 19th Dynasty an ...

and mother of

Tia TIA most commonly refers to the transient ischemic attack, a "mini-stroke". TIA or Tia may also refer to: People * Tia (name), including a list of people and fictional characters with the given name or surname * TiA, stage name of a female ...

Ramesses II Ramesses II (sometimes written Ramses or Rameses) (; , , ; ), commonly known as Ramesses the Great, was an Pharaoh, Egyptian pharaoh. He was the third ruler of the Nineteenth Dynasty of Egypt, Nineteenth Dynasty. Along with Thutmose III of th ...

, and possibly

Henutmire Henutmire was an ancient Egyptian princess and queen. She was one of the eight Great Royal Wives of Pharaoh Ramesses II of the 19th Dynasty of Egypt. Life She is supposedly the third and youngest child of Seti I and Tuya, and the youn ...

. She was the daughter of Raia (''Rʿjȝ''), Lieutenant in the Chariotry,Tyldesley, p.116 by his wife Ruya or Tuya (the name is partly broken: '' /Tjȝ''). Seti I and Tuya's daughter

(''Ṯjȝ'') was married to a high-ranking civil servant who was also called

(''Ṯjȝ''), the son of Amenwahsu (''Jmn-wȝḥ-sw''). The vast majority of Tuya's attestations as queen date to the reign of her son, making it less than completely certain that she bore the title of King's Great Wife during the reign of her husband. On the other hand, as mother of king's only known son, she might well have become Seti's chief queen, unlike another spouse, the royal daughter Tanodjmy. As the mother of Ramesses II, Tuya enjoyed a privileged existence of a respected king's mother. Ramesses dedicated a monumental structure within his mortuary temple, the

Ramesseum The Ramesseum is the Temples of a Million years, memorial temple (or mortuary temple) of Pharaoh Ramesses II ("Ramesses the Great", also spelled "Ramses" and "Rameses"). It is located in the Theban Necropolis in Upper Egypt, on the west of the Ni ...

, to his mother, and also constructed a fine new tomb for her in the section of the

Valley of the Queens The Valley of the Queens is a site in Egypt, in which queens, princes, princesses, and other high-ranking officials were buried from roughly 1560 BC to 1130 BC. Pharaohs were buried in the Valley of the Kings. The Valley of the Queens was known an ...

that he developed for the burials of the women in his family. Following the peace treaty between Egypt and

Hatti Hatti may refer to *Hatti (; Assyrian ) in Bronze Age Anatolia: **the area of Hattusa, roughly delimited by the Halys bend **the Hattians of the 3rd and 2nd millennia BC **the Hittites of ''ca'' 1400–1200 BC **the areas to the west of the Euphra ...

in Year 21 of Ramesses II (1259 BC according to the "Low Chronology"), Tuya sent congratulatory letters to the Hittite great king

Ḫattušili III Hattusili III (Hittite language, Hittite: "from Hattusa") was king of the Hittite empire (New Kingdom) –1245 BC (middle chronology) or 1267–1237 BC (short chronology timeline)., pp.xiii-xiv Early life and family Much of what is known about ...

and to his queen

Puduḫepa Puduḫepa or Pudu-Kheba (floruit, fl. 13th century BC) was a Hittites, Hittite tawananna, queen, married to the King Hattusili III. She has been referred to as "one of the most influential women known from the Ancient Near East." Biography Earl ...

, who she addressed as her symbolic "brother" and "sister," respectively. However, by the time of the inauguration of Ramesses II's temple at

Abu Simbel Abu Simbel is a historic site comprising two massive Rock-cut architecture, rock-cut Egyptian temple, temples in the village of Abu Simbel (village), Abu Simbel (), Aswan Governorate, Upper Egypt, near the border with Sudan. It is located on t ...

in Year 24 (1256 BC), Tuya appears to have been dead.

Monuments and inscriptions

* Statue,

Vatican Museum The Vatican Museums (; ) are the public museums of the Vatican City. They display works from the immense collection amassed by the Catholic Church and the papacy throughout the centuries, including several of the best-known Roman sculptures and ...

no. 28 with figure of

.Tyldesley, p.122 The inscription identifies Queen Tuya as: ''Mother of the King of South and North Egypt, Queen Mother of the King of South and North Egypt (even of) the Horus-Falcon, Strong Bull, Lord of Both Lands, Usermaatre Setepenre, Lord of Crowns,

, given life like Re; The God's Wife and

Great Royal Wife Great Royal Wife, or alternatively, Chief King's Wife () is the title that was used to refer to the Queen consort, principal wife of the pharaoh of Ancient Egypt, who served many official functions. Description While most ancient Egyptians were ...

, Lady of Both Lands, Tuya, may she live.''Kitchen, K.A., Ramesside Inscriptions, Translated & Annotated, Translations, Volume II, Blackwell Publishers, 1996 * At the

, fragments of North Side-Chapel of Queen Mother Tuya were found.

had this chapel dedicated to his mother. A scene in this chapel records the name of Tuya's father and mother. * The

contains scenes of the Divine Birth of the Pharaoh. * A statue and base block, found in

Tanis Tanis ( ; ; ) or San al-Hagar (; ; ; or or ; ) is the Greek name for ancient Egyptian ''ḏꜥn.t'', an important archaeological site in the northeastern Nile Delta of ancient Egypt, Egypt, and the location of a city of the same name. Tanis ...

but originally from

Piramesse Pi-Ramesses (; Ancient Egyptian: , meaning "House of Ramesses") was the new capital built by the Nineteenth Dynasty Pharaoh Ramesses II (1279–1213 BC) at Qantir, near the old site of Avaris. The city had served as a summer palace under Seti I ( ...

. Her titles are given as Hereditary Princess, Chief of the Harem, greatly favoured, God's Wife and Queen Mother, Great Royal Wife, etc. * In Abydos Tuya's name appears on fragments of a limestone statue and in texts in

's temple. * In the

Tuya's name appears on fragments of a colossus and in scenes on the main (central) doorway into the great

hypostyle In architecture, a hypostyle () hall has a roof which is supported by columns. Etymology The term ''hypostyle'' comes from the ancient Greek ὑπόστυλος ''hypóstȳlos'' meaning "under columns" (where ὑπό ''hypó'' means below or und ...

hall. * A statue inscribed with the name and titles of Tuya was found at

Medinet Habu Medinet Habu (; ; ; ) is an archaeological locality situated near the foot of the Theban Hills on the West Bank of the River Nile opposite the modern city of Luxor, Egypt. Although other structures are located within the area and important disco ...

, but likely originated from the

. * Queen Tuya appears on two of the collosi flanking the entrance to the temple at

. * A sandstone lintel from

Deir el-Medina Deir el-Medina (), or Dayr al-Madīnah, is an ancient Egyptian workmen's village which was home to the artisans who worked on the tombs in the Valley of the Kings during the 18th to 20th Dynasties of the New Kingdom of Egypt (ca. 1550–1080 BC). ...

records the names of

and Tuya. * A jamb now in Vienna (Inv. 5091) shows

followed by Tuya, making an offering to Osiris. * A carved alabaster canopic jar stopper in the form of her head, today resides in the collection of the

Luxor Museum Luxor Museum is an archaeological museum in Luxor (ancient Thebes), Egypt. It stands on the corniche, overlooking the east bank of the River Nile. Establishment The Luxor Museum was inaugurated in 1975. It is a two-story building. The range of ...

. * ̈Stela found at Kafr el-Gebel (3 km south of Giza), showing her together with the overseer of the treasury Tia and his wife

(a daughter of Tuya).

Death and burial

Tuya likely died in or soon after Year 22 of Ramesses' reign and was buried in an impressive tomb on the north side of the main wadi of the Valley of the Queens ( QV80).Kitchen 1982: 97; Grajetzki 2005: 66-67. It is possible that a tomb on the south side of the main wadi of the Valley of the Queens, intended for a King's Great Wife but apparently left unused, QV31, was meant for Tuya during her husband's reign: Mladjov 2014: 59. In her tomb, Tuya "was stripped of the first part of her name to become plain Tuya for eternity; the loss of the prefix

- suggests that her death had ended in an almost divine earthly status."

In popular culture

Because the

Pharaoh of the Exodus The Bible makes reference to various pharaohs (, ''Parʿō'') of Egypt. These include unnamed pharaohs in events described in the Torah, as well as several later named pharaohs, some of whom were historical or can be identified with historical pha ...

is popularly identified as Ramses II, Tuya often appears in adaptations of the

Book of Exodus The Book of Exodus (from ; ''Šəmōṯ'', 'Names'; ) is the second book of the Bible. It is the first part of the narrative of the Exodus, the origin myth of the Israelites, in which they leave slavery in Biblical Egypt through the strength of ...

: Queen Tuya has been first portrayed by actress Irene Martin in

Cecil B. DeMille Cecil Blount DeMille (; August 12, 1881January 21, 1959) was an American filmmaker and actor. Between 1914 and 1958, he made 70 features, both silent and sound films. He is acknowledged as a founding father of American cinema and the most co ...

's ''

The Ten Commandments The Ten Commandments (), or the Decalogue (from Latin , from Ancient Greek , ), are religious and ethical directives, structured as a covenant document, that, according to the Hebrew Bible, were given by YHWH to Moses. The text of the Ten C ...

'', as one of

Bithiah The Pharaoh's daughter () in the story of the finding of Moses in the biblical Book of Exodus is an important, albeit minor, figure in Abrahamic religions. Though some variations of her story exist, the general consensus among Jews, Christians, a ...

's maidservants famous for quoting "Bithiah could charm tears from a crocodile." In ''

The Prince of Egypt ''The Prince of Egypt'' is a 1998 American animated musical drama film directed by Brenda Chapman, Steve Hickner, and Simon Wells, and written by Philip LaZebnik, from a story by Kelly Asbury and Lorna Cook. Produced by DreamWorks Pictur ...

'' she is the loving adoptive mother of

Moses In Abrahamic religions, Moses was the Hebrews, Hebrew prophet who led the Israelites out of slavery in the The Exodus, Exodus from ancient Egypt, Egypt. He is considered the most important Prophets in Judaism, prophet in Judaism and Samaritani ...

, voiced by

Helen Mirren Dame Helen Mirren (; born Ilyena Lydia Vasilievna Mironov; 26 July 1945) is an English actor. With a career spanning over six decades of Helen Mirren on screen and stage, screen and stage, List of awards and nominations received by Helen Mirre ...

. However, she is only credited as "The Queen." She is portrayed by

Sigourney Weaver Susan Alexandra ( ; born October 8, 1949), better known by her stage name Sigourney Weaver, is an American actress. Prolific in film since the late 1970s, she is known for her pioneering portrayals of action heroines in Blockbuster (entertainme ...

in the 2014

Ridley Scott Sir Ridley Scott (born 30 November 1937) is an English film director and producer. He directs films in the Science fiction film, science fiction, Crime film, crime, and historical drama, historical epic genres, with an atmospheric and highly co ...

film '' Exodus: Gods and Kings.'' In 2015, in the Brazilian television series ''

Os Dez Mandamentos ''Os Dez Mandamentos'' (English: ''The Ten Commandments'') is a Brazilian primetime biblical telenovela produced and broadcast by RecordTV. It premiered on Monday, March 23, 2015, replacing '' Vitória'' at 8:30 p.m. ( BRT/ AMT). ''Os Dez Ma ...

'', Queen Tuya is played by actress Angelina Muniz.

References

Bibliography

* Edel, Elmar, ''Die ägyptisch-hethitische Korrespondenz aus Boghazköi in babylonischer und hethitischer Sprache'', 2 vols., Kleve, 1994. * Dodson, Aidan, and Dyan Hilton, ''The Complete Royal Families of Ancient Egypt'', London, 2004. * Gauthier, Henri, ''Le livre des rois d'Égypte'', vol. 3, Cairo, 1913
online
* Grajetzki, Wolfram, ''Ancient Egyptian Queens: a hieroglyphic dictionary'', London, 2005. * Kitchen, Kenneth A., ''Ramesside Inscriptions: Historical and Biographical'' I, Oxford, 1975. * Kitchen, Kenneth A., ''Pharaoh Triumphant: the life and times of Ramesses II'', Warminster, 1982. * Mladjov, Ian, "Rediscovering Queen Tanodjmy: A probable link between Dynasties 18 and 19," ''Göttinger Miszellen'' 242 (2014) 57-70
online
* Obsomer, Claude, ''Ramsès II'', Paris, 2012. {{DEFAULTSORT:Tuya Queens consort of the Nineteenth Dynasty of Egypt Seti I 13th-century BC Egyptian women Pharaoh's daughter (Exodus)