- God's Wife
God's Wife (Egyptian Hmt nTr) is a term which was often allocated to royal women during the
18th Dynasty ofEgypt . The term indicates an inherited sacral role, in which the role of "God's Wife" passed from mother to daughter. The role could also exist among siblings, as in the case of the role of God's Wife being shared or passed by daughters ofAhmose-Nefertari , Satamun (I) and her sister, Ahmose-Merytamun [Troy, L. 1986. "Patterns of Queenship: in ancient Egyptian myth and history": 98. BOREAS14. Uppsala: ACTA Universitatis Upsaliensis] .Despite certain allegations found online, the role of "God's Wife" is not the same as the title "God's Wife of Amun", which is a separate sacral title, involved in the "Divine Cycle" myth of the god Amun [Gitton, M. 1984. "Les divine éspouses de la 18e dynastie". Centre de Recherches d'Histoire Ancienne 61/Annales Littéraires de l'Université de Besançon 306. Paris: Les Belles-Lettres.] . [Robins, G. 1983. The God's Wife of Amun in the 18th Dynasty in Egypt. In A. Cameron and A. Kuhrt, Eds., "Images of Women in Antiquity": 65-78. Cranberra: Croon Helm.] . Only two 18th Dynasty queens held this title, being
Ahhotep andAhmose-Nefertari [Troy, L. 1986. "Patterns of Queenship: in ancient Egyptian myth and history": Appendix A, 18.2 and 18.3. BOREAS14. Uppsala: ACTA Universitatis Upsaliensis] .References
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