Death and Life of Queen Hetepheres I

By: Ali Abu Dashish and Ahmed Yasser

CAIRO, Jan. 14 (SEE)- Queen 1st ''Hetepheres'' used to occupy a unique position among the four queens and the pyramids builders era .

The Queen's life, her death, the disappearance of her body, was exciting. Dr. Hussein Bassir, announced that the scholars views were numerous in this regard.

The name of the beautiful queen is «satisfaction», and it is a beautiful name and this expression is still common in our contemporary Egypt, another queen of the same family, Queen 2th Hetepheres. She was the wife of King ''Jafra'' and the widow of his brother ''Kauab''.

Queen Hetepheres, the daughter of King Houny, the last king of the third family, wife of Senefro King, the founder of the 4th family, and the father of King Khufu.

1st Queen Hetepheres played a great role in the smooth transfer of the family from the 3th family to the 4th family, as the legitimate heir to her father King Houny, and in the veins of the pure royal blood. So when King ''Svenfro'', married, became the legitimate king of great Egypt.

One of the most exciting stories of ''1st Queen Hetepheres'' and its beautiful effects is the discovery of her tomb with funerary furniture and all the unique effects found to give an excellent idea of furniture in ancient Egypt, and reflect the greatness of Egypt .

There were theories and opinions about the tomb of 1th Herut, and the disappearance of her body. King Sinfero probably built a tomb for his beautiful queen in the ''Dahshur'' area of Giza, near his pyramid known as the Red Pyramid and the Curve Pyramid. However, the thieves may have infiltrated the tomb of his wife, and stole the contents of her tomb such as ornaments. They decided to move the mother's body and furniture to a new graveyard near his pyramid in Giza.

To discover this new tomb in Giza is an exciting story. On March 9, 1925, George Reisner, head of the Harvard mission and the Boston Museum of Fine Arts, filmed east of the Great Pyramid in Giza and north of 1st Queen Hetepheres's pyramid. After weeks of strenuous digging, he reached a well of a depth of about 27 meters leading to the entrance to the side tomb, which was sealed with limestone and covered with a layer of mortar to protect the tomb from theft.

The tomb of the beautiful Queen Hetepheres I was found in one room, funeral furniture of the Queen was found buried inside this cemetery, there was also a closed alabaster coffin, a closed alabaster box to save some of the dead queen's bowels and a large quantity of pottery.

The contents of the tomb were evacuated for two years. When the coffin was opened, the surprise that it was empty.

There were many explanations. Gangs may have stolen the queen's body from her former tomb in Dahshur with all its jewelry. Perhaps this well was the lower part of a pyramid not completed for the queen.

There are three small pyramids to the east of the Great Pyramid, the northern pyramid of which belongs to Queen 1th Hetepheres . The contents of these small pyramids were stolen in antiquity, with the exception of some funerary furniture belonging to1th Queen Hetepheres.

The furniture of Queen, probably her remains may have been moved to her northern pyramid to the east of the Khufu pyramid, leaving the remaining furniture in this unfinished well. The queen may have been buried in her pyramid to the east of Khufu pyramid and stolen her body and furniture transferred to the cemetery discovered by the American team. It remains a mystery.

But the absence of her body is the most exciting puzzle yet. This wonderful funerary furniture was transferred to the Egyptian Museum and a hall was dedicated to it.

The life and death of Queen1th Hetepheres reflects the role of the leading Egyptian queens and their greatness in the government transition, the formation of the great kings of Egypt, and their strong relationship based on love with their husbands.