pp. 152,
191).

While the capital and the emblem of southern or Upper Egypt are thus
directly associated with a "goddess," further data show us that the
ancient queens of Egypt were termed "god-women or goddesses." When the New
Empire was founded (1600-1100 B.C.) with its capital at Thebes, King Ahmes
assumed the sovereignty of the whole of Egypt, but seems to have shared
supreme authority with his consort Ah-mes-nefretere=divine- or god-woman,
also termed "the high priestess of Amen." From the honors accorded to her
and to her son Amen-hetep or Amenophis I, it must indeed be inferred that
she possessed some inherited sovereign right to one of the ancient
divisions of the empire.

During the period of the 26th dynasty, of Sais, we find Upper Egypt
governed by a "god-woman," Shep-en-upet, who remained in power, even after
the land had been conquered by Psammetichus I. The latter obtained,
however, that his daughter Nitocris was adopted as the successor to the
"divine-woman" ruler of Thebes, and she in turn adopted the daughter of
Psammetichus II (B.C. 594-589), whose name was Anches-nefer-eb-re. A
tablet from the temple of Karnak, preserved at the Berlin Museum
(catalogue no. 2112) represents this female sovereign of Thebes
accompanied by her prime minister, and standing in the presence of the
gods Amen and Chon.

Another remarkable monument at the Berlin Museum (no. 7972) figures the
"god-woman" Shep-en-upet, under the form of a sphinx holding a vase, and
records that she had inherited the sovereignty of Thebes from her aunt,
the consort of an Ethiopian king. An extremely interesting proof that the
beard, _per se_, constituted an emblem of sovereignty, is furnished by a
beautiful portrait statue of the "divine woman," Hat-shepset (Berlin
Museum, no. 2299). She is figured as a sphinx and wears a beard suspended
from her head-dress.(116) The serpent decorates her diadem. On other
monuments this remarkable queen, who built the temple of Der-el-Bahari, is
figured with the crown of Upper Egypt (_cf._ no. 2279, Berlin Museum). By
good fortune the personal gold ornaments of a "divine woman," an Ethiopian
princess, were discovered by Ferlini in the pyramid of Begerauie, enclosed
in a plain bronze vase. These precious objects are now exhibited in the
Berlin Museum, where I have examined them and noted with interest that the
central ornament of two finely worked, broad gold bracelets, is a female
figure with the royal diadem