45 Vladimir A. BOLSHAKOV DOI: 10.31857/S086919080023391-7 REFLECTIONS ON THE SACRAL ROLE OF EGYPTIAN ROYAL WOMEN OF THE NEW KINGDOM 1 © 2022 Vladimir A. BOLSHAKOV a a – Рeoples’ Friendship University of Russia (RUDN University); Institute of Oriental Studies, RAS, Moscow, Russia ORCID: 0000-0003-0790-6473; vb.scriba@gmail.com Abstract: The article deals with a controversial question on the character of royal women’s sacral role in the context of the divine queenship concept. As queenship is seen in contemporary Egyptology as an essential constituent element of the kingship ideology, the sacral role of the royal women is frequently determined as similar or even parallel to that of the king. In particular, sacral scenes with the images of the royal women performing the rites together with a king or alone are sometimes considered an illustration to this interpretation. As the author of the present article suggests, this approach needs re-еvaluation, which should be based on a careful examination of all surviving scenes depicting cult activity of the royal women. Among other issues, the author discusses the sacral role played by Nefertiti, whose official position differs considerably of that of other royal women. A preliminary study of figurative and epigraphical sources, especially with scenes showcasing the royal women, allowed the author to assume that in the majority of cases they played an auxiliary and secondary role. Indeed, since the Ramesside period, the royal women have been most frequently depicted shaking the sistrum/sistra – an auxiliary action in the divine cult. Thus, the thesis about the great king’s wife (or the king’s mother)’s role as a counterpart of the king in his cult functions should be revised, if not rejected. Keywords: ideology of kingship, queenship, royal women, iconography, New Kingdom, Ancient Egyptian rituals, offering scenes. For citation: Bolshakov V.A. Reflections on the Sacral Role of Egyptian Royal Women of the New Kingdom. Vostok (Oriens). 2022. No. 6. Pp. 45–57. DOI: 10.31857/S086919080023391-7 The main object of this article is a critical study of the sacral role of principal representatives of the royal family of the New Kingdom period. Since the king’s great wives and mothers (Hmt nswt wrt/mwt nswt) were the chief figures of the king’s female entourage, the issues concerning the ritual functions of the princesses will be omitted. Before proceeding to the subject, it is necessary to note that under the term «sacral» we consider two closely related facets of the role played by the royal women: the theological aspect and the ritual functions in the context of the divine cult. First of all, we will concentrate on the second aspect of the sacral role of the royal women, although the first one is also discussed. From the very beginning of the New Kingdom, the increased emphasis on the significance of the royal women finds its visible expression in the development of both their titulary and iconography. Notably, by the middle of the 18 th dynasty, the prominent position of king’s mothers and great wives is accentuated by the introduction of new iconographic elements, which associate 1 Acknowledgments: This paper has been supported by the RUDN University Strategic Academic Leadership Program.