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This reading of the triads, which allows Menkaure to appear the pious son who endows the cult of his divine mother from which she in turn feeds him, creates a quid pro quo circularity that is at the heart of the ancient relationship of reciprocity between king and god.
Menkaure and his queen stride forward with their left feet—this is entirely expected for the king, as males in Egyptian sculpture almost always do so, but it is unusual for the female since they are generally depicted with feet together.
This document provides information about King Mycerinus and Queen Kha-merer-nebty III of the Old Kingdom of Egypt from 2600 BC. It discusses a double portrait statue of the king and queen found at the pyramids of Giza, which was intended to house their spirits after death.
Hathor had a complex relationship with the sun-god Re, being simultaneously perceived as his mother, his wife, and his child. The tale about Mycerinus’ incest with his own daughter (who would eventually be enclosed inside the cow) may reflect, in a humanized way, the mythical conception of Hathor as daughter and wife of Re.
Menkaure and His Queen: 1. Discovery. The statue of the Pharaoh Menkaure (Mycerinus) and his Queen in the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, carved out of slate and dating to 2548-2530 BCE, is an example of Old Kingdom 4th Dynasty royal sculpture.
The queen represented in the statue, therefore, was no mere wife. Her position and gestures should be interpreted not as indicating inferiority and submission, but signalling her legitimization of Menkaure as pharaoh.
The goddess’s name is actually ‘Hwt-hor’, which means “The House of Horus,” and she was connected to the wife of the living king and the mother of the future king. Hathor was also a fierce protector who guarded her father Re; as an “Eye of Re” (the title assigned to a group of dangerous goddesses), she could embody the intense ...
