Statue of Queen Tuya

Queen Tuya (also Tuy/Tuya) was Great Royal Wife of Seti I and mother of Ramesses II. Carved in hard granite—a material of permanence—the sculpture follows the Late 18th–19th Dynasty canon: frontal stance, balanced proportions, fitted dress, and formal wig. Inscriptions (now typically fragmentary on such pieces) would have named her titles and piety, linking the queen to temple cult and royal legitimacy. The work blends idealization with emblematic details, presenting Tuya not as an individual portrait but as an office made visible. It stands as evidence of the central role royal women played in succession, ritual, and diplomacy during the New Kingdom.