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Egyptologists think they have identified with certainty the mummy of Hatshepsut (1), the most famous queen to rule ancient Egypt, found in a humble tomb in the Valley of the Kings.
Egypt's chief archaeologist (2), Zahi Hawass, will hold a news conference in Cairo on Wednesday. The Discovery Channel said he would announce what it called the most important find in the Valley of the Kings since the discovery of King Tutankhamun (3).
The archaeologist said the candidate for identification as the mummy of Hatshepsut was one of two females found in 1903 in a small tomb. Several Egyptologists have speculated (4) over the years that one of the mummies was that of the queen, who ruled from between 1503 and 1482 BC -- at the height of ancient Egypt's power.
"It's based on teeth and body parts ... It's an interesting piece of scientific deduction which might point to the truth," the archaeologist said.
Egyptologist Elizabeth Thomas speculated many years ago that one of the mummies was Hatshepsut's because the positioning of the right arm over the woman's chest suggested royalty.
Her mummy may have been hidden in the tomb for safekeeping after her death because her stepson and successor, Tuthmosis III (5), tried to obliterate (6) her memory.
Donald Ryan, an Egyptologist who rediscovered the tomb in 1989, said on an Internet discussion board this month that there were many possibilities for the identities of the two female mummies found in the tomb.
In an undated article on his Web site, Hawass cast doubt on the theory that the mummy with the folded right arm was that of Hatshepsut.
"I do not believe this mummy is Hatshepsut. She has a very large, fat body with huge pendulous (7) breasts, and the position of her arm is not convincing evidence of royalty," he wrote.
He was more optimistic about the mummy found in the wet-nurse's coffin and traditionally identified as the nurse's. That mummy is stored away in the Egyptian Museum in Cairo.
"The body of the mummy now in the Valley of the Kings with its huge breasts may be the wet-nurse (8). The mummy on the third floor at the Egyptian Museum in Cairo could be the mummy of Hatshepsut," Hawass wrote.
1． Hatshepsut : 哈特谢普苏特：埃及王后（公元前1503-1482年），她在丈夫图特摩斯二世死后（公元前1540年）成为儿子图特摩斯三世的摄政者，她授予自己法老的头衔并采用所有的法老的风俗，包括戴假胡子等
2． Archaeologist : 考古学家
3． King Tutankhamun : 图坦卡门，是古埃及第18位法老王，公元前1336至前1327年统治埃及，18岁时死亡
4． Speculate : 推测, 思索
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埃及古物学者已经确认他们在帝王谷的一座简陋的坟墓里挖掘出哈特谢普苏特的木乃伊。哈特谢普苏特是统治古埃及最著名的一位王后。
埃及的首席考古学家札希哈瓦斯将于星期三在开罗举办一个新闻发布会。探索频道称这位考古学家将宣布这是继发掘出图坦卡门国王墓穴之后最重要的一次来自帝王谷的发现。
札希哈瓦斯表示1903年在一个小坟墓中发现了两具木乃伊，其中一具被确认是哈特谢普苏特王后。多年来，有好几位埃及古物学者都推测这两具木乃伊中之一就是这位在公元前1503至1482年埃及鼎盛时期的统治者。
这位考古学家说：“这是基于对牙齿和身体各部位的研究。这是一个非常有趣的科学推论，并有可能引出真相。”
多年前，埃及古物学者托马斯伊丽莎白就推断这些木乃伊中之一是哈特谢普苏特王后，因为这个女性将其右手放置于胸前就揭示了她的皇家身份。
在哈特谢普苏特王后死后，为了安全起见，她的木乃伊可能被藏在墓穴的某个地方，因为她的继子即继承人图特摩斯三世试图破坏王后的记忆。
一位叫唐纳德瑞恩的埃及古物学者在1989年发现了这座坟墓，这个月他在因特网上讨论说，关于这两具在墓穴中发现的女性木乃伊的身份，有很多可能性。
在一篇发表在自己的网页上的未注明日期的文章里，哈瓦斯怀疑这具将右手放置在胸前的特殊位置的木乃伊是否就是哈特谢普苏特王后。
他写道：“我不相信这具木乃伊就是哈特谢普苏特王后。她的个子高大,身体发福，胸部下垂但丰满，至于她的右手的放置位置并不能说明她是皇族。”
哈瓦斯本人相信在奶妈的棺材里发现的木乃伊更有可能是哈特谢普苏特王后，尽管根据传统，那具棺材是为奶妈准备的。
哈瓦斯在文章里还写到：“这具在帝王谷发现的胸部丰满的木乃伊尸体有可能是奶妈。现正在开罗埃及博物馆三层展出的一具木乃伊才是哈特谢普苏特王后。”
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| 中国国际广播电台 译 |
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5. Tuthmosis III : 图特摩斯三世，公元前1514—1450年，埃及法老。他是第一个曾经建立了一个具有任何真正意义的帝国的人，他也是第一位世界英雄。
6．Obliterate : 删除, 使湮没
7．Pendulous : 下垂的
8．wet-nurse : 奶妈, 乳母
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