Ancient Egyptian princesses of the Middle Kingdom were likely trained in the use of weapons and engaged in physically demanding activities, according to a new study published in Frontiers in Environmental Archaeology. Skeletal analysis of royal remains suggests that bows, maces, and daggers found in their tombs were not merely ceremonial gifts but tools used habitually throughout their lives.
Rediscovery of the Dahshur Royals
The research focused on six royal mummies—five women and one man—originally excavated in the 1890s by French archaeologist Jacques de Morgan at the Dahshur pyramid complex, southwest of Cairo. The group includes King Hor and five royal women: Princesses Ita, Khenmet, Itaweret, and Noub-Hotep, as well as one unnamed woman (provisionally identified as Princess Sathathormeryt).
Four of the women were daughters of Pharaoh Amenemhat II, who died around 1900 BC. After being moved to the Egyptian Museum in Tahrir in 1915, the remains were stored in a wooden box and largely forgotten for over a century. They were rediscovered in 2020 during a curation project by Zeinab Hashesh, a professor at Egypt’s University of Beni-Suef and lead author of the study.
Skeletal Evidence of Weapon Use
Using a method called osteobiography, researchers analyzed the long bones and muscle attachments of the remains. While the skulls of the princesses were lost in the early 1900s after being sent to the Cairo School of Medicine, the remaining bones provided critical data on their physical activity.
The study found that the princesses’ bones had developed to sustain heavy muscle use consistent with the weapons found in their burials. Zeinab Hashesh stated that the team found pronounced development in the upper limbs, which correlates to repetitive, high-intensity actions such as stabilizing a weapon or pulling a bowstring.
Specific findings include:
- Princess Noub-Hotep: Showed bowing of the second metacarpal (a hand bone) and robust muscle attachments in the palm and finger bones, consistent with skilled archery.
- Princess Ita: Aged between 28 and 34, she exhibited strong upper-body muscle attachments and a pronounced attachment in the left fifth finger, suggesting the habitual gripping of maces or daggers.
- Princess Itaweret: Identified as a skilled archer, her skeleton also revealed healed trauma in a rib and foot-bone.
- Princess Khenmet: A woman in her late 30s or 40s who possessed very robust ligament attachments despite signs of thinning bones.
Context and Implications of the Findings
For over a century, Egyptologists had debated whether weaponry in female burials was purely symbolic
or “votive” tokens for the afterlife, as weapons were traditionally associated with elite men. The skeletal signatures of biomechanical strain and healed fractures suggest these women led vigorous lives involving hunting or military training.
Hashesh noted that these injuries—such as the broken ribs and foot fractures seen in Princess Itaweret—were likely caused by falls, hard blows, or accidents linked to an active lifestyle. The study suggests these royal women were not merely sedentary figures in palaces but were resilient and powerful individuals. Hashesh further explained that such training may have been linked to ancient Egyptian beliefs that physical training could help the spiritual body survive beyond death.
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