From the hand of Nefertari, the Great Royal Wife of Ramses II, Pharaoh of Egypt, to her beloved sister and friend across nations, Puduhepa, the esteemed Queen of the Hitтιтe land.
“The Great Queen of the land of Egypt, Nefertari of Naptera, speaks thus:
To my sister, Puduhepa, Great Queen of the land of Hatti:
I send you greetings of peace, health, and joy.
I speak to you not only as a sovereign, but as a sister—joined to you not by blood, but by the deep affection and alliance that our two great peoples now share.
May your house be in harmony, your family blessed, and may your country flourish under the favor of the gods. I have heard your words and the kind concern you showed in your letter. You inquired about my health, my well-being, and in this gesture I recognize the warmth of true sisterhood. It gladdened my heart to receive your message.
You wrote to me because of the enduring friendship and the sacred bond between your husband, the Great King of Hatti, and my husband, the Great King of Egypt. May the Storm God, your protector, and Amun-Ra, our life-giver, together bless this brotherhood with everlasting peace. May the alliance between our lands stand firm through the ages, unshaken by time or turmoil.
In graтιтude for your friendship and to honor you, my beloved sister, I send you a gift, a token not of wealth, but of shared respect and royal affection:
For your noble neck, a necklace of purest gold, crafted with care, 12 rows in fullness, weighing 88 shekels—over 700 grams of radiant gold, touched by the sun and worthy of a queen.
And also, fine linen of the maklalu variety, richly dyed and woven, a garment worthy of royal dignity. Let this cloth be fashioned into a robe, not just for beauty, but for the sacred presence it shall carry when worn by your king.”
Let this message and these gifts be more than mere formalities—let them serve as symbols of the unbreakable bond between two great queens, two great peoples, and the peace that now blesses our kingdoms.
May the gods of Egypt and Hatti guide our hands, our words, and our hearts—now and forever.”
