Redford Susan. The Harem Conspiracy. The Murder of Ramesses III

DeKalb, Illinois: Northern Illinois University Press, 2002. — 200 p. — ISBN: 0-87580-29508.For more than three thousand years, the mysterious events surrounding the death of Ramesses III have puzzled historians and students of ancient Egypt. Now, archaeologist Susan Redford investigates the circumstances of the ancient pharaoh's death—and discovers among the women of his harem the threads of a murder conspiracy.
From new translations of ancient papyri and careful readings of temple carvings, Redford identifies the in the assassination—wives, concubines,
and attendants. She evaluates the evidence against them and outlines a possible murder plot that turns upon a shocking revelation about the pharaoh's immediate family. On the basis of new discoveries relating to the identity of Ramesses III's queens and their sons, she uncovers a primary motive for regicide and presents persuasive evidence of a palace revolt. Divisions between clans and rival lineages, she argues, gave rise to a plot to murder the king.
Providing fascinating insights into ancient Egypt's highly refined legal and judicial systems, which merge abstract notions of equity with mutilation and death, Redford's exploration of the harem conspiracy casts new light on crime, punishment, and the role of women in Egyptian society. The Harem Conspiracy interprets the legacy of the assassination in light of the contested succession among Ramesses III's many sons, arguing that the murder contributed to the subsequent decline of Egyptian power.
Richly illustrated with thirty photos and diagrams, The Harem Conspiracy will engage students and the general public while also challenging specialists. Redford's groundbreaking investigation of the plot to murder ''the last of the great pharaohs" offers both a new solution to a three-thousand-year-old enigma and an extraordinary vision of the ancient Egyptian world. An essay by Donald B. Redford, Professor of Classics and Ancient Mediterranean Studies at Pennsylvania State University, offers an incisive overview of Egypt's Imperial Age.Susan Redford, a research affiliate of Pennsylvania State University, directs the Theban Tomb Survey in the Valley of the Nobles at Luxor.