Bust of Nefertiti 

SOI: ​International ​relationships ​can ​cause changes ​in personal and local ​identities​. 

Research  Should the artifact be return or not? 

Question:  

Criterion B Strand 2: follow an​ ​action plan​ ​to explore a research question 

Sub-questions  What is the background and the history of the Bust of Nefertiti? Why is it valuable?  
How did the Bust of Nefertiti go to the museum and what is the situation of it Now? 
What is the perspective of two countries? 

  -Oct. 2 Finish setting up the research question, sub-questions and the actions plan 
Main stages of  -Oct. 3 Research and finish the first sub-question, and then finish the background of the 
the  artifact part in the template.  
investigation  -Oct. 4 Research and finish the second sub-question, and then finish the The departure of the 
  Bust of Nefertiti and it’s arrival to the museum part of the template.  
  -Oct. 6 Research and finish the last sub-question, and then finish the argument part  
-Oct. 7 Combine the results of the research together and finish the conclusion of the 
template.  
-Oct. 8 The last check about everything in the research organizer and the template. .  

Criterion B Strand 3: use research methods to collect and record appropriate, varied and relevant 
information. 

Sub-Research  What is the background  Search terms / keywords →  -Bust of Nefertiti 

Question 1 →  and the history of the Bust  -History 
of Nefertiti? Why is it  -Background 
valuable?  -Beauty 
Quotes,  “One of the most mysterious and powerful women in ancient Egypt, Nefertiti was queen 
images,  alongside Pharaoh Akhenaten from 1353 to 1336 B.C. and may have ruled the New 
observations,  Kingdom outright after her husband’s death”(Nefertiti).  
etc. →  This quote is saying that the Bust of Nefertiti is from ancient Egypt and she is the queen 
  during the period that Pharaoh Akhenaten is ruling from 1353 to 1336 B.C.. There is 
probability that Nefertiti has taken the place of Pharaoh after her husband died. Nefertiti has 
a strong power, she is one of the most powerful and mysterious women during the time.  
According to the information above, Nefertiti is a rare female ruler in ancient Egypt history. 
Because of this, the Bust of Nefertiti is a very important artifact for Egypt, it is a representation 
of culture and history. The statue itself is also one of the few artifacts that shows a female 
ruler in Egyptian history, it is very rare.  
“Nefertiti, whose name means ‘a beautiful woman has come’”(Nefertiti Biography).  
The meaning of the name Nefertiti is ‘there is an arrival of a beautiful woman’. The name is 
very beautiful so people respect her a lot.   
“Nefertiti was the Great Royal Wife of the Egyptian Pharaoh Akhenaten and Egypt’s 
Queen during 1370 B.C.-1330 B.C. ”(Nefertiti Bust).  
The identity of Nefertiti is Egyptian Pharaoh Akhenaten’s Greatest Royal Wife and Egypt’s 
Queen during the time period 1370 B.C.-1330 B.C. 
“She...established the cult of Aten, the sun god, and promoted Egyptian artwork that was 
radically different from its predecessors” 
Nefertiti is very powerful, her power is so strong that she can create new religions that none 
of their predecessors has done. Changing the belief of people is very difficult, so her success 
showed her power.  

“The beauty of the iconic Nefertiti bust may only be skin deep. CT scans in 2009 revealed 
that underneath the surface of smooth painted stucco is the sculptor Thudmose's more 
realistic limestone carving of a woman with wrinkled cheeks and a bump on her 
nose”(Nefertiti).  
Bust of Nefertiti is very precious because there are technology in it that make the beauty of it 
underneath the skin, the lime stone shapes the wrinkled cheeks and bump on the nose. Not 
many people can make statue as beautiful as this one. According to the first quote and this 
quote, the Bust of Nefertiti is constituted by the culture and the technology of ancient Egypt.  
“Not only is the face carved with softly curved cheekbones, strong chin, and sharp nose, 
but the limestone core was covered in gypsum stucco, which was then painted. The result 
is an incredibly lifelike depiction of the queen. Nefertiti's bust is colored with 
golden-brown skin, red lips, colored jewelry and crown. The eyes are set with crystal, and 
one pupil is made with black wax. The other eye was never finished”(Christopher 
Muscato).  
This quote describes the aesthetic of the statue. The curves on the face such as cheekbones, 
chin and the nose are beautiful. The texture of the statue is limestone core painted by 
gypsum stucco. The skin color is golden-brown, the crown is decorated by jewelry. The 
curves and the color shaped a lifelike Nefertiti.   
“...3,000-year-old statue...”(Vivian Giang).  
The Nefertiti statue is 3000 years old already, it is very old and valuable.  
The reason why old artifacts are valuable is it is unique because of its age, nothing else can 
compare with it, all the history and culture of its country is with the artifact along the time.  
“A bust of Nefertiti is one of the most iconic symbols of Egypt.” 
The bust of Nefertiti is one of the most iconic symbols of Egypt so it is very important for 
Egypt.  
  

Summary  The artifact is both valuable in its ancient and its cultural connotation. The culture that the 
statue is trying to communicate is very rare and the kind of the statue is very few too. The 
statue is very detailed and technique shaped a beautiful woman.  

Sub-Research  How did the Bust of  Search terms / keywords →  -Burst of Nefertiti 
Question 2 →  Nefertiti go to the museum  -Looting 
and what is the situation 
of it Now? 

Quotes,  “On December 6, 1913, a team led by German archaeologist Ludwig Borchardt discovered 
images,  a sculpture...excavated workshop of the royal sculptor Thutmose in Amarna” “Borchardt’s 
observations,  team had an agreement to split its artifacts with the Egyptian government”(Nefertiti).  
etc. →  How the Nefertiti is found is the German archaeologist’s team discovered.  
The country that found it first is Germany. The archaeological team found the Bust of Nefertiti, 
an Egyptian artifact. Then they had an agreement with Egypt government to keep it.  

“The Egyptian official said at the time, Egypt and the then-Prussian Empire had an 
agreement saying that relics made of plaster could go to the Germans” 
“Borchardt registered this antique under the claim that it represented an Egyptian 
 princess in plaster. But this bust of Nefertiti is the statue or the head of an Egyptian queen 
made of plaster-covered limestone”(Hawass) 
These two quotes explained the way German archaeologists take the artifact to Germany. 
They signed an agreement with Egypt government so they were able to take the artifact back 
to Germany.  

“...it was first unveiled at the Neues Museum in Berlin in 1924.” 

The Bust of Nefertiti is now presenting in Neues Museum in Berlin. It was there since 1924.   
“BERLIN — Culture lovers revealed in the reopening of the Neues Museum”(JUDY 
DEMPSEY).  
Neues Museum, which is where the Bust of Nefertiti was reopening, so culture lovers are 
really happy about this and are all going to the museum. Since lots of people are going, They 
can make lots of money from the Bust of Nefertiti.  
“The sculpture, famed for its almond-shaped eyes and swan-like neck, is housed in 
Berlin’s Neues Museum and draws over a million viewers a year”(GMT).  
This quote showed that Bust of Nefertiti in Neues Museum can have over a million visitors a 
year which get lots of profits for the museum in Germany. The reason why is the beauty of 
Bust of Nefertiti which is from Egypt.  

Summary  The Bust of Nefertiti always belongs to Egypt which is its original country. The country 
Germany discovered it but took it by illegal ways.  

Sub-Research  What are the perspectives  Search terms / keywords →  -Nefertiti, Egypt, Germany, 
Question 3 →  from two countries?  perspective, return 

Quotes,  “Egypt has been conducting an ongoing campaign to get...artifacts from around the world 
images,  that they claim belongs to them...and at the top of his list is the bust of Nefertiti”(Vivian 
observations,  Giang).  
etc. →  What Egypt has been doing is they are want the artifacts that claim is theirs back.  
So they the Bust of Nefertiti is also on their list and it is an important one.  
“Egypt would continue to press demands for the return of the artifact”(Supreme Council 
of Antiquities).  
This quote stronger the aim of Egypt which is get their artifacts back to their country. 
“Egypt’s antiquities chief, Zahi Hawass, appealed to the foundation seeking the return of 
the bust, famed for its almond-shaped eyes and swan-like neck”(Brian Rohan).  
The chief of Egypt antiquities Zahi is trying as much ways to get the artifact back. He was 
trying to appeal to the foundation to make them return the bust.  

“Germany claims that the statue is too delicate to make the long trip back to Egypt”(Vivian 
Giang). 
This is one of the opinions of Germany that they refuse to give the artifact back. Germany 
says the statue is delicate, so during the trip that it goes back to Egypt it might break. As 
above, the statue is very old and there are lots of details in it, so any big movements can 
break it.  
I think this would not be true because the technology of ancient artifacts protecting has 
improved and people have lots of ways to prevent the damage of it. If there are shakings 
during the trip, people can protect it carefully, control the temperature and humidity well to 
send the statue back to the home country. If they really want to return it, of course they can 
protect the statue well. Now they don’t want to give a valuable artifact, so they can find many 
excuses to keep it in their country.  
“The museum has staunchly refused to give up the sculpture, asserting that the bust was 
acquired legally by the German archaeologist Ludwig Borchardt in 1912”(Dr. Naraelle 
Hohensee).  
The museum refuses to return the statue because they discovered the statue first and have a 
legally document to take it back to Germany, but the quote ​“Borchardt registered this 
antique under the claim that it represented an Egyptian princess in plaster. But this bust of 
Nefertiti is the statue or the head of an Egyptian queen made of plaster-covered 
limestone” and “The Egyptian official said at the time, Egypt and the then-Prussian Empire 
had an agreement saying that relics made of plaster could go to the Germans”(Hawass) 
explained that the way that the archaeological team get the artifact is illegal. What they did is 
 they lower the value set the Bust of Nefertiti into the plaster texture. Why they do this is 
because at that time period, Egypt official claimed that all the artifacts that are plaster texture 
belongs to German, they could take the Bust of Nefertiti because it is made of plaster. But 
actually the sculpture is plaster-covered limestone. Germany was frauding on this thing and it 
is illegal. So they were not supposed to take the Bust of Nefertiti since the beginning.  
“Germany insists their ownership of Nefertiti is without a doubt”(Nefertiti Bust).  
Germany is insists on saying that they have the ownership of the Bust of Nefertiti. They firmly 
believe that the statue is theirs. They are really confident with it.  

Resources  Armitage, H. (2016, October 11). The 15 Most Contentious Items Held In Museums. Retrieved

October 9, 2019, from

https://theculturetrip.com/europe/united-kingdom/articles/the-15-most-contentious-items-held-i

n-museums/​ .

Dempsey, J. (2009, October 18). A 3,500-Year-Old Queen Causes a Rift Between Germany and

Egypt. Retrieved October 9, 2019, from

https://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/19/world/europe/19iht-germany.html​.

German Foundation Refuses To Return Nefertiti Bust. (2011, January 25). Retrieved October 9,

2019, from ​https://www.rferl.org/a/queen_nefertiti/2286525.html​.

German foundation refuses to return Nefertiti bust. (2011, January 25). Retrieved October 9, 2019,

from

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-germany-egypt-nefertiti/german-foundation-refuses-to-retur

n-nefertiti-bust-idUSTRE70N6N220110124​.
Germany acquired Nefertiti illegally, Egyptian official says. (2009, December 22). Retrieved

October 9, 2019, from

https://www.dw.com/en/germany-acquired-nefertiti-illegally-egyptian-official-says/a-5046115​.

Giang, V. (2011, July 15). 10 Ancient Artifacts That Countries Are Still Fighting Over. Retrieved

October 9, 2019, from ​https://www.businessinsider.com/disputed-ancient-artifacts-2011-7​.

Hohensee, D. N. (n.d.). Retrieved from

https://www.khanacademy.org/humanities/ancient-art-civilizations/egypt-art/new-kingdom/a/th

utmose-bust-of-nefertiti-backstory

Lindsay, E. (n.d.). Bust of Nefertiti . Retrieved October 9, 2019, from

https://www.pinterest.com/pin/305541155954734437/?lp=true​.

Muscato, C. (n.d.). The Nefertiti Bust: History & Facts. Retrieved October 9, 2019, from

https://study.com/academy/lesson/the-nefertiti-bust-history-facts.html​.

Nefertiti. (2010, July 15). Retrieved October 9, 2019, from

https://www.history.com/topics/ancient-history/nefertiti​.

Nefertiti Biography. (2014, April 2). Retrieved October 9, 2019, from

https://www.biography.com/royalty/nefertiti​.
 Nefertiti Bust. (n.d.). Retrieved October 9, 2019, from

https://joyofmuseums.com/museums/europe/germany-museums/berlin-museums/neues-museu

m/masterpieces-of-the-neues-museum/nefertiti-bust/​. 

Criterion B Strand 4: reflect on the process and results of the investigation. 

Process  The most difficult thing  Results   First, I researched the 

(think about  about this assignment is  (Think about the  background, the value of the 
criterion B  choosing side of returning  information you discovered  artifact and the history of the 
strands 1-3)  or keeping the artifact. The  and any new questions you  artifact, then I found many 
point of where the artifact  might have)  evidences to prove my 
should be is very  arguments about my side, 
debatable, either side can  returning the artifact. Second, I 
win the argument. There  research about the arrival of the 
need to be a specific point  statue to the country it is in now. 
which is really strong to  I found something special during 
support the side.   the argument, it is a very 
The skill I need to work on  important and string point for the 
is the time managing skills.  argument. Lastly, I researched 
I didn’t finish all the work  about the opinion of each 
that I planned in the action  country, so that I can find things 
plan. I am always being late  to discuss in the counter 
so all the work last needs  argument.  
to be finished at the last  At last I rewrote the points into 
moment. I think time  the template and make 
managing skills are very  arguments and counter 
important. Following the  argument based on the evidence 
plan can save lots of time  I found during the research.  
and finish a high-quality 
work on time.