Taking the escalator down you enter the lower ground exhibition galleries. In the centre of the first space is a life-size statue of Queen Tuya, Pharaoh’s mother, which is made of granodiorite, a dark grey stone similar to granite. The statue is 1.5m high and represents the queen sitting on a simple low-backed cubical seat which has a narrow back but no sides.
The sides and back of the seat have hieroglyphs carved in them. The elegant queen sits straight-backed, with her knees together and her hands resting on her thighs. She wears a long wig which reaches down her back and down each side of her front to her breasts.
A long finely pleated dress which covers her upper arms is tied in a knot under her right breast and stretches on down to the ground. A broad collar made of many strands of beads curves around her neck.
There is some damage to the statue. The top part of the head above the eyes is missing as is the nose, the right elbow and part of the left arm and thigh. It is thought that Ramses adapted an older statue of another queen to make this statue of Queen Tuya. Apparently it was not unusual for a pharaoh to recycle statues in this way.