Compared with other Biblical women, or other female rulers of antiquity, the Queen of Sheba has always been particularly popular. Yemenis and Ethiopians both claim that she once ruled over their countries and Jews, Muslims and Christians have all adopted the queen into their theological debates, religious traditions and into their artistic and literary cultures.
So who was this woman? Was she a wily femme fatale and seducer of King Solomon as she is sometimes portrayed? Or was she the deformed and hairy demon Queen she is described as being at other times? Anna McNamee has been to the British Museum where they are currently hosting an exhibition devoted to the Queen of Sheba. Queen of Sheba: Treasures from ancient Yemen, edited by St John Simpson, The British Museum Press (2002), ISBN 0 7141 1151 1
