Vulture crown

The Vulture crown was an ancient Egyptian crown worn by Great Royal Wives and female pharaohs. It was depicted as a headdress in the shape of a vulture draped over the head, with its wings hanging down on the sides. It was a symbol of protection associated with the vulture goddess Nekhbet, who often wore this crown when depicted in a human form. These crowns were frequently worn by the Great Royal Wife, high ranking priestesses, and female pharaohs. These crowns were also sometimes equipped with the Uraeus to symbolize Wadjet, representing both Upper (Nekhbet) and Lower Egypt (Wadjet).

History
The vulture crown was initially only seen in depictions of goddesses. From the Fifth Dynasty onwards, however, queens began to wear the headdress regularly as part of their iconography. The association of Nekhbet with the queen stemmed from the vulture's symbolism of motherhood; the hieroglyph for the vulture, mwt, was used to write the word for "mother". Because Nekhbet was a protector goddess, the queen's affiliation with her complemented the king's role as the embodiment of the falcon god Horus.

Khentkaus II was one of the first queens to wear the vulture headdress. In the New Kingdom, the vulture's head on the crown was more frequently replaced by the uraeus.