Varela was a concubine to Pharaoh Amenhotep II who lived in Egypt circa 1400 BC. She was one of sixty wives to the Pharaoh. She was believed to have committed suicide by taking scorpion venom, but it later transpired that she was likely killed by Horemshep (or on his orders) as part of a plot to install Fayum on the throne as Pharaoh. (AUDIO: The Eye of the Scorpion)