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Hatshepsut

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Hatshepsut the Queen who would be Pharaoh
Flora Molski
Professor H. Stansbury
HUM111
Born into greatness, daughter of a king. Yet for all she had done so much of her life is still so unknown to us. How could this absolute ruler be all but erased from the annals of time? Was her Step son/nephew Thutmose III to blame? Did he have her killed after watching her usurp his thrown for over 20 years (Sayer, 2012)? Did he chose to further avenge himself by completely destroying any hope that she would enter the afterlife?
Hatshepsut’s legacy remained a mystery until 1904 when one of three sarcophagi she had made was discovered empty by Howard Carter in the 20th Tomb in The valley of the kings (KV20) (Brown, C. 2009). The search continued for who this Pharaoh was, how did she die, and why did she chose to progressively alter her image to male. The Religion of Egypt at the time would not support a women ruler. Not outside of the confines of a regency until the “rightful” king reached maturity (Brown, C. 2009). So if she intended to rule, she would need the support of the priests and through them the people. This transformation may seem drastic and unstable to modern eyes but to myself I see the most impactful and original political spin job in all of history. Hatshepsut was a millennia ahead of her time.
I will be brazen enough at lay at your feet my own theory, that her disappearance was not done to be malicious. But was done to protect her. Hatshepsut the only surviving child of her father Thutmose I and his queen Ahmose, she was forced to marry her half-brother (son of Thutmose I and a second wife) Thutmose II. Thutmose II died early in his reign, the royal couple only having a daughter who could not inherit the throne by virtue of her sex, The Crown would be passed to Thutmose III son to Thutmose II and a second wife. Since Thutmose III was still a child Hatshepsut was to hold regency until the young king was old enough to take the weight of the crown. Hatshepsut took this opportunity to for the first time in her life to live as she wanted, and with all the trappings due her as the child of the king. I think that she saw herself as rightful ruler. But she also knew that first and foremost her gender would not allow it. In one of the few quotes remaining on one of her obelisks shows us her uncertainty as how her life will be seen through the ages. This transformation reflected in the monuments truly reflects who she felt she was and a hurtful somber knowledge that she will never be truly accepted. “Now my heart turns this way and that, as I think what the people will say. Those who see my monuments in years to come, and who shall speak of what I have done. (Brown, C. 2009)” This is a tender voice speaking of insecurities, real fear left bare to echo through the ages. Then she was gone. Her tombs left empty, a mass campaign began to make sure that her insulting existence would be forgotten.
Until Mid 2007. The then Egyptian Minister of State for Antiquities Affairs Professor Zahi Hawass made a break through discovery by chance while filming a special on Hatshepsut for the Discovery Channel. During this time a thought dawned of Professor Hawass. A box was found marked with the Queens name containing an embalmed organ and one tooth. Professor Zawass had the vision to see if any of the suspected, yet unidentified mummies found by KV20 may be our queen. Tomb 60 in the Valley of the Kings (KV60) contained 2 female mummies one being Sitre-In, Wet nurse to the Queen herself. After DNA testing was done the mummy that was laying in obscurity only known as KV60-A was a match. The queen was found! “Our examination of the mummy revealed that the queen had died at between the ages of 45 and 60. She was obese, and suffered from a variety of painful medical conditions. Her bones were weakened by osteoporosis, and her joints showed signs of arthritis. Her teeth and jaws were in terrible condition, which along with her weight may indicate that she was diabetic. We saw evidence of a tumor in her pelvic region, which had begun to metastasize and to erode her left iliac bone. Although she had died in very poor health, however, there was no sign at all that she had been murdered. We must conclude that Thutmose III was not in fact responsible for his stepmother's death, and that he was able to assume the throne peacefully after her passing (Hawass, 2007)”
Professor Hawass’s discovery makes me feel that Hatshepsut was placed there intentionally, but not as a punishment. She was laid to rest with someone who loved her deeply and cared for her as a child. I theorize that Thutmose III loved his step mother, and wanted to protect her from any backlash. Politically it would be wise to erase her to sate the masses who may have resented her time on the throne. The act of hiding the remains so that they could not be desecrated shows compassion. I feel Thutmose III did not resent waiting for the crown. But saw that his step mother had the ability to rule fairly. I will go so far as to say he knew she was born to be Pharaoh.
References
Brown, C. (2009). THE KING HERSELF. National Geographic, 215(4), 88-111.88-111.
Joyce, T. (n.d). Hatshepsut. Britannica Online,
Hawass, Z. (2007, July 27). The quest for hatshepsut - discovering the mummy of egypt's greatest female pharaoh. Retrieved from http://www.drhawass.com/events/quest-hatshepsut-discovering-mummy-egypts-greatest-female-pharaoh
Sayer, H. M. (2012). The humanities: Culture, continuity & change. (2nd ed., Vol. 1, pp. 81-82). New Jersey: Prentice Hall.

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