When we think of the great pharaohs of Egypt, we often think of King Tut and Ramses II, and when we think of great female pharaohs, we think of Cleopatra. However, one of Egypt’s most prominent pharaohs is none of the above. Arguably one of the most underrated pharaohs in terms of their overall impact on Egypt is Hatshepsut. Born to King Thutmose I by the principal wife and queen, Hatshepsut married her half-brother Thutmose II at age 12. After the death of her husband, her stepson and next in line to the throne, Thutmose III, was too young to take the throne, so Hatshepsut took over the reign of Egypt. Hatshepsut was the first female pharaoh with full power over Egypt and was also the longest reigning female pharaoh. Hatshepsut is an important …show more content…
Apparently for years the Pharaohs had been dealing with middlemen to acquire trade commodities coming to them from the east and south through the Red Sea and Eastern Desert trade routes between Luxor and the Red Sea. Hatshepsut's inspiration, recommendation and solution to this problem was to mount an expedition that would cut out the middleman and go directly to the source of supply for many of these commodities. …show more content…
She proved herself to be a warrior by travelling to new lands, and had accomplished many deeds during her trip to Punt.
“The expedition was conducted to obtain myrrh and frankincense trees: thirty one trees provided resin and incense needed for temple ceremonies and everyday use (e.g. mummification, medicinal aids and perfumed oils), and to establish a trade route: Punt was rich in exotic products (ivory used for making amulets, inlays for furniture and headrests; woods such as ebony for temples and tomb furniture; live animals such as the sacred baboon, monkeys and apes; animal skins; and metals such as gold used for making electrum and jewellery).
Hatshepsut is an important figure in Egyptian society based on her determination as a pharaoh during her expeditions to Punt by excluding the middleman, bringing goods back to Egypt, and establishing a trade route. She showed determination through her successful trading expeditions, her innovation in building monuments, and her tenacity in proving herself as a powerful female
Hathor Who is placed beside Amun-Re with a frieze of cobras under them, (Roberts, 1995-p.45). The cobra forms the king’s name, mAat-kA-ra; which drives you to the idea that Hatshepsut is the spiritual daughter of Hathor Who and Amun-Re who received the quintessential powers of live-giving from Hathor and the rejuvenation of Amun-Re, (Roberts,1995-p.45; Troy,1986-p.46). She also displayed the royal entities who tried to take advantage of her being a female king in the inscriptions as imagery using ideological overlay, (Troy, 1986-p.142).
Although there wasn’t any law against women to become ruler. Many believe she was out place when she became ruler. After she died, there was an operation to destroy all images of Hatshepsut from history. However, due to the statues are made out of granite, destroying the statues is extremely difficult. In the artistic convention, there wasn’t a method for a female pharaoh. Hatshepsut accepted to conform to the traditional convention by changing herself to a man. By looking at the Kneeling Statue of Hatshepsut, it depicts her understanding and respect towards the role of a pharaoh in Ancient Egyptian
Therefore, Hatshepsut was summoned to rule on behalf of her stepson. Thutmose was crowned king but until the day Hatshepsut was deceased, the king had to compete with his stepmother-aunt. At first she acted as an advisor to the king, but being Hatshepsut was close to the throne all of her life, felt that “she had the most royal power as well as the purest royal blood in her veins.” After a few years passed, Hatshepsut presumed the Double crown and made herself king. Hatshepsut had a strong and vibrant personality and intended to overshadow her half brother as well as her husband. Thutmose III was still known as co ruler, but he remained in the background. There were many difficulties regarding her gender when she first came into rule, but it did not hinder her greatness. The inscription cutters often made mistakes as all the royal titles were in male form. She had to legitimize herself as female ruler, as she often did through art and statues.
A woman becoming Pharaoh had been almost unheard of in ancient Egypt until Hatshepsut was born. Hatshepsut was the second daughter of the pharaoh, Thothmes I. After her sister, Neferu-khebit, died, Hatshepsut was the next heir to the throne unless a male married her and became Pharaoh. After Thothmes passed away, Hatshepsut fearfully, yet confidently, claimed the throne and commenced one of the most successful She-Pharaoh reigns ever recorded. Pauline Gedge’s Child of the Morning explained the social, political, economic, and cultural aspects of ancient Egypt’s society during Hatshepsut’s reign as Queen and Pharaoh.
Hatshepsut was born around 15th century B.C., she is the daughter of Tuthmose the first and his wife, Aahmes. When king Tuthmose I died, queen Aahmes married her half-brother, King Tuthmose II. King Tuthmose II died after a short rule and the throne was supposed to be passed down to his son Tuthmose III but he was considered far too young to rule so Hatshepsut ruled in his stead as a regent. Information about Hatshepsut varied a bit, some articles speculated Hatshepsut was the 4th female pharaoh while others say she was the 6th. But without a doubt she was considered one of the greatest pharaohs of all time, even amongst the male counterparts. As a pharaoh, Hatshepsut did things like reestablishing trade routes that has been long lost due to past invaders. By doing this, Hatshepsut was able to turn the economy around and lead Egypt into a period of wealth and prosperous trade. Her allowing an expedition to the land of Punt also wielded excellent results. In total she sent 5 ships accommodating 210 sailors and 30 rowers most likely slaves. They bought back 31 live myrrh tree roots and were the first recorded attempt to plant foreign
She was a great Pharaoh, but she was supposed to give the throne to her stepson when the last Pharaoh dies and she keeps it to herself. The reason for this is that I think she kept the throne for herself because she must've thought the nethu was too young to be the next Pharaoh and was protecting the empire from having a very young boy as your Pharaoh or she could just be a person who is not thinking about anyone else besides herself and wants to keep it for all of the gold and riches. Another reason why Ramses was a greater is when Ramses went into went into battle he didn’t care about winning or losing it just mattered that he didn’t give up on it and Hatshepsut didn’t even go into battle because she was scared that she was going to lose being a Pharaoh and have to give it to her stepson. Ramses worked hard to fight for his empire and all Hatshepsut did was sit there and think of another thing to do instead of go into war to protect her
The female pharaoh, Hatshepsut, is arguably one of the most influential people of ancient Egypt. For thousands of years, the workings of Hatshepsut have been subject to multiple interpretations, from both her time and the modern day. An evaluation of the effectiveness of her reign can be resolved from the reliability and validity of evidence presented today, both primary and secondary.
The trading routes, created by the desire from both the New and Old World for exotic foods and animals,
Due to Hatshepsut’s extensive trading expeditions, military campaigns were scarce because there was no need for going to war with other countries such as Punt, since they are already making alliances with each other through trade. However, there were times where Hatshepsut was in battles with other countries, her intention was to obtain peace for her people. Hatshepsut even made foreign policies that was focused on trade rather than war because she wanted create friendship with neighbouring states. Likewise, Hatshepsut objected the idea of invading other countries and starting wars, as she thought that by having little to no warfare would make her country more stable. Hatshepsut presented herself as a wise leader thus also making her a momentous pharaoh because she was able to find another way of bringing peace into her kingdom without the use of military and warfare. As a result, the citizens of Egypt lived in tranquility under Hatshepsut’s
The Large Kneeling Statue of Hatshepsut is a magnificent piece of art located in the Egyptian section next to many other statues of the great pharaoh Hatshepsut. Out of all the statues of Hatshepsut, the Large Kneeling Statue of Hatshepsut was kept in the best shape and caught a lot of attention from the people in the room. Its great size is something truly remarkable, considering it was built in the New Kingdom of Ancient Egypt. More importantly, this statue is the first structure in art that depicts a woman leader. Not only is it a truly unique piece of work, but also it is a piece that is revolutionary for its time. The massive size of this statue leaves one wondering if women have always been just as powerful as men, if not more.
Egyptian women were fortunate in that they were equal to men as far as the law was concerned. They could own property, borrow money, initiate divorce, and many other things unheard of in the Greek civilization. The Egyptian royal line was matriarchal, meaning that royalty was passed down from mother to son. The Greeks, in comparison, were patriarchal, meaning control was passed from father to son. It was also necessary for a man to marry a woman of royalty in order to become a Pharaoh. Because of this, it was common for brothers to marry sisters. Sometimes, women were even known to become a Pharaoh. There are at least four documented female Pharaohs with the most notable being Hatshepsut (1479-1458 B.C.) (McKay 2009). Hatshepsut, though a very powerful ruler, was often times depicted in men’s clothing and with a false beard (McKay 2009). This shows that even though women were much more important in Egyptian society, there was still a stigma around women leaders.
Major Achievements: She was the first female pharaoh. Her largest architectural achievement was a temple above the nile that was built into a cliff.
| * Trade was very international. * Silk roads linked Eurasia, and goods traded hands many times along the roads.
During the time of Ancient Egypt, having strong Pharaohs was essential to the maintenance and growth of the civilization, as the Pharaohs were believed to be living Gods. Although leadership of Ancient Egypt was often male dominated, there were admirable female Pharaohs who successfully gained power and left behind a positive legacy; one woman to achieve this was Hatshepsut, meaning ‘foremost of female nobles’. Her innovation and determination allowed her to maintain her position of Pharaoh for about twenty years (1479-1458 BCE). Hatshepsut was considered to be a very successful leader because of her confidence and ambition, magnificent building projects, and establishment of a strong trading network.
Hatshepsut was a patron of the arts and architecture:and consolidated the country Culturally , innovative in construction projects which included professional roads. She also built some of Egypt’s finest sculpture, statues, jewelry and temples and that led to renaissance design for the arts that would last centuries. Her successful reign is now being commemorated at the New York