Hatshepsut: The Female Pharaoh
Ancient EgyptA Woman on the Throne of Horus
Around 1479 BC, a young boy named Thutmose III inherited the Egyptian throne. He was far too young to rule, so his stepmother and aunt, Hatshepsut, stepped in as regent—a common arrangement in royal Egypt. What happened next was not common at all. Within a few years, Hatshepsut took the full titles of pharaoh for herself, ruling as a king rather than merely a queen. She was the daughter of Pharaoh Thutmose I and the widow of Thutmose II, giving her an unusually strong royal bloodline. Egypt had seen powerful queens before, but a woman openly claiming the office of pharaoh was genuinely rare, and Hatshepsut held that office for roughly two decades.
Becoming 'King'
How does a woman govern in a role designed for a man? Hatshepsut answered with bold imagery. In many of her statues and reliefs she is shown with the traditional kingly regalia, including the false ceremonial beard and the royal kilt, the symbols every pharaoh wore. Inscriptions sometimes refer to her using both male and female grammatical forms. Historians debate how literally Egyptians understood this presentation; most argue it was a way of expressing the divine office of kingship, which was conceived as male, rather than a disguise meant to fool anyone. To strengthen her legitimacy, her monuments promote the idea that the god Amun was her true father and that her rule was divinely ordained—a claim that echoed propaganda used by male pharaohs as well.
A Reign of Trade and Temples
Hatshepsut's rule is remembered less for war than for prosperity and ambitious building. Her most celebrated achievement was a trading expedition to the land of Punt, likely located along the coast of the Horn of Africa or the southern Red Sea. Reliefs at her mortuary temple proudly record the ships returning laden with myrrh, incense, exotic animals, ebony, and living myrrh trees for replanting. She also launched major construction projects, employing the talented official Senenmut, who oversaw work on her behalf. Her crowning monument is the elegant terraced temple at Deir el-Bahari, near Thebes, whose clean columned design still impresses visitors today. She also erected towering granite obelisks at the temple of Karnak.
Erased from the Record
After Hatshepsut died around 1458 BC, Thutmose III finally ruled in his own right and became one of Egypt's greatest warrior pharaohs. Late in his long reign, an organized effort began to erase Hatshepsut's images and names from her monuments—chiseling out her face, replacing her cartouches, and toppling her statues. For a long time scholars assumed this was a son's revenge against the aunt who had sidelined him. Many historians now argue the motive was more political than personal: removing a female king from the official record may have been meant to smooth the royal succession and uphold the expected order of male kingship. Whatever the reason, the campaign was so thorough that Hatshepsut was largely forgotten until modern Egyptologists pieced her story back together.
Rediscovering a Lost Pharaoh
In the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, archaeologists excavating at Deir el-Bahari and Karnak slowly recovered Hatshepsut's shattered monuments and began reconstructing her reign. The identification of her mummy has been argued on the basis of medical and dental evidence, though some scholars remain cautious about it. What is no longer in doubt is her significance. Hatshepsut managed a peaceful, wealthy Egypt, expanded its trade networks, and left behind some of the finest architecture of the New Kingdom. Far from a footnote, she stands among the most accomplished rulers of her age—a leader who claimed the highest office in the land and made it her own.
Key Dates to Remember
- c. 1507 BC — Hatshepsut is born, daughter of Pharaoh Thutmose I.
- c. 1479 BC — Thutmose III becomes pharaoh as a child; Hatshepsut serves as regent.
- c. 1473 BC — Hatshepsut takes the full titles of pharaoh and rules as king.
- c. 1469 BC — Her famed trading expedition to the land of Punt brings back incense, trees, and exotic goods.
- c. 1458 BC — Hatshepsut dies; Thutmose III begins ruling in his own right.