Hatchepsut By Joyce A. Tyldesley

In order to realize why the officials and priests allowed Hatshepsut to rise to power, we need to first understand that Egyptian society gave many remarkable freedoms and legal rights to women. But limits were limits . . . even by the Nile.

After her death, her memory was desecrated by Thutmose III, her step-son and successor, who caused her name to be erased from the monuments wherever it could be found. Her mortuary temple, was damaged but not fully destroyed.

The towering obelisks she had constructed in the early portion of her reign were encased in a sort of cement-sand mixture to prevent her memory from carrying on. Ironically, this cement actually protected the obelisks over thousands of years from enduring the harsh Egyptian climate. Thutmose III foiled his own plan to erase Hatshepsut's memory from history, for it later enabled archaeologists to gather more information on the early parts of her life.

The main reason for becoming this involved and actually trying to write a story about Hatshepsut is so that I can get her legacy out to anyone who will listen. "Hatchepsut was more remarkable than the better-known Cleopatra. Hatchepsut ruled Egypt for more than 20 years . . .(October 27 1998)." Everyone knows of Cleopatra's Caesar-stopping sultriness. But did you know that she wasn't even Egyptian, she was entirely Greek! How funny it seems, that Cleopatra's reign marked the end of Egypt's extensive 2,000 year existence and yet she is the most popular of all Egyptian Queens.

Hatshepsut overcame the fears of past generations of Egypt by slightly altering tradition, stability and the affairs of the country into one of the most notable reigns the civilization ever encountered.

Perhaps the wait for Hatshepsut's recognition has not been wasted. Since the late 20th century is a better time than most to think about and reflect upon, the importance and achievements of this remarkable woman's reign.

Works Cited Kirkus Reviews. Hatchepsut: The Female Pharaoh. 1997. 27 Oct. 1998. http://www.barnsandnoble.com

Kirkus Reviews. Hatchepsut: The Female Pharaoh. 1996. 27 Oct. 1998 http://www.amazon.com/

October 27, 1998. Hatchepsut; The Female Pharoah. 1998. 27 Oct. 1998 http://www.opengroup.com/open/welcome.ht...

Tydsley, Joyce. Hatshepsut. England: Penquin Books, 1996.

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