Breaking News: Hatshepsut's Mummy Found!! ♥

Until a couple years ago, Hatshepsut's mummy had yet to be identified. But in 2007, Dr. Zahi Hawass identified it. This was excellent!
It had first been uncovered in 1903 where she was buried, the Valley of the Kings. (Which is near Luxor, Egypt.) But they had found three mummies there, and they weren't sure which was hers for over 100 years!

They identified it by matching up a molar and a jaw. (There had been a gap missing in the jaw and the molar found fit perfectly!!) After much testing, they concluded that she died at around fifty or so and from a ruptured abscess caused by removal of a tooth!! What do you know? Now you can use that excuse the next time someone says "It won't kill you to go to the dentist!"!! Just fire back with a "Yeah, you could! Just look at Hatshepsut! She died because they removed her tooth!". (Just make sure to not mention that they didn't have the greatest technology back then!!) It may not get you out of your appointment, but you'll still seem pretty darn smart!!

Oh Nooo!!! Hatshepsut Is Dead!! ♥

Hatshepsut's reign was marvelous, but sadly it had to come to an end; when she died. Hatshepsut died on the tenth day of the sixth month of her twenty-second year of rule. This was in 1458 B.C. (Now that was a looooong time ago!!)

After her death, she was mummified, as most Egyptians were. She was buried in the Valley of the Kings. (Even though she was a woman. You would think she would've been buried in the Valley of the Queens - or her Memorial Temple - but since she was pharaoh and it was tradition...) Her burial location was right next to her father too!

You may find it surprising that she wasn't buried in her Memorial Temple, but it was not for a place to be buried, it was simply a Memorial Temple! It was built because she wanted to be remembered throughout Egyptian history.

After she died, her son Tuthmosis III took reign. And during the process, destroyed much of her temple, so some of her history is somewhat skeptical. Many mysteries about her are still waiting to be uncovered!! ♥

What Makes Hatshepsut So Special? ♥

As mentioned below, Hatshepsut reigned because her husband, the current ruler, died, and her son at the tender age of five, was too young to rule. Now, you're going to learn about her reign and how it affected Egypt.

Hatshepsut actually wasn't a very violent person. There are few wars recorded around the time she was in power. I, for one, agree with her - peace all the way! (I'm sort of hippie-ish at heart.) She also encouraged trade. The main form of this was along the Nile River, so I'm sure they used boats a lot during her time.

She also sent and expedition to the land of Punt; which is found on the north-east coast of Africa.

She was also very into building and such. Many Egyptian monuments were built during her time. She was a known sponsor of a vast building program. A well known example is the temple of Amun at Karnak...

Soooooo You Want Your Own Memorial Temple? ♥

How cool would it be to have your own memorial temple? People would remember you forever! Not only that, but in Ancient Egypt, they believed that if your memorial temple would stand for eternity, you would live for eternity in the afterlife. Now that would be pretty sweet right? Well, that's what Hatshepsut thought, but little did she know, her temple would be partially destroyed!! I'll get to that later though...

Hatshepsut's Memorial Temple is in a spot she hand-chose. It was totally up to her! It was designed to blend in with the scenery, and appear to be 'growing' out of the hillside! From the picture (above), it actually sort of appears to be that way! Talk about even cooler. ♥

In the gateway (which is a little bit hard to see from this picture), stand two statues of Hatshepsut dressed as Osiris, complete with a tight-fit cloak and her arms bent across her chest. Statues of me?? Now that would be amazing!

Though it was at first a glorious sight, inside and out, "Djeser Djeseru" (it's original name, which means 'holiest of the holy') suffered damage during Pharaoh Akhenaten's reign. Her name and various images of her and the gods (especially Osiris) were chiseled out then. He wanted to destroy memory of Hatshepsut, and did a decent job of it. Though (never fear!!) after his reign most of the images were restored and put back into her temple, except for (strangely) the images of her.

Today, Hatshepsut's Memorial Temple is in fair shape and is currently being restored to be opened up to the general public. I hope "Deir el-Bahri" (what it is known as today) opens soon - it would be really cool to see Hatshepsut's Memorial Temple and learn so much more about her! ♥

Hatshepsut's Remarkable Birth --- By the Gods!! ♥

Yeah, you probably want to know about Hatshepsut's birth and childhood, right?? Well, to be honest she had a pretty interesting 'mythical' birth. Here's the story everyone believed...

One day, the gods were talking about Egypt and pharaohs. They got deep into the conversation when one of them suggested the possibility of a female pharaoh in Egypt. After much discussion they decided it was a good idea. So they put her inside the wife of the current pharaoh (that was Tuthmosis I) while she was sleeping. When she was born her parents named her Hatshepsut because it means 'part of the best'.

Her childhood though, was much less glamorous and glorious than her mythical birth. Her father was pharaoh, so he was a 'warrior king'. Because of this, he would be away for seven to eight months at a time! Hatshepsut would miss him while he was away. I would do the same too, if my father wasn't there most of the time. I would probably be very lonely, as I'm sure Hatshepsut was.

A Woman Pharaoh! Say What?! ♥

Sooooo... how exactly did Hatshepsut become pharaoh? Well that's a goooood question!! It's actually kind of complicated and strange if you think about it. You see, her dad, Tuthmosis I died, so then Hatshepsut's husband, (who just happened to have the same name!), Tuthmosis II, took reign. Meanwhile, Hatshepsut and Tuthmosis II had a child. (He was a boy, named - you'll never ever guess - Tuthmosis III.) Shortly after that though, Tuthmosis II (remember, that's her husband) died. Tuthmosis, being only the tender age of five at this time, was of course too young to rule. Soooo...Hatshepsut took reign!! She even put on a fake beard that is worn by all pharaohs and declared herself ruler of Egypt! She was pretty daring if you ask me...


Now since there are three Tuthmosises, I thought it might help you to have a little recap...Even my head is still spinning...


Character Recap:
Hatshepsut - Duh! First female pharaoh. Who is blog is about.
Tuthmosis I - Hatshepsut's father
Tuthmosis II - Hatshepsut's husband
Tuthmosis III - Hatshepsut's son

Post #2 --- What exactly is this?? ♥

Well.....it just happens to be a BLOG! Duhhhhh! Well I guess you've probably already figured that out. Oh and if this is the first thing you read, I might want to clue you in on the fact that this is a blog about Hatshepsut. You know, the first female pharoah of Ancient Egypt?? (The picture to the right is of her - well at least a statue.) She ruled in a different way - she wasn't very focused on war. I totally agree that peace is the way to go, but anyway... I'm going to add five more posts that have actually useful information on them so YOU can be informed on Hatshepsut!! She was a very cool lady. Well...you'll see. (Ohhh, and thanks sooo much to all of the books listed under the "Book Resources" list & the websites under the "Online Resources" list!! Super kudos to them!! And super kudos to you too for reading!!) Enjoy learning tons of cool info about Hatshepsut!! ♥

Post #1 --Random Intro!! ♥

OMG this is soooooooo cool! It's my first real post with real stuff. (Besides the questions of course, but those are just titles!!!) Lol this is really fun. :) I wanna change my colors and stuff. I'll probably do that later though. Yeah soooo I think I'm gonna have to change this later but whatever. It's fun for now. Lolz I just keep typing and typing 'cause I'm waiting and everything. Yeah I'm getting kinda bored now. Ha ha yeah I am being really random right now. Blah Blah Blah Blah. Ooooh the picture is actually of Hatshepsut so it goes along with the blog. (Okay actually it's a painting, but whatever.) Make sure to vote on the poll and answer the questions below!! Lol thanks for reading. Gotta gooooo! Bye!!!!

Do You Think It Was Wrong For Tuthmosis III To Remove Artifacts From Hatshepsut's Memorial Temple??

What Are Two Things You Have Learned About Hatshepsut From My Blog?

What Are Areas Of Strength In This Blog?

What Is An Area of Improvement For This Blog?