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1479 B.C.E.: Cross-dressing female wanted to rule the most powerful nation on earth.
Hatshepsut walked in and filled the bill mightily for 19 years. She grew up in the political spotlight—dad Thuthmosis I ruled Egypt for 14 years; Mom’s brother Amenophris had ruled for 21 years. Power in the blood, eh? Contemporary Egyptian women had more freedom than those in backwater territories such as Greece, where they were housebound. So “Hattie” married her half-brother Tuthmose II and, by law, claimed the throne as co-regent of her stepson Tuthmose III when dear bro-hubbie died. Don’t you love international soaps? Hatshepsut dressed to please the public in a false beard and male clothing, so her statues also pleased 20th-century Egyptologists. She might even be mother to the famous Amenhotep II, but history books erased all mention of her name after her death. Was it her Eddie Izzard proclivities or fortune-hunting lover Senenmut conspiring with the stepson? Only theEnquirer
knows. But for the first time, we can view 300 of the statuary, reliefs, sculpture, furniture and jewelry representing the progress of her reign as
Hatshepsut: From Queen to Pharaoh
runs Sunday through December 31 at the Kimbell Art Museum in Fort Worth as part of a three-city tour. Call 817-332-8451 or visit kimbellart.org.
Aug. 27-Dec. 31
