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The egyptian religion and architecture
The egyptian religion and architecture
A 5 paragrahg paper on hatshepsut
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The Mortuary Temple of Hatshepsut was a revolutionary building in The New Kingdom of Egypt. The Temple is located in Deir el- Bahari and was built from 1511-1480 BCE by a well-known architect of Egypt, Senmut. This temple was the first to break away from the solid mass structure, like the pyramids, and introduce volume that creates interior spaces in the New Kingdom. Its structure is fascinating because it combines a lot of important different features, such as colonnades and peristyle courts that make a detailed temple. It was a prominent symbol for the New Kingdom of architecture that paid close attention to the site and created interior spaces to occupy.
The Story of Queen Hatshepsut is quite interesting. Her husband, Thutmose II, passed away and the only heir to the
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throne was their son, who was not suitable to rule the kingdom. Since the son was unable to rule, Hatshepsut “was the first woman to wrest the male throne of Egypt.” (Kostof, A History of Architecture, 79) This unusual circumstance created an urgency to create a nearness to the gods.
She told Senmut that she wanted an earthly palace for Amon reminiscent of myrrh terraces of Punt, the mythical homelands of the gods. She wanted her temple to be as defining in history as her ruling.
The first defining quality to note on the temple of Hatshepsut is that it was built on a cliff. All the prior temples and structures built in Egypt were built primarily on flat land. It’s revolutionary because temples can now be built with the land, not around it. Almost a century prior to the building of the mortuary temple of Hatshepsut there is a pyramid adjacent, the mortuary temple of Mentuhotep. Mentuhotep’s temple is an “emblematic pyramid placed within a great hypostyle hall” and is “raised upon a terrace with both stories accompanied by exterior trabeated porticoes” (Norberg-Schulz, Egyptian Architecture, 11). It was a great temple for its time, and the trabeated portico used was the theme for lots of temples post New Kingdom, until Hatshepsut’s temple. With hers comes the idea of a series of porticoed terraces rising
in front and the idea of pyramids disappears altogether. The Old Kingdom was all about pyramidal shapes and masses, and with the mortuary temple in the New Kingdom they disappear and terraces appear. The temple is “built in three tiers or terraces, with a central ramp sloping upwards to a sanctuary cut in the limestone cliff at the back of the sacred edifice” (Architects Journal, 360). The ramp that connects the three tiers together is called an axis. The axis “runs from the valley temple to the forecourt first by means of an avenue of sphinxes and then by ramps up the first two terraces.” (Kostof, A History of Architecture, 82) The interest in this terraced architecture lies in “how features sink and reappear as one travels along its axis.” (Kostof, A History of Architecture, 82) The axis creates an access to interior spaces- rooms, chapels and courtyards- and also connects the terraces as well as the exterior space to the interior space. Since this temple is the first of its kind, the axis creatively aligns the different levels of the building that are mainly created by the foundation that it is built on. The Old Kingdom Egyptian masses of stones often were built against the land, but Senmut uses the nature of the site as an extension of the design. The structure of the temple had to be adapted to the natural surroundings and it’s one of the first in the New Kingdom that truly does that.
The Pyramids Of Giza were chosen as they are three extraordinary structures that give a rich insight into the context, culture, function, technology, power and experiential aspects of the time period and the buildings themselves. The three pyramids showcase the Egyptian’s advanced construction and design methods, their religious beliefs and practices, their rich and diverse culture, the power of the king, as well as the context that surrounded these magnificent structures.
Gold and precious stone were plentiful, and this was clearly shown on the walls of the Temple of Karnak. She was pleased with the amount of luxury goods that she was able to acquire and also donate in Amun’s name, that she had a scene of that carved into the Temple walls. These luxury goods were exported from Punt. There were many detailed inscriptions of the exotic goods brought from Punt on the Queen’s expedition. Hatshepsut had another temple known as Djeser-Djeseru (seen in figures 2 and 3), which translates to 'Sublime of the Sublimes'. She built it in the Valley of the Kings and the temple was dedicated to Amun. Hatshepsut restored other temples dedicated to Amun as well, to show respect for the gods. In cut hieroglyphs, characteristic of inscriptions of the reign of Hatshepsut, the Queen’s words were inscribed into the
The Funerary Temple of Queen Hatshepsut and the Parthenon were very similar in most cases but at the same time, there were also very different. In this essay, I will compare and contrast these two renowned temples. I am going to focus on the context, subject and style of each Temple. Firstly, let us examine Funerary Temple of Queen Hatshepsut. According to Hill (2010) the Temple of Hatshepsut is one of the most beautiful temples in ancient Egypt and it is located at Deir el-Bahri. It was built by an architect named Senemut. Moreover, this temple was very significant in Egypt because that is where the body of Queen Hatshepsut was buried, and she was said to be the first woman ruler in history. On the other hand, according to Beard
Hatshepsut is very well known for the building of her Mortuary Temple (Deir el-Bahri, Egypt,18th Dynasty, ca. 1473-1458 B.C.E) this was one of the first immense multilevel funerary temple that was ever created. This was a shrines for the gods of Amen, Hathor and Anubis, the temple was also devoted to herself and her father
After Hatshepsut 's death, Thutmose III destroyed or defaced her monuments, erased many of her inscriptions and constructed a wall around her obelisks. Thutmose III did that to take the credit for all of Queen Hatshepsut’s work in 22 year period that she reigned. It was unlikely, for women to be king and Thutmose III took all her work as his own work. Though past Egyptologists held that it was merely the queen’s ambition that drove her, more recent scholars have suggested that the move might have been due to a political crisis, such as a threat from another branch of the royal family, and that Hatshepsut may have been acting to save the throne for her stepson. Hatshepsut was only the third woman to become pharaoh in 3,000 years of ancient Egyptian history, and the first to attain the full power of the position. Cleopatra, who also exercised such power, would rule some 14 centuries later. There have been rumors and stories about Thutmose III wanted to overrule Queen Hatshepsut reign. It was his reign actually, but Thutmose III was a child and could not rule Egypt. Thutmose I and Ahmose rulers of Egypt, and was the mother and father of Hatshepsut. As people talked back then Queen Hatshepsut was the first female to become Egypt’s king. She ruled for over 22 years of reign in peace. She was married to Thutmose II, and had
To understand the struggles of Hatshepsut, there has to be some history about her journey to become Pharaoh of Egypt. History tells that most heirs come from the bloodline of the past royal family. Hatshepsut had that advantage, because “Thutmose had no surviving sons with his...
After her father’s death when she was 12, Hatshepsut became the queen of Egypt when she married her half-brother and he became the Pharaoh Thutmose II. He was the son of her father and one of his second wives. During the reign of Thutmose II, Hatshepsut assumed the traditional role of queen and principal wife. During their marriage, Hatshepsut and Thutmose II were not able to produce a male heir but had a daughter named Neferure. Because she was the first and main wife and queen of Thutmose II, when he died, she proclaimed herself the fifth Pharaoh while denying the old Kings son, her nephew.
Hatshepsut was Thutmose II’s queen, she became regent for Thutmose III ca. 1479 at his death. Egypt prospered under her reign. When Thutmose III was old enough to rule, it was decided that Hatshepsut and Thutmose III would reign together as co-regents. Hatshepsut and Thutmose III’s co-rule may have been strained. After Hatshepsut’s death, Thutmose III defiled or removed many statues, paintings or writings of Hatshepsut life and reign. Not many records exist that show what type of relationship existed between Hatshepsut and Thutmose III. Her name is not listed in the official lists at Karnak and Abydos, Thutmose III had it removed. Thutmose III had it recorded that he assumed the crown in 1490 upon his father’s death. Hatshepsut made the same claim in reverse, but she acknowledged the co-regency but claimed the position of King. Over time, the interpretation of Hatshepsut and Thutmose III’s reign has changed. One biography (Wells) gives the impression that if they could have gotten away with killing each other they would have. The other (Tyldesley) gives a more objective view, and explains that there just isn’t proof of a volatile relationship between the two. Almost as if they were co-regents and each had their strong suit and left each other to it. She (Tyldesley) describes the previous notion of Hatshepsut and Thutmose III’s relationship as overly dramatic.
Her expeditions left a long lasting effect on Ancient Egypt by causing a major expansion of trade (“Hatshepsut”). She is also known for “building and restoring” monuments and temples where she recorded her personal pride (Ray). Overall, Hatshepsut was able to develop the expansion of trade and restore parts of Ancient Egypt. Abdel Fattah
Was she the archetypal wicked stepmother, an unnatural and scheming woman ?of the most virile character who would deliberately abuse a position of trust to steal the throne from a defenceless child? (Gardiner, 1961:184)? Or was she ?an experienced and well-meaning woman who ruled amicably alongside her stepson, steering her country through twenty peaceful, prosperous years who deserves to be commemorated among the great monarchs of Egypt? (Budge, 1902:I)? According to biographer and historian Joyce Tyldesley, Queen or as she would prefer to be remembered, King Hatchepsut became the female embodiment of a male role, whose reign was a carefully balanced period of internal peace, foreign exploration and monument building (Tyldesley, 1996:1). This study will show that it was Hatshepsut the Pharaoh?s devotion to the god Amen and her protection of the maat of 18th Dynasty Egypt that allowed her to forge her successful New Kingdom regime.
Egyptian burial complexes evolved from the simple rectangular mastaba to the great pyramids of the Fourth Dynasty. The true pyramid evolved from the mastaba through an intermediary form, the step pyramid, the earliest example of which is Zoser’s Step Pyramid at Saqqara, which dates to the Third Dynasty (c. 2680 BC). The Step Pyramid was revolutionary for several reasons. It is the earliest known free-standing monument built entirely of stone in Egypt (Fakhry 20); it is also the earliest example of evolutionary architectural development beyond the mastaba. In form the step pyramid is a series of superimposed mastabas and represents the stairway that the spirit of the pharaoh was to climb to reach the sky-realm and join the crew of the solar barque traveling across the heavens (Aldred 47).
When Thutmose I, Hatshepsut’s father died, Hatshepsut was about 15 years old, and Thutmose II took over as pharaoh. Thutmose II died after 3 years of reign due to a skin disease. Hatshepsut had a daughter, Neferure, but Thutmose II also had a son with a commoner named Aset. Many people believe that when Thutmose II reigned, Hatshepsut was actually the one in charge. Because of Thutmose II died early, his son Thutmose III was too young to reign, so Hatshepsut began to rule as Queen Regent, and used the title “God’s Wife.” Due to her father’s popularity and her charismatic features that everyone knew and loved, she was able to gain more followers that allowed her to become full pharaoh about seven years into the rule of Thutmose III. Hatshepsut wore the pharaoh’s dressings, which was made for males and had a false beard, the shendyt kilt, and the nemes headdress, uraeus and khat head cloth. At her coronation, she took on five names: Horus Powerful of Kas, Two Ladies Flourishing of Years, Female Horus of Fine Gold, Divine of Diadems, King of Upper and Lower Egypt, Ma’atkare, Daughter of Ra, Khenmet-Amen Hatshepsut. Hatshepsut’s reign was tranquil. There wasn’t much military action during her years, which was one of the great qualities of her rule. Her main accomplishments were with trade. She expanded trade with Nubia, Libya, and countries in Asia. She also had expeditions to Somalia, which was then called Punt, to retrieve
She built and restored temples across Egypt. She restored the religious complex Karnak, which was dedicated to the god Anum. Hatshepsut had strong relationships with the gods. There are several texts that emphasize her intimate understanding with the god Amun. Hatshepsut claims that Amun is her divine father and “has access to [his] heart and knows what is in his heart”. Also, she enhanced the economy of Egypt by conducting a very successful trade mission to the land of Punt. Because of this expedition, she was able to “bring back exotic materials and goods, such as myrrh trees.” She had a successful military career. Based on reliefs of Hatshepsut, she can be depicted as a sphinx crushing her enemies. Hatshepsut was able to establish herself as one of the most successful
Hatshepsut was born to Ahmose and Tuthmosis I, who was pharaoh at the time. Tuthmosis I and Ahmose also gave birth to two sons, both of whom died, leaving Hatshepsut as the only heir to the throne. It is unknown whether her parents raised her to become the pharaoh or not, but she grew up and married her half-brother, Tuthmosis II. Marrying within your family was a regular practice in royal families because it kept blood lines intact. Tuthmosis II and Hatshepsut had a daughter together named Neferure. Hatshepsut’s father died when she was very young, probably around 15 years old. Tuthmosis II took over, but only ruled for about three or four years, when he died from what is believed to be a skin disease. After his death, Tuthmosis the III, Hatshepsut’s stepson, was still too young to rule, which led to her ruling as Queen’s Regent. Her charismatic personality and group of followers led to her fully becoming pharaoh about seven years into Tuthmosis III’s rule. While having a female pharaoh was not unprecedented, Hatshepsut was the first to take on the f...
...re that was most unique to the Early Dynastic period was the oval enclosure with a centralized platform to lend stability to the shrine. Storage were found near the enclosure. The Temple Oval at Khafaje best exemplifies the unique formation of the oval enclosure in the temples. This enclosure had a double perimeter wall present which was highly unusual for enclosures. Another oval temple was found that Tell al Ubaid, which had a rectangular platform in the center. In the front of this platform there were elaborate decorations, which were belived to have fallen from the façade of the temple which had stood on the platform. Besides these oval temples there were also plans of temples with a number of single or double roomed shrines, one noteworthy temple is from Tell Chuera in North Syria. This design plan yields a closer resemblance to the west and megaron buildings.