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Humanities LibreTexts

2.3: Hatshepsut’s Mortuary Temple

  • Page ID
    359667

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    Hatshepsut’s Mortuary Temple featuring a wide path flanked by sphinxes and monumental cliffs in the background.

    Artist: Unknown
    Medium: Limestone and sandstone
    Art Historical Time Period: New Kingdom, Egypt (c. 1479–1458 BCE)

    This monumental temple honors Queen Hatshepsut, one of Egypt’s most powerful female pharaohs. Built into the cliffs at Deir el-Bahari, the temple’s terraces and colonnades integrate with the natural landscape. Carvings throughout the temple narrate Hatshepsut’s divine birth and her trade expeditions, reinforcing her right to rule.

    The temple’s architecture was innovative in form and political symbolism. Hatshepsut’s portrayal as both divine and kingly challenged gender norms, while its design set a standard for royal mortuary complexes. It reflects how rulers used art and landscape to legitimize and eternalize their authority.

    Vocabulary

    • Terraced A stepped architectural form rising in layers.

    Student Authors

    • Luis Estrada ’23 and Carlos Jimenez ’

    References and Image Attribution

    • Hornung, E. The Valley of the Kings. Cornell University Press, 1999.
    • Tobin, V. M. The Architecture of the New Kingdom Temples. Oxford University Press, 2009.
    • Image: “Templo funerario de Hatshepsut, Valle de las Reyes, Luxor, Egipto, 2022-04-03, DD 118” via Wikimedia Commons by Diego Delso, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Modified from original.

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