Why did ancient Egypt shatter the statues of the Hatshevsut after its death

Hatshepsut is one of the most famous characters in the old Egypt. In 1479 BC, he took a role Regent On behalf of her young nephew Thutumos III. By 1473, the ruling began as a pharaoh in itself, becoming one of the very rare female kings of civilization. After more than three thousand years, when archaeologists dug thousands of fragments of their statues, scientists have widely assumed that her malevolent successor had ordered the destruction of her images. New search, however, draws a more accurate picture.

The Egyptologist at the University of Toronto John Yi Wong suggests an important part of the damage that caused the statues of the female pharaoh was the result of the ancient Egyptian “abolition” rituals and use it as materials for other construction. Although Hatshepsut (HAT-SHEP-SOT)) faced a violent political reaction after her death, Wong’s research challenges the prevailing opinion that Hasmos III ordered the complete destruction of each representation in every harmful representation.

“After her death, the effects of Pharaoh Al-Hatshesut (the analgesic in 1473-1458 BC) were subject to an organized program for destruction, and the most common appearance of it was erasing its name and image from the walls of the temple,” Wong wrote in A. Ticket Published today in the magazine of ancient times, which is the only author. “This act began by Thutmose III, her nephew and behind her (a single era 1458-1425 BC), but the motive behind him is still controversial.”

From 1922 to 1928, archaeologists dug many statues of Hatibsut near its criminal temple in Deir Al -Bahari, Egypt. Given the damaged conditions of the numbers, the archaeologist Herbert Winnos from the Metropolitan Museum of Arts, which led these fossils, was set as “insanity in spite of thymos”, as quoted in the study.

However, Wong claims that “while” broken “Visage” of Hatshepsut may dominate the popular perception, such an image does not reflect the treatment of its statue to the maximum extent.

After studying the type of damage documented in the unpublished field notes, drawings, photographs and messages of excavations in the twentieth century, the Egyptian scientist indicates that many statues have been preserved in a relatively decent condition, with sound faces. The assumption is that if Thutmose III is determined to destroy Hatshepsut memory, it will be more comprehensive in its destruction.

Moreover, Wong argues that the treatment of some statues of Hatibsut is not different from the statues of other male Egyptian rulers, including many who have no evidence of persecution after death. Among other types of specified damage, it is believed that the scattered fragments with separators in the neck, knees and/or ankles are believed to be a form of “abolition” that aims to neutralize the inherent strength in statues.

In other words, the rituals were not hostile to their nature. The cause of some damage to or exacerbated by reusing statues as building materials during subsequent periods may be. This, however, does not fully deny the possibility that some damage was already linked to a violent political cold.

In a statement of archaeological, Wong concluded that “unlike other rulers, Hatsheps offers a program of persecution, and its broader political effects cannot be exaggerated.” “However, there is a way to understand more accurately of the actions of Thutmose III, which may have necessarily driven ritual instead of explicit hatred.”

Ultimately, the proposal that Hatshepsut has been treated like others from the deceased Pharaohs after her death, despite the persecution, makes her rise to the throne as an exceptional woman.