interpreted by some as an offense against maat, instigated a vigorous domestic policy designed to prove beyond any reasonable doubt that maat was firmly established throughout Egypt: her large-scale building programs, obvious devotion to the cult of Amen, successful trading missions and restoration of the monuments which had been destroyed by the Hyksos invaders during the maat-less Intermediate Period, were all actions calculated to demonstrate the presence of prosperity, law and order? (Tyldesley, 1996:9). And the Egyptian people did see their land flourish and it was, according to Tyldesley, a tradition of non-interference as long as things were going well that helped to maintain Hatchepsut on her throne.Traditional pharaohs were the embodiment of the god Horus and Hatshepsut was also Horus but in a grammatically feminine form. She described herself as ?The she-horus of fine gold.? Fine gold (electrum) is an amalgam of gold with silver and is more valuable. Thus Hatshepsut was the ?platinum goddess? who referred to herself as ?god?s wife.? But like other pharaohs, she constantly refers to herself as ?His Majesty? or ?His Person? and reminds us of Elizabeth I of England and her doctrine of the dual body of the monarch, one of which is female. ?In conventional temple scenes, where the icon of a traditional pharaoh is necessary, she appears as a male ruler. In sculpture, on the other hand, she is shown as a female but imperial, with the typical Tuthmosid face and arched profile? (Ray, 1994:3).There was also a third element in her image-making which increased her legitimacy and gained her more acceptance from her people; it was an intensely personal element. Tuthmosis I is prominent in many of her inscriptions, far more than would be necessary under the reign of a male king. Archeologists even found his sarcophagus in his daughter?s tomb, where she apparently transferred it and this shows her clear inten-tion to spend eternity with the...
