Image Details

From Gay Robins, Women in Ancient Egypt

Hoisted up on a bed, the god Amun-Ra and the mother of Queen Hatshepsut (1478‒1458 B.C.E.) prepare to make love. The scene from which this drawing was made appears on a wall of the temple of Hatshepsut at Deir el Bahari, in the Valley of the Kings. According to Egyptian royal ideology, each pharaoh has at least one divine parent: Either a goddess became impregnated by the pharaoh’s father, or a god impregnated the pharaoh’s mother. The inscription accompanying this relief states clearly that Amun-Ra climbs into the bed of Hatshepsut’s mother. The image itself, with the pair’s arms and legs overlapped, seems to imply imminent sexual play. Also, in a very unusual gesture, Amun-Ra passes a hieroglyph representing “dominion” or “overlordship” to the queen—possibly referring to the new royal life transferred to the queen in the act of coupling.