Matrilineal Reinterpretation of Some Egyptian Sacred Cows

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Matrilineal Reinterpretation of Some Egyptian
Sacred Cows

• Nancy Luomala

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Think Again

• What we learn in our Art History texts isnt
  always true.
• A princess who became Queen when there were no
  legitimate male heirs.
• Gardners Art Through the Ages,
• Fred S. Kleiner and Christin J. Mamiya

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Woman without her man is nothing.orWoman,
without her, man is nothing.
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Matrilineal Descent

• Matrilineal Descent, or uterine descent is the
  trace of descent through the female bloodlines.
• Anthropological evidence suggests that Ancient
  Egypt kept its matrilineal order of descent until
  it was enveloped by the Roman Empire.
• The King was the visible power, but the real
  power lay within the Queen. A Queens daughter
  was considered a Kingmaker.
• If a Queen was unmarried or seperated from her
  husband, her brother could rule as King. However,
  if married, the Queens husband ruled as King.

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Women in Egyptian Art

• Typically, the embrace of an Eqyptian King and
  Queen is thought to have shown, A diminution of
  the Kings claim to divinity.
• However, this is not the case. The Queen was
  considered to be married to God, the King was
  only a temporary incarnation. Therefore, a
  Queens embrace is actually an affirmation of a
  Kings divine legitimacy.
• King Mycerinus and Queen Khamerernebty II, Fourth
  Dynasty, ca. 2470 BCE. Museum of Fine Arts, Boston

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Ancient Egyptian Rulers

• The rulers of Ancient Egypt have always been
  identified with female cow imagery.

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• The images associated with the female cow such as
  the sun disk, and the upraised horns could be
  found in countless Ancient Egyptian artworks,
  from relief panels to sculptures.

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Ancient Egyptian Goddesses

• Goddesses were prevalent in Ancient Egyptian Art.
• Goddess Nut swallows and gives birth to the sun
  each day.
• Temple of Hathor at Dendera, Egypt

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Hathor, Isis, and OrisisMuseum of Egyptian Art,
Cairo, Egypt
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Queen Hatshepsut

• Most famous of all Egyptian Queens.
• Ruled Egypt for 21 years, from 1504 to 1483 BC.
• In her temple, and inscription shows he God
  Amon-Re taking the form of her father in order to
  have intercourse with her.

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Queen Hatshepsut

• The inscription below the image reads,
  Khenemet-Amon-Hatshepsut shall be the name of
  this my daughter, whom I have placed in my body
  she shall exercise the excellent kingship in this
  whole land. My soul is hers, my bounty is hers,
  my crown, that she may rule the Two Lands, that
  she may lead all the living
• Most believe this inscription were an attempt to
  legitimize Hatshepsuts reign by showing her
  connection with a King.
• In reality, the right to the throne was hers
  already.

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Queen Nefertiti

• Early in her reign, Nefertiti built an open sun
  court at the Aten Temple at Karnak. This was a
  unique structure because every surface was carved
  exclusively with female figures.
• The militaristic King Horemheb ordered the
  destruction of the temple and its images.
• This is another example of how a male King has
  attempted to eradicate a bloodline to which he
  did not belong

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The Great Wife made whomever she married into a
living King, whether brother or commoner