Image: public domain, courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York

Seated Statue of Hatshepsut

Ancient Egypt, c. 1479–1458 BC

Hatshepsut sits calmly on a throne with her hands resting flat on her knees, wearing the striped royal headcloth and the kilt of a king. She was a woman who ruled Egypt as pharaoh, and in this statue her face looks softer and more feminine than in many of her other portraits.

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Did you know?

Hatshepsut first ruled for the young Thutmose III, her stepson and nephew, and then had herself crowned king.
Many of her official statues show her with a king's regalia, such as the royal headcloth, the kilt and a false beard.
This statue was made for her great funerary temple at Deir el-Bahri, near Thebes.
Later, under Thutmose III, her statues were pulled down and broken, and her name was removed from monuments.
In the 1920s archaeologists of the Metropolitan Museum, led by Herbert Winlock, found the broken pieces near her temple and put many statues back together.
The Met's huge granite Sphinx of Hatshepsut comes from the same temple and was also found in pieces and rebuilt.

About this culture

Ancient Egyptian art flourished along the Nile for about three thousand years, from around 3100 BC until Egypt became part of the Roman Empire in 30 BC.

It is famous for pyramids and temples, majestic statues of pharaohs and sphinxes, and colorful tomb paintings of everyday life.

The artists rarely signed their work, yet they cherished small joys too, like the little blue faience hippo that visitors to the Met fondly call “William”.

Ancient Egypt ›

Where it is today: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York · Museum page