Behind two rows of eleven pillars, scenes show the divine birth of Queen Hatshepsut. The reliefs are difficult to see, for they were deliberately defaced after Hatshepsut’s death. Moreover, the original relief carving was shallow and the absence of strong raking light in the colonnade renders them nearly invisible; recently installed barriers prevent close examination. But they are of great importance, for they were meant to offer theological proof that Hatshepsut was entitled to ascend the throne as king. They proclaim that Amen-Ra was her divine father and Thutmes I her secular one.

Such scenes were later elaborated upon in reliefs carved for Amenhetep III in the southern chambers of Luxor Temple, but the ones here are the first known examples.Hatshepsut’s mother, Queen Ahmes, appears in two scenes. In one she sits on a couch and is offered an ankh sign, the hieroglyph for “life,” by Amen-Ra. This is a tactful way of saying that she was being impregnated by the god.

The accompanying text poetically describes what happened:

“Then came the glorious god Amen himself, lord of the thrones of both lands,When he had taken the form of her husband, They found her resting in the beauty of the palace.She awoke at the perfume of the god and laughed in the face of his majesty.Enflamed with love, he hastened toward her,He had lost his heart to her.

 She could behold him in the shape of a god,When he had come near to her, she exulted at the sight of his beauty.His love entered all her limbs, the palace was filled with the sweet perfumes of the god, all of them from the of incense, Punt.

The majesty of this goddid to her all that he wished. She gladdened him with herself and kissed him.”
In another scene, Ahmes appears before the frog-headed goddess Heket and the ram-headed god Khnum, both associated with childbirth. She is clearly pregnant and they lead her to the birthing chamber where, in the presence of many divine witnesses, she gives birth to Hatshepsut. Amen-Ra stands nearby and affirms that he is Hatshepsut’s father. In a stunningly immodest text, Hatshepsut’s personality and youthful growth are described: “Her majesty became more important than anything else. What was within her was godlike; her manner was godlike; godlike was everything she did; her spirit was godlike.

Her majesty became a beautiful maiden...She is a woman of distinguished appearance.”
The queen’s coronation is shown at the top of the wall, where she stands in the presence of her father Thutmes I and the gods Amen and Ra-Harakhty in ceremonies of purification.

From" The Illustrated Guide to Luxor" by kent R.Weeks ,published by the American University in Cairo Press. Copyright © 2005 White Star S.p.a