Reading Comp. No. 2, quest. 3

From the very beginning ancient Egypt had been a patriarchal society. Ruled by a single Pharaoh, a god king (usually a male), born into the role of king with the promise of becoming a god. These roles often merged in the form of the king’s burial sight and pyramid, all trying to build one bigger and better than the last pharaoh. This made a statement of political power, while also shortening the king’ journey to heaven because of the monuments large size.

Queen Hatshepsut, being the only true female pharaoh, must have been aware of the subordinate nature of the female role in society. Perhaps it was for this reason that she chose to a temple form for her burial sight. For her, the goal was not to display power as much as it was to take care of her people. By building a temple she shows her respect for her place as a woman, while also building a place for her people to ensure their safe passage into the after life. You may also compare this to the fact that pyramids are big, but closed off to everyone. People could enter the realm of the dead queen even though it is set back into the environment, and relatively small in comparison to the pyramids.

Being built in a cave was also a building strategy achieving maximum darkness, and thus function in the temple. For the Egyptians, darkness was the trademark of a sacred space, so building into a cave was a way to achieve darkness even without the use of columns to filter the light (of which there are still many).

Queen Hatshepsut was the first to make use of the temple form. This could also be symbolic of her accomplishments as a ruler. The axial progression into and through the building almost seems to beckon you in. this welcoming spirit was a necessary in her journey, as seen in the pyramids, the temple of Queen Hatshepsut implies a horizontal journey. In Egyptian culture the horizontal axis is associated with the life cycle. As one progresses toward and into the building it feels as if you are making the journey from life (light) into death (darkness). Because the building is one level it also implies a horizontal plain. Perhaps symbolizing the life cycle taken up in the after life.