She Writes History
Egypt’s Female Pharaohs
Ancient Egypt, celebrated for its vast history and monumental achievements, was also a civilization where women could claim political and spiritual authority. Through Althea Provost’s exploration, the remarkable lives of Egypt’s female pharaohs and female kings come into focus, revealing the enduring legacy they carved into the story of Egypt.
The Legacy of Egypt’s Female Pharaohs
Merit-neith: A Pioneer from the First Dynasty
As one of Egypt’s earliest female pharaohs, Merit‑neith stands at the threshold of recorded history. Known also as Merneith, she served as both consort and regent during the First Dynasty and may have ruled Egypt in her own right. Her name, meaning “Beloved by Neith,” reflects an early theophoric pattern in which royal women aligned themselves with powerful goddesses — in this case, the ancient creator‑weaver Neith. My own journey with Neith’s legacy deepened in 2024, when I was invited to Sais to meet the archaeologist currently working at her temple site following my Starseed Egypt Adventure. Standing where her cult once flourished offered a profound sense of continuity with these early queens who carried her name. Two stelae bearing Merit‑neith’s name were discovered near her remarkable tomb at Abydos, a burial equal in scale to those of male kings. Likely the wife of Pharaoh Djet and mother of Pharaoh Den, her presence in royal records around 2950 BC suggests she may have been the first woman to hold sovereign power in Egypt, marking her as a pioneering figure in the lineage of Egypt’s female pharaohs.
New Kingdom, 1390-1336 BCE
Hatshepsut: The Architectural Visionary
Hatshepsut, one of the most influential among Egypt’s female pharaohs, reshaped the sacred landscape of Thebes through an ambitious and visionary building program. Her reign, spanning roughly twenty to twenty‑two years, produced monuments that still define the grandeur of ancient Egypt. Her masterpiece is the breathtaking mortuary temple at Deir el‑Bahari — a structure so clean, geometric, and modern in appearance that it continues to astonish visitors today.
A favorite site among our Starseed Egypt Adventurers, Hatshepsut’s temple reveals its grandeur whether explored on foot or viewed from a hot‑air balloon at dawn. Framed by the towering limestone cliffs of Deir el‑Bahari, the three grand terraces rise in clean, geometric lines that feel astonishingly modern for an ancient monument. From above, the harmony between architecture and landscape becomes unmistakable — a testament to Hatshepsut’s visionary restraint and her ability to create a legacy that feels both regal and contemporary. The understated elegance of the design evokes a profound sense of awe and connection to her enduring presence in Egypt’s sacred history.
Despite the devotion she inspired during her lifetime, Hatshepsut’s legacy was later targeted by her stepson, Thutmose III, who attempted to erase her name and topple her statues in an effort to rewrite history. Yet her presence proved impossible to extinguish. Her temple remains one of the most visited and beloved sites in Egypt, and her influence continues to echo in modern design — even the new Luxor high‑speed train station draws inspiration from the architecture of her temple. Among Egypt’s Female Pharaohs, Hatshepsut remains one of the most architecturally renowned voices, her monuments speaking across millennia.
The Importance of Egypt’s Female Pharaohs
The reigns of Meritneith and Hatshepsut underscore the importance of female leadership in our historic past. These women were not only sovereigns but also builders, visionaries, and cultural pioneers whose choices helped shape the course of ancient Egypt. Their lives show that leadership is not defined by gender but by wisdom, courage, and the ability to leave a legacy that endures. Through their governance and their monuments, they proved that women could rule, innovate, and influence their civilization in lasting and meaningful ways.
Egypt’s Female Pharaohs: Women Who Ruled Across the Old, Middle, and New Kingdoms
As we move beyond Meritneith and Hatshepsut, we can explore the other women who rose to power throughout Egypt’s long history. Though their stories are sometimes fragmentary, they reveal a continuous thread of female authority woven through the Old, Middle, and New Kingdoms.
The Middle and Old Kingdoms: Sobekneferu and Nitocris
Sobekneferu of the Twelfth Dynasty and Nitocris of the Sixth Dynasty are among the earliest recorded female pharaohs. Little is known about their reigns, yet their presence on the throne shows that women could assume full royal authority even in Egypt’s earliest periods. Their brief rule stands as evidence of a political system that allowed women to lead when circumstances required it.
The New Kingdom: Nefertiti, Nefertari, and Twosret
The New Kingdom produced several influential royal women whose roles shaped religion, diplomacy, and the stability of the state. Nefertiti and Nefertari held exceptional status during the Eighteenth Dynasty, appearing prominently in art and ceremony. Twosret, who ruled at the end of the Nineteenth Dynasty, is considered the last known female pharaoh. Alongside figures such as Ahhotep I and Tiye, these women helped guide Egypt through periods of transition, demonstrating the enduring presence of female leadership throughout its history.
Mirror with Hathor Image with inscribed cartouche of Thutmose III.
The presence of these women across so many eras shows that female leadership was not an exception in ancient Egypt but a recurring thread in its long history. From the earliest dynasties to the height of the New Kingdom, women stepped into power, shaped policy, guided religion, and left monuments that still define the landscape today. Their stories, whether well documented or only faintly preserved, remind us that the legacy of Egypt’s female pharaohs is woven into the foundations of the civilization itself.
Sources:
Fragment of a Queen’s Face. (no date) The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Available at: https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/544514 (Accessed: 24 July 2024). Citing: New Kingdom, CA 1390-1336 BC. Yellow Jasper. Purchased by E.S. Harkness to the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York in 1926.
Mirror with Handle in the Form of a Hathor Emblem (no date) The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Available at: https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/545165 (Accessed: 24 July 2024). New Kingdom, ca. 1479-1425 B.C. On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 118.
Pirelli, R. (2008) The Queens of Ancient Egypt. New York, New York: White Star Pub. ; Distributed in the US and Canada by Rizzoli International Pub. Citing photos & descriptions: Tomb of Menna (TT 69). Wife of Henuttauy, Chantress of Amun. Her hair is partly pulled back and held into place by a lotus bud (a symbol of rebirth). p. 21. Bas-Relief of a female figure, p. 58-59. Queen Ahhotep i’s jewelry, p.146.
The cover artwork is reimagined from the exhibition Flight into Egypt: Black Artists and Ancient Egypt, 1876–Now at The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York.
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Continue Your Journey with Althea Provost
The legacy of Egypt’s female pharaohs opens a doorway into deeper mysteries — threads woven through time, temple culture, and the divine feminine. If this exploration stirred something within you, I invite you to step further into the wisdom of Egypt through my online course.
Neith: Return of the Weavers
In this immersive experience, I guide you into the ancient temple culture of the goddess Neith, exploring how nature’s symbolic language — the bee, the snake, and the spider — reveals the energies once carried by priestesses and weavers of consciousness.
Through visual storytelling, remote sensing practices, and an invitation to engage with the unknown mystery, we explore:
- the primordial goddess Neith and her evolving symbols
- the layout and purpose of Egyptian temples
- the sacred geometry of nature as an organizing force
- the role of living goddesses as templates for embodiment
- the bridge between feminine light, consciousness, and the cosmic whole
This course includes a 1‑hour recorded Zoom session with group interaction, exclusive video and audio content, and guided explorations designed to awaken your innate knowing.
For readers drawn to the deeper currents of Egypt’s past, Neith’s wisdom offers a guided path into the symbols and stories that shaped its spiritual legacy.
