I guess it's inevitable that, for people like me who have been pushing for artistic expressions about one of our great lady Per-os, Hathshepsut, of ancient KMT, that when it happens, there's bound to be "artistic license' or mis-information in the package as well.
So here it is, for better or worse, the DC Black Theater's presentation of a play,
"His Majesty, Her Self" opening next month. Some of the questionable hype for this production is the claim that she dressed as a man, when in fact, there are ancient depictions of her without the royal false beard or the crown, which was the regalia reserved for the rulers of KMT. We know that there were at least 4 other royal ladies who ruled KMT, and that Hatshepsut was NOT the first OR only one. Whether the other ladies wore the royal regalia in official sittings for statuary is not known, but the probability that they also dressed in regalia for such sittings can not be discounted. Among other questionable claims is that she STOLE the crown from Thutmosis III. Our understanding is that he was a minor and could not rule yet, as has happened to other royal personnages in KMT.
But, the most troubling of the claims is that Hatshepsut's royal mummy has been located in 2007. Many Afrikan Kemetologists, including Professor Manu Ampim, have serious reservations about the accuracy of this claim. He maintains that many claims made by the Arabs who run the Egyptian excavations in KMT have proven to be baseless. Even Dr. Hawass, the Arab head of the Egyptian Museum of Antiquities has doubts. He said on his web site in 2007, "I do not believe this mummy is Hatshepsut. She has a very large, fat body with huge pendulous breasts, and the position of her arm is not convincing evidence of royalty." Royal mummies arms are typically placed with the right arm over the left arm indicating transformation/resurrection.
Such fabrications of history are part of the process, I assume, for us to at least get exposure of our history to the masses.
Judge for your self, and let me know your impressions.
Kwasi
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