Hatshepsut's Thebes

Hatshepsut's reign as king was unusual and her legitimacy was uncertain: first she was a female ruling within a predominantly male dynastic framework and second, and perhaps more importantly, there was already a legitimate king on the throne. Against this backdrop, Hatshepsut directed substantial resources to the monumental development of the sacred landscape of Thebes, and developed various mechanisms and communication strategies to legitimise her kingship within this sacred, monumental landscape.This talk is an examination of the monumental landscape of Thebes as a whole during the reign of Hatshepsut looking at the temples that she initiated, modified or added to.

About Claire Ollett: Claire has a First-Class Honours degree and a Masters degree (Distinction) in Egyptology from the University of Liverpool, where she was also a holder of the prestigious Duncan Norman Research Scholarship.She worked on the Renaissance North West funded 'Garstang Project' researching three Egyptological collections in the North West and the artefacts in those collections that came from the excavations of Professor John Garstang in Egypt and co-designed the resultant exhibition "From Egypt's Sands to Northern Hills: John Garstang's Excavations in Egypt", which toured six museums in the North of England over a period of two years. At the international exhibition, "Tutankhamen: His Tomb and His Treasures" in Manchester in 2010-11 she led school and public tours. She also worked in an advisory capacity to the exhibition and trained tour guides when it moved to Dublin, as well as dealing with the press (print and radio) and dignitaries at the opening event in Dublin.Over the last 15 years, Claire has worked closely with a number of museums, including The Atkinson in Southport, and designs and delivers tailor-made Egyptology sessions in those museums, as well as in schools across Lancashire, Merseyside and Cheshire. She is also a regular speaker at numerous societies across the country (specialist and non-specialist audiences).