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Primary sourceSculpturec. 1478 BCE

Sphinxes of Hatshepsut

c. 1478 BCE

Colossal granite sphinxes carved with Hatshepsut's face, later smashed after her death and later reassembled from the fragments.

These sphinxes carried Hatshepsut's own face and were deliberately destroyed after her reign, showing efforts to erase her legacy.

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Photo of a reddish-brown granite sphinx statue with a human face wearing a striped nemes headdress, lying on a rectangular base in a museum gallery with wooden floors and a window in the background.
Sphinx of Hatshepsut, c. 1478 BCE. Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York.

About this source

What it is

These large granite sphinx statues carry the face of Hatshepsut and date to around 1478 BCE. They are now held at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, having been pieced back together from broken fragments.

Why it matters

The sphinxes show Hatshepsut's royal image combined with the body of a sphinx, a traditional symbol of kingship. Their destruction after her death and later reconstruction reveal that someone tried to erase her memory, making the statues evidence of both her power and the backlash against it.

Look closer

  • What does the choice of a sphinx shape suggest about how Hatshepsut wanted to be seen?
  • Why might someone want to destroy her image after her death?
  • What can broken and reassembled pieces tell historians that a complete statue might not?

This sculpture is part of the curated material that grounds the AI version of Hatshepsut on Humy.ai — when students ask about related events, the AI can quote it and cite it.

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View of the Mortuary Temple of Hatshepsut at Deir el-Bahari, a tiered stone building with long colonnades and ramps set against towering tan limestone cliffs under a clear blue sky. Small figures and a low shelter are visible in the foreground.Artifact

Primary source

Mortuary Temple of Hatshepsut

Senenmut and/or Hapuseneb (attributed) · c. 1479–1458 BCE

Photograph of a carved sandstone relief panel at Karnak. Columns of hieroglyphs divide the panel. On the left, a figure in a tall crown strides with one arm raised. On the right, a standing figure in a kilt faces left. Blue sky and a palm tree appear at the edge.Photograph

Secondary source

Hatshepsut Dancing Before Min, Karnak Relief

Carole Reeves · 1989

Painted relief on a temple wall showing men carrying a tree in a basket with a pole, between stylized incense trees and a palm, in orange, red and cream colors, with hieroglyphs above and a wave-pattern band below.Sculpture

Primary source

Punt Expedition Reliefs

Royal workshops of Hatshepsut · c. 1470 BCE

Photograph of a dark grey stone sculpture of a head, mounted on a red rectangular pedestal against a white background. The head has a tall, smooth-topped headdress, carved eyes, nose and mouth, and a worn surface. Catalogue label MM 11423 appears at lower right.Sculpture

Primary source

Sculpture Head Probably of Hatshepsut

Photograph of a seated limestone statue of a figure wearing a royal headcloth with a pleated nemes and a false beard-less face, hands resting on the lap, seated on a block with hieroglyphic inscriptions on its side.Sculpture

Primary source

Seated Statue of Hatshepsut

c. 1466 BCE

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