Archive: Hatshepsut episode artwork

EPISODE · Aug 20, 2026 · 47 MIN

Archive: Hatshepsut

from In Our Time · host BBC Radio 4

Misha Glenny delves in to the In Our Time archive to select ten episodes for listeners to revisit. His third choice, first released in November 2014, is the Egyptian pharaoh Hatshepsut, whose name means 'foremost of noble ladies'. She ruled Egypt from about 1479 - 1458 BC and some scholars argue that she was one of the most successful and influential pharaohs. When she came to the throne, Egypt was still recovering from a period of turbulence known as the Second Intermediate Period a few generations earlier. Hatshepsut reasserted Egyptian power by building up international trade and commissioned buildings considered masterpieces of Egyptian architecture. She also made significant changes to the ideology surrounding the pharaoh and the gods. However, following her death, her name was erased from the records and left out of ancient lists of Egyptian kings.With:Elizabeth Frood Associate Professor of Egyptology at the University of OxfordKate Spence Lecturer in Egyptian Archaeology at the University of CambridgeCampbell Price Curator of Egypt and Sudan at The Manchester MuseumProducer: Victoria BrignellReading list:Elizabeth Blyth, Karnak: Evolution of a Temple (Routledge, 2006)Kara Cooney, The Woman Who Would Be King (Crown, 2014)José M. Galán, Betsy M. Bryan and Peter F. Dorman (eds.), Creativity and Innovation in the Reign of Hatshepsut (Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago, 2014)Marc Van De Mieroop, A History of Ancient Egypt (Wiley-Blackwell, 2011)Catharine H. Roehrig, Renée Dreyfus and Cathleen A. Keller, Hatshepsut: From Queen to Pharaoh (Yale University Press, 2005)Catharine Roehrig (ed.), Hatshepsut: From Queen to Pharaoh (Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2005)Joyce Tyldesley, Hatshepsut: The Female Pharaoh (Penguin, 1998)Willeke Wendrich (ed.), UCLA Encyclopedia of Egyptology (University of California, 2010) particularly Peter Brand’s essay, ‘Usurpation of Monuments’In Our Time is a BBC Studios productionSpanning history, religion, culture, science and philosophy, In Our Time from BBC Radio 4 is essential listening for the intellectually curious. In each episode, host Misha Glenny and expert guests explore the characters, events and discoveries that have shaped our world.

Episode metadata supplied by the publisher feed · Published Aug 20, 2026

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Archive: Hatshepsut

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