He spoke slowly and clearly. “In its simplest terms, representing Hatshepsut with a false beard and a male form followed tradition. All pharaohs wanted to resemble Osiris, as a way of emphasizing their connection to him and their power as rulers. Also, evidence shows pharaohs were cleanly shaved, so even male rulers tied on their beards.” A brief pause let his students catch up to him and shake out their cramping hands. “But many representations of Hatshepsut as a woman didn’t just disappear of her own volition. They were razed after her death and replaced by images of her dead husband, who’d
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