ABSTRACT
In all past commentaries on Senenmut and his time, 1 the single most pervasive problem with which modem scholars--and no doubt even contemporary ancient Egyptians--have had the most difficulty in coming to terms is perhaps the fact of Hatshepsut's kingship. The motives for her accession, the extent of her power, the nature of her political support, the legacy of her rule, and the reasons for her proscription are all themes that derive from the monumental and chronological data that must form the basis of any evaluation of her reign. The private officials known to have comprised her administration have inevitably been drawn into the debate to a greater or lesser degree, and none more frequently than Senenmut, whose primary title, ironically, reflects his duties in administering the worldly property of the estate of Amun rather than that of Hatshepsut. In the course of the past century, as an increasing number of monuments belonging to Senenmut have been discovered or newly identified, each one has understandably provided an opportunity for a reinterpretation of the career of this powerful courtier; yet each has also provided the chance for fresh commentary on Hatshepsut's kingship and her presumed rivals for the throne of Egypt. It will be the task of this introductory chapter to explore this separate phenomenon: the extraordinary extent to which the monuments of Senenmut have been employed to elucidate the theme of the so-called Tuthrnoside feud, which runs inexorably through modem histories of the early 18th Dynasty. An awareness of past methodologies must be the first step; for it is only by defining the modem context of these monuments that they can be examined from a fresh point of view.
