King Tut's Black Roots Article - Page Three
Although Hatshepsut's mummy has not been found, it is clear that she is the granddaughter of Ahmose and Ahmose-Nefertari and the daughter of Thutmose I and Ahmose. From this one may readily infer that she, too, in Hansberry's words, "was neither blond nor brunette but rather a person who was in all likelihood either dark brown or black."18

Thutmose III was the son of Thutmose II and his lesser wife Isis. Scholars believe that, upon his father's death, little Thutmose ascended the throne with his stepmother/aunt, Hatshepsut, serving as co-regent; however, within time she "took over all authority from the young ruler and was crowned King of Upper and Lower Egypt."19 A brilliant and progressive leader, she has been described as the first great woman of history.

Following Hatshepsut's death, Thutmose III finally achieved independent power. This pharaoh, who earned the reputation of being Egypt's "greatest and most powerful ruler," reigned from 1479-1424 B.C. (part of which time overlapped the rule of Hatshepsut.) His roots also appear to have been Black. According to the Senagelese scholar, Cheikh Anta Diop, Isis, the mother of Thutmose III, was from the Sudan.20 African American historian W.E.B. DuBois has stated that the pharaoh's "granite head in the British museum has distinct Negro features."21 Furthermore, Egyptologist Gaston Maspero has commented on the great king's mummy: "His [Thutmose III's] statues, though not representing him as a type of manly beauty, yet give him refined, intelligent features, but a comparison with the mummy show that the artists have idealized their model. The forehead is abnormally low, the eyes deeply sunk, the jaw heavy, the lips thick, and the cheekbones extremely prominent; the whole recalling the physiognomy of Thutmose II, though with a greater show of energy. Thutmose III is a fellah of the old stock, squat, thickset, vulgar in character and expression, but not lacking in firmness and vigor."22

Thutmose III was succeeded to the throne by Amenhotep II (1424-1398 B.C.), a son borne for him by his half-sister, Meryetre-Hatshepsut, the daughter of Queen Hatshepsut. Amenhotep II's uneventful reign extended over a period of about twenty-six years. From his mummy, it has been noted that this pharaoh was "taller than both his father and his son [Thutmose IV];" 23 but nothing has been said regarding the king's racial characteristics. However, since both of the pharaoh's parents appear to have been Black or "Negroid," then, the same may be confidently said of him. The surviving statues of Amenhotep II seem to confirm this view.24

Amenhotep II's chief queen, about whose origin little is known, was Tia. She bore Thutmosis IV, who succeeded his father to the throne. This pharaoh ruled from 1398-1388 B.C. His emaciated mummy has also been found, and Harris and Weeks have noted its strong "resemblance to Amenhotep II, a fact that helps confirm the known order of royal succession."25

"Her head [the head of Queen Tetisheri], broken from the badly damaged body, was one of the first studied. X-rays showed the same prominent dentition, the same type of malocclusion, and the same shape of the skull as the women found in the royal caches of the next four generations. The moderate wear on her teeth and even an impacted third molar, which lay at a very dysfunctional angle in the jaw, were the same sort of problems found among her descendants. A comparison of the mummy, now confidently called Tetisheri, with those of her daughter Ahhotep and her granddaughter Ahmose-Nefertiry [Nefertari] showed how well she fit in this family group."14

~ The Eighteenth Dynasty ~

As we have noted, the Eighteenth Dynasty was founded by Ahmose I and his sister/queen, Ahmose-Nefertari. Egyptologist Donald Redford has written that "the royal family of the two dynasties [Seventeenth and Eighteenth] is the same: Ahmose [I], the king who in Manetho's list stands at the head of the Eighteenth, is a full blooded scion of the Seventeenth."15 Ahmose I and Ahmose Nefertari had several children, one of whom was Amenhotep I, who ruled as pharaoh of Egypt from 1524 -1503 B.C. While Amenhotep I also probably had several children by one or more of his sister/wives, none of them survived. The pharaoh was therefore forced to designate his brother-in-law, Thutmose, to succeed him.

The ascension of Thutmose I (1503-1491 B.C.) to the throne represents the first break in the royal family line since the founding of the Seventeenth Dynasty by Senakhtenre Tao and Tetisheri. But even here the Black genetic continuum appears to remain intact. While Thutmose's origin is unknown, his mummy has been examined and has been described by Hansberry as presenting " a noticeably Negroid or Kushite [Nubian] cast."16 The remains of the great pharaoh's two wives, Ahmose and Mutnofret, have not been found, but their parentage leaves little doubt as to their ethnic origin. Both were daughters of Ahmose I and Ahmose-Nefertari and sisters of Amenhotep I.

Thutmose I also had a number of children, but only two are significant here: Hatshepsut, the daughter of Thutmose I and his Chief Queen Ahmose; and Thutmose, the son of Thutmose I and his lesser wife Mutnofret.

When the elder pharaoh, a great militarist who revived Egypt's glory, died, his sickly son, Thutmose, ascended the throne and ruled as Thutmose II (1491-1479 B.C.). Here, again, we have a pharaoh whose mummy has been described as "noticeably Negroid" and whose ancestry is clearly Black.17 His wife and half sister, the famous Queen Hatshepsut (1472-1457), who succeeded him to the throne and ultimately ruled as pharaoh, bore for Thutmose II at least two daughters, Neferure and Meryetre-Hatshepsut.
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