During the 18th Dynasty of ancient Egypt, the pharaoh Hatshepsut presided over one of the most prosperous periods in the empire’s history. Her reign lasted more than two decades and restored stability to a kingdom whose trade networks had weakened in earlier years.

Early in her rule, Hatshepsut launched military campaigns in Nubia to the south and in the regions of the Levant and Syriato the north. These operations helped suppress conflicts that had disrupted commerce across the eastern Mediterranean. Hieroglyphic inscriptions portray the pharaoh fighting alongside her soldiers and restoring prestige to the Egyptian empire.

These victories did more than stabilize Egypt’s borders. They also created the conditions for one of the most ambitious voyages of the ancient world. Within a few years, Hatshepsut would send a fleet of Egyptian ships down the Red Sea toward the distant trading land of Punt. The expedition would expand Egypt’s trade networks and ultimately shape the history of fragrance.

Historians often refer to Hatshepsut as “the first great woman of recorded history.” Gender aside, she was a formidable ruler whose achievements rivaled those of her male counterparts. Monuments from her reign still stand across Egypt as reminders of a period marked by prosperity, construction, and renewed international trade.

Women in ancient Egyptian society possessed more legal rights than women in other early civilizations. They could own property, conduct business, and initiate divorce. Yet a woman ruling as pharaoh in her own right remained unusual. Only figures such as Khentkaus I, Sobekneferu, and possibly Nitocris ruled before her, and none enjoyed the same level of political and religious backing.

Hatshepsut secured that support carefully. By cultivating relationships with powerful nobles and priests, she reinforced the legitimacy of her rule. Her lineage strengthened her claim as well. She was the daughter of the pharaoh Thutmose Iand the queen Ahmose.

Evidence suggests that Hatshepsut ruled with a clear awareness of the challenges posed by her gender. At times she embraced tradition; at other times she adapted it. She declined the traditional pharaonic title “Strong Bull” and instead associated herself with the lioness goddess Sekhmet, a powerful symbol of strength and protection.

Representation became one of her most effective tools. Through statues, obelisks, reliefs, and temples, Hatshepsut shaped the story of her reign. The scale of construction during her rule was remarkable, and each monument reinforced the authority of her kingship.

In ancient Egypt, religion and royal authority were inseparable. For Hatshepsut, divine approval was not only a matter of faith. It also justified the most ambitious actions of her reign.

Like many of Egypt’s greatest rulers, Hatshepsut was also an ambitious builder. Her trusted official and architect Senenmut oversaw an extensive construction program that reached across the empire.

Using wealth gained through revived trade networks, Hatshepsut sponsored projects in Nubia at sites such as Qasr Ibrim, Semna, Faras, and Buhen. At the vast Karnak Temple Complex she expanded the Temple of Mut and erected towering granite obelisks.

Her most celebrated monument rose on the west bank of the Nile at Deir el-Bahri. Known in antiquity as Djeser-Djeseru, meaning “the Holy of Holies,” the terraced temple remains one of the most distinctive architectural achievements of ancient Egypt.

These monuments served not only religious purposes but also political ones. Their walls recorded the story of Hatshepsut’s reign in carefully designed reliefs that emphasized her divine legitimacy.

Among the most striking of these narratives is the story of her divine birth. According to temple reliefs, the god Amun visited her mother, Ahmose, disguised as the pharaoh Thutmose I. The inscriptions describe his arrival “in a flood of light and perfume.” Amun placed an ankh to the queen’s nose, and the future pharaoh was conceived through divine will.

The creator god Khnum was then said to fashion Hatshepsut’s body and ka, or life force, while the goddess Heket oversaw the birth.

Scenes depicting this story appear both at the Karnak temple complex and on the walls of Deir el-Bahri.

Other inscriptions describe Amun guiding Hatshepsut through dreams. In one vision he urged her to explore the “terraces of myrrh” in a distant land known as Punt. The Egyptians referred to Punt as Ta Netjer, or “God’s Land,” a region famed for aromatic resins and sacred woods.

Egypt had traded with Punt centuries earlier, but the connection weakened over time. Much of the commerce now passed through intermediaries. A direct expedition promised wealth, prestige, and renewed influence.

Around the ninth year of her reign, Hatshepsut ordered ships to sail for the legendary land of Punt. The exact location of Punt remains uncertain to historians. The journey required careful navigation along the Red Sea, through unfamiliar waters, and past seasonal hazards, making the expedition both risky and remarkable. To reach Punt, Hatshepsut commissioned a fleet of large seagoing vessels. The expedition consisted of five ships roughly seventy feet long, each capable of carrying sizable crews and cargo. Altogether the mission likely involved close to a thousand participants, representing both a trading venture and a clear display of Egyptian authority abroad.

Reliefs at Deir el-Bahri show the Egyptians arriving in Punt and being welcomed by local rulers. The inscriptions describe a lively exchange as the visitors prepared their goods for trade. The Egyptians brought weapons, metals, pottery, and other items valued in regional commerce. In return they received an extraordinary cargo of fragrant woods, ebony, ivory, gold, incense, and large quantities of myrrh resin. Exotic animals, including monkeys and apes, were also transported back to Egypt. Temple inscriptions proudly claim that nothing comparable had been brought to Egypt before. When the fleet returned to Thebes, it carried immense wealth and prestige for the pharaoh who had ordered the voyage.

Hatshepsut’s expedition also occupies a unique place in the history of fragrance.

According to temple reliefs, the returning ships carried thirty-one living myrrh trees taken from the terraces of Punt. Workers replanted the trees in the sacred gardens of Amun at Karnak and along the processional approaches to Deir el-Bahri. Excavations have uncovered preserved root remains at these locations, suggesting that the ancient account may be accurate. If so, the expedition represents the earliest known example of large-scale plant transplantation.

Cultivating myrrh within Egyptian territory gave the empire greater control over a vital aromatic resource. The change strengthened Egypt’s developing perfume tradition and contributed to the later rise of fragrance centers such as Mendes.

For the ancient Egyptians, fragrance was inseparable from religion and daily life. Perfume and incense were often described as “the breath of the gods.” Among sacred aromatics, myrrh held a special place. It appeared in temple rituals, sacred incense blends such as kyphi, and rites associated with the goddess Hathor.

Centuries later, myrrh would appear again in another famous story of sacred gifts: the biblical account of the birth of Jesus.

The scent of myrrh therefore carries a long and remarkable history. At its roots lies one of the most celebrated expeditions of the ancient world, led by the pharaoh Hatshepsut. Her journey to the land of Punt.