LGBTime Machine: Ancient Rome

Posted on By

Note: This post is part of a series. Read more about the LGBTimeMachine series here. 

By Sabeau Rea, Communications Intern

“… And so I said, Time Traveler?! I barely know her!”

Our LGBTime Machine groans to a rattling halt, and through the windows of the ship we can just make out the Nile River in the distance. We’ve landed in Egypt– roughly 3000 years ago, and we have an agenda full of intersex deities with no time to waste so let’s get moving.

 

Allow me to cordially introduce to you the first deity on our Egyptian Polytheism list– Atum. The god/dess Atum was the first deity to exist in the Egyptian pantheon, and was also the first intersex deity in the group. Besides being a massive overachiever for all of this, and kind of the deity version of that kid always asking to be line-leader on field trips (read: me), the god/dess also sired several children. How did Atum reproduce these offspring? Essentially the same way my 8th grade sex-ed teacher told me reproduction happens– by vomiting them out of their mouth.

These bile babies (which is totally the name of a mediocre punk band somewhere) would later grow up to give birth to pretty much the entire remaining pantheon of Egyptian deities as we understand it today, which makes Atum the grandparent of the entire Egyptian religion. Not to be outdone–one time, I kept a Tamagotchi alive for a month.

Atum was not alone either; next on our list is Hapi– the swell intersex deity of the Nile River. As if being able to add an accolade like that to a job resume wasn’t already incredibly cool, Hapi also had blue skin. Along with their blue hue, Hapi rocked an androgynous-associated look with feminine-associated large breasts and round stomach, and a masculine-associated wrap-skirt and Egyptian false beard (an accessory designated for nobility). It is also safe to speculate that Hapi would have also been considered genderqueer due to their attempt to indicate their androgyny in androgynous-associated gender presentations.

It is always in these quiet moments of religious and gendered reflection that the hallowed words of Shakespeare come to me, “I am a god. Hurry up with my damn croissants.” No. Wait, that was Kanye West. Close enough. Let’s continue.

The last of the better known gender and sex variant divinities in the Egyptian religion is the god/dess Shai/Shait. Shai/Shait was a genderfluid god/dess who would be referred to alternatingly with the name Shai, when female, and Shait, when male. The deity was also discussed with both male and female pronouns used interchangeably to describe him/her. 

Think of this like ancient photoshop

Now, you may be asking yourself, “But, what about LGBTQIA+ pharaohs?” To you I would say, one, don’t begin sentences with “but,” and two, you probably aren’t asking yourself this to begin with, but I was desperately in need of a good segue so here we go. We’re headed to the palace to learn about LGBTQIA+ pharoahs.

We stroll up to the palace– and by stroll up, I mean hiked—for like five hours. Through the sweltering desert. And you were complaining about your feet for like, the whole time… (Also, don’t start sentences with “and.”)

You run to the nearest 1980s-style water fountain and start chugging in H2O like you’d just walked five hours through a desert without it or something. I conveniently ignore the blatant historical inaccuracy that is 1980s-style water fountains in Ancient Egypt. One of them pours Kool-aid.

Kool-Aid fountain aside, (though ignoring it will prove hard as it’s blasting Tschaikovsky out of its built-in speakers) this palace is crucial to our trip because it’s home to Akhenaten, a pharaoh who ruled for seventeen years during the eighteenth dynasty of Egypt. If Akhenaten doesn’t sound familiar, it’s probably because they were a pretty average Pharaoh as far as beings endowed with absolute power go.

A name you may recognize, however, is their wife’s: Nefertiti. Yeah, this pharaoh managed to marry “the most beautiful woman in the world.” She was quite a bit more than beautiful, too, but leave it to sexism to make that all for which she was known.

“Typical,” I warble out between gulps from the margarita fountain. You make a note to check the time machine manual’s policy on drinking and timing.

In actuality, Nefertiti was so much more than just aesthetically pleasing. Akhenaten, her partner in matrimony, was a total feminist themselves, and in the truest feminist form not only made Nefertiti their chief wife, but gave her way more power than any queen in the history of the empire. No, for real, these lovebirds were practically co-rulers– a decision which would’ve been entirely unprecedented for the era. Two for you, Akhenaten. You go, Akhenaten. 

“So a feminist co-regency is fantastic, but what does this have to do with intersections of sex and gender?” you may be wondering. You seem to do a lot of that. Well, dearest, and most inquisitive reader, you may have noticed I’ve been referring to Akhenaten using “they/them” pronouns. This is because– you guessed it– Pharaoh Akhenaten was intersex.

With wide hips, large breasts, and a phallus, the Pharaoh reigned over Egypt while siring several children. Kanye West also once sang, “Have you ever had sex with a pharaohhh?” Well, Nefertiti did, and, collectively along with Akhenaten’s other wives, they had six daughters. (Two for two on these Kanye quotes. Ancient Egypt is rife with possibilities.) 

What makes Akhenaten’s sex so spectacular is how universally unspectacular it was to the Ancient Egyptians.While the Pharoah’s policies, including the implementation of monotheistic worship of the sun god, were incredibly badly received, their sex and gender were never criticized, or even questioned. In fact, their physicality was so widely accepted that most official renderings of the pharaoh were depicted true-to-form.

In Ancient Egyptian art, the subjects of the pieces would be rendered in an idealized manner to hide flaws, and appear as attractive as possible. Think of this like ancient photoshop. The fact that Akhentathen’s body was rendered “as is” indicates that the culture viewed the pharaoh’s body as an acceptable physicality to the degree it that it did not need embellishing. 

All About Hatshepsut

I run full-speed through the palace, shouting back to you in labored attempts to test the acoustics. I’m trying to find a place to record my mixtape. It will not be a very good mixtape. From the other end of the hall you can just decipher something about a female pharaoh, but you can’t quite make out the entirety of what I’ve said because of the poor acoustics. It is a great sign for feminism. It is a terrible sign for my mixtape.

I return to where you’re standing and reiterate my statement more clearly. The pharaoh was assigned female at birth, but it is speculated that he/she was quite possibly genderfluid rather than female. This hypothesis is the topic of much discussion as a concrete answer cannot be found for whether he/she was an ancient member of the LGBTQIA+ community, or merely queering gender to circumvent the sexisms of the era.

With a lack of definitive clarity, but an overwhelming amount of evidence pointing in either direction, she will be tentatively included to allow you the space to make your own conclusions on the matter. Alright, so in the slightly misheard words of a popular athletic clothier’s campaign slogan, “Let’s do it.”

Briefly after Queen Hatshepsut assumed the throne of Egypt he/she began alternating between male-associated, and female-associated attire. While the majority of his/her attire vacillated, he/she kept one constant to his/her ensembles– the extravagant, wood false beard worn by pharoahs. Total aesthetic goals. 

Speaking of the word pharaoh, this leads us seamlessly into our next fact– Hatshepsut renounced the title of queen to assume the moniker Pharaoh, a title previously reserved exclusively for men. This decision occurred quickly after acquiring the throne .

In tandem with this unprecedented, pioneering decision he/she would later shift from using “she/her/her” pronouns to an interchanging usage of both masculine and feminine ones. 

My favorite factoid however, is how he/she was increasingly rendered in art as gender ambiguous. By the end of his/her reign, depictions of Hatshepsut consistently possessed a conventionally Ancient Egyptian masculine physicality–shirtless without breasts—while incorporating the conventionally feminine attribute of a waist smaller than those of his/her cis-male counterparts. 

Lest we forget that members of the LGBTQIA+ community are much, much more than one-dimensional caricatures–Hatshepsut is here to remind us. He/she is widely regarded as one of the most successful Pharaoh’s in the history of Ancient Egypt. We’re talking, “he/she reigned for a lengthy twenty-two years, during which he/she brought about one of the most tranquil, and successful eras the empire would ever see” prolific. 

 

Is it time to go already? Well, before we jet off to our next adventure, I have one last question for you: with all you’ve seen thus far, how far back do you think genderqueer, intersex, and transgender communities will really go?

Join me next time as we come a little bit closer to the answer, and educate ourselves on an ancient third-gender community now legally recognized by modern society, and a group of transgender female bodyguards that seriously have me reconsidering my employment options. See you soon.

 

Citations:

  1. Anu, Khepra Ka-Re Amente. Lifting the Spiritual Self-Esteem of the LGBT Community: A Critique of Fabricated, Discriminatory, Judgmental, and Sexist World Religions. N.p.: iUniverse, 2012.
  2. Myśliwiec, Karol. Eros on the Nile. Illustrated ed. N.p.: Cornell University Press, 2004.
  3. Ben-Jochannan, Yosef. “The Nile Valley Civilization and the Spread of African Culture.” Lecture, Minority Ethnic Unit of the Greater London Council, London, England, March 6, 1986.
  4. Hill, J. “Hapi.” Ancient Egypt Online. Last modified 2010. Accessed November 4, 2016. http://www.ancientegyptonline.co.uk/hapi.html.
  5. Bhagavatananda Guru, Shri. A Brief History of the Immortals of Non-Hindu Civilizations. N.p.: lulu.com, 2015.
  6. Foley, Francois. “Re-constructing Akhenaten: The Many Faces of a Pharaoh in Naguib Mahfouz’s Akhenaten, Dweller in Truth.” Rewriting Texts Remaking Images: Interdisciplinary Perspectives 103 (2010): 39.
  7. “Akhenaten.” In Funk and Wagnalls New World Encyclopedia. New World Encyclopedia, 2016. Last modified February 20, 2016. Accessed October 30, 2016.
  8. Cavert, Dr. Amy. “Egyptian Art.” Last modified 2013. Accessed October 30, 2016. https://www.khanacademy.org/humanities/ancient-art-civilizations/egypt-art/beginners-guide-egypt/a/egyptian-art.
  9. Margetts, Edward L. “The Masculine Character of Hatshepsut, Queen of Egypt.”Bulletin of the History of Medicine 25, (Jan 01, 1951): 559. https://search.proquest.com/docview/1296237691?accountid=14696.

12 responses to “LGBTime Machine: Ancient Rome”

  11. A case-control study additionally means that AAS use leads to a persistent small discount in testosterone levels
    (177). Nevertheless, recent or current unreported AAS
    use, reverse causality and other factors inherent to a
    case-control research design make it troublesome to establish a true cause-and-effect
    relationship. Regardless, persistent AAS-induced hypogonadism has been reported in the literature in several instances (65, 178).
    Future research is needed to delineate the AAS cycle features or affected person traits that
    hinder recovery and result in partially reversed, extended, or persistent hypogonadism.

    With that mentioned, if you’ve accomplished a couple of Anadrol
    cycles and have a great handle on how you respond at particular doses, you then might choose to be much
    less apprehensive about getting blood accomplished so often. The incontrovertible reality that Anadrol is an oral steroid is a profit for anyone who isn’t eager on using injectables.
    Orals include some important downsides, but from an administration viewpoint, nothing can be easier than swallowing tablets.
    A risk factor with the sudden increase in energy Anadrol provides is the possibility
    of injury when lifting weights that your joints won’t yet deal with.

    Non-peptide options like creatine, omega-3s, collagen, and HMB additionally supply proven benefits,
    particularly when paired with proper diet and
    coaching protocols. Bodybuilders often face injuries that interrupt training and slow progress.
    To pace up restoration and get again to peak efficiency,
    many are turning to healing peptides like BPC-157 and TB-500.
    These compounds are gaining consideration for his or her potential to accelerate tissue repair, cut back inflammation, and assist total healing.

    This article takes a better take a look at how each peptide
    works, compares their advantages, and explores which could be higher
    suited for injury recovery in high-performance athletes.

    Thus, by way of the concept of muscle reminiscence, we see that hypertrophy could be restored in sufferers at any given time.
    The main drawbacks we observe with Deca Durabolin are sexual side
    effects, impotence, and a lack of libido. However, this stack is a complementary duo,
    as testosterone usually counteracts such side effects because of its additional androgenicity.
    Testosterone has delicate to moderate adverse effects on ldl cholesterol and poses little to no liver
    toxicity.
    Research has shown that anabolic steroids improve dash speed in rats by up
    to 29% (14). Due to Anavar’s mild androgenic score, it doesn’t
    sometimes produce virilization unwanted aspect effects in girls when taken in low to moderate doses.

    Thus, we’ve generally discovered Anavar to be a female-friendly steroid.
    Moreover, water retention is unlikely on Anavar, with the compound making a dry and outlined look.

    Your physician will focus on and information you on tips on how
    to cease the steroids over a certain time frame.

    They have many capabilities, including lowering irritation and suppressing the
    body’s immune system. Other types of steroids embody lotions, ointments, injections,
    inhalers and sprays. These are mentioned within the separate leaflets known as
    Topical steroids (excluding inhaled steroids), Topical steroids for eczema and Bronchial
    Asthma inhalers. Whether you’re a seasoned bodybuilder or
    somebody contemplating incorporating Winstrol vs Anavar safety comparison 10 into your
    regimen, this guide aims to be your go-to useful resource. Read on to unlock the secrets
    of Anavar and make knowledgeable choices in your journey to optimum fitness.

    These doses may be 10 to 100 occasions larger than doses prescribed
    by medical professionals to deal with medical circumstances.
    All anabolic steroids are Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) schedule 3 medication 24, 25, 26.
    Utilizing anabolic steroids this fashion, and not utilizing a
    prescription from a doctor, just isn’t authorized or protected.
    Whereas the total rate of suppression varies from one steroid
    to the following, with Dianabol it is rather pronounced.
    For this cause, most males are encouraged to include
    some type of exogenous testosterone with their Dianabol use.
    Failure to include exogenous testosterone, regardless of your genetics or rumors you’ve heard will result in a low testosterone condition. Such a situation comes with a host of
    possible signs and is extraordinarily unhealthy.

    Anabolic steroids may cause suppression of clotting factors II, V, VII,
    and X, and a rise in prothrombin time. Even “short” cycles require vigilance and
    proactive liver support. On 50 mg of Turinabol, I ran three miles
    after which went for some squats.
    Due to Anadrol’s quick esters, its results may be skilled within the early levels of a cycle.
    We discover that users can observe subtle modifications in physique composition throughout the first few days.
    Four women in the study confirmed slight virilization changes, regardless of being given large
    doses.

  12. When legally prescribed, they are an option for patients who produce abnormally low ranges of testosterone
    or who suffer from body-wasting ailments similar to most cancers or AIDS.

    When utilized by athletes, the goal is to speed up the
    physique’s pure muscle-building process. When we raise weights
    heavier than what we’re used to, we create tiny micro-tears in muscle fibers.
    The physique’s natural repair course of repairs the tear and then overcompensates by including bigger
    cells to build a stronger fiber — this is called muscular hypertrophy.
    Over time, this repeated process of teardown and re-build
    will end in muscle progress. General, AAS carry
    vital dangers throughout a quantity of physique techniques, particularly when used in high doses or
    long-term.
    Many men who take anabolic steroids are infertile through the time of anabolic steroid use.
    Because continual anabolic steroid use suppresses spermatogenesis (sperm production), the testes shrink.
    Many males who use anabolic steroids may also take human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG)
    to prevent testicular shrinkage.
    Deca Durabolin isn’t administered by itself,
    as it reduces androgenicity, doubtlessly causing
    sexual side effects, together with impotence (erectile dysfunction).
    Therefore, it’s usually stacked with Anadrol, testosterone, or trenbolone.
    Deca Durabolin (nandrolone) is a bulking steroid also capable of
    adding notable quantities of muscle mass by enhancing protein synthesis and
    nitrogen retention in muscle fibers. Deca Durabolin also commonly improves muscle fullness
    by rising intracellular fluid quantity. Endogenous testosterone ranges sometimes normalize several weeks following cycle cessation. The
    prevalence of life-threatening results of steroid misuse seems to be very
    low from case research, however severe adverse results may be underreported and
    underrecognized because they often do not seem until years later.
    Relying on the type, anabolic steroids could be taken orally, injected intramuscularly,
    or utilized by way of the skin as gels or creams.
    Anabolic refers to muscle progress properties, whereas androgenic refers again to the promotion of male sex traits (16).
    Several circumstances can lead to muscle loss, including AIDS, chronic obstructive pulmonary illness (COPD), most
    cancers, and kidney and liver illness. Whereas not as frequent,
    AAS can be used in these populations to help preserve muscle mass (9, 10).

    Apparently, even a dosage that’s roughly twice that of TRT (200 mg testosterone enanthate weekly) only partially suppresses LH (-66.7%) and FSH (-62.5%) and, certainly, results in azoospermia in only about two out of three men (182).
    As such, efforts have been made to complete gonadotropin suppression by including progestins.
    One reason for this may be that the low intratesticular testosterone ranges
    derived from the circulation proceed to stimulate spermatogenesis in some males
    (180). In the HAARLEM examine, nearly all topics had undetectable LH and FSH ranges during AAS use.
    Nonetheless, only two-thirds of topics were azoo- or oligozoospermic on the end of their cycle (176).
    There was no affiliation between the period of the AAS cycle and the
    diploma of suppression of spermatogenesis.
    The time scale of 10 to 12 weeks makes it possible to mix virtually any
    compounds with totally different length esters, primarily
    allowing you to tailor either a bulking or chopping cycle based on your private objectives.
    Corticosteroids are one other well-known group, however corticosteroids
    have different medical uses29. They’re nice
    for lowering irritation and overactive immune
    response, but they won’t serve you for muscle growth.

    In competitive sports, steroid dosing tends to
    be pretty conservative to keep away from detection. Muscle mass isn’t
    the main concern here, as they’re used extra for restoration and elevated power output (6, 7).

    Athletes utilizing AAS can experience power features of 5–20% and
    weight features of four.5–11 pounds (2–5 kg),
    which may be because of an increase in lean body mass (5). Though
    historically regarded as a male hormone, women also produce testosterone however in much smaller quantities.
    It serves a quantity of capabilities for women, primarily promoting bone density
    and a wholesome libido (2). TRT is simply protected for individuals with clinically low testosterone ranges.

    Gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) neurons of
    the hypothalamus secrete GnRH in pulsatile trend into capillaries of the hypophyseal portal system.

    GnRH binds to its receptor, the GnRH receptor, on gonadotrophic cells of the anterior pituitary.
    Activating this G protein-coupled receptor triggers a cascade of occasions that stimulates the synthesis and release of luteinizing hormone (LH)
    and follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH). LH and FSH, in turn,
    bind to their cognate receptors on the Leydig cells and
    Sertoli cells of the testis, respectively. LH stimulates testosterone production and, at
    the side of FSH, regulates spermatogenesis. Testosterone, and its estrogenic
    metabolite estradiol, exert unfavorable feedback on the hypothalamus and pituitary to
    suppress their very own synthesis (173, 174).

    References:

    PedsElite

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.