The Senenmut Astronomical Ceiling (TT353) A Hypothesis of Calculated Astronomical Redaction

The astronomical ceiling in the tomb of Senenmut (TT353) is the earliest known complete celestial diagram in Egypt, yet it has long been cited for apparent technical anomalies — above all, the reversal of the upper-arm (rmn ḥry) and lower-arm (rmn khry) decans, and the anomalous treatment of Mars. This paper proposes that these irregularities are not evidence of scribal incompetence but the visible residue of deliberate editorial triage. Senenmut, acting as Hatshepsut's chief administrator and calendar registrar, grafted retro-calculated planetary positions from a specific sky configuration datable to May 1534 BCE onto an inherited schematic template. The resulting diagram functions as a politically and theologically charged redaction of the traditional astronomical canon, designed to anchor the queen's contested kingship in a verifiable celestial precedent. This hypothesis reconciles the template and observation schools while providing a coherent account of the documented anomalies.