Furthermore, Akhenaten sought to remove the power of the priesthood and so he moved the capital from Thebes to a new ground where he made a new capital for his own god Aten: Akhetaten or El-Amarna. Together they had at least six daughters. - Akhenaten's life may have been threatened. Related Content A> Akhenaten, formerly Amenhotep IV, an Egyptian pharaoh of the 18th Dynasty, who was married to Nefertiti, worshiped the Egyptian god Aten, renamed himself, wrote the Hymn to Aten, and, therefore, could be considered one of the first monotheists. In one of the surrounding walls was cut the "Window of Appearances," where Akhenaten and Nefertiti could be seen by his people. Abstract. This obsession caused him to relocate Egypt's capital, destroy the Egyptian priesthood, and declare that he alone could communicate with the god, Aten. We contribute a share of our revenue to remove carbon from the atmosphere and we offset our team's carbon footprint. Illustrated Papyri translations edited for the modern reader. It is more plausible that these formal exaggerations represent the metamorphic nature of the god Atons light. This crowd-sourced content has not yet been verified for accuracy by our erudite editors! The New Kingdom (c. 1570- c.1069 BCE) is the era in Egyptian history Nefertiti (c. 1370 - c. 1336 BCE) was the wife of the pharaoh Akhenaten Ankhsenamun (born c. 1350 BCE and known as Ankhesenpaaten in youth Amun (also Amon, Ammon, Amen, Amun-Ra) is the ancient Egyptian Tutankhamun (also known as Tutankhamen and `King Tut', r. c.1336-c.1327 Moses the Egyptian: The Memory of Egypt in Western Monotheism, Egypt's Golden Couple: When Akhenaten and Nefertiti Were Gods on Earth, Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike. The royal tomb intended for Akhenaten at Amarna did not contain a royal burial, which prompts the question of what happened to the body. Further, Re's representationa falcon-headed goddisappeared to be replaced by a new form called Aten, a solar disc extending rays of light ending in curved hands bearing gifts to the king and queen. Both defiled and admired during his lifetime and long after, the Egyptian pharaoh Akhenaten (c. 1385 B.C.-c. 1350 B.C.) His son succeeded him as Pharaoh, only to be murdered by General Horemheb, who eradicated all traces of Akhenaten and restored worship of the gods of old. His son Tutankhamun (ruled ca. In 1353 or possibly 1351 BCE, Amenhotep IV ascended to the throne of Egypt. Please support World History Encyclopedia. The copyright holder has published this content under the following license: Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike. Akhenaten took the throne in 1352 or 1353 B.C.E. Later Egyptian historians would refer to him only as the heretic king.. Few scholars now agree with the contention that Amenhotep III associated his son Amenhotep IV on the throne for several years of coregency; it is assumed here, in accordance with general scholarly consensus, that the older king died before his son gained power. In the 4th year of his reign (c. 1350 BCE), Akhenaten claimed that a vision sent by his god, Aten, the only god he acknowledged, led him to a . Although there is no recorded dissension or push back from the people while the king lived, once he was gone, everything was disassembled. Instead, Akhenaten began his reign as Amenhotep IV, the son of Amenhotep III. Take note, True Believer! Akhenaten's religious reforms resulted in his being despised as 'the heretic king' by some while admired as a champion of monotheism by others. ), Unlock the world of Marvel Digital Comics! To get right away from the influences . His legacy of monotheism, however, if Freud and others are correct, influenced other religious thinkers to emulate his ideal of one true god and reject the polytheism which had characterized human religious belief for millennia. A hallmark of any monotheistic belief system, however, is that it encourages the belief that, in order for it to be right, other systems must necessarily be wrong. One of the many unfortunate results of Akhenaten's religious reforms was the neglect of foreign policy. View the full answer. Akhenaten came to power as the pharaoh of Egypt in either the year 1353 or 1351 BCE and reigned for roughly 17 years during the 18th dynasty of Egypt's New Kingdom. Powerhouse X-Men creator Ann Nocenti teams up with Sid Kotian for 'Storm' #1 this May. Scholars are uncertain. Little is known about his life as a crown prince. Akhenatens exclusive worship of the sun god Aton led early Egyptologists to claim that he created the worlds first monotheistic religion. 3 Pages. | 22 When he laid out his city, he also commanded that a series of boundary stelae be carved in the cliffs surrounding the site. He was the second son to Amenhotep III (ruled ca. 220 lessons Akhenaten had Abdiashirta brought to Egypt and imprisoned for a year until Hittite advances in the north compelled his release, but there seems a marked difference between his letters dealing with this situation and other king's correspondence on similar matters. The royal family was depicted with features that, by comparison with standard conventions of Egyptian art, appear noticeably exaggerated: a prognathous jaw, a thin neck, sloped shoulders, a pronounced paunch, large hips and thighs, and spindly legs. Priests of Amun who had the time and resources hid statuary and texts from the palace guards sent to destroy them and then abandoned their temple complexes. Originally, he was known as Amenhotep IV, but then changed his name to reflect his link with . In the fifth year of his reign, Akhenaten rejected the traditional religion in favour of worshiping the Aten, or sun disc . The young prince and future king grew up in this new and changing Egypt. Indeed, Amenhotep IV took his father's predilection for the Egyptian sun god, Aten, to new heights. For nearly two millennia, Akhenaten danced with insanity. That same year Akhenaten moved his capital to a new site some 200 miles (300 km) north of Thebes. Amenhotep IV moved his seat of power from the traditional palace at Thebes to one he built at the city he founded, Akhetaten, changed his name to Akhenaten, and continued the religious reforms which resulted in his being despised as `the heretic king' by some later writers while admired as a champion of monotheism by others. In addition, settings became less formal as well. Each day, Akhenaten and Nefertiti processed in their chariots from one end of the city to the other, mirroring the journey of the sun across the sky. Akhnaten soon relocated with 20,000 people to a new capital city, named Akhetaten (and known to archaeologists as Amarna), while it was still under construction. He was originally known as Amenhotep IV but changed his name to Akhenaten during his fifth year in power. Please note that some of these recommendations are listed under our old name, Ancient History Encyclopedia. Akhenaten further reshaped Egypts religious sphere through the persecution of some traditional gods, most notably Amun Egypts state deity for much of the 18th dynasty. That Amenhotep IV was personally involved in these changes seems clear: the biographical text of one of the reigns master sculptors indicates that he was instructed by the king himself. Queen Nefertiti, famous from her portrait bust, is thought to have been an Asian princess from Mitanni. Some Rights Reserved (2009-2023) under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike license unless otherwise noted. Early in his reign, Akhenaten identified himself with the sun god Aton and elevated the cult of Aton above the worship of most other gods, including Amon, the king of the gods. Learn for free about math, art, computer programming, economics, physics, chemistry, biology, medicine, finance, history, and more. The other aspect of Amarna Period art which differentiates it from earlier and later periods is the intimacy of the images, best exemplified in the Stele of Akhenaten showing the family enjoying each other's company in a private moment. Is usually comprehensive and extensive. (42-43). Updates? His reign is known as the Amarna Period because he moved the capital of Egypt from the traditional site at Thebes to the city he founded, Akhetaten, which came to be known as Amarna (also Tell el-Amarna). AKHENATON. Ultimately, Akhenaten 's contribution to Egyptian religion was a failure; his transformation of religion, while initially successful, proved too radical for the Egyptian population show more content. Retrieved from https://www.worldhistory.org/Akhenaten/. At the center was the god Amun of Thebes and his priests had become powerful. World History Encyclopedia. He strongly rebuked Abdiashirta for his actions against Ribaddi and for his friendship with the Hittites who were then Egypt's enemy. By the 12th year of his reign, Nefertiti disappearedsome scholars believe she became the new co-king, Ankhheperure Neferneferuaten. He moved Egypt's capital city from Thebes to the newly built Akhenaten. But this religious and artistic renaissance was short lived; Akhenaten made himself unpopular by closing the old temples, and his lack of enthusiasm for the practical duties of kingship was detrimental to Egypts Imperial interests. Akhenaten drastically revised the religious and political structure of Egypt, developed new art and architectural styles, and generally caused great chaos during the Middle Bronze Age. - Mythology & Facts, Who was Telemachus? When you visit the site, Dotdash Meredith and its partners may store or retrieve information on your browser, mostly in the form of cookies. Akhenaten did not become Akhenaten until later in his reign. Rameses I . Akhenaten became best known to modern scholars for the new religion he created that centered on the Aten. Akhenaten came to power as the pharaoh of Egypt in either the year 1353 or 1351 BCE and reigned for roughly 17 years during the 18th dynasty of Egypts New Kingdom. These deaths greatly affected Akhenaten, causing him to redouble his dedication to Aten and his campaign against the other gods of ancient Egypt. Akhenaten Stelewikipedia user: Maksim (Public Domain). Whether Akhenaten was motivated by a political agenda to suppress the power of the cult of Amun or if he experienced a true religious revelation, he was the first on record to envision a single, supreme deity who cared for the individual lives and fates of human beings. In this lesson we explore the reign of Akhenaten, the religiously zealous son of Amenhotep III who tried to initiate a profound shift in Egyptian religion, culture, and governance. "Akhenaten." Akhenaten's obsession did not outlast his death, and after he died in 1336 B.C.E. The highly anticipated animated series will be available February 15 on Disney+, following the February 10 premiere on Disney Channel. G Sioen / De Agostini Picture Library / Getty Images. Discovering Egypt Website Established 1997. http://downloads.bbc.co.uk/podcasts/radio4/ioth/ioth_20091001-0900a.mp3, Who else might be in Pharaoh Tutankhamuns Tomb, Women of Power and Influence in Ancient Egypt. Akhenaten chose this name for himself after his conversion to the cult of Aten. The mad Titan Thanos, seeking the Heart of the Infinite's power for his own ends, teamed with the Defenders (Doctor Strange, Hulk, Namor the Sub-Mariner, and Silver Surfer) and Captain Marvel (Genis-Vell) to infiltrate the Cosmic Order's space station. Things took a turn for the worse for Akhenaten when he held a massive celebration in the 12th year of his reign dedicated to Aten. The depiction, then, could illustrate Akhenaten and Nefertiti as those who had been transformed to god-like status by their devotion to the Aten to such an extent that their faith is seen even in their children. To use the materials on this site please eMail me and ask permission. As Dorman (2015) confirms, architectural developments which occurred at this time revolved around the Pharaoh's radical religious . Hirst, K. Kris. Akhenaten changed both religion and art in ancient Egypt. Artistically, Akhenaten's reign saw a shift toward more life-like depictions of royalty in everyday settings. The scenes, reconstructed from thousands of individual talatat blocks, portray the royal couple and their eldest daughter, Meritaton, engaged primarily in making offerings to the Aton, although scenes of offering-bearers, cattle designated for slaughter, foreigners in obeisance, and detailed depictions of the royal palace are also abundant. However he deserves acknowledged for being a revolutionary leader. The location chosen for the new capital, named Akhetaton . Later, the faces of both he and Nefertiti are drawn down, their limbs thin and elongated and their bodies bloated. Life in his palace at Akhetaten seems to have been his primary concern. Mark, Joshua J.. Mark has lived in Greece and Germany and traveled through Egypt. It was rich and confident, with soldiers and officials established in foreign countries. [Akhenaten] carried out a religious revolution the like of which had never been seen before in Egypt. The evidence of the subjects' love and respect for Akhenaten comes from "reports written during Akhenaten's reign" of the loyalty his guards showed him. Akhenaten is a name that doesn't come up in casual conversation unless one happens to be an admirer of ancient Egyptian culture. Facial features were characterized by angular, slitted eyes, fleshy lips, nasolabial wrinkles, and holes for ear plugs, while the princesses are often each depicted with an inflated, egg-shaped cranium. Akhenaten (pronounced / k n t n /), also spelled Echnaton, Akhenaton, (Ancient Egyptian: -n-jtn -n-yty, pronounced [u n jatj], meaning "Effective for the Aten"), was an ancient Egyptian pharaoh reigning c. 1353-1336 or 1351-1334 BC, the tenth ruler of the Eighteenth Dynasty.Before the fifth year of his reign, he was known as . Previous Egyptian art idealized its subjects, whereas depictions of Akhenaten and the royal family have a decidedly different look, with elongated limbs and faces and squat, rotund bodies. Discover the true identity of Avenger Prime, check out the finale of 'Strange,' get tangled in a 'Dark Web,' and more in this week's comics! The walls were decorated with reliefs executed entirely in sunk relief, a method well-suited for exterior surfaces exposed to direct sunlight. He ruled for 17 years during the 18th Dynasty and came to be known by some fascinating names, including Great Heretic , The Heretic Pharaoh, and Rebel Pharaoh . Mark, Joshua J.. Amenhotep IV continued that practice, but his attention was focused primarily on his connection to Re-Horakhty (Horus of the two horizons or God of the East), an aspect of Re. Do you know anyone who is so focused on one thing or another that they lose all interest in anything else? Some of the most famous pharaohs come from this period. Akhenaten was an Egyptian pharaoh during the 18th Dynasty of the New Kingdom Period. Nefertiti was a powerful queen who helped Akhenaten transform the Egyptian religious landscape. Akhenaten is most well-known as being a spiritual enthusiast and instigator of revolution within the . Tutors may have included the Egyptian high priest Parennefer (Wennefer); his uncle, the Heliopolitan priest Aanen; and the builder and architect known as Amenhotep son of Hapu. The Cast and Director of Marvel Studios' Black Panther: Wakanda Forever Answer YOUR Questions! 23 chapters | He ordered the name of the previous god to be scrubbed from all official buildings and writings, to the point that some instances of his father's pharaonic name were destroyed because it began with 'Amen.' Retrieved from https://www.thoughtco.com/akhenaten-4769554. 131,-K/kg. This effectively ended the priesthood of Amen-Re. 13341325, a child of the consort known as the "Younger Wife") and the earliest 19th dynasty pharaohs led by Horemheb (ruled ca. Akhenaten believed that Aten, the sun disk, was the one true god. All other trademarks and copyrights are the property of their respective owners. Akhenaten is viewed as one of the most controversial Pharaohs of Ancient Egypt. Scholars have debated the reasons for this peculiar almost other-worldly representations, but perhaps the figures represent Akhenaten's notions of the infusion of light brought from the solar disk into the bodies of the king and queen. This is unsurprising given the fact that the shift throughout Egypt in culture and religion was so immense. Akhenaten: Heretic and Pharaoh of New Kingdom Egypt. Genetic testing has determined that the man buried in KV55 was Tutankhamun's father,[19] but its identification as Akhenaten has since been questioned. Egypt was a wealthy and prosperous nation at the time and had been steadily growing in power since before the reign of Queen Hatshepsut (1479-1458 BCE). A freelance writer and former part-time Professor of Philosophy at Marist College, New York, Joshua J. However, like many topics pertaining to Akhenaten, this issue remains the subject of much scholarly debate. The famous Stele of Akhenaten, depicting the royal family, shows the rays of the Aten touching them all and each of them, even Nefertiti, depicted with the same elongation as the king. Unlike the traditional ritual prescribed for most Egyptian deities, which was carried out in small, darkened sanctuaries in the innermost recesses of their temples, Amenhotep IVs devotion to the Aton was celebrated through the presentation of foodstuffs on large numbers of offering tables and made in open sunlight. Hammurabi's Code is significant chiefly because it. After the first 5 normal years of his reign Amenhotep IV changed his name to Akhenaten meaning 'living spirit of Aten'. Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the Pharaoh Akhenaten. Such was the case for Egypt with Pharaoh Akhenaten. All Text & artwork is Mark Millmore. Akhenaten's religious fervency had spilled over into other areas as well. In 1352 BC, Akhenaten ascended to the throne as the tenth pharaoh of the 18th dynasty. Its like a teacher waved a magic wand and did the work for me. Akhenaten. Articles from Britannica Encyclopedias for elementary and high school students. Please select which sections you would like to print: Alternate titles: Akhenaton, Akhnaton, Amenhotep IV, Amenophis IV, Ikhnaton. The royal family took on a more androgynous appearance that sometimes even obscured the difference between Akhenaten and Queen Nefertiti. We also examine his actions in foreign policy and the changes in Egyptian art during his reign. 1379 BCE). Egypt's standing in the ancient world suffered during Akhenaten's reign. Akhenaten chose this name for himself after his conversion to the cult of Aten. Only a few years after he took the throne, he changed his name to Akhenaten, meaning 'Living Spirit of Aten,' and proclaimed himself to be the only conduit through which the living world could speak to Aten. His odd appearance in representations that he commissioned and his preoccupation with worshiping the sun-disc, or Aten, have stimulated a vast amount of academic discussion and controversy for more than . "Akhenaten: Heretic and Pharaoh of New Kingdom Egypt." To those who came after him in Egypt, however, he was the 'heretic king' and 'the enemy' whose memory needed to be eradicated. The first changes in the artistic representation of the king and Nefertiti began early in his reign. Akhenaten is often not credited as being one of the great pharaoh's of ancient Egypt; his name is not as recognized as his son, Tutankhamen. (137), Nefertiti Offering to the AtenElsie McLaughlin (CC BY-NC-SA). World History Encyclopedia. To prepare for the jubilee, Amenhotep IV began building a huge number of temples, including several near the ancient temple of Karnak. By the time Akhenaten took the throne, his family had been ruling Egypt for nearly two hundred years and had established a huge empire dominating Palestine, Phoenicia, and Nubia. Akhenaten and Nefertiti worship the Aten, Tall al-Amarnah (Amarna, Tell el-Amarna), necropolis, detail of stele, relief. Hatshepsut and her successors, such as Tuthmosis III (1458-1425 BCE), employed a balanced approach of diplomacy and military action in dealing with foreign nations; Akhenaten chose simply to largely ignore what happened beyond the borders of Egypt and, it seems, most things outside of his palace at Akhetaten. In this article, you point out that Akhenaten reined between 1352 and 1336 BCE. He moved his capital from Thebes to a place now called Tell el-Amarna or Amarna, more than 200 miles (300 km) north, on a desert bay on the east side of the Nile River. The 18th Dynasty of Ancient Egypt was full of intrigue. In this lesson, we'll explore the reign of Akhenaten, his policies, and how his own fervent obsession shaped Egypt during his time as pharaoh. the Egyptian capital returned to Thebes and Egyptians resumed their traditional religious worship. One of the earliest landmarks of Paleolithic culture is. We do know that Akhenaten and his wife Nefertiti worshipped only the sun god, and the names of other gods and goddesses were removed from view. "Akhenaten." The end of Akhenatens reign is murky. However, within a few years there were changes. Enrolling in a course lets you earn progress by passing quizzes and exams. L04: Reading Quiz (Taking this quiz unlocks Lesson 4.2) Due No due date Points 2 Questions 2 Time Limit None Instructions You They had six daughters but no sons; the oldest, Meritaten and Ankhesenpaaten, were to become wives of their father. Akhenaten was one of the most controversial Pharaohs to rule Egypt. 3.3 Transfer of Capital to Akhetaten: Political and Religious Motives. The Amarna Letters, (correspondence found in the city of Amarna between the kings of Egypt and those of foreign nations) which provide evidence of Akhenaten's negligence, also show him to have a keen sense of foreign policy when the situation interested him. Interest in Tutankhamun spread to the family of the 'golden king' and so attention was brought to bear again on Akhenaten after almost 4,000 years. Perhaps, then, the elongation of the figures in these images was meant to show human transformation when touched by the power of the Aten. The pharaoh as a servant of the gods, & identified with a certain god was common practice, but no one before Akhenaten had proclaimed himself an actual god. What, then, was this new religion that motivated Akhenaten to upend so many elements of Egyptian society? Cite This Work A religious reformer he made the Aten, the sun disc, the center of Egypt . As the pharaoh Amenhotep IV, he came to power during the New . Guests include Kate Spence, Richard Parkinson and Elizabeth Frood. Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions. Atenism, however, was a very exclusive religion confined to the royal family, with the king as the only mediator between man and god. Akhenatens son, Tutankhaten, restored the disgraced Amun as king of the gods, and he renamed himself Tutankhamun to honor Amun. Within the first few years of his rule, Amenhotep IV introduced sweeping changes in the spheres of religion, architecture, and art (see Amarna style). 1379-1336 BCE) was one of the last pharaohs of the 18th Dynasty of the New Kingdom Egypt, who is known for briefly establishing monotheism in the country.Akhenaten drastically revised the religious and political structure of Egypt, developed new art and architectural styles, and generally caused great chaos during the Middle Bronze Age. The names of the god Amun and the other gods were chiseled from monuments throughout Egypt, the temples were closed, and the old practices outlawed. License. AKHENATON (or Akhenaten) was the tenth pharaoh of Egypt's eighteenth dynasty (c. 1352 - 1336 bce) and the founder of the earliest historically documented monotheistic religion. - Stories, Character Traits & Analysis, Xenophanes of Colophon: Philosophy, Quotes & Biography, Empress Theodora: Biography, Facts & Quotes, Execution by Guillotine: Definition & Invention, Charles Martel: Biography & Battle of Tours, Working Scholars Bringing Tuition-Free College to the Community. To consider these images as realistic depictions of the royal family, afflicted with some disorder, seems to be a mistake in that there would be no reason for Nefertiti to share in the king's supposed disorder. Freud quotes from James Henry Breasted, the noted archaeologist, that: It is important to notice that his name, Moses, was Egyptian. From documents and letters of the time, it is known that other nations, formerly allies, wrote numerous times asking Egypt for help in various affairs and that most of these requests were ignored by the deified king. The Metropolitan Museum of Art 1000 Fifth Avenue at 82nd Street, New York, 10028-0198. The Cosmic Order used their ultimate might to force peace onto the universe. Amenhotep IV likely ascended to the throne of Egypt as a teenager. His queen, Nefertiti, to whom many historians believe he delegated numerous governing responsibilities, died during the festivities. Religious persecution was new to the Egyptians, who had always worshipped many deities and were ever ready to add new gods to the pantheon. Normally, but by no means always, kings held their first jubilee after they had ruled 30 years. Each ray ended in a tiny hand with which the Aton might offer the sign of life to the king and queen or even embrace their limbs and crowns. Akhenaten's tomb was uncovered by the great archaeologist Flinders Petrie in 1907 CE and Tutankhamun's tomb, more famously, by Howard Carter in 1922 CE. This is categorically stated by English Egyptologist, Reeves (2001) who argues that El-Amarna was well structured and as mysterious as Akhenaten and . A sculptor's model of Akhenaten, in Amarna style, c. 1353-1337 BCE, via The Louvre, Paris. Percy lives in the Upper East Side of Manhattan, but found his life uprooted upon discovering his true paternity.He has black hair and sea-green eyes. In the middle of the 14th Century BC, the heretic pharaoh Akhenaten adopted the main worship of a single god, the sun-disk or Aten, eradicating Egyptian traditions that had lasted for millennia and drastically altering the art style to reflect this new freedom of expression. However, he soon showed his hostility for Amun. But Akhenaten undermined the prosperity of Egypt through his own obsession with the sun god, Aten. Jade artifacts, especially in the form of circular discs, are primarily associated with ancient. The polytheism of the ancient Egyptians encouraged a worldview where peace and balance (ma'at) were emphasized and religious tolerance was not considered an issue; there is not even a word directly corresponding to the concept of `religious tolerance' in the ancient Egyptian texts. The Hittites from the north began to make gains and this led to a general disintegration of the empire. The city was built on virgin land in the middle of Egypt facing towards the east and precisely positioned to direct the rays of the morning sun toward temples and doorways. "The Great Hymn to the Aten" in Lichtheim, Miriam 1978. Amenhotep IV changed his name to Akhenaton, meaning "the Servant of Aten" early in his reign. Cu MIX za . Any evidence that Akhenaten involved himself in matters outside of his city at Akhetaten always comes back to self-interest rather than state-interest. Beginning with the first dynasty of the Old Kingdom, pharaohs held "sed festivals," over-the-top parties of eating, drinking, and dancing that were jubilees of kingly renewal. Several scholars have suggested that a skeleton found in tomb KV55 in the Valley of the Kings could belong to Akhenaten, because the tomb contained numerous grave goods (including the coffin in which the remains were found) belonging to Akhenaten and other Amarna period figures. In 1334 B.C., after a 17 year reign, Akhenaten was abducted by the alien Cosmic Order, who had two millennia before discovered and accessed the vast power of the Heart of the Infinite. Nefertiti means "The beautiful one has come.". The pharaoh submits gifts from the sun to the priest Ai and his wife. Thank you! King Amenhotep IV (Akhenaten) King Akhenaten or Amenhotep IV was the great Egyptian pharaoh for the 18th dynasty for 17 years and died in 1336 B.C. There were so many temples required that Amenhotep IV's architects invented a new building style to speed things up, using smaller blocks (talatats). Elongated, spindly limbs and narrow eyes figure prominently in depictions of the royal family during this period, causing some scholars to wonder whether Akhenaten had a medical condition such as Marfan syndrome. It had several royal greater-than-lifesized statues made in a new art style, located north of the temple of Amun, and near a mudbrick palace for the king. Freud recognizes that the cult of Aten existed long before Akhenaten raised it to prominence but points out that Akhenaten added a component unknown previously in religious belief: "He added the something new that turned into monotheism, the doctrine of a universal god: the quality of exclusiveness" (24). However, in the fifth year, he underwent a dramatic religious transformation, changed his devotion from the cult of Amun to that of Aten, and, for the next twelve years, became famous (or infamous) as the 'heretic king' who abolished the traditional religious rites of Egypt and instituted the first known monotheistic state religion in the world and, according to some, monotheism itself. Changing his name to Akhenaten, he established Aten-devoted cities in Egypt, Nubia, and Syria, attempting to obliterate all worship of the Egyptian Gods Helopolitans and Ennead. Akhenaten was born as Amenhotep IV (in Greek Amenophis IV) in the 7th or 8th year of his father's reign (ca. Among the surviving works of this period are the colossal statues of Akhenaten, the paintings from his private residence, the bust of his wife Nefertiti, and that of his mother, Queen Tiy. One temple at Karnak shows only Nefertiti as the primary officiant before the Aton, sometimes accompanied by Meritatonan unprecedented privilege for a mere queen. Akhenaten, also spelled Akhenaton, Akhnaton, or Ikhnaton, also called Amenhotep IV, Greek Amenophis, king (135336 bce) of ancient Egypt of the 18th dynasty, who established a new cult dedicated to the Aton, the suns disk (hence his assumed name, Akhenaten, meaning beneficial to Aton). Our latest articles delivered to your inbox, once a week: Our mission is to engage people with cultural heritage and to improve history education worldwide. As a god, he seems to have felt that the affairs of state were beneath him and simply stopped attending to his responsibilities. Akhenaten ruled between 1353 BC and 1336 BC, and during his reign much changed in his kingdom. In the long course of Egyptian history, few figures have been as polarizing as Akhenaten. Step One of Akhenaten's plan to refocus Egypt's religious life began shortly after his rise to power in 1349 BCE, when Akhenaten instituted a cult to Aten and renamed himself to reflect this god (Akhenaten meaning "One is effective for the Aten").. Pharaoh during Egypt's 18th Dynasty, Amenhotep established a monotheistic religion worshipping the sun god Aten, alleged creator of the universe. Your key for reading. China. Akhenaten was not the first pharaoh to show interest in the Aten. (111-112). The British Museum is free to everybody and opens at 10am every day. The pharaoh Akhenaten worshiped only the sun god, Aten. Their secret revealed by the Hulk's rampage, they nonetheless located the Heart and severed the Order's instrumentation. and 1335 B.C. The Egyptologist Zahi Hawass writes: Dating to this point in Akhenaten's reign was a campaign to excise the name of gods other than the Aten, especially Amun, from the monuments of Egypt. Step Two was enacted when he sent his workers to remove all . But one thing external peace could not protect against was the instability of its pharaoh's whims. However, modern scholarship notes that Akhenatens cult drew from aspects of other godsparticularly re-Harakhte, Shu, and Maatin its imagining and worship of Aton. He ruled from 1352-1336. pr. Amenhotep III's heir was to be his eldest son, Thutmosis, but when he died unexpectedly, Amenhotep IV was made heir and at one point co-regent to his father for perhaps the last two or three years of his reign. Not only was it rich, but it was at peace with its neighbors and well-positioned for long-term stability. Eventually, Akhenaten ordered the building of a new capital to honor Aten and secure the break with tradition he had initiated. The fourth temple built at Karnak in the 4th year of his reign, called Hutbenben "the Temple of the benben stone," is the earliest example of the revolutionary style of the new pharaoh. In the fourth year of his reign, he changed his name to Akhenaten. Reeves argues that, far from being the idealistic founder of a new . World History Encyclopedia. Letters to the king discovered in the ruins of Tell el-Amarna, known as the Amarna Letters, show the discontent of the army commanders and high commissioners in Palestine and Syria. Cr. Akhenaten remains an interesting figure, as does his Queen, Nefertiti. The Akhenaten Temple Project. He has inherited special abilities from Poseidon which include the ability to control water, boats, and ships; to create small hurricanes; to . Cookies collect information about your preferences and your devices and are used to make the site work as you expect it to, to understand how you interact with the site, and to show advertisements that are targeted to your interests. Akhenaten's revolution became ugly as time progressed. At the beginning of his reign, the young pharaoh, Amenhotep IV, still worshiped the old gods, especially Amun of Thebes and the sun god, Re-Harakhte. Their faces were characterized by large lips, long noses and squinting eyes, and their bodies displayed narrow shoulders and waists, small and somewhat concave torsos and large thighs, buttocks and bellies. I would definitely recommend Study.com to my colleagues. Dr. Doom learned Akhenaten's origins, and traveled back in time to slay him before he gained power, but Akhenaten anticipated this and foiled him. This was probably carried out, at least in part, by illiterate iconoclasts, presumably following the orders of their king. Many historians agree that Egypt's status in the ancient world fell during Akhenaten's reign. Akhenaten: The Mysteries of Religious Revolution, The face of Akhenaten, with characteristic exaggerated features, on an unfinished sculptors trial piece from Amarna, Talatat block used by Pharaoh Akhenaten, Luxor Museum, Egypt. in Aktuality. Much scholarly debate has centred on whether these features reflect the actual appearance of the kingextended by convention to his family and retainersand various theories have been argued about the presumed pathology of Amenhotep IV and what medical conditions might produce the anatomical traits shown. Getty Images content under the following license: Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike who is so focused on one thing peace... Fourth year of his reign as Amenhotep IV ascended to the AtenElsie McLaughlin ( CC ). Disappearedsome scholars believe she became the new and opens at 10am every day,! Deaths greatly affected Akhenaten, causing him to redouble his dedication to Aten and his campaign against the other of. York, 10028-0198 to force peace onto the universe the one true.. Sources if you have any Questions on this site please eMail me and permission. Chose this name for himself after his conversion to the cult of Aten is... World suffered during Akhenaten 's reign gods, and during his reign, Akhenaten ascended the! Status in the Aten, to whom many historians agree that Egypt 's enemy changing.... Did not become Akhenaten until later in his reign Egyptian religious landscape affected Akhenaten, this remains! You know anyone who is so focused on one thing or another that they lose all interest the... A method well-suited for exterior surfaces exposed to direct when akhenaten comes to power, what are his policies primarily informed by? for accuracy our... Lets you earn progress by passing quizzes and exams officials established in foreign policy and the changes in fourth. 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