Amenhotep IV (Akhenaten)

Reign: 1350 - 1334 BC

(18) Dynasty of Egypt & Religious Revolution

Amenhotep IV changed his name to Akhenaten, meaning "the Servant of Aten" (a sun God) early in his reign. Whereas his father, Amenhotep III, had sought to reduce the increasing power of the priesthood, Akhenaton practically dismantled it. Akhenaten started his reign as most Egyptian kings. But fairly early in his reign he introduced a monotheistic worship of Aten, the Sun God. At first he attempted to place temples for next to temples for other gods. Eventually he closed all the other temples and took their revenues.

Akhenaten

 In the process of this religious revolution, Akhenaten placed himself as the intermediary between Aten and the people. This helped eliminate the need for the priesthood. As the only one with access to the god, Akhenaten established himself as a god-king and became the first king to be called Pharaoh.

New Capital at el-Amarna

In a move to further distance he created a new capital at Akhenaton now known as el-Amarna. This sacred city had never been occupied prior to Akhenaten's moving his capital nor did it outlast Akhenaton's reign. After Akhenaten's death the backlash forced his son, Tutankhamen to reverse the move to monotheism and return to the worship of many gods. During his reign it appears likely that only the nobles embraced the Aten cult but even much of that may have been just to stay in favor with the king. Even without their temples the common people apparently maintained their old worship practices.

 Changes in Art

This period of change during Akhenaten's reign has become known as "The Amarna Revolution" or "The Amarna Interlude". Besides the changes involving the king's position and title, the religious movements and the capital there was a new artistic style used as well. Bek, Akhenaten's "Chief Sculptor and Master" proclaims in a stele that the king told the artists to create "what they saw". This led to the development of a more realistic style in the official art that in many cases continued on after Akhenaten's time.

Akhenaton's Physiognomy

When the first portraits of Akhenaten and his wife Nefertiti was uncovered they were thought to represent two women because of Akhenaton's body style. Akhenaton's sculptures usually show him with an elongated neck, protruding belly and a lower body form more closely related to the way women were depicted. For a while it was thought that Akhenaton was actually a woman. Today there is a theory that Akhenaten may have developed a condition known as Frolich's Syndrome late in life. This tumor of the pituitary gland can result in body deformations very similar to Akhenaton's depiction.

10 FACTS ON ANCIENT EGYPT’S MONOTHEIST PHARAOH

#1 HIS FATHER IS KNOWN AS AMENHOTEP THE MAGNIFICENT.

Born Amenhotep, Akhenaten was the son of Amenhotep III and Tiye. Amenhotep III, also known as Amenhotep the Magnificent, was the ninth pharaoh of the Eighteenth dynasty of Ancient Egypt and had a long and prosperous reign. Tiye was Amenhotep III’s Great Royal Wife, the title given to the principal wife of the pharaoh. Their eldest son Crown Prince Thutmose died before Amenhotep III thus making Akhenaten next in line for the throne.

#2 HE RULED OVER ANCIENT EGYPT FOR SEVENTEEN YEARS.

Akhenaten ruled as Amenhotep IV for the first few years of his reign. Amenhotep IV was crowned in Thebes. The date of his succession to the throne is not known with certainty and varies between 1370 BC and 1358 BC. His reign lasted for seventeen years till his death in 1336 BC or 1334 BC. Amenhotep IV was pharaoh of the Eighteenth dynasty of Ancient Egypt.

#3 AMENHOTEP IV WAS THE HUSBAND OF THE FAMOUS NEFERTITI.

Amenhotep IV married Nefertiti at the beginning of his reign. From inscriptions it can be deduced that Nefertiti and Akhenaten had at least six daughters. Though Nefertiti was not his only wife, Akhenaten is shown openly displaying love for Nefertiti and their daughter in depictions. Most probably, the couple had a genuine romantic relationship. Nefertiti became an icon of feminine beauty after the rediscovery of her bust in 1912.

#4 AMENHOTEP IV INSTITUTED THE FIRST MONOTHEISTIC RELIGION IN HISTORY.

When Amenhotep IV came to the throne, many gods were worshipped in Egypt with Amun being the King of Gods. Initially he allowed worship of Egypt’s traditional deities but soon he took steps to establish sun god Aten as the supreme god of Egypt. By year 9 of his reign Akhenaten declared that Aten was not merely the supreme god, but the only god. This was a radical step and the first instance of monotheism in all history.

 #5 HE TOOK THE NAME AKHENATEN IN YEAR FIVE OF HIS REIGN.

In year 5 of his reign that Amenhotep IV disbanded priesthoods of all the other gods, rejected the primary god Amun as superstition and replaced the traditional image of falcon as the symbol of deity with the sun disk. To show his loyalty to Aten, he changed his name from Amenhotep, which meant ‘Amun is content’, to Akhenaten, meaning ‘Living Spirit of Aten’.

#6 AKHENATEN ORDERED THE ERADICATION OF ALL OF EGYPT’S TRADITIONAL GODS.

In year 9 of his reign, Akhenaten ordered the eradication of all of Egypt’s traditional gods. He ordered the defacing of Amun’s temples throughout Egypt and imposed a ban on images except the ones which referred to Aten. By these measures he tried to instil in people that Aten was the one true god. He also declared that he was the only intermediary between Aten and the people of Egypt thus eliminating the priests.

#7 HE IS THE FOUNDER OF THE CITY OF AMARNA.

In year 5 of his reign Akhenaten ordered the construction of his new capital which was named Akhetaten or ‘Horizon of Aten’. Akhenaten was dedicated to his new religion of worship to the Aten. The temples built there were roofless so that rays of the sun would fall on the worshipers. The site today is known as Amarna. It is one of the most important historical sites in Egypt and exploration of the city continues to this day.

#8 ART WAS REVOLUTIONIZED DURING THE REIGN OF AKHENATEN.

Akhenaten presided over one of the wealthiest period of ancient Egypt. Numerous structures were constructed during his reign, the most famous being the Temple of Amenhotep IV. Art was revolutionized during his reign with more realistic artistic portrayals. It was radical for its time as it focused on ordinary activities and domestic scenes. Also royal women became more prominent in portrayals of the period.

#9 AKHENATEN AND ATENISM WERE ERASED FROM RECORDS AFTER HIS DEATH.

After the death of Akhenaten, his monotheistic religion was discarded and traditional religious practices were gradually restored. He was referred to as the ‘heretic king’ and all traces to him and Atenism were erased. His name doesn’t appear in any of the king lists compiled by later Pharaohs and it was only after the discovery of the site of Amarna in the nineteenth century that the world came to know about Akhenaten

#10 AKHENATEN WAS THE FATHER OF KING TUT.

Tutankhamun

One of Akhenaten’s sons was Tutankhamun. Tutankhamun went on to become pharaoh and took the name Tutankhamun. He became famous when his nearly intact tomb was discovered in 1922 and is now popularly known as King Tut. Previously it was not certain that King Tut was the son of Akhenaten but DNA tests in 2010 established this fact. It is also now known that King Tut’s mother was a biological sister of Akhenaten and one of his wives.

AN INTERESTING THEORY

Since Akhenaten was the first monotheist, there is a theory that after his death his followers were forced to leave Egypt and were led by an Atenist priest who was the biblical Moses. That Akhenaten’s monotheism religion later went on to become Judaism cannot be definitely established. However there are several points that support this theory including the fact that three principal Judaic terms for God have a connection to Aten.

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