drawing
of Akhenaten with cat by Megaera Lorenz
Akhenaten was an ancient Egyptian
pharaoh who reigned about 3,500 years ago. He made some major, but rather
short-lived changes to various aspects of ancient Egyptian culture, the
most notable one being his religious revolution. Akhenaten also made major
changes in the ancient Egyptian art style, and presented himself in a very
different manner from any of his predecessors.
Akhenaten ruled in the eighteenth
dynasty, which seemed to be an age of revolution in ancient Egypt. Only
a few reigns before his had been the reign of Hatshepsut, the most famous
(but not the only) female pharaoh.
Akhenaten's strange appearance and
mysterious behavior, as well as his connection with Nefertiti and with
the ill-fated "boy king" Tutankhamen, have made him the subject of much
passion and controversy in the last century or so. Akhenaten is all things
to all people--to some he was a fanatical lunatic, to some he comes across
as a strange, eccentric young man whose behavior was strongly influenced
by his mother, to others he was a Christ-like visionary and a mentor of
Moses, and to still others he was simply someone who happened to be at
the wrong place at the wrong time and who really had nothing to do with
the dramatic reformations that went on during his reign.
Akhenaten had an extensive family, which
was well represented in the art from his reign. His parents were Amenhotep
III and Tiye. Akhenaten's name was originally Amenhotep IV, which he changed
later. Akhenaten was married to Nefertiti, who is now famous because of
the beautiful bust of her found at Amarna. Nefertiti's origins are uncertain.
Some historians believe that she was a foreign princess, but there is some
evidence to suggest that she was a relative of Akhenaten.
Akhenaten and Nefertiti had six daughters,
named Merytaten, Meketaten, Ankhesenpaaten, Neferneferuaten-tasharit, Neferneferure,
and Sotepenre. Meketaten died when she was about eleven of unknown causes,
and Neferneferuaten-tasharit, Neferneferure, and Sotepenre followed shortly
afterwards. They were probably victims of a plague that was running rampant
in Egypt at the time.
There were two mystery figures in
Akhenaten's family--Smenkhkare (Akhenaten's co-regent and successor), and
Tutankhaten (later Tutankhamen). These two were almost certainly brothers--this
was basically confirmed by the discovery of Smenkhkare's body in tomb 55--but
their relation to Akhenaten is unknown. Maybe they were brothers of Akhenaten
as well, or cousins.
Akhenaten's religious revolution
The nature of Akhenaten's revolution is
well established--he overthrew Egyptian polytheism in favor of the worship
of a single god, Aten--but the reason behind it is still unknown. Many
people have offered theories.
When historians first began to study
Akhenaten carefully, in the late 1800s, the first thing that naturally
came to everyone's mind was that Akhenaten was divinely inspired. However,
it does not seem likely that Akhenaten simply decided out of the blue to
make such a major change. Many early historians, determined to link Akhenaten's
religion somehow to the Jewish religion, said that he was inspired by Joseph
or Moses (Redford, p. 4, 1984). This is a possibility, considering that
Joseph, at least, was around in roughly the same time period as Akhenaten.
However, after close examination of Akhenaten's religion, this hypothesis
seems unlikely. Akhenaten's religion did center on one god, but his major
emphasis was on the Aten's visibility, tangibility, and undeniable realness.
Akhenaten placed no emphasis, therefore, on faith.
According to John Tuthill, a professor
at the University of Guam, Akhenaten's reasons for his religious reform
were political. By the time of Akhenaten's reign, the god Amen had risen
to such a high status that the priests of Amen had become even more wealthy
and powerful than the pharaohs. However, Barbara Mertz argued that Akhenaten
and his courtiers would not have easily perceived this (Mertz, 1966, p.
269). Still, this theory remains as a possibility to be considered.
It may be that Akhenaten was influenced
by his family members, particularly his wife or mother (Dunham, 1963, p.
4; Mertz, 1966, p. 269). There was a certain trend in Akhenaten's family
towards sun-worship. Towards the end of the reign of Akhenaten's father,
Amenhotep III, the Aten was depicted increasingly often.
Some historians have suggested that
the same religious revolution would have happened even if Akhenaten had
never become pharaoh at all. However, considering the violent reaction
that followed shortly after Akhenaten's untimely death, this seems improbable.
The reasons for Akhenaten's revolution
still remain a mystery. Until further evidence can be uncovered, it will
be impossible to know just what motivated his unusual behavior.
Works Cited:
Dunham, Barrows (1963). Heroes and Heretics. New York: Alfred A.
Knopf, Inc.
Mertz, Barbara (1966). Red Land, Black Land. New York: Coward
McCann, Inc.
Redford, Donald B. (1984). Akhenaten: The Heretic King. Princeton,
New Jersey: Princeton University Press
Drawing of Akhenaten on the Nile by Megaera Lorenz
Read more about Akhenaten's
family, and see a drawing of Smenkhkare by Megaera Lorenz! What was "wrong" with Akhenaten, if anything? Check
it out at The Mystery of
Akhenaten: Genetics or Aesthetics! What kind of webpage would Akhenaten
himself have designed? See it at Webpage-en-Aten!Find
out about the fascinating art from Akhenaten's reign at The
Art of the Amarna Period!
What are some of your views about the mysteries of
the Amarna period?
Please take some time to let me know by signing
the Amarna Survey!
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drawing
of Akhenaten with cat by Megaera Lorenz
