Akhenaten

The Heretic King

 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TD1C13 RG4F8&feature=related

 What previous religion existed before Akhenaten?

Who was Akhenaten?

Akhenaten (Ruled jointly with father 1352 however ruled solely in 1350-1336 BC) was son of Amenhotep III and Queen Tiy. During his reign both the art and religion in Egypt were marked by rapid change. When he initially succeeded the throne he was known as Amenhotep IV, but changed his name to Akhenaten in his fifth regal year, and began to build a new capital called Akhetaten ("horizon of the sun"), in Middle Egypt. This phase, encompassing Akhenaten's and Smenkhkara's reign and the beginning of Tutankhamen's, is now referred to as the Armarna Period, and the site of the city of Akhetaten is now known as el-Amarna.

Who was originally suppose to ascend the throne? What happened?

 Akhenaten was a philosopher and a thinker, much more so than his forefathers. His father Amenhotep III had recognised the growing power of the priesthood of Amun and had sought to curb it - Akhenaten however took matters a lot further by introducing the new "monotheistic" cult of worship to the sun-disc Aten. Akhenaten raised the Aten to the position of 'sole god', represented as a disk with rays of light ending with hands which reach out to the royal family, sometimes offering the hieroglyphic sign for life. Akhenaten and his family are frequently shown worshipping the Aten or simply indulging in everyday activities beneath the disk.

 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ub9N6u WXV4Y

 How did Akhenaten try to remove any trace of the other gods?

 The names of other deities were removed from temple walls in an attempt to reinforce the idea of the Aten as a single supreme deity.

 What were the three stages of Akhenatens religious revolution?

 Akhenaten decided that the worship of the Aten required a location uncontaminated by the cults of traditional gods and to this end chose a site in Middle Egypt for a new capital city which he called Akhetaten, 'Horizon of the Aten'. It is a desert site surrounded on three sides by cliffs and to the west by the Nile

What motivated Akhenaten to make these changes?

Physical appearance
Significantly, and for the only time in the history of Egyptian royal art, Akhenaten's family was depicted in a decidedly naturalistic manner, and they are clearly shown displaying affection for each other. Nefertiti also appears beside the king in actions usually reserved for a Pharaoh, suggesting that she attained unusual power for a queen. Artistic representations of Akhenaten give him a strikingly bizarre appearance, with slender limbs, a protruding belly and wide hips, giving rise to controversial theories such as that he may have actually been a woman masquerading as a man, or that he was a hermaphrodite or had some other intersex condition. The fact that Akhenaten had children argues against these suggestions. It has also been suggested that he suffered from Marfan's syndrome.

What was Akhenatens view on the Aten ?

The effect on the economy Inward looking Pulled all resources and redirected to the building of capital Borders started to shrink Trade routes established started to falter Military used for building projects

What was the cult of the Aten?

No mythology No human characteristics No family tree What else?

Family values
Akhenaten was married to Nefertiti at the very beginning of his reign, and the couple had six known daughters:

What happened after Akhenatens death?

Akhenaten died in his seventeenth year on the throne and his reforms did not survive for long in his absence Much of the art and building infrastructure that was created during Akhenaten's reign was defaced or destroyed in the period immediately following his death. Stone building blocks from his construction projects were later used as foundation stones for subsequent rulers temples and tombs.

 In year 14 of Akhenaten's reign, Nefertiti herself vanishes from the historical record, and there is no word of her after that date. Her disappearance coincides with the rise of co-ruler Smenkhkare to the throne. Smenkhkare is thought to have been married to her daughter Meritaten, and may have become Akhenaten's co-regent for a few years before Akhenaten's death.