king akehnaten

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In the Shadow of a Heretic: The Story of the Power Hungry King Akhenatenin a Time Known as the Amarna Interlude

By Jeff Jackson Jeff Jackson, 2011

Jeff i s a Toledo native who joined the U.S. Navy ri ght out of hi gh school. H e is cur rentl y amember of the Ohio Ai r National Guard. H e has had a li felong in terest i n h istory especial lythe history of An cient Egypt. H e hopes to pursue an M .A. in H istory after h is graduation

fr om Lourdes College as a hi story major in M ay 2011.

Et Ti el Amarna known today as Tell el Amarna is a place located in Egypt at the center

point between the Mediterranean Sea and the First Cataract of the Nile River. 1 It is west of the

Eastern Desert and is situated on the eastern side of the Nile River. 2 It was here that a legend was

born which has been debated ever since. This place probably has little to no meaning to theaverage person in modern times. However, to historians, theologians, Egyptologists, even

psychotherapists, Tell el Amarna is a location that over the last 200 years has brought a torrent of

controversy to the academic world. A chain of events took place approximately 2,500 years ago

at Tell el Amarna that rocked Ancient Egypt to its core. This chain of events is known today as

the Amarna Heresy and it was led by a heretical, despotic and egomaniacal pharaoh known as

Akhenaten.

What was the Amarna Heresy and who exactly was this despot known as Akhenaten?

There are many theories concerning Akhenaten that have developed over the past 200 years or

so. Many researchers from a plethora of different backgrounds have tried to tell Akhenatens

story. From what historians can ascertain, Akhenaten was a heretical Egyptian king who led a

massive religious and cultural revolution (or some might say reformation) in the Eighteenth

Dynasty during the period of Ancient Egypts New Kingdom (c. 1352 -1336 B.C.E.). 3 Up until

the twentieth century and even for some until today, it was Akhenatens revolutionary changes

that brought about the first belief in monotheism. During his reign, Akhenaten made massive


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changes to Egyptian religious beliefs, artwork, and cultural attitudes. These changes were so

radical that pharaohs who followed after Akhenaten attempted to erase him from history by

destroying his temples and monuments. In fact, there is not a single mention or listing of

Akhenaten in any of recorded histories provided from antiquity.

The only other possible references to Akhenaten from ancient times were made by a

Ptolemaic Egyptian priest named Manetho in the third century B.C.E. and the Geek historian

Herodotus who lived in the fifth century B.C.E. Manetho mentioned in his writings about a king

who moved 80,000 people to live in a city in the middle of the desert just east of the Nile River

that would later be abandoned by later Egyptian dynasties. Herodotus mentions in his work Histories , a despotic Egyptian king who closed all the temples of the Egyptian gods and made all

of the people work for him. 4 But neither of these ancient writers mentioned Akhenaten by name.

The deeds recorded could be of anyone. Scholars attribute the references in these works to

Akhenaten because of the actions done by the king mentioned seem to depict his behavior.

It is precisely in this methodology where the problems lay. Historians try to fill in the

blanks as they see fit. Many people have told the story of Akhenaten by filling in the blanks

through the cultural experiences of their own time. Since there is no historical record of the

Amarna Period, the only evidence we have of this time comes from facts and observations

obtained from the archaeology done at Tell el Amarna. The many theories concerning Akhenaten

and the Amarna Heresy must be traced, weighed and quantified against the multitude of

archaeological data that has accumulated over the past two centuries. Over the centuries many

individuals had visited Tell el Amarna either to explore the ruins or to search for treasure.

Serious work was not done until the late eighteenth century when Jean Franois Champollion

deciphered the Ancient Egyptian hieroglyphs on the Rosetta Stone. Once this occurred, many


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others learned the language of Ancient Egypt and better attempts were made at learning what

actually happened during the Amarna Period.

One of the most influential people in western scholarship who made this attempt was an

English traveler and antiquarian, John Gardner Wilkinson (1797-1875). He was an astute scholar

whose observations culminated in a work entitled The Manners and Customs of the Ancient

Egyptians (1836). His book was the most influential one of its era and expressed Victorian views

on Ancient Egypt. Wilkinson was the first to mention how the Ancient Egyptians of the Amarna

period had a significant change in their religious views. He argued how the representation and

worship of the sun differed from the main stream religious views of Ancient Egypt, and theartwork of the time period was so dissimilar to the norm that Egyptians of the Amarna Period

must have been of a foreign origin. In his work, Wilkinson, also wrote that the names of the

kings found at Amarna perhaps belonged to a dynasty of shepherd kings. 5 He was unable or

unwilling to provide an explanation about the origin of these foreign shepherd kings ruling

Amarna. Wilkinson opened up a Pandoras Box of speculation which led to one the most absurd

theories surrounding the Amarna period. Namely his use accounts of the Amarna Period to

confirm the Book of Exodus in the Bible as historical fact.

During the 1850s, many scholars and amateur historians were concerned with the new

discoveries in Egypt and the legitimacy of the Bible. One individual in particular was an amateur

Egyptologist and staunch anti-Catholic named William Osburn. Between the years 1851 and

1854, Osburn wrote several books on Ancient Egypt and used Wilkinson as his main source of

information. Each one of his works attempted to show how the archaeology of Ancient Egypt

proved the historicity of the Hebrew Bible. Some of his works include: The Antiquities of Egypt ;

Ancient Egypt, Her Testimony to the Truth of the Bible ; Israel in Egypt, Books of Genesis and


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Exodus illustrated by Existing Monuments . In these works, Osburn, painted a picture of the

relationship between Akhenaten and his wife Nefertiti as the perfect marriage which had to be

divinely inspired. Osburns works were well-received by the general public and acquired a

favored status especially among the English who saw his work on Akhenaten as a defense of the

progression of monotheism from polytheism, and an example of one who lived a pious family

life. His works would bear a heavy influence on one particular Englishman, Sir William Mathew

Flinders Petrie (1853-1942). 6

Petrie is considered by most to be the father of modern Egyptology and his work on

Ancient Egypt remains respected by scholars to this day. He forever changed how scholarsapproached Egyptology. Petrie excavated at Amarna between November 1891 and March 1892.

His essays about Amarna were published in books that were sponsored by the Religious Tract

Society. Other scholars like Reverend S. Manning, in his work The Land of the Pharaohs

Drawn with Pen and Pencil in 1897 used Petries research to discuss how archaeology confirmed

the Bi bles historicity. This action brought Petrie much not oriety and support. According to

Petrie, he viewed Akhenaten as a highly enlightened being who was living in truth. Petrie had

unbounded admiration for Akhenaten. He saw Akhenaten as an innovator, idealist, religious

reformer and pacifist. Petrie believed Akhenatens ethics were above reproach and not typical of

the average Egyptian king. As Petrie described him, His affection is the truth, and as the truth

he proclaims it. Here is a revolution in ideas! No king of Egypt, nor of any other part of the

world, has ever carried out his honesty of expression so openly Thus in every line Akhenaten

stands out as perhaps the most original thinker that ever lived in Egypt, and one of the great

idealists of the world. Not only was Petries inte rpretation of Ancient Egyptian hieroglyphs

plagued with his cultural illusions, so was his interpretation of the artwork. By studying the


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Amarna reliefs and statues, Petrie determined that the wife of AmenHotep III, the father of

Akhenaten, was ethnically Mesopotamian in origin. He stated that this was because of the odd

facial features of Akhenaten which were inherited as a direct result of having an Asiatic mother.

Petries analysis of Amarna influenced a whole generation of scholars, especially American born

Egyptologist, James Henry Breasted. 7

Breasted was one of the most notable pupils of the Berlin School of Archaeology under

German archaeologist Adolf Erman. His classical study of Akhenatens rei gn can be summed up

in these words:

there died with him such a spirit as the world had never seen before a bravesoul, undauntedly facing the momentum of immemorial tradition, and therebystepping out from the long line of conventional and colourless Pharaohs, that hemight disseminate ideas far beyond and above the capacity of his age tounderstand. Among the Hebrews, seven or eight hundred years later, we look forsuch men; but the modern world has yet adequately to value or even acquaintitself with this man who, in an age so remote and under conditions so adverse,

became not only the worlds first idealist and the worlds first individual, but alsothe earliest monotheist, and the first prophet of internationalism the mostremarkable figure of the Ancient World before the Hebrews .8

By now, the links between Amarna and the Bible were built solidly throughout the

academic world. Even Sigmund Freud (1856 1939), the renowned pioneer of psychotherapy,

was quoted as saying that he believed Akhenaten was the mentor of Moses and the originator of

Jewish monotheism. However, Freud had his own interpretations of Amarna artwork; he

believed that Akhenaten suffered from an array of mental illnesses including the Oedipus

complex. His diagnosis was made by the odd appearance of Akhenatens features plus his

understanding of Ancient Egyptian marriage arrangements. 9

Fr euds major work on this subject was entitled Moses and Monotheism (1939). This

work was a result of his deeply emotional and intellectual battle against anti-Semitism that was

being perpetrated by Fascists on a global scale. In it Freud credits the Amarna Period as the


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source of our moral heritage. He even went as far as attributing the well known stele called a

Hymn to Aten as a tribute by the Hebrew people to Egypt for the gift of monotheism.

Unfortunately for Freud his only sources for his argument came from secondary sources (such as

A History of Egypt ) already supporting this belief. Believing the Amarna Period and Akhenaten

to be the precursors to Moses and a western moral legacy is a vain and un-intellectual attempt to

somehow redeem Jewish peoples in the minds of westerners. 10

Regrettably during much of the first one-hundred years of Amarnas excavation in the

1920s and 1930s, there were many fascist theories being published about Akhenatens time

period that were false. This would include fascists views of the Amarna Period and racist viewsof Akhenaten. Periodicals published in Germany from the 1920s-1930s by an organization who

went by the name of Die Schonheit embraced a fascist view of Akhenaten and his religion as

nude sun worship. This was due to a very inaccurate interpretation of the Amarna period

artwork. Many people in Germany who supported this view saw pictures of Amarna inscriptions

detailing Akhenatens half nude body with his arms stretched toward the sun. To them, this

looked like sun and nature worship. Richard Ungewitter, a nudist and racial hygienist, and a

distributor and writer for Die Schonheit was himself an ardent supporter of these fascist views.

He wrote on how the Jews were an infestation on the Aryan body politic. Ungewitter believed

that Akhenaten was from an Aryan aristocratic race that had mixed with Semitic races. He even

went as far as creating pseudo -genealogies in order to prov e his theory and make Akhenaten

part Aryan. This concoction of his fit since many of the Aryan races did have sun and nature

worship. There were many others in Germany who sympathized with Nazi propaganda at this

time and followed the same morbid logic.


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Fascists views supporting a lost civilization of a white Aryan race (instead of a Semitic

one) influencing the Amarna period have no basis in reality nor did they conjure any support

from the academic arena and quickly died out. Racist views are altogether a bogus concoction.

Some approaches to a racist view still survive today. 11 At first the racist view was an attempt to

prove the inferiority of black Africans. Many believed throughout the late 18th through the 19th

centuries that it was absolutely impossible for a black civilization to create a viable, moral and

ethical society. Through the 20th and finally in the 21st centuries, many of these assumptions

were discredited by genetic studies done by scientists on mummified remains proving that black

Africans did play a major role in the development of Ancient Egypt. Racism today has taken a180 degree turn. There are some people who now argue that the entire 3000 years Ancient

Egyptian civilization was solely constructed by that of black Africans. Modern genetic testing

and DNA samples taken from a multitude of sources dispute this claim. The one thing modern

scientists can agree on is that the ancient Egyptians were an amalgam of many different races

and ethnic backgrounds.

It is ones own vanity to instill any modern or postmodern views of racism upon a

civilization whose culture is still very alien to western ideas. The same can be said of any

monotheistic connections made between western religions and the Amarna period. Still even

today many western scholars propose this antiquated theory and it is accepted as gospel among

religious zealots wishing to establish Akhenaten and the Amarna Period as the major influence

for the belief in a single god. Any connection between monotheism or a belief in the Hebrew god

Yahweh and Akhenaten can be easily dismissed by interpreting primary source inscriptions of

the Amarna Period. One such inscription, seen in Figure 1, is at a temple built by AmenHotep III


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(c. 1408-1372) in Soleb. It was a temple built in honor of the Egyptian god Amen and bears the

inscription of Yahweh. 12 It is referred to as the Soleb inscription.

Figure 1 13

the land of the Sashuthe tribes of Yhw.

It is still in debate who exactly the Shasu were. Some link them to the Edomites and

others believe them to be the Bedouins. The word Shasu in Ancient Egyptian can be interpreted

as wanderer in the English language. But a more accurate interpretation is those who

wandered on foot. 14 This actually can refer to anyone. However, it really does not matter to

whom the inscription is referring. Everyone can agree that AmenHotep III ruled before

AmenHotep IV (Akhenaten). The fact of the matter is that there were a people who already

worshipped Yahweh in the region long before Akhenatens iconoclastic reformation. If the belief

in the Hebraic god Yahweh was not influence by Akhenaten, did the Ancient Hebrews influence


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Akhenatens belief in Aten as the sole Egyptian deity? The answer to this is no. The two

religions have absolutely nothing in common.

The truth behind Akhenatens story can only be told by accurately reading the surviving

primary sources of the time period through an Ancient Egyptian perspective and not a modern

western one. Akhenatens rule was marked by religious upheaval but it had nothing to do with

anything outside of already existing Egyptian beliefs during his time. The foundation for

Akhenatens religious revolution actually t ook root many generations before he was even born.

It was a power struggle between the worshippers of the sun disc cult of Iunu (an Ancient

Egyptian city known to historians by its Greek name Heliopolis) and the powerful Amen cult ofWaset (an Ancient Egyptian city known to historians by its Geek name Thebes). It would appear

religious beliefs were not the driving force behind the conflict surrounding Akhenaten s story. In

fact, the two cults had lived side by side in peace for some time. The real story was that it was

more or less a grab for political power.

The sun disc cult worship, first of the two cults, began in Ancient Egypts early Dynastic

period around 3100-2686 B.C.E. This period was the beginning of the unification of Ancient

Egypt. Many Gods were worshipped at this time. The prominent god was Ra, the sun god. Ra

was the manifestation of the sun and his name was fused with many other gods. This is what

scholars call syncretism, where two known gods are fused so creating a new one. An example of

this is when worshippers of Atum, Heliopolian god who created the universe, combined their

belief with the worship of Ra and formed the combined god Atum-Ra. Early kings of the first

Dynasty known as the Horus kings brought about the worship of a combined deity Ra-

Horakhty. This was an amalgamation of the sun god Ra and the god of the horizon Horus.

Around 2600 B.C.E., during Ancient Egypts old kingdom period, the first temple at Heliopolis


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(translation means city of the sun) was dedicated to the new role of this manifestation of sun

disc worship. Over time Sun disc worship infiltrated all aspects of religion. Many pharaohs

incl uded the title of son of Ra in their titles. 15

Akhenatens worship of Aten is another manifestation of sun disc worship. This belief

was a syncretism of Ra and Aten. It was not created by Akhenaten as many scholars would like

to believe. Instead it evolved over time. Aten was originally a local god worshipped in

Heliopolis who grew in popularity during the New Kingdom Period of Ancient Egypt. The

earliest literary text known mentioning Aten as a solar deity comes from a 12 th Dynasty pharaoh

known as Ammenemes I. It is known as the Tale of Sinuhe . The tale describes the ultimateintegration between Ammenemes I and the solar disc god Aten. The first inscriptions of Aten in

the form of a sun disc with outstretching rays of light emerged during the reign of AmenHotep II

(1427-1400 B.C.E.). But it wasnt until the reign of AmenHotep III (1390-1352 B.C.E.) that

Aten was propelled into the status of being a major deity. 16 This was in fact due to his wife Tiys

influence. 17

The Amen cult developed much later that the sun disc cults. Amen was initially a local

god worshipped in Waset during Ancient Egypts 11 th Dynasty. The rise of the Pharaohs from

Waset, particularly Pharaoh MentuHotep II (2055-2004 B.C.E.), elevated Amen to the status of a

major deity. One of the first inscriptions of Amens elevated status is at the temple of Senusret I

(r. 1965-1920) where Amen is referred to as the king of the gods. Many Ancient Egyptians

combined other gods with Amen. For example, the god Ra and became Amen-Ra or Kamutef

became Amen- Kamutef. Pharaohs of this time period also adopted son of Amen -Ra into their

titles. 18 With all of their success the Amen cult did not dominate the countrys political and

religious organizations. The Amen cults chief rival was still the ancient sun disc cults of Iunu.


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This is probably why the concept of Amen-Ra (the solar manifestation of Amen) came into

being. It was an attempt to unite the two theological rivals under one banner. However, this

attempt would be in vain. Political tension between the two competing cults came to a head

during the reign of the Pharaoh Hatshepsut (1472-1458 B.C.E.). It was at this time the seeds of

Akhenatens revolution were sown. 19

The conflict began with pharaoh Tuthmoses II (1492-1479 B.C.E.). He had no male

offspring with his wife Hatshepsut and when he died only seven years into his reign the throne of

Ancient Egypt was left vacant. The title of kingship would not be passed to the queen

(Hatshepsut) but to a child of his less significant wife named Isis. The childs name wasTuthmoses III. He was just an infant and too young to assume control of the throne. Greedy for

power, Hatshepsut made her move for control of Ancient Egypts throne. The details concerning

her rise to power are obscure. But one thing is certain; she could not have done it on her own,

especially being a female in Ancient Egypt. She received support from powerful government

officials and also won the support of members of the Amen cult who might have seen this as an

opportunity to vie for political power over their long time rival the sun disc cult. Hatshepsut took

the throne of Ancient Egypt and began portraying herself as a man. Her chief vizier was none

other than a high priest named Hapuseneb. He continued to maintain support from the Amen cult

by establishing the Opet festival and building an elaborate temple at Karnak. This brought

Hatshepsut even more powerful allies such as the grand steward of Amen. He was Senmut, who

many historians believe, would later beca me Hatshepsuts lover. 20

During Hatshepsuts reign , the Amen cults power was firmly in place. Other cults like

the worshippers of the sun disc deities (RaHorakty, Atum, Aten, etc.) flourished, too. Ancient

Egypt saw a prosperous time with little to no conflicts. The consequence of Hatshepsuts actions


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maintain prominence as Ancient Egypts controlling religious faction would be an uphill

struggle. 22

The support for the solar disc worship throughout Ancient Egypt by Tuthmoses IV was

apparent. One well known inscription left by Tuthmoses IV was called the Dream Stela. It is a

stele of an inscription he had placed at the base of the Sphinx. (Figure 5)The content of the

inscription was about a dream he had. In it Tuthmoses IV proclaims that his right to succeed his

father was given to him by the Egyptian god Harmachis, a solar deity who was the manifestation

of Ra-Horakty and Atum. Tuthmoses IV made it clear that his legitimate right to the throne did

not come from Amen or his cult. Also during this time a new concept about Aten wasflourishing. This concept depicted Aten as Ras most sentient aspect or light energy. The Aten

Scarab is one the most important documents from this time period which describes Atens new

role. As sun disc worship began to grow, political ambitions of the Amen cult was diminished.

The Amen priesthood could no longer claim the status of the overseers of the pr iests of upper

and Lower Egypt. Tuthmoses IV died before his 30 th year of reign leaving his son AmenHotep

III in control of the throne. 23

When AmenHotep III took the throne, a tribute was made to Amen. The temple at Luxor

bears an inscription detailing the birth of AmenHotep III. In it, he credits the god Amen with his

birth and legitimacy to rule. (Figure 2). It is clear in the left tracts of the inscription he was

paying tribute to Amen. Scholars have no credible explanation for this other than it may have

been a matter of prestige for the king or helped him to win over supporters from the Amen cult

and keep the peace. One thing is for certain. While it seems AmenHotep III gave credence to

Amen and his cult, it was also during this time that the worship Aten as a major Ancient

Egyptian deity was set in stone. The worship of Aten during this time period was influenced


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greatly AmenHotep IIIs first wife Tiy. Queen Tiy had considerable sway over her husband. It

was in this time period that Aten manifested into the essence of a single deity.

Figure 2 24

Words spoken by Amen -Ra, lord of the thrones of the Two Lands, before her: Amen -Hotep-ruler of Waset is the name of this child that I have placed in your body. .He shall rule the Two Lands

like Ra forever.

AmenHotep III and Queen Tiy had a son named AmenHotep. Prince AmenHotep brought

the political tension between the Amen cult and the sun disc cults to a climax. According to

inscriptions from Waset and Gebel es Silsila, he appeared onto the political scene as Pharaoh

AmenHotep IV. He was made coregent with his father at the age of 16. Not much is known

about how long he remained coregent with his father. It was sometime within this period that

.

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AmenHotep IV was matched with his future wife Nefertiti. Beyond this, very little is known of

AmenHotep IVs early reign or religious co nvictions. It is known that at the Sed festivals held at

Karnak during this time tribute was paid to all the chief gods including Amen, Ptah, Thoth and

Osiris. There did not seem to be any quarrel between followers of the major gods at this time.

Many scholars believe this was partly due to the fact that AmenHotep IV shared co regency with

his father. Historians are aware that he did commission inscriptions to be carved at Waset. At

Waset, AmenHotep IV can be seen worshipping the solar deity Ra-Horahkty. (Figure 3)This was

a bold move since this site of Waset and Karnak was the Amen cults main center of worship. In

the fourth year of AmenHotep IVs reign , he decided to build an elaborate temple in EastKarnak. This would more than likely form a wedge between any hope of a political compromise

between the worshippers of the sun disc and the Amen cult. 25

Figure 3 26

Track with AmenHotep IVs cartouche: Son of Ra, AmenHotep, Ruler of W aset Horizontal track next to his cartouche: Given life, like Ra

..


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The first five years of AmenHotep IVs reign are recorded on the buildings at Karnak. It

ends with his building of the Ben-ben mansion undertaken at Waset. Very little is known about

this time period and speculations of what actually took place come from fragmented inscriptions

scholars are still trying to decipher. The one thing that can be known for certain is that tensions

between the Amen cult and Akhenaten rose. Everywhere Amen priests went they would be

inundated with symbolic jubilees and inscriptive symbols of AmenHotep IV and sun disc

worship. It was sometime within this year when Akhenaten claimed Aten manifested himself to

him and described how he brought the world into existence. The fifth year of his reign closed

with Akhenaten disclosing his radical ideas to his high officials, courtiers and citizens in afoundation ceremony. AmenHotep IV changed his name to Akhenaten (which translates into he

who is beneficial of Aten) on the13th day of the eighth month. He then formed the Priesthood

of the Aten. 27

The reign of Akhenaten is actually 17 years long and the only evidence for historians to

surmise of what actually took place comes from ancient inscriptions found from that time

period. 28 For some unknown reason Akhenaten decided to move the capitol of Ancient Egypt

from Memphis to the middle of the dessert we know today as Amarna. What prompted this

decision is truly speculative. Most historians believe that the action to move the capitol was a

likely occurrence of the result of the political tensions between the Amen cult and Akhenatens

new sun worship cult of Aten. In an inscription endorsed by Akhenaten he claims that it was

Aten himself that brought him to the Amarna site.

Akhenaten moved the capitol to Amarna and called it Akhenaten which translates to the

horizon of Aten. This is commemorated in one of the boundary steles (15 total) surrounding

Akhetaten city. Everything historians can possibly know about why Akhenaten moved the


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capitol to Amarna comes from these steles. 29 With building projects increasing at Amarna, funds

for building at Waset decreased. This would certainly provoke resistance from the Amen cult. It

is no wonder although pure speculation of why Akhenaten moved the capitol. Life in the Ancient

Egyptian state had always been a Machiavellian affair. The evidence of the precarious events

that took place in Ancient Egyptian statehood was passed down by Ammenemes I. It is entitled

The Teaching of Ammenemes I . In it states:

It was after supper, night had come. I was taking an hour of rest, lying on my bed, for I was weary. As my heart began to follow sleep, weapons for my protection were turned against me, while I was like a snake in the desert. I awokeat the fighting, alert, and found it was a combat of the guard. Had I quickly seized

weapons in my hand, I would have made the cowards retreat in haste. But no oneis strong at night; no one can fight alone; no success is achieved without a helper.Thus bloodshed occurred while I was without you, [my son Sesostris]; before thecourtiers had heard that I would hand over to you; before I had sat with you so asto advise you. For I had not prepared for it, had not expected it, had not foreseenthe failing of the servants.

It concludes with the following warning:

Beware of subjects who are nobodies, of whose plotting one is not aware.Trust not a brother, know not a friend, make no intimates it is worthless! Whenyou lie down, guard your heart yourself, for no man has adherents on the day ofwoe. I gave to the beggar, I raised the orphan, I have success to the poor as to thewealthy; but he who ate my food raised opposition, and he whom I gave my trustused it to plot

Surprisingly, The Teaching of Ammenemes I was one of only two surviving texts found at

Akhetaten. It would have been evident that Akhenaten was aware of these teachings and one of

the driving forces behind his decision to move his capitol city to the Amarna territory. This was a

decision that could have been based on the survival of him and his religion. 30 In all actuality it

was a move to gain further control of his country. Even with Akhenaten moving the capitol he

still would have been met with stiff resistance from Amen cult as well as worshippers of other

Egyptian cults of the period. It is documented that Akhenaten moved the Ancient Egyptian


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capitol because of religious reasons. However, what appeared to be a religious revolution on the

surface was actually a grab for power and it is in the fifth year of his reign one can see his

egomania and lust for power had surfaced. Concerned with consolidating power, in the fifth year

of his reign, Akhenaten forced all the people within his circle of power as well as the Egyptian

elites of society to convert to his new religion. New steles were added in Akhetaten city with

statues of Akhenaten and Nefertiti carved with the names of Aten on them. Once again the

concept of Aten worship would evolve further. Aten would now be heralded as the one and all

powerful Egyptian god, and from this point on, Akhenaten and Nefertiti were the sole

intermediaries between Aten and the Egyptian people.Some scholars believe that by elevating Aten to the status of the one and all powerful god

of Egypt, was a move towards monotheism. This is not an accurate interpretation of the facts.

What Akhenaten did was take total control of the religious aspects of his nation, and in turn, took

power for himself and away from the Amen cult. It is also clear that the worship of Ancient

Egypts older gods was still practiced even in Akhetaten. The city Akhenaten created. This

would demonstrate a belief in henotheism more than monotheism. Some of those gods included

Maat, the personification of cosmic order, Hapi, the Nile river god, Shu, god of the air and

Tefnut, goddess of moisture. It is unclear why Akhenaten allowed the beliefs of these deities in

his city. It could be because many of these deities sometimes had an embodiment of Ra depicted

in some of their images and was a rudimentary form of sun worship. Or these older belief

systems posed no threat to the hierarchy he was building. Other indications that might prove that

Akhenaten tolerated the worship of other deities were found in some of the homes of ancient

Egyptian people who had no political power and lived Akhetaten. These people posed no threat


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alongside Tutankaten. Under his leadership, Horemheb led a successful offensive against the

Hittites reclaiming many of the territories lost due to Akhenatens neglect. 44 Tutankaten was

concerned with restoring normalcy and Akhetaten was abandoned. During his reign he issued

what is called the Restoration Decree from Memphis. He changed his name from Tutankaten to

Tutankamen (which translates as the living image of Amen) .45 He ruled with his consort

Ankhesenamen until he was 18 years old. Few details remain about his reign and his death is

shrouded in mystery. 46 He was the last of the Amarna dynasty. With the Amarna dynasty gone

the Amen cult regained prominence once again. They did their best to repay Akhenaten in like

kindness. By destroying his statues and desecrating anything that had his image they had hopedto erase him from history. There is not a single mention of Akhenaten or the Amarna heresy

anywhere in ancient Egypts written record. He is not even mentioned in any of the kings list.

They almost succeeded if it were not for modern archaeology.

The final analysis of who was Akhenaten and what his heresy entailed is evident. He was

not the precursor monotheism or Judaism. Nor can he be used to support radical ideas concocted

by the western world. What the archaeological evidence found at Amarna shows us is that he

was a despotic king who lusted after power and became intoxicated with his own religion and

self adulation.


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23

Endnotes

1 Cyril Aldred, Akhenaten: King of Egypt (New York: Thames and Hudson, 1988), 16.

2 Lorna Oakes and Lucia Gahlin, Ancient Egypt: An illustrated reference to the myths, religions, pyramidsand temples of the land of the pharaohs (New York: Barnes & Noble, 2006), 386-387.

3 Helen Strudwick, ed. The Encyclopedia of Ancient Egypt (London: Amber Books, 2008), 74.

4 Dominic Montserrat, Akhenaten: History, Fantasy and Ancient Egypt (London: Routledge, 2000), 52.

5 Ibid., 61-66.

6 Ibid., 64-66.

7 Aldred, Akhenaten , 112.

8 Ibid., 113.

9 Ibid., 113.

10 Montserrat, Akhenaten , 105-108.

11 Ibid., 108-113.

12 Lawrence Boadt, Reading the Old Testament: An Introduction (New York: Paulist Press, 1984), 167.

13 Ustronie, Rumburaka. 2002/08. Accessed March 27, 2011. http://www.rumburak.friko.pl/BIBLIA/JHWH/archeologia/soleb.php

14 Ibid., Internet.

15

Strudwick, The Encyclopedia of Ancient Egypt , 108.16 Nicholas Reeves, Akhenaten: Egypts False Prophet (New York: Thames & Hudson, 2001), 78.

17 Strudwick, The Encyclopedia of Ancient Egypt , 74.

18 Ibid., 112-113.

19 Ibid., 113.

20 Reeves, Egypts False Prophet , 32-35.

21 Ibid., 38-39.

22 Ibid., 40-41.

23 Ibid., 46-51.

24 D.M. Murdock, "The Nativity Scene of Amenhotep III at Luxor." Love-Evolve-Transcend. Internet.

25 Reeves, King of Egypt , 260-265.

26 Montserrat, Akhenaten , 18.


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24

27 Ibid., 267-268.

28 Ibid., 291.

29

Reeves, Egypts False Prophet , 107.30 Ibid., 105-106.

31 Montserrat, Akhenaten , 37.

32 Ibid., 37.

33 Reeves, Egypts False Prophet , 154.

34 Kenneth Garrett Photography, Kenneth Garrett, accessed April 14, 2011http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://c.photoshelter.com/img-get/.


36 Ibid., 154.

37 Ibid., 155.

38 Helen Strudwick, ed. The Encyclopedia of Ancient Egypt, 75.


40 Ibid., 63.

41 Ibid., 153.


43 Aldred, Akhenaten , 287.


45 Reeves, Egypts False Prophet , 181-182.



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List of Sources

Primary Sources

Aldred, Cyril. Akhenaten: King of Egypt. New York: Thames and Hudson, 1988.Montserrat, Dominic. Akhenaten: History, Fantasy and Ancient Egypt. London: Routledge,

2000.

Reeves, Nicholas. Akhenaten: Egypt's False Prophet. New York: Thames & Hudson, 2001.

Secondary Sources

Boadt, Lawrence. Reading the Old Testament: An Introduction. New York: Paulist Press, 1984.

Dodson, Aidan and Dylan Hilton. The Complete Royal Families of Ancient Egypt. London:Thames & Hudson, 2004.

Kenneth Garrett Photography, Kenneth Garrett, accessed April 14, 2011http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://c.photoshelter.com/img-get/.

Murdock, D.M. "The Nativity Scene of Amenhotep III at Luxor." Love-Evolve-Transcend. https://sites.google.com/site/religionsciencevsfaith/christ-in-egypt-the-horus-jesus-connection/the-nativity-scene-of-amenhotep-iii-at-luxor (accessed April 1, 2011).

Oakes, Lorna andLucia Gahlin. Ancient Egypt: An Illustrated Reference tot he Myths, Relidions,

Pyramids and Templesof the Land of the Pharaohs. New York: Barnes & Noble, 2006.

Ustronie, Rumburaka. 2002/08. Accessed March 27, 2011. http://www.rumburak.friko.pl/BIBLIA/JHWH/archeologia/soleb.php

Strudwick, Helen, ed. The Encyclopedia of Ancient Egypt. London: Amber Books, 2008.

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