The Heretic King
Akhenaten
©
1996-2008 Deurer
All Rights Reserved.
. . . . .About four
years into his reign, the Pharaoh Amenhotep IV changed his name to
Akhenaten. He was responsible for the most drastic changes in ancient
Egypt, a society that prided itself on the ideals of tradition and
stability. This is known as the Amarna period. You can see by the
images above, the art of Egypt no longer showed the pharaoh as a
perfect human specimen. Note the wide hips, thin waist, and facial
features that radically depart from traditional Egyptian styles. Was
he afflicted or perhaps deformed? Most scholars believe that it was
simply an artistic convention. Religion also changed dramatically
during this period; Akhenaten abolished the worship of many gods and
brought about a monotheistic religion. His new god was called,
Aten. Aten was described as being the creative
force in the universe. It manifested itself as a solar disc with rays
extending out, ending as hands.
The next photograph is
The
Golden Mask of Tutankhamun
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