Temples, Tombs & Hieroglyphs_ A Popular History of Ancient Egypt - Barbara Mertz [105]
If one were to collect the statues of Egyptian kings from earliest to latest times, and arrange them in chronological sequence, one might, at first glance, take them for portraits of the same individual. The artistic canon permitted few deviations, and its rules applied most rigorously to the depiction of the divine king. There are, to be sure, certain stylistic variations from period to period, and it is even possible to distinguish family types. Still, the long row of male figures would be superficially alike: stern, handsome faces and stalwart, muscular bodies, broad of shoulder and slim of hip, with seldom a hint of sagging paunch or double chin. All, that is, except one; and it would stand out from the rest with almost shocking singularity. The long, haggard face, with deep-set eyes and hollow cheeks, the strangely deformed, almost feminine body—this is Akhenaton, whom James Henry Breasted called “the first individual in history” and credited with being the founder of the world’s first monotheistic religion. Breasted has been accused of overenthusiasm; some scholars loathe Akhenaton as much as Breasted admired him. What ever one’s bias, it cannot be denied that Akhenaton was a personality, unique and fantastic.
I am planning to spend what may seem to some an inordinate amount of time on this period, for several reasons. First and most important, it interests me. Second, it interests a lot of other people, and volumes have been written on the subject. Third, it shows to what lengths scholars will go to prove a pet theory. One might claim about this period that never has so much been said by so many about so little. In fact we do have more evidence than is often the case, but much of it is fragmented and susceptible, as you will see, to dozens of different interpretations. Here’s a brief summary of some of the “facts.” Those of you who are familiar with Akhenaton and his lot may regard it as a preliminary test—but remember, there are no right answers.
Akhenaton was the son of Amenhotep III and his chief wife, Tiye
He ruled for a minimum of seventeen years, either a. Alone, or
b. As coregent with his father for one to three years, or
c. As coregent with his father for about twelve years.
His chief wife was Nefertiti, who was: a. The daughter of a high official named Ay, or
b. Somebody else’s daughter.
They had six daughters.
At the end of his reign Akhenaton was associated with a king named Ankhkheperure, who was: a. A young man of unknown antecedents also named Smenkhkare, or
b. Nefertiti
He was also associated with a king named Neferneferuaton who was: a. The same person as 5a, or
b. Nefertiti
They were succeeded by a boy named Tutankhaton, who was: a. The son of Akhenaton by: (l) A secondary wife named Kiya, or
(2) some other as yet unidentified wife, or
(3) Nefertiti, or
b. The son of Amenhotep III by (l) Queen Tiye, or
(2) His daughter Satamon, or
(3) Caught you! Not Nefertiti. Somebody else.
There are a few actual facts in all that mishmash. Akhenaton was the son of Amenhotep III and the latter’s chief wife, Tiye. When he became king he took the same nomen as his father—“Amon is satisfied.” The early years of his reign appear to have been fairly conventional. Then, at some time before his fifth year, something happened.
The crux of the change was a new god. To honor him, the king changed his name from Amenhotep to Akhenaton, which means “it is well with the Aton.” To further particularize the change of allegiance, Akhenaton moved his capital. Thebes was the home of Amon; the Aton should have a city upon soil that had never been dedicated to another god. The court moved, bag and baggage, to a site three hundred miles north of Thebes. Its modern name is Tell el Amarna, and the term “Amarna” is used to characterize Akhenaton’s revolutionary ideas