Through the Eras

Religionworld depict the bas of the condemned dead, representedby the ba-bird hieroglyph, being boiled in cauldrons.Through these means these unfortunate Egyptians, whosecrimes are not known, were consigned to oblivion.SOURCESWerner Forman and Stephen Quirke, Hieroglyphs and theAfterlife in Ancient Egypt (Norman, Okla.: University ofOklahoma Press, 1996).Erik Hornung, “Black Holes Viewed from Within: Hell inAncient Egyptian Thought,” in Diogenes 42 (1994):133–156.—, The Valley of the Kings: Horizon of Eternity (NewYork: Timken Publishers, 1990).AKHENATENSIGNIFICANTPEOPLEin ReligionBefore 1352 B.C.E.–1366 B.C.E.KingFounder of a New ReligionBEGINNINGS. Akhenaten was the second son ofKing Amenhotep III (r. 1390–1352 B.C.E.) of the EighteenthDynasty and his wife Tiye. When his olderbrother Thutmose died young, Akhenaten became thecrown prince. It is possible that Akhenaten served for atime as co-regent (co-king) with his father, but the evidencefor a co-regency is disputed. When his father diedaround 1352 B.C.E., he ascended to the throne as AmenhotepIV. He was married to the beautiful Nefertiti, ashis Great Royal Wife. She may have been his cousin, althoughthis is uncertain. He was also married to a womannamed Kiya, who may have been a Mitannian princessfrom a region north of modern Iraq. With Nefertiti,Akehnaten had six daughters, three of whom died in infancy.It is also possible that he was the father of Tutankhamun(born Tutankhaten), but, as with so muchfrom this period of Egyptian history, the evidence is inconclusive.ATEN. In the fifth year of his reign, the king signaleda new religious direction for his kingdom bychanging his name to Akhenaten, “He who is effectivefor the Aten.” “Aten” was the Egyptian word for thephysical disk of the sun. In the same year, the king beganconstruction of a new capital for Egypt. At a vacantsite in Middle Egypt he built the city of Akhetaten, “thehorizon of the sun-disk.” In the sixth year of his reign,Akhenaten moved his family and administration into hisnew capital.NEW RELIGION. Akhenaten introduced a new religionto Egypt. Akhenaten worshipped only one god, thelight that was in the sun. This light was believed to grantthe world life, and to keep it alive. This new god wasdepicted as a sun disk emanating rays that ended inhands. These hands were frequently directed towardsAkhenaten and his family, and could be shown offeringthe breath of life, symbolized by ankh-signs, to theirnoses. In order to worship the Aten, Akhenaten had anew type of temple constructed, reminiscent of the suntemples of the Fifth Dynasty (2500–2350 B.C.E.), nearly1,000 years earlier. These temples consisted of a seriesof open courts oriented towards the east, centering onan altar. Such temples were built at Thebes, Memphis,Heliopolis, and of course, Akhetaten. In these temples,even the doorways had broken lintels, to allow the sun’srays to reach all parts of the temple.ROYAL FAMILY. While Akhenaten and his familyworshipped the Aten, the people of Egypt, especiallythose living at Akhetaten, were to worship the royal family.Akhenaten was considered to be the son of the Aten,and it was through him that the Egyptians were to worshipthe sun. Egyptian homes at Akhetaten containedstelae (carved or inscribed slabs of stone) showing theroyal family worshipping the Aten. These stelae servedas the focal point of the cult of the Aten within theirhomes. One official, Panehsy, praised Akhenaten as “mygod, who built me, who determined good for me, whomade me come into being and gave me bread.”AFTERLIFE. Even the traditional conception of theafterlife underwent a drastic change. No longer did thedead live on in the underworld in the company of Osiris,or journey through the sky in the barque of Re. Essentiallythere was no longer a world of the beyond. Boththe living and the ba-spirits of the dead continued to livehere on earth, under the sun’s rays. At sunrise, the basof the justified dead traveled to the Great Temple of theAten in Akhetaten to receive the sun’s life-giving raysand to participate in the offerings made to Aten in histemple. Justification no longer meant being found innocentin the tribunal of Osiris, but was a status reservedfor those who were loyal to the king during life. Akhenaten,as Aten’s sole representative on earth, was the dispenserof provisions to the dead.AMUN. Not only did Akhenaten promote the worshipof a new deity, he went so far as to close down theArts and Humanities Through the Eras: Ancient Egypt (2675 B.C.E.–332 B.C.E.) 247