Akhenaten Reforms

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Evaluate the responses to Akhenaten’s religious upheaval by Egyptian society during his reign and following his death.

Introduction (context)

The 18th Dynasty of Ancient Egypt is perhaps most widely recognized for its unprecedented religious reforms - on the exclusive veneration of the sun disk, Aton, and the persecution of the Theban Deities, which, had been worshipped and honored for 1,500 years prior. These changes are attributed to the Pharaoh Akhenaten, whose reign from roughly 1353 to 1336 BCE remains a product of scholarly discourse, particularly of the profound and lasting impacts on the economic, political, and religious landscapes of Ancient Egypt. Following his death, Akhenaten’s legacy was suppressed with great zeal during the reigns of Tutankhamun, Horemheb, Seti I, and Ramesses II, and focused on the restoration of traditional religious practices. This essay examines the varied responses to Akhenaten’s reforms during and after his death, which not only shaped his rule but also subsequent Egyptian history and religious practices.

During his reign (slight rebellion). …show more content…
The boundary stelae found, carved into the enclosed limestone cliffs, revealed his clear intentions to construct a city dedicated to the worship of Aten. The site is considered an atypical settlement due to its placement away from the cultivation of the Nile and its delta, thus, making irrigation difficult. The Great Hymn to the Aten is inscribed in thirteen columns of hieroglyphics on the west wall at Amarna and depicts the deity as having no mouth to speak and is not portrayed face-to-face with Akhenaten, rather, the king is bathed in its rays when lifting his offerings to the sun disk in

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evidence – wall relief of vizier of the South shows Akhenaten wearing the Khepresh (blue crown of coronation) on a throne under a canopy with the goddess Maat Year 1 – according to Demovic – “adopted his favourite epithet” – Beautiful Child of the Living Sun Disc Reveals his relationship to the Aten Year 6 – name change from ‘Amenhotep IV’ to ‘Akhenaten’ Coincided with intensity in his belief of Aten as one, only god Amenhotep = ‘Amun is Satisfied’ Akhenaten = ‘He Who is Serviceable to the Aten’ King –…

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shrouded in controversy, with the enigmatic figure of Akhenaten arousing heated debate among historians who still struggle to piece together the story of this renegade. There remains a deep division among historians as to whether Akhenaten’s reign caused the decline of the Egyptian Empire, and as stated by Nicholas Reeves, a British Egyptologist, “You’re never going to find two people who agree on this period”1. Rick Gore claims that Akhenaten “brought the vast and powerful Egyptian Empire to the…

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been the sacred center for other settlements around that area. Vultures painted on the temple walls could have represented the death aspect of the Goddess. Q2) How did Akhenaten change the political hierarchy of Egypt and why? What religious changes did he make and why? Were Akhenaten’s reforms problematic and if so why? Akhenaten was a Pharaoh of the Eighteenth dynasty of Egypt who ruled for 17 years. He is also known as the rebel pharaoh as he changed the whole constitution of Egypt. He is also…

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woman as ruler, and after her death her name and image were frequently defaced. Akhenaten: Egyptian pharaoh (r. 1353–1335 B.C.E.). He built a new capital at Amarna, fostered a new style of naturalistic art, and created a religious revolution by imposing worship of the sun-disk. Akhenaten was attempting to reassert the superiority of the king over the priests and to renew belief in the king’s divinity. Akhenaten’s reforms were strongly resented by government officials and priests whose privileges and…

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definition, considers all other religions to be false and idolatrous Lang and Schmidt’s theory: The earliest religions were actually monotheistic  degenerated into polytheism because the high god was perceived as being irrelevant to daily life Akhenaten: 1375-1350BCE: Egyptian pharaoh who elevated the worship of Aten, the sun’s disk, to the point where all other gods were proscribed Modern times: Judaism Christianity Islam the significance of the religious dimension in human history Meaning…

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