Akhenaton

Rachel

10/11/04

Egypt 5 of 5

Amenhotep, known as Akhenaton, was an Egyptian pharaoh who lived in the middle of the eighteenth dynasty during the years 1380 and 1362 BC. He was a very loving and affectionate father and husband. His wife, Nefertiti, bore him seven daughters but no sons. Akhenaton is remembered for combining all the Egyptian deities into one all-powerful god or deity, Aton-Ra, a sun deity. This change was a challenge to all the priests. The priests were given their position at birth, through which they were guaranteed incredible powers as spokesmen (or spokeswomen) for the gods. By declaring Aton-Ra the ultimate god, Akhenaton was proclaiming himself as Aton-Ra’s only spokesman. Akhenaton’s beliefs were so strong that he ordered his agents to remove the name and images of Amun (king of all the gods) from all the temples and tombs. He even went so far as to remove the phrase ‘the gods’ from some places to portray that there is only one god. During this time Akhenaton emporarily ushered in a period of artistic freedom in Egypt known as Amarna Ar. Historians think that Akhenaton had a disorder called Marfan’s Syndrome. Marfan’s Syndrome is caused by a single autosomal dominant gene; it "overwrites" other genetic factors causing profound changes throughout a person’s body. Marriage between members of the same family increases the transmission of this dominant gene, which might explain the evident deformities, frailties, and early deaths in Akhenaton’s household. Weak eye sight and sensitivity to cold are common to Marfan sufferers. This might explain the attraction Akhenaton had to the sun as the god Aton-Ra.

Akhenaton’s death is a mystery. After he died, the Egyptians returned to their old ways. The "chisel- wielders" came back and hacked out Akhenaton’s name just as swiftly as they had hacked out Amun’s name. The city of Akhenaton fell into ruins and was left undisturbed until the nineteenth century when Egyptologists discovered it. Akhenaton and his wife were the first two Egyptians in history to create the first monotheistic religion. Therefore, some people believe he was a prophet. Although many history books describe him as the ancestor of Moses and Jesus, we, as Christians know that that can not be true because both Moses and Jesus were, by birth, Hebrews.