Aten: Did you mean...?

Among the duties of any Egyptian monarch was the construction of monumental building projects to honor the gods and preserve the memory of their reigns for eternity. These building projects were not just some grandiose gesture on the part...

Art is an essential aspect of any civilization. Once the basic human needs have been taken care of such as food, shelter, some form of community law, and a religious belief, cultures begin producing artwork, and often all of these developments...

Women in ancient Egypt had more rights than in any other ancient culture and were valued with greater respect. This is evident not only in the physical evidence and inscriptions but in their religion. Some of the most powerful and important...

Monotheism is simply defined as the belief in one god and is usually positioned as the polar opposite of polytheism, the belief in many gods. However, the word monotheism is a relatively modern one that was coined in the mid-17th century...

The land of ancient Egypt was alive with the spirit of the gods. The sun god Ra broke from the darkness every morning in his great boat, bringing the light, and many of the gods watched over the people by night as the stars. Osiris caused...

The gods of ancient Egypt were worshipped as the creators and sustainers of all life. People acknowledged their supremacy and intimacy daily through rituals, amulets, and their labor for the king. Everyone, from farmers to craftsmen to merchants...

A stele depicting Egyptian pharaoh Akhenaten (r. 1353-1336 BCE) and his family worshipping the Aten or sun disk.

This fragmentary statue of the pharaoh Akhenaten (Amenhotep IV) dates from the Amarna Period (c. 1353-1336 BCE), and was originally housed in a temple complex to the Aten near Karnak, in what is now modern-day Luxor. Currently on display...

Northern Palace at Amarna. The royal family lived in apartments to the rear of the palace. The palace had no roof as a gesture of welcome to Aten.

The Head of Tutankhamun was once part of a larger limestone statue depicting Tutankhamun (r. c. 1336 to c. 1327 BCE) and the god Amun, fashioned during Tutankhamun’s reign, 18th Dynasty, New Kingdom of Egypt. This statue is significant because...