AKHENATEN - AMARNA PERIOD

AMARNA PERIOD

Period: 1391 BCE to 1292 BCE

THUTMOSE IV & THE ATEN

1385 BCE

Thutmose IV portrayed himself as a lot less interested in dedication to Amun as his predecessors. Thutmose instead honoured the sun god Heliopolis quite extensively, and attributed his accession to the throne to the sun god Re-Horakhe (who Akhenaten would later like). His major artistic contributions include his obelisks erected with the sun on them. It is in his reign that we're introduced to the Aten as a godly presence, and the sun cult is first promoted as a development in Egyptian religion.

AMENHOTEP III & THE ATEN

1370 BCE

The sun cult grew during the luxurious period of Amenhotep III's reign. Amenhotep became concerned at the latter of his reign, saying the temples of Amun were receiving "enough of the riches of empire to pose a threat to the king in certain circumstances." A3 began to associate himself more and more with the Aten, calling himself the Dazzling Sun-disk as he recognised it as a symbol of divinity and royalty. A3 increased the importance of the Aten in Egyptian culture for his son to continue.

YEAR 1 (OF REIGN): KARNAK WORK BEGINS

1349 BCE

Amenhotep IV continues work at Karnak initiated by his father

MERITATEN IS BORN

1349 BCE

YEAR 2: ATEN TEMPLES

1348 BCE

Work on 4 temples dedicated to the Aten begins at Thebes This year, Akhenaten issues his first religious reforms, bans traditional religious beliefs and practices. (ancient.eu)

YEAR 4: AKHETATEN CITY + BIRTHS

1346 BCE

Work starts on new city of Akhetaten (ancient.eu claims people started to move to the city at this point)
Akhenaten's second and third children were born, Meketaten and Ankhenspaaten

MEKETATEN & ANKHENASPAATEN ARE BORN

1346 BCE

YEAR 5: PRIEST DISBANDMENT

1345 BCE

(amarna.co.uk) Disbandment of priesthood begins,
Karnak work started in Year 1 (continued from A3) is finally completed.

YEAR 6: AMENHOTEP IV TO AKHENATEN

1344 BCE

NAME CHANGE! Central section of city completed

YEAR 8: GOVERNMENT TO AKHETATEN

1342 BCE

Royal family, government officials move to the new capital city of Akhetaten

YEAR 9: ATEN THE SOLE GOD - REFERENCES REMOVED

1341 BCE

References of other gods start to be removed, Aten slowly becomes main feature of Egyptian religion.

YEAR 10: BIRTH OF NEFERNEFERUATEN

1339 BCE

YEAR 11: BIRTH OF NEFERNEFERURE & SETEPENRE

1338 BCE

YEAR 12: QUEEN TIYE VISITS AKHETATEN

1337 BCE

Akhenaten's mother visitis his son's new capital city to attend the reception of foreign dignitaries. Leaders from Punt, Nubia, Libya, Palestine and Syria as well as Hittite leaders and the Mitanni attended, but the purpose for the event is unknown.

YEAR 14: NEFERTITI DIES

1335 BCE

Akhenaten's first wife dies, his oldest daugher Meritaten becomes Queen

YEAR 15: CO-REGENCY

1334 BCE

Co-regency with Smenkhkare begins, Meritaten also marries Smenkhkare in this year

YEAR 17: AKHENATEN DIES

1332 BCE

TUT REIGNS

1331 BCE

Tutankhaten, turned Tutankhamen reverses Aki's reforms and restores most religious/traditional Egyptian practices.

AY REIGNS BRIEFLY

1323 BCE

Ay continues Tut's policies for his short-lived rule.

HOREMHEB SETS THINGS STRAIGHT

1320 BCE

Horemheb makes it his duty to erase all things Aten related and restore Egyptian culture and tradition. He destroys the city of Akhetaten so that "no stone lay upon another" and used the leftover resources from the city to add to Amun temples at Karnak and Luxor. He erased all Amarna-related artefacts and depictions, even going as far as to deface monuments of his immediate predecessors and takes their achievements for h is own - with propaganda marking him as the true heir after A3.

HOREMHEB DIES

1292 BCE

Horemheb dies and makes Ramesses I his successor, ending the Amarna period as well as the 18th Dynasty.