After I read Children of the Lamp: the Akhenaten Adventure, I became interested to know if the pharaoh really existed, not just as a ghost in the book. Turns out he did, and made some serious changes in Egypt.

Because he was pharaoh, and almighty ruler of Egyptian life, he wanted the entire country to believe in one god only, the Aten. The former religion had been Amon-Re, but Akhenaten declared it untrue. His name means One Who Serves Aten, and he made a capital city, Akhstaten. solely dedicated to worshipping the Aten.

His wife, Queen Nefertiti was known for her exceptional beauty. She is shown in works of art with her husband, and is often seen praising the Aten, and receiving ankh.

One of the princesses, Ankhsenpaaton, married King Tutankhamen, better known as King Tut. Her five sisters, Meritaten, Meketaten, Neferneferuaten, Neferneferure, Setepenre, and herself, were all beautiful girls. However, in Akhenaten’s 14th year of rule, Mekctaten died. She was the second daughter of the royal couple and was buried in the Royal Tomb at Akhetaten.

Akhenaten’s father, Amenhotep III, inherited his rulership and ruled with peace. He was known for diplomatic skills. One of his greatest monuments, now known as tie Colossi of Memnon, depicted himself in statue form. Akhenaten’s mother, Tiye, was Annentoptep’s chief wife, but died around the time of Princess Meketaten.

Even though these people lived hundreds of years ago, it’s important to know. I hope you learned a few things about that time period, and I advise you to read the book I mentioned in the first paragraph; it has a lot of facts about Akhenaten.

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