Egyptian Pharaohs: From Polytheism to Monotheism

The long line of ancient Egypt’s pharaohs constantly related themselves to the mystical deities that are so popular now amongst modern audiences. It was a means to bolster authority and legitimize themselves, and there more often than not was a wide array of gods to have been associated with. However in the Eighteenth Dynasty, Akhenaten the “Heretic King” reigned and the “Amarna Period” (based on the name of his capital city) rose. He inflicted monotheism upon Egypt, ensuring that the only deity who was worshipped was the Aten – the Sun Disk. One of Akhenaten’s sons, Tutankhamun, was enthroned a few years after Akhenaten’s death when he was nine and was left to deal with the political turmoil and strife he inherited. Unfortunately, he died

With large lips, wide hips, and a narrow figure, he deviated from the desired look of sturdiness and masculinity that previous kings strived for. This Amarna-style of art is, oddly enough, found not only on the monuments that Akhenaten built, but is also on some on the artifacts found in Tutankhamun’s tomb. Some may have been from his time as a child, back when his father was alive and he was being raised (for half his life) in accordance to a monotheistic mindset to the Aten. However, some have been made specifically for funerary purposes – in other words, they were specifically made after the Amarna Period for Tutankhamun. For example, a statue of Tutankhamun also bears a curvy body and feminine lips (cf. images Silverman et al. 2006:172 and 181)1 and a chair depicts him and his wife receiving the Aten’s rays just as a relief of his father and Nefertiti did (cf. images Silverman et al. 2006:167 and Gardiner 1961:Plate XV) (Griffith Inst.: 91)2. Some objects carry the name “Tutankhaten”, his name when he was first crowned (Silverman et al. 2006:165). He altered his name mid-reign, right before restoring non-Atenist temples, to represent his relationship to Amun rather than the Aten (Carter