Aten, also Aton, Atonu, or Itn (, reconstructed ) was the focus of Atenism, the religious system formally established in ancient Egypt by the late Eighteenth Dynasty pharaoh Akhenaten. Exact dating for the Eighteenth Dynasty is contested, though a general date range places the dynasty in the years 1550 to 1292 BCE. The worship of Aten and the coinciding rule of Akhenaten are major identifying characteristics of a period within the Eighteenth Dynasty referred to as the Amarna Period (1336 BCE). By analogy, the term "silver aten" was sometimes used to refer to the moon. High relief and low relief illustrations of the Aten show it with a curved surface. Therefore, the late scholar Hugh Nibley insisted that a more correct translation would be globe, orb or sphere, rather than disk.

Origins

The Aten was the disc of the sun and originally an aspect of Ra, the sun god in traditional ancient Egyptian religion. Aten does not have a creation myth or family but is mentioned in the Book of the Dead. The first known reference to Aten the sun-disk as a deity is in The Story of Sinuhe from the 12th Dynasty, in which the deceased king is described as rising as a god to the heavens and "uniting with the sun-disk, the divine body merging with its maker".

While the Aten was worshipped under the reign of Amenhotep III, it was made the sole deity to receive state and official cult worship under his successor Akhenaten, though archaeological evidence suggests the closing of the state temples of other Egyptian gods likely did not stop household worship of the traditional pantheon.

Religion

thumb|Relief depicting Akhenaten and Nefertiti with three of their daughters under the rays of Aten.

Aten was extensively worshipped as a solar deity during the reign of Amenhotep III where it was depicted as a falcon-headed god like Ra. While Aten was the preeminent creator deity of a pantheon of ancient Egyptian gods under Amenhotep III, it was not until his successor that Aten would be the only god acknowledged via state worship. During the reign of Amenhotep III's successor, Amenhotep IV, the Aten became the sole god of the Egyptian state religion, and Amenhotep IV changed his name to Akhenaten to reflect his close link with the supreme deity. Work is done best when the sun, and thus Aten, is present. The Aten created all countries and people, and cares for every creature. According to the inscriptions, the Aten created a Nile river in the sky (rain) for the Syrians. The rays of the sun disk only holds out life to the royal family, and because of this non-royals receives life from Akhenaten and Nefertiti, later Neferneferuaten, in exchange for loyalty to the Aten. In inscriptions, like the Hymn to the Aten and the King, the Aten is depicted as caring for the people through Akhenaten, placing the royal family as intermediaries for the worship of the Aten. There is only one known instance of the Aten talking.

In the Hymn to Aten, a love for humanity and the Earth is depicted in Aten's mannerisms:

Akhenaten represented himself as the son of Aten, mirroring many of his predecessors' claims of divine birth and their positions as the embodiment of Horus. Akhenaten positioned himself as the only intermediary who could speak to Aten, emphasizing the dominance of Aten as the preeminent deity. This has led to discussion of whether Atenism should be considered a monotheistic religion, and thus making it one of the first examples of monotheism. Inscriptions found on boundary stela accredited to Akhenaten discuss his desire to make the city a place of worship to Aten, dedicating the city to the god and emphasizing the royal residences' efforts in worship. Major principles of the Aten's cult worship were recorded via inscriptions on temples and tombs from the period. Straying significantly from the tradition of ancient Egyptian temples being hidden and more enclosed the further one went into the site, temples of Aten were open and did not have roofs in order to allow the rays of the sun inside. However, these were typically replaced by functionally equivalent representations of Akhenaten and his family venerating the Aten and receiving the ankh, the breath of life, from him. Compared to periods before and after the Amarna Period, Priests had less to do since offerings, such as fruits, flowers, and cakes were limited, and oracles were not needed.thumb|Akhenaten sacrificing a duck. New Kingdom, late 18th Dynasty. [[Metropolitan Museum of Art|The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York City.]]

In the worship of the Aten, the daily service of purification, anointment, and clothing of the divine image that is traditionally found in ancient Egyptian worship was not performed. Instead, incense and food-stuff offerings such as meats, wines, and fruits were placed onto open-air altars. A common scene in carved depictions of Akhenaten giving offering to Aten has him consecrating the sacrificed goods with a royal scepter. Instead of barque-processions, the royal family rode in a chariot on festival days.

Iconography

Aten was considered to have been everywhere and intangible as Aten was the sunlight and energy in the world. Therefore, he did not have physical representations that other traditional ancient Egyptian gods had, instead represented via the sun disc and reaching rays of light tipped with human-like hands.

Later, iconoclasm was enforced, and even sun disc depictions of Aten were prohibited in an edict issued by Akhenaten. In the edict, he stipulated that Aten's name was to be spelt phonetically.

Architecture

thumb|Ruins of the [[Small Aten Temple|Small Temple of the Aten at Akhetaten, modern Amarna. Little of the original temple remains and several of the papyriform columns are modern recreations. New Kingdom, late 18th Dynasty. Amarna, Egypt. ]]

Two temples were central to the city of Akhetaten. The larger of the two had an "open, unroofed structure covering an area of about 800 by 300 metres (2,600 ft × 1,000 ft) at the northern end of the city". Doorways had broken lintels and raised thresholds. Temples to the Aten were open-air structures with little-to-no roofing to maximize the amount of sunlight on the interior making them unique compared to other Egyptian temples of the time. Balustrades depict Akhenaten and the royal family embracing the rays of the Aten flanked stairwells, ramps, and altars. These fragments were initially identified as stele but were later reclassified as balustrades based on the presence of scenes on both sides.

Royal titulary

Inscriptions in tombs and temples during the Amarna Period often gave Aten a royal titulary enclosed in a double cartouche. Some have interpreted this to mean that Akhenaten was the embodiment of Aten, and the worship of Aten is directly worship of Akhenaten; but others have taken this as an indicator of Aten as the supreme ruler even over the current reigning royalty.

There were two forms of the title; the first had the names of other gods, and the second later one was more 'singular' and referred only to the Aten himself. The early form was "Re-Horakhti who rejoices in the Horizon, in his name Shu, which is the Aten."

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:left; margin:1em auto;"

! scope="row" | Early name

|<hiero><-S34-G9-N27:N27-V28-D36:Z1*Z1:Y1-Aa15-N27-></hiero><br>"Re-Horakhti who rejoices in the Horizon"<br><hiero><-Aa15-r:n:f-Aa15-H6-w-N5-n:t*Z1*Z1-Aa15-i-t:n:N5-></hiero><br>"in his name Shu, which is the Aten" The syncretism is readily apparent in the Great Hymn to the Aten in which Re-Herakhty, Shu, and Aten are merged into the creator god. as he did not actively deny the existence of other gods; he simply refrained from worshipping any but the Aten. Other scholars call the religion henotheistic. The point of this transition can be seen in the name-change of Tutankhaten into Tutankhamun indicating the loss of favor in the worship of the Aten.

  • Tutankhaten: "Living image of the Aten". Early name of Tutankhamun.

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File:Relief fragment showing a royal head, probably Akhenaten, and early Aten cartouches. Aten extends Ankh (sign of life) to the figure. Reign of Akhenaten. From Amarna, Egypt. The Petrie Museum of Egyptian Archaeology, London.jpg|Relief fragment showing a royal head, probably Akhenaten, early form Aten cartouches, and Aten extending Ankh to the figure. Amarna, Egypt. New Kingdom, late 18th Dynasty. The Petrie Museum of Egyptian Archaeology, London

File:Limestone fragment column showing reeds and an early Aten cartouche. Reign of Akhenaten. From Amarna, Egypt. The Petrie Museum of Egyptian Archaeology, London.jpg|Limestone column fragment depicting reeds and an early form Aten cartouche. Reign of Akhenaten. Amarna, Egypt. New Kingdom, late 18th Dynasty. The Petrie Museum of Egyptian Archaeology, London

File:Headless bust of Akhenaten or Nefertiti. Part of a composite red quartzite statue. Intentional damage. Four pairs of early Aten cartouches. Reign of Akhenaten. From Amarna, Egypt. The Petrie Museum of Egyptian Archaeology, London.jpg|Headless bust of Akhenaten or Nefertiti with four pairs of early form Aten cartouches, once part of a composite red quartzite statue with indications of Intentional damage. Amarna, Egypt. New Kingdom, late 18th Dynasty. The Petrie Museum of Egyptian Archaeology, London

File:Inscribed limestone fragment showing early Aten cartouches, "the Living Ra Horakhty". Reign of Akhenaten. From Amarna, Egypt. The Petrie Museum of Egyptian Archaeology, London.jpg|Inscribed limestone fragment showing early form Aten cartouches, "the Living Ra Horakhty". Amarna, Egypt. New Kingdom, late 18th Dynasty. The Petrie Museum of Egyptian Archaeology, London

File:Fragment of a stela, showing parts of 3 late cartouches of Aten. There is a rare intermediate form of god's name. Reign of Akhenaten. From Amarna, Egypt. The Petrie Museum of Egyptian Archaeology, London.jpg|Fragment of a stele with three late form cartouches for Aten, one depicting a rare intermediate form of the god's name. Amarna, Egypt. New Kingdom, late 18th Dynasty. The Petrie Museum of Egyptian Archaeology, London

File:Siliceous limestone fragment of a statue. There are late Aten cartouches on the draped right shoulder. Reign of Akhenaten. From Amarna, Egypt. The Petrie Museum of Egyptian Archaeology, London.jpg|Siliceous limestone fragment of a statue with late form Aten cartouches on the draped right shoulder. Amarna, Egypt. New Kingdom, late 18th Dynasty. The Petrie Museum of Egyptian Archaeology, London

File:Wall relief. Early cartouches of the god Aten, from Amarna, Egypt. New Kingdom, 18th Dynasty. Neues Museum.jpg|Wall relief with early form cartouches for Aten. Amarna, Egypt. New Kingdom, late 18th Dynasty. Neues Museum, Berlin, Germany.

File:Bronze plate with a cartouche of Akhenaten and 2 late cartouches of the god Aten. From Amarna, Egypt. 18th Dynasty. Neues Museum.jpg|Bronze plate with a cartouche of the throne name of Akhenaten (left) and two late form cartouches for Aten (middle, right). Amarna, Egypt. New Kingdom, late 18th Dynasty. Neues Museum, Berlin, Germany.

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See also

  • Ancient Egyptian religion
  • List of solar deities
  • Amun
  • Ra
  • Akhenaten
  • Nefertiti
  • Ankhesenamun
  • Meritaten
  • The Egyptian

References