AHETATON - THE CITY OF PHARAOH-HERETIC AKHENATEN

In 1368 BC to the Egyptian throne Amenhotep IV - the most unusual of the ancient Egyptian pharaohs, reforms which gave rise to extremely interesting period in the history of Egypt. Prior to his system of mystical and religious beliefs of ancient Egyptians was extremely complex and confusing. Adoration of the many gods passed from the time of the deification of animals. For example, the god of the dead Anubis depicted in human form with the head of a jackal, the sun god Horus (who was incarnated in Pharaoh at his coronation) is depicted flying falcon or a man with the head of a falcon god Thoth - with the head of an ibis, the goddess Hathor - with cows and so on . They are supplemented by the worship of the cult of the supreme gods - Ra, Amun and Ptah. Each whole of them accompanied by a pantheon of deities sister, who had power in any one city or nome. Such a cumbersome system crushed Egypt and interfered with its association.

Pharaoh Amenhotep IV abolished the cult of the god Amun, together with the worship of others - large and small - to the gods. The priests of the god Amun constituted the largest and most influential stratum of society, is so strong, that could even confront the power of the pharaoh.

Amenhotep IV had broken with the Theban priesthood and the former official religion. Already in the early years of his reign near the temple of the god Amun in Thebes, in the garden with fragrant trees, he built a temple of the god Aten - United vseozaryayuschemu life-giving sun "- and the high priest declared himself the new God.

In the sixth year of the reign of Amenhotep IV, with the gap Theban priesthood finally took shape: Pharaoh forbade worship in honor of Amon and all the old gods, the vast possessions were confiscated by the priests, countless churches are closed throughout the country, the names of gods, scrape the walls of public buildings. He himself had changed his name Amenhotep ( "Amon satisfied") to Akhenaten ( "pleasing to Aton") and together with his family, soldiers, craftsmen, the new priests, artists, sculptors, and the servants had left Thebes - the state capital and center of worship of the god Amun.

Photo — «Ahetaton - The City
of Pharaoh-heretic Akhenaten»

Climbing up the Nile, Pharaoh came ashore in a wide valley, surrounded by impregnable cliffs. At a glittering golden chariot, accompanied by close Akhenaten came to the place where planned to erect a temple god Aton. It is done "a great sacrifice to his father (Aton), bread, wine-fed bulls, hornless calves, birds, beer, fruit, incense, herbs every good day basis Ahetatona - Aton alive. This inscription was carved on one of the 14 boundary stelae of the new capital, on the other stele of Pharaoh kept the oath never to overstep those boundaries.

For a few years from scratch to build a great big city, there was not enough to banish a lot of people. Simple labor force could be used for buildings, but their finishing needed skilled craftsmen, which are covered with a huge temple of the god Aton carvings and inscriptions. Near the temple, at right angles to it, located the main palace - the largest civil building of the ancient Egyptian architecture. Its area is 700x300 meters, and that′s not counting personal adjacent houses and the temple of the royal family. The main part of the palace, as the temple of Aton, was made of white stone. All he was decorated with gold, tiles, paintings, carvings and inscriptions.

Erected by the city with temples, gardens, palaces, rich nobles neighborhoods, parks and ponds, was declared a "land of the god Aton. In this city, even the type of ancient Egyptian temple was completely different. All the old churches were of the light into the darkness of the cult chapel, which was lit up only for lights at the altar. A gloomy state of mind dictated by the very nature of the ancient gods, calculated on a frightening reverence.

The cult of the god Aton wore a completely different character. The main ritual was accompanied by the sunrise, which revived the Nile, spread blue and white lotus flowers, a thicket of papyrus raised birds, filling the awakening world with their cries. At this point in the temple, which was a huge open courtyard to the sun, the inhabitants of the sun Ahetatona brought their gifts: flowers, vegetables and fruits.

Photo — «Ahetaton - The City
of Pharaoh-heretic Akhenaten»

The temple was festively decorated with pillars, statues of the pharaoh and painting. Standing on the top floor of the main altar, Akhenaton waving censer with incense, and musicians, accompanied on harp and lute, courtiers, priests and all the worshipers intone the word anthem:

Your beautiful sunrise on the horizon, the living Aton, pioneer life.

Arise up, people who wash the body, raise their hands, rejoicing in the birth of a new day! . .

You give life and distant countries, fertilizing rain of their land.

How many and wonderful creations of yours: people, animals, flowers, grass - all that is on land, water and air!

New ideas pharaoh reformer also appeared in poetry and painting, architecture, sculpture, and even in everyday life. Akhenaten did not wage wars, so he never shows the exciting land or punishing enemies. Therefore, reliefs, paintings and sculptural portraits represent him as a man steeped in philosophical reflection, with a rich inner world: in the images of the pharaoh guess some contemplation, sharp, almost sensual feeling of fullness of life with all its joys and sorrows.

Akhenaten died early, when he was not yet 35 years old, and has neither son nor worthy companions. Some researchers even suggest that he was poisoned, as one of the paintings depicted the attempt on him.

New cops did their best to obliterate the memory of his predecessor and his new god. They stripped, trampled and destroyed all that was created by Akhenaten. Especially trying commander Heremheb prevails on the Egyptian throne, allegedly on the "will of the god Amun. Without legal rights to the throne, he zealously pursued with particular memory of the Pharaoh Akhenaten. By order Heremheba began destroying Ahetatona, by that time and so finally abandoned. Beautiful city smashed with hatred: smash and destroy the magnificent temples and palaces, statues and reliefs. Then ruins Ahetatona gradually drifted sand, and hid for several millennia desert. At the spot where once the snow-capped embankments, before 1880 in the kingdom of the sun and the silence stretched a narrow strip of crops, and in the shadow of thick palm groves sheltered three small villages.

Photo — «Ahetaton - The City
of Pharaoh-heretic Akhenaten»

They opened the city pharaoh reformer, as often happens, quite by accident. In late 1880, a woman from the small village of Tell el-Amarna, found several clay tablets with some inscriptions. She realized that it was - those "old", so that the interests of foreigners. To increase the market value of their findings, she broke the plate into several parts, which are offered to traders-dealers. Those treated him fairly skeptical and suggested that for them a very low price. Only one of the traders realized that the plates are covered with some sort of script, and invited them to various museums in Europe.

However, scientists have experienced a lot of frustration because of the eastern imitations, treated plates from el-Amarna in disbelief. Only members of the Berlin Museum not only established the authenticity of clay fragments, but decided to buy up all the written tablets, by that time found themselves in all parts of the world.

So in the early 1890′s in the area of Tell el-Amarna began the first excavations, which began the Englishman William Matthew Flinders Pitris. He was a chemist by education and a mathematician, then engaged in collecting antiques, and then, for almost 50 years, was "digger with a meter and theodolite in the hands. " However, F. Pitris, who had already discovered many interesting monuments of Egyptian history, to the excavations at el-Amarna soon lost interest. Beginning it was disclosed to the mystery has remained unsolved.

Only in 1907 Germanskoe Oriental Society dared to take up excavation of the mysterious hill near the el-Amarna. Supervised by these works of L. Burkhardt, to whom belongs the honor of opening the world-famous bust of Nefertiti now - an extraordinary monument, graced humanity entirely new page in the history of ancient Egyptian iskusstva. 1

First World War interrupted studies at al-Amarna, and they were continued until its completion. Archaeological gradually restored short history Ahetatona - a powerful radiant city of Aton, the great charm in its . . . and total wealth.

Photo — «Ahetaton - The City
of Pharaoh-heretic Akhenaten»

"

Most of the vast territory of the city, the residence of the pharaoh Akhenaten is now possible to imagine. It was built on the spot, before anyone not inhabited, and therefore the question of the limited urban area did not arise. Since Ahetaton there was a very short time, the question of land and in the future could not be a problem, so the city was characterized by wide stretches of the manor house type. Planning and rich and poor homes in diversity, moreover, a characteristic of all the buildings - the similarity of their plans. The significant difference of the poor houses of the rich was only then that the poor are not parked chapels, household services, accommodation for the slaves and servants.

A typical house in a rich Ahetatone - this is usually an entire estate, an area of 68x55 meters. In its center was a residential building, which housed around the garden, a chapel and other buildings. All manor twine wall with two entrances: the main entrance path led to a small courtyard, where, having risen for several steps, fell into an indoor staircase at home. For a small room adjoining the entrances through which took place in a large oblong room with 4 round columns: it was kind of reception for guests and also the room where the rest owners.

During the reception hall is the central room of the house - too big room with four columns, but square. This door led into the rest of the house - the master bedroom, family room, etc. All premises were illuminated through the window at the top of the exterior walls - almost at the roof. To highlight the central room, its walls were made higher altitude than the adjacent premises.

Large and well-planned houses of the nobility were placed in the roads, fewer houses - for them, but too close to the road, and then, on winding streets with narrow aisles, randomly huddled huts of the poor.

The priests of the sun god Aton housed in a huge area with magnificent portals and streets for processions, decorated with columns chapels with sculptures and reliefs. According to the plan Akhenaten all premises sometimes takes the form of bank of the Nile: thin columns reminiscent of stalks of papyrus, the paintings on walls and floors were repeated lotus flowers and buds, and birds fluttering in the bushes.

Photo — «Ahetaton - The City
of Pharaoh-heretic Akhenaten»

These motifs previously met in the Egyptian art, but never before in they did not have such a wealth of themes and colors, such freedom and grace of execution, such a drag beauty of line and color . . .

This is natural, replacing canonized stylized poses and gestures, and manifested itself in the depiction of people. For example, Akhenaten often imprinted with your family - with his wife Nefertiti and daughters. Among the found in el-Amarna monuments are few, where the Pharaoh is depicted without Nefertiti.

Basing the new capital Ahetaton, the Pharaoh Akhenaten had promised to erect a queen in it its own place to worship the sun - the shadow of RE. We Nefertiti was his great and magnificent ship that swung at the palace next to the boat dock Pharaoh.

Unfortunately, now the Palace of Nefertiti left some ruins, but it is known that in the north-eastern end of the garden is a long building stretching along the north wall of the palace. Inside this room pillars supporting the ceiling, stood in a row - each on a tiny island between intermittent water bodies. These reservoirs were made in huge letters "T": the top row, they were turned down the steep end, but in the bottom - up. Vklinivayas sheer number ends in a row, the letters "T" formed a strict pattern. Handrails and the floor around the reservoirs, as well as the slope of the walls were completely painted railing plant ornaments and pictures of flowers.

Such was this "magnificent mansion of the Sun," Church buildings decorated with small, austere and full of water immersed in greenery and flowers. After Nefertiti these possessions passed to her daughter Miyot.