Nefertiti's
Role
in the Religious
Revolution of the Eighteenth Dynasty
Nefertiti,
the Great Royal Wife of King Amenhotep IV better
known as Akhenaten, joined her husband in worship of a new religion that
celebrated the power of the sun-disk Aten.
During the Amarna
Period, Akhenaten at the age of twenty-one renounced his ties to the old
religion of the Middle Kingdom by moving the capitol of Egypt from Thebes
to a new site, Tell- el Amarna. He named the territory, Akhetaten, which
means the "horizon of Aten". In this city, Akhenaten financed the decoration
of monuments and temples which celebrated the power of the god Re Horus
of the Akhet (Re-Horakhty) and the sun-disk Aten.
James P. Allen in
his essay, "The Religion of Amarna" suggests that Akhenaten's religious
revolution transformed Egptian religion using the "new solar theology,"
a belief that the power of the sun-god Re-Herakhty was found in the sun-disk
Aten. According to Cyril Aldred, author of Egyptian Art in the Days of
the Pharaohs 3100-320 BC, Akhenaten instigated a fundamental change in
Egyptian religion which resulted in the unprecendented acceptance of a
monotheistic god.
Nefertiti's
prominent
role in Egyptian royal rule and religious worship reflects her influence
in the public sphere. During the early years of her royal reign, Nefertiti
as
part of her religious conversion changed her name.
Nefertiti
which
means "The-beautiful-one -is come"
became Neferneferuaten-Nefertiti
or "The-Aten-is -radiant-of-radiance [because]
the-beautiful-one-is come". A different interpretation
of the name change, translated Neferneferuaten
to mean--"Perfect One of the Aten's Perfection".
Following his wife's lead, Amenhotep changed his name in the fifth year
of his reign to Akhenaten. Nefertiti's
central role in the adoption of this new religion is witnessed in the artistic
representations which adorn temple walls. Aldred in his book entitled Akhenaten,
King of Egypt quotes a eulogy of Nefertiti's
found on the boundary stelae of Akhetaten. The inscription reads:
"And the Heiress,
Great in the Palace, Fair of Face,
Adorned with
the Double Plumes, Mistress of Happiness,
Endowed with
Favours, at hearing whose voice the King rejoices,
the Chief Wife
of the King, his beloved,
the Lady of
the Two Lands,
Neferneferuaten-Nefertiti,
May she live
for Ever and Always."
Queen Nefertiti
is known in history as "The Most Beautiful
Woman in the
World."
Throughout the ages,
Egyptian sculptors have deified their kings and queens.
Arnold establishes
a link between the elongated features of the Karnak style
and the fantastic
depictions of gods and goddesses. She comments, "If the
pharaoh was the
all-important human link with the divine, then the queen's
resemblance to the
king must have assured her a share in close relationship to the god's."
The Berlin bust, seen
above, is indeed, the most famous depiction of
Queen
Nefertiti.
Found in the workshop of the famed sculptor Thutmose, the bust is believed
to be a sculptor's model.
The technique which
begins with a carved piece of limestone, requires the stone core to be
first plastered and then richly painted. Flesh tones on the face give the
bust life. Her full lips are enhanced by a bold red. Although the crystal
inlay is missing from her left eye, both eyelids and brows are outlined
in black. Her graceful elongated neck balances the tall, flat-top crown
which adorns her sleek head. The vibrant colors of the her necklace and
crown contrast the yellow-brown of her smooth skin. While everything is
sculpted to perfection, the one flaw of the piece is a broken left ear.
Because this remarkable
sculpture is still in existence, it is no wonder why Nefertiti
remains
"The Most Beautiful Woman in the World."
Sources:
Aldred,
Cyril. Akhenaten, King of Egypt. London: Thames and Hudson, 1988.
Aldred,
Cyril. Egyptian Art in the Days of the Pharaohs 3100-320BC. London: Thames
and Hudson, 1980.
Allen,
James P. "The Religion of Amarna". found in The Royal Women of Amarna,
Images of Beauty from Ancient Egypt. ed. Dorothea Arnold. New York: The
Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1996.
Arnold,
Dorothea. "Aspects of the Royal Female Image during the Amarna Period".
found in The Royal Women of Amarna, Images of Beauty from Ancient Egypt.
ed. Dorothea Arnold. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1996.
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