Akhenaten ruled ancient Egypt for 17 years and was thought to have died in the 1330s B.C. He is known for ruling with the religious belief in one God (like many modern day religions) as apposed to worshiping multiple pagan-type Gods as was typical during the ancient world. It is still under debate, but it is thought that his belief in the Aten (or sun God) was not actually the belief in a deity, but the power of nature of the universe as the creator of life. Eventually, the ancient Egyptians disregarded his belief and returned to polytheism decades after his death.
Interestingly, he was the husband of Nefertit and was recently proven by DNA evidence to be the father of the famous child-King Tutankhamun (King Tut).
Why Akhenaten interests me so much? Not only was his religious beliefs “radical” for his time, but his image depicted in statues and sculptures does not resemble those of earlier or later ancient Egyptians. Notably his elongated head (remember my last post?) and strange physique (especially for a pharaoh) makes him an interesting figure in ancient history.
His emergence in the timeline makes for fantastic historical fiction that I plan on running with in my latest work.
