Subject
Akhenaten, Nefertiti, and their children
The subject of this relief is the worship of the Egyptian sun god Aten. The people depicted are the Pharaoh Akhenaten, his wife Nefertiti, and their two children. An image like this would have likely been very popular at the time of Akhenaten's rule, since he forced a major shift in Egyptian religious belief by insisting the only true god was Aten. The ancient Egyptian people were polythestic before (and after) his rule, so Akhenaten likely would have had to work very hard to convince the general Egyptian public to fall in line with his ideals, and so likely would have pushed the production of images like this one as part of spreading of his agenda.
Context
Worship of Aten
This image was created during the rule of the Egptian pharaoh Akhenaten, who shook up Ancient Egypt's tradtionally polythestic religion by insisting everyone only worship one god, Aten, and appointing himself Aten's sole high priest.
Style
Limestone relief
This image was engraved in limestone, and is monochromatic (the only color coming from the stone istelf). The persons depicted (pharoh, his wife, and their children) have been created in an idealized way that makes them appear god-like, and shows the hierarchy within the family. Akenaten is the biggest and the closest to the sun disk because he holds the most power, then Nefertiti behind him is slightly smaller, showing she has less power/connection to Aten, and their children behind her are smaller still.
Connection
Magic/spirituality
The anicent Egyptians were a deeply spiritual people who very much believed in the power of supernatural forces, as evidenced by the detailed spells and instructions listed in the Book of the Dead. While I cannot put words in the mouth of historical figures, is almost certain that Akhenaten truly, deeply believed in his worship of Aten, and believed that is was extremely important that Aten recieved the proper praise and acknowledgement in order for Egypt to gain his favor so they could thrive. While securing the high priesthood as a role only the pharaoh held was certainly benefical for him, I believe his actions originated from true belief, rather than a master scheme to gain more power.
Wynne Smith - Object Annotation
Wynne Smith
Created on September 6, 2025
Start designing with a free template
Discover more than 1500 professional designs like these:
View
Urban Illustrated Presentation
View
Geographical Challenge: Drag to the map
View
Decisions and Behaviors in the Workplace
View
Tangram Game
View
Process Flow: Corporate Recruitment
View
Weekly Corporate Challenge
View
Wellbeing and Healthy Routines
Explore all templates
Transcript
Subject
Akhenaten, Nefertiti, and their children
The subject of this relief is the worship of the Egyptian sun god Aten. The people depicted are the Pharaoh Akhenaten, his wife Nefertiti, and their two children. An image like this would have likely been very popular at the time of Akhenaten's rule, since he forced a major shift in Egyptian religious belief by insisting the only true god was Aten. The ancient Egyptian people were polythestic before (and after) his rule, so Akhenaten likely would have had to work very hard to convince the general Egyptian public to fall in line with his ideals, and so likely would have pushed the production of images like this one as part of spreading of his agenda.
Context
Worship of Aten
This image was created during the rule of the Egptian pharaoh Akhenaten, who shook up Ancient Egypt's tradtionally polythestic religion by insisting everyone only worship one god, Aten, and appointing himself Aten's sole high priest.
Style
Limestone relief
This image was engraved in limestone, and is monochromatic (the only color coming from the stone istelf). The persons depicted (pharoh, his wife, and their children) have been created in an idealized way that makes them appear god-like, and shows the hierarchy within the family. Akenaten is the biggest and the closest to the sun disk because he holds the most power, then Nefertiti behind him is slightly smaller, showing she has less power/connection to Aten, and their children behind her are smaller still.
Connection
Magic/spirituality
The anicent Egyptians were a deeply spiritual people who very much believed in the power of supernatural forces, as evidenced by the detailed spells and instructions listed in the Book of the Dead. While I cannot put words in the mouth of historical figures, is almost certain that Akhenaten truly, deeply believed in his worship of Aten, and believed that is was extremely important that Aten recieved the proper praise and acknowledgement in order for Egypt to gain his favor so they could thrive. While securing the high priesthood as a role only the pharaoh held was certainly benefical for him, I believe his actions originated from true belief, rather than a master scheme to gain more power.