Essay Database

Akhenaton was the first pharaoh to introduce the concept of monotheism, the worshipping of only one god, as opposed to polytheism, the worshipping of many gods. The people of Egypt had usually depicted gods in either animal or human form in their paintings and sculptures in order to help give them a physical form that they could worship. However, under Akhenaton's new ideas, the only god was Aton, which was represented with the form of …

…to be covered up, which again makes it hard to determine the sex of the figure. In a way, this statue may have been more of a symbol of Aton than a depiction of Akhenaton. But if nothing else, it produces a link between Akhenaton and Aton. Most importantly, this statue of Akhenaton was not meant as a literal depiction of the pharaoh. It was a symbol for Akhenaton's revolutionary beliefs on art and religion.