Explorations in Bible lands during the 19th century - H. V. Hilprecht

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674 EXPLORATIONS IN BIBLE LANDS
IV
EL-AMARNA
To the same period as
Gurob belongs a third city, which,
however, was not a mere provincial town, but as a royal residence
played an important part in the political and religious
development of the Pharaonic kingdom, — the city of El-
'Amarna. It is situated on the right bank of the Nile about
halfway between Thebes and Memphis, and owes its foundation
to that religious revolutionist and fanatic Amenophis
IV. This ruler had made the bold attempt to reform the
Egyptian religion and to put in the place of the numerous
old gods, concerning whom distorted ideas had grown up, the
worship of the planetary system of the sun. Whether
the old capital Thebes, in which his forefathers resided,
reminded him too much of the god Ammon, whom he persecuted,
and who had a large temple there, or whether his
revolutionary ideas found strong resistance on the part of the
orthodox priests, is not yet known to us. Certain it is that
Echenaten (" Spirit of the Sun — " ) the name he had taken
in place of Amenophis, in which the hated name of
" Ammon " occurs — broke up the court at Thebes and
built a new residence at El-'Amarna in the plain, whither
he removed with all his court. The town grew rapidly.
Temples and palaces arose. Near the royal castle stood
the houses of the aristocracy in the midst of well attended
gardens. But this glory was of short duration. Soon after
the death of the king a reaction set in and finally prevailed
the court was once more removed to Thebes, and the newly
founded city decayed rapidly.
After
Lepsius had made accurate plans of the city ruins,
together with the outlines of the streets and private buildings,
the royal palace and the temple of the Sun, and also of