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The Life and Times of Akhnaton
Based on firsthand archaeological discoveries, this excellent biography examines the life of Akhanton, who reigned as kind of ancient Egypt from 1372-1354 B.C.
322 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1923
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80 people want to read
About the author
Arthur Weigall
57 books31 followersArthur Edward Pearse Brome Weigall was an Egyptologist, stage designer, and journalist participated in the discoveries of the tombs of Yuya and Tjuyu, Kha and Merit, and Horemheb. During World War I he became a successful set-designer for the London revue stage, which led in turn to film work and thence to a post as film critic for the Daily Mail.
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
May 8, 2016
This book is a fascinating reconstruction of the character of Akhnaton and the religion he founded, with deep but also interesting flaws mostly due to the time in which it was written.
(Oddly, the edition I read is credited to Gerald Weigall and listed separately on Goodreads, but checking the text of this PDF of the book confirms that it is the same as this one. That PDF incidentally contains the original illustrations, a great lack in the Kindle edition.)
Weigall's work contains exactly what I was hoping for: a fuller account of Atonism and the social changes Akhnaton made in his kingdom than I had previously read. With reference to many tomb paintings, sculptures and stone carvings, as well as the archaeological findings in Akhnaton's City of the Horizon of the Aten, Weigall traces the religion's development from a split between the priesthoods of Amun-Ra in Thebes and Ra-Horakhti in Heliopolis to the first monotheistic worship in history. He emphasises the nature-loving and pacifistic aspects of Atonism, as well as the idea that it was the first religion to decentre itself from a particular, localised deity and become, potentially, equally relevant to all nations.
Weigall has a great sympathy and admiration for Akhnaton and his prose, though sometimes fussy, often reflects this in its beauty. I also appreciated his work in setting the events at Akhetaton (Amarna) in their context within the Egyptian empire of the time, which stretched from Palestine down to Syria, and its neighbouring states.
The most obvious problem with this monograph is that it was written in 1922, before Howard Carter's discovery of Tutankhamun's tomb that year. Weigall refers to Tutankhamun as 'another noble ... who usurped the throne' by marrying one of Akhnaton's daughters. Discoveries and research in the intervening near-century have demonstrated that Tutankhamun was a son of Akhnaton by an unnamed sister-wife and thus had his own claim to the throne, which was only strengthened by his marriage to the princess Ankhesenpaaten (Ankhesenamun). Many other events in the timeline reconstructed by Weigall have been substantially revised since publication. What's more, a lot of the book seems to be speculation that is not backed up by archaeological sources, or whose sources are not mentioned. This would not be a problem if not for the age of the book or the fact that this speculation so often fits Weigall's very evident biases.
Weigall is, you see, a bigot (perhaps in keeping with his era) and a wholly convinced Christian. His admiration of Akhenaton stems from his identification of Atonism as a premature, incomplete revelation of his own religion to the pharaoh, and he pauses his narrative often to expound on the connections he sees between the two. "Like a flash of blinding light in the night-time," he writes, "the Aton stands out for a moment amidst the black Egyptian darkness, and disappears once more — the first signal to this world of the future religion of the West." Weigall's explicitly religious agenda made me nervous about accepting his extended chains of reasoning. So did his frequent statements about the character of 'the Oriental' or 'the Asiatic', of which this is a memorably strange example: "In Amenophis III, one may see the lazy, speculative Oriental, too opinionated and too vain to bear with the stiff routine of his fathers, and yet too lacking in energy to formulate a new religion."
As a short primer for a turbulent period in Egyptian history, filled with vivid descriptions of places and people long since gone, I did enjoy this book, and I would recommend it — with the strong caveats in the previous paragraph. It needs to be supplemented with a more modern text, however, and I plan to find one next. (The only long work I had previously read on Akhnaton was Oedipus & Akhnaton: Myth & History; as you can see, I'm slowly grasping towards credible sources on his life.)
(Oddly, the edition I read is credited to Gerald Weigall and listed separately on Goodreads, but checking the text of this PDF of the book confirms that it is the same as this one. That PDF incidentally contains the original illustrations, a great lack in the Kindle edition.)
Weigall's work contains exactly what I was hoping for: a fuller account of Atonism and the social changes Akhnaton made in his kingdom than I had previously read. With reference to many tomb paintings, sculptures and stone carvings, as well as the archaeological findings in Akhnaton's City of the Horizon of the Aten, Weigall traces the religion's development from a split between the priesthoods of Amun-Ra in Thebes and Ra-Horakhti in Heliopolis to the first monotheistic worship in history. He emphasises the nature-loving and pacifistic aspects of Atonism, as well as the idea that it was the first religion to decentre itself from a particular, localised deity and become, potentially, equally relevant to all nations.
Weigall has a great sympathy and admiration for Akhnaton and his prose, though sometimes fussy, often reflects this in its beauty. I also appreciated his work in setting the events at Akhetaton (Amarna) in their context within the Egyptian empire of the time, which stretched from Palestine down to Syria, and its neighbouring states.
The most obvious problem with this monograph is that it was written in 1922, before Howard Carter's discovery of Tutankhamun's tomb that year. Weigall refers to Tutankhamun as 'another noble ... who usurped the throne' by marrying one of Akhnaton's daughters. Discoveries and research in the intervening near-century have demonstrated that Tutankhamun was a son of Akhnaton by an unnamed sister-wife and thus had his own claim to the throne, which was only strengthened by his marriage to the princess Ankhesenpaaten (Ankhesenamun). Many other events in the timeline reconstructed by Weigall have been substantially revised since publication. What's more, a lot of the book seems to be speculation that is not backed up by archaeological sources, or whose sources are not mentioned. This would not be a problem if not for the age of the book or the fact that this speculation so often fits Weigall's very evident biases.
Weigall is, you see, a bigot (perhaps in keeping with his era) and a wholly convinced Christian. His admiration of Akhenaton stems from his identification of Atonism as a premature, incomplete revelation of his own religion to the pharaoh, and he pauses his narrative often to expound on the connections he sees between the two. "Like a flash of blinding light in the night-time," he writes, "the Aton stands out for a moment amidst the black Egyptian darkness, and disappears once more — the first signal to this world of the future religion of the West." Weigall's explicitly religious agenda made me nervous about accepting his extended chains of reasoning. So did his frequent statements about the character of 'the Oriental' or 'the Asiatic', of which this is a memorably strange example: "In Amenophis III, one may see the lazy, speculative Oriental, too opinionated and too vain to bear with the stiff routine of his fathers, and yet too lacking in energy to formulate a new religion."
As a short primer for a turbulent period in Egyptian history, filled with vivid descriptions of places and people long since gone, I did enjoy this book, and I would recommend it — with the strong caveats in the previous paragraph. It needs to be supplemented with a more modern text, however, and I plan to find one next. (The only long work I had previously read on Akhnaton was Oedipus & Akhnaton: Myth & History; as you can see, I'm slowly grasping towards credible sources on his life.)
January 13, 2014
I have read and studied Akhnaton for many years; but this made him into a real person that I could identify with, and so appreciate what he achieved.
Though a technical book, I truly found it a very GOOD READ.
Though a technical book, I truly found it a very GOOD READ.
October 25, 2015
Учитывая количество источников, Вейгаллу стоило не историком быть, а беллетристом - слишком много красивых фантазий. Но вспоминая, что весь Древний Египет на подобных фантазиях и домыслах стоит, то, наверно, не так уж страшно. Кроме того, больно положительно Вейгалл относится к Эхнатону - все сделанное последним воспринимается, как минимум, благородным. А некоторые интересные страницы жизни "миролюбивого" фараона почему-то упущены, например, жестокие расправы над фиванскими жрецами - вплоть до сожжения тела, что не практиковалось даже по отношению к самым заклятым преступникам. В остальном, интересно.
January 20, 2009
Well-written, in almost story format. Very good read if you're interested in the subject.
March 25, 2012
Mostly a discussion of the religion of the Aton. Very little about the times of Akhnaton - still readable
January 17, 2014
Very dry and out of date, you would have to really like Egyptology to read this book
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews