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Egyptian Artifacts

Bust of Akhenaten at the Louvre

Let’s take another look at an Amarna Period piece! This is a limestoneΒ π“‡‹π“ˆ–π“ˆ™π“Œ‰Β bust of AkhenatenΒ π“‡‹π“π“ˆ–π“‡³π“…œπ“π“ˆ–Β that is currently in the Louvre! While you all know HatshepsutΒ π“‡‹π“ π“ˆ–π“ŽΉπ“π“„‚π“π“€Όπ“ͺΒ is my favorite pharaoh 𓉐𓉻, AkhenatenΒ π“‡‹π“π“ˆ–π“‡³π“…œπ“π“ˆ–Β is my second favorite! I always refer to AkhenatenΒ π“‡‹π“π“ˆ–π“‡³π“…œπ“π“ˆ–Β as β€œmy favorite disaster” because I think that is quite the succinct way to describe his 17 π“Ž†π“€ year rule π“‹Ύ of EgyptΒ π“†Žπ“…“π“π“Š–!Β 

While it can’t be seen in my pictures 𓏏𓅱𓏏𓏦, some of the paint 𓇨𓂋𓅱𓏭𓏸𓏦 is still preserved on the bust! One of the places that still has traces of paint is the Blue Crown (Khepresh)Β π“†£π“‚‹π“ˆ™π“‹™Β that AkhenatenΒ π“‡‹π“π“ˆ–π“‡³π“…œπ“π“ˆ–Β is wearing. Also, the ears and back of the neck still have traces of paint.Β 

The Uraeus π“‡‹π“‚π“‚‹π“π“†— is missing from the front of the Blue Crown π“†£π“‚‹π“ˆ™π“‹™, and it was probably lost in antiquity. The Uraeus π“‡‹π“‚π“‚‹π“π“†— symbolizes divine authority, royalty, supremacy, and also acted as protection π“…“π“‚π“Ž‘π“€œ for the pharaoh π“‰π“‰». Fun Fact: no example of the Blue Crown (Khepresh) π“†£π“‚‹π“ˆ™π“‹™ has been found by archaeologists! 

The artistic style during Akhenaten’s π“‡‹π“π“ˆ–π“‡³π“…œπ“π“ˆ– rule π“‹Ύ was very different than the traditional Egyptian art styles, which makes pieces like this bust so weird and wonderful in their own way! I will never get tired of studying Amarna art!Β