FRIDAY, AUGUST 6 — TEL EL AMARNA

At Amarna (slide show) you can visualize the city the “heretic pharaoh” Akhenaten, left (formerly Amenhotep IV), founded to anchor his new (monotheistic!) sun god (“Ra”) -focused religion, Atenism. At this site see the distinctive naturalistic style of Amarna art, with a focus on the royal family, not the gods, the depiction of movement, and the use of sunk relief.

You’ll get an orientation to the site, its historical and theological underpinnings, and its most famous residents, Akhenaten and Nefertiti (and their children as seen in image at upper right; Nefertiti bust, lower right). Amarna is a sprawling site thought to rank among the most important archeological finds in Egypt. Our visit will focus on the tombs up on the cliffs behind the city. The tombs have very striking artistic and cultural features.

However, if you don’t want to climb up the stairs to the Tombs of the Nobles (which are roughly 150 ft above the valley floor) you can visit the Mallawi Museum (slide show) in a nearby town.

The Mallawi National Museum houses antiquities from excavations in the Minya region including Tell El-Amarna, Tuna El-Gebel, and El Ashmunein. The remarkable collection spans ancient Egyptian, Greek, Roman, Coptic, and Islamic Eras. It is a modest civic building yet the artifacts within are excellent representations and some are quite beautiful and uncommon. If you’re not someone who embraces climbing stairs in the heat, consider the Mallawi Museum. While you’ll miss the unique Amarna tomb art, you’ll gain a deeper understanding of neighboring sites, and will see rare artifacts from the evanescent city herself.