Overview

Jocelyn Gohary uses the heb-sed or Sed-festival, an ancient Egyptian religious festival that can be traced back to the Archaic Period, as the basis for a comparative study that throws light upon the controversial reign of Amenhotep IV-Akhenaten. This volume, which makes available the hitherto unpublished record of the Sed-festival of Amenhotep IV at Karnak, is based upon an analysis of scenes carved on the blocks known as the Akhenaten talatat. Originally installed in the Aten temple complex at Karnak, the blocks were reused after Akhenaten's death, and are now in the process of being correlated with the aid of computers, an enterprise initiated by, the Aktienaten Temple Project. The conclusions that Gohary draws from the study relate primarily to the religious aspects of the scenes and rites enacted, and to the art styles used on the talatat. The material indicates that the Karnak temple represents an early stage of transition in the development of the cult of Aten, as well as in the innovation of artistic representation. Gohary's study thus establishes an extremely useful stage in the Akhenaten sequence, and provides an important core of material to which talatat recovered in future can be related. Gohary's research also suggests that his celebration of the Sed-festival in a traditional manner lends weight to recent views of Akhenaten as less of a radical than has previously been thought.

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Jocelyn Gohary

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