Hello, hello and welcome back to the History of Egypt podcast. Episode 118, the House of Aten.

This is part two in our exploration of Akanatin's religion. We've seen its expression and precedence

in solar hymns. Now it's time to see what the Pharaoh actually did when worshipping his God.

More importantly, we will see where he did it, visiting the magnificent temples erected

in the city of Arquette-Artem.

This episode of the history of Egypt was brought to you by Stefan Pielstrom and Laurent Vermeer,

who generously donated to the show.

Stefan, Laurent, thank you very much for your support. I hope this episode brings you satisfaction.

To everyone listening, please enjoy the show.

When Akanaten decided to set up his new royal residence at Aket Aten, he naturally made provision for the religious facilities he would need to glorify the sun god. Every Egyptian city, every palatial compound, needed its shrines and temples,

and the horizon of Aten was no exception. From the very beginning, maybe before anything else,

Akanaten commissioned new temples, divine houses, for service to his god.

In the central city there are two major temples, one large,

one small. As you can guess, we generally call the smaller temple, wait for it, the small

Arten Temple. The larger one is the Great Temple. They have ancient names which I will use later,

but if you're looking at any modern map, the great and small temples are what you will find.

The two Arten temples are located in the central city, the administrative and religious heart of Arquette Arten.

Along with the Great Palace and Central Food Depot, which we explored in episode 114, the magnificent

sanctuaries define the core of Akanaten's new home.

As we will see, they are splendid and grand.

Both temples are oriented west to east, with their entrance facing the Nile River and their altars pointed towards

the sunrise. Originally, they probably connected to the Nile via processional roads and stone jetties

...