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Primary sourceSculptureAmarna period, c. 1350-1330 BCE

Stela of Akhenaten and his family

Amarna period, c. 1350-1330 BCE

An Amarna-period carved stone stela showing Pharaoh Akhenaten, Queen Nefertiti and their children beneath the sun disk of the Aten.

Nefertiti appears in this stela as the standing queen beside Akhenaten and their children, under the Aten's rays.

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Carved relief of a royal family under a sun disk with rays ending in hands. A seated pharaoh with a tall crown is at left, a queen with a tall crown stands at right, and small children are depicted between them, all in a warm-toned stone.
Stela of Akhenaten and his family, Amarna period. Egyptian Museum, Cairo, JE 44865.

About this source

What it is

This is a stone stela from the Amarna period, carved with a scene of a royal family. It shows a seated pharaoh wearing a tall crown, a standing queen also wearing a tall crown, and small children between them, all beneath the rays of a sun disk. It is held at the Egyptian Museum in Cairo (JE 44865).

Why it matters

The stela comes from the time of Akhenaten, when Egyptian art and religion changed to focus on the sun god Aten. Scenes like this, showing the royal family together under the sun's rays, were a new and personal kind of royal image. Nefertiti, Akhenaten's Great Royal Wife, appears here as a central figure in the family and the new religion.

Look closer

  • Why might the artist have shown the whole family together, rather than just the pharaoh alone?
  • What does the sun disk with rays suggest about how the family wanted to be seen?
  • What details are missing that might help us know more about who is pictured?

This sculpture is part of the curated material that grounds the AI version of Queen Nefereti on Humy.ai — when students ask about related events, the AI can quote it and cite it.

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Akhenaten and His Family

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Relief Fragment Showing the Blue Crown of Nefertiti

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Primary source

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