Central City

Northern Nile Valley

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The centre of Akhetaten contained the temple complex, the Great Palace and the King's House. The temple complex contained two main buildings, a sanctuary and the Long Temple, 190m in length and divided into six courts. Along the south wall of the Long Table, archaeologists found the remains of 920 offering tables. This was separated from the King's House by storerooms. The palace was built of stone and decorated with great care, with faience mouldings and tiles, and alabaster balustrades.

Archaeologists value the site because, unlike most places in Egypt, it was occupied for just one reign. Also, it has proved to be one of the most useful sites for understanding how people lived in this early period.

Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

  • Tuna Al Gebel

    Tuna Al Gebel

    13.26 MILES

    Tuna Al Gebel was the necropolis of Hermopolis; about 5km past the village of Tuna Al Gebel you'll find the catacombs and tombs of the residents and…

  • Tomb of Amenemhat (No 2)

    Tomb of Amenemhat (No 2)

    19.23 MILES

    Amenemhat was a 12th-dynasty governor of Oryx. His tomb is the largest and possibly the best at Beni Hasan and, like that of Khnumhotep, its impressive…

  • Beni Hasan

    Beni Hasan

    19.06 MILES

    The necropolis of Beni Hasan occupies a range of east-bank limestone cliffs some 20km south of Minya. Most of the superb tombs date from the 11th and 12th…

  • El-Qusiya, Egypt - November 4th, 2011: A Coptic family visits a shrine at Deir al-Muharraq monastery also called the Burned Monastery. Being one of the oldest functioning monasteries in the world it is an important pilgrimage place for Coptic Christians. Deir Al Muharraq monastery

    Deir Al Muharraq

    15.45 MILES

    Deir Al Muharraq, an hour’s drive northwest of Asyut, is a place of pilgrimage, refuge and vows, where the strength of Coptic traditions can be…

  • Tombs of Mir

    Tombs of Mir

    20.02 MILES

    The necropolis of the governors of Cusae, the Tombs of Mir, as they are commonly known (sometimes also Meir), were cut into the barren escarpment during…

  • Royal Tomb of Akhenaten

    Royal Tomb of Akhenaten

    5.58 MILES

    Akhenaten’s tomb (No 26) is in a ravine about 12km up the Royal Valley (Wadi Darb Al Malek), which divides the north and south sections of the cliffs and…

  • Tell Al Amarna

    Tell Al Amarna

    2.54 MILES

    You will see the ruins of Akhetaten – temples and private or administrative buildings – scattered across the plain of Tell Al Amarna, but the main sights…

  • Speos Artemidos

    Speos Artemidos

    17.16 MILES

    If the guardian allows, you can follow a cliffside track that leads southeast for about 2.5km and then some 500m into a wadi to the rock-cut temple called…

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Nearby Northern Nile Valley attractions

1. North Palace

1.1 MILES

An isolated building on the north of the city and once entered through a monumental gate, this domestic complex contained a central courtyard with rooms…

2. Tomb of Panehsy (No 6)

1.82 MILES

The tomb of Panehsy, chief servant of the Aten in Akhetaten, retains the decorated facade most others have lost. Inside, scenes of the royal family,…

3. Tomb of Meryre II (No 2)

1.82 MILES

Meryre II was scribe, steward and 'Overseer of the Royal Harem of Nefertiti'. To the left of the entrance, you will find a scene that shows Nefertiti…

4. Tomb of Meryre I (No 4)

1.83 MILES

High priest of the Aten, Meryre is shown, on the left wall of the columned chamber, being carried by his friends to receive rewards from the royal couple…

5. Tomb of Ahmose (No 3)

1.83 MILES

Ahmose, whose title was ‘True Scribe of the King, Fan-Bearer on the King’s Right Hand’, was buried in the northern cemetery. Much of his tomb decoration…

6. Tomb of Penthu (No 5)

1.83 MILES

Penthu, the royal physician and 'First under the King', was buried in a simple tomb. The left-hand wall of the corridor is decorated with images of the…

7. Tomb of Huya (No 1)

1.84 MILES

Huya was the steward of Akhenaten’s mother, Queen Tiye, and relief scenes to the right and left of the entrance to his tomb show Tiye dining with her son…

8. Tell Al Amarna

2.54 MILES

You will see the ruins of Akhetaten – temples and private or administrative buildings – scattered across the plain of Tell Al Amarna, but the main sights…

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