AKHÉNATON ET NÉFERTITI AU Rwḏ mnw DE KARNAK

Recent assemblages of blocks extracted from the Ninth Pylon of Karnak confirm the ritual significance of the Rwḏ mnw, a monument associated with the renewal of kingship and the affirmation of Akhenaten and Nefertiti’s divine essence. The various phases of the ritual toilette of the couple and their sequence follow closely the daily ritual performed on the statue of Amun in Karnak as described in papyrus Berlin 3055; they do not depict intimate scenes of the couple’s daily life in the palace and call in question the palatial nature of this monument. The function of the Rwḏ mnw in the complex built by Akhenaten in East Karnak is reevaluated based on available data deriving from its name, its murals and the origin of its décor, its relations with the other monuments of the House of Aten in Karnak and with the structures built by Amenhotep III in the Theban region.