A depiction of the pharaoh Akhenaton with the sun god Aten or Aton in the Egyptian Museum, Cairo, Egypt. Akhenaton reigned c. 1364-1347 BCE. Akhenaten, known before the fifth year of his reign as Amenhotep IV, was a pharaoh of the Eighteenth dynasty of Egypt who ruled for 17 years and died in 1336 BC or 1334 BC. He is especially noted for abandoning traditional Egyptian polytheism and introducing worship centered on the Aten, which is sometimes described as monotheistic or henotheistic. Modern interest in Akhenaten and his queen, Nefertiti, comes partly from his connection with Tutankhamun, partly from the unique style and high quality of the pictorial arts he patronized, and partly from ongoing interest in the religion he attempted to establish.