*amarna*

n. [ Ar., hill of Amarna. ] A station on the Nile in Egypt, midway between Thebes and Memphis, forming the site of the ancient city of Akhetaton, capital of Amenophis IV. (Akhenaton, or Amenhotep IV., of the 18th dynasty, king 1353-1336 B. C.), whose archive chamber was discovered there during extensive excavations in 1887-1888. A collection of about 300 clay tablets (called the
Tel-el-Amarna tablets, or the
Amarna tablets) was found here, forming the diplomatic correspondence (
Tel-el-Amarna letters) of Amenophis IV. and his father, Amenophis III., with the kings of Asiatic countries (such as Babylonia, Assyria, and Palestine), written in cuneiform characters. It is an important source of our knowledge of Asia from about 1400 to 1370 b. c.. The name of the site is also spelled Tell-el-Amarna, Tell el Amarna, and Tel Amarna. [ Webster 1913 Suppl. +PJC ]