he been able to make up his mind to relegate Atonu to the second rank of divinities; Memphis, Heracleopolis, Siut, Khmunu, and, in fact, all the towns of the valley would have deemed themselves fortunate in securing the inheritance of their rival, but not one of them would be false to its convictions or accept the degradation of its own divine founder, whether Phtah, Harshafitu, Anubis, or Thot. A newly promoted god demanded a new city; Amenothes, therefore, made selection of a broad plain extending on the right bank of the Nile, in the eastern part of the Hermopolitan nome, to which he removed with all his court about the fourth or fifth year of his reign.* * The last date with the name of Amenothes is that of the year V., on a papyrus from the Payilm; elsewhere we find from the year VI. the name of Khuniaton, by the side of monuments with the cartouche of Amenothes; we may conclude from this that the foundation of the town dates from the year IV. or V. at the latest, when the prince, having renounced the worship of Amon, left Thebes that he might be able to celebrate freely that of Atonu. He found here several obscure villages without any historical or religious traditions, and but thinly populated; Amenothes chose one of them, the Et-Tel of the present day, and built there a palace for himself and a temple for his god. The temple, like that of Ea at Heliopolis, was named _Hait-Banbonu_, the Mansion of the Obelisk. It covered an immense area, of which the sanctuary, however, occupied an inconsiderable part; it was flanked by brick storehouses, and the whole was surrounded by a thick wall. The remains show that the temple was built of white limestone, of fine quality, but that it was almost devoid of ornament, for there was no time to cover it with the usual decorations.* * The opinion of Brugsch, that the arrangement of the various parts differed from that of other temples, and was the effect of foreign influence, has not been borne out by the excavations of Prof. Petrie, the little which he has brought to light being entirely of Egyptian character. The temple is represented on the tomb of the high priest Mariri. [Illustration: 084.jpg Map]