Akhenaten, or Amenhotep IV as he was first known, reigned during the prosperous golden age of Egypt's 18th Dynasty. He is generally associated with neglecting the empire to pursue his dreams as a religious philosopher; letting the Egyptian border collapse and ignoring their foreign colonies and provinces. Akhenaten was married to the most beautiful woman in ancient Egypt, who was also his sister, Nefertiti. Delve into the reasons behind Akhenaten's brief reform of Egyptian religion and art and the impact this had on Egypt's golden age. Akhenaten had a dream of reforming Egypt. It changed the way they worshiped, the way they lived, and even the way they created art. His rule was a time of great change for Egypt, yet his ideas and reforms were met with little support or enthusiasm. He used huge amounts of Egypt's resources and time for all his reforms, he also consumed much of his time on these issues rather than his pharaonic duties. During the fifth and sixth years of his reign Akhenaten established the boundaries of his new capital, Akhetaten, 350 kilometers north of Thebes. It was supposed to be a city dedicated to the Aten and all those who worshiped him, however, like most of Akhenaten's reforms once his reign ended, like so many of his other attempts to change Egypt, this one would be abandoned. Akhenaten led an artistic reform, changing the way Egyptian artists depicted the Egyptian people. He moved away from the false grandeur that had always been used and opted for a more raw and realistic approach, perhaps even exaggerated ugliness. He himself was depicted as a thin, frail, pot-bellied man with a stern, imposing face rather than a strong, radiant god-king as previous pharaohs had always done. a result of new forces in that area and the indifference and concern of the pharaoh” It is clear that during Akhenaten's reign the kingdom fell into chaos, largely due to his infatuation with the Aten. His reign is often referred to as the beginning of the end of the Golden Age, when Egypt's foreign relations and borders crumbled. Historian T. Save-SÖderbergh summarizes Akhenaten's rule and its effect on the Kingdom by saying: “Akhenaten's last years must have been filled with infinite bitterness. Everything had failed. The great empire, the pride of Egypt was shattered and the enemy threatened Egypt's borders...” In conclusion, Akhenaten can be considered the facilitator of the fall of the New Kingdom of Egypt due to his negligence towards of foreign relations, the borders of the empire, and the misuse of many precious Egyptian resources. on his own reform rather than on the needs of the empire.