EGYPTIAN ART

3000-30 B.C.E
Ancient Mediterranean
Ancient Egypt
 Ancient Egypt

2575-2134 B.C.E 1550-1070 B.C.E

 CULTURE & BELIEFS:
1.Egyptian art expresses the
ideas of permanence, rebirth
and eternity.
2. figure styles follow a
formula that expresses
differences in status.
MATERIAL, PROCESSES, TECHNIQUES:
1. Egyptians developed the use of the
clerestory to provide light into darkened
areas.
2. The god king is expressed in monumental
stone structures that Egypt has become
famous for

ESSENTIAL
INFLUENCED BY CULTURAL INFLUENCED BY
INTERACTION:
1.Many similarities among artistic
KNOWLEDGE AUDIENCE: Egyptian art is
sometimes centered on elaborate
styles in Egypt- indicates a vibrant
funerary practices and the
exchange of ideas.
numerous artifacts associated
with them.
 3000-30 B.C.E
Old Kingdom: 2575-2134 B.C.E
New Kingdom: 1550-1070 B.C.E

● Covers a large expanse of time, marked by the building of monumental

funerary monuments and expansive temple complexes- interest in
elaborate funerary practices (pyramids).
● Figural style- emphasis on broad frontal shoulders and profiled heads,
torso and legs.
OLD KINGDOM: figures appear static and imperturbable.
NEW KINGDOM: body types lose motionless stance and are softer,
increasingly androgynous.
ART WORK #13
#13.1
Palette of King
Narmer

Predynastic
Egypt. c. 3000–
2920 BCE.
Greywacke.

2 images
#13.2
Palette of King
Narmer

Predynastic
Egypt. c. 3000–
2920 BCE.
Greywacke.

2 images
Palette of King Narmer
BACK FRONT
FORM
● Hierarchy of scale.
● Figures stand on a ground line.
● Narrative.
● Register.
● Schematic lines delineate Narmer’s
muscle structure: forearm veins and thigh
muscles are represented as straight lines,
knee caps are half circles.
● Composite view of human body- face
profile.
● Hieroglyphics explain and add meaning.
they identify Narmer in the cartouche.
Palette of King Narmer

THEORIES
● Represents the unification of
Lower and Upper Egypt under
ONE ruler.
● Unification is expressed as a
concept or goal to be achieved.
● May represent a balance of order
and chaos.
● May reference the journey of the
sun god.
Palette of King Narmer

FUNCTION
● Palette used to prepare eye
makeup for the blinding sun,
although this palette was probably
commemorative.
● Palettes carved on two sides were
for ceremonial purposes.
Palette of King Narmer
CONTENT
● Relief sculpture depicting King
Narmer uniting Upper and Lower
Egypt.
● Depicted 4 times at the top register
is Hathor, a god as a cow with a
woman’s face or Bat, a sky
goddess who has the power to see
the past and the future, or a Bull
which symbolizes the power and
strength of the king.
Palette of King Narmer
Palette of King Narmer
CONTENT FRONT
● Narmer wears Cobra crown of
Lower Egypt reviewing headless
bodies of enemies.
● He is preceded by 4 standard
bearers and a priest; his foot
washer or sandal bearer follows.
● In the center, mythical animals with
elongated necks- symbolizing
unification and a bull knocking
down a city= Narmer knocking
down enemies.
Palette of
King Narmer
 CONTENT BACK
● The falcon is Horus- god of Egypt,
triumphs over Narmer's foes- holds
a rope around the head and
papyrus plant (symbols of Lower
Egypt)
● Narmer has a Bull’s tail = symbol of
strength.
● Defeated Egyptians lie beneath his
feet.
Palette of
King Narmer
ART WORK #15
#15
Seated scribe

Saqqara,
Egypt. Old
Kingdom,
Fourth Dynasty.
c. 2620–2500
BCE. Painted
limestone.
Seated scribe

FORM
● Not a pharaoh, sagging chest and
realistic body.
● High cheekbones, hollow cheeks,
distinctive jaw line.
● To be seen from the front.
● Color still remains on the sculpture.
Seated scribe

FUNCTION
● Created for a tomb at Saqqara as
a provision for the Pharaoh.
Seated scribe

CONTEXT
● Attentive expression- thin angular
face; ready to dictate for the
Pharaoh.
● Seated to indicate his comparative
low station.
Seated scribe

CONTENT
● Very lifelike but NOT a portrait,
rather a conventional image of a
scribe.
● Inlaid crystal eyes.
● Holds papyrus on his lap; his
writing instrument (now gone) was
in his hand ready to write.
ART WORK #17
#17.1
Great Pyramids (Menkaura, Khafre, Khufu) and
Great Sphinx

Giza, Egypt.
Old Kingdom,
Fourth Dynasty.
c. 2550–2490
BCE. Cut
limestone.
2 images
#17.2
Great Pyramids (Menkaura, Khafre, Khufu) and
Great Sphinx

Giza, Egypt.
Old Kingdom,
Fourth Dynasty.
c. 2550–2490
BCE. Cut
limestone.
2 images
 Great Pyramids (Menkaura, Khafre, Khufu) and
Great Sphinx

FUNCTION
● Giant monuments to dead pharaohs:
Menkaura, Khufu and Khafre.
● Preservation of the body and tomb contents
for eternity.
● Some scholars also suggest that the
complex served as the king’s palace in the
afterlife.

FORM
● Each pyramid is a huge pile of limestone
with a minimal interior that housed the
deceased pharaoh.
● Each pyramid had an enjoining mortuary
temple used for worship.
 Great Pyramids (Menkaura, Khafre, Khufu) and
Great Sphinx

CONTEXT
● Each pyramid has a funerary complex
adjacent connected by a formal pathway
used for carrying the dead pharaohs body
to the pyramid to be interred.
● Shape may have been influenced by a
sacred stone relic called a benben, which
is shaped like a sacred stone found at
Heliopolis. Heliopolis was the center of the
sun god cult.
● Each side of the pyramid is oriented
toward a point on the compass, a fact
pointing to an association with the stars
and the sun.
● Giza temples face east, the rising sun, and
have been associated with god Re.
Pyramid of Khufu
Pyramid of Khufu
Pyramid of Khufu
Pyramid of Khafre
Pyramid of Khafre
Pyramid of Menkaura
Pyramid of Menkaura
 The Sphinx
FORM
● Carved in situ from a huge rock; colossal
scale.
● Body of a lion, head of pharaoh and/or god.
● Originally brightly painted to stand out in
the desert behind the figure, which once
rose near ramps rising from the Nile.

FUNCTION
● The Sphinx seems to be protecting the
pyramids behind it, although this theory has
been debated.
 Great Pyramids (Menkaura, Khafre, Khufu) and
Great Sphinx

CONTEXT & INTERPRETATION

● Very generalized features, although some
say it may be a portrait of Khafre.
● Cats are royal animals in ancient Egypt,
probably because they saved the grain
supply from mice.

HISTORY
● Head of Sphinx badly mauled in the middle
ages.
● Fragment of the Sphinx’s beard is in the
British Museum.
ART WORK #18
#18
King Menkaura
and queen

Old Kingdom,
Fourth Dynasty.
c. 2490–2472
BCE.
Greywacke.
King Menkaura and queen
King Menkaura and queen
 King Menkaura and queen
FORM
● Two figures attached to a block of stone;
arms and legs not cut free.
● Traces of red paint exist on Menkaura’s
face and black paint on the queen’s wig.
● Figures seem to strive forward, but
simultaneously are anchored to the stone
behind; it is unusual for the female figure to
be striding with the male.
● Figures stare out into space (the afterlife?)
 King Menkaura and queen
CONTEXT
● Menkaura’s powerful physique and stride
symbolize kingship, as does his garb:
nemes on his head, an artificial beard, and
a kilt with a tab.
● Original location was the temple of
Menkaura’s pyramid complex at Giza.
● Society’s view of women is expressed in
the ankle-length tightly draped gown
covering the queen’s body; men and
women of the same height indicated
equality.
● Society’s view of the king is expressed in
his broad shoulders, muscular arms and
legs, and firm stomach.
 King Menkaura and queen
FUNCTION
● Receptacle for the ka of the pharaoh and
his queen.
● Wife’s simple and affectionate gesture,
and/or presenting him to the gods.

MATERIALS
● Extremely hard stone used; symbolizes the
permanence of the pharaohs presence and
his strength on earth.
King Menkaura and queen
King Menkaura and queen

THEORY
● Because of the prominence of the female
figure, it has been suggested that she is not
his wife but his mother, or the goddess
Hathor- although the figure has no divine
attributes.
ART WORK #20
#20.1
Temple of Amun-
Re and Hypostyle
Hall

Karnak, near Luxor,

Egypt. New Kingdom,
18th and 19th
Dynasties. Temple: c.
1550 BCE; hall: c.
1250 BCE. Cut
sandstone and mud
brick.

3 images
#20.2
Temple of Amun-Re
and Hypostyle Hall

Karnak, near Luxor,

Egypt. New Kingdom,
18th and 19th
Dynasties. Temple: c.
1550 BCE; hall: c.
1250 BCE. Cut
sandstone and mud
brick.

3 images
#20.3
Temple of Amun-Re and
Hypostyle Hall

Karnak, near Luxor,

Egypt. New Kingdom,
18th and 19th
Dynasties. Temple: c.
1550 BCE; hall: c.
1250 BCE. Cut
sandstone and mud
brick.

3 images
 Temple of Amun-Re and Hypostyle Hall

FUNCTION
● Egyptian temple for the worship of
Amun-Re.
● God housed in the darkest and
most secret part of the complex,
only accessed by priests and
pharaohs.
 FORM
● Axial plan.
● Pylon Temple.
● Hypostyle halls.
● Massive lintels link the columns together.
● Huge columns, tightly packed together, admit
little light into the sanctuary.
● Tallest columns have papyrus capitals;
clerestory allows some light and air onto the
darkest parts of the temple.
● Columns elaborately painted.
● Columns carved in sunken relief.
● Bottom of columns have bud capitals.
● Massive walls enclose complex.
● Enter complex through massive sloped pylon
gateway into a peristyle courtyard, then through
the sanctuary, where few allowed.
 Temple of Amun-Re and Hypostyle Hall

HISTORY
● Built by succeeding generations of
pharaohs over a great expanse of
time.
Temple of Amun-Re and Hypostyle Hall
 CONTEXT
● Adjacent is an artificial sacred lake- a
symbol of the sacred waters of the world
that existed before time,
● Located on the east of the Nile, linked by a
road with the Karnak temple for the Opet
festival.
● The complex was built near this lake over
time; symbolically, it arose from the waters
the way civilization did.
● Theory that the temple represents the
beginnings of the world:
○ Pylons are the horizon.
○ Floor rises to the sanctuary of the god.
○ Temple roof is the sky.
○ Columns represent plants of the Nile:
lotus, papyrus, palm, etc.
ART WORK #21
#21.1
Mortuary temple of
Hatshepsut

Near Luxor,
Egypt. New
Kingdom, 18th
Dynasty. c. 1473–
1458 BCE.
Sandstone,
partially carved
into a rock cliff,
and red granite.
2 images
#21.2
Mortuary temple of
Hatshepsut

Near Luxor,
Egypt. New
Kingdom, 18th
Dynasty. c. 1473–
1458 BCE.
Sandstone,
partially carved
into a rock cliff,
and red granite.
2 images
Mortuary temple of Hatshepsut
Mortuary temple of Hatshepsut
 FORM
● 3 colonnaded terraces and 2 ramps.
● Visually coordinated with the natural setting; long
horizontals and verticals of the terraces and
colonnades repeat the patterns of the cliffs
behind; patterns of dark and light in the
colonnade are reflected in the cliffs.
● Terraces were originally planted as exotic trees.

FUNCTION
● Hatshepsut declared that she built the temple as
“a garden for my father, Amun” (Hatshepsut
claimed to be of divine birth- fathered by the god
Amun)
● Only used for special religious events- lacks
other subsidiary buildings (for offering, priests
etc)
● The royal tomb was located in the mountain
behind the temple and reached by the way of the
 CONTEXT
● First time achievements of a woman are
celebrated in art history; Hatshepsut’s body
is interred somewhere else.
● Temple aligned with the winter solstice,
when light enters the farthest section of the
interior.
● Located on the west side of the Nile across
from Thebes.
● Perhaps designed by Senenmut, a high
ranking official in Hatshepsut’s court.
 Kneeling Statue of Hatshepsut
1473-1458 BCE red granite

FORM
● Male pharaonic attributes: nemes or headcloth, false beard,
kilt.
● Wears the crown of Upper Egypt.
● Queen in male costume of pharaoh yet slender proportions
and slight breasts indicate femininity.

FUNCTION
● Statue of the god brought before sculpture in procession.
● Processions up the mortuary temple passed in front of this
statue of Hatsheptsut.
● One of 200 statues placed around the complex.
 Kneeling Statue of Hatshepsut
1473-1458 BCE red granite

CONTEXT
● One of 10 statues of Hatshepsut
with offerings of jars, part of a ritual
in honor of the sun god; pharaoh
would kneel only before a god.
● Inscription on base says she is
offering plants to Amun, the sun god.
ART WORK #22
#22
Akhenaton, Nefertiti,
and three daughters

New Kingdom
(Amarna), 18th
Dynasty. c.
1353–1335
BCE.
Limestone.
Akhenaton, Nefertiti, and
three daughters

TECHNIQUE
● Sunken relief, which is less likely
to be damaged than raised relief.
● Sunken relief creates deeper
shadows and can be appreciated
in the sunlight.

FUNCTION
● The domestic environment was new
in Egyptian art; the panel is for an
altar in a home.
Akhenaton, Nefertiti, and
three daughters
Amun
FORM (the original
god)
● State religion shift indicated by an
evolving style in Egyptian art:
○ Smoother, curved surfaces.
○ Low-hanging bellies.
Aten
○ Slack jaws.
(a sun god)
○ Thin arms.
○ Epicene bodies.
○ Heavy-lidded eyes.
○ At the end of the sun’s rays, ankh Akhenaten
(means,
(symbol of life) point to the king “Aten is
and queen. pleased”)
Akhenaton, Nefertiti, and
three daughters
Akhenaton, Nefertiti, and
three daughters

CONTEXT
● Akhenaton abandoned Thebes and created a new
capital, originally named Akhenaton and later
changed to Armana; the style of art from this period
is called Armana style.
● The state religion was changed by Akhenaton to the
worship of Aton, symbolized by the sun disk with a
cobra; he changed his name from Amenhotep IV to
Akhenaton to reflect his devotion to the one god
Aton; this is an early example of monotheism.
● Akhenaton and Nerfiti are having a private
relationship with their new god, Aton.
● After Akhenaton’s reign, the Armana style was
slowly replaced by more traditional Egyptian
representations.
 Akhenaton, Nefertiti, and
three daughters

CONTENT
● Akhenaton holds his eldest daughter
(left), ready to be kissed.
● Nefertiti hold her daughter (right) with
another daughter on his shoulder.
● Intimate family relationships are
extremely rare in Egyptian Art.
Akhenaton, Nefertiti, and
three daughters
ART WORK #23
#23
Tutankhamun’s tomb,
innermost coffin

New Kingdom,
18th Dynasty. c.
1323 BCE.
Gold with inlay
of enamel and
semiprecious
stones.
Tutankhamun’s tomb, innermost coffin

Or Google search:
smarthistory
Tutankhamun’s
tomb innermost
coffin and death
mask
Tutankhamun’s tomb, innermost coffin

HISTORY
● Famous tomb discovered by
Howard Carter in 1922.

CONTEXT
● When Akhenaton died, two pharaohs
ruled briefly, and then his reigned for
10 years- from age 9 to 19.
● Tutankhamun’s father and mother
were brother and sister; his wife was
his half-sister; perhaps he was
physically handicapped because of
genetic inbreeding.
Tutankhamun’s tomb, innermost coffin
FORM
● Gold coffin (6’7” long) containing
the body of the pharaoh.
● Smooth, idealized features on
the mask of the boy king.
● Holds a crook and a flail, symbol
of Osiris.
 FUNCTION
● Mummified body of King
Tutankhamun was buried with
143 objects, on his head, neck,
abdomen and limbs; a gold
mask was placed over his head.
ART WORK #24
#24
Last judgment of
Hunefer, from his tomb
(page from the Book of
the Dead)

New Kingdom,
19th Dynasty. c.
1275 BCE.
Painted
papyrus scroll
Last judgment of Hunefer, from his tomb (page from the Book
of the Dead)
Last judgment of Hunefer, from his tomb (page from the Book
of the Dead)

CONTEXT
● Hunefer was a scribe who had
priestly functions.

FORM
● Narrative on a uniform register
(read right to left).
Last judgment of Hunefer, from his tomb (page from the Book
of the Dead)

FUNCTION
● Illustration from the Book of the
Dead, an Egyptian book of
spells and charms that acted as
a guide for the deceased to
make his or her way to eternal
life.
Last judgment of Hunefer, from his tomb (page from the Book
of the Dead)

CONTENT
● Top register: Hunefer in white at
left before row of judges.
● Main register: the jackal-headed Ma’at

god of embalming, Anubis, leads

the deceased into a hall, where
his soul is weighed against a
feather. If his sins weigh more
than a feather, he will be
condemned.

Hunefer Anubis
Last judgment of Hunefer, from his tomb (page from the Book
of the Dead)

CONTENT
● The hippopotamus/lion figure,
Ammit, between the scales, will
eat the heart of an evil soul.
● The god Thoth, who has the
head of a bird, is the
stenographer writing down these
events in the hieroglyphics that
he invented.

Anubis Ammit Thoth

Last judgment of Hunefer, from his tomb (page from the Book
of the Dead)
Horus’ Horus
Children
CONTENT
● Osiris, the god of the
underworld, enthroned on the
right, will subject the deceased
to a day of judgement.

Hunefer Horus Iotus Osiris

 Isis & Nephthys

Natron platform
#24
Last judgment of
Hunefer, from his tomb
(page from the Book of
the Dead)

New Kingdom,
19th Dynasty. c.
1275 BCE.
Painted
papyrus scroll