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Egypt
Old Kingdom 31002185 BC
Middle Kingdom 21331786 BC
New Kingdom 15801085 BC
New
Vocabulary
Ka
Palatte
Mastaba
Pylon
•Civilization in Egypt organized earlier, but first
dynasties 3000 BC-the start of the old kingdom
•Pharaoh was supreme ruler and a god- basis of all
civilization and of artwork
•Knowledge of civilization rest solely in tombs
•Preoccupation with the cult of the dead (like Neolithic)
but no fear of the spirits of the dead
•Each person must provide for the happiness of his
afterlife- would reproduce daily life in tombs for their Ka
(spirit) to enjoy- blurring of line between life and death
•Tomb was like afterlife insurance
•Utilitarian-used to prepare eye
makeup (to protect from sun glare)
•King Narmer united upper and
lower Egypt- wears the crown of
upper Egypt
•Palette is first known work of
historical art (as opposed to prehistoric) and is not funerary
•Symbols include: Papyrus (lower
Egypt), falcon (Horus), bare feet,
lower figures
Palette of King Narmer, c. 3000 BC
Other Side•appears barefoot again and
marches to inspect decapitated
enemies.
•Pharoh is strong bull trampling
enemy and knocking down a
citadel- bulls tail is a part of
pharoh garb for 3000 years
•Center section is a symbol for
unification -used to hold eye
makeup
•Both panels have a strong sense
of order-organized into bands
•Artist works for clarity first
•Only 3 views- frontal, profile,
from above
•Strives to show pharaoh in most
complete way- but this prevents
any feeling of movement
Tomb Architecture-relates only to Pharaoh and high officials
Step Pyramid of Zoser,
2600 bc
Built on a Mastaba (Arabic for “bench”), burial chamber deep
underground with a shaft linking it to the pyramid, meant to serve as a
great monument
Step Pyramid of King Zoser, 3rd Dynasty, 2600 BC
•Part of a huge funerary district with temples and other buildings,
scenes of religious celebration before and after death-both
symbolic and practical
•Designed by Imhotep-1st known artist in recorded history
Columns
•Egyptian architecture began with mud bricks, wood, reedsImhotep used cut stone masonry
•style was similar to less enduring material- columns are always
engaged rather than free-standing- just like bundles of reeds used
to look like•now columns had an expressive purpose rather than just
functional-had a profound impact on Greek architecture
•tapering fluted columns were designed for harmony and elegance,
not just to hold things up
•Papyrus columns are linked with lower Egypt
Great Pyramids at Giza, 4th Dynasty
•Egyptian dead were always buried on the west side of the Nile, where the
sun sets
•Burial Chamber is in the center of the pyramid rather than underneath
•Originally covered in smooth stone, built over the course of 75 years
•Funerary district is much more organized than Zoser- surrounded by
mastabas and smaller pyramids
•Pyramid shape came from cult of the sun god, Re, also from step shape
The Great Sphinx, Pyramids at Giza
•Next to pyramids (closest to Chefron)-serves as guardian
•65 feet tall, carved from one stone
•Damaged during Islamic times, but had features of Chefron
•End of the period of huge scale monuments
Chefron from Giza, 2500 BC
•Served as a back up in case
mummies were destroyed
•Made of carved of extremely
hard stone called diorite
•shows enthroned king with the
falcon of the god Horus
•Shows the artist’s cubic view of
the human figure- created by
drawing the front and side view
of the figure on the block of stone
and then working inward until the
views met
• figure is immobile and firm- the
body is impersonal but the face
has some individual traits
•Standing (common pose), both have
left foot forward, yet they are not
moving forward-
•No emotion- outwardly or towards
each other
•same height, provide a comparison
of male and female beauty
Mycerinus and Queen
•Most poses were seated or
standing- another pose added
in the 4th century BC•the scribe pose- cross-legged
on the ground- scribe is a lower
court official- most scribes
were sons of pharaohs.
•Alert expression in face,
individualized torso- flabby
and middle-aged
•Serves true for the history of
art- the lower the rank of the
subject, the more realism is
used
Seated Scribe
Tomb paintings (non-royal)landscapes were popular
background is very active
•Ti is much larger than others- shows
importance
•Ti isn’t engaging in activity- he’s
watching- also shows importance
•Action is going on after death- body
does not respond, but the spirit
appreciates the activity
•Scenes are not nostalgic, they
describe life cycle activities
•Success of the hunt symbolizes
triumph over evil
Ti Watching a Hippo
The Middle Kingdom
•Collapse of centralized
pharaonic power at the end of
the sixth dynasty= Egypt
entered political disturbance for
700 years• power by local overlords who
revived rivalry of the
north/south
•after 12th century, invaded by
Hyksos, of Asiatic origin and
ruled for 150 years until 1570
BC
•Portraiture- faces are troubled
rather than serene- have selfawareness- very realistic
physically and psychological-
Portrait of Sesostris, 1850 BC
New Kingdom...
•500 years following Hyksos- 18th-20th dynasties are a golden age of Egypt•extended borders into Palestine and Syria –period known as the empire- tremendous
trade and architectural projects-centering on new capital, Thebes
•divinity of kings now connected with god Amun who was fused with Ra (sun god)
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•New Kingdom art covers many styles
th
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•Built 1480 BC
against rocky cliffs,
•Built by Hatshepsut,
the first great female
ruler-often portrayed
as a man in portraits
• dedicated to Amun•linked by ramps and
colonnades to a small
chamber deep in the
rock•great example of
architecture within
natural setting- ramps
echo shape of cliffs
Temple of Hatshepsut, 1480 BC
•More imperial
palaces built
•Dedicated to
Amun, supreme
God
•An example of the
form of most New
Kingdom Palaces
•Entrance is a Pylon
•Closed off by walls
•Faces the Nile
Temple at Luxor, 1390 BC
•Columns made
much heavier than
needed and were
elaborately carved
How has style
changed?
Mai and his Wife
How has the society’s vision of beauty
changed?
•More androgynous, weaker-lookingwhy??
Akhenaten- done 15 years later
A famous example of the
Akhenaten Style
•New sense of style that
unfreezes the immobility of
Egyptian art
•Was unfinished and found in
the sculptor’s studio
Queen Nofretete, 1360 BC
•Style and religion returned to tradition•Tutankhamen was Akhenaten’s son-died at age 18
•Three nesting coffins
Owes his fame to the undisturbed
contents of his tomb!!
Coffin of Tutankhamen