The Ancient Egyptian Arts

Egyptian Arts
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Egyptian Arts
Ancient Egyptian Arts were widely practiced from the beginning of the period 3000BC to about 30AD. The art of this time mainly involved painting, architecture and sculpturing, even though other forms of arts were also practiced and produced. The unique and great style used in the painting and sculpturing made the art in ancient Egypt to be of high standard, a quality that was maintained for a long period. This style was often shown in the postures and poses of curved and sculpted figures that all depicted a great similarity. In addition, body proportions always followed a clear ratio in most of these figures. Most importantly, the size of a painting or sculpture in most cases was directly proportional to an individual’s position in society, with the portraits of the Pharaohs larger compared to any other persons. Apart from having a high standard, Egyptian art was also symbolic whereby the unique features used usually emphasized either a person’s position in society or token from their conquests. In This regard, animals and colors used were in most cases also symbolic. Typically, the main figures used in the art always had their legs parted apart from when they were sitting, the side view of the head was shown and the frontal view of the torso. Egyptian art can be understood best using the Narmer Palette (ca. 3000BCE) as an example.
Narmer Palette Image[Akhenaten, Nefertiti and their three Daughters, ca. 1340 BCE, Egyptian Museum of Berlin]
This is a piece of art from ancient Egypt as evidenced by the distinct pose and rigid posture of the main figure with parted legs. The conservative nature of Ancient Egyptian Art saw very little changes happening even many years later after this period. Major changes to the art came during Akhenaten’s rule during the Amarna Period (ca. 1353-1332 BCE).
Under his rule, the Pharaoh Akhenaten overthrew Egypt’s polytheism in favor of monotheism where only Aten, the sun god was to be worshiped. This great change impacted heavily on the artistic styles thereby causing a major break from the usual style.
Akhenaten, Nefertiti and their three Daughters
The figure above is an example of how the style changed during the period. The image is that of Akhenaten’s family with him being on the left hand side while his wife Nefertiti is on the right. Also in the image are their three daughters. In profile, the figures are similar to those of Ancient Egyptian Art whereby the head is shown from the side and the torso is visible from the front. However, unlike the ancient period, the postures and proportions are somewhat different with the figures appearing more relaxed. Furthermore, the manner in which the figure of the pharaoh is presented in this art is very different from the conventional one. Typically, figures of authority such as the pharaoh were often bigger in size compared to any other persons, animal or tree featured in the same image. Moreover, distinct facial features complemented with a masculine figure were always used to represent the Pharaoh. In Akhenaten’s case however, everything is different whereby his facial features and those of his wife Nefertiti are almost the same in a way that makes him appear more feminine. Akhenaten in the image has a round belly and hips unlike the others before him. In terms of size, the two figures are also similar. Generally, art became more naturalistic during the Armana period and a sense of movement was included in the paintings and sculptures. Most importantly, the practice of idolizing the nobles ended in this period.
Lintel of Amenemhat I and Deities (ca. 1981-1952 BC) is art from the Middle Kingdom period and existed during the reign of Amenemhat I. The king’s birthplace is noted to have been from the South of Egypt where he also served as King Mentuhotep IVs vizier. He accomplished much even before ascending to the throne including leading the “expeditions to the quarries of Wadi Hammamat. To ensure stability during his reign he chose the city Itj-Tawy as the new capital in place of old Thebes.
Lintel of Amenemhat I and Deities
All these explain why this block painting was made in his honor. The relief depicts the king Amenemhat I flanked in front and behind by the gods Anubis and Horus respectively. The god Anubi has a jackal head while Horus has the head of a falcon, both of which symbolizes the life of the king. It is clear that the king is in a celebratory mood because of his thirty-year jubilee otherwise referred to as the Heb Sed. As was typical of the kings and pharaohs of old, they were given almost the same status and respect as the deities. This fact explains why in the relief Amenemhat I is surrounded by goddesses and gods. In the image, the Upper Egypt goddess by the name Nekhbet stands on the left side while the Lower Egypt goddess named Wadget stands on the right side of the...