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CHAPTER 3
EGYPTIAN ART
Google Earth Coordinates:
The Great Sphinx, Giza
Hypostyle Hall of Temple of Amun Ra, Karnak, Egypt
Pyramid of Djoser, Saqqarah, Egypt
Pyramids of (Menkaure, Khafra, and Khurfu), Giza
Ruins of the Great Temple of Amun, Karnak; aerial view
Temple of Ramses II at Abu Simbel
Video Links:
Giza Pyramid Mystery Solved?
Predynastic and Early Dynastic Art
Key Images
People, boats, and animals, p. 51, 3.1
Palette of King Narmer, p. 51, 3.2
Informing Art: Egyptian Gods and Goddesses, p. 52
From ca. 5000 BCE until ca. 3150 BCE, Egypt was divided into two independent
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The Old Kingdom: A Golden Age
Key Images
Step pyramid and funerary complex of King Djoser, Saqqara, p. 53, 3.4
Papyrus-shaped half-columns, funerary complex of King Djoser, p. 54, 3.6
The pyramids of Menkaure, Khafra, and Khufu, Giza, p. 55, 3.7
Informing Art: Major Periods in Ancient Egypt, p. 54
Materials and Techniques: Building the Pyramids, p. 56
Primary Source: Excerpt from the Pyramid Text of Unis (r. 2341-2311 BCE), p. 58
The Egyptians believed that the ka
traveling between this world and the next. Egyptian tombs were equipped with ka
doors so that the ka could go through the door into the next world, as well as ka
statues in which the ka could sleep at night if the mummified body of the deceased
were not available.
The earliest funerary complex was that of the Third Dynasty King Djoser
(Netjerikhet) at Saqqara designed by the priest Imhotep, the first named architect in
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Khafra, and Menkaure. Each pyramid was covered with a white limestone and a gold
capstone.
Also a part of this necropolis is the Great Sphinx, whose head is thought to resemble
the features of Khafra, in front of whose pyramid he stands. The Sphinx is almost
The Middle Kingdom: Reasserting Tradition through the Arts
Key Images
Senwosret III, p. 62, 3.17
Lady Sennuwy, p. 63, 3.18
Following the death of the Sixth Dynasty pharaoh King Pepy II in ca. 2152 BCE, there
was a turbulent First Intermediate Period which lasted over a century. Much of the art
of the Eleventh and Twelfth Dynasties relied on Old Kingdom forms, especially in
funerary art.
Sculptures of members of the royal family show a breaking away from earlier
sculptural conventions. This can be seen in the Sculpture of Senwosret III which
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The New Kingdom: Restored Glory
Key Images
Temple of Queen Hatshepsut, Deir el-Bahri, p. 66, 3.24
Kneeling Figure of King Hatshepsut, p. 67, 3.26
Hypostyle Hall of Temple of Amun-Ra, Karnak, p. 68, 3.28
Campaigns, Temple of Amun at Karnak, p. 69, 3.29
Temple of Ramesses II, Abu Simbel, p. 69, 3.30
: Interpreting Ancient Travel Writers, p. 75
Primary Source: The Book of the Dead, p. 77
Within a century, the Hyksos were expelled by Ahmose, the first pharaoh of the
Eighteenth Dynasty, and Egypt entered a final period of cultural and economic
prosperity known as the New Kingdom.
Eighteenth Dynasty pharaohs constructed temples of the Theban divine triad, Amun,
his consort Mut, and their son Khons at Karnak and Luxor, creating two temple
complexes to honor the triad.
During the Nineteenth Dynasty Ramesses II commissioned numerous architectural
projects at Abu Simbel.
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During the reign of Amenhotep IV (Akhenaten) a new style of art called the Amarna
Style was launched. The sculptures from this period break with the established canon
Ahmenhotep IV challenged the traditional polytheistic system in Egypt, practicing
monotheism, worshipping Aten the god of the sun disk. Changing his name to
blished a new capital at
Amarna.
Alexander the Great conquered Egypt and founded the city of Alexandria before his
death in 323 BCE, and his general Ptolemy established the Ptolemaic Dynasty which
lasted for almost 300 years, until Egypt was conquered by the Roman Emperor
Augustus in 30 BCE following the Battle of Actium. The Ptolemaic Dynasty ended
Key Terms/Places/Names
hieroglyphs
pictographs
Djoser (Netjerikhet)
Saqqara
canon
hierarchical scale
faience
Amenhotep IV (Akhenaten)
Amarna style
Aten
Discussion Questions
1. Discuss, in both form and function, tomb architecture from the mastaba to the
pyramids at Giza.
5. How do Middle Kingdom portraits and paintings differ from those of the Old
Kingdom?
6. Discuss the importance of tomb paintings and how these paintings relate to the
Egyptian concept of the ka.
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Resources
Books
Aldred, Cyril. Akhenaten: King of Egypt. New York: Thames and Hudson, 1988.
Kemp, Barry. Ancient Egypt: Anatomy of a Civilization. New York: Routledge, 1989.
DVDs
Egypt: Quest for Eternity. (2002) National Geographic. 60 min.
(2005) PBS Paramount.180 min.
NOVA: Secrets of Lost Empires. Pyramid. Obelisk. (1996) 60 min.
Pyramid. Hosted by David Macaulay and Derek Jacobi. (1999) PBS Home Video.
www
3D Virtual Reconstructions